Games

Papers, Please

Lucas Pope

2013•Puzzle•PEGI 16•About 6 hours

Taste attributes: adventurethrillerespionagefresh & originalintricatelinearbig & variedall consuming questfighting evilrescue/escape/jeopardysocial commentaryunderdog triumphs

See which match your taste

Boxlist takeA layered, sweeping puzzle game, otherwise balanced. Best if you like spectacle over intimacy.

Pace: balanced · Originality: balanced · Tone: balanced · Weight: balanced · Realism: balanced · Story: intricate · Structure: linear · Look: balanced · Scale: big and varied · Emotional punch: balancedHow we score

IGDB rating

82 / 100

737 ratings

Your matchTake the taste test to see your match

Based on your film and TV taste: games are matched on the same ten characteristics, with your own match bands.

About This Game

The communist state of Arstotzka has just ended a 6-year war with neighboring Kolechia and reclaimed its rightful half of the border town, Grestin. Your job as immigration inspector is to control the flow of people entering the Arstotzkan side of Grestin from Kolechia. Among the throngs of immigrants and visitors looking for work are hidden smugglers, spies, and terrorists. Using only the documents provided by travelers and the Ministry of Admission's primitive inspect, search, and fingerprint systems you must decide who can enter Arstotzka and who will be turned away or arrested.

Summary: IGDB

Story

The gameplay of Papers, Please focuses on the work life of an immigration inspector at a border checkpoint for the fictitious Eastern Bloc country of Arstotzka. The player inspects would-be immigrants' documents and uses a sparse array of tools to determine whether the papers are in order for the purpose of keeping spies, smugglers and other unwanted individuals out of the country. At the end of each in-game day, the player earns money based on how many immigrants they processed less any penalties for mistakes, and then must decide on a simple budget to spend that money on rent, food, heat,...

Characteristics

Where this game sits on each taste spectrum

SlowPACEFast

FamiliarORIGINALITYOriginal

DarkTONEWholesome

LightWEIGHTINESSHeavy

FantasyREALISMRealistic

SimpleINTRICACYIntricate

Non-LinearLINEARITYLinear

UnderstatedSTYLEStylised

IntimateSCALEEpic

RestrainedEMOTIONIntense

Genres and themes

AdventureThrillerEspionageAll consuming questFighting evilRescue/escape/jeopardySocial commentaryUnderdog triumphs

Keywords

Life simulationStory drivenDystopianManagementEspionagePixel artNudityDeveloped by one person

Where to play

Details

Developer: Lucas Pope
Publisher: 3909
Released: 8 August 2013
Platforms: Linux, Android, PC (Microsoft Windows), iOS, Mac, PlayStation Vita
Modes: Single player
Perspective: First person, Text
Time to beat: 4h rushed, 6h normally, 32h complete
Age rating: PEGI 16
Taste scores: How we score
Source: IGDB

How game matches work

Games are scored on the same ten characteristics as films and matched with the same formula and your own match bands, from your film and TV taste. Game scores are estimates, made by fixed rules from IGDB genres, themes, keywords and descriptions.