What is the best survival horror video game of all time?

Survival horror is a genre built on dread, tension, and the desperate fight to stay alive — which game mastered it best? From Resident Evil 4's revolutionary over-the-shoulder design to Silent Hill 2's psychological labyrinth, vote for the survival horror masterpiece you'd recommend to anyone.

1

Subnautica

Unknown Worlds' 2018 underwater survival game set on an alien ocean planet — terrifying not through jump scares but through the fear of the deep unknown.

1000pts

2

The Last of Us

Naughty Dog's 2013 post-apocalyptic masterwork following Joel and Ellie across a fungus-ravaged America, praised for its storytelling and emotional depth.

952pts

3

Resident Evil 4

Capcom's 2005 masterpiece (remade in 2023) that revolutionized the genre with over-the-shoulder gameplay while Leon Kennedy rescues the President's daughter.

888pts

4

Until Dawn

Supermassive's 2015 branching horror experience in which eight friends on a mountain retreat face a slasher, and all decisions affect who lives or dies.

833pts

5

Outlast

Red Barrels' 2013 first-person asylum horror in which the player carries only a camcorder with night vision while fleeing violent inmates.

761pts

6

Condemned: Criminal Origins

Monolith's 2005 dark forensic horror-thriller set in decaying urban environments, praised for its brutal melee combat and gripping mystery narrative.

761pts

7

Dead Space

EA's 2008 sci-fi horror classic (remade in 2023) set on an infested deep-space mining ship, famous for its dismemberment mechanic and oppressive atmosphere.

666pts

8

Resident Evil 2

Capcom's 2019 remake of the survival horror classic, praised as one of the finest remakes in gaming history for its modern tension and detailed design.

666pts

9

Amnesia: The Dark Descent

Frictional Games' 2010 first-person horror game stripped the player of weapons entirely, creating sustained psychological dread through helplessness.

533pts

10

Silent Hill 2

Konami's 2001 psychological horror landmark about James Sunderland searching a foggy town for his dead wife, renowned for its deeply symbolic story.

333pts

11

Little Nightmares

Tarsier Studios' 2017 atmospheric puzzle-platformer horror with a grotesque giant-inhabited world seen through the eyes of a tiny girl in a yellow raincoat.

333pts

12

Phasmophobia

Kinetic Games' 2020 co-op ghost hunting game where players must identify supernatural entities using equipment while avoiding being killed by them.

333pts

13

Alien: Isolation

Creative Assembly's 2014 survival game that perfectly captured the terror of Ridley Scott's original film, with a nearly perfect AI Xenomorph hunting the player.

0pts

14

SOMA

Frictional Games' 2015 deep-sea sci-fi horror that uses its terrifying setting to explore deeply philosophical questions about consciousness and identity.

0pts