Why there is no Cthulhu mythos AAA game?

[telamiina]

So mabe the best horror mythos in USA ,and really well known all over the world.
Why there is not any new Cthulhu mythos AAA games?

I have thought that is it begouse Cthulhu mythos is so anticristian? US developpers are affraid of it?

Or is the problem there that good horror games are hard to make?
Is Lovencraft so mutch loved in developpers hearts that they dont have guts to do it?

Or is it again these business guys who think it would not sell?

Well we all know that Cthulhu game made well would sell for lots of fans and if the game was good it would sell to no fans also.

So fusturated that I have to play these old games over and over againg.

[Bathe in my magnificence]

The biggest problem is that there aren't that many Lovecraft stories that would translate well to the world of computer gaming. Not many people are going to buy an AAA title that just involves some guy staring at a statue and mumbling to himself in a study. lol I suppose they could make a game like Surgeon Simulator where you have to try and write your life story on the walls with your own faeces before "they" come to get you through the angles of your room. :D

Some of the scenarios and campaigns written for the RPG, Call of Cthulhu, would make fantastic PC games but that would involve Chaosium pulling their fingers out and arranging a deal with a top studio. I guess it is just a matter of funding as, regardless of his rise in popularity over the last few years, HP Lovecraft is still very much a cult author and, therefore, having such a niche market, we're probably stuck with low budget efforts. There is, of course, a lot of stuff out there that is inspired by the Cthulhu mythos but, unfortunately, it is incredibly "Hollywoodised" and, therefore totally lacking in that certain something a good Lovecraft fanatic demands - Atmosphere! Unfortunately not many people out there will throw their support behind a game where you can't kill the bad guy and you're destined to fail no matter what you do. lol

[Massivedisturb]

Check out "Shadow of the Eternals" on kickstarter.
It is the spiritual successor to Eternal Darkness

[Graeystone]

The biggest problem might be copyright issues. Lovecraft's works are not Public Domain. If its not Lovecraft's Estate that prevents it then it may be the publisher(s) of Lovecraft's stories.

Its one thing to do parodies like South Park did a few years ago or little homages that are sometimes seen in media, its quite another to base a game or anything else directly on the stories.

Anyway here is a couple of flash games(free of course) based on the Mythos. They are card type games-
http://www.kongregate.com/accounts/GamesofCthulhu

[telamiina]

Actually Lovecrafts writings are now free to use. You must of course pay fee to publish hes works but it's good for all not just one publisher.

[Kaiborg92]

The question does nearly solve itself. I mean, if you look at franchises like Dead space and Resident Evil, you see that the developers dont believe in Horrorgames anymore, they also dont believe in unconventional approaches. That Lovecrafts storys are essentially just horror, with nearly no action and the most unconventional lore I could think of, makes it nearly impossible for any Developer with money to make such a game. Triple A wouldnt make Lovecraft a favor anyway. That whole industry is nearly as shallow and unimaginative as Hollywood.

[telamiina]

Well I think little combat etc. would be ok if it was done properly. Sanity eating monsters should not be to easy :D

Some kind of a RPG would be awesome, in the spirit of pen and paper Call of Cthulhu.

[dvt32]

The human mind can't endure the presence of Cthulhu.

[ChunkyMonkey]

It is possibly a good thing that there are few games involving Chthulhu or short stories by Lovecraft. The source material is mostly short stories which often focus on occultism that was popular in late 19th early 20th century. There are already many games with or about occult as a plot device. The stories are often philosophical or horror in nature, not much adventure. Like others said it would be hard to make a quality game out of it. If fans of Lovecraft decide to play it they will know the plot in advance since they have read the short stories and the mythos. If it is to be a game loosely based on Lovecraft stories then people will complain tha the plot is dumb or that it doesn't live up to standard of their favorite author.

There could have been very good Lovecraft games have been made if they were made in the 90s before the big waves of horror games like Resident Evil, Myst, Doom. Then there were in my opinion also more Lovecraft fans since the 80s and 90s produced movies based on his stories.

The closest you can come to good horror games remniscient of Call of Cthulhu is Penumbra games

[Massivedisturb]

Another Kickstarter game here, this one is inspired by Dark Corners of the Earth.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/u55/u55-end-of-the-line

[Graeystone]

Originally posted by Massivedisturb:

Another Kickstarter game here, this one is inspired by Dark Corners of the Earth.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/u55/u55-end-of-the-line

I'm sure this will be a neat game however watching the video made me realize something about HP's stories - very little dialouge! And yes that's actually a good thing for HP's works. Readers are not distracted by needless dialouge. Perhaps that's one of the things needed for a succesful Lovecraft game - minimum dialouge as possible.

[telamiina]

Seems good. This new indie thing.

[Death Korps Commissar]

i always wondere that. the secret world does borrow a bit from lovecraft but thats about it.
i think what would have to be done is to not take any particular story as a backdrop but create an entire world out of it and just weave a couple of storys into it.

[Mr. Floppy]

Check out http://www.monria.com/


Monria is a 3D Cthulhu Mythos MMORPG. Using the advanced, well known CryEngine2 graphic engine, it features beautiful graphics ready to compete with any MMO on the market. Built upon the successful Entropia Universe platform, created and maintained by Swedish developer Mindark, established back in 2003, Monria has a real cash economy environment, in which players may buy in-game currency (PED) with real money that can be redeemed back into U.S. dollars at a fixed exchange rate of 10:1.

[ChunkyMonkey]

Actually the old "Call of Cthulhu" game is pretty good. I know it is outdated as far as graphics. I was playing it recently and it is creepy despite any dated graphics.

If you're interested in decent Chtulhu related movie, watch movie "Dagon" , it is not a big hollywood release, but it scary as heck, and has some very gruesome scenes. Seems accurat to the book too.

[telamiina]

Originally posted by Mr. Floppy:

Check out http://www.monria.com/


Monria is a 3D Cthulhu Mythos MMORPG. Using the advanced, well known CryEngine2 graphic engine, it features beautiful graphics ready to compete with any MMO on the market. Built upon the successful Entropia Universe platform, created and maintained by Swedish developer Mindark, established back in 2003, Monria has a real cash economy environment, in which players may buy in-game currency (PED) with real money that can be redeemed back into U.S. dollars at a fixed exchange rate of 10:1.

Well, Im not in to these MMORPG's, Shallow hack and slash.