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| Developer(s) | 
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| Platform(s) | 
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| Genre(s) | Horror-Platformer | |||
| Release Date(s) | Japan: May 31, 2011
North America: June 2, 2011 Europe: June 3, 2011 Australia: June 6, 2011 | |||
| Mode(s) | The Story | |||
| Age Rating(s) | T for Teen | |||
| Media Included | DS Card | |||
Where All Dead Things Go is a horror-platformer game created by NextGen Solo and published by Fantendo. This is the second game ever in the whole company history to receive a "T" rating, the other game being Ultimate Koopa Battles. It was announced on March 15, 2011 and was planned to be put up on April 16, 2011, but instead was put up 3 days earlier.
The Story[]
Prologue[]
The car skidded off the road. It was the dead of night, a cold winter's night at that. This unfortunate event would've ended a bit better if not for the 50-foot drop or the forest covering the steep incline that awaited the falling vehicle and the person inside.
"Oh sh-" the person exclaimed before being knocked out by a hanging branch in the way.
The news crews and people gathered around at the site of the crash. It was known all over the world as "the most dangerous car crash ever seen" and rightfully so. The road was closed down, and the city enforced a new project to build a sturdier and taller railing around it. The forest was now known as Mace's Woods, in honor of Mace Kanon, the person that was in the crash. He was now a well-known figure, an example of the worst-case scenario of driving. A most painful death...
Chapter 1: Am I Alive Again?[]
"Oh my god, I just crash- oh my god, I'm alive!" Mace said with amazement.
"But...this isn't the highway...or the forest...and what happened to me?!" he said, looking at his hands.
Yes, it was not true. Mace had died, and he was placed in a very bad situation, one he just didn't know yet. Looking around, he saw nothing but black & white, and black & white beings with glowing red eyes. Looking at himself in a reflective rock, he saw that he matched the world around him, like camouflage. But this wasn't the bad part...
Just then, a "being" flew up to him.
"Hey, you! Aren't you a human?" the being asked.
"Yeah...why do you ask? And how do you speak my language?" Mace asked, looking suspiciously at this wispy-looking creature.
"Never mind the language-speaking, why aren't you being...you know...possessed? Taken to The Far Side? the being replied.
"The...Far Side? What is that? Is there something going on here?!" Mace asked back, losing patience.
"Wait, you don't know what's going on? That's great! Let me tell you everything I know, and then you can help us and all of hell!" the being explained.
Just as Mace asked himself "Hell...?!", the being started to talk.
"This place was put under a curse, it seems. We used to have a red, rocky world with fire being the theme and volcanoes doting every corner, pits of fire, and stuff like that (your classic hell). But, about 3 days before right now, the Great King's Castle was mysteriously stripped of all its doors, windows, and any other entrances! When word got out, all of us hell inhabitants came to see, and when I got there, just then, a huge burst of flame erupted from the roof of the castle! I know what you're thinking, but this was no slip-up entrance made by the being who shut down the castle, this was simply a channel for his black & white "ink stuff" to pour out and cover us all! And even worse, there were tons of people who looked just like you falling from the sky! That's why I asked you why you weren't possessed. These people all had a drving force carry them to The Far Side, a land home to the evils of hell, the truly evil!
Read the full story here (link coming soon).
Gameplay[]
Gameplay is similar to a Mario DS game, namely New Super Mario Bros. This game is unique because it successfully pulls off the horror aspect while giving a challenging platformer to the player. This combination of visual darkness and level design sets Where All Dead Things Go... apart from other platformers.
When you first start the game and after the opening cutscenes, you are greeted by the world map for the 1st world. Each world has 5 levels, and the 6th level is the boss. Most of the levels show your journey through the secret underground tunnels, but there are a few on-ground levels as well.
Worlds & Levels[]
World 1: The Entrance Side[]
1-1: The Journey Begins
1-2: The Forces of Evil
1-3: Hopping Chasms
1-4: Hanging Over Here
1-5: Spelunking Hell
1-BOSS: Right Kaotic Hand
World 2: The Open Side[]
2-1: Fields of White
2-2: Mountains of Black
2-3: Horrorific is Horror-ific!
2-4: Blasting Up the Wall
2-5: Tamber's Tale (Prelude)
2-BOSS: Synthlead
World 3: Tamber & Kyliea Side[]
3-1: Tamber's Tale 1
3-2: Tamber's Tale 2
3-3: Rescuing Kyliea 1
3-4: Resucing Kyliea 2
3-5 Tamber's Tale (End)
3-BOSS: Left Kaotic Hand
World 4: The Hard Side[]
4-1: Mining in a Cart
4-2: Cart Crash n' Fail
4-3: Dodger's Dodge 'em Cave
4-4: Blasting Through the Wall
4-5: Tunnel Tremors
4-BOSS: Dodger
World 5: The Close Side[]
5-1: White Ice
5-2: It's Colder Underneath
5-3: Blumty the Bat
5-4: Flyover Dry-Ice Lake
5-5: Techno Topple
5-BOSS: Sawlead
World 6: The Far Side[]
6-1: Here We Are
6-2: Losing a Friend to An Enemy
6-3: Scary Slide
6-4: Synth Castle 1
6-5: Synth Castle 2
6-BOSS: Synthell
World 7: The Boss Side[]
7-BOSS 1: Both Kaotic Hands
7-BOSS 2: Kingdom Hell
FINAL BOSS: The Core
World S: The Secret Side[]
S-1: Cutscene Theater
S-2: Boss Rush Mode
S-3: VS. Mode
Characters[]
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Mace J. Kanon was your normal, average person until that fatal accident in the dead of night. Reincarnated into hell, he is now considered the savior of the black-and-white world, and as the plot slowly unfolds in front of him, he begins to understand what must be done. |
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Tamber is the being you encounter that explains the problem you must solve. Tamber's name isn't revealed until Chapter 3, where he becomes a more vital character. |
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Kyliea is the "damsel in distress" of the game, despite the fact that she is a minor character and her dilemma takes place only during Chapter 3. |
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Synthell is the penultimate boss of the game. This evil being is responsible for the black-and-white "redecoration" of hell. |
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The Great King is the leader of hell. But wait, wasn't that the devil? Something isn't right... |
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Kaotic Hand is the apparent villain in the game. At first, he appears to be a scary monster figure, but why is he only viewed from the side? |
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Kingdom Hell is the last boss of the game, and has two forms. This is the first one, and as you see, there are 2 Kaotic Hands, which are the hands/arms. |
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The Core is the final form of Kingdom Hell, and is the creator of Kingdom Hell, The Great King, Kaotic Hand (obviously) and Synthell. So, this power manifestation is the mastermind behind everything! |
Reception[]
This game got mixed reviews. Some cited the game as "stunningly unique", with only minor complaints on controls and such, while others called it "a slightly scary Mario copy", saying that the game actually beings to digress in the horror factor as it goes on, mostly harping on Blumty the Bat, being more like "a happy-go-lucky Rare-esque partner", than a scary one. They say that his late inclusion practically "saves" the horror aspect in the beginning half of the game, but bashes the later half's when introduced.
The Metacritic review aggregator score is an 89/100.
Trivia[]
- This game was a completely random idea, and was not really influenced by anything. At all.
- The game's opposite project is Kenny's Kwest.
- Mace Kanon is the 2nd original main character from NextGen Solo, the others being Sixty Four and Kenny.
- A sequel is in consideration, but likely not to appear in a while; the only evidence of a sequel is Mace's real-life artwork.
- Kingdom Hell's name is an obvious reference to Kingdom Hearts, but it's not just there to be a reference. The Kingdom Hell boss battle, with the creature's enormous appearance, resembles the final Ansem battle in the first Kingdom Hearts game.