Chronicle of Innsmouth Reviews

After some back and forth, I decided to give the game a thumbs up to support the developer and the genre. The game is nice, but has serious weaknesses. Here are my pros & cons: + The story is basically very exciting. + The voice acting is an asset and really spices up this small independent production. + The music and sound effects are excellent and create a very creepy atmosphere and suspense. - I was most annoyed by the technical shortcomings and bugs in the game, especially in the user interface and controls. It's simply badly programmed and unstable. The hotspots don't work properly and sometimes it's bugs and pixel hunting and not the easy puzzles that cause headaches. The Lucasfilm-1989-esque UI is completely unnecessary as you only need some of the commands once in the game. - I'm sorry to write that: The graphics are really ugly and off-putting. It looks like the first work on an Amiga 500 after a quick-simmer course in Deluxe Paint II. - The genre mix of funny and psychological horror is not entirely successful. A few good, cynical jokes here and there would also fit in with Lovecraft, but this needs to be refined, because this game is supposed to focus on horror. Conclusion: Not everyone will like this game. It's something for Lovecraft fans and die-hard point & click adventure fans. But it's not a game that will convince newcomers to the genre or excite fans of highly polished, challenging adventure games. Nice nonetheless.

A great point-and-click adventure, especially if you're a fan of the old-school genre. I loved all the nods to classic games like Monkey Island—the protagonist even bears a striking resemblance to Guybrush. The team behind the game did an excellent job crafting a richly atmospheric world that pulls you right in. The voice acting and music are also great. That said, it's a bit on the short side. There are areas in the game—like the church—that seemed ripe for exploration but were sadly left unused. It felt like there was potential for much more. Still, I loved the many ways you could die, especially toward the end. It brought back memories of Shadow of the Comet in the best way. As a Lovecraft enthusiast, I really recommend this gem. Looking forward to play the sequel.

There's some puzzles in this that just broke me. The lighthouse being the most obvious one. Keep telling me it's timing, it just won't work. I really wanted to like this game, believe me.