Tweet
Subterfuge, available on iOS and Android, is a game about deception and submarines, which makes its name absolutely perfect, doesn't it? Heavily inspired by the likes of browser-based backstabber Neptune's Pride, a full game lasts somewhere around a week and has eight people forming the most fragile of alliances in the hopes of personal gain. You see, only one person can ever 'win' a game of Subterfuge, which means that whenever an agreement is reached between two players, it has to be a temporary one at best. The trick is figuring out how to come out on top when things do eventually, inevitably, fall apart. This makes for a brilliant and incredibly tense experience - one that in hindsight, I wish I'd played with a group of total strangers instead.I first realised there might be an issue on day two of our campaign. A neighbouring player had left our border somewhat unguarded and I decided to seize the moment, hoping to snatch a valuable factory before she could react. Moving between outposts in Subterfuge can take upwards of 12 hours, but I'd scheduled the attack to begin in the very early hours, hoping to cover most of that distance before anybody realised what was happening. This is how Hannibal must have felt as he looked upon the Alps, I'm sure, knowing the Romans could never expect such boldness. I went to bed that night confident in my scheming and awoke to a message that read "Why are you attacking me? Explain yourself, FRIEND." Worse than the unnecessary capitalisation, it was now obvious that I'd underestimated my opponent's defences. We were both set to take heavy losses in just a few hours time and I had no way of cancelling my attack. This could set me back.
With only one option left, I tried to talk my way out of what was about to happen. "Oh gosh, I'm sorry", I replied, "I didn't mean to attack you. Can we please work this out?". Hannibal, I was not. And yet somehow, an interesting compromise was made: if I agreed to immediately return the factory after claiming it, my opponent would pull her forces back and ensure that neither side took any unnecessary losses in the process. Or in other words, I was capturing a really important outpost in the middle of enemy territory and it wasn't going to cost me a single submarine. This was an excellent play, a perfect start. All I needed to do now was break our promise and keep the factory for myself. I'd played a bunch of Neptune's Pride at this stage and this is exactly what these games are all about. Skullduggery is to be expected, y'know? But I just couldn't do it.
Read more…
More...