Big budget, AAA horror games are so 2012. This is the year of the indies, and to prove it, I’ve gathered a couple dozen upcoming titles — all from small studios, with many being the dev’s first project — that prove you don’t need big teams and mountains of cash to make a horror game that’s worth being excited about.

Dying Light, The Evil Within and Doom 4 are all on my radar, but the following games aren’t afraid to push the envelope and be daring with their concepts, mechanics, and stories.

Read on for my list of 30 Upcoming Indie Horror Games You Should Be Excited About!



If you’d prefer a more in-depth look at five of the following thirty horror games that I, personally, am most excited about, you can get all that and more in the video below.

Among The Sleep (PC, maybe PS4, Xbox One)

What makes it exciting: From Krillbite Studio, Among the Sleep follows a two year-old boy who wakes up alone in his home during a thunderstorm. A familiar setting is warped by the child’s imagination until it resembles a waking nightmare. Not many games place you in the footie pajamas of a toddler — that unique idea alone makes this worth checking out.

When you can expect it: Spring 2014

Ashen Rift (PC)

In the horror FPS game Ashen Rift, it’s you and your pitbull against a crumbling, post-apocalyptic wasteland that’s brimming with monsters. Your goal is to close something called the “Rift,” which is supposedly the cause of the Earth’s falling apart. If it was me, I’d be too busy teaching my dog how to go for the nuts on command to close any rifts. That’s probably why I’ll never be a video game hero.

Unfortunately, hordes of monsters known as Feeders stand in your way, but it’s okay, because you have man’s best friend. See this game in action after the jump.

When you can expect it: TBA

Asylum (PC)

What makes it exciting: Agustín Cordes is a game designer who’s perhaps best known for his creepy horror game Scratches. His next project, the psychological horror game Asylum, takes the terror to a much larger scale, as it’s set in a massive, decaying mental institute. On top of that, it’s story is inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft.

When you can expect it: TBA

Caffeine (PC)

What makes it exciting: This one caught my attention only recently, but a series of unsettling teasers have only managed to grow my excitement for this unusual game. Like Among the Sleep, Caffeine follows a young boy who finds himself alone in an eerie environment, only this time the locale is a caffeine mining station in outer space and the horrors that hunt him are most definitely real.

When you can expect it: TBA 2014

Claire (PC)

What makes it exciting: The idea behind Claire is simple: it’s like Silent Hill, if that series was in 2D and had a gorgeous pixelated art style. If you need to be sold after that elevator pitch, I’m afraid I can’t help you.

When you can expect it: TBA 2014

Daylight (PC, PS4)

What makes it exciting: From the makers of the Saw video games, the next horror game from Zombie Studios is the procedurally generated Slender-esque horror game Daylight. It follows a young woman who upon being trapped in a long-abandoned hospital realizes she might not be alone. It’s a horror game of the supernatural variety and it actually finds a novel use for the PS4’s Twitch.tv integration by allowing players to trigger in-game scares through the live-stream chat.

When you can expect it: April 8, 2014

Darkwood (PC)

What makes it exciting: Like Daylight, Darkwood uses procedural generation to ensure each playthrough is different from the next. Every time you dive into its creepy, desaturated world, it will be unfamiliar. It also brings with it some of the unforgiving elements of roguelikes, including permanent death.

When you can expect it: TBA 2014

DreadOut (PC)

What makes it exciting: What makes DreadOut exciting? If you’ve been waiting patiently for a new Fatal Frame, it’s mere existence is exciting. More than that, it looks terrifying and comes with a distinct Indonesian flavor.

When you can expect it: TBA 2014

Faceless (PC)

What makes it exciting: This will be the only Slender Man game on this list, but even if you’ve grown tired of the myriad Slender clones we’ve been inundated with over the last two years, Faceless is intriguing because it introduces four-player co-op into the mix. Now you have a friend (or three) to *accidentally* trip as you run from everyone’s favorite Internet-born Cryptid.

When you can expect it: TBA

The Forest (PC)

What makes it exciting: As I said in the video above, The Forest may very well be my most anticipated horror game of 2014. That’s because it looks horrifying, blends two of my favorite movies — Cannibal Holocaust and The Descent — and mixes in an element of Minecraft through base building and resource gathering. Did I mention it looks horrifying?

When you can expect it: May 22, 2014 (Alpha), Full release TBA