I am this site’s resident scaredy-cat. I have been a big brave girl a few times, venturing through otherworldly horrors in Alan Wake 2 (including the very this-world horror of the titular Alan Wake being annoying), surviving both aliens and existential dread in Control, and shooting my way through sci-fi zombies in Signalis.
But, by and large, just looking at the screenshots of games like Mouthwashing or the Resident Evil games scares me. Every time that I remember the Caretaker in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, I shiver. I love sending mail, but the creepy opening moments of this year’s Letter Lost were enough to put me off of it completely.
It’s not like I can’t handle violent games or murder mysteries, but there’s something about creepy stuff in particular that just makes me want to burst into tears and run away from my controller. The fall means spooky season, and while I do love decorating with ghosts in my house, that’s as far as I get.
In addition to being a big baby, I’m apparently also a glutton for punishment because I’ve been looking at the upcoming indie release schedule and clicking on lots of freaky things. But maybe you’re braver than me, so I’ve gathered seven of the coolest looking scary games that I simply will not be able to play.
Upcoming Indie Horror Games in Fall 2026
In the list below, I’ve put games in order of release date, but you can also jump to them in alphabetical order below:
- Blue Ridge Hunting
- Grave Seasons
- Nowhere
- Penguin Colony
- Silver Pines
- Tenebris Somnia
- Tom the Postgirl
Nowhere
is where I’ll be when Nowhere releases! This Nordic-inspired mystery game looks right up my alley except for how it looks, which is like a dark alley that I don’t want to be walking down. I wish I could play as a detective exploring a haunted forest town and the impact of Norse gods, but sadly I never will. Midnight Forge LTD is a solo developer based in the U.K., and I love seeing people pursue their passions! I will be pursuing my passion of not crying.
- Nowhere, developed by Midnight Forge LTD, is scheduled to release on September 30, 2026, for PC. You can wishlist it on Steam here.
Silver Pines
On October 8, 2026, I will not be playing Silver Pines, which is too bad, because it looks awesome! Developer Wych Elm combines metroidvania with horror, mystery, and survival to investigate a missing person’s case in a small town. The moody 2D art style looks so cool. I love mystery games so I am deeply saddened that I am not brave enough to play this game. Fans of Twin Peaks will probably be excited, and I can say this as someone who watched most of Twin Peaks before having a little menty b right before the last episode.
- Silver Pines, developed by Wych Elm and published by Team 17, is scheduled to release on October 8, 2026, for PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2, and Nintendo Switch. You can wishlist it on Steam here.
Penguin Colony
Admittedly, this is my best shot at a horror game on the list because you get to play a penguin and I love birds and chonky little guys. In this “cosmic horror” game, players take on the role of a penguin and can switch between a waddling little chick and an elegant sliding adult in Antarctica. Set in 1939, a few years after H.P. Lovecraft’s death, the game is heavily inspired by that writer’s style. As a penguin, you’ll see stories unfold between the humans in camps in the winter chill as they research an eldritch horror. The game is published by Fellow Traveller, and I typically love the titles they back, like Citizen Sleeper. Unfortunately, I will have to satisfy myself with videos of baby penguins since this is one birding walk I won’t be taking.
- Penguin Colony, developed by Origame Digital and published by Fellow Traveller, is scheduled to release on October 8, 2026, for PC. You can wishlist it on Steam here.
Tenebris Somnia
Tenebris Somnia does something cool and deeply horrifying by bouncing between 2D and 3D graphics so that when you’re trapped in a bathroom with an evil clown girl, you can really feel it! Wow! No thanks! Going from a spooky pixel look to a most horrific cinematic live-action in an abrupt shift? I want to throw up just thinking about it! Someone else is going to really enjoy this game. That person is probably Clint or Scarlet, our resident horror experts. Meanwhile, I will have to talk to my therapist about what it means that I feel like my skin is crawling after seeing just one screenshot of this survival horror game.
- Tenebris Somnia, developed by Andrés Borghi and Saibot Studios and published by New Blood Interactive, is scheduled to release on October 16, 2026, for PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2, and Nintendo Switch. You can wishlist it on Steam here.
Blue Ridge Hunting
Tracking down cryptids in Appalachia online with my best friend? Sign me up! Except don’t, because I would scream so loudly into the mic that my friends would never talk to me again. The International Cryptozoology Museum in Maine is one of my all-time favorite road trip destinations, so I admire the game’s attention to tracking. I like the idea of there being an option to do a single-player adventure or Blue Ridge Hunting is a project by solo developer Jade Meadows, and I’m rooting for her, even if I will never play her awesome game. Instead of hunting Bigfoot, I will go back to making spaghetti for him in Creature Kitchen, even if I shrieked when he appeared.
- Blue Ridge Hunting, developed by Jade Meadows, is scheduled to release in early access on October 20, 2026, for PC. You can wishlist it on Steam here.
Grave Seasons
I haven’t played a cozy farming sim in over two years (I’ve been burnt out on the cozy genre), but Grave Seasons is almost enough to get me back in. Playing with the now-famous Stardew Valley model, players move to an isolated town for some R&R, start a farm, and make new friends (and maybe lovers) in town. But the twist here? One of these NPCs is a supernatural serial killer! The character art is gorgeous, but I will be too freaked out to plant tomatoes as I wonder if the person I want to kiss is going to kill me.
- Grave Seasons, developed by Perfect Garbage and published by Blumhouse Games, has a fall 2026 TBD scheduled release for PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch. You can wishlist it on Steam here.
Tom the Postgirl
I am absolutely devastated to report that I will likely never play Tom the Postgirl, a dark humor adventure that reminds me of Over the Garden Wall (which I love) mixed with Thank Goodness You’re Here (which I also love). The creepy hand-drawn aesthetic is incredible, balancing black-and-white with red accents for this play on a Peeping Tom a la Little Red Riding Hood. As I said earlier, I absolutely love snail mail and getting to deliver it to pals. However, the ratio of murder to mail is a bit high for me in this “walk-and-stalk” game. If someone plays Tom the Postgirl, let me know if you liked it. Not that I’ll play it… I just want to know.
- Tom the Postgirl, developed by Oopsie Daisies Studio and Arte France and published by Arte France, has a 2026 TBD release window for PC and Mac. You can wishlist it on Steam here.
Excited To Play These Horror Games This Fall?
Neat! Don’t tell me about them in the comments! I genuinely don’t want to know anything further about these games. This is not a bit! I genuinely cannot even believe I was brave enough to write this list!
Amanda Tien (she/her or they) loves video games where she can pet dogs, solve mysteries, punch bad guys, play as a cool female character, and/or have a good cry. She began writing with The Punished Backlog in 2020 and became an Editor in Fall 2021. Amanda also does a lot of the site's graphic designs and podcast editing. Amanda's work has been published in Mothership, Unwinnable Monthly, Poets.org, Salt Hill Journal, and elsewhere. She holds an MFA in Fiction from the University of Pittsburgh and a BA in Creative Writing from Columbia University. Learn more about her writing, visual art, teaching, graphic design, and marketing consulting at www.amandatien.com.
