The Best Horror Board Games for a Scary Good Time

Based on the popular online game of the same name, Dead by Daylight effetively replicates a fast-paced hunt through a house of horrors as a killer tries to snare the other players and hang them on meathooks. While hidden movement is used effectively in several horror titles, this instead uses the clever twist of hidden programmed movement, where everyone chooses their movement card in secret and then reveals, ensuring you always run the risk of running into the arms of a waiting killer, or escaping by the skin of your teeth. A vast pool of variable player powers to explore gives you lots of strategies to leverage and ensures no two games need be the same.

What if Lewis & Clarke's expedition into the American interior encountered not just hostile terrain but a catalogue of nightmares like Bison-headed minotaurs and man-eating plants? Cooperative game Corps of Discovery lets you experience both sets of terror at once, as its ingenious puzzle-based exploration system needs to be grappled with to simply survive in the untamed wilderness, while you'll also encounter monsters that will sap your supplies and must be defeated to progress, as we explained in our Corps of Disovery review. And if you want even more mind-sapping horrors to tackle, you can add in various expansions or opt for the deluxe edition which includes them all.

In many horror films, the ultimate terror comes from being alone, trapped without support or help in the most appalling circumstances. Final Girl tries to replicate that terror on your tabletop as a solo-only affair. To play you'll need the core box linked above plus a film box, whch contains two scenarios based on popular horror tropes: you can learn more about the system in our Final Girl buying guide. Whatever you choose, you'll be facing some monstrous foe across a unique location board, trying to leverage the game's smart tactical and strategic choices to defeat them before they trap and kill you.

Unmatched, a game series in which you can mix and match figures from myth and pop culture to go head-to-head in a tactical fight, might not seem like much of a horror game. But Unmatched: Cobble and Fog takes the action to the streets of Victorian London with figures like Dracula, the Invisible Man, and Jekyll & Hyde. Each has its own deck of cards that leverages the simple rules framework with flavourful and fun special effects. Dracula, for example, can lure and hypnotise his opponents as well as drain their blood. Between them the four characters here weave a real atmosphere of gothic horror. Cobble and Fog is about the best set in the entire Unmatched series, and so is also a great introduction to its wider charms.

An iconic horror game that’s now 20 years old and in its third edition, Betrayal at House on the Hill is still beloved. The defining trait is how it begins with everyone cooperating to explore a haunted house and unveil its secrets within, then radically shifts halfway through to reveal the central mystery and one of the players becomes a traitor. The betrayer here does not know they are the villain until this final haunt phase occurs, which establishes a throughline of tension and anticipation. The haunt then is randomly selected from a large number of options. The possibilities here are wild, as the foe could turn out to be a grisly werewolf that will then hunt down the survivors, or it could be something more tricky such as a ghastly spirit that manipulates the board. This flips the game on its head, adding some new rules and interactions. It’s a wild and unforgettable ride every time.

Some years ago there was a quite brilliant board game based on the Battlestar Galactica TV show in which players each had a hidden role and the group had to try and out traitors while guiding the starship back to Earth. Now it’s been reborn with a horror theme, with a steamship under attack by Lovecraftian monsters as it crosses the ocean. In Unfathomable, players are either passengers who need to work together to save the ship or secret cultists who must quietly sabotage any efforts to avert the crises that unfold each turn. The star of the show is the way players put cards face-down into a pile that can either boost or undermine attempts to stave off disaster, leaving the group slivers of information to guess who might be the cuckoo in the nest. The stellar production values we’ve come to expect from publisher Fantasy Flight help a lot, too.

Real-world Australians may be outraged by the portrayal of their home as a monster-infested island, but it makes a compelling horror game. Players spend the early part of the game building a train network across the continent, defeating Lovecraftian monsters on the way to reach valuable resources and build farms. About halfway through, the pace kicks up a notch as the monsters start to hit back, destroying your infrastructure and potentially wiping humanity out completely, resulting in a loss for all players. It’s a weird combination but it works well, providing a fun theme, exciting combat and strategic route and combo building all at the same time and making the game widely appealing.

In the original Zombicide released in 2012, you play as a survivor hoping to live through a modern-day zombie apocalypse. Black Plague changes up the formula by transporting you a fantastical medieval world of magic, dragons, and... well, more zombies. You control a paladin, or a knight, or a magician, among other character types as you look to combat the death magic of an evil necromancer. This fantasy version of a typical zombie story is refreshing and novel, and there are a ton of expansions available that add new scenarios, player characters, locations, items, and more. If you want other similar options, check out our picks for the best cooperative board games.

It’s the monsters’ world; we’re just living in it. In Horrified, it’s your job to thwart the nefarious plans of the most famous movie monsters of all time. Take on Frankenstein and his bride, the Wolf Man, Dracula, the Mummy, the Invisible Man, and the Creature from the Black Lagoon in this easy-to-learn cooperative game. You’ll take to the streets of a small village under duress from the monsters, and must take on the role of one of several heroes. Each one comes with their own strengths and weakness when it comes to fight off the monsters. If you’re looking for a showdown with horror’s most iconic monsters, Horrified is the game for you.

There's also a Dungeons and Dragons version of this board game available that is just as fun.

If you’re looking for more Lovecraftian flavor, Arkham Horror: The Card Game is a no-brainer. The base game comes with a small handful of scenarios that sends you directly into the jaws of cosmic mystery, and many more scenarios are available, as explained in our buying guide. You can use the suggested starter decks, or build a custom one centered around your chosen investigator’s special abilities. Gameplay sees you hopping from location to location to search for clues in order to advance the story while attempting to impede the deadly Mythos deck. Your investigator will inevitably take damage and acquire weaknesses over time that can affect future games in the campaign, making Arkham Horror: The Card Game one of the most thematic games on this list. Also check out our list of the best deck-building games.

At first blush, Cthulhu: Death May Die looks like an overstuffed box focused more on miniatures than gameplay. That concern is misplaced as this fully-cooperative game is one of the most empowering horror games on the market. Players take on the role of 1920s investigators intent on breaking up a cult ritual to summon a Great Old One. Each scenario is contained in a tuck-box with its own rules and components, providing a high degree of variety to gameplay. If the group is successful, they will disturb the ritual just as the Elder God appears, diminishing their immortality and resulting in a brief moment of vulnerability. This game is the epic showdown at the end of Arkham Horror-style pulp tales. Tommy Guns are blasting, fists are being thrown, and explosions are going off. It’s electric.

The game that popularized the whole “secret roles” mechanic now common to the party game scene, One Night Ultimate Werewolf will have your group flinging accusations and insults around the table. The goal is to learn who the werewolves are and expose them, but that’s easier said than done. There are other characters who can switch roles around, and even see which roles are not in play for the round. Because nobody can be sure who the werewolves are (including the werewolves themselves), each game is a chaotic flurry of accusations and desperate defenses that always end in a good time. Rounds are short, and the free phone app makes setup a breeze, which makes One Night an ideal party game.

Mansions of Madness takes the dungeon crawling and asymmetrical gameplay of Descent and Star Wars: Imperial Assault and transports its to the macabre world of H.P. Lovecraft. One player takes on the role of the Keeper and guides the others through one of several pre-written scenarios. As players make their way through the mansion, their actions and choices may affect the monsters they encounter. Several expansion scenarios are available, which helps to make your investment more worthwhile. Set aside a hefty chunk of time, however, as Mansions demands no small amount of attention, making it a perfect game for a dedicated group of horror fans.

If you like these, be sure to check out of picks for the overall best board games and all of IGN's board game reviews.

Charlie Theel is a tabletop games freelancer. You can follow him on Twitter @CharlieTheel.

Matt Thrower is a contributing freelancer for IGN, specializing in tabletop games. You can reach him on BlueSky at @mattthr.bsky.social.