The Masked Men
The Masked Men are a pair of characters in Katana Zero, named Comedy and Tragedy. They are a pair of beings with seemingly supernatural abilities, often appearing in Zero's Chronos hallucinations.
Appearance
They have also appeared in the real world in multiple instances, notably appearing in the final scene of the Chinatown mission, and killing a whole squad of heavily armed police officers telepathically. They both wear lab coats and masks, Comedy wearing a golden smiling mask (referred to as "the golden mask of life"), and Tragedy wearing a frowning silver mask (referred to as "the silver mask of death"). They also both wear a t-shirt of the same color as the other's mask.
Tragedy speaks in an ominous Elizabethan-Era English dialect, while Comedy speaks in a frank, often vulgar and taunting tone.
Personalities
Comedy, as one might expect, is able to make light of nearly any situation he's in. While he speaks less often than Tragedy during dialogue, he almost always adds some bewildering or scathing commentary to a situation. Comedy is also known to be the half of the duo most prone to expressing his genuine opinions on Zero or what's happening.
Tragedy, on the other hand, is very grim and serious. He tends to serve as more of a "narrator" as to what will likely happen next depending on the choices Zero will make after the "grim haruspicy". There is a hint of a masochistic nature in Tragedy's persona as he will show some degree of excitement towards Zero threatening to attack them.
In Katana ZERO
Tragedy's first appearance is in the Murdower Hotel mission. He can be found sitting in an armchair reading a newspaper in the hotel lobby. He is gone at the end of the level.
Though brief, Comedy's first appearance is the Studio mission. During the fight with V, after a couple of rewinds, the screen starts glitching out. For a brief moment you can spot Comedy in the director's chair that V sat in before.
Comedy and Tragedy make their first appearance together a few missions later, appearing in Zero's apartment after having poisoned his nightly herbal tea. While Zero lays paralyzed, they tauntingly warn him about a future choice he will have to make.
The Masked Men make another appearance in the climax of the Chinatown mission. They appear in front of Zero while he is surrounded by armed police. It should be noted that the police are able to see the masked men in real time. The masked men slow Zero's perception of time, and speak to him, giving him the choice to die and spare The Little Girl from an unknown fate, or to live and keep fighting. Depending on the player's choice, the masked men either kill the police squad telepathically, giving Zero a chance to escape, or they leave Zero to be killed by police.
After Zero returns home following the events of the Bunker mission, he finds his apartment broken into, along with the apartment next door to him where The Little Girl supposedly lived. He finds a note they left stating "One life for another", and the post-credits sequence shows they have kidnapped The Little Girl.
Notes
- The Masked Men's masks are references to the Greek masks of comedy and tragedy.
- If Zero talks to DJ Electrohead during the club mission and gets information about Chronos, he can refuse his shot of Chronos in his following meeting with The Psychiatrist before the prison mission. If he does this, Tragedy will provide the mission objectives instead of The Psychiatrist, and instead of being told to sneak through the prison undetected, his orders will be to kill everyone.
- Doing so will unlock the same achievement and post-game sword as following the Psychiatrist's orders.
- In the Chinatown mission, the player can attempt to attack one of the Masked Men. If Zero chooses to actually attack them, he will swing his sword forward and hit nothing. Then the game ends as if the player had chosen the decision of "I want to die."
- Tragedy moves more fluid, while Comedy moves jaggedly and choppily.
- Comedy's movement might indicate insanity or instability.
Gallery
Tragedy
Comedy
