Gaming and phobias

Arachnophobia, fear of spiders:

Games are one of the worst things out there for people scared of spiders. These eight legged creatures get around into some of the biggest titles on the market. While there are plenty of games that have had terrifying giant spiders that put Shelob to shame, the scariest has to be Limbo’s, the dark silhouette of this beastie blends into the background perfectly and when you realise what it is, you are powerless to do anything but run.

Worst Game: Limbo
Special Mentions: Most Zelda games, Skyrim and any Earth Defence Force game

Coulrophobia, fear of clowns:

Whoever invented clowns is a moron – end of. Thousands of children have been left scarred by masked ‘entertainers’ that are more scary than they are funny. Games seem to love playing on this by chucking clowns into our games. Creepy clowns pop up everywhere from Left 4 Dead 2′s fairground level to racing games like Twisted Metal. The worst offender to coulrophobia sufferers has to be Dead Rising, in which an insane clown called Adam taunts you and eventually attacks you with dual chainsaws.

Worst Game: Dead Rising
Special Mentions: Twisted Metal, Broken Sword, Loaded

Aquaphobia, fear of water:

Water levels are pretty common in video games. It’s an unsung rule that every platformer requires an underwater level, but for some this can be absolute torture. The fear of water (quite often deep water) is linked to both the fear of drowning and the unknown. Hydrophobia and Tomb Raider are obvious additions to this list and Super Mario 64 makes it on for the Unagi enemy. Shadow of the Colossus is the worst game for those who fear deep water. The seventh colossus battle has you swimming down, holding onto a huge snake-like creature who then drags you to the depths of his habitat, where no light can be seen.

Worst Game: Shadow of the Colossus
Special Mentions: Super Mario 64, Tomb Raider, Hydrophobia

Tags: Dead Rising, Limbo, Mirrors Edge, Phobia, Resident Evil, Shadow of the Colossus, Tomb Raider, Twisted Metal, Zelda

About the Author

Kiron Ramdewar The mad-man behind this website has an unhealthy devotion to video games. Since playing Doom at the age of five he has an unstable fixation on control pads, shooting things and chainsaws.