Within the wonderfully chilling genre ofhorrorare sub-genres that help horror enthusiasts pinpoint exactly which elements they enjoy most and which particular elements they wish to avoid. Sometimes sub-genres are dictated by art style, themes, or content matter, and at other times, sub-genres are constituted by the game’s mechanics.
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The classicpoint-and-clicksystem may have been born out of the limitations of technology in gaming years back, but now, modern developers utilize it in fresh, unique ways. Point-and-click gamesaren’t merely a thing of the past; they keep UIs (user interfaces) looking clean, give gamers simple newbie-friendly controls, and allow every minor detail of a game’s art to be appreciated in full attention when players are searching for clues (while sneaking in a few good scares). Here are some of thebest point-and-click games for horror fansto try out.
7Sanitarium
For any horror fanatics that are itching for a retro game heavy withpsychological horror elements,Sanitariumcouldn’t be any better of a fit. This 1998 PC game throws players straight into the madness that isSanitariumby immediately giving them control of an unnamed man, finally waking from a coma after a car crash, as he finds himself heavily bandaged in a strange place. The main character desperately asks others if they know his name or how he got to the sanitarium he found himself in, as he remembers nothing of his life before his awakening.
While the player does not know the main character’s name, other residents of the sanitarium refer to him as “Max”. The player guides “Max” through the sanitarium as reality around them begins to shift, bringing the player into fantastical (yet macabre) worlds where they must work to find and uncover the mystery of “Max’s” past.
6The House
The House(as well as its sequel) are bothsimple (yet effective) flash gamesthat may seem rather tame at first but still manages to deliver some genuine scares. The player takes the role of a nameless and faceless protagonist whose only goal is to enter the house, uncover its secrets and escape with their life.
In bothThe HouseandThe House 2, the player navigates throughout the house, room by room, looking around for clues about why the house’s former tenants met an untimely fate. Despite being rather dated by their flash software,The House 1and2still maintain their effectiveness when it comes to both immersion and spook factor.
5Sally Face
While the player still has the ability to walk and venture left and right in this2D side-scroller,Sally Faceis primarily a horror adventure that uses the classic point-and-click system. This macabre tale follows the mysterious Sal Fisher, as he recounts chilling tales from his past.Sally Faceis an episodic story about the young Sal telling the tale of his childhood as he himself in the present, awaits his fate on death row.
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The player relives his memories to find out how the unfortunate Sal came to meet his present-day predicament while introducing the player to terrifying antagonists as well as chilling environments. The game takes many sudden turns in its storytelling, keeping the player on their toes, desperately trying to guess what’s about to unfold next.
4Year Walk
Year Walkis about a man by the name of Daniel Svensson as he partakes in the (archaic, mostly outdated) Swedish tradition of the Årsgång, known as the year walk. The Årsgång was a means of divination, a grueling task of traveling with little to no food or water. In return, successful participants would be able to see a glimpse of what their future holds.Year Walkis heavily decorated with Swedishfolklore and the mysterious creaturesthat were born from it.
It’s a haunting, yet beautiful point-and-click adventure where the player follows Daniel on his Årsgång journey by navigating through a winter forest and clicking/interacting with all the interesting things in the environment. As protagonist Daniel makes his way closer to the church (his destination), it becomes clear that his Årsgång journey may have a grim conclusion instead a fairy tale ending.
3Five Nights At Freddy’s
One of the most iconic horror games in recent generations,Five Nights At Freddy’s, is yet another game that includes the simple element of point-and-click. The player takes the role of the Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria nighttime security guard and must protect themselvesfrom the dangerous animatronicsthat roam the facility, until the end of their shift. The player has simple controls: they must use the mouse to navigate through their security cameras, constantly switching screens in order to properly monitor each of the animatronics in one of the most intense games of “Red-Light Green-Light” ever.
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Despite its simple controls (technically being a “point” horror rather than “point-and-click” horror as simply moving the mouse is all that’s needed for gameplay),FNaFended up spawning one of the most iconic horror series in modern gaming.
2I Have No Mouth, And I Must Scream
I Have No Mouth, And I Must Screamis a terrifying horror experience based on Harlan Ellison’s 1967 short story of the same name. This particular entry isn’t exactly for the faint of heart as it deals with incredibly heavy topics that many psychological horrors tend to delve into.
The game takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where asupercomputer called AMhas taken over Earth and destroyed all humankind, save five human beings. These five humans are the game’s main characters and have been kept alive for years just to be tortured by AM. to successfully defeat AM (as there are multiple endings), the characters must live through the horrific scenarios AM has created, and overcome the fatal flaws of their past.
1Clock Tower
Clock Tower(1995) is one of the most iconic series in the horror genre; and while there hasn’t been a new installment in recent years, it still managed to keep its name relevant among other bona fide classics.Clock Tower(known as “Clock Tower: The First Fear” in Japan) follows protagonist Jennifer Simpson as she attempts to settle into her new life at the Barrows Mansion after being adopted alongside her friends Laura, Anne, and Lotte.
It doesn’t take long until Jennifer realizes something is wrong in the Barrows household as later into the night she finds the mangled corpses of her friends. The player must use thepoint-and-click systemto navigate Jennifer and protect her from the infamous Scissorman, guiding her to the best escape route or finding safe rooms for hiding.
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