Do you enjoy tactical RPG games? Do you have a penchant for H.P Lovecraft stories? The look no further! Rise of the Elders: Cthulhu includes all of the aforementioned things, and more. Interested? Well, in order to find out if it was going to tickle my fancy, I went and did a bit of research about it. Don’t forget that you can also pledge to this game by heading to the Rise of the Elders: Cthulhu Kickstarter; just click the link at the bottom of the article.
The Story and Gameplay
This little gem is being created by the guys over at Strange Matter. It is based on the original story but the way it is presented is slightly different. Instead of your classic horror survival, these devs decided to make a turn-based RPG. The story starts in 1929, the members of a deranged cult are trying to awaken an Elder that rests beneath the sea. I’ll give you two guesses who it might be. No, it isn’t the Little Mermaid; it’s Cthulhu. You are in charge of a team of investigators who are trying to stop this from happening. You must discover a way to halt the awakening before time runs out.
The gameplay seems to have some interesting elements. There is base management and of course character development. It works very much in the style of an XCOM game in this respect. Perma-death is a thing and you are on a time limit. You can travel around the world in real-time, meet contacts, study relics and even learn spells. There are of course turn-by-turn encounters as well. I imagine it being much like XCOM except without the high-tech weaponry and more insanity.
The Characters
One of the things that interested me that most about this game was the characters. For now, they have planned to have nine types of character under three different ‘Occupations’. I suppose these are like the classes. You have Dreamers, Enforcers and Scholars. All of which have unique abilities, bonuses and weaknesses. For example, Dreamers have high sanity but are fragile, so they are good at learning spell but are vulnerable to mental disorders. This is something else that interested me. The fact that Afflictions and abilities can affect your characters personality meaning they change throughout your gameplay. So, someone who is perfectly sane at the start could turn into a gibbering mess before the end. I love it!
Rise of the Elders game artwork
Rise of the Elders: Cthulhu Kickstarter
So, Rise of the Elders has just started its Kickstarter campaign. They are looking to raise about 51,000 Euros (£44,000/$55,000 roughly) before March 2nd 2017. It seems like quite a big budget but they have great visions for this game and good luck to them. The fact that they have already raised 6,500 Euros already is a promising sign but they have a long way to go yet. They do have some interesting rewards for their backers though.
If you pledge the minimum which is 10 Euros, you get the game on mobile or tablet and your name in the credits. Then, the more you pledge the more stuff gets added, as you would expect. This includes copies of the game on PC or mobile, the original soundtrack, digital art, mugs, printed art books; there is even one where you can create your own character that they will put in the game (if you pledge 222 euros that is). However, the biggest reward goes to whoever wants to pledge 999 Euros. These two lucky people will receive all of the aforementioned things and basically help the developers write the game. And they will make a little shrine to you in the credits because why not?
This is Strange Matter’s first game so go and show them some love. Click the link to take you straight to the page – Rise of the Elders Kickstarter.
Rise of the Elders: Cthulhu is currently planned to be released in October 2017, just in time for Halloween.
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Catie
I've always had a passion for games and, since I found my passion for writing, I wanted to write about them. I'll play just about anything if I can get my hands on it. I have an unhealthy obsession with all things Star Wars and my motto is "Never apologise for being a nerd."
