Disregarded Demographics: Repo Men

I hope none of you are in debt.  It’s a bad situation to be in, especially with the recession’s beady eye still roving over the world, and so the latest Disregarded Demographics focuses upon a game that may make you think twice about taking out that loan from the dodgy looking bloke in the pub.  Today is the day of the repo man.

If you’re going through recession depression in reality, the last thing you’re going to want to do in a game is flail around in a futile attempt to pay bills.  Your role here, then, is that of a jolly nice bloke with a big van and a clipboard who goes around to peoples’ houses to carry off their stuff when they’ve been silly enough to miss repayments.  Under the employ of a notorious loan shark, it’s up to you to get back as many coins as possible from the hapless victims struggling to pay back their borrowings.

Let’s go through a typical mission.  After being given an address you will drive over there, swerving every so often to avoid the bottles and spit being launched at your windscreen by the residents of the council estate you will inevitably be visiting, before finding an appropriate stake out point.  Timing is critical, as if you plan out your strike so it’s at a time when the indebted has a visitor round or is about to go out you gain bonus points for the sheer shame or inconvenience you have caused them.  Bonus points mean that there’s less chance of your skull being cracked wide open, as you’re only in the job to pay off your own debt.  The more embarrassment the better.

The real fun begins when you manage to gain entry to the property, either by sweet talking or smashing the door in, as you enter a detective mode of sorts to track down the most valuable items to take away to reclaim your boss’ money.  Electronics are always a safe bet, but if you want to take a risk you could track down the jewellery of the house instead.  Either way you have to be quick, as technically the business you’re working for is operating illegally and the police are only too happy to come and do some detective work of their own ‘“ so make sure you’re out before the time limit runs out and the boys in blue arrive to make your situation even more dire.

As you’re seeking out items to repossess you’re encouraged to leave a trail of destruction behind you and move through the rooms without prejudice or care, Katamari-style.  It’s not played in the same way, with you not being a big ball, but imagine that sort of chaos left in your wake.  Except only the expensive things ‘˜stick’ to you.  As with the shame of earlier, the more damage the better.

The final part of the day before beating out your escape route is the loading of the goods into your van.  It takes the form of a top down action puzzle game wherein you must simultaneously get the possessed items into the back of your vehicle while batting off the hysterical victim trying to stop you.  Items are ‘˜dropped’ in from the top, like any normal block dropping puzzle game, only it takes direct inspiration from/rips off Trash Panic in that you’ve got to cram as much in as possible and smash things up to get more in if necessary.  It sort of defeats the point of taking these objects to sell on, but it causes misery and, thankfully, your boss likes the taste of bitter tears.

By switching your position in a debt situation, this game, through the power of mindless destruction, shows you how much more fun it is to be the one owed money rather than the one owing.  It will be a key factor in ending the credit crunch as people realise what they could be letting themselves in for and rush to pay back their loans, and it will also inspire a rise in demand for jobs in the repossession agent sector.  Financial problems wrapped up, games can then return to resolving more important issues, like world peace.

Images: BSPCN, QuickPurchase