5 Video Games for Halloween

Leaves are on the ground, nights are drawing in, and that means autumn is here. With it, comes Halloween goodness. Many decide to pull out the horror movie collection and have a spook-filled night in, so why not do the same with the video game collection? Here are 5 games that will get you in the mood, each representing an aspect of Halloween.

Spooky: Deadly Premonition

Deadly Premonition may well be the Marmite (love it or hate it) of video games. Famed for its great Twin Peaks style plot, intriguing characters and often hilarious voice acting and comedy horror, my view is firmly in the ‘love it’ category.

This open-world, non linear murder mystery adventure with a twist of horror is an experience like no other. The lead character, Agent York, is the most intriguing of all, but that is just one of the mysteries of Greenvale, the game’s location setting. Ok so the combat may be duff at times, with very basic ‘stand still to shoot’ mechanics, but it saves Deadly Premonition from being no more than an interactive movie. Thoroughly creepy, intentionally quirky and funny, and always a mystery until the very end, Deadly Premonition is definitely a unique horror story and I cannot recommend it enough for that alone.

Costumes: Costume Quest

Everyone loves to dress up on Halloween, especially when it comes to trick or treat time, or maybe a Halloween party. Costume Quest takes that concept one step further, in this adventure with JRPG elements.

You play the part of one of a pair of child siblings, in costume and ‘trick or treating’, the basis of locating missions around their neighbourhood, with RPG-style turn based combat, where the costumes come to life, ranging from a fully fledged knight to the Statue of Liberty. Costume Quest plays out like a great interactive kid’s book, and although its simplicity becomes repetitive, it captures the fun essence of Halloween perfectly.

Horror: Dead Space

For full blown visceral horror, you need look no further than Dead Space. The fact that it is set in space is only aesthetic to a degree, but as the Alien tagline said back in ’79: In space, no one can hear you scream.

Isaac Clarke, a ship systems engineer, is forced to go it alone against an alien force known as Necromorphs – creatures that develop from human hosts – and the only way to defeat them is dismemberment. You get an array of engineering weapons, such as cutting tools, and other techniques powered by his suit, such as telekinesis, in a variety of locations, including outside the space station itself, in zero gravity. Claustrophobic, edgy, gory, often jumpy, Dead Space never lets up. And THAT ending. Ooooh boy, it certainly got me.

Sweets: Candy Crush

Candy Crush is – well, by now you all know what it is, whether you like it or not. It’s got sweets. You match them up, and then annoy everyone with Facebook requests for more lives to keep playing. But hey, it’s got sweets, so it counts, ok?

Party: Mario Party 2 (Horror Land Board)

Everyone loves a party on Halloween, and there aren’t many better party video games than the Mario Party series.

The Horror Land boards are some of the best in the series; players are donned in wizard robes in an area inundated by Boo’s, with appearances by Wario and, ultimately, Bowser in a board perfectly suited to Halloween. Mario Party 2 was released back in 2000, but is still available via the Wii Virtual Console. In a series when success is often determined more by luck than skill, Mario Party 2 is still great fun with friends.

So there you go; not your typical Halloween picks in some cases, but there is more to Halloween than just plain horror and gore. Like video games, it’s about entertainment.