I'm Convinced That The Best Survival Horror Co-Op Game Came…

Survival-horror games are traditionally single-player experiences, but there have also been a handful of co-op horror games released over the years. Resident Evil 5 and 6, if you count them as survival-horror, both feature co-op as a main feature, while the more recent Outlast Trials translated that franchise's disturbing first-person horror to co-op rather expertly. I have played basically every co-op survival-horror game released over the years, and in my opinion, none have topped the 2005 PlayStation 2 hidden gem Obscure or its sequel, Obscure: The Aftermath.

Obscure released in Australia and Europe in 2004, but didn't make its way to North America until 2005.

I rented Obscure on a whim from Movie Gallery back in the day and was immediately hooked, playing through it start to finish with my brother in all of its local co-op glory. Growing up, I was a huge fan of the classic Resident Evil games, and the idea that I could experience that style of survival-horror in co-op was mind-blowing at the time. It's a co-op horror experience that still hasn't been topped, and I sincerely wish more people would get to try it for themselves.

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By Jake Fillery

Obscure plays like an old-school Resident Evil game, but takes that classic puzzle-solving and exploration gameplay and sets it in a high school. Obscure's playable characters are all high school stereotypes, and these stereotypes play a role in gameplay. For example, the stoner/criminal character can pick locks, while the jock has better agility and strength than the other characters. The story and characters in Obscure aren't exactly the most complex, but they get the job done.

Obscure Stands Out Thanks to Its Unique Features

Obscure's biggest selling point is its incredibly fun local co-op mode, which lets two players experience a classic-style survival-horror adventure together. But there are a couple of other reasons why the game stood out, like the ability to combine items together to create useful new tools and the looming threat of permadeath that hangs over the characters. Characters that die in Obscure are dead forever, meaning fewer characters to work with as players work their way to the finale.

You Can Play Both Obscure Games on Steam

Obscure on Steam
Obscure: The Aftermath on Steam

Survival-horror fans intrigued by Obscure should note that the game and its sequel were re-released on Steam about a decade ago. The Steam versions have both earned "Very Positive" reviews and retail for $6.99 (the original) and $9.99 (the sequel). They appear to be faithful ports without a lot of fancy bells and whistles added, so don't expect new features like online co-op, but the fantastic local co-op mode is still intact.

It's great that Obscure and its sequel can be played on Steam, but I would love to see these games ported to other platforms, so more horror fans can discover them. It's a shame that neither game can be played on any modern gaming console and are instead trapped on much older hardware.

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It's unlikely, but it would be even better if the Obscure games could get remakes or remasters. Capcom has had incredible success with its line of Resident Evil remakes, and while Obscure doesn't carry nearly the same weight, there are plenty of survival-horror fans that would jump at the chance to play a local co-op entry in the genre. A remaster or remake could also add online co-op to the mix, but local co-op is a must for Obscure to maintain its identity.

There hasn't been any news on the Obscure franchise in years, and fans shouldn't hold their breath for any developments. PC gamers can check out the games on Steam, and console players can keep their fingers crossed that the classic horror games will eventually make their way to modern systems.

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