34 Narrative games like The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes that you should try

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Ranking compiled by Lluis Enric Mayans, Founder & Head of ContentUpdated May 19, 2026How this is calculatedOrdered by an attribute-similarity model, not editorial opinion.

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We filtered the 50 games similar to The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes down to the 34 that fit the “Narrative” category. The Darkness II, Homefront: The Revolution and Hunt: Showdown 1896 top the list, ranked by affinity and similarity score to The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes.

iRank82/ 100

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GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

The best narrative games like The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes

34 similar games foundUpdated May 2026

Handpicked by our similarity algorithm, these are the titles with the highest gameplay match to The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes. Each one has been evaluated across 16 real attributes — from combat style and progression mechanics to world structure and visual perspective — so every recommendation is based on how the game actually plays, not just its genre label.

#1The Darkness IIClosest overall match

iRank87

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

SoloMultiplayerCo-opMeleeDarkNarrativeOpen WorldHorror

Steam👍 92%· 21KIGDB77· 11

Year 2012Dev Digital Extremes · 2K GamesOn PlayStation 3 · PC

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with survival mechanics, horror tension and adventure storytelling

≠ Its own twist: shooter, first-person shooting and exploration and discovery, while skipping combat tactical

Quad-wielding combat: two guns plus two demon arms that grab, throw and tear, which makes fights faster and more physical than the first game. The comic-book art style holds up well. It is short — a single sitting for many players — and the darkness-and-light mechanic reduces most encounters to shooting out the same lamps.

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: visuals and setting.

It predates The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes by 9 years, with what that implies technically.

Genre100Game mode100Tone100World100Combat63Setting47

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Steam Xbox

#2Homefront: The Revolution

iRank55

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

SoloMultiplayerCo-opMeleeTacticalNarrativeDarkOpen WorldHistorical

Steam👍 61%· 17KIGDB48· 22OC48· 83

Year 2016Dev Deep Silver Dambuster Studios · Deep SilverOn PS4 · PC · Xbox

✓ Same family of open-world action games: adventure storytelling, survival mechanics and strong narrative focus

≠ Where it differs: brings shooter, first-person shooting and stealth mechanics, while skipping horror tension

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: visuals and setting.

On reception: its Steam reviews are mixed, against very positive for The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes.

Genre100Tone100World100Game mode86Combat82Setting38

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Steam PS

#3Hunt: Showdown 1896Closest on setting

iRank76

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerCo-opSoloTacticalMeleeNarrativeDarkOpen WorldHorrorHistorical

Steam👍 74%· 272KRAWG👍 74%· 317MC79IGDB75· 5OC80· 9

Year 2018Dev CrytekPlaytime ~6hOn PC · PS · Xbox

✓ Same family of open-world action games: survival mechanics, horror tension and strong narrative focus

≠ Its own twist: first-person shooting, shooter and roguelike runs, while skipping adventure storytelling

Savage, nightmarish monsters roam the Louisiana swamps, and you are part of a group of rugged bounty hunters bound to rid the world of their ghastly presence. Banish these creatures from our world, and you will be paid generously—and given the chance to buy more gruesome and powerful weapons.

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: visuals.

On reception: its Steam reviews are mostly positive, against very positive for The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes.

Genre100World100Setting76Tone74Combat72Game mode62

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Steam Xbox PS

#4Shadow of the Tomb Raider

iRank83

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

SoloCo-opMultiplayerMeleeNarrativeDarkOpen WorldHistoricalThird Person

Steam👍 85%· 86KIGDB80· 17OC80· 169

Year 2018Dev Eidos Montréal · Square EnixOn Xbox · PS4 · Linux

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with adventure storytelling, survival mechanics and strong narrative focus

≠ Stands apart with puzzle design, shooter and third-person shooting, while skipping horror tension

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: combat and setting.

Genre100Game mode100Tone100World100Visuals66Combat40

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

Co-opSoloMultiplayerMeleeDarkNarrativeOpen WorldHorrorThird Person

Steam👍 84%· 11KIGDB73· 12OC74· 93

Year 2018Dev Rebellion DevelopmentsOn PS4 · PC · Xbox

✓ Both are open-world action games — sharing adventure storytelling, horror tension and dark, oppressive atmosphere

≠ Where it differs: brings puzzle design, shooter and first-person shooting, while skipping survival mechanics

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: visuals and setting.

Genre100Tone100World100Game mode80Combat64Setting48

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Steam PS Nintendo

#6RAGE

iRank72

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

SoloMultiplayerCo-opMeleeNarrativeDarkOpen WorldHorrorThird Person

Steam👍 78%· 18KRAWG👍 52%· 834MC79IGDB81· 10

Year 2011Dev Aspyr Media · Bethesda SoftworksPlaytime ~5hOn PC · PS · Xbox

✓ Same family of open-world action games: adventure storytelling, horror tension and strong narrative focus

≠ Its own twist: first-person shooting, shooter and racing gameplay, while skipping survival mechanics

id Software shooting at its most precise, wrapped in a wasteland that mostly exists to connect combat arenas. The gunfeel and enemy animation still hold up. Everything around it is weaker: driving sections pad the runtime, the world is a hub-and-spoke rather than open, and it ends abruptly enough that many players assume they missed a final act.

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: setting and combat.

On reception: its Steam reviews are mostly positive, against very positive for The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes.

It predates The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes by 10 years, with what that implies technically.

Genre100Game mode100Tone100World100Visuals46Combat36

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Steam Xbox PS

#7Resident Evil Village

iRank90

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

SoloMultiplayerMeleeDarkNarrativeOpen WorldHorror

Steam👍 96%· 147KRAWG👍 91%· 1.1KMC83IGDB87· 15OC84· 216

Year 2021Dev CapcomPlaytime ~15hOn PC · PS · Xbox

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with survival mechanics, horror tension and adventure storytelling

≠ Where it differs: brings first-person shooting, shooter and stealth mechanics, while skipping combat tactical

Experience survival horror like never before in the eighth major installment in the storied Resident Evil franchise - Resident Evil Village.

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: visuals and combat.

Genre100Tone100World100Game mode67Setting52Combat33

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Steam Xbox PS

#8Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days

iRank68

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

SoloMultiplayerCo-opMeleeDarkNarrativeOpen WorldThird Person

Steam👍 67%· 9.4KIGDB69· 7

Year 2010Dev IO Interactive · Square EnixOn PlayStation 3 · PC

✓ Both are open-world action games — sharing adventure storytelling, dark, oppressive atmosphere and strong narrative focus

≠ Stands apart with shooter, third-person shooting and first-person shooting, while skipping survival mechanics

Shot entirely through a handheld-camera aesthetic — grain, blown-out light, censored gore — which is the reason to see it, and consistently committed to. The shooting itself is unremarkable and the cover system is imprecise. It is also very short, and the unrelentingly bleak tone gives you little reason to return once it ends.

On reception: its Steam reviews are mixed, against very positive for The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes.

It predates The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes by 11 years, with what that implies technically.

Genre100Game mode100Tone100World100Visuals66Combat64

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Steam

#9Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell

iRank70

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

SoloMultiplayerCo-opMeleeDarkNarrativeOpen WorldHorrorThird Person

Steam👍 75%· 9.7KIGDB64· 11OC67· 69

Year 2015Dev High Voltage Software · Deep SilverOn PlayStation 3 · PS4 · Linux

✓ Same family of open-world action games: adventure storytelling, dark, oppressive atmosphere and strong narrative focus

≠ Its own twist: shooter, third-person shooting and first-person shooting, while skipping survival mechanics

A standalone expansion set in Hell, built around flight: you unlock wings early and the whole map is designed for vertical movement rather than driving. That traversal is the best part. It is very short — a few hours — and reuses the systems and much of the structure of Saints Row IV without adding a real campaign.

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: setting.

On reception: its Steam reviews are mostly positive, against very positive for The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes.

Genre100Tone100Game mode92World79Visuals66Combat64

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Steam GOG PS

#10Grand Theft Auto IV

iRank90

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerSoloCo-opMeleeNarrativeDarkOpen WorldThird Person

Steam👍 83%· 195KRAWG👍 96%· 103MC95

Year 2010Dev Rockstar Toronto · Rockstar GamesOn PC · PS · Xbox

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with adventure storytelling, strong narrative focus and dark, oppressive atmosphere

≠ Where it differs: brings third-person shooting, shooter and sandbox freedom, while skipping survival mechanics

The most grounded entry: heavier driving, a euphoria physics system that makes collisions and stumbles feel physical, and a city built for density rather than scale. Combat is serviceable. It is also the slowest — long drives between missions, friends who phone constantly asking for activities, and a tone considerably more sombre than the games around it.

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: combat.

It predates The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes by 11 years, with what that implies technically.

Genre100Game mode100Tone100World80Visuals61Combat49

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Steam

#11Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

iRank93

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

SoloCo-opMultiplayerMeleeNarrativeDarkOpen WorldThird Person

Steam👍 92%· 83KRAWG👍 93%· 4.1KMC93IGDB93· 6

Year 2004Dev Rockstar North · CapcomPlaytime ~2hOn PC · PS · Xbox

✓ Same family of open-world action games: adventure storytelling, strong narrative focus and dark, oppressive atmosphere

≠ Stands apart with racing gameplay, shooter and first-person shooting, while skipping survival mechanics

The largest of the PS2-era entries by a distance: three cities, countryside between them, and systems the series never repeated — stat training, gang territory, vehicle variety from bikes to planes. It is also the most uneven. Mission difficulty spikes without warning, and the RPG-ish stat grind sits oddly against the pace of everything else.

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: combat and visuals.

It predates The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes by 17 years, with what that implies technically.

Genre100Game mode100Tone100World81Visuals49Combat35

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Steam Epic Xbox

#12Gears 5

iRank79

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

SoloMultiplayerCo-opMeleeDarkNarrativeOpen WorldThird Person

Steam👍 71%· 24KIGDB88· 12OC85· 150

Year 2019Dev The Coalition · Xbox Game StudiosOn Xbox · PC

✓ Both are open-world action games — sharing adventure storytelling, dark, oppressive atmosphere and strong narrative focus

≠ Its own twist: shooter, third-person shooting and first-person shooting, while skipping survival mechanics

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: setting.

On reception: its Steam reviews are mostly positive, against very positive for The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes.

Genre100Tone100World100Game mode91Visuals66Combat64

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Steam Xbox

#13Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus

iRank83

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

SoloMultiplayerMeleeTacticalDarkNarrativeOpen WorldHistorical

Steam👍 81%· 48KIGDB87· 22

Year 2017Dev MachineGames · Bethesda SoftworksOn PS4 · PC · Xbox

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with adventure storytelling, dark, oppressive atmosphere and strong narrative focus

≠ Its own twist: shooter, first-person shooting and stealth mechanics, while skipping survival mechanics

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: visuals and setting.

Genre100Tone100World100Combat84Game mode65Setting33

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Steam GOG Xbox

#14Hitman 3

iRank86

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

SoloMultiplayerMeleeTacticalNarrativeDarkOpen WorldThird Person

Steam👍 87%· 63KIGDB85· 16OC85· 196

Year 2021Dev IO InteractiveOn Xbox · PS4 · PC

✓ Both are open-world action games — sharing adventure storytelling, strong narrative focus and dark, oppressive atmosphere

≠ Where it differs: brings shooter, third-person shooting and sandbox freedom, while skipping survival mechanics

Genre100Tone100Game mode69Visuals66Combat65World55

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

SoloMultiplayerCo-opMeleeDarkNarrativeOpen WorldThird Person

Steam👍 83%· 92KIGDB81· 21OC82· 136

Year 2016Dev Ubisoft Montreal · Ubisoft EntertainmentOn PS4 · PC · Xbox

✓ Same family of open-world action games: adventure storytelling, dark, oppressive atmosphere and strong narrative focus

≠ Where it differs: brings shooter, third-person shooting and sandbox freedom, while skipping survival mechanics

Where it drifts furthest from The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes: setting and combat.

Genre100Game mode100Tone100World70Visuals66Combat39

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Steam Epic Xbox

Complete list of narrative games like The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes

The full catalog of games sharing gameplay DNA with The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes, ordered from highest to lowest similarity score. Use the filters above to narrow down by genre, setting or game mode and find the alternative that best fits your playstyle.