2024 may have been a great year for horror games, but with games like Perdition: The Dark Ages and Poppy Playtime 4 on the horizon, 2025 could be even better. Events like Summer Game Fest and The Game Awards have already revealed what many of next year's biggest releases could be. Others simply appeared online. Predictably, the ever-popular and enduring horror genre is well represented in these early previews.
From new installments in major franchises to innovative and unexpected indies, there are a lot of great horror games on the horizon for 2025. Here are some of the most anticipated titles.
10
Doom: The Dark Ages combines FPS action with medieval horror
id Software, TBA 2025
Revealed during an Xbox showcase in July, Perdition: The Dark Ages is the next installment of the rebooted Ruin series. Like the others, it will be a fast-paced, aggressive first-person shooter with a horror coat of paint. Players will face all types of demons, but this time the game will have a dark medieval setting. That means more creative, pseudo-historical weapons like flails, saw-shaped shields, and miniguns that fire skull fragments, along with fantasy-tinged enemies like ogres and dragons.
Perdition: The Dark Ages will be a prequel to Ruin (2016), apparently starring the same protagonist, despite the huge time difference between the two games' settings. It may not be outright scary, but its adrenaline-pumping combat and menagerie of monsters place it firmly within the horror genre. It is expected to be released in 2025 – no date set yet - for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.
9
The Occultist is a psychological horror that distorts reality
DALOAR, TBA 2025
In development by premiere Spanish studio DALOAR and set to be published by illuminated manuscript fighting game publisher Daedalic Entertainment The Occultist promises a unique psychological horror experience. The premise sees paranormal investigator Alan Rebels visiting the mysterious GodStone Island, in search of his father, who disappeared some time before. Alan uses his Mystical Pendulum looking at another reality, manipulating it to break illusions and solve puzzles. Alan will face a series of terrifying enemies as he navigates the island and discovers more about his father's disappearance and the cult that once inhabited the abandoned GodStone.
Featuring stealth mechanics and reality-defying puzzles, little is known about The Occultist at this early stage, but it looks promising. Its unique spin on survival horror can be refreshingly innovative. Expected to be released in 2025and will be on PC, PS5 and Xbox as soon as it launches.
8
Poppy Playtime 4 continues the indie horror saga
Mafia Entertainment January 2025
The fourth installment of the indie horror powerhouse Time to play with poppy is also set to be released in 2025. Like previous episodes, it will follow an employee at the Playtime Co. toy factory as they explore its long-abandoned depths. It will feature chilling sound design and challenging puzzles, while sentient toys lurk around every corner. Unlike previous installments, however, Poppy Playtime 4 will introduce a new antagonistthe leonine Yarnaby, who may be the series' most terrifying villain yet.
Poppy Playtime 4 It is expected to pick up where the previous chapter left off, with the protagonist going even deeper into the factory to investigate his missing co-workers. It is expected to be released in January 2025but it's probably just the PC version. Traditionally, new installments are released first on PC and then on other platforms, including consoles and mobile devices, several months later. A more concrete release date for all platforms will likely come closer to launch.
7
Tenebris Somnia combines 2D horror with live action
New Blood Interactive, TBA
The next effort to Faith: The Unholy Trinity publisher New Blood Interactive is Tenebris Somnia. Like this Faith uses graphics inspired by the Atari 2600 to tell a survival horror story rooted in Catholic aesthetics, Tenebris Somnia instead, it borrows the visual style of classic point-and-click horror games such as Clock Tower. But combines this with real live action footagewhich have already shown impressive effects as seen in the trailer above.
This creates a brilliant juxtaposition between the bright, sickly colored explorable game world and the terrifying reality of FMVs. The title suggests that the interaction of the two media is used to distinguish between reality and dreams in the game - but that's just a theory for now. Tenebris Somnia doesn't have a concrete release date, but we're hoping to announce it in 2025. It's likely to be a PC exclusive when that happens, though as Faith, there's always the possibility of a Nintendo Switch port.
6
Dark Fracture
Twisted II Studio, TBA 2025
Dark Fracture it's been a long time. It first appeared online with a demo in 2020, which received positive reviews on Steam for its creepy atmosphere and brilliant body horror. From what can be said at this stage, Dark Fracture is primarily a walking simulator that goes through various horrors, punctuated by puzzles. Creativity emerges with its unique take on body horror: moaning, contorted faces lurk at the end of visceral corridors, bloodied arms pass through walls, mountains of flesh rise from the floor. Meanwhile, the walls appear to shift around the player, complicating navigation and leading to a feeling of utter hopelessness.
Dark Fracture will finally be released in 2025barring further delays, but no final date has been set yet. It appears to be exclusive to PC, at least for now, but that could change after its release.
5
Cronos: The New Dawn is the next game from the Bloober team
Bloober Team, TBD 2025
After the resounding success of Silent Hill 2 remake, the developers at Bloober Team have revealed their next project - Chronos: The New Dawn. This will be a retrofuturistic horror game set between two eras: a panicked past and a desolate future amid an apocalyptic event called The Change. The protagonist will travel back to the past, trying to rescue those he believes can help save the future, and then extracting their essences with a tool called the Harvester to bring them to the future. There will undoubtedly be a twist somewhere along the way, with some terrible secrets about the Change coming to light.
A completely original horror property, Kronos is rooted in Polish history and culture - much of it in the Bloober Woods region. This will also feature third-person shooter combat against mutant enemiesnot very different from that of Silent Hill 2. It is expected to release in 2025 for PC, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
4
Dying Light: The Beast is a classic survival horror spin-off
Techland Summer 2025
Featuring an open world, rooftop parkour, co-op for up to four players, and an immersive day-night system where enemies are more powerful at night, Dying Light has always been something of an icon of zombie survival horror. Now, he's returning to his roots with Dying Light: The Beastwhich brings back original series protagonist Kyle Crane, as revealed at Gamescom 2024. But there's a twist: now infused with zombie DNA after years of experimentation, Crane can transform into a Volatileunleashing his powers on anyone and everyone who stands in his path.
Dying Light: The Beast is set 13 years after the original game, when Crane embarks on a quest for revenge against a mysterious figure called The Baron. Originally planned as a DLC for Dying Light 2, The Beast it was eventually expanded into a full game. Will be released in summer 2025as long as everything goes according to plan, for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
3
Little Nightmares 3 brings back a platform horror classic
Supermassive Games, TBA 2025
Originally produced by Tarsier Studios Little nightmares is a series of platform and puzzle games. Without any innate combat skills, the series requires players to rely on their quick thinking and find tools to sneak past or frustrate enemies. Many thought the series had come to an end when Tarsier was acquired by Embracer Group, but Bandai Namco, which owns the intellectual property, decided to continue with a different developer. It ended up being Supermassive, developer of Anthology of Black Images (also with a new game coming out next year).
Despite the new developer, Little Nightmares 3 It's expected to play much like its predecessors, but with massive editing: cooperative multiplayer. One character, Low, will use a bow and arrow, while the other, Alone, will use a wrench. (But the game will still be playable with one person and an AI-controlled companion.) It's scheduled for release in 2025 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
2
Directive 8020 is the next game in the Dark Pictures anthology
Supermassive Games, TBA 2025
Anthology of Black Images is a series of interactive dramatic games, typically featuring multiple protagonists and essential choices that shape the outcome of the story. Known for titles like Until Dawn The quarryMan of Medan and The devil in medeveloper Supermassive Games has another project on the horizon: Directive 8020. Set in a space future, Directive 8020 stars Lashana Lynch as Brianna Young, the pilot of a colony ship that crash-lands on a planet twelve light years from Earth.. From there, the plot dives into biological horror, with Brianna pursued by a creature that can imitate other life forms inspired by films like The thing, Foreignerand Solaris.
Although little else is known about Directive 8020promises the same kind of interactive cinematic storytelling as the other games in the Anthology of Black Images. It will be released in 2025 (release date to be announced) and will be available for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.
1
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 is our most anticipated horror game of 2025
The Chinese Room, TBA 2025
Based on Vampire: The Masquerade Tabletop RPG, the original BloodlinesReleased in 2004, it was widely praised for its well-written script and player freedom of choice. A sequel has been in the works for a long time, but after several delays and development changes, it has yet to come to fruition. Its release date, however, is currently set for 2025on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, and many hope it stays that way.
Situated in trendy Seattle, Lineages 2 will star a vampire created by a player during a turbulent periodwith a power struggle underway in the city's vampire court. They will be able to choose one of the setting's vampire clans, which will determine their abilities and alliances in battle as they navigate the complexities of vampire politics and try to keep their identities hidden from humans. Certain aspects of the game may become more difficult if discovered. Years of hype have made Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 one of the most anticipated horror games of 2025.
Sources: Daedalic Entertainment/YouTube, New Blood Interactive/YouTube, PlayStation/YouTube