I had such fun and enjoyment with Spacebot Interactive’s Dragonborne release, so when I heard they were going to release a second game, I was excited to see what kind of game they were going to provide for us. New game Deadeus, created by Adam Birch (aka -IZMA-) through the Game Boy Studio, now has a physical release. This horror indie game has everything I want in a game, and while I haven’t finished lots of horror games that I’d picked up since I was younger, this one is different and is one a gamer should complete. With 11 different endings, there’s definitely replayability in this game, and it has lots of love and care put into it.
The story for Deadeus is about a boy who wakes up from a nightmare where a monster says he’ll eat everyone in three days. He tries to tell his mom and other adults, but no one believes him, with all telling him that everyone has nightmares- except for the girl next door, his best friend, and some other kids in the village who had a similar nightmare, as well as some of the old folks who remember a certain tragedy that happened 15 years ago. Each day the player and the other kids have different nightmares about what’s to come in the three days when everything comes to an end. With 11 different endings, it is worth replaying and finding all this little indie has to offer. Will the god Deadeus be resurrected or be stopped? What will happen to the town, the residents and the protagonist?
What can I say about the graphics? Besides being a 16-bit game that has its limitations, the graphics look fantastic for what they are, giving this little indie a wholesome feel to it. I love the horrifying imagery that’s used to tell the story that fits the feel of the game. It’s one of this game’s many positive aspects that make it fantastic – along with its soundtrack and story. Deadeus looks and feels super nostalgic, which I have to give it points for.
One thing I always look for when I play a game is a great soundtrack, and it doesn’t disappoints. The game features music by Stuart Busby, which helps make Deadeus an enjoyable horror game. I love how it fits into the indie and helps make the horrifying narrative even more horrifying. It gives me that intense feeling that pulls me more into the game, making me want to keep playing it and not put it down so I can find out what’s going to happen next, like I’m watching a good horror movie (like some of my classic horrors films, Friday the 13th, Halloween, and Nightmare on Elm Street). Sometimes when I replay a game, I turn down the sound, but with this one I kept it on to get the full experience, and I love how eerie it makes this indie feel, especially during the cutscenes. It drew me in and made me want to play more to unfold the game’s mysteries and find out everything about it.
Despite Deadeus being released online in 2019 and not getting a physical release until now, it feels like a nostalgic game from back in the day of the Game Boy, and with the Game Boy constantly getting new and improved mods, like new backlight screens, it’s definitely worth adding Deadeus to your gaming library. It may not be for everyone since it does have some religious overtones, but if you can look past that, you can enjoy Deadeus as the little slice of horror goodness that it is. If you’re a Game Boy collector, then I definitely recommend picking up Deadeus. And if you did miss picking up a copy of Deadeus, I hope that Spacebot Interactive does a second run for it.
Developer: Adam Birch (aka -IZMA-)
Publisher: Spacebot Interactive
Platforms: Game Boy
Release Date: August 2019 (online release), 15th March 2021 (physical release)
