Narrative-driven Horror Experience Distills Award-Winning Call of Cthulhu Tabletop RPG into Discrete, Unsettling Mobile Gaming Adventures
SEATTLE – July 10, 2018 – That sense of anxiety and dread you feel? It’s a sign Cthulhu is coming… MetaArcade, the developer of interactive fiction games, announced today it has launched the narrative horror game, Cthulhu Chronicles™, on the App Store for iOS devices with other platforms in development. Created in partnership with Chaosium, creator of the popular tabletop RPG game, Call of Cthulhu, the game distills the essence of the award-winning roleplaying system into a story-driven, intuitive experience designed for mobile gamers, with individual stories forming a larger campaign set in 1920s New England. To celebrate the power of the Old Ones, the game features a special 10% discount on all scenarios during the launch week.
First appearing in the horror fiction of H.P. Lovecraft and frequently referenced in popular culture, Cthulhu and other Elder Gods are deities of monstrous appearance whose mere presence can drive onlookers insane. Imprisoned in an underwater city, Cthulhu is a source of constant, unidentified anxiety for all of humankind while his followers seek to bring about his return.
In Cthulhu Chronicles, players can play as various archetypal investigator characters such as a policewoman or private detective to pursue missions involving crazy cults, sinister creatures, and horrors from beyond space. The immersive narrative is accompanied by rich images and evocative ambient soundtrack by Cthulhu contributors Chad Fifer, Cryo Chamber, Graham Plowman, and others.
“Our mission is to bring tabletop RPG adventures to mobile into graphically appealing, bite size chunks you can pick up and play, and it’s been exciting converting Chaosium’s Call of Cthulhu to our Adventure Creator format for Cthulhu Chronicles,” said David Reid, Founder and CEO of MetaArcade. “We’ve created new and remastered adventures with multiple branching storylines that create a satisfying balance of horror and adventure through the campaign arc.”
Cthulhu Chronicles is designed for both interactive fiction fans and Cthulhu veterans looking for a way to play between sessions. All that is required to play is an inquisitive mind, an iPhone or iPad, and a readiness to face a vast, malevolent presence. Unlike many RPGs, the focus isn’t on building up a character through combat. Instead, players choose an appropriate investigator for the mission at hand, with each investigator having their own strengths and weaknesses as well as individual storylines. At key decision points, players will make choices that matter, as each story has multiple endings and numerous clues to uncover—which in turn unlock new storylines and outcomes as the campaign unfolds. Their skills—athleticism, appearance, and intelligence—will help them overcome enemies and accomplish special feats, but chance will play a role as well, indicated by a spinning wheel of fate. A failure can be a mere setback—or cause death or insanity.
"Cthulhu Chronicles brings the terror and fun of Call of Cthulhu to life on your mobile device,” said Mike Mason, Call of Cthulhu Line Editor at Chaosium. “It emulates the tabletop experience, giving you choices to make, each one taking your investigator down different paths with differing conclusions. Mystery, intrigue, horror, and madness await your investigator, who can gain insights and lose sanity while charting his or her way through the scenarios.”
At launch, the game includes five unique scenarios created with MetaArcade’s proprietary Adventure Creator tool, with four more coming soon. Together, these scenarios comprise the first Cthulhu Chronicles campaign, Investigations in Lovecraft Country. Additional campaigns are planned after launch; there will also be an opportunity for the community to create their own Cthulhu Chronicles stories in the future.
Players get three ‘trials’ each day to play any story for free, and can buy stories via in-app purchase to unlock them permanently for unlimited plays.
Cthulhu Chronicles, which is now available for iOS as a free download with in-app purchases, is developed and published by MetaArcade. Keep in touch with the latest MetaArcade news by following @MetaArcade and facebook.com/MetaArcade.
About MetaArcade
Launched in 2016, MetaArcade is a Seattle area independent game company building a platform to allow players to create and publish their own interactive fiction experiences – with no technical experience required – for free. The company was founded by lifelong RPG fan and seasoned vet David Reid, who previously held high profile roles at Microsoft, NCsoft, Trion Worlds, and CCP Games. MetaArcade launched Tunnels & Trolls Adventures in 2017 for Android and iOS mobile devices, and launched the horror adventure title, Cthulhu Chronicles, for iOS on July 10, 2018. For more information, visit www.MetaArcade.com.
About Chaosium
Chaosium was founded by visionary game designer Greg Stafford in 1975. For more than forty years, Chaosium has captivated gamers, readers and mythic adventurers worldwide. Its award-winning roleplaying games, boardgames and fiction have been acclaimed as some of the most engaging and innovative of all time. For more information, visit www.chaosium.com.
About Call of Cthulhu
Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu was created by gaming legend Sandy Petersen in 1981 and is the definitive horror roleplaying game. It has won over 80 awards since then, including being inducted into the Academy of Adventure Gaming Art and Design Hall of Fame. The current 7th edition of the rules won 9 awards at the 2017 ENnies.
