Topic: Lovecraft and Castlevania

[AlexCalvo]

The work of H.P. Lovecraft has made several appearances in the series.  From the Cthulhu enemy that debuted in SoTN (mistakenly name switched with malechai in the english translation), the Dagon boss in PoR, the Necronomicon appearing in the intro of the N64 games, and what I would argue is the biggest Lovecraftian mark on the series as a whole, Fishmen, what Lovecraft called deep ones.

The fishmen of the series, even going back as far as the first game fall far more in line with Lovecraft's description of deep ones than with the creature from the black lagoon (which was heavily inspired by Lovecraft's work.)  I don't know if this was intentional, given that the first game was basically a monster mash game of classic movie monsters, with some mythology thrown in to help.  But just take a look to compare.

Deep Ones
https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&authuser=0&site=imghp&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1366&bih=643&q=deep+ones&oq=deep+ones&gs_l=img.3..0l10.1252.2384.0.2483.9.7.0.0.0.0.323.688.0j1j1j1.3.0....0...1ac.1.64.img..6.3.684.NkT2MwMAXCA

Creature From the Black Lagoon
https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&authuser=0&site=imghp&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1366&bih=643&q=deep+ones&oq=deep+ones&gs_l=img.3..0l10.1252.2384.0.2483.9.7.0.0.0.0.323.688.0j1j1j1.3.0....0...1ac.1.64.img..6.3.684.NkT2MwMAXCA#hl=en&authuser=0&tbm=isch&q=creature+from+the+black+lagoon

Which one looks more like our fishmen?

I also want to touch on the whole concept of Chaos, and the whole pinnacle/abyss/chaos/whatever the hell realm we see primarily in the sorrow games, and final form Dracula fights throughout the series.  To me these are clearly Lovecraftian ideas, ancient stellar beings of immeasurable power who are bent on chaos and destruction, waiting out among the stars, in unknown realms, for the time to return and reek havoc.  This is what like 75% of Lovecraft's stories are about.

I personally would love to see a take on the series that pressed on these issues a little harder.  Some late 19th century horror mystery injected into a Castlevania game could be a great shot in the arm to make the series relevant again, and make it feel new while still staying true to the series.  Play up the cosmic weirdness horror of Chaos, while also bringing in other Lovecraft horrors to pad out the enemies and bosses.