The Innsmouth Case | iOS Review

July 5, 2020 Zack Parkerson

The works of H.P. Lovecraft is something I hold very near and dear to my heart. I’ve read every story he’s written at least once, and consider him to be one of the finest writers in horror ever. I only say this to let you know how often I think about his fiction, and yet I’ve never once considered what humor would look like as a part of his world. Luckily, The Innsmouth Case is here to do that for me.

Dead Cthulhu Waits

The Innsmouth Case is a choose-your-own-adventure visual novel set in the titular fictional town. Playing as a modern day private eye, you’re hired to track down a missing girl. What happens from there is entirely up to you.

Right off the bat, I was struck by just how many references and easter eggs there are to the many stories set in Lovecraft’s world. The developers over at RobotPumpkin Games clearly have a passion for the property. This game seems made for the established fan, with a surprising amount of deep cuts into the lore. For those fans, prepare for a lot of excellent art of characters and creatures you yearn to see.

There Exists a Color out of Space

There are so many paths the story can take, and I was often surprised at how far these paths went. As an example, my character swapped places with a Yith (look it up), and I thought with certainty that would be my “failed” ending. I was pleasantly surprised, however, that the story kept going for quite a while longer. I really respected seeing so many aspects of these cosmic horror stories I love.

The humor lands often in The Innsmouth Case, too. There are jokes that fans will get, but plenty of other gags too. Your character’s inner monologue typically elicits a chuckle, which helps to carry a fun tone throughout the adventure, no matter the Eldritch monstrosities you encounter. One recurring bit that had me in stitches is the myriad options for your character to just be horny as hell. You can try to seduce the creepy man who runs to the hotel, or suggest intercourse to an extraterrestrial blob of strange claws and shapes. It just constantly cracked me up.

Never Awaken the Dreaming Azatoth

My primary holdup with the game has to do with the platform of choice. I reviewed it on iOS, which seemed like a beautiful choice for a visual novel adventure game. However, I was left wanting. Mobile games are typically short-burst activities, and I was very excited at the prospect of playing the game in small sessions. A few pages here, maybe a big decision there. A story to get through while waiting for the bus or in a line. To my surprise, the checkpoints are pretty few and far between. You can adjust the text speed, but it never just loads the whole text block at once, so trying to catch up to where you were is a chore. I have little doubt this could be easily addressed with a future update, though.

Even with that downside, though, The Innsmouth Case is a fun way to spend some time. The humor works better than it has any right to, and the depths they delve into H.P. Lovecraft’s stories is nothing short of remarkable. Even after several hours of play, I know there are more routes for me to get back to and explore. I’m excited to see even more of this new way to experience the stories that I love. You should be too.

To hear me talk more about The Innsmouth Case, be sure to listen to Episode 301 of The Gaming Outsider Podcast around the 48:21 time stamp.

This review is based on an iOS copy of The Innsmouth Case provided by UberStrategist for coverage purposes.