History VideoGame / Evilgenius

* ContractualBossImmunity - The Super Agents cannot be killed through any amount of minions, traps, gunfire, or interrogation. Only specific methods that don't become available until the second half can deal with them.
** Mariana Mamba is [[spoiler:made fat via reverse liposuction, [[PunishedWithUgly losing her looks]] and thus rendering her main weapon null.]]
** Jet Chan is [[spoiler:challenged to a rigged one-on-one karate battle after interrogating his old master. In the ensuing match he is utterly humiliated, and he leaves in shame and never returns.]]
** Katerina Frostonova is [[spoiler:forced to watch you beat up and chop up the only object she ever showed any affection for, her teddy bear. The resulting BSOD leaves her unable to operate any more.]]
** Dirk Masters is [[spoiler:dipped in your bio-tanks. The chemicals react with the numerous illegal steroids in his body, morphing him into a unique Freak under your command.]]
** John Steele cannot be defeated during the game, but [[spoiler:if you have him locked in a jail cell when you press the button to launch the rocket and thus win the game, the ending cinematic will show him strapped to the rocket and launched into space with it.]]
* ContractualBossImmunity:
** Super Agents are immortal and cannot be defeated permanently without researching their AchillesHeel. Even then they don't die, only retire in shame.
** Henchmen also cannot die if defeated by regular enemy agents. Super Agents, however, will remove one of the Henchman's lives permanently.

* ContractualGenreBlindness: Why does your ElaborateUndergroundBase's entraces have slowly-opening doors? Why do your minions ignore {{Highly Visible Ninja}}s unless you've specifically told them to do something about them? Because you're the EvilGenius. If you weren't Contractually Genre Blind, ''more than half of the gameplay would have to be changed''.

** The Brianiac Machine blinds them with EpilepticFlashingLights.

** So disposable, in fact, that the basic construction worker minions are free. Or you can pay out the nose to recruit as many as you need in mere seconds. Not to mention the game actually rewards you for summarily executing or torturing your minions in front of others.

** Sure, you ''can'' tell your minions to shoot the Super Agents, but the latter will always get up. The only way to kill the Super Agents is to put them on some sort of specific torture device after completing their missions.

** The main reason to just shoot them is because being around bodybags causes the loyalty of minions to drop, so its usually more efficient to have them executed in jail and then take them 10 feet away to the freezer, so that you don't make them carry it all through your base lowering everyone's loyalty.

** There is also a blink-and-miss-it one: the first island choppers have a Novistrana symbol on the tail. Novistrana was in Elixir Studio's earlier game, ''VideoGame/RepublicTheRevolution''.

* TooDumbToLive: On both sides. Social and Scientist Minions will duel armed soldiers in gentlemen's fisticuffs, to infiltrators deciding to explode harmless table tennis courts. Captured agents also get to keep whatever weapons they have on them, like say the Super Agent Dirk Masters who was just mowing through the base with his big M60s. Agents deciding to ''attack a nuclear reactor.'' [[StuffBlowingUp You can tell how well that turns out for them]].

** One of the most extremely cruel examples is the way you can finish off Frostonova. [[spoiler: You cut up her teddy bear right in front of her.]] ''YouBastard.''
** When defeating Jet Chan [[spoiler:by drugging him and having one of your crew besting him in the dojo, you can choose to have him be defeated by one of the basic construction worker minions rather than a martial artist.]] The ultimate humiliation.
* VillainCred: "Notoriety", which represents how widely your misdeeds are known to the world. Increasing it is necessary to progress in the main storyline, and is the main reason to perform side missions. You also get increases to your minion cap for high Notoriety, but on the downside, once you become ''really' notorious, Super Agents start showing up.

* VillainProtagonist: The PlayerCharacter is the eponymous evil genius, a CardCarryingVillain with designs to TakeOverTheWorld.
* VillainousFriendship: Whenever your henchmen aren't doing anything, they can usually be found in pairs, chatting in out of the way corners. If one of them is unpaired, one of the regular minions will talk with them instead. Henchmen and minions will also wave to one another as they pass in the halls.

* WhoShotJFK: The "Assassinate Mr. President" mission involves sniping him from a "grassy knoll". Partially subverted in that you don’t actually kill him, according to the briefing, as that would bring cause a huge amount of heat- you just hit him with a drug-filled dart and he trips out (which may be a reference to theories about a man with an umbrella who people claim fired a dart that paralyzed JFK.)

** The only way to kill the super agents is to put them on some sort of specific torture device.

** The main reason to just shoot them is because being around bodybags causes the loyalty of minions to drop, so its usually more efficient to have them executed in jail and then take them 10 feet away to the freezer, so that you dont have to have them carry it all through your base lowering everyone's loyalty.

* AfterCombatRecovery: Henchmen have this, as a second IdleAnimation that recovers all their stats rapidly.

* GoodBadBugs: There are some bugs that really, really should not have slipped through. Examples include the Persian Rug being a barrier instead of a tile (as in, it stops people from walking over it) and science-related henchmen actually making your schemes take longer. Many of these bugs can be fixed by a simple edit of text files, but if you don't feel like it, you can try the automatic Unofficial Patch.

%%* ElaborateUndergroundBase: No, really.

* EqualOpportunityEvil: Although the minion's sprites are mostly all white, their names show a wide variety of origins. The Henchmen are a straighter example.

* EvilMinions: No prizes for guessing.

** Minions will also use doors without problem if they can get through them... blissfully ignorant of any enemy agents (guns and swords optional) that are stood in front of said door trying to force it open. Cue a lot of snooping and/or explodey death.

** Some people have reported that both two Super Agents' {{Karmic Death}}s have caused crashes. The only fix? Don't look at them. Hope you weren't excited about acting seeing your enemies defeated...
** After a late-game mission, the Forces of Justice have been convinced that each other is the problem. The game tells you that they'll [[EnemyCivilWar fight against each other while on your island]], freeing you from both worrying about Good Guy retaliation levels. For every one time this actually ''happens'', there's a handful of times when the massively-armed soldiers drop the IdiotBall and work together to deal with you.

* GoodBadBugs: There are some bugs that really, really should not have slipped through. Examples include the persian rug being a barrier instead of a tile and science-related henchmen actually making your schemes take longer. Many of these bugs can be fixed by a simple edit of text files, but if you don't feel like it, you can try the automatic Unofficial Patch.
* GoodIsNotNice: In addition to attacking each other during global chaos, higher-ranking Soldiers and most Super Agents will attack minions on sight, even Social or Science minions who aren't aggressive. They'll also blow up your hotel, even killing tourists in the process.
* GoodSmokingEvilSmoking: Alexis totes a very long, very evil looking holder for her omnipresent cigarette. Playboy minions have a less comically over-sized but no less sinister holder as part of their gear, and you'll constantly be seeing minions and henchmen smoking around the base while on break. Basically it's the sixties, and '''everyone''' smokes.

** You get virtually no in-game information on how to defeat John Steele. [[spoiler:You need to have him locked in a holding cell when you fire your super weapon in order to see his demise.]]
** Likewise, the game doesn't tell you why your minions are panicking or why enemy agents are suddenly able to teleport into your base. (It's because your base has an area that is completely enclosed, but an annoying thing about this is that the game is equally unclear when a location ''is'' enclosed. That dead-end corridor where you put two vases? It's actually inaccessible even though it looks like there's plenty of room to squeeze through. The training room where you put some dojo mats together? Also inaccessible, because minions can't walk across the mat.)

** Research involves being presented with an object and selecting up to three pieces of lab equipment out of eight to experiment on to find new stuff. To put it another way, it means choosing between 8C3, or a whopping ''336'' possibilites of which only one is the correct one. For a ''single'' item. The game does have some mercy where you can pay to find out which ones aren't the right ones, but given it costs thousands it'll chew through your budget in no time unless you use it sparingly.

* NonActionBigBad: The Evil Genius can't attack enemies. The bodyguards you pick up as your Notoriety rises ''can'', but they're not particularly good at it.

* OurZombiesAreDifferent: Once you research the appropriate technologies, you can create F.R.E.A.K.s by dumping body bags into the Bio-Tanks.

** Dumping a fallen enemy into the Bio-Tanks result in a mindless mutant. This is also how you defeat Dirk Masters permanently after you find out the secret to his TestosteronePoisoning

* RenegadeRussian: Red Ivan, a former Soviet soldier gone rogue after being betrayed by his handlers. His mind is a mess thanks to simultaneously hating both the capitalists he was trained to fight and his former Soviet comrades.

* SchmuckBait: Some of the traps are quite obvious. Plus using stolen loot.

** Naturally, given the source material. Many of the Acts of Infamy are a ShoutOut to Bond movies and other spy films.
** There is also a blink-and-miss-it one: the first island choppers have a Novistrana symbol on the tail. Novistrana was in their earlier game, ''VideoGame/RepublicTheRevolution''.

** One of Jubei's voice lines when issued a move order is "Gojira!" Which is the Japanese name of Franchise/{{Godzilla}}.
* TheSixties: Mixed liberally with elements of TheSeventies and TheEighties, such as [[spoiler: a Rambo expy for the PATRIOT super agent.]] The presence of the Cuban Missile Crisis dates the game at 1962, however.

* StoryDrivenInvulnerability: Super agents cannot be permanently killed by ordinary means, only through a special mission unique to each one. Applies more loosely to the Evil Genius's henchmen; they can be killed through "ordinary" combat, but only super agents have enough oomph to deplete one of their 3 lives.

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: Each enemy intelligence agency roughly corresponds to a Cold War faction[[note]]P.A.T.R.I.O.T. and S.A.B.R.E. are the Western Bloc (P.A.T.R.I.O.T. represents the US sphere of influence, while S.A.B.R.E. is the West-aligned Europe, Turkey, and the British Commonwealth), H.A.M.M.E.R. is the Eastern Bloc (USSR, Eastern Europe, and Cuba), A.N.V.I.L. is Communist China, and S.M.A.S.H. is the Non-Aligned Movement[[/note]], but some of their territories would historically belong to another one.

Upon release, the game was reasonably successful but not enough to save its developer, Elixir Studios, from closing down a year after its launch. The [=IPs=] were bought up by Creator/Rebellion, who would release two different and now-defunct Facebook titles, ''Evil Genius WMD'' and ''Evil Genius Online.'' In 2013, while announcing the beta for ''Evil Genius Online,'' they also announced the production of a proper PC successor to the original game. ''[[VideoGame/EvilGenius2 Evil Genius 2: World Domination]]'' was properly revealed in July of 2017. It is set to release in 2020.

A proper sequel, ''VideoGame/EvilGenius2'', was announced in July of 2017, headed by Rebellion. It is set to release in 2020.

* IHaveBoobsYouMustObey: How Mariana Mamba wins over your henchmen.

** You can use this to your advantage; there's a "bug" that allows you to stop a minion from leaving due to Loyalty zeroing: if you tag them for capture, then repeatedly zoom in to view their stat panel, they stop to salute you every time, giving your minions or henchmen time to catch up. Cue [[{{Brainwashed}} "re-education"]] via "Loyalty Restoration".
** Only valets can use fire extinguishers. No one else can, including higher level social units (who apparently forget how). On top of that, valets have a distressing tendency to run right into the path of veteran kill teams, trying to pick up all the money and items dropped by your construction workers to fight off said kill teams. Which leads to them all being dead by the time the veterans start setting your base on fire blowing things up. And valets aren't very smart in extinguishing fires themselves:
-->If a fire breaks out, the closest valet will not simply grab the nearest extinguisher and put it out. Instead, seemingly random valets all over your base will grab the extinguishers nearest them, and run to the fire, no matter how far it may be. Then, when they get there, they will put out one burning object (in a room after an explosion there can be over half a dozen objects on fire) and walk, with the extinguisher, past the other fires and put the extinguisher back. [[http://wiki.n1nj4.com/index.php?title=Fire_Extinguisher]]
** Same with technicians when they earn their science degree. Apparently, they forget basic mechanics and won't repair your stuff anymore. Cue generators blowing up.

There's also a great deal of freedom and a wide range of methods you can use to complete your overarching goal. Want to run a fortress island with massive numbers of armed guards, machinegun emplacements, and horrifying freaks of nature, all emphasizing [[MoreDakka firepower?]] Perfectly reasonable. Want a deadly secluded island filled with martial arts disciples? Feel free! Want to beguile your enemies with squads of elite deceptive social minions who will leave their heads spinning and questioning their loyalty? That's also perfectly viable. Want to set a thousand deadly traps and twisty, mystifying corridors that will leave the forces of justice lost, confused, and very very dead? Nothing's stopping you. You're allowed to either discard the VillainBall with prejudice or wrap both hands around it and run straight for the end zone.

* ManInWhite: Henchman Eli Barricuda is never seen without his stylish immaculate white suit. [[BerserkButton Never, ever, spill something on it]].

* HistoricalRapSheet: Criminal mastermind Lord Kane is alleged to have had a hand in every major crime of the 20th century, from starting the fire that crashed UsefulNotes/TheHindenburg to the [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand]]. He does insist that the sinking of the Titanic was [[NeverLiveItDown an honest accident]], as one of his minions apparently misheard his orders.

*** Next, it tells you hat to steal enough resources to build a rocket. You'd expect the log will update once you've got said resources, but you also need to click on the giant hole in the middle of your base before your minions will actually start construction, and there are no hints that the hole could even be interacted with. Without knowing that though, it's likely you'll be stealing dozens and dozens of crates either thinking you don't have enough or that the game is bugged.

** Research involves being presented with an object and selecting up to three pieces of lab equipment to experiment on to find new stuff. To put it another way, it means choosing between 8C3, or a whopping ''336'' possibilites of which only one is the correct one. For a ''single'' item. The game does have some mercy where you can pay to find out which ones aren't the right ones, but given it costs thousands it'll chew through your budget in no time unless you use it sparingly.

** For objective 7 the game tells you that you need to steal enough resources to build a rocket. You'd expect the log will update once you've got said resources, but you also need to click on the giant hole in the middle of your base before your minions will actually start construction, and there are no hints that the hole could even be interacted with. Without knowing that though, it's likely you'll be stealing dozens and dozens of crates either thinking you don't have enough or that the game is bugged.

* GuideDangIt: You get virtually no in-game information on how to defeat John Steele. [[spoiler:You need to have him locked in a holding cell when you fire your super weapon in order to see his demise.]]

* AnachronismStew: While WordOfGod had put this in the 60s, the [[{{Zeerust}} level of technology]] and several historical inaccuracies very much puts the game into this. One point of contention, for example, was the existence of [[UsefulNotes/TheRaj British India]] (under S.A.B.R.E.) about two decades after it had been [[UsefulNotes/ThePartitionOfIndia dismantled]] in real life.

** Because you can only place a handful of items in corridors it's actually not that efficient to use them to connect parts of your base. Instead, use the barracks so you can line your base with lockers, beds, and gun cabinets, not only allowing you to save tons of room, but as a bonus or allows your minions to sleep and get guns without having to run across your lair. Do make sure you actually have small parts of corridor though, otherwise you'll find you won't be able to place fire extinguishers anywhere.

** Because you can only place a handful of items in corridors it's actually not that efficient to use them to connect parts of your base. Instead, use the barracks so you can line your base with lockers, beds, and gun cabinets, not only allowing you to save tons of room, but as a bonus or allows your minions to sleep and get guns without having to run across your lair.

** The freezer's intended use is to store body bags, so accordingly it disables their loyalty-sapping aura. In fact, it disables ''all'' auras, so it can also be used for storing the {{dismantled|MacGuffin}} totem pole, which also has a cursed negative aura until you reassemble it.

** People who are distracted by a social minion will ignore anything happening around them while that's taking place, up to and including ''gunfights''.