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Deathloop invasion is a zero-sum mind game I can’t stop playingSo you want to kill a Colt? Then you’ll have to learn to think like one
So you want to kill a Colt? Then you’ll have to learn to think like one
“Shut the fuck up,” I hiss under my breath. “I’m in disguise. If the player hears you, we’re both mince. And thanks.”
This is invasion mode inDeathloop, a competitive stealth game like no other. As many players make their way through thecritically acclaimed campaignfor the first time, others hover in lobbies like vultures, looking for endgame challenge as a living miniboss. Taking on the guise of Julianna, the nemesis of Deathloop protagonist Colt, they’re planted into levels alongside NPCs. Their job is to kill the hero before he kills an important enemy character - or failing that, before he slips away into the tunnels beneath Blackreef, the blasted island where the same day repeats again and again.
Can Deathloop Kick It? Yes, It Can | My Fav Thing In… (Deathloop Review)Watch on YouTube
Can Deathloop Kick It? Yes, It Can | My Fav Thing In… (Deathloop Review)
The odds are stacked against invaders. While Colt enters a level with two Get Out of Hell Free Cards, Julianna’s first death is final. And so she is naturally pushed toward stealth: hidden routes, brief bouts of invisibility, and a masking mechanic named Masquerade that Colt doesn’t have.
Using Masquerade, then, is a bit like dressing up as a pin in a bowling alley: it’s not going to stop you from getting hit if you’re in the way. And so you have to be smart about how you use it - working out the scenarios in which Colt players don’t shoot.
All this is just the dorsal fin poking above the surface of a mode that is fathoms deep. Many invaders won’t even touch Masquerade. Some will simply set the stage for the mother of all shootouts. The geography around each level’s antenna - which Colt needs to hack before he can escape you - becomes your backyard in the way a Call of Duty map might, a favoured battleground you know Colt will eventually show up to. And you can always fall back on camping at the exit, except - twist - there’s more than one. So working out the spot in which to set your proximity mines is a matter of getting in Colt’s brain too.
At this stage, I expect to spend more hours protecting the loop than I ever did breaking it. Do I feel guilty about being a full stop for players who, if they’re unlucky, could lose a fancy new power or gun because I sunsetted them before their time? If I’m honest: just a twinge, just the once.
After a scrappy firefight over the rooftops of Updaam, I lost one Colt for a 20 minute interlude, during which they successfully located and stabbed their target, esteemed game designer Charlie Montague, and evaded a bridge ambush with ease. I caught up with them just as they were inputting the tunnel code to leave, sinking a blade straight through their back. Gosh, they must have screamed.
Besides: I’m a victim too. Deathloop invasions are all I want to do now. I can’t stop. Yes, I’m killing players, but is anyone thinking about the disruption to my life? “I’m an invaded party too, you know,” I yell at the latest unsuspecting Colt, as I unfold yet another turret onto the cobbles of Karl’s Bay.
It’s important to note that, despite their meatiness, Deathloop’s invasions are entirely optional. If you’d prefer to leave Julianna’s performances entirely to the computer, there’s an extraordinary single-player game here to dig into and adore. No judgement. But I hope you’ll open the door to invasions at least once. Connect with a killer, if only to feel the uneasy thrill of knowing they’re there - just out of view, like a spider you’ve lost sight of in your bedroom.
