Reviewing (mostly) every game (or DLC) in my library, part 527:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️☆☆☆ (7/10)
First off, a warm congratulation to the dev, as [i]Get In Get Out[/i] released today! And it honestly surprised me. A lot of indie games, especially first releases, are ... rather amateur but [i]Get In Get Out[/i] is a solid debut with great polish, concept, art, and writing. However, I do have some possible suggestions to nudge the game toward an 8/10 rating with staying power. A huge thank you to IndieGems and the dev for giving me a free copy :)
[b][h2]Pros:[/h2][/b]
✅ [b] Premise.[/b] It's [i]Papers, Please[/i]-inspired with a plague. Instead of checking papers, you are checking health. Your tools are a computer, an infrared scanner, a notepad, health form, stethoscope, and your brain. Oh, and did I mention a shotgun? You have a shotgun. You can kill infected (or not infected) folks with a shotgun. Beautiful, just beautiful. You will also have to manage money, resources, Food, Security, Health, and Morale.
✅ [b] Moral quandaries.[/b] While the actual mechanics of the game are mostly quite simple (more on that later), I found myself stumped and saying "f*ck it, we ball." There's a lot of ambiguity in this game, which was appreciated. For example, one of the symptoms of the plague is memory issues—forgetting things, confusion, general instability, etc. However, I had a dear old granny asking to be let in. Every one of her symptoms was fine, except ... she kept asking about her grandchildren. She was alone. I grew uneasy but out of the kindness of my heart, I let her in. Another example: a brash man asks to be let in. No issues with his symptoms. Except his background check says he's a fascist and carries a morale penalty. Am I morally justified in letting him in? Last example: a general oddity is a symptom of the plague. However, I am learning about the sheer variety in human expressions. A woman wearing a shirt with a smile came up to me. She was trying to smile, though she was not successful. She also kept talking about how she wished to blend in with everyone. I was alarmed and thought she was crazy, so I blew her head off. Anyway, [spoiler]she was a human and probably autistic. I just murdered a poor autistic woman for trying to fit in. Christ. The game wasn't too funny then.[/spoiler]
✅ [b] Writing.[/b] I was surprised by how strong the writing was. Each stranger has a short little story. Some are emotional; some are disgusting; some are grim; some are silly. However, I loved reading each little vignette. Everything spoken feels realistic, and I was looking forward to the next tall tale. (I'm still thinking of the dad and his son.) I also liked the notepad mechanic. I appreciated that all the notes were automatically written, and the descriptions of a stranger's behavior, dialogue, or even smell were detailed yet didn't spell out any answer. The descriptions were long, a paragraph each, as well.
✅ [b] Humor.[/b] The game strikes an excellent between being a brooding, post-apocalyptic world. For the most part, you'll dealing with serious stories and traumatized people. However, every so often, you'll get a bats*it crazy person, like a clown or a man dressing up as a trashcan. These guys were my favorite, I admit.
✅ [b]Even in an apocalypse, you can still adopt a cat. And drink tea.[/b]
✅ [b] Art.[/b] I'm not a big fan of pixel art, but I really love the art??? It's very clean/clear, yet the color palette is super grim and depressing. However, you can make out many small details, and I find it quite beautiful.
✅ [b]Actually playable on Steam Deck?![/b] I had no issues using the trackpad or joysticks to navigate. I had no problems with sensitivity. No bugs, crashes, or performance issues, either.
[b][h2]Cons:[/h2][/b]
🟥 [b]Mechanics, while cool in theory, can be vague.[/b] For example, each stranger has a health report form. These will show different injuries: bite marks, open wounds, a cut, blood, etc. I wished there was dialogue to confront the stranger on their injuries. I was also a bit confused on how they worked in-game. Does everyone just carry their medical reports on them at all times? Or am I undressing these people and frisking them? Similarly, I wished the scanner had more agency than just clicking it and seeing the result. Maybe some strangers would refuse to have their temperature taken? Or hats or masks can obscure the result?
🟥 [b]Game is also too easy.[/b] This was a bit of a bummer. I thought I would have to juggle Food, Security, Health, and Morale. However, I never had to make hard choices regarding resource management. If I allowed the healthy humans in, they gave me all the resources I needed. Similarly, the mechanics are pretty straightforward. No wounds, no irregular heartbeat? Don't even need to take the temperature tbh. Lastly, the game gives you quite a lot of money, but not much to spend it on! You can only buy shotgun shells or batteries. I appreciate the game's generosity—[i]Papers, Please[/i] stressed me out—but I maxed out my resources pretty quickly. Since I did so well, I had a modifier giving me more money because my district was safe. Then, I was just stockpiling cash. It would be nice to build on this mechanic a bit more. I didn't struggle at all.
🟥 [b] Short length.[/b] I was honestly surprised when the ending came! The game gives you three strangers each day, and you have ten days. A solid, sensible number, but only lasting an hour for me. I would be interested in an endless mode to see all the NPCs without having to redo the game. Still, the price makes sense for a first game.
🟥 [b]Text size, especially on Deck, can be small. [/b]I had to squint to read the terminal and notepad.
🟥 [b]A couple grammatical issues.[/b] Mostly missing commas for direct addresses (e.g. "yes sir" instead of the correct "yes, sir.").
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If you enjoyed this review, please check out my curator page to find more: [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/45814768-Verdict-Play-or-Pass/]Verdict: Play or Pass. [/url] Also, please leave a like and visit [url=https://steamcommunity.com/groups/Indie_Gems]IndieGems[/url] and our YouTube channel for more reviews like this one.
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