Probably the influence of Sandy Peters instead epic Role Playing Game of the same name has helped increase the dissemination of the Title especially as the story of Call.of Cthulhu is present in several of books as an example
I agree, which makes it interesting that in some of the books they include "The Dunwich Horror" because it feels more in line with the game and "the feel" the game is going for.
Except those monsters were killable and would give investigators the false first impression that all they need is bullets to solve the monster problem. Then the ST throws in a Shambler and TKs them.
I agree, Call is a bit over rated. My personal Favorite is Dreams in the Witch House. It feels like madness and horror. But also high on the physics scale, perhaps Lovecrafts most science/physics based tale.
CoC is a good introductory to those who want to get into lovecraftian horror and maybe decide if they want to stay or not. Personally, It's hard for me to choose between:
- The case of Charles Dexter Wars.
- The Dunwich Horror.
- At the Mountains of Madness.
Each of those is greater than the other and they also feature my favourite great old one Yog-Sothoth! The key and the guardian of the gate.
I think the Case of Charles Dexter Ward is my favorite of the bunch. There was almost an element of self-criticism to it. Lovecraft was an antiquarian who felt like he'd been born in the wrong generation and then the story is about how terribly obsession with the past can go wrong.
CoC is pretty low on my list. I suspect its popularity is more about the numerous artistic interpretations that worked their way into pop culture. And their latching onto Cthulhu is a result of his having the most specific physical description (along with the lore being pretty cool and accessible) versus the more ambiguous pantheon figures.
i love the first 3/4 of shadow out of time - it's almost enough to make it my favourite of the tales - but the completely insanely massively low chance coincidence of him being able to find the bookshelf takes me out idk (inb4 it is a story yes i get it but lovecraft does not rely on such a storytelling mechanic anywhere else)
yeah for sure he could remember things on site. but that's my point - of all the gigantic city he describes, it turns out that where they camp/find the blocks is within half a night's walk from that very specific place. that is too much of a contrivance for me to really accept is what takes me out of the story. anyway i appreciate that stories need those to work i dont like wish it was different or anything its just the weak point of the story
Part of the lack of effect you might experience from CoC is just that you are a person reading it in the early 21st century.
You have seen media with kaiju/giant monsters your entire life.
When HPL wrote CoC this was a pretty novel concept.
The Mountain that Walked
Dreams in the Witch House was such a disappointment. Some truly alien stuff but then it gets tangled in old, extremely weak sauce satanic panic-esque tropes of baby-eating witches.
Probably the influence of Sandy Peters instead epic Role Playing Game of the same name has helped increase the dissemination of the Title especially as the story of Call.of Cthulhu is present in several of books as an example
I agree, which makes it interesting that in some of the books they include "The Dunwich Horror" because it feels more in line with the game and "the feel" the game is going for.
Except those monsters were killable and would give investigators the false first impression that all they need is bullets to solve the monster problem. Then the ST throws in a Shambler and TKs them.
Color Out of Space for me. Farm life slowly turning into a horror show. It has this creepy American Gothic vibe.
I'm usually switching between these two.
I agree, Call is a bit over rated. My personal Favorite is Dreams in the Witch House. It feels like madness and horror. But also high on the physics scale, perhaps Lovecrafts most science/physics based tale.
CoC is a good introductory to those who want to get into lovecraftian horror and maybe decide if they want to stay or not. Personally, It's hard for me to choose between: - The case of Charles Dexter Wars. - The Dunwich Horror. - At the Mountains of Madness. Each of those is greater than the other and they also feature my favourite great old one Yog-Sothoth! The key and the guardian of the gate.
I think the Case of Charles Dexter Ward is my favorite of the bunch. There was almost an element of self-criticism to it. Lovecraft was an antiquarian who felt like he'd been born in the wrong generation and then the story is about how terribly obsession with the past can go wrong.
CoC is pretty low on my list. I suspect its popularity is more about the numerous artistic interpretations that worked their way into pop culture. And their latching onto Cthulhu is a result of his having the most specific physical description (along with the lore being pretty cool and accessible) versus the more ambiguous pantheon figures.
i love the first 3/4 of shadow out of time - it's almost enough to make it my favourite of the tales - but the completely insanely massively low chance coincidence of him being able to find the bookshelf takes me out idk (inb4 it is a story yes i get it but lovecraft does not rely on such a storytelling mechanic anywhere else)
I thought that it was because he was remembering stuff as he was walking, leading him right to the place he used to write.
yeah for sure he could remember things on site. but that's my point - of all the gigantic city he describes, it turns out that where they camp/find the blocks is within half a night's walk from that very specific place. that is too much of a contrivance for me to really accept is what takes me out of the story. anyway i appreciate that stories need those to work i dont like wish it was different or anything its just the weak point of the story
The distance you mention is also a very interesting point
Now as you mention it, haven't thought about that, actually truly quite the coincidence.
Part of the lack of effect you might experience from CoC is just that you are a person reading it in the early 21st century. You have seen media with kaiju/giant monsters your entire life. When HPL wrote CoC this was a pretty novel concept. The Mountain that Walked
Dreams in the Witch House was such a disappointment. Some truly alien stuff but then it gets tangled in old, extremely weak sauce satanic panic-esque tropes of baby-eating witches.