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Released seven years ago,Outlastgave gamers the absolute chills with its haunting atmosphere, grotesque imagery, and the inability to fight back any of the enemies players encounter. This revolutionized the gameplay mechanic of running and hiding in horror games to a tee, having to rely on players' wits and sense of hearing to know how to survive at the hands of the Variants.
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Each game in theOutlastseries introduced a colorful cast of enemies who still haunt players to this day. Who are thescariestOutlastcharacters?
Updated Aug 04, 2025, by Mark Sammut:The Outlast Trialsis currently in development and looks set to debut sometime in 2022. The game looks promising, and it will bring amultiplayer componentto the series. This entry will not be replacing Outlast 3, so fans of the previous games can also look forward to a more traditional entry. If there is one thing The Outlast Trials needs to get right, it is its villains. Outlast produced some of the horror genre’s mostterrifying charactersof the 2010s, and this article has been expanded to include a few more of them.
UPDATE: 2025-06-07 17:10 EST BY JAKE FILLERY
Updated June 25th, 2023, by Amy Cowley:
Now that The Outlast Trials is currently available on Steam, there are now a whole host of new and terrifying characters added to Outlast’s already impressive roster.
Though all of the NPCs andOutlast charactersare frightening, there are a few figures that stand out from the rest for traumatizing players the most with their actions on-screen, and their extremely unsettling character designs. With that said, this article has been given a much-needed update to shine a light on some of the horrors buried in the mysteries of the trials.
18Leland Coyle
Leland is one of theOutlast Trialsvillains, corrupted and deluded from even a young age, leading him to become a truly twisted and deranged individual. Though he still dons his uniform, he is certainly not in the mindset of protecting or serving any of the hapless player characters he encounters in the trials.
With a background embroiled in abusive behavior and ties to racist organizations, he has always beena villainous man, andOutlast Trailsshines a light on his horrendous behavior. He carries a stun baton that he is certainly prepared to use on his victims. Once he spots one of the Reagents, Cope will not stop unless they are lucky enough to lose him, or he downs them. If players see him in the Trials, they should run far and fast.
17Pouncer
One of theOutlastmonstersplayers can encounter, Pouncer is one of the most startling, and perhaps one of the most dangerous for unsuspecting Reagents. Tragically, she is an Ex-Pop who suffered extreme trauma which might explain her behavior.
The Pouncer will choose various hiding spots scattered throughout the trials, such as lockers, barrels, crates, or car trucks, and if a Reagent draws close enough, she will leap out and tackle them to the ground. Players will need to react quickly and mash the button prompt shown on the screen to throw her off, otherwise, she will beat the Reagent until they die. Though if a player has a brick or bottle equipped, they can use it to immediately through the Pouncer off, but she will return for another round.
16Mother Gooseberry
One of the most underused types of horror is dental horror, but thankfully, Mother Gooseberry is here to help fill the void. Once a children’s TV presenter, Mother Gooseberry fell into disgrace, most likely due to hersplit personality disorderwhich she expresses through a rather creepy hand-puppet that is a duck wearing a top hat, named Doctor Futterman.
Doctor Futterman is obsessed with oral hygiene, but it is doubtful that they have any experience in this field, as their patients end up being butchered through the use of dental instruments. Though Mother Gooseberry puts up a caring, maternal front, any Reagent who ends up in her sights should run, or they will find themselves at the non-existent mercy of her villainous alter-ego Doctor Futterman.
15Night Hunter
Though the Night Hunter is one of the grunts, his status should not be taken into account when estimating thisOutlast Trialsvillain. He is still highly dangerous, and highly terrifying to encounter. Whereas the darkness of the trials offers a safe harbor to Reagents from most of the Ex-Pops, there is no such luck with the Night Hunter, as his night-vision goggles allow him to easily spot and pursue Reagents who try to hide in the shadows.
He is the most confident in the dark, but his goggles also mean he has a weakness. In areas that are brightly lit, the Night Hunter grows visibly frustrated and tries to shield his eyes from the light. When players encounter one of these Ex-Pops, they better pray there is a lit area close by, otherwise they will find themselves the prey of the Night Hunter.
14Skinner Man
Along with struggling to survive against the violent antagonists that stalk their trials, Reagents must also worry about their sanity, as suffering from psychosis can come with some very unwelcome side effects, the Skinner Man being the most major one. A skeletal head with piercing red eyes and tendrils swirling behind him, his appearance is certainly the stuff of nightmares.
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Unlike other enemies, the Skinner Man is relentless in his pursuit and always knows the location of his prey. Rather than violently beating the Reagent, he slowly drains their vitality with an AOE aura that will affect anyone unlucky enough to be in that area. Players will need to stay on top of maintaining their sanity to avoid the bone-chilling Skinner Man from appearing.
13Dennis
Dennis' design is not particularly terrifying as he just looks like a burly man; however, what makes this character stand out is his dissociative identity disorder. During his brief appearance inOutlast: Whistleblower, Dennis can be heard speaking to himself as four different personalities, and their dialogue is deeply unsettling as they discuss giving the “interloper” to “thing below” as a sacrifice.
Dennis serves as a testament toOutlast’s strong character writing; even a minor character like this can leave a lasting and haunting impression.
12Jeremy Blaire
Jeremy Blaire is not a traditional “horror” villain and, consequently, doesn’t hold a candle to the franchise’s more iconic antagonists. That said, Jeremy might just be the most disgustingly immoral person in the franchise, and that is saying something.
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Murkoff’s Vice President plays a key part in keeping theexperiments running, going out of his way to ensure the company’s secrets remain hidden. If someone threatens to expose Murkoff, Jeremy will not hesitate tohurtthem. Jeremy is chilling in an unspectacular way: a businessman who treats humans like cattle.
11Val
Val has a sympathetic backstory as she was forced to kill children by the Testament of the New Ezekiel. This psychologically breaks Val, and the character eventually forms their group – the Heretics – that strives to bring the Anti-Christ into the world.
Val doesn’t appear too often inOutlast 2but the antagonist’s storyline produces some of the most uncomfortable moments in the game. Whenever Val speaks of their dreams, the character is likely to inspire a few nightmares.
10Laird Byron
Mirroring the man he’s devout to the most, Laird Byron, the leader of the Scalled, is angry, bitter, and abusive towards his followers. He is also small, diseased, and heavily deformed, which is why he is an outcast from the Testament of the New Ezekiel, despite remaining loyal to Sullivan Knoth.
To feel better about himself, he casually hunts down those in his group who ever so slightly disagree with his methods and kills them through his servant, Nick Tremblay. Don’t let Laird’s size fool the player, this is one character who will give provide those nearby with the shivers.
9Corgan
Despite not having a huge role or evenbeing named inOutlast 2, Corgan still manages to be creepy. He is first encountered at the beginning of the game, looming through the darkness as he watches and studies players, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Eventually, he will strike and he will stop at nothing to kill.
Corgan serves as just a taste of what players are about to endure for the rest of the game and, with that blood-soaked face and dead, white eyes, one can only imagine how much more terrifying it can get.
