Horror Gaming Resurgence

Don't look now, but it looks like 2014 may be the year that brings horror gaming back to consoles. PC gamers are lucky enough to have a pretty healthy library of releases every year, with entries into every genre from A-Z. We console people still have plenty to play, but the genres are a bit more limited. A few years ago, it was almost impossible to throw a rock in a Gamestop without hitting a survival horror game. Sure, you could say the market was saturated, much the same way the first person shooter genre has reigned supreme the last few years. Survival horror, hell just horror in general, has taken a pretty substantial hiatus, save for the occasional Silent Hill sequel, or rare gem like the first Dead Space, in the console market.

2014 looks as if it might be a game changer, however (pardon the pun). There have already been a couple of  worthy entries in horror gaming, particularly for the PS4, and I thought I'd show off the games that I've enjoyed so far, and give a look at some that I'm looking forward to later this year...

Outlast was a freebie for PS+ members for the PS4 back in February. This game takes the "survival" part of survival horror very literally. Aside from a run button and a hide button, you have absolutely nothing to defend yourself with. You play as a investigative journalist, acting on a tip about strange shit going on at the long abandoned mental hospital recently re-opened by the Murkoff Corporation. Armed with your notebook and Sony Handycam, you must navigate the blood stained walls of the hospital in search of the truth, and a way out.

Not content with having just one game that will make you scream like a little girl, the PlayStation Network has just added another indie horror title, Daylight, to it's store. This one's party Outlast, part Fatal Frame, and even adds a hint of Silent Hill. That's a recipe for scary, I don't care how hard core you are. In Daylight, you play Sara, who has just awakened in an abandoned hospital, with no idea how she ended up there. Like Daylight, you only have a few random items at your disposal, including a cell phone, glow sticks, and flares, to traverse the maze, searching for clues as to why you're there and just what happened at the facility. Of course, what Sara quickly discovers is that she's not alone...

There are others out there already, Dead Nation Apocalypse Edition for instance, but those are the two that have really gotten me excited about horror games so far.

Now for the really good stuff, the upcoming horror titles for the remainder of this year. In no particular order...

That's a whole lot of horror gaming goodness for the remainder of 2014, and that's just the ones that have been announced. Who knows what else this year has in store. I'm still waiting impatiently for news of a next-gen Silent Hill, among others. It's a good time to be a horror fan, no matter which kind of horror fan you are. If these games end up playing even half as good as they look, we are in for on hell of a fun year.