A Plague Tale: Requiem is coming out tomorrow, and I couldn’t be more excited. The first game in the series, A Plague Tale: Innocence, is one of the better horror games I’ve played in a long time, with a gripping story and an immersive atmosphere. One glance at the promotional materials for either game will tell you right away that they’re on the dark side—but are the Plague Tale games scary, or just grim?

Is ‘A Plague Tale: Innocence’ Scary?

The short answer here is “hell yes.” A horror story devoid of jump scares (thankfully), A Plague Tale: Innocence is a scary game because it plays on instinctual fears and common phobias such as:

• Fear of the dark/unknown: Light and dark become gameplay mechanics; you must stay in the light whenever possible to avoid a swift and savage death.
• Fear of disease: Few fates are as gruesome as succumbing to this particular version of the Black Death.
• Fear of torture/gore: Let’s just say more than one character has a bad time during this game, and leave it at that.
• Fear of death: Your own, of course, but also the potential deaths of your companions—and on top of that, there’s the emotional damage of an innocent teenager being driven to murder by circumstances beyond her control.
• Fear of rats: Rats are one of the main threats you face in the game, and there are few things quite as unnerving as watching an army of them swarm around you and wait for your torch to go out.

There’s also the uncomfortable vulnerability of playing a young character with relatively little power or combat experience. Your only weapon for most of the game is a slingshot, and while protagonist Amicia eventually comes into her own as a strong female protagonist (and you do get some pretty cool ammo later in the game), you never get powerful enough to feel safe.

For PS5 players, the DualSense controller adds an extra layer of fear through the use of heartbeat pulses during intense encounters as well as a skittering effect that feels like rats are rattling around in your controller. It’s one of the most unnerving things a game has ever done to me, personally, and I still can’t decide if I love it or abjectly hate it. Maybe both.

Will ‘A Plague Tale: Requiem’ Be Scary?

I haven’t played A Plague Tale: Requiem yet, obviously. But the evidence so far suggests that yes, the second Plague Tale game is going to be scary, too. (And probably make us cry while it’s at it.)

Everything we’ve seen of the game so far features similar gameplay to Innocence. As a direct sequel, we can also expect the return of several familiar faces as well as familiar fears from the first game. Even though the setting has changed and Asobo Studio has promised more colorful, vibrant environments this time around, the tone remains the same—as do the dual threats of both the Inquisition and the rats.

Our main characters will also be coping with the emotional fallout of the previous game’s events. This part may not be scary, per se, but will likely be disturbing.

All in all, an October release feels perfect for another scary Plague Tale game—and I am very much looking forward to including it in my Halloween festivities.

Want more horror games to play this October? Check out The Harbinger’s Head, a chilling tale of myth and murder in 19th-century Ireland. And don’t forget to sign up for my free newsletter!