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Urban legend horror games

These games take a story people pass around, the girl in the third school toilet stall, the train station on no map, the tunnel where the law stops, and make you walk into it. You investigate rumours, follow the rules the legend sets and find out what happens to people who test them. The fear is in knowing the story before you meet it.

The top 29 of 29 urban legend horror games, ranked by player and critic scores

The 29 best, 2026

  1. Kugayama Shiori's Death Diary key art: a wide-eyed blue-haired schoolgirl ghost in a sailor uniform reaches toward the viewer under a dark night sky, beside the Japanese title AnimeKugayama Shiori's Death DiaryYou meet the urban legend Kashima Reiko and fill an Urban Legend Encyclopedia with tales like The Crossroads to Another World. 94% on Steam (1,099 reviews)about 8 hPaidPC, Switch
  2. The Scourge key art: a red-lit kitchen strung with red thread and hanging photographs, a dark figure on the left and a glowing glass-block window PsychologicalThe Scourge | Tai ƯơngIt is built on urban legends of 1990s Saigon. 93% on Steam (1,216 reviews)about 4.5 hPaidPC
  3. Escape the Backrooms key art: four players in yellow hazmat suits and gas masks stand in an empty library-like room under a sign reading THE END Co-opEscape the BackroomsThe levels and entities come from the Backrooms, a creepypasta that spread on the internet. 90% on Steam (168,596 reviews)about 9 hPaidPC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
  4. Spirit Hunter: Death Mark II key art: a man in glasses and a loose tie between two uniformed schoolgirls before a dark school gate and brick building at night PsychologicalSpirit Hunter: Death Mark IIChapters are built on school legends such as Hanako of the Toilet and Slit-Mouthed Kashima 97% on Steam (178 reviews)17 h or morePaidPC, PlayStation, Switch
  5. Urban Myth Dissolution Center key art: a blue-skinned, dark-haired man in pixel art points at the viewer in front of yellow clouds and rays 2D horrorUrban Myth Dissolution CenterEach case is built around one urban myth, from cursed relics to a red-hooded figure seen in snapshots. 88% on Steam (6,444 reviews)13 h or morePaidPC, PlayStation, Switch, iPhone, Android
  6. Last Train Home cover: a man in a white shirt and tie standing in a dark train carriage with red seats, above the title LAST TRAIN -> HOME 2D horrorLast Train HomeReviewers tie it to the Japanese urban legends about boarding the wrong last train and being carried to another world 90% on itch.io (2,774 ratings)about 5 minFreeBrowser, PC
  7. Silver Thread key art: a pale figure holds up a document before a cluttered evidence corkboard in a glitchy red scene, under the gothic white title 2D horrorSilver Thread : Episode 3A screenshot has Itou bring up the kids' game where you repeat her name in front of a mirror. 96% on itch.io (177 ratings)about 40 minPay what you wantBrowser, PC
  8. Spirit Hunter: NG key art: Akira, a young man in a dark jacket and choker, beside a girl in a black dress and bow on a deserted night street by Kissouji station PsychologicalSpirit Hunter: NGEach of the seven chapters is built around an urban legend of the suburb that has come true and must be investigated 91% on the PlayStation Store (366 ratings)15 h or morePaidPC, PlayStation, Switch
  9. ( C Y C L E ) key art: an orange looped logo over a dithered orange and black photo of a worker in a hard hat in a dark tunnel beside a large machine Short( C Y C L E )Told as rumours and urban legends that a friend of a friend swears are true. 96% on itch.io (122 ratings)about 10 minFreeBrowser
  10. Aka Manto key art: a pale-masked figure in a red hooded cloak holds a knife in a pixelated red classroom, beside the title 赤マント Survival[Chilla's Art] Aka Manto | 赤マントBuilt on the Japanese urban legend of Aka Manto, the spirit in a red cloak who asks people in school toilets whether they want red paper or blue paper 88% on Steam (1,223 reviews)about 2 hPaidPC
  11. Camp Whittlewood key art: a pixel-art forest at night with three figures around a glowing campfire under the jagged orange title 2D horrorCamp WhittlewoodThe horror starts as an old campfire tale the other campers use to tease you, and then it comes true. 97% on Steam (95 reviews)about 2 hPaidPC
  12. PARANORMASIGHT key art: the cast of cursed characters crowded under a pale-faced ghost with long dark hair PsychologicalPARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of HonjoThe story is built on the Seven Mysteries of Honjo, supernatural urban legends of Sumida. 95% on Steam11 h or morePaidPC, Switch, iPhone, Android
  13. Teke Teke: Moonlit Dread key art: the title in blood-red scratched letters with Moonlit Dread in white below, over a pitch-dark night forest Multiple endingsTeke Teke: Moonlit DreadThe maker says the game is inspired by the Japanese urban legend Teke Teke. 88% on itch.io (422 ratings)about 15 minPay what you wantPC
  14. Bad Parenting 1: Mr. Red Face key art: a wide-eyed low-poly woman with a dark bob stands by a striped bed in a dim room with patterned wallpaper PsychologicalBad Parenting 1: Mr. Red FaceMr. Red Face is a made-up figure adults tell children about, said to visit well-behaved kids late at night 94% on itch.io (1,576 ratings)about 30 minFreePC
  15. The Complex: Expedition key art: a blue-lit steel corridor of panels and pipes leading to a glowing yellow doorway with torn edges PsychologicalThe Complex: ExpeditionThe store calls it a psychological horror experience based on the Backrooms urban legend. 88% on Steam (1,714 reviews)about 1.5 hPaidPC
  16. The Coma 3: Bloodlines art: a wide-eyed girl in close-up beside a wall of organic growths, with black spiky shapes between them, in dark blue SurvivalThe Coma 3: BloodlinesIn the Coma, rumours and urban legends become reality and hunt the living 86% on Steam (369 reviews)about 8 hPaidPC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
  17. Akai Onna art: a pale woman with long dark hair in a red floral dress stands facing you in a dim apartment, face in shadow, with film grain PsychologicalAkai OnnaThe store says its story is inspired by Japanese urban legends about a woman in red. 87% on Steam (236 reviews)about 30 minPaidPC
  18. Consternation II key art: a red pixel-art factory with tall chimneys and dead trees, its smoke forming a spiky face and a hooded figure SurvivalConsternation IIThe walled-off mill draws urban explorers and paranormal investigators, some telling of seeing the murdered woman or hearing screams. 88% on Steam (84 reviews)about 30 minFreePC
  19. Black Rose key art: the ornate title over blue damask wallpaper, with a black rose above it and a flashlight beam below SurvivalBlack RoseLinda only heard rumours that the place is haunted and that its workers were murdered 79% on Steam (989 reviews)about 1 hFreePC
  20. Spirit Hunter: Death Mark key art: a man in a trench coat and glasses beside a doll-like blonde girl in a black dress, under the Death Mark logo PsychologicalSpirit Hunter: Death MarkEvery chapter follows a rumour spreading through H City, recorded in Spirit Files such as Rumors of the Mark. 83% on Steam11 h or morePaidPC, PlayStation, Switch
  21. Blank Dream key art: the original Japanese title 虚白ノ夢 (Kohaku no Yume) in white on dark blue beside a column of glowing lights, marked 2015 Teriyaki Tomato PsychologicalBlank DreamOne realm is themed around seven urban legends inside a school. 90% (50 ratings)about 3 hFreePC
  22. The Ghost Train key art: passengers in a dim train carriage with magenta seats, a woman in a yellow top in the middle and a man reading on the right Psychological[Chilla's Art] The Ghost Train | 幽霊列車The station named Kisaragi draws on the Japanese internet legend of a train stop that is on no map 78% on Steam (667 reviews)about 1 hPaidPC
  23. Inunaki Tunnel key art: a dark overgrown brick tunnel entrance blocked by graffiti-covered panels, with VHS distortion streaks Psychological[Chilla's Art] Inunaki Tunnel | 犬鳴トンネルBuilt on the tunnel's reputation in Japan: killings, burnings and the rumour that Japanese law does not apply past its entrance 77% on Steam (636 reviews)about 45 minPaidPC
  24. DreadOut 2 key art: three dark silhouettes, one holding a curved blade, stand around a tall mound of bodies glowing red at its base under a white misty sky Action horrorDreadOut 2Side quests, hidden stages and mini-bosses are written around Asian and Indonesian urban legends you uncover 74% on Steam (2,114 reviews)about 7 hPaidPC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
  25. Seven Mysteries banner: a pale student in a school uniform holding a bloodied book between a red-lit pixel-art room and a blue checkered corridor, title below 2D horrorSeven MysteriesStudents tell each other scary stories about the school's seven mysteries, then live them out one chapter at a time. 88% on itch.io (16 ratings)about 2.5 hFreePC
  26. Subliminal key art: a dark blue soft-play tunnel with a static-filled CRT television on the padded floor and a round opening beyond PsychologicalSubliminalThe store says it is inspired by the urban legend of The Backrooms. 73% on Steam (2,576 reviews)about 3 hPaidPC
  27. Hanako key art: a grey drawing of a pale girl with a black bob, black tears and a red pinafore peering round a toilet stall door with a bloody hand, blood dripping down the wall Survival[Chilla's Art] Hanako | 花子さんBuilt on the Japanese school legend of Hanako-san, the girl who answers a knock on the third stall 73% on Steam (259 reviews)about 4 hPaidPC
  28. Emio – The Smiling Man key art: a figure with a grinning paper bag on its head looks back at three shocked detectives on a purple dusk street AnimeEmio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective ClubThe murders echo Emio, the Smiling Man, a local urban legend of a killer who puts a smiling paper bag over his victims' heads Metacritic 7412 h or morePaidSwitch
  29. Don't Knock Twice key art: a brass goat-head door knocker with long horns on a dark, charred wooden door ShortDon't Knock TwiceBased on the urban legend: one knock to wake her from her bed, twice to raise her from the dead. 71% on the PlayStation Store (1,067 ratings)about 1 hPaidPC, VR, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch

Short enough for one evening

Done in an hour or so

Free to play

9 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