Psychological horror Haunted house Horror Night shift horror

The Mortuary Assistant

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Embalm the dead alone at night, and find the demon before it finds you.

Platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
Stores: Steam
Price: Paid
Rated: Very Positive on Steam (92% of 8,832 reviews); 3.9 of 5 on PlayStation Store (1,298 ratings); Metacritic 73 on PC
Length: about 1.5 hours a shift; more than 10 hours for the whole story
Players: 1
Made by: DarkStone Digital
Released: 2022

No. 30 of the demon horror games · No. 26 of the ritual horror games · No. 8 of the possession horror games

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What frightens You are alone at night in a mortuary, embalming bodies step by step, while a demon that has latched onto you plays with what you see. Corpses move when you look away, figures stand in doorways, and you must work out which body hides the demon and banish it before it takes you.
Content: gore, blood, violence, disturbing imagery, corpses, jumpscares, self-harm, drug references.

A first-person horror game from DarkStone Digital, published by DreadXP. As an apprentice at River Fields Mortuary you are called in at night to embalm bodies, but a demon has come with them, and you must identify and banish it while doing your job and doubting your own eyes.

About The Mortuary Assistant

The Mortuary Assistant is a first-person horror game by DarkStone Digital, published by DreadXP and released on PC in August 2022. It came to Nintendo Switch in April 2023 and to PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S in August 2024. It is single-player only.

The year is 1998. You play Rebecca Owens, who has finished her degree in mortuary science and works as an apprentice at River Fields Mortuary. One night you are called in to handle some embalmings. The bodies are different this time, and so are you. The mortician calls, and you learn you cannot leave.

Much of the game is careful, practical work. You check in each body, examine and record its marks, and go through the embalming process with real tools. Between tasks you search for clues and perform occult rituals that point to which demon is present and which corpse it is using. Name the wrong one and the night ends badly.

The fear comes from what happens while you work. A system changes events from one playthrough to the next, so you never know what the demon will do: a body may sit up, a figure may stand behind you, or the building may not be quite what it was a moment ago. Each demon you banish reveals a little more of the story of Rebecca Owens and the mortuary's secret.

It suits players who like slow, procedural horror where ordinary work becomes frightening, and who are ready for graphic corpses and sudden scares.

How to play The Mortuary Assistant

Start your night shift at the mortuary.
Bring each body in, examine it and record its marks on the clipboard and computer.
Embalm it step by step with the tools in the embalming room.
Look for sigils and clues, and use the occult rituals to narrow down which demon is present.
When you are sure which body and which demon it is, perform the banishing.

Screenshots

The Mortuary Assistant screenshot: a corpse on the embalming table with a metal instrument held in its grinning mouth

The Mortuary Assistant screenshot: a pale, hairless figure with black eyes crouches high on top of a doorframe near the ceiling

The Mortuary Assistant screenshot: a gaunt woman with long dark hair and a skull-like face reaches out in front of a steel door

The Mortuary Assistant screenshot: a clipboard body chart held up beside a thin corpse lying on the embalming table

The Mortuary Assistant screenshot: three pale, wet grey figures stand in a dark, rainy void, one face close to the viewer

The Mortuary Assistant screenshot: a red-lit desk with an old computer, a lamp and a phone, with a body on the embalming table beyond

The Mortuary Assistant screenshot: a dark tiled morgue with open body-cooler doors, a corpse on a lift table and a brick cremation oven

Tips

Do the embalming steps carefully; the work and the investigation feed each other.
Note every clue as you find it; the demon tries to make you doubt what you saw.
A night that goes wrong is not wasted: each shift teaches you more and reveals more of the story.
The makers warn of self-harm, drug references and strong language.

Questions

How long is The Mortuary Assistant?

A first shift takes about an hour and a half, but the story unfolds over multiple playthroughs, and the makers state 10 or more hours of content.

Is The Mortuary Assistant on consoles?

Yes, on PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Series X|S and Nintendo Switch, as well as Windows PC on Steam.

Is The Mortuary Assistant different every time?

Yes. The demon, the possessed body and many of the scares change from one playthrough to the next.

Who made The Mortuary Assistant?

DarkStone Digital, published by DreadXP.

Can you play The Mortuary Assistant with friends?

No. It is a single-player game.

Is The Mortuary Assistant very gory?

It shows corpses and embalming in detail, with blood and sudden scares. Consoles rate it Mature 17+ for blood, violence, drug references and strong language.