ALIEN RPG vs Call of Cthulhu
Compare ALIEN RPG and Call of Cthulhu side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| ALIEN RPG | Call of Cthulhu | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Scifi, Horror | Horror, Modern |
| Play Style | Horror, Survival, Deadly, Atmospheric, One-Shot Friendly, Gritty, Licensed IP | Investigation, Deadly, One-Shot Friendly, Atmospheric, Roleplay-Heavy, Mystery, Horror, Corruption, Skill-Based |
| Core Mechanic | Roll a d6 dice pool (attribute + skill). Each 6 is a success. Stress adds extra dice — better odds, but stress dice that roll 1 trigger panic. Push rolls to reroll failures but gain stress. Cinematic mode for one-shots, Campaign mode for long-form play. | Roll d100 equal to or under your skill percentage. Success tiers at half (Hard) and one-fifth (Extreme) of the skill value. Bonus and penalty dice adjust the tens digit. Failed rolls can be pushed for a second attempt at greater risk. |
| Dice | d6 dice pool | d100 |
| Complexity | Medium | Medium |
| Accessibility | High | Medium |
| Runnability | High | High |
| License | All Rights Reserved (20th Century Studios license) | Chaosium Fan Material Policy |
| Cost | $$ | $$ |
| Publisher | Free League Publishing | Chaosium |
| Year | 2025 | 2014 |
| Best For | Sci-fi horror campaigns and one-shots in the Alien universe, with a stress/panic system that mechanically drives tension. Supports both deadly cinematic one-shots and long-form campaign play. | Investigation-driven horror where combat is deadly and sanity is fragile. Great for one-shots. |
| Highlights | Stress and panic system mechanically reinforces horror tension, two distinct play modes (Cinematic and Campaign), Evolved Edition streamlines rules and improves layout, well-supported licensed setting | Sanity system mechanically reinforces horror tone. Intuitive percentile skill system with tiered success levels. One of the largest published scenario libraries in the hobby. |
| Considerations | Tightly bound to the Alien IP with limited genre flexibility, stress mechanics can feel punishing at high levels, Evolved Edition changes are modest over 1st edition | Chase rules add complexity with limited payoff, 46-skill list requires point allocation across multiple categories, sanity spiral can remove player agency in extended campaigns |