10 Weirdest Video Games of All Time

Video games are usually applauded for their fun gameplay and compelling storylines, but some games are just known for giving their players a bizarre experience. These games push the limits of what we consider normal, throw all logic and reason down the drain, and make you question your decisions. Yet, despite how strange they are, it’s fair to acknowledge the boldness they had to go down that path to begin with in an era of very safe, very sterile massive releases.

Plenty of unforgettable games have completely messed up their players throughout the years, all the way back from the PS1 days to the dark recesses of the modern internet. To give credit to their strangeness, here are the ten weirdest games ever.

 

1. Catherine

Developer: Atlus
Publisher: Sega
Platform(s): PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360

There’s no better game to start this list off with. From the creators of Persona (which itself is hardly the ham sandwich of video games), Catherine is a puzzle-platforming game at its core, but it also tackles mature themes and bizarre storylines. The game follows a man named Vincent, who struggles with choosing between two girls with oddly similar names, his long-term girlfriend Katherine, and a blonde girl he just met, Catherine. Blatant adultery aside, it gets weirder.

The game’s main gameplay point is its platforming segments, wherein you’ll find yourself climbing a tower every night in your nightmares. However, throughout the game, there’ll be several bosses that’ll chase you up the tower. These bosses have eerie designs that’ll not only haunt you in the nightmare segments, but also in your real-life dreams. There are more twists and turns that make Catherine a weird cult hit, yet those fall under spoiler territory, so you’ll have to play the game yourself to find out.

If you like seeing an adulterous goat dude in his underwear, you will love Catherine.

 

2. Cruelty Squad

Developer: Consumer Softproducts
Publisher: Consumer Softproducts
Platform(s): PC

Cruelty Squad is yet another FPS game in a giant sea of them, but it’s not your typical FPS game in the same way that Catherine isn’t your typical puzzle game. Consumer Softproducts’s abstract chaos combines immersive sim elements from games like Deus Ex and Hitman, except this time, it feels like the ultimate fever dream sprinkled with LSD. By looking at the graphics and art style alone, you already know you’re in for a trippy ride. Call of Duty wishes it could look half this interesting. Aside from its grotesque aesthetics, the game has more oddities to offer.

Yes, Cruelty Squad is like Hitman since you’re tasked to assassinate a target at each level, and you also possess severe levels of drip. However, this game has filthy mechanics like harvesting a dead enemy’s organs after they explode everywhere. Eventually, you can sell the harvested parts in the stock market for money, black market style.

Cruelty Squad has a lot of unsettling, almost abrasive aspects and isn’t really going to be for everyone, but those who do jive with its special brand of brain poison will find something truly weird and unique.

 

3. Demolition Girl

Developer: Tamsoft
Publisher: D3 Publisher, 505 Games
Platform(s): PlayStation 2

We’re used to monsters like Godzilla or King Kong wreaking havoc across cities, but what if that monster was a skyscraper-sized bikini model? Luckily, you don’t have to imagine because Demolition Girl gives us just that (as well as a little bit of shame).

In Demolition Girl, an idol named Riho Futaba is doing photoshoots at the beach until she is bitten by a strange creature, making her gigantic. Confused about what happened, she roams around the city, causing mayhem, so it’s our job to stop her.

To do so, the game will make you pilot various vehicles, such as helicopters, tanks, and jet fighters. However, some of the game’s objectives are pretty unusual, like making you fly around to take measurements of her body or defending her from aliens. It’s rare to find another premise as weird as Demolition Girl’s, but that’s why it’s so memorable.

If you played Resident Evil Village and it unlocked something deep, deep within you, at least you know now what you should play next.

 

4. Harvester

Developer: DigiFX Interactive
Publisher: Nightdive Studios
Platform(s): PC

While it’s not the absolute weirdest, Harvester wins the prize for the most disturbing game on this list.

Initially released in the 90s, Harvester explores dark and twisted concepts, including murder, cannibalism, and, erm, stuff that we can’t really mention without our monetisation status getting shot into the sun. Its use of gore is also unlike any other game we know today, making it seem so casual that it sends chills down your spine. The game was so creepy that it even got banned in Germany.

If the US government thought the likes of Night Trap were a blight on society, they clearly hadn’t even heard of this absolute nightmare fuel.

In Harvester, you wake up as Steve Mason in the small town of Harvest in 1953. Steve has no memory of his past, so he explores around and interacts with people, only to learn that the residents are acting strange and a deeper conspiracy is afoot.

Point and click adventure games are usually pitched to people of all ages. But not Harvester, as this blend of FMV, absolute grot, and black comedy is certainly no Monkey Island.

 

5. Hylics

Developer: Mason Lindroth
Publisher: Mason Lindroth
Platform(s): PC

It’s hard to get your RPG to stand out these days, but Mason Lindroth managed to do just that with this big old slice of weird.

Hylics calls itself “a recreational program with light JRPG elements” made with claymation. This distinct art style gave Hylics a surreal and bizarre vibe that feels like a mix of paranoia and retrofuturism. If you like Aardman but wish sometimes the animators would take a lot of psychedelics, you’re in the right place.

The story itself is also abstract, as it’s open to interpretation with its little dialogue and focus on visual storytelling. Additionally, Hylics’ soundtrack is worth mentioning since many consider it raw and rough, and really just about a million miles away from the slick, sleek sounds of most modern blockbusters.

The game also gave birth to a sequel, Hylics 2, which has more story and a new take on its gameplay that’s arguably a more complete experience. If you plan on trying these games, prepare for a nonsensical and bizarre experience.

 

6. LSD: Dream Emulator

Developer: Outside Directors Company
Publisher: Asmik Ace Entertainment Inc.
Platform(s): PlayStation

Of course, this list wouldn’t be complete without LSD: Dream Emulator, which has become absolute catnip for retro YouTubers over the last few years.

LSD: Dream Emulator is an original PlayStation exclusive where you explore surrealistic, dreamlike environments. The game has no story since you only move around and touch objects until you get transported to a new dream scenario. But the game is unsettling because you never know what horrific nightmare you’ll encounter.

LSD: Dream Emulator can throw you into various places, from natural environments to sumo rings to complete acid trip rooms. The worst thing is the game is fully randomized, so you don’t know what’ll come next. If that’s not enough, the game will spawn unsettling creatures or suddenly play a video or message to mess with you. Thought Metal Gear Solid 2’s final descent into madness was too basic? Hold on tight and bring plenty of chewing gum.

LSD: Dream Emulator has several bizarro elements that can make anyone feel uneasy, haunting players even long after playing the game. While the game was never released outside of Japan, here’s a clue to help you play this one: what’s the third word in its title?

 

7. Mister Mosquito

Developer: Zoom
Publisher: Eidos Interactive
Platform(s): PlayStation 2

We’re back in Japan, and back wondering what’s going on and why we feel like this.

People who live in tropical countries know how annoying mosquitoes can be.Thankfully, Mister Mosquito allows you to experience what it’s like to be on the other side as the blood-sucking critter instead.
This game is exactly as it sounds. You play as a mosquito named Mr. Mosquito, and your job is to suck blood out of unsuspecting residents of the Yamada household.

Despite its simple yet unconventional premise, the game has more aspects that add to its strangeness. For instance, the game can sometimes trigger battles where the residents spot Mr. Mosquito, so you’ll have to calm the resident down by hitting specific spots, kind of like an Armored Core game with an added chance of malaria.

There are even levels where you have to drain the victim’s blood when they’re taking a bath, which might not have aged well by today’s standards. Still, Mister Mosquito will always be known as one of the most unique games for the PlayStation 2.

Quick trivia: Mister Mosquito was developed by Zoom, who also made Phalax, which has one of the weirdest/worst/best box arts ever.

 

8. Pathologic

Developer: Ice-Pick Lodge, General Arcade
Publisher: Good Shepherd Entertainment
Platform(s): PC

Any person who played Pathologic knows it deserves a spot on this list. Any person who’s also been on gaming YouTube for longer than 15 minutes has probably also had at least two ten-hour video essays on the series recommended to them.

Pathologic is a psychological first-person survival game wherein you find yourself in a mysterious town infected with a deadly plague. Playing as one of three characters, your main objective is to keep the citizens healthy throughout 12 in-game days.

Doesn’t sound too wild so far, right? Well, take The Sims, mash it with Deus Ex, and a big old dose of pessimistic inevitability about death and failure, and you have a game that sometimes feels angry at you for even playing it.

Pathologic does a great job of making you feel exhausted and desperate with its strange atmosphere. You might even be forced to make tough decisions to survive, like stealing, looting, or trading opiates for sewing needles and razor blades from small children. Pair that with its dated yet somehow still captivating gameplay, Pathologic is a unique and polarizing experience that’s not for the faint of heart, or anyone who actually quite likes rats. This game will make you hate them.

 

9. Seaman

Developer: Vivarium, Jellyvision
Publisher: Sega
Platform(s): Dreamcast

Virtual pet games are supposedly cute and relaxing games where you can turn off your brain and chill with virtual furry friends. However, Seaman on the Dreamcast took this formula to a disturbing level. Instead of your usual talking cats or Tamagochis, Seaman has you care for a fish-like creature with a human face.

If Sonic Adventure had the right idea with the Chaos, Sega wanted to make sure freaks were still catered to here.

There’s more to it. You can talk to the Seaman using the Dreamcast microphone, and it’ll actually respond with some of the strangest dialogue ever put in a video game. It’s even possible to have multiple Seaman and watch them slowly evolve. But make sure not to forget them so that they don’t die. Imagine not having these gormless faces watching you, constantly judging you almost endlessly. Doesn’t really bear thinking about.

To top it all off, the game’s narrator is voiced by the late Leonard Nimoy, so at least you’ll be accompanied by him throughout this cursed game.

 

10. Zeno Clash

Developer: ACE Team
Publisher: ACE Team
Platform(s): PC, Xbox 360

Just by taking one look at its gameplay, you already know Zeno Clash is one of the weirdest games out there. Zeno Clash is a first-person beat em up which is already pretty weird, set in a punk fantasy world named Zenozoik, which sounds specifically like someone tried to give it the stupidest name possible.

The game does have a story, but it’s hard to focus on it with all the bizarre enemies and settings you’re thrown into, or without having elevated levels of certain substances within your bloodstream.
Zeno Clash has a variety of enemies for you to turn into punching bags, ranging from insane Corwids to odd Shadow beings. Along with its impactful soundtrack and surreal art style, you can’t help but feel uncomfortable yet satisfied at the same time while playing through this S. Zeno Clash might be considered weird by many, but it’s definitely the good kind of weird.

If you want something a bit more modern, Clash: Artifacts of Chaos is a third-person prequel that came out in 2023 and is every bit as weird and wonderful.

READ NEXT: 20 Amazing Games That Have Completely Disappeared From Storefronts