10 Great Video Games That Should've Started Franchises

6. Call Of Cthulhu: Dark Corners Of The Earth

Vanquish Game
Bethesda

Even though H.P. Lovecraft is renowned for his cosmic horror stories, transitioning his work into other mediums has never been easy.

With that said, Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth came close. Headfirst's ambitious title follows a private investigator who uncovers a conspiracy involving cults and ancient inhuman civilisations.

Call of Cthulhu was a bold project since it juggles action-adventure, first-person shooting, and stealth. Rather than adapting one Lovecraft tale, the horror survivor game effectively implements elements from various stories. Though Lovecraft is niche, Dark Corners of the Earth was surprisingly accessible for players unfamiliar with the author while still remaining true to the source material.

As promising as all this sounds, Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth tanked and Headfirst went bankrupt months after its release. This was disappointing since the developers intended to release two follow-ups. The first sequel, Tainted Legacy, would've continued the mythos from a contemporary perspective. The final chapter, Beyond the Mountain of Madness, would serve as a direct sequel to one of Lovecraft's most famous stories, At the Mountain of Madness.

If the sequels came to pass, it could've helped H.P. Lovecraft's become more mainstream.

Contributor

James Egan has been with Whatculture for five years and prominently works on Horror, Film, and Video Games. He's written over 80 books including 1000 Facts about Horror Movies Vol. 1-3 1000 Facts about The Greatest Films Ever Made Vol. 1-3 1000 Facts about Video Games Vol. 1-3 1000 Facts About James Bond 1000 Facts About TV Shows