Horror Games
In the literature that inspired role playing games, the heroes usually succeeded against insurmountable odds. While D&D and its successors created a game where player characters' constant risk of death usually caught up to them, players were well-aware that if they survived to reach a sufficient level of ability, they would be nigh-unstoppable. But horror liturature was built around a different kind of protagonist: one who was aware that failure was more likely than success, and long-term survival was unlikely. Worse, the most inspirational horror fiction for gamers, H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos, virtually always had protagonists dying or being driven insane by their discoveries.
Sandy Peterson's Call of Cthulhu game changed that. His brilliant Sanity mechanic gave players a way to have fun while their characters suffered and were gradually driven mad. A number of games were written about heroic investigators poking into Things We Were Better Off Not Knowing. The White Wolf game company eventually created an entirely new line of role playing, involving horror, alienation, and pathos. While our collection in this genre is currently small, we expect it to grow over time.
 |
Call of Cthulhu, 1st edition (1981) The first and classic horror RPG, exploring the fiction of HP Lovecraft. |
 |
Ghostbusters (1986) Comedic horror. A perfect mixture of rules and setting. |
 |
Wraith: The Oblivion (1996) A game of psychological exploration and horror. |
Last revised August 12, 2007.