Let's plays of horror games are popular for good reason: watching someone else lose it over a jump scare can be hilarious, and, in case you're a huge coward (like me), even therapeutic. There have been lots of really good videos over the years—and what better time to take a look back than Halloween?
NSFW Warning: Disturbing content and strong language follows.
Amnesia, A Bag of Milky Ways, and Lots of Screaming
In one of the most famous examples of the horror let's play genre, a YouTuber by the name of DILDOBITCH is introduced to Amnesia: The Dark Descent by his friends. The result is a humorously subtitled video filled with plenty of screamy-whimpery terror.
Slenderman Slowly Destroys a YouTuber
Slenderman is one of the scariest monsters out there. Just ask YouTuber Cryaotic, who, at the suggestion of PewDiePie, decided to give the free-to-play Slender: The Eight Pages a try. It didn't take long for the game's oppressive atmosphere (and Slendy) to break him.
The Game Grumps Tackle Some Nightmarish Mascots
Five Nights at Freddy's puts you in the shoes of a security guard watching over a pizzeria. In the dark. While murderous animatronic robots roam around. It's quite the combo, as the Game Grumps' 4-minute jump scare compilation shows.
Full-body Immersion for That Added Terror
With the Oculus Rift and the Cyberlith Virtualizer, a recently Kickstarted VR kit, you can truly immerse yourself in video games—though in the case of horror games, it can be traumatic. Especially if that game is the Rift-exclusive Affected. Some great reactions in this one.
11 Drunk Guys, 1 Scary Game
Put eleven guys in the same room, have them play Outlast, one of the scariest horror games in recent memory, and what you get is more comedic than horrific. Not that that's a bad thing. It's also subtitled in the same style as the Amnesia vid above, which makes it all the better.
Old-school Scares
Before Amnesia, Frictional games worked on the very similar Penumbra series. Just how similar is it? You can see for yourself by watching the above video, where PewDiePie lists the top 5 jump scares he came across while playing the second game. They pack quite a punch.
These are only six examples of the hundreds (if not thousands) of great horror let's play videos out there. Do you have a favorite? Make sure to share in the comments below.
Questions? Comments? Contact the author of this post at andras-AT-kotaku-DOT-com.