There’s no need to spend a lot on a good game. Here’s proof: Itch.io. An alternative to Steam, Itch.io has cheap horror games. From free to $9.99, we’ve got horror games for you. Cover your eyes with that cushion, put on your headphones, and turn the volume up. Let’s get into it. Here are our 7 favorite horror games on Itch.io.
Fears to Fathom – Home Alone
Who’s going up those stairs?
You’re all alone at home. Mom left you lasagne in the fridge. It’s time to hang out with your friend. It’s too late, your friend can’t make it. A text comes in: who’s that outside?
You can play Home Alone and Norwood Hitchhike in Fears to Fathom, an episodic horror game. There’s no doubt you’ll be on the edge of your seat during this 15-minute horror game. As a home invasion horror game, the story is simple but well done. It’s common for people to worry about someone breaking into their house, including me. However, it’s how you handle those situations that matters. Defend yourself. Take off. Don’t move. It’s your call. The game Home Alone is free on Itch.io.
Iron Lung
Is this all by myself?
Humanity lives on space stations now that the stars and planets are gone. The Quiet Rapture is here. There aren’t enough resources. There’s only one way to survive: search barren moons. In this game, you play a convict on a mission to find anomalies on a moon with a blood ocean. You’re locked in an iron lung with no windows. It’s going to be tough, but if you succeed, you’ll be free. As you submerge deeper and deeper into the unknown, unexplored blood ocean, your body is engulfed in curiosity and dread. You’re next. Now it’s time to work.
The game is simple. Each anomaly is on a map with coordinates. The main desk has Y and X axis directional keys for moving your submarine. Your camera to the outside world is behind you on a screen. Hands and tools can’t get into the iron lung. Can’t there be anything else down here? It’s impossible for anything to exist in a bloody ocean. Don’t you think? The only option down here is to push forward because there’s no light, no noise except for the clanging of the submarine hitting walls and debris. The Itch.io version is $5.99.
The Convenience Store
Do you wanna watch the tape?
You get a parcel delivered during your shift, but who sent it? It keeps opening the motion detector doors, but no one’s there. The monitor looks weird. Why is that area taped off behind the store? How will you end this game?
There’s got to be a Chilla’s Art game on here. Your character works the night shift at a convenience store. Get your jobs done before your shift ends, serve customers, and explore your surroundings. As Chilla’s Art lets you sink into a routine of performing general retail tasks, you’ll believe you’re playing a work simulator. You’ll feel uncomfortable and uneasy at all times during this slow-burning, anxiety-inducing horror experience. Available on Itch.io for $2.99.
The Backrooms 1998
Georgie?
Backrooms done in a unique way. The year is 1998, and you’re a teenager who falls into the backrooms. As you try to record this bizarre and impossible experience, you keep your camera rolling. Investigate the backrooms, try to figure out what’s going on. You’re not alone, though. Great graphics in this first-person found footage game. In addition, this game uses your microphone. Finding out what really happened in The Backrooms 1998 is the most interesting part. This horror game has a twisted ending like some other horror games (not usually seen in backroom games).
It’s easy to get lost in this labyrinth of yellow wallpapered labyrinths. You’ll get heard this time. The game’s on Itch.io for $9.99.
Nun Massacre
Nuns: Don’t trust them.
Play Stay Out of The House by Puppet Combo, the masters of retro horror games, out October 13th, 2022. Mother Apollonia tells Mrs. McDonnell to visit the Catholic School to find her sick kid after she’s asked to do so by Mother McDonnell. Everything’s not what it seems, as usual. Suddenly, you realize you might never get out of the school. Find the resources you need to unlock doors and get past obstacles by exploring the school. Take care, though. Apollonia’s here. Blade in hand. Keeping an eye out for you.
As the nun runs after you down every corridor, the chase music is hauntingly inhuman and deafening. Do you even think she’s human? Crawl through the vents, hide under the beds. Get ahold of your child and do whatever it takes to stay alive. $4.95 at Itch.io.
FAITH
She is here.
Third installment in Faith’s pixel horror trilogy will come out October 21st, 2022. As a young priest, you have to clean the world of demons and cultists. Using your holy cross, rid the world of demons who try to steal your essence. It starts out with you wandering through the woods, exploring what happened. As you go, you’ll vanquish demons and pick up notes. An exorcism attempt was previously made by Father Allread. However, what happened at Martin’s House? Find all the notes and piece together the story. Get exorcising instead of exercising. It’s a great 8-bit horror game with 5 endings. There’s a free version of Faith Chapter I, and a $1 version of Faith Chapter II.
The Well
There’s no such thing as too much curiosity.
This one-button horror game is based on a H.P. Lovecraft poem. In the story, Atwood and his nephew go crazy digging a well at his property after the events in the poem. When your colleague needs help chasing the pagan treasure inside the never-ending well, you help him. Green pixelated art style makes the game stand out. Cosmic horror is heightened by distorted, hard-to-see images. In this short story, you’ll see a Lovecraftian tale come to life.
You’ll be surprised how far the rope goes. Keep your sanity. Available on Itch.io for $1.99.