Given that we are fast approaching my favorite holiday, I thought I’d spend four Night Threads highlighting some of my favorite, but lesser known, horror games. Our third game is…Darkwood!

Published in 2017 after years in early access, Darkwood is a top-down survival horror game by Polish developer Acid Wizard. Somewhat more well-known than the previous entries, Darkwood is set in an desolate Polish forest teeming with horrific monsters. During the day the player most scavenge for supplies to survive another night, and hopefully find a way out of the woods. Despite the top-down view, the game manages to keep the tension high through an strategy game-like “fog of war” conceit. While the play can see their surroundings at all times, only enemies or objects that are directly visible will appear. If the player boards up the windows of their safehouse, they will have added security, but will be blinded to the horrors lurking outside.

Darkwood is a horrifying, excellent game.

Disturbing Content Warning: High. The gore is somewhat limited by the fact that the graphics are pixelated and scaled down, but this is legitimately one of the most creepy, unsettling games I’ve ever played.

Availability: PC (Steam and GoG), PS4, Xbox, Switch.