Pyramid Review
Gatsby and the Great Race (for Call of Cthulhu)
Published by Chaosium, Inc.
Written by Paul Fricker with Rik Kershaw-Moore & Mike Mason
Cover by Paul Fricker
Illustrated by Paul Fricker
120-page b&w tapebound book; $20
If you are going to attend a convention in the near future and sign up to play any Call of Cthulhu scenario entitled "Hesitation," "Repetition," "Deviation," or "Machination," do not read this review. It will greatly reduce your enjoyment of either of those four scenarios, each of which offers an atmospheric and unnerving -- if not scary -- playing experience.
Gatsby and the Great Race is a wonderful title for a scenario for Call of Cthulhu. Not quite on a par with On the Trail of the Loathsome Slime, but not far off. It is pity, then, that this Miskatonic University Library Association monograph does not involve the Gatsby of F. Scott Fitzgerald fame. Similarly it does not involve the Great Race. Think what an interesting scenario that would be if it did? Nevertheless, the scenario does involve someone called Gatsby, does involve a race, which, if not great, is at least memorable, and is written for Call of Cthulhu.
So what then, is Gatsby and the Great Race? It is a Call of Cthulhu scenario set in the 1920s that could be run in the United States or Great Britain. Designed for an optimum number of six investigators plus Keeper, it comes with pre-generated characters and is designed to be played in a single session. Players take the roles of couples, friends, . . .
This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.
Article publication date: August 10, 2007
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