Introduction

Decker is a pseudo-roguelike game by Shawn Overcash, who made the whole game himself and released it in 2002. In it, you play a decker (read: hacker) trying to make his way in the criminal underworld by completing contracts and scamming whatever credits you can on the side. It's heavily inspired by Shadowrun (3rd edition) and Zangband, though it doesn't really play anything like Zangband. Being a huge fan of Shadowrun myself, I enjoy this game despite its flaws.

What flaws, you ask? Well, Shawn Overcash is no great artist. All the graphics in the game were done in MS Paint, and not particularly well. Despite the rich setting, there's no story: you're just a freelance decker, fulfilling contracts and making money. Because of this, the game can (and does) often feel grindy. Lastly, and somewhat related to the lack of story, is the lack of an ending. You can set a goal for yourself if you want, or just play until it stops being fun, but there's no actual victory condition.

Still, it's a game I find charming for its relative simplicity. It's a good time sink, if nothing else, and I hope some of you enjoy it.

Table of Contents

• What numbers mean
• I call newbie runners 'tomatoes' because they get turned into chunky salsa
• The Matrix is a lot less kung fu and a lot more tension and panic
• Optimization proves less than optimal
• Sitting in a basement has never been so boring
• The illusion of ease is a lot like actual easiness
• Democracy simply does not work
• New missions, new software, new hardware
• Nothing says efficient like reinventing the wheel
• Voting leads to grinding leads to voting
• If you can't beat 'em, kill 'em outright
• Time is relative in the Matrix
• Why, farewell, box
• You know what really grinds my circuits?
• Short update, short vote
• Six days later, grinding... done?
• Middle class just flew by
• The box has done what it can
• It's REAL Miller time
• Life in the upper crust
• Getting dangerous proves dangerous
• We are invincible
• Submergence (is harder than it looks)
• Failure to launch