For some, the thought of playing a scary game solo is too much to bear. Fortunately, that’s not the only way to enjoy some of the most horrifying games on the market. There are plenty of opportunities to dive into a cooperative adventure that’s riddled with jumpscares, making the fear that little bit easier to handle. With that in mind, we’re breaking down the best scary games to play with friends in this list, so you can be a little braver with someone by your side as you play.

It’s worth stressing that, for the most part, the scariest games ever made won’t offer cooperative experiences. They’re scary because they’re putting you against the forces of darkness or spontaneous jumpscares on a solo perspective – there’s nobody there to back you up. However, we’ve managed to pull together some good horror games with multiplayer, so you can avoid going it alone.

Let’s get into the list of the top scary games to play with friends.

Best Horror Games to Play With Friends

If you’ve got a taste for something creepy or scary and want to play with friends, consider one of the following games.

Sons of the Forest (2023 – Early Access)

Sons of the Forest is one of the best-looking survival horror games to be released in recent years. It puts players on a vast island and charges them to survive, craft settlements, and solve mysteries scattered around the map. It’s also one of the best scary games to play with friends because multiplayer is baked into the base experience. It’s a freaky game that takes players into the depths of horrifying bunkers and caves that are bursting at the seams with bloodthirsty cannibals and mutants.

Related: Best Horror Games of All Time

Phasmophobia (2020)

Phasmophobia became an overnight sensation when it was popularised by content creators on Twitch and YouTube. In Phasmophobia, players must enter a series of locations and hunt ghosts, using a range of tools to determine what kind of spectre they’re dealing with. It’s one of the top horror games to play with friends because it’s designed to be cooperative, but it still manages to feature some of the best jump scares in the business – so be warned!

Dead by Daylight (2016)

Dead by Daylight remains one of the most popular multiplayer horror games even seven years after it was released. It continues to be updated all the time, and new horror-themed characters keep finding their way into this intense, tension-ridden title. It’s a multiplayer-only game, so that makes it one of the best scary games to play with friends by default. It’s designed to be a heart-pounding, unpredictable game, so it’s well worth the play if you’re looking for something scarier than usual.

Sker Ritual (2022 – Early Access)

Sker Ritual comes from Wales Interactive, the creative developer behind Maid of Sker, one of the best horror games ever released. In Sker Ritual, players must join forces to contend with a Call of Duty Zombies-like experience that sees them defend themselves against waves of terrifying enemies. It’s more action-packed than it is scary, but it’s still one of the best horror games to play with friends, and it’s available on a wide range of platforms – it also looks gorgeous on screen.

The Outlast Trials (2023)

The Outlast Trials is a multiplayer-focused expansion of the Outlast universe, which is widely considered one of the scariest franchises in gaming. Typically, the Outlast franchise pits a player against horrors that they must survive entirely on their own. In The Outlast Trials, up to four players need to survive a series of experiments that’ll have them testing both their abilities as gamers and their sanity as humans. It’s intense for sure.

Related: Best Indie Horror Games