my reviews on 3 lovecraftiana video games that i think deserve more love! the sinking city, call of cthulhu, and sherlock holmes: the awakened. (slight spoilers)
i love this game so much. it is an independent story much like call of cthulhu (see below). you are investigating a new england town called oakmont (similar to innsmouth) for a source of madness - it has so many lovecraft elements and references to shadow over innsmouth as well as dagon, the shadow out of time, and the king in yellow. the atmosphere is amazing, just properly 1920s spooky and the open world of oakmont is charming and derelict. the main storyline is engaging, sprawling, and not too hard to follow, but there are many other varied sidequests to pursue as well. the world is big enough to explore and the map is SOOO SOLID. definitely more to experience and much more fleshed-out than call of cthulhu and sherlock holmes the awakened. i enjoyed the connection between the quest plotlines and particularly the historical backstory quests that really fleshed out the setting. the characters are cool and interesting. the investigation mechanics are simple enough. there is also a sanity resource that is well-incorporated into the gameplay, and it gets REAL scary when it gets too low. my biggest frustration with this game is with the combat - it's diffcult and doesn't scale very well at first, and towards the end of the game when you do have powerful enough guns/ammo it becomes very repetitive and annoying to constantly mow down monsters. the monsters can be pretty scary in close spaces or when you go into specifically infested areas, but otherwise this game not too scary overall. i put so many hours into this game and still had a few sidequests leftover. i highly recommend!!! and they're making a sequel set in ARKHAM!!!
this is not a direct adaptation of call of cthulhu, it's an independent story much like the sinking city - set on a dreary island off the coast of massachussetts. the atmosphere, gameplay, and overall vibes are great. i really enjoyed the narrative, i thought the story was interesting and mysterious and not boring or repetitive. the story is definitely shorter and more streamlined than the sinking city (no real sidequests:( ). the lovecraft inspired elements were well done and immersive! in particular, the visions and nightmare sequences were really spooky and fun. i LOVE that they included the shambler from the stars in the story!!! in terms of scariness, this game was spooky with a few jump scares, but nothing too crazy. i also enjoyed the semi-open world layouts, particularly the scenes in mental institute. characters are fine (i actually really disliked the main guy. he passes out like 50 times throughout the whole game lsfgjdljkj). the skill tree/character build dynamic and the spot-hidden/puzzle mechanics are a bit underutilized, but there are some stealth mode levels which change things up a bit. the sounds design is also underutilized and could've used more work. the ending was also very satisfying. overall, really classic story elements, i enjoyed it but wish it was longer!
sherlock holmes: the awakened (2023)
made by the same developers as the sinking city, i think this game does a really great job of blending the lovecraft and sherlock holmes worlds together without being derivative of their previous title. like the sinking city, it is not a direct adaptation of a lovecraft story specifically (most closely aligned with call of cthulhu), but deals with an investigation of various disappearances around london linked to a cult. i enjoyed the story, it felt natural and organic to the world of sherlock holmes while being authentic to lovecraft's mythos. part of the story is dealing with sherlock's descent into madness (fun!), but there is no specific sanity mechanic. the investigation mechanics are similar to previous SH games and not too difficult. there is no combat, and it is a deal shorter than the sinking city but has a few sidequests. the semi-open world locations are all gorgeous and perfectly reflect the story and mood. i was really impressed by the new orleans location and the BAYOU BOAT RIDE (a heavy location reference to call of cthulhu). there's a fun mental hospital location location too. there are a few puzzle levels that take place in a dream realm, and these are also very spooky and enjoyable. the scary factor is not bad at all. the soundtrack is very good! also, getting to change the outfits of sherlock and watson is really cute. :) overall, a bit short but very fun and immersive!!!
izzy806
prguitarman
turnnoffyourmind
dailybridgerton
theartofmadeline
titsay
