It’s almost Halloween 2025, and you know what that means: the annual flood of horror games. But we’re not interested in the latest triple-A spectacle. We’re focused on the games that are built to trigger deep-set nostalgia while delivering genuine, modern dread—the neo retro titles.
This year, the low-poly look of the PlayStation and the grainy aesthetics of VHS tape are dominant. If you want to spend your Halloween weekend playing new games that feel comfortably, terrifyingly old, here are the absolute essentials you need to download.
The chilling reign of PSX survival horror
The chunky, low-poly graphics and fixed camera angles of the original PlayStation are arguably the most effective way to deliver atmosphere. These games prove the power of visual abstraction.
Flesh Made Fear
This is the main event. A PSX-inspired survival horror nightmare that is scheduled to hit Steam right on Halloween. The combination of blocky visuals and claustrophobic corridors is designed to bring you straight back to the late ’90s dread. Expect tank controls in spirit, if not in practice. If you want true retro horror, start with Flesh Made Fear.
Sorry We’re Closed
Another excellent addition to the low-poly canon. This PSX-styled survival horror is making the leap onto consoles, showing that the demand for this specific aesthetic is only growing. Sorry We’re Closed is the perfect, minimal entry for those who enjoy tension built through visual noise and ambiguity.
Lo-fi and pixelated PC scares
Not all horror needs 3D models. Sometimes, the dread is delivered through intentional graphical degradation, invoking the nightmares of old VHS tapes and early PC adventures.
Blight Night
This is a deep dive into aesthetic horror. Blight Night is built around the terrifying concept of VHS tracking errors and video artifacts. The horror is derived from a technical failure, making the game look like a found-footage tragedy played through a worn-out VCR. It’s an unusual, highly effective style of retro terror.
The Flayed Man
If your taste runs toward classic PC point-and-click adventure games, this is for you. This is pure, skinless and sinful point-and-click horror that relies on graphic adventure stylings and narrative to unsettle you. The Flayed Man (which sounds like something from Game of Thrones, but is far worse) proves that the old format still works for delivering narrative chills.
Out of Memories
This one focuses on atmosphere and abstraction. A minimalist horror adventure that strips away unnecessary graphical detail to deliver its sense of foreboding. It’s a smart exercise in how little detail you need to establish terror, recalling the stark look of early 8-bit text and graphic adventures. Don’t miss out on Out of Memories.
Halloween action and bullet hell
Who says you can’t celebrate Halloween by blowing up everything in sight? These games blend retro action genres—shooters and bullet hell—with dark themes, making them perfect for a high-energy horror marathon.
Vampire Survivors
The king of the horde survival genre is always worth a revisit, and it is receiving a significant Halloween update, including a Balatro crossover and a Castlevania sequel element. If you want maximum, immediate, pixelated action this Halloween, this Vampire Survivors update is mandatory.
Hell Is Other Demons
A critically acclaimed bullet hell that is hitting consoles “just in time for halloween.” Its intense, stylish action and aggressive difficulty make it a great choice for players who prefer to fight back against the darkness with an endless hail of gunfire, perfectly channeling the high-octane 90s aesthetic.
Don’t miss Hell Is Other Demons.
Heavy Metal Death Can
This title tells you exactly what you’re getting: a 90s-style horror shooter. Heavy Metal Death Can is loud, it’s aggressive, and it’s unapologetically retro. This is a game for those who miss the era when shooters weren’t afraid to be fast, messy, and slightly ridiculous.
Nazizombies Slayer
A hardcore pixel shooter that instantly brings to mind classics like Alien Breed. Sometimes, you just need a frantic top-down view and endless hordes of enemies to get the adrenaline pumping. Nazizombies Slayer is pure, intense action wrapped in a horror-themed shell.
Grave Space
Another title that channels that glorious 90s retro energy with a bullet hell twist. This is perfect for those who enjoy the neon aesthetic of the early decade combined with the challenge of modern, high-intensity pattern recognition and evasion. And just to underline the title, in Grave Space, you fly around in a coffin…!
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Christian Cawley is the founder and editor of GamingRetro.co.uk, a website dedicated to classic and retro gaming. With over 20 years of experience writing for technology and gaming publications, he brings considerable expertise and a lifelong passion for interactive entertainment, particularly games from the 8-bit and 16-bit eras.
Christian has written for leading outlets including TechRadar, Computer Weekly, Linux Format, and MakeUseOf, where he also served as Deputy Editor.
When he’s not exploring vintage consoles or retro PCs, Christian enjoys building with LEGO, playing cigar box guitar, and experimenting in the kitchen.
