Catacombs, Square Enix’s Squad Shooter, Had Mind Tricks Just Like Eternal Darkness

So, you’re walking through an Aztec-themed maze and decide to take a breather from shooting Tezcatlipoca when a giant foot crashes from the ceiling and scatters the team.

That’s one of the traps Cavia thought up for Catacombs, a project Square Enix signed after Nier was finished.

Levels in Catacombs are randomly generated and littered with traps and Cavia included a few mind tricks to catch players off guard. You might hear a woman shriek or a thunderous footsteps while you controller rumbles. These are decoys to distract players while enemies drop in from the ceiling through a portal. Other surprises designed to shock, but not harm players are hands emerging from a door when you try to open it an exploding the treasure chest that actually doesn’t cause damage.

Catacombs also had stage specific traps like Medusa statues in a Greco-themed level that turn players to stone if you shine your flashlight on them. Another area has giant Venus Fly Traps that drag players inside and warp them to another part of the map. An Egyptian level has a Pharaoh’s Curse that is activated if you shoot a certain type of statue. Cavia added this to make players pay attention where they’re shooting instead of holding the trigger to fire.

More common traps include spikes that protrude from the ground or walls and pitfalls. If a player gets caught in a pitfall, like a sand trap in the Egyptian area they will cling to the edge for a few seconds, but another player has to come over to save them. The most dangerous trap are monster generator generators. If you shoot one of these it will create a portal that spawns monsters.

What kind of monsters are in the game?

Catacombs has a mix of grunts called "ghouls" that use melee attacks. These guys swarm players with brawn over brains and use melee attacks (swords/spears/etc.). The developer joked that they were kind of like zergling. "Titans" like the stone statue on the right require players to work together to take down. You will need someone to draw fire or tank and another hero to heal while two other characters pelt the giant with magic bullets.

Uitzilopochtli or Huitzilopochtli are found in the Aztec level. These creatures spit fireballs and grab other players with their talons. They can lift allies up into the air and if you shoot a hostage they will take damage.

Reapers are one of the most menacing enemies. The first time you see an executioner it slowly comes towards you, something like a Tonberry the source explained. The next time you seen a Reaper it starts with the same pattern and then drops to the ground using all four "legs" to quickly crawl towards players. All of the enemies in Catacombs were designed like the Reaper with seemingly predictable attack patterns until they shock players wit a sudden change.

And what kind of weapons do you have to fight them? (Low level on the left, max level on the right)

"Shotgun"

"Magnum"

"Machinegun"