Call of Cthulhu®: Dark Corners of the Earth

Спустя 20 с лишним лет и бесконечное количество попыток я наконец-то прошел эту игру. И не скажу, что нахожусь в восторге. Скажу больше - она меня морально вымотала, как самый потный сосалик. Даже после "Bloodborne" мои руки так не тряслись. Но это ни в коем случае не плохая игра. Нет. Просто она как будто не до конца сформирована. Я знаю, что её выпустили после банкротства студии, но я б не удивился, если б узнал, что её банально не доделали. Начну с плюсов. Во-первых, сюжет. Это не прямая адаптация произведений Лавкрафта, а скорее компиляция его самых удачных и узнаваемых работ - тут и "Дагон", и "Тьма над Иннсмутом", и "Зов Ктулху" и "Хребты Безумия" и тд. Вы в роли детектива Уолтерса приезжаете в маленький городок Иннсмут, чтобы найти пропавшего клиента; и в ходе поисков невольно ввязываетесь в движуху между последователями культа Дагона и ФБР. А потом вообще раскроете тайну своего прошлого, но к сожалению это знание не принесет вам счастья (если что, это не спойлер, в начале игры прямо показывают, чем закончит наш герой). И сюжет реально интересный. Не гениальный, но легко бы лег в основу какого-нибудь романа. Полностью вам ничего не раскроют, но, камон, всё по заветам Лавкрафта, ведь нет ничего страшнее, чем тайна. Первые пару часов в игре самые удачные. Иннсмаут - маленький, но невероятно атмосферный город. Узкие улочки, темные улицы, уродливые жители, старые дома с заколоченными окнами и протяжный морской ветер. По этому городу просто интересно бродить, смотреть по сторонам, и гадать, что же скрывается за его фасадом. Ну а после начинается по-настоящему напряженная погоня и прятки, которые до самого конца держат в напряжении. Ведь малейшая неосторожность - и прости прощай. А чекпоинтов тут крайне мало. Вся фишка с шизой, которая якобы является особенностью геймпля - геморрой. Всё понимаю - герой нервный, всего боится. Но, блин, когда посреди перестрелки или во время самых потных моментов экран становится мутным, а всё видимое превращается в карусель - это невероятно бесит. Пару-тройку раз я точно помирал из-за таких приколов, потому что просто не знал, где враги - а они не промахиваются. А вот когда дают в руки огнестрел становится уже не так страшно. Так как интерфейса практически нет, приходится полагаться на внимательность и интуицию, ведь каждый патрон на счету, а герой, увы, довольно хлипкий. Почему я раннее сказал про несформированность? Потому что игра скачет между жанрами и до конца не может определиться, что он такое? С одной стороны, скучно не бывает: сначала прячетесь, потом стреляете, потом решаете головоломки - и тд. С другой - ни одна механика не доведена до вменяемого уровня. Стелс кривой, перестрелки портят глупый ИИ и возрождающиеся враги (а ресурсы не бесконечны, ага), головоломки превращаются в долгую и унылую прогулку по запутанной локации в поисках невероятно важного предмета, который ещё поди-сыщи (да-да, пиксельхантинг как он есть) - а нужно ещё найти куда его вставить. Квинтессенция этого ужаса - финальный уровень, который представляет собой лабиринтообразные пещеры с неочевидными загадками и моментами, до которых практически невозможно догадаться. Ну откуда я знал, что в одном из закутков вбитый в стене кристалл - который легко пропустить - так важен!!! Я час бродил по туннелям, ломая себе голову, что я упустил. И ведь гулял бы так и дальше, если б не гугл. Ну и самая главная проблема этой игры - баги. В руководстве лежат фанатские патчи, но даже с ними нет никакой гарантии, что вы пройдете игру без проблем. У меня, например, постоянно ломались скрипты (особенно на корабле) и были вылеты. А финальная секция вообще вымотала меня до предела. Побег из гибнущего города - притча во языцех среди фанатов Ктулху. Пять минут беспрерывной беготни от падающих камней в надежде, что скрипт не забагует и вы спокойно пройдете до портала - а забаговать он может где угодно - испытание для самых настоящих мужчин. Даже костыльные решения вас не спасут - чистая удача и ничего более. Когда у меня это получилось - не знаю, с какого раза - я почувствовал, будто поднялся на самую высокую гору, вымотав себя до предела. В общем, игра далеко не идеал. Даже отличной назвать её не могу. Скорее где-то между "хорошо" и "нормально". Мне понравился сюжет, атмосфера; местами было действительно страшно, напряженно и интересно. С другой - кривой геймплей, баги, игры разума и неочевидные головоломки, решение которых не приносит удовольствия. Но я рад, что закрыл этот гештальт, а значит могу с чистой совестью жить дальше. 6.5 из 10

Love the game; The steam version crashes too much, even with attempting fixes.

If you're a fan of atmospheric horror, this game is an absolute masterpiece! Even after all these years, "Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth" delivers an experience that few games have managed to match. The atmosphere is incredible. Innsmouth feels genuinely oppressive, mysterious, and unsettling, and the sense of dread never really goes away. Instead of relying on cheap jump scares, the game builds tension through its world, sound design, and storytelling. You constantly feel like something is wrong, and that's exactly what makes it so unforgettable. The story is one of the best Lovecraft adaptations ever made. It captures the feeling of cosmic horror perfectly, slowly revealing terrifying truths that kept me hooked from beginning to end. The famous hotel escape sequence alone is worth experiencing, it's one of the most intense moments in gaming history. I also loved that combat isn't the main focus. You're vulnerable, your character can panic, and sometimes the smartest option is simply to run. It makes every encounter feel meaningful and keeps the tension high throughout the adventure. Yes, the game shows its age, and it has a few technical rough edges, but none of that took away from what makes it special. Its atmosphere, storytelling, world-building, and unforgettable moments easily outweigh its flaws. This is a true cult classic and, in my opinion, one of the greatest horror games ever made! If you enjoy Lovecraft, immersive storytelling, and games that leave a lasting impression, don't hesitate. It's an experience you'll remember long after the credits roll... Highly recommended !!

It's always crashing.

Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth became a guilty pleasure game for me because I know that it is an incomplete mess. Lets get the most important thing out of the way first: The PC port for this game on Steam is broken. The port was made primarily by a single developer so I don't blame them considering the company faced financial struggles at the time. You will have to patch the game and even then it will still have bugs that are not solved to this day. One bug I could not find a fix for was whenever I had blood splatter on my screen from taking damage the game would lag. Most of these fixes are linked on the PCGamingWiki: Retail EXE to utilize all settings using DCoTEPatch. Widescreen Fixes Pack to fix HUD, aspect ratio and cutscenes. dgVoodoo 2 to fix crashing when alt-tabbing the game. DCoTEPatch is absolutely mandatory for bug fixing, enabling extra features and increasing FOV. Once all of the patches are applied you will have to use the Steam launch command to make Steam launch the game using the retail EXE. Now I can get to the game itself. I did try the game a while ago and I believe I got up until the boat section before I gave up. This time around I completed the entire thing. The game feels very ambitious, unfortunately a lot of the game was cut probably due to the scope being too large and some financial troubles. What's left is a game that is inconsistent and barely holds together. Arriving at Innsmouth sets the stage well. The inhabitants are really creepy looking and the town itself looks lost to time. A significant part of the game takes place there and it feels very different to the last half. It is more of a slow burn, asking people for clues, stealthing past guards and solving puzzles. The chase that takes place in the hotel is commonly mentioned as a highlight for people and I understand why. Unfortunately the stealth is not great. The game has very bare bones stealth mechanics and it is extremely inconsistent when enemies spot you resulting in a lot of trial and error. It takes quite a while before you get a gun and once you do it becomes less of a stealth detective game and more of a straight up shooter. There are a lot of scripted sequences that are broken easily, the game can be continued but you will miss out on dialogue and hints. I would've beaten the game a lot faster if I wasn't so confused on what to do to proceed. One of the biggest faults of the game is not making it clear enough what to do or where to go next. The Marsh Refinery is one of the best examples. The refinery is insanely large, its easy to get lost and not obvious what they want you to accomplish. I like the localized healing system even if it slows the combat down. Depending on where you get injured it can affect your aim with a weapon or make you limp and stagger. Considering how insanely unforgiving fall damage is you will probably break your legs a few times. The shooting is decent even if there isn't a lot of enemy variety. I wish enemy corpses wouldn't disappear, it breaks the immersion a bit. My favourite mechanic has to be the sanity system. Its not overly complex, but it adds a lot of charm. Jack Walter franticly talking to himself when he witnesses something horrific is a nice touch. Very interesting that this came out before Amnesia: The Dark Descent because it very much reminded me of the same system. I enjoy the cutscenes that are taken from other creatures perspective, it creates some great tension. The opening cutscene does a really good job of establishing the dark world the game takes place in. The horror elements did a lot to uplift the games atmosphere. The decision to have no HUD elements on the screen helps the immersion. I only wished they would have done what Condemned: Criminal Origins did which is let you check the remaining ammo instead of having to guess how much you have left. Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth is an extremely hard game to recommend to most people in its current state on Steam, but if you can get past all of the road blocks and you are a big fan of the Cthulhu Mythos then you will probably get something positive out of the experience.

TLDR: THE classic attempt at bringing Lovecraft into the video gaming sphere. Dated, lovingly campy, imbalanced, corny, and definitely worth it. Recommended buy on GOG for its fixed up and less buggy iteration. I could just gush about Dark Corners forever. It's not a "good game" by today's standards, and I imagine people will have trouble playing it. If you love psychological survival horror, though, this is one of the progenitors. It's a lot of fun and quirky in how it immerses you in the story. The graphics have not aged well, but everything bears a solid and creepy aesthetic. The story is a bit of a mash between several of Lovecraft's well-worn classics with the heaviest influence clearly being The Shadow Over Innsmouth, and (unless I'm mistake) most of the game is based on the TTRPG so you're working with some solid foundations. The game is buggy, I know a few playthroughs have been thwarted in the past by glitches. I recommend mod fixes where possibly and patience when they aren't. I've been told on multiple occasions that GOG has the fixed iteration of the game, so I would recommend it there rather than steam - one of the infamous glitches of the "artillery section" is likely to plunge you out of the end of the game if you're not careful.

I really wanted to like Call of Cthulhu, before I get into the problems, let's look at the good. The atmosphere got me from the beginning of the game, even now this game has some damn good eerie vibes. Like the dark clouds hanging over the town and the gloomy look of the town. The first act of the game is brilliant, it's slow burn build up done right, it goes from a adventure detective game from the start, to running intense shooter the next. Literally if the entire game was the first act, plus bits of the second act, I would say this is a really solid horror game. But sadly that's not the case, first of all the bugs is the worst thing about the game. Now I installed the patches, widescreen and 60fps to where the game doesn't crash. But even with all that, this game is really janky to a bad degree, one part was where I was waiting to ride the ore cart, I had to look up a guide, try to glitch onto the cart, only to find out that there is like one cart that is ridable after looking it up on an old forum. I almost quit playing several times, and I can bare some old mechanics, glitches and a lot more if the game has great strengths, But the game's biggest strength is the first act and that's about it. Now the breaking point was the ship section, seriously that section is just awful, the cannon controls awful, the going in and out to fetch ammo and first aid for the one crewmate awful, and the final nail in the coffin for me was escorting that same crewmate back to the infamy only for him or I to die because my character still hasn't learned to close doors 4 hours into the game. Overall I give this game a 3/10, has an amazing beginning but a sour third act which you need the patience of god to get through.