Hi Everyone,
My name is Nick Morris and I'm president of Deliberative Entertainment and a video game developer in Canada. Because the community here has an obvious interest in both law enforcement and gaming, I wanted to seek out your feedback about an in-depth law enforcement strategy game called Keep the Peace that we are currently prototyping. The game puts players in a combo role of Police Chief, Dispatcher, and Incident Commander, responsible for the safety and security of their town, city, or region. Players will make difficult decisions about the type of police force they want to create and the way they'll approach crime, disasters, and other issues in their jurisdiction.
I'm here because I'm looking for your feedback. Many folks on these forums are extremely detailed-oriented and critical, and that's precisely what we need. I know you've all watched a litany of mediocre police games come and go -- especially simulators, but probably a few "strategy" titles too -- and I won't allow Keep the Peace to join that list. It either gets done well, or not at all. But I need your help -- your ideas, your feedback, your advice -- to make it the best game it can be.
We're currently at a very early stage of development, which makes it relatively easy to incorporate feedback. We do have details about the current vision for the game and we've assembled a video and some screenshots describing that vision in more detail. If you've gotten this far and are interested in more information, here's a little bit more about the game.
Just some of the things you'll do in Keep the Peace:
Hire officers that are right for your department based on dozens of skills and characteristics
Customize vehicles, tools, and weapons, to equip your officers appropriately for the tasks you'll be throwing their way
Assign your units to patrols and prioritize their time between preventing crime, reacting to crime, and traffic enforcement
Dispatch your units to the scene of dangerous emergencies -- break-ins, bank robberies, vehicle pursuits, shootings, natural disasters, car accidents, and much more, each with virtually infinite possible variations -- and decide which incidents get which resources first
Choose tactics your officers should use for complex incidents. Should they negotiate with a hostage taker, or break down the door? Will you allow a growing protest to proceed unimpeded, or will you assign units to stand in the way? A variety of factors could affect your decision in each unique situation.
Set policies (e.g. regarding the use of force), implement programs (e.g. DUI checkpoints), and expand your capabilities (e.g. with a crime lab, a motor pool, new training facilities, or new technologies)
Train and promote your officers, and manage their physical health, mental health, and morale.
Deal with long-term crises. Although Keep the Peace is an open-ended sandbox game, like SimCity or Civilization, various narrative elements will keep it interesting and novel. A serial killer could terrorize your streets for months or years; a new gang could come to town; a new mayor could withhold key resources and make your life difficult.
We've uploaded a little teaser video to YouTube:
And here are a few screenshots based on the prototype:
Though the video and screenshots are still very rough around the edges (just a prototype, after all), and you can expect the models and textures to be completely rebuilt during actual production, I would love to get your feedback about the overall game. For example:
Are there features you see here that excite you?
Are there things you see here that you do not like, or feel could be improved/changed?
Are there things you'd like to see that seem to be missing?
What strengths or weaknesses have you seen in other games that could provide a lesson for a game like Keep the Peace
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask! I'll try to monitor this thread closely. You can also find more screenshots and information about the game, and you can reach out to me directly if desired, via our website (see signature below).
Thank you in advance!
Nick