Written by Alan Hughes (who knows what he’s talking about! — Mike).

The horror video game genre, more so than most other genres like sports and first person shooters, has ebbed and flowed in popularity over the decades. From a peak in the late nineties that produced long running franchises like Resident Evil and Silent Hill, horror was out of style a decade later.

Thankfully, a resurgence in the genre began about five or six years ago and is still going strong. The new horror games represent a much wider spectrum of gaming styles and horror influences, many of which are notably Lovecraftian cosmic horror. 

This list is not meant to comprehensively cover the history of Lovecraftian video games, but to look at some entertaining and significant games currently available, from big budget AAA games to smaller independent studios. 

Sherlock Holmes the Awakened (2023) Developer Frogwares revisited their 2008 Sherlock Holmes title and completely remade it as a follow-up to their 2022 ‘young’ Sherlock Holmes adventure Chapter One. Putting the rational Holmes into the strange world of Lovecraft has been done often on the page, but to see it in a visual medium is a treat. 

Available on PS4, PS5, XBox One, XBox Series S/X, Nintendo Switch, Windows PC 

Dredge (2023) A fishing simulator game that’s also a Lovecraftian horror adventure? The concept is simple – catch fish, upgrade your boat, find bigger, stranger creatures and discover hidden mysteries that lie beneath. All of the disparate elements work in this beautiful, strange and tense game from the New Zealand studio Black Salt Games. 

Available on PS4, PS5, XBox One, XBox Series S/X, Nintendo Switch, Windows PC

Dead Space (2023) This year is the year of the remake for AAA games, and Dead Space was one of the most eagerly awaited. The original version from 2008 is still considered a classic sci-fi survival horror game and the remake is one of the best rated and best selling games of the year. Dead Space is an Intense and challenging escape through the wreck of a starship infested with the deadly Necromorphs. 

Available on PS5, XBox Series S/X, Windows 

Dreams in the Witch House (2023) Largely the product of one-person studio Atom Brain Games, Dreams in the Witch House is a time management sim game. Playing as Walter Gilman, you must study for exams, earn money, make friends, stay healthy and, of course, avoid Brown Jenkin and the witch Keziah. This is an unexpectedly deep adaptation of Lovecraft’s classic story and it bears repeated playthroughs. 

Available on Windows 

Signalis (2022) Signalis is a survival horror game presented in a visual style and limited resource system reminiscent of 1990s console games. Set mostly on a remote mining station in the far future, Elster, a replicant space traveler, must survive attacks by mindless replicants and delve into the mysteries of her own memories. The game directly references Chambers’ The King in Yellow and H.P. Lovecraft’s The Festival and the themes are evocative of Kubrick or Lynch.

Available on PS4, XBox One, Nintendo Switch, Windows PC 

Alan Wake (2021) Originally released in 2010, a much improved remaster was released in 2021. More Lovecraft by way of Stephen King, it brings to mind both authors’ penchant for putting writer main characters into terrifying and unearthly situations. Alan Wake 2 is set for release later in 2023. 

Available on PS4, PS5, XBox One, XBox Series S/X, Nintendo Switch, Windows PC 

Call of the Sea (2020) This release is something of an overlooked gem. Call of the Sea is a combat-less adventure puzzle game. The player’s character is Norah Everhart, a woman in the 1930s searching for her missing husband on a strange South Pacific island. Lovecraftian Mythos elements abound including a strange device built by a scientist named Tillinghast. The game’s art style is bold and colorful like a painting from a pulp cover.

Available on PS4, PS5, XBox One, XBox Series X/S, Windows PC, Amazon Luna 

The Sinking City (2019/2021) Another game from Frogwares, this is a detective RPG set in the flooded city of Oakmont, sometime after the events of The Shadow Over Innsmouth. The most deeply Mythos game on this list, The Sinking City is epic in its ambitions, but sometimes stumbles in its execution. The 2021 rerelease for next-gen consoles adds new content, sharpens the previously murky visuals and speeds up the load times.  

Available on PS4, PS5, XBox One, XBox Series S/X, Nintendo Switch, Windows 

Call of Cthulhu (2018) This RPG is not an adaptation of the classic story, but a game developed under a license from the Chaosium pen and paper game. In this original story, a Boston private detective travels to Darkwater Island to investigate the death of an artist. Equal parts Chandler and Lovecraft, Call of Cthulhu is tightly focused and good for someone who doesn’t want to invest a big chunk of time into a game. 

Available on PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Windows 

Conarium (2017) Set in an Antarctic research station in the 1940s, Conarium is a first person adventure game that mostly focuses on puzzle solving and exploration. Despite a few inconsistencies, it works as a sequel to In the Mountains of Madness.

Available on PS4, XBox One, Nintendo Switch, Windows

Written by Alan Hughes.

Keep an eye on this page for a complete list of Lovecraftian video games, coming soon! (Subscribe to this blog below, or on the upper right side of this page, if you’re on your PC.)