''Deceive Inc.'' is a first-person shooter video game developed by Sweet Bandits Studios and published by

Tripwire Interactive Tripwire Interactive LLC is an American video game developer and Video game publisher, publisher based in Roswell, Georgia. History Tripwire was co-founded by John Gibson and Alan Wilson with support by members of the international team that c ...

in 2023.

Gameplay

Players control a spy competing against other teams of spies to retrieve a package. Gameplay blends elements of

hero shooter A hero shooter is a subgenre of shooter games which emphasize "hero" characters that have distinctive abilities and/or weapons that are specific to them. This type of gameplay encourages players to choose heroes based on their strengths and the r ...

s and extraction shooters. Each player has a holographic projector that can hide their identity. As long as they do not shoot, players can hide as a

non-player character A non-player character (NPC) is a character in a game that is not controlled by a player. The term originated in traditional tabletop role-playing games where it applies to characters controlled by the gamemaster (or referee) rather than by a ...

, and in some cases camouflage into an object. Shooting or being shot reveals their identity. To retrieve the package, players need to disable vault terminals to open the map's vault. To gather higher-tier resources, players can masquerade as a VIP, which allows them access to otherwise forbidden areas, though this stands out to other players.

Characters

The game currently has eleven playable characters split into different classes that indicate their playstyle: * Chavez, a Vanguard who fights with a six-round

revolver A revolver is a repeating handgun with at least one barrel and a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold six cartridges before needing to be reloaded, ...

and an expertise that grants him invincibility for a short time. * Ace, a Tracker who wields a

sniper rifle A sniper rifle is a high-precision, long range shooting, long-range rifle. Requirements include high accuracy, reliability, mobility, concealment, and optics, for anti-personnel weapon, anti-personnel, anti-materiel rifle, anti-materiel and sur ...

and an expertise that allows her to trail enemy targets she aims at. * Squire, a Vanguard who wields a silenced

pistol A pistol is a type of handgun, characterised by a gun barrel, barrel with an integral chamber (firearms), chamber. The word "pistol" derives from the Middle French ''pistolet'' (), meaning a small gun or knife, and first appeared in the Englis ...

and an expertise that allows him to scan the area around him for loot. * Madame Xiu, a Scoundrel who uses a rapid-fire

crossbow A crossbow is a ranged weapon using an Elasticity (physics), elastic launching device consisting of a Bow and arrow, bow-like assembly called a ''prod'', mounted horizontally on a main frame called a ''tiller'', which is hand-held in a similar f ...

and has an expertise that lets her teleport to a selected character. * Hans, a Disruptor who carries a hand-mounted

shotgun A shotgun (also known as a scattergun, peppergun, or historically as a fowling piece) is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge (firearms), cartridge known as a shotshell, which discharges numerous small ...

with the ability to fire a large orb that slows enemies and disables their expertise. * Cavaliere, a Tracker who wields dual pistols and the ability to track down enemies by investigating items they have recently interacted with. * Larcin, a Scoundrel who has a

pocket pistol In American English, a pocket pistol is any small, pocket-sized semi-automatic pistol (or less commonly referencing either derringers, or revolvers), and is suitable for concealed carry (USA), concealed carry in a pocket or a similar small space ...

and the ability to go invisible for short periods of time. * Yu-Mi, a Disruptor who carries a

slingshot A slingshot or catapult is a small hand-powered projectile weapon. The classic form consists of a Y-shaped frame, with two tubes or strips made from either a natural rubber or synthetic elastic material. These are attached to the upper two ends ...

that can fire special pellets that destroy enemy gadgets, disables their disguises and slows them down. * Red, a Scoundrel who uses a classic

assault rifle An assault rifle is a select fire rifle that uses an intermediate cartridge, intermediate-rifle cartridge and a Magazine (firearms), detachable magazine.C. Taylor, ''The Fighting Rifle: A Complete Study of the Rifle in Combat'', F.A. Moyer '' ...

with an expertise that allows her to instantly regain her cover and debuff enemies. * Sasori, a Tracker who uses darts and a

wakizashi The is one of the traditionally made Japanese swords ('' nihontō'') worn by the samurai in feudal Japan. Its name refers to the practice of wearing it inserted through one's ''obi'' or sash at one's side, whereas the larger '' tachi'' sword wa ...

with the ability to coat them in crippling poison for a short time. * Octo, a Disruptor who uses an intel-powered

semi-automatic rifle A semi-automatic rifle is a type of rifle that fires a single round each time the Trigger (firearms), trigger is pulled while automatically loading the next Cartridge (firearms), cartridge. These rifles were developed Pre-World War II, and w ...

and other intel-based abilities to get the upper hand on his opponents. * Vigil, a Vanguard who wields a

and has the ability to use different gadgets that create smoke, detect enemies, or jam interactable objects.

Classes

The game's characters are split into four separate classes, which described in-game as follows: * Vanguards are "well-rounded, self-reliant fighters that can get through the thick and thin". * Trackers focus on "finding, singling out, and hunting down targets". * Scoundrels are "sly, cunning, and use dirty tricks to get ahead of the competition". * Disruptors are "experts at controlling space and disturbing the flow of fights".

Development

Developer Sweet Bandits Studios is based in

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

released the game for Windows, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S on March 21, 2023. In December 2024, it was announced the game would no longer receive updates. The developer claimed they were unable to get Deceive Inc. "in a state in which it could thrive" and could no longer continue developing the game.

Reception

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, the PC and Xbox Series X/S versions received positive reviews, and the PlayStation 5 version received mixed reviews. ''

PC Gamer ''PC Gamer'' is a magazine and website founded in the United Kingdom in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future plc. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games m ...

'' called it a "creative blend of sneaking and shooting that will have squads coming back for more". ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' said it is "a fantastic multiplayer game" that fans of the genre will enjoy despite its confusing progression system. ''

Shacknews ''Shacknews'' is an American video game journalism website founded in 1996. It that publishes news articles, reviews, and cheat codes. History ''Shacknews'' was founded in 1996 by Steve Gibson. The website, originally named 'Quakeholio', was ...

'' called it "creative, both visually and conceptually" and "a blast to experience, just as long as you have friends at the ready". ''

Push Square Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British digital media company based in London. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and oth ...

'' said it is "a solid starting point with a great premise" but needs better gunplay and more content.

References

External links

* {{Tripwire Interactive 2021 video games Windows games PlayStation 5 games Xbox Series X and Series S games Multiplayer video games Indie games First-person shooters Hero shooters Spy video games Tripwire Interactive games Video games developed in Canada Video games set in the 1970s