Today, improvements in game engines and console hardware have allowed developers to create more immersive, realistic, and ultimately more terrifying games than ever before. Games like Resident Evil 7: Biohazard and Blair Witch exemplify this with their utilization of first-person perspectives that put players in the heart of their eery environments.
Sony’s PlayStation 1 was released in 1994 and was the gaming industry’s most popular console until the PlayStation 2 hit stores in 2000. Unsurprisingly, technological advancements in the gaming industry have meant that many of the PlayStation 1’s classic games don’t hold up today. There are expectations to this rule though, such as the Spyro and Crash Bandicoot trilogies, as well as the iconic stealth game Metal Gear Solid. Another factor of the PlayStation 1 that hasn’t aged badly is how genuinely scary some of its horror games still are; although some gameplay mechanics and visuals don’t hold up today, the 10 games on this list still provide unsettling experiences that make great use of the PlayStation 1’s limited hardware to strike fear into the players.
10 OverBlood
Published outside of Japan by industry giants Electronic Arts, OverBlood is a science fiction horror game that is remembered today for its being the first survival horror title to use a fully three-dimensional virtual environment.
Along with the environmental innovations, OverBlood was unique for its time for blending fighting and puzzle mechanics; as well as allowing players to seamlessly switch between third and first-person perspectives. A sequel, OverBlood 2 was released in 1998 to a lackluster reception.
9 D
Released in 1995, D is an interactive movie that puts players in the shoes of famous digital actress Laura Harris, who is tasked with investigating a hospital that her father has locked himself inside after a killing spree; it soon becomes clear that things aren’t as they seem though, as the hospital transforms into an eery castle once Laura arrives. Befitting of the interactive movie genre, players cannot save the game and must complete it within two hours.
D was reviewed by GameSpot in 2000 who gave the game a score of 5.7. The reviewer, Hugo Foster, praised the game’s visuals and creepy atmosphere but criticized its tedious puzzles.
8 Clock Tower
Clock Tower (1996) was developed by Human Entertainment and is a point-and-click survival horror game, it is the sequel to a Japanese exclusive that was also titled Clock Tower (1995).
The point-and-click game raises the stakes from most others in the genre by having players be hunted down by the game’s terrifying antagonist Scissorman. Scissorman is undoubtedly one the gaming industry’s scariest most intimidating villains of all time and is likely the key reason as to why X-Play listed Clock Tower as the eighth scariest game of all time in 2006.
7 Parasite Eve
One of the better-known names on this list, Parasite Eve was developed by Square (who merged with Enix in 2003 to create Square Enix) and was released in 1998. The action role-playing game is based on the horror book of the same name, which also inspired a 1997 film. The game’s horror themes, fixed perspective, and the story that is centered around police, unsurprisingly caused the game to be frequently compared, sometimes unfairly, to the revolutionary Resident Evil.
Despite having to deal with comparisons to the iconic Resident Evil, Parasite Eve was well-received by fans and critics, exemplified by its 81 Metascore and 9.0 User Score, which is one of the highest user scores on the entire site.
6 Koudelka
Developed by Sacnoth, Koudelka is a Japanese role-playing game from the Shadows Hearts series. The game is set in the Great British country Wales and finds a nice blend of puzzle-solving and turn-based combat.
Like many games on this list, Koudelka draws inspiration from Capcom’s Resident Evil series through its fixed camera angles, pre-rendered backgrounds, and exploration-heavy gameplay.
5 Alone In The Dark: The New Nightmare
Also known as Alone in the Dark 4, Infogrames’ PlayStation 1 classic Alone In The Dark: The New Nightmare was developed by Darkworks and was initially released in 2001. Releasing on the PlayStation 1 over a year after the release of the PlayStation 2 understandably hurt initial sales, though they soon picked up when the game came to PC and the second generation of Sony console a short while later.
Alone In The Dark: The New Nightmare was released on Steam in 2013, though the lackluster port earned the game an All Reviews rating of Mixed.
4 Dino Crisis
The first entry into the series of the same name, Dino Crisis was released in 1999 by the era’s horror specialist, Capcom. The game has numerous similarities to the Japanese company’s early Resident Evil titles, such as the save room mechanic, camera perspective, and influx of puzzles.
Dino Crisis earns the accolade of being the series’ most frightening game, though Dino Crisis 2 is widely recognized as the series’ most critically acclaimed title, exemplified by its 86 Metascore.
3 Silent Hill
Of all the Resident Evil-inspired horror games that were released on the PlayStation 1, few would disagree that Konami’s Silent Hill is the best. Much like the aforementioned Dino Crisis 2, the game received an 86 score on the review aggregator Metacritic; this score was largely impacted by PlayStation Magazine, who gave the game a perfect score of 10/10.
Konami’s Silent Hill was a pioneer of the implementation of intricate storytelling in video games. The game’s narrative features five different endings, including one secret ending where the game’s protagonist, Harry Mason, is abducted by aliens.
2 Nightmare Creatures II
Nightmare Creatures II was developed by Kalisto Entertainment and released in May 2000 making it one of the PlayStation 1’s final major releases not to appear on the PlayStation 2. Indicative of the game releasing so late in the PlayStation 1’s lifecycle, it has some of the most unsettlingly realistic visuals on the console.
Konami’s Nightmare Creatures II is far from being this list’s most critically acclaimed entry, exemplified by its GameRanking’s scores of 49 and 64 across its two releases; though it does have a strong argument for being the scariest entry to play today with its adrenaline-pumping action-gameplay.
1 Resident Evil 3: Nemesis
There’s a reason why Capcom’s Resident Evil series has been mention so frequently throughout this list; the series’ initial 1996 game is one of, if not the most influential survival horror game of all time.
The series’ third installment, Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, released in September 1999 and cranked the fear factor up a notch, predominantly due to the inclusion of Nemesis. Nemesis frequently appears in lists of gaming’s most terrifying villains, with Red Bull and WGAC being just two of many publications to include the pursuing foe. Following the success of the 2019 Resident Evil 2 remake, Resident Evil 3 was given the same treatment in 2020, though it failed to garner the same critical acclaim as the 2019 game.
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