Sights & Sounds
- As we hit the fourth game of the series, it's been interesting to see how Dave Gilbert/Wadjet Eye have toyed with the visual style of the Blackwell series. With each entry, the pixel art character models and environments have gotten just a little more detailed and refined, bringing more and more personality to this digital rendition of NYC
- As a minor note, I'm not a huge fan in the pivot to drawn character portraits over pixel art. Joey admittedly benefits from it, but Rosa's portrait looks a bit amateurish and less like her depiction in the previous games
- The soundtrack is a definite downgrade. The noir-y jazz has been shitcanned in favor of generic-sounding synth and drums. I've always loved the music in this series, so the tracks here were a big disappointment
Story & Vibes
- Audiovisual gripes aside, the writing has taken a huge leap forward in this game. I'm not totally sure of what happened in the two years separating Convergence and Deception, but Mr. Gilbert definitely developed some ideas and decided to really ramp up a few plotlines
- I won't delve too deeply into spoilers as that would be a massive disservice to the game, but a few hints dropped about something larger and more sinister going on behind the scenes in Unbound and Convergence definitely come to the fore in Deception
- In some ways, those two previous entries I mentioned felt like the series was shuffling its feet. I guess I know now that they served as important setup for this game (and presumably the final game in the series as well). I don't know if that revelation necessarily makes those two titles retroactively better, but it at least justifies their existence in the Blackwell pantheon
- Given that the series deals heavily with things like ghosts and the afterlife, I'm surprised that this is the first time that the series has actually felt creepy. The final plot sequence is actually pretty exciting
- If there's any blemish on Deception's writing, it has to involve the setup for the game's final dialogue puzzle. To motivate that puzzle, Rosa undergoes a change that completely contradicts the depiction of her personality up to this point in the series. The annoying part is that it could have seemed plausible. Had the game done a better job a) emphasizing the severity of Rosa and Joey's conflict, b) making Rosa seem more vulnerable, or c) making the villain seem more dangerous, then it could have made sense. Instead, it just felt a little upsetting. Rosa is such a badass throughout the whole series; why is she suddenly so weak? And why does the reason for her temporary personality change occur offscreen?
- In any case, that's the only part that ruined the vibes. Like the previous titles, Deception is high on mystery and intrigue, but it also adds a layer of excitement that was sorely missing in the two immediately predicting games
Playability & Replayability
- It is a point-and-click. Name's on the tin. You know what's inside
- I may replay this game in the future if I decide to revisit the series down the road. I wouldn't replay the whole series, but this game would definitely be part of it
Overall Impressions & Performance
- It's nice to see the Blackwell universe finally start to kick off, even if I had to play 60% of the franchise to get to this point. These aren't very long games, so it's easier to stomach the time investment for this payoff. One thing's certain: I'm really excited to see the what's in store for the series' conclusion in Epiphany
Final Verdict
- 8/10. The soundtrack is a disappointment and there is one glaring story flaw, but Deception is definitely the highlight of the series to this point. If you've enjoyed the prior games in the series to this point, there's no reason to stop; Deception is when things go from "merely interesting" to "actually great"
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My Perpetual Steam Game Giveaway is, as its name implies, still going on! Just added some new stuff too. Go get you a game; all you have to do is review it. Kinda what this site is all about.
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With a rating over 7/10 and under 1000 reviews on Steam, this title earned a spot on my Hidden Gems list.
- As we hit the fourth game of the series, it's been interesting to see how Dave Gilbert/Wadjet Eye have toyed with the visual style of the Blackwell series. With each entry, the pixel art character models and environments have gotten just a little more detailed and refined, bringing more and more personality to this digital rendition of NYC
- As a minor note, I'm not a huge fan in the pivot to drawn character portraits over pixel art. Joey admittedly benefits from it, but Rosa's portrait looks a bit amateurish and less like her depiction in the previous games
- The soundtrack is a definite downgrade. The noir-y jazz has been shitcanned in favor of generic-sounding synth and drums. I've always loved the music in this series, so the tracks here were a big disappointment
Story & Vibes
- Audiovisual gripes aside, the writing has taken a huge leap forward in this game. I'm not totally sure of what happened in the two years separating Convergence and Deception, but Mr. Gilbert definitely developed some ideas and decided to really ramp up a few plotlines
- I won't delve too deeply into spoilers as that would be a massive disservice to the game, but a few hints dropped about something larger and more sinister going on behind the scenes in Unbound and Convergence definitely come to the fore in Deception
- In some ways, those two previous entries I mentioned felt like the series was shuffling its feet. I guess I know now that they served as important setup for this game (and presumably the final game in the series as well). I don't know if that revelation necessarily makes those two titles retroactively better, but it at least justifies their existence in the Blackwell pantheon
- Given that the series deals heavily with things like ghosts and the afterlife, I'm surprised that this is the first time that the series has actually felt creepy. The final plot sequence is actually pretty exciting
- If there's any blemish on Deception's writing, it has to involve the setup for the game's final dialogue puzzle. To motivate that puzzle, Rosa undergoes a change that completely contradicts the depiction of her personality up to this point in the series. The annoying part is that it could have seemed plausible. Had the game done a better job a) emphasizing the severity of Rosa and Joey's conflict, b) making Rosa seem more vulnerable, or c) making the villain seem more dangerous, then it could have made sense. Instead, it just felt a little upsetting. Rosa is such a badass throughout the whole series; why is she suddenly so weak? And why does the reason for her temporary personality change occur offscreen?
- In any case, that's the only part that ruined the vibes. Like the previous titles, Deception is high on mystery and intrigue, but it also adds a layer of excitement that was sorely missing in the two immediately predicting games
Playability & Replayability
- It is a point-and-click. Name's on the tin. You know what's inside
- I may replay this game in the future if I decide to revisit the series down the road. I wouldn't replay the whole series, but this game would definitely be part of it
Overall Impressions & Performance
- It's nice to see the Blackwell universe finally start to kick off, even if I had to play 60% of the franchise to get to this point. These aren't very long games, so it's easier to stomach the time investment for this payoff. One thing's certain: I'm really excited to see the what's in store for the series' conclusion in Epiphany
Final Verdict
- 8/10. The soundtrack is a disappointment and there is one glaring story flaw, but Deception is definitely the highlight of the series to this point. If you've enjoyed the prior games in the series to this point, there's no reason to stop; Deception is when things go from "merely interesting" to "actually great"
----------
My Perpetual Steam Game Giveaway is, as its name implies, still going on! Just added some new stuff too. Go get you a game; all you have to do is review it. Kinda what this site is all about.
----------
With a rating over 7/10 and under 1000 reviews on Steam, this title earned a spot on my Hidden Gems list.
This game was alright, kinda dragged on. I got soft locked and had to restart from my last save. of the 4 games i have played this one was my second fav. It started off really slow and I almost dropped it, but after getting into it.. there were good moments.