Cthulhu Virtual Pet

About

Cthulhu Virtual Pet is a single player casual simulation game with horror and comedy themes. It was developed by NeuroCreativa and was released on March 31, 2016. It received positive reviews from players.

This 8 bits Cthulhu Virtual Pet can be in your pocket to fill your days with fun

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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84%

Audience ScoreBased on 2,648 reviews

graphics28 positive mentions

monetization258 negative mentions

Adorable virtual pet game with a Lovecraftian theme and nostalgic pixel art style.
Engaging and moderately challenging mini games that provide coins to care for Cthulhu.
Deep sleep feature allows players to pause care during busy periods or sleep.
Reasonable one-time purchase to remove ads and support the developers.
Developer actively updates and provides good community support.

Lack of tutorial or clear instructions on game mechanics and symbols causes confusion.
Cthulhu is very needy with stats depleting quickly, making it difficult to manage during long periods away.
Excessive full-screen ads appearing approximately every 90 seconds disrupt gameplay and annoy players.
Progression is slow and stagnates after a certain level with no new evolutions or content beyond initial stages.
Some mini games suffer from control and hitbox issues, making them frustrating or unfair.

monetization
266 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
2%
1%
97%
Monetization relies heavily on frequent full-screen ads, often appearing every 60-90 seconds, which many users find intrusive and disruptive to gameplay. However, the option to pay a reasonably priced $1 to remove all ads is widely praised and considered worth the cost to improve the experience. Overall, while ads can detract from enjoyment, the minimal paywall for an ad-free version helps balance user satisfaction and developer support.
- “Worth your time and worth upgrading to no ads.”
- “Extremely addictive and no ads.”
- “This app is awesome; I have no ads at all but I didn't pay.”
- “Too many full screen ads had to uninstall.”
- “The game breaking issue here are the full screen ads that pop up literally every 20 seconds until you either rage quit, like I did, or buy the ad removal from the store.”
- “Also the ads are popping up in the middle of the mini games and causing me to lose quite often.”
graphics
62 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
49%
6%
The game's graphics are widely praised for their cute, retro, and nostalgic 8-bit pixel art style that effectively captures a charming and melancholic vibe reminiscent of classic handheld and early computer games. While some users appreciate the simplicity and aesthetic appeal, a few express a desire for more customization options and occasional dissatisfaction with recent changes to the art style or color palette. Overall, the visuals are considered a strong and appealing feature, enhancing the game's unique concept despite minor criticisms.
- “Really amazing game graphics are retro and nostalgic, simplistic yet they managed to make a face that makes me go "awww" every time he smiles. The "deep sleep" feature is also something many other games should adopt!”
- “The game is really amazing; nice and melancholic graphics, reminds me a lot of classic video games and is just incredible.”
- “The pixelated monochrome sprite graphics give it a nostalgic feel for 80s DOS and Apple II games.”
- “And the ads at the bottom of the games block off the graphics.”
- “Most new graphics also look kinda disturbing when I look at them carefully, like the eating animation of the man.”
- “Terrible new art style.”
humor
27 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is widely praised for its dark, Lovecraftian humor and cute, funny presentation, blending nostalgia and a quirky, pitch-black comedic style. Players find the sound effects, notifications, and character interactions genuinely hilarious and entertaining. However, some note that the humor and engagement lessen once the character reaches adulthood.
- “Wonderfully designed little game with a pitch black sense of humor.”
- “Reminds me of tamogatchi with a hilarious lovecraft twist, very fun :)”
- “The mini games are fun and addictive, love the graphics and sounds, and the notifications when he needs attention are hilarious.”
gameplay
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
48%
14%
The gameplay is generally praised for its simple, fun, and engaging mini games that add variety and lasting appeal to the virtual pet concept. However, some users find the evolution mechanics underdeveloped and note repetitive gameplay that can become boring without new features. Additionally, intrusive ads and a need for clearer UI explanations slightly detract from the overall experience.
- “The mini games are fantastic as they effectively kill time with simple yet well executed mechanics.”
- “This is a pretty standard virtual pet on the surface but the mini games and worshipers mechanic gives it some fresh and lasting playability.”
- “The best features of this game are its aesthetically pleasing colour scheme and art, its really nice GUI, and engaging mini games (which are cute and interesting in their different mechanics and shoutouts to the Lovecraftian material).”
- “But after several repeats of the gameplay without any new features for the accomplishment in the game, you would get bored really fast.”
- “Don't assault your users with ads that interfere with gameplay every 1.5 minutes.”
- “Took a star off for lack of intuitive explanation of UI and mechanics.”
music
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
28%
55%
17%
The music in the game is widely praised for its creepy, eerie ambiance that enhances the Lovecraftian theme, with particular appreciation for the mini-game tracks and sleep mode soundtrack. However, some users request more variety, looping fixes, and an option to toggle music on or off, noting occasional annoyance from repetitive or conflicting sound. Overall, the soundtrack effectively complements the pixel art and game atmosphere, making for an immersive experience.
- “Mini games are addictive and the ambient music is creepy and cool at the same time.”
- “The pixel art is amazing and the music when he sleeps puts me in a different world.”
- “Mini games kick butt, the sounds and music are tight, and I really dig the NES look.”
- “The music of the minigame added in the last update just stops playing after a while; maybe you should consider setting it on a loop.”
- “Could definitely use some sweet chiptune music thrown in there to liven things up a bit.”
- “I just wish I could turn off the music.”
stability
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
8%
92%
Stability issues are commonly reported, particularly with save game loading and certain mini-games like the lock/padlock challenge, which often freeze or glitch. While some users experience frequent bugs and resets, others note that developers actively work on fixing these problems. Overall, stability is inconsistent, impacting gameplay enjoyment for some players.
- “I loved this game and had a high score but after resetting my phone and reinstalling the app, it freezes when trying to load my save game.”
- “Easy to use and fun, but mine at least is buggy. On stage 3 of life (prime), last night he evolved, but when I opened it this morning, he was back to the beginning of the prime stage again. Shouldn't he have evolved to the next step?”
- “One con: the lock game is really buggy.”
grinding
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
10%
90%
Grinding in the game is generally described as tedious and repetitive, with many mini games becoming monotonous and lacking meaningful rewards beyond cosmetic skins. While some users appreciate the cute art style and find certain mini games enjoyable or responsive, the overall consensus is that the grinding lacks variety and engaging incentives.
- “Nothing real to look forward to, most of the mini games were tedious and only two earned me currency consistently.”
- “Levels cease to give rewards, there's nothing to purchase aside from skins, and half the mini games are tedious.”
- “The minigames you have to do to earn points were repetitive and tedious.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game runs smoothly and receives regular updates, but some users experience optimization issues, such as screen compatibility problems that prevent progress.
- “The game runs smoothly and is updated regularly.”
- “Can't get past the first screen - unoptimized for my screen, can't press the 'envoque' button.”
story
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The story is well-loved, particularly for its unique concept of having a Cthulhu pet, which appeals to fans familiar with the original storybook.
- “Loved the story, liked Tamagotchi.”
- “Anyone with any interest or knowledge of this story will love having their very own Cthulhu pet.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users express frustration with inconsistent and unforgiving controls that detract from the emotional engagement, leading to dissatisfaction and eventual abandonment of the game.
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game offers a good initial experience for its price but has limited replay value.
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find character development frustrating when significant changes, such as redesigns, occur unexpectedly without prior warning, undermining the investment they’ve made over time.
- “Obviously it's the author/designer's prerogative to make that kind of change, but when I've been 'raising' it for over a week, it sucks to open it up one day and find a completely changed character design with no warning.”