This is Gaming Cypher’s PC Review (done by Brandon Clayton) of Deceit, by Cambridge-based games studio, Automaton.
Deceit is the definition of a fast-paced, multiplayer, cooperation-based and psychologically stimulating first person shooter. The game itself is based around short five-minute games which allow almost anyone to sit down and play without worrying about investing a large amount of time and missing out on any content.
That being said, the ultimate goal of each short game is to escape the asylum you are trapped in. At the start of each game five other players spawn around you while two of the total six are “infected” players (chosen at random). The goal of the two infected players is to eliminate all other players before they can escape the asylum. Periodically during power outages, the lights will go out and visibility is severely diminished giving the infected a change to transform into “monsters” and seek out and eliminate the other four innocent players. This asymmetrical gameplay challenges each player’s psychological and collaboration skills and the ability to deduce which two are infected. Similarly, if both infected work together, they can lead others astray and slow down the group from escaping while picking them off one by one during power outages.
While players aim to collect a pair of two keys needed to unlock doors to escape, in my experience players became distracted and fought over other non-essential items located throughout the map. These items are not necessary to win for either side, but they do help the innocent figure out who the infected are as well as slow their assault. In addition, in order to pick up an item a player must be the only one inside the contested white line surrounding the item itself for a fixed period of time (similar to capturing an objective in a domination game type). This means either cooperating with others to divvy up items or shooting others contesting the item to down them, capturing the item and then sneaking off with it. At this point, the game really begins to test each player’s ability to trust others and work together which makes for a different and continuously gratifying experience from game to game based on how each player interacts with one another.
Overall, Deceit offers an interesting insight into how people interact in a fixed environment and whether they choose to work together for the common good of the team or go lone wolf and attempt to win solo. Either way, the game heavily depends on the players whom you play with which can make the game extremely interesting and cooperative or leave a few players out of items and helplessly alone. In light of this I would recommend that playing with a few friends could make the game much more approachable and feel less of a mass free-for-all.
The graphics in Deceit seem at the moment a big lackluster for the size of the map and the limitations of the game itself in terms of exploration and environmental interaction. In terms of the graphics and environment the player is limited to, it seems like more could still be done in order to boost its aesthetical appeal given the current limitations and size of the map. In addition, the lack of a more interactive or evolving environment leads to fixed patterns of gameplay, such as players rushing to items which never change positions.
However, it is important to keep in mind that this game is still an early access game, meaning that at the moment it may appear minimalistic but with the addition of a few varying maps or alternating spawn points for items the developers could severely boost the game’s playability going forward. Overall I believe that the game itself executes a great idea fairly well and really hits a few solid genres mixing the FPS, horror and team based game types into a well presented game. If any of the aforementioned changes could be made—which I’m sure they will in the future, this game would really shine.
You can find Deceit for PC on Steam Early Access.
As a young adult, I find myself drawn towards the competitiveness and the challenge that online gaming provides. My most preferred gaming genres include multiplayer based teamwork and strategy such as RPGs, shooters, MOBAs, MMOs, and top-down strategy games. While I've utilized and enjoyed both Xbox and PlayStation gaming platforms, I find that I prefer the use of a PC.
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