Every year, Universal Halloween Horror Nights turns some of horror’s biggest franchises into real-world experiences, with haunted houses, scare zones, live entertainment, themed food, merchandise, and more.For guests willing to brave the events, some of the biggest names in horror are brought to life around them.Halloween Horror Nights returns to Universal Studios Florida for its 35th year, running on select nights from August 28 through November 1.Credit: UniversalRelated: Disney Parks Worldwide Could See Attendance Drop From November 19Universal’s Biggest Horror Event ReturnsThe 2026 lineup at Orlando is packed with recognizable horror properties. Guests will be able to enter houses based on Sinners, Stranger Things 5, Hellraiser, Evil Dead Burn, and Ozzy Osbourne’s music and imagery.But this September, Universal could face some unexpected competition from one of the very franchises that has helped define the horror experience within the resorts.Credit: UniversalThe asymmetrical title Halloween: The Game is arriving on September 8, 2026 — right in the middle of Halloween Horror Nights season.While IllFonic’s upcoming title is nowhere near the size of Rockstar’s highly anticipated open-world game Grand Theft Auto VI, which releases this November, it still offers something interesting for horror fans: the chance to step directly into the world of Michael Myers without leaving home.Credit: IllfonicRelated: Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Is Leaving the Park This YearMichael Myers Is Coming HomeHalloween: The Game is being developed by IllFonic, the studio behind Friday the 13th: The Game, and is built entirely around John Carpenter’s original 1978 Halloween movie.Players can either take on the roles of Heroes of Haddonfield, using weapons and everyday household objects to fight back against Michael, contact the authorities, rescue civilians, and try to survive the night. But there’s more.Halloween: The Game also includes a standalone single-player story that allows players to experience the events surrounding “The Night He Came Home” from Michael Myers’ perspective.Could This Affect Halloween Horror Nights?It’s very unlikely that Halloween: The Game will reduce attendance at Halloween Horror Nights, and in no way is Universal facing an attendance problem because of the game.The two experiences are obviously very different. At Halloween Horror Nights, fans travel to Universal Studios, buy a ticket, queue for haunted houses, and experience horror in a physical environment surrounded by elaborate sets and scare actors.With Halloween: The Game, they can buy or download the game, stay at home, put on the Michael Myers mask, and spend potentially dozens of hours stalking or surviving Haddonfield.Credit: IllfonicBut with all that said, Michael Myers does appear to be missing from HHN this year. The character has appeared at the event before, including in haunted-house experiences based on the franchise. So Halloween fans in particular may obviously choose to spend their hard-earned cash on a copy of the game.With the game arriving on September 8 right in the middle of Universal’s biggest Halloween event, it could give horror fans one more reason to stay home this fall. And for Universal, that’s a pretty unusual competitor to have lurking in the shadows.Spend an evening walking through Universal’s version of a nightmare — or spend an evening becoming Michael Myers. And unlike Halloween Horror Nights, the game doesn’t eventually kick you out.Will you be playing Halloween: The Game this September? Let us know in the comments below!The post Universal Halloween Horror Nights 35 Could Lose Horror Fans This September appeared first on Inside the Magic.