Summary
- Trains create terrifying scenarios with no escape, claustrophobia, and dangerous strangers onboard.
- These horror games feature hellish trains full of ghosts, zombies, and demons, revealing dark truths.
- From eerie anomalies on Japanese bullet trains to spider-train monsters, horror thrives on public transport.
Trains and train stations may not be the first things that come to mind when thinking about horror, but they can in fact be perfect locations for creating terrifying scenarios. Many people fear crashing or having no control. Not only that, but with no way to escape when hurtling down the tracks, the narrow carriages can prove claustrophobic, especially when stuck with dangerous strangers.
These horror titles contain hellish trains full of ghosts, zombies, and demons, a safe haven on wheels, or oddly familiar railway stations that don't seem to offer a way out. No matter what they use to create scares, they give a new meaning to the "horrors of public transport".
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9 The Ghost Train
Steam User Rating: 79%
- Release: July 23, 2020
- Developer: Chilla's Art
In The Ghost Train, the player follows Kensuke Tanaka, a 42-year-old Sales Manager on his evening commute home from work. With each ride, the journey gets more and more peculiar. Players experience strange interactions in an increasingly decaying environment.
This game is equal parts unnerving and somber. There are seven endings to The Ghost Train, each revealing the truth about the train, its passengers, and Kensuke.
8 Resident Evil 0 (HD Remaster)
Steam User Rating: 82%
- Release: January 19, 2016
- Developer: CAPCOM
The prequel to one of the most popular horror game franchises of all time, Resident Evil 0 transports gamers back to before the Arklay mansion incident. Players step into the shoes of Rebecca Chambers, a rookie S.T.A.R.S. Cop who becomes involved in investigating the crashed Ecliptic Express in Raccoon Forest, uncovering the origins of the T-virus.
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It's not the most polished game, with janky cutscene-to-gameplay transitions and at times cringey voice acting. However, Resident Evil 0 retains a lot of its original charm, making it a nostalgic experience for those who played the 2002 version.
7 World War Z
Steam User Rating: 83%
World War Z
- Released
- April 16, 2019
- Developer(s)
- Saber Interactive
- Platform(s)
- PC, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter
World War Z is a third-person co-op shooter inspired by Max Brooks' zombie book of the same name. The first chapter of the campaign is set in New York and follows four survivors trying to escape the city to an evacuation site via a train in a combination of objectives and combat.
Players have access to different specialized classes and guns, both of which can be leveled up to unlock perks. Fighting off the increasingly difficult zombie hordes is an extremely satisfying experience that is fun to play with friends.
6 Shinkansen 0
Steam User Rating: 84%
- Release: March 23, 2024
- Developer: Chilla's Art
Shinkansen 0 takes place on a Japanese "bullet train." Players must try to escape the looping carriage by keeping an eye out for anomalies, turning back if they notice anything unfamiliar or risk having to start again from the beginning. With creepy anomaly designs and claustrophobic atmosphere, Shinkansen 0 turns this familiar mode of transport into an uncanny and high-tension experience with two possible endings.
5 The Final Station
Steam User Rating: 87%
- Release: August 30, 2016
- Developer: DO MY BEST
The Final Station is a side scroller, survival, horror-mystery game. The player takes on the role of a survivor in a zombie-ridden world, hired to operate a train needed to pick up components for the "war machine." Meanwhile, they must also care for other survivors and maintain the train in between supply stops at various stations.
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Alongside an increasingly surprising and dark narrative, The Final Station combines strategy, exploration, and action to keep the player invested in what is otherwise a simple concept.
4 Zompiercer
Steam User Rating: 88%
- Release: April 3, 2020
- Developer: DDDimanN
The game begins with an alarm warning the protagonist that zombies have breached their sanctuary. Zompiercer sees the player take control of a train and drive through a series of different locations while fighting against a range of different zombie types.
This game is both sandbox and survival, with resource management and base building mechanics that the player can use to make the train a home on wheels. With each level, the player can also upgrade health, stamina, strength, and stealth, making Zompiercer a versatile title for all kinds of gamers.
3 Choo-Choo Charles
Steam User Rating: 91%
- Release: December 9, 2022
- Developer: Two Star Games
Combining the allure of trains with arachnophobia, Choo-Choo Charles is a unique horror game. The player takes on the role of a monster hunter, tasked with taking down Charles, a horrifying spider-train that hunts humans at the mines on the island of Aranearum. The beast is described as "half train, half giga-spider from hell."
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Between collecting eggs to summon Charles to a final duel, the player can complete other quests for scrap rewards. These can be used to upgrade the player's train's speed and defenses, all while fending Charles off with a mounted machine gun. Overall, Choo-Choo Charles is a surprisingly fun game full of wacky lore and terrifying chases.
2 Granny 3
Steam User Rating: 93%
- Release: August 22, 2021
- Developer: DVloper
In version 1.1, the developer added a train ending to Granny 3. The player must search Granny's house for different components in order to get the train under the house up and running and use it to escape, all while evading the baseball bat-wielding Granny, who hears the player's every movement.
The third installment takes longer to beat than the preceding Granny games, because of the bigger labyrinthine house and (optional) additional enemies. The extra routes and items offer a more engaging experience that is both challenging and frightening.
1 The Exit 8
Steam User Rating: 93%
The Exit 8
- Released
- November 29, 2023
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Windows
- Developer
- KOTAKE CREATE
- Genre(s)
- Puzzle, Simulation, Adventure
Similar to Chilla's Art's Shinkansen 0, The Exit 8 is an anomaly-spotting game slash walking-simulator. The player is stuck looping in the sterile passageways of Japan's underground train station. They must reach exit 8 by continuing until they see an anomaly, at which point they must walk in the reverse direction.
Despite some anomalies being subtle and difficult to spot, the bright artificial light and the repeating tiled walls transform the station into a stifling place that, like the backrooms, feels all too familiar.
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