Highly-rated Fear the Spotlight is a love letter to retro '90s horror games, and it's free to keep right now

'Tis the season for all things spooky and scary, and everywhere you look, games are dropping Halloween-themed events, haunting updates, and skins that'll turn even the most serious characters into a jack-o'-lantern. The trend even extends to the free Epic games offering this week, which sees the very first horrifying horse in the Blumhouse Games stable being given away for nothing. It's a banger, too. Fear the Spotlight is a highly-rated love letter to the best horror games of the '90s and very early 2000s, and for the next seven days, it's free to keep forever.

If you missed last week's similarly sinister freebie, Amnesia The Bunker, then ensure you don't make the same mistake again. The first game published by Blumhouse, 2024's Fear the Spotlight is yet another great horror experience that certainly recaptures the magic of the early Resident Evils and Silent Hills. The eerie, low-res atmosphere is arguably its greatest strength, alongside some superb puzzles as well.

While there's no real combat to speak of, you are still trying to avoid the wrath of a spotlight-headed monster that roams the halls of the school our protagonist Vivian is exploring. The threat in question rocked up after a séance-gone-wrong (yes, you get to use a ouija board), and your friend Amy has gone missing in the aftermath as well. It's your job to find her and escape the school, all while dodging the creature's searching rays.

While it's been playable on Steam since its release last year (and has racked up a staggering 97% lifetime user score in that time), today marks its debut on the Epic Games Store, and it's instantly being given away as this week's freebie. While we occasionally see a couple of free PC games being dished out, Fear the Spotlight is the only one this time around.

Fear the Spotlight is free to keep on the Epic Games Store until Thursday, October 30. You can grab it here.

If sneaking around like Vivian is in your skillset, you should either become a spy or check out our best stealth games list. Or both, if you'd like. We've also got a list of the best old games if you want more retro nostalgia.

What horror games are you playing during the spooky season? Share your recommendations with fellow readers in the PCGamesN Discord server.