1 week ago
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Even though Lovecraft might’ve been an indubitably racist author, others have built upon his legacy to create a genuinely compelling library of cosmic horror media. Very few games truly drive home how horrific it is to live alongside Lovecraft’s monstrosities, however, and Cyclopean: The Great Abyss may correct that.
Frankly, I can’t help but be surprised that we haven’t yet had an honest-to-goodness cosmic horror dungeon crawler. That’s what Cyclopean: The Great Abyss is, of course, but just look at it! How has nobody else come up with this particular concept before? Thankfully, small-scale developer Schmidt Workshops is here to correct that wrong, and I think there’s some real merit in this project beyond its impeccable vibes.
Image via Schmidt WorkshopsCyclopean: The Great Abyss releases in Early Access on January 17, check out the demo now
A free demo is available via Steam, and it’s a tiny download, so you’ll be in-game before you know it. The crux of the experience is Cyclopean‘s obvious Ultima gameplay loop. This is a full-fledged old-school CRPG that plainly states it’s been heavily inspired by the likes of Ultima and Questron, just to list a few. You’ve got the one-two combo of a bird’s eye exploration component with first-person dungeon crawling. The deliciously grainy graphics tie it all together with a gross, slimy bow on top.
Schmidt Workshops points out that, even though Cyclopean is releasing via Early Access on January 17, the game is more-or-less functionally complete already: “Cyclopean is a complete game, but it is still in need of more thorough play-testing. Early Access will help me enhance and expand the game while getting important feedback from players,” says the developer’s statement on Steam.
“As mentioned there is a complete game already playable, with three different potential endings. The quests are not too long or involved, but they have a beginning, middle and end. The player has many options in how to engage with the game world, including combat, stealth and dialogue,” they continue.
Good showing, then, but I’d like to add more context to why I think this may be Schmidt Workshops’ most promising game yet. This one-man game-dev studio effectively specializes in producing small-scale Lovecraftian adventure games, and I’m genuinely surprised they’re not more popular in the cosmic horror gaming niche.
For example, Schmidt Workshops’ Aberration Analyst is more-or-less a Delta Green operation handler simulator. Paradox Vector, on the other hand, is described as an “homage and sequel” to Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness with a wild graphics style to keep things spicy. As you can probably tell, I’ve been on a bit of a Schmidt Workshops bender as of late, but it’s really good stuff.
Once again, these are all relatively small-scale titles that come in at just under $5. At that price point, though, I’m happy to recommend them and will be looking forward to whatever else Schmidt Workshops pushes out in the future.
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