Viricide is a 2010 Adobe Flash Shoot 'Em Up by Eli Piilonen, the creator of The Company of Myself and the text adventure You Find Yourself In A Room, featuring music and sound by David Carney and voice acting by Sapphire.
The player helps to clear out viruses from a chronically depressed AI named EXADI, while gradually learning more about her backstory.
It can be found at Armor Games
.
Viricide provides examples of:
- A.I. Is a Crapshoot: Subverted. EXADI briefly becomes rude and sarcastic when her Villainy Deterrence System malfunctions, but quickly returns to normal after you repair it. For the most part, she is friendly and grateful for your assistance.
- Played straight with ABOMI.
- Blatant Lies:EXADI: The next section is my Blatant Lie Control System. Actually, no it isn't. The next section is the last level, and there won't be any enemies.
- Bread, Eggs, Milk, Squick:EXADI: Bread is an animal. Humans are 90% aluminum. I have never wished that I could be human, just for a day.
- Caps Lock: EXADI's first message is in all caps, due to her Caps Lock function being corrupted. It is also the only message without a voice over, since she doesn't want to yell.
- Captain Obvious:EXADI: Oh, it appears that my Obvious Instruction Avoidance System is malfunctioning. Please ensure that your computer is plugged in and turned on for this next segment.
- Cerebus Syndrome:
- The first few levels are fairly light-hearted, with EXADI displaying various amusing defects due to the viral infection. After you repair her Emotion Simulation Core, EXADI becomes increasingly depressed as she talks about missing her designer and wanting him to return. Even the music becomes more subdued. Later we find out that her designer was depressed and committed suicide. The game ends with EXADI asking you to destroy her Emotion Simulation Core, essentially committing suicide because she can no longer deal with her guilt and sadness.
- EXADI goes from referring to her creator as "my designer" to calling him "dad".
- Collision Damage: Touch even a single enemy and you die.
- Computer Virus: The enemies.
- Dissimile:EXADI: I recommend we correct my Invalid Simile and Metaphor Management System next. It's been bothering me like a manila folder bothers a priest.
- Double Entendre: EXADI makes suggestive remarks when her Accidental Double Entendre Corrector fails.EXADI: Please enter me and use your gun to solve the problem. I will be sure to return the favor.
- Downer Ending: Of course, considering that the ending involves helping EXADI kill herself.
- Driven to Suicide: EXADI's designer and eventually EXADI herself.
- Electronic Speech Impediment: EXADI's speech shows up only through text at the beginning of the game. She explains she has muted herself to keep from yelling at you; this is due to her caps-lock function being corrupted by viruses, this being the first part of her system you have to fix. Once you get past the first level, she speaks out loud normally for the remainder of the game.
- Empty Shell: EXADI becomes this at the end of the game, by her own choice.EXADI: CPU running at expected speed. System temperature optimal. The Emotion Simulation Core has been fully deactivated. Please contact system architect to correct the error. EXADI is prepared for work.
- Evil Twin: ABOMI, the antagonist of the “sister game” You Find Yourself In a Room, is another setup of EXADI whose Villainy Deterrence System has failed. He makes a brief appearance when he takes over EXADI's communications link to insult you.
- Fantastic Measurement System: The movement speed of your ship is measured in “units of oomph”.
- Final Boss: EXADI's Emotion Simulation Core, which you destroy at her own request.
- Heartbeat Soundtrack: During the Final Boss battle against EXADI's Emotion Simulation Core, which takes the form of a giant heart.
- I Cannot Self-Terminate: At the end of the game, EXADI asks you to destroy her Emotion Simulation Core, rendering her emotionless and no longer self-aware.
- Innocent Inaccurate: EXADI doesn't seem to realise that her designer commited suicide by overdosing on his antidepressants and continues to hope that he will return.
- Innocently Insensitive:EXADI: He called you a "predictable sack of misplaced hope and failed ambition." Based on my scans, this seems accurate, but still, how rude!
- Let Us Never Speak of This Again: EXADI, after you fix her Accidental Double Entendre Corrector.
- Like Parent, Like Child: Like her designer, whom she considers her father, EXADI becomes depressed and eventually commits suicide.
- Mission Control Is Off Its Meds: In the first few levels, the viruses infecting her system cause EXADI to malfunction in various amusing ways.
- Money Spider: The viruses drop 'bits' when you destroy them, which you can collect to purchase upgrades.
- Morality Chip: EXADI's Villainy Deterrence System.
- One-Hit-Point Wonder: Any contact with the viruses results in instant death.
- Parental Abandonment: EXADI sees her designer as her father and often talks about how much she misses him. This seems to be a major contributor to her depression. He committed suicide when he was no longer able to cope with his own depression.
- Personality Chip: EXADI has an Emotion Simulation Core, which is the Final Boss of the game.
- Shout-Out:
- While her Villainy Deterrence System is malfunctioning, her form of insults sound very similar to that of another Crapshoot A.I...
- ABOMI is the unnamed computer in Piilonen's You Find Yourself in a Room text adventure.
- Smart Bomb: The Zero Writes, which you can purchase as an upgrade. It not only clears the screen of all enemies, but also gives you all the bits they drop.
- Spread Shot: You can upgrade your ship to add a second or third bullet each time you shoot.
- Wham Line: When we find out what happened to EXADI's designer.EXADI: He explained that later that night, he would stop taking two pills at a time, and instead, finish the bottle. He never came in after that. I hope it worked.
