Achluophobia / Nyctophobia – Fear of the dark

• Trigger: Unlit cave systems, power outages, or being separated from flares

• Why: Darkness is constant and overwhelming, especially before flares are thrown or when lights fail, leaving players vulnerable and disoriented.

Acousticophobia / Phonophobia – Fear of loud or sudden sounds

• Trigger: Exploding bugs, swarm alerts, collapse sounds, or enemy screeches

• Why: Audio design is sharp and often sudden — sound cues are critical for survival but can also be jarring and panic-inducing.

Atychiphobia / Atelophobia – Fear of failure or imperfection

• Trigger: Dying before extraction, running out of ammo, failing to mine quotas

• Why: Missions are long and intense. A small mistake can ruin a full run, leading to guilt, stress, or frustration — especially in multiplayer.

Claustrophobia – Fear of confined spaces

• Trigger: Narrow tunnels, digging through tight crevices, or hiding from swarms

• Why: The game frequently forces players into enclosed areas with low ceilings, tight turns, and pressure from behind or above.

Entomophobia – Fear of insects

• Trigger: Bug-like swarm enemies (Glyphids), flying insectoids, crawling movement

• Why: Enemies resemble oversized alien insects — many with mandibles, twitchy legs, or burrowing behavior that may deeply disturb insect-phobic players.

Gephyrophobia – Fear of crossing bridges or walking over voids

• Trigger: Platforming across chasms, zip-lining over gaps

• Why: Traversing dangerous spaces with only a narrow bridge, grapple, or line between you and a fall can provoke intense unease.

Hemophobia – Fear of blood

• Trigger: Squishing bugs, blood splatter effects, gooey enemies exploding

• Why: While stylized, the constant splatter of red, green, or yellow fluids when enemies are killed can trigger discomfort for players sensitive to gore.

Mysophobia – Fear of contamination or germs

• Trigger: Slime-covered caves, gas clouds, enemy bile or acid attacks

• Why: Many alien enemies use fluids or environmental hazards that suggest infection, decay, or biological waste.

Ophidiophobia – Fear of snakes

• Trigger: Cave leeches, worm-like enemies, or tentacle-based ambushes

• Why: Some enemies attack from ceilings or floors in a slithering, lunging motion that closely resembles snake behavior.

Scopophobia – Fear of being watched

• Trigger: Enemies that lurk, cave crawlers, or unknown threats in dark corners

• Why: The game’s unpredictable enemy spawns and frequent use of shadows can cause players to feel constantly observed by unseen creatures.

Speleophobia – Fear of caves

• Trigger: Entire game setting — underground tunnels, collapsing caverns, darkness

• Why: Deep Rock Galactic is entirely cave-based. The tight, alien, unstable terrain reinforces this phobia at all times.

Thanatophobia – Fear of death

• Trigger: Getting swarmed, falling off cliffs, or dying right before extraction

• Why: Sudden death from overwhelming odds or solo cave-ins can cause anxiety — especially with the pressure to escape alive after long missions.

Thalassophobia – Fear of deep water or vast unknown spaces

• Trigger: Deep vertical shafts or pits, especially those shrouded in darkness

• Why: Some map layouts create the feeling of falling into the unknown, evoking the dread of endless depth or unseen creatures below.

Trypophobia – Fear of clusters of small holes or bumps

• Trigger: Hive walls, insect egg sacs, or terrain patterns

• Why: Certain cave textures and organic alien surfaces resemble porous or clustered holes, which can deeply unsettle trypophobic players.