Terrifying levels make players feel like they are living out one of the most horrific experiences. That sounds dreadful to some, yet it is one of the most enjoyable experiences for others. This is because sometimes getting scared is a lot of fun. A lot of games that have scary levels tend to be that way because of their horror genre, but many games that are not horror in nature also feature such levels.
This list aims to talk about the best levels that have some of the biggest scares in gaming and provide some of the most interesting backdrops.
10 We Don't Go To Ravenholm -- Half-Life 2
The "We Don't Go to Ravenholm" chapter of Half-Life 2 is so out of the left field from what the rest of the game provides. It switches the play style of the game. The game is initially more focused on being an action-adventure title, but this level takes basically everything the player knows, gets rid of it, and throws them into a Headcrab-infested city.
The city has a lot of moments where players will need to carefully navigate around the Headcrabs and use traps to their advantage.
9 The MacMillan Estate -- Dead By Daylight
Dead By Daylight is The MacMillian level and is not a place that players want to be if they are playing the survivor's side of the game. It's an industrial area meshed with foggy forests and buildings that are falling apart. It looks like the perfect setting for the game.
The level offers many ways to avoid the killer, but players must use the different buildings and trees to outsmart the killer. There are several open spaces where the killer could quickly run up on the players to kill them.
8 The Sewers -- The Last of Us
The sewers in The Last of Us are one of the most unnerving parts as there is a lot of stillness that takes place during this part of the game. A lot of tension has already formed between Joel and a character named Henry by this part of the story, so there is that looming threat but also that of clickers being around any corner ready to strike.
It's a great level that keeps on building that tension, forcing the players to be more strategic in how they take out large droves of clickers.
7 The Child’s Room -- Layers Of Fear
This part of the game is fairly short, but it provides a terrifying sequence in Layers of Fear. The players go into a colorful well-lit children's room, and if they pick up the carousel, it acts as a light and music box that slowly spins the character. Things in the room start to come to life and get more and more out of hand.
It's an experience that players must witness on their own as the room horrifically begins to become more disfigured in its appearance until fully unrecognizable.
6 Resident Evil: Biohazard -- Escape The House
The initial house level with Jack in Resident Evil: Biohazard is masterful in its horrific design. It has to be one of the most distraught-filled experiences that a player can have in gaming. The players are forced into a tight, compact space with a serial killer hunting them.
Players must be able to sneak around Jack while also completing a puzzle to open a door. Jack becomes increasingly horrendous as the players do more damage to him, and the fight shows players just how weak the protagonist is. It's a dreadfully wondrous set-up for what's to come.
5 First Laura Chase Scene -- The Evil Within
The Evil Within very effectively sets up its terrifying villains throughout the story, and the first chase scene with Laura proves this. Players will experience this harrowing monster as she runs towards them in a chase scene that includes light puzzles.
Laura's grisly figure is only expanded on with her ability to be able to transport herself through the use of dead bodies and pools of blood. The chase makes players think about their next move. If, at any point, the players mess up, Laura can be fast in punishing them.
4 Return To The Ishimura -- Dead Space 2
The return to the Ishimura section of Dead Space 2 takes players back to the ship that started it all. The level has a lot of long areas where not much is going on. This leaves players unsure when one of the Necromorphs might try to rip their heads off. As the players get farther into the map, the fear of uncertainty starts to get in their heads.
When players encounter the first Necromorph, it will be something that they will remember for years to come as it feels unexpected and well-placed.
3 Brownstone High School -- Phasmophobia
The High School in Phasmophobia is one of the creepiest maps because of several reasons. One of those factors is that the map makes the players feel alone most of the time, even if they are with a full squad. The huge map makes it tricky for players to figure out which room the ghost resides in, so they'll often split up.
The school feels desolate as each of the rooms varies in size. If players choose to do this alone in the dark, it is certain to be one of the most terrifying experiences.
2 Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly -- Sae Kurosawa Boss Fight
The boss fight against Sae Kurosawa in Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly is one of the most nightmarish boss fights ever made. How this boss fight is handled is terrifying, as players will need to time their movement precisely to not be latched onto and attacked. The pictures that players land will also reveal a ghastly smiling Sae.
Fatal Frame II's sound is exquisitely handled to match the fight's grim tone. Her laughter echoes throughout the fight, the music dulls and then gets maddeningly loud, and for the entirety of the fight, Sae is telling the players about how she was murdered.
1 Eddie Gluskin Pursuit -- Outlast 2
Outlast 2's section against Eddie Gluskin will be appalling to some as the chase gets drastic before it ever gets any better. Eddie Gluskin relentlessly chases the players, and as the chase continues, the game keeps adding different obstacles that make the players feel helpless.
There is a point where the players' ability to walk is stifled, and the fight makes them feel powerless throughout its entirety, making the level feel like a heart-pounding experience. This is one of those maps that really isn't for the faint of heart, as the scares are taken far past what most people are used to seeing.