The Scariest Horror Game Remakes, Ranked

Key Takeaways

• Many horror remakes have succeeded in enhancing scares through eerie environments and terrifying enemies.
• Remakes like
  Resident Evil 2
  bring back the fear factor by creating realistic and horrifying zombies.
• The Silent Hill 2 remake masterfully replicates the atmosphere and suspense of the original.

The horror game genre has been experiencing somewhat of a remake renaissance over the last few years. When developers get the chance to recreate an iconic horror experience, it allows them to tinker with certain aspects of the game’s environments, enemies, and story to make them just that little bit more unnerving and creepy, which is always a good thing for true horror fans.

While horror remakes have varied in their overall scare-factor, it would be hard to deny that a select few have succeeded in sending shivers down the players’ spine by thrusting them into nightmarish scenarios that they are tasked with getting out of. Anyone who’s looking for a modernized horror title that is filled with spooks and scares definitely owes it to themselves to test out the games listed below.

7 Alone In The Dark

A Horror-Filled Showcase Of Body Horror And Deary Atmosphere

The Alone in the Dark remake, while a little rough around the edges in terms of gameplay, still provides more than its fair share of scary encounters and heart-pounding moments. The game manages to achieve this by keeping players in the dark (literally) for most of the levels, ramping up the eerie sound cues to keep them on their toes, before then paying it all off by throwing a horrific batch of enemies their way.

Horror games have also been known for incorporating body horror, but Alone in the Dark goes all in with it, presenting almost every monster as a gross and obscene mixture of body parts that lingers in the brain long after they’ve been defeated. The inconsistent tone and fairly silly characters can take the fear factor away at some points, but when Alone in the Dark wants to scare the player, it does a pretty good job of doing so.

6 System Shock

The Unnerving Voice Of SHODAN Will Remain With Players Long After System Shock’s Ending

The original System Shock, released back in 1994, is often considered to be one of the most essential and influential horror games ever made. Much of this was due to SHODAN, a mysterious AI who manages to come across as even more creepy in the remake, especially now that her voice and face have been enhanced with modern technology.

As players make their way through a desolate Citadel Station, they’ll be tasked with taking down terrifying ghouls and mutants who have all succumbed to SHODAN’s influence. Though there are some powerful weapons players can get their hands on to help turn the tides, the cyberpunk-horror atmosphere of the game mixed with the disturbing portrayal of SHODAN will provide a true test of any player’s nerves.

5 The Last Of Us: Part 1

A Survival Horror Classic Featuring Improved Audio And Grotesque Enemy Designs

Though it was initially unclear whether The Last of Us Part 1 was a remaster or remake, Sony and Naughty Dog have both claimed it to be the latter, being a ground-up rebuilt edition of the classic original title. While the original was already scary enough, this remake takes it up to a whole new level, especially with the brand new 3D audio where every shriek and scream from the infected causes an immediate panic as players try to deduce where the enemies are coming from.

While Joel does amass a small arsenal of weapons throughout the game which can make quick work of most enemies, The Last of Us Part 1 ensures players are only given small drops of ammunition, along with crafting resources similarly being a rare occurrence. This creates a level of suspense that lasts from beginning to end, reaching its peak during the segments where Joel and Ellie must navigate their way through rooms chock-full of Clickers.

4 Resident Evil 2

Resident Evil 2 May Have The Most Realistic, And Terrifying, Zombies Of Any Video Game

The Resident Evil 2 remake did something remarkable; it made zombies scary again. For a long while, zombies in video games had become somewhat of a joke enemy considering how frequently they had been used, but by pitting players in the tight and narrow corridors of the R.P.D once again, Capcom made these bloodthirsty monsters a truly horrific sight, just as they were in the original.

As players make their way through the R.P.D., the sewers, and the lab, they’ll be introduced to new sets of enemies and a formidable catalog of scary bosses to overcome. The safe rooms may provide a few moments of closure, but sooner or later, players will be forced to make their way to the next area, which is guaranteed to be filled with all kinds of horrors spawned out of the Raccoon City outbreak.

3 Project Zero 2: Wii Edition

Players Are Dropped Into A Dark Haunted Village Surrounded By Ghosts And Evil Spirits

Project Zero 2 for the Wii is a remake of the 2003 PS2 title, Fatal Frame 2, and as those familiar with the series will know all too well, this isn’t a game for the faint of heart. The story follows twin sisters Mio and Mayu as they venture through a haunted forest and village. The only way to fend away the ghosts is to use the series’ signature enchanted camera, but this is much easier said than done, considering that each ghost will act differently from the one before.

While some will prefer to be distant and shy away from the camera, others will lunge directly at the player, making it easy to flip the Wii remote in a sudden state of panic. Pair this with an unnerving soundtrack and a new ending which is by far one of the darkest of any horror game, and it makes for an experience that only seasoned horror veterans can see through to the end.

2 Dead Space

Dead Space’s Unique Intensity Director Ensures Players Never Feel Fully Safe

There aren’t many enemies in video games quite as terrifying as the Necromorphs. These multi-limbed monstrosities are a lot faster than regular zombies and, lucky for Issac, he’s landed on a ship that just so happens to be crawling with them. Dead Space remake set a benchmark for audio design in horror games as players can hear the Necromorphs climbing through vents and stalking them as they progress through the game. Additionally, as Isaac’s mental state becomes more fractured, the whispers that ring through the headphones become louder and more disturbing as the game goes on.

Trying to replay the game also doesn’t do much to lower the fear factor due to the game’s unique ‘Intensity Director’ which is a system that will detect how easy the game has been for the player thus far. If they’ve been stocking up on too much ammo and are breezing through the levels, then more Necromorphs will be thrown their way at random points in the journey, just to make sure they don’t ever feel too confident.

1 Silent Hill 2

A Masterclass In Atmosphere And Suspense That Manages To Replicate The Horror Of The Original

When it was announced that Bloober Team was remaking Silent Hill 2, which many consider to be the greatest horror game ever made, nobody expected them to pull it off quite as well as they did. Somehow, this ground-up remake manages to replicate the chilling atmosphere and terrifying enemy encounters from the original. A big part of this is due to the combat, which is purposefully made to be a little unresponsive and hard to control so James always feels largely defenseless against the hideous creatures he comes up against.

This game is also very clever with its lighting, creating a thick sheet of darkness in areas like the apartment complex and hospital that invokes a sense of tension that just never lets up. Any players hoping that the game gets less scary as it goes will be in for a bad time, as each new area only becomes more unsettling as a way to emphasize James’ own personal purgatory.