I am back here with another list – have I run out of content ideas? No of course not (maybe a little) I am just really really into survival horror at the moment – thanks largely in part to 2025 and 2026 so far fuelling a bit of a resurgence of the Genre with the return of Silent Hill, Tormented Souls 2, Cronos and now even a new Resident Evil this month
Which got me thinking… The PS2 was the last time we really saw a GOLDEN era of the survival horror genre – but which are the best ones?
I will only be running with One game per franchise – so as much as I would really really love to include Resident Evil Outbreak on this list, especially with it tying directly into Resident Evil Requiem, I am unable to include this one given what else Capcom released during this era.
10 Rule of Rose
Am I an edgelord hipster boy for putting this on my list? Likely. Does it deserve to be on the list? Absofuckinglutely it does.
Rule of Rose is one of those games that almost feels mythical at this point. Banned in places, wildly misunderstood, stupidly expensive physically, and still talked about in hushed tones like it’s some forbidden artefact. But underneath all the controversy is a genuinely uncomfortable, oppressive survival horror experience that leans into psychological cruelty rather than monsters jumping out of lockers every five minutes. The combat is rough. The pacing is awkward. But the atmosphere? Disgusting in the best possible way. It sticks to you. It makes you feel grimy. And that’s survival horror at its purest. The PS2 was weird enough to allow this to exist and I genuinely miss that
9 The Suffering
The Suffering is angry. That’s the best way to describe it. It’s loud, aggressive, messy and absolutely dripping in early 2000s edge, but somehow it works. The prison setting is perfect survival horror fuel and the creature designs are still some of the most creative of that era, each tied to methods of execution which is just twisted enough to be memorable. It leans more action-heavy than some of the slower burn titles on this list, but it still carries that oppressive atmosphere that makes you feel trapped and hunted. It also did something interesting with morality choices before that was really the norm in horror games. It might not be as subtle as Silent Hill, but sometimes you just want to smash demons in a haunted prison and feel a bit unhinged while doing it.
8 Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly
Fatal Frame 2 is pure dread. No power fantasy. No rocket launchers. Just a camera and the worst vibes imaginable. The idea of having to let ghosts get closer to you to deal more damage is genius and cruel at the same time. It forces you to sit in the fear instead of blasting your way out of it. The twin narrative is tragic and genuinely unsettling, and the abandoned village setting is peak early 2000s horror aesthetic. It feels isolated in a way that very few games manage. It is quiet, suffocating and deeply uncomfortable. The PS2 era absolutely thrived on slow, deliberate horror and this might be one of the finest examples of that design philosophy done right.
7 The Thing
The Thing had no right being as good as it was. Movie tie-ins are usually bin fodder, but this one actually understood the paranoia at the heart of John Carpenter’s masterpiece. The trust system was brilliant for its time. Your squad could literally turn on you if they lost faith, and that constant uncertainty made every encounter tense as hell. Ammo was scarce, the enemies were grotesque, and the snowbound setting gave it that proper isolated survival horror energy. It leaned into action a bit more than the film, sure, but it still captured that creeping dread of not knowing who or what to trust. For a PS2 sequel to a cult horror film, this was way better than it had any right to be.
6 Siren
Siren is not here to hold your hand. It actively hates you. The mission structure is confusing. The objectives are vague. The enemies are relentless. And yet… that is kind of the point. The sight-jacking mechanic was genuinely ahead of its time, letting you see through the eyes of enemies and other characters, which created this horrible sense of being constantly watched. The rural Japanese setting feels grounded and grimy rather than flashy, and that realism makes it scarier. It is slow, methodical and absolutely brutal in difficulty. Not everyone will gel with it, but if you commit to it, Siren delivers one of the most uniquely oppressive horror experiences on the PS2.
5 Obscure
Obscure feels like a time capsule of early 2000s teen horror and I mean that as a compliment. It is basically a playable slasher movie set in a high school, complete with co-op which was honestly such a fun twist for the genre. Survival horror is usually lonely, but here you could drag a mate into the nightmare with you which made it chaotic in the best way. The light mechanic, where enemies were vulnerable to brightness, added a nice layer of strategy without overcomplicating things. It is not as psychologically deep as Silent Hill or as mechanically refined as Resident Evil, but it absolutely deserves recognition for trying something different and nailing that cheesy horror film energy.
4 KuOn
I think this one would probably be far higher on my list if I had actually played it but with me being a fromsoftware fanboy and also having watched a lets play of the majority of the game I think it hugely deserves this high spot.
KuOn is fascinating because you can see the DNA of what FromSoftware would eventually become. The atmosphere is slow, deliberate and oppressive. The Heian period Japanese setting gives it a completely different flavour compared to the Western leaning horror titles of the time. It feels ritualistic. Haunting. Almost meditative in how it builds tension. It is clunky, yes, but so were a lot of early PS2 horror games. What matters is the vibe, and KuOn absolutely has it. As a FromSoftware fanboy, it feels like looking at an early sketch of something that would later evolve into the studio we now obsess over.
3 Clocktower 3
Clocktower 3 is unhinged in a way that I genuinely adore. The stalker mechanics bring back that classic helplessness where running is often your best option, and the boss encounters are theatrical as hell. It leans heavily into melodrama, almost to the point of absurdity, but that camp edge gives it personality. The time travel narrative is wild, and the killers are exaggerated enough to feel like horror icons in their own right. It may not have the subtlety of Silent Hill, but it makes up for it with sheer commitment to its tone. It feels like a proper evolution of that classic run-and-hide horror formula
2 Resident Evil: Code Veronica X
Code Veronica X feels like the bridge between old school Resident Evil and the slightly more action-driven future that was coming. The Ashford twins are some of the most memorable antagonists in the entire franchise, completely over the top but iconic because of it. The shift to fully 3D environments was a big moment for the series and it still retains that classic puzzle heavy, resource management tension that defines survival horror. It is challenging, sometimes brutally so, and absolutely unapologetic about it. While Resident Evil 4 would later reinvent the wheel, Code Veronica X feels like the last pure evolution of the classic formula before everything changed.
1 Silent Hill 2
Is this really a surprise? I have gone on and on and on about this game for decades now. I even own the original special edition and want to frame this in my physical collection
Silent Hill 2 is not just the best PS2 survival horror game. It is one of the best horror games ever made full stop. The atmosphere is unmatched. The fog, the sound design, the music, the way the town feels like it is judging you. Pyramid Head is iconic, yes, but it is the psychological weight of James’ journey that elevates this above everything else. It is slow, uncomfortable, tragic and deeply personal. It trusts the player to sit in the silence and think. That is why it still gets talked about decades later. The PS2 era was special, but this was the crown jewel of it all.