History VideoGame / BuckshotRoulette

* DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist: Getting a face full of buckshot only makes you lose one or two points of charge depending if the shotgun is {{sawn off|Shotgun}} or not, then you get immediately revived. Even if you lose a round, you're revived anyway and you can just play another round. [[spoiler:Except on the final round: if your charge meter drops too low, your defibrillator will have its power cut, meaning that if you get shot again, you will die]].

* EndlessGame: The recent January 2024 update adds "[[AllOrNothing Double or Nothing]]" mode. By swallowing the pills in the restroom, you can have a less story-focused game and now go for a high score to see how much money you can risk and win from the dealer, before cashing out.

* FacelessProtagonist: We know absolutely nothing about the person we are playing as, since they are simply supposed to be a stand-in for the player.

** Although the game's depiction of the pump-action shotgun is mostly accurate, if the Dealer shoots himself the shotgun will eject a shell on its own as if it were semi-auto, presumably because there isn't any space where it would make sense to include an animation of the dealer cycling the gun after they've just been shot.

* PointOfNoContinues: [[spoiler:If either player's number of charges gets to two or lower in the final round, the power lines connecting them to the MagicalDefibrillator are cut, meaning that receiving another shot will kill them.]]

* ArtificialStupidity: The Dealer is poor at keeping track of the shells that have been fired. This can lead to baffling moments such as wasting a magnifying glass on the last round in the chamber, or even shooting itself with it for no reason; it also has a tendency to waste multiple items while only blanks are left in the shotgun. It is more formidable in [[EndlessGame Double or Nothing]] mode, due to the nature of the game.

* ArtificialStupidity: The Dealer is poor at keeping track of the shells that have been fired. This can lead to baffling moments such as wasting a magnifying glass on the last round in the chamber, or even shooting itself with it for no reason. It is more formidable in [[EndlessGame Double or Nothing]] mode, due to the nature of the game.

Things get more interesting in the second round, as the dealer will add items to the game that you can use to give yourself an edge over your opponent, who will do the same to you. A new game mode called "Double or Nothing" was added in a small update on January 13th, 2024. It can be accessed by consuming the sleeping pills in the restroom, which immediately allows you to get right into the game (skipping the intro dialogue and tutorial). The game mode randomizes the shell, item, and health counts for each round, and there's only three rounds till you can cash out but you have the option of risking it all by going ''[[TitleDrop double or nothing]]''.

* GracefulLoser: [[spoiler:The Dealer honors the result of the game should it be killed, with their last act being to reward the player with their winnings and letting them keep the shotgun as a memento. When the Dealer is about to lose, all it asks is, "Are you ready?"]].

* GodIsDead: During the second time you take out your items in the second round, [[spoiler:you accidentally pull out a [[BloodStainedLetter bloody release of liability]] signed with the name "GOD", suggesting that God Himself decided to play the game with the demon and lost]].[[note]][[DevelopersForesight The game also prevents you from inputting that name at the start]]. If the Dealer is God, then showing you his [[MyCard own paperwork]] was meant to intimidate you.[[/note]]

* AllegoricalCharacter: A common interpretation for The Dealer is that he's a allegory for addiction, as he runs the game where the player is enticed with money and must risk their own lives against it. The player will keep coming back, but they're playing with their own life every time, and sooner or later, they're going to lose.

* AllegoricalCharacter: Many interpret The Dealer itself to be a allegory for addiction, as they run the game where the player is enticed with money and must risk their own lives against it, and The player will keep coming back if they lose until their eventually die or get their money, which at that point may not have always been worth it,

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: {{Downplayed|Trope}}. If you win the game and get the tens of thousands of dollars, the player drives off into the night with the money and the shotgun. Despite all the prizes however the music sounds slightly melancholic, as if the character is reflecting on whether it was worth it or not.]]

** The hacksaw cuts off part of the magazine tube as well as the barrel, yet the shotgun still functions as normal. In real life, the "sawn-off shotgun" [[NonIndicativeName doesn't ACTUALLY have its rifling sawn off]], it's just a catch-all term for a shorter shotgun; ''actually'' taking a saw to the barrel would make shots woefully inaccurate or even brick the shotgun.

* GodIsDead: During the second time you take out your items in the second round, [[spoiler:you accidentally pull out a [[BloodStainedLetter bloody release of liability]] signed with the name "GOD", suggesting that God Himself decided to play the game with the demon and lost]].[[note]][[DevelopersForesight The game also prevents you from inputting that name at the start. If the Dealer is God, then showing you his [[MyCard own paperwork]] was meant to intimidate you.[[/note]]

* GodIsDead: During the second time you take out your items in the second round, [[spoiler:you accidentally pull out a [[BloodStainedLetter bloody release of liability]] signed with the name "GOD", suggesting that God Himself decided to play the game with the demon and lost]].[[note]][[DevelopersForesight The game also prevents you from inputting that name at the start. If the Dealer is God, then showing you his [[MyCard own paperwork]] was meant to intimidate you]].[[/note]]

* GodIsDead: During the second time you take out your items in the second round, [[spoiler:you accidentally pull out a [[BloodStainedLetter bloody release of liability]] signed with the name "GOD", suggesting that God Himself decided to play the game with the demon and lost]].[[note]][[DevelopersForesight The game also prevents you from inputting that name at the start]].[[/note]]

* OffscreenMomentOfAwesome: [[spoiler:You're not the first person the Dealer has roped into his game, as you discover a bloody waver in the second round, apparently signed by God Himself. And the Dealer ''[[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu won]]''. Notably, if you die in the final round, your afterlife is a barren wasteland beyond ThePearlyGates, implying God is, indeed, dead.]]

** During their turn, players can either shoot themselves or their opponent. Shooting yourself with a blank gives you another turn.

* DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist: Getting a face full of buckshot only makes you lose one or two points of charge depending if the shotgun is {{sawn off|shotgun}} or not, then you get immediately revived. Even if you lose a round, you're revived anyway and you can just play another round. [[spoiler:Except on the final round: if your charge meter drops too low, your defibrillator will have its power cut, meaning that if you get shot again, you will die]].

* ArtificialStupidity: The Dealer is poor at keeping track of the shells that have been fired. This can lead to baffling moments such as wasting a magnifying glass on the last round in the chamber, or even shooting itself with it for no reason.

* ArtificialBrilliance: The dealer can be very apt with using its items to its advantage. It can and will combo them together to ruin you if you let it, such as a combo of putting handcuffs on you, using a magnifying glass to see what shell is in the shotgun, sawing off the shotgun and if luck is on its side, this all leads to you getting screwed over.
* ArtificialStupidity: The dealer is poor at keeping track of the shells that have been fired. This can lead to baffling moments such as wasting a magnifying glass on the last round in the chamber, or even shooting itself with it for no reason.

* ControllableHelplessness: Once you pick up the shotgun, you ''cannot'' put it back down until it is fired, either at yourself or the dealer. Being hasty in the final round without using your items first can [[UnwinnableByDesign screw you over]] if not careful.

* DevelopersForesight: When signing the "General Release of Liability" document at the start, you cannot input "DEALER", since it would cause confusion with the actual dealer. [[spoiler:You also cannot input "GOD", possibly for the same reason]].

* ExtraTurn: There are three ways of getting another turn: shooting yourself with a blank, using the handcuffs (which will force your opponent to skip their turn), or firing off the last shell in the shotgun, making the dealer reload the shotgun (it will always allow you to get the first shot after that).
* EyeAwaken: [[spoiler: Subverted. After the Dealer's final life is taken, it appears as if he finally gains a pair of red glowing eyes as he stands in the darkness... but it's actually an automated delivery system for the money you were playing for, set to go off upon his death.]]
* EyelessFace: The dealer seems to have no eyes in its sockets.
* FaceFramedInShadow: The only things we see of the dealer besides its hands is its face peering out of the darkness.

* FaceOfAThug: Despite how horrifying the dealer looks, it is nothing but polite and honorable during its game of chance with you to the very end, following the rules in the same exact fashion you are and never stooping to any dirty tactics, cheap scares, or even any unsportsmanlike behavior. You're not even forced into its DeadlyGame, as the decision to play is [[ButThouMust entirely the player character's choice]].
* FairPlayVillain: The dealer enjoys playing a game that ends with the participants killing each other, but it is entirely up-front and honest with the terms and rules. It personally follows the rules it has established, and both parties have an equal chance of winning.
* FloatingLimbs: We don't see much of the dealer due to the lighting, but its hands are separate from its body and can reach all the way across the table at will without showing any arms.

* GracefulLoser: [[spoiler:The dealer honors the result of the game should it be killed, with their last act being to reward the player with their winnings and letting them keep the shotgun as a memento. When the dealer is about to lose, all it asks is "Are you ready?"]].

* HealingLoop: A combination of horrible item luck and poor memory can see you [[ArtificialStupidity and the dealer]] getting caught in one with the cigarettes which recover health. Turns can be wasted if you keep racking the shotgun with beers.

* MoreTeethThanTheOsmondFamily: The dealer's mouth is lined with thin, razor-sharp teeth.
* NightmareFace: Not that the dealer's face is all that pleasant to begin with, but after the first time it's shot, its face becomes warped and mangled-looking for the rest of the game. It returns back to normal if you lose and come back to play again, suggesting it has a HealingFactor.
* NobleDemon: The demonic dealer is nice enough that it will have its assistant on the outside defibrillate you back to life if you lose in the first two rounds, then simply welcomes you back to the table for another round. There's nothing that suggests you are forced to participate either, as you have to willingly sign a release of liability to play in the first place. It's also notable that at no point does the dealer attempt to misdirect, lie, cheat, or otherwise manipulate the game or you to win, like you'd expect most demons to.

* PlayerExclusiveMechanic: Since the player always gets the first turn each time the shotgun is reloaded, they can employ some strategies that the dealer cannot use. For example, they can use one pair of handcuffs before the reload and another after the reload, in order to make the dealer skip four turns in a row. Alternatively, they can use beers to skip to the last shell and then fire it at the dealer: either it's a live round and they score a hit, or it's a blank and they get to try again after the reload.

* QuakingWithFear: Picking up the shotgun noticably has it shaking somewhat, especially if you decide to test your luck with shooting yourself. It stops shaking if you aim at the dealer though, probably because you don't have much to worry about getting hurt while doing so.

* SlasherSmile: The dealer has a big, tooth-filled smile prior to being shot. It loses this afterwards, either because of the pain or because its mouth is simply too damaged to make one.

* UncertainDoom: [[spoiler:The entity stays down after you win the final round, having cut off its own life support to raise the stakes. Your prize money is given to you by a machine, but the fact that two ominous red lights briefly glow in the darkness before the suitcase appears suggests that it is still alive.]]
* VoiceGrunting: The game isn't voice-acted, so the dealer and its assistant talk this way.

* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: [[spoiler:The only time the Dealer's polite demeanor drops is when the player returns to the table after dying in the final round. The Dealer doesn't welcome you back to the table like he usually would, instead giving a DeathGlare, as if wondering how the ''hell'' you're back, and while he still allows you to replay the final round, he utters an ominous, [[ImpliedDeathThreat "I better not see you again."]]]]

* OffscreenMomentOfAwesome: [[spoiler:You're not the first person the Dealer has roped into his game, as you discover a bloody waver in the second round, apparently signed by God Himself. And the Dealer ''[[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu won]]''. Notably, of you die in the final round, your afterlife is a barren wasteland beyond ThePearlyGates, implying God is, indeed, dead.]]

* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: [[spoiler:The only time the Dealer's polite demeanor drops is when the player starts up another game after achieving the Pearly Gates ending. The Dealer doesn't welcome you to the table, instead giving a DeathGlare, as if wondering how the ''hell'' you're back, and while he still allows you to replay the final round, he utters an ominous, [[ImpliedDeathThreat "I better not see you again."]]]]

* DeadlyGame: It ''is'' Russian roulette after all, but it is possible that your character could simply decide to leave upon being resuscitated after losing the first two rounds. [[spoiler:All bets are off on the final round though, which can only end with one of you dying]].

* HealingLoop: A combination of horrible item luck and poor memory can see you [[ArtificialStupidity and the dealer]] getting caught in one with the cigarettes. Turns can be wasted if you keep racking the shotgun with beers.