Post-apocalyptic horror is a thriving subgenre because it offers a cathartic to all those afraid of the future. In the case of video games, stories set in the post-apocalypse also allow you to interact with familiar tools while offering a fantastic fictional experience.
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Many post-apocalyptical horror games are available, most focusing on some sort of zombie apocalypse. Yet, the best of them try to do something new regarding gameplay, visual presentation, and storytelling, offering some of the best titles in the industry. So, if you are itching for some global destruction, here are the ten post-apocalyptic horror games.
10 Deadlight
Deadlight is a gorgeous 2.5D sidescroller that mixes precise platforming with puzzle-solving. Set in an alternate version of 1986, where the world was ravaged by a zombie outbreak, Deadlight has you playing as a family man desperate to cross Seattle and get to a safe zone where he believes his family is waiting.
Deadlight doesn’t try to do anything new with its story, and there won’t be many surprises along the way. Yet, it combines the zombie apocalypse setting with the tradition of puzzle platformers satisfyingly. Furthermore, the breathtaking visuals of Deadlight are reason enough to play it.
9 Days Gone
Days Gone
- Developer(s)
- Bend Studio
- Genre(s)
- Open-World , Action , Adventure
Days Gone is a massive open-world game where you play as a biker outlaw trying to find his wife, who he previously thought had died in the zombie apocalypse. Using your motorcycle to cross the vast scenery of a post-apocalyptic Oregon feels incredible, but it also adds another layer of management to your usual survival gameplay, as you must find fuel and repair damage done to your vehicle.
There are many things to do in Days Gone, and only following the main mission will give you dozens of hours of gameplay. While the combat and crafting systems of Days Gone stick close to what you usually find in similar games. Still, the game gives you a lot of freedom to tackle challenges, and there’s even the option to weaponize the undead creatures by attracting them to enemy camps.
8 Remnant 2
Remnant 2
- Developer(s)
- Gunfire Games
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG
Remnant 2 puts an unexpected twist to the post-apocalyptic horror genre by dropping zombies and using multidimensional evil plants as the source of Earth’s destruction. This unique setting allows you to explore the alien world and fight an army of grotesque creatures in all shapes and sizes.
The enemy variety of Remnant 2 is a big selling point for the game as it increases the replay value of its procedurally generated maps. The game is also inspired by the Soulslike formula, offering incredible character customization and engaging boss battles that test your skills. To sweeten the deal, while Remannt 2 works quite well as a solo title, the game can be played entirely with up to three cooperators.
Our Remnant 2 review underlines how the bosses’ design is highly improved compared to the first game in the series, increasing the sequel’s fun factor.
7 Dying Light
Dying Light’s day and night cycle helped the game stand out from other post-apocalyptic titles infested with zombies. That’s because the undead hordes of Dying Light increase their aggressivity and speed when the sun sets, putting you in constant fight or flight. Luckily, the game also gives you flexible parkour movement to get out of tough spots and explore an open world filled with secrets to uncover.
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Dying Light’s gameplay is improved by its multiplayer aspects. You can call three friends to explore the decaying post-apocalyptic world of dying light together, uniting your strengths to overcome challenges. However, there is also the possibility of invading other people’s game as an elite zombie and spreading some chaos and destruction in your wake.
6 Left 4 Dead 2
Instead of a vast world to explore, Left 4 Dead 2 delivers a linear journey to share with your friends. This post-apocalyptic masterpiece brings up to four survivors together as they cross the destruction left by the zombie outbreak and try to get to a safe place.
Each match of Left 4 Dead 2 takes you through abandoned buildings, malls, roads, and even an amusement park as you fight waves of bloodthirsty enemies ready to devour your flesh. It’s a fast-paced action experience unlike any other. Yet, since each adventure in Left 4 Dead 2 is self-contained, it’s easy to pick up and play the game for just a few hours, which helps explain its longevity.
5 Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl
With a mind-bending story that mixes history and fiction, Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl has amassed a cult following since its 2007 release. Set after a fictional second nuclear disaster in Chernobyl, Stalker will have you fighting grotesque creatures produced by the radiation that warps fauna, flora, and physical laws around the nuclear plant.
While Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl’s gameplay revolves around first-person shooting, the game also has a clever artifact system that allows you to customize your abilities to face the enormous challenges on your way. The unique atmosphere and creative writing are what help Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl to survive the test of time, though, as it offers a new take on post-apocalyptic horror.
4 Project Zomboid
Project Zomboid
- Developer(s)
- The Indie Stone
Project Zomboid is one of the best survival games ever created, offering you a sandbox of possibilities for surviving the dangers of a zombie apocalypse. Instead of turning the zombie outbreak into a power fantasy, Project Zomboid shows how hard it would really be to wake up and realize the world was engulfed in chaos.
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You are not an action hero in Project Zomboid. Instead, you are a regular person who needs to find ways to get clean water, a good food supply, and shelter that can hold off the zombies looking for fresh meat. Weapons and ammunition are scarce, and all the other people you encounter are trying to find a way to keep breathing, which more than often leads to conflict. Project Zomboid is the most realistic zombie game ever made, which explains its continuous success.
3 The Walking Dead
The Walking Dead The Game
With The Walking Dead, Telltale took the narrative universe created by Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore and used it to develop one of their best episodic games. Telltale’s The Walking Dead is so successful because it doesn’t try to tell the same story you can read on the comic books or watch in the TV show adaptation. Instead, the game is set in the same universe but features all-new characters.
The fact that everything is new in Telltale’s The Walking Dead means you can be surprised by the twists and turns of its narrative, even if you are a hardcore franchise fan. Furthermore, Telltale delivered a profoundly emotional story that packs quite a punch and lingers long after the credits roll.
2 Metro Exodus
Metro Exodus is arguably the best entry in a fantastic series of video games. Based on Dmitry Glukhovsky’s novels, the Metro games are set in a post-apocalyptic world devastated by nuclear war. The radiation risk has led people to form underground communities, which turned metro systems into valuable means of transportation.
The first-person shooter gameplay of Metro Exodus gives you the task of fighting enemy groups determined to steal your community resources and the mutated creatures that emerged due to the radioactive atmosphere of Earth. The horrors of surviving in a destroyed world follow you everywhere, helping to make Metro Exodus’ story so poignant.
1 The Last of Us
The Last of Us
- Genre(s)
- Action , Adventure
When it comes to post-apocalyptic horror, few games are as influential as The Last of Us. The Last of Us is praised for its innovative take on zombies, which infest the planet after a fungus mutation allows it to contaminate humans. In this shattered world, people have become cruel and greedy, willing to commit atrocities to hold onto the few resources they manage to gather.
In this devastated land, we follow Joel and Ellie, two survivors fighting against all odds to find a possible cure for the fungi infection. As the story unfolds, we can see the bond Joel and Ellie build between them, which leads to the constant fear that something might happen to any of them. That, allied with the many tragic stories you witness during your playthrough of The Last of Us, makes this one of the most unforgettable games ever.
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