

However, there are some technical issues that the game suffers with, too. As we said previously, the environment is thick with atmosphere, and fans of the genre will find everything they’re looking for while playing Call of Cthulhu. skills are put to the test in an interesting environment and setting. It’s a mild complaint about an otherwise competent game where your detective and P.I. When paired with some frustrating puzzle-design, the unknowable madness of Darkwater may as well have been the act of playing through Call of Cthulhu all along. The game is operating as its prime when you’re walking around as Pierce, but we can’t help but feel that certain missions give you more limited choices in certain scenarios, and the numerous forced stealth sections are a detriment – as they tend to be to any game they’re placed in. The first-person exploration feels solid enough, and throughout Call of Cthulhu, you’re presented with a wealth of choices and options. However, the usage of these is based around percentages which then, in turn, use a behind-the-scenes dice roll, which can feel frustrating at times.

As you dive deeper into Call of Cthulhu, you’re able to level these up and unlock more options within the game. Soon the story beats become rote, and you start to know exactly what the unknowable is.Įxploring as Pierce is great, and you’re able to assign points to traditional tabletop RPG stats such as Psychology, Eloquence, Strength and more. This is no fault of the game itself, but instead, one that arises with the sheer saturation of Lovecraftian horror games that we’ve played in recent years. For those who are familiar with the works of Lovecraft, this setup quickly unravels. It manages to build tension easily, and a few hours into the game, you’re quickly wanting to know more about Darkwater and the monsters just creeping beneath the surface. The atmosphere that this breeds is darkly oppressive, with the game’s dank and dreary palette further serving this gothic tale of cosmic horror. From this initial setup, Call of Cthulhu shows its hand as a game where you have to explore and investigate your surroundings, peering deeper into the mysteries of Darkwater, and talking to its many inhabitants.

At the beginning of the game, Pierce is tasked with finding out exactly what happened in a mysterious fire on the fictitious island of Darkwater. Call of Cthulhu takes place just after World War One, where you take up the role of Edward Pierce, a war veteran who wrestles with nightmares, drinks like someone is going to take it away from him and self-medicates a little too much, too.
