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10 Horror Video Games That Will Haunt You in the Dark

Johan Tobias — Wed, 12 Nov 2025 07:33:16 +0000

10 horror video games may have fewer enthusiasts than sprawling RPGs or fast‑paced sports titles, and that’s easy to understand. When everything around you moves at breakneck speed, the last thing you want is to scare yourself silly with a video game. Still, if you’re a brave soul who loves to explore, there are fantastic horror experiences that will keep you up all night.

10 Outlast 2

Outlast 2 continues the legacy of its 2013 predecessor, arriving on Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PS4, and PC. Like the original, it thrusts you into a first‑person nightmare, but this sequel cranks up the difficulty and dread. You follow journalist Sullivan Knoth and his unsettling followers as the story unfolds.

The game drops you into the shoes of a reporter whose helicopter crashes in the desolate Arizona desert. Together with his wife Lynn, you’re forced to investigate a series of grisly events no other journalist dares to touch. There’s no combat—only sprinting, hiding, and piecing together a horrific puzzle. The desert’s darkness is suffocating, the corruption sky‑high, and the truth buried deep.

Although the opening may feel a bit slow, don’t be fooled—this title is relentlessly terrifying and demands a sturdy heart and a solid stomach.

9 The Madness of Death

The Madness of Death is a brief yet intensely horrifying experience, designed for the select few who can endure its psychological torment. Clocking in at roughly 30‑60 minutes, the game delivers immersive gameplay, a gripping narrative, and a barrage of unsettling horror.

The plot follows a grieving man whose wife perished in a tragic accident. Consumed by sorrow, he withdraws from society and becomes obsessed with ancient legends about resurrecting the dead. When his sister receives a mysterious letter urging her to visit, she discovers an enigmatic box of symbols instead of her brother, while he, elsewhere, clutches a stone that drags him into an inescapable nightmare.

The game carries a strong discretion warning—players who are easily triggered should heed it before diving into this unsettling journey.

8 Until Dawn

Blending survival, action, and adventure, Until Dawn offers a little something for every horror fan. The story centers on eight teenagers trapped on a remote mountain cabin, forced to confront a terrifying presence that threatens to kill them all.

You can assume control of any of the eight characters, making choices that ripple through the narrative. Each decision carries weight—your team may survive together or fall apart. The branching storylines create a butterfly‑effect dynamic, while cameo appearances by stars like Hayden Panettiere add an extra layer of intrigue. Originally a PS3 exclusive, the game now shines on PS4 and has been remastered for PC.

While the game is a thrilling ride, it’s best enjoyed with the lights on.

7 The Last of Us

Despite racking up more than 200 Game of the Year awards, The Last of Us remains a brutally disturbing experience. Players follow Joel and Ellie as they navigate a post‑pandemic world, fighting for survival against hostile factions and infected creatures.

The title is unapologetically violent—combat, shootings, torture scenes, and graphic animal deaths abound. Though not a traditional horror game, its grim atmosphere and moral dilemmas make it a chilling journey best avoided in total darkness.

Available on PC and all major consoles, the latest remake leverages the power of the PS5 for an even more immersive experience.

6 Murder House

If haunted‑house tales make you shiver, Murder House is a retro survival‑horror gem you’ll want to keep the lights on for. This fifth‑generation classic relies on tank controls and a chilling narrative.

The plot follows a news crew that breaks into an abandoned mansion to cover a story—only to discover the house belongs to the executed serial killer Antony Smith, whose restless spirit still haunts its corridors. The game lacks autosave, forcing players to rely on limited pencil saves, a hallmark of its PS1 origins.

Curiosity may drive you to uncover who survives, but be prepared for a night drenched in terror.

5 Dead by Daylight

Dead by Daylight delivers gore, blood, and mature horror in a multiplayer 4‑vs‑1 format. One player assumes the role of a savage killer, while four survivors scramble to evade capture and escape.

Survivors benefit from a third‑person perspective, making navigation intuitive, whereas the killer operates in first‑person, hunting with relentless precision. Teamwork can turn the tide, but selfish choices may seal a grim fate. The game’s chilling environments, atmospheric music, and expertly crafted tension elevate the horror experience.

Available on PC and consoles, this multiplayer nightmare is best played with the lights on.

4 Amnesia: The Dark Descent

Developed by Frictional Games in the late 2000s, Amnesia: The Dark Descent earned a reputation for its relentless psychological horror and intricate puzzles. The game forgoes combat entirely, forcing players to rely on wit and stealth.

Rather than cheap jump‑scares, the title builds dread by stripping away agency—players feel powerless in a bleak, tragic setting. You follow Daniel, a man plagued by amnesia, as he navigates a pitch‑black mansion armed only with a trembling lantern.

The oppressive darkness and haunting ambience make you question whether you’d dare join Daniel in such a bleak environment.

3 The Evil Within

From Tango Gameworks and published by Bethesda Softworks, The Evil Within stands as a visceral survival‑horror experience with striking creature design. Inspired by classics like Silent Hill and Resident Evil, it leans heavily on jump‑scares and grotesque monstrosities.

Players must scavenge for resources across multiple chapters, uncovering safe havens and upgrading weapons to survive the nightmarish onslaught.

Available on both PC and consoles, the game’s graphic intensity and stomach‑turning moments demand a sturdy heart and a well‑conditioned stomach.

2 Remothered: Tormented Fathers

Remothered: Tormented Fathers delivers a hyper‑realistic, psychology‑driven horror adventure. The narrative blurs the line between hero and villain, weaving relentless twists that ratchet up tension.

The story follows Rosemary Reed, a middle‑aged woman investigating a crime at Richard Felton’s estate. Initially welcomed by Gloria, the housekeeper, Rosemary soon discovers sinister motives, turning her quest into a desperate fight for survival.

Film‑style cutscenes, top‑tier audio, and a haunting soundtrack amplify the dread. The game is playable on PC and consoles, best enjoyed with the lights on.

1 Resident Evil 7: Biohazard

Resident Evil earned the title of horror video game royalty, and Resident Evil 7: Biohazard stands as its most terrifying incarnation. Released in 2017, the game dominated charts for years, cementing its status as a modern classic.

Set in a contemporary rural American backdrop, the single‑player experience blends classic survival mechanics with a fresh, terrifying atmosphere. Only the clever and brave can outlast the nightmarish challenges.

Players consistently rave about the game’s oppressive ambience, declaring it the most intense Resident Evil entry to date. Approach it at your own risk—and never, ever play it in the dark.

10 Horror Games: Killer Perspectives That Thrill Players

Johan Tobias — Mon, 10 Feb 2025 07:26:00 +0000

One of the core ingredients that makes horror truly unsettling is the feeling of powerlessness. While terrifying monsters and otherworldly dangers already raise the stakes, the dread intensifies when you’re unable to stop them. That’s why countless horror titles cast you as the helpless victim, forcing you to outwit or outrun a relentless threat. Yet every now and then, the narrative flips, letting you step into the shoes of the menace.

Some games turn the genre on its head by putting you behind the mask of a killer—be it a deranged slasher, a mythic creature, or a cold‑blooded machine. In these experiences you stalk unsuspecting civilians, satisfy a gruesome hunger, or simply revel in the sheer power fantasy. The opposition may be NPCs or even other players, but they’re typically little more than prey. While the challenge may feel lighter, the thrill of wielding terror yourself more than makes up for it, offering a fresh perspective on classic horror tropes.

Explore 10 Horror Games Where You Play as the Killer

10 Texas Chainsaw Massacre

It’s no coincidence that the first entry in this list stems from one of the most infamous horror movies ever made. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre follows a group of unsuspecting friends who take a wrong turn and stumble into a nightmarish situation. A brief pit stop brings them face‑to‑face with a cannibalistic family, and the most terrifying member is Leatherface—a hulking, silent figure wielding a roaring chainsaw and a mask stitched from human skin. You might think such graphic content would be impossible on an early Atari system, but the original actually pulls it off.

The Atari tie‑in puts you directly in Leatherface’s shoes, tasking you with a brutal killing spree. Gripping the chainsaw, you chase terrified civilians across the screen; colliding with them slices heads clean off, splattering pixelated blood everywhere. The gameplay loop is intentionally straightforward, because the fun lies in embodying the iconic slasher and doing exactly what he does best—wreaking havoc with a chainsaw.

If the retro aesthetic isn’t your cup of tea, the 2023 remake expands the experience with additional killers, upgraded graphics, and smoother controls, giving the classic concept a modern polish while keeping the original’s gruesome charm.

9 The Happyhills Homicide

Sticking with the pixel‑art vibe, The Happyhills Homicide introduces us to John Wade, a school janitor whose grotesque appearance earns him relentless bullying from both students and staff. After a devastating fire leaves him scarred and homeless, Wade decides to settle the score, turning his revenge into a meticulously planned campaign. The game forces you to root for the very monster you’d normally condemn.

Designed as a side‑scrolling puzzle, the title requires you to infiltrate victims’ homes, study their routines, and set up elaborate traps. You’ll rummage through objects, bypass obstacles, and time your attacks to catch targets off‑guard. The payoff isn’t just a quick kill; the game rewards you with outrageously creative ways to dispatch each foe, emphasizing patience, ingenuity, and a twisted sense of showmanship. Revenge, as they say, is best served cold—and in this case, pixel‑perfectly cold.

8 Dead by Daylight

This multiplayer horror experience pits a group of survivors against a single, masked killer. The survivors must cooperate to gather resources, craft tools, and repair generators that power the exit gates, all while racing against a relentless time limit. Their success hinges on teamwork, stealth, and quick thinking.

The lone killer, meanwhile, stalks the survivors, dragging them to sacrificial hooks and offering their bodies to a mysterious entity known simply as “the Entity.” If the killer manages to hook all survivors before they can escape, victory is theirs. The core loop is simple yet tense, pitting frantic escape attempts against a merciless hunter in a deadly game of cat‑and‑mouse.

7 Predator: Hunting Grounds

Borrowing heavily from the formula popularized by Dead by Daylight, Predator: Hunting Grounds drops four elite special‑ops soldiers into a hostile environment where they must complete military objectives such as reconnaissance or target elimination. The twist: a fifth player assumes the role of the alien Predator, hunting the squad with advanced stealth technology and near‑invulnerable biology.

The Predator’s arsenal—cloaking, plasma casters, and razor‑sharp blades—lets it ambush troops with terrifying efficiency, turning the battlefield into a lethal hunting ground. Meanwhile, the human squad must rely on coordination and firepower to survive, though they’re vastly outmatched by the extraterrestrial hunter’s superior capabilities.

6 Friday the 13th

Another multiplayer adaptation of a classic slasher franchise, Friday the 13th casts one player as the infamous Jason Voorhees, who stalks a remote summer camp in pursuit of terrified counselors. Jason’s supernatural agility and uncanny resilience make him a formidable predator, forcing the counselors to stay on their toes.

The counselors can fight back by setting traps, using projectile weapons, and exploiting Jason’s backstory—particularly his traumatic relationship with his mother—to create brief windows of vulnerability. While taking down Jason is a daunting task, clever use of the environment can buy enough time for a daring escape or a last‑stand until the match timer expires.

5 Jaws Unleashed

The iconic great white from Steven Spielberg’s classic film becomes the playable protagonist in Jaws Unleashed. Set around the fictional Amity Island, you control the massive shark as it prowls the coastal waters, hunting swimmers, capsizing boats, and fending off armed hunters.

As you consume prey and destroy human vessels, you earn experience that lets you upgrade your size, speed, and attack repertoire, enabling you to tackle ever‑larger targets. Human attempts to eradicate you become increasingly desperate, but each successful defense solidifies your place at the top of the marine food chain.

4 Vampyr

Set against the backdrop of a 1918 London plagued by a vampiric disease, Vampyr puts you in the role of Dr. Jonathan Reid—a physician who discovers he’s also a powerful vampire. The game forces you to balance your medical duties with an insatiable thirst for blood.

Feeding on patients fuels your vampiric abilities and is essential for leveling up, yet each kill reduces the number of civilians you can heal, creating a moral dilemma. By the end, your character may have become a greater menace than the very plague you were meant to cure, highlighting the dark allure of power.

3 Terminator: Resistance

The post‑apocalyptic world of the Terminator franchise is explored from both sides in Terminator: Resistance. While the base game follows a human resistance fighter battling relentless machines, the Infiltrator Mode DLC flips the script, allowing you to become a Terminator unit tasked with eliminating a key Resistance commander.

As an infiltrator, you scour the ruins of Los Angeles, breach Tech‑Com facilities, and mow down any human who stands in your way. The experience showcases the terrifying efficiency of a cybernetic assassin, reinforcing the series’ theme that machines are a formidable, almost unstoppable threat.

2 Rebel Without a Pulse

In Rebel Without a Pulse, you play as Stubbs, a zombie who defies the usual mindless horde archetype by actively hunting humans and devouring their brains to stay alive. The game blends vehicular combat, makeshift weaponry, and classic zombie mayhem.

Beyond personal carnage, Stubbs can infect victims, turning them into obedient zombie minions. As your undead army grows, you can command them to assault human strongholds, spreading the infection like a virus and eventually overwhelming the entire population.

1 Among Us

At first glance, Among Us appears to be a light‑hearted social deduction game, but its premise hides a lurking horror. Crewmates must maintain a deteriorating space station while an impostor—disguised as one of them—silently murders and sabotages their efforts.

The impostor’s goal is to blend in, strike when least expected, and sow distrust among the crew. Detecting the hidden killer becomes a tense exercise in paranoia, turning the simple act of teamwork into a nerve‑wracking battle for survival.

Top 10 Dirty Tricks Fake Psychics Use to Manipulate You

Marjorie Mackintosh — Sun, 07 Jan 2024 23:15:40 +0000

Welcome to the world of the top 10 dirty tactics that fake psychics love to pull on unsuspecting clients. While there is some scientific evidence suggesting genuine psychic phenomena – such as Daryl Bem’s precognition experiments involving over a thousand participants – the majority of self‑styled seers are simply masters of deception, using a toolbox of psychological tricks to keep you talking, paying, and ultimately believing they have supernatural powers.

10 They Keep You Talking

One of the most effective ploys in a charlatan’s repertoire is to keep the conversation flowing nonstop. The longer you gab, the more breadcrumbs of personal detail you unintentionally drop, and the easier it becomes for the fraudster to spin a convincing “reading.”

In practice this means the bill climbs higher – especially with phone‑based psychics who often charge $3.99 per minute or more – and you may end up paying for time you never intended to spend, not to mention the emotional toll of feeling trapped in a never‑ending dialogue.

Why This Is One of the Top 10 Dirty Tricks

The relentless chatter is a classic confidence‑building technique: the more you talk, the more you invest, and the harder it becomes to walk away.

9 They Ask For Personal Information

After establishing a comfortable rapport, many impostors suddenly request your name, birth date, and home address, claiming these details are essential for a “proper” reading. This veneer of professionalism masks a far more sinister motive.

In reality, the data is harvested to flood you with alarming messages – think “you’re in danger, call immediately” or “I sense a curse; you must contact me now!” – all designed to coerce you into further calls or an in‑person visit where the scammer can milk every minute of your time for cash.

If the practitioner truly possessed psychic abilities, such personal identifiers would be unnecessary. Their demand for your private information is a red flag that the whole operation is a money‑making scheme.

8 Flattery And False Claims

The hallmark of a fake psychic is the relentless use of flattery paired with fabricated assertions. By complimenting your aura or character, the con artist builds a false sense of friendship and trust, laying the groundwork for deeper manipulation.

Once you feel validated, the charlatan drops a “special” claim – for example, “Your aura is unusually vibrant; I’d love to schedule an advanced reading next Tuesday.” This creates urgency and the illusion of exclusivity, nudging you toward a higher‑priced session.

If the psychic can keep you returning for these premium readings, they’ve successfully turned you into a recurring source of income, all while you remain blissfully unaware of the deception.

7 Past Lives As Famous People

Another favorite ruse is to tell you that you once lived as a renowned historical figure—perhaps Cleopatra, Abraham Lincoln, Alexander the Great, or Helen of Troy. While the notion sounds glamorous, it’s virtually always a fabricated compliment designed to inflate your ego.

These claims are rarely genuine; most fraudsters recycle the same famous personas across dozens of clients. By flattering you with a “great‑person” past life, they keep you hooked, hoping you’ll pay extra for “regression” sessions or other pricey add‑ons that supposedly uncover deeper memories.

6 They Make A Claim And Then Wait

A classic maneuver is to make an ambiguous statement and then fall silent, waiting for you to react. This pause lets the pretender read your body language, facial expressions, or nervous ticks, using any reaction as “evidence” of their accuracy.

If you respond—whether with a gasp, a nod, or a puzzled look—the fake psychic seizes that cue to claim, “I see you’re startled; I sensed something about your health.” The deliberate silence is a psychological trap that makes you feel validated, even though the claim was intentionally vague.

5 They Give You Information That Might Be True For Anyone

Fake psychics excel at delivering statements that could apply to virtually anyone. A typical example is, “I sense you have suffered a recent loss.” Since most people have experienced some form of loss—be it a financial setback, a loved one’s passing, or even a misplaced pet—such a remark feels eerily personal.

The genius of this approach lies in its universality. Because the comment is so broad, you’re likely to fill in the blanks with your own recent grief, convincing yourself that the psychic has tapped into your hidden world.

This technique is a win‑win for the scammer: they never risk being proven wrong, and you walk away convinced of their uncanny insight.

4 Positive Claims With Just A Few Negatives

To keep clients coming back, fraudsters pepper their readings with mostly upbeat predictions, sprinkling in a handful of negative details to lend credibility. If every statement were rosy, you’d suspect a sham; a few “you lost something important” bits make the reading seem balanced.

For instance, a fake psychic might say, “You recently misplaced a treasured object.” That could be anything from a set of keys to a family heirloom, and you’ll likely recall a recent instance that fits, reinforcing the illusion of accuracy.

3 They Look You Up Online

In the digital age, many impostors scour social media platforms to gather personal tidbits about you before a session. Whether you’ve announced a forthcoming book or posted vacation photos, they harvest these clues to weave into a seemingly “psychic” narrative.

During the reading, you might hear, “I see you’re on the brink of becoming a bestseller,” which feels startlingly precise but is merely a reflection of publicly available information.

The internet is a goldmine of data, and fake psychics exploit it to fabricate the illusion of supernatural insight.

2 They Ask You Questions

A genuine psychic wouldn’t need to interrogate you; they’d simply reveal facts that the client has no way of knowing. In contrast, a charlatan bombards you with a barrage of questions, coaxing details you never intended to share.

When you’re caught off‑guard by a sudden “yes or no” query, you may answer without thinking, inadvertently handing the fraudster the very information they need to craft a convincing reading.

By extracting these unsolicited details, the fake psychic builds a façade of accuracy while simultaneously setting the stage for future, higher‑priced sessions.

1 They Use Props

A true psychic doesn’t need flamboyant accessories to convey their gifts. If you step into a dimly lit room filled with crystal balls, oversized scarves, glimmering bracelets, and walls adorned with natal charts, you’re likely in the lair of a professional con artist.

These visual cues—large crystals, esoteric books, or an elaborate tarot spread—serve to reinforce the illusion that something mystical is happening, when in fact the entire performance hinges on suggestion and showmanship.

Even the most minimalist fraudsters may keep a simple deck of cards on a table, using it as a prop to lend credibility to their act without appearing overly theatrical.

Regardless of the level of ornamentation, the use of props is a hallmark of deception; a genuine psychic would rely solely on their innate ability, not on external objects, to convey insights.

10 Savage Psychic Slayings

About The Author: Regina Paul is an author and artist who lives in Seattle, Washington. Visit her website at https://www.reginapaul.com.

Top 10 Board Games That Demand Insane Hours of Play

Johan Tobias — Sat, 06 Jan 2024 18:46:59 +0000

Government lockdowns have rekindled people’s interest in tabletop fun, and the top 10 board titles on this list prove why some games can monopolise your calendar for weeks on end. Whether you’re a seasoned strategist or a casual dice‑roller, these marathon‑length classics will test your stamina, patience, and love of elaborate rule‑books.

Why These Top 10 Board Games Take So Long

Long‑play board games thrive on depth. They blend massive maps, countless counters, and intricate diplomatic webs that demand careful planning and often, multiple sessions to resolve. The result? Hours‑long (sometimes days‑long) experiences that become legendary around the gaming table.

10 Risk

Of all the games on this roster, Risk is probably the most familiar to casual and hardcore gamers alike. The iconic quest for world domination, launched in 1959, set the template for modern strategic board gaming and continues to inspire countless successors.

While the official rulebook lists a standard game at roughly 120 minutes, real‑world sessions with six players often stretch far beyond that. In practice, a single game can occupy the table for eight solid hours as armies clash, alliances shift, and continents change hands.

Some epic campaigns even top the twelve‑hour mark. The game’s cultural reach is evident in pop‑culture, such as the infamous Seinfeld episode where Kramer and Newman keep the dice rolling over multiple days.

It’s not unusual for groups to break a session, set the board aside, and reconvene days or weeks later, allowing the drama to unfold at a leisurely pace.

9 7 Ages

Don’t let the title mislead you—7 Ages will take far more than seven hours to complete. Spanning six millennia, players shepherd dynasties through seven distinct epochs, each representing a pivotal slice of human history.

Although the game’s surface suggests a conventional war‑game, it actually demands a sophisticated blend of economic management, scientific progress, and cultural development. Players must guide their civilization from humble origins to a thriving empire.

Because of its depth, a typical playthrough runs at least 480 minutes (eight hours). The sprawling board depicts the entire globe, broken into evenly sized territories across every continent.

From balancing budgets to orchestrating military campaigns and pioneering breakthroughs, the game rewards meticulous attention. Emerging victorious after such a marathon offers a sense of achievement few other games can match.

8 Machiavelli

If you’ve ever perused the political treatises of Niccolò Machiavelli, you’ll recognise the same intrigue in this sprawling strategy game for four to eight players. The title immerses participants in Renaissance Italy, recreating the volatile power dynamics of the era.

The game faithfully reproduces five major Italian powers—the Kingdom of Naples, the Republics of Florence and Venice, the Papacy, and the Duchy of Milan—each vying for supremacy on the peninsula.

Three additional foreign powers—Habsburg Austria, Valois France, and the Ottoman Empire—add further layers of diplomacy, rebellion, warfare, and assassination. A typical session consumes at least 480 minutes (eight hours), though many groups extend the experience to twelve hours or more.

Various rule variants let players tailor the length, but the core experience remains a deep dive into political machinations that can easily dominate an entire weekend.

7 The Republic Of Rome

Roman history stretches over two millennia, yet The Republic of Rome concentrates on the pivotal 250‑year span of the Republic itself. Players command powerful families, each seeking dominance within the Senate and across the Mediterranean.

Each faction juggles military commands, political offices, popular support, and economic concessions. Success hinges on balancing aggressive expansion with careful coalition‑building.

Winning requires amassing enough influence to become Rome’s pre‑eminent power, a task that demands both confrontation and cooperation. The base game’s average duration sits at roughly 300 minutes (five hours), but seasoned players often push sessions into the ten‑to‑twelve‑hour range.

Experienced groups can stretch gameplay even further, turning a single campaign into a marathon of strategic intrigue.

6 2038: Tycoons Of The Asteroid Belt

While most marathon board games revisit historical battles, 2038: Tycoons of the Asteroid Belt propels players into deep‑space mining. An adaptation of the notoriously complex 18xx series, this title challenges participants to claim, develop, and profit from asteroid resources.

Gameplay unfolds in rounds where players trade stock, dispatch mining vessels, and manage fuel supplies. The ever‑changing map—generated anew each session—adds a layer of unpredictability.

Even without expansions, a standard campaign lasts about 360 minutes (six hours). Adding the optional expansion set tacks on roughly another four hours, though many groups report twelve‑hour marathons to fully explore the economic intricacies.

The blend of financial strategy, logistics, and random map generation makes each playthrough a uniquely demanding experience.

5 Paths Of Glory

Most lengthy war games focus on World War II, but Paths of Glory transports players to the Great War (1914‑1918). Participants assume the roles of monarchs and generals, directing massive campaigns across Europe and the Near East.

The game supplies 316 die‑cut counters, a massive map sheet, and a 32‑page rulebook. Players must coordinate offensives, manage resources, and navigate the political landscape of the early twentieth century.

Average playtime hovers around 480 minutes (eight hours), but the steep learning curve can extend initial sessions considerably as players become familiar with the rules.

Veteran groups often push a single campaign to fourteen hours or more, turning the experience into a true test of endurance and historical strategy.

4 Europe Engulfed: WWII European Theatre Block Game

Europe Engulfed stands among the most intricate recreations of World War II, a product of thirteen years of design. Despite its relatively brisk pace, a full campaign typically consumes about 720 minutes (twelve hours).

The game covers the entire European and North‑African theatres, allowing players to command massive armies, navies, and air forces across multiple fronts. It’s one half of a two‑part series; its sibling, Asia Engulfed, focuses on the Pacific theater with a 480‑minute average.

While you can isolate individual campaigns, the full experience demands tackling all theatres to appreciate the scope. The publisher markets the entire campaign as playable within a single 10‑to‑14‑hour day once players master its elegant systems.

Dozens of dice and wooden blocks represent units, and success hinges on strategic movement, timing, and the ever‑present roll‑of‑the‑die.

3 Axis & Allies

Axis & Allies is famous for its flexibility: a quick, four‑hour skirmish is possible, yet seasoned veterans can stretch a single game beyond ten hours as strategies deepen and alliances shift.

The base playtime is listed at roughly 240 minutes (four hours). However, as players refine tactics and coordinate massive offensives, sessions can balloon dramatically.

Reddit anecdotes abound, with some gamers recounting 30‑round campaigns that consumed eight hours per day for eight consecutive days—a staggering 64‑hour marathon. The game’s longevity is bolstered by numerous expansions covering specific campaigns like Operation Overlord and the Pacific Theater.

Each expansion adds fresh scenarios and rules, typically adding another four‑plus hours of play, cementing Axis & Allies as one of the longest‑running board‑game franchises.

2 The Campaign For North Africa—The Desert War 1940‑43

When it comes to sheer duration, The Campaign for North Africa tops the chart. This mammoth simulation can dominate a gaming group for weeks, with an average playtime of 60,000 minutes—just over 41 days.

The game demands a minimum of eight participants, with a maximum of ten, each assuming command of distinct forces. Its massive rulebook, 1,600 cardboard chits, and a ten‑foot map create an unparalleled level of detail.

For truly dedicated groups, sessions can swell to 90,000 minutes (about 62.5 days). If a table meets once a week for three‑hour sessions, completing the campaign could span more than a decade.

Charts tracking morale, damage, mechanical failure, and countless other variables add layers of realism that keep players engrossed for extraordinary lengths of time.

1 Monopoly—Longest Game Ever

Even the classic Monopoly can turn into a marathon, but the 2019 Monopoly—Longest Game Ever edition pushes the limits dramatically. While a standard game usually lasts one to three hours, this version stretches the experience to potentially months.

The revamped set boasts 66 properties—three times the usual count—plus a single die and a rule that eliminates the quick‑win mechanic of rolling doubles.

Victory requires ownership of every property, and bankruptcy becomes a drawn‑out affair as players can tear and reuse bills, extending the financial drama indefinitely.

Hasbro hasn’t published an official average playtime, but given the added complexity, it’s safe to assume sessions can linger for weeks, turning a simple family pastime into an epic endurance test.

Top 10 Awesome Sportspeople Who Don’t Look Like They Play Sports

Brian Sepp — Thu, 23 Mar 2023 02:16:33 +0000

One of the most wonderful things about sport is that if you play most sports for long enough, your body will see the benefits. Even the doughiest of snot-bubbling kids will turn into a marble-hewn Greek god or goddess if they spend a decade or two performing at a high level, week-in-week-out on the field or court or wherever they play Ultimate Frisbee.

But there are many high-level sportspeople who simply do not end up looking like Muhammad Ali or Flo-Jo—some tippy-top-level sporting heroes and heroines just look…different. From an MMA bruiser who could strut her stuff on a catwalk in Paris to a Sumo wrestler who looked like he should be behind a desk at the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company (or if you live on the other side of the Atlantic, Wernham Hogg), these amazing guys and gals prove that you don’t need to look like a gym bunny to set the sporting world alight.

Young or old, big or small, sport can be for all.

Related: 10 Ways Sport Has Changed History

10 John Daly – Golf

He’s won accredited golf events all over the globe. He’s a PGA champion. He won the Open on the hallowed St. Andrews course, the spiritual home of golf. He’s nicknamed “Long John” due to his lengthy drives and never-ending backswing. John Daly is a legend. But wait, there’s more…

He’s also legendary for not looking like a bloke who could even give you directions to the nearest golf course. More Silver Bullet than Sand Hills Golf Club. And that’s the thing with John Daly—he doesn’t fit in. Golf has, for better or worse, a code of dress and conduct. It is a game associated with “the right sort.” Daly is not that sort—alcoholism, gambling, multiple marriages, conspiratorial politics, and legal issues are all a part of a laundry list of charges that any club committee would use to justify ejecting this loutish rube.

Thank goodness that none of that highfalutin’ crap matters when you’re as good at the game of golf as John Daly is. With a middle finger pointed at the “powers that be,” it’s fun to watch Long John smash a ball 300 yards down the fairway. What is viewed by some as loutishness is exactly what golf is often missing—entertainment.^[1]

9 Danny Craven – Australian Rules Football

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

Soccer (or football according to most of the planet) is often called “the beautiful game.” Australian football…well, check out the video. Considering the hard-hitting nature of the game, Danny Craven’s career is all the more amazing—you’d expect that only people who are 203 centimeters (6’8″), made of concrete with a titanium skeleton, and fueled by plutonium could play this game. Danny Craven, who played for the St. Kilda Saints in the late ’80s and early ’90s, proved that this was not a prerequisite. Danny, you see, was just shy of 160 centimeters (5’3″). For most Aussie Rules players, it must have been like playing against a child. A hard, fast child who’d break your jaw if you messed with him.

Having broken his leg in 1989, Craven fought back to play for a further five years, ending his pro career with the Brisbane Bears in 1995. He went on to have a coaching career and now commentates for NIRS (the National Indigenous Radio Service).^[2]

3 Pavel Bojar (Takanoyama Shuntarō) – Sumo

Quite a few non-Japanese men have pursued the ancient sport of Sumo. Many, especially those from Mongolia, have done so with great success. Currently, there are also rikishi from Brazil, Bulgaria, and Georgia (the former Soviet state, not where Rick Grimes is from). The first non-Japanese Yokozuna (the top ranking in the sport) was Akebono Tarō (aka Chadwick Haheo Rown), who hailed from Hawaii.

Most of these foreign fighters share one thing in common—they look like sumo wrestlers. One guy stands out…unless it’s next to an opponent, who would surely be taller and wider and thus obscure your view of him.

Pavel Bojar from the Czech Republic fought in the top competitions from 2004 to 2014, a decade that saw him climb the ranks. By 2011, he’d made it to the Makkuchi (highest level), pitting his skills against some of the greatest wrestlers ever to play this holy Japanese sport. Not that you’d expect any of this when you look at him. Pavel looked more like a civil servant from a Monty Python sketch than a sumo wrestler.

He wasn’t half bad, mind you, scoring a great many wins against much larger, more experienced opponents. The strength he held in his (comparatively) tiny frame must have been immense to be able to sling 25+ stones worth (350 pounds) of sweaty flesh into the air (or onto unlucky front-row punters). Pavel, we salute you. Please don’t salute back—we doubt you have any discs left in your back.^[3]

7 Diana Nyad

There are a few amazing things about this lady. First, she has raised a good deal of money for charity, notably over $100,000 for victims of Hurricane Sandy back in 2013. Secondly, and most obviously, her achievements in long-distance swimming are exceptional, all without ever being recognized by an official sporting body.

She swam all the way around Manhattan Island in 1975, swam 102 miles in open water in 1979 (a World Record at the time, both for women and men), and, in 2013, swam for 52 hours from Cuba to Key West, Florida. Thirdly, she completed this (as of the writing of this article) unratified but nevertheless incredible oceanic feat at the age of 64…without a shark cage. To see this spry and healthy granny conquer the ocean with very little aid or respite is truly inspiring. This is probably why she does TED Talks…^[4]

6 Johanna Quaas – Gymnastics

Diana Nyad has achieved an incredible set of feats at a relatively advanced age. But she’s got nothing on our next entrant. Johanna Quaas is known as “Turn-Oma” (Gymnastics Grandma) in her native German. Perhaps, though, “Gymnastics Great-Grandma” would be more apt—Johanna is a Guinness World record holder for the oldest competitive gymnast.

At the ripe old age of 86 in 2012, she gained the record by competing in the Senior Games in the state of Saxony.

In 2016, she completed a long-standing dream by skydiving, completing a 2,926-meter (9,600-foot) jump with her tandem partner, former German gymnast and Olympic silver-medallist Eberhard Gienger. She is 96-years-old as of the writing of this article, still alive and very much still kicking. Probably kicking higher than any 96-year-old ever.^[5]

5 Peter Crouch – Football

Perfectly sculpted, bronzed, and svelte: these are terms associated with the world’s top soccer players—Cristiano Ronaldo being the perfect example (at least that’s what they tell me).

These are certainly not words one would use to describe former England striker Peter Crouch. In his pomp, “Crouchy” would score goals for fun, netting a career total of 22 goals in 42 international appearances alone—an incredible feat, especially when you consider that he looks like a cross between Roald Dahl’s Big Friendly Giant and a teenage extra from Channel 4 sitcom The Inbetweeners. Whenever he hoisted his lofty frame skyward to head an incoming ball, fans never knew if Crouch was about to score or snap along the weak spots on his lanky frame.

All kidding aside, common-or-garden football fans in Britain often focus more on the personality of Peter Crouch (he is funny, quick-witted, and the type of bloke that anybody would be glad to share a pint with) rather than his career highlights. He was an excellent footballer, very underrated, and undervalued as a goal-scorer.^[6]

4 Andrew Millward – Rugby Union

To look at the former COO of the Ospreys rugby team in South Wales, Andrew Millward, you may think: “Sure, I can believe that guy may have played a bit of rugby. Many years ago. For his village club.” And you’d be correct—he did. Then professionally for a bigger club. The problem is that Andrew Millward also looked like a “former” rugby player when he was an active rugby player. He’s always looked like a “former” rugby player. Maybe even from birth. This isn’t to say he wasn’t a good player; quite the contrary, he was excellent.

Joey Tribbiani from the sitcom Friends once explained to Ross Geller (who wanted to impress his English girlfriend by participating in a rugby match) that a “scrum is kind like a huddle.”

No. No, it is not.

A scrum in the sport of rugby is 16 extremely large men on two opposing sides interlocking and pushing against one another with all their might. It’s the closest we get to a medieval battle of shield walls in the modern era. The front row of players (two props and a hooker…stop giggling) is where all the “dark arts” occur. The different tactics, dirty tricks, and out-and-out violence that happens at the very front of a scrum are legendary, even outside the sport. Andrew was a warrior whose battlefield was this exact place, and he “kicked ass” at it. He was a tiny, nuggety rock, unmoved by larger, heavier opponents, leading to him becoming a folk legend at his former club, Neath RFC.^[7]

Oh, and just to answer the question that is bound to pop into your head: Rambo: First Blood is his favorite movie.

3 Donna Vano – Snowboarding

Extreme sports are among the most physically demanding and dangerous sports there are. From those nutbags who engage in free-climbing on sheer rockfaces or don wingsuits and fly through the air to 10-year-old kids on their razor scooters going up and down a halfpipe, there is a constant, far more acute threat of serious injury than in most other sports (excluding, arguably, combat sports). Snowboarding certainly hits the “Jesus wept; this is incredibly dangerous” mark on this continuum.

Donna Vano is right up there (both at the heights of her sport and, well, literally) at the ripe old age of 56! It’s like watching a “soccer mom” spin around on a plank of wood, a sight that usually requires at least three bottles of Chardonnay.

Donna has three Guinness World Records, and she has gathered the most gold medals in the U.S. America Snowboarding Association across all five disciplines. Extreme sport is a place where youth reigns supreme—except when your name is Donna Vano.^[8]

2 Bill Lee – Baseball

Hippies have kind of gotten a bad rap—lazy, pot-smoking, do-nothing dreamers—except when they choose to follow Charles Manson and want to hasten an apocalypse by murdering a bunch of people and trying to frame others, of course. But one guy who bucked both those trends was Bill Lee, the “Spaceman” of baseball. Bill Lee isn’t exactly the “All-American,” bubble-gum-chewing, square-jawed slugger. Instead, he was a left-handed “eephus” pitcher (which he dubbed the “Leephus pitch”) who praised Maoist China, advocated for population control, smoked his own body weight in weed, and once answered a question regarding mandatory drug testing with this corker:

“I’ve tried just about all of them, but I wouldn’t want to make it mandatory.”

So he was also a funny guy. His tenure as a pitcher for both the Boston Red Sox and the Montreal Expos in the ’70s was legendary: a great pitcher, compensating for his lack of fastball with an eclectic array of clever pitches. But he was most entertaining when spatting with anyone he deemed as out-of-line—fans, game officials, fellow or opposition players, and even coaches. This laid-back hippie was like a loosed pit bull when it was game time. One of baseball’s great characters, Lee may have been more at home at a commune in the Nevada desert. Luckily for sports fans, he could throw. Weirdly.^[9]

1 Rose Namajunas – MMA

There is an undue assumption still held about women in society—the “prettier” a woman is, the less likely she is to work. This assumption, although not without rubrical merit to an extent, has largely been dismissed in modern society. Further, there is a more stubborn assumption that the prettier a woman is, the less likely she is to be able to attain sporting excellence (especially in the more traditionally masculine combat sports). Rose “Thug Rose” Namajunas has smashed this stereotype.

Being possessed of, according to MMA/podcasting legend and elk meat connoisseur Joe Rogan, a “supermodel face,” one could expect that she could have made her living by being scantily clad and standing in front of a camera. But boy, oh boy, she didn’t go that route. Rose Namajunas is one of the most stone-cold, hard-working, ass-kicking fighters in the history of mixed martial arts. With an incredible drive, heart, and enough skill at striking to knock a water buffalo out cold, Thug Rose is perhaps the most dangerous natural beauty in the world. But don’t drool over her in her presence; she could crush you like an ant.^[10]

10 Remarkable Reasons That Animals Play Dead

Marjorie Mackintosh — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 15:10:49 +0000

Playing dead seems like the last ditch effort of someone or something that has given up all hope. When you have no ideas left, just stay very still and hope the world passes you by. It’s not clever and it doesn’t take a lot of skill, but you’d be surprised at how effective it is. And it’s not just good for avoiding bear attacks.

10. Moorland Hawker Dragonflies Play Dead to Avoid Mating

The Moorland Hawker dragonfly may not be a creature you’re familiar with, but it’s very common. You can find it all across the northern hemisphere through Europe, Asia and North America. The females of the species have also developed a unique self preservation technique that is at once clever and kind of sad, in human terms.

Insect mating is never a particularly romantic endeavor, so after hawker dragonflies have mated, it’s back business as usual. But in their world, consent doesn’t exist, and a male has no way of knowing if a female has already mated or not. Females, in an effort to prevent unwanted males, have perfected the playing dead defense.

A female obviously doesn’t need to mate twice, but a male that tries it could actually end up causing damage to her reproductive system. To fend this off, the female will flee from a male and then crash to the ground, lying on her back and remaining perfectly still. Since an upside down insect is almost always a dead insect, the male will conclude she’s dead and leave.

9. A Pet Pig Played Dead To Get Help For Her Owner

There’s ample evidence that pigs are highly intelligent, even more so than dogs, and on par with human toddlers. When a bond has been made between humans and a pet pig, it’s not surprising that a pig may have some clever skills up its sleeves when the need arises. We can train dogs to track drugs and alert humans who are having a seizure. A pig that plays dead to save a life seems entirely reasonable.

Jo Ann Altsman had a heart attack back in 1998 and the only one home to help her was a pot-bellied pig named Lulu. The pig actually forced her way through a fence, tearing herself up in the process, and made her way to the street. There, she did the only thing a 150lb pig could do. She played dead in the middle of the road.

Eventually, someone stopped to see why there was a dead pig in the road. Lulu led the person back to the home and Altsman received medical attention. Apparently, had it taken even another 15 minutes, her doctor said she likely wouldn’t have made it.

8. Male Nursery Web Spiders Play Dead to Trick Females

Arachnophobia is a prominent fear for many people, and there’s not a lot of love lost between spiders and humans. And it’s no wonder when you look at how they treat one another. Take, for instance, the nursery web spider. The males of the species are deceitful and sneaky and far too crafty for their own good.

When it comes time to mate, the males have to get creative. In many spider species, the females will kill the males and they are typically much larger. Male nursery web spiders use tricks to get the job done, which can include giving the female a gift wrapped in silk to distract her. The problem is the gift may be a lie and inside will just be a seed she can’t eat or even the husk of something the male already ate. And he’ll also play dead to deceive her long enough to turn her back so he can sneak in and mate while he has the chance.

About two-thirds of given gifts were real insects that the female could eat while the male mated with her. The last third were the trick gifts, which usually resulted in shorter mating periods since the female would realize she’d been duped. That led to the deadbeat male faking death, so it had a chance to try another round of mating.

7. Cichlid Fish Play Dead to Dupe Prey

Typically, we think of playing dead as a method of escape. We’ve all likely heard that playing dead is a way to deal with a grizzly bear. Just do nothing and hope it loses interest. But sometimes playing dead is done for the exact opposite reason, as is the case with cichlid fish.

A technique known as aggressive mimicry, the fish uses it to draw in others that would feed on its dead body. The fish literally lies still on the bottom, resting in the mud, and when smaller fish come to inspect the corpse, it snaps to life and eats them.

6. Embryonic Sharks Play Dead After Sending Predatory Electrical Signals

The life of a shark can be a rough one. These predators are constantly on the hunt for food and they’re also in danger from humans as well as each other. Larger sharks are more than happy to prey on smaller ones and baby sharks are at great risk. This is such an everyday part of how a shark lives that their ability to avoid predators is pure instinct, part of their minds before they’re even born. We know this because there’s evidence of embryonic sharks playing dead to avoid danger. Even before they hit the water, they know to avoid predators.

Sharks are able to sense electrical fields produced by other living things. They use this ability when they are adults to help them hunt. But when they’re still unborn, they can sense the electrical fields of potential predators and respond by limiting their movement and effectively playing dead to not give themselves away to something that might be interested in a snack. All of this happens within the confines of an egg still inside the mother shark. When the electrical signals are sensed, the embryonic shark will limit gill movements and wait the predators out.

5. Praying Mantis Will Play Dead to Avoid Cannibalism

The praying mantis is an infamous example of the dangers of mating in the animal kingdom. It’s a well-known example of the disparity between males and females in insects thanks to the habit females have of cannibalizing males after and sometimes even during mating. The males, as you can imagine, don’t like this and will try to avoid it if and when they can.

In at least one species of mantis, around 60% of males end up eaten. The other 40%? They need to think fast. For some, the key is to trick the female into thinking her job is already done and that means playing dead.

This can be seen in several different mantis species which also engage in the behavior to escape predators. They leap off trees, flatten themselves on the ground, and present themselves as corpses.

4. Opossums Don’t Choose to Play Dead

Is any animal more famous for playing dead than the opossum? People literally call it “playing possum.” Ironically, of all the animals we’ve already covered that play dead, opossums are actually the least effective at it. Which isn’t to say they won’t effectively make you think they’re dead, it’s just that they’re not “playing,” strictly speaking. The reaction is not a voluntary one, so it’s less play and more affliction.

The reason an opossum is said to play dead is what you think. It’s a defensive mechanism and comes into play when the opossum fears attack from a predator. The animal doesn’t have control over it and cannot make it start or stop on its own. It’s kind of like a sneeze or a muscle spasm that might strike you by surprise and you just endure it because your body is doing what it needs to do.

The opossum will also release liquid from a gland that gives off a smell like rotten flesh to help complete the illusion. This can go on for four hours, too.

As an aside, though it’s called “playing possum,” if you’re talking about the North American marsupial, it is technically an opossum. A possum is actually a similar but different animal found in Australia.

3. Young Fire Ants Fake Death Until They’re Older

When it comes to ants, there’s a real mixed bag out in the world. Some species are tiny and relatively harmless, while others are larger and potentially very dangerous. The bullet ant gets its name because when it stings you, it produces a pain likened to actually being shot by a gun. That’s pretty terrifying. Slightly less terrifying but still much maligned thanks to its sting is the fire ant. If you’ve never been stung by a fire ant, you can guess, based on the name, what you might be in for. Their sting is loaded with compounds that can cause minor skin irritation up to serious pain.

Though the fire ant is equipped with clear defensive skills, just like most animals, the young ones are not as adept as the older members of the species. Young fire ants are not able to defend themselves against rival fire ants so they’ll just play dead to avoid a confrontation altogether.

The “attacking” ants may only show up and inspect the young ants, they don’t need to be fully aggressive. The young ants will curl up right away and as soon as the rivals leave, they uncurl and go about their day. Once they’re old enough, however, the fire ants will take on a more aggressive defense and fight these invaders rather than trying to trick them.

2. A Deer Shot By a Hunter Attacked After the Man Thought it was Dead

Hunting, whether subsistence hunting or even trophy hunting, typically plays out the same way. Whether we agree with it or not, it involves a human tracking and killing an animal either for the sport of it or to feed themselves or their family and community. But that’s getting ahead of the story and implies the hunt went as planned, and that’s not always the case.

Thomas Alexander was hunting deer in Arkansas. He caught sight of a buck and fired, taking the deer down. Alexander left his hide and approached the deer to inspect his kill. So far, this is how most deer hunts go. But this was not like most deer hunts, and that deer that Alexander went to inspect was not dead. It just looked like it was.

Incredibly, the deer was not dead. When Alexander approached, the deer got to its feet and attacked him. The buck must have had an impressive rack of antlers because Alexander suffered serious puncture wounds throughout his body. He was able to make a call to his wife, who then called emergency services, but unfortunately the man died shortly after. The deer was not found.

1. A Korean Business Lets People Pretend to be Dead

Maybe it seems too obvious that humans play dead as well, but when you stop to think about it, can you think of many cases in which this happens for a particular reason other than why an animal might do it? We’re told to play dead to avoid grizzly bears and, in horror movies, it’s sometimes a good way to avoid the killer.

In Daejeon, South Korea, there’s another reason for playing dead and it’s apparently to prevent suicides. In a seminar called “Coffin Academy,” participants are charged $25 to spend four hours getting ready to die. They write letters to their loved ones, decide what should be written on their tombstones, and then spend some time resting in a coffin to get a feel for that final dirt nap.

The pretend death goes for 10 minutes of silence and stillness. According to at least one account of it, the coffin is actually nailed shut by staff to really hit the simulation home. Some feared that the experience, which many find therapeutic, might encourage people to want to commit suicide by presenting them with the idea that the afterlife is peaceful. The founder argues the opposite, suggesting that it shows how lonely it would be to people in a country with the highest suicide rate in OECD countries.

10 Tricks You Can Play on Your Own Brain

Marjorie Mackintosh — Sun, 19 Feb 2023 11:51:47 +0000

Your brain is almost always there when you need it, barring those occasions when you find yourself chemically altered, really tired or far too enamored with an attractive person you’re trying to impress. And while it’s a marvel of biology capable of doing incredible things, the fact is your brain is only human. If you try hard enough, you can play some tricks on it, which is doubly impressive since it’s the one helping you play the tricks in the first place. Let’s check out ten of the most impressive ones.

10. Hanger Reflex Can Make Your Head Involuntarily Turn

Internet trends, memes, and viral videos come and go. Yesterday’s Ice Bucket Challenge becomes tomorrow’s Yanny/Laurel. And in May 2022 the coolest thing going, for about two weeks, was the Hanger Challenge.

The premise was as simple as it was unbelievable. Put a wire hanger around your head and it’ll make your head turn whether you want it to or not. No one believed it was real, so everyone had to try for themselves and then post their own videos of the results. Thus, a viral trend was born as the number of videos exploded, fueled by general disbelief that the weird effect could at all be genuine. But it was! If you properly stretch a hanger around your head, it will, in fact, cause your head to involuntarily turn. For most people, anyway.

Despite becoming trending in 2022, the phenomenon had been realized much earlier and was even written about in scientific papers back in 2015. It was even featured on Japanese TV as far back as 1995. You can safely assume it’s been a thing for as long as both hangers and heads have existed. It just never got this much press before.

When the unilateral fronto-temporal region of your head is compressed, the movement is involuntary, but the exact reason why this happens isn’t entirely clear. Nonetheless, over 95% of people who were tested in a study felt sensation while just 4.2% seemed immune.

9. Sunglasses Can Trick You Into Being Happier

Do people in sunglasses seem happier to you than other people? It’s very possible they might be, and it’s not just because they look super cool. Sunglasses trick your brain into being happier.

The power of sunglasses is tied up in how human emotion works. You may have heard some people referred to as wearing their hearts on their sleeves, and maybe you yourself aren’t so great at hiding your emotions. The way we look and act can have an effect on how we feel, and the simple act of frowning can make you feel sad or even angry and aggressive. And, to be clear, you don’t have to be frowning because you’re sad or angry. Bright sun in your eyes will make you squint and frown and that gesture is enough to actually induce the negative emotions associated with frowning.

Participants in a study who wore sunglasses reported being less angry and aggressive overall than those who were not wearing them. This seems to mesh with other research that suggests just the act of smiling releases stress-relieving chemicals. So if you find yourself feeling a little wound up on a sunny day, try slipping on the shades and trick your brain into thinking you’re happy.

8. Placebo Sleep Can Trick You Into Feeling Rested

The CDC says one in three adults doesn’t get enough sleep. For that reason alone, finding a way to get more rest seems like a good idea. So what if you could just trick your brain into thinking you slept, even when you didn’t? Turns out, that’s an option, and it works.

Placebo sleep works like most any other placebo, when your mind constructs the illusion that something has happened, even when it hasn’t. Given the right stimuli, you can be convinced you’re well rested even if you’re not.

Researchers took two groups of people and explained the importance of REM sleep, then did a sleep study. They were told a good amount of REM sleep is between 20% and 25%. After a sleep study, one group was told they spent 28.7% of their time in REM sleep. The other group was told they’d only had 16.2% REM. Those were not true numbers.

Those who were told they slept better did better on cognitive tests after the fact. Those who were told they slept worse performed worse compared to control groups. How any of them actually felt had no bearing at all.

7. The Rubber Hand Illusion

You would hope that, above all else, your brain would at least be able to identify where your body parts are and what they feel like. Sadly, you can even trick it to fail at doing that with something called the Rubber Hand Illusion.

The trick here is as simple as it is perplexing and can be done at home if you want. You need a fake hand of some kind; something as simple as a blown up rubber glove will do. Rest your right forearm on a table with your hand concealed from view in a box or behind cardboard. Put the hand in front of yourself lined up with your shoulder. You can use a towel to cover it below the wrist to help complete the illusion.. Your other hand can be under the table.

Have someone sit opposite you and use two paint brushes to stroke your concealed hand and the rubber hand in unison. Keep focused on the fake hand. If the stimulation is properly coordinated, most people begin to perceive the fake hand as their real hand. When the rubber hand is threatened, such as with a knife or needle, your brain will actually produce a response as though your real hand were about to be stabbed.

6. The Nocebo Effect Can Make You Feel Pain or Sickness

We’ve addressed placebos already, so let’s take it up a notch with the nocebo effect. This can actually make you feel pain and sickness for literally no reason at all, just by tricking your brain. In essence, it’s believing something bad will happen and then it does only because you think that way.

An example of how this can work parallels the placebo effect and, actually, was half of what happened in the placebo sleep example. If you take a useless pill and a doctor tells you, it’ll make you feel great, and it does, that’s placebo. But if the doctor says it has horrible side effects and you start to feel sick, that’s the nocebo effect. It’s all your brain making up symptoms based on what it’s been told is happening, even if it’s not true.

5. The Stopped Clock Illusion

Ever feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day? Well, you’re in luck, because there’s a way you can freeze time. Or at least trick your brain into thinking you did for a moment.

Quick eye movements can produce visual distortions known as saccadic suppression and it’s what prevents you from noticing your own eyes moving when you look in a mirror. At the same time, they also produce an illusion called chronostasis. Also called the stopped clock illusion, it’s what happens when you flick your eyes quickly to an analog clock on the wall and it seems like the second hand has stopped moving. It’s caused by rapid eye movements leaving a gap in visual input. Moving your eyes from your computer to a clock very quickly, for instance, means you don’t really focus on anything in between. To avoid a blur or a spot of darkness, your brain sort of holds that moment, just for a moment, and it makes it seem like the world has stopped, however briefly, in order to ensure a seamless transition.

4. The Cutaneous Rabbit

If you’ve never had a rabbit run along your arm, now’s your big chance to experience the illusion of it without having to hunt down an actual rabbit. The Cutaneous Rabbit can trick your brain into thinking you’re being assaulted by rabbits.

The method is simple. A subject lays out their arm and is subject to five quick, light taps on the wrist. Then five more in the middle of the forearm. Then five more near the elbow. The subject will feel them as a progression of taps from wrist to elbow, mimicking the feeling of a tiny rabbit hopping in 15 hops all the way up the arm. You can see examples of it in YouTube videos with mixed results.

3. Seeing a Black and White Image in Full Color

Another popular trick that gained some steam on TikTok was finding color where there is none. Specifically, you can fool your brain into seeing a black and white image as full color if you focus on a central spot and the image is switched to a high contrast negative color image.

As you focus on the spot, the color receptors in your eyes begin to grow fatigued. Your cones perceive color with three cones, sensitive to wavelengths of blue, red, and green. Once the reverse color image is swapped back to black and white again, your eyes will perceive the colors that were lacking in the contrasted version. The illusion is quick, but for a moment you should perceive the black and white photo in full, true color.

2. Out of Body VR

Virtual reality can be used to trick you into having an out of body experience. It’s a bit like the rubber hand illusion, only this time it’s full body immersion. The VR environment needs to present you with a duplicate of yourself, and then all someone needs to do is poke you with a stick.

As one neuroscientist explained, your sense of self and body is constructed through a lot of sensory data. Sight is a big part of it, but what you can feel physically and also where you feel your body is oriented are relevant as well. When you trick the brain by showing it new information that doesn’t match up, it freaks out a little bit. In experiments, researchers were able to have participants look at virtual bodies being touched and actually feel themselves in that other, virtual body when sensations match up to what they were also feeling. At one point, when the virtual body was smashed with a hammer, the participants registered fear responses, including increased sweating and pulse as though they were experiencing the assault themselves.

In another experiment, participants were asked to enter a virtual body and sort of wear it as their own. Then their perspective was shifted so instead of being in the body they were looking at it. Afterward, all the participants who had left the body and looked at it noted a marked reduction in their fear of death. Researchers suspected in this case that leaving the body allowed participants to separate body from consciousness and lose some of the traditional fear of dying in the process.

1. Distorted Body Image Can Reduce Pain

We know there’s a strong psychological component to pain, but just how strong may be surprising. Things like phantom limb syndrome or alien hand syndrome show that your brain’s perception of how your body actually is can be vastly different from reality, but still convince you it’s true. A distorted body image can actually affect how your mind perceives pain, even in chronic conditions, and it can be manipulated in some unusual ways.

In one study, patients with chronic arm pain were asked to look at the arm that hurt, perform a few movements, and then gauge the pain they felt after. They did this four times under different conditions. One was just normal, but the other three involved binoculars. They looked at the arm with no magnification, with increased magnification, and then through reversed binoculars so their arms looked tiny. Nothing else was different.

Participants reported that they felt greater pain when their arm was magnified. But when they looked through the backwards binoculars at a tiny arm, they felt less pain. More interesting was that this wasn’t just in their heads. Researchers measured inflammation after the experiment and there was less swelling after viewing the arm made to look tiny. So it wasn’t just perception, it had a real, physical effect on pain.