The Best Horror Games With Weapon Crafting

Crafting in video games has become a bigger trend in the last decade and it seems like more and more games are including crafting systems into the core gameplay. Fallout 4 is a relevant example since the show was big for Amazon and it had a lot of old and new players jumping in.

From armor to weapons, there were a lot of ways to customize gear in Fallout 4. While there are horror aspects to that game, like being stalked by Deathclaws or Feral Ghouls, it’s not quite in the direct survival horror genre. So, let’s instead look at some horror games with crafting elements.

7 Dead Rising 4

Use Everything But The Kitchen Sink To Slay Zombies

Dead Rising 4 is the latest iteration in the Dead Rising series of zombie-slaying games. Since the first one on Xbox 360, Capcom has always been forward-thinking with creative ways for players to craft weapons. From taping boxing gloves with knives to weaponizing a lawnmower to jumping into a mech-like suits, there are so many ways to kill zombies.

Dead Rising may not be the pinnacle of the series, but it does see the return of the original star, Frank West. It also features more weapons to kill zombies than any other entry before this. It’s a mindless treat for both horror and zombie fans.

6 Dead Island 2

Channeling The Elements In L.A.

Dead Island 2 took a while to come out, but when it did, the game was received well. Players could select from a handful of characters who had varying degrees of abilities. All characters in Dead Island 2 could equip the same weapons though, so it wasn't a debilitating class system that relied on stats, unlike some other RPGs.

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This zombie game also allows players to craft weapons like adding electricity to a machete. Adjusting the elemental effects on weapons is one of the most engaging aspects of Dead Island 2. The setting is also great, as the sunny side of California is a great juxtaposition to the horrors of zombies.

5 Dying Light 2: Stay Human

A Parkour Riddled Infectious Ride

Dying Light 2: Stay Human is one of the most intense zombie games anyone can play which is why it's always handy to get some starter tips. Zombies are runners in this universe and parkour is a solid part of the gameplay. This and Mirror’s Edge are the two franchises that truly embraced the parkour mentality with the Assassin’s Creed series being tangentially related.

In Dying Light 2, players can find blueprints to craft their melee weapons and guns. It’s the typical post-apocalyptic gameplay loop of exploring ruined cities, looking for parts, and shooting zombies in the process. The better the parts, the cooler things players can make, resembling a lot of Dead Island’s weaponry as Techland, the developer of the Dying Light games, also created the Dead Island franchise before moving on.

4 Dead Space 3

A Frozen Planet Filled With Danger

Dead Space 3 is not the best game in the series by far, but it does do some interesting stuff with the gameplay not found in most of the other games. Modding guns was a part of the first two games, but players couldn’t do much with the look of their weapons. It was kind of like following skill trees for weapons which was not a bad system.

In Dead Space 3, players could switch out suits and all aspects of a gun from the barrel to the body to the grip. It falls in line with something players could see in a Call of Duty game which makes sense, since there was definitely a more militarized theme in Dead Space 3’s story and overall gameplay. Also, there was two-player co-op for the first time.

3 Parasite Eve

New York City's Finest

Parasite Eve takes players way back to the glory days of the PS1 and the 90s. The story followed a New York City cop, Aya Brea, who was investigating a virus breakout around Christmas. Said virus was mutating people and animals, making up the majority of the game’s enemies. It was like Final Fantasy met Resident Evil.

Players could run around an arena and then pause the game to select targets before resuming the real-time combat. Aya’s many guns could be modified back at the station to increase attack power or ammo capacity, as two examples. It was a more basic crafting system for the PS1, but it’s still memorable decades later.

2 Sons Of The Forest

Off The Grid And Into Danger

Sons of the Forest was released last year in 2023, but it has since launched into a 1.0 state on Steam in 2024. It’s one of the year’s biggest horror hits among survival fans. Players begin in a forest and then have to survive a series of cult-like activities involving bizarre symbols and monsters.

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It’s an intense game with a lot to craft and explore, so much so that it can be a bit intimidating which is why Sons of the Forest players might need some a tips on surviving the game as well. Survival games are for the patient and survival horror games are for the morbidly curious, but not the faint of heart.

1 Resident Evil 4 (2023)

A Horror Classic Reimagined

Many entries have tried, but probably no other game in the series is going to review as well as Resident Evil 4. That includes both the remake and the original on GameCube as well as the various ports. Resident Evil 4 was a major influence on horror genre mainstays like The Evil Within and shooters like Gears of War.

There’s a lot to praise, but one of the cooler aspects was the shop. The shop was a first for the series, allowing players to both buy guns and modify them to their heart’s content and Resident Evil 4 has no shortage of weapons. It made replaying the game an addictive experience, as players could craft an arsenal of absolute anarchy and carry progress over. It was a system strengthened by the 2023 remake, among other aspects.

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