Forgottenlor has reviewed Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones, an RPG set in a Lovecraft universe.

Turned out of my ancestral home by a mob of cultists and gangsters, and with only loyal butler Werner helping me, I wake up from a horrible dream in a seedy tavern in the city of Arkham. That was the beginning of my aristocratic character's journey into Stygian. Stygian is a horror RPG based on the pen and paper RPG Call of Cthulu, which in turn is inspired by the works of horror writer H. P. Lovecraft. In Stygian you don't play a hero, but at best a somewhat capable person who has to survive unimaginable horrors. And in this case survival doesn't only mean not dying, but also not succumbing entirely to madness. As a result, you'll find that having your character run away from battle or taking drugs or drinking alcohol is often preferable to fighting against hopeless odds and using up precious ammunition or spiraling into insanity. Stygian's visuals are drawn out of pulp comics, and this along with its unusual mechanics and setting make it a pretty unique RPG, which stands out against the mass of fantasy, sci-fi, and post-apocalyptic RPGs flooding the market. But Stygian is also a game made on a tight budget, and unfortunately that limits its otherwise excellent potential.

Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones has been reviewed by RPG Codex.

Controversial Features

The first controversial decision you'll notice is that there is no manual saving; only ten rolling autosaves and save-and-quit (which are also part of the roll, so they can be lost). There also aren't any save profiles, meaning if you want to try out another character before finishing, all your progress is lost. The developers have promised to patch this out, but as it is now, it's not so bad (other than the lack of profiles). Areas are small enough so that saves are frequent, and there's never more than one combat encounter per map. I lived with my bad substance-addiction rolls and some of my less-than-ideal decisions and made it to the end.

The second is the bane of numerous RPG players: time limits. If you go without rations, you'll go hungry, get stat penalties, and eventually starve to death. If you go without sleep, you'll get fatigued and eventually end up with heavier stat penalties, and resting is never free, requiring either money or camping supplies (which are rarely found in the world itself). Making matters worse, the passage of time is opaque to the player, though the developers claim the meters remain paused during dialogue, menu screens, and combat. A few hours in, you'll find yourself rolling in enough money that these will be mere nuisance mechanics, but I don't believe they belong here to begin with. Why make any player feel rushed? First, this has a relatively short length for a role-playing game. Second, it isn't a hardcore dungeon crawl or survival game. Third, there are a lot of text descriptions in the world one can read that a time limit will make one want to avoid entirely. It's like tacking on a day/night cycle and a periodically-draining blood meter to Vampire: The Masquerade: Bloodlines; just obnoxious. It's also not like there are a lack of strategic gameplay elements; the management of health and sanity meters is sufficient.

[...]

Some reviews for Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones.

OldManMordaith 8/10

Once again, I find my old frame hurtling through time and space to another video game realm. When I slid into the dimensionally displaced city of Arkham, I adopted the clever pseudonym Mord Aithinsworth. I woke up in some dingy attic over the top a noisy bar, from some horrible dream about a man with questionable fashion taste.

I had some expectations going in. I was adopting the persona of a conman, a charlatan, a nogoodnik – in other words, a not-very-nice person at all. I was expecting in this world of madness to sneak, creep, and generally lie my way through things. And I was mostly correct. There was a problem with my expectations, though one fixed with a growing understanding of the genre I found myself in.

Stygian isn’t just a horror game, nor is it just a noir mythos game. I mean, it is those, but it also smacks of pulpy adventure stories. There is a loving camp to everything (that thankfully does not break the grim tone of the game.) The story makes mention of masked vigilantes, but all the heroes are dead now. There are evil criminals – ones that would be at home in a Dick Tracy comic, though maybe with a darker source of power and debauchery? And combat with the eldritch horrors was a more viable option than I was expecting going in… Though still not the best of ideas.

[...]

GameReactor 7/10

Aside from the skill set of managing and successfully engaging in combat, Stygian also requires players to maintain personal health through survival mechanics. This means that not only do you have to keep an eye on health before diving headfirst into conflict, but you have to be aware of other things such as hunger, fatigue and most importantly sanity. Unlike hunger, which can be automatically quenched by simply having rations in your inventory, sanity has to be delicately managed, else you will succumb to the Abyss and, well, die.

One of the ways to do this is to steer clear of horrific scenes such as mangled bodies, never presenting yourself with the opportunity to be affected, however, this will impede your progress. Losing sanity means you will be afflicted by some form of mental illness during a playthrough (schizophrenia was the most common for us), resulting in gameplay being altered, such as certain dialogue options being ruled out or the general perception of your character changing.

[...]

Thanks Farflame!

The first update for Stygian features many fixes.

IndianNoob checked out Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones:

Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones Review :: Brilliant Lovecraft Adaptation, Good RPG

As a fan of Lovecraftian fiction, I took great pleasure in reviewing two of the latest adaptations recently, Cyanide’s Call of Cthulhu and Frogware’s Sinking City. CRPGs are basically my bread and butter over at The Indian Noob and I try not to miss out on any new releases. Thus, I’ve been waiting for Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones for quite some time; Cultic Games’ new RPG that supposedly combines otherworldly cosmic horror with deep RPG mechanics. You don’t get to play supernatural RPGs every day and the fact that its Lovecraftian horror makes it even better. With our sci-fi aficionado Sailesh Singh riding shotgun, I ventured into the bizarre world of Stygian to pass the final judgment.

Story & Setting

Stygian is a love letter to the works of Lovecraft and those who followed. To my surprise, it takes more inspirations from Dream Cycle, The Shadow Out of Time and The Haunter of the Dark than Call of Cthulhu or Shadow Over Innsmouth, which is quite refreshing. Nevertheless, everything you expect from pulp and weird fiction is present in its full glory, and then some. A town in the verge of ruination? Check. Its denizens slowly turning insane thanks to cosmic entities and indescribable horrors? Check. Helplessness, hopelessness and a lot of unanswered questions? You bet. 

[...]

VERDICT

Stygian: Regin of the Old Ones is hands down one of the best Lovecraftian video game adaptations out there. It’s also a good RPG that’s just short of excellence due to the average combat, relatively short length and somewhat limited exploration. A dark, brooding setting, narrative-driven gameplay, satisfying role-playing options and plenty of choices await those who buy Stygian. If the current price seems a bit too steep, don’t forget to add it to your must-play list and pick it up down the line.

Score: 8/10

PC Invasion has reviewed Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones:

Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones review | 1920 blaze it

Get high, punch Cthulhu

Eldritch horror! It’s all the rage these days. Poor ol’ Lovecraft could have hardly hoped to leave such a long-lasting legacy. However, we don’t often get RPGs that so directly interact with the source materials of the Mythos. For the longest time, one had to resort to pen and paper RPGs. Today, on the other hand, you can play Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones.

In Stygian, you play as one of the luckless Gilded Age people who found themselves in Arkham on the Black Day. This fictional Massachusetts town is integral to H.P. Lovecraft’s stories, and now, it has found itself ripped from Earth and hurled somewhere else. Life is hard in this maddening dimension, and by the time you start the game, everything has gone to pits. Yet the mysterious Dismal Man appeared in your dream last night, and you now have a clue to follow. Try not to lose your head – literally and metaphorically.

[...]

Conclusion out of space

Here is where I should note one thing: the game is shorter than you’d expect, and it ends somewhat abruptly. The developers addressed it in a Kickstarter update dated five days before release. All in all, I accept their reasoning. I enjoyed Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones and wish it had gone on for double the length. As it stands, the 15-20 hours of gameplay don’t cover the entirety of the planned 50-hour plot. I can only hope that the rest will be introduced as DLC or a sequel.

Nevertheless, I enjoyed every moment of playing Stygian: Reign of Old Ones. There may be questionable decisions in including such a wide variety of mythos creatures in a single release, but the decision to set the game basically after the end of the world (as far as Arkham is concerned) is a fresh take. Stygian oozes atmosphere, craft, and effort. I love it, it’s great, and you should play it.

Score: 9/10

Today's the release day of Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones:

Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones

Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones is a supernatural horror roleplaying video game which takes place in the strange worlds of Howard Phillips Lovecraft. Stygian will draw the player into a bleak journey from a ruined Arkham to the very depths of the Abyss.

The gameplay experience promises a mix of rich role-playing and turn based tactical combat in an authentic 2D graphical style reminiscent of 20's illustrations.In Stygian, players create their characters from scratch with a robust selection of archetypal backgrounds with different origin stories, attributes, skills, traits and lastly belief systems which determine how characters replenish their lost sanity, also presenting unique dialog choices.

The narrative of the game is strongly connected to the works of H. P. Lovecraft. In your quest, you'll use the haunted violin of Erich Zann to lure a fiendish deity and convince the poor wretched protagonist of "The Outsider" to join your party among many others.The heavy burden of fighting a desperate battle with forces beyond recognition will haunt you to the end of the game.

Physical combat will be scarce and difficult, spellcasting will have deep and dangerous consequences, sanity loss will leave its marks on characters as mental illnesses and sometimes the best solution will be running away from the terrors that lurk in the night. Stygian embraces the original themes of gothic, pulp and weird fiction, incorporating them into the computer roleplaying genre, promising a fresh (or putrid from another perspective) breath of air for roleplaying fans.

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About this Game

In Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones, the player journeys from a doomed Arkham into the depths of the Abyss. Create your own character based on 1920's archetypes and carve a path through a broken and mysterious world.

Your desperate battle against forces beyond comprehension will haunt you until the end. Physical combat will be challenging, spellcasting will have dire consequences, and your sanity will be strained to the breaking point by unknown abominations. Sometimes the best solution will be to flee what lurks beyond the threshold.

Features:

• A hand drawn 2D world reflecting Lovecraft's themes of cosmic horror and dread.
• Enemies, environments and storylines inspired by Lovecraft’s iconic original works. Take part in quests inspired by your favorite stories and see them play out according to your own decisions and role-playing style.
• Choose from 8 main character Archetypes, each with its own origin backstory and specialties.
• A host of weird companions will accompany you on your ill-starred journey: the lonely, antediluvian 'Outsider', a fallen soldier of the Great War reanimated by Herbert West. Recruit these and other outlandish beings to your crew.
• Your character's Sanity and mental state will influence dialogue options. Mental illness comes with advantages as well as hindrances. Sometimes it pays to be mad in a world gone mad!
• Stygian's Belief System determines how your characters cope with the warped reality of the new Arkham, as well as the rate at which they regenerate lost Sanity. Belief Systems also offer unique dialogue options, expanding the breadth of role-playing possibilities.
• A new kind of spell system which sometimes takes more than it gives. Being a master of the occult is not as simple as flinging colored missiles from your fingertips. The black magic of Stygian is potent but may cost you your mind, your health, and possibly even much more.
• Strategic, turn-based combat from a 2D perspective, similar to the classic Heroes of Might and Magic games.
• The struggle in Stygian is not to save the world, for that battle is lost already. Pursue your own goals in these end times: salvation, vendetta, or perhaps something darker.

Fextralife previewed Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones.

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Stygian: Reign Of The Old Ones Preview. we took a look at Stygian: Reign Of The Old Ones a Lovecraftian Turn-based RPG developed by Cultic Games and published by 1C Entertainment.

Thanks Farflame!

We had another look at Stygian at at Gamescom and this second time it still appears to be a good game and it is going to be released soon.

Stygian takes place in an alternative Lovecraftian history of the 1920's in New England in the fictional town of Arkham. The game starts with you creating your character from eight different archetypes, together with the other character building options, you should be able to create the character you want. This could be important because the way you have built your character and the choices you make during the game, will have an influence on the reactions of the NPCs in the game. Some might no longer talk to you or some might like you even better than they did before. As a result, the choices you make in the game will lead to one of the possible endings. 

The Lovecraftian horror RPG Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones will be released on September 26, 2019.

Lovecraftian horror CRPG, Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones, descends upon Steam on September 26

Break down the barriers of reality in this hand-drawn take on the stories of H.P. Lovecraft

Prague, Czech Republic -- 31st July, 2019 -- The town of Arkham. Unspeakable horrors from beyond the veil. A... release date on Steam? Open your mind to Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones, a cosmic horror CRPG set to wrap its tentacles around PC gamers on September 26, available for $29.99 USD (24.99 EUR) on Steam. Drawing directly from the works of H.P. Lovecraft and employing a gorgeously grotesque hand-drawn visual style, Stygian offers a turn-based RPG in a broken and mysterious world.

Step into the 1920s as you create your own character based on one of eight different archetypes pulled from the pages of cosmic horror history - from the academic to the occultist - each with their own unique attributes, skills and belief systems. These belief systems in particular determine how your characters cope with the warped reality of the world around them. This, like the classic CRPG titles that came before it, provides players with an open-ended narrative to unearth as they attempt to find sense in the mysterious otherworldly happenings that have befallen the town of Arkham.

Faithful to its mind-rending subject matter, combat in Stygian is understandably tense. Featuring strategic, turn-based combat from a 2D perspective, players will come face to face with everything from fanatic cultists, to monstrosities that are so horrifying that we've been instructed not to describe them for your safety and well-being. Balancing physical combat that's inconsistent at best against creatures from beyond and powerful eldritch spellcasting that has dire consequences on one's mind, combat in Stygian deftly matches the cosmic horror experience that surrounds it.

Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones arrives on Steam on September 26, following its successful Kickstarter funding. For those attending Gamescom, be sure to stop by 1C's booth for a chance to get your hands on the game early and experience the terror for yourself! For more information, make sure to Wishlist the game on Steam and follow Cultic Games and 1C Entertainment on Twitter.

Key Features:

• A hand drawn 2D world reflecting Lovecraft's themes of cosmic horror and dread.
• Enemies, environments and storylines inspired by Lovecraft's iconic original works. Take part in quests inspired by your favorite stories and see them play out according to your own decisions and role-playing style.
• Choose from 8 main character Archetypes, each with its own origin backstory and specialties.
• A host of weird companions to accompany you on your ill-starred journey: the lonely, antediluvian 'Outsider', a fallen soldier of the Great War reanimated by Herbert West. Recruit these and other outlandish beings to your crew.
• Your character's Sanity and mental state influences their available dialogue options, offering both advantages and hindrances. Sometimes it pays to be mad in a world gone mad!
• Stygian's Belief System determines how your characters cope with the warped reality of the new Arkham, as well as the rate at which they regenerate lost Sanity. Belief Systems also offer unique dialogue options, expanding the breadth of role-playing possibilities.
• A new kind of spell system which sometimes takes more than it gives. Being a master of the occult is not as simple as flinging colored missiles from your fingertips. The black magic of Stygian is potent but may cost you your mind, your health, and possibly even more.
• Strategic, turn-based combat from a 2D perspective, similar to the classic Heroes of Might and Magic games.

The struggle in Stygian is not to save the world, for that battle is lost already. Pursue your own goals in these end times: salvation, vendetta, or perhaps something darker.

Killatia interviews a developer for Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones.

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Killatia checks out this Lovecraft inspired RPG from Cultic Games and 1C Company Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones

Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones was previewed by PC Gamer.

“As a team we grew up playing games like Fallout, Baldur’s Gate, and Planescape Torment,” says Oral, ”and we wanted to recreate that kind of experience.”

Throughout the story we follow the enigmatic clues and footsteps left by a mysteriously shrouded figure called the Dismal Man. After experiencing a nightmare in the opening tutorial, I retrace the Dismal Man’s steps to find a key glinting on the ground. Asking around town points me toward Schmidt’s Antiques, and its key-obsessed merchant, Isidore.

Isidore’s offers to buy the key, raising the price in cigs—Arkham’s currency, like a prison, is cigarettes—until they reach 1000. At this point I actually have the option of selling the key, which Oral tells me leads to a gameover state.

“We give the player the right to abandon the main quest,” says Oral. “Remember in Choose Your Own Adventure game books, you died a lot! We have that element in our game.”

[...]

Thanks Gokyabgu!

The latest update from Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones explains their approach to UI design and shows some examples.

Structure in Madness: The UI Design of Stygian

Greetings fellow inmate,

Yes, we are completely aware of the fact that what you had to go through was not a fabrication of your mind. On the contrary, my dear, it was as real as the air you breathe or our darkening sun that fails to warm your soul as it used to... 

Let them believe in their petty, fragile reality and try to cure you like it will make any difference in the upcoming times. Oh, don't you worry, the Black Day is nigh my dear...

Until our time comes, let me further educate you in our ways. They may call us mad but there is a structure even in madness... Let me introduce an old friend to you...

Hey backers, I’m Mehmet Reha Tugcu, the UI designer of Stygian and I’m here to talk a bit about our user interface. Our primary goal while designing the UI was to preserve the aesthetic of the game while maintaining the user friendliness of modern games. 

  A segment of character creation screen

Much like the RPGs of old, our HUDs are highly decorative and textured. Even though our UI is a homage to the godfathers of the genre, we’ve tried to avoid their flaws like cluttered elements and confusing players with information overload. Hopefully older players will feel right at home using the interface while newer players won’t be overwhelmed by the depth of the game.  

[...]

To kick of our series of Gamescom articles, here is a preview of Stygian:Reigs of the Old Ones. One of the Lovecraftian games that were present at Gamescom.

Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones takes place in an alternative history in the 1920's of New England.  In the game you get to create your character from 8 different archetypes from that era, like an aristocrat, occultist or investigator. All modelled afteler Lovecraftian archetypes. The game takes place in the fictional town of Arkham after the awakening of the great Old Ones. You meet a character called the Dismal Man. He tells you to find him beyond Arkham after the Black Day. The main story is about following his footsteps in order to find some answers. You have a choice on how to approach that, like follow him for vengeance as you feel he is responsible for what happened to the world. Or maybe you end up joining him. The choices you make in the game will have an impact on the story and also the endings, of which there are eight. As mentioned, the ending you get is determined by the choices you make, such as who you are, who you are adding to your party, your relationship with them, your actions in the world and the pacts that you make with others in the game. Also people can react differently based on who you are and what choices you have made. If you are a criminal and you interact with another criminal you can have a different conversation than if you would be a soldier.

A new update for Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones addresses crafting.

Publishing and Crafting: Two Separate Systems of Survival

Greetings Brewers of the Forbidden Recipe!

We'd like to start this update with an announcement. The publishing of Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones will be handled by 1C Online Games the publisher of King's Bounty and Men of War series. This cooperation will help bring Stygian to a wider audience, therefore hasten the doom of mankind, although they are not aware of it...

We'd like to thank the 1C Online team for seeing the potential of mayhem in Stygian. As you can expect, Cultic Games will retain its total creative freedom over the doomed town of Arkham and its unfortunate residents.

Now, let's talk about some of the game systems and have a look at the Crafting System.

There are three main skills associated with Crafting: Science, Medicine and Survival. 

With the help of your Science skill you can discover (or learn) blueprints of gadgets and contraptions. With the sufficient Science skill value and the right components you'll be able to craft a variety of items from electric lanterns to prototypical weapons.

With Medicine you can discover (or learn) formulas of mixtures and drugs. With the sufficient Medicine skill value and the right components you'll be able to craft a variety of items from cocaine to pheromone cocktails.

And lastly, Survival gradually unlocks new survival recipes which can aid you in your desperate struggle such as ammo belts and handmade backpacks.

You can see the whole system at work in the showcase video below:

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Lastly, there are two types of components which you'll be using to produce your much needed items:

• Specific Components: If the plan requires a specific item and that item only, it falls in to the category of Specific components
• Components with Crafting Traits: If the plan requires an item with a crafting trait, any item that bears the same trait will suffice

For example if a plan requires an item with the Alcoholic trait, any kind of liquor or even pure alcohol itself will suffice to fill that particular slot. With this approach, we wanted to  open up the way for a flexible system that enables situations like using the clothes you wear to make bandages. And we somehow feel that you'll find yourself in grim situations like this pretty often...

Feel free to throw away any questions you might have ladies and gentlemen!

Until we set sail for the black unknown with the elder race from the stars...

Team Cultic

Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones has a new trailer and a demo.

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Public demo is out on Steam! You can now download Stygian and join the cast of desperate souls that are forsaken to walk the streets of our doom-struck town!

Kickstarter update #23 for Stygian explains the rest system:

Rest Activities or How I Learned Getting Ready for the Dark Times Ahead

Greetings fellow Cultists of the Dreaming Sheikh!

In this update, we'd like to share some detailed information about our Rest System. As you probably know, resting in Stygian is not a just a mere tool for refilling your depleted stats in the blink of an eye but a defined side system of preparation, risk assessment and research. We, the folk at Cultic Games tend to do all these before going to sleep, don't you too?

First things first! Let's have a look at our Rest Screen:

[...]

Retcon Raider gives an overwiew about the RPG Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones:

Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones - An Overview

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Let's take a look at some of the other games that are currently on my radar. I've been talking about H.P. Lovecraft a lot lately, so I think the most (un)natural place to start is with another game based on Lovecraft's stories!

@Cliqist they report that Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones is teasing a backer demo for the first half of 2017 with a public release to follow according to the latest kickstarter update.

Stygian isn't expected to be complete until November of 2017. Luckily, according to the Kickstarter update, backers will be able to visit Arkham much earlier. An exclusive demo is planned for the first half of 2017. The demo will feature complete character creation and begin with the first chapter of the game. Backers will get first dibs on demo access with a public release to follow.

Kickstarter update #17 of upcoming Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones includes an interesting interview and information for people who have been itching in their wallets to donate to the game.

Here's a snip from the interview from Twisted Tales blog.

DM: Although the game begins in Arkham, it has been transplanted into a much more hostile, alien environment. How does this build on H.P. Lovecraft's stories and distinguish the game as its own entity?
CO: H.P. Lovecraft emphasized humanity's fragility in the face of a cosmic threat and our inescapable demise when the Great Old Ones awaken, but he never described the actual apocalypse. Our aim is to create a supernatural post-apocalyptic anti-utopia which is being ruled hand in hand by the Mob and the Cult in the absence of the proper institutions after the fall of society in Arkham. We wanted to isolate the iconic town of Arkham in a limbo between dimensions to be able to create a pocket plane, which we intend on filling densely with figures and entities of terror. We take our inspiration from the social reality of the period in which Lovecraft wrote as well as his work to create the devilish status quo of our Arkham. So I can say that we are interpreting a lot while respecting the actual canon.

Stygian's Kickstarter campaign is almost over.  GameBanshee found the latest update notes interesting:

As Cultic Games' Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones Kickstarter campaign nears its conclusion with less than 40 hours to go, it has seen a total of fifteen updates to date, which cover a variety of topics, including the game's stretch goals, art design, music composition, combat mechanics, and more. Here's a little something from the most recent update:

In this update we'd like to share more information on the advantages and side effects of Mental Conditions in Stygian's challenging combat scenarios.

As we emphasized before, sometimes it helps to be mad in a world gone mad!

Mania

Increases Action Points but gives the character a small chance to lose control and attack the nearest enemy unit in combat.

Paranoia

Increases Reaction but gives the character a small chance to attack an ally in combat.

Schizophrenia

Increases Mental Resistance but gives the character a small chance to enter a catatonic state and lose a combat round.

Psychopathy

Increases Critical Chance but gives the character a small chance to lose a certain amount of Sanity after killing a foe.

Depression

Increases Supernatural Defense but gives the character a small chance to lose his Physical Defense bonus entirely for a turn.

Obsession

Slightly increases the success chance of a repeated combat action but gives the character a small chance to automatically repeat a failed combat action until getting a success or passing a High Difficulty Will check.

The Lovecraftian RPG Stygian has been funded on Kickstarter.The newest update shows evironment art:

Beauty in Madness: Environment Art of Stygian

Greetings fellow admirers of the macabre!

In this update we'd like to give you more information on the creation process of our environment art along with sharing some images from different stages of production. Our environment artist Elwira Pawlikowska is responsible for breathing life into the eerie landscapes you'll visit in Stygian. Her painstaking, authentic pencil drawing style and background in architecture made her the perfect choice for Stygian's backgrounds.

[...]

Take a closer look at the gifts of madness:

A Closer Look at Our Gifts of Madness

Greetings fellow Arkham residents!

In this update we'd like to give you additional details about some of our gifts and their connection to the game's lore.

Merry Folk from the Stars

Written by the mysterious Edmund Whateley and published by the equally enigmatic publishing house Cultic Press, "Merry Folk from the Stars" caused a wave of hysteria among children across the country. Some see the unholy success that came by the publication of this cursed book as the final nail in the coffin of our society.

Parents all over the country reported hallucinations, aggressive behavior, catatonic trances and even worse symptoms displayed by their children who read the book. Further complicating this dismal situation, Merry Folk could only be the beginning of what is yet to come...

[...]

Merry Folk Figurines

[...]

Special Edition Game Tome

[...]

Cultist Robe

Here's a RPG-France interview with Cultic Games who are running a Kickstarter campaign for the RPG Stygian right now - a snippet:

A Detailed Interview with Cultic Games and More!

[...]

Lovecraft's universe is unique, and is an infinite source of inspiration for video games, art or movies. Why did you want to make a roleplaying game in this world?

Since the first time I read Lovecraft (I guess I was around 10 when my older brother gave me the book, I still blame him for the weird dreams :)) the storytelling style, the themes of facing the incomprehensible and the fragility of human beings against these cold ancient entities left their deep mark on me. 

Besides I always wondered why CRPGs were confined to certain settings and themes in the last decades. Think about "Ultima: Martian Dreams" or SSI's "Dark Sun" games or "Albion" from Thalion Software. They are all wonderful and fresh games opening new horizons to RPG gamers. Then somehow games like that started to disappear. Of course there are business reasons behind this. These kind of games require taking a certain kind of risk for the publisher. "Orcs and Elves sell, right? Why change the formula?" 

We're living in the indie age now. The gamers are your publishers and you can obtain the template codes of an inventory system from Unity Asset Store. There is breathing space for passion to prevail against established business systems. So why the hell not?

[...]

The Stygian Kickstarter campaign had a good start - the RPG is nearly 50% funded:

Such a Good Start to Bring Doom to This Expired Planet! Thank You!

Stygian has made a solid start in its first day! Thank you all!

You may want to check our newly added FAQ section at the bottom of the project page as it sheds light to most of your questions.

Let's watch it grow together!

The Kickstarter campaign for Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones has started:

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Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones is a supernatural horror CRPG (computer role-playing game) set in the strange worlds of Howard Phillips Lovecraft. Embracing the themes of pulp and weird fiction, Stygian will draw the player into a bleak journey from a ruined Arkham to the very depths of the Abyss.

Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones has now been greenlit on Steam. Expect the kickstarter to launch soon.

Stygian has been Greenlit!
28 May - Lord General Yavuz

Thank you for all your support!
Our next goal is to answer all of your questions directly.
And one more thing: We're going to launch our Kickstarter campaign soon.

SLEEP NO MORE

The Kickstarter for Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones will begin in 24 days:

Description

Stygian: Reign of the Old Ones is a supernatural horror roleplaying video game which takes place in the strange worlds of Howard Phillips Lovecraft. Stygian will draw the player into a bleak journey from a ruined Arkham to the very depths of the Abyss.

The gameplay experience promises a mix of rich role-playing and turn based tactical combat in an authentic 2D graphical style reminiscent of 20's illustrations.In Stygian, players create their characters from scratch with a robust selection of archetypal backgrounds with different origin stories, attributes, skills, traits and lastly belief systems which determine how characters replenish their lost sanity, also presenting unique dialog choices.

The narrative of the game is strongly connected to the works of H. P. Lovecraft. In your quest, you'll use the haunted violin of Erich Zann to lure a fiendish deity and convince the poor wretched protagonist of "The Outsider" to join your party among many others.The heavy burden of fighting a desperate battle with forces beyond recognition will haunt you to the end of the game.

Physical combat will be scarce and difficult, spellcasting will have deep and dangerous consequences, sanity loss will leave its marks on characters as mental illnesses and sometimes the best solution will be running away from the terrors that lurk in the night. Stygian embraces the original themes of gothic, pulp and weird fiction, incorporating them into the computer roleplaying genre, promising a fresh (or putrid from another perspective) breath of air for roleplaying fans.

History

Your former life was in bliss of ignorance until you've awakened to the darkness waiting to devour our very existence on the doorstep of our fragile dimension. Something terrible left its eons old slumber and the reality as we know it, collapsed. The town of Arkham was pulled to somewhere not from this world and its residents are in the shadow of absolute terror. As a survivor of the catastrophe you should investigate the strange occurrences in the city and survive the rising darkness physically and mentally, if possible...

Feature List

• A hand drawn 2D world which reflects the mood of Lovecraft and the pulp era of horror.
• Quests and storylines which capture the iconic themes of Lovecraft. Take part in your favorite horror stories and shape their outcome according to your role-playing style.
• Weirdest of the companions will accompany you in your accursed journey. Lonely antediluvian of "The Outsider", a dead WW1 soldier reanimated in the hands of "Herbert West", a psychic narcissistic cat from Ulthar and more will be among your eccentric cast of companions.
• Sanity and the mental state of the character will have influence on the dialog options. Mental conditions create benefits as well as hindrances. Sometimes being mad in a mad world helps.
• Belief Systems determine what the characters find comfort in and regenerate lost sanity alongside providing unique role-playing opportunities. A rational character gains sanity after completing a research on a mythos creature while a divine one gains sanity after converting a lost soul to the path of God.
• A unique spell system which sometimes takes more than what it gives. The black magic of Stygian is very potent but will cost you your mind, health and sometimes your very soul. Being a master of the true occult is not like flinging colorful missiles from your finger tips.
• Turn based strategic combat in beautiful 2D with "Heroes of Might and Magic" like perspective.
• 7 different backgrounds with completely unique prologue stories and specialities to breathe life into the Lovecraftian archetypes.
• The struggle is not for saving the world, that battle is lost already. Track your personal goal for salvation or vendetta in a doomed world.

-> Find more info in the dev-thread here at RPGWatch!