Game News Arkham Horror: Mother's Embrace Slithers Out

[Saint_Proverbius]

Tags: Arkham Horror: Mother's Embrace; Artefacts Studio; Asmodee Digital

Arkham Horror: Mother's Embrace has hit Steam and GOG. The turn based, Lovecraftian CRPG is currently on a 20% release sale price for $15.99 (normally $19.99). The reviews on the game are currently mixed, so who knows about this one. Here's a bit of the description:

As the investigators get closer to their goal, your squad will have to face curious science, living nightmares, and a sinister cult, whose mad scheme is to bring about the end of everything. Use a large variety of melee and ranged weapons, as well as powerful items and devastating magic spells to defeat your opponents in turn-based combat; while you attempt to retain your sanity.

As you face off against Lovecraftian horrors, your investigators will descend deeper into the depths of madness, affecting their level of sanity and causing traumas that will impact the course of your investigation. Care about your sanity and make the right choices… the Ancient Ones are preparing their return.​

I kind of like that setting. Not too many games go with early 1920s. The idea of a Madness Mechanic could be neat if done right, but doing it right seems like a tall order.

Thanks, Mortmal

 

[Infinitron]

Saint_Proverbius Please always add links to GOG as well (with Codex referral code): https://af.gog.com/game/arkham_horror_mothers_embrace?as=1649904300

 

[luj1]

None of the recent games marketed as 'Lovecraftian' are really Lovecraftian, but parodies of Lovecraft.

Interestingly, certain titles which have nothing directly to do with Lovecraft, such as Soul Reaver or Clive Barker's Undying, are way more Lovecraftian. It's not about namedropping. It's about crafting the right tone, art and atmosphere.

 

[Mortmal]

Hard to know with that one, could be a cheap cash grab, some complain about valid things, then you get complains about voice overs. Yet it's on the top of steam game sales, telling how people are bored and want something new . No previews anywhere and they obviously did not bother to bribe anyone here even.

 

[J_C]

The trailer is pretty good, fingers crossed the game will follow suit.

 

[Iluvcheezcake]

Apparently its utter shite

 

[Whisper]

Hard to know with that one, could be a cheap cash grab, some complain about valid things, then you get complains about voice overs. Yet it's on the top of steam game sales, telling how people are bored and want something new . No previews anywhere and they obviously did not bother to bribe anyone here even.

There is no choice for new games currently.

You get decent game like 1 in 2-3 months. So if devs have a least invested some effort it would be popular.

Almost no competition.

 

[The_Mask]

This is the same game that when it came to trailer time it snatched the BG 2 spell chants, and hoped no one would notice.

I'm usually not a cynic, but if this game turns out to be trash, I would not be surprised in the slightest.

Timestamped citation:

 

[Dr Schultz]

It's about crafting the right tone, art and atmosphere.

I'd say it's about creating game mechanics that reflect Lovecraft recurring themes, which nor CB'U nor SR does in the slightest (despite being very good games with a nicely crafted atmosphere).

 

[jac8awol]

I dunno man, this game is too weird even for me. It has black people reading books.

 

[Tyranicon]

None of the recent games marketed as 'Lovecraftian' are really Lovecraftian, but parodies of Lovecraft.

Interestingly, certain titles which have nothing directly to do with Lovecraft, such as Soul Reaver or Clive Barker's Undying, are way more Lovecraftian. It's not about namedropping. It's about crafting the right tone, art and atmosphere.

Agree. Most "Lovecraftian" media these days is more of a Lovecraft themepark than anything resembling proper cosmic horror. You get the requisite tentacles, Cthulhu references and cult trimmings, but nothing that incites existential dread.

 

[Don Peste]

Alia, Fero, Didici, Pecto?

 

[luj1]

It's about crafting the right tone, art and atmosphere.

I'd say it's about creating game mechanics that reflect Lovecraft recurring themes,...

I'm all for mechanics, but if your atmosphere is equivalent to Disneyland it's worthless. Furthermore, the mechanics need to be good. Going mad from seeing a dead horse does not make a game "Lovecraftian". It's hipster garbage.

... which nor CB'U nor SR does in the slightest...

Even this is not true.

In Soul Reaver traversing between the material and spectral plane is a fundamental gameplay mechanic. While in Undying you start with an item which reveals creatures from another dimension, literally the story of Lovecraft's "From Beyond".

 

[Dr Schultz]

It's about crafting the right tone, art and atmosphere.

I'd say it's about creating game mechanics that reflect Lovecraft recurring themes,...

I'm all for mechanics, but if your atmosphere is equivalent to Disneyland it's worthless. Furthermore, the mechanics need to be good. Going mad from seeing a dead horse does not make a game "Lovecraftian". It's hipster garbage.

... which nor CB'U nor SR does in the slightest...

Even this is not true.

In Soul Reaver traversing between the material and spectral plane is a fundamental gameplay mechanic. While in Undying you start with an item which reveals creatures from another dimension, literally the story of Lovecraft's "From Beyond".

What I meant is that traveling between worlds is a staple of the action adventure genre at least since a Link to the past and in Soul Reaver it is applied exactly like in any other action adventure. CB'U, on the other hand, despite its rich atmosphere and its story, plays out like any other shooter of its era.
Killing thousands of demons in a hectics hooter isn't something I would call remotely lovecraftian and the same goes with the gameplay loop of A Link to the past. So, to me both games (despite being good in a general sense) are still power fantasies shrouded in a lovecraftian cloak.

For comparison, Call of Chtulhu: Dark Corner of the Earth, despite failing miserably with the story and with other facets of its gameplay, has at least a mechanical implementation of the madness trope (and a pitch perfect introduction). The same goes with Darkest Dungeon and Sunless Sea, which definitely succeeded in threading lovecraftin themes in their very mechanics.

 

[Gregz]

None of the recent games marketed as 'Lovecraftian' are really Lovecraftian, but parodies of Lovecraft.

If you want to play a fun Lovecraftian game for free, right now, download this:

https://bluemaxima.org/flashpoint/

Install it, then search for “The Necronomicon 2.0”, and play

https://www.reddit.com/r/software/comments/kmodf1/how_can_i_play_flash_games_after_2020/

 

[Psycroptic]

I wish there were a computer version of the Arkham Horror board game. Kind of like Talisman. It'd be cool to throw together digital expansions and play it whenever.

 

[Tacgnol]

None of the recent games marketed as 'Lovecraftian' are really Lovecraftian, but parodies of Lovecraft.

Interestingly, certain titles which have nothing directly to do with Lovecraft, such as Soul Reaver or Clive Barker's Undying, are way more Lovecraftian. It's not about namedropping. It's about crafting the right tone, art and atmosphere.

Agree. Most "Lovecraftian" media these days is more of a Lovecraft themepark than anything resembling proper cosmic horror. You get the requisite tentacles, Cthulhu references and cult trimmings, but nothing that incites existential dread.

I was always impressed with the original Alone in the Dark from that perspective. The game referenced some really obscure Lovecraft stuff in the ingame books and some of the paintings.

I guess that's the difference between modern writers and writers in the early 90s. The latter probably actually had an interest and understanding of the source material rather than Lovecraft's racial views.

 

[Fenix]

Yeah, AitD was scary as fuck.

 

[StormbringerEarl]

I feel recent 'Lovecraftian' games would be better off if they used the Arkham Horror tabletop ruleset as a base or just dropping the setting and just going for witchcraft and occult themes. Where are the new Pagan or Voodoo horror titles, no one seems to really to dive in deep enough to Lovecraft's themes and just end up stuck on the reef of Deep Ones, Dagon, Color out of Space, and Cthulhu. If someone was hellbent on making a Lovecraftian game why not take inspiration from The case of Charles Dexter Ward, Herbert West the Reanimator, or the Dream Quests of Unknown Kadath?

 

[Kalin]

Nigger and femoid protags in Lovecraft setting.