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1[[quoteright:256:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Greed-Black-Border-2-icon_6481.png]]
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3->''"It's always fascinating how so many unexplored planets just happen to have breathable air."''
4-->-- '''The Marine'''
5
6''GREED: Black Border'' is a sci-fi ActionRPG developed by ClockStone Software and released by HeadUpGames for the PC in 2009. It uses the same isometric view, equipment doll and other features popularized by VideoGame/{{Diablo}}, though with much more emphasis on ranged combat with various guns.
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8It's TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture, and humanity has spread out amongst the stars, establishing itself in five different colonial nations, [[NoBloodForPhlebotinum who are at war over a new and valuable resource,]] [[GreenRocks Ikarium.]] [[PowerGlows This stuff glows yellow]] and can be used as money, weapon enhancement, rocket fuel or even conveniently-placed ExplodingBarrels. The problem is, the stuff is only found on a few tightly-controlled planets owned by [[RichPeople colonial authorities,]] so "wildcat" miners and the like go out in search of new worlds that hopefully host deposits of the stuff.
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10The player takes the role of one of three ex-government operatives, The Plasma, [[PlayingWithFire The Pyro]] or [[GatlingGood The Marine,]] who've recently struck out on their own in search of fortune. Their journey gets sidetracked when their ship gets [[TractorBeam auto-grabbed]] by a seemingly derelict mining vessel…
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12The game can be played alone [[CoopMultiplayer or with up to two others cooperatively.]]
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14----
15!!''GREED provides examples of:''
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17* AbsentAliens: In the backstory. [[spoiler:That is, until your character encounters the bizarre robots on the desert planet.]]
18* AcidPool: Found in the toxic waste dump in Chapter 2.
19** Undead Chemists and Toxin Spiders create these as a special attack, both actively and when they die.
20* ActionBomb: Some of the cyber-zombies come equipped with [[ExplodingBarrels a barrel of liquid Ikarium.]]
21* ActionGirl: The Plasma.
22* AsteroidMiners: The Yukon 5 and her crew.
23* AFatherToHisMen: The Marine used to be a top military officer but quit because he was sick of his men being sacrificed for pointless missions.
24* BigCreepyCrawlies: Chapter 2 is fraught with them, culminating in the mutant carrion beetle boss at the toxic waste dump.
25* BookDumb: The Marine remarks upon entering the Yukon 5's data center that libraries make his head hurt.
26* ChainsawGood: Early enemies you face include circular-saw-mounted robots and long-saw packing ''zombies.'' Good thing [[{{BFG}} you've got a big gun.]]
27* ClassAndLevelSystem: As a VideoGame/{{Diablo}}-alike, this game gives you access to three classes, each with a set of active and passive skills. You get two attribute points per level to distribute amongst health, energy (your ManaMeter) and shield, and one skill point. You can equip one active and two passive (offensive and defensive) skills at a time but can switch them on the fly.
28* ColdSniper: The Plasma.
29* {{Cyborg}}: [[spoiler:The aliens found in Chapter 3 appear to be this, though they may just be MechaMooks.]]
30* DeathWorld: The desert planet is extremely hot and full of BigCreepyCrawlies, including but not limited to [[GiantEnemyCrab Giant Enemy Crabs.]]
31* DeadpanSnarker: The Marine, and [[TheStoic rather stoic at that.]] His response to [[GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere a giant mutant carrion beetle from nowhere?]]
32--> "And I thought ''I'' had giant cockroaches in my kitchen."
33* DefectorFromDecadence: All three characters, in some form.
34* DeflectorShields: You've got a regenerating shield meter. It pays to wait for it to recharge between fights. You can invests in certain skills to speed that up.
35* EnergyWeapon: Used by many {{Mooks}}. The Plasma's SniperRifle is this.
36* EvenEvilHasStandards: The Pyro was part of a government [[ProfessionalKiller "Cleaning" crew]], but he drew the line on being ordered to level a civilian settlement.
37* EverybodysDeadDave: Kamishiro is the only survivor of the incident. Other than you, of course.
38* EverythingsDeaderWithZombies: The Yukon 5 suffered its own little ZombieApocalypse, but oddly enough, TheVirus only affected [[CyberneticsEatYourSoul those with bionic implants.]] Anybody who didn't turn was quickly killed by those who did, it seems.
39* ExplodingBarrels: Goddamn everywhere, especially where they shouldn't be. Like ''bathrooms.''
40* {{Expy}}: The Plasma's [[SpyCatsuit appearance]] and fighting style (long range sniping) may remind you strongly of [[VideoGame/StarCraft Nova.]]
41* FireBreathingWeapon: The Pyro's favored weapon.
42* ForbiddenZone: The [[TitleDrop Subtitular]] "Black Border", for largely unexplained reasons. [[spoiler:Though [[HordeOfAlienLocusts a horde of hostile alien]] [[MechaMooks robots]] might have something to do with it.]]
43* GatlingGood: The Marine's preferred firearm. He begins the game with a quad-barrel gatling. [[MoreDakka Where does he go from there?]] To guns with dual tri-barrel assemblies and finally to ones with ''[[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill three]]'' tri-barrel assemblies. [[SpectacularSpinning These spin the entire setup in addition to the barrels themselves,]] [[MoreDakka creating a hailstorm of bullets.]]
44* GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere: All three [[BossFight bosses]]. The second one gets [[ThePointsMeanNothing bonus points]] for actually [[LampshadeHanging being]] a giant space flea (well, carrion beetle).
45* GlowingEyelightsOfUndeath: On the cyber-zombies. [[EyeLightsOut They never go out.]]
46* {{Greed}}: [[TitleDrop Well, duh.]] It's the reason eccentric billionare Lorca took his [[AsteroidMiners mining crew]] beyond the [[ForbiddenZone Black Border]] to look for [[GreenRocks Ikarium.]] [[IntrepidMerchant Kamishiro]] is clearly driven by it, the player characters mostly just want to get out of this with their heads attached.
47* GreenRocks: Yellow, in this case. Later seen as blue in a super-refined form.
48* HealThyself: You can only carry nine of these. It seems like a generous amount… [[OhCrap that is, until your shield meter depletes]].
49* HumansAreWhite: Everyone is the same color. Kemshiro takes it further: he's a stereotypical middle-aged, fat, bald white guy with a Japanese name and a Yiddish accent, so it could be a case of InTheFutureHumansWillBeOneRace.
50* InterfaceScrew: Parts of the desert planet's surface (dark colored dirt areas, as opposed to lighter sand) are so hot that they warp the screen — and screw with your mouse!
51* IntrepidMerchant: Masato Kamishiro, whom you first meet on deck 5 of the Yukon 5. Though his voice will quickly grate on your nerves, he'll gladly take all that stuff that's been piling up in your inventory, and he gives you an item that allows you to [[TeleportersAndTransporters teleport to and from his location,]] a la [[VideoGame/{{Diablo}} Diablo's town portal scrolls.]]
52* InventoryManagementPuzzle: Of the same vein as VideoGame/{{Diablo}}, though with less complexity. You can only carry a single stack each of medkits and energy cells, but equipment takes up a huge amount of space. You need only equip three items — a helmet, armor and a weapon, though each can be equipped with a small enhancement and these fill up space quickly if not used.
53* MonsterIsAMommy: [[spoiler:The Alien Queen, no doubt. You've been stomping all over her minions/children for the past three levels.]]
54* ManaMeter: Smaller than most, but it regenerates quickly. One of The Marine's active skills taps into it to replenish his shields, while a passive one causes it to act as a second shield meter.
55* MineralMacguffin: Chapters 2 and 3 have you searching for refined Ikarium, a liquid form of the stuff to use as fuel for Kamishiro's ship.
56* MechaMooks: The Yukon 5 is crawling with security mechs of all shapes and sizes that don't like you very much. [[spoiler:The aliens aren't much better.]]
57* NoNameGiven: A planet, in this case. It's just called the "desert planet" if it is mentioned directly.
58* NukeEm: Several of The Marine's higher-level skills involve micro-nukes. They don't explode, though. They sit there spewing radiation.
59* SentryGun: Watch out for these, [[InvincibleMinorMinion they're indestructible]] and will kill you quickly. Seek ways to avoid them, like cover or distractions.
60* ShiftingSandLand: The Yukon 5 wrecks at the beginning of Chapter 2, leaving you temporarily stranded on an uncharted desert world that happens to host ''huge'' Ikarium deposits. Jackpot!
61* ShoutOut: Upon encountering the first boss, The Marine will invoke ComicBook/TheJoker's CatchPhrase from the 1989 ''[[Film/Batman1989 Batman]]'' movie.
62* ShoutingShooter: The Marine does this when using the "Frenzy" skill.
63* SocketedEquipment: Every item has one socket and the "gems" (in this case, enhancement chips) are plentiful, but they cannot be removed or replaced, so choose carefully.
64* SpiderTank: The first BossFight is against a robotic spider mech with [[GatlingGood a Gatling gun]], seeker bombs, and an EnergyWeapon that sprays a cone of small blasts. You ''really'' don't want to get hit by the gatling, but thankfully it has very slow tracking, so just keep circle-strafing.
65* StockForeignName: Kemishiro. Funny enough, he has a New York accent.
66* StuffBlowingUp: Grenades, explosive rounds, ExplodingBarrels…
67* TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon: The [[spoiler:alien lair, with its [[PowerGlows glowing crystals]] and {{Bizarchitecture}}]] in Chapter 3.

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