Ah, Halloween. Easily one of the most predictable weeks of the year. See, as a content site, we have to come up with ideas every single day, so when a massive holiday comes around, it’s like a free ticket that tempts any and all websites to jump on the festive bandwagon. In fact, holiday-themed internet articles are now the easiest way to tell what time of the year it is.

Above: Literally a joke 

A few years ago we presented the Top 7... bloodiest games you’ve never played, and this year, having now written about every possible Halloween  topic there is, we’ve decided to expand that old idea into a larger collection of lesser-known bloodbaths. And that’s really all the set-up you need. Like we said, freebie.

Bloodstorm

Time Killers is fairly accepted as the most gratuitously bloody fighting game ever made. That kind of notoriety leads people to play and document said game, making it too known for this list. Bloodstorm, the arcade follow-up apparently named on the set of Fox & Friends, did manage to slip through the cracks and offer more of the red stuff than its already generous predecessor.

Above: We’re not even to the actual game yet 

Whereas Mortal Kombat was content with an end-of-match fatality, both Time Killers and Bloodstorm let you dismember, decapitate and literally kill your opponent at any time… and they would be alive for round two. Naturally this leads to incalculable gallons of blood.

It’s no secret why both titles are so relentlessly violent – they’re shit games. The first got by on shock value alone, and by the time Bloodstorm oozed into arcades, the fighting scene was decimated. Just watch a video of the finishing moves and you’ve experienced all there is.

Nanobreaker

Nanobreaker and the next entry have something in common – they’re both Japanese games specifically designed to appeal to the expanding Western audience. Somehow that translated to stupid amounts of blood.

Above: Wow 

You play as a guy with a lot of weapons. Your goal is to kill Orgamechs, who are half organic (so they bleed) and half robot (so they don’t matter). And that’s about it. Maybe that’s why it’s hemorrhaging review scores with a 51 Metacritic average.

Above: You can change the blood to “rainbows,” if you like 

Hm. Now here’s something interesting. Nanobreaker’s Wiki page uses GamesRadar as a reference, saying we named it the bloodiest game ever. Not true! It was number one on the old “Top 7… bloodiest games you’ve never played.” Someone should edit this grievous error.

Shadow of Rome

It’s no surprise that a game set in a crumbling, gladiator-obsessed Rome would be a non-stop shower of crimson rain, but in a strange case, this solid slasher published by Capcom managed to disappear into the sunset with barely a second glance. Believe us, if it sold well, Capcom would be on Shadow of Rome EX2: Mark of Lupercus.

Above: Smash, slice and tear your opponents to pieces 

If you cared, there was a surprisingly decent story about an arena fighter caught in the assassination of Julius Caesar, though if you’re like us, you played it just to pop heads, sever limbs and liberate as many torsos from their tyrannical legs as possible.

Above: Whoa, even a little spine in there 

Above: Did you know most of our blood is in our neck? If so, you’re wrong 

So obviously, dismemberment was a key feature in Shadow of Rome. How important was it? Well, even the options screen made it clear just how ruthless the game was going to be: