Double Switch

Double Switch is a full motion video game released for the Sega CD (1993), the Sega Saturn, Mac and Windows 95. The game is produced by Digital Pictures and has a similar format to their earlier game titled Night Trap.

Storyline
The game takes place in a large and old apartment complex called the Edward Arms where a young man named Eddie has been locked in the basement, and needs your help to get him out. Each member of the building has their own plot line that overlaps into the main plot line. In the first level you have to quickly move from the various cameras Eddie has placed throughout the building in order to trap the various Mafia hit men and secret society assassins wandering around the building. You also have to get the security codes to free Eddie that the mobsters will preview at certain points during the game. In the subsequent levels you learn that the Mafia hit men and secret society assassins are trying to locate a valuable Egyptian artifact, and that they are willing to do anything it takes, even kill the various other tenants in the building to get what they want. Around this time a mummy will appear and attempt to steal the statue, and you must rely on the handyman to activate hidden alcove traps to stop the mummy. If done correctly, the mummy is revealed to be Eddie himself and the game then moves to act 3 where you must protect the tenants from Eddie's rampage. If done correctly, the player will receive the best ending, in which the statue is revealed to be a key to opening a giant treasury within the complex itself.

Characters
Eddie: Main character of the story. Eddie is trapped in the basement at the beginning of the game, and makes it your job to free him. At first Eddie is viewed as the protagonist but as time goes on, he slowly reveals himself to be insane and attempts to kill the tenants over the statue.

Lyle (the handyman): Lyle is first looked upon as an antagonist, but after Eddie escapes from the basement, he slowly explains that Eddie is not healthy and must be stopped. If played correctly, Lyle will begin opening new traps that can be used to stop Eddie's rampage. Late in Act 2, it is revealed that Lyle is actually Eddie's father.

Elizabeth: Eddie's mother, obsessed with proving her son is not all bad, she is blind to Eddie's insanity.

Alex: A young woman who is currently doing a report on the Edward Arms. She has a romantic crush on Eddie. Her life is put into danger when she stumbles upon the truth behind the statue.

Brutus: Recently released from prison, Brutus is an older man whose father, we are told, helped build the Edward Arms and knew all of its secrets. Brutus claims his father said there was treasure buried in the building. Brutus has made it his task to find the treasure and hopefully pay off his past debts.

Phoebe/Laura (the "Grads"): Two young women living together as roommates. Phoebe discovers the statue and finds the link between the statue, the building, and the Egyptian treasury. Phoebe's life is soon put into danger as she attempts to protect the statue. Not much is revealed about Laura except that she is Jeff's girlfriend.

Jeff: Jeff is the leader of his band named Scream (their room is listed as "Band"). They are trying to get noticed and have scheduled an audition. Jeff is lucky enough to get Scream its first break, however, his life is soon put into danger as he is pulled into the dark conspiracy behind the statue.

Luigi and the mob: Luigi is a member of a local mafia; he and his thugs have infiltrated the building to collect an amount of money from, and kill, Brutus. After realizing that something is amiss in the building, they remain to investigate. The thugs are to be trapped and the player spends most of the game trapping them.

The Scroll and Key Society: Seen in Act 1, but not revealed until Act 2, the Scroll and Key Society is a group of green clad individuals in dark sunglasses who have come to the building on behalf of Lionel Edward's legacy (Elizabeth's father), whom they claim was a prominent society member. These members are looked upon as intruders and the player is to trap them as they trap the thugs.

Cast

 * Corey Haim .... Eddie
 * Deborah Harry .... Elizabeth
 * R. Lee Ermey .... Lyle (the handyman)
 * Camille Cooper .... Alex
 * Taylor Negron .... Slick Sammy (the man who auditions the band)
 * Irwin Keyes .... Brutus
 * Wendy Gazelle .... Phoebe
 * David Packer .... Jeff
 * Kimberly Oja .... Laura
 * Brooke McCarter .... Bang

Versions
All versions are identical, except that the Windows, Saturn and Mac editions were released later with enhanced video quality and Eddie's references to the Sega Genesis controller removed.

Criticism
Double Switch is one of a genre of full motion video and computer games produced in the early to mid-1990s.

Critics felt that Double Switch had better production values than Night Trap (which had been popular largely due to its controversial content) but the game was also difficult and the player really did not have much time to enjoy the production values because they had to quickly move between the cameras to set the traps.

Trivia

 * After the player saves Brutus once by trapping the mob leader and a thug, Brutus makes a threatening comment to the other, untrapped, running thug: "You tell Luigi and Mario their days are numbered!". That comment is an indirect taunt to Nintendo, hence the names of the mob leaders referencing Nintendo's mascot (Mario) and his brother (Luigi).
 * The Windows 95 version was among the first DirectX games to be introduced at the Windows 95 launch.
 * The game is an example of the trap-em-up genre, which also includes games like Heiankyo Alien, Space Panic, Home Alone, Lode Runner, and Night Trap.