Dark Deception

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a game by Glowstick Entertainment
Platform: PC (2018)
Editor Rating: 4/10, based on 1 review
User Rating: 6.7/10 - 15 votes
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See also: Action Adventure Games, Action Games, Horror Games, Best Indie Games
Dark Deception
Dark Deception
Dark Deception

We love a game that amalgamates two great ideas to make an even stronger one. We even have a soft spot for horror games that go after players with cheap jump scares. However, when you start taking timeless classics and messing with the formula, changing the players perspective, making the difficulty obnoxiously hard and then kicking the player when they are down with a cheap scare, that’s where you begin to lose us. That’s exactly what Dark Deception does and in practice, it fails to deliver a fun or scary experience.

This game tries to marry the classic arcade smash hit Pac-man with various jump scare games such as Slender Man, Five Nights at Freddie’s, Amnesia: The Dark Descent or Layers of Fear. However, this ill-advised blend of maze-based action never really gets off the ground, leaving the player equal parts confused and frustrated.

Not A-maze-ing At All

The core gameplay loop of this game is lifted straight from the 1980’s icon Pac-man. The player will be dropped into a dark and dreary maze and will be asked to collect on the power shards in the area to restore power to the magic ring that will save them from the perils that lurk within. Now, what makes Pac-man so addictive, fun and why it was so successful was because the player could win through strategies and skill. However, this game has no such thing for the player to utilize.

You’ll have a small map to show you a patch of the maze and that’s it. There are no power pills to kill your assailants, no special routes you can take to keep out of their way. You just run around aimlessly picking up shards as fast as you can until you inevitably lose all your lives and repeat the process. To win, you have to get lucky and that’s not really in the spirit of the Pacman franchise.

Looks Can Be Deceiving

The game is titled Dark Deception and if they called it that due to its presentation being enough of a deception to play the game then it’s a pretty apt name. The visuals for this title are by far and away the strongest asset this game has in its locker. The hallways are dark and uninviting, what little light appears is eerie and the monsters that lurk in the shadows, although being cartoonish in nature, still offer a powerful fright when you encounter one after sharply turning a corner. Sadly, the story is no where near as strong. Essentially you have to go into a variety of different mazes with the help of an ethereal guide called Bierce. Picture Elvira or Yvonne Del Carlo and you won’t be too far off the mark. That’s the most exposition you get from this game but considering that you’ll probably not be sticking around for the conclusion, it won’t be too much of an issue.

Grounds For Divorce

It’s never an easy task to put two very different gaming assets together to work a unique hybrid. Although, it can sometimes be untapped potential, on most cases it’s ill advised and a project doomed to fail. This is exactly the case with Dark Deception. Despite a strong set of visuals and a tense atmosphere, there is little else worth praising about this one.

4

The gameplay is frustrating, the mechanics work against the player and overall, it’s a blend of gaming genres that are best forgotten about.

Pros

  • Visuals are great
  • The sound lends itself to the dreary setting, creating a tense atmosphere

Cons

  • There is no skill or strategy to succeed in this game.
  • The UI and mechanics work against the player

Download Dark Deception

PC

System requirements:

  • PC compatible
  • Operating systems: Windows 10/Windows 8/Windows 7/2000/Vista/WinXP

Snapshots and Media

PC Screenshots

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