CTHON

About CTHON

CTHON is a single player shooter game with a science fiction theme. It was developed by Gravity Games and was released on March 17, 2017. It received mostly positive reviews from both critics and players.

Embark - if you dare - upon a desperate battle against the unknown horrors of the beyond; featuring roguelike elements, including procedural generation and permanent death, Cthon seamlessly blends visceral combat with strategic character building.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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Reviews

77%Audience ScoreBased on 78 reviews

graphics10 positive mentions

story3 negative mentions

Excellent atmosphere with creepy, dark sci-fi setting and a haunting ambient soundtrack that enhances tension and immersion.
Innovative upgrade system that visibly changes weapon appearances and HUD, adding depth and customization to gameplay.
Procedurally generated levels and roguelike elements provide high replayability and variation in each playthrough.

Slow pacing, limited weapon variety, and basic combat mechanics can make gameplay feel repetitive and less engaging.
Permadeath and heavy RNG elements lead to frustrating difficulty spikes and sometimes unwinnable scenarios, reducing player agency.
Technical issues including clunky controls, lack of key rebinding options, limited graphics settings, and occasional crashes detract from experience.

gameplay
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
10% positive mentions, 80% neutral mentions, 10% negative mentions
The gameplay blends classic old-school FPS mechanics with roguelike elements, featuring procedurally generated mazes, permadeath, and character customization through upgrades and class-based builds. While some find the slow pacing and procedural exploration repetitive, others appreciate the tense survival strategy and atmospheric fusion of retro shooter and RPG styles. Overall, it offers a straightforward yet engaging mix of exploration, combat, and resource management that appeals to fans of both classic FPS and roguelikes.
- “This is a pretty fun and atmospheric mix of Wolf3D / Blake Stone-style old-school FPS gameplay with the randomly generated rogue-like formula, in a dark sci-fi / Lovecraftian setting.”
- “Overall, this game succeeds at fusing Wolfenstein/Doom's FPS gameplay with RPG and roguelike mechanics, elements of Metroid's aesthetic, and the narrative bent of Lovecraft's cosmological outlook.”
- “Again, like System Shock, inventory and resource management are significant elements of the gameplay, especially on the higher skills where supplies are extremely scarce.”
- “The movement is slow, gameplay is boring and if you die, you must begin from the start.”
- “The core gameplay consists of wandering procedurally-generated mazes, looking for the exit while fighting enemies with bare bones FPS mechanics, and managing and upgrading your character.”
- “The gameplay is dead simple and thanks to the procedurally generated levels, there's a lot of time spent exploring corridors to nowhere.”
graphics
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36% positive mentions, 53% neutral mentions, 11% negative mentions
Cthon's graphics embrace a nostalgic, low-res retro pixel art style reminiscent of early 90s FPS games like Wolfenstein 3D and Doom, effectively capturing a gritty, atmospheric, space-Lovecraftian aesthetic. The visuals are praised for their strong stylistic cohesion, detailed weapon upgrade appearances, and immersive environments that enhance the cosmic horror mood, though some players note the simplistic graphics may feel off-putting or outdated to those unfamiliar with old-school shooters. Overall, the graphics successfully blend old-school charm with modern enhancements to create a compelling and immersive visual experience.
- “The atmosphere is on point: graphics and audio are perfect for the space-Lovecraftian setting.”
- “The real strength of this is the visuals: each upgrade for your weapons and character changes the appearance of your gun or UI respectively, for each level of upgrade.”
- “For attempting 'old school' graphics it does a solid job visually without limiting itself with the clunkiness of many actual older titles.”
- “Cthon is a pretty simple roguelike, with the graphics and action of Wolfenstein 3D (albeit with all ranged attacks being projectiles instead of hitscan), and the story of Doom.”
- “If the graphics were any more complex, enough for me to mentally note areas down as landmarks or whatever, the automap wouldn't even have a reason to exist.”
- “I understand that the graphics can be off-putting if you haven't experienced the early first-person shooters back in the day, or that the gameplay mechanics can seem a bit unbalanced at times.”
music
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43% positive mentions, 44% neutral mentions, 13% negative mentions
The game's music is widely praised for its dark, eerie, and atmospheric soundtrack that effectively enhances the sense of dread, suspense, and isolation in the sci-fi horror setting. Despite being sometimes short or looped, the haunting ambient tunes and cosmic horror-inspired tracks strongly contribute to immersion and tension throughout gameplay. Overall, the soundtrack is regarded as a standout element that elevates the game's mood and presentation.
- “The game features a wonderful soundtrack with really great spritework and atmosphere.”
- “The real impressiveness comes from the soundtrack, which drifts in and out of cosmic horror ambiance to a slow paced post-rock doom that immediately gives off a 'bell witch' vibe.”
- “The slower pace, the gloomy, claustrophobic hallways, and a deliciously spooky soundtrack (seriously, these are really creepy tunes) all conspire to create the kind of tension-fraught, horror-fps atmosphere that I've longed to experience again since the mid-2000's.”
- “If it wasn't for the soundtrack, this would be a sub-par roguelike, but mixed with the aesthetic of the game, it really drives home a cosmic horror feel as you slowly progress through the labyrinthine levels of a dead research station on top of some forgotten alien civilization.”
- “The slower pace, the gloomy, claustrophobic hallways, and a deliciously spooky soundtrack (seriously, these are really creepy tunes) all conspire to create the kind of tension-fraught, horror-FPS atmosphere that I've longed to experience again since the mid-2000's.”
- “The gameworld is dark and unsettling, the simplistic ambient soundtrack creates the vibe of danger and uncertainty while permadeath keeps each playthrough tense.”
atmosphere
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
61% positive mentions, 22% neutral mentions, 17% negative mentions
Cthon delivers a dark, foreboding atmosphere with its blend of retro FPS gameplay and Lovecraftian sci-fi horror, enhanced by a creepy, tension-filled soundtrack and detailed sprite work. The claustrophobic environments, eerie sound design, and procedural enemy placement create a consistently oppressive and immersive experience that strongly evokes classic horror and sci-fi shooters. While some players note pacing and balance issues, the game's atmosphere remains its standout feature.
- “This is a pretty fun and atmospheric mix of Wolf3D / Blake Stone-style old-school FPS gameplay with the randomly generated roguelike formula, in a dark sci-fi / Lovecraftian setting.”
- “The slower pace, the gloomy, claustrophobic hallways, and a deliciously spooky soundtrack all conspire to create the kind of tension-fraught, horror-FPS atmosphere that I've longed to experience again since the mid-2000s.”
- “This game exudes an oppressive and foreboding atmosphere backed up by cool sound design and a meaty roster of enemies that are way too happy to scare the living daylights out of you thanks to the procedural generation of the maps putting them directly behind doors and in blind spots.”
- “The slower pace, the gloomy, claustrophobic hallways, and a deliciously spooky soundtrack all conspire to create a tension-fraught, horror-FPS atmosphere.”
- “While Cthon has some balancing issues and technical limitations, it manages to emulate the strong atmosphere of similarly flawed obscure Amiga FPS titles like 'Behind the Iron Gate' or 'Alien Breed 3D'.”
- “The sprite-work is interesting, with decrepit, sickly looking creatures inhabiting the claustrophobic halls, and their deaths being equally as grim as the atmosphere the game gives off.”
replayability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38% positive mentions, 24% neutral mentions, 38% negative mentions
The game offers high replayability primarily due to its procedurally generated levels and permadeath mechanics, ensuring each playthrough is unique. While the short playtime is noted, the upgrade system and randomized elements provide depth and varied challenges, though the difficulty can fluctuate based on found resources. Some users wished for additional features like achievements to further extend replay value.
- “Especially the aspect of procedurally generated maps makes Cthon a gem of high replayability and compensates for the short playtime of one to two hours.”
- “It's short, yes, but replayability is guaranteed with procedurally generated levels and an upgrade system that lets you customize your build.”
- “The procedural generation consistently creates levels with different layouts each time you load them so there is a high amount of replayability.”
- “Also would have appreciated some achievements to extend the replay value.”
- “There's permadeath, levels and items are randomly generated, which adds some replayability, but also throws difficulty all over the place, as your survival is very dependent on found upgrades and resource management.”
- “[h1]replay value[/h1]”
story
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50% positive mentions, -25% neutral mentions, 75% negative mentions
The story in Cthon is simple and minimalistic, delivered through scrolling text between game sections, effectively evoking a retro Doom-like atmosphere. While well-written and solid, it lacks depth and additional elements such as logs that could provide more narrative substance.
- “The simplistic retro story, told in screens of scrolling text in between the 3 sections of the game, is effective and evocative.”
- “Story elements are minimal but well written.”
- “Cthon is a pretty simple roguelike, with the graphics and action of Wolfenstein 3D (albeit with all ranged attacks here being projectiles instead of hitscan), and the story of Doom.”
- “The story was solid, though I wish there was more meat to it with logs or something like that rather than just the segment-end texts it provides you.”
- “Story elements are minimal.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions
The grinding aspect can become somewhat tedious, but the accompanying sound effects—reminiscent of original Doom games with eerie monster noises and mechanical door sounds—help maintain an engaging atmosphere.
- “It gets a bit tedious.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
0% positive mentions, 100% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The optimization not only enhances performance but also includes visual upgrades to the guns, improving both functionality and aesthetics.