At the risk of starting this list like an English essay, it’s important to establish a definition of Eldritch. Merriam-Webster defines Eldritch as “strange or unnatural, especially in a way that inspires fear”. Eldritch is particularly associated with weird fiction, including the works of the Cthulhu mythos, and video games are filled to the brim with weird and unnatural enemies.
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Eldritch abominations by their very nature are difficult to perceive. They exist on the borders of reality, breaking down definitions of nature and reality. Here are some of the scariest Eldritch horrors and Lovecraftian monsters in video games.
7
God From Silent Hill
“Pray For The Day Of The Miraculous Descent”
Silent Hill
Silent Hill is a series of survival horror games best known for its original trilogy. The first three games stood out with how atmospheric they were, along with their engrossing storylines that were often told through symbolism and metaphors.
Silent Hill 2 is set to be remade by Bloober Team, a game that could reignite the franchise.
The God of the Silent Hill series is willed into being and creates time so that suffering will not last an eternity. God then dies, but on her deathbed she tells her followers she will come again. This is interpreted by The Order as rebirth, and it becomes their mission to bring about the rebirth of their God. They seek a human vessel, a human womb, to birth God and bring about an eternal paradise.
She is an extremely powerful god who manifests in the series in many ways, not all of them inherently malevolent. Sometimes she is a hideous incubus, other times she appears more ambiguous, even nurturing. Definitions of her appear to be highly subjective, just like Silent Hill in general. What is truly terrifying about God is the awful things that are done in her name by The Order.
6
Cthylla From The Sinking City
“May The Sea Bless You”
- Released
-
June 27, 2019
- OpenCritic Rating
-
Fair
The titular “Sinking City” is the flooded town of Oakmont, which is besieged by all kinds of Eldritch horrors. The town is home to monsters known as the Wylde Beasts, zealous cultists, mysterious disappearances and supernaturally triggered madness. The protagonist, Charles Reed, is drawn to Oakmont by visions and begins to investigate the connections between these strange happenings.
It turns out that Charles is destined to sacrifice himself to a cosmic creature straight out of the pages of the Cthulhu mythos, Cthylla, the daughter and mother of Cthulhu. Cthylla and the King in Yellow are part of a complex ecology of ancient beings operating beyond human understanding. By sacrificing himself, Charles Reed can choose to end or perpetuate an apocalyptic cycle of birth, death and suffering.
5
The Hiss from Control
“You are a worm through time”
Action
Third-Person Shooter
Supernatural
- Released
-
August 27, 2019
- OpenCritic Rating
-
Mighty
The Hiss, like many of the paranormal phenomena in Control, is very difficult to explain. But in incredibly reductive terms, it is a resonance that behaves a bit like a virus. It spreads through the chanting and incantations of those who are essentially enslaved by it. Tuning into its opposing resonance, known as Polaris, can help people resist The Hiss.
Those who are fans of the developer Remedy will not fail to notice the similarities between The Hiss and the Dark Presence in Alan Wake. This makes it very clear that The Hiss is not a unique phenomenon in the Remedy Extended Universe and that there may be myriad mind-warping entities out there that are difficult to comprehend, let alone contain.
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4
The Old Ones From Bloodborne
“When The Great Ones Descend, A Womb Will Be Blessed With Child”
- Released
-
March 24, 2015
- OpenCritic Rating
-
Mighty
Behind the grimy blood-drenched veneer of Yharnam as the player encounters it at the beginning of Bloodborne is a world of cosmic horror and old gods. This is the realm of The Great Ones who loom large over the world of Bloodborne, invisible to those without insight until Rom is defeated.
Unlike the monstrous beast-form bosses in the earlier game, the Great Ones often fail to make any anatomical sense whatsoever. They descend and impregnate women in the hope of creating a new Great One. The Great One, known as Moon Presence, is the true final boss of Bloodborne and is unlocked by consuming three “third of umbilical cords” in a single playthrough.
3
The Entity From Dead By Daylight
“You’ll Never Wake Up Again”
- Franchise
-
Dead by Daylight
- Released
-
June 14, 2016
- OpenCritic Rating
-
Fair
Despite its anachronistic nature, Dead By Daylight does have an overarching narrative. It also has an Eldritch creature pulling the strings known as The Entity. It is a being of “pure consciousness” that consumes suffering and negative emotions. The trial grounds that the player traverses are an elaborate means of feeding The Entity.
The Entity appears not to understand the cultural context of the worlds it is pulling subjects from. This results in a strange amalgam of established horror properties and unique characters colliding in what is essentially a hunting ground. The participants are resurrected and have their memories wiped so that they can begin suffering anew and provide The Entity with further sustenance.
2
The Shape From Still Wakes The Deep
You Know The Drill
- Released
-
June 18, 2024
- Developer(s)
-
The Chinese Room
- OpenCritic Rating
-
Strong
Still Wakes the Deep takes place on an isolated oil rig off the coast of Scotland. This is the perfect setting for an encounter with an Eldritch monster. The Shape is a parasitic growth that has penetrated the rig and is now laying waste to the crew. It is very difficult to ascertain its form, but it appears as a fleshy tentacled root like mass.
The Shape appears to have a profound impact on the physical and psychological state of the crew of the rig. It assimilates and absorbs some of its victims. Others mutate in different ways and become crazed and homicidal, attacking their crew mates on sight.
1
Eveline From Resident Evil 7
“I want you to be my mommy”
- Released
-
January 24, 2017
- OpenCritic Rating
-
Mighty
Eveline may look like a precocious 10-year-old girl, but she is functionally a shape-shifting fungal bioweapon. This obviously sounds terribly dehumanizing, and her backstory is absolutely tragic, being the result of scientific experimentation. She still perceives things as a young girl might, meaning that her isolation and exploitation have horrifying results. Her desperation for a family and to belong is the root of the horrors of the Baker house.
Eveline is part of a cycle of trauma and violence that stretches back to the death of Mother Miranda’s daughter in a small village many decades ago. The fact that she is scared and emotionally vulnerable does not stop her from being one of the most terrifying antagonists in the Resident Evil franchise.
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