Halloween is coming, and I’m sure you’re looking for something scary to play. Well, I have excellent news for you. While looking for killer horror games myself, I realized one thing: Most of the best horror games support macOS.

Which means you won’t have a problem finding something right up your alley. Do you prefer first-person, side-view, story-driven, or action-packed games? No problem; these 10 games cover most genres and play styles.

Our absolute favorite Mac Horror games

10. BioShock Remastered

BioShock Infinite was the top BioShock experience on Mac, but that changed with the BioShock Remastered release.

Infinite was, in many ways, a superior game, but when it comes to scary experiences, BioShock Remastered is the way to go. BioShock is not about jump scares; it’s about immersing you in one of the most desperate places ever. The game takes place in Rapture, a city full of psychopaths ready to do the most gruesome and terrible things.

The gameplay mechanics are great, too, making this an extremely fun game to play. And with the Remastered version, you can enjoy improved graphics, textures, and resolutions up to 5K. What’s even better, this game is so well-optimized, it runs great on Macos, including older MacBooks.

System requirements: macOS 10.12.5, 2.4 Ghz Intel Core i5, 8 GB RAM, 2 GB NVIDIA 680MX, 2 GB AMD R9 M290, 1.5 GB Intel Iris Pro 5200, 27 GB storage.

Art	Game	Genre	64-bit?	64-bit	API	M1 Support	Performance
	BioShock Remastered	Shooter	Yes		Metal	Rosetta	Good

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9. PACIFY

As a strange combination of DEVOUR and Phasmophobia, Pacify is another exorcist-styled 1 to 4-player co-op game.

But this time, instead of exorcising the monster, you are trying to capture it for money. The plan for doing so is to pacify the monster until it can be kidnapped and put into our white van, which is as ridiculous as it sounds. Unlike DEVOUR, Pacify is both hilarious and scary at the same time. Especially with the ability to control how the monster behaves based on different circumstances. Either save your friends or screw them over in the worst ways possible.

However, be careful not to mess around too much, because once the Evil takes over, there’s no going back for you or the monster.

System requirements: macOS 10.14.x Mojave, Intel i5 or equivalent, 4 GB RAM, 2GB VRAM, 5 GB available space.

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8. CARRION

From Devolver Digital, the publisher for other great Mac games such as Cult of The Lamb and Inscryption comes CARRION. A reverse-horror game where you get to be the monster hunting down the scientists instead.

Playing as a mass of monstrous flesh, your goal is to tear down this prison-like facility as revenge for your imprisonment. Along the way, you will consume countless humans to use as material for evolution. Gain new abilities and customize them to your playstyle as you continue to spread fear and panic amongst your captors. Claw your way to freedom, because, in CARRION, you are the hunter and definitely not the prey.

Additionally, the steam version of CARRION runs superbly using Rosetta on M1 Macs, which is fantastic news.

System requirements: macOS 10.12, 2-core processor, 1 GB RAM, compatible with OpenGL 3.0, 500 MB storage.

Art	Game	Genre	64-bit?	64-bit	API	M1 Support	Performance
	CARRION	Action	Yes		OpenGL	Rosetta	Good

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7. Alien: Isolation

Set fifteen years after Ridley Scott’s original film, Alien: Isolation sends you on a journey to an abandoned space station. This probably sounds like a standard Alien-scenario, but Isolation is unlike any other Alien game you’ve ever played.

Isolation is the first game that finally captures the essence of the original film. This is a game about survival. The monster is to be feared and respected. It can’t be killed. All you can do is run and hide. Luckily, the space station is full of places to hide, including vents, lockers, and cabinets. This means stealth will be your best weapon against the monster.

Even after all these years, Isolation still looks great and plays smoothly, thanks to Feral Interactive‘s fine job with the macOS version. That’s great, but good looks usually mean demanding games… If you have an older Mac with integrated graphics, stay away from this one.

System requirements: macOS 10.10.4, 2.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M, ATI Radeon HD 5670, or Intel Iris Pro with 1GB of Video Memory, 35 GB storage.

Art	Game	Genre	64-bit?	64-bit	API	M1 Support	Performance
	Alien: Isolation	Horror	Yes		OpenGL	Rosetta	Average

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6. Layers of Fear

Layers of Fear is a unique take on the horror genre. There may be no monsters here, but this is still one of the scariest games you can play on your Mac.

In Layers of Fear, you are a painter who has gone mad in his attempt to finish his masterpiece. The entire game takes place in what seems to be an ordinary house. Except it isn’t. You enter a room and turn around, only to see that the door disappeared. Paintings seem to follow you with their eyes. At some points, you begin to understand what it must feel to go mad.

The more you play, the more disturbing this game becomes. You’ll find clues to the horrible things you’ve done and eventually hear and see terrifying specters of the things you used to love. By the way, this is an unsettling game that also looks great. Aspyr did a great job optimizing this game for macOS.

System requirements: macOS 10.12, 2.3 GHz Intel Core i5, 4 GB RAM, ATI Radeon HD 5770 1GB VRAM, Nvidia GeForce 750M or Intel HD 6100, 5 GB storage.

Art	Game	Genre	64-bit?	64-bit	API	M1 Support	Performance
	Layers of Fear	Horror	Yes		TBC	Rosetta

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5. Inscryption

Inscryption is a very strange game. A peculiar combination of an escape room puzzle and a deck-building game, it truly is one of a kind.

The gameplay loop goes along these lines: You start by playing a card game against a strange opponent. After winning the game, you leave the table to explore the room. After solving some escape room puzzles, you return to the table to fight another mysterious opponent with your deck. It may sound simple enough, but the game has plenty more weirdness to offer.

If that isn’t enough to put this game on the list, Inscryption also has native M1 support.

System requirements: macOS 10.13 or above, Intel Core i5, 8 GB RAM, Intel HD Graphics 6000 or Radeon HD 6750M (512 VRAM), 3 GB storage.
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4. SOMA

This first-person game takes place in an underwater research facility. This is Rapture meets the Nostromo, and that’s the best part of the game. The tension comes from the environment, not the monsters.

But it gets worse: You can’t fight back. You’ll have to hide from the monstrosities that roam the corridors as you explore and discover what happened to all the missing employees. Like in past Amnesia games, you can interact with everything around you. You can grab door handles, yank cables, move items, and more. This creates an incredibly immersive, yet demanding experience.

Similar to Alien: Isolation, this is one good-looking game that will require some chops to run properly. But with the right hardware, this game can look amazing.

System requirements: 2.4 GHz Intel Core i3, 4GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 260, AMD Radeon HD 5750, or better with 512 MB of Video Memory, 25 GB storage.

Art	Game	Genre	64-bit?	64-bit	API	M1 Support	Performance
	SOMA	Horror	Yes		OpenGL	Rosetta	Good

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3. DEVOUR

Have you ever thought you could do a better job in the Exorcist? If you have, then consider playing Devour.

Devour is a 1 to 4-person co-op horror survival game. The entire objective is to survive long enough to collect items used to eventually banish the evil demon from your area. This is made increasingly difficult by the fact that the demon gets angrier the closer you are to succeeding. What seems to be a simple spooky task, in the beginning, turns into a complete tactical nightmare as you rush to finish the ritual before being eaten alive.

With genuinely terrifying jumpscares and adrenaline-inducing sound design, Devour is the perfect game for you to scream at with your friends.

System requirements: macOS 10.15, Intel i5 or equivalent, 8 GB RAM, 3 GB Video RAM, 8 GB available space.

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2. Outlast

Outlast puts you in the shoes of a freelance journalist who decides to investigate a psychiatric hospital lost in the mountains. That was obviously a bad idea, as hell breaks loose, and you find yourself surrounded by homicidal patients. Plus, most of the corridors, rooms, and sewers you’ll navigate are pitch black. The only way to see is by using the low-battery video camera you have on you.

But it gets worse: You are completely incapable of combat. With no weapons at your disposal, you will have to be quick on your feet to stay alive. Needless to say, Outlast is a must if you enjoy horror games.

This is a good-looking game, too, even after all these years. But unlike others on this list, Outlast is anything but demanding and runs fine on most Macs.

System requirements: macOS 10.9, 2.2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4 GB RAM, GeForce GT 750M, Intel Iris Pro 5200, or Radeon HD 3xxx, 5 GB storage.

Art	Game	Genre	64-bit?	64-bit	API	M1 Support	Performance
	Outlast	Horror	Yes		OpenGL	Rosetta	Average

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1. Resident Evil Village

Resident Evil Village is a game so famous, it became a widespread meme for months before the game’s full release. But vampire lady Alcina Dimitrescu is not the only reason you should play this game.

RE Village is a fresh take on the Resident Evil franchise. Breaking away from its usual modern-world settings, Village has an almost medieval take on the theme. However, they still retain the classic Resident Evil-styled mansion house with its traps, puzzles, and guns. This combination of franchise formula and refreshing setting perfectly caters to both new and old players of the RE series.

And just in time for Halloween, RE Village is now available on the Mac App store for M1 Macs. Featuring both solid M1 gameplay and the Winters Expansion DLC around the corner, there’s no better time to try it out. You can see the macOS port in action here.

System requirements: Requires macOS 12.0 or later and a Mac with an Apple M1 chip or later.

Art	Game	Genre	64-bit?	64-bit	API	M1 Support	Performance
	Resident Evil Village	Action	Yes		Metal	Native	Good

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Our Criteria

Games have a largely subjective aspect to them. You may love some games, while I might prefer completely different ones. This is why we identified a set of criteria that every single one of our picks has to meet:

Native support: This should go without saying, but each and every one of the games mentioned here has to be officially supported on macOS and does not require Bootcamp, CrossOver, or Parallels. We’ve seen too many “top games for macOS lists” that feature Windows-only games…

MacOS performance: There are many reliable Windows-PC reviews, guides, and videos on the internet. However, they never acknowledge MacOS gaming. This is why our focus is always on the Mac performance of the games listed here.

Critical acclaim: Video games can be subjective, but to keep this guide as relevant as possible, we only consider proven games with positive reviews from professional reviewers and average gamers.

Pricing: We all want quality, but pricing also plays an important role. We always keep in mind price tags and production value to give indies and AAA games equal chances. After all, we’re after games that are fun to play. Looks are important, but fun gameplay is even more so.

Your Turn

With first-person shooters, action games, and more, this list has something for everyone. I’m confident that no matter your particular preferences, at least one of these games will be a good fit for you. And most importantly, they all have what it takes to put a chill on your spine. What better way to celebrate Halloween than that?

Do you have a favorite Horror Mac game for Halloween that wasn’t listed here? If so, let us know in the comments section.

The post The 10 Best Horror games for Mac in 2022 [M1 and Intel] appeared first on Mac Gamer HQ.