Summary
Throughout its history, thehorrorgenre has terrified and disturbed us. From classic literature to movies and video games, audiences have been forced to confront their deepest fears. Over the years, horror has moved into new places, creating various sub-genres that push the boundaries of taste. With films such asThe Thing,Reanimator, andThe Fly,body horrorbecame aprominent fixture on our screens.
Body Horror subverts our ideas of form, distorting the human body into misshapen monstrosities, and revealing the character’s inner turmoil while annihilating their sense of self. Video games use body horror to great effect, creating enemies that are both disturbing and tragic. These creations stay with players long after the game is complete. They have become some of the most renowned and iconic enemies in gaming and continue to unnerve new players every year.
Resident Evil, the biggest franchise in horror gaming, has consistently unleashed monstrous body horror creations on the gaming public. One of the most iconic enemies in the series was first introduced inResident Evil 2and was quickly cemented inhorror game history.
The Lickersare mutated humans that barely resemble their previous selves and have evolved far beyond the slow-moving zombies they originated from. Fast and agile, they can climb walls and attack from any direction. With bulbous, exposed brains, large claws, and a whip-like tongue, Lickers have been scaring players since the 90s.
Halo,one of themost popular shootersin video game history, is not known for its horror. However, the game’s primary antagonists are some of the most disturbing enemies in gaming.The Floodis a terrifying parasitic alien race that distorts and controls all who it infects. Its only goal is to spread through all sentient life.
The Flood represents an unstoppable, unfeeling force. It can infect the living and dead alike, turning their corpses into deformed monsters that continue the unending goal of finding more victims. Based on contagious viruses, The Flood is the biggest existential threat in theHalouniverse.
The horror survival game,The Forest, drops players onto a large, mysterious island filled with cannibals and deformed mutants. The game gives players little time to rest and organize before attacks from the island’s dangerous denizens occur regularly. Playersmust quickly build shelter, find a water source, and hunt for food. As players progress, they will soon come in contact with the island’s more horrific enemies, theCreepy Mutants.
There are many variants of Creepy Mutant in the game, and they can often be heard before they are seen. Strange bestial sounds echo around the forest, followed by heavy footsteps getting closer and closer. From the bizarre multi-limbed Armsy to the Spider-like Virginia, these disturbing abominations have an aggressive temperament and are very hard to kill.
Little Nightmares 2is amasterclass in atmosphere. This immersive puzzle game puts players into a surreal dystopian world with disturbing characters around every corner. One of the most memorable sections of the game is the school. Here, porcelain-headed children run amok and set traps for players, whilethe snake-necked teacherwatches her students' every move.
The teacher inLittle Nightmares 2is one of the most memorable enemies in the game. Her elongated neck chasing players through the school’s vents is legitimately scary. At first, she looks like any other austere teacher, but she soon reveals her monstrous side as she searches for the hidden player.
FromSoftware’sBloodborneis widely considered one of the best games ever made. It took theSoulsformula into more gothic cosmic horror territory, and introduced many new strange and terrifying monsters to fight.Ludwig, The Accursedcan be found in theOld HuntersDLC. He is one of the most memorable and challenging encounters in the game.
Ludwig was the first hunter of the Healing Church who attempted to purge the beasts of Yharnam. This legendary hero wielded the Holy Moonlight Sword, which would slowly corrupt him. Players find Ludwig completely deformed, half-man, half-horse. Ludwig’s screams of agony and anger can be heard throughout the first phase of his boss fight. This disturbing monster is a tragic story of a one-time hero who became the very thing he hunted.
Theclassic action survivalhorror gameThe Last Of Usintroduced the world to the Cordyceps fungus and the horrific monsters it creates. Cordyceps infects the minds and bodies of its victims, turning normal people into terrifying Clickers that hunt by sound.
The Last of Us Part 2pushed these monsters to new places.The Rat Kingis a boss enemy in Abby’s story and is a standout moment in the game. This enormous creature is formed from numerous Clickers that have fused to form a colossal single entity. While this boss is one of the most dangerous enemies in the game, it is also a disturbing fate for each victim conjoined to the monster.
The sci-fi survival horror gameDead Spaceleaves little to the imagination. It’s horrific monsters and gore-drenched gameplay are not for the squeamish. The game follows engineer Issac Clarke as he and his crew investigate the doomed spaceship, the USGIshimura.
Discovering the crew has been massacred and changed into violent Necromorphs, Issac must fight to survive the unfolding nightmare. Each enemy type in the game is a disturbing distortion of the human form. However, a few enemies push this to new levels of creepy. TheLurkersare small monstrous enemies with effective ranged attacks. They were created from the ship’s infant population and now stalk theIshimura, waiting to ambush players from any direction.
Some of the most disturbing enemies inElden Ringare found in its DLC,Shadow of the Erdtree. Appearing in the numerous gaols, these deformed creatures, known asJar Innards,were once the women of the Shaman village. Forced into the living jars to achieve sainthood, their bodies have distorted and grown to form the shape of the jar itself.
Talking to a Phantom in Bonny Gaol, the in-game lore states, “For pity’s sake, your place is in the jar. Nigh-sainthood itself awaits you within. For shamans like you, this is your lot. Life were you accorded for this alone”.This dialogue hints at a forced ritual that leads to a perpetual life of misery and brutal subjugation of Marika’s people.
Silent Hill 2is one of the defining releases in survival horror video games. Its depictions of deformed entities and psychological horror made an immediate impact on the gaming public. One of the most disturbing of these enemies isAbstract Daddy.
This boss fight is not only tough, as it is fought in a single small room, but it is one of the most unsettling moments in the game. Abstract Daddy is a manifestation of the character Angela’s sexual abuse as a child, as seen through the psyche of James Sunderland. Its appearance is that of two intertwined bodies connected to a bed, representing the traumatic memories she endures.
Resident Evilonce again brings the body horror scares with a truly terrifying creation.Resident Evil Villageis the eighth installment in the successful franchise and the second to feature a first-person perspective. While the game brings more action compared to its predecessor, one sequence stands out as one of the most disturbing inResident Evil’shistory.
Trapped in House Beneviento and searching for the second lord of the game, players are plunged into darkness and chased down by a giant monstrous baby. The sequence is truly disturbing. The monstrous infant laughs and gurgles as it chases the player, sucking them into its distorted mouth if caught. It is one of the most heart-pounding and horrific moments in modern horror gaming.
