Summary
Games are usually only as good as their villains, as players need to be truly invested in taking down the big bad of whatever adventure they find themselves thrust into, and the same is true in the horror genre. While there are horror games that thrive without having any tangible threats, there are plenty of others that feature a monster behind everything.
These villains look every bit like a horrifying creature, reflecting their monstrous natures within. From famed franchises such asSilent Hillto more indie titles, these games offer some of the best, and most nightmare-inducing, monster villains that players dread to confront.
Supermassive’s flagship horror game wasUntil Dawn, the title that charted the course forSupermassive’s other horror games. In this title, a prank gone horribly wrong sees twin sisters Hannah and Beth Washington plummet to their deaths off an icy cliff, and one year later, their friends reconvene at the Washington mountain lodge to party and pay tribute.
When the friends arrive, they are subjected to all sorts of horrors at the hands of a masked killer, but there is also something less human at work. It seems the mountain is the home to cannibalistic monsters known as the Wendigo, something a human turns into after they resort to eating human flesh. As it turns out, Hannah actually survived the fall and ate her sister Beth in order to survive starvation, becoming the most feared of the bunch. Seeing her as a human beforehand really drives home the tragedy of her story.
The prequel to the hugely successfulLittle Nightmares,Little Nightmares 2features Six, this time as a companion to the new playable character Mono, as they both explore the Pale City, trying to avoid the terrifying monsters that live there, such as the long-necked teacher and the Hunter. The overarching villain is known as The Thin Man, an extraordinarily tall and pale man who wears a suit and hat.
The Thin Man is an undeniably terrifying antagonist; his appearance is rather unsettling, and the calm quietness he carries with him is chilling. But what makes this villain truly stand out is the twist at the end ofLittle Nightmares 2, which reveals that Mono is The Thin Man. It was an unforeseen revelation that took players by surprise, even moreso than Six’s betrayal.
From one of the notable minds behindResident EvilcameThe Evil Within, a new and original survival horror game that saw players taking on the role of Detective Sebastian Castellanos, who finds himself in a nightmarish otherworld after investigating the scene of a mass murderer. There are manycreepy monsters to find in this otherworld, such as theSilent Hill-inspired Keeper, but none are quite so terrifying, nor as tragic, as Laura.
Laura perished in a fire in her family’s barn as an act of revenge against her parents, and as such, fire and blood follow this long-limbed boss monster during the fight. While players might sympathize with her unjust murder, that certainly doesn’t stop them wanting to put a healthy amount of distance between themselves and Laura. This extra dimension added to her backstory helps Laura stand out against other monsters inThe Evil Withinand the horror genre as a whole.
Though the game might be from a bygone era,Parasite Evestill remains a largely popular title among those who have fond memories ofplaying it back in the late 90s. It introduced gamers to Aya Brea, one of the bravest horror game protagonists, and the titular antagonist Eve, who was once a successful opera singer, and Aya just so happened to be at her performance the night of her transformation.
Eve has quite the lofty ambition to give birth to the Ultimate Being, as it is called in the game, and as one might expect, this is a dangerous ambition that can’t go unchallenged. Though Aya does eventually manage to put an end to Eve and the Ultimate Being, Eve was still a fantastic nemesis to have that stole the spotlight in every scene, definitely giving players a run for their money. Though she may be gone, she certainly won’t be forgotten.
Eveline is the classic example of the quote “[your] scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.” She was the result of combining mold and DNA from Miranda’s daughter Eva, which led to her gaining powerful abilities to control minds and infect others with her gifts. She was smuggled onboard a ship by Mia Winters when Blue Umbrella caught wind of her existence, and both ended up in the care of the Baker family.
Those familiar withResident Evil 7,and particularly its DLC, will know that the Bakers were a normal family until Eveline was introduced in the household, as it was her influence that changed them into monsters. One mustn’t be fooled by either of Eveline’s human forms; she is the true monster ofRE7.
The Xenomorph found its fame in the famousAlienmovie franchise, first appearing all the way back in the late 70s.Practical effects made the creature a truly terrifying specimento witness as it picked off the crew of the Nostromo one by one, with only Ripley and her cat being the sole survivors.Alien: Isolationbrings the story back to the Ripley family, following Ellen’s daughter Amanda as she searches for answers about what happened to her mother.
Tracking down the ship’s flight recorder aboard a space station called Sevestapol, Amanda finds far more than she bargained for when the Xenomorph strolls onto the scene. Unkillable, intelligent, and never too far from the player, this ever-present threat fills every second ofAlien: Isolationwith unrelenting dread and suspense. Players will never know when the creature might drop from a vent to greet them, further adding to the game’s fear factor.
Resident Evil 3runs parallel to the events of the second game, as Raccoon City falls to the ravages of a zombie outbreak.Amidst the zombie humans and dogs, there is also a terrifying juggernaut that is nigh unkillable. Referred to as Nemesis, this monstrous figure has orders to eradicate all surviving S.T.A.R.S. members, and Jill Valentine is now in his sights.
While trying to escape the city before a bomb is dropped on it, Jill has to contend with Nemesis, who always has a way of appearing right when she least expects him. No matter how many times she tries to put him down, he just comes back bigger and badder than before, making every encounter more terrifying and challenging.
There have been few game monsters more iconic or feared thanSilent Hill 2’s Pyramid Head. As James explores the mist-filled town while searching for his wife, whom he previously believed to be dead, he meets more than a few monsters, with themost threatening being Pyramid Head. A few brief encounters and an unbeatable boss battle culminate in a showdown against two of the creatures, with James finally learning the truth of their existence.
Pyramid Head is more of a manifestation of James’s guilt for killing Mary than anything else, which is something he must learn to overcome if he has any hopes of moving on with his life. Despite this, Pyramid Head can bring James down with either his great sword or spear, cutting his exploration of the titular town short. His towering design and the metal pyramid, which either disguises his true face or is a part of his body, help to give him an otherworldly feel.
