The Baker Family: In Resident Evil 7 you’re introduced to the Baker family when Jack Baker quite literally cuts his son’s arm off, and Ma baker tries to force you to eat it…to this day we don’t know what exactly she was trying to force you to eat. All we do know is that it was disgusting, rotten, and bug-filled. The Baker family doesn’t scare easily, the deeper you go into Resident Evil 7, the more time you spend with them. Jack in particular is a highlight because of his ability to burst through walls when you’re least expecting it and scare the shit out of you.

Big Daddies in Bioshock are the ultimate protectors. They protect the little sisters with their lives, the only issue is you need to either save or harvest those little sisters. And to do that, you have to kill their Big Daddy. You might think that they’re easy to kill because they’re so big, which means they won’t be able to move very well, but you’d be wrong. They’re strong, fast, capable of using plasmids and have a drill taller than most men.

Clickers - The Last of Us: You’d think humans would be the scariest enemies you have to fight in The Last of Us, but you’d be wrong. Clickers are completely blind and locate you entirely through echolocation. That may sound like a simple enough problem to avoid, just move slowly and stay away from them, right? Wrong. Naughty Dog created enemies that “see” through sound and littered the ground with interactable objects like glass that you have to walk over while in earshot of a clicker. Step in the wrong place and suddenly they’re shambling after you, ready to eat your flesh.

Deathclaws - Fallout: These monsters are the definition of “f*** this sh*t I’m out.” Fast, lethal, ruthlessly aggressive, and almost immune to damage, if you see a Deathclaw, it’s better to run than it is to try and fight. You may not get far, but you’ll be able to survive for a little bit longer.

The Witch - Left 4 Dead: The Witch is iconic because she’s completely harmless until you disturb her. If you leave her be, she’ll be curled up in a ball, crying, minding her own business. You hear her before you see her and her blood-curdling screeches and moans send chills down your spine, but then you see her. Someone in your party moves a little too close when they aren’t paying attention and suddenly all hell has broken loose, and she’s ready to rip your face off.

Mr. X - Resident Evil 2: Built like a tank and always ruining up your plans, even if you shoot off his hat, Mr. X follows you everywhere you go in Raccoon City. He’s impossible to kill. All you can do is slow him down or temporarily make him stop, and that’s if you have enough ammo. Half of the fear associated with him is based around what he can do, the other half is based around the fact that it’ll take most of your ammo to try and get him out of the way. You never know if you can actually survive Mr. X because even if you get away, your inventory may be extremely bare.

Pyramid Head - Silent Hill: Characters like this is why many gamers keep their lights on when they’re home alone at night. Pyramid Head doesn’t sound that frightening in your head, but when you watch him slowly chase you through Silent Hill with his gigantic blade, or watch him force himself onto mannequin dolls to pleasure himself, you get a sense of the sick individual you’re dealing with. You can’t kill Pyramid Head, you can only survive his insanity.

Richard Trager - Outlast: Outlast is one of the more unique horror experiences of the last decade and that’s thanks to Richard Trager. You get introduced to him when he cuts a journalist’s fingers off but that isn’t enough for Trager. His endeavors with human experimentation have obviously taken a serious toll. Trager has turned the hospital into hell, turned himself into a monster, and he intends to give you a fate worse than death.

Until Dawn - The Wendigo: What’s more terrifying than a story that hits close to home? Until Dawn’s big bad is the wendigo, a creature that was originally human until they were cursed with cannibalism. Now they hunt, looking for their next victim or victims, and in Until Dawn, you play as a group of stupid young men and women that don’t truly know what they’re up against. The Wendigo doesn’t show itself often, but when it does it’s absolutely terrifying due to its height, slender frame, and sheer physical strength.