Doug Bowser, President of Nintendo of America, reveals his favorite horror games just in time for Halloween season. Some may be surprised to see thatBowser’s favorite games listin the horror genre isn’t just made up of games from his own company, but pays homage to both Electronic Arts and Valve’s titles.
Horror games are popular year-round, but it’s at this time of year that many game analysts take the time to pay homage to the greats.Nintendoisn’t known for creating particularly bone-chilling games that recreate the kind of panic people see in modern horror media, but it has some spooky-themed titles that many players enjoy.
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The GameStop official Twitter asked its audience what their favorite horror games are, and some popular answers includedDead by Daylight,theLuigi’s Mansionseries, and theSilent Hillgames. Quite a few users took this opportunity to compare thechaotic PS5 pre-ordersto a horror game. Doug Bowser, however, took the question as it was and listed off three games:Dead Space, Left 4 Dead,andLuigi’s Mansion 3.
EA’sDead Spaceand Valve’sLeft 4 Deadare traditionally-definable horror games that integrate themes of paranoia, paranormal disturbances, and general creepiness. Some may be surprised to see BowsercallingLuigi’s Mansion 3a horror game, since the games in Nintendo’s franchise are seen as more kid-friendly and the third installment got an “E for Everyone” rating from the ESRB.
Still, critics have said thatLuigi’s Mansion 3takes those traditional survival horror tropes and makes them accessible for all ages, meaning that yes,Luigi’s Mansion 3uses horror tropes in a way.Horror-themed video gamesdon’t always have to be M-rated and aim to scare the player, although games who do pull this off skillfully are often received well both by critics and by general audiences. Many of the comments on Doug Bowser’s tweet agreed with his love ofLuigi’s Mansion 3, which makes sense, as Nintendo andMariogames fans are more likely to follow Bowser. Still, it’s worth saying that this particular Nintendo game did pretty well, getting an 86 on Metacritic and an 8.5 user score.
Bowser’s love forLeft 4 Deaddid provoke some ire from fans, as some comments asked forNintendo to port the game to Switch. Others took the original tweet more positively and expressed appreciation that Doug Bowser, one of Nintendo’s presidents, plays and enjoys non-Nintendo games. Of course, devs are often very passionate gamers themselves and can appreciate a game that isn’t one their company created.
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