The best sci-fi horror games that will make you scared to close your eyes

Sci-fi and horror make a dreamy combination – or a nightmarish one, depending on what scares you. Themes of total isolation, cosmic horror, and experiments that push humanity beyond comprehensible limits make unnerving, memorable premises for horror games. 

If, like me, you can’t get enough of abandoned lunar bases and snarling extraterrestrials, you’ll find the best futuristic horror games below, including titles that veer into the psychological and those that stick to a classic survival horror formula.

Best sci-fi horror games of all time

While sci-fi horror games can come in all shapes and sizes, the vast majority of them fall into the survival horror niche; in fact, most of the games in this list are widely argued to be some of the biggest must-play sci-fi horror games around. 

ROUTINE

ROUTINE is a deeply atmospheric, surreal part of the sci-horror genre, and my colleagues haven’t gone a week since its launch without hearing about it from me.

Developed by Lunar Software and published by Raw Fury, this game takes place on an abandoned lunar base, with a retrofuturistic feel and subtle brand of horror.

As you might expect from a survival horror game set in a deserted lunar base, the player character is not alone – far from it – but they don’t have any real ways to defend themselves. There’s a sense of desperate loneliness woven into ROUTINE’s core, both in its visuals and its narratives, making it truly memorable.

Dead Space (Remake)

If you’ve been looking for genre breakdowns and scariest sci-games ranked tier lists, you’ve likely come across lots of people recommending the 2023 iteration of Dead Space. There’s a good reason for this – the game is utterly unnerving, and it has a level of polish to it that arguably makes it rival the original.

Following in the footsteps of the original 2008 Dead Space, the 2023 remake tells the same story – Isaac Clarke, isolation in deep space on the USG Ishimura, slavering necromorphs with too-long limbs – but adds a bundle of modernizations.

The original is still absolutely worth playing, of course, but this is a rare case of a horror remake standing up to its predecessor. 

Alien: Isolation

Alien: Isolation takes prime position in most round-ups of the top 10 horror games on Xbox and other platforms online – and with good reason. It’s a disgustingly tense and atmospheric horror game, with a retrofuturistic feel and one of the most iconic monsters in the sci-horror world.

The bulk of Alien: Isolation offers a prime survival horror experience – dealing with the ever-present, intelligent Xenomorph hunting you down while dodging other enemies, managing resources and health – but it veers into action towards the end of the game.

SOMA

Unlike most of the games on this list, SOMA is a psychological horror game that grapples with themes of humanity and consciousness. Threats come in all forms in SOMA, with everything from a malicious AI to terrifying beasts to contend with while scouring cramped, underwater hallways.

Much like ROUTINE, SOMA makes the player feel helpless. There aren’t any meaningful ways to fight back or defend yourself; it’s a case of planning ahead, reacting to threats quickly, and dodging or sneaking out of harm’s way, all while seeing the game’s engrossing narrative unfold. 

Dead Space (Original)

Despite its age, you’ll still find the original Dead Space in most round-ups of the top 10 horror games for PC. It’s a masterclass in tension, blending tension and terror with ease as Isaac Clarke attempts to survive on the USG Ishimura.

While it certainly feels a little clunkier in places, going back to the original Dead Space in 2026, it’s still absolutely worth your time. Dead Space’s DNA can be seen in almost every sci-fi horror game to this day; it’s a truly iconic title.

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