Updated September 2026
This is the ranking of the best Action Horror Games, sorted by NextGameLike Score: a 0-100 metric blending Steam reviews, IGDB ratings (community and critic), Metacritic, OpenCritic and the NextGameLike community votes into a single number. Unlike opinion-based editorial lists, this order is computed from real data and applies a Bayesian shrinkage adjustment so games with few reviews can't inflate the top of the chart. Half-Life: Alyx - Final Hours, Half-Life: Alyx and Cookie Clicker lead the chart — the highest-rated titles in the genre according to our data. The top-25 average NextGameLike Score is 82/100, out of 29 games catalogued. The ranking updates continuously as new reviews and votes come in.
Top 3
Top of “The 20 Best Action Horror Games (2026)”: Half-Life: Alyx - Final Hours (93.5/100). Close behind: Half-Life: Alyx and Cookie Clicker.
Ranked by NextGameLike Score · 29 games catalogued
Half-Life: Alyx - Final Hours is one of the few Action Horror Games where players and critics say the same thing. It holds the best critic score on the whole list, 93/100. Hence the first place.
No argument here: Half-Life: Alyx wins over players and critics alike. No other entry of the 20 has a higher share of positive reviews: 98%. Enough for the podium: number 2.
Cookie Clicker is here because of its players — they are who it won over. That puts it at number 3.
No argument here: Alan Wake wins over players and critics alike. That gets it into the top 10, at number 4.
Players and critics agree on Buckshot Roulette, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Horror Games. It is the newest on the list (2024), and has already earned its place. Number 5, inside the top 10.
Players and critics agree on Soma, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Horror Games. Number 6, inside the top 10.
Players and critics agree on The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Horror Games. That gets it into the top 10, at number 7.
Vital Shell is carried by its players more than by its reviews. That gets it into the top 10, at number 8.
Players and critics agree on Killer Frequency, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Horror Games. Number 9, inside the top 10.
R.E.P.O. is carried by its players more than by its reviews. It is the most reviewed of the 20: 388,941 Steam reviews. That gets it into the top 10, at number 10.
Critics were lukewarm on Spooky's Jump Scare Mansion: HD Renovation; players were not. It lands at 11 of 20.
The Walking Dead: The Final Season is here because of its players — they are who it won over. It sits at 12 of 20.
Players and critics agree on City Car Driving, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Horror Games. It lands at 13 of 20.
No argument here: Resident Evil 5 wins over players and critics alike. It sits at 14 of 20.
Penumbra Overture is here because of its players — they are who it won over. It is the oldest game in the ranking (2007) and still here. It sits at 15 of 20.
Outlast II is carried by its players more than by its reviews. It sits at 16 of 20.
Senua's Saga: Hellblade II is one of the few Action Horror Games where players and critics say the same thing. It sits at 17 of 20.
Critics were lukewarm on Still Wakes the Deep; players were not. It sits at 18 of 20.
No argument here: Amnesia: Rebirth wins over players and critics alike. It sits at 19 of 20.
Players and critics agree on The Walking Dead: A New Frontier, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Horror Games. It sits at 20 of 20.