Deceit – Review
Would I deceive you? In Deceit, I’m sure I’d agree. To win this six-player horror survival game, players must rely on deception, distrust of others, and trust in one another.
As one of six test subjects in each game, you’ll take on the role of a bloodthirsty creature who can transform into a humanoid monster when the light goes out.
What your goal is in Deceit is entirely dependent on your situation; if you’re innocent, the goal is to figure out who is infected as quickly as possible, remove them from the game as quickly as possible and then flee. Your goal if you’ve been infected is to eliminate all of the other players.
In order to transform and execute uninfected players, infected players must drink blood from blood bags scattered throughout the level. So as not to be overheard, it is imperative that the blood be consumed in a discrete manner. It’s a surefire way to be kicked out of the game if you’re caught drinking blood around other players.
To protect themselves from infected creatures in the dark, the innocents have the option of equipping themselves with camera’s that can be used to stun them. In the dark, the gun is useless, but a few clicks with your camera can do the same thing in a fraction of the time.
A tracker, for example, allows players to keep tabs on their whereabouts for a specified period of time. Both players and the infected can take advantage of this feature closer to the game’s dark period so that they can find their prey in the darkness much easier.
Scanners, which are one-time-use items that reveal whether or not another player is infected, are sometimes found by players. If a player is infected, they can scan another player and tell their “teammates” they scanned them when they didn’t, which makes it difficult to get rid of them. Pretending to be innocent could save your life as an infected person, because you don’t want to get checked out.
Antidote can be used to revive a player who has been knocked out of the game. As long as the player has at least a third of their blood metre filled, this item appears to be of little use against players who know how to play, as the creature has an uninterruptible cinematic kill that does not allow the victim to be revived.
Last but not least, there is a lethal injection that can be used to instantly end the life of any uninfected player. People who are not infected will plead with everyone not to pick this up because it is an easy target for the infected. Because the infected cannot acquire this item, an innocent person would have no need for this item.
Only a few maps are available, and there is no way to select a map. Running through the same few corridors or the same forest becomes tedious after a short period of time.. After all, it’s the unexpected that makes life interesting! In addition to the four playable characters, there are numerous customization options for each character (purchasable in the game). Cosmetics and skins aren’t considered “content,” in my opinion, because they add little to the overall experience of a game.
It’s possible to unlock perks for each character by completing challenges in the role of that character. When new players are paired with the perks, the game is effectively over. To be able to stun lock the creature with the camera is ridiculous, preventing them from regaining consciousness or attempting to kill a second survivor ever again.
You must learn to trust others and recognise lies when they are told in order to survive in the world of deception. With your gun, you can start the voting process if you believe a player is lying. The downed victim is removed from the game after receiving enough votes from other players, and he or she has no chance of respawning.
Deceit’s greatest threat is the cooperation of its players. Partying up with friends and telling each other who is infected and who is innocent completely detracts from the point of the game.
A ranking system and in-game currency are included in Deceit, and these items can only be obtained by winning games. It’s easy to get bored in the trenches, so why not try to gain an advantage? A lot of the games I played in the first week of this game were completely unbalanced and ruined by this kind of behaviour.
To put it another way, it is impossible to win when two of the other players in the game are uncooperative simply because they want to grind experience and play in accordance with their own preferences.
This can only be countered for the time being by persuading as many other players as possible to do the same, which is easier said than done! This strategy relies too heavily on the player community to play the game as intended, and it won’t succeed.
So, do I think Deceit is worth a try? Even if the game is on sale, I’m still disappointed because there isn’t enough content to justify a full price purchase.