The original game was a Facebook app that similarly put users in the middle of a horror movie, but it also used their personal data to creep them out. “The first film experience played on the very real growing concern about data security that for years had been splashed endlessly across major news headlines,” Zada explained to Rolling Stone. But this game, will test you to see how well you truly know the game, if you 'know' the characters and all the moves inside-out, I can almost guarantee that you will NOT lose a match. This game is extremely logical, and knowing how characters fight, their strengths and weaknesses, will win you a match almost every time.
For the past couple of months, I've been making bite-sized horror text games at BiteSizedHorror.com. I love making short, scary text games. It's a real challenge to create an atmosphere with just a few words. And I wanted to challenge other people to do it, too.
The jam starts on Monday at midnight (Pacific Time). At that moment, a word will be posted/tweeted/emailed. That word has to be included in your game at some point.
It ends the Sunday before Halloween at midnight. So, it starts Sunday night, and it ends Sunday night. During the week, you should make your game, tweet about it using #BiteSizedHorrorJam, or do whatever you want.
So, here are the rules:
1. You have to make the game during this week until Sunday at midnight, the 25th of October.
2. It must be a horror game!
3. It must be a text game!
4. It must have less than 666 words.
5. It has to include the special word: MONSTER
HOW DO I MAKE A TEXT GAME?
Use Twine! It's a wonderful tool. It's a lot easier than you think, and there's a bunch of guides to help you online. (Here's a great one!)
You can also use any other tools, code, libraries, etc. that you like. Twine is a great tool for beginners, but anything and everything is encouraged.
DO YOU HAVE ANY EXAMPLES?
I really love two games by Liz England: growth and itch. There's also this one by Rachel Ponce called Tiny Lights. The reason I started making tiny text games in the first place was Porpentine's Twiny Jam, where all three of those were posted. You should check that out for inspiration (even though not all the games are horror).
PRIZES!
The jam is scored on three qualities: Scariness, Uniqueness, and Overall Quality. So, the rubric is biased toward unique games and scary games. Keep that in mind!
Everyone who enters gets the prize of having made a game. The person with the highest average score above gets bragging rights. In addition to bragging rights, they will receive a prize pack containing Stephen King's Danse Macabre and an Amazon Gift Card of $25.
Nathan Meunier has donated 3 Steam keys to his newly released game, This Book is a Dungeon. It was made in Twine! They'll be given to the people who win in each of the three categories.
David Szymanski has donated a Steam key to his game, The Music Machine, to the highest overall scorer.
And Brandon Li has donated 5 copies of the iOS version of Indefinite to the Top 5 overall scorers.
Other prizes may be announced during the jam! If you would like to contribute a prize, please send me an email at g karber @ gmail (dot) com.
It doesn’t need to be October to enjoy some spooky games. Horror titles are plentiful each year as developers bring out new IPs and installments to beloved franchises. However, if you’re wanting to save some money and enjoy a good horror title then check out some of these games below. You may find something well worth downloading and enjoying today. However, you may want to note that these titles are not ranked in any particular order. With that said, enjoy the list down below and check back for future updates.
#10 One Night
- Developer: Dark Gaia Studios
Indie games can really bring out some unique experiences and for fans of the horror genre, there are a ton of great content out there for you. However, if you grew up playing the likes of the Sony PlayStation, then you may be more fond of the old school survival horror setup. The kind of game which doesn’t necessarily throw jump scares at your way but instead puts players into an unsettling world filled with puzzles and a map that relies on players memories of where exactly everything is. If you’re wanting to take a step back in time and enjoy a classic style survival horror game for free, then we have something well worth checking out.
R1 Slasher Chatslasher The Gamer
One Night is a title that is easily comparable to the likes of classic Resident Evil but with a 16-bit visual style. This game throws players into a man who awakens with no memory other than being stuck in an unusual place known only as The Complex. From there it’s a game against odds as you find yourself trying to solve puzzles and riddles to unlock new areas. Likewise, there are plenty of creatures randomly roaming the in-game world and you’re not prepared to fight them. Instead, you have to seek out weapons that will be used essentially once to keep a monster away. Furthermore, another neat little callback to the days of Resident Evil, you’ll have to locate “safe rooms” in which you’ll be able to make a game save.
#9 PT
- Developer: Konami / Fan Remakes
R1 Slasher Chatslasher The Game Changer
It was during Gamescom 2014 that P.T. was announced. This was a demo being released on the PlayStation Network for PlayStation 4 that gamers could download. Everything regarding the demo was mysterious and the demo itself was made to take players a long time to uncover all of the puzzle solutions before it would be completed. With that challenge in place players worldwide took to the game and progressed through this survival horror title in order to find out more. After so long gamers started to find out all the cryptic clues and completed the demo for it to play a cutscene which featured Norman Reedus and the official title, “Silent Hills” a brand new installment to the love beloved survival horror franchise.
This game has since been pulled from being online for the PlayStation Network. It’s an unfortunate move because so many people out there who found this game afterwards is no longer going to be able to enjoy it for free officially. With that said, there are all kinds of remakes available online that can give you the chance in trying out this experience. Grant it, these are not official video games but there’s really nothing you can do about that unless you purchase a PlayStation 4 that has a P.T. demo already installed. After all, this is a list about free horror games so if you search the web a bit, you’ll come across some fan remakes rather easily.
#8 Doki Doki Literature Club
- Developer: Team Salvato
R1 Slasher Chatslasher The Game Pc
There is a ton of different various of horror video games. Some rely on atmosphere while others go straight for the jump scares. However, it’s usually pretty telling right away what a game is going to be like before even having to start the game up. Doki Doki Literature Club is far from a game that looks anything remotely like a horror video gameplay experience. On the surface, Doki Doki Literature Club is a visual novel, one that likely follows a dating simulation and honestly, those games have never really caught my attention.
But you would be amiss if you didn’t try this game out as again, the surface is incredibly misleading. This is a psychological horror game that toys with the players. The deeper you get into the narrative, the more unsettling the game becomes. Unfortunately, this is a game that I really can’t dive into with the premise as it would spoil too much and it’s a title that’s really best going into without really any knowledge other than knowing that it’s quite the unsettling horror gameplay experience.
#7 September 1999
- Developer: 98DEMAKE
R1 Slasher Chatslasher The Game Of Life
The found footage horror experience is one that’s usually featured in movies. It’s setup in a way that makes the viewer feel like the film is more or less actual discovered footage which should hopefully put the viewers on edge well after the film comes to an end. It’s not often that we get something of that caliber in video games but there is September 1999 that we could suggest players check into. This is a game that acts like an old school VHS tape footage.
You have about five minutes to go through the title where your roaming someone’s home. However, it’s clear that there’s something quite unusual going on in this world and there’s no telling just what’s around the corner. Being stuck in an unfamiliar home can be tense, but this experience goes a step beyond to make the atmospheric journey a creepy one even if it’s short. Again, similar to Doki Doki Literature Club, I can’t dabble into this premise all that much without spoiling what’s ahead.
#6 Slender: The Eight Pages
- Developer: Mark J. Hadley
Listen, chances are you played Slender: The Eight Pages. Slenderman was a big online folklore story that had fans spreading around creepy tales for a good few years. However, it wasn’t long after this myth gained some major popularity and at one point a fan made a video game for players to enjoy. It followed a generic tale for Slenderman in which players were in a dark forest as they venture out to fight eight pages. However, it’s clear that Slenderman is near and you’ll certainly want to keep away. This game has become a classic and an online phenomenon. If you haven’t played it yet and enjoy some good old jump scares, then this is one classic that’s well worth downloading today.