10 Terrifying Paranormal Games You Should Never Play
Some of these games might sound familiar, like whispered dares from childhood sleepovers. Others you may have never heard of, tucked away in obscure internet forums or passed down as eerie local lore. But they all have one thing in common: each promises to open a door you may not be able to close.
If curiosity gets the better of you, remember this: the most dangerous games don’t always need a board or a ball. They just need you to be willing to play.
1. Bloody Mary
Where it comes from: A classic in schoolyard dares and sleepover challenges, Bloody Mary is believed to have roots in a blend of folklore about vengeful spirits, the old superstition that mirrors can trap souls, and the urban legends surrounding Mary Tudor (“Bloody Mary”) or other tragic women named Mary.
How it’s played:
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Stand alone in a dark room in front of a mirror.
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Light a candle or keep it pitch black.
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Chant “Bloody Mary” three times (some versions say 13) while staring into your reflection.
What’s supposed to happen: Her face appears in the mirror—sometimes beautiful, sometimes horribly disfigured. In the worst versions, she drags you into the mirror or scratches your face.
Why it’s feared: Mirrors have a long association with the supernatural—some believe they are portals to another world. Bloody Mary plays on the primal fear of seeing something behind you in your reflection that isn’t really there.
2. The Ouija Board
Where it comes from: Patented as a parlor game in 1891, but tied to much older methods of spirit communication. It rose to fame during the Spiritualist movement, when people longed to contact loved ones who had passed away.
How it’s played:
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Place the board on a flat surface, with the letters, numbers, “Yes,” and “No” visible.
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Light candles and dim the lights.
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Everyone places their fingertips lightly on the planchette.
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Ask questions—and wait for it to move.
What’s supposed to happen: The planchette glides across the board, spelling out messages from spirits. In some accounts, the “spirit” becomes hostile, spelling threats or refusing to leave.
Why it’s feared: The Ouija Board has been linked to alleged possessions, hauntings, and dangerous attachments. Even skeptics admit that the psychological effect—seeing your own hands “moved” by an unseen force—can be deeply unsettling.
The importance of saying goodbye: Practitioners and paranormal enthusiasts warn that if you don’t move the planchette to “Goodbye” at the end of a session, you risk leaving the “door” open. This is believed to allow whatever you contacted to remain in your space—sometimes leading to ongoing paranormal activity or even dangerous attachments. Whether you believe it’s real or not, the ritual of saying goodbye has become one of the most universally stressed rules for the game.
3. One Man Hide and Seek (Hitori Kakurenbo)
Where it comes from: A Japanese internet phenomenon called One Man Hide and Seek from the mid-2000s, said to allow a spirit to inhabit a doll and play hide-and-seek with you.
How it’s played:
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Take a doll, remove its stuffing, and replace it with rice and a piece of your own fingernail or hair.
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Sew it back up and wrap it in red thread.
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Place the doll in a bathtub filled with water.
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Declare “You’re it” and leave the room.
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After a set time, return to find the doll—if it’s moved, it’s your turn to hide.
What’s supposed to happen: The spirit inhabits the doll and actively seeks you out. Some players claim to have found the doll in different rooms or heard tiny footsteps in the dark.
Why it’s feared: Dolls already have an uncanny, human-like presence. Add in the idea of one actively hunting you and you’ve got a recipe for sleepless nights.
4. The Elevator Game
Where it comes from: This creepy ritual called The Elevator Game gained worldwide attention in 2013 after the strange disappearance of Elisa Lam in Los Angeles, though the game itself originated from Korean urban legends.
How it’s played:
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Enter an empty elevator in a building with at least 10 floors.
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Press a specific sequence of floor buttons (4, 2, 6, 2, 10, 5).
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At the fifth floor, a woman may enter—do not speak to her.
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Press the first floor button, but if the elevator goes to the 10th floor instead, you’ve reached “the other world.”
What’s supposed to happen: The world you exit into is eerily empty and dark, with only a red cross glowing in the distance.
Why it’s feared: The game blends a common, everyday setting with surreal horror. The thought that something as mundane as riding an elevator could deposit you somewhere else entirely is pure nightmare fuel.
5. The Midnight Man
Where it comes from: Said to be based on an ancient pagan ritual, The Midnight Man Game was meant as punishment for those who broke religious rules.
How it’s played:
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Write your full name on a piece of paper.
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Prick your finger and add a drop of blood to the paper.
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At exactly midnight, place the paper and a lit candle at your front door, knock 22 times (the last knock must be at midnight), then open the door and blow out the candle.
What’s supposed to happen: You’ve invited the Midnight Man into your home. For the next 3 hours and 33 minutes, you must avoid him by keeping your candle lit and moving constantly. If your candle goes out and you can’t relight it within 10 seconds, he’s near.
Why it’s feared: The rules forbid sleeping, turning on lights, or using anyone else’s blood. Players describe hearing whispers, footsteps, or feeling breath on their neck.
6. The Closet Game
Where it comes from: Exact origins are unclear, but it circulates in North American internet folklore as a quick way to summon a demon.
How it’s played:
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Stand in a dark closet with a match.
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Close the door and say, “Show me the light or leave me in darkness.”
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Listen for faint whispers.
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If you hear them, light the match immediately—if it goes out before you leave, “something” will grab you.
What’s supposed to happen: A demon appears, either in the darkness or later in your home.
Why it’s feared: Claustrophobia and sensory deprivation amplify fear, and the idea of hearing a whisper in total darkness is enough to keep most people from trying. Not to mention the fact that summoning a demon is never a good idea.
7. Daruma-san
Where it comes from: The Japanese game, also known as the “Bath Game,” involves a ghost who follows you all day after you summon her.
How it’s played:
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Sit in a bathtub filled with water, facing the faucet.
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Wash your hair while chanting “Daruma-san fell down.”
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Visualize a woman slipping and striking her head on a tap—this is the ghost you’re summoning.
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The next day, she follows you. To avoid her catching you, you must periodically turn and shout “Tomare!” (“Stop!”) while running away.
What’s supposed to happen: If she catches you, you vanish or die. The only way to end it is to shout “Kitta!” (“I cut you loose!”) before midnight.
Why it’s feared: The ritual forces you to picture a violent death, and the idea of being followed all day—never knowing when she’ll catch up—creates constant paranoia.
8. The Three Kings Ritual
Where it comes from: Internet forums dedicated to creepypasta and ritual games in the early 2010s.
How it’s played:
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Place three chairs in a dark room—one facing north (your throne), one to the left, one to the right.
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Put a large mirror on the left chair and another on the right.
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Sit in the center chair at exactly 3:33 a.m. with a lit candle, holding an object from your childhood.
What’s supposed to happen: You’ll see “kings” in the mirrors—one good, one evil—and they may answer questions or show visions.
Why it’s feared: The game requires you to deliberately put yourself between two mirrors in the dark, which already creates optical illusions. The added layer of “entities” turns the setup into a nerve-shredding experience.
9. The Sandman Ritual
Where it comes from: An online legend that spread on creepypasta boards in the early 2010s, said to cause vivid hallucinations and possible possession.
How it’s played:
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Lie on your stomach in a dark, quiet room.
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Have someone else sit beside you and rub your temples gently while telling a slow, detailed story about the Sandman filling your body with sand.
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The story continues until they say the Sandman has reached your head.
What’s supposed to happen: You’ll either enter a deep trance or “see” the Sandman himself—sometimes benign, other times monstrous. In the worst versions, you don’t wake up right away… or at all.
Why it’s feared: It blurs the line between hypnosis and supernatural summoning, making it unclear whether the danger is psychological or paranormal.
10. The Devil’s Telephone
Where it comes from: Appearing in both Japanese and Western urban legends, this game involves calling a cursed phone number to speak to the dead—or worse.
How it’s played:
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You must find a payphone (or in modern versions, an old rotary phone).
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At exactly 3 a.m., dial a specific, often impossible number (variations say 204-968-9999 or 666-6666).
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Don’t speak until you hear breathing on the other end.
What’s supposed to happen: The voice that answers may offer you information, but always at a cost. Hanging up too early or asking the wrong question can result in your own death or a haunting.
Why it’s feared: Phone calls are a familiar, safe activity—until you imagine the person (or thing) on the other end isn’t human at all.
Why These Games Endure
These rituals tap into shared human fears:
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Isolation – Many require you to be alone in the dark.
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Breaking everyday safety – Using mirrors, bathtubs, closets, and elevators as supernatural tools makes the familiar dangerous.
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High stakes – The “rules” always carry dire consequences for breaking them.
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Community storytelling – They spread online through personal “I tried it” accounts, making them feel both modern and ancient.
Even if they’re nothing more than stories, they’re effective because they make you imagine yourself in the scenario. And once the seed is planted, you can’t help but wonder: What if it’s true?
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