This June 17 arrives on Steam the new title of Aesir Interactive edited by astragon entertainment : Police Simulator Patrol Officers. This is not some sequel to Patrol Duty, the Bigmoon studio game released 2 years ago. Here we are in the presence of a brand new game, in early access, also powered by Unreal Engine 4.
The game puts you in the shoes of a police officer in the city of Brighton who will have to enforce the law on residents, pedestrians or drivers. The simulation side is given by the tasks that the officer must perform, but also by the management of his schedule. Indeed, you only have to work 5 days a week, and choose your 2 days of rest. These allow you to skip the tasks that interest you the least such as patrolling on foot or in the car. A patrol (one day in game) lasts approximately 30 minutes for the player. The days of the week are all represented and I can only advise you not to miss Monday. It's a day when most streets are closed to parking between 12 p.m. and 14 p.m. ... ideal for lining up plum and climbing in XP ... “Cunning as a chicken! " could become a new popular expression 🙂 Joke (screwed up) aside, this management side is really interesting and allows Patrol Officers to be called “Simulation”.
We quickly take the grade
First assigned to traffic tasks, you will have to control parked vehicles. License plates, parking positions, parking meter status, the first few minutes give you time to admire the superb scenery of the game. It is also during this period that you will issue your first tickets to the inhabitants who decide to throw litter. on the ground, or crossing outside zebra crossings.
An original XP system
To progress and see yourself unlocking new "toys" like the radar gun, or new quarters, you have to gain XP. The originality of the game lies in the fact that it can be won, but also to lose ! How? 'Or' What ? By carrying out abusive identity checks or "Palpations just because the young lady is pretty", for example. But also by asking for the intervention of the pound Fair for an expired parking meter. In short, we enforce the law but we represent it and we must not abuse the possibilities offered by the game. The use of force or the tazer just for fun is also a reason for dismissal, it goes without saying.
An interesting number of possibilities
In short, let's go back to the heart of the game: evolution. As you gain XP, new possibilities will open up to you. And you are totally free to do them or not. Radar control, search for an individual according to a report card, arrests, accident reports, roadblocks, the tasks are numerous and random. A colleague can call you at any time for a reinforcement request, you are free to take your chance, to gain maximum XP, or to continue what you are doing. And this random aspect is one of the strengths of the game. The characters, the traffic, the events are all situations generated at the will of the game. You will never do it twice in the same day. Even if, we must admit, after 2 hours of play, we start to go around in circles in this early access version.
Some shadows ...
Especially since we can quickly be annoyed by the gameplay, still in development on this early access. Collision bugs that block you between a wall and a pedestrian, forcing you to leave the game, script problems, sometimes hazardous physics, even Unreal Engine crash, no French language (and even Google Translate does not know what means JayWalking), the developers promise a Day One patch to correct the first problems encountered. Better, a precise roadmap, online here, already announces the color of future updates, spread over at least a year, and it is rather encouraging. Better ergonomics, new car, new district, multiplayer mode, new “crimes”, etc., this should add a few hours of play to the clock.
We keep an eye on this game which is added to the long list of simulations followed on Univers-simu.com. There is no need to want to put a note on an early access version. Personally, I deplore this new trend and I would have preferred a fully completed Police Simulator Patrol Officers with all the features announced in the roadmap. But hey, early access is for our good it seems.