10 Horror Movies That Would Make Great Games
From Hollywood to Darkwood
Video game adaptations are now standard practice in Hollywood, with studio execs eyeing up pre-loaded fandoms as a safe route to box office returns. Familiar names, built-in audiences; it’s an easy pitch.
It’s also nothing new. From various Star Wars and Indiana Jones games to the disaster of E.T. on Atari, games have been feeding off film licenses for decades, especially in gaming’s past when tie-ins doubled as marketing machines and deadlines mattered more than quality.
Horror movie properties have dipped in and out of games as well. Alien, Blair Witch, Friday the 13th - they all took a stab at the gaming sphere - but a surprising number of the genre gems have yet to make the leap.
As a fun hypothetical here are 10 horror films I think are primed for a video game adaptation, and the developers who could actually do them justice.*
*For the record, I am not including fan games or promotional mobile efforts as pre-existing titles; these are, by and large, ideas for full horror game experiences. Also, this list is all speculation for fun and in no way is based on any public or press information about current development plans.
AS INTERACTIVE SURVIVAL HORROR FROM:
This is one of those movies that feels like it’s already been converted to a game what with Ghostface, or at least the mask, carving out a presence across games from Mortal Kombat to Dead by Daylight. Yet, a full adaptation of the original meta-slasher still hasn’t materialized.
Scream thrives on self-awareness; it dissects horror and its role within society. It plays with expectation, then weaponizes it. That makes it a natural fit for a choice-driven structure, multiple perspectives, branching paths, and characters you’re never quite sure will make it to the next scene. Until Dawn already proved how effective that formula can be, pulling from the same teen-slasher DNA that helped revive Scream.
The fit is obvious; Supermassive Games knows this space better than anyone.
AS PSYCHOLOGICAL HORROR FROM:
I can’t think of many friends who have seen this indie sci-fi gem, but it’s a movie that has a haunting high-concept that I often look back on as a exceptionally underrated horror.
Brandon Cronenberg lives up to his father's name with the amount of body horror on display in this film, as the main character is an elite corporate assassin who puppeteers people’s bodies using advanced brain implant tech to complete high-profile executions undetected.
As a game, I would structure it like one of Codename 47’s forays, ensuring to encapsulate the darkly psychological bent that plagues the protagonist. Fight against surrealist anomalies due to the mind-melding drawbacks of the technology, whilst pursuing the path to the target? Give it to me.
Alan Wake 2 and Control dev Remedy would have this in the bag, and they’d likely bridge both of those games to inspire a fantastic gameplay experience based on a compelling indie sci-fi horror.
AS ASYMMETRICAL TACTICAL MULTIPLAYER FROM:
This movie, on the surface, seems an extremely generic, clichéd effort. However, once you recognize the multiple layers of its meta-satire, you can see how not only does it work better as a horror movie on second viewing, but also one that could work brilliantly as a game.
Spoiler alert: the titular Cabin (in the woods) is actually a sacrifice site where ancient underground gods demand specific offerings to prevent global annihilation.
Imagine playing as the orchestrator of a hypothetical game, needing to lure unsuspecting college teens to their deaths, in order to survive a greater obliteration? The teens could be controlled by real players, while the orchestrator aims to kill every one of them, or everyone could lose in dramatic world-ending fashion.
Think of Five Nights At Freddy’s meets Resident Evil Resistance in the hands of Dead by Daylight devs Behaviour Interactive - I’m in!
AS HORROR PLATFORMER FROM:
Admittedly, I haven’t even seen Good Boy yet; it’s been on my film backlog for a good few months, and honestly, with such a short runtime, I have no excuse.
However, the premise is extremely simple: it’s a supernatural horror movie from the perspective of a dog.
I would love nothing more than to control said dog, taking on ‘supernatural horrors’, in a unique package by the team that brought us Little Nightmares and REANIMAL. It screams hit, quite honestly.
AS SCI-FI SURVIVAL HORROR FROM:
As far as I am concerned, Paul W.S. Anderson has only landed twice when it comes to game adaptations: Mortal Kombat (1995), a good adaptation trapped in a messy film, and Resident Evil, a loose adaptation that still worked as blockbuster horror. Everything since has chipped away at that goodwill, none more baffling than turning Monster Hunter into a desert-bound military story.
Yet, Event Horizon stands apart as an original; a cult sci-fi horror that fuses Alien’s industrial dread with Hellraiser’s descent into something far worse. Its legacy runs deep; you can see it etched into the design language of Dead Space, from the claustrophobic corridors to the sense of cosmic wrongness.
This is survival horror waiting to happen: slow, oppressive, unknowable. A prequel makes the most sense, following the ship’s original crew as they drift into something they cannot understand or escape.
Bloober Team feels like the right call here; having followed up the Silent Hill 2 Remake with Cronos, the latter auditioned successfully for the role of developer in my hypothetical adaptation.
AS ACTION HORROR FROM:
It feels obvious. Maybe too obvious. Zombie games are everywhere; the well has been tapped dry repeatedly. Still, Train to Busan shifts the equation just enough to stand out.
The train setting does most of the heavy lifting: tight corridors, limited routes, and constant forward momentum. Combat would feel immediate and overwhelming, something closer to Dynasty Warriors colliding with the early sections of Resident Evil 0, with waves of infected pushing through narrow spaces. Between those bursts, there could be dramatic quieter moments: regrouping, solving small environmental puzzles, forcing open the next carriage before the horde catches up.
Platinum Games might not be known for horror, but they understand combat flow better than most. Within a confined setting like this, that expertise could turn chaos into something controlled, readable, and relentlessly engaging.
AS FIRST-PERSON SURVIVAL HORROR FROM:
The setup of this one practically writes the gameplay loop. Darkness becomes the central mechanic, not just visual, but psychological. A failing torch, limited battery, and tight tunnels that disorient as much as they restrict. The Crawlers are most effective when they are heard but not seen: movement in the distance, shapes just out of reach, the moment of recognition coming far too late.
Combat is secondary, if it exists at all. This leans into avoidance, vulnerability, and the slow erosion of control. Add in night vision, sound cues, spatial awareness; the tools could be minimal while maximizing constant tension.
Red Barrels feels like the right fit; Outlast already proved how effective they are at sustaining dread without relying on traditional combat.
AS THIRD-PERSON ACTION HORROR FROM:
Technically an adaptation of the book of the same name, Guillermo del Toro's first English-language film, Mimic, whilst not an instant hit, has a cult allegiance, indebted mostly to the Director’s Cut version, which fixed some of the studio meddling of the theatrical release.
This film centers on a story about a genetically modified bug that is on the loose after evolving rapidly and can - you guessed it - mimic other species (including humans).
I’d seat the player behind the wheel of one of the CDC Operatives, tasked with trawling the sewers for the big bug and returning a tissue sample so its potential spawn can be destroyed biologically. That’s when Mr. Funny Shoes goes all Tyrant-like and becomes a persistent threat.
The Evil Within team, Tango Gameworks, back from closure (with Guillermo himself - who seems to be involved in multiple game projects anyway - assisting), would be a great choice. Utilizing their sense for gruesome and grotesque, melded with action-horror set pieces and moments.
AS DETECTIVE MYSTERY HORROR FROM:
Not an obvious pick, but an increasingly relevant one. Psychological horror with investigative depth has found its footing again; players are more willing to sit in uncertainty to piece together fragmented narratives.
This would lean heavily on investigation systems; examining scenes, connecting clues, and interrogating unreliable witnesses. Combat remains limited, reserved for moments where the infection, or possession, manifests more violently. Encounters could draw from ritualistic mechanics; shamanistic tools used not to fight, but to push back, to reveal, to survive.
Frogwares stands out here; The Sinking City already explored that blend of investigation and psychological unease, and this would sharpen that focus into something more oppressive, more personal.
AS CO-OP ACTION HORROR FROM:
Dog Soldiers is built for co-op: preparation, defense, panic. Barricading doors, rationing ammunition, setting traps, holding positions as waves of werewolves close in. The tension comes from balance; action and survival constantly pulling against each other, every decision buying time or costing it.
There’s a renewed appetite for creatures like this; Resident Evil Village dragged lycans back into the spotlight, and the appetite hasn’t faded. This would lean into that energy: fast, brutal, unpredictable.
Techland feels like the natural choice; Dying Light already blends traversal, combat, and survival systems into something kinetic. Shift that into a tighter, more defensive structure, and the result could be a co-op horror experience that thrives on pressure and teamwork.
Well, it’s safe to say I would play the hell out of all of these games. The question is, would you? Let us know on Discord which movie-to-game was your favorite!
If you have any of your own, be sure to drop those too!
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