I'm not looking for supernatural/ghost stories or horror stories, just games that do a good job being scary and/or disturbing.
Shade, by Andrew Plotkin 10 votes "A perfectly unsettling atmosphere" [+]"A perfectly unsettling atmosphere" ( ![]() | |
Anchorhead, by Michael Gentry 9 votes "Gets in your head" [+]"Gets in your head: It doesn't /scare/ at first, but you don't stop thinking about it. And then you're laying in bed at night and you see the horror. Very subtle and beautiful." ( ![]() | |
Slouching Towards Bedlam, by Star Foster and Daniel Ravipinto 8 votes "Not my cup of tea due to how the Logos was handled (in Christianity, the Logos is Christ), but it certainly was disturbring." [+]"Not my cup of tea due to how the Logos was handled (in Christianity, the Logos is Christ), but it certainly was disturbring." --J'onn Roger... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ![]() | |
De Baron, by Victor Gijsbers 7 votes "Not the fun kind of creepy." [+]"Not the fun kind of creepy." --perch... "Not for those easily triggerred." [+]"Not for those easily triggerred.: Not scary at all, but easily one of the creepiest IF's on the database." --clyde... (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ![]() | |
Shrapnel, by Adam Cadre 6 votes "Disturbing in a psychedelic, nightmarish fashion." [+]"Disturbing in a psychedelic, nightmarish fashion." ( ![]() | |
Vespers, by Jason Devlin 4 votes "It's set in..." [+]"It's set in a plague-stricken monastery and everyone looks like they're going mad. " ( ![]() | |
All Alone, by Ian Finley 4 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ![]() | |
Kaged, by Ian Finley 4 votes "Orwellian..." [+]"Orwellian dystopia, creepily presented." ( ![]() | |
Babel, by Ian Finley 3 votes "Not violent, just very very creepy" [+]"Not violent, just very very creepy" ( ![]() | |
The Awakening, by Dennis Matheson 2 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ![]() | |
1981, by Anonymous 2 votes "Hard to discuss..." [+]"Hard to discuss without spoilering, but the PC is a stalker." --Christina Nordlander... (No comment) [+](No comment) --Jubal... ![]() | |
A Fire Darkly: Chapter 1, by Louis Rakovich 2 votes "beautifully unsettling" [+]"beautifully unsettling" ( ![]() | |
The King of Shreds and Patches, by Jimmy Maher 2 votes "Never mind scary..." [+]"Never mind scary and creepy, I'm yet to play another text adventure that makes you forget it's turn based, and afraid you're going to mistype a command in your hurry to escape. Simply amazing." ( ![]() | |
Ecdysis, by Peter Nepstad 2 votes "More Lovecraftian than Lovecraft" [+]"More Lovecraftian than Lovecraft" ( ![]() | |
The Blind House, by Amanda Allen 2 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ![]() | |
The Lurking Horror, by Dave Lebling 2 votes "Probably the..." [+]"Probably the creepiest IF from back when it was called adventure games and you still had to pay for them." ( ![]() | |
Going Down, by Hanon Ondricek 2 votes (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ![]() | |
Rameses, by Stephen Bond 1 vote "Trapped in a disturbing life, as an excessively damaged person." [+]"Trapped in a disturbing life, as an excessively damaged person.: The protagonist in Rameses deserves his suffering; he's a poster boy example of the "spineless milksop" protagonist found in several modern works, but slipping into his perspective starts off creepy (like wearing a damp tuxedo stolen from a casket) and gets creepier as you realize that you, as Rameses, have no real agency. Then it's like still being in the tux, but being put back in the casket where it belongs ... Thoroughly unsympathetic character + well-written rails = genuinely unsettling IF experience." ( ![]() | |
Cragne Manor, by Ryan Veeder, Jenni Polodna, Adam Whybray, Adri, Andrew Plotkin, Andy Holloway, Austin Auclair, Baldur Brückner, Ben Collins-Sussman, Bill Maya, Brian Rushton, Buster Hudson, Caleb Wilson, Carl Muckenhoupt, Chandler Groover, Chris Jones, Christopher Conley, Damon L. Wakes, Daniel Ravipinto, Daniel Stelzer, David Jose, David Petrocco, David Sturgis, Drew Mochak, Edward B, Emily Short, Erica Newman, Feneric, Finn Rosenløv, Gary Butterfield, Gavin Inglis, Greg Frost, Hanon Ondricek, Harkness Munt, Harrison Gerard, Ian Holmes, Ivan Roth, Jack Welch, Jacqueline Ashwell, James Eagle, Jason Dyer, Jason Lautzenheiser, Jason Love, Jeremy Freese, Joey Jones, Joshua Porch, Justin de Vesine, Justin Melvin, Katherine Morayati, Kenneth Pedersen, Lane Puetz, Llew Mason, Lucian Smith, Marco Innocenti, Marius Müller, Mark Britton, Mark Sample, Marshal Tenner Winter, Matt Schneider, Matt Weiner, Matthew Korson, Michael Fessler, Michael Gentry, Michael Hilborn, Michael Lin, Mike Spivey, Molly Ying, Monique Padelis, Naomi Hinchen, Nate Edwards, Petter Sjölund, Q Pheevr, Rachel Spitler, Reed Lockwood, Reina Adair, Riff Conner, Roberto Colnaghi, Rowan Lipkovits, Sam Kabo Ashwell, Scott Hammack, Sean M. Shore, Shin, Wade Clarke, Zach Hodgens, Zack Johnson 1 vote "Some of these rooms are horrifying." [+]"Some of these rooms are horrifying." ( ![]() | |
Awakening, by Pete Gardner 1 vote (No comment) [+](No comment) ( ![]() | |
Andromeda Awakening - The Final Cut, by Marco Innocenti 1 vote "Scary in a way that's not supernatural" [+]"Scary in a way that's not supernatural: The world is about to end, and only you know it since your colleague was just assassinated. There's a sense of urgency throughout the whole story to warn others before it's too late." ( ![]() | |
Resonance, by Matt Scarpino 1 vote "Eerie and..." [+]"Eerie and unsettling. After all, it is about mind control. And yet, you are determined to rise above it." --Kinetic Mouse Car... ![]() | |
Theatre, by Brendon Wyber 1 vote "My first ever IF..." [+]"My first ever IF played - you are stuck alone in an abandon theatre. It is much more than it seems... every unsettling when playing at night." --DustyCypress... ![]() | |
Make It Good, by Jon Ingold 1 vote "Draws the player..." [+]"Draws the player into an uncomfortable moral place." ( ![]() | |
Blind, by Andrew Metzger 1 vote "Creep kidnaps..." [+]"Creep kidnaps blind woman and keeps her in creepy locale. That's plenty of creep." ( ![]() | |
The Storm, by Stephane F. 1 vote (No comment) [+](No comment) --Stephane F.... ![]() | |
rendition, by nespresso 1 vote "Torture and abuse" [+]"Torture and abuse" ( ![]() | |
Poll created on July 17, 2009