Web of Deceit 1: Black Widow

Web of Deceit: Black Widow
by Blam! Games - October, 2012

Series links: Web of Deceit 1: Black Widow, Web of Deceit 2: Deadly Sands

Available at:
Big Fish for PC as Collector's Edition / Standard Edition
iWin as Collector's Edition / Standard Edition

 

You’re drawn into a web of deceit when your train stops in Andville, where the Black Widow lies in wait. Follow a trail of clues and dead husbands as you  explore this once picturesque town now at the mercy of the Black Widow and her mechanical minions. What drives her lust for revenge? Where is the root of  her strange power? Uncover the bizarre history – and mystery – of this little town. And track down the Black Widow in time to foil her devious plot for  revenge!

The Collector’s Edition includes:

• Hours of bonus gameplay as Morgana!
  
• Re-playable collection of puzzles
  
• Concept art and stunning wallpaper
  
• Brilliant soundtrack
  

For the Standard Edition:

• Strategy Guide
  
• Blog Walkthrough (Big Fish)
  

Click images to enlarge
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Decent Game, If You Can Cope With Spiders
   

BASED ON COMPLETED GAME

It’s not sensational, it has no extra gimmicks or gizmos, it’s just an average HOG with decent production values.

I guess the one thing that does separate it from the crowd is the extensive use of LIVE ACTORS. This I think they did PRETTY WELL. They hammed it up a little bit, and the LIP SYNC was a little OFF, but all in, not a bad effort. There was also a LOT of REPLAYABLE VIDEOS, and they are done VERY WELL.

As you’d expect, there are SPIDERS everywhere – mostly mechanical ones though. The STORY is not going to win awards, but it was held together well enough. You find yourself stuck in a little town that’s been taken over by spiders. Yick! And now you must find out what’s going on and defeat them.

WARNING to the squeamish: there are a LOT of dead bodies in this game, although none are gory or gross.

This is primarily a HO GAME. There are some STRAIGHTFORWARD PUZZLES, but relatively few. The HO SCENES are excellent. VERY CLEAR, objects clearly visible and a reasonable size. They do make use of colour to confound you a little, but not enough to irritate. The ANIMATION really livens up the scenes.

In general, this game is autumnal (fall, for the US contingent) in colouring throughout. Which was unusual. The GRAPHICS were GOOD, not great. And the same can be said for the sounds, although sometimes the AMBIENT SOUND included strange and creepy mutterings, and that was REALLY WELL DONE. I found myself checking behind me.
All up, good value game, even at full price.

I recommend this game!

I remember this game!  I think Blooming Lilac and I had discussed it a bit.  Personally I thought
the Big Spider was rather pretty.  Also, as the story progressed,  I felt some empathy for the
Black Widow.

I certainly didn't dislike all the spiders. I not a spider fan, but they were so colourful and different that I was comfortable with them. I felt sorry for the black widow as well.

Web of Deceit: Black Widow CE (IHOG)
based upon demo

I don't think I need to mention that there are spiders in this game.  They are mechanical, but very lifelike in their mannerisms (at least in the part that I played.)

Options include separate sliders for music, sound, and voices, plus custom cursor, full screen, and the ability to change the difficulty at any time.  Modes include Casual, Advanced, and Hardcore, and are actually significantly different.

The game features live actors, which are pretty well integrated, though they talk very s.l.o.w.l.y.  Lucky thing you can click through to advance to the next screen whenever you're ready to.

The HOS are lightly interactive, and I only came across two in the time that I was playing the game.

We have a journal, which, in addition to tracking the story, allows you to rewatch videos whenever you like.  There is also a jump-to MAP.

The CE content that I can see is:

• Bonus chapter
  
• 9 Wallpapers
  
• 7 Music tracks
  
• 13 Concept Art
  
• Mini-games
  
• Videos
  

The walls, music and concept art are accessible at any time, the rest are not unlocked until you've finished the main game.

The quality of this game is excellent, with lovely graphics, well-done cutscenes, an interesting story, good gameplay... and I couldn't get into it at all.  I probably played for 45+ minutes, but I just have no desire to continue.  I guess it's just one of those things! *shrugs*