We don’t tend to dwell on the appearance of the Grim Reaper much because it’s too morbid a consideration (though we swear to God that he hangs about the 360 Gamer offices for shits and giggles). However, if pushed, we’d guess that he’s an ugly little sod with little (if any) corporeal flesh hanging off his aging skeleton. This being the case, we’d also find it difficult to believe that when not reaping souls the Grim Reaper engages in a little speed dating or goes out on the lash and actually manages to pull. (Imagine what she’d have to look like to surrender to the charms of a man (thing?) that makes John Merrick look like Adonis?) And, given his lack of flesh, how would he manage to, er, bone her?
Okay, okay – we’ve gone off on a massive tangent. You see, some Germans want us to believe that all or none of this could happen, and they’ve decided to make a game based on it (not Grim Reaper Goes on the Lash, though – that WOULD be awesome). They have conjured up a world where the personification of death could copulate and, despite the massive odds against the splicing of genes from the bringer of death and almost certainly some pissed-up slapper from Barnsley (we hear they’re game for anything after 15 pints of Stella), the resultant spawn would be a coquettish and voluptuous daughter, Scarlett, who lives in Sixteenth Century Venice.
Of course, those familiar with the works of Terry Pratchett will know that the recently knighted author has also dallied with the notion of Death and the concept of him having a daughter over the years (albeit an adopted one), so perhaps we shouldn’t be too critical of Deck13. But whilst the developer openly acknowledges Pratchett as a potential influence, it is clear that the gender choice was based on, er, aesthetics rather than because they’d cribbed the idea from The Hogfather.
Writing on the Venetica website, Deck13 explains the decision to opt for a female of the species: “On the one hand we wanted to make this story interesting for girls and that’s why we chose a more believable figure instead of a typical battle Amazon. And boys seldom have anything against chasing an attractive lady through a game…” Looking at the character design of Scarlett, we’d say she looks anything but a ‘believable figure’, so we’re guessing that the decision was made with the boys in mind rather than girls (who, having been served up a staple diet of predominantly masculine heroes, tend not to give a monkey’s about such things).
Alas, actual information about the game itself is at a premium. We honestly tried to divine what we could from the press release but our head hurt when we tried to read it. Take this humdinger, for starters: “This allows her to generate herself tactical combat advantage, for instance by repositioning herself unseen while staying in the Twilight World, and afterwards surprisingly returning to the world of the living.” Of course, we shouldn’t be too churlish about a document that so clearly started out its life in another tongue, so we’ll refer back to the developer, which boasts that it’s “a visually stunning action RPG with a unique and captivating atmosphere.” Of course it is; they all start out their life promising to deliver.
Similarly, the visual clues on offer do little to help. We know that our heroine exists between both Sixteenth Century Venice and the Twilight Zone where dead foe felled on terra firma become considerably more potent (which presumably is what is shown here). But how will the combat work? Will the skills she learns in the dark transfer topside? In fact, how will the two plains of her existence work to make a cohesive gaming whole?
Neither press release nor screenshots seem willing to offer much in the way of explanation. One thing that we can say is that there’s a Galleonesque quality to the characters. And that makes us sad because the last time at least two of the 360 Gamer team came into contact with Toby Gard’s broken pirate game (that wasn’t a pirate game, you understand) we nearly committed a murder. However, we’ll set aside our fears until the time when we get to see Venetica in action. Unless, of course, the Grim Reaper gets to us first…
