Adventure Game Studio

The story
Street psychics.  Their blinking neon signs are everywhere, promising love and wealth and happiness.  They make a fortune preying on the gullible and milking them dry.  So when these victims begin dying and leaving confused spirits behind, it can only take a genuine psychic (and her wayward spirit guide) to clean up the mess.  

From seedy downtown nightclubs to penthouse apartments to a luxury yacht on the Hudson River, Rosa and Joey will unearth the truth about the underground world of street psychics.  Including some secrets that Joey would rather be left buried.

Screenshots:
(http://www.davelgil.com/boe/dec/BD_screen15.png)
The void.

(http://www.davelgil.com/boe/dec/BD_screen16.png)
A storefront psychic's office.

(http://www.wadjeteyegames.com/screenshots_Sept2011/BD_screen7.png)
Joey gets his groove on.

(http://www.davelgil.com/boe/dec/BD_screen4.png)
A familiar face returns.

(http://www.wadjeteyegames.com/screenshots_oct2011/BD_screen3.png)
A peek into Rosa's past

(http://www.wadjeteyegames.com/screenshots_Sept2011/BD_screen1.png)
Snooping around a Columbia University dorm

Trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7Z5A6CVCME

Demo
http://www.wadjeteyegames.com/demos/Deception_Demo.exe

Price
$14.99

Buy it
From HERE (http://www.rosablackwell.com)

Team
Written and programmed by: Dave Gilbert
Backgrounds by: Indrek Plavutski (InCreator)
Character sprites by: Ben Chandler (ben304)
Character portraits by: Daniel Rubenstein
Music by: Thomas Regin

Also, Abe Goldfarb and Rebecca Whittaker both return as Joey and Rosa.

VO samples
Rosa clip (http://www.davelgil.com/boe/dec/rosa_clip.mp3)
Joey clip (http://www.davelgil.com/boe/dec/joey_clip.mp3)

Conversation clip 1 (http://www.davelgil.com/boe/dec/conv_clip1.mp3)
Conversation clip 2 (http://www.davelgil.com/boe/dec/conv_clip2.mp3)


Notable features:
- Note combining is back!
- Rosa has a smart phone now.  No more trekking back home to use the computer.
- Five individual cases to solve.
- More ghosts than ever!*  Eight in total.
- Part of Joey's secret past revealed!
- Plus all the usual guff - voice acting, orchestrated music, commentary, and unlockable bloopers/extras.

You can buy it from the official Blackwell Deception (http://www.rosablackwell.com) page.

*Legacy and Unbound had two ghosts each, and Convergence had five.

Congrats on the release, Dave, Ben, Thomas and InCreator!

I'm very happy this series keeps growing. It's probably the hottest original adventure game series of the millennium so far.

Quick review roundup!

Alternative Magazine Online (http://alternativemagazineonline.co.uk/2011/10/12/game-review-the-blackwell-deception-pc/)
The Blackwell Deception is a welcome addition to one of the most enjoyable adventure game series ever made. 9/10

Adventure Gamers (http://www.adventuregamers.com/article/id,1378/p,2)
Perhaps the best game in the series to date, Blackwell Deception is an enjoyable retro title and a well-rounded effort that’s easy to get into and hard to put down.

Gnome's Lair (http://www.gnomeslair.com/2011/10/blackwell-deception-review.html)
A fantastic adventure game. Buy it now and make sure to thank me afterwards. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to give it another playthrough. 

Noob Feed (http://www.noobfeed.com/review_infos/view/606)
The game not only lets you play it, it takes you inside the story and makes you get along with it.

Gamer Node (http://www.gamernode.com/reviews/11030-the-blackwell-deception-review/index.html)
If gamers are looking for a quality point-and-click adventure with a unique blend of characters and a distinct narrative to drive the action, they should seriously consider picking this up. 4/5

Capsule Computers (http://www.capsulecomputers.com.au/2011/10/the-blackwell-deception-review/)
Blackwell Deception can pack some emotional punches where it counts. 8.5/10

Indie Game Reviewer (http://www.indiegamereviewer.com/review-blackwell-deception-an-adventure-from-wadjet-eye-games/)
“Blackwell Deception”, their latest entry in a series of classic adventure games, hearkens back to the days of classic Sierra adventure games, even down to the graphics. 5 stars

Platform Nation (http://www.platformnation.com/2011/10/12/the-blackwell-deception-review-pc/)
The star of this game is the story and its characters. 9/10

Game Cola (http://gamecola.net/2011/10/blackwell-deception-pc/)
Don’t be “deceived” â€" Blackwell Deception is an excellent game.

Dealspwn (http://www.dealspwn.com/blackwell-deception-review-79758)
Pay attention, adventure fans: this is probably the most fun you'll have all year.

Adventure Classic Gaming (http://www.adventureclassicgaming.com/index.php/site/reviews/680/)
This is a must play for any gamer who loves indie and classic adventure games. When the game is finally over, you will get a warm and satisfying feeling of solving a compelling mystery.

Yay! I heard rumors at Mittens that this was the best Blackwell game yet, and the reviews seem to bear that out (the last three listed give it 8.0, 9/10 and 5 stars respectively, btw, in case you missed it). Congratulations on the release!

Looking forward to playing, but it looks like my pre-ordered dl has got lost in the mail somehow? (Why this should ever happen is something of a mystery to me, but whatever. It seems to be available from the page linked in the original purchase receipt, anyway.)

Quote from: Snarky on Wed 12/10/2011 20:02:48
Looking forward to playing, but it looks like my pre-ordered dl has got lost in the mail somehow?

This has happened to a few other people as well.  If anyone hasn't gotten their download link, let me know - by email! - so I can forward it to BMT.  BMT is aware of the problem and they will immediately send you a download link.   Or you can do what Snarky did.  That works too. :)

Congrats on the release! I unfortnatly have to wait to buy this (and I wanted to get the DVD :() untill I have some more cash.. Downloading the demo right now though to give it a try ;D.

Cool. I'll give the demo a spin.

Is this going to mark the end of the Blackwell series, finally giving you the free time needed to produce your magnum opus, The Oceanspiritwell games?  ;)

  Congrats on finishing this, and the graphics look awesome as expected.

Well...please, please slap me silly for asking this Dave, but do you plan to release an, ahem, walkthrough for Deception?  So many times I have thrown in the towel on great adventure games, and I am determined to finish this one the whole way through...cheats or not!!  Plus, I just don't like missing out on stuff that I could have tried to do, or trying new possibilities that might have given different results/endings.

Soooo...?  This may be the LAST thing on your mind right now as you're just getting the game released, but whenever you guys think of it (or if you already have it!) could you pretty please post it somewhere!  Or email it to sarahewarren@hotmail.com. 

Thanks for ANY help.  :)



Sarah

Congrats  :)

I actually thought I might be the first person to review this game... should have known better!  But I'm likely to say a lot of the same things, really good game.

Congrats, now I have to wait for the DVD to arrive...  :)

Quote from: SarahLiz on Thu 13/10/2011 06:39:51
Well...please, please slap me silly for asking this Dave, but do you plan to release an, ahem, walkthrough for Deception?  So many times I have thrown in the towel on great adventure games, and I am determined to finish this one the whole way through...cheats or not!!  Plus, I just don't like missing out on stuff that I could have tried to do, or trying new possibilities that might have given different results/endings.

Soooo...?  This may be the LAST thing on your mind right now as you're just getting the game released, but whenever you guys think of it (or if you already have it!) could you pretty please post it somewhere!  Or email it to sarahewarren@hotmail.com. 

Thanks for ANY help.  :)

Sarah

I rarely bother since someone usually rises to the challenge pretty quickly.  And lo and behold - Gamezebo to the rescue! (http://www.gamezebo.com/games/blackwell-deception/walkthrough)

Deception was released 3 days ago and there's already a walkthrough available, ahaha.

I just downloaded and played through the entire game in one sitting. Wow. It's so action packed compared to the first 3! I'm breathless with anticipation for the 5th game already! I can't wait to see what happens next!

Finished it yesterday! Great work, Dave and everybody!

But funnily enough, on my second playthrough (commentary) I seem to be stuck...

Spoiler

I've got the Haines apartment key, exhausted all the dialog options with both Madison and Penelope, talked to Jeremy about having talked to Penelope and played with the baby but Madison just won't leave her apartment! Did I miss something or did I break everything by leading the baby out of the room before I was supposed to do so?

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This is actually a very common roadblock to run into on multiple playthroughs!  Did you:

Spoiler

Talk to Penelope about the Peridot first?

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Spoiler

I loaded a saved gamed from a bit earlier and was able to talk about the peridot with Penelope. I guess the problem emerges when you get the key before talking to Madison or Penelope about it. After that Penelope has no dialog options to choose from and you're stuck.

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I got stuck in the same way, and sadly had to restore from a previous save.   :-\

Quote from: AJA on Mon 17/10/2011 16:10:30
Finished it yesterday! Great work, Dave and everybody!

But funnily enough, on my second playthrough (commentary) I seem to be stuck...

Spoiler

I've got the Haines apartment key, exhausted all the dialog options with both Madison and Penelope, talked to Jeremy about having talked to Penelope and played with the baby but Madison just won't leave her apartment! Did I miss something or did I break everything by leading the baby out of the room before I was supposed to do so?

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Spoiler

Leading the baby out definitely isn't a problem, I'd done that and it still worked okay.  The only thing I can think of is, did you send Joey in to have a look in the bedroom?

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Spoiler

No, I'm pretty sure the problem is the key. Once you've got it you can't get the dialog options that introduce the key puzzle.

After the cutscene with Joey and the old man, go back to Seagram and steal the key. Stuckness ensues.

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Bug report time...

Spoiler

Selected as Joey, when you're standing on the deck of the ship when it's on a collision course with the shore, trying to speak with Rosa has him saying "What are you standing around for? Abandon ship!" - but there's no speech to go with it.

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DVD just arrived, yeey!  :)

If you care to hear me ramble about game development, I was interviewed by the Geekfist podcast during New York Comic Con. We talk about Blackwell, comics, and assorted nerdery. Also, Mr. T bench pressing the Silk Spectre: http://bit.ly/rVhE2F  There's lots of background noise but it was a fun time.

Hey guys, I just wanted to drop a line and say good work on this! I played through it the other day and had a blast with it all the way through.

My first concerns regarding the backdrop style turned out to be somewhat unfounded. When I was actually playing the game and not just looking at screenshots I thought the whole style worked great. The only thing I found myself missing visually was that wider spectrum of scenery as seen in Convergence, for an instance. The environments did become somewhat samey and thus bland, but this is nitpicking. Also I have a hard time with portraits, but I always do, so this can be ignored.  :=

Apart from a select few over the top dialog puzzles I loved the whole thing from a gameplay standpoint. Again I salute you for stuffing so much solid gameplay into your environments! I envy your talent at reusing puzzles and locations without having them feel over-done. kudos.

As with previous games I found myself caring a lot more for the individual sub-plots than anything connected to a wider story arc, but this I believe is merely me not liking to constantly be on a "you'll find out on the next episode" leash.

The music and voice acting was brilliant as always. I loved the dialog. Joey delivered some extra sweet lines this time around and many of them put a grin on my face. I loved the whole exchange between him and Red when Joey gets that kiss from the girl at the night club. Heh, that was hillarious.

I'm willing to say in fact, that I enjoyed this even more than the brilliant Crackwell unhinged, and thats no easy game to beat.

Good job guys, I look forward to whatever you come up with next! (make more cool stuff with jburger!!!)

Really enjoy your games, Dave!!  I have all of them, but this one.  Have to wait until I have some extra money to purchase it.  Thanks for all your hardwork.  Have a Great Thankgiving!!

Guess what's coming to Steam!

And look what's getting achievements:

(http://www.davelgil.com/boe/dec/BD_achievements.PNG)

Yay! Finally Blackwell will be on Steam  :D

Reticule coverage of Blackwell Deception.

http://www.thereticule.com/blackwell-deception-the-verdict/

I no longer had an excuse to not get them, so I bought the whole Blackwell package on steam!

So a few days late to announce this.  All the Blackwell games launched on Steam last friday!  You can even nab all four games at the stupid low price of $14.99 during the first week. Assuming you're into Steam!

Yes!

Great news! Congratulations, Dave.

I finally got around to play Blackwell Deception and I must congratulate you for what is in my opinion your best game so far. Thomas Regin is excellent as always. The plot had me on my seat, I can't wait to see where you will take it in the next chapters. But what amazed me the most were the puzzles.

I remember disliking Convergence because it seemed like the series was heading straight into interactive story territory rather than adventure game, and I remember saying Deception would be my last Blackwell game if it came to that but Deception blew away my expectations. It was a brilliant move to bring back all the gimmicks from your past games in Deception and I especially loved the new Joey, the one that goes through doors, spies on people, displaces items, looks inside objects, finds otherwise unattainable information... it's impossible to play through Deception without "Thinking with Joey". And it wasn't just the gimmicks, I had four or five "ah-HA!" moments on traditional puzzles during my playthrough, that was amazing, and they didn't feel like road blocks too. I haven't had this much fun solving puzzles since Time Gentlemen Please.

Anyway, if you can demonstrate the same creativity and ingenuity in your future games, you've got one faithful customer for life with me. Keep up the good work!

Thanks Blueskirt! I wrote a bit about this subject on my blog a few months ago (http://nygamedev.blogspot.com/2011/11/graphics-and-budget.html), but in a nutshell I took a lot of the Convergence feedback to heart.  With Deception I spent a lot more time getting user feedback in order to make the game as involving as possible, and I've slowly given Joey more things to do with each game. :)

"Thinking with Joey" sounds like an awesome gameshow. Fanart, anyone?

-Dave

D: !

I don't know how I managed to miss this link when I first read your post but I've read your blog entry and I must say I can't wait to see your future projects with that new philosophy.

Blackwell Deception got a shout out on G4TV! (http://t.co/tDv5MGZk)

Assuming you're into G4TV at all.

Finally I got my hands on this.
I really really hate to do this, but seeing bugs everywhere is my doom. So...

If before having any saved game I will go to main menu "Options" then select "Load" and then "Restore" (while no saved game is chosen in the list), I will be returned to main menu where all options are missing. But inventory is now enabled! :) I can examine items and use the phone.
After checking "Business Cards" and returning to main menu again all options are back, but there's now Rosangela standing beyond them... playing idle animations! :D.
(http://i.imgur.com/6jvGE.png)

Finished this one. A good game, interesting puzzles. Also funny ending. The one after the credits.
(Note: when I say 'funny' I don't mean 'ridiculous'; it just made me smile.)
Perhaps it's overall mood of the game, but I felt the atmosphere of loneliness surrounding Rosangela and Joey most of the time. Maybe it is because they didn't have a chance to speak with any friendly NPC, at least living NPCs.

Here's little bug report, just FYI.

Spoiler

1. I noticed that sometimes you have to do extra click with mouse before hotspots start to respond. This seem to happen if I wait for character speech ends in natural way. However it is not 100% reproducible.
2. When discussing the Peridot item ('Chat with Joey' dialog option right after I stole it) the last Joey's line is "Good", but voice over is "The cost is clear, let's split".
3. Tiffany's voice-over missing for the line "I love him." (topic "Ken Sharpe")

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