The Cellar - View Single Post

vsp · 05-19-2003, 03:06 PM

I have a pile of games that are sitting in my on-deck circle, waiting to be played. I have another pile that I'm about 80-90% through, waiting for me to work up the desire to finish them.

So what did I do this weekend? Ignore both piles, go back to my PSX collection and blast my way through games that I'd already enjoyed and played to death.

This weekend's oldie-but-goodie: <b>the Tecmo's Deception series</b>.

The Deception games are unusually dark in tone, particularly the first one (in which Our Hero is executed unjustly, makes a deal with Satan and returns to seek bloody revenge). Parts Two and Three cast their antiheroines a bit more sympathetically (one brainwashed, the other defending herself and revenging a slain family). In any case, the games are all about one basic play mechanic -- setting up traps on room ceilings, floors and walls, and using them to carve, fling, fry, zap, pummel and squash all who would oppose you.

I'm partial to Deception II and III myself, which both have third-person perspectives (think Resident Evil) instead of the first game's Doom-esque style. You start with rudimentary traps and tools, and build up resources by using them to defend yourself against intruders; at any given time, you can have one ceiling, one wall and one floor trap ready for use or charging in each room. (Traps can be relocated or switched at any time, but they have a "charge up" time after placement.) Successful trap hits earn you skill points; creative combos and using built-in room fixtures (pendulums, electric chairs, buzz saws, falling pillars, etc.) build them up even faster. Skill points are traded for more advanced traps, allowing talented players to build up quite an arsenal rather quickly.

When you get the hang of the trap system, the game is an exercise in cathartic sadism; you can catch an invader by surprise and slam him/her through eight or nine traps in a row, before they can react or lay a finger (or sword, spell or arrow) on you. Watching opponents bounce around like superballs can get repetitive -- most enemies are more hapless than threatening -- but there's a perverse satisfaction in finding new and creative combos.

If this sounds at all appealing, the games are out there for cheap. Kagero: Deception II is fairly common in EB used bins, often for less than ten bucks. Deception III adds in a training mode, an expert (puzzle) mode, and a much more detailed trap-building system (which can make the game much easier than Deception II, but oh well.)

Between the Deception games and the Monster Rancher series, I don't want to know how much of my life Tecmo's games have leeched away...

05-19-2003, 03:06 PM	#334
vsp Syndrome of a Down Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: West Chester Posts: 1,367	I have a pile of games that are sitting in my on-deck circle, waiting to be played. I have another pile that I'm about 80-90% through, waiting for me to work up the desire to finish them. So what did I do this weekend? Ignore both piles, go back to my PSX collection and blast my way through games that I'd already enjoyed and played to death. This weekend's oldie-but-goodie: <b>the Tecmo's Deception series</b>. The Deception games are unusually dark in tone, particularly the first one (in which Our Hero is executed unjustly, makes a deal with Satan and returns to seek bloody revenge). Parts Two and Three cast their antiheroines a bit more sympathetically (one brainwashed, the other defending herself and revenging a slain family). In any case, the games are all about one basic play mechanic -- setting up traps on room ceilings, floors and walls, and using them to carve, fling, fry, zap, pummel and squash all who would oppose you. I'm partial to Deception II and III myself, which both have third-person perspectives (think Resident Evil) instead of the first game's Doom-esque style. You start with rudimentary traps and tools, and build up resources by using them to defend yourself against intruders; at any given time, you can have one ceiling, one wall and one floor trap ready for use or charging in each room. (Traps can be relocated or switched at any time, but they have a "charge up" time after placement.) Successful trap hits earn you skill points; creative combos and using built-in room fixtures (pendulums, electric chairs, buzz saws, falling pillars, etc.) build them up even faster. Skill points are traded for more advanced traps, allowing talented players to build up quite an arsenal rather quickly. When you get the hang of the trap system, the game is an exercise in cathartic sadism; you can catch an invader by surprise and slam him/her through eight or nine traps in a row, before they can react or lay a finger (or sword, spell or arrow) on you. Watching opponents bounce around like superballs can get repetitive -- most enemies are more hapless than threatening -- but there's a perverse satisfaction in finding new and creative combos. If this sounds at all appealing, the games are out there for cheap. Kagero: Deception II is fairly common in EB used bins, often for less than ten bucks. Deception III adds in a training mode, an expert (puzzle) mode, and a much more detailed trap-building system (which can make the game much easier than Deception II, but oh well.) Between the Deception games and the Monster Rancher series, I don't want to know how much of my life Tecmo's games have leeched away...