Haunt

Haunt is a haunted house horror TTRPG based on Ritual. It's gloomy and scary and sad in the tradition of the genre, and might be a perfect pick for playing something like Fatal Frame or Haunting Of Hill House.

The PDF is 26 pages, with atmospheric photo art and immersive layout that makes every page a treat to look at.

Gameplay-wise, Haunt is technically GMless, but handles this by distributing the GM role among the players. Each player controls a regular PC and also a ghost. Players play their ghosts when their PC isn't present, and this division of responsibilities results in the ghosts feeling very individual and distinct.

Once play begins, PCs can explore their environments and make skill checks, but every one of them is on a countdown to their death. As the game progresses, the group draws cards from a Haunt deck, each prompting reactions from the PCs and lowering their countdowns.

The mechanics here are the same as in Ritual (which is also worth checking out!), and they ultimately mean that while there are tools for the PCs to struggle against their fates, they're nearly all going to be killed by the ghosts of the house. Play to lose, in as atmospheric a way as possible.

The last PC standing escapes the house, but the process is harrowing. The lower each PC's countdown is, the more erratic their behavior becomes. And the more PCs die, the more the house fills with ghosts.

Overall, Haunt is a great toolkit for telling a compelling, scary ghost story with a TTRPG. Its art and tone match its writing perfectly, and it's a little surprising to remember that it's based on another game, because Ritual's mechanics fit Haunt's concept perfectly. If you like ghost stories, check this one out!