Kagero: Deception 2

Combining the 3D adventure of Tomb Raider with devilish strategic challenge reminiscent of Bomberman, Kagero: Deception II isn't really comparable to anything other than its predecessor, Tecmo's Deception. A thinking man's action game, Kagero is addicting and exciting, but not particularly inventive and ultimately less than completely satisfying.

Millenia Dame

In Kagero, you're Millenia, a human who has been adopted by a strange race of blue-skinned creatures called Timenoids. Millenia has been brainwashed and transformed into an assassin, killing whatever ambitious humans dare approach the Timenoid's castle. The catch is that Millenia can't bear arms. Instead, she must lure the humans into a series of traps, which can be set on the ceiling, floor, or wall. You can only use one of each at a time, and they're slow to charge, so timing and placement are your keys to victory.

Unfortunately, there are disappointingly few useful traps and even less workable combos, almost all of which involve a magnet. As you kill more humans, you earn experience and can build a better human trap, but they're just more complex versions of the same stuff (mostly variations on arrows, bombs, or rocks).

Catchy Kagero

Impressive 3D architecture, lighting effects, and character movement highlight Kagero's cinematic atmosphere. The Timenoid Castie, although a bit small, is very nicely defined, and interesting textures make each character sinister and compelling. The game's solid face textures, however, make Millenia and her supporting cast unable to show emotion.

Luckily, the gothic music successfully creates tension, conveying a sense of impending doom. The simple interface is very easy to pick up, and the camera is intelligent enough to keep you completely aware of your surroundings. Dual Shock support adds some rumble to your tumbles, but the lack of analog-stick support is disappointing.

Kagero's trap interface is unique and fresh, but the plodding story line takes forever to advance and usually boils down to one guy after another walking into your traps. As the missions advance and increase in difficulty, you'll just want to take a sword in hand and slash these guys to bits. Deception II is definitely worth a rental. The game's fun, but probably not a title to keep playing for very long.

ProTips:

• Early on, the fireplace room is a great place to make a stand: You can lead your enemy through traps in a circle.
• Deadmoon's Double will tend to stand in one place and attack with projectiles. His energy slowly regenerates, so hit him hard and fast.
• In Chapter 3, a land mine at the bottom of the stairs with an arrow slit just past the water is a great combo.

Deception II, the prequel to the devilishly fun and original Satan's-little-helper game, Tecmo's Deception, looks to capture gamers with its improved graphics and wicked new game-play. You can brainwash and condition characters to do your dirty work, use trap combinations to set off multiple traps at once, and enjoy greater variety with the game's multiple endings. The interactive 3D environment even features moving walls, saws, boulders, and pendulums, which make every exploration a dangerous challenge. RPG fans, beware! Deception II might be September's most sinful pleasure.

The story goes something like this: A race of blue-skinned people called the toki-bito are brainwashing humans into killing each other. Your character, Millenia is one such human who must do the dirty work of the smurfs, oops...I meant the toki-bito. The cinema at the beginning of the game shows Millenia as a child who is taken to a traveling carnival by her parents. The toki-bito take the form of a clown and mesmerize poor Millenia into the life of an assassin. The lesson here is clear: Stay far, far away from traveling carnivals and clowns. Especially clowns. As the title explains, this is the sequel to the cult favorite Tecmo's Deception which invented a subgenre called trap-battle. The premise of the original title was simple in that you basically set up traps and lured your victims into them. The layouts became more complex, but the basics remained the same. In Deception 2, you now have the ability to recruit your enemies and turn them into assassins as well as using multiple traps in a combo-like fashion. The combos are an awesome upgrade and can be used to deadly perfection. For example, it's now possible to string traps that will activate repeatedly until the enemy is dispatched. Each trap is assigned a specific button and is cleverly laid out. The Triangle button controls the ceiling traps, the square button controls the wall trap and the X button controls the Floor trap.

The graphics have received a tremendous boost. The environments and the characters themselves both look far better than in the original. The traps have a more satisfying graphical punch with fancy lighting effects and way-cool textures. The sound has also been improved. The sound effects made by the. traps are a world apart from the cheesy noises that graced the first title. When an iron ball falls from the ceiling and lands on a hapless victim, you feel it. Actually, you literally feel it since Deception 2 supports the vibration mode on the Dual Shock controller. The background music is appropriately gothic with an orchestral sound which really adds to the atmosphere of the game. Kagero: Deception 2 will definitely be one of the more original experiences out there this fall.