Summary
- Skizzo from Days Gone lacks likability due to betrayals and inappropriate behavior among the community.
- Rais from Dying Light is criticized for being a cliché villain with cringey actions and lack of depth.
- Maria from Silent Hill 2 divides players with her annoying personality and burdening presence during gameplay.
Horror game villains have come in all shapes, sizes, and forms, from deranged serial killers to malevolent demons. As the antithesis to the protagonist, the villain is a catalyst for the hero to change and grow, as well as conjuring up compelling conflict within the game’s narrative. As such, they have to be well-written enough to keep the player’s attention.
Some villains are purposely unlikable, or have an interesting backstory with a glimmer of humanity that makes them sympathetic and even relatable. However, there are others that players simply find hard to gel with. Whether gratingly obnoxious, poorly written, or downright pure evil, these are some of the most unlikable villains in horror games, intentionally or otherwise.
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Spoiler Warning: some of these entries contain plot spoilers for their respective games.
This list does not include titles where the antagonist is also the protagonist, such as Mouthwashing and Layers of Fear.
10
Skizzo (Days Gone)
A Poorly Chosen Persona
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OpenCritic
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Top Critic Rating:
72/100
While there are some areas where the game falls flat (namely, the periods of repetitive gameplay), Days Gone appears to have all the ingredients for a good open-world zombie game; biking, horde shooting, and a charming protagonist. Admittedly, Bend Studio also did a fantastic job of making a thoroughly unlikable antagonist.
Skizzo was head of security at Iron Mike’s camp, where (tellingly) he did not get along with the rest of the community. Beyond the made-up kingpin persona and inflated ego, Skizzo has no hesitation in betraying Deacon. He also has a history of creeping on the other members of the encampment — a deal-breaker on the likability front.
9
Rais (Dying Light)
A Cookie-Cutter Villain
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OpenCritic
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Top Critic Rating:
74/100
- Franchise
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Dying Light
- Released
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January 27, 2015
- Publisher(s)
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Warner Bros. Games
- Multiplayer
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Online Co-Op
Rais is the antagonist and widely feared warlord of Dying Light. He is portrayed in the game as being completely unhinged, leading with fear and having most of Harran under his thumb. It’s clear to see that he enforces his power through violence and without empathy.
Despite being a cliché villain, Rais has also come under fire simply for being cringey, through edgy dialogue and random, performative “bad-guy” actions. While there is always a place for a lunatic antagonist, Rais’s lack of apparent depth in-game compared to his backstory left little to be compelled by.
8
Maria (Silent Hill 2)
A Divisive Antagonist
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OpenCritic
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Top Critic Rating:
87/100
Like James, Maria in Silent Hill 2 is a divisive character. As the manifestation of James’ idealized version of Mary, she is not meant to be likable. Many players are put off by her insistent flirting, and her lingering presence as a temptation leaves them screaming at James not to betray his wife.
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But beyond the intentional causes of Maria’s unlikability, many also find her generally annoying — more so in the remake — even in her supportive, sympathetic moments. During the periods where James and Maria are traveling together, she becomes more of a burden, making some of the gameplay laborious.
7
Joan (The Walking Dead: A New Frontier)
A Manipulative Dictator
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OpenCritic
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Top Critic Rating:
71/100
- Franchise
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The Walking Dead
- Released
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December 20, 2016
The Walking Dead has its fair share of villains, yet the context of the series means that many dicey encounters are motivated by family, fear, and hunger, earning them a degree of empathy and forgiveness. Joan is one particular character, however, in whom it is difficult to find any likable qualities.
Caring and diplomatic on the surface, Joan’s true colors soon begin to show as she is revealed to be a manipulative and ruthless dictator. From raiding innocent survivor camps to betraying and framing fellow members of the New Frontier, her many misdeeds make her downfall a satisfying one.
6
Simon Carver (Little Hope)
Pulling The Strings
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OpenCritic
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Top Critic Rating:
73/100
- Franchise
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The Dark Pictures Anthology
- Released
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October 30, 2020
- Publisher(s)
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Namco Bandai
- Multiplayer
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Online Multiplayer
Supermassive has had some interesting villains in their games, from wendigos to werewolves to serial killers. Simon Carver is the antagonist of Little Hope, a game following a group of students as they venture into Little Hope and their subsequent flashbacks to the town’s witch trials.
Carver was the Reverend during the trials period. There is a lot of speculation and many theories as to his true motives and identity, but one thing is for certain: he’s very unlikable. It’s implied that he manipulated and abused the young girl, Mary, and communed with the devil. Carver is a slimy individual who appears to enjoy the suffering of innocent people.
5
Fontaine/Atlas (BioShock)
Gives Players A False Sense Of Security
- Franchise
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BioShock
- Released
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August 21, 2007
BioShock is known for its disturbing plot and dystopian themes, covering political, social, and economic issues. Atlas (later revealed to be Fontaine, the megalomaniac rival of the city’s creator, Andrew Ryan) appears as a guide to the main character, Jack, before his true mastermind plans come to light.
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Focused on taking down Andrew Ryan, Fontaine disregards everyone else, showing little remorse for harvesting the genetically modified Little Sisters. He had also been manipulating Jack from the moment he was conceived, using him for his own means. Whether the twist of his identity came as a surprise or not, Atlas’s betrayal is hard to swallow.
4
Chief Irons (Resident Evil 2)
Sleazy & Corrupt
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OpenCritic
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Top Critic Rating:
92/100
- Released
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January 25, 2019
Chief Irons is just one of Resident Evil’s many antagonists, and a prime example of institutionalized corruption and misuse of power. Prior to the Raccoon City Destruction Incident, Irons was Chief of the city’s police department, accepting bribes from Umbrella to turn a blind eye to their experiments, even assisting them.
Beyond the exploitation of his status, there are multiple documents that allude to Irons being a serial killer, targeting young women — in keeping with his history of violence and assault. Chief Irons is an all-around disgusting character, and rescuing Sherry from his clutches is a huge win.
3
Dr. Angus Bumby (Alice: Madness Returns)
Preys On The Vulnerable
- Released
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June 14, 2011
- Developer(s)
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Spicy Horse
- Publisher(s)
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Electronic Arts
Alice: Madness Returns is an interesting interpretation of both Carroll’s original tale, and navigating trauma. Amid the puzzles and hack-and-slash gameplay, Alice faces Wonderland-ified counterparts of her real-world abusers and struggles, one of which being Dr. Angus Bumby.
Bumby is unlikable right off the bat with a self-righteous and pompous attitude, which only deepens when his true motives are revealed. As a psychiatrist, Bumby had been manipulating his orphaned patients in order to exploit them for terrible, unspeakable purposes. His existence in Wonderland as the Dollmaker is a perfect representation of his nefarious and controlling nature.
2
Dahlia Gillespie (Silent Hill)
One Of The Worst Mothers Of All Time
- Released
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January 31, 1999
The Silent Hill franchise is known for its roster of disturbing bosses and messed-up plots. One of the most notorious villains, though, is Dahlia Gillespie from the original Silent Hill. The high priestess of the Order cult, Dahlia was obsessed with bringing about the birth of their God and a subsequent Paradise.
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Tragically, in order to do this, she was willing to put her young daughter through severe abuse and a pregnancy. In a wider sense, Dahlia is responsible for a lot of the suffering in future entries of the franchise, passing on the torch to Silent Hills 3′s antagonist Claudia, who is leagues more sympathetic in comparison.
1
Sullivan Knoth (Outlast 2)
Depraved Puppeteer Of Suffering
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OpenCritic
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Top Critic Rating:
75/100
This entry, and the game Outlast 2, mention and explore events that may be distressing for some readers and gamers.
There is no question that Outlast has plenty of repulsive villains, each compelling in their own way. While it is possible to see the cause of insanity in the likes of Chris Walker and Father Martin, Outlast 2 introduced a much more calculated antagonist: Sullivan Knoth. Knoth was a cult leader and founder of the Testament of the New Ezekiel cult after allegedly hearing the voice of God via radio static.
Attracting a following of weak, desperate, and hopeful people, Knoth and his cult members settled at Temple Gate, where he continued to encourage incest, sometimes forcibly. Visions of the anti-christ’s birth inspired a paranoia that led him to kill any resulting children. While Murkoff’s involvement in the whole affair may explain away some of the delusion, there is no doubt that Knoth is a twisted man with vile beliefs, and a master of coercion.
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