"Send in the JYDGE."
JYDGE is a twin-stick shooter by 10tons Ltd, released in 2017. Players control the titular JYDGE, a robotic dispenser of Jystice patrolling the mean streets of the futuristic city of Edenbyrg. The JYDGE and his weapon, the Gavel, are customizable with a variety of abilities, called "Cyberware," and weapon types. Levels center on fulfilling a certain main objective, along with optional secondary objectives that are usually more challenging. Completing objectives grants medals that are used to unlock Cyberware, fire modes, and subsequent levels. Players can mix and match abilities to accomplish their objectives as they see fit. As the game progresses, missions can be played on higher and higher difficulty settings, which in turn grant more medals and more stuff to unlock.
Takes place in the same universe as Neon Chrome as a Prequel. And yes, many words and names will have the letter Y shoehorned in. Find the website here
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JYDGE contains exymples of:
- Attack Drone: Some Cyberware abilities allow the JYDGE to deploy these on missions, with varying degrees of power.
- Attack Reflector: A weapon mod for the Gavel allows the player to reflect projectiles with melee attacks.
- Bomb Disposal: A few missions require the JYDGE to disarm a bomb before a certain amount of time passes. Apparently, it's as simple as walking up to it and pressing a couple buttons.
- Boss in Mook's Clothing: Certain named enemies take the forms of regular enemies with beefier health bars, more damage, faster speed, or all three.
- Bragging Rights Reward: Averted: Every unlockable Cyberware and fire mode is unlocked long before you reach the maximum number of medals.
- Call-Forward: The Neon Corp appear as a news media agency, before their villainous portrayal in Neon Chrome.
- Chameleon Camouflage: The Chameleon cyberware renders the JYDGE invisible, provided he stands still.
- Character Customization: The ability to mix and match cyberware abilities and weapon mods is the main focus of the game.
- Charged Attack: The Gavel's melee swing can be charged by holding down the button, increasing its damage at the cost of rooting the JYDGE to the spot.
- Combat Medic: One piece of cyberware allows the JYDGE to heal his drones or human companions.
- Cool Mask: The titular character's face is obscured by an opaque visor.
- Crapsack World: The setting of Edenbyrg is definitely somewhat bleak. The Cobra Gang are powerful, wealthy, and shockingly well-armed, while the Edenbyrg police are not above fielding murderous robot peacekeepers. A giant empty crater lies in the center of the city as well, according to the in-game map.
- Deflector Shields: An unlockable piece of Cyberware gives the JYDGE a regenerating energy shield.
- Degraded Boss: After facing the Scourge at the end of Act 1, similar enemies will appear throughout the game, often as optional encounters.
- Difficulty Levels: Each level has four difficulty modes, with varying enemy placements, layouts, and objectives. The final difficulty, Nightmare, is only available after beating the game.
- Dynamic Entry: The "Wall Breaker" cyberware allows the JYDGE to plow through thin walls just by walking into them, facilitating this.
- Elite Mook: Some missions have especially strong enemies with names. When you kill them once, they're gone for good on that difficulty level, making later runs more convenient.
- Enemy Mine: The JYDGE can recruit two gang enforcers with the "Groupies" cyberware, and another ability allows him to heal them.
- Explosive Leash: Downplayed. If a hostage dies during a rescue mission, the JYDGE will turn into chunky salsa on the spot.
- Equipment Upgrade: The Gavel's fire modes can be upgraded for a flat increase to damage. This becomes useful on harder difficulties.
- Expy: The JYDGE himself is very similar to Judge Dredd, with shades of RoboCop.
- Gatling Good: the Gavel has multiple firing modes. It's first mode is Lead Byllets which makes the Gavel a fast-firing assault rifle. The 3rd last mode, Minigyn, takes it up to eleven, firing so fast that its shots come out looking like a single laser beam.
- Glass Cannon: The JYDGE is surprisingly squishy without Cyberware that boosts his health. The "Pain Gavel" weapon mod cements this, boosting melee strength greatly at the cost of severely limiting the JYDGE's maximum health.
- Grenade Launcher: One of the Gavel's special weapon variations is a grenade launcher.
- Heel–Face Turn: The two gang members who accompany the JYDGE when he equips the "Groupies" cyberware.
- Impossibly Cool Weapon: The Gavel, a gun that can fire bullets, missiles, mines, grenades, and/or spiders, all while moonlighting as a warhammer.
- Judge, Jury, and Executioner: Suffice to say that the main character isn't exactly beholden to due process - or that Edenbyrg lacks "due process" in the first place.
- Judicial Wig: If not a wig, the JYDGE at least wears a headpiece that resembles an especially long bench wig.
- Knight Templar: The JYDGE will prosecute the rule of law by any means available - even those that are clearly over the top and excessive, and at high potential civilian cost.
- Lightning Bruiser: The Elite Mooks with names like "Ray Ron" or "Ray Ray" who take the forms of regular melee enemies run much faster than the player and do lots of damage, as well.
- Luckily, My Shield Will Protect Me: The JYDGE can equip a riot shield that can absorb a generous amount of damage, provided he's facing in the direction of incoming damage. It's especially useful for "take no damage" objectives.
- Mission-Pack Sequel: Has the same basic gameplay as Neon Chrome and reuses many of its assets, but instead of being a Roguelike the emphasis in JYDGE is on replaying hand-crafted levels with different abilities and weapons. Some of these levels are even recycled from Neon Chrome's bonus levels.
- Mix-and-Match Weapon: The Gavel has a plethora of fire modes and limited-use special weapons to equip before missions. On top of that, it's got a hammer's head on the end, if all else fails.
- More Dakka: The first fire mode for the Gavel is the one with the highest rate of fire. Some weapon mods can boost it even further.
- Noodle Incident: A giant crater called "The May 18th" sits in the center of Edenbyrg. Its presence is never explained.
- One-Hit-Point Wonder: Equipping the "Rythless" cyberware ability causes the JYDGE to die in one hit, on top of boosting the speed of enemies and projectiles, in exchange for lowering the health of enemies as well.
- One-Man Army: The JYDGE is sent in to fortified gang strongholds and tense hostage situations all on his own. Downplayed in that companion NPC's do exist.
- "Open!" Says Me: You could find a key to unlock that door - or you could just blow it down with a shaped charge. On higher difficulties some levels even enforce this.
- Orcus on His Throne: The Cobra doesn't do anything on screen, and literally won't even get off his butt behind his desk even if the JYDGE barges into his office guns blazing.
- Painfully Slow Projectile: Enemy projectiles can be easy to dodge, and a piece of Cyberware that can be unlocked slows them down even further.
- Parrying Bullets: The Gavel's melee attack can swipe projectiles out of the air, and a weapon mod exists that returns them to sender.
- Prequel: Contains nods and allusions to Neon Chrome and, of all games, Crimsonland.
- Shoot Everything That Moves: The JYDGE's drone companions have this ethos, and will even shoot at harmless birds in certain levels.
- Slow Laser: One fire mode for the Gavel is a big laser bolt that bounces off walls.
- Spider Tank: The Scourge and its derivatives are four-legged weapons platforms.
- Stealth-Based Game: Downplayed. Stealth is encouraged, and some pieces of cyberware facilitate it, but depending on his build, the JYDGE does not need to sneak around to survive. The "Shadow Blend" cyberware allows him to turn invisible in dark areas à la Thief
- Stout Strength: The JYDGE can get the "Shrinkify" Cyberware fairly early, which makes him "30% smaller," so he's harder to accurately target and can fit in narrower spaces. Late in the game, there's the "Giant" mod which makes him much wider and taller, with four times more health and extra melee damage. Shrinkify and Giant aren't mutually exclusive, and equipping both results in the JYDGE becoming slightly larger than normal while somehow still keeping the giant-related bonuses.
- There Was a Door: Thin walls can be breached by weapons fire or melee strikes, a useful tactic for flanking or stealth. A piece of Cyberware allows the JYDGE to tear them down just by walking into them.
- The Syndicate: The Cobra Gang's goons comprise most, if not all of the enemies you face throughout the game. The JYDGE takes them down for good in the final mission.
- The Stoic: The JYDGE never displays emotion on screen.
- Video Game Cruelty Potential: The only penalty for endangering or outright firing upon bystanders and non-hostage civilians during missions is a bad ending... for the chief of police.
- Video Game Caring Potential: On the other hand, it is not only very possible to spare every civilian you meet, it is required to get an achievement.
- With Catlike Tread: Some missions have an optional "do not be seen" objective. Enemies will often fail to hear or investigate the sound of torn down plaster, gunfire, or even explosions unless they're very nearby or they just saw someone get gunned down.
- Xtreme Kool Letterz: A common motif in the game is the inclusion of the letter Y in place of certain vowels in some words.
