The very first time I played the Scarecrow sections in Arkham Asylum. Screen slightly tilting, the music (or lack of) and just the atmosphere that was presented scared the shit out of me. After I figured out how to tell if I was in one, I instantly thought to myself, "That, was fricking awesome. I want more moments like those!"
Pretty much any time in Minecraft Survival Mode where I'm in caves or outside at night. Especially if I'm playing Hardcore (and since I often play Terrafirmacraft, that's the ONLY way to play properly.)
Seriously, Minecraft could easily classify as one of the scariest games out there, even taking real horror games into account.
Another one that's personal (and probably unique) to me is a case of something that wasn't even supposed to be scary at all, but when I was a kid getting there for the first time, was scared out of my wits: the end of the Gall level in Shadows of the Empire.
The Gall level is the longest level in Shadows of the Empire. The boss of the level is Boba Fett. Now, I generally prefer to take my time when playing games, even now, and this was also true when I was a kid. Near the end of the level, however, there's a bunch of elevators that go up, and they move FAST. I wanted to have time to collect myself before fighting Fett, since the idea of fighting the guy scared me via reputation alone. But when I stepped on those elevators, I kept yelling at the screen "TOO FAST!!" because I was so scared. Didn't help that I wasn't actually sure which elevator would finally take me to meet him. But when I finally stepped on that last elevator, I was in a virtual-panic. (Like I said, I was a kid; I think I'm about 8 or 9 in this story, and even now as an adult I get scared very easily. So if this is reading like a bad haunted-game creepypasta, that's why).
Of course, once the fight actually began and that boss music started playing, the fear subsided a bit (my experience is that the idea of a scary experience is generally 100 times scarier than the actual scary experience), though I naturally lost since it's actually a very tough fight.
And no, that part of the game never scared me again, but I do feel some small emotional memory of that first time whenever I replayed the game.
I was playing dark souls, and I was trying to fight the black knight that's in undead parish (the one that's at the top of the tower right after the wyvern's bridge). Anyway, I kept running up the tower, hitting him with my sword, and then running back down the stairs in an attempt to get him to follow me back down, because I really didn't want to fight him in the confined space of the tower. I'd done this 5 or 6 times and it was getting really annoying that he wasn't chasing me. Anyway, I ran back up the tower again, took another swing at him and ran back down, and stood at the bottom waiting for him to make it down the stairs. Suddenly he landed on top of my head and nearly made me shit myself. Yup, the crazy ************ decided that enough was enough and jumped off the tower to kill me. The impact of him falling on my head stunned my character and the black knight got a couple of good hits in leaving me almost dead before I regained my concentration and killed him. Still scared the crap out of me.
The first time I played it Gone Home was freaky as hell. Little creaks from somewhere upstairs, the occult subplot things, the rain, and the absence of all other characters was a recipe for crapped pants.
I was also playing the Black Mesa mod recently (the source remake of half-life) and the part where the helicopter gunship thing shows up on the cliff face was THE WORST THING.
Aaaand lastly, in Dragon Age 2. That whole quest with Hawke's mother and her 'suitor'. Sheesh.
Well, if it counts, fighting General RAAM in Gears of War 1. I was really young at the time and doing it by myself, so the fight was terrifying and the kree enemies just made it worse. I would always jump and yell out whenever he got closer and I wasted ammo badly. Always will be cemented into my head.
In Shin Megami Tensei 4 I was following the main story where I was to find the Black Samurai in this base, as I was going the doors I opened one where the Black Samurai's armor just shows up on the screen. It freaked me out pretty bad.
I was playing dark souls, and I was trying to fight the black knight that's in undead parish (the one that's at the top of the tower right after the wyvern's bridge). Anyway, I kept running up the tower, hitting him with my sword, and then running back down the stairs in an attempt to get him to follow me back down, because I really didn't want to fight him in the confined space of the tower. I'd done this 5 or 6 times and it was getting really annoying that he wasn't chasing me. Anyway, I ran back up the tower again, took another swing at him and ran back down, and stood at the bottom waiting for him to make it down the stairs. Suddenly he landed on top of my head and nearly made me shit myself. Yup, the crazy ************ decided that enough was enough and jumped off the tower to kill me. The impact of him falling on my head stunned my character and the black knight got a couple of good hits in leaving me almost dead before I regained my concentration and killed him. Still scared the crap out of me.
I've nearly cacked myself so many times in Dark Souls 2. The biggest one being the misty part of Shaded Woods, one of the tree has a face on it. I was rotating my camera trying to get my barings, and BAM. For a few seconds I just went still and my heart was racing
Gah, fuck the Cradle and all of the shit in that area. Completely validated my grinding for climbing gloves though, I spent 90% of my time in that level stuck on the wall trying to not have a heart attack. Goddamn resurrecting enemies...
OT: FO:NV running Project Nevada, I was looking for some of the high end gear the game offers, and I set off a Deathclaw nest. Not even my Steath implant, or my Holorifle could save me from that.
The Library level in Halo 1 and 2. Turning to find a Flood's crotch in you face is both disturbing and terrifying; running into one with a rocket launcher is not much better. And to any Minecraft player, hearing that distinctive hiss is enough to make you shit your pants and ragequit.
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines.
Okay this was a supernatural RPG where you play as your own vampire. It had a great world, lore, story, and gameplay. Although while it does go downhill a bit by halfway, there are two moments.
1.
This special part has no action at all, but yet the whole setting of the hotel and the events that happen make you frightened. Ghosts appear and disappear, things are thrown at you, a terrible story is had, and a lot of shit happens to your character that should make them run away immediately. >.<
2. While I don't have a good video for it, there is a plot-line about these weird ass monsters. In which you visit a secret porn studio, find some creepy ass monsters, book it, discover more, and by the end you are in a small house trapped with monsters everywhere.
These are the two events that make "Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines" totally worth it.
Apart from the tiny worse ending half of the game, it is damn good.
It is quite a shame the MMO did not make it. :/
The year was 1994. The game was UFO Enemy Unknown. My brave squad had just landed at a terror site. A new type of alien was there. It charged at my squad. within a few turns nearly my entire team were either zombies, or hatching into Chryssalids. Scariest gaming moment ever. Ever. (I was scared enough that it took me a while to try the mission again.)
I once aggro'ed 3 Sectopods simultaneously on Classic Ironman. I could barely feel my legs when it happened.
OT: If anyone remembers the Tentaculats from X-Com: Terror from the Deep, you have experienced true horror. Every time these fuckers show up, it's like watching Aliens.
I'm not sure if it counts as a horror game or not given the subject matter... but the Childrens Library in Ghostbusters had several very good scares.
However seconds for The Cradle from Thief 3 and the Mansion from Vampire - Bloodlines (which as a level was a wonderful pastiche on the Shinning and a great way to explain a little more about what being sensitive to the supernatural means in WoD).
I tend to prefer creepy vibes to jump scares, I don't like being startled so I don't really play a lot of horror games or watch horror movies.
While the Scarecrow bits in Arkham Asylum are a given, I found it pretty unnerving whenever you have to backtrack through buildings you've already done for Riddler trophies. There's no enemies, no music, it's just...quiet. I often turned on the patient interviews just so I could have something to listen to.
You know, specific things in scary games don't scare me in the moment, but I get generally creeped out when playing scary games and become more aware of noises in my house. Even playing some areas in the Ghostbusters game, my dog would move and I'd jump, but nothing in the game would make me jump.
The sunken ship level in No One Lives Forever. I can be cheating and have god mode and all the weapons in the game (normally, you're only allowed a harpoon gun) and it will still creep me out. Speaking of NOLF, anyone remember the boxed henchmen in the sequel? They were probably supposed to be too silly to be scary but I think that's what made it so scary to me in the first place. Especially when you kill them and they just stop moving.
Also, I never thought I'd mention Ace Attorney in a thread like this, but this bit in Dual Destinies certainly caught me off guard:
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