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Demon: Interface $4.99
Average Rating:4.4 / 5
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Demon: Interface
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Demon: Interface
Publisher: Onyx Path Publishing
by Björn L. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/15/2022 13:01:30

Fighting the God-machine - a Mephisto review

Demon: Interface

The setting of Demon: The Descent plays a unique role in the 2nd edition of the Chronicles of Darkness, focusing on demons and the mysterious God-Machine. Interface offers an introduction to this game world through eight short stories that present the strange world of demons. The title of the system, Demons, probably conjures up a wrong image, as the setting is characterized less by religious mysticism than by a high-tech agent setting. The fallen angels of the God-Machine are futuristic robotic creatures waging a secret battle against the hidden powers controling the world in the background.

Even though this secret struggle characterizes the stories, they cover different facets. In one story, it's a matter of a demon continuing to protect a person who should have died according to the God-Machine's will. Another story revolves around camouflaging the identity of a demon. The central theme, however, is always how the demons interact with humans.

The special feature of this anthology volume, in contrast to the other game world anthologies, is that in addition to the stories themselves, each one is followed by a short chapter describing characters, phenomena, and the like from the game's point of view, so that elements from the stories are actually described in game terms and mechanics.

Interface provides intriguing insights into the unusual world of darkness inhabited by demons. The interpretation of demons as technical servant beings of the so-called God-Machine is a unique approach. This anthology offers a suitable introduction to get the first glimpse into this unusual game world, its genre and its atmosphere - even if, of course, these short stories do not explain the secrets surrounding the God-Machine.

(Björn Lippold)



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Demon: Interface
Publisher: Onyx Path Publishing
by Chazz K. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/12/2015 20:47:48

An interesting look at the world of Demon, but it benefits from having read the Demon core book. I really like the idea of pairing rules with stories. The stories were a mixed bag but none were particularly memorable.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
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Demon: Interface
Publisher: Onyx Path Publishing
by Michael B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 11/19/2014 06:48:37

Interface has some wonderful pieces, but you'll have to endure a few mediocre ones before you reach them. Each comes with a few pieces of Crunch connected in one way or another to the story. Interface's main flaw is that without intimate knowledge of the Demon the Descent game, most of the stories are incomprehensible. Identities swap, overlap and over-wright one another in a way that can be confusing even if you know how Demons can take and drop cover, but may be completely surrealistic to people who are not in the know.

A short synopsis of the stories and my opinion on each:

The Principal - A demon in cover as a suburban wife faces an angelic threat. I didn't really like this one. It has some good scenes of paranoia superimposed on pastoral suburbia. And an interesting example of cover erosion. But the twist is one of those you can never see coming, and it's not really worth the obfuscation.

Long Road to Caanan - Integration and temptation set against the gay-beats scene of 60's Greenwich Village. An interesting examination of the intersection between social integration and integration with the God-Machine. How a cover can change the way a demon sees his relationship with the world. But sadly without the Crunch section explaining the underlying themes, the story is pretty opaque.

Time to Go - A saboteur operating against the God-Machine under a military cover in 2006's Kuwait. Despite the setting, this one is pretty straight-forward. Demon on a mission vs agents of the God-machine. There's really very little to the story beyond that. It works.

Fifth - A flight, a heist and a monumental secret. I didn't like this one. It has some excellent scenes of cover interaction with humans and Demons interacting under cover. But the whole plot hinges on a revelation that is explained satisfactorily only in the Crunch. And while it is an interesting idea to bring to a chronicle, the story itself doesn't anything interesting with it.

Unicorn Crossing - A computer game programmer caught in the machinations of the God-Machine. The imagery in this story is creepy in a good way. But the plot didn't really grab me. It seems ludicrous to imagine that what goes on in the story stays under the radar. Plus, the whole "computer game that sucks your soul" shtick is such a horrible cliche. Thankfully, that aspect of the story is more part of the Crunch then the story itself.

Thnetosis - Human friendship, Demons under cover and unusual sacrifices. I really liked this one. Its simple and it works. There's some unusual example of humans reacting to Demonic revelation and a new twist of patchwork covers.

Dear Marjorie - A 18th(?) century watchmaker caught in the machination of the God-Machine and the Demons fighting against it. in the 21st century. This, for me is the best story in the collection. Told in unsent letters and pieces of third person accounts. It manages to capture the mix of awe, fascination, terror and helplessness that a normal human experiences when caught between angels and demons. The facility chain it depicts is exactly the kind of weird locomotion of assets the God-Machine might build. And beyond all the well built plot, it managed to stir me emotionally. The use of Seattle's splintered time-lines still hasn't out staid it's welcome.

Retirement - A former saboteur forced to break a promise to locate a former colleague. Another good story. It manages to convey quite well the connections a Demon might form with his cover, overtime. And the constant game of trust and mistrust between Demons and their enemies. It's not very complicated and works very well.

Overall, I liked Interface. The crunch sections are a good way to bridge the gap between the fiction and the game it tries to emulate. And the fiction itself does a good job of depicting some of the ways Demon characters might live and act. But I clearly enjoyed the last three stories more then the others.



Rating:
[3 of 5 Stars!]
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Demon: Interface
Publisher: Onyx Path Publishing
by P. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 10/15/2014 21:56:09

This is something that we haven't ever seen before now, which makes it worth the price just to see how well it works, but it turns out that Demon: Interface actually works WELL! The stories offer views into the world of these creatures in a way that the game's books only hint at, and that's what great fiction adds to your chronicle. The mechanics that complement each story won't be equally useful for every troupe, but they each give insight into not just what happened in the story and show a peek at WHY it occurred.

For the price of one book, this book pulls double-duty, and you won't find that either one suffers for the other!



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
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