History VideoGame / ProjectDownfall

Released on Steam Early Access on March 15th, 2019, the game had its full release on December 1st, 2022.

* NintendoHard: As expected of something that traces its inspiration to ''VideoGame/HotlineMiami''.

* TotallyNotACriminalFront: Lucky's Casino in the level Less Than Zero is owned by the Svoloch Family and it's the place where they stash their money. It's one of the protagonist's targets when he starts going after them.

* LegitimateBusinessmensSocialClub: Lucky's Casino in the level Less Than Zero is owned by the Svoloch Family and it's the place where they stash their money. It's one of the protagonist's targets when he starts going after them.

* KaizoTrap: When you kill the last enemy on a level, the music will stop with a record screeching sound to let you know the level is safe. However, sometimes the game will have one last enemy at the exit to surprise you. This happens in [[spoiler: "Shortcut", "Passing Through", "Benefactors", and "I'll Be Back".]]

** Several missions have names referencing movies and games alike: ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'', ''VideoGame/EthnicCleansing'', ''[[Film/BigTroubleinLittleChina Big Trouble in Little Tokyo]]'', ''[[Film/TheTerminator I'll Be Back]]'', ''[[Film/BoyzntheHood Boyz from tha Hood]]'', etc.

** Ending C: [[spoiler: Obtained by sparing all crime lords (you also seem to need to meet Svoloch head honcho Igor Broznevski, who is very hard to find). The Svoloch mob recruits you by claiming they know the location of the man who killed your wife. They use you as a hitman, exploiting your short-term memory loss by telling you each time the target is the person who killed your wife.]]

* KaizoTrap: When you kill the last enemy on a level, the music will stop with a record screeching sound to let you know the level is safe. However, sometimes the game will have one last enemy at the exit to surprise you. This happens in [[spoiler: "Shortcut", "Passing Through", and "Benefactors".]]

** Ending F: [[spoiler: Obtained via going insane by pills, then killing the hallucination of your girlfriend cheating on you in "Rising High". For the rest of the game you'll hallucinate your girlfriend having a massive shotgun wound in her head. After escaping the hospital after the Titanprog attack, you can enter a flesh-covered passageway where you'll fight a "boss fight" against your girlfriend whose head has become a massive brain. When you snap out of it, you're back in your apartment and your girlfriend is dead for real, her head blown clean off. The game turns out to be a session in a virtual reality pod, used by Omnicare to learn what happened to you over the past week. You confess to your crimes and are executed for mass murder.]]

** Ending J: A variation of Ending I. [[spoiler: Same as Ending I, except at Omnicare HQ you turn around and try to escape the city after confronting the Omnicare leader, instead of going to the mainframe. After defeating a pair of DE-902 robots, you escape and leak the full details of the Omnicare conspiracy to the public, igniting an anti-megacorp revolution which you will ultimately lead.]]

* GameWithinAGame: You can purchase and/or find video games scattered throughout different levels and stores. Some you can get from a specific route and event you need to trigger, other times it'll be as easy as going to the store and buying it with in-game currency. Most video games you obtain are nods to other FirstPersonShooter games like ''VideoGame/{{Blood}}'' and ''VideoGame/DukeNukem3D'', or even movies like ''Film/TheMatrix''.

* DualBoss: The majority of boss fights involve you fighting a pair of exceptionally tough enemies, often with a bunch of regular goons thrown into the mix as well.

Project Downfall is a 2022 highly stylized FirstPersonShooter by [=MGP=] Studios and [=Solid9=] Studios, inspired by the ''Film/JohnWick'' and ''VideoGame/HotlineMiami'' series. Taking place in the year 2049, you take control of a nameless protagonist who has suffered a massive brain injury. In addition to ruining his short-term memory, it has also apparently eliminated his inhibitions. One day, after a subway commute home from work goes wrong, he's forced to slaughter a number of Russian mobsters and a couple of corrupt cops. Now freed from the laws of society, he keeps a pretense of being a normal office worker while moonlighting as the "Crimson Reaper", a vigilante who's brave (and/or insane) enough to go up against the crime lords who control the city of Crimson Tide.

** Ending I: Endings I and J are probably the most obscure and the most difficult to obtain, but give you a completely different endgame route compared to the default or insanity routes. [[spoiler: Obtained by dilligently going back to work regularly and getting a promotion, then free-roaming to Cloudbreak Station which starts a series of several levels in which you uncover the Omnicare conspiracy and battle the Kyoncha [=PMC=]. Kyoncha get back at you by strapping a bomb onto your girlfriend while she's out shopping, killing her and putting you in the hospital. At the end you'll climb the Omnicare HQ and confront the leader of Omnicare, learn that Alfred was his [[TheDragon right-hand man]], and kill them both. You plug yourself into the Omnicare mainframe, turning everyone with an Omnicare chip in their brain into a violence psycho like yourself. This tragedy creates distrust of chip technology, thwarting Omnicare's plot to use the chip to control the population, and creates enough chaos for the Novorussian Federation to take over Crimson Tide city.]]

* GuideDangIt: Exactly what does and doesn't affect the ending isn't very clear, and many actions which do change the game world and can even give you an entirely different set of levels don't actually affect the ending by themselves, but only in a specific combination. For the most part, the different paths you can take through the game don't affect the ending[[note]]However, taking "Journeyman" instead of "The Package" is necessary for 70% of the endings as they require you to go back to work, and "The Package" is necessary for Ending G as meeting him in front of the Twindle Club is the only way for you to kill Alfred[[/note]], and how many pills you take, who you kill, and how you treat your girlfriend or best friend don't either, unless you go extremely overboard in pills and[=/=]or killing. In general, the ending is decided by [[spoiler: a) whether or not you take enough pills to go completely crazy, b) whether or not you maintain your day job (which you can't even do if you go "The Package" route instead of finishing the first level normally), c) whether or not you kill ''all'' witnesses ([=NPCs=] who appear in combat sections) and[=/=]or all crime lords, d) whether or not you see your psychiatrist regularly if you've been taking too many pills, and e) you get special variants of the bad ending if you kill the first [=NPC=] you meet (who is your best friend) or if you take enough pills to hallucinate your girlfriend cheating on you in the Neo Nazi prostitute traphouse and kill the hallucination.]] In fact most of the endings are so obscure that according to the game's leaderboards, only a couple dozen people in the entire world have ever gotten any ending other than the default Ending H.

** Ending A: [[spoiler: Obtained by going insane by overusing pills, not seeing your psychiatrist, and obeying the Teddy Bear by killing all witnesses[=/=]crime lords, and going to "The Interview" with Titanprog instead of going to "Small Time" to confront the remaining crime lords. You'll hallucinate and massacre the Titanprog building, just like Omnicare planned all along, and after being captured by the police you'll escape from the hospital and spiral down into insanity. Everything after the Titanprog attack turns out to be a session in a virtual reality pod, in which you've been re-living the last week of your life so Omnicare can learn what happened to you and exploit it for profit. You're executed for mass murder, denying you did anything wrong.]]

** Ending K: [[spoiler: Obtained by going insane from pills and killing everyone, but attempting to obtain regular treatment from your psychiatrist. After attacking Titanprog and despite being captured by the police and put in a pod to learn what happened to you, you'll descend into the depths of your insane mind, battling anthropomorphic animals and literal demons, completely disassociating from reality and locked into a endless battle for the rest of your life.]]
** Ending L: [[spoiler: Obtained by obeying the Teddy Bear and killing everyone, not seeking treatment, then killing the Teddy Bear at the very end of the "insanity" path, then interacting with a hidden arcade machine during the final escape. This triggers a "joke" ending in which you turn out to be a playtester for the Early Access game ''Project Downfall''.]]

Project Downfall is an Early Access FirstPersonShooter, inspired by the ''Film/JohnWick'' and ''VideoGame/HotlineMiami'' series. You take control of a nameless protagonist who has suffered a massive brain injury. In addition to ruining his short-term memory, it has also apparently eliminated his inhibitions. One day, after a subway commute home from work goes wrong, he's forced to slaughter a number of Russian mobsters and a couple of corrupt cops. Now freed from the laws of society, he keeps a pretense of being a normal office worker while moonlighting as the "Crimson Reaper", a vigilante who's brave (and/or insane) enough to go up against the crime lords who control the city of Crimson Tide.

* AllJustADream: This happens in five of the endings. [[spoiler: In four endings, the entire game turns out to be you re-experiencing the last week of your life in an Omnicare virtual reality pod, so they can learn the details of what happened to you (and replicate it for profit) before your execution for mass murder. There's also one ending in which the entire game turns out to be you playtesting the video game ''Project Downfall'' for the developers.]]

* BossArenaIdiocy: When facing [[spoiler: the two DE-902's sent by the Kyoncha in the level Fugitive]], there will be a couple of pillars that can provide cover from one of the unit's laser cannon. Between shots, it will take a moment to recharge, giving you ample time to return fire until you put it down. Upon death, the unit will drop the cannon, which you absolutely need to take out the remaining one.

* CheckpointStarvation: Being based on ''VideoGame/HotlineMiami'', this is to be expected. Especially annoying if you're playing a relatively long level. Did you get killed by a goon who got a lucky shot on you when you were close to the exit? Too bad, you're going back to the beginning. Good luck!

* EverybodyDiesEnding: You can choose to kill every NPC you come across during your playthrough, [[spoiler: which leads to the protagonist, now free of witnesses or competition that can stop him, becoming the most ruthless crime boss ever seen in Crimson Tide]]. Unless you killed everyone ''and'' went insane overdosing on pills, in which case you get a completely different ending in which [[spoiler: you're caught and executed for your crimes.]]

* InjuredPlayerCharacterStage: If you take a certain route throughout the game, the protagonist will be severely injured by a bomb and will be taken to the hospital. The stage that follows this (called Trauma) has the protagonist escape from the hospital and making his way back home. During this stage, you'll have to face-off against elite mercenaries while your head is bandaged and you experience hallucinations that will affect your sight, forcing you to run or hide from your attackers until your vision goes back to normal.

** Ending A: [[spoiler: Obtained by going insane by overusing pills and obeying the Teddy Bear by killing all witnesses[=/=]crime lords, and going to "The Interview" with Titanprog instead of going to "Small Time" to confront the remaining crime lords. You'll hallucinate and massacre the Titanprog building, just like Omnicare planned all along, and after being captured by the police you'll escape from the hospital and spiral down into insanity. At the end the game turns out to be a session in a virtual reality pod, in which you've been re-living the last week of your life so Omnicare can learn what happened to you and exploit it for profit. You're executed for mass murder, denying you did anything wrong.]]

** Ending E: [[spoiler: Obtained by going back to work regularly despite going insane from pills, and not seeking treatment. After the church shootout ("Man of Faith"), you'll have a hallucination and shootout at work against the animal costume people, and when you get home the police will capture you outside your apartment. You'll be executed for mass murder, and Omnicare will download the last 2 weeks of your life from your brain and use it as the basis of a new video game.]]
** Ending F: [[spoiler: Obtained via going insane by pills, then killing the hallucination of your girlfriend cheating on you in "Rising High". For the rest of the game you'll hallucinate your girlfriend having a massive shotgun wound in her head. After escaping the hospital, you can enter a flesh-covered passageway where you'll fight a "boss fight" against your girlfriend whose head has become a massive brain. When you snap out of it, you're back in your apartment and your girlfriend is dead for real, her head blown clean off. The game turns out to be a session in a virtual reality pod, used by Omnicare to learn what happened to you over the past week. You confess to your crimes and are executed for mass murder.]]

** Ending K: [[spoiler: Obtained by going insane from pills but attempting to obtain regular treatment from your psychiatrist. You'll spiral completely into insanity, battling anthropomorphic animals and literal demons, completely disassociating from reality and locked into a endless battle for the rest of your life.]]
** Ending L: [[spoiler: Obtained by obeying the Teddy Bear and killing everyone, then killing the Teddy Bear at the very end of the "insanity" path, then interacting with a hidden arcade machine during the final escape. This triggers a "joke" ending in which you turn out to be a playtester for the Early Access game ''Project Downfall''.]]

* PostClimaxConfrontation: Both Ending C and Ending D have a unique special level that takes place after the credits, showing your first job [[spoiler: as either a Svoloch enforcer or Kyoncha operative.]]

* RunOrDie: The area before the level Providence has a small section with enemies that will either warn the protagonist not to keep going forward and to turn around or a group of enemies giving him permission to pass through. In either case, once the player walks past them, a sniper will start shooting from a nearby balcony. You don't have a weapon with which to return fire and his shots will kill you instantly on impact. Your only choice is to run towards the escalator on the other side.

** Ending F: [[spoiler: Obtained via going insane by pills, then killing the hallucination of your girlfriend cheating on you in "Rising High". For the rest of the game you'll hallucinate your girlfriend having a massive shotgun wound in her head. After escaping the hospital, you can enter a flesh-covered passageway where you'll fight a "boss fight" against your girlfriend whose head has become a massive brain. When you snap out of it, you're back in your apartment and your girlfriend is dead for real, her head blown clean off. The game turns out to be a session in a virtual reality pod, used by Omnicare to learn what happened to you over the past 2 weeks. You confess to your crimes and are executed for mass murder.]]

* MultipleEndings: The game has 12 endings, although several are variations on the same outcome. Also, there are 3 different endgame ending paths; the default one (Ending H, Ending C, and Ending G)[[spoiler: Confront the remaining crime lords at the mansion in "Small Time"]], the "insanity" one (Ending A, Ending B, Ending F, Ending K, Ending L) [[spoiler: Go to "The Interview" with Titanprog instead of going to "Small Time" while insane from overuse of pills]], and the "truth" path (Ending I and Ending J) [[spoiler: go to war with Kyoncha until they ambush you in "The Setup", leading to a final confrontation with Omnicare]].

* MultipleEndings: The game has 12 endings, although several are variations on the same outcome.

** Ending A: [[spoiler: Obtained by going insane by overusing pills and obeying the Teddy Bear by killing all witnesses[=/=]crime lords, and going to "The Interview" with Titanprog instead of going to "Small Time" to confront the remaining crime lords. The game turns out to be a session in a virtual reality pod, in which you've been re-living the last week of your life so Omnicare can learn what happened to you and exploit it for profit. You're executed for mass murder, denying you did anything wrong.]]

* AllJustADream: This happens in five of the endings. [[spoiler: In four endings, the entire game turns out to be you re-experiencing the last 2 weeks of your life in an Omnicare virtual reality pod, so they can learn the details of what happened to you (and replicate it for profit) before your execution for mass murder. There's also one ending in which the entire game turns out to be you playtesting the video game ''Project Downfall'' for the developers.]]

** Ending A: [[spoiler: Obtained by going insane by overusing pills and killing all witnesses[=/=]crime lords, but you didn't kill Ali at the start of the game (suggesting your descent into madness was gradual rather than you being evil from the start). The game turns out to be a session in a virtual reality pod, in which you've been re-living the last 2 weeks of your life so Omnicare can learn what happened to you and exploit it for profit. You're executed for mass murder, denying you did anything wrong.]]
** Ending B: [[spoiler: Obtained by going insane by overusing pills ''and'' killing Ali at the start of the game. Similar to ending A, but the last level ends with a hallucination of the protagonist shooting themselves in the head, seeming to imply their head injury was a suicide attempt (possibly over a dead wife from prior to the events of the game). You confess to your crimes and are executed for mass murder.]]
** Ending C: [[spoiler: The Svoloch mob recruits you by claiming they know the location of the man who killed your wife. They use you as a hitman, exploiting your short-term memory loss by telling you each time the target is the person who killed your wife.]]

** Ending G: [[spoiler: Obtained by killing all witnesses as well as all the major crime lords, as well as Alfred. Having shown your utter ruthlessness, and with no one left to oppose you, you become Crimson Tide's undisputed criminal kingpin.]]

** Ending L: [[spoiler: Obtained by interacting with a hidden arcade machine during the final escape in the "gone insane from pills" ending path. This triggers a "joke" ending in which you turn out to be a playtester for the Early Access game ''Project Downfall''.]]

* {{BFG}}: If you follow a certain route, you can collect an incredibly powerful cannon that can shoot in multiple directions and will instakill anything it hits. One of these is actually dropped by a boss. After the first time you collect it, it will become available at the local gun store in Azur Plaza.

* GuideDangIt: Exactly what does and doesn't affect the ending isn't very clear, and many actions which do change the game world and can even give you an entirely different set of levels don't actually affect the ending by themselves, but only in a specific combination. For the most part, the different paths you can take through the game don't affect the ending[[note]]However, taking "Journeyman" instead of "The Package" is necessary for 70% of the endings as they require you to go back to work, and "The Package" is necessary for Ending G as meeting him in front of the Twindle Club is the only way for you to kill Alfred[[/note]], and how many pills you take, who you kill, and how you treat your girlfriend or best friend don't either, unless you go extremely overboard in pills and[=/=]or killing. In general, the ending is decided by [[spoiler: a) whether or not you take enough pills to go completely crazy, b) whether or not you maintain your day job (which you can't even do if you go "The Package" route instead of finishing the first level normally), c) whether or not you kill ''all'' witnesses ([=NPCs=] who appear in combat sections) and[=/=]or all crime lords, d) whether or not you see your psychiatrist regularly if you've been taking too many pills, and e) you get special variants of the bad ending if you kill the first [=NPC=] you meet (who is your best friend) or if you take enough pills to hallucinate your girlfriend cheating on you in the Neo Nazi prostitute traphouse and kill the hallucination.]]

** Ending I: [[spoiler: Obtained by dilligently going back to work regularly and getting a promotion, then free-roaming to Cloudbreak Station which starts a series of several levels in which you uncover the Omnicare conspiracy and battle the Kyoncha [=PMC=]. Kyoncha get back at you by strapping a bomb onto your girlfriend while she's out shopping, killing her and putting you in the hospital. At the end you'll climb the Omnicare HQ and confront the leader of Omnicare, learn that Alfred was his [[TheDragon right-hand man]], and kill them both. You plug yourself into the Omnicare mainframe, turning everyone with an Omnicare chip in their brain into a violence psycho like yourself. This tragedy creates distrust of chip technology, thwarting Omnicare's plot to use the chip to control the population, and creates enough chaos for the Novorussian Federation to take over Crimson Tide city.]]
** Ending J: [[spoiler: Same as Ending I, except at Omnicare HQ you turn around and try to escape the city after confronting the Omnicare leader, instead of going to the mainframe. After defeating a pair of DE-902 robots, you escape and leak the full details of the Omnicare conspiracy to the public, igniting an anti-megacorp revolution which you will ultimately lead.]]