Screenshots
Watch trailer on Steam ↗Cthulhu Keeper
Kuuasema · Published by Kuuasema · Official site ↗
Content notice: In this game, your can play Lovecraftian monsters against humanity.
Last updated 27 Sept 2026
In this Lovecraftian real-time tactics game you play as a 1920s cult leader on a mission from the Old Ones. Build your cult, summon eldritch monsters, and undertake stealth tactics missions to spread insanity and amass power! In CTHULHU KEEPER you are the cosmic horror.
As a 1920s cult leader in Cthulhu Keeper, direct your eldritch followers through stealthy missions to grow your power and spread cosmic horror. Build your cult and unleash ancient beings in this Lovecraftian real-time strategy experience from Kuuasema.
About this game
Welcome to Cthulhu Keeper, a real-time tactics and dungeon-building game set in the eerie 1920s, where you assume the role of a cult leader weaving a web of dark influence. Build, defend, and expand your lair, summon terrifying creatures, and orchestrate sinister missions.
Plan and execute missions in the outside world, from stealing artifacts to converting new followers. Each mission presents unique objectives, like capturing valuable targets or escaping undetected. Customize your cult leader and monsters for each mission, equipping them with helpful items and powers.
Begin by carving your lair from solid rock. Lay out halls and chambers, create dedicated rooms for rituals, and strategically place defenses to fend off intruders. Customize the layout, giving your cultists tasks like research, monster care, and trap setting.
Use the power of ancient tomes and artifacts to summon creatures from Lovecraft’s mythos. Each monster brings unique abilities and needs a fitting habitat, such as shadowed caves or occult gardens. Choose carefully: a stealthy Shambler can move unnoticed, while a powerful Mi-Go dominates the skies.
As your lair grows, word spreads, drawing attention from rival cults, detectives, and the police. Set traps and strategically place spells to defend your cult against these intrusions. If an invasion breaks through, your compound will suffer damage, and resources will be stolen.
Dig, Dagger, Dagon.
Key Features:
Dungeon Building Meets Tactics: Carve out a sprawling lair, defend it against rival cults and investigators, and manage resources to expand your domain of terror.
Summon and Control Lovecraftian Monsters: Unlock and command creatures from Lovecraft's mythos, each with unique skills and abilities. Develop them through research trees, specializing them to fit your dark strategy.
Loot & Research: Expand your knowledge by collecting manuscripts and artifacts. Unlock powerful upgrades, new monsters, and specialized skills. For each creature, you can choose different evolutionary paths, adapting your horrors to fit your playstyle.
Challenging Missions with Unique Rules: Undertake a variety of missions with different goals—raid asylums, conduct grim rituals, and battle rival cultists, police, and even mythos monsters.
Lovecraftian Storylines: Experience handcrafted story arcs inspired by the Cthulhu mythos, including tense encounters with cults, gruesome rituals, and eldritch prophecies.
Can you harness the ancient powers without losing your sanity?
System Requirements
Will my PC run this? →Minimum
- OS: 10
- Processor: AMD Ryzen 3 3100
- Memory: 16 GB RAM
- Graphics: GeForce GTX 960
- Storage: 3 GB available space
Recommended
- OS: 10
- Processor: Intel Core i7-10700K
- Memory: 24 GB RAM
- Graphics: GeForce RTX 2080
- Storage: 6 GB available space
Supported Languages
*languages with full audio support
Latest news
AnnouncementsOfficial
Words of Madness & Wisdom from the Cthulhu Keeper Team
1. What was the original idea or inspiration behind Cthulhu Keeper, and how has it evolved since the first concept?The main inspiration is somewhat obvious: we had all played Dungeon Keeper I & II in the 90's and loved the Bullfrog classics' mood and the fun twist that you actually played on the evil side. An equally formative 90's title was Commandos: Behind the Enemy Lines. Both felt like rare gems that deserved a modern revisiting.Lovecraftian stories, movies and comic books have always been dear to us, and we wanted to explore the mythos in the video game medium for the eerie, astral & horrible themes. And the monsters are just awesomely weird.The aim was to fuse the gory horrors and the bit of tongue in cheek vibe from Dungeon Keeper into a horrible cult management game that we would like to play ourselves!2. What has been the biggest challenge during development, and how did the team overcome it?The biggest challenge must have been to combine the stealth tactics gameplay with the cult compound & management side. You get to summon and play as Lovecraftian horrors – but in stealth gameplay, you are inherently weak and try to avoid mayhem and chaos, which the monsters naturally bring about. So we had to build progression and suspense before we could let the bigger terrors run loose. The stealth missions are perfect for feeding the dungeon economy though. Gathering resources such as tomes, gold, corpses and other artefacts encourages players to explore every corner and fits the slower exploration pace.Early concept 1.3. Can you share a feature, mechanic, or detail that you're especially proud of, but think most players might miss?One small mechanic that might fly under the radar is how the Mi-go can be used to mind control a guard. If you pull it off, you can sneak past other guards until shooting them in the back.4. How did you approach sound design and music in a game where dread and atmosphere are so central?We focused on ambient sound design more than traditio...Read full article on Community Announcements (MrRum)Community & EventsOfficial
Cthulhu Keeper X Steam Scream 4 Fest
Cthulhu Keeper will be part of the Steam Scream 4 Fest 2025 (October 27–November 3)! Meaning it starts TOMORROW!Playtest is still open on Steam. Let's have a great spooky season, you all!Read full article on Community Announcements (MrRum)AnnouncementsOfficial
Cthulhu Keeper part of the Finnish Games Week on Steam
We are happy to take part in the Finnish Games Week here on Steam! Let's have a proper festival!Read full article on Community Announcements (MrRum)AnnouncementsOfficial
🏆 MOST ANTICIPATED GAME OF 2025 – CTHULHU KEEPER! 🏆
Cthulhu Keeper has WON 1st Place as the Most Anticipated Game of 2025 at the ChinaJoy–Game Connection Indie Game Awards!We are truly honored and humbled by this recognition. Thank YOU for the hype and cheers - together, we have pleased the Great Old One.Our dungeon of cultists is growing! Now is the perfect time to join and stay ahead on all Cthulhu Keeper news: 👉 Join our DiscordYou can playtest and wishlist the game on Steam right now: 🎮 Play on SteamNot fluent in English? No problem! Cthulhu Keeper is already localized in English, German, French, Spanish, Simplified & Traditional Chinese, Japanese, and Finnish.Cheers! -Kuuasema TeamRead full article on Community Announcements (MrRum)AnnouncementsOfficial
We're a 2025 Indie Game Awards Finalist!
We’re thrilled to share that Cthulhu Keeper has been nominated as one of the most anticipated indie games of 2025 at the Game Connection × ChinaJoy Indie Awards! 🌌👁️Thank you for all the excitement and encouragement - it means the world to our small team.More eerie updates coming soon... 💚 Don’t forget to wishlist/playtest us to stay tuned! -Kuuasema TeamRead full article on Community Announcements (MrRum)
