10 Horror Anime To Keep You Up At Night
4. Higurashi
Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni, also known as When They Cry, is a horror anime that doesn’t really start like a horror anime. You’d be forgiven to mistake it at first for a light slice-of-life, considering the idyllic setting and cute character designs.
Keiichi Maebara is also deceived by the apparent peacefulness of Hinamizawa village, where he moves and quickly befriends a group of girls. However, as the village’s annual festival draws near, all of Keiichi’s (and the viewers’) assumptions are shattered, as his friends turn homicidal and start butchering everyone on sight.
If the gore itself isn’t shocking enough, it’s the characters’ descent into pure unhinged madness that is sure to make your hair stand on end.
Seeing teenage girls pick up cleavers and hack their way through the village isn’t for the fainthearted, but Higurashi does more than just provide shock value. It also presents viewers an intriguing mystery that can only be unraveled by exploring alternate storylines. Scary, troubling and unpredictable, this anime is as much a horror tale, as it is a detective story.