Line #17 VideoGame/DeathSpank


1	[[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/deathspank_3.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:1000:Justice For All!]]
3
4	''[=DeathSpank=]'' is a two-part ActionRPG designed by Creator/RonGilbert, developed by Hothead Games, and published by Creator/ElectronicArts. It is centered around IdiotHero Extraordinaire [=DeathSpank=], self-proclaimed "Hero of the Downtrodden, Dispenser of Justice and Vanquisher of Evil". The first half, ''Orphans of Justice'' (or simply just ''[=DeathSpank=]'') has our hero on a quest to obtain [[MacGuffin The Artifact]], and later, rescuing orphans from Lord Von Prong. The second part, ''Thongs of Virtue'' has [=DeathSpank=] traveling to various locales to defeat those corrupted by the Thongs of Power. Both parts were released in 2010, first on Platform/PlayStation3, and then on [[Platform/IBMPersonalComputer PC]] and Platform/Xbox360.
5
6	A sequel known as ''The Baconing'' was released in August of 2011 for the three aforementioned platforms. Taking place after [[spoiler:[=DeathSpank=] killed Sandy]] and established the land of [[{{Egopolis}} Spanktopia]], [=DeathSpank=] must once again save the world, this time from [[EvilCounterpart the Anti-Spank]], created when [=DeathSpank=] wore all of the thongs at once.
7
8	If you've ever played a HackAndSlash, you'll know how to play this game.
9	----
10	!!''[=DeathSpank=]'' contains examples of the following tropes:
11	* TwentyBearAsses: Pretty much every mission except for boss fights and the slight handful that involves a puzzle. Forgivable because they can by and large be completed in three minutes, and their humorous tone.
12	* AnachronismStew: The first game takes place in a medieval-inspired setting, but one of the quests has you buying a cellphone for a particularly insufferable Orphan, and when talking about movies with some {{Punch Clock Villain}}s, [=DeathSpank=] decides to just [=BitTorrent=] the film on his own time. ''Thongs of Virtue'', however, moves onto a somewhat more modern setting.
13	* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: "A tale of blood, and steel, and ''bacon''..."
14	* ArtifactOfDoom: The Thongs of Virtue. There were supposed to be 9 of them, but only 6 were made due to {{executive meddling}}. Thus, they became corrupt. They are:
15	** Justice, worn by [=DeathSpank=].
16	** Courage, worn by Lord Von Prong.
17	** Compassion, worn by [[http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2010/256/605420_20100914_screen009.jpg The Nun]] (she has a name, but it's [[OverlyLongName absurdly long]]).
18	** Cuisine, worn by [[http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2010/256/605420_20100914_screen013.jpg Wortten Wandelranger]].
19	** Generosity, worn by [[http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2010/256/605420_20100914_screen012.jpg Santa Claus]].
20	** Peace, worn by [[spoiler: Sandy Bravitor. Her grandfather was the forger of the Thongs, and her plan was to have [=DeathSpank=] retrieve them all so she could destroy them, and ultimately kill him as well. You can submit to her, but ''The Baconing'' reveals that [=DeathSpank=] killed her instead and took all 6 Thongs for himself]].
21	%%* AutomaticCrossbow: Your main ranged weapon. ''Thongs of Virtue'' replaces it with guns.
22	* AxCrazy: [[spoiler:Sandy becomes delusional towards the second game, obsessed with killing all the Thong bearers for a good cause she never follows through if she wins.]]
23	* BadSanta: Santa is one of the villains of ''Thongs of Virtue''.
24	* BagOfSpilling: ''Thongs of Virtue'' starts with [=DeathSpank=] being captured and put in a P.O.W. camp, presumably with his stuff looted.
25	* BasedOnAGreatBigLie: The games always start with a message stating that they're based on a true story. At the end of each game's credits is a message admitting they aren't.
26	%%* BigBad: Lord Von Prong in the first game. [[spoiler:Sandy for both games.]] The [=AntiSpank=] in ''The Baconing''.
27	* BreakingTheFourthWall:
28	** [=DeathSpank=] will beg the player to "Block, you fool, BLOCK!" if he takes too many hits without blocking.
29	** In ''Thongs of Virtue'', [=DeathSpank=] and other characters occasionally call out their character types.
30	* ChekhovsGun: It turns out that the artifact was actually a power source/crafting ingredient that could be used to forge a legendary piece of armor... but since they already created six pairs of armor and needed millions of similar artifacts to make one, it was useful but pretty much vendor trash on its own. In ''The Baconing'', you find caches of artifacts that are being used as power sources and sacrifice them to undo the curse planted on five of the armors ([=DeathSpank=] was stupid enough to wear all six pairs at once).
31	* ClothesMakeTheSuperman: The plot centers around the Thongs of Power, granted to six individuals who have all gone corrupt from their power save for the possessor of the Thong of Justice.
32	* {{Combos}}: Most of the gameplay revolves around using multiple weapons to raise a damage multiplier, which in some cases are the only way to feasibly beat {{King Mook}}s.
33	* CoOpMultiplayer: A second player can enter the game as Sparkles the Wizard, sharing the same life bar as [=DeathSpank=]. The sequel has Steve Von Prong, ninja and son of Lord Von Prong, as well as Tankko the Warrior in the DLC. ''The Baconing'' introduces Bob from Marketing as well as Roesha, One Bad Mutha.
34	* DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist:
35	** When you die, you're sent back to the nearest outhouse and without a handful of your money... that you can get back by returning where you died to pick it up. Since the enemies don't respawn if you don't change maps... The only downside to dying is that you come back with a small amount of health, and whatever you were fighting will have full health again.
36	** The ending of ''Thongs of Virtue'' reveals that this is one of the powers of the Thong of Justice. [[spoiler:For [=DeathSpank=] to truly die, he has to legally relinquish its power.]]
37	* DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment: The Cleaver of Cleaving, the Bladed (something) of Blades, etc.
38	* DestructiveSaviour: The intro of ''The Baconing'' shows [=DeathSpank=] defeating evil monsters, all the while getting the {{Distressed Damsel}}s killed, either [[GrievousHarmWithABody intentionally]] or otherwise.
39	* EveryoneHasStandards: [=DeathSpank=] refuses to touch the Thongoliths, despite being stupid.
40	* FaceHeelTurn: [[spoiler:Sandy turns out to be the FinalBoss of the original duology.]]
41	* FallenHero: The possessors of the Thongs have all ended up corrupt, save possibly for [=DeathSpank=]. This is implied to be due to his stupidity.
42	%%* FighterMageThief: [=DeathSpank=], Sparkles, Steve.
43	* ForGreatJustice: [=DeathSpank=] describes himself as a "Dispenser of Justice". And he will not stop boasting about it.
44	* GameBreakingBug:
45	** The Rudolph glitch. Sometimes Santa's top reindeer won't show up due to a bug, and you're required to kill him to get a special helmet in order to progress. If you kill all of the lesser reindeer in the area when Rudolph is missing and save, Rudolph will ''never'' show up again, and the game becomes unwinnable. However, if you allow yourself to die while at least one lesser reindeer is alive, Rudolph will come back when you do. If you're playing the PC or [=PS3=] version, Hothead can fix your save file if it happens. If you're on 360, you're boned. What makes this glitch especially bad is that this takes place 95% of the way through the game.
46	** ''The Baconing'' picks up on that tradition. The game has a high chance on crashing at the penultimate boss fight and corrupting your save file. No Fix is known for that. Even worse, the penultimate boss [[MarathonBoss takes forever, which is treated as a gag.]]
47	%%* AGodAmI:
48	%%** [[spoiler:Sandy]]
49	%%** A more benevolent version occurs in ''The Baconing''. [[spoiler:[=DeathSpank=] is officially declared the God of Orphans.]]
50	* GottaCatchThemAll: The main quest of the first game soon becomes saving orphans, whom you collect with an "Orphan Bag" you stuff them into.
51	* GottaKillThemAll: ''Thongs of Virtue'' is about [=DeathSpank=] taking down those corrupted by the Thongs of Power.
52	* HeelFaceTurn: The Leprechaun Mafia, a minor group of villains from the first game, appear to be allies in ''The Baconing'', [[spoiler:to the point that their Don makes [=DeathSpank=] an honorary leprechaun.]]
53	* HeroicComedicSociopath: An interesting partial example, [=DeathSpank=] is obsessed with altruistic ideals and heroism, but he is also a confounded imbecile with a skewed moral compass. He will accept quests from genuinely evil people (Such as the Wizard and the Barnacles) at the drop of a hat as long as they have a quest marker above their head. [[spoiler: And after a day of acting as an orphan's father, complete with a heartwarming montage, he ignores her feelings and stuffs her in a bag (though the fact that the girl was also a brat who previously made him buy a series of fancy crap for her probably didn't endear her to him).]]
54	%%* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:An option in the ending. ]]
55	* HiveMind: Possibly shown by the [[PuppeteerParasite Mind Barnacles]] by [=DeathSpank=] when [[spoiler: he infects the protectors of the wells to get the quest required item they carry.]] Although they could just have a lot of information stored in them and speak on behalf of the mother barnacle instead.
56	* HookerWithAHeartOfGold: Parodied with a prostitute who ''literally'' has a golden heart. Which you have to take.
57	%%* HubCity: The similarly named towns of Pluckmuckle and Le Beau Cuckle serve this role in the first two games.
58	* HumiliationConga: Eubrick was once a great hero, until he fought Lord von Prong and got his ass kicked twelve times. Not only did he lose very quickly, Lord von Prong describes him as his '''easiest foe''' he had ever faced.
59	* IdiotHero: [=DeathSpank=], whose favorite number is... plaid.
60	%%* KnightTemplar: [[spoiler:Sandy. And not just her. All Thong wielders, even Deathspank to a lesser extent, are all using corrupt version of their virtues.]]
61	* LanternJawOfJustice: [=DeathSpank=] has a large chin, and is obsessed with justice.
62	* LargeHam: [=DeathSpank=] is very bombastic.
63	* LevelGrinding: Even players who complete every single quest are unlikely to reach the level cap of 20. If you want the achievement, you're gonna have to spend an extra half hour killing Unicorns, the only enemy that gives significant XP at that point.
64	* LoveFreak: If you couldn't tell, [=DeathSpank=] is absolutely obsessed with Justice.
65	* MacGuffin: The Artifact, which is actually [[spoiler:a strip of bacon]]. [=DeathSpank=] does get it early on, but he gets it mugged from him. [[spoiler:Sandy states that it's really not that important at the end, despite being the one who sent him on the quest. In her moonbase, you'll even see stacks of Artifacts.]]
66	* MediumAwareness: [=DeathSpank=] and [=NPCs=] alike tend to refer to in-game elements such as hit points and the quest log. At one point, a quest giver claims to have gained experience points for the quest ''you'' just completed by turning it into ''him''.
67	* MultiMeleeMaster: Up to ''eight'' weapons can be equipped at a time, each mapped to different buttons.
68	* MultipleEndings: [[spoiler:The ending of ''Thongs of Virtue'' either has [=DeathSpank=] sacrifice himself to Sandy or fights her, putting an end to her madness. According to the canon set by ''The Baconing'', [=DeathSpank=] killed Sandy.]]
69	* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: [=DeathSpank=] is a parody of such names. Possibly a play on how players tend to name their characters something along the lines of [[Webcomic/PennyArcade SkullAssassin]] in games.
70	* NarratorAllAlong: [[spoiler:Sandy, though you should be able to guess it out when she's referred to as "the mysterious, but quite attractive woman".]]
71	* PermanentlyMissableContent:
72	** The Primp VIP achievement/trophy in ''Thongs of Virtue''. If you open the chest in her brothel before viewing all 20 of her costumes, it's gone because Madame Primp will become hostile. The game saves as soon as you open it, so quitting out via dashboard won't save you. Also combines with GuideDangIt because you don't know Primp will attack you, and the fact that it's in plain sight, begging you to open it while Primp is changing costumes, doesn't help.
73	** The Konichiwa achievement/trophy is also potentially missable. You have to talk to the Japanese judge in Wortten's office to get the "Learn Japanese" book to appear in the library. If you begin the cookoff without doing so, Wortten may kill him during the battle (she kills judges at random), preventing you from spawning the book.
74	* PunctuatedForEmphasis: From ''The Baconing'':
75	-->'''Zeus''': For I name you...[[spoiler:God. Of. ORPHAAAAANS!]]
76	* PuppeteerParasite: The Mind Barnacles take over the mind of their host.
77	* SadisticChoice: At the end of the second game, [[spoiler:after Sandy goes mad due to the Thong of Peace, [=DeathSpank=] must choose between sacrificing himself to save her, or be forced to kill her. There is no third option. According to ''The Baconing'', the latter is canon. Though it might not be so sadistic since the sacrifice is in vain and [=DeathSpank=] dislikes Sandy.]]
78	* SenselessSacrifice: [[spoiler:The Sacrifice ending is actually the worse ending, as your sacrifice goes in vain. The Thongs are not destroyed by Sandy.]]
79	* SequelEscalation: Of a sort. The original game had a medieval fantasy theme, the second game introduced modern era aspects, and ''The Baconing'' brought ''futuristic sci-fi'' to the table.
80	* SequelHook:
81	** Upon defeating Von Prong, it's revealed that the source of both his and [=DeathSpank=]'s power are their thongs. Sandy then sends [=DeathSpank=] after others with thongs.
82	** ''The Baconing'' ends with [=DeathSpank=] [[spoiler: commandeering [=AntiSpank=]'s time machine and going into the past.]]
83	* ShaggyDogStory: [[spoiler:The Sacrifice Ending in ''The Baconing'', where after killing [=DeathSpank=] Sandy is unable to bring herself to properly destroy the thongs and instead hides them away as she grows old and in regret.]]
84	* ShopFodder: Anything you don't need goes to the Grinder in your inventory, which reduces items down to money.
85	* SpoiledBrat: [[ComicStrip/LittleOrphanAnnie Annie the Orphan]], who makes [=DeathSpank=] buy all sorts of crap for her. However, her final demand is for [[spoiler:a daddy, which [=DeathSpank=] decides to be for a while. Before stuffing her into a bag.]]
86	* StealthInsult: Lord Von Prong's opera singing can smash a hourglass and is his strongest attack, able to paralyze [=DeathSpank=].
87	* VerbalTic: Lord Von Prong might burst into a SOOOOOONG! Amusingly, he fully controls it in the final battle, not bursting at all during the dialogue right before, but using it to [[ThatOneAttack stunning effect in the battle itself.]]
88	* WickedCultured: Lord Von Prong is both of these things to a ridiculous extent. He kidnaps orphans just to bait [=DeathSpank=], and uses ''opera'' to murder him.

Context VideoGame / DeathSpank