Halloween horror: Top 10 horror game characters now haunting the web
It’s Halloween time and things are getting scary in the world of Internet horror opportunities. A new study has revealed the top 10 scariest monsters or villains in video games, and the iconic Slenderman has topped the list.
Multiplayer card game site World of Card Games has gathered a list of well-known video game monsters or villains, using Google Keyword Planner to analyze the monthly search volume for each. They ranked the monsters from highest to lowest searches to reveal the list of most popular.
In first place is the ghostly Slenderman, gathering a staggering 87,477 monthly searches on average. This monster is originally from the indie game Slender, now retitled Slender: The Eight Pages.
Slenderman is an abnormally tall, slim, white, faceless figure dressed in a suit, stalking the defenseless player, whose mission is to collect all eight pages in a pitch-black forest, guided only by a flashlight.
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Bonnie the Rabbit from the horror video game franchise Five Nights at Freddy’s is in second place with 78,675 monthly searches. Also known simply as Bonnie, this monster is an evil purple or blue animatronic rabbit who is possessed by the spirit of a little boy named Jeremy, who was murdered by William Afton.
Along with the other animatronics, Bonnie blindly seeks revenge and attacks any adult who visits Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza after dark. Bonnie is the most active animatronic in the game, being the first to leave the group to hunt and kill the player.
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In third place is another animatronic from Five Nights at Freddy’s, called Foxy the Pirate, gathering 63,761 searches a month. This terrifying monster is an animatronic fox, possessed by another one of Afton’s victims, Fritz, joining the other animatronics in hunting down the player.
Foxy has an eye patch, a hook for a hand, and is damaged and torn in places, exposing his endoskeleton under his crimson fur. His teeth are the sharpest of all the animatronics.
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Fourth place belongs to Chica the Chicken, another animatronic, accumulating 56,360 monthly searches. In Five Nights at Freddy’s, Chica is a yellow chicken animatronic possessed by a little girl called Susie, the first of Afton’s victims.
Another monster with an insatiable thirst for killing and revenge, Chica wears a bib with the words ‘LET’S EAT!!!’ on it and holds a tray with an unsettling pink cupcake on it, known as Mr. Cupcake.
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In fifth place are the Ghouls from the Fallout video game series, which have 38,088 searches a month. These creatures were once humans who have been mutated by radiation but can also be animals, like bears, as seen in the game.
Ghouls are functionally immortal or have an extended lifespan, resembling zombies or burn victims due to their gruesome injuries and mutations. Some still have the intellect and mind of a human, but many become feral, succumbing to madness, aggressively killing any living being in sight, and feasting on human flesh.
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Vanny, an enemy from the Five Nights at Freddy’s: Security Breach game, has 23,735 monthly searches, putting her in sixth place. Also known as Vanessa or Ness, she is a security guard at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza who is corrupted by Glitchtrap, a digital recreation of the murderous William Afton, creating a sadistic alter ego.
The corrupted version of Vanny wears a white bunny costume with a creepy mask adorning a maniacal grin and glowing red eyes. She can be seen taking great pleasure in hunting her victims, and her childlike, cutesy mannerisms make it even creepier.
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Seventh place belongs to Deathclaws from Fallout, gathering 23,342 searches every month. These large monsters are man-made, engineered by the United States military in the Fallout video game series to replace humans in combat. After the war, they escaped into nature and became apex predators.
Deathclaws are highly aggressive, carnivorous reptiles designed to kill and built for maximum damage. Their scaly dark skin is tough and spiky, with horned heads, powerful jaws and sharp teeth. Their arms are long, ending in razor-sharp claws that can tear through armor and flesh easily.
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In eighth place are the iconic exploding Creepers from Minecraft, accumulating 22,440 monthly searches. Creepers are common creatures you find in Minecraft, approaching players and detonating to blow them up. When killed, Creepers also explode.
These monsters are slightly taller than the players and have no arms. Their blocky, pixelated bodies are green, allowing them to easily camouflage in grass and forests. A Creeper’s face is simple in design but still unsettling with two large square black eyes and a small rectangular frown-like mouth that gives it an expressionless and eerie look. Minecraft’s creator built the first Creeper by accident, as he was trying to make a pig and got the coding and measurements wrong.
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Another Five Nights at Freddy’s character, Springtrap is in ninth place, with 22,231 monthly searches. This monster is another animatronic, and the only one that can give the player a ‘Game Over’ in Five Nights at Freddy’s 3, as the others just jumpscare and impair the player’s vision or hearing.
Springtrap is an early version of the Bonnie suit, a heavily damaged, filthy rabbit animatronic with a missing ear and finger, wires sticking out, and a large portion of his endoskeleton and machinery exposed. Inside Springtrap is the mummified human remains of William Afton – compared to the other animatronics, this distressed and macabre appearance is certainly more gruesome.
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Ennard, another monster in Five Nights at Freddy’s, is tenth for scariest video game enemies. This twisted antagonist has 18,285 monthly searches, and for good reason. It is an amalgamation of other animatronic parts, a disturbing mess of wires, springs, metal, and machinery to create a unique and terrifying monster.
The only part of Ennard that is covered most of the time is his face by a petrifying clown mask, and the eyeballs of several other animatronics can be found dotted over his body. Its design is eerily human-like, making its appearance even more horrifying.
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Top 10: Scariest monsters in video games
| Rank | Monster | Monthly Searches |
| 1 | Slenderman | 87,477 |
| 2 | Bonnie the Rabbit | 78,675 |
| 3 | Foxy the Pirate | 63,761 |
| 4 | Chica the Chicken | 56,360 |
| 5 | Ghouls | 38,088 |
| 6 | Vanny | 23,735 |
| 7 | Deathclaws | 23,342 |
| 8 | Creepers | 22,440 |
| 9 | Springtrap | 22,231 |
| 10 | Ennard | 18,285 |
A spokesperson for World of Card Games has commented on the findings: “Some of the scariest video game monsters blend unsettling designs with unnerving backstories, making them unforgettable in the horror genre.”
“From the faceless, haunting figure that stalks the player through dark forests, to eerie animatronics possessed by vengeful spirits, these creatures strike fear through their relentless pursuit and disturbing appearances. Mutated beings and twisted creations amplify terror, as they grotesquely blur the lines between life and death.
“Players often find themselves trapped, desperately trying to survive while being hunted through dark environments with limited tools, heightening the sense of vulnerability. The unpredictability of these monsters, combined with the atmosphere of dread they create, leaves players feeling powerless and on edge long after the game is over.”
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(Source: World of Card Games)
(Cover image of Slenderman, credit: Twitter)
Posted by Richard Webster, Ace News Today
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