Cult of the Lamb is a dark retelling of the 2022 indie video game hit that expands on the plot of the game while also providing some extra personality to its main characters. The new series, written by Alex Paknadel and illustrated by Troy Little, provides a new entry point for the uninitiated, explaining the core concept of the game's world and the central conflict between the Lamb and the Old Faith in a fast-moving process.
Developed by Massive Monster, Cult of the Lamb is a darkly sinister roguelite video game in which players control the founder of a cult dedicated to the eldritch entity The One Who Waits. In exchange for founding a religion based on its worship, the titular Lamb is granting extraordinary powers along with the continuous ability to cheat death.
The Cult of the Lamb comic seemingly understands that it needs to stay true to certain elements of the source, with Little's art seamlessly adapting the style of the game and Paknadel crafting a gruesome story that hits all of the dark beats of the original game. While Cult of the Lamb had a sort of dark humor due to the novel mix of cutesy animals and cults and mass slaughter, that tone doesn't carry through in the comic, mostly because comics and video games are very different mediums.
Perhaps the most interesting take on the comic is how it gives Lamb a true personality. In the video game, Lamb was a player stand-in, a blank canvas on which the player could make their own choices and assign their own personality within the game. In the comic, Lamb is driven by revenge and bristles at the thought of leading innocents down the dark path of worshipping The One Who Waits.
Cult of the Lamb could have been a cash grab, a way to simply continue a cult-smash video game's fandom. Instead, Paknadel and Little actually examine the source material and craft a new take on the game's story, one that will likely follow the same beats as the original but explores that story in ways the game could not. Colors by Nick Filardi