Demons have always been a classic nemesis of humans and gods. From the times of ancient China and Egypt, through Hindu and Iranian mythology, and all the way down to the prevailing religious attitudes today. The idea of a demon as a supernatural being that is immensely hard to kill or banish has persisted for so long that they still rule superstitions to this day.
Of course, this makes them the perfect kind of enemies for video games. Video games are the epitome of catharsis and stress relief for many people around the world. Nothing screams “conquer your fears” louder than the cacophony of a shotgun blast combined with the agonized blood-curdling screams of a dying demon.
The best thing about demons as enemies in video games is the fact that they’re not human, so they don’t have to act within human limitations. Creativity flows out endlessly in the quest to design the perfect, formidable demonic enemies developers want you to face.
Therefore, if you’re considering playing such a game, it’s comforting to know that the worst kind of supernatural evils has been created for your exterminatin’ pleasure.
10. Shadow Warrior (PC/Linux/OSX/PS4/Xbox One)
Killing demons as a knightly warrior or a space marine is all fine and good, but what about killing demons as a samurai? Not just any samurai, mind you. A wise-cracking, fun-loving samurai who’s bored as hell? That’s exactly what Shadow Warrior is all about. Yes, the game’s title might be confusing but you’re going to get way more than you ever bargained for.
This is a remake of the classic 1997 shooter of the same name, which is even crazier. Its return for the 21st century has been handled surprisingly well. You play as Lo Wang, a highly-skilled mercenary samurai under the employment of industrialist Orochi Zilla.
You’re dispatched to purchase an ancient katana from a man who reveals himself to be in a treaty with an ancient Japanese demon named Hoji. A scuffle ensues which results in the Japanese Shinto idea of hell, known as ‘shadow realm’ in-game invading Earth and wreaking havoc.
However, Hoji is a good demon so he allies with you and helps you retrieve the sword and put an end to the invasion. Your path will take you throughout locations in Japan and you’ll fight demons directly taken from Japanese mythology. What are you going to fight them with? Guns, big rocket launchers, katanas, and magic. Just go wild man!
09. Darksiders (PC/Wii U/PS3/PS4/Xbox 360/Xbox One/Switch)
Imagine a game where you play as a literal personification of one of the scourges that plague Earth and human life. Then imagine killing demons as him, doing good for the betterment of humanity. Yes, the name of that game with that crazy setting is Darksiders, the start of a well-received franchise.
In Darksiders, literal heaven and literal hell simply decide to have a century-long brawl on Earth. Humans? Yeah, they’re caught in the middle and facing total extinction. To ensure order and peace, the Charred Council formed a military brotherhood known as the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (legit) to intervene and enforce its rules as needed.
They created a separate protected state for humans known as the Kingdom of Man. You play as War, one of the four horsemen, and intervene in re-ignited hostilities where heaven, hell, and mankind just duke it out to whatever cosmic bitter end awaited.
Use magic swords, scythes, raw magic, firearms, and ride demons while doing so. Who are you going to fight? Everyone, but especially demons. The story and lore are more than worth figuring out on your own, so you’ll never lack entertainment and engrossment while you’re at it. Don’t wait and pick up the game. It will run on anything these days.
08. Painkiller: Hell and Damnation (PC/Xbox 360/PS3)
Hell hath no fury like a husband scorned, beaten, battered, and denied the chance to say goodbye to his wife. Indeed, with sheer will, you can move heaven and hell. That’s what the Painkiller games are all about. Painkiller is about Daniel Garner, just an ordinary man.
Except he went to purgatory and then got down to hell to massacre legions of demon spawn and their leaders to see his wife again, and was denied the chance in the previous Painkiller game. So now, he’s struck a deal with the Angel of Death himself to kill even more legions of demon spawn and their leaders for yet another chance to see his wife again.
Assume the role of this grieving, determined, and absolutely pissed-off husband, take a page straight out of Doom and blast those demons to kingdom come. Their existence is a blight upon reality anyway and the Angel of Death himself is helping you, what could go wrong?
It’s probably one of the best depictions of the Abrahamic idea of hell to ever be put into media. Complimenting the atmosphere and visuals of such a rich setting is a hard-hitting metal soundtrack befitting such a visceral demon-exterminating experience. Use your arsenal of crazily overpowered weapons to humble hell itself. Make the Doom Slayer proud of you.
07. Diablo (PC/Mac OS/PSX/Source ports)
Doom was the name on everyone’s mouths when it came to demon-killing in the 1990s. Get shotgun, open door, blast demon, exit level. That was the drill everyone was familiar with until Diablo dropped. The player controls a lone hero, the original demon slayer, striving to rid the world of Diablo, the Lord of Terror, in the mythical Kingdom of Khanduras in a primitive age.
This fragile society of man has been utterly and completely corrupted by the influence of Diablo, and you are bound to come across some gruesome scenes and implications. Khanduras is so corrupted that even the clergy and the king himself are direct pawns of hell, controlled by Diablo.
Your journey through the corrupted realm of Khanduras will take you through a wide variety of diverse locales, plagued with bandits, zombies, demons, and wild animals under the influence of hell. Everything wants you dead, and you’re just a regular human.
There are so many enemies and locations each with their unique place in the lore that it’s still a blast today to go through them all. Just imagine the impact it had on the gaming scene back when it came out in 1997. It was and still is mind-blowing.
Diablo would end up setting a standard for the means by which combat, abilities, and character upgrades would be handled in future combat-RPG titles. It can be hard to play this legendary gem these days, owing to Blizzard’s ways of managing their lifelong game repertoire.
You may buy it on GOG.com and pair it up with a source port known as DevilutionX that allows you to play Diablo with modern controls and widescreen support on Linux and Android. There’s also a Switch source-port floating around that is worth checking out since it offers full support for handheld and docked play, with crisp graphics and sound.
06. Amid Evil (PC/Switch [Upcoming])
What if you had a golden staff right now that could shoot scorching hot fireballs as some kind of heavenly overpowered assault rifle? Okay, now what if you were on a holy pilgrimage to use it in slaughtering everything in your path? Legends among you will cite Heretic and Hexen as examples, but there is a newer instant classic on the scene.
However, Amid Evil is where it’s currently at. A strange and powerful "Evil Force" arrived in the distant past, corrupting the hallowed regions of the known realms. They're just battle demon armies upon legions. Despite the efforts of many heroes, no one has been able to overcome the Evil Force. You are the only person to have successfully completed an impossible test and earned the privilege to wield a holy combat axe.
The wielder of the mighty relic gains access to the highest planes of reality and it’s up to you to undertake the holy pilgrimage to cleanse those places of these demons. There are six ranged weapons in the game, in addition to the Axe of the Black Labyrinth, each of which uses one of four types of mana. The player must search the game world for both weapons and mana.
You can absorb the souls of slain demons in addition to scooping up mana. When you have enough souls, you can enter "soul mode," which triggers alternate fire modes for all weapons and dramatically boosts their potency for a brief period of time.
This is similar to how the Tome of Power operates in Heretic and Hexen, cementing the clear lineage. There is one weapon in the game that is so absolutely crazy, that it is necessary for you to find out about it all by yourself. Trust me, you’ll be really thankful for not being given the spoiler.
05. Devil May Cry 5 (PC/PS4/PS4/Xbox One/Xbox Series X/S/Luna)
How can this list be complete without an entry featuring one of the most popular and well-received demon-slaying franchises of all time? Of course, the games from the Devil May Cry franchise have been hailed as some of the best games to come out of Japan of all time.
The gameplay includes the reintroduction of Dante and Nero as playable characters, as well as the introduction of a new character dubbed V. The gameplay is similar to that of the other Devil May Cry games, with a focus on fast-paced "stylish action," in which you fight hordes of demons with a range of strikes and weaponry.
The game assigns a battle style rating based on a number of characteristics, including move diversity, combo duration, and avoiding attacks. It's the same old drill, but updated and improved for the 2020s. Perhaps then, the main draw for returning players to the franchise is the new story. Developers have commented that the main theme for this entry is ‘love’.
Knowing their track record with the previous Devil May Cry games, you’d be right to expect a high quality story told through the contexts of each playable character. Indeed, demon-slaying action and great storytelling intersect to create one of the best Devil May Cry experiences ever.
04. Castlevania: Lords of Shadow (PC/PS3/Xbox 360)
Of course, it’s everyone’s favorite dark gothic fantasy video game series that has stood the test of time since the 1980s. Continuing into the recent part of the 21st century, it has been able to churn out great up-to-date experiences that still retain the charm and feel of the originals.
Gabriel Belmont, the main character, is a member of the Brotherhood of Light, an elite group of holy knights that protect and defend innocent people from the demons who have infested Earth as a result of the Lords of Shadow's influence. One of them cruelly murdered Gabriel's wife Marie, and her soul is locked in limbo, unable to depart.
She recognizes what is at stake now that she is neither living nor dead, and she guides Gabriel to his destiny of saving the planet as he explores the terrible spell. If there’s one thing hell and its leaders should learn quickly is to never, ever mess with grieving husbands and prey on this primal urge of theirs, especially if they are sword-wielding spell-casting badasses.
Platforming and puzzles are a big part of the game, and there are fifty of them, just like in the original Castlevania games. Gabriel can jump most lengths, dash, and retain his balance above lethal pits under the player's control. Scaling buildings, rappelling, and swinging across gaps are all possibilities with the Combat Cross.
Some game sequences necessitate the player's solving of physical challenges or brain teasers. Usual Castlevania players that returning fans will love. Of course, a great story also accompanies this reimagining of the core parts of Castlevania’s experience and you won’t regret grabbing a copy.
03. Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (PC/PS4/Xbox One/Xbox Series X/S/Switch)
Facing demons in combat is a theme that would rightfully respect the cultures of various peoples around the world and tell their stories in unique ways. Riding on that notion, Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is a deep dive into ancient Celtic and Norse cultures and their ideas of demons and hell.
The game begins with Senua, a Pictish (ancestors of the Scottish) warrior from Orkney, arriving at the boundary of Helheim, the netherworld, on a journey to save the spirit of her dead lover, Dillion, from the goddess Hela. Senua feels she is cursed with the ability to hear the voices of ghosts, known as "Furies." It's actually just psychosis in a time when such mental diseases were explained away with magic and demons.
Hack and slash, puzzle-solving, and psychological horror are all included in the game. Voice acting is also an important part of the game's experience, and it's done well. Developers collaborated carefully with neuroscientists, mental health specialists, and people living with psychosis to accurately reflect the disorder.
Killing demons is well worth it, even if they're all in your head! A well-told story with quite a number of surprises and astonishment awaits you in this rather surreal experience of a demon-slaying game. The Norse Vikings play a rather major role in the game’s story and they’re handled quite pleasantly. The story’s quality necessitates being completely mum on it as the true reward is letting the players find it all out by themselves. Embrace the role of Senua, the Pictish warrior, and fight those damned demons, real or imagined.
02. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (PC/PS4/Xbox One/Stadia)
This list was started off with Shadow Warrior precisely to save space for Sekiro, and you’ll easily understand why once you begin to play. It’s another absolute gem coming out of Japan based on Japanese mythology. Sekiro is set during 17th century Japan, arguably the bloodiest time period in the history of Japan.
This was the era of civil war, known as Sengoku and it got very bloody near its end. With ever-increasing intrigue, strife, bloodshed, and the emergence of a group set to unify Japan with brute force, the infernal powers have reared their ugly heads.
Demonic influences have corrupted humans and wildlife as the demons themselves begin to make their home in rural Japan. It’s up to you, a warrior chosen by the gods to take the fight directly to hell’s influences, purify Japan, and put pointless strife to an end. The developers behind Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice are the same guys who developed the Demon Souls and Dark Souls games, so you may have an idea of what to expect.
Yes, combat is immensely tough and there is a lot of grinding to be done before you become an expert medieval slayer of demons. The game, however, has fewer role-playing elements than the Souls series, omitting character creation and the opportunity to level up a variety of stats, as well as no multiplayer elements.
It does contain equipment upgrades though, such as a skill tree, and limited ability customization. Rather than assaulting an enemy's health points, fighting in Sekiro focuses on destroying their posture and balance with a katana, eventually leading to an opening that allows for a single fatal strike.
The game also has stealth components, which allow players to quickly dispatch some demons if they can get close enough without being spotted. Demon slaying combined with such elegant combat mechanics? Let’s sign you up!
01. Doom Eternal (PC/PS4/PS5/Xbox One/Xbox Series X/S/Switch/Stadia)
This is it. You knew this was going to be at the top of this list. You knew this was the most straightforward and visceral demon-slaying experience one could ever ask for. It didn’t dominate conversations in 2020 for no reason. Doom Slayer is back to see his eternal enemy, the demons invading Earth and he’s even more pissed off than before.
What is left of humanity has either fled the planet or joined the Armored Response Coalition, a resistance group formed to fight the invasion that has gone into hiding after suffering massive losses. It’s up to the Doom Slayer to single-handedly save his species from extinction as their demigod champion and he’s going to carry out this job for extreme prejudice.
Travel dimensions in this blockbuster entry to the Doom franchise, its most bombastic and over-the-top yet. Uncover facts that are forbidden to be known by any mortal and shut the forces of hell down, for good. Gameplay has been enhanced in terms of loop and skill demands compared to its predecessor, Doom 2016.
Each and every combat encounter is a brutal dance of death that you must dominate with speed, explosiveness, and sheer grit. New adversaries, such as the Marauder and Doom Hunter, have been introduced, while old opponents, such as the Pain Elemental, Arachnotron, and Arch-vile, have been reintroduced.
The game introduces a new mechanic called "Destructible Demons," in which adversaries' bodies decay as they absorb damage. Certain sections of a demon's anatomy can be damaged via this mechanism, preventing them from using their greater attacks. All of these additions are quite appreciated.
The story? It’s there if you’d like but in keeping with Doom tradition, it’s really not important at all. And that’s why it’s more than a worthy torchbearer for the franchise taking over from what I believe is 1994’s Doom II: Hell on Earth. Enough talk, get down to slaying demons with big guns, both ballistic and muscular.
