The Lovecraft Tapes is a real-play Call of Cthulhu 7th edition RPG campaign podcast recorded using roll20.net, Audacity and Adobe Creative Cloud. Episodes are available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Podbean.
Cast (as of Tryst)
Keeper of the Arcane Lore – Jeremy Johnson ( https://twitter.com/lovecrafttapes )
Jack Whiteside – Bryan Johnson ( https://twitter.com/Bryanpodcasts )
Rocky Arroyo – Matt Zielesch ( https://twitter.com/TheRealWeirdKid )
Roy Arroyo – Gabe Dichenzo ( https://twitter.com/lovecraftgabe )
The Lovecraft Tapes Podcast Review
As stated in the synopsis The Lovecraft Tapes is a real-play game of the RPG Call of Cthulhu by Chaosium. I’m sure everyone has at least heard of Dungeons & Dragons and its role-playing elements. Call of Cthulhu is very similar, albeit with some different dice rules and its scenarios are based on the horror works of H.P. Lovecraft with a much larger emphasis on investigating, horror and story-telling elements.
The Lovecraft Tapes was started in 2016, fittingly enough on Devil’s Night. My husband started listening to them after trying out a few other podcasts and became instantly hooked. Since I don’t listen to very many podcasts it took me awhile to listen but once I did, I was hooked, as well. We are currently listening to Tryst and eagerly waiting for the next episode to come out. My husband has listened to them all from the beginning but I have yet to catch up.
I was very impressed. Jeremy runs the Chapters very smoothly. He has a great knack at description and setting the scene in such detail that you can picture it vividly in your head. He also writes most of the scenarios for the show (or puts his own spin on existing stories) and you can see that he puts effort into it and doesn’t half-ass it. They’re tight enough to be coherent yet loose enough so that his players have leeway and don’t feel railroaded into actions.
As for the rest of the guys…they are so fun to listen to. You can tell they enjoy playing and they play their PC’s so well that you can literally visualize them for yourself. I honestly can’t pick a favorite but I do enjoy Roy a whole lot. Particularly when it’s ‘family time’. They are also goofy fun to listen to even when they’re bantering out of character. It makes for a thoroughly enjoyable listening experience. It’s also fun to listen for the references they make and they have a clear love for the horror genre.
At the end of each episode they have ‘Recommendos’ and it’s always different. It’s interesting to hear what they think of movies or games that I have seen or played. Their Recommendos aren’t limited to just movies and games but range all over the place so it’s never dull. They tell you just enough to intrigue you but don’t spoil anything. I have noted several movies down to take a look at.
From a technical standpoint their editing is great. I only caught one instance where I could hear a cut but everything else is pretty seamlessly blended. The audio is clear and even and the sound effects are at an excellent volume. They are enough to enhance the show but don’t overpower it and wreck your ears unexpectedly.
So kick back, grab a TacoFish and listen to a funny, well thought out podcast with a lot of personality. You really want to check this one out. Highly Recommendo’d.
GracieKat was the first co-host of Sci-Fi & Scary, Lilyn’s partner-in-crime, and sub-head of the Kali Krew. She reviews horror books, movies, and games for the site. She also does a weekly Focus on the Frightful feature, and is the site list-maker. She is also in control of the Sci-Fi & Scary podcast which will relaunch soon.
This podcast is epic,if you want to insanely laugh, it doesn’t matter if your familiar with CofC from Chaosium, or just want to learn about the legendary table top RPG this is the podcast to listen to.Just go ahead and try not to laugh during it. A very nice Focus on the frightful,loved every word of it. Scifiandscary + Lovecraft tapes= pure insanity that ROCKS! Roll for More!😈🎲😈