10 Most Terrifying Video Game Enemies (And What They Represent)

7. The Villagers - The Evil Within

Although at first glance the regular enemies of The Evil Within - deformed, zombie-like villagers who torment Sebastian on his nightmarish journey - could be perceived as being simple Ganados rip-offs, the reason for their monstrous appearance is actually rooted in a traumatic story twist.

Everything that happens in the title's world is a result of Ruvik, a psychopathic serial killer, letting his twisted subconscious go wild to conjure up a horrific hellscape, and these deformed enemies represent a group from his past.

As a child, Ruvik and his sister were caught in a barn that was burned down by a nearby farmer, with the latter dying and the forming having every inch of his body scorched as a result. Ruvik relives this traumatic moment by bringing the villagers to life to haunt Sebastian, with their twisted, inhuman appearance reflecting the way he saw his attackers as inherently evil beings, rather than bad people.

While they look like generic zombies then, they're actually how the villagers were seen in the antagonist's nightmares, brought to life to haunt yours.