Penguin Colony review - the least expected Soulslike you’ll play, and a cracking parody of Lovecraftian empires
Penguin Colony is a Soulslike game that Rock Paper Shotgun describes as an exceptionally clever parody of Lovecraftian horror and cosmic dread. The reviewer calls it “probably the best pisstake of Lovecraft and Lovecraftian horror” they’ve experienced. The game places the player in a ravaged polar campsite setting, advancing through burning tents and uniformed corpses in an atmospheric environment. A key narrative moment involves a pioneer figure attempting to saw off their own face, establishing the game’s grotesque and darkly humorous tone.
The game effectively employs classic Lovecraftian themes including eldritch relics, incomprehensible cosmic entities, interdimensional empires, and the psychological descent into madness. Narration by Lenval Brown reinforces these cosmic horror elements, speaking of inexplicable deaths, “scientific explanations,” and “queer creatures” from other dimensions. What makes Penguin Colony distinctive is how it presents Lovecraftian fiction at a deliberate remove from typical cosmic horror conventions. By filtering these themes through an unexpected game genre and setting, the game amplifies the inherent absurdity of Lovecraft’s universe without needing to spell out jokes explicitly. The interplay between the relatively mundane Antarctic setting and grand cosmic ambitions creates an unconventional take on Lovecraftian parody.