How would this be as a setting with Call of Cthulhu mechanics?

>eventually

Eventually? Dude was blaring I WISH TO FUCK CARLOS IN HIS BIZARRE AND PERFECT HAIR from episode 1.

The fact that they were clearly not trying to make it sound like a late night radio show is what killed it for me. People generally don't say things like that on the air and keep their jobs.

>Call of Cthulhu mechanics?
Kind of pointless since everyone would be down to 0 SAN in about 2 sessions.

A better idea would be Unknown Armies or if you like unfinished indie games Night Shift.

Oh, I guess so. I think it only bothered me once they made the romance part of the storyline and made carlos into a recurring character (even to the point of having him voiced on air). Before that it was just another joke.

i think you've got a finger problem there buddy

You guys know of Scarfolk?

Do you also hate any and all entertainment that doesn't adhere to 100% realism? How boring is the comedy you watch if nobody can say anything that you think nobody would say?

I didn't mind the homosecksie if it had been more comedic. For some time I was convinced that it's all in Cecil's head. I think this was nicely emphasized in the bit where Carlos called him telling there's some weird shit going on that the people need to know about, and Cecil acts like Carlos is hitting on him.

Personally, I found the first 25 or so episodes perfectly adequate, but after that it took a massive nose dive and I've lost all interest. It got way too convoluted and started telling stories, rather than leaving shit intentionally vague and all told from the subjective perspective of an unreliable narrator.

To be honest, I just thought Carlos transcended the boundaries of ordinary sexual orientation with the powers of sheer gutsiness and cold hard science.

That's already a game, though it's set on an island; Over The Edge, made back in the 90's.

It's the RPG version of Naked Lunch, it's super weird and possibly unplayable, but worth a read.

>For some time I was convinced that it's all in Cecil's head. I think this was nicely emphasized in the bit where Carlos called him telling there's some weird shit going on that the people need to know about, and Cecil acts like Carlos is hitting on him.

This. At the start I was really certain that Carlos was some kind of mind-altering creature that people could not help but fall in love with. like the Good Boy pupper from a few episodes back, which contained the only high point in Night Vale recent history with the description of the mud

I thought Cecil was Carlos-sexual in the same way Smithers is Burns-sexual. I think that was actually the original intention. Then it turns out that no, he really is gay and has a crush on Carlos.

And then he never shuts up about it.

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I found it to be funny if Carlos had really been just a dude trapped in this hellhole and reaching out to Cecil since he's doing public radio announcements. Like he's the odd one out because he's a normal sane person. And Cecil is just not listening and thinks Carlos is hitting on him.

It would start off reasonably interesting with some genuinely creepy moments, then become apparent that they were swiftly running out of ideas and devolve into a pile of pandering and dumb inside jokes.

Would have been hilarious if Carlos wasn't gey... don't really gaf that he is.

That being said I'm only up to 38-something so it'll probably get worse.

IMO would be a cool setting. Maybe tone down the San though.

Personally, I don't object to "tumbrlinas" or gay people, but the narrative is pretty shallow.

A one-shot using Fiasco or possibly Dread could make for a pretty good game. Unknown Armies or Over The Edge might work too, but Nightvale isn't a great extended campaign setting, and it certainly isn't Lovecraftian.

...

No problem at all, fellow human being. Just an old childhood birthmark.

Please resume your human conversating, ol' chum.

>I found it to be funny if Carlos had really been just a dude trapped in this hellhole and reaching out to Cecil since he's doing public radio announcements. Like he's the odd one out because he's a normal sane person. And Cecil is just not listening and thinks Carlos is hitting on him.

I think that was the original intention and yes, it was much funnier that way than a sentimental love story. Night Vale is too weird and cruel for cheap sentiment.

I agree, I liked Carlos when he played 'The Straight Man' to the rest of the towns "The Funny Man", but in a horror context. (The Sane Man and The Crazy Man? I think that still needs work.)

The problem with Carlos wasn't that he got into a relationship with Cecil, it wasn't him being gay, it wasn't any of that. It was when he became weird as well.

He started this whole weird 'the study of science' thing, and then "The University of What It Is" showing his past is weird, and this ruined the core of his character.

That being said, adding the relationship wore down Cecil's character a bit, hurt the story, and could be used as a good case study of why a lot of main characters aren't in serious relationships.

Honestly, a lot of very good plot points and characters seemed to have this happen to them. If I'd have to guess, it felt like it started being written by committee instead of a few people with a vision.

Had another thought, if it's casual horror played for laughs, would that take it out of the horror context and make 'The Straight Man' and 'The Funny Man' the correct terms again?

>I liked Carlos when he played 'The Straight Man' to the rest of the towns "The Funny Man", but in a horror context. (The Sane Man and The Crazy Man? I think that still needs work.)
>The problem with Carlos wasn't that he got into a relationship with Cecil, it wasn't him being gay, it wasn't any of that. It was when he became weird as well.
>He started this whole weird 'the study of science' thing, and then "The University of What It Is" showing his past is weird, and this ruined the core of his character.

Are you me?

I didn't much care for there being any other voice actor on the show. The moment they began to bring other people in they all were doing "look at me, I'm weird" and that just hurt it. Keep it weird, but tell it straight. Don't do the "lolrandum" crap, handle it like it was all real without playing it up. The comedy comes from the juxtaposition of someone telling weird news with a straight face.

I've never heard anyone suggest this, and when I mention it people look at me like I'm crazy, but my assumption was that Carlos was an incubus or some shit, and literally everyone thought he was stupidly hot and was unnaturally attracted to him.

I was extremely disappointed when it turned out no, it was just the host.

I thought the 'perfect carlos' thing was just Nightvale being Nightvale.

Itras By mechanics would be a better fit than CoC's.

>All of intern dana's lines would have actually been interesting if they'd been read by Cecil.

I say give it a listen and just stop when you get tired of it, though I say that as a casual fan so my advice is probably biased.

Staying away from the metaplot would be the best way to go, basically. Forge your own blend of mundane and weirdness.

The fan-brewed Night Shift game I see pop up at times seems to hit that pretty well.

The Strexcorp plot is kind of a turning point too, for better or worse. Extended metaplots seem to be the show's Achille's Heel.