Horror games have become a key part of the gaming world, spaning many subgenres, styles, and locales. A large number of games' fictional locations, despite their hellish outlooks, are actually based on places in the real world.
Many iconic settings take inspiration from books and movies, but the more interesting ones are the sites based on real-life places. In fact, many recognizable titles like Silent Hill, Resident Evil, and Outlast have locations that are based on a real area or building. Here's a list of interesting game locales that readers may not have known draw from real-life locations.
10 Kholat, Inspired By The Dyatlov Pass Incident
This eerie game is set in the cold, creepy environment of the Ural Mountains, Russia, which in the game renames Kholat Syakhi. According to the game, back in 1959, nine students went suddenly missing here. Legendary actor Sean Bean narrates the tale, and adds to the mystery and fear that follows the player while investigating the strange disappearance.
The real-life inspiration for this game was the Dyatlov Pass Incident of the same year. This tragic incident involved the disappearance of nine student skiers from the Ural Polytechnic Institute who, over the course of a few months, mysteriously vanished. After no messages were received from the group, an investigation started, eventually turning up the belongings and strangely mutilated bodies of the students. The mystery remains even today.
9 The Town Of Light, Based On The Volterra Psychiatric Asylum
The Town Of Light is an adventure game with heavy psychological and horror aspects. Released in 2017, it takes place in an abandoned 20th-century mental asylum. Players must explore the run-down buildings, finding hints to figure out the mysteries of the past.
This game’s real-life location is recreated accurately, based on the Volterra Psychiatric Asylum in Tuscany used in the 50s and 60s. The asylum held over 5000 patients at a time, all of whom suffered from mental health conditions. The asylum became known for its poor treatment of patients, using "cures" including electroshock therapy and unregulated medication. Patients were even subjected to poisoning. The Town Of Light follows this grim setting, and features fictional character Renee’s tragic story.
8 Fatal Frame, Set In The Himuro Mansion
Koei Tecmo’s cult classic Fatal Frame was released on the PlayStation 2. The survival horror game’s first installment takes place in a recreation of the real-life Himuro Mansion, which has solidified its place in the dark side of Japan’s history. The protagonist, Miku Hanasaki, ventures into the Mansion to find her brother, who has disappeared after visiting supposedly haunted locations.
The Himuro Mansion is the site of one of Japan’s biggest mass murders in recent history. Seven people were allegedly found dead in the Mansion, killed during strange and occult rituals. These gruesome rituals involved torturous methods to "ward off evil spirits." Fatal Frame features some of these in its story, making it an underrated classic.
7 Sherlock Holmes Vs. Jack The Ripper, Set In Victorian London
As the title suggests, this game features fictional detective Sherlock Holmes on the case of prolific killer Jack The Ripper. The story is based on the tragedies of the famous case, and takes place in Victorian London — specifically the Whitechapel area, where Jack The Ripper was active.
The game follows the true story of this unidentified killer, and places the character in the investigative position of Holmes and Watson to try and unravel the case. This is not the only game that features the old-time killer, either — those fascinated with the Ripper have plenty to explore.
6 Five Nights At Freddy’s Is Based On A Chuck E. Cheese Incident
Five Nights At Freddy’s has become very popular. Despite being a creepy-looking horror game filled with jump scares, the franchise has garnered quite a young fanbase. This is unfortunately ironic due to the grisly origins of this game’s inspiration.
The game is based upon the story of a fateful night in a Chuck E. Cheese restaurant. In 1993, a man who previously worked at the company hid in the bathroom and waited until closing time, then attacked the five members of staff remaining at the premises. It is said that Foxy, Freddy, Chica, Bonnie, and Golden Freddy represent the lives lost. This twisted origin adds to the fear and unease that fans feel while playing the game.
5 The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: Atari 2600, Inspired By Ed Gein
All media surrounding the "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" are based on the same event, and the Atari game is no different. The 1983 game Texas Chainsaw Massacre: Atari 2600 was based upon the film of the same name, but it still comes from a real-life incident.
The gruesome inspiration for the series is the prolific killer, the "Butcher Of Plainfield: Ed Gein. While not from Texas himself, his violent and disgusting acts were the basis for the Chainsaw Massacre films. The setting of the houses, and the plot itself, were both based on Gein’s life. He is known for creating furniture from human parts, among other terrifying practices.
4 Resident Evil Village, Based On Peles Castle
Some fans may not know that the most recent Resident Evil installment contains a location based on a real-world place. Resident Evil Village features a vampiric family by the name of Dimitrescu, who inhabit Castle Dimitrescu atop the dark village.
The real counterpart and inspiration for this is Peles Castle, located in Transylvania. Fans in Romania and close to Transylvania have even gone to the castle to take pictures to compare the two locations. The dramatic castle is truly a great building to base a game location off, and it complements the story beautifully.
3 Silent Hill, Inspired By Centralia, Pennsylvania
What comes to mind when Silent Hill is mentioned is not exactly a pleasant place, and certainly not one that people would like to believe exists. It is, however, based upon a real place. Silent Hill draws inspiration the town of Centralia, in Pennsylvania.
Centralia is entrenched in its own tragedy. A once prosperous mining town, it succumbed to a fire that broke out in the mines under the town. The fire could not be contained, creating burning sinkholes in the ground. The fire is still said to be burning to this day, and the population of the town has dropped to almost none. This tragic story lends itself well to the nightmare scenarios in Silent Hill. Thankfully though, the only monster in Centralia is the fire, not anything like a zombie nurse.
2 Chernobylite, Based On The Chernobyl Disaster
This game is definitely not the first piece of media to be based on the devastating disaster in Pripyat, but is the latest. Chernobylite is a recently released sci-fi survival game on both consoles and PC, and sees players pick their way across the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. While not specifically listed as a horror game, those who understand the disaster and its effects will appreciate the terrifying aspect of it. The reactor exploded in the mid-80s and caused a horrendous sequence of events, costing the lives of many and ruining the area for decades to come.
Chernobylite is located in the very real Exclusion Zone, which covers 30km in every direction around the Chernobyl nuclear reactor site. The player must search this dangerous area for their long-lost wife. The haunting and melancholy feel provides a look into the true brutality of the unfortunate event.
1 Outlast Features MK Ultra, Mountains, And Asylums
Outlast is a horror survival game featuring the playable character of a news journalist, who investigates an abandoned asylum nestled deep in the mountains of Colorado. Mount Massive Asylum is named after a real mountain in the Colorado range, and the building itself is modeled after the H. H. Richardson Complex located in Buffalo, New York.
There are also other elements from real life in Outlast, as the game's villainous Murkoff Corporation’s gross doings were heavily inspired by Project MK Ultra. Tin the USA in the mid-50s, MK Ultra involved involuntary subjects being exposed to what was essentially mind control via the use of drugs, torture, and information overload. In Outlast, the Murkoff Corporation picked up where the government left off and continued the terrifying experiments.