Five Co-Op Horror Games to Try on the PC

Five Co-Op Horror Games to Try on the PC

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Posted 2022-05-25 by Luke Applebeefollow


It's fun to scare yourself silly. After all, that's why we watch horror movies, right? Even though the gore is fake and the plot is often too ridiculous to take seriously, they're an absolute riot – especially when you're hiding behind a packet of Snickers Pods on the couch with your mates.

So, what do you do when you've exhausted your movie collection, there's nothing of interest to stream on the TV but your friends are keen to indulge in a little macabre entertainment?

You could immerse yourself in a cooperative computer game.

Labyrinthine



Touted as a co-op horror like no other, up to four players online work together to solve puzzles, collect items and avoid the monsters that lurk in the maze-like environment. If you happen to stumble into one of the baddies you witness a brief cutscene of your demise and then respawn. Be careful though, as a group you only have so many lives until game over.

The goal for every level is the same: Find the exit and escape.

Sounds simple enough. However, each map is procedurally generated for a fresh experience every time.

This title is in early access but at the time of writing it plays quite well and is incredibly satisfying.



Last Year: The Nightmare

Fans of the good ol' slasher might appreciate this one. In Last Year: The Nightmare, a serial killer hunts you and your fellow classmates as you attempt to escape high school.

What's interesting is that the killer and the classmates are all playable – so one of your mates gets to be the bad guy.

There are four specialities that the teens can choose from including assault, technician, scout and medic. Each one can also craft something different to aid the team with their escape efforts.

As the teens, you complete different objectives in the school and collaborate to escape and can even hide in the science lab and build a bomb.

The killer also has several playable types to choose from and has an arsenal of tricks to deploy such as turning invisible, planting traps and smashing through windows and concrete walls.

If the group is up for some five versus one multiplayer then check it out.



Occult

Aside from a little jank and perhaps too many enemies populating the maps which hamper progress, my group's experience with Occult has been ok.

While Last Year: The Nightmare is goofier and emphasises the fun, Occult is much darker in tone by comparison. You will visit cursed places which have a clear set of objectives to complete almost like a shopping list of things to do while you're on the worst vacation ever.

It's another co-op adventure and you'll need to stick close together to pick up your mates when they fall down. When everyone is out of action you all lose.

There are puzzles and you'll frequently be playing hide-and-seek with the freaky inhabitants of each level you explore. At the time of writing the latest patch added a psychiatric hospital which features gaunt zombie nurses roaming the floors with huge hypodermic needles and then if you're unlucky you might encounter a multi-arm, multi-headed monstrosity.

Hopefully as the patches roll out, Occult will become more refined.



Phasmophobia

The 'found footage supernatural horror' niche is fascinating to watch on-screen but what if you actually one of the paranormal investigators equipped with all the gear to investigate a haunted house? Well, Phasmophobia lets you and up to three friends live out that fantasy.

Since the game's launch in September 2020 so much has changed. Sure, character animations are still simplistic but put that aside for a moment and focus on the core gameplay itself.

Every level starts the same, from the safe confines of your work van. Here, you stock up on the tools of your trade – lighters, candles, holy crosses, photo and video cameras and all kinds of devices that will help you by process of elimination determine what kind of entity is causing a ruckus in the house.

Be warned, by using voice comms in-game you will freak each other out and may even scream like the ghosts that torment the players. Half the fun is mucking around with objects and scaring each other accidentally by bumping into doors, creaking the floorboards with your own steps, that sort of thing.

Spend long enough alone in the dark and your sanity level will drop. If it drops too far you are at risk of being killed by spooky spectre. In death, you roam the level a free spirit and can even interact with small items like tins to elicit a laugh from living investigators.

With more than 140 hours currently on record, I highly recommend giving Phasmophobia a go.



%%Hellcoming
%%
It needs an awful lot of polish and more content but Hellcoming addresses the question: Who cleans up after an abomination wreaks havoc?

Well, you and up to three other friends do but the place is as terrifying and dangerous as ever because the threats haven't been banished.

Grab a brush and scrub the walls of gunk or fry little critters with a UV lamp.

I'm yet to complete a level – there's just so much to do.



This one is a little more lighthearted and good to wind down after some of the other more intense co-op horror survival escapades.



Do you like teaming up with mates online to play these kinds of games? If so, can you recommend any games not mentioned in this list?

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#halloween
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%wneverywhere
83462 - 2023-06-11 06:42:02

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