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[Moogie]

I'm interested in discovering games where the main focus of gameplay is in building elaborat Goldbergian trap-combos to defeat opponents. Evil Genius did this in a limited way, but the Devil's Deception series on Playstation systems seems to be the most focused on this concept.

But these are literally the only games I know of that fit this archetype. Are there others?

Here's an example of what I mean by "trap combos": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Py25AeWo2rY

[Ozyton]

... that video was quite silly

Only thing I can think of at the moment is perhaps Orcs must Die. You can get combos for using multiple traps, but that's mostly for score than a core game element like in the video

You can do some interesting things though, like using a flip-up flame trap to flame a bunch of orcs and send the ones standing on it flying into a vortex in the wall.

[Catastrophic lolcats]

There's Mighty Quest for Epic Loot. I haven't played it but I've heard some really good things about it (sadly the forced Uplay made me steer right clear of it).
There's also The Castle Doctrine. I'm not too sure about this one and only heard it referenced a few times in a podcast. Seems like a dungeon builder mixed with a roguelike.

They don't seem to be completely 100% what you want but there is a major trap design element to them.

[MoLAoS]

Well, you could play GemCraft using mostly traps, and setting up your lines of traps to get optimal mana gain, poison damage, armor removal, and speed slowing.

But if you are being super specific about Goldbergian traps, I can't imagine its a very popular game genre.

[Mech#4]

"Orcs Must Die 1 and 2" does require trap combos to a degree. Some of the tougher monsters you can fling from one trap to another, getting hit by arrows and grinders to wear them down. The game is more about placing heaps and heaps of individual traps, but as OzyTheSage said, you get higher scores for bouncing enemies off one trap and into another.

Not traps, but Goldbergian devices are the core mechanic in "The Incredible Machine". It's a puzzle game rather than conflict. Light the match which launches the rocket which starts the rotor which powers the treadmill which flings the ball into the hoop.

[Azated]

I think Pirate Defense is exactly what you're looking for. The entire point of the game is to throw enemies around as much as possible through as many traps as you can place.

There's also Crazy Machines 2, which isn't necessarily about traps, but you can make some really cool physics-based machines.

[Moogie]

But if you are being super specific about Goldbergian traps, I can't imagine its a very popular game genre.

Not super specific on that point, just using the term more as a descriptor than anything. Any games that employ stringable trap combinations applies, even if it's not the main focus of the game- as long as it's a decently important part of the action!

Some interesting suggestions so far. Pirate Defense is closest in spirit, I think, although I'm not overly fond of tower defense games. The view is a bit too small, and in true TD fashion, the details of the action get lost in the sheer number of moving units onscreen at any one time. I'd like to be able to see it in closer detail, and for the traps to have a more satisfying impact.

The Incredible Machine games are well known, and great games in their own right, but not what I'm looking for in this instance.

Feel free to suggest anything you think may apply, though. Although I'm personally looking out for a very specific type of game, this sort of thread can be useful to anyone seeking vaguely similar ideas. If you've got a fun game in mind, even if you don't think it's exactly what I'm looking for, post it anyway! Someone will appreciate it.

I don't suspect there's much out there that satisfy the desired criteria, but you never know unless you ask. On that point, I had no idea the Devil's Deception series even existed before today.

[Rez]

... that video was quite silly

It went from silly to mildly disturbing when a spanish donkey was the finishing move.

[Trapezohedron]

Does DF count?

I mean, making a retracting drawbridge and making your victims plummet down to candy spikes and then finally flooding them with magma, which also incidentally leaks over through your magmaproof grate into a chamber leading to your vampire broker and some booze seems to fit the bill.

Seriously though, I don't know what counts as a trap-focused game. PS: Deception IV was disturbing and silly.

[Neonivek]

They made another Trapt/Deception game?

I mean I always appreciated the game's convoluted storyline and how the game's have an implied canon.

Also The Incredible Machine has a few "trap" stages.

[Sean Mirrsen]

You might find Evil Genius a little interesting, too. The traps are far from the main focus, but you can and often do combine their various effects to deal maximum damage to intruders.

[Neonivek]

You might find Evil Genius a little interesting, too. The traps are far from the main focus, but you can and often do combine their various effects to deal maximum damage to intruders.

I love that game!

A trick I employ is not to use lethal traps inside your own base. Since non-lethal traps really don't affect your own minions harshly (and heck... non-lethal is usually easier)

[Trapezohedron]

I think the guy already knows about Evil Genius, having mentioned it in his OP.

[Sean Mirrsen]

I think the guy already knows about Evil Genius, having mentioned it in his OP.

Oops. Failed a spot check. Or is that a reading check?

Unfortunately, I don't really know any other games that allow the player to do that. I mean, people do these things in games all the time, but those people are the ones making the games, and the player in on the receiving end.

[notquitethere]

Dungeon Keeper 2 had a dungeon defence mode where you had as much time as you liked to set up an elaborate series of traps to use on the hapless heroes.