# Classic video games that scare you? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 18, 2007, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-video-games-that-scare-you/396415 "2007-03-18T06:20:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![wasson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/4da419/32.png) [@wasson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wasson)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2007, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-video-games-that-scare-you/396415/41 "2007-03-19T17:27:34Z")
Phantasmagoria. > **[Phantasmagoria (video game)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phantasmagoria_%28computer_game%29)** > > Phantasmagoria is a point-and-click adventure horror video game designed by Roberta Williams for MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows and released by Sierra On-Line on August 24, 1995. It tells the story of Adrienne Delaney (Victoria Morsell), a writer who moves into a remote mansion and finds herself terrorized by supernatural forces. It was made at the peak of popularity for interactive movie games and features live-action actors and footage, both during cinematic scenes and within the three-dimens... ---
**Author:** ![metonymic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@metonymic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/metonymic)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2007, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-video-games-that-scare-you/396415/42 "2007-03-19T17:38:40Z")
I love the System Shock games so much – they’re terrifying. I love the creeping realization in System Shock 1 that although you’re so close, you will probably always be just slightly too late to save anyone… and that leaves you completely alone. I can’t wait for Bioshock! These adventure games (5 Days a Stranger, 7 Days a Skeptic, and Trilby’s Notes) by Ben Croshaw are pretty scary – and free! (links to downloads in “external links” section) [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chzo\_Mythos](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chzo_Mythos) They’re well-written, and quite creepy. 7 Days is probably my favourite. ---
**Author:** ![Cemetery\_Savior](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/439d5e/32.png) [@Cemetery\_Savior](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cemetery_Savior)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2007, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-video-games-that-scare-you/396415/43 "2007-03-19T17:56:19Z")
[QUOTE=GreedySmurf] It’s gotta be Aliens V Predators on the PC. Playing in a dark room at 2 in the morning, the grpahics on screen are gloomy and your motion detector goes off with that classic blipping sound, and your spinning waiting trying to see that damn aline that you know is out there somewhere. :eek: [/QUOTE] On the HR Giger thing…there was some game my roomate and I played in 1993 or so. It was a ‘mood’ game…had a lot of Giger graphics in it…I think it took place in a house, and had some Cthulu overtones. I think the character was supposed to be going slowly insane, and you’d lose if you spent too much time going nutty. Anyone remember the name of the darn thing? I had nightmares for a while after playing that one. -Cem ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2007, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-video-games-that-scare-you/396415/44 "2007-03-19T18:00:52Z")
[QUOTE=Hogwash] The _Thief_ series in general has many creepy moments and a capacity to scare. [/QUOTE] Those damn zombies. My creep-out threshold is pretty high, but the zombies pushed me over it. You’d have this panicky running fight and drop one, then move on. Coming back through the area, it would look clear (since the zombie is on the ground) and you’d forget it was there…until it moaned at you. That groaning noise always freaked me out. Also, the ghosts (with the muttering) and the fire-shadow critter in the ruined basement freaked me out a few times. I loved _Eternal Darkness_–definitely a creepy game overall. I didn’t really feel the sanity meter detracted from the feel all that much, and it was pretty much necessary in terms of game mechanics. The sanity effects that got me most were the voices, and the bugs on the screen (if you were playing in a dark room, it really looked like a huge roach or somesuch crawling across the TV screen). In general, creepy sounds seem to get to me more than creepy visuals. ---
**Author:** ![enigm4tic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@enigm4tic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enigm4tic)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2007, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-video-games-that-scare-you/396415/45 "2007-03-19T20:03:24Z")
[QUOTE=GreedySmurf] It’s gotta be Aliens V Predators on the PC. Playing in a dark room at 2 in the morning, the grpahics on screen are gloomy and your motion detector goes off with that classic blipping sound, and your spinning waiting trying to see that damn aline that you know is out there somewhere. :eek: [/QUOTE] ah came in here just for that one. Especially hunting through dark halls or when they busted out of random places, that blip sound compounded with the alien shriek when they charged you from nowhere flipped me out every time. Now whenever I see a movie where somebody gets freaked out and starts shooting in random directions I understand why. I hear FEAR is really creepy, but I haven’t played through it yet myself. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2007, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-video-games-that-scare-you/396415/46 "2007-03-19T20:11:26Z")
**Eternal Darkness** for the Gamecube. Some of the insanity effects are incredible. I remember my character trying to reload the pistol and blowing his/her brains out instead. Scared me to death. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2007, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-video-games-that-scare-you/396415/47 "2007-03-19T20:26:31Z")
[QUOTE=Cemetery Savior] On the HR Giger thing…there was some game my roomate and I played in 1993 or so. It was a ‘mood’ game…had a lot of Giger graphics in it…I think it took place in a house, and had some Cthulu overtones. I think the character was supposed to be going slowly insane, and you’d lose if you spent too much time going nutty. Anyone remember the name of the darn thing? I had nightmares for a while after playing that one. -Cem [/QUOTE] _Dark Seed_. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2007, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-video-games-that-scare-you/396415/48 "2007-03-19T20:30:01Z")
[3D Monster Maze](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3D_Monster_Maze) for the 16K Sinclair ZX81 - you’re running around a 3D maze, trying to find the exit and there’s a T-Rex in there… somewhere… a line of text at the bottom of the screen says ‘FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING’… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-video-games-that-scare-you/396415.md?page=2)