The best iOS games to get you in the Halloween spirit
We’re getting closer and closer to Halloween every day, which means everyone’s gearing up to watch their favorite horror movies, make weekend trips out to pumpkin patches, and do all kinds of other, fun seasonal stuff before this month ends and everyone looks toward Thanksgiving.
If you’re in the midst of all your Halloween activities and you want to take a break with some games that match the spirit, we’ve got good news for you. There’s a bunch of great games on the App Store that can get you in the mood for Halloween, and we’ve compiled a list of the best ones in a handy little list. We've also added a "spookiness rating" (1=not scary, 5=scariest) to each one so you can find the right game for you. Check out the picks below:
PARANORMASIGHT ($18.99)
This game is an anime-style detective story that revolves around a set of ancient curses associated with a specific section of Tokyo. In it, you’ll leap between characters who are all wrapped up in this mystery in some way and be taken on a pretty spooky and macabre ride.
Spookiness Rating: 3
The things that take place in this game can be pretty scary, but their impact is softened by being a text-based game with no voice acting whatsoever. As a result, I found its most terrifying moments a bit hair-raising, but not more than that.
Click here to read our PARANORMASIGHT review
Madness/Endless ($3.99)
In this stealth action game, you play as a humble servant to a cursed blade and are a mission to save the end of the world. It sounds generic, but all of this title’s set dressing is delightfully grotesque, dark, and violent.
Spookiness Rating: 2
This game definitely has one of the most grim aesthetics on this list, but you’ll more than likely be so laser-focused on not dying and executing combos to be too scared by anything you see.
Click here to read our Madness/Endless review
Vampire Survivors (Free)
Mow down waves of skeletons, werewolves, and other creepy creatures in this wave-based survival game that is based somewhat on bullet hell titles. It’s hard to articulate exactly how compelling this game is, but putting together the right builds and seeing how it empowers you to survive against so many enemies that you can’t really see anything else on screen is just really satisfying every time you do it.
Spookiness Rating: 1
The pixel art style and arcade nature of this game makes it hard to be scared by, but it does feature a lot of the creatures you tend to think about come Halloween time.
Click here to read our Vampire Survivors review
DYSMANTLE ($9.99)
This survival-crafting game takes place during the zombie apocalypse, making it a fitting entry here. Like most games of this ilk, you wander around scavenging for resources and exploring an open world while also being careful not to be overwhelmed by aggressive undead who want to cut you down.
Spookiness Rating: 3
Large swaths of Dysmantle aren’t scary at all, but if you venture really far from your camp and start encountering new enemies that howl at you before charging can be quite unsettling.
Click here to read our DYSMANTLE review
Death Road to Canada ($14.99)
If you could imagine a road trip survival game like The Oregon Trail that takes place during a zombie apocalypse, then you’d be thinking of something that closely resembles Death Road to Canada. This road trip action-rpg features a ton of randomized elements ensuring that no attempt to drive from Florida to Canada feels quite the same.
In addition to featuring zombies, Death Road to Canada is planning a Halloween event coming to the game later in October that will include special playable characters, encounters with costumed survivors, and more.
Spookiness Rating: 2
Death Road to Canada is a very goofy game, so although it may feature death and zombies, it is all presented comedically and using a pretty colorful and exaggerated pixel art style.
Click here to read our Death Road to Canada review
Dicey Dungeons ($4.99)
Dicey Dungeons is a fantastic roguelike dungeon-crawler where you play as a game show contestant in a competition where you’ve been turned into a dice and must fight for your survival. As horrifying as that sounds, the game itself is otherwise not that Halloween-y, except for the fact that the iOS version of the game contains a set of three Halloween-specific episodes!
Each of these three episodes feature some fitting holiday visuals and music, as well as new enemies and challenge types. If you haven’t grabbed Dicey Dungeons yet, this could be a great seasonally appropriate occasion to do so.
Spookiness Rating: 1
Absolutely nothing about Dicey Dungeons can be construed as scary. It has such a bright and colorful art style plus a pace that only moves when you do, so there is virtually no chance of being creeped out by it.
Alien: Isolation ($14.99)
There are only a handful of truly scary games on this list, and if I had to pick Alien: Isolation is very likely the scariest one. This port of the beloved console game from Creative Assembly puts you in the universe of the Alien film franchise and has you sneaking your way around a derelict space station looking for a flight recorder and a way to survive the xenomorph on board with you.
This iOS version is pretty immaculate and a great showpiece for anyone looking for a cutting edge title to play on mobile over this month to get their spooks in.
Spookiness Rating: 5
This game features one of the most iconic and terrifying movie monsters ever made and it is hunting you through a majority of the game. Yes, this game is absolutely terrifying.
Click here to read our Alien: Isolation review
Ordesa - the interactive movie ($2.99)
Ordesa is an FMV game about a strange and mysterious house. You mostly just act as an observer, but as you pan around the screen, tilting your device, your movements often act as the cause of strange happenings.
A big part of the fun in Ordesa is figuring out what this means. Are you a ghost? Is there something else going on here? Did your tilting cause that chair to move, or was it going to do it on its own? If you pick this game up, you might find out the answers in what is a short and smooth experience.
Spookiness Rating: 3
There are moments of intensity in Ordesa, but the majority of the game is only lightly tense, mostly due to your own input.
Click here to read our Ordesa - the interactive movie review
Night in the Woods ($5.99)
A game about cute animals living in a small town doesn’t seem very Halloween-y, but Night in the Woods lands here because it captures the essence of fall, has a Halloween segment of the game, and grows from a simple slice of life tale into a full-blown small town mystery.
Spookiness Rating: 1
Even at its creepiest, it’s hard to be unnerved by the warm aesthetics in Night in the Woods. There are strong emotional moments in the game, but not too much of the thrilling kind.
Click here to read our Night in the Woods review
Night Book (Free)
Night Book is a lot like playing out a traditional horror movie. You play as a woman who works nights as an online language interpreter, and lets just say one of her shifts ends up being very… eventful.
As an FMV game, you mostly just watch the action through a computer interface of security cameras and video calls, but make all the important decisions around how to survive the night. It doesn’t really do much beyond its choose-your-own-adventure schtick, but it works well because of how tight and well-managed its horror story is.
Spookiness Rating: 5
Play this is you want a thrill. There’s lots of jump scares and eerie behavior on display that is meant to set your heart racing in the same way a scary movie does. It’s not a high watermark of scariness, but it does go out of its way to try and spook you.
Click here to read our Night Book review
What Remains of Edith Finch ($4.99)
What Remains of Edith Finch is a mysterious narrative adventure about a family with a dark, cursed history. You don’t learn about anyone by talking to them, though. Rather, you wander their old, abandoned homestead full of sealed off doors, secret compartments, and memorials to those who lived there.
Although it seems a little contrived in its structure, this game pulls off some creative storytelling, some of which is very Halloween appropriate. As for the rest of it, the dark mystery of the family and the coldness of the house do enough work to give you spooky season vibes.
Spookiness Rating: 2
There’s nothing inherently scary about What Remains of Edith Finch, but the implications of the family history, as well as some of the narrative sequences, explore some really dark subject matter in a way that can put you on edge.
Click here to read our What Remains of Edith Finch review
Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Hav ($15.99)
Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Hav may look colorful and happy on the outside, but it’s basically the anime equivalent of Saw. High schoolers are trapped within their school and are forced to play a murderous game as their only means of escape.
This game is mostly interactive fiction (aka lots of reading), but there’s more than enough problem-solving mechanics to sink your teeth into as well. Danganronpa is worth picking up if you want a big old game to spend the entire spooky season with.
Spookiness Rating: 2
The content of Danganronpa’s story is rather dark and gruesome, but it’s presented in a colorful anime style and has plenty of downtime to ratchet down the tension.
Little Misfortune ($6.99)
Little Misfortune is a charming little adventure game that is tonally all over the place, but mostly sticks to being dark. The eponymous character Misfortune is doomed with bad luck and is on a quest to bring happiness to her family by playing a game with a the voice inside her head.
I wouldn’t say Little Misfortune is the most satisfying game from a mechanical or storytelling standpoint, but it has a lot of heart and takes a lot of chances, which makes it fascinating to play through.
Spookiness Rating: 3
There aren’t “scary” moments in Little Misfortune but there are some surprisingly grim turns in the story that can make you uncomfortable.
Speed Dating for Ghosts ($2.99)
In case you were wondering, Speed Dating for Ghosts is exactly what it sounds like. This colorful game allows you to rotate between chats with a variety of specters in hopes that you might make a connection.
Speed Dating for Ghosts is light and digestible in a way that makes it easy to recommend, even if you don’t play games on your phone that much.
Spookiness Rating: 1
The ghosts in Speed Dating for Ghosts are just looking for love, not spooks.
Death Come True ($15.99)
If you’re looking for something that looks and feels like a horror movie, Death Come True is your best bet. This FMV game is all about solving a mystery in a hotel, and goes a lot of the places your typical horror movie goes.
I hesitate to say more because the creators of Death Come True have been very vocal about not wanting it to be spoiled, which is fair. The whole appeal of the game is its story, which goes to some bizarre places and uses some clever tricks to get there.
Spookiness Rating: 4
Without spoiling too much, there’s serial killers, tense chase sequences, and an almost literal boogieman in this game, making it the closest you can get to the equivalent of a slasher film on mobile.
Book of Demons: Tablet Edition ($9.99)
Book of Demons: Tablet Edition is basically Diablo for your tablet. It rules. Go get it if you haven’t already. You won’t regret it.
Spookiness Rating: 1
Book of Demons is spooky in the same way that Diablo is spooky. It isn't really, it just uses occult and demonic imagery and character designs as the backdrop for a combat-heavy action rpg.
Candies n’ Curses (Free)
If you want a dose of Halloween spirit while you’re waiting for the train, Candies n’ Curses is probably your best bet. This fantastic action roguelite has you killing ghouls, ghosts, and otherworldly creatures in close-quarters with your lantern.
The game simply involves swiping between floors of battle arenas, but it can get quite challenging. Luckily, between runs you’re gathering souls and ectoplasm to buy upgraded weapons and charms to help you get further on each subsequent run. Although it’s a free-to-play game, Candies n’ Curses can be turned into a “pay once and play” game for $9.99, and it’s worth that asking price.
Spookiness Rating: 2
It’s not exactly scary, but it’s got all the Halloween vibes you could ask for in a bite-sized package.
Zombicide: Tactics and Shotguns ($4.99)
What better way to celebrate Halloween than by killing lots of zombies? Zombicide: Tactics and Shotguns is a digital adaptation of the Zombicide board game, which is a pretty no-nonsense tactics game about fending off undead hordes while completing objectives.
If you want to think more about positioning and careful movements, rather than when something is going to jump out and scare you, Zombicide is a great game to pick up. It’s slow pace makes it a fun game to plink around on as you’re watching Halloween specials.
Spookiness Rating: 1
Zombicide isn’t really scary at all. There’s some gore, but everything is so separated by a top-down view that even that isn’t all that thrilling.
The Walking Dead (Free)
The game that reinvented adventure games and put Telltale on the map is still fantastic, despite coming out back in 2012. It’s a story-heavy game that nails the tension and uncertainty of surviving a zombie apocalypse in a way that few—if any—other games have done.
For those seeking a game that feels like a horror movie or series, The Walking Dead is the best way to go.
Spookiness Rating: 4
Like a zombie movie, the monsters themselves aren’t all that scary, although there are geniune moments of high tension and jump scares.
Cultist Simulator ($6.99)
Interested in somehing a little more arcane? Cultist Simulator could be the ticket. This game simulates what it is like to start a cult (hence the name), though all the action takes place through a sort of tabletop game where you slot cards into tiles to take actions, like recruting underlings or evading police suspicion.
This definitely isn’t the most straightforward game, but that can also be part of its dark allure. Playing Cultist Simulator over extended periods can lead to discoveries and horrors you weren’t prepared for.
Spookiness Rating: 2
Discovering disturbing information is about as spooky as Cultist Simulator gets. As a result, you can find a way to play into it and make shivers run up your spine, or you can let it wash over you without making much of an impact.
Simulacra ($4.99)
Out of all the entries on the list, Simulacra is probably the most hardcore horror experience on this list. In it, you happen upon the phone of a woman named Anna, and it’s your job to snoop through her phone to figure out her story.
As you sift through emails, text messages, and other files on Anna’s phone, you discover some deeply disturbing stuff and experience moments of both overt horror and subtle, unsettling tension-building. What helps sell the scares here is that the game takes place entirely through a simulated phone screen, so you feel like you’re really just using a phone you found as you play. Simulacra definitely won’t be for everyone, but if you want some legitimate scares in a mobile game, give this one a shot.
Spookiness Rating: 5
Simulacra is one of the only mobile games I've played that is genuinely creepy. This is a game that goes out of its way to make you uncomfortable or hit you with a jump scare, and it all works surprisingly well on a small screen.
Rebuild 3: Gangs of Deadsville ($4.99)
Rebuild 3 tasks you with figuring out how to create a new semblance of society in the wake of zombie hordes roaming the lands. The result is a 4X game in the vein of something like Civilization, but with added complications like building fortifications to keep wandering zombies out, deciding what to do with new survivors that stumble into your compound, and how to deal with other groups of survivors that may compete with you over resources. It may not be an explicitly scary game, but Rebuild 3 is still a solid, seasonally-appropriate addition to include on this list.
Spookiness Rating: 1
This strategy game is too colorful and caught up with interpersonal relationships to feel scary in the slightest.