5 Retro Games for Halloween

Last year I covered the games that you may want to play on Halloween looking at titles in current and recent generations. This year I wanted to take a different approach, so I’ll be looking at games from a little further back to get your Halloween gaming tricks from… or treat!

Time for GameAbuser takes a look at some horror games from the past for your retro halloween night.

Splatterhouse

One of my all-time favourite games, I spent a lot of money on arcade machines playing this and was good at it, but nowadays I kind of suck at it… The simple story of a couple on a weekend retreat think that the really spooky house in the middle of nowhere is a good place to take shelter in a bad storm until Jenny, the girlfriend, gets kidnapped by some unknown force. So it’s up to Rick, the boyfriend, and this freaky ass hockey mask that he puts on but won’t come off. It does transform him into a muscular “hero” but at what costs?

A hard game that will challenge you despite it’s 2D simplicity but filled with some awesome horror imagery as well as the infamous “Biggy Man” with chainsaws for hands (you know its awesome horror when chainsaws are included); they really add to the tension.

You can find Splatterhouse on the Wii Virtual Console as well as the sequel.

Zombies ate My Neighbors

This is a great title to play with a friend; back in the day when local co-op was the rage (and still should be in my humble opinion) where you are one of two plucky teenagers, Zeke and Julie, stopping Zombies as well as number of other horror movies icons such as Frankenstein, Dracula, Werewolf, the Blob, Aliens, Chucky dolls and a number of others from eating your neighbours. Yes, you completed each level by saving your neighbours!

It’s a top-down shooting game with elements of puzzle as you try to solve how the hell to stop certain enemies (made more difficult if you haven’t seen the respective film). Ammo isn’t in abudance so you have to think what to use when adding to the tension, plus there are 48 levels (7 optional bonus levels) to finish that became more difficult if you let your neighbour die in a previous level as they won’t be replenished in the next one!

So if you want to play on your own or got a friend on the sofa with you then a great title to pick up on the Wii Virtual Console that will pay homage to all those classic movies.

3D Monster Maze

Back in 1981, it was considered to be the first survivial horror game, 3D Monster Maze is something to behold it’s simplicity and damn freaky nature. You are asked by a clown (who I can only assume is probably Pennywise, but that’s just me) to go into a maze with a T-Rex for giggles. Like the dumbass you are you say yes.

You find youself in the maze with no direct way out and a line of text saying “Rex lies in wait” that changes depending on how close you are to Rex and it’s current actions “Run, Rex is behind you” always making me panic. It seems a little weak, but trust me if you turn off the lights with the door open behind you then you’ll find it a little freaky by yourself.

There are sites to play it online, I’m not sure on the legality of them so google “play 3d monster maze”

Hugo’s House of Horror / Nitemare 3D

Not that I can remember much of this game other than some really weird set-pieces that as a kid freaked me out. It was cliche in some sense of the types of horror (I’m not sure if in the tongue-in-cheek sense of Zombies Ate My Neighbours though); but this quasi-text/graphic based adventure game would kill you if you make the wrong choice, more often than not for me it was being eaten by the guests or some monster/dog.

A few years after Hugo’s House of Horror, Grey Design Associates made a 3D game based on the same story called “Nitemare 3D”. From what I can tell, it was based on the Wolfenstein 3D engine so in that case was a full game mod. As in Zombies Ate My Neighbours, certain weapons where affective against certain enemies so you had to make sure you found the right weapons. Oddly though, the freakiest thing in this game is the heroes face in the info panel… is it a man with woman’s make-up on or what?

Not sure of the validity of the site, but you can purchase Hugo’s House of Horror, or “Hugo’s Horrific Adventure” in this case, and Nitemare 3D for $10 each.

Silent Hill

I know last year I mentioned Silent Hill 2, but this is a retro list and PSone just fits into that idea. Plus this is the original, where Silent Hill started for many of us and, for some, was the first game to properly scare us with it’s deranged symbolism that David Lynch would be most proud of. It’s a classic in many ways and should never be forgotten; those freaking shadow children in the school still freak me out for a number of reasons.

Also, on this note of David Lynch and just because it’s got me interested I think I’ll add this as a bonus; doesn’t fit with the rest of the list as it’s a brand-new release but I fancy mentioning it!

Deadly Premonition

I’ve not been able to play this game as I’m writing this, but from reading around the interwebs it’s much like the bastard child of Twin Peaks and Silent Hill if they made uglies on a pentagram while listening to some Cradle of Filth. The graphics and gameplay don’t look upto scratch, but the story is supposed to be fantastic and something that any true horror fan could aprechiate (and not in that crap way that Six did with “The Human Centipede”). A budget title selling for £24.99 in the UK (£17.85 on ShopTo.Net) and $19.99 in the US on Xbox 360, it looks like a worthy title.

Related posts:

1. Gaming in Hell [Hallowen Special]
2. Dead Space Extraction [Wii First Impression]
3. Memory Recap: Zombies Ate My Neighbors | The Lost Gamer
4. PlaySEGA: Play SEGA Games Online… Officially
5. PEGI Now the Sole Age Rating System for Games in the UK