Line #19 VideoGame/FoulPlay2013


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/foul_play_2013_theatre_stage.jpg]]
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3	''Foul Play'' is a side-scrolling co-op [[BeatEmUp Beat 'em Up]] developed by Mediatonic and published by Creator/DevolverDigital.
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5	The game is set around [[FramingDevice a play]] starring Victorian daemon-hunter [[GentlemanAdventurer Sebastian]] [[GentlemanAndAScholar Dashforth]], and his sidekick Scampwick Steerpike, acting out their life story on stage, [[DemonSlaying hunting daemons]] in 5 plays. The game features [[RPGElements RPG elements]], such as a levelling system which unlocks special moves and unlockable charms, along with standard Beat 'em Up mechanics. What makes the game stand out is the whole "Play" aspect. Everything has the look of a stage show, right down to the background transitions and various other quirks, and health in the game is represented by a meter that quantifies crowd excitement, which can be restored by way of combos.
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7	Foul Play was released on the 19th of September 2013 on Platform/XboxLiveArcade and Platform/{{Steam}}, and then on the Platform/PlayStation4 and [[Platform/PlayStationVita Vita]] on the 23rd of February 2016.
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9	Has nothing to do with the [[{{VideoGame/FoulPlay}} 1996 murder mystery adventure game of the same name.]]
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12	!!This game provides trope examples of:
13	* AIIsACrapshoot: The security robots in Atlantis (fourth act of Play 3) mistake Dashforth and Scampwick for criminals as soon as they set foot in there.
14	* AllThereInTheManual: There are 3 books which the player can unlock pages for and read in the main menu.
15	** Concerning Daemons: The diary of Horatio Dashforth, Sebastian's missing father.
16	** Hunter's Journal: Sebastian Dashforth's diary.
17	** My First Hunter's Guide!: Scampwick's guide, which has information on all of the defeated bosses.
18	* ApocalypseCult: The main antagonists of Play 4 are a cult trying to summon a Flame Daemon to destroy London. [[spoiler:Their leader ends up possessed by said Daemon]].
19	* AssholeVictim: The Guide in Play 1. He leads Dashforth and Scampwick to a trap to be killed and looted by bandits. He is soon captured by possessed laborers at a dig site and taken to the Pharaoh's chamber, where the latter consumes his soul.
20	* BadassBookworm: Dashfort is a daemonologist and researcher of the occult, and is perfectly able to beat any manner of daemon back to hell with his cane.
21	* BodyHorror: There are some examples, but the most obvious are the Squid Zombies (who were formerly human before turning into squid-like creatures) and the Tentacle Daemon [[spoiler:(a possessed Captain Blowhard)]] in Play 3. Subverted in that they're people in suits, the game taking place in a theatre play and all, but in universe, the play is BasedOnATrueStory, which means Dashforth and Scampwick ''did'' face these horrors.
22	--> '''Dashforth''': Some daemons distort a man's mind, Mr. Scampwick. Others are... less subtle.
23	* CaneFu: Dashforth's weapon is his walking cane.
24	* CombatTentacles: The Squid Zombies and the Tentacle Daemon, obviously.
25	* ConservationOfNinjitsu: Dashforth and Scampwick v.s. An incredibly large number of {{Mooks}}. The heroes win.
26	%% * CulturedBadass
27	%% * DeadpanSnarker: Scampwick.
28	* {{Expy}}: Notferatu. [[Film/{{Nosferatu}} It's even in the name.]]
29	* FanDisservice: The Pharaoh at the end of Play 1 has a harem. The girls are all mummies that fight you.
30	* GrievousHarmWithABody: The player is able to throw enemies at other enemies. This makes battles against larger Mooks much easier.
31	* GroinAttack: The heroes' advice when taking on larger foes, except for the gargoyles and living statues.
32	* HighClassGlass: Dashforth is never without his monocle.
33	* IdiosyncraticComboLevels: The combo levels go from acceptable (5x) to Legendary (200x)
34	* ImprobableWeaponUser: Scampwick uses a broomstick to beat baddies up.
35	* LooksLikeOrlok: Notferatu, obviously, being an blatant parody of ''Film/{{Nosferatu}}''.
36	* MixAndMatchCritters: The Bearicorn in Play 3, which as it name implies, is a mix between a bear and an unicorn.
37	%% * OrpheanRescue: [[spoiler:Play 5]]
38	* TheReveal: The titular Foul Play [[spoiler:was planned by the heroes to get a large group of people together to help him open a Hell Gate and save his father]]
39	* RuleOfThree: Sebastian [[MrExposition explains]] that, in order to open a Hell gate, one needs three things. A proper location, the right time, and more willpower than it is humanly possible, which is why daemonic summonings are carried out by cults. [[spoiler:This last reason is why Sebastian and Scampwick organize the play, in order to make an improvised cult out of their cheering audience.]]
40	* TooDumbToLive: The Cultist Leader in Play 4. [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] in Scampwick's Diary.
41	--> '''Scampwick''': You see, this exactly is what happens when you mess with stuff you do not understand. First is all "[[KillItWithFire Let's bring hellfire]] down on our enemies" , next is all "Help!", "Oh god IT BURNS!" and "Who would have thought hellfire HURTS!"
42	* SpecialEffectsFailure: In-universe examples occur with various theatrical quirks, such as janitors being on stage with the actors at awkward times, enemies having to be reminded of their lines, and the mechanical components clearly visible in the scenery transitions.
43	* VaudevilleHook: Used to pull some knocked out mooks off-stage at random times.
44	* YourVampiresSuck: The final levels of Play 2 is full of [[TakeThat Take Those]] towards romanticized vampires such as those depicted in Anne Rice novels. Not even [[LooksLikeOrlok Count Notferatu]], their leader, approves of the behavior and fashion sense that his fellow kin has adopted.

Context VideoGame / FoulPlay2013