Dark Adventure Radio Theatre: Masks of Nyarlathotep

By: H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society

Narrated by: H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society

Length: 7 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's Summary

Dark Adventure Radio Theatre: Masks of Nyarlathotep is an epic tale of globe-trotting adventure inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft, presented as a 1930s-style radio drama. Dark Adventure Radio Theatre presents the tale with an absurdly large cast of professional actors, exciting sound effects and thrilling original music by Troy Sterling Nies. 

Like many Lovecraft fans, we played Chaosium's celebrated role playing game Call of Cthulhu®. Now, in partnership with Chaosium, we've adapted their most famed and beloved game supplement of all time -  Masks of Nyarlathotep - into a fully dramatized super episode of Dark Adventure Radio Theatre. And if you've never heard of or played the game - don't worry, you don't need to know anything about the game to enjoy this super-sized episode. The death of a dear old friend and an inquiry into a doomed archeological expedition spiral into a global investigation with dire repercussions. 

Can a handful of intrepid investigators make a stand against an insidious and bloodthirsty cult? Can a diabolical conspiracy be thwarted before a doomsday plan comes to fruition? Is there any hope for mankind against the machinations of an Elder God or will they meet only despair, death and madness?

©2018 Chaosium, Inc. (P)2019 HPLHS, Inc.

Great Lovecraftian style adaptation!

If you are looking for a narrated story by H.P. Lovecraft, skip this. HOWEVER.... if you enjoy his style of writing and are up for a bit of dark humor and frivolity, well then..., This is a perfectly done, over the top, '30's style radio play, commercials included. I didn't even catch how hilarious the commercials were until about the 2nd or 3rd one. After that, they were as much fun as the play. I love the use of dramatic musical overtones, old style sound effects, and the commercial breaks. Yes, the drama is a touch overly dramatic. That's purposeful. Take it as a vehicle used during radio plays to express things so you can see them with your ear. Please remember that even though this is definitely a legitimate Lovecraft Universe story, it does have a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor. I'm getting more of these. I absolutely loved this one.

most excellent!

I do love a really good radio play but this this takes me back well back to before I was but still!! remarkably done
if you play Call of Cthulhu and are familiar with masks of nyarlathotep the tantamount tour-de-force campaign, you'll love this. If you're playing through it still might be safe to listen to might give you some ideas. If you're running it! Cool beans to listen to this before or after and during. So much fun so so so much fun. If you don't know anything about any of those things, even if you don't know anything about HP Lovecraft, this is a fantastic tale of Adventure! Go for it just go for it.

support these folks!

Please give these people support buy all of thier materials! They do a fantastic job and it shows!

Simply outstanding!

HPLHS, they set the benchmark on radio dramatizations and readings of HP Lovecraft's works. Outstanding

Excellent story!!!

Great story, awesome presentation. It was full of action and adventure. Gripping story I actually found myself tooth,g for the characters and really got into the story. Also, the story was paced well enough so you weren't always sure what wad going to happen and the commercials were hilarious.

too many pejoratives for my wife's taste

my wife is African American and she found it offensive.
I understand it this is a period piece, but it really didn't need pejoratives to get the point across

So much fun!

Loved it through and through! Now I just hope I can do the story the same sort of justice that this audiobook did when I run the campaign for my friends next month! Can't wait to see how the newest chapter on Peru solidifies the connection of the players to Jackson Elias!

Good performances. Uninspired story. Commercials.

The theatrical style and presentation are a welcome introduction to material as old as H.P. Lovecraft's original writings. The pulp style is novel and is a good fit. The story itself reminded me of an Indiana Jones adventure. I'm half-way through the recording and I'm not going to finish it and will request a refund after I'm done writing this.

I cannot stress how much I HATE the commercials. Whatever momentum which is built in any given scene comes to a screeching halt and hits a brick wall whenever an ad rolls. I enjoy the other work from group, of Lovecraft's other, more focused short stories. With the Masks of Nyarlathotep, it felt like the story just kept dragging on and on, interrupted by commercial after commercial.

The best way to listen to a Lovecraft book.

Absolutely brilliant. I can't wait to listen to more of their productions. I hope they do more modules like the horror on the orient express.

Guy Noirlathotep

Fair warning: this is a silly, pulpy, radio-play style telling of a classic role playing module that is nominally Lovecraftian, but only in the same way a suburban strip-mall bar is an “Irish pub”, leaning heavily into the campy and cliche, and far and away from the authentic. Which can be fun! But if you want creeping horror, look elsewhere.

If you’re familiar with A Prairie Home Companion then you’ll pretty much know what you’re in for. If you’re familiar with Guy Noir then you know almost exactly.

This is well produced, well acted, generally well written. It however leans a bit much into the sins of the era it’s set in (the 20s) - racism, e.g. - even though it’s made in the present day and based on a role playing game from the 80s. It’s not as though they’re unfortunate relics of a classic text. And - perhaps I’m in the minority here - but the “commercials” are frequent, and unfunny.

There’s a movie - I forget its name - that was an almost perfect recreation of old, bad, low budget sci-fi. I found it briefly amusing... and then realized it was a bad, low budget sci fi movie. Does it matter if its awfulness is intentional?

This isn’t that. But you do sort of get the sense that with just one or two missteps, it could have been.

Great

A thoroughly entertaining romp, melodramatic, great performances and a cracking storyline. An old fashioned style radio drama that doesn’t take itself too seriously.

Pulpy geeky fun!

Absolutely great fun from start to finish! Who knew that a dramatisation of an RPG campaign would be so engaging to listen to rather than play?

The plot and acting run a very thin line between loving pastiche of old pulp stories and slightly silly, but almost always land on the right side. I particularly loved the fake adverts at the end of each chapter, adding a nice touch of light relief to the tension of the cliffhangers. I really want some Bubble Pep now!

The acting is largely great - deliberately cheesy in places and doing a great job of making the large cast of heroes likeable. Some of the British accents are all over the place, but only the bit-parts - I doubt non-Brits will notice or care.

If you have any interest in Lovecraft or the Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game, or you just generally like fun, I’d definitely recommend giving this a listen.

Absolutely brilliant!

Brilliant vintage radio show format complete with hilarious adverts such as 4 hands toothpaste, infused with Radium! loved it!

Absolute trash

Love, Lovecraft stories but this isn't anything close to Lovecraft and has been butchered by mass injection of current politics and ideology.

A rare miss.

I'm a big fan of the HP Lovecraft Historical Society but this, this is the first negative review I've ever given to one of their works. Previously all their works have been pretty damn good attempts to recreate the early radio broadcasts, the script for this one, just doesn't seem to be as authentic, the minor injections of modern politics particularly grate. In short if you like HPLS's work then you might enjoy this but I would consider this as the last one you buy once you have the others because it's by far the least impressive, in script and performance quality.

Outstanding

wow... amazing completely amazing, I listened to many of these radio plays but this is by far one of the best.

Absolutely Fantastic

radio drama presentation was immersive and while the story isn't gonna win any "all time" awards, it was fit for purpose and pretty evocative at times and gripping the whole way through. fastest I've ever gotten through any audiobook

amazing audiobook except..

..the stupid fun-adverts that break up each chapter. does nothing but to break the tension and suspense.
I get it was part of the original recording...but it does no service to the story or tone.

Ia Nyarlathotep!

As a lifelong Lovecraft aficionado, this production was an absolute joy to listen to on my late night drives home from work. Brilliantly written and played! Please make more like this! Cthulhu Fhtagn!

Exceptional!

Based on the quality of this production, I have decided to buy more plays performed by this wonderful company. At the Mountains of Madness next I think!