rpgcodex > the threads can be improved by adding more replies

Zombra

Creative Assembly (Alien Isolation, 2014)
Yes, it's more visceral than psycho horror, but they absolutely nailed the atmosphere and sense of dread from the film. If they turned their resources and talent to psycho horror they could knock it out of the park.

Zombra

Digital Happiness (DreadOut, 2014)
Low budget, small Indonesian film studio put out better, weirder, creepier survival horror than most big budget games. And yes, even leaving aside gameplay which was surprisingly diverse and disorienting, the story was a dark, slow burning nightmare. Their designers "get it" with horror (or did at the time; I haven't seen their more recent work).

Zombra

The Astronauts (The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, 2014)
Very different format, more a puzzle game really, but this counts as a horror story. Brilliantly plotted and paced, very high awareness of what makes or breaks good horror.

Zombra

FunCom (The Park, 2015)
Short but strong single-player psycho horror spinoff of the excellent The Secret World. When these artists are given reign to really delve into a horror story, they nail it.

Zombra

Stormind Games (Remothered: Tormented Fathers, 2018)
Remothered is B- as a game but a solid A as a horror experience. This is a small Italian studio that knows the genre.

Zombra

CAPCOM (Resident Evil 8, 2021)
Yes, even shoot-em-up CAPCOM can do better at pure horror than Bloober Team. RE8 is mostly "action horror" but the Beneviento House sequence proves they can do decent psycho horror. (No guns allowed in that part.) That sequence on its own is better than any Bloober game in its totality.

Zombra

Frogwares (The Sinking City, 2021)
I made comparisons to SH2 at the time. The balance of action and story was strikingly similar, right down to the clunky combat because the protagonist is not supposed to be a bulletproof ninja. (Best played on highest difficulty to reinforce this.)