Howard Phillips Lovecar

About

"Howard Phillips Lovecar" is a free, frenetic action game where you drive a car and shoot at cultists to prevent them from summoning ancient beings. With a shotgun and Tommy gun, you'll plow through summoning circles in this retro-style game, available on Steam. The developer continues to enhance the paid version, while the original remains unchanged and free to play.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

82%

Audience ScoreBased on 66 reviews

graphics6 positive mentions

music3 negative mentions

The game features an interesting art style and a fun Lovecraftian theme that can be entertaining.
Despite its simplicity, the game offers a nostalgic arcade experience reminiscent of older browser games.
It has potential for improvement and can be a fun distraction for short play sessions.

The controls are clunky and unpolished, making the driving experience frustrating.
The game lacks depth and variety, leading to repetitive gameplay that wears thin quickly.
Audio issues, including poor sound balancing and the absence of music, detract from the overall experience.

graphics
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
20%
20%
The graphics feature an interesting art style that some players appreciate, though opinions are mixed regarding its execution and overall appeal. While the visuals are distinctive, many feel that the color palette and artwork lack depth, ultimately detracting from the gaming experience.
- “The graphics use an interesting art style, which may or may not fit your own taste.”
- “Interesting art style.”
- “Cool art style and idea.”
- “Despite the price point and distinctive visuals, I think it's held back from being worth the time playing it.”
- “The artwork is not really interesting; the color palette leaves something to be desired.”
gameplay
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
38%
13%
The gameplay of Howard Phillips Lovecar is generally well-received, with players noting its enjoyable mechanics and the sense of improvement with each playthrough. However, some reviewers caution that the game lacks variety and depth, making it a decent but not groundbreaking experience.
- “I bought it only for the name, but the gameplay is pretty great too.”
- “Howard Phillips Lovecar is one of those games where you can feel yourself getting better at it every time you play it, and there's a lot of nuance in its controls and the way the different mechanics interact with one another.”
- “Decent game for the price, but don't expect variety or deep game mechanics.”
music
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The reviews indicate a significant issue with the game's music, as players report the absence of any music despite adjustable volume settings. This has contributed to an overall negative perception of the audio quality in the game.
- “Furthermore, there is no music despite there being a very deliberate music volume level in settings.”
- “Bad audio overall (also no music?!).”
- “Furthermore, there is no music despite there being a very deliberate music volume level in settings.”
atmosphere
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
50%
33%
The game's atmosphere is characterized by a dark, washed-out color palette and immersive sound effects, such as cultist yells, which enhance the tension, especially during moments of damage. While the art style may come off as amateurish, it effectively contributes to the overall eerie and tactical ambiance of the arcade shooter.
- “The atmosphere, with cultist yells and a washed-out color palette, especially when you've taken some damage and the darkness closes in, adds depth to a surprisingly tactical arcade shooter.”
- “The art is weird, maybe amateurish, but still appreciable as the atmosphere is dark enough and the sound is convincing as well.”
- “The atmosphere, with cultist yells and a washed-out color palette, especially when you've taken some damage and the darkness closes in, adds to a surprisingly tactical shoot-'em-up arcade game.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is reported to be poorly optimized for 5.1 speaker setups, with users noting an unbalanced sound distribution that feels disorganized and inconsistent across the speakers.
- “Not optimized for 5.1 speakers; the sound is not balanced among the speakers and seems to come out haphazardly.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized as both amusing and gory, blending comedic elements with graphic violence to create a unique and entertaining experience.
- “Funny and bloody.”
story
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The story features strong and compelling characters with a dark tone, though the backstory is noted as needing improvement.
- “The backstory could use some work, but the characters overall are really good and dark.”