Friday Fhtagn: Night of the Cephalopods The Video Game

While it looks dated and very old school it’s a fairly modern game that takes us back to the good old days of Zelda like adventure games, but this one has a twist. It’s dark, brooding and the perfectly melded narrative make it so much more than any of the older games.  There are a few things about Miguel Sternberg’s game “Night of the Cephalopod” make it a fun and endearing game.

The gameplay is simple and intuitive.  You’re given a weapon and you must fight your way through hordes of levitating cephalopods intent on destroying your soul.  That’s it.  It doesn’t get much deeper than that.  However, what really sets this game apart from other games like this, is the narration, the pacing and the mood.

The narration is creepy.  It’s done with a sense of dread and urgency.  You can feel the narrator’s pace quicken as he describes the unholy things that are about to try to eat you.  The context and story is given over the actual gameplay.

The feeling of immersion is enhanced because it immediately feels like a friend is telling you, “The scariest thing happend to me last night” and in the course of him telling you, you’re living out the experience vicariously through the game.

The game doesn’t really innovate any standard gaming conventions, but it blends some excellent old-school survival/ exploration gaming with a compelling and disturbing story.  Without that context, evil hovering cephalopods would jut be “cool” but not particularly scary.

Here it is, you can download the demo at SpookySquid.com. The Lovecraftian influences on this game is downright brilliant, addicting and so much fun to play.

(Update) Todays Friday Cephalopod on Pharyngula perfectly punctuates the Night of the Cephalopod theme: The Great and Serene Floating Brain

Friday Fhtagn: Night of the Cephalopods The Video Game