Line #21 VideoGame/VirtualNightclub


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jc_front_1.jpg]]
2	->''This is a game about time. Transcend time and escape. When sixteen S-Warps scattered through five time zones. Bring them back to the Time Machine.''
3	-->-- '''Timezone Gal'''
4
5	''Virtual Nightclub: A Game About Time'' is a point-and-click PC/Mac video game from 1997. It was originally developed by Prospect Project and published by Philips Interactive Media and Thumb Candy, largely the same team behind ''VideoGame/BurnCycle''.
6
7	The game is set in the titular Virtual Night Club in {{Cyberspace}}, where one of the attending performers has been murdered on stage, and the player must figure out what went wrong while collecting 16 S-warps that scattered across five time zones, all in the span of [[TimedMission six real-time hours]]. Along the way, the player must solve puzzles to collect the S-warps, meeting many colorful dancers and performers in FullMotionVideo, including a variety of real-life musicians and artists.
8	----
9	!!Virtual Nightclub contains examples of:
10	* AlienGeometries:
11	** From the outside, the nightclub seems to map to a cylindrical tower made of interlocking segments, contrasting the elaborate architecture inside.
12	** The Verve Bar has a one-way exit. How does one enter it? By ''playing a vinyl record'' in a nearby dressing room.
13	* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: The scanner at the entrance to the Def Jam club checks for Metal, Words and Music, and you have to leave any metallic items at the door to pass through.
14	* ArtificialLimbs: Cyberon the cyborg has a bionic left arm.
15	* AwardBaitSong: Torch's song, "Playing With Light" only appears in small snippets throughout the game. At the end, when the player acquires a vinyl record with the full song on it, the lyrics [[ThemeSongReveal reveal everything about Torch's story and the murder mystery]], complete with a music video that puts every cutscene in context.
16	* BookEnds: The game opens with the player having to click three sides of a [[OminousCube spinning cube]], which then splits into the 16 S-warps you must collect. When the cube is re-assembled at the end, the player must click the cube three times more to leave the nightclub.
17	* BorderPatrol: At random, [[TimePolice Time Cops]] will jump in front of you, ask, "You have permission for this zone?" then immediately warp you back to Time Zone 1 if you don't click them first.
18	* {{Bouncer}}: Cyberon acts as this for the Gallery and won't let you pass without an invitation. Another bouncer guards the metal detector to the ''Def Jam'' club, but this one at least gives you the code to the outer door.
19	* CoolestClubEver: One of the few titles to take place entirely in one.
20	* CyberpunkIsTechno: Most of the soundtrack is this.
21	* DesignStudentsOrgasm: Being designed by [[https://www.unit24.info/olaf-wendt-retrospective/ Olaf Wendt]] who provided the visuals for ''Burn Cycle'', the entirety of the nightclub is stylized in an abstract 90s geometric style, down to the items you find.
22	* DismantledMacGuffin: Three fragments of an invitation must be assembled to enter the Gallery.
23	* FakingTheDead: [[spoiler: With the use of a hologram, Torch faked her own death to slip out of the club. Her lover Bobby then framed Max for the deed by planting his cane next to the murder weapon.]]
24	* FantasticDrug: Meme-Active, small metal cubes that some characters can trade for things.
25	* FeaturelessProtagonist: Your character isn't given any distinctive features, and any face can be used in updating their Pass. The only hint is when the Timezone Girl calls you "Android" when you receive your first S-warp.
26	* FlyingFace: One of the characters is this, named Electric Head. He mainly pops up to steal things from your inventory if not clicked on in time.
27	* GiveMeYourInventoryItem: Common, but a notable instance of this occurs when the player must give something to a group of Cyberpunks to proceed down a ramp.
28	* HeartbeatSoundtrack: Plays when [[spoiler: the General deactivates the Time Machine]], making the club darker and more sinister.
29	* TheHedonist: Max, the implied owner of the club.
30	* HintSystem: Timezone Gal can give you hints at the push of a button next to the inventory bar.
31	* {{Hologram}}: Elevator Girl's profession is this, and Torch commissioned her to build a [[ProjectedMan projection of herself]].
32	* HologramProjectionImperfection: Unlike most of the characters, Zip's body jitters when on-screen, complete with a fitting drum beat. It doesn't seem to bother him much.
33	* HyperactiveSprite: Various FMV clips of dancing patrons pop up around the club, with different varieties between time zones.
34	* ImpossiblyCoolClothes: Silvery form-fitting jumpsuits, marching band vests and elaborate headwear adorn half the people in the nightclub.
35	* InUniverseGameClock: When an hour of the six-hour time limit passes, a ''Creator/SalvadorDali''-esque clock appears to show how much time remains.
36	* JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind: For some characters, the player can enter their "Headspace" and hear audio interviews from various artists or musicians, such as a member of ''Redman'' and ''Creator/NealStephenson''. Moving from one headspace to another also acts as shortcuts around the club.
37	* LevelMapDisplay: Miss Timewarp hands you a tracker that shows where you've been in the nightclub, including the various time zones.
38	* MinigameGame: Most of the puzzles you encounter are little more than matching games or pattern puzzles, many of them timed as well.
39	* OurTimeMachineIsDifferent: The Time Machine doesn't lead anywhere, but acts as a repository for the S-warps. [[spoiler: If it's turned off, however, time ''stops''.]]
40	* PlayfulHacker:
41	** Zip, an occasional patron who trades hardware in exchange for Meme-Active. He may or may not also be the same character from ''VideoGame/BurnCycle''.
42	** Some of the Cyberpunks are also willing to help upgrade your Tracker on occasion.
43	* PlotCoupon: The S-warps you must collect.
44	* PlotTriggeringDeath: The game's story largely begins when the player tunes into the club's radio station, where a news flash reports the death of the singer Torch. Traveling to one of the Time Zones allows the player to see this, and the rest of the game revolves on finding out who killed Torch.
45	* ReachingThroughTheFourthWall: Some characters will randomly hand you items that start as real-life props and end up as sprites in your inventory. Some of them don't look much like what they're meant to represent.
46	* ReplayMode: The "Recap" button in the main menu plays the most recent cutscene you saw.
47	* SensibleHeroesSkimpyVillains: The regular clubgoers are all decently clothed, while most of the Cyberpunks have their torsos heavily exposed, with ''nasty-looking'' attachments.
48	* {{Sexbot}}: Cartha, built for pleasure.
49	* ShootTheTelevision: In the ''[[Creator/DefJamRecordings Def Jam]]'' club, for rappers ''Cru'', ''Redman'' and ''Suga'' to perform, the player must destroy a group of monitors with a gun that shoots words.
50	* StealthHiBye: Nearly everyone you meet does this, down to the Navigator who hands you your Pass and first Warp just as the game's started. Some simply ''fade in and out of existence''.
51	* StylishProtectionGear: Cyberon, the Navigator and the General all wear bulky goggles for purely aesthetic reasons. Cyberon actually takes his off and smiles if you give him a certain item.
52	* SurrealMusicVideo: The player can view live performances from real musicians in-game, mostly as rewards for solving puzzles.
53	* VideoPhone: the various terminals around the club act as this, with the dialing function labeled "Vone".
54	* VillainousHarlequin: The Cyberpunks, a gang of rowdy individuals who wear huge masks in this manner.
55	* TheVoice: Timezone Girl, whose face only appears in a tiny [=FMV=] square on the Tracker and in the top-right of the screen. Her general role amounts to announcing whichever time zone you warp to, and the rules of the puzzles you solve.
56	* WarpWhistle: Single-use "Warps" can be used to jump to another time zone, and the Tracker can be upgraded to do this as well. Another upgrade later on even lets you teleport to certain areas at will.
57	* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: In one scene, Max heavily implies this when he confronts Torch in a hallway.

Context VideoGame / VirtualNightclub