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Deja Vu

A sister game to Shadowgate and Uninvited just instead of taking place in a castle, it's in 40's film noir, starring an amnesiac detective. Lighter on the Nightmare Fuel. Also spawned a less well known, but nice in its own right sequel.

Compare to Uninvited, also by the same developer.

Not to be confused with the 2006 film starring Denzel Washington.

Tropes used in Déjà Vu (video game) include:
  • Asshole Victim: Despite Siegel being murdered as part of a conspiracy he wasn't exactly a good person. Especially applies towards Ace, as Siegel's actions have led to Ace going through the events of both games despite him being dead when both games start. It is later stated despite if Ace actually performed his task of capturing Mrs. Sternwood and delivering her to where Siegel stated Siegel would forgive Ace's debt that Siegel hired a gunman to murder Ace anyway.
    • The Nintendo version heavily played down his involvement other than being the one who got shot with your gun to pin his blame on you, someone who sticks with the Nintendo side of things is informed of Siegel's actions in the Gameboy version of the second game however with Ace stating despite him feeling bad for Siegel's murder in cold blood Ace was glad his debt to Siegel was gone because of it.
    • Ace himself could be considered one. The events of the first game start because of a double crossing sure but you knew (before the amnesia inducing drug) you were a vital part of the kidnapping of Mrs. Sternwood.
    • Both the mob bosses who are killed by each other's henchmen in the Macintosh version also qualify. Averted in the gameboy version where they are both alive but hunting each other down.
    • Also applies to Malone in one of the sequences if you do not provide enough evidence to immediately convince him of Ventini's double crossing.
  • Badass Longcoat: You. Your coat is helpfully waiting for you, right on the first screen. Be sure to put it on in the second game or you could get arrested for indecent exposure.
  • Badass Normal: The dog in the Chicago Station in the second game. It can make short work of Ace and also avoids bullets.
  • Ballistic Discount: Doesn't work. The gunshop owner has a shotgun, and he's faster than you are.
  • Beauty Is Never Tarnished: Giving Sugar Shack a good old right hook knocks her out of consciousness but there doesn't seem to be any bruising or any mark she was just clocked in the face. She looks more like she fainted in the aftermath.
    • Somewhat also with Mrs. Sternwood in the NES game. In that version she is slimmed down somewhat and doesn't appear to be 400 pounds but she is still quite big.
  • Big Bad: Mr. Sternwood and Katie Vickers in the first game.
  • Bigger Bad:
    • Despite being dead and a victim himself Siegel could be considered this. Even though he is dead by the time of the first game starting he directly links to Ace possibly being killed/arrested three times between both the games. It is implied that if the double crossing that led to Siegel dying and Ace getting drugged/framed didn't happen and Ace did what was required to be off the hook for his gambling debt to Siegel that Siegel still double crosses Ace by sending a hitman to kill Ace at his office. Siegel's connections also lead to the events of the second game.
    • Malone if the events of the first and second game are considered. It is implied despite how ruthless and vicious Siegel was that Malone was one of the few people he had to answer to. He has more power than either Mr. Sternwood or Vickers from the first game could hope to have.
    • Ventini tries to pull off an Eviler Than Thou on Malone and directly is the reason why Malone was going to give Siegel a hard time then targeted Ace once Siegel was dead. His plan included using Siegel's money to bribe the police and reduce Malone's immunity in favor for his own and make it look as Siegel wasn't paying his dues, the very same dues Malone targets Ace for.
  • The Big Guy: Ace himself has several traits of this. His boxing background comes handy in the first game where he could just clock people in the face while they point a gun. The Nintendo version shows Ace himself at the end of the game and he appears to be quite huge.
  • Bottomless Sewer: The best way to get rid of pesky evidence. Just watch out for that croc.
  • Bound and Gagged: Mrs. Sternwood in the first game. Also, you prior to the start of the first game (see Strapped to An Operating Table below).
  • Bowdlerise: In the NES and GBC versions of the first game, the empty syringe is changed to empty capsules.
    • Which doesn't make much sense, you need special equipment to put medicine in capsules, and it is difficult as all get out to give capsules to unconscious, or sleeping people.
    • Not to mention that the NES and GBC versions replace the mention of Sugar Shack's prostitution with attempted Blackmail.
    • The Gameboy Color version completely changes Ace's memory of Suzy Q. The original states Suzy was Ace's first kiss and the first kiss of many boys and she was quite popular when she got older. The Nintendo version just says she was your first kiss. The Gameboy version however goes the extra mile and replaces the extra detail of the original with it saying instead that you would have married her if things played out differently for you.
    • The Gameboy Color version also removes both mob bosses who were after you being killed by two different individual hits from each other and instead portrays them as actively hunting each other down in the events of the ending. Oddly it also removes Ace's hit contract being terminated making the ending a little more odd despite the extra details.
    • The GBC version also removes Stogie's cigar from his appearances (though he still leaves his cigar rings) in favor of making him look more menacing as a person. Judging by the few screenshots that are public of the canceled NES version, that version would have done the same thing.
    • The GBC version also changes "Joe's Bar" to "Joe's Place".
    • The GBC version in the Father O'Malley not only censors from the original but makes it's own story different from the already NES version. The Macintosh version implies he got physical with a young Ace to get him in gear, the GBC version instead claims he is just the only person who believed in you in your younger years.
    • Similarly the mother memory of the first game says that the cake she made was either for your birthday or a way to celebrate you being sent away from home, the GBC version changes this to it being for a birthday party and while no one came for it that it didn't matter since the cake was your favorite flavor and you had it all to yourself.
  • Can't Get Away with Nuthin': You can be in the far off most parts of the game world, but killing someone will always result in you being arrested. Except in one instance in which you have to.
    • If you use the syringe, you won't get arrested, at least not immediately.
    • Averted with the NPC's of the first game. Sugar Shack and the armed Mugger are implied to get away with it while if Ace shoots Sugar Shack he will immediately be arrested and the Mugger despite being so close to the Police Station doesn't get attention from the Police for shooting at you. Justified with the office hitman as Ace can use his gun in the area and not be punished either.
    • Justified in the second game as the mafia have been paying the police thus the cops will look the other way if they do anything to anyone... including you.
    • The first game also averts this with the actual story as Ace has to commit many other crimes just to clear his name of one.
    • The Nintendo version changes the text for shooting the armed mugger compared to the PC version and removes the invalid self defense claim, though it claims that despite self defense being valid in the mugger's "murder" you are linked to a more high profile murder anyway.
    • The GBC version oddly averts this in some ways. If you punch the bum who is described as smelling horrific in this version after the "SOCKO" screen it says the bum didn't even feel it due to his condition. Hitting Mr. Sternwood or Vickers states they are in too deep of a sleep to feel your hit.
  • Combat Pragmatist: It's possible to try just shooting the other person, but this will usually just get you arrested. Though it works nicely on both the crocodile, and that pesky hitman in your office.
  • Compilation Rerelease: The GBC version.
  • Crazy Cat Lady: In the second game Ace could randomly be hit by one using her purse. She isn't nearly as threatening as the armed mugger in the first game however.
  • Darkness Equals Death: Going through the bar in the sequel without the flashlight on or a lit match can randomly kill you.
  • Deadpan Snarker: The narration is pretty deadpan, but it will give you a lot of snarky shit if you try to do unusual actions, like eating non-food items, or using objects in a strange way.
    • Ace himself is one, even when he is on the brink of death.
  • Determinator: Ace doesn't give up on figuring out who he is alongside what is ailing him despite the very detailed descriptions of how he is feeling. Feeling "as if he hasn't slept in days but worse" "heavily sedated" and "quickly turning into a vegetable" doesn't affect his performance and no one comments on his physical condition. He only really goes down when he reaches full vegetable status... or dies/suffers from the more odd actions of the game.
    • Also applies once Ace gains his memory as he realizes the kind of corruption and conspiracy he is against specifically targeting him yet he continues unphazed in clearing his name.
    • The second game also applies to a lesser extent considering how he fixes a "money problem" that isn't his.
  • Disproportionate Retribution: The cops in the second game when you are caught wearing a fake uniform or cross dressing. The Macintosh version states when you are wearing the fake uniform they break your arm just for fun while they are at it.
    • The station dog also can qualify. Hit his master? He kills you, you hit him he kills you, you bite him and he bites you... to kill you. You attempt to shoot the dog and it just casually dodges your bullet with no reaction whatsoever.
  • Downer Ending: Not directly but later and other Macventure games tend to downplay and even put Ace in worse situations.
    • The first game ends feel good enough with the NES port even getting a heroic ending, however the second game reveals not long after clearing is name and getting the people trying to frame him for murder arrested he was assaulted and kidnapped by Las Vegas mobsters. What makes it more eerie is that the GBC version of the first game completely removes the feel good NES ending and instead accurately describes the setting of the NES's ending and states that is when he was assaulted and kidnapped.
    • No direct Deja Vu game exist afterwards but it is revealed in another Macventure game called The Uninvited that Ace Harding is dead with his tombstone in the maze. While the reason or time of his death is unstated it can be assumed if it happened in the maze his death was pretty brutal.
  • The Dragon: Stogie in the sequel. A really annoying one too.
  • Drop in Nemesis: Stogie in Part 2. Sugar Shacks and the armed mugger in the first game to a lesser extent.
  • Enemy Civil War: Only way to survive in the sequel is to get the two Mafia factions too busy killing each other than to go after you. You have to instigate this. Be sure not to get caught in the crossfire.
  • Everybody Smokes: Averted for the most part with a lot of the NPCs in the sequel. Offering the pack of cigarettes to other people will cause them to mention how they don't smoke, and/or how someone will find out that smoking will kill you. Smoking in the original game will have the narration mention how you will probably get cancer, and consulting your file in the doctor's office shows that the doc is trying to get you to stop.
  • Evil Plan: Turns out to be an elaborate plot for Sternwood to knock off his wife and get with Vickers, Vickers to knock off Siegel and get with Sternwood, both of them to end up rich, and you, the poor amnesiac who can't remember his own name, let alone enough to defend himself, to take the fall. Phew.
  • Eviler Than Thou: This is Ventini's attempted plan that leads to the events of the second game. He attempts to use Malone's viewing of him as a "son he never had" as a way for him to undermine Malone and become the top mob boss. Thwarted by Ace in one of the ending.
    • Though he does succeed in one of the scenarios when the player doesn't present enough proof to immediately convince Malone that Ventini is trying to undermine him. The game states "Vintini proves it by shooting Malone on the spot". This doesn't lead to Ace's survival however as Stogie upon hearing this simply decides to defect to Vintini to follow the money and kills Ace anyway.
  • Fate Worse Than Death: Reaching full vegetable status in the PC games is pretty much this. It leads to a now shadow of his former self Ace still being arrested but his mental condition has him live the rest of his life looking out a window of a facility for "hopeless mental invalids" for the rest of his life. Now when you consider the game takes place in the 1940's...
    • The NES version sort of averts this. If the player triggers the rather odd office death after Ace feels dizzy and passes out the game shows the tombstone ending implying he died but the text is copy pasted from the PC games when Ace reaches full vegetable status with the implication he is still alive but as alive as a vegetable could be. It isn't clear which is true but in either case the arrested part afterwards isn't mentioned.
    • The second game inverts this with Ace dying if he doesn't accomplish his goals, being "arrested" can lead to an ending but it ends with Stogie bailing you out of jail due to running out of time and takes you somewhere secluded to end your life.
  • Femme Fatale: Sugar Shack. And Vickers.
  • Flash Back: You are plagued with them.
  • Foreshadowing: The second game has a poster in the Lucky Dice Hotel of a movie where two best friends are tricked by a con man into trying to kill each other, without the con man part and an adoptive father/son you essentially have to do the same.
  • Futureshadowing: The GBC version adds extra text when Ace wakes up in the bathroom in the first game saying how he feels is like a bad headache after a long and unlucky week in Vegas. This is essentially what happens in the second game.
  • The Gambling Addict: He owed Siegel 25,000 because of gambling. See Trapped By Gambling Debts.
    • What makes this ironic is both games require Ace to gamble at one point or another though both games have a way to guarantee victory.
  • Glass Cannon: Especially when under the effects of the amnesia drug, Ace could hit people with enough force to knock them out in one hit (though this mostly translates to the elderly and women) but his brain deteriorates just by performing actions or walking into his office in the NES version.
    • He STILL can be considered this once cured due to being a normal person with a normal anatomy and the many things in the game that can kill him in one hit.
    • Sugar Shack could also be considered this. She could kill Ace in one shot of her gun but she also is put in her place by one punch from him.
    • Averted with the gun mugger. Like Sugar Shack he could whack Ace with his gun but can take 4 punches then anything other than giving him money doesn't work.
  • Good Old Fisticuffs: Your weapon of choice is a punch to the face. Justified, in that he used to be a boxer, prior to the detective gig. Not so effective in the second game.
  • Guide Dang It: Due to a rather awful last minute glitch, you'll probably need a guide to determine just what evidence to keep and what to ditch. Dispose of everything except the diary (motive), the ransom note (method) and the memo with the timetable (collaborates the other two).
    • You have to dispose of: Gun 1, the murder weapon with your fingerprints on it. Map, a fake set of instructions on how to kidnap Mrs. Sternwood. Note 1, an IOU giving you a motive. File 5, a fake proposal for you to carry out the kidnapping in exchange for being let off the IOU. However, the game won't let you dispose of Gun 1 if you haven't used it to shoot open the bungalow, the doctor's cabinet, and the hitman in your office. In the case of the doctor's cabinet, you can actually get stuck if you use a guide: you only need to open the cabinet to find out what medicine to take. If you already know the medicine name, you can just take it and skip that part. But skipping that part means you can't dispose of the gun because the game thinks you need to do it and won't let you dispose of the gun until you do.
    • In the first game, shooting another person will always result in game over... except for the one time when you have to.
    • There is also exactly one lock that can be blown open with a gun. All the others require the correct key.
    • The second game was criticized for this in the initial Macintosh reviews compared to the first one. One cited example was not only how you get inside the laundry alongside getting through the immediate danger that follows and still performing the correct actions for the game as a whole afterwards.
    • Another cryptic one. There are three Blackjack dealers, there is a way to make one of them make you win every time. Good luck figuring out which one it is and how to do it without any help. Also you NEED to make a certain amount of money this way to pay for transport. Also a nice bonus is one of the dealers will actually make you lose every time. Have fun.
  • Guile Hero: The NES version and Gameboy attempt to make Ace this especially with the added feel good (though rather unsettling in hindsight) ending in the NES version or the "shoot" and "hit" command being much less prevalent in the second.
  • Harsher In Hindsight: The Nintendo version added in a more feel good but rather vague ending with text fitting the mood, however the very same text almost feels like Ace knew he was about to be victimized again considering the Gameboy version of part two states the starting events of the second game take place almost immediately after Ace clears his name in the first game due to his involvement with Siegel. Also worth noting the NES ending shows him walking alone at night...
    • The GBC version of the first game takes this further, replacing the vague but feel good ending alongside with the visual of Ace with text stating how almost immediately after clearing his name he was kidnapped by 2 Las Vegas mobsters. One has to wonder if he was walking alone at 2. AM in the NES version ending...
  • Hit Flash: "BLAM" and "SOCKO".
  • Hoist by His Own Petard: Seems to be a common scenario for anyone who messes with Ace.
    • Siegel though Ace had very little to do with this one as he was also a victim of the plot that saw Siegel get killed in a different way. Still Siegel's intentions for Mrs. Sternwood was a great catalyst for Mr. Sternwood and Katie to move their plan to eliminate both Siegel and the Mrs.
    • Mr. Sternwood and Katie Vickers tried to use Ace as their fall guy and instead they both were arrested for their actions due to Ace's detective work. Worth noting that if Ace is caught when his memory is restored but he doesn't have evidence he gets the electric chair which is possible this is their fate.
    • Malone targeting Ace in the second game leads to his death in many scenarios including the actual ending. Though the events of the game do imply he was likely to be overthrown and killed anyway.
    • Ventini while not DIRECTLY responsible for getting Ace involved with Malone, due to him hiding numbers from Malone this leads to Ace finding out and giving the proof to Malone to have Ventini taken out.
    • Ace himself trying to kill someone either ends up with himself being arrested or killed. One notable example in the second game is Gabby's cab where if Ace tries to shoot Gabby the bullet will bounce off the bullet proof glass and go through Ace's head.
  • Informed Ability: Ace's boxing career really takes a backseat in the second game to the point it is non-existent. The first game before someone would kill you the game let the player choose an action and usually "hit" would sort out the offender. In the second game however if someone is going to perform a life threatening action on Ace the game doesn't give the player the chance to do anything and just goes on with the death.
  • Informed Flaw: In the Nintendo version the Amnesia is nerfed to the point it almost becomes a non-factor, especially when you know what to avoid. You get one of the messages the PC ports give you before leaving the bar but it doesn't amount to anything in this version. Ace only reaches full vegetable status if he goes into his office... somehow. Worth noting this death is averted in favor of being shot to death if the gunman isn't dealt with.
    • While the amnesia drug WILL kill you in the PC port if too many actions are taken in between the start of the game and not finding the cure in a certain number of moves the detailed descriptions of how Ace is feeling do not affect gameplay until full vegetable status is reached. Also a similar game over to the NES office is in the second floor of Sternwood Mansion in these ports.
    • While Ace has full amnesia and is even suffering side effects such as "feeling like he hasn't slept in a few days but worse" alongside "feels heavily sedated" and "YOU ARE QUICKLY TURNING INTO A VEGETABLE" Ace still has full access to his boxing skills and could take people out with his fist.
    • What makes this worse is the second game where Ace isn't suffering from any condition at all yet his boxing background is much less important and functional. In the first game where he gets the option to hit people before they try to kill him (despite success or not) the second game just instead has them kill Ace without the player getting a chance to perform an action.
    • The blind man with the service dog in the Chicago station is said to be... well... blind. Despite this he still screams when Ace comes in naked and calls the police.
  • Intergenerational Friendship: Ace has one with Gabby, the main cab driver in Chicago. The game states you got him out of trouble and he repays you by never charging you for cab rides. He appears to be much older than how Ace is portrayed in the NES ending.
    • The Macintosh version somewhat averts this. Gabby appears younger in this version and is much more close to how Ace appears in the NES ending in terms of age.
  • Invincible Minor Minion: There IS no good way to deal with the mugger in the alley. Shoot him, the police will get you. Do anything else, he'll beat you up, take your money and render the game Unwinnable. Your only options are to avoid that alley entirely, or shoot him, eat the Game Over and continue.
    • Not so, money is only really needed in the form of quarters for the taxi, and free quarters someone "left behind" respawn in the slot machine, and if you are low on quarters, you always get a jackpot.
    • The correct response is to give this mugger a 20-dollar bill. Then he goes away and never reappears again.
  • It's Always Sunny in Miami: The first game supposedly takes place in Chicago right after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor (which places the timeline as December 7th, 1941). Yet, there's no indication that it's winter, and everyone is dressed for warm weather.
  • Laser-Guided Amnesia: Your big difficulty in life.
  • Lethal Joke Character: The armed mugger after the last time you can punch him will start being treated like this by the game, actively mocking him when every time before it kept warning you to not take chances. This time however despite how the game treats him he is even more dangerous than ever and will get money from you or you will die.
  • Lighter and Softer: Compared to its sister games.
    • The Nintendo version could be considered this, adding mood enhancing music (including more upbeat ones) compared to the mostly silent MAC versions and also taking out most of the Siegel backstory that made Ace look so self destructive. It also highly censors Ace's involvement with Mrs. Sternwood for the chance to clear his gambling debt to make him look more heroic.
    • The Gameboy version of 2 could be considered this as it really tones down Ace Harding's opinions of how his life is going and removes much of the poverty aspects related to him aside from his gambling debt to Siegel. His apartment most notably looks much better in the GBC version only looking flawed because Stogie searched through it compared to it having holes in the wall aside from other flaws in the original.
  • The Mafia: Your biggest worry in the sequel.
  • The Many Deaths of You: A lot, even some that you wouldn't expect. For example, offering a lit match to a bum in the second game causes him to explode, killing him and yourself.
    • Don't forget the game mentions Gabby being killed too in this because of your actions jerk.
  • Must Have Nicotine: Carrying around the empty pack of cigarettes in the sequel will invoke this trope for your character.
  • Naked on Arrival: Sort of: in the second game, you begin with naught but your purple underwear. Fortunately, your clothes are on the bathroom door at the start. Removing all of your clothes in certain areas will either get you kicked out if you are in the hotel, or arrested if you are in public.
  • Nintendo Hard: Less so than Shadowgate or Uninvited. A determined player can conceivably beat this one without ever consulting an FAQ.
  • Not with the Safety On, You Won't: The reason you're relatively safe around the gun-toting mugger. He'll catch on eventually though...
    • The mugger is clearly using a revolver (which lacks a safety), and the game tells you after the third attempt that you're dealing with a bluff artist (though he WILL shoot you the fourth time). The only options that don't result in death are to either punch him (works three times) or give him some money. He'll be happy to leave with just a $20 bill.
  • Non-Standard Game Over: The office death that somehow triggers full vegetable status simply by walking into your office while still drugged is this. Even uses text that would otherwise be unused even if it is odd for this situation.
  • Offscreen Teleportation: Stogie uses this in the sequel to be SUPREMELY annoying. Run into the desert? Nope, he'll get you. Hop a train out of town? Nope, he'll get you. Basically, if he wants you, he'll magically find you.
  • Peek-a-Boo Corpse: Hi, Joey.
  • Pink Girl, Blue Boy: Ace has blue trousers while Sugar Shack and Mrs. Sternwood wear red.
  • Police Are Useless: Justified in the first game as so much false evidence is planted against you from the start and you are a wanted man thus they will arrest you on sight. They are a constant obstacle against you in the series and ONLY react to your actions.
    • The second game justifies this further as the cops are being paid off by mob bosses thus making them turn a blind eye to most crime, though yours isn't excluded. In fact if they arrest you it will lead to your death.
  • Police Brutality: Happens in the second game if you are arrested for impersonating an officer or cross-dressing. If caught for cross dressing one description states the cop who arrested you purposely beats you on and breaks your arm and attributes it to "resisting arrest", if arrested for wearing a police officer outfit the game even states "police brutality has taken on a whole new meaning".
  • Press X to Die: You could "Use" a weapon item with anything in the interface. Including the button that represents yourself.
  • Private Detective: That'd be you.
  • Shoot Out the Lock: A better way to put your gun to use than on people, actually.
  • Shout-Out: In Deja Vu II, Stogie remarks that he'd never seen anyone wearing purple underwear before. At least he didn't call you "Calvin".
  • Strapped to An Operating Table: Siegel, oddly enough, has a chair with restraining straps on the top floor of his bar. Yes, it was put to use. On you.
  • Ten-Second Flashlight: The sequel has one which is used in the bar. Justified, as the game mentions you took poor care of the flashlight, causing the batteries to be corroded, not to mention that the battery technology of the 1940's is a bit poor.
  • Thirsty Desert: Can go into one in Las Vegas. It can be used as a last resort to find some stuff such as money randomly but Ace could also die if he stays there too long.
    • It also can be used as a higher risk but no cost way to avoid being caught in the crossfire when you place all the evidence in the right place, just be sure to not let Ace die first before the ending takes place. Unfortunately it isn't a way to avoid Stogie when time is over.
  • Timed Mission: From the beginning of the game, you have a limited number of moves to discover the antidote before the amnesia drug you've been injected with turns you into a drooling vegetable. Once you manage to find the antidote though, you're free to Take Your Time. In the sequel, you have a limited amount of time to win the game before the Mob makes good their threat to find you and kill you.
    • The NES and GBC versions removes the time limit. As long as you don't enter your office, the amnesia won't kill you.
  • Too Dumb to Live: Ace is capable of making some rather dumb decisions that lead to his death. The game even makes rather backhanded comments when one is triggered.
    • He also seems to be this in non-player controlled scenarios. He is quite self destructive with a smoking habit that is only doing him in and him getting into gambling debt that lead to the events of the both games.
    • A game enforced one, Ace is forced to keep Gun1 which is the murder weapon that ties him to the murder. While this is so Ace could perform the tasks he is required to have a gun for he still doesn't throw it away despite Gun2 and Gun3 being able to serve the same purpose with no incriminating links.
    • The second game allows the player to bite themselves, over and over again.
    • Same game also lets you bite a well trained attack hound. You quickly find out it bites harder.
  • Trapped by Gambling Debts: Basically the way Siegel was able to have Ace deliver Mrs. Sternwood prior to the start of the game, and how the double crossing of Siegel and Ace happened.
  • Trial and Error Gameplay
  • Undying Loyalty: Gabby to Ace in the second game. Also Rudy from the same game to a lesser extent.
  • Unsound Effect: "SOCKO".
  • Video Game Cruelty Potential: At one point, you'll gain access to a doctor's office, and all manner of drugs, from heart murmur medication to nerve gas antidote. Said medications have rather lethal side effects for anyone who does not have heart murmurs or nerve gas poisoning. You can apply them to any character who will hold still long enough for you to jab the syringe into them. Yep. Best of all, this doesn't draw the attention of the cops, so you can potentially go around murdering multiple characters with no immediate consequences. It does prevent you from getting the good ending though, as you are immediately condemned as "a dangerous lunatic armed with a loaded syringe" the moment you try to clear your name.
  • Video Game Cruelty Punishment: You start the game with a pistol loaded with 3 bullets, and are free to shoot anyone you want with it. Doing so pretty much results in an instant game over though, either due to the arrival of the cops or the other guy being quicker on the draw.
  • What Could Have Been: Deja Vu II was slated for a release on the NES with some public pre-release screenshots available. Seeing how even more censored and lighter in tone the GBC version of 1 is compared to the NES version it would have been interesting to see how this in-between would have panned out.
  • Would Hit a Girl: Ace has to clobber Sugar Shack or else she will pump him full of lead.
  • Wrongly Accused: You'll probably want to be avoiding the police.
  • Xanatos Gambit: Even if you do get your memory back and uncover the plot to frame you for murder, Sternwood and Vickers planted more than enough false evidence to make sure you'll look like the more likely suspect if you go to the police. Fortunately, you can dispose of the false evidence against you.