The Precinct – An Update

Ok – So I’ve now played through the game story… In most cases that is the key part of the game and signifies the end of the players involvement. So what you need to know is that it takes around 10-12 hours. That doesn’t seem very long does it…

Here’s the where it’s at… If you’re playing as I think the dev’s expect, when you complete the story you’ll still have a serial killer on the loose and also a serious treasure hunt requiring the finding of missing objects from the museum. The end of the story is definitely not game over.

Looking at my game so far, it’s clear that the story is there just to get you invested in your fellow cops and to ultimately become a permanent part of the city’s protection. Your partner, Kelly, is going to retire. He’s an older cop and makes no bones about working out his final years. Of all the characters he is the only one you will be deeply involved with and his retirement near the end of the story will leave you wondering about your next partner – That’s how close you will become. Ultimately, Kelly will have taught you a lot about how to handle things – You’ll know when to give control of an incident away; You’ll know when to turn a blind eye. If you’re playing this game… Listen to Kelly!

I’m not going to give any spoilers regards the ending of the story so – After the story… This is where this game demonstrates its strength. You see the story has trained you to get out there as a Police Officer and resolve crimes. You and the partner assigned will deal with all sorts of issues from simple littering to a multi-person gun battle…

…And sometimes it really hits in an unexpected way – the residents slowly moving back into China Town after this gang shootout really had a feeling of sadness to it.

You will deal with and actually deal death…

…You keep shooting at the cops in their car and maybe they’ll ram you? It’s part of the job to cover the body and recover the firearm. But the citizens will gather round to look until you do.

There’s a lot to enjoy about this game – any shift you take can be a peaceful ticketing 8 hours or it can become a bloodbath. You can get killed in some weird circumstances. I was ambushed by a drug dealer who shot me to the point where I had just the last segment of my ‘lifebar’ left. I successfully took cover behind a car only for a random person to run up behind me and kick me – enough for me to be killed ‘in the line of duty’. If you can’t handle those setbacks, this game probably isn’t for you. And there’s more. Occasionally, when you’re arresting suspects you’ve caught, something will go wrong. I’ve experienced situations where I’ve tackled a suspect and they have disappeared as if they fell through the floor. Then, most frustrating of all, the suspects that escape despite the fact that you know you have them in custody. Here’s an example…

…Basically, these were 2 burglars with guns and we caught them both – one had slipped into a dumpster in the hope I wouldn’t find her. While I’m going through the process of checking details and searching, my partner announces that ‘we lost em’. Clearly we didn’t and these are bugs that the dev’s will need to resolve along with some other minor issues with taking cover (I’m fed up with getting shot when I should have been able to hide behind that dumpster right beside me!).

That’s the gripes – But the game is great! Every shift is different and keeps you on your toes. Does my recommendation from the previous post still stand? Yes and certainly more so! A great game and definitely worth a buy😎👍