2022 was full of terrors. And I'm not just speaking within the confines of video games. But video games are one of the best ways to deal with the horrific reality we face, as they allow us not only to face our fears, but to shatter them.
Or, as we can see with some of them, just accept the fact that they're inevitable. Here are the scariest monsters and villains we will encounter in 2022.
Major spoilers for The Closing Shift, The Mortuary Assistant, The Callisto Protocol, Elden Ring, Warhammer 40,000: Darktide, Ghostwire: Tokyo, The Quarry, and Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.
The final shift
While The Closing Shift isn't a triple-A game, it's a fantastic indie game that hits what many people fear most. Getting stuck in an everyday job knowing something terrible is coming and there's nothing you can do about it.
In The Closing Shift you play as a barista who, as the game progresses, becomes increasingly aware that he is being harassed. As you're forced to go about your mundane chores, you'll hear other patrons gossiping about a range of attacks in the area, and you'll come across people who will trigger your paranoia.
It all culminates in a final encounter with your stalker, who is just a random person obsessed with you. The realism of the situation makes this nameless stalker one of the most terrifying villains of 2022.
the corpse attendant
Was there a single horror YouTuber who hasn't played this game? The answer is no, and with good reason. In The Mortuary Assistant, you continue the trend that "jobs are scary and inevitable" and, unsurprisingly, lets you play as a mortuary assistant.
Unfortunately, you work at a morgue that happens to be a hotspot for demonic activity, and now you've been marked. You must spend the night figuring out which of the corpses you are working on is possessed by one of Hell's demons. If you fail, they will take your soul too.
This game combines a spooky atmosphere with investigative gameplay and truly terrifying monsters that will not only take advantage of your fear but also your insecurities. If you like well-crafted scares, this is your horror game. But you could also argue that the real villain here is your boss, who hasn't told you about demons lurking in the morgue...or, of course, about the person you've trapped in the basement for the "higher good".
The Callisto Protocol
The Callisto Protocol was released in December, ending the year of terror with much blood and death. And while the lack of enemies leaves one frowning, the best villain in The Callisto Protocol is easily Captain Ferris.
Related:Defending the Callisto Protocol: Why the most controversial game of 2022 isn't as bad as you think
You'll meet Captain Ferris when you first arrive on Callisto when he's just a man who follows orders. But as the game progresses, you'll see his slow transformation as the virus distorts him, making him one of the most difficult and recurring encounters in the game. And when will you see it in its final form? You would almost feel sorry for him if he didn't try so hard to kill you.
Oh good. I think there is always a price to pay.
antique ring
There is no shortage of terrifying enemies and bosses in the Elden Ring. From the patched Grafted Scion to the misshapen star in the truest sense of the wordstole the skyfrom a town in the Midlands. And yet there is no villain more terrible than Sir Gideon Ofnir.
Yes, the geezer sitting in Roundtable Hold who demanded that you make yourself useful, and then meticulously wrote down all your accomplishments... only for you to use later in the game.
Sir Gideon Ofnir tops this list because he has an incredible spy network that spans the Midlands. Because of this, he has the title of All-Knowing and can use the abilities of the shard carriers that you killed earlier in the game.
Related:The Elden Ring Coliseum is chaos on track
But it's not enough that he's constantly spying on you. Ruthless on his cause, he goes so far as to kill Latnna's wolf and then disinherit his adopted daughter for daring to question him. Yes, Sir Gideon Ofnir tops this list because he is a dog killer, a stalker, and the pure embodiment of conditional parental love. What's scarier than disappointing your parents?
(Dung Eater came second. You know, because of all the dung and corpse desecrations)
Warhammer 40,000: The Dark Sea
If you know anything about Warhammer, you know that there are some amazing worlds. Everything is mean, miserable and heartbreaking. That's one of the reasons why the game and all of the media and lore associated with it are so awesome. But if you ask any Warhammer fan what is one of the most terrifying monsters you will encounter in Warhammer: 40,0000 Darktide, the answer is clear: the Beast of Nurgle.
The very essence of the beast of Nurgle is decay and abominable rot, given the form of rotting flesh. Its body is pale and mottled, soft and sticky. Its face is a green mass of writhing tentacles. And wherever they go, rot and plague follow.
The Beast of Nurgle is an unabashed display of what the plague does to a body and the inevitability of death. And while Warhammer 40,000: Darktide is kind enough to let us face our fears head-on, I'd rather never look at the beast again.
Ghostwire: Tokio
Ghostwire: Tokyo is a party for people who love Japanese urban legends, cultural criticism, ancient folklore and general Asian horror. It's essentially the red carpet for Japanese monsters and ghosts. In this action game you are one of the last living people in Tokyo after a mysterious fog turned everyone into ghosts. Your job is to defeat the threats that come your way and stop the man who summoned the Mist in the first place.
You will come across many spooky creatures as you roam the streets and climb skyscrapers. And while some of these monsters are terrifying to look at, like the spider boss Tsuchigomo, there are other spirits you'll encounter that go a little deeper.
The Students of Misery and the Students of Pain are such an example. These ghosts are the ghosts of high school students who have been crushed under the combined societal pressures to succeed in school and adjust to a society that sometimes seems rigid and unforgiving. There's a reason so many Asian horror games revolve around high schools. But what makes these ghosts most troubling is the lack of a head, of identity, the fact that they are almost always stuck in the same monotonous patterns they maintained while alive, and the sheer number of them. They represent one of the finest and most haunting examples of the horror of growing up. It's not the threat of death, it's the loss of oneself.
the quarry
Straight from the minds who made the cult classic Until Dawn, The Quarry is one of the best installments in the Dark Picture Anthology. It follows seven camp counselors who are staying longer than expected at an isolated summer camp. But when night falls, things quickly spiral out of control and they face choices that result in death or redemption. And while there are plenty of enemies and villains in the game (including werewolves! Who doesn't love a good werewolf game), one villain was there from the start.
Elisa.
Yes, the mother of "Dog-Boy Silas". Eliza was a fortune teller who forced her foster son to be part of her touring show, where she took advantage of his albinism and lycanthropy and forced him to live in a cage. When Silas eventually escapes, leading to the events that take place at Camp Hackett, Eliza continues to manipulate events around her. Even after her death.
More than anything, Eliza wants Silas to survive. And she wants that to happen by killing the Hackett family, who needs Silas dead to end the werewolf curse Silas placed on his family members. She happily celebrates each Hackett's death and curses you if you help them. Worse if you actually kill Silas.
And that's what makes Eliza so disturbing. She is an abusive and exploitative mother who has transcended death itself to maintain her dominance over Silas. She doesn't care about Silas' quality of life, or the potential lives shattered by the werewolf infection spreading around the camp. She only cares about getting what she wants and killing anyone who wronged her.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet
If you're a fan of Pokemon, you probably know that there's no shortage of Pokemon with chilling stories. But Pokémon Scarlet and Violet brought with them their most tragic and terrifying addition yet in Greavard.
Greavard looks like a dog in dire need of grooming. But its overall appearance has only one purpose: to attract you. That's poor Greavard's curse. It is the spirit of a dog that died in the wild, never knowing human company. In death, all he desires is the care and affection of an owner, and you may be tempted to give him just that.
Related:
But that's a mistake. If you are attracted to the candle on his head or his sad appearance, Greavard will follow you forever. And while that doesn't sound so bad, when Greavard shows his affection, things get tricky. It licks anyone who comes near it purely out of excitement, slowly sucking the life out of them. That's right, Greavard will kill you with love. Maybe out of an unconscious desire for you to join him in the afterlife?
And while you can't call Greavard a villain without a little guesswork, he's a pocketMonsterthat feeds on the human instinct to pet every dog they see.
horror