Having a safe place to return to in a video game after a difficult quest or harrowing story beat is more than a welcome reprieve – it’s a necessity. But what if your hub world isn’t actually a needed respite, but a confusing mess? Or – worse – makes the whole experience even more stressful?

Here are the scariest, most dangerous, or unsettlingly insidious hub worlds that I’d not want to live in, from “best” to the absolute worst.