Necronomicon
GAME » on June 24, 1994
Necronomicon is a Japanese horror adventure game, set in the fictional world of author H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos - a series of interconnected stories on the theme of unspeakable cosmic horrors.


Story

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The arrival of Jonathan Swift.

Necronomicon follows the investigations of journalist Jonathan Swift into a report of a woman giving birth to a seemingly inhuman child, and his journey to the town of Arkham and on into the mist-shrouded horrors of rural Massachusetts. Joined by his friends, an archeologist and a detective, Jonathan finds himself surrounded by local superstition and visions of the Deep Ones; an ancient sea-dwelling race of fish-like creatures.


Setting

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Guilman's. The name of quality.

Set during the 1920's, the game begins with Jonathan's arrival in Arkham, and goes on to feature such locations as:

  • Guilman's House (the name of which may be a play on "Gilman", the protagonist from Lovecraft's story "The Dreams in the Witch House").
  • The Church of the Esoteric Order of Dagon (from Lovecraft's Story "The Shadow over Innsmouth").
  • The ruins of an abandoned monastery.
  • A brothel.
  • A cemetery...

Most locations have some connection, explicit or otherwise, to those of Lovecraft's writings.


Gameplay

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Oh noes! Dangerous bridge ahead!

The game utilizes a traditional point and click interface, though through context menus instead of icons. Choices made by the player can alter the story and can result in a number of different endings.


Versions

The PC 9801 version comes on eleven floppy disks, though a compatible CD-ROM version was also released. The FM Towns (Platform) version also comes on CD-ROM. CD Versions of Necronomicon feature voice work and additional audio enhancements.


Content

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Friendly locals.

Necronomicon features images of violence and gore. Sexual content is largely limited to nudity and suggestion.


Miscellaneous

Not to be confused with Digital Pinball: Necronomicon on Sega (Company) Saturn (Platform).


Trivia

  • The art style of the game was clearly based on the work of H.R. Giger, who published a book of paintings called Necronomicon. A special note in the credits thanks both Giger and Lovecraft for their inspiration.
  • It's incorrectly listed in several places that John Petrucci wrote the score to this game, in fact it was for a game of the same name on the Sega Saturn. The score for this game was written by in-house Fairytale composer Muse.

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