Matthew John Costello (born 1948) is an American writer specializing in the genres of horror, gothic, and science fiction. His articles have appeared in publications including the Los Angeles Times and Sports Illustrated. He has scripted Trilobyte's bestselling CD-ROM interactive dramas The 7th Guest and its sequel The 11th Hour, as well as many other video games.

This biography of a living person does not include any references or sources. (January 2024)

Costello continued Dana Lombardy's "Gaming" column on Asimov's Science Fiction beginning in April 1986, which renamed to "Neat Stuff" in April 1989 and he continued until June 1990.

Along with F. Paul Wilson, Costello created and scripted FTL Newsfeed, which ran daily on the Sci-Fi Channel from 1992 to 1996. His television credits also include shows on The Disney Channel, PBS, the BBC, and many others. In 2005 his novel Beneath Still Waters was adapted into a film by director Brian Yuzna.

Costello also wrote Island of the Skull (Pocket Books), an original prequel to Peter Jackson's film, King Kong.

Along with his adult genres, he has created works for children. His works include the book series The Kids of Einstein Elementary (Scholastic), and Magic Everywhere (Random House), as well as games including Aladdin's Mathquest (Disney), A Cartoon History of the Universe (Putnam), and two math games based on the hit PBS Kids show Cyberchase. He is the designer of role-playing and board games, including Dungeons & Dragons, Call of Cthulhu, Batman, Lone Wolf & Cub, and many others.

Recently, Costello worked on Rage, a post-apocalyptic action-adventure game for id Software, and wrote its novelization, as well as a new game for Eidos with Neil Richards and Swedish developer Avalanche Studios.

• Bram Stoker Best Novel nominee (1993): Homecoming
• Prometheus Award Best Novel nominee (1999): Masque

• Official website
• Matthew J. Costello at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
• Matthew Costello at IMDb
• Matthew J. Costello at Library of Congress, with 31 library catalog records
• Matthew J. Costello at Demian's Gamebook Web Page
• Shane Christopher (pseudonym) at LC Authorities, 1 record, and at WorldCat