Call of Cthulhu reviewed by Sandy Peterson

[Plane Sailing]

Here I am reviewing my own game. | Call of Cthulhu (2nd - 6th Edition) | RPGGeek

Interesting to see him commenting upon the history, design decisions etc.

Cheers

 

[MerricB]

Sandy Peterson talks about the creation of Call of Cthulhu!

On RPGGeek.com:

Here I am reviewing my own game by Sandy Peterson.

This is really worth having a look at - a look into the history and design of one of the true classic RPGs.

Related article on Elfquest is also there: What went wrong with Elfquest?

Cheers!

 

[MerricB]

CoC is one of the great RPGs. There are all sorts of things I find clunky about it, but I still love it.

Cheers!

 

[Nikosandros]

CoC is one of the great RPGs. There are all sorts of things I find clunky about it, but I still love it.

Cheers!

Indeed. The system is far from perfect, but at the end of the day it fulfills its purpose really well. CoC remains one of my all-time favorite.

 

[PaulofCthulhu]

For those who haven't heard it before, the following might be a nice companion piece.

Sandy's Game: 25 Years of Call of Cthulhu

 

[Keeper of Secrets]

The article is wonderful. It shows some insight into what the author was thinking.

Honestly, what impresses me the most about Call of Cthulhu is actually how clever it was for its time, especially when many of the other games in that era were ultimately derived from AD&D.

A game where people wanted to play powerless individuals, living on the edge of health and sanity, seems like a long shot to put into the market but clearly it had a strong appeal and one which is very lasting . . .

 

[Achan hiArusa]

You can see the success in the fact that everyone tries to fix "Sanity" from Kult to Unknown Armies to Dread to Don't Rest Your Head.

 

[MerricB]

"Fix" Sanity? Could you tell me more?

I really don't approach many other horror RPGs.

Cheers!

 

[wedgeski]

I think "being different" was enough of a selling point in the '70's that the game had a reasonable shot at success, especially in a market approaching its zenith.

In some ways I dislike one of the popular takes on CoC which is that, if you're sane, you're not playing it properly, and I've played in groups where the goal of the game has mutated into little more than a race to zero SAN.

This isn't for me. CoC works at its very best when you create a nuanced investigator with so much more to lose as his sanity ebbs away.

 

[DragonLancer]

In some ways I dislike one of the popular takes on CoC which is that, if you're sane, you're not playing it properly, and I've played in groups where the goal of the game has mutated into little more than a race to zero SAN.

This isn't for me. CoC works at its very best when you create a nuanced investigator with so much more to lose as his sanity ebbs away.

I fully agree. With the campaign I am currently running (a ten year in game campaign) I'd much rather have the characters survive as long as possible. Insanity and death are always close bedfellows but it doesn't need to be the case with every story being told.