Okay, poetry is not my strong point, but if our in-game employer does it every mission, then I should have tried it too. In general, it’s funny, but the game, which tells the story of the undead returned to the sinful earth (if it really is earth), has recently found a kind of second wind. Memes are starting to be made about it more often, people remember it and, what about the skating rink in deadbolt, m? I propose to figure out how Deadbolt was good then, and how interesting is it now?
Let’s start with the classics with the plot. There isn’t much of it here, but considering that the game takes about four to five hours to complete, it’s not surprising. At the same time, let’s immediately understand the issue of duration. The player is given control Reaper, the same one as Reaper, which is an old woman with a scythe, although it doesn’t seem very similar to the latter. And he goes about his immediate tasks, with the only exception that he has to send to the next world not the living, but the already dead, who for some reason remained on this side. These include zombies, vampires and other nocturnal creatures.
And each type of undead in this game represents its own criminal group with its own characteristics and characteristics, in which one can still discern, for example, the features of the Yakuza or street gangs. Because of this, on the dark streets of a certain city N, a completely familiar story of criminal showdowns unfolds, but in the surroundings of the world of darkness, where the reaper is essentially an assassin receiving an order from a certain fireplace. I mean, literally from the fireplace, sitting behind a cozy chair. Therefore, the plot is more of a rationale for the murders, while the lore has a little more meaning. After all, despite its secondary nature, there is room to delve into it.
An attentive player will be able to easily create a holistic picture of the world and find out, for example, that a person can be reborn as a zombie if he dies from an overdose. Or why it is so important that the Reaper is reflected in the mirror. Maybe. And you will mainly have to look for answers either sitting at the fireplace, this is almost the only way to conduct a dialogue, or by catching tapes telling their backstory from the corpses of enemies. Quite interestingly presented in a video of an internal voice. Many questions arise during the passage, but, what is important, it is not necessary to look for answers to them. True, unfortunately, you are unlikely to be able to find answers to everything. In general, there is a possibility that any lore in the game was added for fun, because some moments seem too forced, but let’s not talk about that. The main thing is that the game does not let you distract you from the gameplay too much and we will dwell on this in more detail.
On paper, which is represented by https://slotshubcasino.co.uk/withdrawal/ the description on Steam, Deadbolt is a stealth action game. In common parlance – Hotline Miami with a side view. And, in general, the comparison is very accurate. Only instead of a telephone we have a fireplace, and as a silent killer – literal the embodiment of death, which still dies in one shot. Although the Reaper will still be more talkative than Jacket. However, the catch lies in the word stealth, which you might not have noticed. Because this completely changes the rhythm of the game. It’s hard to call Deadbolt a purebred stealth game, because it’s intended to rather change the approach to adrenaline-fueled carnage, which this time will have to be done with the lights off. You won’t be able to hide from your opponents using cover or eliminate all targets without disturbing anyone. No, you will still have to shoot in both directions as expected, but you will have to do it slowly and preferably at the head.
Getting some of these achievements is a real pain. Thank you at least for the fact that they pay for them in local currency.
And this is the main obstacle for most new players, because the developers do not encourage rushing unless you want to get the speedrunner achievement (but you definitely won’t do this on your first playthrough). Yes, sometimes you will have to run, but you must act as accurately as possible, waiting for the enemy so that he approaches you exactly at that moment, so that you definitely kill him in the head after opening the door, exactly according to your plan. And many factors contribute to this. Let’s start with the fact that there are not enough cartridges at the level and if you shoot a burst at everything that moves, you can easily land in a puddle, because until you buy yourself a scythe, you won’t be able to save even on close combat. And this is also facilitated by the fact that while the main character can die from a weak hit, some of his enemies can almost eat up a clip.
Also, animations are quite important – it takes some time for the enemy to take out a gun or for the player to climb into the ventilation. At first you don’t notice it, but when you understand how timings work, you begin to act strictly according to them. Oh yes, ventilation. In addition to the fact that the main character sees in the dark and can run silently, his main ability is the ability to move through ventilation in a haze. This is your main advantage, and only this mechanic takes out almost all of the stealth, especially considering that there are not enough weapons with a silencer here. Thus, Deadbolt develops its… Let’s say, philosophy, according to which you play more like Hitman, if he was engaged in sweeps, than like the Miami Ripper, which we are all familiar with. And at first it’s difficult to get used to such a rhythm, which is why the game may seem quite complicated, but I assure you that you learn very quickly here.
The developers have tried very hard to ensure that every element of the gameplay here works as it should, and in addition to the mechanics, this can be seen in the level design, which, despite the only two goals "kill or see" are constantly trying to diversify their structure. There are timed levels, sniper fights and constantly adding new enemies. Probably every three levels someone new appears. The only thing that seems a little unnecessary here is the shelters. Of course, it’s better with them than without them, but it seems to me that they only exist in the case when you didn’t have time to kill the enemy in the head, and you don’t want to restart the level. There are only a couple of moments throughout the entire game where they can really come in handy, but otherwise you can do without them. But, on the other hand, opponents also actively use them and… it doesn’t really help them either, so let’s skip cover.
And let’s talk about the local soundtrack, because it’s absolutely amazing. It is very different from what we are used to hearing in similar games and what we still hear. It’s slower, a little noirish and has a horror feel to it. This music suits the game just perfectly. And, most importantly, it suits the local tempo perfectly. Chris Christodoulou (Chris Christodoulou) did a simply amazing job, because its soundtrack is perfect for both a noisy club and the cozy apartment of the main character. I advise those interested to even look at his comments on the creation on YouTube, if their knowledge of English allows.
Well, a few words about our apartments. This is your safe zone. Here you can listen, or rather read, the tapes found, here you receive and select missions, and also buy equipment for the souls of defeated enemies, for which you will have to go down to the pier to Charon, who is transporting us weapons from the other world. In general, there’s not that much to do here, but it’s interesting to watch how, as the game progresses, the hero’s apartment becomes a little more comfortable and, for example, how he gets a cat. The cat is important.
The game has, probably already obligatory, the ability to start a new game +. However, in addition to increased difficulty, it also provides another nice bonus for lore lovers
So why is Deadbolt so good?? Because this is a stealth action game that is meticulous to the smallest detail, where every detail is in its place. Yes, you may not notice it, but this game is literally made according to a ruler, where everything is in its place. Well, after the four hours that it takes you will want even more. In this case, a good option would be to contact the level editor. True, there is not as much variety here as in the editor of Hotline Miami 2, but you can add a couple of hours to your passage. Yes, and you will probably want to replay it. So if you ever missed the opportunity to play as the otherworldly John Wick, then doing it on Halloween would be a great idea.
Conclusion: if you ever missed Deadbolt, now is the time to catch up, because it’s worth it.