ON THE BRILLIANT IRRELEVANCE OF CACTUS’S DEATH PARTY BACKSTORY

My favorite part of Cactus’s video for Death Party, the followup to his 2008 game Shotgun Ninja (available as part of the Cactus Arcade package [zip]) isn’t the continuation of its pre-retro graphics with more decidedly modern mechanics, it’s the deep storyline he gives it on his blog, like a throwback to Atari/C64 back-of-the-box hyperbole:

A small guerrilla squad, called Death Party, undergoes rigorous training to be sent on a mission to take out the mysterious dictator ruling their home land. But how will they uphold their morale as they discover the citizens have all been turned into mindless addicts from drugs introduced into the local water supplies? They soon find themselves in a battle against an over powerful enemy, fighting for no one but themselves. Meanwhile the plot of their adversary seems to expand beyond their wildest imagination.

As usual, it’s always a bit premature to get hopes up for Cactus games that may or may not see the light of day, but, he says, there’s still hope for a few additional levels and a release soon.