With that final (praying it’s final) heat wave finished, we are now well into Spooky Season! You know what that means?… I made a list!

I’m a huge fan of the in-between seasons. Spring and Fall are both exciting seasons that exhibit a great change throughout nature, but Fall is a particular favorite of mine. Here’s why.

As a kid, I didn’t like any holiday that didn’t focus on gift-giving (I was a pretty lame kid). However, after my 2020 Halloween season, everything changed.

During this season I spent many evenings playing eating good food, drinking great drinks, watching some amazing shows and movies, and playing some great thematic games.

Betrayal at House on the Hill became our favorite game, and even got a chance to play through all of the Legacy edition of the game.

Every spooky season since 2020 I’ve tried my hardest to recapture that time. There’s nothing quite like getting just a little spooked with your friends while enjoying thematically appropriate party favors.

What is spooky season without shows, movies, books, and games? Just a pile of dried leaves. If you really want to get into the spooky spirit, check these out.

Much of the vibes of Halloween come from the media surrounding it. These TV shows and movies really put me in the spirit of Halloween.

I watched both of these shows during spooky season 2020 and every year I want to revisit them.

These shows aren’t scary in the traditional sense, but they explore some heavy themes such as mental health, family drama, grief, and… love? If you’re looking for a show that is spooky and meaningful, look no further.

These classic Disney Channel Original Movies are fantastic additions to the spooky movie lineup. It’s got everything: Mediocre costumes, a girl rebelling against her mom, a spooky school bus that flies, and a ton of pumpkins.

I don’t have to say anything about this.

If you get tired of poor costumes and heavy themes, The Great Pumpkin is a great cozy refresher. It’s got classic music and feels like a warm blanket and hot toddy.

This Cartoon Network original series hits the same vibes as The Skeleton Dance and is heavily inspired by Betty Boop animations. It’s a great inclusion for a weekly watch or if you want to binge it over a weekend.

The months my wife and I play board games the most are September and October (I literally have the data to back up this claim). During spooky season you can find us wrapped up sipping coco, eating cookies, and playing some games!

This is the game that started it all for me - My love of board games and my love of spooky season.

In this game, players explore a haunted house. While doing this they’ll find unspeakable horrors, haunted items, and spooky omens. As the house grows, so does the danger of a betrayal.

At some point in the game, one player becomes the monster, ghost, ghoul, or entity that is occupying the house. At that point, the game turns into a 1 v all as the monster tries to reach a separate goal from the rest of the players who are now trying to stop the monster.

Fall and winter are perfect times to cuddle up with a book. Grab some hot cocoa, hot apple cider, or some witch’s brew, and get to reading you nerd!

Hill House has gotten it’s roots into every part of this list, and I didn’t even include the 1959 movie House on Haunted Hill.

This book is a great option for an October read. It’s a quick read with some pretty great scares thrown throughout.

The Shining book is often overlooked by The Shining movie, but it shouldn’t be. The book has a lot more going on. Some of it horrifying and some of it a 1970 children adventure movie.

This book is a longer read, but the winter landscape makes it a great book to read into the winter months.

Scary video games aren’t hard to find. But, it’s hard to find a scary video game that isn’t too scary for me.

There are some truly horrifying and scary games out there. That’s not what I’m going for for this season. I’m also not a fan of cheap jump scares. I wish I had more games to add to this, but I don’t really associate many games with this time of year.

This game is not the easiest to find, but it’s easy to emulate. I would recommend the 3DS version, but it might be easier to play the Nintendo 64 version.

The atmosphere of this game is everything. Even in happy environments there’s a creepy sensation that things aren’t right, and they aren’t - the world will end in 3 days.

The game is not scary in the slightest. Spookiness is not why I’m including it here. Stardew Valley is the epitome of cozy games. Everything about it reminds me of October, even during the summer seasons of the game I’m reminded of Autumn.

In this game, you play as someone who has become disillusioned by your corporate job and decides to move to the countryside and live on the farm your grandfather left for you.

During your time in Stardew Valley, you’ll tend to crops, meet the local townsfolk, and build a wonderful farm. It’s a good time and every time I pick it up I wrap myself in a blanket and lose 3 hours.

There’s a difference between something that is scary and something that is spooky. You don’t have to be genuinely scared to be enjoying this time of year. I prefer to cozy up and enjoy the slightly scary somewhat hokey media that’s associated with Halloween.

Anyway, have a great Halloween, and I hope this list of spooky media can help you enjoy the season!