An in-depth look at Lovecraftian Video Games

[@Lh0000]

Lovecraft seems to suffer from Dracula syndrome.. where everyone has heard about it, but very few people have actually read it.

[@ineednochannelyoutube5384]

Because his writing is dull, and the topic unappealing.

[@Assimandeli]

@@ineednochannelyoutube5384 Topic unappealing yet there's a shitload of games that want to be the "proper lovecraftian game"

[@ineednochannelyoutube5384]

@@Assimandeli The genre is called cosmic horror, and the only games I'd call proper cosmic horror are Vultist Simulator and Darkest Dungeon, in that you remain thoroughly powerless through both.

[@Assimandeli]

@@mistrants2745 Cool opinion that you probably read somewhere else. His fiction isn't really influenced by his racial beliefs. Trust me, I read some of his works mainly because I wanted to see how racist it can get. It didn't.

[@Ironwind1972]

You nailed it. Lovecraft is very hard to read.

[@pepper3924]

Isn’t it a little ironic that old Lovecraftian games have a “cult following”. I thought that was kinda funny.

[@kemmli]

Damn... you right

[@outregis]

Most peoples' perception of these games is only skin deep. They see it for what it is, however Lovecraftian minds will look deeper, trying to imagine what is beyond the somewhat basic quality of some of the games. And, in the end, I'm sure all of thosr cult followers are just suffering from a itch to see more. Which is kinda self-prophetic.

[@Kazak29]

it is, in fact, very funny

[@coolgreenbug7551]

We don' take kindly ta strangers playin our game

[@vordat2845]

@@kemmli to the bathroom then you have the cards so we will

[@MrMiddleWick]

So basically the point of this video is that the real Lovecraftian horror game is the friends we made along the way?

[@depressedoptimist6168]

You made me chuckle.

[@calebaustin700]

Maciej P. And bloodborn

[@masterzoroark6664]

.... A dating sim in Insmouth? Sry, your comment made me think about stuff like that, game set on the other side of the veil where humans adjusted to the strangeness aren't common and the imaginative creatures take the wheel

[@yousirjustyeedyourlasthaw4975]

Maciej P. Maybe the true horror was inside us all along.

[@jocosesonata]

**proceeds to have my flesh melted, giving birth to the new meat god**

[@hobgobonline]

I think Bloodborne manages to do the Old Ones very well as cosmic entities. The lovecraftian parts of the story are incredible

[@JCashBeatz]

*Great Ones

[@NeroCM]

@@JCashBeatz*Great old ones

[@NeroCM]

Personally, I think the exact opposite. While the mystery is decent, the fact that humans are seen killing, abusing or stealing the power of cosmic entities makes them pretty poor Eldritch Horrors as far as comparisons to Lovecraft can be made. Chtulu is a primordial god of infinite power that wouldn't even notice if every single nuke on Earth was launched at it. Meanwhile, in Yarhnam, Kos gets killed by an idiot with a cane.

[@Onnisaurus]

@@NeroCM Kos is said to have been murdered by Brygenwerth scholars. I think you may be thinking of the Orphan of Kos who you can in fact kill with a cane.

[@NeroCM]

@@OnnisaurusNo, I was thinking of Ebritas. But Orphan is a good example too. Regardless of who killed what, Great Old Ones being killed them by humans make them pathetic on the scale of Eldritch beings.

[@anthonydelfino6171]

For me, when you look at Lovecraftian horror as less tentacle monsters and more the fear of the unknown and the insanity that comes from knowing too much, then as soon as a game markets itself to you as Lovecraftian, it stops being Lovecraftian in the purest form. Bloodborne is a fantastic example of Lovecraft done right, and I applaud the marketing team for showing such restraint in holding back that entire part of the game from the material sent out to market the game. You never see any of the eldtich style monsters in the early game materials, instead early promotional materials made it look like a steampunk gothic horror game, which was exactly why I bought it, and then was really excited when the other parts started popping up. That said, I do still love me some games that have the men who've turned all... Davey Jones with squid appendages and such, and even then I think that can be a decent jumping off point for new games, but I think the thing that really worked for Lovecraft, even in his day, was that he encouraged his readers to expand on the lore he created in his short stories, in effect, jump starting the type of mythology that normally takes several generations of oral tradition to happen, and writers following in his footsteps shouldn't be afraid to take risks expanding the concepts his works brought about, instead of what they do now which is more or less exactly retell the stories as they were.

[@StarboyXL9]

Underrated comment. Should be pinned.

[@DoctorMagoo111]

Insofar as no game has jumped the hurdle of, "true Lovecraftian fiction," (which I find to be gate-keeping more than it is good criticism with how fervently some beat that drum...), I'd say the top three (in alphabetical order) are Bloodborne, Darkest Dungeon, and Eternal Darkness. They all do a fair chunk of it "right" without egregiously doing a lot "wrong". ED is probably the weakest of these in terms of the, "unknown," factor, although for its time it was a giant.

[@kogn5338]

I think the game sunless sea is a good example, it has no direct connection to lovecraft horror or the mythos, but it is very much a game about exploring the great unknown and the fear of what lurks beyond civilization, plus the dark and dreary theme helps it fit in as a “lovecraftian” game

[@fringehouse]

Dead Space was definitely Lovecraftian, and was extremely creepy because of it. The whole thing with the Obelisk that turns humans crazy and creates disgusting and abstract monsters I feel was a very good idea. Probably was inspired by the Event Horizon movie

[@charlesboudreau5350]

I agree. The biggest problem about labelling a game as lovecraftian is that it immediately introduces expectations and sets you up to expect whatever supernatural. You can't have unfathomable mystery creep up on you because you're actively expecting it.

[@GoodOlChippy1]

I really think “lovecraftian” is a loaded term with the wrong expectations. Tentacles, giant monsters, mythos, etc. I don’t think those are the best things about Lovecrafts work, I think it’s easily the feelings of existential dread, insignificance, and despair that really make his works amazing. This is why I tend to use the other term involving this type of horror: cosmic horror. I think the term’s relatively divorced from the lovecraftian expectations listed above, whilst holding on to the real substance of lovecrafts work: despair, insignificance, etc. I really think that until we can divorce the imagery from the substance, we’re not going to get consistently good media with the best parts of cosmic horror.

[@Khefingt0n]

Have you ever seen the music video for a song called “Dye” by Fantasy. Or maybe it’s the other way around. I’m not super into lovecraftian stuff but based on your description, that video is pure lovecraftian.

[@JarlFrank]

Yeah the problem with Lovecraftian stuff these days is that it tends to bank on mythos creatures we all know and are familiar with. And usually they're depicted in a cool way. Just google Cthulhu and look at the images it brings up, most will depict Cthulhu as a big muscled tentacle monster. That's not going to disgust or disturb you just by looking at it. Lovecraft's own sketch of what Cthulhu is supposed to look like is a lot more unsettling than most modern depictions. And with all the familiarity most fantasy fans have with the mythos, encountering a shoggoth isn't going to make you go "AAAAH WTF IS THAT" but "ah yes, it's a shoggoth, I know these creatures".

[@words_on_a_screen]

The most grotesque creatures, dwell deep in the darkest chasms of the mind.

[@deer4927]

This is why, as a huge fan of Sunless Sea and Fallen London, I really think its inclusion here was somewhat odd. I guess I've always been against comparing the setting to "Lovecraft" for baseline aesthetic similarities. While there may be some inspiration, I have always taken it to be a bit of an insult to the setting's creativity and own forms of horror (The horror in the Fallen London universe almost always being, funnily enough, extremely rooted in humanity- madness from passion, such as with the glorious Sun, to implications such as with selling your crew to the garden on the Isle of Cats) to compare it to Lovecraft's work when, in fact, they are thematically worlds apart. The loaded aspects of the term Lovecraftian not only serve as a barrier to creating new, unique cosmic horror stories, but can obfuscate unique new creations which are completely seperate thematically due to purely aesthetic similarities.

[@mslightbulb]

Thank you.

[@NoName-ym5zj]

My main problem with most of these is that they are "Lovecraftian" only in their aesthetics while most of the games that have the actual themes of Lovecraft's work are often not labeled as such.

[@quarthkankleson2841]

Subnautica is an amazing example of such, immense terror but no weird cosmic horrror shit

[@NoName-ym5zj]

@Tynox 01 another thing about this i hate is assumption of tentacles = cosmic horror. By this logic some hentai could be considered pretty fucking Lovecraftian.

[@alexwhite3959]

Sunless sea is a really good one. The tag line of the game is “Lose your mind. Eat your crew. Die.”

[@tsean1106]

115117legit that sound truly terrifying

[@justynpryce]

I think honestly that Hellblade is a pure lovecraftian or rather a cosmic horror game. Personally I see mental illness as the greatest cosmic horror, and the fear that comes as a result is displayed so well in the game.

[@LessSuspect]

The best part about Bloodborne and From games in general is that they tell story through gameplay. The game never quite tells you that you are a bloodthirsty monster, but it encourages acting like one. So when one of the beasts tells you that hunters are no different from beasts, the more self aware player might agree.

[@TheDandyMan1550]

Only took one scroll down and I already found someone taking about Bloodborne😂

[@thatwaygaming8679]

That moment after you kill Ebrietas, an optional boss, and you realize that YOU struck first.

[@kozukitonio740]

djura after befriending him talks to us about that the beasts are human too. obvious but we don’t realize what we are doing until that

[@toolatetothestory]

In our defense, all the previous monsters we have seen tried to kill us. If you have never seen one that wouldn't kill you on sight, why think this random one is different @@kozukitonio740

[@Sezenian]

@@TheDandyMan1550 Deservingly so

[@jake4524]

"A gunfight with Dagon" is the funniest thing I have ever heard

[@Doomseer]

Hahaha I'm pretty sure Dagon would face palm so DAMN hard if some little ant had a temper tantrum and started shooting at him lolXD!.. 😂

[@ggdynfytugfy6892]

If that fishy fucker tries to mess with me, the only thing he'll be "communing with" is my 9mm

[@lilacpen8678]

"After all these years, Dagon has a GUN."

[@thoughtengine]

Could be worse - it could be a swordfight with an elf (Dagon was a monster fully statted out in 4th ed D&D, given that half the creatures in the monster manuals were ripped off from later Mythos beings).

[@Farseer9247]

I was playing this game back in the days... but never got to this part... i saw it for the first time in this video and i bursted out with laugh

[@UpstageBeast]

"What's the point of putting scary lovecraftian creatures in your game if everyone is just gonna act like it's no big deal ?" That sounds like comedy gold actually lmao.

[@NGRevenant]

I feel like you could write a sitcom with the elder ones

[@lychielavellan941]

Lol it is. I have sinking city and some of the side quests are essentially “yeah I need you to do a thing to keep the pests away” and then you proceed to get rekt by a big gross monster with tatas

[@andrewskaggs8118]

It’s kind of like Welcome to Night Vale? Like “there is a large, ominous darkness, the depths of which are unknown to you and I, looming over the city. Looking at this immense void instills dread, and now: The Weather”

[@YuyuHakurei]

That humor is in starcraft. Joe it looks like you hit a zergling again. Lol just treating planet devouring insectoid races as if they are the same as deer.

[@louvi5893]

Sucker for love

[@MisterMoray]

"There's a lot to discover in Bloodborne's lore, but you'll never get a complete picture." There it is.

[@johndee2990]

Bloodborne has been analyzed to shit by every KZbinr and their dog.. I don't even have a PlayStation and I know more about that shitty exclusives lore than I do about Demon Souls which I actually fucking played. Yeah I imagine it's as fun a the rest of the DS franchise but in all honesty, the lore and mythos behind Bluuuudbrooowwwn is lacking in scope and depth to its predecessors and seems obscure for the sake of lazy writing.. kinda like "the monster so horrible I shall not describe it" or at least it's doing it just for the sake of doing that.. Really, people put to much meaning to overlooked details in the game and happy coincidence on the creators part.

[@folorbipple624]

John Dee try playing a game before passing such harsh criticism

[@MisterMoray]

@@johndee2990 "the monster so horrible I shall not describe it" You've never even read any Lovecraft, have you?

[@PurpleCocaine91]

@@johndee2990 Bloodborne is quite a masterpiece. I'm sorry that it may have been soured for you, but it's completely ingenious. Also, one core mechanic is the insight. You collect enough insight, you begin to see the city differently. The eldrich beings that were invisible, become visible. It even has the negative effect of causing frenzy (madness). I feel though that you might have been interested at some point, because you said that you watched enough of the videos 😉 Annnnddddd a lot of the story is in item descriptions, notes and dialogue. Nothing lazy about it my friend.

[@johndee2990]

Yes, just like the Dank Souls games I love and still play.. because both the game is awesome to experiment with new builds and I have found some interesting playstyles with self imposed level Capps. I was interested in Bluuuudbrooowwwn even though it was an exclusive until I played it with one of those Xbox to PS controllers.. it feels like it's the Death Stranding to Dark Souls' Silent Hill. Dank Souls has a better subtle cosmic horror than the overt, in your face approach Bluuuudbrooowwwn takes.. Just the time dilation itself reminded me of The Colour out of Space. The Twisted Dragon forms are the Lovecraftian nature showing through.. tentacles and multiple eyes do not Lovecraftian horror make. Oh, and to answer the garbage worm snake. I read the Dunwich Horror in grade school, the Mountains of Madness in grade 8, and the King in Yellow later in highschool. Imposters like to give vague descriptions of the monsters themselves because they don't understand that the horror comes not from the creatures themselves but their blatant disregard for the rules of our reality.. Truly good cosmic horror plays on the Fridge Horror Trope and could make a strange smudge on a window turn out to be the thing keeping you up at night.. Garbage Snek probably thinks the SCP Foundation is top tier writing with its most notable entry being "da bestestest lizard evar" Learn to read between lines rather than what's shovelled in front of you like some kind of coal oven that runs on young adult novels. And that's about all I am interested in clarifying, I don't really care if you like it, there are people who love "My Immortal" for all sorts of reasons (personally, I did find Internet Historian's reading quite comical) But that in no means makes it a good representation of the Harry Pooper universe. Don't take offense, these are just words on the internet that 99% won't even glance twice at.

[@James-bw4np]

Seems like the majority of people think Lovecraftian= crazy creature feature/ monster horror. Instead of the slow realization that you are a piece of dust in a universe with much bigger fish where their mere presence can rip your sanity to shreads.

[@vicentegeonix]

Jesus lovecraft fanboys sure as hell are kinda annoying.

[@BezKajdan]

@@vicentegeonix It's nothing to do with fanboying, people are simply doing the setting wrong.

[@vicentegeonix]

@@BezKajdan yeah it has alot to do with fanboys, nothing pleases them.

[@BezKajdan]

@@vicentegeonix well how about doing things right

[@vicentegeonix]

@@BezKajdan well how about not being a bitch?

[@Tiltigo]

You actually got me. When you showed the list of games you would talk about, and Bloodborne wasn't there, I genuinely thought you wouldn't talk about it.

[@officialprincelouie]

Same...

[@braden_m]

I was pissed lol

[@Don-ds3dy]

I'm worried quite a few people may have left the video after not seeing it on the list.

[@milesbaker1337]

How is bloodborne lovecraftian?

[@dairyisfine]

@@milesbaker1337 How is it not?

[@slicedmilk7858]

Let's talk about the most horrific part in this video. The fact he actually went through all the chalice dungeons to fight the Pthumerian Queen.

[@KRIMZONMEKANISM]

This.

[@kuronaialtani]

I still haven’t cleared the Defiled Pthumeru Chalice to this day But I’ll always remind myself I beat Loran Camerabeast on my first try, so silver lining

[@Butwhy23]

@@kuronaialtani best strategy to defeat the darkbeast is to always go for single hits(at the most two). This is because of his AoE attack that he always goes to if he feels you are doing decent damage and will definitely one shot you. Get enough one hits in and you'll stagger him. Rinse and repeat. And if you are an arcane build, he basically becomes a joke.

[@kuronaialtani]

Athul Thomas or just happen to have a holy moonlight sword that can repeatedly stagger him in 1-3 hits with 850 ar Was quite fun

[@Butwhy23]

@@kuronaialtani lol....know exactly what you are talking about. That was how I took him out in my last run. The first phase becomes just a matter of avoiding the AoE and then for the second phase I didn't even do anything. Took some blood bullets and did a couple of call beyonds and some blacksky eyes ...prey slaughtered

[@enricocasin]

Surprised nobody has mentioned Iron Lung. In my opinion, it has the best application of the Lovecraft style of writing in gaming, where the whole setting is setup in such a way as to make you feel absolutely insignificant, performing a useless mission as a convict, you are so far away from understanding what is happening on that universe and getting any answers about anything, it all makes you feel so small. Even if the game is very simple it makes you feel like there is this huge cosmic story going on.

[@InternetHydra]

Agreed, though I do think the background setting and what happened in it is much TOO big for such a bite-sized game with no followup (yet).

[@kudosbudo]

aye iron lung was actually scary.

[@tjkiwi3252]

This is because Iron lung came out years after this video.

[@ColdHawk]

Kafka crossed with Lovecraft then?

[@GreatOldOneCthulhu]

@@InternetHydra The movie's coming out eventually, so we'll see what that has in store

[@Danothyus1]

i still remember to this day the moment i was playing bloodborne and thought "man, for a game about werewolves and blood there's a lot of...." and then it clicked to me "oh god, this is a chtullhu game".

[@NotDalesDeadBug]

It clicked for me when I grabbed the armor near the beginning and got grabbed by the amygdala was like damn ok this gonna be interesting

[@jonahmarlow3991]

Hank of The hill I had no idea why that was happening till I got my insight up

[@Barrontrump33365]

i realized it was lovecraftrian when i fought the one reborn specifically when i saw the opening cutscene

[@salmonellasam2755]

Bloodborne is one of the best concepts for an eldritch horror game

[@salmonellasam2755]

Dare I say imo the best

[@iergosum]

Not that Id describe these as “Lovecraftian” per se, but the Silent Hill franchise really does well with the fear of the unknown aspect.

[@SamSphinx]

With the idea of alternate dimensions and ancient gods, I think it falls within the psychological aspect of Cosmic Horror quite well

[@SkullTraill]

He does mention Silent Hill. But so far no mention of Bloodborne. Which is a great take on eldritch horror.

[@iergosum]

SkullTraill hang in there!

[@SamSphinx]

@@SkullTraill Funny how many comments take place before the video is over, eh?

[@filthyshrek101bc2]

Kirby

[@runswithbears3517]

In my opinion, Lovecraft is more mystery than horror, and that's where many games fall flat.

[@A_Dylan_of_No_Renown]

I totally agree. My sense is that many ‘Lovecraftian’ games are too in-love with the monsters. They’re eager to show too much of the mosters too quickly and explain them. Their conception of ‘Lovecraftian’ is reduced to shallow aesthetic. Mystery along with existentialism is definitely an important quality of what would make something truly Lovecraftian. Lovecraft himself didn’t come out of nowhere. He is very much continuing the Gothic mold established by writers like Poe. It’s important then that a Lovecraftian game establish that the true horror of the monster is the incomprehensibility of the thing-and that this incomprehensibility is at odds with our existence.

[@ВладимирКоролёв-х1м]

Mystery has even more potential in games.

[@Grandmastergav86]

Agreed.

[@cmillerpa33]

Dark souls. Which is the good ending?

[@tarettime9392]

It's the horror of mystery

[@mikeosredkar8804]

I really appreciate the nod to SOMA. It's definitely not Lovecraftian in the sense that that tag gets used too often, but the existential dread and feeling of insignificance is the most Lovecraftian thing I have maybe ever experienced in a video game.

[@WolfHreda]

The narrator they hired for Darkest Dungeon narrates a LOT of Lovecraft and other stories. He's very good at it, and it was one of his readings that inspired one of the developers to want to hire him for the job.

[@michimatsch5862]

Actually only for the trailer at first but they realized they had to get him for the whole thing.

[@DrRaadM]

Good old Wayne June

[@CorwinTheOneAndOnly]

I feel like Lovecraft's ideas work perfectly in a situation where *you do not know you are being subjected to Lovecraft's ideas.* As in, if you buy a game called fricking "Call of Cthulhu", how are you ever going to be surprised, fascinated, or terrified by literally anything in that game? Just off of the title alone, you know absolutely everything coming your way. Quite the opposite of "the fear of the unknown". For Lovecraft's ideas to work in an engaging form of media, you have to hide it from your audience as much as possible so that they can slowly and dreadfully realize what's going on. Bonus points for making them second guess their own observations for as often as possible, simulating the descent into madness. An easy source for this would be Bloodborne, of course, where the lovecraftian second half was so well hidden, both in real life and in game, that people didn't realize it wasn't just a victorian werewolf story until they got to that part themselves, and while not as terrifying as it could have been due to it being an action game where you play a superhuman that can kill said horrors, it still clearly resonated with people as a "holy crap, things are spiraling out of control and I don't know what Im supposed to do" moment, which is the whole point of Lovecraft. For anyone here in chat wishing to create their own lovecraftian media, be it game or film, I highly encourage you to hide it. Title your work "Camping Simulator" or "Woodside Roadtrip" or something, and be as unassuming as possible. True, your marketing won't net you the lovecraft-junky audience *immediately,* however I promise you the game will market itself to that audience, if done well enough. That is the beauty of a genre niche like this. Do not be afraid to hide it from your audience, because they will thank you for it.

[@PhiltheMean]

Great comment! I've never been more satisfied with a Livecraftian twist than with Bloodborne. I think games that embrace lean more towards cosmic horror than Lovecraft are often more successful because in original works it's much harder to hide your intentions if you use your own created cosmic horror experience.

[@dellboi1984]

sadly in todays environment lovecraftian is kinda dead on arrival, with review and spoiler talk rife, what is unknown on release would be lauded and hence known after less than a week so a late audience would thenknow...the unknown, sad i know, but true.

[@llewliet4021]

Maybe that HP Lovecraft dude wasn't that amazing if you have to hide the fact that the game you're making is inspired by it in order for the players to experience his visuals and ideas. In general, it's quite stupid to assume that you won't be surprised, fascinated or terrified only because you as a player try to predict what is going to happen. At this point, it's like saying good horror can only work if the title makes the game/movie/:etc... seem like a happy-going experience.

[@CorwinTheOneAndOnly]

@@llewliet4021 Missing the point entirely. Lovecraftian horror works off of the whole "fear of the unknown/unknowable" thing. It literally works better the less the player/viewer/reader knows. If someone knows what "Cthulhu" even is before reading call of cthulhu, then yes, it will have less impact.

[@llewliet4021]

​@@CorwinTheOneAndOnly You can still enjoy the experience even by knowing there will be Cthulhu because unless you've been spoiled completely, you won't know how the lovecraftian elements will be used to enhance the horror experience: there are many many ways to tell a compelling story and make a horror game.

[@DATskorge]

the issue with lovecraft is that people see "lovecraft" as "tentacle monsters" rather than existentiak dread, shit that is scary because it is hard to understand, and the feeling that defeat by ultimate encroaching evil X has already occurred. Like having a conversation and realising only at the end that you are in fact inside a migo brain case the whole time. Also neverknowsbest why didnt you cover Hatoful Boyfriend?

[@PineappleStickers]

I find the real issue with Lovecraft "Horror" is exactly what you stated, in that "Defeat...has already occured". Theres no stakes or tension. If this unfathomable, all powerful entity we can't even perceive (something i consider lazy writing) could wipe us out whenever it should so choose... whats to fear? Nothing can be done and at that point theres only acceptance.

[@foxsotired3038]

@@PineappleStickers Cosmic horror isn't really supposed to have any stakes or create tension. It's just supposed to instill existential dread. That's why it's so much easier to write short storys. Also, I am unsure what you mean by acceptance. Our inevitable death at the hands of disease or illness does not usually instill a sense of acceptance in most people but rather dread, which is kinda the point of horror, no?

[@foxsotired3038]

@@PineappleStickers also describing the indescribable would defeat the point of the fear of the unknown. There are some instances where lovecraft describes his monsters and he sometimes half describes his monster which, I will agree, is either a case of lazy writing or a mistake since it doesn't get the whole fear of the unknown thing or the visceral horror of a well described, grotesque monster.

[@swine13]

Its that feeling when you pull back the cot blanket to expose a glazed ham just as the oven timer goes off..

[@leomadero562]

The real issue is that people either don't know or can't express true horror in a game. Have you ever seen a truly scary drawing on the internet after the age of 12? Every slender man pic/drawing filled me with dread as a kid but now the can make me laugh with how stupid even the concept is.

[@Angelfyre.]

When I do a DND campaign using Sanity I never let my players know about it. When they go mad it’s always hidden from the players while using it to a narrative advantage. The player that’s mad may see an NPC as a monster or caught daydreaming in a nightmare

[@windigo1592]

genius

[@impishlyit9780]

I independently came up with the idea to do the same thing, using Tharizdun as a primary force. I actually came up with specific rules for modifying and utilizing sanity, including stipulating group sanity checks! Unfortunately, the idea was scrapped because my campaign fell through literally three times, but such is the nature of life.

[@noahsains6227]

Bad mechanic, nothing annoys me more in dnd than unexplained homebrew bullshit.

[@kittyspartan143]

This sounds like you don't trust your players to roleplay, so you have to trick them into it. I'd be super disappointed to find out my GM thought that of me.

[@Sol-Orion]

I like this idea- I think that *not knowing* my sanity was slipping would really add to the fear factor. I've never really run a campaign where sanity would have been a significant aspect, but I'll keep this idea in mind for the future.

[@ywnrnf6028]

I feel like he's always so close to metioning Bloodborne when talking about invisible sanity meters its driving me mad.

[@captainbeefster]

I feel like Bloodborne did it pretty well though, because when frenzy builds up all the way, you just die immediately, which gives it the weight that it should. But you kinda need to let the player know about something like that, so you know when to avoid it.

[@lexiwexiwoo]

Would you say it's over pushing your sanity meter? 🤔

[@HawthornMusic]

[@michaelweiske702]

@@captainbeefster Frenzy doesn't instantly kill you, it just does a ton of damage, which means you'll _almost_ surely die, but blood vials still help!

[@yoel9396]

80 goddamn percent of your max hp. I hate frenzy. It makes sense thematically. It's cool. Still hate it

[@srdf0]

"What would be the budget for a Lovecraftian film?" H.P. Lovecraft: "The frontier of the unknown can never do more than scratch the surface of eternally unknowable infinity." "Okay, so a lot?" H.P. Lovecraft: "What a man does for pay is of little significance. What he is, as a sensitive instrument responsive to the world’s beauty, is everything." "Can you please leave?"

[@liammeharry]

"Have you seen my cat?" "PLEASE LEAVE!"

[@toprak3479]

@@oilcrab Wasn't his first story The Tomb? I haven't read that story with the beast in the cave.

[@HighFlyActionGuy]

"No N words" -Howard "Phillips" Lovecraft.

[@elitaerms]

no he would just be racist

[@srdf0]

@@elitaerms And I would put that on youtube? I'm aware he was.

[@CreedManiac99]

The paintings in the Dishonored games were some truly unsettling stuff and they added a sense of uneasiness that felt a level above the general theme. Now that I think about it those games had the outsider as a "dark" (more like gray) god created via a cultist ritual and the sea setting... hmmm...

[@willtowers1532]

it feels like it does everything right in the set up of an eldritch twist, but doesn't do it. a shame, really, other games have the opposite problem of going into the eldritch too soon without a good set up

[@drakevanya2886]

It’s not often called a Lovecraftian horror game, but Night in the Woods has some of the most effective uses of lovecraftian horror I’ve ever seen and it mixes it with some genuine emotional heart which these stories rarely do

[@superb_ray_of_light]

This video made me realize Destiny is somewhat the opposite of a lovecraftian horror game. Its worldbuilding flirts with lovecraftian and metaphysical concepts. A lot of the enemies (especially the raid bosses) have deep lore, an unknown agenda, incomprehensible cosmic power, and all are compelled by an unknown force behind the scenes... And then you beat the shit out of them with guns and space magic

[@StarboyXL9]

In Destiny humanity has become just another cosmic horror. That was the one thing that Lovecraft never touched on, the possibility that the humanity of the future might become indistinguishable from the monsters that populated the universe.

[@トーキ-g8v]

@mr.wendigo I’ve been thinking of creating a story where the power system is just human weaponry so far in the future the present day humanity just can’t understand even a single part of it, weaponry melding itself with its user turning gallant knights into abominations of machinery, where the people consumed by the weaponry becomes “beyond” human. A future of humanity where we become so advanced, even to other species, we become the monsters. With everyone becoming ridiculously altruistic, to an almost suicidal degree. They aren’t suicidal though, and they’re fine with the horrifying mish mash of machinery and flesh contorted. And the reason said weaponry is in the past is that one of humanities future enemies decided that the fastest way to defeat humanity is to kill them in the past.

[@fort809]

@fucku weebsnfurries someone hasn’t touched destiny in multiple years if they think it has bad writing or a bad story

[@The_Boykisser]

Ghaul when he sees my Code Duello rocket launcher with Lasting Impression (Chuckles) I'm in danger

[@shiftyjim4138]

@@トーキ-g8v warhammer 40k anyone?

[@clemdelaclem8864]

I can't understate irony of the work of lovecraft themself becoming so familiar through tropes and regurgitation that invoking them inherently removes the fear of the unknown that was intended

[@anenemystand5582]

Lovecraft's actual writing kind of isnt great. It's pretty easy to see that most of his "fear of the unkown" are actually racist or paranoid rantings. Like that time he wrote a story about the potential horrors of air conditioning. I'm more interested in the man for what came after him

[@evanharrison4054]

@@anenemystand5582 Wow, have you read any actual things Lovecraft wrote, or just the wiki page and selected quotes? First of all, Lovecraft's views at the time were considered normal. Nothing he said about "racism" was anything groundbreaking. It was just that he was one of the few people to care to write about it. Before "the long march through the institutions", it wasn't that uncommon for people of european descent to distrust or even dislike people of other races and religions. In fact, that sort of thing only became de facto illegal during the tail-end of the 90s. With your logic, pretty much everyone who was born before the millennium is an illiberal piece of racist garbage. Secondly, to assume that his fear of the unknown came from racist paranoia, is to reveal that you know nothing of the man. From his early childhood, he was plagued by visions. He actually saw things in his mind that inspired him to write these stories. It's not only reductionist, it's completely asinine. By this logic, you could also say he wrote his stories as a reflection of his disinterest in sexuality. Let's just assume that all his symbolism are phallic and vaginal in nature, and that everything anyone ever writes in the world is about fucking. Let's be Freud. You seem to have a level of understanding about Howard Phillips Lovecraft that most university professors possess. Abso-fucking-lutely nothing except for a bunch of progressive-liberal critiques written by people who have also never read him. I will concede the point that he wasn't the best writer to ever have existed, but to deny his greatness is criminal. He felt the darkness in this world, and he did his best to put it on paper. He was inspired, motivated and unrelenting in the face of hardships. He did more and he did better than most writers who came after, or even before him. FYI, this insistence on linking everything back to the white man's racism is very tiresome. Contrary to popular opinion, you can be a racist, and not just be a racist and nothing else. Unlike in the pictures, a person who dislikes or distrusts foreigners, coloreds, jews, muslims, gypsies or people of non-saxonian descent...etc. might still be a strong, intelligent and good person. Like I say "everyone hates someone." Go read some Lovecraft, and not just the hits. Keep reading him until you realize that the thing he feared the most was this world. All the suffering, all the death and, most importantly, all the pretense. Humans put a lot of effort into trying to make their lives seem like paradise, when in truth, it's usually just a thin piece of film, floating on top of an endless cesspit. I believe that what he truly feared was death. The ultimate unknown. He kept thinking about it all his life, while constantly trying and failing to understand why people strive so hard to pretend it's not looming over them. That, and the ludicrous nature of life and existence in this world. You think about it, and it drives you mad. That was HP Lovecraft.

[@matchington1148]

Evan Harrison very well written sir. My compliments.

[@anenemystand5582]

@@evanharrison4054 I'm going to stop you immediately. Even for the time lovecraft was not normal. Practically everything set him off. For fucksake he named his car nword man. And yes I have read his works

[@cra8zykidg]

@@evanharrison4054 the claim that HP Lovecraft views were normal for his time isn't true because even his friends had commented on his racism and even he himself called himself an ass in retrospect when he got older. Yes he had nightmares as a child that greatly influenced his work his racial prejudice influenced his work none the less look at Shadow over innsmouth for example as good as the story is the innsmouth people represent his fear of interracial breeding. He's one of my favorite authors but come on you can't deny that even for his time is he was a racist

[@an8strengthkobold360]

Basically stop making "lovecraftian" shooters. That's just a shooter with tentacles and fish men.

[@johndee2990]

No, Lovecraftian shooters should feel like COD Zombies in the respect that it doesn't matter how many you take down, how tactical and good a player you are.. inevitably you will slip up for but a second and will surely fail.. But you are going to spit in the face of eternity goddamit!

[@an8strengthkobold360]

@@johndee2990 as long as you aren't f*cking killing gods with guns, alright then.

[@johndee2990]

How about a strategy game where the ultimate goal is to make an alien (most likely Yithian) superweapon that turns out to only be a portal gun that postponed the Gods emergence until a Higher race of beings (again, probably Yithian) can actually banish or unmake the God. Even in a humourous way, like "We Must Go Deeper"

[@morganthemorgan688]

@@johndee2990 Shadow of evil was a pretty good and kinda Lovecraftian, and that's a zombies map so

[@OrbitalShell]

It could be something like Alien Isolation where you're in constant fear of being found and killed. That game does dread well and you feel powerless in it regardless your weapons.

[@Rudol_Zeppili]

I somehow convinced myself unintentionally, that this video was 12 minutes long, and that is was six minutes through it. I am 31 minutes through it and the video is one hour long, now that is truly lovecraftian.

[@ThePhantomSephiroth]

To think the guy died thinking his work would be forgotten........

[@Potatotenkopf]

*Sad Van Gough Noises I may or may not have misspelled Gough

[@nanObytez-kb5ru]

@@Potatotenkopf Van Goth, clearly.

[@user-vk3uz3ml6t]

@@Potatotenkopf Van Gogh figure

[@no1important777]

or forgetting what he named his cat. or that he just doesnt understand technology...

[@TheDevinMT]

@@no1important777 check out the comic Providence, I gotta say it recontextualizes a whole lot of the more problematic elements of Lovecraft into something with a much better take away

[@DomiBorealis]

"Why does the screen get blurry when the insanity is high?" When having a panic or anxiety attack your vision may get blurry or you lose focus as you dissociate the world around you. So it’s actually somewhat accurate to real life. Although as a gameplay mechanic, I get that it can get annoying to have tunnel vision often.

[@johndee2990]

He shit the bed on Dark Corners of the Earth. The blurred vision is just to show you are actively losing sanity through stress at the moment.. the sanity meter is hidden and permanent. The only way to tell you are insane or afraid is through subtle effects like resistant controls (mimics fearful hesitation) whispering to oneself and auditory/visual hallucinations that may or may not be external forces trying to break your mind.. Then there is what he failed to mention about what happens if you are unlucky enough to be halfway through a level and lose all sanity.. you usually kill yourself through the most available means. (Gun, knife, smash head in wall) These happen almost at random and take you off guard as a player.. reloading the last save and expecting to die at the same spot if you are trying to repeat such doesn't work.. you have zero sanity left, you are just going to kill yourself at a new horror encountered when again, you least expect it. (Eg, after the next in game cutscenes or upon seeing the elder symbol used to save the game)

[@horusreloaded6387]

@@johndee2990 so there is a sanity meter? For sure?

[@horusreloaded6387]

Also you may get sweaty under stress and sweat fucks your eyes when find its way in there

[@Hennesg]

but woud it not be better if you just try to induce anxiety in the player so you dont have to replicate an effect that would be happening anyways if you were successful?

[@alexlol2678]

@@johndee2990 I have frequent anxiety attacks and have dissociative episodes often enough to be somewhat debilitating, and I can confirm that your vision can blur or distort during moments of extreme stress :(

[@Phantosification]

The whole "you're USED to this?!" angle could work if the player character starts off wondering what's wrong with the town, but then slowly they too become used to it. And reflects on that later. As if the town is influencing/corrupting you.

[@DukeOnkled]

I rather like the idea of mundane horror. Terrifying abominations and atrocities that become so commonplace that no one pays it any mind.

[@Phantosification]

@@DukeOnkled It works if there's a character that acknowledges how fucked up things are, even if no one else notices or cares. An audience surrogate helps a lot in those kinds of stories.

[@pinksucccubus]

Alex Hill in some, the audience tends to be the player/viewer of the content (without a surrogate), which can work pretty well if done right, I’ve experienced those types a lot in comedy-horror styles, and they’re usually done fairly well.

[@JohnSmith-op3qj]

In that sense, you might be talking about Far Cry 3 and Jason Brody getting used to how brutal the island people are.

[@Naniru87]

This does happen in sinking city. "Monkey man" and the "fish people" can be asked about their um...uniqueness. It is also heavily stressed that the city has always been peculiar and had always that otherworldly vibe to it. People just lived with it because they were raised with this. It is also said that the city isn't getting any help from the outside and is pretty hard to reach after the flooding starts and the weird monsters appear. Sections of the city are walled off *because* of the monster that started appearing. This game is not perfect by far esp. gameplay- wise but it had explanations for it's weirdness and the city felt real to me. In a strange kind of way. I also loved that one of the ending was basically the "fuck this" option were you just leave and let the world drown because you can't be bothered to take care of it.

[@djbeema]

This was legit one of the best descriptions of Bloodborne and why it's a true masterpiece of cosmic horror.

[@mechagurd]

"As there are no other Lovecraftian videogame to talk about, I guess my job here is done" Me: ARE YOU SERIOUS *Bloodborne spawn sound plays* Me: ..........You got me you, smooth sonuvabeesh

[@dadrising6464]

Exactly my thought.. one of the few that realy got the athmosphere right..

[@hobbesgoblin2691]

Even fallout has some truly good Lovecraft parts.

[@dadrising6464]

@@hobbesgoblin2691 True.. athmospere/envieoments.. the ONE THING bethesda's good at. Esoeacally far harbor was glorious

[@hobbesgoblin2691]

@@dadrising6464 dunwich was fucking horrific, and then there's point lookout

[@knightshade2654]

The best Lovecraftian games are the ones that don't slap the Lovecraft name on themselves.

[@MegaDoom89]

Take a shot every time he says "lovecraftian" if you wanna see Cthulhu within your deep slumber.

[@bdl2157]

Use Vodquila to meet your ancestors ;)

[@kriscollins2437]

has to be kraken

[@chesterstevens8870]

@@kriscollins2437 A man of culture and refinement, I see.

[@nicolasramos2170]

if you take a shot every time he says lovecraftian you won't even need to be asleep to see Cthulu

[@nicolasramos2170]

@T Finnster true

[@alexbenavidez4500]

God, I was chanting Bloodborne in my head for so long of this video. I was truly waiting for it to come up. It's such a beautiful game that genuinely made me realise that I really loved the genre that we call "Lovecraftian Horror" It's hard to describe the game to me as anything other than beautiful, and it really exemplifies not just the aesthetic, but the unnatainable appeal of the unknowable and the fact that I'm addicted to stories that dabble in it

[@petersanten3294]

While I know it most certainly isn't the Lovecraftian game most people are looking for, hilariously I found "Sucker for Love" and incredible depiction of eldritch lore and feeling. While ate first glance its nothing more than a "You can date Cthulhu itself" kinda game, and continues to be so, it is entirely aware of what it is and give you the true feeling of being at the utter mercy of these unfathomable beings hands. Its comedy gold at some points, and honestly just drives home its style with incredible attention to detail and good voice acting. Yeah, its not the horror-RPG insanity filled game most of us want, but its a good laugh and a fun spin on the usually visceral and horror filled genre.

[@didack1419]

That sounds so random, I love it

[@milktestingwoman]

I think there's a genre called Surprising Lovecraft, which are games that dont focus on the dark and dreary aesthetic of lovecraft but still incorporate its themes of cosmic ignorance and insignificance. Outer wilds is one of those games, making you feel absolutely alone while still maintaining a mostly bright and well-lit design. except for echoes of the eye, of course

[@thomaspiskorski7324]

I love outer wilds so much .

[@brickmastertube]

Outer Wilds is surprisingly terrifying.

[@marioxzzz]

Not a game but, Dungeon Meshi or Delicious Dungeon, a manga soon to have an anime, starts as a fun adventure (in a very rpg like fantasy world) about having to cook monsters (with pretty drawings and all), and it ends up having one of the best lovecraftian villains out of nowhere.

[@pushbutton8894]

Lovecraft+videogame=returnal

[@jack0holic677]

Bloodborne is a good example of surprising Lovecraft, the game starts out as a beast hunt at the start of the night that happens every night. Then you find increasingly disturbing and confusing strange things, leaning more into the Lovecraftian, it’s not a easy game but it’s such a good lovecraft game

[@billlyons7024]

Darkwood is one of the most tense games i have ever played. After an extended playtime I usually have to do something to mellow out.

[@magicman3163]

Bill Lyons it’s based on Fairy tales tho

[@asdfgidji879]

you dont have to hide it dude you can say "smoke weed" on the internet no one really cares

[@es_three232]

You smoking weed aint ya

[@ZaLewdWarudo]

@Tom Phelps yeah exactly. People who don't get this are the exact reason so many failed attempts at doing Lovecraftian horror constantly happen.

[@purvdragon-sensei]

Bill Lyons I play like one hour or one night max each time, it’s just too fucking tense man, I was literally shaking with my controlling during the “wedding”. Then the music ramped up and I am panicking trying to survive and GTFO.

[@ismellstatic]

I definitely feel that the deeper into Darkwood you go, the more the lovecraftian themes unfold. Entities so large and incomprehensible that explanation is hopeless and even the incomprehensible form beheld is only the surface of something much deeper as well as the fragile nature of human perception are both concepts that the later events of the game really dig into in ways that I think vastly surpass other games directly adapting or trying to rehash the themes and concepts of lovecraft’s stories.

[@zackv4850]

One of the scariest parts of dark wood for me was when it broke the rules on me. You see the environment when you look away but not the living things. There’s that one part where when you look away you see a happy built house. You look back and you see silvery white growths. Freaked me right out because this was after roughly 48 hours time getting use to those rules.

[@blimp..]

i am gonna check it out i had no idea this exists

[@AlexDeath15]

Exactly! Dark Wood goes full Lovecraftian later in the game, but its difficult to tell it without spoilers. I actually find the story absolutely horrifying with the heart-wrenching ending just making me paranoid. I think this is the main point of anything lovecraftian: making characters twisted, corrupted, doubting reality and their sanity and making the reader paranoid.

[@haleffect9011]

Forgot Dead-Space The themes that develop are definitely lovecraftian in scope, if not necessarily completely in execution

[@schibleh531]

Did you see the ending of the 3rd game's dlc? Dead Space's main antagonists "the brethren moons" are pure Lovecraftian horror. For me DS 2 was the best because you had fun shooting with the smaller creatures but you get the feeling that your action are futile because of what you're up against. The shooting feels like you're merely delaying your death rather than a power fantasy.

[@AdamWhistle1]

Dead Space had many faults, but the story did actually hit on some aspects of Lovecraftian horror. Of course, it failed at being a horror game because it had to be a shooter and you cannot have a shooter with a story where you fail.

[@Hunterfalke]

@@schibleh531 Dead Space 1 and 2 are some of my favourite games. The first was way creepier, the second more action based, but still had some horror elements. Reminded me a lot of Alien 1 and 2, which worked in a similar way. And to be completely honest, i fuckin loved the end of the second one. Isaac giving up and the credits rolling in was an amazing red hering, and even if the escape from death isn't usually part of Lovecraftian horror, it worked so well here. Live to fight another day. Even if the other day turns out to be a shitty sequel shooter.

[@kvarley87]

Yes! Thats the first game I think of that does Lovecraftian themes well. I'm only talking about the first one thought, I never played the other two.

[@schibleh531]

@@Hunterfalke EA gotta EA. The poor guys at Visceral were still trying to make a good game though, the story was good if you think about it but the gameplay was so not dead space that I keep forgetting that.

[@sub-jec-tiv]

Really recommend SOMA for people into Lovecraft, and sci-fi. It’s not Lovecraftian specifically, but absolutely it is cosmic horror, has vibes like Lovecraftian horror, and it’s also unique in the way it does that. It’s one of my favorite games of all time. Made by the same people as Ammesia, much later in their career. It’s masterful and I hugely recommend it to any Lovecraft fan. EDIT: Oh good you mentioned it!

[@anonfinally1692]

The angler fish still haunts me

[@benjaminaltube8731]

Bloodborne has a super intense lovecraftian influence.

[@masoncalvert7823]

Bloodborne was the first that came to mind

[@kwamemwangs2173]

bloodborne is just unneccesarily scary. hypogean gaol petrified me

[@theftparrot5750]

Well bloodborne takes design cues from lovecraft but it is so thematically different calling it super intense is a disservice to both IPs

[@NATIVE1179]

@@kwamemwangs2173 I was gonna disagree with you, but then I remembered my first playthrough, hell yeah that game is scary, upper cathedral ward with the chandelier wolves, that part got me lol

[@sandmaneyes]

Bloodborne has a huge injection of Gothic horror and other pulp sources (Howard).

[@jakeohalloran952]

There may not be many games for us, but we have Bloodborne and I'm more than happy with that gem

[@edgarduartegutierrez9860]

I swear Bloodborne feels like some unreachable dream of a game that one could only imagine of. Like, Demon's Souls, Dark Souls, Sekiro and Elden Ring seem to be the natural evolution Hidetaka Miyazaki would have in his games and Bloodborne is this crazy trippy "What if Miyazaki made a Souls game BUT instead of the setting being medieval/samurai it would be about cosmic lovecraftian horror entities whose presence will only be known through gaining maddening insight about the beyond". We should be so glad that something as such actually exists

[@jakeohalloran952]

@@edgarduartegutierrez9860 He spoils us with his games. What I also love is that Miyazaki still puts the themes and tropes of cosmic horror throughout his games, even recently with Elden Ring and a certain questline, but with Bloodborne he went full blown and I'm very grateful haha.

[@Fenr]

Darkwood is a masterpiece. It's incredible hard to make an atmospheric game that inflicts dread from that perspective. The sounds are extremely well done, but I think it's greatest strength is the fact that it isn't part of any known mythos, so anything you experience there is fresh and intriguing.

[@SlartiMarvinbartfast]

I agree, Darkwood is magnificent. The atmosphere is first rate.

[@MaaZeus]

I had never heard of that game until I watched this video. Now it is in my Steam wishlist waiting for a good moment to buy it and immerse myself in it for a weekend.

[@YouDontWantItWithMe]

This video is a masterpiece in and of itself. It feels incredible when someone “gets it” the way you do. I love how strong your understanding of Lovecraft is. Your section on Bloodborne was so beautifully written it literally brought a tear to my eye. An exquisite piece of writing, about an exquisite game, and an even more exquisite author. Bravo sir. Bravo.

[@oldoddjobs]

Stop crying

[@YouDontWantItWithMe]

@@oldoddjobs your inability to see the irony of your comment is pretty cute. Thanks for that

[@breedingpitmetal]

You got me in the end I was already losing my shit, being convinced you would not say a wird about bloodborne

[@ghostoflazlo]

I was looking for this comment since I couldn't see any mention of BB in the beginning haha

[@moomimi]

Kind of sick of it

[@bruhd4560]

Wird

[@bruhd4560]

smhrampage thanks

[@Lambdaleth]

@@breedingpitmetal Aren't we all?

[@nergalsmom]

Your example at the end with the librarian nails it for me. What most "lovecraftian" games lack in my opinion is some genuine conflict between the normal and the paranormal. Too often do games drop you in an alien setting, with no access to the normal world, surrounded by npcs who think nothing of the madness going on all around them. It's tentacles and old ones from the word "go", with zero buildup. If there is one thing lovecraftian games lack IMHO, it is the patience to set up the normal world and then slowly, subtly, irrevocably erroding it.

[@koryfredrick1164]

In one word: "context"

[@Paulito-ym4qc]

take bloodborne: you think you´re in a convential horror game, werevolves, frankenstein style mobs and the whole blood thing, and then midway through the game, everything gets cosmical, goes alien. like i genuinly had no idea bloodbornewas lovecraftian untill i reached byrgenwerth, and after that i loved it even more, since i love dark suls and i love lovecraft, so yeah, its my favourite game

[@zacharysmith5049]

Do people really criticize The Dark Descent for inspiring a decade of lazy knockoffs and starting PewDiePie's career? Do those same people also criticize 1977's Star Wars because there are a lot of bad blockbuster movies and criticize Doom because there are a lot of bad FPS games? We should be able to differentiate between a good original and its bad imitators. We praise Star Wars, Doom, and The Dark Descent because they were influential but rarely equaled.

[@LtSprinkulz]

I disagree. TDD is as boring as every single one of its copycats.

[@arcade5765]

nesznoe you sound like you’ve played a lot of horror games. got a favorite? i’m new to the genre and want to have a spooky time

[@arcade5765]

@@toadbard thanks. i'll go with silent hill

[@starwish6278]

@@LtSprinkulz that's just like, your opinion man.

[@Troopertroll]

I'm pretty sure Amnesia started every big channel from that era.

[@cmillerpa33]

Seems like a game that starts fps style but as the story evolves your awesome action hero abilities become more and more useless might work better for both worlds. The result of which would effect the character with hopelessness and eventually insanity. I am not a fan of happy endings maybe multiple endings based on your choices or even your builds but in the end no end is good.

[@crowofcainhurst]

The man living his whole life being ignored and eventually died penniless. And now he's a cultural icon.

[@KyngD469]

A racist too. So good he didnt get to cash in.

[@Thecrocodiemanmask]

@@KyngD469 Ah, found the dipshit.

[@Thecrocodiemanmask]

Cainhurst Crow Love Bloodborne!

[@bryan0x05]

A lot of writers/ artists are like that.

[@KyngD469]

@@Thecrocodiemanmask you gonna go write lovecraft a letter telling him how you showed me what's what? Stfu 🤡

[@QuentinClemensLove]

My mind the entire first hour: Is this guy REALLY not going to talk about Bloodborne?My mind at 1:01:05: PRAISE THE GREAT ONES HERE IT COMES

[@JesseByars]

Playing Dark Corners of the Earth with no expectations in 2006 was a great experience.

[@himynamelscolin]

The Springfield in that game was fuckin OP af and I loved it

[@TightWiggle]

Duuuuude I just remembered I still have this game on steam, think I'm gonna have to play it again

[@DemonAbyss10]

Why Sunless sea is my favorite "lovecraftian" game is not because of horror. It is due to its parallels and multiple nods towards 'The Dream Cycle', which IMO is the pinnacle of lovecrafts work.

[@carcinogenicoak3057]

I think Lovecraftian horror has more to do with cosmic horror with pinches of fear of the unknown, something that Junji Ito does fantastically. It’s taking something you might understand and bastardizing it to be unknowable. With Lovecraft, he didn’t know very much about air conditioning, geometry, the deep ocean, or the light spectrum; he took things he could understand over time and bastardized it to make it scarier than what it was. That’s also what Junji Ito does in his work, he twists the human body and the natural world into something unnatural, makes it unrecognizable and scarier. Hellstar Remina is the best example of this concept that I could think of and I would recommend it to anybody who wants a story about cosmic horror.

[@hasturiath]

netflix South Korean precisa fazer uma adaptação de Hellstar Remina

[@LeSingeDeMars]

Did you know when Lovecraft wrote?

[@VDViktor]

Oh so you think lovecraftian horror is……what everyone else thinks it is? Incredible

[@pushbutton8894]

Play returnal

[@jonahulichny9874]

@@VDViktor wow, way to be a snide jackass. Really makes you look intelligent.

[@pierrethehandsome2518]

I'm so glad you mentioned Darkwood. That is by far the scariest game I have ever played, and it is a fantastic game that not many people know about. Subscribed, keep up the good work!

[@flyingflamingflamingos3793]

As soon as u put a health bar on cthulhu, it stops being cosmic horror, it just becomes a lovecraft inspired monster game

[@StarboyXL9]

Yes. The true way to portray a Great Old One/Outer God in a video game is to make them a plot device, never an actual boss, unless you are going for Cosmic Action (where you fight Cthulhu instead of being helpless against him). In a true Lovecraftian work, the characters are always at the whim of the greater entities, coming into conflict only with their followers and servants, never the entities themselves.

[@killernyancat8193]

@@StarboyXL9 Like The Shore?

[@akoyash9964]

@@StarboyXL9 bloodborne and darkest dungeon do this

[@whyareyouhere6274]

@@akoyash9964 You don't exactly see the eldritch beings in yharnam until you get enough insight (madness, basically). Only bosses, and some are beasts, not eldritch

[@thrackerzod6097]

(DUSK SPOILERS BELOW): I don't entirely agree, Dusk did this right with the final boss being Nyarlathotep. Of course, once you deplete his health bar, he doesn't actually die. He was just testing you against a lowly vessel, and your "reward" is being his servant, rather you like it or not. In contexts like that it works while still maintaining the correct theming. But most of the time you're correct.

[@Zyckro]

What a thought-provoking dive into lovecraftian video games. This isn't the first time I've watched this video through, and perhaps it won't be the last. Phenomenal work!

[@anabasis769]

59:26 "If Lovecraftian horror is about the unknown, games might always struggle to represent that. Games need rules, they need to quantify and codify various parts of reality to bring them into existence." Ice Pick Lodge: "Hold my beer"

[@inslava]

I played only pathologic 2 - but this game achieved uncertainty by constantly changing rules and twisting things around. You never can be in comfort as after few hours suddenly usual things got broken and new threats have arouse - and player needs to learn again how to survive

[@thrawncaedusl717]

I would word it slightly differently: all horror stories have rules, but the rules appear blurred. The “horror” comes from starting to understand the rules, then being punished because they are more complicated than you had initially thought (although ideally the rules do exist, just not in a way that any viewer could fully trace). A supernatural horror movie/game in which the rules make sense and are known is functionally fantasy.

[@softpiglet]

I wouldn't call Pathologic and other Ice Pick Lodge games "Lovecraftian", since they aren't derived from that Western tradition. They come from the existential dread of Slavic and Russian culture, especially during the Soviet Union. These games do have elements that defy logic, such as the Polyhedron, but the horror tends to come from the sense of helplessness in the face of large, unwieldy societal mechanisms. When the unknown appears in Pathologic, it is more often a symbol of industrial disconnect from rural/natural traditions, not a great external cosmic terror. The terror is more internal, caused by people, than external. These games would be better labeled as cousins of Lovecraft.

[@HistoritorJimaldus]

Cultist Simulator ;)

[@Dosnmeda]

Actually, in Dark Corners of the earth your character will shoot himself if his sanity is completely drained.

[@Poldovico]

I think the hardest part of representing Lovecraft theme of the unknown in a game is that said game would be aimed at a playerbase who knows Lovecraft. For the characters, the cosmic horror might well be a terrifying reveal that they can scarely comprehend, but we come in already expecting it. When you have Cthulhu in the title, what's left to know?

[@PatchyE]

Exactly. That's why you need to come up with new things instead of retelling the same story. I think the new weird movement did great in this regard as a new kind of horror.

[@Kazak29]

@@PatchyE eastern magician over here spittin them facts

[@shrimpy2688]

So you play horror games without getting scared because you’ve seen the trailer and know what the creature looks like?

[@Poldovico]

@@shrimpy2688 No, but I do get bored of detective books if they are titled something like "The murderous butler"

[@shrimpy2688]

Poldovico fair enough, but you see my point yeah?

[@grimm4927]

God I am SO happy bloodborne is on this list. Bloodborne is what introduced me to my love for the lovecraftian genre, and has always remained a game so very close to my heart. At the start of the video when you mentioned some people found video games as a pour medium for lovecraftian horror, my very first thought was "Man if they'd played bloodborne..." and for it to end up on the list!! Awesome.

[@Spuck1983]

I always think about 'being lost in time and space.' Maybe VR will do lovecraft good in games. It can play with the senses a bit more.

[@carbonbeaker409]

I THINK it may have more potential, but will ruin the experience if done incorrectly.

[@ouroldhouse3674]

Sinking City had the right idea, I think it just needed more time in the oven to flesh it out properly - less combat, more investigation stuff, more npc interaction etc.

[@logia6]

My question is would you play it on switch?

[@ouroldhouse3674]

@@logia6 Well, I don't see why not, but personally I'd prefer it on a big screen with headphones - it's a very slow-paced game and has quite a bit of reading involved.

[@Oblivius33]

I partially disagree on that statement. While the mood was correct and the town was otherwordly enough it was too frontloaded with its cliche' designs. Even if we are to look at its direct inspiration, Innsmouth, the real oddity were the citizens, their looks and attitude, and even then the presence of something really really ugly is only hinted at untill very later. With the epitome happening just the moment before the protagonist passing out. Lovecraft stories require a proper long, exausting set up time. With the real horror revealing itself in small pieces that alter the perception of event and characters as the protagonists becomes aware of the true nature of the darkness beneath it. Having tentacle monsters, Innsmouth citizens and wierd pale humane looking monsters at every corner is just a bad idea, at that point. Lovecraft horror is more like window dressing.

[@balbal123321]

There is another Frogwares game with lovecraftian elements, Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened. It has more detective work and no combat at all

[@ouroldhouse3674]

@@Oblivius33 Yeah, that's what I was kinda getting at with the "less combat" point. There shouldn't be, for example, just "enemy types" - each creature should be it's own distinct, and *significant* event, rather than unimportant cannon fodder. More focus on the investigation side, really deep focus in fact, slowly piecing together this picture of unimaginable horror as your character *gradually* loses his grip on reality as he conducts the investigation - this would have been a more authentic attempt at a Lovecraft piece. What they definitely got right, in my opinion, is the look and feel of the world, the understated soundtrack (seriously good) and general ambience of the locales. Some of the sidequest stories were also quite well written and genuinely creepy - only to have that great work undone when you arrive at a location and commence another shooting gallery.

[@brasingt]

People don’t like Amnesia the Dark Descent? That game was awesome.

[@psicogames5509]

Pussies don't like Amnesia

[@johnnymcjohnson1373]

Amnesia is fucking great and I’m convinced anyone who says otherwise has never even played it

[@aplaguedoctor406]

Who the hell doesn't like it? I've seriously never heard of one person who didnt like it

[@mannyc19]

I loved it.

[@cheese5081]

@Micheal Ellis PewDiePie didn't "ruin" it, he's one of the reasons amnesia is so well known. I don't know how someone ruins a game by playing it.

[@JAM0LO]

Dredge seems like a very fitting game to join this roster of games. I really enjoyed it. Here's hoping one day for a part 2

[@MissDarknSpooky]

Dredge ❤❤❤

[@smergthedargon8974]

You forgot the part in Sunless Sea where you can bang a squid-man. I think that's _very_ important in... uh... Lovecraftian themes. Or something.

[@MySerpentine]

Welcome, Delicious Friend.

[@kylejoe8393]

Using the map in Sinking City and not having the game hold your hand is one the best features... I never had my boat get stuck either LoL The NPCs all freak out when they see monsters in my game.. Maybe it was patched.

[@johndee2990]

Never knows anything just ripped his opinions from game Urinal-ists

[@cai_in_the_sky2222]

I got the boat stuck all the time but never had to get out and swim. It's not a perfect game by any means (I still don't understand the point of having Mayans in the Massachusetts area, or some of the side quests) but it's still a decent experience in my opinion. Then again, I'm not the biggest Lovecraft fan and I didn't have too high of hopes for the game 🤷‍♀️

[@ebrahim_al_mutawa]

Yeah my boat never got stuck either and I thought it was a really good game. The side quests were fun too, idk why he said they were shit

[@DetNate]

"Euclidean" is an obscure Lovecraftian horror game that I recommend. You're just endlessly sinking into an abyss filled with Eldritch abominations and are almost completely helpless. Fun times, especially if you have thalassophobia.

[@chukyuniqul]

Didn't get much of a thrill from it. Dying is, paradoxically, not immersive and the creatures encountered yet are too geometric and sterile, they lack the grime needed for their appearance to be effective. There is such a thing as too alien. The game has many, many flaws. But it DOES have brilliant soundscape and the levels themselves are very good looking.

[@DarthFennec]

I bought Euclidean a while ago and forced myself to play it for about an hour before giving up. I wasn't able to get engaged in the experience at all, none of it worked for me. It was boring just falling through random shapes, and it was obnoxious getting killed by things over and over that I couldn't tell I was getting hit by. Maybe it works better in VR or something, who knows, but I got absolutely nothing out of that game. I do have thalassophobia, but Eldritch didn't trigger that for me at all (unlike, say, Subnautica, which for that reason is the scariest game I've ever played).

[@mushmushmush]

@Honudes Gai yes, but it's also a pain to play, in my oppinion

[@GusBDamme]

I genuinely believe Lovecraft wouldn't have gotten nearly as ingrained into popular culture without his cool name. I mean, who would see a name like "Bob Mathews" or "Albert O'Brian" maybe "Peter Gandursnot" and want to use their name as a way to describe scrary things lol The name Lovecraft just sounds like a genre even without being the authors name, its just such a cool name to describe a type of scary being "A massive Gandursnottian creature" just doesn't have that ring to it

[@Ceabrus74]

I think lovecraft himself is responsible for making the name sound cool. Otherwise, I'd dismiss "lovecraftian" as a romance subgenre.

[@trevertravis8963]

That is usually the case when things get named after the creator. Would Disneyland be as magical a place if his name was Walt Horowitz, or Walt Gunderson?

[@lightish3754]

"Ay dude what's the difference between The Sinking City and Call of Cthulhu?" "One dude has a beard."

[@spazbella1863]

Better shooty bang bang

[@leninthebeaniesouhacker.2459]

Sunless seas/skies and darkest dungeon are great.

[@onlyinsomniac]

I died at "What can I say? I like maps." I've always been frustrated with the quality of Lovecraft-inspired games, and you did a great job of breaking down why they so often fail to deliver.

[@viktorsilva4017]

"Dark Corners of the Earth" is a cool game. Gets quite boring sometimes, but it's good to revisit once in a while. Graphics are now bad and the monsters aren't REALLY scary, but the "noire/uncanny" vibes are pretty cool. I'll never forget raiding the Order's church while it was raining irl.

[@dirtyandnasty9011]

I absolutely loved this game, the escape from innsmouth was insane. I was lucky enough to play it at release so it didn't feel that bad technicaly. It was a bit outdated for a late xbox game but it was pretty ok. I played it the same year I played Thief Deadly Shadows. The Cradle was thrice more frightening as Innsmouth. I was a warrior in this 2005 year 😆

[@Gyrannon]

I'd say you missed the point in a lot of Lovecraftian Horror - Sinking City is a prime example, you said it appears normal to everyone else, but you. Into The Mouth of Madness movie said "what if being insane is the new norm and you're locked in room wondering what happened to the world?" it is the same. It's normal for them, but from the character you're playing as, it is far from normal. The sane will always try to rationalize what they see and experience. Another good example of people missing the point - Color out of Space, one reviewer said "she's been trying to leave since the beginning of the movie, and now when she finally has a way out, she says 'no I'm staying' that makes no sense!" duh, insanity isn't suppose to make sense! I a while ago had my brother read some lovecraft books, he didn't think they were scary. Not all horror works on everyone. Did lovecraft fail because some kid wasn't bothered by his written work? No. Did these games fail because they didn't meet certain peoples' expectations? No. There is no such thing as something that is universally horrifying to everyone. The reason why they failed for you: You dove in expecting. The characters you play as in Sinking City and Call of Cthulhu games, they haven't a damn clue what to expect. They didn't see it coming, you did. Read a horror book for the first time. Okay, now read it again. You know what's going to happen. Is it just as scary as the first time? Did the character's story change between the first time you read & the second time? When you inject your foreknowledge into it, it becomes less or not at all scary. A book written about the unknown, and you know. What makes anything fail is your own expectations of the unknown.

[@johndee2990]

My hat is off to you sir, you wrote a more couthful reply than I. You kept composure and did not resort to belittling the presenter of stolen critiques from Game Urinal-ist websites to present as his own.. even his conclusion of Bloodborne was stolen from another KZbinr

[@horusreloaded6387]

So you are saying that the games doesnt work because player know so cant relate to the main character? And "your opinion is wrong just because it is your opinion"

[@Gyrannon]

@@horusreloaded6387 "There is no such thing as something that is universally horrifying to everyone. The reason why they failed for you: You dove in expecting. The characters you play as in Sinking City and Call of Cthulhu games, they haven't a damn clue what to expect. They didn't see it coming, you did." That is why it failed for the reviewer, that is why it failed for other people. They went in EXPECTING to be terrified. But they weren't, and in their mind it failed. Cosmic horror has been characterized as: The "fear and awe we feel when confronted by phenomena beyond our comprehension, whose scope extends beyond the narrow field of human affairs and boasts of cosmic significance". It's like those movies where the audience is watching the victim as being terrified of this monster, and other people are sitting there saying "that's not scary". And the truth is, well that's probably because it's not happening to you, you're not putting yourself in the character's shoes. Imagine those things from the game, imagine them being real, and they are trying to kill you or whatever, you've never seen this monster prior, is it reasonable for you to be scared since it is happening to you? Now imagine people spectating and going "pfft, I don't see what the fuss is about". See my point?

[@horusreloaded6387]

@@Gyrannon i mean you start with "those characters acts in this way because x" which is a legit criticism but then you switch to "you are a bad reviewer because youbexpected this game to scare you which is wrong" I think the problem is that the games aren't made for the fictional character but for the people who play it. And when games claim that they are horror games which would scare you, then what is wrong with playing them with expectations? Then it is stil the game's fault to set expectations. Or why horror games they played with expectation can scare them? You can make a movie where viewer is actually scared of the monster as much as the character. It is the maker's job to find the way. Other than that yeah not everything scares everyone, especially when the person played 100000 horroslr games before. Personally Fallout 3's tunnels scares me. But it is still personal opinion and he can just say "i wasnt scared of it and this is why and it is my opinions so you can explain why it worked for you" Edit: actually i saw some comments here talking about how Bloodborne is a good example because Lovecraftian games shouldnt tell you that they are one. So they agree with you on expectation part except they blame the marketing and not the player

[@Gyrannon]

@@horusreloaded6387 Then with "Then it is still the game's fault to set expectations" it becomes IMPOSSIBLE to not be the media's fault. Cause if just ONE video or article spoils everything, then by your reasoning, the media in question fails because now everyone knows what to expect. You write a book. Someone reads it and tells everyone "it tries to be scary" and then it is labelled as a thriller or horror. Did it fail because someone went in expecting and is it your fault for not seeing what was inevitable?

[@HasvenWorld]

1st thing to remember. "Bullets won't work, Jon."

[@Magnanimoose]

Bullet's what won't work?

[@snubbiyu_biyu]

@@Magnanimoose he’s referencing the creepy ass Garfield comic

[@NootalieWalf]

This got me through doing the dishes AND cleaning my room thank you for your service.

[@Loxias1989]

😂😂😂

[@braden_m]

THIS

[@0The_Farlander0]

Eternal Darkness was a good one. I had a GameCube that was mine, and I told my little brother to stay off it. I came home one day and he was sitting with my mom and looking a bit shaken up. Apparently, he had played the game at the near endgame stage I was at, and when he went into a room, his character's head was sliced off. The character then picked up the head, the screen zoomed in on his face, and he quoted Macbeth. That was enough to ruin my brother's day and keep him away from my GameCube for a while.

[@davidsonmad]

I feel like "The Vanishing of Ethan Carter" is often overlooked when people talk about lovecraftian games. It takes some of the concepts and themes of Lovecraft, but does them in its own style; and it feels fitting, as you read/experience these stories by a young aspiring writer. It's packed full of Lovecraft but leaves plenty of room for their own ideas, so it tends to avoid that 'cliches' problem that "Call of Cthulhu" & "Sinking City" seem to suffer from. Honestly I might just respect the game more than it really deserves, but I rarely hear it mentioned, and it definitely scratched that Lovecraft-itch for me.

[@Deadlover323]

It's a shame though that Ethan Carter was simply a "demo" in the sense that it was made to prove an idea.. and that the story went to such weird and nonsense places at times.. If the story hadn't gone off the deep end at some points, it for sure would be a very strong one, and apart from those places, it is a really good "lovecraftian" game

[@SickoLP]

I agree, also The Room 1 and 2.

[@emulation2369]

it has nothing to do with Lovecraft...it was a story about gay-boy who burned to death that is it...

[@Deadlover323]

@@emulation2369 Don't think you understand how lovecraft inspiration/influence works friend...

[@SickoLP]

@@Deadlover323 Actually I think he might and just doesn't like the game so he's being immature about it

[@ShmuckLord385]

Let's just also talk about dead space though. I think, though it is inspired more by the thing and the fly, it hits all the right notes to be a great cosmic horror while also being a very grounded survival horror.

[@georgiykireev9678]

It's interesting btw: cosmic horror, the feeling that everything is already doomed and there's nothing you can do about it, only made it into Dead Space with the third game, that everyone seems to hate for some reason, and its Brethren Moons. The Obelisks by themselves seem much more localised and innocent, and if not for the Moons, you would think a species in some far corner of the universe is safe from them

[@ShmuckLord385]

@@georgiykireev9678 which Is why I fucking adore the 3rd game!

[@Sci-Fi_Freak_YT]

Georgiy Kireev yeah I love the third game as well, I mean the writing and horror could have been better. But overall it’s a great game for it having cosmic themes and ideas.

[@richardcahill1234]

Dead Space isn't horror. It's an action game. It looses any aspect of horror 5 minutes after your first encounter with an alien when you realise the trick to killing every alien is to shoot their limbs off. The main character becomes Rambo in space. There's nothing scary about that.

[@Sci-Fi_Freak_YT]

Richard Cahill have you even played the game?

[@chimerical8746]

just make alien isolation with the *F I S H P E O P L E*

[@flamehunter101]

You mean like S.O.M.A?

[@chimerical8746]

@@flamehunter101 yeah, but more Lovecraft monsters n shit

[@chimerical8746]

@fucku weebsnfurries*it's

[@Smile4theKillCam456]

@fucku weebsnfurries alien isolation was amazing, especially in VR. It’s pure survival horror, not an FPS.

[@charlesatanasio4363]

And some hallucinations. The Sinking City was terrible as a game, but the look it had was GOOD. Add some of the weird shit into Alien Isolation's game-play loop, and you're golden.

[@twindrill2852]

I really love Call Of The Sea. Not only does it feature a female protagonist (kinda uncommon in Lovecraft games?), it features a lifelike and colorful palette which is an unique spin on how Lovecraftian games are usually dark and brooding, giving the exploration of the unknown more wonder than fear.

[@maezynhaugen386]

I was looking for this! Thought I would have to bring up Call Of The Sea myself. I adore that game so much. Though my submechanophobia had a time with it. The small pieces of knowing of the underwater beings origins but not having all the pieces given and not everything explained but giving enough to speculate is amazing. Damn I’m gonna go replay it again.

[@Heckishretching]

Thank you for nary a spoil.

[@Abrakadabro666]

Who cares what sex the main character is? Wow. You're not looking for a lovecraftian game - you're just looking for validation. 😅

[@bobincognito]

While watching this video a word kept lingering in the back of my mind that grew louder and louder B L O O D B O R N E

[@seprithlicastia463]

I was worried he was not going to mention it after that preface comments of "works directly inspired by Lovecraft" but, by the end, I saw where he was going with it.

[@D00000T]

A good tip when making a lovecraftian game is to constantly compare it to Quake throughout development. If Quake looks more lovecraftian than your lovecraftian game, than you fucked up somewhere along the way

[@jonathanfavourite]

Did you even watch the video?

[@misaeltoral508]

Lovecraft would have absolutely adored Bloodborne. That game is really something else when it comes to representing Lovecraft’s ideas without ripping them off. I

[@MrPF]

Lovecraft feared technology, he would wright a story about little people who live in a machine, that you can only see through a weird mirror

[@Kavino]

That's the problem with western big budget (AAA or not) games. Even when they are tackling something as otherworldly as Lovecraft's mythology the art direction and story just feels bland and unimaginative.

[@cynicalgold9992]

@@Kavino have you ever even played bloodborne? Its the furthest something can possibly be from bland and unimaginative

[@crim1188]

@@Kavino I'm guessing you've never played Bloodborne huh

[@lennartmackies2064]

@@Kavino you know that fromsoft, the company that made Bloodborne is a japanese studio right? I give you AAA but western? lol

[@weescamp]

Thank you, as a long time fan of Lovecrafts writing this is a brilliant insight into what makes a successful 'Lovecraftian' experience. I've always found it difficult to explain to people who haven't read any of his works what lovecraftian is. A brilliant 80 minutes well spent. Thank you for sharing this.

[@ikaruga24]

Eternal Darkness, Bloodborne and Demons souls are the best Lovecraftian feeling games i have ever played. Notable games that i have not finished that capture this are Alien Isolation, Prey, Dead space 1 and 2,

[@Paulito-ym4qc]

demon souls? don´t get me wrong, i love demon souls, but except for the old one there isn´t really much lovecraftian in there, is it? like sure there are a few unsettling monstors and stuff, and the old one is lovecraft at it´s best, but to describe as "lovecraftian"? i dont know...

[@Paulito-ym4qc]

whoops i forgot about tower of latria, m sorry

[@ikaruga24]

@@Paulito-ym4qc the tower of latria was very lovecraftian and bloodborne even featured a section winking at DeS concerning that thing in the middle of the tower. To a lesser extent but still very lovecraftian was the poisonous village that very much resembles certain lovecraftian themes.

[@Paulito-ym4qc]

@@ikaruga24 yeah i know, i completely forgot about the tower of latria, sorry

[@channe3049]

You missed that one pure Lovecraftian game called "Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth", that game perfectly captured the source material of Lovecraftian cosmic horror rather than inspired from it. You main character will be ended up suicide at the end by ran out of sanity.

[@zainlookboonmee]

I really enjoyed both Sunless Sea and Bloodborne. The text based descriptions in Sunless Sea could be really weird and out there to describe things that couldn't be conveyed visually, and I really loved that. And Bloodborne is just plain addictive.

[@ianmaluk1]

The reason why video games depict sanity meters is because it's an extension of tabletop RPG mechanics, which all Lovecraftian video games are inherently derived from, and sanity meters are meant to act like an unhealable health bar. The initial idea being that although the body can heal, the mind could not. If you hit zero sanity points in any tabletop RPG it's an instant game over. Your character either goes mad or dies, either way, that's where you're stopped from playing as that character. Which is one of the greatest flaws of video game sanity meters, they're far too forgiving to the point that their whole existence is undermined and made useless by gimmicks. Simply making them hidden doesn't solve the problem however, as the players need to be constantly aware of their character's stress in order to better prepare for situations which could lead to their own demise. If you add an element of permadeath or game-over-start-again linked with only the sanity meter, or add mental scars which can permanently cap your sanity meter's heal rate, then you could solve that issue instantly.

[@Troopertroll]

The best way to do a sanity meter in a video game is to actively attempt to disturb and drive the player insane throughout the game. "Losing" via Amnesia's in-game Sanity mechanic paled in comparison to the number of players made mentally incapable of continuing to play at various points.

[@ianmaluk1]

@@Troopertroll That's the whole point though... No one wins or gets a happy ending in Lovecraftian Horror, because that contradicts the very idea of the genre. You can complete your quest but you won't ever win; you'll never complete a campaign for the Call of Cthulhu tabletop without having lost at least a third of your sanity. This is because you are not the hero of the story, those people only exist in fiction, and your existence means absolutely nothing to what lies beyond the black sea above. So why should it be any different in a video game?

[@brett66]

Great video, thanks. Call of the Sea is another one I'm kind of surprised you didn't cover. Though it's really more of a love letter to classic point and click adventure games, I think it's an effective Lovecraft interpretation in how a lot of the horror is uncovered secondhand. Having a character following in the footsteps of someone else's deteriorating sanity or misadventure in the search of some kind of secret is a common ingredient.

[@pointyraccoon]

"Sunless Sea is even less of a horror game" Thalassophobes: Excuse me, what?

[@MaxHimbigger]

Ayyyy

[@cumguzzler8537]

The Sunless series is definitely horror

[@soleo2783]

Dude, abzu was free on epic games at some point, i downloaded it and couldn't finish cuz i would start panicking whenever i looked down

[@Arkman968]

@@soleo2783 played subnautica on a bet and couldn't leave the submarine, figured I'll try abzu because I love things based on water like water pokemon or waterbending in Avatar, but the ocean terrifies me

[@mizudrakon]

@@Arkman968 Yeah, and Subnautica isn't really a horror game either... (although it has one area where the computer tells you to watch out "because many things here are usually considered terrifying in human culture")

[@Adrot]

"Why do sanity meters even exist?" Better yet, why does Nintendo have a patent over them?

[@horusreloaded6387]

That fact could drive me insane but I cant afford patent lawyers

[@T--------]

WAIT THEY DO?

[@Adrot]

@@T-------- patents.google.com/patent/US6935954B2/en

[@mrcheese1328]

Nintendo having patents over sanity meters is like Sonic having a car

[@reyalskrad1]

I recently found out that WB has a patent for the nemesis system in shadow of Mordor. This shit should be illegal. You shouldn't be able to patent a game mechanic, that be like patenting a paint color, or brush stroking method. Absolutely ridiculous.

[@ByteMe619]

You’re spot on with your analysis on how to utilise Lovecraftian elements in original storytelling. A unique story told with elements/tones of some of the major themes of Lovecraft’s works (cosmic horror, psychological horror, etc) will always be better than an adaptation of Lovecraft’s works, or blatant references that don’t really add to your story.

[@JM-bh7wn]

I'm incredibly late to this party but I've recently been on a Lovecraft kick and found this wonderful video. I especially love your thoughts on the sanity "meter" being a frustrating concept. Personally, I'd love to see a game that allows you to choose HOW your character experiences the horror before them. One choice allowing you to experience the horror as rational person with the ability to better LEARN about the vile nature of what lies before. The other choice, experiencing the visceral nature of Eldrich horror with less understanding but more ability to perceive the terror as your mind has already gone to madness.

[@bentaphid44]

I'm surprised you didn't mention Dead Space at all. While the gameplay itself isn't particularly Lovecraft, the plot, setting, and lore all are steeped in cosmic horror

[@NebLleb]

That's because the second one was more of an action-horror game a la F.E.A.R., and the third one ditched all horror.

[@bentaphid44]

@@NebLleb While I agree that the gameplay and overall tone went more action focused as it went on, I think that the ending of the third game is the most lovecraftian thing I have seen in a game. Everything about The Marker plays very heavily on the "madness from forbidden knowledge" theme. The whole Dead Space universe is fairly dour and depressing on top of that. I think the games at least deserved a mention in the "inspired by Lovecraft but not directly Lovecraft" bit

[@NebLleb]

@@bentaphid44 Eh, I actually tried playing the third game, and I thought it stunk. That, and rendering the player's accomplishments over the previous entries all for nothing in a DLC epilogue is just not cool IMO.

[@bentaphid44]

@@NebLleb Hey now, I'm not saying the third game is good, and having to pay for the real ending is inexcusable. But as far as cosmic horror goes, "in the end the council of flesh moons destroy humanity" is a pretty strong entry in my opinion

[@NebLleb]

@@bentaphid44 Eh, not to me. Ending by retconning the main game's bittersweet ending and then having the Brethren Moons destroy the earth just renders the entire series pointless. Why play through the games prior (Dead Space 1 & 2) when nothing you do matters? It comes off as a slap in the face to me and other fans, and it serves as the final nail in the coffin that is DS3. At least to me and other Dead Space fans, it serves as the final nail. You can have your opinion on the subject, and I can see why you'd have that opinion. Besides, if there is a plus to this, it's that the cancellation of DS4 has inadvertedly saved our hero from an EVEN WORSE fate.

[@blackknightz5036]

"The world is indeed comic, but the joke is on mankind."-H.P.Lovecraft

[@Potatotenkopf]

So life is a circus and we are the clowns.

[@just_a_guy4788]

I think that the current times and occurences, prove that quite clearly.

[@painhurtssometimes2185]

This feels like an hour of trying not to bring up bloodborne lol literally every transition where you describe something could just be a part of bloodborne

[@siege1289]

He does bring up bloodborne?

[@ethhics]

@@siege1289 But there is an entire hour before he mentions Bloodborne.

[@siege1289]

@@ethhics Because there are other games trying to be lovecraftian or have Lovecraftian themes besides bloodborne. This is a "Lovecraftian Theme" video, not a "Bloodborne" video.

[@soleo2783]

@@siege1289 Sure, but in a video about lovecraftian video games, not mentioning a recent, successful video game that got it almost perfectly right for a whole hour feels weird. And really the only reason for that is a "Haha, you thought i forgot about BB" meme.

[@siege1289]

@@soleo2783 That, or he was addressing games older than Bloodborne, or had more direct connections to the Lovecraftian Mythos.

[@bradenwolf2179]

I would say the fishing game Dredge does a decent job here. It uses rhe stress meter idea, there is no "winning" the game, just completing it, the monsters generally can't be fought, and you slowly learn what is going on over time

[@notveryobservant1056]

I agree that that aspect of the monsters is good, I was thinking about how much better it could’ve been if the sanity meter was hidden from the player. Getting attacked by a rocket-propelled shark would be so much more scary if it was inexplicable.

[@hiddenmutant]

@@notveryobservant1056 I both agree and disagree; I can definitely see how a hidden sanity meter would have made the game much more startling and unpredictable, but I do feel like the way the sanity meter was done did add an element of fear and stress onto the player themself. I could pretty much feel my own eyes start to ache, twitch, and strain, just the same as the meter, as I tried to figure out where I needed to go and what I needed to do in order to survive and wreck as little of my ship as possible in the process. Glad we can all agree the monsters are top notch tho! Without spoiling too much, my favorite was the shipwreck hermit crab.