Whenever it gets close to Halloween, most of us are ready for a good scare. Zombies tunneling from below the soil, mummies leaping out from behind tombstones. Slenderman staring at us from off in the distance. Lionsoft, creator of the previously featured Sprint - King of the Jungle, knows the feeling well, not to mention a handful of retro games that fit the scary setting just as snugly. And so comes 8-bit Halloween, an arcade platform game that borrows from some of the most popular sidescrolling games of old to create a challenging, holiday appropriate release to get you in the mood.

Control your character, Jackie-Gun, with the [arrow] keys, jump with [up], and shoot with [X]. It really doesn't get much more complicated than that, apart from collecting a few coins and working your way around the branching level paths. Pummel every enemy you see with a shower of bullets if you want to survive, otherwise you'll end up pushing daisies with the rest of your foes. The difficulty is unforgiving. Just a few hits and you're down for the count, and the only way to get back up again is to start over from scratch. If you've got the guts to muster up a win, though, you'll find this simple and free game will more than satisfy your lust for holiday-related retro scariness.

Windows:
Get the free full version

Mac OS X:
Not available.
Try Boot Camp or Parallels or CrossOver Games.