Although horror anime is often defined by how successfully a show scares its viewers, how it chooses to do so is flexible, allowing authors and directors to approach the genre from numerous different angles to create vastly different experiences. While many fans are used to the blood, gore, and jumpscares often associated with horror, there is another sub-genre that can be just as frightening in a far more subtle way: psychological horror. Instead of relying on overt scare tactics, psychological horror aims to spook the audience by using their own mind and sanity against them. By testing the character's emotional boundaries alongside their physical ones, in moments of great distress, viewers are treated to mind-bending yet terrifying experiences that may make or break a character's entire psyche. Sometimes, the monster is merely just a monster, but occasionally, it's something far harder to comprehend, and it's that unpredictable threat that makes this genre so thrilling.