10 Ingeniously Clever Video Games That Will Mess With Your Mind

by Robert Zak

1. Eternal Darkness

Eternal Darkness
Nintendo

Not nearly enough credit is given to this fourth-wall-breaking survival horror on the GameCube, which might have something to do with the fact that it existed solely on Nintendo's overlooked console.

With a story about pre-human deities going by names like Chattur'gha and Ulyoath, the game has strong overtones of Lovecraftian horror. As a woman called Alexandra, you wander around a mansion investigating the death of your father, but the gameplay jumps between several different characters and time periods, dating back as far as Roman times.

The real mind games of Eternal Darkness come through its depiction of Alexandra's deteriorating sanity, which effectively reach out of the screen and make you feel like you're going insane by pretending to delete your save files, turn the volume down on your TV, and even reset the console.

Top that off with subtle spooky effects like paintings becoming disfigured and statues turning their heads to look at you, and Eternal Darkness is one of the best games at making you feel mentally unstable.

Advertisement

Watch Next


In this post: 
Bioshock
 
First Posted On: 
Contributor
Contributor

Gamer, Researcher of strange things. I'm a writer-editor hybrid whose writings on video games, technology and movies can be found across the internet. I've even ventured into the realm of current affairs on occasion but, unable to face reality, have retreated into expatiating on things on screens instead.