Cthulhu 500 is a motor racing-themed card game

Card game

A card game is any game using playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, be they traditional or game-specific. Countless card games exist, including families of related games...

 designed by Jeff Tidball based on H. P. Lovecraft

H. P. Lovecraft

Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....

's Cthulhu Mythos

Cthulhu Mythos

The Cthulhu Mythos is a shared fictional universe, based on the work of American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft.The term was first coined by August Derleth, a contemporary correspondent of Lovecraft, who used the name of the creature Cthulhu - a central figure in Lovecraft literature and the focus...

. The game was released by Atlas Games

Atlas Games

Atlas Games is a company which publishes role-playing games, board games and card games. Its current president is John Nephew.Games published include:...

 at Gen Con

Gen Con

Gen Con is one of the largest and most prominent annual gaming conventions in North America. It features traditional pen-and-paper, board, and card-style games, including role-playing games, miniatures wargames, board games, live action role-playing games, collectible card games, non-collectible...

 2004 and won the Origins Award

Origins Award

The Origins Awards are American awards for outstanding work in the game industry. They are presented by the Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design at the Origins Game Fair on an annual basis for the previous year, so the 1979 awards were given at the 1980 Origins.The Origins Award is commonly...

s for Best Traditional Card Game of 2004 and Gamers' Choice 2004.

Object of the game

Players compete by racing Cthulhoid vehicles (such as the Sports Cthutility Vehicle or the Car of Cthulhu) and take turns either upgrading the vehicle or pit crew

Pit stop

In motorsports, a pit stop is where a racing vehicle stops in the pits during a race for refuelling, new tires, repairs, mechanical adjustments, a driver change, or any combination of the above...

, or attempting to overtake the car in front. Once a player reaches the front of the pack, that player may attempt to overtake the rearmost vehicle and thereby gain a lap. The player with the most laps when the checkered flag

Checkered flag

Checkered Flag or Chequered Flag may refer to:* Checkered flag, a type of racing flag* Checkered Flag , a 1963 album by Dick Dale and his Del-Tones* Chequered Flag , a 1983 game by Sinclair Research Ltd....

 card is drawn wins; in case of a tie, the front-most of the tying vehicles wins. The last-place finisher is the loser.

External links

• Cthulhu 500 official page at Atlas Games
• Game review at RPGnet