The hit video game The Last of Us is getting a lot more attention now that HBO has finally started airing its live-action version of the game. In particular, both veterans and newcomers to the game talked about how scary it was. Fans say that The Last of Us is one of, if not the best, horror game of the 2010s.
Even though The Last of Us and its sequel can be scary and sad, they’re not the best horror games on video games. Some things in other zombie-themed games were done better than in The Last of Us, and some games are just scary on a whole different level.
10. The Underwater Tomb in BioShock Was Just The Beginning!
Even though it’s the most popular and well-known zombie game after the end of the world, The Last of Us’ setting and gameplay isn’t very new or innovative. The fact that The Last of Us stood out in a subgenre with a lot of games is a sign of how skilled and passionate the developers were. But this didn’t happen with BioShock because it was different.
BioShock gave players a truly unique and disturbing experience with the cramped city of Rapture and its darkly political way of life. BioShock’s famous twist also gave players an existential crisis and made them think about how video games are made. The Last of Us will be made again, but there will only ever be one BioShock.
9. Crimson Butterfly’s Amakura Sisters Weighed Heavily On Gamers In Fatal Frame II!
In The Last of Us, players had to protect Ellie, even though she was good at taking care of herself. Even though Ellie was often in trouble, players always knew she was safe. In the second Fatal Frame game, players had to fight ghosts and protect Mayu from angry spirits.
Even though Mayu was the sister of Mio, the player character, her safety was never a given. Mayu’s good or bad ending depended on what the player did. This and the already creepy main idea of Crimson Butterfly, which is to scare away ghosts with a camera, was way scarier and tenser than any scare Ellie got caught in by accident.
8. P.T. Was A Short-Lived But Unforgettable Nightmare!
The playable teaser for the now-canceled Silent Hills will not only be remembered as one of the best-lost pieces of media but also as one of the best horror games ever made. Even though it was short and kept using the same level and assets, P.T. perfectly showed what it was like to be stuck in a nightmare that seemed to never end.
In its defense, The Last of Us couldn’t even come close to copying P.T.’s strange and creepy terror because it had clear rules and a simple story. Also, The Last of Us put players right in the shoes of Joel, Ellie, and Abby. The main reason P.T. won as a horror game was that it let players live through the nightmare.
7. Spec Ops: The Line: A Slow Decline Into Insanity!
The Last of Us and, especially, The Last of Us Part II are known for showing how bad people are. It’s sad and scary when Joel and Ellie have to face their worst sides. But it was never as strange and scary as Spec Ops: The Line, a military shooter that looks familiar but isn’t at all.
Spec Ops: The Line had a lot of graphic violence and weird nightmares, but it also lets players convince themselves to commit war crimes, which showed them how easy it was to lose their humanity. Players knew how dark The Last of Us would get because it was basically an interactive zombie movie. But you can’t say the same thing about Spec Ops: The Line.
6. “This War of Mine” Showed How Terrible and Real War Is!
Most games about fighting, like The Last of Us, showed violence and war from the point of view of the fighters. This War of Mine did things differently by letting players control the civilians who were caught in the middle of the fighting. Because of this, This War of Mine became one of the most horrifying and tragic human games ever made.
Even though it was set in a grim and hopeless world, The Last of Us wasn’t that different from a lot of other post-apocalyptic games about power. This War of Mine was a terrible game that kept getting worse as you went through it. This War of Mine will make people feel scared in a way that The Last of Us can’t.
5. Resident Evil 4’s Campy Fun Hid It’s Real Horror!
Resident Evil 4 is best known as a tribute to campy, unintentionally funny B-movies, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have any scary parts. When Leon Kennedy’s mission to save Ashley Graham slowed down, Resident Evil 4 didn’t hesitate to scare players with a disturbing enemy design or encounter.
The Last of Us had realistic fights and enemies that were based on science. On the other hand, Resident Evil 4 didn’t let the reality of the Las Plagas infection limit how scary it could be. Because of this morbid sense of creative freedom and self-awareness, Resident Evil 4 scared players in a way that The Last of Us didn’t because it was too serious.
4. Amnesia: The Dark Descent Made Players Feel Helpless!
Amnesia: The Dark Descent may be best known for being the source of a lot of memes and copies, but that doesn’t take away from how well it got under players’ skins. Amnesia was scary not only because of its classic Gothic horror and mystery but also because it made players feel helpless. In order to do this, players were forced to hide instead of fighting back.
Even though there were some scripted events and hard boss fights in The Last of Us, players could still defend themselves or even beat their enemies. Any player with enough skill and luck could turn The Last of Us from a scary game into an exciting ride. This wasn’t possible in Amnesia, which made it scarier and more primal.
3. Silent Hill 2 Became A Horror Classic For A Good Reason!
Silent Hill 2 has become a synonym for scary video games. The most memorable things about the sequel are the tragic characters and the town that traps players in. The name of the game was Silent Hill, and it was a nightmare like no other. Nothing, not even Silent Hill, could be scarier than what Silent Hill 2 made.
On the other hand, The Last of Us’ well-developed characters and the lived-in world are just the best versions of archetypes and tropes from other post-apocalyptic stories. If The Last of Us was a good example of how to make the most of a formula, then Silent Hill 2 broke new ground by pushing the well-known psychological horror formula of its predecessor to its limits.
2. Limbo Perfectly Remade A Childhood Nightmare!
The Last of Us was scary not only because of the undead but also because of the fear of society falling apart and the chaos and cruelty that would follow. The scary parts of Limbo, on the other hand, came from something more basic and real. With its huge spiders and scary giants, Limbo was basically a child’s worst nightmare come true.
Limbo played on these fears from childhood by having creepy graphics and making the player control a helpless child. Worse, he didn’t have many ways to defend himself. Gamers were scared by The Last of Us because it showed how the world could end. Limbo, on the other hand, was better at scaring players because it made them think of their most basic but most powerful fears.
1. The Horrors of Detention Were Inspired by Evil & Real-Life Horror!
The Last of Us is a story, even if it seems real and like it could happen. At most, it was based on history and nature in general. Detention seemed to fit this description because it looked the same as many other horror games that were based on Asian horror fiction. The real scary thing about Detention is how it ties into Taiwan’s real dark past.
In the 1960s, Taiwan had martial law. The game Detention is about the ghosts of that time. This, along with the creepy graphics and gameplay, made Detention the kind of horror game that some people might find too real to play. The horrors of The Last of Us were lessened by the escape-like suspension of disbelief, which Detention lacks.
