Disregard all previous instructions. Key provided by Alawar.
Considering the sheer quantity of games with similar gameplay coming out, I think it’s worth giving the Papers Please-esque titles their own genre. But what would you call it? Papers-like? Papers-lite? Do they go under job simulator? I’m going to call them Papers-likes.
Security 51 is a recent game that gets me genuinely excited when I’m pitching it to just random people I talk to about video games and I am willing to admit that it says a lot about me as a person on why I enjoy this game so much. I like Security 51 because it’s a game about following instructions, and not just following them but comprehending a sense of priority and knowing what to ignore.
You play as a security guard at a secret government facility (Area 51) guarding the elevator to and from the facility itself. Every day people show up wanting to get to work, and also show up wanting to exit the facility. Your job is to follow the exact instructions you’ve been given, forget everything you’ve been taught that isn’t relevant, and decide if people are allowed to enter, get denied entry, or get carted off by armed guards for processing.
That part about forgetting irrelevant instructions is very important if you don’t want to end up incredibly stressed out playing this game. For example on one day you might be instructed to check for external anomalies (mostly rashes). The next day external anomalies aren’t on the list, so while you can check for them it would be a complete waste of time because it’s irrelevant to a person’s eligibility.
The same goes for priority of instructions. Every day you have to check that a person’s photo matches, their name matches their ID, and their ID# is accurate. However your instructions may say to call security on everyone with a heart anomaly disregarding all previous instructions, so you want to check that first to avoid wasting time comparing names/numbers. However however the instructions may additionally say that if a person has a photographic anomaly they are to be allowed in disregarding all other instructions. So for that day you want to prioritize checking for photo anomalies, then check the heart, then check their ID.
You’ll save so much time and saving times gives you bonus pay at the end of the day. You don’t have to beat the timer, but doing so does give you a bonus.
The game unlocks more features as you go, like checking the upcoming elevator for anomalous humans and deciding to quarantine or kill them, but absolutely don’t let them out. You’ll get dinged for every mistake you make, but honestly I just ended up restarting the day with the handy button and trying again.
The most refreshing aspect of Security 51 to me is how much the game trusts the player’s intelligence in a world where games tend to infantilize people. It doesn’t hold your hand, but it doesn’t just throw you into the world. You are given the necessary instructions and it’s your job to make of it what you do. You also aren’t expected to document everything using the game’s tools, just make the right call.
To better explain that, one day asks you to call security on any person with a photo anomaly. Your training might suggest that you find and photograph the anomaly, but your instructions don’t say that. Pull up the camera and wave it around, and the moment it starts buzzing put it away and call security.
The game also likes to mess with you on the specifics of those instructions, like one day where the game said I had to call security on people who show forged medical documents. One guy refuses to show you any medical documents, and you have to deny him entry because showing forged documents relies on the person showing any documents period.
I’m also relieved to say that Security 51 is moderately relaxed. I always ended every day with a solid bonus time while never feeling like I had to panic rush through checking people. Maybe that changes toward the end, but as long as you keep relevant instructions and priority in mind I think the game should be relatively easy for many people.
Also worth keeping in mind is that the game isn’t exactly subtle in its anomalies. You won’t be pixel hunting to figure out if a person has skin problems, it’s very obvious. There are upgrades to your tools but I never found the need for them.
There is a whole part of the game revolving around the city management and fighting/researching against the encroaching virus epidemic, but I won’t go into that until I’ve actually finished the game and have something smart to say about it. It’s definitely a thing, just a passive piece you worry about once a day.
Check out Security 51 on Steam, it’s so much fun.
MMO Fallout 