Cosmic Abyss is a clever combination of SOMA and Resident Evil

If there’s one sub-genre that I really like, it’s cosmic horror. I actually have a Cthulhu figure sitting above the TV in my living room, so any time a game draws inspiration from Lovecraftian mythology, there’s no chance in this world (and even others) I’m going to miss it.

And it’s amazing how each title manages to bring a unique meaning and story to the table by drawing inspiration from the twisted creations of HP Lovecraft. Each has its merits (and slips, of course), from the suffocating atmosphere of Call of Cthulhu and the sad sanitation system in Eternal Darkness: Need for Cleanliness, to the unexpected combination of fear and relief in Dredge or the retro charm of Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the World.

However, to this day, nothing has been able to bring down Bloodborne, one of FromSoftware’s greatest masterpieces for me, as a game that perfectly captured the essence of cosmic dread. Well, at least until now, because suddenly, a worthy opponent has appeared.

In the Depths of Madness

Developed by the wonderful people at Big Bad Wolf, who you may know from their work Vampire: The Masquerade – Swansong and The Council, Cthulhu: Cosmic Abyss is an investigative title that not only borrows elements from the Cthulhu legends, but also dives headfirst into them – and in fact you will understand why soon, in fact, enough.

With the developer’s invitation (thanks, Nacon!), I was able to play the first two chapters (which lasted more than three hours) and attended a special presentation with the game’s director, Tommaso Sergi. He explained that the main goal of the developers was to try to imagine a world that expands beyond Lovecraft’s original creations, making my experience with the click of a game faster. “We pushed these myths a little bit, in a respectful way,” he explained, showing a clear and contagious joy of the work. But let’s start at the beginning.

Cthulhu: Cosmic Abyss is a first-person investigative game that puts you in the shoes of Noah Williams, a veteran investigator initially tasked with finding a missing colleague. When he reaches the last place he was seen, he finds a place full of fear and madness, filled with various heads of religions and obscure things. However, I’ll stop there – the less you know about this part, the better.

What you don’t know and what you should know is that the search for his missing partner leads to a new, mysterious assignment that turns out to be an underwater research station that everyone believed to be abandoned is actually very active, and some very bad things happen there, as you might expect.

Basically, the station was investigating a mysterious underwater city connected to an ancient, dark cult. And yes, if you’re a fan of Lovecraft’s work, you already know we’re talking about R’lyeh.

That’s all the setup you need for the story. I only got a small part of it, but it already had a little bit of everything: plot twists, drama, horror, optional dialogue with various characters, and a ton of mystery.

What I found particularly interesting, however, was the state of the future. Cosmic Abyss is set in 2053, and it uses that time in a clever way within the narrative because it gives context to a few things in the game, like the main character having an AI companion (and you get room for some subtle criticism, by the way).

For example, by adding this voice assistant (called Key), the game turns the menu into something diegetic – meaning it’s a real part of the game world, since the device Noah uses is the same one you interact with as a player. Oh, even the difficulty settings, of which there are two in total, are justified by AI, as one of them works as a free mode, providing more assistance and softening the more punishing machines.

And I feel that’s a good reference for talking about gameplay, as the experience unfolds through continuous, deep investigation.

SOMA Meets Resident Evil

With this heavy investigative focus, Cthulhu: Cosmic Abyss relies entirely on environmental puzzles and thorough exploration to create a space experience, avoiding conventional combat and direct confrontation with enemies.

And, for me, this formula fits well with the game’s premise, which spices things up with ocean exploration and claustrophobic level design. Wandering through the small corridors of the station and facing the incredible size of the sea outside works very well to create tension and fear of the unknown – which are the main pillars of any cosmic horror story, according to Lovecraft himself, when he said “the oldest and strongest form of fear is the fear of the unknown.”

Combined, these features made me feel like I was playing a brilliant mix of SOMA (with its oppressive loneliness, thalassophobia, and existential dread) and the inherent puzzles of Resident Evil’s first-person titles (hunting for key lost cards and reading disturbing notes left by researchers who clearly thought messing with alien creatures was a good idea).

But despite reminding me of these popular titles, Cosmic Abyss still boasts its unique nature by giving you space and well-designed mechanics to play the detective with a great amount of incredible freedom.

Although you have a main objective guide at the top of the screen, the game gives you tools and expects you to figure things out on your own. You can interact with a large number of objects and notes, rotating them to search for hidden clues, saving them for later use, or even pinning them for immediate use (which, honestly, was a lifesaver for me during the demo, as my short-term memory is not my strongest suit).

In addition, you can perform an in-depth analysis of points of interest using the Sonar system, which is essential for your investigation. It works in a very straightforward way: imagine you need a certain key card to open a door, but you just found one that doesn’t work – you can analyze it, and Sonar will highlight the locations of similar cards nearby. It works like detective mode, but it’s more customized and less automatic; you have to sort it out to get what you need.

And with so many investigative tools at play, the screen can easily become overwhelmed with too much information. However, the HUD in Cthulhu: Cosmic Abyss is clean, beautiful, and functional, using small icons that only provide what you need at the time.

My only real complaint about the Vault toolkit. It acts as an inquiry board where you can connect clues, people of interest, and get notes to solve puzzles or decide your next move. The concept is great and reminds me a lot of The Mind Place in Alan Wake 2, but the design didn’t feel right at all. I have to admit that I struggled with its design before I fully understood how everything worked, unlike other mechanics, which I picked up almost instantly.

Regardless, with all these tools at your disposal, it’s incredibly easy to feel like a real detective, and the cosmic horror twist is what gives the whole experience so much charm.

In addition, there are a few other important gameplay features, such as an energy bar to keep Noah healthy and fast (which is recharged by injecting an unknown mushroom into his arm, which is totally disgusting, I love it). And there’s also Corruption, which works as a (e)mind mechanic – since I played early in the game, I haven’t seen its worst effects yet, but it seems to be affecting Noah’s vision and messing with his senses.

Final Verdict: A Dive Worth Taking

That’s what I felt when I played Cthulhu: The Cosmic Abyss. It really is a terrifying experience of the universe designed for you to enter its madness and take your time, as the puzzles will make you crack your brain while solving them, and there is a wealth of interesting stories hidden in the texts you find along the way.

There are a few things the director, Tommaso Sergi, said during his introduction that stuck with me because they promise more than what we can expect from the game. He noted that the game will have many outcomes and endings, and that we should expect our AI partner, the key, to provide a different perspective of the character.

Sergi also promised 12 hours of play time to reach the end (one of them, at least) and emphasized that the freedom aspect was intended – the developers want players to feel like they are writing the story themselves rather than playing through it.

Hearing those details and having so much fun with the demo made me fall in love with this crazy project right away. It’s a compelling combination for any horror fan, and I can’t wait to lose a few points when the full game arrives on April 16, 2026, for PC (via Steam), PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.

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Released

April 16, 2026

Number of Players

Single player

Steam Deck Compatibility

Not known