Welcome to the Worst Places to Take a Deep Breath
When we’re running away from twitching nurses or demons in disguise, sometimes, it seems like our only solace is an empty room. But some games pride themselves on testing your nerves, and no place is safe in those nightmarish places. You already know the type: the door creaks, the music drops out, and your controller suddenly feels a lot heavier. Today, we’re going through the 20 worst detours you can take (you’re welcome in advance for saving you a heart attack).
1. The Bathroom — P.T.
If you’ve played P.T., you already know that you’re caught in the worst hallway known to man. Oh, you thought you could go into the bathroom? We hope you like the most unsettling imagery this side of Lisa’s funhouse. This bathroom isn’t a place to reset your nerves—it’s where they go to die.
2. Room 302 — Silent Hill 4: The Room
Okay, well, if any place is unsafe, it’s Silent Hill. Room 302 starts as a refuge, which is exactly what makes its true nature so nasty. As the hauntings worsen, your “safe room” becomes a trap that you can’t even really escape from. It’s hard to relax when your own home base seems to be learning new ways to hate you.
3. The Spencer Mansion Dining Room — Resident Evil
There’s nothing worse than a game turning your expectations on their heads. Sure enough, this is where Resident Evil teaches you that nice, calm lighting is a lie. The room looks fine until you realize how quickly it deteriorates.
4. The Madhouse Basement — Resident Evil 7: Biohazard
What’s that? Another Resident Evil? You bet. The basement in RE7 feels like it was built specifically to make you regret curiosity. The corners feel crowded. The sound design keeps hinting at something nefarious. And even when nothing happens, the room still manages to make you flinch at your own footsteps.
KniBaron from Bangkok, Thailand on Wikimedia
5. The Shalebridge Cradle Cells — Thief: Deadly Shadows
These cells don’t need constant action to get under your skin, and that’s why we hate them. The layout does most of the work here, left abandoned, as if it remembers everyone who suffered there. When you move slower, it’s not for stealth; it’s because you physically can’t push yourself any faster.
6. The Ocean House Hotel Room 1 — Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines
The Ocean House is a master class in making a normal room feel fundamentally wrong. Objects shift, noises travel oddly, and the game keeps you on your toes. The whole time, you’re anticipating a threat you can’t exactly pinpoint. Next thing you know, you’ll keep telling yourself it’s just a room before finding out how wrong you are.
Activision, Troika Games on Wikimedia
7. The Nursery — Dead Space 2
Nurseries in real life? Adorable. Nurseries in horror games? The worst misstep you’ll ever take. This spot takes a familiar setting and strips out every ounce of comfort. The lighting and audio also create a tension that never gives you a real pause. By the time you’re through, you’ll owe your nervous system an apology.
Sergey Galyonkin from Raleigh, USA on Wikimedia
8. The Basement “Safety” Room — Amnesia: The Dark Descent
This so-called safe room in Amnesia feels like you’re hiding in a place that’s going to betray you. The game’s sanity effects don’t help, making the space even more unstable. It doesn’t matter if you’re doing everything right—you’ll still be listening for sounds that might not even be real.
9. The Police Station Interrogation Room — Resident Evil 2 (2019)
Sorry, we’re not done with Resident Evil yet. This room carries a weird weight. Call us crazy, but it feels like the walls themselves pulse with a strange fear. When you step in, you’ll probably check behind you twice, and you’re not wrong for doing it.
10. The Apartment Hallway — Silent Hill 2
This hallway doesn’t have to do much because your imagination handles the rest. The lighting is oppressive, the whole place feels off, and the silence lands like a warning. Who knows what lurks behind all those doors?
11. The Doll Workshop — Bloodborne
Say what you want about real-life dolls—you don’t want to encounter them in video games. The workshop seems serene until it suddenly doesn’t. The stillness feels deliberate, like the room is patiently waiting for one wrong move. And in a room filled with dolls, you’re bound to make one.
12. The Baby’s Room — Resident Evil Village
We’re still not done with Resident Evil! Trust us, you aren’t crazy for keeping a low profile in this room, even if you stay quiet on the sofa. The game tightens your options until every movement feels like it could be a mistake. Go ahead, try to look away—you’ll still have to keep an eye on what’s coming.
13. The Faculty Office — Outlast
Papers, lights, and cramped corridors combine into a space that feels too small for how dangerous it is. But that’s Outlast for you. Standing still never seems like the right call, so you’ll keep plotting escape routes in your head.
14. The Operating Theater — The Evil Within
Well, this can’t be good. And it isn’t! The environment screams “procedure” without explaining what exactly you’re scheduled for—and that creepy feeling sticks. Even after you leave, you’ll feel like you didn’t actually get out.
15. The Dark World Cellar — The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
We hate it when kids’ games have unnecessarily freaky spaces! Sure enough, the cellar is a sharp reminder that even a bright series can deliver hostility. The sound and pacing make the space feel more serious than you’re prepared for, especially if you arrive expecting a standard dungeon.
PantheraLeo1359531 on Wikimedia
16. The Clock Tower Room — Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly
As if having to photograph ghosts wasn’t enough, say hello to the clock tower, a place that uses stillness as a weapon. Every creak, every distant noise feels like it belongs to someone else, but it’s happening on your time. Good luck keeping the camera steady in this freakshow.
17. The Frozen Bathroom — Max Payne
Oh, brother. Another video game, another horrifying bathroom. This one’s unforgettable because of the details; they create a scene that doesn’t ask for your attention so much as demand it. You’ll indeed be frozen yourself, feeling like you saw something you weren’t supposed to.
Strange Happenings on Unsplash
18. The Wheat Fields — Alan Wake
Okay, okay, it’s not exactly a room with walls, but they're still suffocating, and they trap you all the same. Visibility shifts, the atmosphere tightens, and the darkness is downright purposeful (which it always is in Alan Wake). You’re forced to make your way through, but you really won’t want to.
19. The Prison Cell Block — SOMA
No one likes walking around an empty cell block, but SOMA doesn’t care. The game’s tone makes the space feel less like a set piece and more like a verdict. What does that mean for you? Oh, nothing—just that you’ll move through it with a kind of dread that doesn’t leave even when the door opens.
20. The Classroom — Doki Doki Literature Club!
We could talk forever about the brilliance of Doki Doki, but instead, we’ll just draw attention to the Literature Club classroom. It starts as a bright, ordinary after-school meeting spot, which is why it hits so hard when the game begins warping things. This was never about poetry at all!
