As an avid fan of horror literature, it was mandatory for me to try out Call of Cthulhu, based upon the stories by Howard Phillips Lovecraft. Even though the game was released on all important platforms with Microsoft Windows, Playstation 4, Xbox One and even more recently Nintendo Switch, it had been underrated, overlooked and forgotten. If you like supernatural stories with gloomy settings and mysterious vibes, you are going to appreciate this game.
The intriguing story revolves around a private detective and war veteran who investigates the mysterious case of the Hawkins family. The father who was a fisherman, the mother who was an artist and their young son perished in a terrible fire on their secluded mansion on an East Coast island. The investigator soon realizes that the fire wasn't an accident but numerous residents on the strange island seem to want to prevent him from uncovering the truth. It turns out that many influential islanders are members of a sinister cult that plans on awakening its deity. Unbeknownst to him, the private investigator is getting baited, manipulated and used for the abominable motivations of this sect and must soon fight for sanity and survival.
The graphics find the right balance between sinister elements and colourful parts. The main settings are often rainy, grey and abandoned but anything related to the mysterious cult is portrayed in mysterious neon green colours. The sounds blend in perfectly as well. As the main character attempts to not lose his sanity, the players can hear mysterious whispers, echoes and distorted voices that enhance the atmosphere. The game has excellent flow and a perfect length around more or less ten hours with fourteen concise chapters that never overstay their welcome.
Call of Cthulhu's atmosphere is supernatural, spooky and gloomy from start to finish and there are a few minor jump scares. However, one could have expected a role-playing survival horror game to be a little bit scarier. This game here is rather weird than frightening which makes for a fresh change but a few more terrifying scenes would have been welcome.
The game doesn't really have any disadvantages but some average elements could have been improved. The soundtrack is certainly atmospheric but could have been more vivid at times and a proper title song as in ''The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan'' would have been an interesting addition. There aren't too many difficult challenges in the game except for the scenes in the asylum and the fight with the creature from the painting. Especially the game's second half could have been more difficult to increase tension. The story is interesting but it would have been even better to see how different decisions impact the ending of the game. Even though the game sometimes indicates that certain decisions are going to have impacts on the story, it often remains unclear what those impacts are precisely.
Still, Call of Cthulhu is a game that is highly recommended to anyone who likes supernatural horror stories, role-play survival games and gothic culture. This game has been overlooked and if you can find it for a fair price one year after its initial release, then Call of Cthulhu certainly unfolds its dark atmosphere splendidly throughout the upcoming black winter days.
