14 of the Best Survival Horror Games of All Time

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In this episode of the Retro Rebel Podcast, we’re talking survival horror games as we nail down the absolute best games in the genre for you.

Retro Rebel Podcast is hosted by Amanda Fox and Stacy Bishop. Each week they take a deep dive into the gaming industry and discuss news stories, the current games they are playing as well as the topic of the week. Do you like this episode? Wanna complain about something we got wrong? Let us know what you think by dropping a comment below or emailing us at info@templeofgeek.com. We really want to hear your opinions!

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Intro Music – Final Impasse By Ground is Lava

What we’re playing

Amanda I’m just playing 6 Nimmit still which is a fun German sequential card game that I’ve taken quite a liking to in recent weeks. I play it for hours in the evening when the show I’m watching is too boring lol. I recommend playing it on Tactics and Professional for the most challenging experience. Tactics reduce the card number based on how many players there are and professional means cards can be placed in the front and in the back of the rows.

Holly – I’ve not long returned from the last event this year of Empire LRP. Profound Decisions have made a family-friendly, highly immersive, and interactive LARP.

There are 10 Nations to choose from, each with its own style and culture. You can fully curate your own character, with options of what class to be (or multi-class), what resources you receive & if you choose to take the field – what Heroic abilities you want to wield.

My character Neala is a member of the Navarr nation, who is a priest/medic so I get involved in the political side of the game. I also work in the field hospital to heal our fighters once they return from battle through the Sentinel Gate. There are so many ways to play, with each class/nation bringing its own unique challenges and opportunities each season.

Strength to the Empire, Strength to Navarr!

14 of the Best Survival Horror Games of All Time

We’re making our own list again – doggone it! And today, we’re talking survival horror and I’m joined by superfan Holly to nail down the absolute best games in the genre for you. Do you agree? Comment below! 

Holly’s list

  1. Resident Evil franchise – Highlighting: RE 1 1996, RE 2 1998, RE 4 2005, RE 7 VR 2017, Remake 2015, Remake 2 2019, Remake 4 expected 2023
  2. Dino Crisis – Playstation, Dreamcast 1999
  3. Silent Hill – PS1 1999
  4. The Evil Within – PS4 2014
  5. Death Stranding – PS4 2019
  6. Deadly Premonition – Xbox 360 2010 / directors cut PS3 2013
  7. Zombi – PS4 2015 (Originally ZombiU on Wii U 2012) 
  8. P.T. – PS4 2014 (not an actual game but a playable teaser of the now canceled Silent Hills. Influenced newer horror games such as Resident Evil Village)

Amanda’s list

I’m not a huge survival horror fan – I get too scared. So my list is much smaller, I’m sorry.

  1. Left for Dead, Xbox 360, 2008 – Sure, it’s multiplayer but it’s a kickass survival horror game.
  2. Dying Light, Xbox One, 2015 – Zombie parkour! It’s the best, scariest survival horror game I’ve actually played through.
  3. Alien Isolation, Xbox One, 2014 – Yes, yes I haven’t played much but it was so good it scared the pants off me.
  4. Dead Space, Xbox 360, 2008 – The monsters are properly grotesque and I remember not being able to play it a night because I got too freaked out.
  5. Bioshock, Xbox 360, 2007 – Look, the internet classifies this as survival horror so I gotta put it in, would you kindly forgive me?
  6. We Happy Few, Xbox One, 2018 – drugs are bad mmmmkkkk… this indie horror darling is so unique I’ve woven it into my DND campaign.

Our Hosts

Amanda Fox cut her teeth on her dad’s old Tandy before graduating to SNES and beyond. An accomplished guild leader in multiple titles and a sucker for console RPGs. Amanda spends most of her free time with a bit of tech in her hands. With a life philosophy derived from a Spock quote and more passport stamps than shoes; she is a well-traveled nerd with the urge to pontificate.

Holly is a disabled enby who has spent the majority of their life playing games. Growing up in hospital due to childhood cancer, classic console gaming brought escape and joy to a hard situation. Always a Sega lover at heart, as shown by their classic console collection, the jewel of which is the Dreamcast they bought with their first-ever paycheck. Still a console gamer (PS4), they are a lover of J-RPG’s and obsessed with Kojima’s games, especially the Metal Gear saga to the point of getting a Foxhound tattoo. For Holly, Ludens is their life. Holly’s socials are Twitter: @HollyDspoonieme and PSN: Tiny_Caska.

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