A blog dedicated to collating trigger warnings for video games while avoiding spoilers. Corrections, additions, and requests are always welcome. We don't want to discourage people from playing certain video games, we just want everyone to feel safe and prepared when gaming. inbox / game/trigger list / faq / mods
Hello friends! One of our two mods (me, hi) has started using their personal Tumblr again after a brief... seven year hiatus...
I've realised this blog is almost always the top result when searching for a videogame's triggers, and a lot of people have left us asks over the past seven years. Therefore I feel lowkey Morally Obligated (and also genuinely earnest) to keep this blog up to date, and will be working on further posts of content warnings for videogames. As well as updating the theme and general housekeeping.
If you would like to contribute any content warnings for a game you've played, we'd love if you left us an ask! Even if it's simply "Slay the Princess has stabbing in it" or "Baldur's Gate 3 has off-screen eye horror", everything's appreciated. I will include your username in the game's post as a thank you (unless you request otherwise.)
As a reminder of this blog's goal: we aim to set expectations for whether a player could encounter content that'll negatively affect their experience with a game. Whether that's due to phobias, intrusive thoughts, trauma, discomfort or distaste, or even just a feeling of "oh this game might get a bit heavier than I'm down for". Our coverage of a game is not a judgement passed, nor are we Old Men Yelling At Clouds like "STOP PUTTING UNDEAD IN HORROR GAMES!!!! THEY'RE TRIGGERING!!"
Emetophobia Warning for Episode Four of Life Is Strange
At the junkyard, a character will run away and be keeled over on their knees. It’s obvious that they feel like they’re going to v*, but all you hear is them sobbing.
If you go into the bathroom at the Vortex Club Party, drunk characters are banging on cubicles insisting “we need to p* too”. If you look inside open stalls, you will see characters keeled over toilets.
Do the people who run this blog play through the actual game or do people submit these to you?
I’ve played through most of the games on our list, or at least watched an LP of them. Some guides are written up from us playing the game with this blog in mind.
If a game title has * next to its name on our list, we’ve anti-spoiler’d points from Game Phobias (with credit). If an entire guide was submitted (so far, this has only been the case with Dishonored), we credit the person who sent it to us.
Overview: ableist parenting, emotional abuse, body horror, brainwashing, cannibalism, claustrophobic gameplay, eye horror, self harm, stalking and torture. Notably, Justine does not use darkness as a game mechanic the same way the base game does. The DLC is a horror and utilises jump scares.
The following has been paraphrased from Game Phobias.
Ableism: A character was treated “more like a mental patient” than a child by their parent.
Abuse: A character leaves taunting messages for the player character throughout the game, intending to make them feel guilty for the things they’ve done. The ongoing emotional abuse of the player character is a core game mechanic.
Body horror: The monsters that the player must evade are men that have had their bodies horribly mutilated.
Brainwashing: A character seems to have brainwashed the monsters into being obsessed with them.
Cannibalism: It is implied that the third monster to chase the player intends to cannibalize them if they are caught. There are chewing noises that can be heard if the player character is caught.
Claustrophobia:
The player is required to crawl through vents at one point.
A severely claustrophobic moment is a slight spoiler: see the end of this post.
Eye horror:
The monsters that attack the player have no eyes.
One phonograph is a recording of Justine putting out a man’s eyes, however, it does not need to be played.
Jump scares: Jump scares are extremely common throughout the game.
Self harm: It is revealed through audio diaries and flashbacks that a character engaged in self-harm. It is hinted but not shown.
Stalking: Male monsters stalk the protagonist throughout the game.
Torture:
A character enjoyed torturing people for amusement.
There is a picture of a nude man being tortured, seen after the player encounters the Priest character.
Amnesia: The Dark Descent — Content and Triggers Guide
Overview: parental abuse, body horror, brainwashing, murder of children, claustrophobic and nyctophobic gameplay, decapitation, drowning, eye horror, ghosts, stalking, torture, undead creatures, unreality. The game is a psychological horror, and relies heavily on jumpscares and darkness in gameplay.
Warnings for the game’s DLC, Justine, can be found here.
The following has been paraphrased from Game Phobias.
Abuse: An early loading screen suggests that a character had a physically abusive father.
Body horror:
The monsters that the player must evade appear to be humans that have had their bodies twisted. They may be undead.
Looking at Alexander's portrait with low sanity will cause his face to become malformed and eyeless. This can be avoided by keeping sanity high.
Some documents and flashbacks contain descriptions of mutilation. Clicking on the torture devices in the Choir and Transept will cause text to appear, describing the torture.
Brainwashing: A character exploited the desperation of another to make them commit atrocious acts.
Child violence: During an auditory flashback in the Dungeons, the murder of a young girl can be heard.
Claustrophobia: The player is encouraged to hide in wardrobes and other small spaces to evade monsters.
Darkness: Darkness is a primary game mechanic. Most darkness is nearly impossible to see in without a light. Light sources, such as candles, tinderboxes to light them with, and an oil lamp are available, but they must be used wisely, as they are a finite resource. Light may also attract monsters. This is not true in the Justine expansion.
Decapitation: A character can be decapitated, and their head put in the player’s inventory.
Drowning: In the Sewers section after the player completes the puzzles to fill the room with water, there is a large, metal box that the player passes by. Inside it sounds like someone is drowning.
Eye horror:
If the player clicks on the iron maiden, they will receive a text flashback of a victim experiencing this. It can be avoided by not clicking the iron maiden.
Looking at Alexander's portrait with low sanity will cause his face to become malformed and eyeless.
Ghosts: Auditory flashbacks can sometimes be heard. Although it’s not clear what triggers these, a common theory is that it is ghosts.
Jump scares: Jump scares are extremely common throughout the game.
Stalking: Daniel is pursued by a being called ‘The Shadow’, and at some points in the game must flee it. It manifests as glowing red fog.
Torture: A very important plot point that becomes relevant late in the game. Torture rooms must be visited to complete the game, and the clicking on the devices will cause a text flashback to appear, detailing the suffering of a previous victim.
Undead:
Some interpret the enemies Servant Grunt and Servant Brute as being undead.
There is a character that can be alive while decapitated.
Unreality:
When there is a flashback the player can hear soft whispers. They can be interpreted as auditory hallucinations of the protagonist.
If Sanity becomes too low, the world will begin to distort and the protagonist may start to see and hear things that aren’t really there. This can be avoided if the Sanity meter is kept high though players should keep in mind that the game purposefully tries to lower the Sanity meter.
Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs — Content and Triggers Guide
Overview: body horror, cannibalism, murder of children, claustrophobic and nyctophobic gameplay, ghostly apparitions, stalking, suicide, unreality. The game is a horror, and utilises jumpscares.
It should be noted that the game raises questions about life and its meaning and/or meaninglessness, as well as the inevitability of death.
The following has been paraphrased from Game Phobia’s more spoilery page.
Body horror: The man-pig enemies are, as the name implies, a twisted combination of a man and a pig. Documents reveal they were once human.
Cannibalism: A character sold food made out of human meat.
Child violence: Children are murdered by their parent. This is not shown onscreen.
Claustrophobia: At several points, the player must crawl through small spaces, such as vents.
Darkness: Darkness is a primary game mechanic, and the player must use an electric lantern to light the way. The lantern never goes out, but it will flicker when enemies are near and the light may attract enemies. Enemies can appear suddenly out the darkness.
Ghosts/supernatural:
Apparitions are present in the game. It’s unclear if they are ghosts or hallucinations.
The antagonist, The Machine, may count as this.
Jumpscares: There are quite a few of these within the game, usually by way of monsters suddenly appearing.
Stalking: A character has secret rooms which they use to spy on others’ activities, including bathing.
Suicide: A character commits suicide.
Unreality:
There are a few instances in the game where the area may suddenly change without warning.
In the Factory Tunnels: after completing a portion of a puzzle, the player must go through the door they came in. Rather than being the short, straight hallway it was before, it is instead a winding hallway with a monster in it.
Late in the game, during the Tesla level, the player’s surroundings suddenly change within the space of a step and must flee a monster. Once they have escaped, they will find themselves back where they were.
In CLIPD142, a clip 32 seconds long, filmed on the 27/06/1994, with the woman in the orange jacket, the woman runs offscreen and v*s loudly. You do not need to view the clip for story progression.
Overview: acrophobic and nyctophobic gameplay, animal death, body horror, child abuse, claustrophobic scenarios, enemies that resemble insects/reptiles/dolls, references to drug use, reference to v*ing, supernatural influences including spirits and demons, medical malpractice, reference to self harm, forced impregnation, multiple hallucinations.
The game is a horror, and utilises jump scares (listed under the cut).
The following has been paraphrased from the spoiler-heavy page at Game Phobias.
Animal death:
There are skinned dog enemies that will attack the protagonist. The player can choose whether or not to fight them.
A severed dog's head can be found in the game. The protagonist will comment on it if it is examined.
Body horror:
All the monsters in Silent Hill are horribly twisted. They are unavoidable.
In the first area after the sirens go off, the protagonist finds pieces of bodies strewn around the environment.
If you complete Kaufmann’s Sidequest, a demon graphically emerges from a woman’s back during the game.
In the first area after the sirens go off, there is a mutilated body hanging from a fence.
There is a mutilated dead body hanging in a bathroom in the Otherworld Midwitch Elementary school. The camera lingers on it.
Child abuse:
A character has a history of verbal abuse from their parents.
A character was abandoned on the side of the road by their parents.
There is reference to a parent purposefully burning their child alive.
Claustrophobia:
There are multiple narrow hallways and rooms throughout the game. Fixed camera angles are also used throughout to give a sense of claustrophobia.
In Midwich Elementary School, the protagonist must enter a small, enclosed clock tower. Fixed camera angles are used to make the space seem even smaller than it is.
On the 4th floor of Alchemilla Hospital doors are locked behind the protagonist so he cannot get out of hallways.
Darkness:
Darkness is a major game mechanic. If the environment is not purely dark, then it is shrouded in fog. Enemies will appear suddenly out of the fog/darkness, and sometimes the player can hear an enemy but not see it.
Dolls:
There are child-sized enemies that are doll-like in nature that make baby cooing noises. The player can choose whether or not to fight them. These monsters do not exist in the Japanese and European versions.
Drugs:
A character sells drugs, and their stash can be found (but not used).
Details of drug withdrawal can be found in a character’s diary.
No drugs are used on screen.
Emetophobia: Lisa references v*ing in her diary. This can be avoided by not going back into the room after Lisa’s “I'm just like them” speech.
Ghosts/demons/spirits:
In Midwich elementary school, there are small shadowy creatures that could be seen as ghosts. They do not attack. They appear later in the game in Nowhere and do attack.
A book in the Otherworld Midwich Elementary School mentions poltergeists. You do not need to examine books in the library.
An apparition appears before the protagonist several times throughout the game. They could be seen as a ghost.
The monsters in the game qualify as this. They all look demonic.
Dahlia talks about a demon taking over the town.
The town itself is implied via books and dialogue throughout the game to be cursed by evil gods. Thus, the town itself could be considered the product of a supernatural evil.
The protagonist must confront and fight a summoned demon as the final boss. If the player has completed Kaufmann’s Sidequest then the boss will look demonic.
Heights:
The protagonist must run across a narrow board over a bottomless pit to retrieve a key. This is required.
Multiple roads in town end in seemingly bottomless pits. There are invisible walls in front of these so the protagonist cannot fall in.
In Alchemilla Hospital the protagonist must walk over several narrow platforms over bottomless pits.
While running through the upper floor of the shopping mall, the floor will suddenly fall out from under the protagonist.
The protagonist must climb up an extremely tall lighthouse at the lake. The camera looks down to emphasize the height.
Insects:
Giant cockroach enemies are common in the school and the sewers.
After the protagonist falls through the floor in the shopping mall a giant centipede enemy attacks the protagonist. It must be fought.
One of the bosses is a giant moth enemy.
There are giant insect enemies in the sewer level.
After defeating a boss, an insect-like parasite comes out of their back.
Jump scares:
The game purposefully creates an atmosphere of tension similar to waiting for a jump scare. There are also several actual jump scares in the game:
After meeting Cybil a monster jumps through a window suddenly.
In Midwich Elementary School, in the locker room, there is a locker that makes noise, if the locker is examined, a cat will jump out at the player character. The cat will not attack.
In the Otherworld version of the locker room from above the same locker will make noise. If examined the locker will slowly open and it seems empty. After the protagonist walks away, a dead body will very suddenly fall out of a different locker. This sequence is required to get a key.
Whenever the player picks up a plate in Alchemilla Hospital a loud noise is suddenly heard. This is also true of the hospital basement.
In the shopping mall the televisions suddenly turn on by themselves.
While running through the upper floor of the shopping mall, the floor will suddenly fall out from under the protagonist.
The sewer level has enemies suddenly jump out of the water.
After using the Ring of Contract in Nowhere, something will begin banging against the doors.
Medical malpractice: It is revealed in the game that doctors are keeping their patient in a state of pain and purposefully not healing them.
Reptiles:
The Air Screamer enemies resemble pterodactyls. They are extremely common.
The Split Head boss in Midwitch Elementary School resembles a lizard.
There are giant lizard enemies in the sewer level.
Self harm: A note found in the Nurse Center in Alchemilla Hospital references self harm. This can be avoided by not reading notes in the Nurses Center. However, this note may be used to complete a puzzle, so a walkthrough should be consulted.
Sexual violence: There is reference to supernatural impregnation, without physical sex.
Unreality:
Multiple times through the game, the protagonist will “wake up” from dreams, or question if he just dreamed a previous sequence.
Harry questions throughout the game whether or not certain things are hallucinations.
There are sudden shifts in environments throughout the game. The player is never sure if they are viewing the real world or the Otherworld.
At one point the protagonist appears in a place called Nowhere that is confusing and has several different previous environments crammed into one, forcing a sense of déjà vu.
This week I’m going to be working on all the bolded and asterisked games on our list. Games with asterisks mean we paraphrase them from the wiki Game Phobias, because Game Phobias has unmarked spoilers. Once I get all of those out of the way I can start putting up new games.
+ if you have a specific trigger we aren’t covering, please feel free to let us know!
I think you may have missed something in Beyond: Two Souls! There is a scene when you go to a bar. After you drink lemonade at the bar you can either leave or stay. If you stay you play pool with some of the men there and one of them molests your character which turns into attempted rape. I'm not sure if you're not there yet or if you chose to leave, but it's a useful warning!
Hey, thankyou! The guide we used for B: TS is actually from another person and we just reblogged it, but they did include that under “Chapter: Like Other Girls”.
Overview: implications of sexual violence and pedophilia, unreality, nyctophobic/acrophobic/claustrophobic gameplay, ghosts. The game could be considered psychological horror, and briefly utilises jump scares.
Acrophobia: During Ruby’s story, the player falls from a great height.
Claustrophobia: The game features some very narrow hallways.
Ghosts: Rose’s Wolf may be a ghost.
Jump scares: During some of the visits to Grandmother’s House, the player character’s shadow may suddenly appear and startle the player.
Nyctophobia: Some incarnations of Grandmother’s House are very dark.
Pedophilia: Carmen’s story has overtones of this.
Sexual violence: Carmen’s story seems to explicitly revolve around the threat of sexual assault.
Unreality: Many visits to the Grandmother’s House involve shifting or suddenly changing environments. This is especially true in the case of Scarlet.
What is the purpose of the * added to the tags on each post?
It’s for our trigger list, so people can search by trigger.
The * specifically is so that we’re not in the “stalking" and “cannibalism” tags, etc. We want to avoid attention from those kind of tags.
And for tags like “lgbtqia*” - for LGBTQIA-discriminative canons - and “ableism*”, we don’t want our post randomly popping up in a tag that is other people’s space.
Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines — Content and Triggers Guide
Overview: amputation, body horror/gore, cannibalism, drug use, emetophobic scenes, a strangulation ability, nyctophobic and claustrophobic gameplay, supernatural evils, eye horror, brief reference to incest, insects, frequent medical malpractice, self harm, frequent suicides, stalking, undead/zombies, unreality, torture. The game takes place exclusively at night, and utilises jump scares.
The haunted house level is a famous level in the game that utilises jump scares, stalking, ghostly apparitions (with laughter), extreme darkness, and has two extremely claustrophobic scenes.
To skip the level, after you receive it from Therese, use the console (link) and use the console command "give item_g_ghost_pendant". You would also need to set "G.Therese_Quest = 2". There are other jump scares in the game, but they are more about enemies suddenly appearing.
The following has been paraphrased from Game Phobias.
Amputation/decapitation:
A major quest character is obsessed with cutting off others’ body parts. They will attack the protagonist in an attempt to do this.
A character is beheaded in the opening cutscene.
A torso missing limbs is found in a basement.
A quest gives the protagonist a severed arm as a weapon.
The protagonist finds a character whose finger has been cut off. It isn’t visible.
In the warehouse across the street from The Last Round, there is an impaled corpse that is missing its head and some limbs. It is graphically rendered.
It is revealed via dialogue that Gimble cut off his own arm to better understand prosthetics. To avoid this dialogue the player must not click the “Tell me more about yourself” dialogue option.
In the haunted house, there are newspaper articles detailing how a child was murdered and his head cut off. It is required to read this article to complete the quest unless you use the console.
Asphyxiation:
The Malkavian power “Vision of Death” will cause the victim to commit suicide via strangling themselves. The power “Bedlam” can also possibly cause it. The player doesn’t need to use these powers.
Body horror/gore:
Nosferatu history: an ability means that the protagonist’s body is trying to rot.
A character reveals that they have been purposefully twisting humans into monsters. It isn’t shown onscreen.
In the Sabbat hideout there are mutilated bodies strung up in the beginning area and the final boss’s room.
Cannibalism:
In the basement of the abandoned apartment complex (during the documentary quest), there is a vampire that eats people instead of drinking their blood. Their first appearance shows them eating a body and they have blood smeared across their face while talking.
On the “crackhouse” level, there are zombie-like creatures that will eat the protagonist’s brains if they get too close.
Claustrophobia:
Multiple quests require the protagonist to crawl through ventilation systems.
In the haunted house level, the protagonist must enter a small dumbwaiter to gain entry to the second floor. In the same quest an elevator will break and fall on top of the protagonist.
In one of the endings, the player must be inside an elevator when the elevator breaks down, and also has to crawl through a pipe. If you want to avoid this, see the end of the post (spoilers regarding who you can side with).
Darkness:
The haunted house that the Player Character goes to for Therese uses darkness and shadow to frighten the player. There are areas that are extremely dark and ghosts will appear out of nowhere in some areas. This quest is required to complete the game unless you use the console.
Drowning:
One of the endings involves a character being trapped at the bottom of the ocean for eternity. If you want to avoid this, see the end of the post (spoilers regarding who you can side with).
Drug use:
A side-quest ends in a level that is called “The Crackhouse”.
In the Giovanni mansion, there are two women taking drugs in one of the bathrooms.
Emetophobia:
If a Ventrue character drinks blood from a homeless person, a prostitute, or a rat, they will v* it. This can be avoided by either not playing a Ventrue or by being careful about who the protagonist feeds on.
In the hospital there is a red-headed girl in one of the rooms. She will v* blood when the protagonist approaches her.
In the crackhouse as part of the pestilence quest, if the protagonist drinks the blood of the zombies they will v* it back up, complete with triggering noises. This can be avoided by not drinking any zombie blood in the crackhouse.
To get into the Giovanni mansion, the protagonist must talk to a couple standing near the taxi. After talking with both of them, the woman will begin to v*.
Eye horror:
Bruja players only: “Glass Eye” describes the injury that caused the protagonist to have a glass eye. The glass eye is not visible during gameplay.
A quest received from the owner of the White Cloud shop requires the protagonist to take a pair of eyes from a dead body. This quest is not required to complete the game.
The final poster reward from Gary’s poster quest is a poster of a woman without any eyes.
In the Sabbat hideout there are people standing around with empty eye sockets.
Ghosts/spirits/demons:
At the haunted house the ghosts are poltergeist-like, causing things to be thrown at the Player Character, lights exploding, etc. The ghosts also appear to the Player Character throughout the house. This quest is required to complete the game unless you use the console.
The explanation for bloodlust in the game is the Beast, a force within all vampires that drives them to become monsters. This is implied to be some sort of supernatural force.
In the Library quest (available in the patched version of the game) there appears to be some sort of satanic ritual happening in the basement.
Incest:
A loading screen and dialogue options mention that incest is common amongst a certain family.
It is revealed that two sisters were sexually abused by their father.
Insects:
The final boss of the Sabbat hideout has an insect-like fighting form. He only has two eyes and his body is human.
Jump scares:
On the haunted house level there are multiple scripted jump scares. This includes people appearing out of nowhere and running at the protagonist, lights exploding suddenly, and things crashing down from the ceiling suddenly. This quest is required to complete the game. See the start of the post for how to avoid it.
In the museum by the stairs there is a giant T-rex head that will roar suddenly when approached.
At the internet café for Isaac’s movie quest, monsters will suddenly jump out at the Player Character and attack. This begins after using the key on the door in the back room.
At the 609 King’s Way house, as well as the sewers section immediately afterwards, monsters jump out at the protagonist suddenly.
After defeating the boss in the Library, something in the elevator will jump out and attack the player character.
In the unofficial patch of the game, when the protagonist first arrives at the grand entry area it will be empty. If the Player Character goes to the first floor it will suddenly be full of enemies that will immediately attack. This appears to be a glitch.
The boss at the top of Lacroix's tower will teleport and reappear immediately behind the protagonist and attack.
Medical malpractice:
If the protagonist hacks personnel files in the hospital, they find out that one of the doctors has been sexually assaulting his patients. It isn’t shown in-game.
The audio diaries at Grout’s mansion show a doctor slowly beginning to abuse his patients. This can be avoided by not examining the tape recorders in the mansion.
The enemies in Grout’s mansion appear to be tortured patients. They have devices strapped to their bodies and faces.
Sexual violence:
It is revealed that two sisters were sexually abused by their father.
Male Gangrel history only: “Perv” implies that the player character was obsessed with women and would have sex with them regardless of their interest.
In the hospital the protagonist can hack personnel files to find out that one of the doctors has been sexually assaulting his patients. This is not shown in the game.
One of the vampiric abilities, “Seduction”, is sexually coercive. Seductive dialogue options are purple and marked with hearts.
Self harm:
In the hospital there is a red-headed girl that the player can choose to save. There is a reference to self harming the protagonist’s wrist, but no bleeding from the wrist is shown.
A character references having cut off his own arm. To avoid this dialogue the player must not click the “Tell me more about yourself” dialogue option with Mr. Gimble.
Stalking:
Male Gangrel history: “Perv” implies that the player character was obsessed with women.
Male Nosferatu history: “Peeping Tom” implies that the player character would use computers to spy on women.
In a set of apartments, it is revealed that the security guard has placed cameras in all the apartments, is spying on the residents and is planning on stealing a woman’s underwear.
If the player chooses to save the red-haired girl in the hospital, she will later approach the protagonist and reveal that she has been stalking them, to be “helpful”.
There is an optional side quest that involves planting cameras in a woman’s apartment. The quest is received from the female Nosferatu in the Nosferatu’s lair. It is not required to complete the game.
There are several quests where the protagonist must break into others' homes. There may or may not be people home; if there are then the protagonist must sneak around to avoid being noticed.
Suicide:
The Malkavian power “Vision of Death” will cause the victim to commit suicide via strangling themselves. The power “Bedlam” can also possibly cause it. The player doesn’t need to use these powers.
In the haunted house there are newspaper articles detailing how a man killed his family and then killed himself. The article is required to be read to complete the game.
A character states that their father committed suicide, and blames their own sibling for it.
If the player completes the mission to plant cameras in a woman’s apartment, the woman will kill herself. It is not shown on screen.
Torture:
Several basements in the game contain torture implements.
The enemies on one level appear to be patients that have been tortured. They have torturous looking devices strapped to their bodies and faces.
On one level the protagonist will be subjected to a series of dangerous tests designed to kill them.
Undead:
The game revolves around vampires, who are by definition undead.
In the pestilence quest received from Strauss/Damsel, the final level in the crackhouse requires the protagonist to fight zombies. If they get too close they can grab the protagonist and begin to suck on their head. This quest is not required to complete the game.
The protagonist must fight zombies in the basement of the Giovanni mansion. The zombies here function the same way as the zombies in the pestilence quest above. This quest is required to complete the game.
There is an optional quest where the protagonist must prevent hordes of zombies from leaving the graveyard. The zombies are in various stages of decay, and moan.
Unreality:
If the player chooses to play as a Malkavian, the protagonist will manifest signs of mental instability, which lead to hallucinations, erratic speech and breakdowns. They will hallucinate people and things on the streets, talk to inanimate objects, and in the protagonist’s apartment the television will begin talking to them. The dialogue options for the player will have tilted letters.
Throughout the haunted house level ghosts will appear and disappear in certain places throughout the house. In addition, several rooms in the house are revealed to be illusions and will alternate between new and dilapidated. One room’s floor will almost completely disappear after the protagonist completes part of the quest. This quest is required to complete the game unless you use the console.
The Tremere Haven in the Downtown area is bigger on the inside than it appears due to the building being magically enchanted. The corridors twist and turn and the protagonist can end up where they started if they take a wrong turn.
Ending spoilers (who to side with) for drowning and claustrophobia avoidance:
Drowning: The drowning is present in the Ming Xiao ending.
Claustrophobia: Any ending where you side against LaCroix results in being stuck in the elevator and having to crawl through a pipe.
Overview: eye trauma, heights, severe unreality, stalking, suicide and the option of committing suicide, acrophobic levels, torture. The protagonist is a soldier in a modern army, and a primary theme of the game is the dehumanization of people that is required to be able to kill them.
Paraphrased from Game Phobias.
Acrophobia: Almost every level starts from a very high point. At the end of one level, the player character falls very far.
Body horror:
There is a pit where decaying bodies have been thrown, and another instance where freshly burnt corpses are discovered.
Gunshots to the heads of targets explode heads, and attacking downed enemies will lead to an 'execution' move, which sometimes includes bashing their head in.
White phosphorus is employed in the game, leaving the few survivors horribly mutilated.
Eye trauma: One of the burned bodies discovered has empty eye sockets.
Stalking: The player character is taunted by two antagonists who are watching his movements.
Suicide:
A character commits suicide.
The player is given the option of making the protagonist commit suicide.
Torture: The sounds of someone being tortured is broadcasted over the radio. Deceased torture victims are later found. The player character may also find the log of a torturer, who describes those who survive his torture as “brothers and sisters”.
Unreality:
The game opens with memories jumping back and forth.
The protagonist sees disturbing visions of the men he's killed.
The protagonist hallucinates for the majority of the game.
The game's antagonist taunts the player character in such a manner. The game itself, via loading screen messages, engages in this with the player.
The game heavily pushes the theme of futility and criticizes both the player and Player Character for thinking they are more than they are. (i.e. "If you hadn't come here, this wouldn't have happened.")
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim — Content and Trigger Guide
Overview: child abuse, alcoholism, violence towards animals, body horror, cannibalism, a clown-like character, nyctophobic/claustrophobic gameplay, v*ing, spiders and insects, torture, undead, suicide, references to sexual violence, needle-like darts.
Includes all DLC. This post is text-heavy, so if you don’t want to read it or can’t, feel free to ask us directly about certain triggers.
Paraphrased from Game Phobias. GP’s page is text-heavy and spoilery - if you’re wondering about any additional triggers you can ask us directly.
Abuse:
A character in Riften will tell you of the emotional abuse they have received at the hands of her aunt. They give you a quest in order to shame the aunt for her sexuality, in retaliation and in the hopes of improving their situation.
The Daedric prince of madness often drives people insane so that they will commit atrocities.
A young girl in Rorikstead remarks that she is beaten and abused by both her father and her sister.
The residents of Honorhall Orphanage are emotionally abused by their caretaker. These children can be adopted with the Hearthfire add-on, and the caretaker can be killed as part of the quest "Innocence Lost" which will cause her to be replaced by her kindlier assistant.
Alcoholism: Several characters are depicted as drunkards, and ask the protagonist to give them alcohol.
Animal Cruelty:
A character is an apprentice alchemist who tests their concoctions on animals. This does not take place on-screen, but there is reference to it.
Wolf-fighting cage-matches appear in two locations: Faldar’s Tooth and Cragslane Cavern. In both cases, the Dragonborn puts a stop to the wolf-fighting operations by killing the outlaws responsible but must either ignore or kill most of the wolves, as they attack when their handlers are attacked or if they are freed from their cages.
Body horror:
Hagravens are hostile woman-bird hybrids.
In the Dragonborn DLC, the side-quest called "Experimental Subject" involves a wizard asking the Dragonborn to participate in an experiment. If the Dragonborn agrees to be a test subject, the wizard will cast a spell on them, which will cause the screen to go black and the wizard and his apprentice to comment on mutations appearing on the Dragonborn’s face.These mutations are not depicted and this quest is avoidable, as the Dragonborn can simply refuse to participate.
During the quest “The Break of Dawn,” the Dragonborn must investigate ruins which are being controlled by a necromancer. Throughout, the dungeon, the player encounters failed necromantic experiments which appear as corpses that flop about in unnatural ways when interacted with.
During the Dark Brotherhood quest “Death Incarnate,” the Dragonborn will encounter a person suffering severe burns over their entire body and must have a brief conversation with them and ultimately kill them in order to advance complete the questline.
Cannibalism:
During the quest “The Taste of Death,” the Dragonborn can help a cabal of cannibals whose place of worship has been overrun by undead. The Dragonborn can, instead, kill the leader of the cannibals at several points during the quest, but the quest will fail, and the Dragonborn may potentially miss out on quests provided by any of the “dinner guests” if the leader is killed at a point where the guests are present.
Human flesh and human heart are both alchemy ingredients which which the player can use to create potions or can simply eat.
If the player becomes a vampire, they must feed on sleeping humans in order to maintain their human appearance. To learn more about the ritual necessary to cure vampirism, click here
Claustrophobia:
Shalidor’s Maze features very tight spaces and potentially startling encounters. The maze is entirely avoidable, and the reward for completing the Maze, the Diadem of the Savant, can be found at a different location via a bug. To read more about the alternate method to acquire the "Diadem of the Savant" item, click here
At two points in the Dark Brotherhood plotline, the Dragonborn must close themselves inside a coffin.
Clowns:
During the Dark Brotherhood questline, the Dragonborn encounters an NPC who wears a jester's outfit, laughs, dances, speaks in rhyme, and is violent.
Darkness: Many locations throughout the game feature darkness which makes it difficult for the player to see and from which enemies may jump out at the Dragonborn. This includes most dungeons and caves, as well as the overworld at night.
Ways to alleviate this: the Night Eye racial ability for the Khajiit race, which provides them with toggle-able night vision; light spells, which produce a small ball of light which either follows the Dragonborn or can be placed at range, or simply the use of torches.
Emetophobia:
During the quest “The Only Cure,” the Afflicted enemies fight with a v* attack.
In the Dragonborn DLC side-quest "Experimental Subject", the wizard’s apprentice will v*. V* is not depicted, though the apprentice does make an emetophobic remark followed by triggering noises. This quest is avoidable, as the Dragonborn can simply refuse to participate.
Eye horror:
During character creation, the player can create a Dragonborn who has either one or both eyes which are covered in white cataracts or scars.
Eye of Sabre Cat is an alchemy ingredient and can often be harvested from the creatures when they are defeated.
Certain prop skulls, especially those which appear in the dens of vampires, bears, trolls, or anything else that is liable to consume a human, appear bloody and still contain damaged eyes.
Insects/spiders:
The chaurus are large insects which commonly appear in areas themed as dwellings for the subterranean Falmer enemies. There are some mods that turn the chaurus into rats. One can be found here. Note that this also turns spider monsters into bears.
Needles: In Nordic ruins, certain traps shoot needle-like poisoned darts when triggered.
Self harm: During the main quest line, the Dragonborn uses a knife to make a cut on their hand.
Sexual violence:
During the quest “Caught Red Handed,” a character implies that they were drugged and r*d.
Sapphire of the Thieves Guild tells the Dragonborn of her backstory, in which her family was all killed she was captured and r*d by bandits.
Suicide:
A suicidal character can be met in a random encounter, and will ask the protagonist to kill him. If you refuse, he lets you leave.
During the Dark Brotherhood quest “Mourning Never Comes,” if the Dragonborn takes the bonus option of killing the sole daughter, the grieving mother will kill herself. To read more about the "Mourning Never Comes" quest, click here.
During the miscellaneous quest “Frostflow Abyss,” the Dragonborn investigates a cave system infested with Falmer beneath a lighthouse to discover what became of the lighthousekeeper and his family. The keeper’s daughter is found dead from suicide. To read more about the "Frostflow Abyss" quest, click here.
Torture:
Several locations in the game have torture rooms, which feature torture devices such as stretching racks and wall shackles.
Upon completion of the Dark Brotherhood quest line, the Dragonborn can purchase an expansion for the Sanctuary which creates a torture room with four prisoners. There is no opportunity to release them.
During the main-plot quest “Diplomatic Immunity,” the Dragonborn must infiltrate into an enemy embassy and steal intelligence files. While inside, the Dragonborn must visit the dungeons for the final file and can free prisoners who had been beaten and interrogated. To read more about the "Diplomatic Immunity" quest, click here.
Undead:
Draugr are animate mummified zombies which are encountered in their burial chambers and will attack intruders.
Animate skeletons are recurring enemies.
Vampires appear throughout the game and can turn the Dragonborn into a vampire. Vampirism can be cured during the early stages in the same way that any other disease can be cured: with a cure disease potion or a visit to the shrine of a Divine. However, if allowed to progress until the Dragonborn is a full vampire, a special ritual must be undergone with Falion of Morthal to cure the Dragonborn of their vampirism. To read more about the special ritual, click here.
The Dragonborn can use magic to resurrect dead bodies to be temporary servants and followers, though this is completely optional.
