Great Games: The Lurking Horror
One of the themes you’ll see running through my great games list is games that make me feel something beyond the usual fun/excitement. Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy VIII are genuinely moving at times, Day of the Tentacle is laugh-out-loud funny, and The Lurking Horror is genuinely creepy. This despite the fact that it’s a text adventure–or is it because of that fact? You have to rely on your imagination, and the game gives your imagination a lot to work from.
The Lurking Horror is set in a thinly-disguised version of MIT, called GUE (a cute reference to the Great Underground Empire from the Zork games). You’re a student, working late at night in the computer lab to finish up a term paper. There’s a huge blizzard outside, trapping you in the complex of science buildings. And there’s something nasty lurking in the complex with you…
The beauty of The Lurking Horror, which is the same thing that good horror novels and movies do well (and the bad ones often forget about), is that it gradually builds up the creepy factor, rather than just hitting you in the face with big scary monsters. Aside from a dream sequence at the beginning, the first sign of anything out of the ordinary is a janitor, riding around on his floor waxer, who never blinks. You eventually get to the Lovecraftian monsters, but you get there in steps, so that each step is a new fright.
The university setting is extremely well-used. I have no doubt that the writers went to MIT themselves, and they include a lot of authentic details that really add to game–you really feel like you’re there, in those deserted, late-night halls. In addition to the computer lab, you go into science labs, up onto the roof of one of the buildings, and down into the steam tunnels that connect them. You even get an ID card and “freshman orientation” booklet in the box with the game. The fact that it’s such a convincing setting makes the supernatural elements that much creepier.
The puzzles are clever in all of the Infocom games, but this one has some particularly good ones–most notably a couple of excellent uses for a severed hand. They feel generally well-integrated into the game, as opposed to the “explore, explore, explore, oh hey, here’s a puzzle to solve” feel that some text adventures ran into.
Above all, The Lurking Horror really feels like an interactive HP Lovecraft story, which is pretty high praise. It’s an old enough game that you probably won’t have any trouble finding a copy for download if you want to play it, and there’s even software for the Palm to let you carry it around with you. Check it out.
Games |Leave a Reply