Creepypastasare scary stories that have circulated around the internet for over a decade. But, just as there are different sub-genres of horror, there are a plethora of different categories for Creepypastas, including one revolving around gaming. These tales have had many influences on their readers, but popular bi-products of this movement are fan-made games based on the events of a particular Creepypasta.
These games seek to either expand upon a particular story, likeSlender: The Arrival,or replicate the events of a certain haunted game so that fans can experience the terror for themselves. The latter is definitely more common, sparking several fan-made recreations of certain Creepypastas, such asPokemon Creepy BlackandThe Theater.
10Polybius
Polybiusis an urban legend that pre-dates the internet itself, allegedly taking place back in 1981. The story ofPolybiustells the tale of amysterious puzzle/shoot-‘em-up arcade gamethat would inflict horrific side effects, such as severe nightmares and amnesia, on its innocent players. Players would allegedly report strange phenomena while playing,like hearing a woman crying or seeing grotesque faces out of the corner of their eyes.
RELATED:Terrifying Horror Villains Stuck In Underwhelming Games
In 2017,Jeff Minter released his own version ofPolybius.This newly released version is meant to be a psychedelic, fast-paced take on the original puzzle/shoot-‘em-up game, but without the amnesia, nightmares, crying women, and government conspiracy. That said, the horrors of the original arcade cabinet came not from the game itself but from the mystery and phenomena surrounding it.
9The Midnight Game
The Midnight Gameis more of a list than a scary story. The original Creepypasta details an old Pagan ritual that was used as punishment for those who broke the laws of Paganism. The ritual summons a malevolent figure, The Midnight Man, into the practicer’s home whom they must avoid being caught by until the ritual ends at 3:33 AM.
Structurally,The Midnight Game(developed by Unicorn Studios) plays very similarly toSlender: The Eight Pages.Players assume the role of an unsuspecting protagonist who is trying out this ritual in their own home, only to be met with The Midnight Man stalking them around every corner until 3:33 AM. Much likeSlender: The Eight Pages,the protagonist cannot fight back against The Midnight Man. If he catches or corners the player, it’s game over.
8The Uncle Who Works For Nintendo
All young video game fanatics have had a friend who has an “uncle who works at Nintendo.” This (most times, made up) relative is often the works cited for insider information on certain games, whether it be catching Yoshi inPokemon Red & Blueor inputting tedious button combinations to unlock secret levels inMario 64.
Ztul’sThe Uncle Who Works At Nintendo,however, takes these harmless white lies and crafts them into a brilliantly creepy text-based game where horrific twists and absurd weirdness can arise based on choices the protagonist can make at a sleepover with their friend who has an “uncle that works at Nintendo.” The game is relatively short, only taking about half an hour to complete, but it has multiple endings and an unsettling abstract art style that’s sure to get under the player’s skin.
7Easter Egg: Snow On Mt. Silver
Pokemonis often the focus of many gaming Creepypastas. The nostalgia the game holds for millions of fans, its lighthearted tone, and its lovable creatures all make it a very easy game to put a sinister twist on.Easter Egg: Snow On Mt. Silverplays heavily on the nostalgia of players, and how hacking into the game’s code can yield unsettling, horrific results.
The original story ofEaster Egg: Snow On Mt. Silverfollows two young adults that have been fans ofPokemonsince the days ofPokemon Red & Blue.After the protagonist’s brother restarts his copy ofPokemon Silver,he decides to use his GameShark to make his playthrough more interesting. Lo and behold, this idea leads to him seeing some horrific Easter eggs hidden in the game’s code and leaves his sister to put together exactly what he saw on Mt. Silver.
6Sonic.exe
Sonic.exeis a classic when it comes to gaming Creepypastas. It follows the “scary gaming story” formula to a tee, with jumpscares, the devil’s number, and bloody, hyperrealistic facial features. Horror fans can acknowledge its cliches, but it doesn’t changeSonic.exe’sinfluence on gaming Creepypastas.
RELATED:Best Mini-Games In The Sonic The Hedgehog Franchise
The game itself is very linear, with a clear start and only one, gruesome ending. Players will control a variety ofSonic The Hedgehogcharacters in their hellish journey through the sinister levels, including Tails, Knuckles, and even Dr. Robotnik.
5Luna Game
My Little Ponybecomes a much darker, more sinister series when players pick up thedrblueling4’sLuna Game.This multi-level platformer is designed for one purpose only: freaking out players,especiallythose who seek comfort in the cheeriness ofMy Little Pony.
Players will control Princess Luna throughout theLuna Game.Leading her through many gruesome scenarios, foreboding text from the other ponies, and, sometimes, directly contributing to her bloody in-game demise. This title is even rumored to leave disturbing images of the ponies in the game files and desktops of those who play it.
4Slender: The Eight Pages
An undeniable classic when it comes to the phenomena of Creepypasta isSlenderman.Many fans of these scary stories regard this tall, faceless creature to be the one to kickstart the popularity of online Creepypastas. Due to his infamy, games, movies, and spin-off stories have been created to expand on the story ofSlenderman.
One of the most popular isSlender: The Eight Pages.The game follows an unnamed protagonist as they collect eight pages in a dark forest with only their flashlight to comfort them; unknowingly being stalked by the predatorySlendermanas he becomes increasingly agitated with each page the player collects.
3Pokemon Lost Silver
Pokemon Lost Silveris certainly one of the more well-known Pokemon Creepypastas. The original story follows a college student who buys a copy ofPokemon Silverfor a bargain price at GameStop. When he boots up the game, he’s greeted with ominous messages spelled out through the names of the creatures in his party, and worst of all, the realization thatPokemondon’t just faint when they’re defeated — they die.
RELATED:Pokemon Gen-8 Ghost Type Tier List
It’s an all-around sinister game that tells the endlessly creepy story of a trainer who, despite collecting all the badges and “catching ‘em all,” couldn’t avoid the inevitability of death.
2The Theater
The Theateris structurally very similar to thehauntingSilent Hills.The game puts players through a loop of the same blood-red, dimly lit movie theater lobby, repeatedly collecting their ticket from the ominous “Ticket-Taker” and going through the doors of the theater only to end up back in the lobby again.
Though, similarly toSilent Hills,things begin to change in the movie theater lobby as the player continues to loop through it. Sprites will disappear, the on-screen text will distort, but most disturbingly players will eventually encounter a sinister version of the Ticket-Taker with a swirl pattern on his face (appropriately dubbed “The Swirly Head Man”).
Sad Satanwas a dark web urban legend that followed a seemingly innocent young man downloading a game off the dark web by the same name.Sad Satanwas subliminal and could be interpreted in many ways, to say the least. The game played like a walking simulator spliced in with unnerving images popping up and encounters with disturbed, unnamed in-game characters.
What made the game infamous wasn’t its initial release, but the supposedly “unedited” version ofSad Satan.The unedited version is rumored tocontain graphic images of goreand child pornography, but that hasn’t stopped those desperate for the most extreme haunted gaming experience from finding and downloadingSad Satan.
Sad Satanis not for the faint of heart. The unedited version ishighlyillegal due to its explicit content, so it’s recommended that players stick to the edited, clean version if they desire to delve into the subliminal darkness ofSad Satan.
