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Murder mystery horror games

In these games someone has been killed and you have to work out how, and by whom. You search crime scenes, collect clues, question suspects and piece the case together on a board or in a casebook. The fear comes from what the clues show you, from a killer who may still be close, and from cases that point toward something stranger than a person.

The top 30 of 45 murder mystery horror games, ranked by player and critic scores

The 30 best, 2026

  1. Firework key art: orange silhouetted figures, one with an umbrella, stand on a dark ember-lit ridge under a grey misty sky, above the title FIREWORK PsychologicalFireworkThe store asks whether the massacre was a supernatural event or an elaborate murder 98% on Steam (44,554 reviews)about 3.5 hPaidPC, Switch
  2. Sally Face store header: Sal with blue pigtails and his white prosthetic face, between a long-haired teen and a figure in bloody bandages PsychologicalSally FaceAfter a string of mysterious murders, Sal and his friends look for who is behind them. 97% on Steam (30,172 reviews)about 9 hPaidPC, Mac, Linux, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, iPhone, Android
  3. Rena calls out a good morning to Keiichi on a tree-lined village road, with the English text over the scene PsychologicalHigurashi When They Cry Hou - Ch.1 OnikakushiEach June since 1979 someone has died, in a pattern that reenacts a covered-up murder. 96% on Steam (6,917 reviews)10 h or moreFreePC, Mac, Linux
  4. Umineko When They Cry Answer Arcs key art: red-haired Battler in a black cape beside the title, in a dark mansion room PsychologicalUmineko When They Cry - Answer ArcsBrutal murders repeat with unsolvable riddles at each scene, and you are asked whether the culprit is human 96% on Steam (1,608 reviews)58 h or morePaidPC, Mac, Linux
  5. The Dark Rites of Arkham key art: a detective in a fedora holds a revolver as huge toothed jaws and tentacles loom out of a blue night behind him 2D horrorThe Dark Rites of ArkhamThe case starts with a ritual murder in a sealed room that no one could have entered or left. 97% on Steam (706 reviews)about 6 hPaidPC
  6. Cube Escape Collection key art: a white cube outline and the title on a purple starry background PsychologicalCube Escape CollectionThe story starts with a homicide detective looking into the death of a woman, drawn into Rusty Lake. 94% on Google Play (64,100 ratings)about 7 hPaidPC, Mac, iPhone, Android
  7. Notch - The Innocent LunA key art: a pink-haired girl against a red glow and a green-haired girl in a black choker against pale light, back to back PsychologicalNotch - The Innocent LunA: Eclipsed SinnerSMurders begin in the town that summer and the story follows who is killing and why, across branching routes. 95% on Steam (3,295 reviews)about 7.5 hPaidPC
  8. The Happyhills Homicide cover: the title in dripping red letters beside the killer's white clown mask with red cheeks and nose 2D horrorThe Happyhills HomicideBetween kills you play a detective who pieces together clues from the crime scenes. 95% on Steam (2,277 reviews)about 1 hFreePC
  9. Umineko When They Cry key art: Battler in a white suit and the witch Beatrice beside the title, in front of a portrait in a dark mansion hall PsychologicalUmineko When They Cry - Question ArcsBrutal murders repeat with unsolvable riddles left at the scene, and you are invited to work out who did it. 95% on Steam (2,909 reviews)63 h or morePaidPC, Mac, Linux
  10. Alice is Dead - Ep 1 illustration: Alice, blonde in her blue dress and white apron, lying slumped in a pit against a dark earthen wall PsychologicalAlice is Dead - Ep 1Newgrounds sums up the series as: Alice is dead, and you might be the one who killed her. 94% on Newgrounds (4,948 ratings)about 10 minFreeBrowser
  11. Key art with the title The Incident at Galley House over a dark country house on a hill at night, a 1930s car parked on the muddy track below PsychologicalThe Incident at Galley HouseYou work out the unsolved deaths of people who gathered at a mansion one stormy night in 1936. 94% on Steam (4,837 reviews)11 h or morePaidPC, Mac, Linux
  12. The Chrono Jotter key art: two girls in dark school uniforms lying sideways, mirrored in an ornate gold and black circular frame with red swirls PsychologicalThe Chrono JotterClassmates are murdered one by one and you question suspects and connect clues to unmask the killer among them. 94% on Steam (1,973 reviews)10 h or morePaidPC
  13. Myosotis cover: a dark-haired young man holding a skull among blue forget-me-nots, with a second figure upside down behind him and the words My life is not yours to take PsychologicalMyosotisSteam's page sets you to discover the truth behind your murderer's actions, asking him for an answer as you haunt him. 96% on itch.io (527 ratings)about 30 minFreeBrowser, PC, Mac, Linux
  14. CHAOS;CHILD key art: a boy in glasses and school uniform among seven schoolgirls, their figures eaten away by rust-red splatter on white PsychologicalCHAOS;CHILDThe club pins notes and crime scene data to a map of Shibuya and tries to deduce who is behind the New Generation murders 93% on Steam (4,166 reviews)20 h or morePaidPC, PlayStation, Switch
  15. Alan Wake 2 key art: Alan Wake's face looms over a red-lit forest where a small figure stands with a flashlight PsychologicalAlan Wake 2Saga gathers clues and works out a deadly murder case on the case board in her Mind Place. 92% on the PlayStation Store (68,381 ratings)16 h or morePaidPC, PlayStation, Xbox
  16. Gabriel Knight 2: The Beast Within key art: the title over a blurred, snarling wolf-like head with bared teeth Puzzle horrorGabriel Knight 2: The Beast WithinThe case is a run of killings in and near Munich, starting with a little girl, and you work out who or what is behind them. 92% on Steam (317 reviews)15 h or morePaidPC
  17. Corpse Party (2021) key art: a crying, bruised student in front of a broken window, with a bloodied blade in the foreground 2D horrorCorpse Party (2021)The students must uncover the murders behind Heavenly Host to find a way out. 90% on Steam (1,554 reviews)10 h or morePaidPC, Mac, Linux, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
  18. Summer of '58 key art: an old sepia photo of six young people sitting under the gate of the Yunost pioneer camp, with the title in jagged red letters PsychologicalSummer of '58You piece together what happened on the day of the 1958 killings and who was really behind them 89% on Steam (1,748 reviews)about 1.5 hPaidPC
  19. Return to Shironagasu Island key art: a black-haired girl in a sailor uniform reaches for a red apple among a floating knife, syringe, scalpel and Bible tied by a red cord PsychologicalReturn to Shironagasu IslandGuests at the island mansion start to die, and the store promises numerous mysteries and murders to solve. 91% on Steam (432 reviews)about 6.5 hPaidPC, Mac, Switch, iPhone
  20. Endless Nightmare key art: the long-haired woman in bloodied white, knife in hand, stands by the staircase in the dim blue-lit family house EscapeEndless Nightmare 1: HomeThe stores' own goal for the game is to collect clues and figure out who the murderer is. 88% on Google Play (106,000 ratings)about 30 minFree with adsAndroid, iPhone
  21. The Skin Stapler key art: a grinning killer in sunglasses holds up a bloody skin mask over a moonlit city, while two detectives stand back to back, one aiming a revolver MysteryThe Skin StaplerAfter each killing you search the scene and unlock the message the killer left, following his trail to who he is. 90% on Steam (533 reviews)about 3 hPaidPC
  22. The Vanishing of Ethan Carter key art: a boy seen from behind on an autumn forest path, the scene torn open by a burning rift into a grey, skull-strewn world PsychologicalThe Vanishing of Ethan CarterAt each murder scene you restore the evidence and order moments of the crime to work out who killed whom. 88% on the PlayStation Store (8,399 ratings)about 4 hPaidPC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
  23. Black Mirror III key art: a smirking young man in a jacket above a burning gothic manor, a church, a graveyard and a heap of skulls Puzzle horrorBlack Mirror IIIDarren is arrested as the main suspect in a fatal crime and has to find out what really happened. 90% on Steam (556 reviews)13 h or morePaidPC
  24. CHAOS;HEAD NOAH key art: Rimi, a pink-haired schoolgirl with a large winged blade, and Takumi with a sheathed sword, seen from above on cracked grey concrete PsychologicalCHAOS;HEAD NOAHThe culprit behind the New Generation Madness killings has not been caught, and a stranger's image predicts the next one 88% on Steam (1,211 reviews)29 h or morePaidPC, Switch
  25. The Final Pin key art: the red title over a dim sewer tunnel with a ladder, a bloody handprint on the wall and teal water on the floor PsychologicalThe Final PinA noir whodunit about an unsolved string of murders that ends with a reveal of who the killer is. 90% on itch.io (316 ratings)about 1.5 hPay what you wantPC
  26. Up All Night key art: a hand-drawn close-up of a frightened dark-haired young man lit red, with the white title lettered across the bottom Multiple endingsUp All NightThe store page asks you to solve a murder after Nick stumbles on a gruesome scene in the woods. 94% on itch.io (108 ratings)about 2 hPaidPC, Mac, Linux, Android
  27. The 7th Guest Remake key art: Stauf's Victorian mansion under a purple, stormy sky, a figure standing in a lit upper window Puzzle horrorThe 7th Guest RemakeSteam's content note calls it a murder mystery: you piece together what happened to Stauf's guests. 87% on Steam (317 reviews)about 6.5 hPaidPC, PlayStation, Xbox
  28. Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers key art: the title over a pixelated red and orange collage of a man holding a flame and a pale beaked mask 2D horrorGabriel Knight: Sins of the FathersA string of ritual killings in New Orleans, which the press calls the Voodoo Murders, is the case at the centre of the story 88% on Steam (197 reviews)11 h or morePaidPC
  29. rotten angel cover: two white-haired anime-style brothers, one upright and one upside down, mirrored around the title on white Psychologicalrotten angelSuspicions grow after a body is found, and its warnings cover murder and attempted murder 90% on itch.io (161 ratings)about 20 minFreeBrowser, PC, Mac, Linux
  30. Reaplaced key art: Grea, a reaper in a dark hooded cloak, swinging a scythe among glowing blue soul flames Visual novelsReaplacedA locked-room murder you solve from the clues in a casebook before Grea reveals the killer and the method. 91% on Steam (57 reviews)about 2.5 hFreePC, Mac, Linux, Browser

Short enough for one evening

Done in an hour or so

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11 games

Every game of the kind

More picks

Scores are those players and critics give on the stores and sites named; each game's page says where.

More kinds of horror

  1. Short horror games621
  2. Psychological horror games530
  3. Horror games with multiple endings417
  4. Horror puzzle games341
  5. Survival horror games259
  6. 2D horror games254
  7. PS1 horror games233
  8. Stealth horror games180
  9. Horror escape games164
  10. Surreal horror games145
  11. Horror visual novels137
  12. Anime horror games132
  13. Haunted house games131
  14. Mystery and detective horror games127
Every genre

Where you play

  1. Steam horror games1009
  2. Epic horror games97
  3. GOG horror games270
  4. itch.io horror games592
  5. PC horror games1337
  6. Mac horror games391
  7. Linux horror games261
  8. PlayStation horror games404
  9. Xbox horror games367
  10. Switch horror games317
  11. Mobile horror games188
  12. VR horror games69
  13. Browser horror games236
  1. Scary games1456
  2. Free horror games561
Every game, A to Z