Cassette Tapes

## Overview

Cassette tapes are collectible items that drop from certain enemies. There are 11 in total: 10 drop from enemies, and 1 is hidden in Hard Mode.

They are also called "memory tapes" in the achievement *Cassette Culture*, which unlocks after you've collected all 10 enemy tapes.

Once collected, the tapes can be used in Reaper's home, allowing you to read the contents of the tape.

The following enemies can drop tapes:

1. Punk
2. Bouncer
3. Roland (25%)
4. Incubus / Succubus
5. Nightcrawler
6. Madam Stela
7. Grunt
8. General
9. Ibzan (25%)
10. Cardinal

## Cassette Contents

### Zombie Cassettes

#### Zombie #1

I wake up. How much time? Thumping in my ear. Music. I look down, and there's splinters in my hand. Roland's gone. I die again. I overdose again.
I wake up. Hands wet. Feet wet. Docks again? I'm in living room. I need more ash. Roland? I hear the music again. I hear yelling. The room fills up with cold water. I splinter and we all overdose again.
I wake up. Knocking at the door. Roland?"

#### Zombie #2

I hear scuttling. I fire my gun and splatter Jacob against the wall. Thought it was the reaper - I'm sorry Jacob. Thick smoke fills the room and Jacob's red and yellow and green corpse is gone. Where's Jacob? I want to be Jacob again."

#### Zombie #3

Dark and stormy said that the ash can be used for more than getting high - but man, was it HARD to convince the boys. I just wanna get everyone to a place where we don't need the high anymore - somewhere where we feel more... alive. We all feelin' like shit here. The boys don't know it, but on the day we lost Stephen I took a bump too. We all did. But I'm trying to be stronger - it's not working yet, but I'm trying to be stronger. They need a leader.
I hear shifting in my bed - somethin' woke her up. My phone is ringing - Puff? Man, Puff is always calling me for dumb shit - he gets spooked by everything. Amber speaks up, her voice piercing the silence: 'Babe, can you turn that off?' I reply with a whisper, 'Yeah, sorry Am, it's just Puff again. Always callin' me.' I lock the phone and toss it across the dark room. I look back at her pale form - at least there's SOME benefits from working with the vampires. Still, they give me the creeps. I can't wait until this is over. Any day now."

### Vampire Cassettes

#### Vampire #1

The bartender knows me; I've been coming here for weeks, since the day the Bloody Mary opened. Clubs only last a few weeks at best around here; no one really knows why. A man at the bar buys me a drink - it glows like moonlight. I take a sip and I feel the warmth. I shift from one leg to the other. I don't feel like dancing tonight.
I take another sip - it's a lot more bitter than I expect. The man at the bar buys me another drink. He scans me, gaze lingering... oh, right. I almost forgot that this is how I died last time. His hands burn where they touch. Let me forget - please make me forget!"

#### Vampire #2

The workers pile out of the car. They've been blinded, so they can't see what happened. One by one, they pile into the club with their shovels and bags and start harvesting the frozen bodies. I promised not to tell. The Stelas' would kill me if I did - last week Logan blabbed to his girls during pillow talk. Big mistake. He's ash now.
We've all been betrayed before - that's why we're here. What's one more? I just want to secure my trip to hell, one way or another. Can you blame me?"

#### Vampire #3

One of the Nightcrawlers knocked on our bedroom door (even though we've told them time and time again to NEVER step in the house...disgusting.) My husband opens the door and I hear an exchange. Hushed but excited - must be another successful harvest! He closes the door and walks back towards his desk, trying his hardest to keep his smile hidden. We're only a couple harvests away to having enough ash!
Oh, I wonder what the other Place is like? Does it rain there? How warm is it? The Dredged say it's so warm there - I can't wait to lay in the sun again!"

### Skeleton Cassettes

#### Skeleton #1

'More flesh,' he'd say. 'We need more for the portal; it is so close my brothers! We will soon be embraced by his Warmth, for he loves every one of us!'
It's so cruel, isn't it? I wanted to die.. And I still do - but I can't. I have no brain to destroy or nerves to sever. The Generals reassemble me as soon as I rip myself apart - and why is it so GODDAMN cold?"

#### Skeleton #2

It starts as a dull chill, originating from my right shoulder. The feeling grows towards my hands, skin tight against the bone. The feeling grows more, a searing hot pain in contrast to the frigid air.
Suddenly, the cold exits in a brilliant blue flash from my fingertips - and Albina is reconstructed where she last died. Miraculously, the cold subsides for a moment; what a relief. God, what warmth! I know Albina didn't WANT to be reconstructed - she shoots daggers from empty sockets - but the cold was too much to bear. I almost feel sorry and begin to - oh, is that another body?"

#### Skeleton #3

My heart drops through the fucking floor and I lose it, forever. Where's the - where's the fireplace? It was here... wasn't it? It's just wall. It was here. He was HERE. I start clawing, razor sharp bones raking the plaster apart. It was here. I'm so cold. I need my friend. My fingers find a weakness and bust through. Ah, there you are!
With frenzy, I rip the plaster down. Dust floats through the air and swirls around my arms. Nothing. There's nothing here but an empty void. No. No. NonononononoNO. Where are you, you son of a bitch?"

### Misc. Cassettes

#### Demon #1

Aulk pulls the dinghy up to the shore. Charon can't see us here so far from the docks. She lets out a sigh of relief. We all clamber over the edge, boat swaying as it's relieved of demons and ammunition and weaponry. The cold sand is inviting. While none of us would admit it, we were terrified of the deadly dark of the Styx - and of Charon. We've all heard the songs in the birthing chambers... wait, you haven't? Seriously?
'Splish, splash, in the Styx we go.
Charon's comin', swim real slow.
Splish, splash, in the Styx we go.
Mama's not watching, she doesn't know.
Splish, splash, in the Styx we go.
One by one by one he throws.
Splish, splash in the Styx we go.
Always remember that we drown slow.'
Somethin' like that."

#### Secret Cassette

My room is pitch dark, as usual. And dead empty. The fireplace is off - damn. I was hoping my friend would be here tonight. I've never been much of an interior decorator, but this is a bit... dry. I suppose I don't need much to live - I don't need to eat or drink, and I can't sleep. I still bought a bed anyways. It wasn't until after I got it that I remembered I had no eyelids to close, so now I just stare up into the ceiling while - is that mold growing again?
How long have I been in this Place? Months? Years? Decades? Every day is the same - I go out and kill undead and go home and stare at that mold. My friend says nothing to me, just more missions. At least the mold gets to grow and change, slowly inching towards - AH, the fireplace? Is it - oh, wait, it's not on. Damn. I thought I saw you."

## Trivia

* In Hard Mode, a final tape can be collected from the last level. This tape does not count towards unlocking the achievement.
* There are three additional cassette sprites unused in the full game, shown below.

## References

1. Tapes have a 5% chance to drop from their respective enemy. The two exceptions to this are Roland and Ibzan, whose drop rates are both 25% (as shown above).