With Spooky season rolling around there are plenty of games that certainly fit the Halloween vibe check. However, most of these tend to be horror games full of jump scares and general terror inducing, nightmarish stories bound to keep you up all night. With that being said, I’ve found some perfect no jump scare, no crying yourself to sleep games which are still perfect for the spooky season of Halloween.
Darkside detective is a classic pixelated point and click adventure game that follows Detective Francis McQueen, and his sidekick Officer Dooley as they investigate paranormal cases across Twin Lakes city. The game has a huge focus on everything spooky season, from ghosts in libraries, to evil nannies trapping children in paranormal universes, what more could you want?! The game’s writing is also incredibly well done and is guaranteed to make you laugh outload at least once in each case you tackle. A game on the shorter side that’s perfect to complete with a friend, Darkside detective is perfect for non-horror lovers this October!
2.Night in the Woods – Infinite Fall
Easily one of my favourite games I’ve ever played, Night in the Woods could not be a more perfect game for October if it tried. You play as Mae, an anthropomorphic cat who’s just dropped out of college and moved back in with her parents to the town of Possum Springs, a once mining town now being taken over with malls and fast-food restaurants. As Mae reunites with old friends and explores the town she usedto call home, strange happenings begin to occur, and Mae tries to uncover the truth while tackling family drama, friendships and her own internal struggles. The game is perfectly comforting, simple to play and has a great story with enough coziness and spookiness to keep you hooked. The game takes around 20hours to complete fully, although this obviously depends too on how quickly you read, as the game is entirely written dialogue, and has no voice acting.
3.Undertale – Toby Fox
A cult classic of the ages, Undertale is the perfect game for anyone and everyone this Halloween. You play as a small child who has fallen into the underground, an underground world (shocker!) full of monsters of all shapes and sizes, who all hate and fear humans due to a past war. Not only does this game offer a complete passivist playthrough, where you can do things such as compliment frogs and pet dogs until their neck grows so long they can’t fight you anymore instead of throwing hands. It also has a simplistic, yet challenging combat system that keeps you on your toes as you dodge ‘love-pellets’ hurled at you by evil flowers. Oh, and the soundtrack is phenomenal (I’m talking about you Megalovania).
4.Rain World – Adult Swim Games 
5.Death and Taxes – Leene KÜnnap
A game where you play death himself! What could be better to cozy up too this October than deciding who should live or die? You play as the Grim Reaper, in an office job where he pours through paperwork of different people deciding who should live and who should die. Upon making his decision, he ticksa box with a comically large marker under either ‘live’ or ‘die’. Your choices alter the world around you and there are multiple different endings to enjoy. Players of Papers Please, or Reign, are guaranteed to enjoy this quirky indie management title.
6.In Between – Gentlymad 
In between is a rather depressing tale following a man who’s just had a near-death experience. For the people who enjoy a game with a deep and depressing narrative that makes you reflect, and also rewards exploration, this game certainly checks those boxes. In Between certainly makes you think and puts you in the protagonist’s shoes as he desperately fights for his happy ending. A sad but rewarding tale, In between is perfect for those who want a good, personal story game that follows a character we all grew attached to and wanted to see happy as we played. Not your typical platformer, but certainly the sort of setting and vibes you might see around Halloween.
