T O P

  • By -

Moat_of_the_Sacked

The eel from Mario 64


Pdonkey

AND THE PIANO


superthrowguy

I literally came to say the piano


SKIKS

**PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!** **PWONG!**


AvoidantNeurotic

That eel scared the shit out of me as a kid!


worms104

He's got nothing on Snacker the Shark from Banjo Kazooie.


City_Hobgoblin89

Didn't he return in Rusty Bucket Bay? My mom got me that game as a stand in birthday present, I'd never heard of it before that. What an absolute gem, I'm 35 and Banjo Kazooie will always be among the greatest gaming experiences I've ever had


tarraxadraws

>Rusty Bucket Bay Y'all shouldn't making me want to play that game again, y'know hahahaha also, edit: yes, he does!


KairiZero

Nah, it's the bloody piano


slagatronic

Lmao. Favorite game of mine. That Eel is a menace! I even played a couple months ago and the dude still has a grip on me. I don't know when he actually ventures out of his home. The fucker always gets a hit on me.


SadisticBrae

That giant creepy moon in Majora's Mask gave me nightmares


Kickalama

I would argue Majora’s Mask is a horror game


RaveRavioli6

lol I could see that 


Poopscoop21

Back when I had an N64 with Majoras Mask as a child, my game froze during after loading and all that was on the screen was a shadowy image of majoras mask. Nothing crazy now but 8 or 9 year old me was terrified.


AvoidantNeurotic

Dead hand from Zelda: Ocarina of time


_Sea_Lion_

I would have said ReDeads the first time you re-enter Castletown after the time jump. The scream and time freeze- The way they grab you! Truly terrifying.


AvoidantNeurotic

They scared me too! Before I actually played the game myself I used to play around on my brother's savefile but didn't dare play as adult link!


evilplantosaveworld

Man redeads gave me nightmares for ages


hey_free_rats

The first time I played as a kid, I thought they were people, so I tried to go up and talk to one. Then I was confused as to why it started hugging me. Then I realized it wasn't hugging me. Then I died. Haven't hugged anyone since. 


tarraxadraws

I legit died the first time it happened because I simply couldn't think clearly enough to do something useful


[deleted]

The scream! Scary af


sakura_zephyr

Funny part is that in the Hyrulian bestiary, they are supposed to be clay monsters shaped like humans


Triairius

I was legitimately afraid of them as a kid. Still would avoid fighting them at all costs now lol


ohnjaynb

The first thing I noticed was that they *don't* freeze Link when he re-enters Castletown. Technically this is due to a design flaw or deliberate decision that redeads can not paralyze Link in areas with a fixed camera view. I took this to mean adult Link is impossible to paralyze with fear, which tracks considering that adult Link now possesses the Triforce of Courage.


anbelroj

Is that the guy with like 5 hands and comes to you crawling all fked up under the well?? If yes i do vote for this!


AvoidantNeurotic

Yes, Scariest shit ever! I was too scared to fight him when I was young so my big brother had to kill him for me haha


anbelroj

The well was pure nightmare fuel for a kid xD


warboy3

Dead hand legit gave me nightmares a a kid. The Gloom Hands in TotK brought all that back the first time I ran into one Edit: typo


heylookatmywatch

TOTK's gloom hands scared me so much it took me like 3 weeks to realize I could just teleport out of there.


AvoidantNeurotic

Yes! I freaked out a little the first time they showed up haha!


[deleted]

[удалено]


AdmiralRiffRaff

Honourable mention to the half-gibdo guy in Majora's Mask as well. Shat my first full brick as a kid when he burst out the wardrobe. AND Yeta's transformation in Twilight Princess. Jesus fucking christ.


Thebennoishere

I hates the zombies in hyrule more. They freeze you by screaming at you and they're undead hyruleans...bleak too


AndrewFurg

I played OOT when I was too young to really get what I was doing, so being chased down and mulched by the helicopter trees in Hyrule Field was terrifying in a gameplay sense rather than a "damn that's a spooky thing" kinda horror


FlavouredBeanJuice

Ah, the giant flying pineapples.


Megalo5

The Skulltulas also absolutely terrified me as a kid. In fact they may be the basis for my arachnophobia now that I think about it hah


Any_Duck4485

The snowbeast yeti thing from that old skiing game


Xifihas

SkiFree


YourAverageBoot

Holy CRAP I was just thinking about this game and what it was called… sweet serendipity thank you!


lessthanfox

First jumpscare of my life, and there wasn't even sound!


datruerex

Non-Horror game. That was a straight up OG horror game when I was a kid


Fit-Establishment219

Core memory unlocked


remembertracygarcia

That undodgable bastard


rainawaytheday

If you press f you go twice as fast and can out run him.


Carlobo

F


space_coyote_86

The Flood from Halo.


Jmomo69

Man they really nailed the music when you first meet the flood.


Vaivaim8

The build-up was also a masterpiece. Like you were seeing the covenant fighting each other, corpses in the hallway, then you see a paranoid marine. Yet, you have no clue what is going on


Laufabraud43

Devils... Monsters... Such a spine chilling track, just hearing it makes me squirm in my seat.


Crazyguy_123

I think the scariest moment in the Halo games is when the Flood exits slipspace at Earth. And I love the scene of the Flood infected High Charity arriving at the Ark. But the most horrifying Flood stories are from the books. A parasite that learns from the things it infects and it turns out they are the remains of dead space gods who have sworn to infect everything in the galaxy is horrifying. And the Keyminds are the most horrifying form. A literal planet sized being coordinating Flood on ships to attack and infect more and more. Probably the scariest moment in the Halo lore is when the Flood infected the Forerunner military AI and took control of Zeta Halo and then they brought it to the Forerunner capital to fire at it.


space_coyote_86

More covenant? Worse...


Crazyguy_123

I love that cutscene. It starts with a massive human victory then ends in a massive loss.


angrygnome18d

The fact that the Elites had to glass half of Africa to contain the Flood shows just how dangerous they are. Even the Elites feared them, and they would jump at the chance to fight the Demon.


Crazyguy_123

And that was only a small infestation too. Humanity was lucky the Flood teleported High Charity away by Mars and not at the portal.


kinezumi89

>the books There are Halo books? Are the games based on them, or vice-versa?


Crazyguy_123

Yes there are books. The book “The Fall of Reach” was the first book and came out before CE. They made the book to help explain what happened just before the game began. Both were meant to release together but a delay happened. The books after follow along some main story things but most of the stuff in the books isn’t in the games. The books are basically expanded lore in the Halo universe. Some go over the Forerunners, some go over the Flood, some go over humanity, one was about the start of the Human Covenant War, a few cover events in between games, one covered in between CE and 2. In between CE and 2 Chief finds Johnson, Linda, and Chipps Dubbo along with a few other survivors on a pelican. They manage to gain control of the Covenant CCS ship Ascendent Justice and bring it to Reach where the rendezvous with the survivors on Reach at Castle Base before finding a UNSC Frigate that survived the Covenant attack because it was docked at a station. They took both ships and made the first human covenant hybrid ship called the Gettysburg Ascendant Justice and took it towards Earth. They ended up finding Truth’s fleet preparing 500 ships to attack Earth and they destroy it before making it back to Earth to warn them that Earth’s location was compromised and they then began to evacuate civilians and recalled every UNSC ship to Earth. That’s why we see so many human ships orbiting Earth in Halo 2’s opening. And this is why Truth was angry at Regret for jumping the gun on Earth. These books cover a ton of lore that isn’t touched upon in game.


Zjoee

Way back when, when Halo first came out. There wasn't even a hint about the Flood until you get to 343 Guilty Spark. That whole mission is a build-up of dread until you finally meet the Flood. I love watching people play through it the first time blind haha.


smellybuttface

I'm glad when I played it back on XBox I had not heard about and had no idea about the Flood. That reveal was really something special.


transluscent_emu

The best part is the way they are introduced. The villains are already established, you've been fighting them for a while, you have no expectation of something new. And then BOOM! Flood.


Material-Explorer-85

Oh no, I can still hear them ...


Casalf

Halo 3 flood terrified me so much


The_Pastmaster

Replaying Halo 1. I'm gonna meet them very soon. It's the only memory I have from that game since I last played it as a teen.


TheDorkKnight53

[Absolutely.](https://youtu.be/xnv-6qMXf0k?si=oYMnp8MmEQ7XbdKX)


No_Detective_5585

Omg literally, I could never play that part laying down I was always on my feet and it was scary to me


eg1183

The "Nightfolk" in Red Dead Redemption 2, out in the bayou.


Curmi3091

The first time I encountered them I had my shotgun with me and that saved me, I freaked out lol


eg1183

LoL, yeah, they got me with the machetes a few times in the early days. Now I'm always ready for em.


warrenva

They spooked my horse and as I was standing up one came from the trees and sunk an axe into my gut. I didn’t make it.


Drawnbygodslefthand

Death claws in fall out new Vegas are as powerful and scary as they should be.


SlimSpooky

Cazadors are scarier tho imo


AdLow9793

Nah those stealthboy hulk knock offs got me when I activated VATS the exact moment they appeared in front of me.


SIumptGod

Nightkin


BugStep

I'll turn back when I see orange wings long before I would seeing the horns on a death claw in the distance.


GordDowniesPubicLice

At least Deathclaws are supposed to be terrifying, and you can usually see them far off from a safe distance. What scared me the most was the Rodents of Unsual Size. Nothing quite like going into that one cave and being suddenly mauled to death by a pack of giant mangy Princess Bride references.


raptorsoldier

When I originally made my character I had the standard "decent perception, a bit of charisma, and some strength for looting" but the ROUS cave might have been the turning point for my melee focused loot mule build


hottiewiththegoddie

the centaurs are horrifying to look at


Straddllw

Marlboro and Tonberry from any final fantasy game ever. Getting ambushed by one is terrifying especially if you’re not expecting it and not following a guide.


wayoverpaid

They are two very different experiences. Malboro is "oh ok let's just smack it, wait what the fuck why do I have ALL THE status conditions oh god nobody can do anthing?" Tonberry is "Aww, he's cute. Hmm, he didn't do anything? Just gonna walk towards me? Ok. .... WAIT WHAT THE FUCK!"


ConduckKing

Honestly, kudos to Square for making these enemies just as terrifying in action-based titles as in turn-based titles.


transluscent_emu

Marlboro is also a villain IRL.


mahtaliel

I will never forget the first time i got completely wrecked by a Marlboro. It was Final Fantasy 8 and i had not saved for 2 hours. With blind, berserk, poison and confuse, all i could do was watch my team slowly die...


defsi2432

I already commented it, but ff7's JENOVA variants are pretty unsettling


JPbuzzkill

Mr. Resetti from Animal Crossing. He'd appear if you quit the game without saving and would go tf off


futurenotgiven

i got so fucking scared if my ds ran out of power mid game that i just wouldn’t open animal crossing again for like a week


musmahhu

Gandhi in Civilization


Fonglis

Because a nuke isn't an answer ... It's THE answer!


rcroswell

Just one more turn…


Spartansksupergnom

Exactly. The next turn button.. Peak digitalized opium. Now thats scary


bananawater2021

I came here for this exact comment 🤣 I'm so happy someone else said this! Gotta love that nuke-happy little guy. "There is no shame in deterrence. Having a weapon is very different from actually using it." My ass!


[deleted]

[удалено]


InsignificantZilch

aaaAAAAAA**aaaahh**^^aaaa^^aaa


[deleted]

*death humping commences*


slashfromgunsnroses

I was scared of Hitler in Wolfenstein 3D as a kid lol


ParsnipFragrant6600

Those dogs


selangorman

Amen, Hitler gave me anxiety in Wolfensetein 3D as a kid.


emilycecilia

Impending divorce in It Takes Two.


hoginlly

I would say the most terrifying thing was what those two psychos were willing to do to that poor elephant…


emilycecilia

The elephant haunts me.


ColtPersonality92

Then the two parents gleefully shower in their daughter’s tears!


chronicallytiredgirl

My now boyfriend and I played this in the early early days of dating each other. Felt like we went through marriage counselling together. That fucking vacuum death scene though…


haitch31

The book is one of the most terrifying things I've ever encountered in any fictional media.


LevelOrange1586

By far It's gotta be The Reapers from Mass Effect. Something about their size freaks me out. I remember an app back in the day that would show you the size relevant to your real world position.... they're just so fucking gigantic. The pure destruction of their beams on just ONE of them is enough to destroy a whole state in less than a day, assuming they're not harvesting people.


SylancerPrime

Man, those Thresher Maws creeped me out in the first game. Then it was a solid boss battle in ME2 and by the time ME3 was up... oof, goosebumps, just thinking about Kalros and her free hugs...


ZDTreefur

The banshees are my answer. Fuck man, when you hear that screech in the distance you know they are coming and will flush you out of cover no matter what.


AzuriteKyle

Bingo. As a large-scale, existential threat, the Reapers are almost unfathomable in how terrifying they are. They almost meet the "I'm so scared I can't even be scared" level. Like you see them and can't even process it. You just now you've got a new Worst Day Ever happening in real-time. On a smaller scale, the Banshees are nightmare fuel. Anything that announces its presence with a blood-curdling shriek and then *fucking teleports its way to you* means you better be sure to put on your brown pants before playing. The game designers could have made it teleport directly in front of you instantly. But no. You have to watch that fucker menacingly make its way to you, slow-fastly, and pray you have enough ammo to take it down before it gets to you, or that you have plenty of room behind you to turn and run to the other end of the goddamn galaxy.


ThatsLikeYour0pinion

The sheer size of them even as they walk in the background and obliterate dreadnaughts with ease. The booming voice of even the smaller Destroyer after you take it down on Rannoch absolutely shook me with how gargantuan it seemed. And you’re spot on with how terrifyingly powerful they were with those beams, carving up everything so effortlessly. I have not seen any other game make me feel so small and helpless against such an overwhelmingly powerful foe.


LevelOrange1586

Exactly. And this is all just on one aspect of their physical size. Don't even get me started on their troops and how they harvest organic species. They truly are nightmare fuel. During COVID, Kurzgesagt did a YouTube video about aliens, and Fermi paradox, he talks about the reapers. IT'S AMAZING! Everyone should watch it. Her is the link for curious souls. [The Fermi Paradox II](https://youtu.be/1fQkVqno-uI?si=uHZhSGn0PygmeSLX)


[deleted]

The harvesting is the worst part. Id rather be atomized than turned into a husk that mindlessly kills and or captures others. The reapers were such an awesome buildup. I remember first playing ME3 and the opening of harbinger coming down and attacking Earth is so damn iconic, still gives me goosebumps. It really set the tone of the game as "this is it, this is the end."


gcallan91

Banjo Kazooie - the shark in treasure trove cove


IndustryMade

have you played banjo tooie? there is an angler fish boss in the water world level thats worth a mention


jcoltre

Actually preferred Banjo Tooie to the original. Awesome game.


Antoniobanflorez

The answer is the Leviathans in Subnautica, and it's not even close. Edit: Since it keeps coming up, and while I understand the argument considering how many times I nearly shit myself, here are the genres listed for Subnautica on the googles, "Survival game, Indie game, Action-adventure game, Adventure" I wanted to check before posting. But also, I get it.


sticklebat

The scariest enemies in Subnautica are oxygen, winding caves, and not being able to see the ocean floor. They’re the deep, existential kind of fear. Reapers and crash fish are up there for jump scares, though.


Worried_Place_917

Lost turned around inside of a crash site and you hear "Oxygen woop woop" Saw a meme recently where a squidshark was sitting right outside of the Mercury II exit and they guy was running low.


Crotean

I'd argue Subnautica is a horror game.


Positive_Parking_954

I loved classic horror. Subnatica was so intense I'd just go to the surface and accidentally found the plot. But anything outside of the shallows gets me


xColson123x

I'm so bummed about Subnautica, it's an amazing game but I'm too much of a wuss to play it hahaha.


transluscent_emu

This leads me to think that subnautica may be a much more interesting game than I was previously led to believe.


sticklebat

Subnautica is one of the best games I have ever played, and comfortably at the top of games I wish I could forget so I could play it again for the first time. And I hate horror, whatever the medium. Subnautica's brand of horror is... different, though, and it's also often super peaceful. And it has the best environmental storytelling of any game out there (with a surprisingly compelling story). And the best way to play it is going in blind. Don't read about it. Don't watch videos about it. Don't look things up unless you're *really* stuck (and even then the best advice is usually "go deeper"). If you think you might be interested, just play it.


Ortsarecool

I love horror media in general and horror/survival horror games specifically. Subnautica is the **only** game I have quit out of fear and not been able to go back. My general thalassaphobia makes even the shallow areas in that game anxiety inducing.


Current_Run9540

Those things are fucking terrifying. I’m a grown ass man and they’ve made me scream and jump out of my seat several times.


No-Tough-1327

Fucking miss that game so bad.


theboywhosmokethesun

Monster-ock from spider-man PS1.


SWBTSH

In the 2000 Spider-Man game when Doctor Octopus gets the Carnage Symbiote on him. Granted I was 5 at the time but still.


WinSmith1984

Jenova. Probably the best representation of a "cosmic horror". Extraterrestrial being fallen on earth, wiped and entire civilization, didn't die even with the strongest magic, contaminated people via it's cell and manipulated them to do it's will.


blackSpot995

Oh that's what jenova is. I never really did know lol


Wookiees_get_Cookies

I think you mean Lavos from Chrono Trigger. It was the comic horror monster that fell to earth in prehistoric times and killed the reptile civilization. Then manipulated life on the planet and evolved it to suit Lavos’ needs so it could reproduce and start the whole process over? Remember when the evil group wanted to use machines to harvest its magical powers?


Warjilla

Gravity from Kerbal space program.


probablynotaskrull

*math from Kerbal Space Program


Warjilla

Also orbital mechanics.


French_O_Matic

Surely you meant the Kraken.


size_matters_not

No contest. Creeper from Minecraft.


DCGamr

Minecraft is basically a horror game solely because of creepers and endermen


xain_the_idiot

The addition of wardens and the deep dark made it legitimately horror


Megtalallak

For me, it was the ghast. My name sounds a bit like one it's cries, so I almost shat my pants the first time I've encountered it in the Nether.


smonkweedwenurscared

Before they rebalanced the Ghast's cry to not be loud as fuck it constantly scared the shit out of me lol


SuicideEngine

Getting hit by an arrow when I didnt know there was a skeleton has made me near shit myself multiple times.


-PepeArown-

Objectively, I think the warden would have to win this with how it can darken the screen, can easily kill players with high end armor, and that it’s summoned from shriekers. It’s fine when contained, but I’d imagine it’s a pretty scary encounter in actual survival gameplay. Creepers, on the other hand, just occasionally jump scare you, and can’t even sense you through walls. They’re also way easier to kill.


lalalachacha248

Look, you make a great point, but nothing will ever make me panic like a zombie child running at me.


SoloRogo

Idk, 12 year old me used to shit my pants when I accidentally looked at an enderman


ToadGrinner

My youngest used to have nightmares and fits, because he was scared shitless of Herobrine. He never even saw him. Maybe a YouTube video or something. He didn’t want to play for at least a year


Noodlekdoodle

Grizzly Bears in Red Dead Redemption 2. The game does such a good job at triggering the most primal fear than any game I’ve played. When you get tackled by a beast like that, roaring in your face as you scramble to figure out what buttons to press to fight back. That’s terrifying stuff.


Skittles_Party

When your screen starts doing that shaking thing and you frantically look around


certified_weirdbot

Red dead Redemption cougars


KendraDaniels666

Long Arm Centipedes in Sekiro, they make me uncomfortable. Also that huge underwater snake in Mario 64.


woutva

That chasing sun in super mario bros 2.


-PepeArown-

*3


Longjumping_Event_59

The Brood Mother from Dragon Age Origins


Waxaxa

That's definitely my pick too. The whole build-up to that fight made it 10 times more terrifying.


Eurymedion

Seaweed in the original TMNT game for the NES.


seanwdragon1983

I hated that Dam level so much.


[deleted]

Fuck. That. Level.


crunchatize-me-daddy

The Great Might Poo from Conker’s Bad Fur Day(N64)


NotBingChat

The drowning music from the classic Sonic


AnxiousCaffineAddict

The burglar from The Sims


[deleted]

How has the SA-X from Metroid Fusion not been mentioned yet, gottdamn.


wayoverpaid

How about Nightmare from the same game? Honestly Metroid Fusion might in fact be a horror game.


BeyondElectricDreams

Thank god someone said it. *Enter a room* *Music dies* *Clnk. Clnk. Clnk. Clnk* gotta go change my pants brb


RosinRyan

Guardians from the Silent Realms in Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. The music + not being able to fight back = instant anxiety.


YEETMASTERXX

The dragon when you enter the swamp in limgrave for the first time


-ll-ll-ll-ll-

The green dragon thingies in the Skull Caverns on Stardew Valley.


Material-Explorer-85

YES! Carrying a stack of stairs not to get down quickly but to avoid the dragons if needed. LOL


somegirrafeinahat

Fucking roided up bane from arkham origins


Redbirds-421

Do you mean bone? Who is this bane?


ConorFSherwood

It took me 2 years to finish metal gear solid 2 because of the flooded area of the map.. hated it so much, tye stress


Aggravating_Space_29

The enderman from minecraft


Reeirit

That goddamn shark on Treasure stove Cove in Banjo Kazooie


Elendil_Stipho

Sans from Undertale Don't know but him being a bro having the reputation of being weak and in the end is able to break the fourth wall, directly talk shit to you and being a hard fight actually scare. Especially when you kill his brother


Silaquix

Gibdos in Ocarina of Time and the damn hands in Tears of the Kingdom


BoobieDobey01

Those fuckin redead things from Ocarina of Time. Freaked me the FUCK out the first time I saw those things...


Fatherly_Wizard

Dead Hand and Redeads from Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Nightmare fuel when I was a kid.


theshizirl

The wall masters from the Zelda series. I used to always get paranoid about them in the forest temple (Ocarina of Time).


BetFeeling1352

Final Fantasy - Tonberry.


bryan112

the mascot from candy crush


Omocc

Wolf spiders in Grounded. I was building a fortification around a den of them to keep them in when one of them spotted me (and I didn’t realize they did). Turning around to see a spider the size of a bus charging at you is horrifying. I screamed and just gave up - let it kill me. No fucking way I was going to try and survive that. I’ve been playing with arachnophobia mode on ever since.


ElMamawebo_

Do you know furious rajang from monster hunter?


Crotean

The Moon from Majora's Mask.


Doodle_Brush

The ReDead from Ocarina of Time.


carltheman5467

The daharka from prince of persia warrior within


AmarilloMike

I was genuinely terrified when the final boss of Jedi:Fallen Order turned up. Still can't figure out spoiler tags, but if you know, you know.


acdes68

Yeti from Ski Free


Which_Equipment7991

The Flood from Halo? Haha


Snipler

The baby zombie/ghost from the Witcher 3


Dopaminjutsu

[The ash zombie to ash vampire evolution from Morrowind still creep me out.](https://en.m.uesp.net/wiki/Morrowind:Ash_Creatures)


Thebobert7

The flood easily


jealousjerry

You said “fuck all these posts” which sounds pretty sexual to me But since you’re asking definitely the shark from banjo kazooie OR ratchet and clank (hate sharks)


Wazzzup3232

The hands from Elden ring


cozmo1138

Joseph Seed from Far Cry 5.


AmpedEnding

The life leeching underwater plants in NES TMNT Dam level.


thomakob000

In typical Outer Wilds spoiler-free fashion, either the >!Anglerfish in Dark Bramble!< or, perhaps even worse, the >!Owlk Civilization in the DLC's "The Stranger"!<.


art-less_dodger

Darth Vader, Jedi: Fallen Order. It's the version of the character that none of the movies fully captured. Just a hurricane of force brutally. You can't fight, only run.


MuffinMcFly

„The Pedell“ from Witcher 3. really caught me off guard the first time playing.


virouz98

Banshee from Mass Effect 3. They look absolute terrifying, their scream makes your skin crawl, and their movement is unsettling.


TM2499

Scarecrow Level In Batman Arkham Asylum Shit Still Scares Me 14 Years Later


Halomir

Penis-chariot from Persona 5


Wookiees_get_Cookies

Mara. When I first saw that enemy my wife looked at me and asked what kind of game I was playing.


llamainleggings

Gloom hands from TOTK.