Games Like POOLS

Experience backrooms like never before. Dreamcore is the ultimate psychological exploration game, set in the largest liminal world ever made. No guides, no path—only intuition. Will you keep your bearings in a world designed to make you lose them?

Why similar: Walking Simulator 14.1%, Psychological Horror 10.3%, Underwater 10.2% ★, Surreal 10.2%, Escape Room 9.2% ★

Why You'll Like It: Captures the exact same non-Euclidean, liminal aesthetic and unsettling found-footage exploration vibe.

Explore the Poolrooms as if it were lost media from 1998.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 31.5%, Surreal 22.8%, Psychological Horror 16%, Exploration 8.5%, Atmospheric 8.2%

Why You'll Like It: Focuses heavily on navigating surreal, water-filled labyrinthine spaces inspired by the same architectural concepts.

You are trapped in an endless underground passageway. Observe your surroundings carefully to reach "The Exit 8".

Why similar: Walking Simulator 26%, Psychological Horror 18.4%, Surreal 12.9%, First-Person 8.4%, Exploration 8.4%

Why You'll Like It: Employs psychological tension through repetitive corridor observation and subtle environmental anomalies.

The most relaxing horror game you'll ever play. Anemoiapolis exists in the uncanny valley of American architecture -- endless carpeted floors and lonely malls. Escape for your life, and enjoy the scenery.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 19.2%, Psychological Horror 17.5%, Surreal 14.1%, Realistic 10.7%, First-Person 8%

Why You'll Like It: A premier liminal space exploration game that relies on eerie architecture and quiet dread rather than monsters.

Explore and admire while navigate through eerie, surreal environments inspired by the Backrooms lore. Explore this uncanny world lost in time and get lost in the otherworldly architecture in a world where reality bends and your sanity is tested.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 21.6%, Psychological Horror 15%, Surreal 9.7%, Realistic 9.5%, Underwater 8.9% ★

Why You'll Like It: Directly targets fans of walking simulators set within uncanny, empty urban and indoor environments.

Subliminal is a psychological horror game inspired by the urban legend of The Backrooms. Bleeding edge lighting and rendering, handcrafted open-ended levels, light and perspective-based puzzles, nostalgic spaces, unfamiliar faces, and a rotting feeling that something is not quite right.

Why similar: Psychological Horror 21%, Surreal 19.9%, Realistic 15.4%, Atmospheric 10.3%, First-Person 9%

Why You'll Like It: Delivers realistic, uncanny environments where the sheer scale of empty spaces generates psychological unease.

Escape the Backrooms is a 1-4 player co-op horror exploration game. Traverse 30+ eerie backrooms levels while avoiding entities and other dangers. Try to escape but be warned: survival isn't guaranteed.

Why similar: Psychological Horror 35.8%, Escape Room 32.1% ★, First-Person 12.4%, Exploration 9.4%, 3D 3.5%

Why You'll Like It: Immerses players directly into the iconic sprawling backrooms levels with a strong emphasis on atmospheric dread.

Experience the liminal world of the backrooms through a VHS camera, immersing into a mysterious story and wandering the dream-like structures... Might there be something following you?

Why similar: Psychological Horror 22.6%, Walking Simulator 22.5%, Realistic 11.7%, First-Person 9.6%, Exploration 8.5%

Why You'll Like It: Recreates the classic backrooms survival horror style through tense, lonely navigation of endless yellow offices.

Dive into a realistic experience of the Backrooms, without jumpscares, getting lost in impossible spaces and feeling like something is watching you. The uncertainty of not knowing where you're going will make you want to quit… Will you be able to make it to the end?

Why similar: Walking Simulator 19.9%, Psychological Horror 15.2%, Escape Room 11.8% ★, Nonlinear 9.5%, Realistic 9.4%

Why You'll Like It: Traps the player in a monotonous, realistic hotel environment where reality slowly begins to break down.

You are trapped in a corridor suspended above the clouds. Each time you open the door at the end of the corridor, explore the environment that awaits you, find anomalies, use the alarm, and break the loop.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 23.1%, Psychological Horror 17.7%, Surreal 11.6%, Realistic 10.7%, Atmospheric 7.7%

Why You'll Like It: Presents surreal, dreamlike environments designed specifically for eerie and contemplative exploration.

When a routine expedition into The Complex goes horribly wrong, you're left alone and lost, wandering the seemingly infinite maze of hallways, otherwise known as the Backrooms. Might there be something following you?

Why similar: Psychological Horror 27.2%, Realistic 20.9%, Exploration 12.7%, Mystery 8.7%, First-Person 8%

Why You'll Like It: Expands on backrooms lore with realistic visuals and solitary exploration across vast, uncanny sectors.

Perception is reality. In this mind-bending first-person puzzler, you escape a surreal dream world through solving impossible puzzles using the ambiguity of depth and perspective.

Why similar: Surreal 35%, Psychological Horror 23.5%, First-Person 15.5%, Minimalist 9.8%, Exploration 9.5%

Why You'll Like It: Explores surreal architectural logic and perspective-bending puzzles that match the mind-bending nature of POOLS.

Explore quiet liminal spaces that feel familiar, yet strangely wrong. Walk, climb, and swim through five handcrafted stages, then build worlds of your own in a powerful sandbox. Publish them through LIMSCAPERS, visit other creators’ spaces, and explore together in Multiplay Beta.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 24.2%, Surreal 14.6%, Psychological Horror 14.5%, Atmospheric 8.5%, Realistic 7.9%

Why You'll Like It: A dedicated sandbox walking simulator focused entirely on discovering quiet, unsettling liminal zones.

Explore, Listen and Observe. LIMINAL WATERS is a liminal space exploration game. Discover a large facility with diverse rooms and themes and be enchanted by the radiant beauty of Unreal Engine 5.6. Relaxation, anxiety, confusion or familiarity? The mysterious Poolrooms are waiting for you.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 29.4%, Surreal 18.8%, Realistic 11.9%, Relaxing 8.8%, Atmospheric 7.8%

Why You'll Like It: Combines relaxing walking simulator mechanics with eerie, surreal water-themed environments.

You are trapped on a train that runs forever. Keep an eye out for anomalies and find a way out.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 28%, Psychological Horror 22%, Realistic 10.6%, Exploration 7.4%, Surreal 7.4%

Why You'll Like It: A sequel to The Exit 8 that continues the unsettling underground transit corridor anomaly-hunting gameplay.

INFRA puts you into the boots of a structural analyst on a routine mission. Quickly though, your task turns into a fight for survival, all caused by deep-rooted schemes of the past. Your tools are simple: your camera and the wits to navigate a labyrinth of debris.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 35%, Atmospheric 14.9%, Exploration 13.4%, First-Person 11.8%, Psychological Horror 9.5%

Why You'll Like It: Features slow-paced, atmospheric exploration of massive, decaying industrial infrastructure and forgotten spaces.

A different kind of liminal experience. Explore surreal spaces inspired by nostalgia, discover hidden paths, and unravel a mystery that is shaped by your own mind. No monsters, no combat. Just atmosphere, discovery, and dread.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 24%, Psychological Horror 18.6%, Surreal 13.7%, Realistic 8.2%, Atmospheric 7.6%

Why You'll Like It: Presents mystery and dread through the careful, atmospheric exploration of forgotten spaces.

An exploration game that delves into the depths of loneliness. Wander through empty rooms, search for signs of an abandoned world, and listen to the sounds around you. No dangerous chases, just silence and an empty world to explore.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 21.9%, Psychological Horror 15.6%, Surreal 14.6%, Realistic 9.5%, Exploration 7.2%

Why You'll Like It: Blends surreal exploration with psychological horror elements across strange, disconnected 3D worlds.

Your job at the Cabin Factory is simple: inspect the cabins and decide on whether they’re haunted or not. If you do find any anomalies, get out…immediately.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 32.5%, Psychological Horror 27.8%, Realistic 10.4%, Atmospheric 10.1%, First-Person 8.9%

Why You'll Like It: Challenges players to spot subtle anomalies in a secluded, repetitive cabin setting.

The Convenience Store | 夜勤事件 is a J-horror game about a college girl on a night shift.

Why similar: Psychological Horror 26.9%, Walking Simulator 18.9%, Surreal 13.8%, Atmospheric 8.3%, Realistic 7.9%

Why You'll Like It: Builds slow-burn psychological horror and unease entirely through mundane yet oppressive environments.

Rediscover gravity and explore an Escher-esque world of impossible architecture. Witness infinity in first-person and master its rules to solve physics-defying puzzles. Cultivate a garden to open new paths forward, where an eternal expanse awaits.

Why similar: Surreal 25.9%, Nonlinear 15.1%, First-Person 10.7%, Minimalist 9.8%, Atmospheric 9.6%

Why You'll Like It: Features impossible, repeating architectural structures that evoke a similar sense of surreal spatial awe.

A psychological horror game where you enter the Greenhouse at your own risk to uncover the truth behind the friendly façade. Change the environment and weather to progress, hoping to get out. Switch off the entities to enjoy eerie serenity.

Why similar: Immersive 23.6% ★, Walking Simulator 16.6%, Psychological Horror 12.2%, Escape Room 9.6% ★, Surreal 7.2%

Why You'll Like It: A short, atmospheric psychological horror walking simulator set in a confined, unsettling location.

Smuggle contraband VHS tapes across the border. Discover the remnants of illicit industry. Prepare for an assassination. This is Paratopic, an atmospheric retro-3D horror adventure through a cursed fever dream.

Why similar: Surreal 32.9%, Psychological Horror 18.5%, Walking Simulator 17%, Atmospheric 12.3%, Dark 5%

Why You'll Like It: Offers a low-poly, highly surreal narrative experience filled with deeply unsettling atmospheric dread.

A slow burn walking sim with an interactive soundtrack and horror vibes. You explore abstract locations and create your own unique sound for each of them by moving around and using Monoliths.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 28%, Surreal 19.6%, Psychological Horror 19.3%, Atmospheric 8.9%, First-Person 6.1%

Why You'll Like It: Showcases surreal, atmospheric sci-fi architecture designed for quiet, eerie exploration.

World Alone is a single-player Backrooms experience focused on dreamlike liminal pools. The game features a narrative told through cinematic sequences and immersive environments. Feel the true essence of solitude in World Alone...

Why similar: Walking Simulator 23%, Nonlinear 14%, Realistic 11.5%, Psychological Horror 8.8%, Relaxing 7.8%

Why You'll Like It: Focuses on lonely, nonlinear exploration across quiet, contemplative worlds without aggressive threats.

Liminal Shift is a unique atmospheric suspense game developed using the latest Unreal Engine 5 technologies such as Lumen and Nanite. With every step you take, Liminal Shift pushes you deeper into an eerie, unsettling experience like no other.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 20.6%, Surreal 13.5%, Psychological Horror 13.1%, Realistic 9.5%, First-Person 9.3%

Why You'll Like It: Invites players to wander through atmospheric 3D environments where things feel fundamentally wrong.

LiDAR Exploration Program is a relaxing atmospheric game with light horror elements, where you explore in complete darkness using a scanner to reveal the world around you.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 28.8%, Psychological Horror 23.4%, Atmospheric 12.9%, Exploration 10.1%, First-Person 9.2%

Why You'll Like It: Uses unique scanning mechanics to reveal the eerie geometry of dark, unexplored spaces.

Walking simulator. Explore cozy liminal spaces that feel unsettlingly familiar and spark your imagination, like a dream you’ve been in before.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 21%, Psychological Horror 13.8%, Surreal 10.6%, Underwater 9.1% ★, Nonlinear 8.1%

When reality is a nightmare, nightmares become real. In this psychological horror game, you fight the terrifying creatures invading your mind. Can you save your sanity?

Why similar: Psychological Horror 34.8%, Atmospheric 15.8%, First-Person 15.7%, Dark 11.8%, Exploration 6.8%

Why You'll Like It: Uses surreal World War we architecture to evoke deep psychological horror and distorted reality.

Luto is a psychological horror experience where you take on the role of someone unable to leave their home. Every attempt to escape will lead you deeper into the unknown, where nothing is as it seems and everything will test your senses.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 28.6%, Psychological Horror 22.7%, Atmospheric 8.4%, Realistic 8.2%, Dark 8%

1975. Disaster strikes the Beira D oil rig off the coast of Scotland. Navigate the collapsing rig to save your crew from an otherworldly horror on the edge of all logic and reality in this 3x BAFTA Games Award-winning narrative horror experience.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 25.3%, Psychological Horror 22.2%, Underwater 17% ★, Atmospheric 9.2%, First-Person 8.7%

A free, VHS styled, first-person found footage horror game, which runs exactly for 5 minutes and 30 seconds.

Why similar: Psychological Horror 47.5%, Walking Simulator 19.8%, First-Person 11.4%, Atmospheric 8.4%, Dark 5.5%

Why You'll Like It: A brief, highly atmospheric found-footage experience focused purely on tense environmental observation.

Visage is a first-person psychological horror game. Explore a mysterious ever-changing house in a slow-paced, atmospheric world that combines both uncannily comforting and horrifyingly realistic environments, and enjoy a genuinely terrifying experience.

Why similar: Psychological Horror 37.1%, Walking Simulator 13.3%, Surreal 8.3%, First-Person 8.1%, Dark 8.1%

Step into an uncanny building trapped in endless loops. Use the elevator, uncover unsettling anomalies, and evade the Entity lurking behind you. Liminal Exit is an immersive game inspired by liminal spaces and Exit 8. Explore 3 liminal space floors and track anomalies to escape, but watch your back!

Why similar: Walking Simulator 25.4%, Psychological Horror 15.8%, Surreal 14.3%, Nonlinear 11.9%, Realistic 9.3%

Longing for light, a sunless world begins devouring itself. Every step shifts the landscape beneath you as you search for what remains of her.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 25.6%, Surreal 19.6%, Psychological Horror 18.3%, Atmospheric 7.3%, Exploration 7%

A short horror game where you pilot a tiny submarine through an ocean of blood on an alien moon.

Why similar: Underwater 21.7% ★, Psychological Horror 19.4%, Walking Simulator 13.2%, Atmospheric 9.8%, Minimalist 7.5%

You're trapped in an endlessly looping art gallery — familiar, yet uncanny. If you can notice the changes, maybe you can find your way out.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 36.4%, Psychological Horror 27.1%, First-Person 9.9%, Realistic 9.4%, Exploration 8.5%

If you scream, you restart. A jumpscare horror simulator where you walk through a pitch black forest and escape by reaching 8:00 AM.

Why similar: Psychological Horror 24.7%, Walking Simulator 24.6%, Realistic 11.9%, Atmospheric 9%, First-Person 8.3%

The era-defining first-person psychological horror in all its terrifying glory. All of the game’s chapters collected into one convenient package that allows you to plumb the depths of madness in pursuit of artistic revelation.

Why similar: Immersive 28.9% ★, Psychological Horror 19.3%, Walking Simulator 14.7%, First-Person 7.9%, Atmospheric 7.7%

A psychological horror descending through liminal spaces shaped by the Kübler Ross model - the five stages of grief, where your perception and an RC car are the only tools to grasp what’s real.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 15.4%, Escape Room 11.9% ★, Psychological Horror 11.8%, Surreal 10.3%, Nonlinear 8%

Liminal City is a psychological horror and exploration game based on found footage, set in Backrooms Level 11. Walk through the streets of Level 11, filled with soulless buildings, dynamically moving to different levels and searching for a way out. Once you fall in here will you be able to get out?

Why similar: Walking Simulator 25.8%, Psychological Horror 19.8%, Realistic 12.9%, Atmospheric 8.3%, Exploration 7.6%

DREAM LOGIC is a story driven first-person atmospheric horror game which takes place in liminal spaces. Explore various nostalgic, dreamlike, uncanny environments. But don't feel too safe, there's a sneaky creature watching your every move.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 24.7%, Psychological Horror 23.7%, Atmospheric 11.6%, Exploration 9.5%, First-Person 7.7%

ROUTINE is a First Person Sci-Fi Horror set on an abandoned lunar base designed around an 80s vision of the future. Explore and investigate your surroundings as you survive against unknown threats.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 27.1%, Psychological Horror 24.3%, Atmospheric 12%, Dark 9.6%, First-Person 9.1%

You arrive at a deserted street that feels familiar yet is filled with unease. Pick up your camera, capture the hidden anomalies, and break this endless loop.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 29.2%, Psychological Horror 20.9%, Surreal 14.8%, Realistic 10.3%, First-Person 8.7%

An anomaly-spotting horror game set in Level 0 of the Backrooms. Study the looping corridor and identify changes ranging from subtle details to terrifying entities. Decide to turn back if something has changed, or continue ahead if everything seems normal.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 22%, Surreal 15.9%, Psychological Horror 15.6%, Realistic 10.5%, Minimalist 7.3%

An indie psychological horror experience about surviving infinity. Navigate an endless expanse of rooms, ascend through various levels, gather items and artifacts, avoid going insane, evade corrupted entities, and see just how deep the realm known as The Backrooms goes.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 30.1%, Psychological Horror 26.9%, Surreal 13.1%, First-Person 9.2%, Relaxing 6.2%

When the Darkness comes is a walking simulator whose glitchy and dark tale tries to illustrate the hardships of depression and anxiety through a variety of imaginary digital landscapes.

Why similar: Psychological Horror 37.3%, Walking Simulator 34.6%, First-Person 9.8%, Atmospheric 7.4%, Dark 5.6%

Unpredictable horrors lurk around every corner, forcing you to find the missing people while desperately clinging to survival. In this experience even your own mind can become your enemy. Stay vigilant and keep your voice hushed, or risk becoming another victim of the forest's darkness

Why similar: Psychological Horror 28.7%, Realistic 18%, Walking Simulator 16.6%, First-Person 9.7%, Dark 9.1%

Seybul Tech is a walking simulator. Navigate as an office employee, confronting peculiar encounters while in search of an exit from this enigmatic abyss.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 25.5%, Psychological Horror 19.7%, Surreal 17.4%, Realistic 7.7%, Dark 7.1%

You work in the cinema as an usher and accidentally fell into the Backrooms, now being trapped, needing to unravel the mysteries of the yellow rooms in order to get out of this place, but be careful, there are entities that will be in your way.

Why similar: Psychological Horror 22.9%, Surreal 19%, Realistic 11.9%, Atmospheric 10.2%, Exploration 9.1%

The Backrooms: Escape is an experience in the liminal world of backrooms. Move freely, explore the secrets of the corporation, but remember - you are not alone.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 29.2%, Psychological Horror 20.2%, Realistic 14.2%, Exploration 9.3%, Atmospheric 8.5%

There's Nothing Down There is a short undersea horror exploration game. Descend into a sinkhole at the bottom of the ocean and discover the remains of a lost, yet not dead, civilization.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 30.1%, Realistic 15.2%, Underwater 14.3% ★, First-Person 12%, Exploration 11.1%

Explore terrifying liminal spaces. Horror walking simulator with reality-bending platforming and supernatural threats. Get lost between dimensions.

Why similar: Realistic 16.3%, Minimalist 13.1%, Exploration 12.5%, Psychological Horror 11.9%, First-Person 10.9%

Noah Baker, an 18 year old highschooler experiences unsettling occurrences while house-sitting for a media personality, little did he know what was about to unfold that night.

Why similar: Psychological Horror 29.7%, Walking Simulator 22.1%, Atmospheric 13.7%, Realistic 12.4%, Exploration 8.2%

Inside the Backrooms is a horror multiplayer game mixed with different mechanics that will make you spend an intense night with friends. Explore, think, interact, but be careful, it is rumored that there are several entities wishing to find you...

Why similar: Psychological Horror 35%, First-Person 11.1%, Atmospheric 10.7%, Exploration 10.5%, VR 10.3%

First-person psychological horror where the elevator is the only safe place. Each floor is a new reality. Each floor has a new inhabitant. Find it to continue your descent downward.

Why similar: Psychological Horror 25.2%, Walking Simulator 22%, Exploration 8.3%, Atmospheric 6.9%, Mystery 6.9%

SKUF BACKROOMS is a psychological horror game that takes the player to the Backrooms level, consisting of intertwining transition zones of post-Soviet living spaces.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 27.6%, Psychological Horror 21.6%, Realistic 13.1%, Surreal 10.6%, Atmospheric 9.6%

Shinkansen 0 | 新幹線 0号 is a game set in Japan where players are tasked with finding anomalies in the Shinkansen. (Japanese bullet train)

Why similar: Psychological Horror 27.5%, Walking Simulator 26.3%, Realistic 16.8%, Immersive 10.6% ★, First-Person 6.7%

Dire Echo is a psychological horror walking simulator that immerses players in the eerie and oppressive atmosphere of abandoned deep space.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 27%, Psychological Horror 16.2%, Realistic 13.1%, Atmospheric 8.7%, First-Person 8.4%

Nine floors down to the exit of Hotel Liminal. Some are exactly as they should be. Some hide an anomaly. Everything depends on spotting the difference, and one mistake sends you back to the top.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 21.4%, Psychological Horror 15.9%, Surreal 15.1%, Realistic 10.1%, Atmospheric 7.2%