Buried in Backlog
Buried in Backlog
The Precinct is a top-down police simulator produced by Kwalee and developed by Fallen Tree Games. The game’s story and gameplay loop are straightforward. You play the role of a rookie cop, and with each shift you do your police duty, give traffic tickets, arrest criminals, and find clues to lead you to gang activity. While this may sound simple, Fallen Tree spices it up by giving you a comprehensive guide that you follow in order to make arrests or give fines according to procedure.
Image Source: GameStop Store page
Graphically speaking, the game is quite beautiful, and although the map isn’t gigantic, it’s big enough that exploring it all still feels quite satisfying, while not being so big that driving around the city becomes tedious. Additionally, you can feel the Grand Theft Auto vibes coming off the game. There are hidden jumps and side missions where you race street cars, and if the original GTA had the cover system that the Precinct incorporates, it would have been an even better game.
There are only a couple of real glaring issues that, at this time, haven't been worked on or are not on Fallen Tree’s plate. One is pathing for NPCs. There have been times when the AI has gotten stuck or in a loop that causes them to walk in circles or simply stand in place and refuse to react to prompts. The driving in the game also feels… strange, almost as if you are driving on ice in some instances. While I am a product of the 80s, I chalked it up to just the old suspensions on the cars at the time. Additionally, I feel that your AI partner is lacking. Yes, he may be an old cop ready for retirement, but can he just hold down a drug dealer while I run the other guy down? Lastly, as it may just be a personal issue, but I wish there was a way to pre-aim whilst in cover. Just a little tiny dot cursor would suffice.
Image Source: Gamestops Store page
The Precinct is a great homage to the 80s and a wonderfully made police sim. It's in-depth enough to keep folks hooked while not taking itself super seriously, considering the topic of the game. It’s got some flaws that I’m sure the developer will iron out in time. As a single-player game, it's great, and I hope we get the chance to see it get a Multiplayer co-op mode that lets my buddy and I drive around dispensing sweet justice.