Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

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Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

I've posted over in the Video Games Randomness thread a couple of times about this game, but now I've played all the way through the demo and I'm impressed. It's on sale now through March 23rd for 12% off but there are bundle options, for instance if you have or want Thief Simulator as well you can get it for 21% off.



Just to keep things neat and tidy I'm going to repost the two posts I made over there. After that are three new posts from the rest of the demo.
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

So I've been playing the demo to Contraband Police, which released today (full release, not early access). The video I've posted is just a small look at the game. It has a bit of a Paper, Please vibe to it, but lives in a 3D world where a lot more things can happen, like searching vehicles, being shot at, chasing down fugitives, etc. I'm part way through the demo now and I'll post some more impressions. So far reviews have been good.




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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

A bit more from Contraband Police. This is still the demo and I'm in the second day of training. This time I catch a smuggler and find the smuggled goods.

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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

It's the third day in the Contraband Police demo and instead of manning the crossing point, I'm delivering my prisoners, visiting Vlad's for a pistol and dropping off the contraband I have found. I guess I'll not trying to sell the contraband on the black market... this time :wink:.

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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

It's now the fourth day of my training as a border guard inspector and I'm now learning about actually pulling cargo out of a vehicle and busting it open to inspect it. And boy are there a lot of things to find!

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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

It's not all just a bore checking people's papers and looked at goats. In this fifth and last day of the demo I chase someone trying to run the checkpoint and later things really go sideways.



By the way, I picked up the game :D. Sadly, I have to replay all the tutorials :(, there is apparently no way around it. It took me 55 minutes to rush through it again :?. The good news is that the tutorials in the game don't play out the same as the demo. I suspect that since the game has only one campaign and no sandbox mode the tutorials are designed to be a bit different each time just so you don't get too mad :wink:
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by Blackhawk »

jztemple2 wrote: Wed Mar 08, 2023 11:38 pm It's not all just a bore checking people's papers and looked at goats.
No, some days you get cancer from beating holes in barrels of radioactive waste. :?
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

Blackhawk wrote: Wed Mar 08, 2023 11:49 pm
jztemple2 wrote: Wed Mar 08, 2023 11:38 pm It's not all just a bore checking people's papers and looked at goats.
No, some days you get cancer from beating holes in barrels of radioactive waste. :?
I just finished my first post-tutorial work day. It was... interesting :wink:. I won't give away spoilers but there are things happening in the game at a higher level that drive the story. And there is a story. I died later on that day, after dark, when I was ambushed running errands and the van caught fire :shock:. I discovered that the whole campaign wasn't over, which is good. Instead I had a choice to repeat the day, or load the latest checkpoint, which turns out to be the last time I stopped someplace, in this case Vlad's store. So that's good.

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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

I've just completed my third post-tutorial day and I can see why folks are liking this game. It is not just a border guard post simulator, or a 3D version of Papers, Please. There is more to the gameplay and story but if I describe it at all it would really be giving away spoilers. Suffice to say at this point that there are things happening that don't involve the border crossing you administer at all :ninja:
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

Things are getting even more interesting. I was in the middle of doing my daily routine of harassing folks trying to enter the country :wink: when I got a call from the boss. Seems the lieutenant that normally investigates crimes is busy and so I have to go to the Drunken Bear Inn and look at a dead body, collect evidence, interview suspects and figure out who dun it :D. Just another day in the life of a border guard :dance:
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by wonderpug »

How much is it like Papers, Please? My ears keep perking up when you make the comparison but then you play down the connection. :)
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

wonderpug wrote: Thu Mar 09, 2023 10:55 pm How much is it like Papers, Please? My ears keep perking up when you make the comparison but then you play down the connection. :)
It is like Papers, Please in a couple of aspects primarily. One is that you are looking at documents you are given and seeing if things match up, like does the photo on the passport look like the person, or are the names spelled the same. And are some of the documents expired? Is the work permit for a profession that has been temporarily banned? Does the list of cargo carried actually match the cargo you see? Is the license plate on the vehicle the same as on the registration? In this aspect it is a puzzle game like Papers, Please.

The other aspect is that things aren't always on the up and up. Maybe you'll take a bribe to let someone through. Perhaps someone's sad tale will encourage you to overlook some discrepancy in the paperwork. And there are factions in the country and maybe you'll start supporting one of them by looking the other way over certain people or cargoes. And of course your decisions have consequences, short term and long term.

But the game is a whole lot more than just an homage to Papers, Please. Even now, ten hours in for me, there are still parts of the game that are just being hinted about. And not to say that there hasn't been a lot going on right now. My border post was attacked by rebels. I've been ambushed on the road. I had a major, major decision to make (huge spoiler) which was obviously a significant branching of the story line. I've had to investigate a murder. And things are getting more complex at the border crossing.

I very much encourage folks to download the demo and give it a try. You'll go through all the tutorials which while quite detailed are only a part of the full game. It will give you an idea of the gameplay. Then you can decide for yourselves. Frankly I'm finding it a lot more fun than Paper, Please.
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by wonderpug »

Sold, thank you!
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

I will say though, that for me the game is getting to be a bit of a grind. As the game progresses there are more things that have to be checked and identified correctly in order to make money from each inspection. If you miss something you actually lose money. I seem to recall this was also in Papers, Please but here it gets cranked up to eleven. The game is composed of chapters and each chapter, which can be several days, has a new set of requirements for me as a border inspector to fulfill. There are always a basic set of checks that have to be done every time, which grows larger with each chapter, but each chapter also levies special requirements which exist for only that chapter. Like in one chapter I had to check their work permit and if they were one of three professions they got turned away.

In the image below is an example from the last chapter I just finished. The top part are regulations of which all have to be satisfied, otherwise the driver gets turned away. The bottom half are damage check inspections. If you spot all of them that failed you get a bonus, miss some and you don't. Also in the chapter I was playing, having more than three damage check fails should result in a vehicle being turned away. However, that was only for that one chapter.
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Here's how the vehicle weight is checked.
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And all the above is in addition for checking for smuggled goods. Finding smuggled goods is important, since you get paid for finding contraband and turning it in to the police base. Missing smuggled goods will cost you on the evaluation.

As I said, all of the above aren't bad things, but they are a bit of a grind for me. But for some folks they might enjoy the challenge of trying to uncover all the discrepancies. And as I said, there is a lot more to the game that is going on, but to talk about them would spoil the surprise. So I again encourage folks to download the demo and check it out.
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

Week 1 Patch. Oddly, I haven't seen any of these issues :roll:
Comrades

As promised, we just released an update that fixes the following issues:
• Acaristan was too dangerous. We have reduced the number of ambushes and police cars are now much more durable!
• Accepting missions and answering the phone no longer cause an instant losing.
• Problems related to the photo of drivers in the passport will no longer occur.
• The inspection summary now shows the correct places in the smuggler's car where contraband was hidden.
• The achievements First Investment, Steadfast, Double Agent and are now obtainable.
• Constable Repnin had many car accidents. We told him to keep further away from the parked car.
• Sometimes our opponents were too afraid of a fight and stayed hidden for too long. We gave them some vodka for courage!
• We fixed incorrectly displayed data in documents for languages: Chinese, Japanese, Thai.

We already have tasks gathered for the next patch, which we will release next week.
Such as:
• Random crashes during gunfight
• Sometimes game loading blocks at 0%
• Runaways are too fast! You can never catch a fast one with your Azam.
• Blocking in various places in the area.
• Fix for the tower sniper (problems with shooting)
• Blocker on lumbermill shootout (day 5)
• Incorrect stamp checking

At the same time, we are working on the Free Mode, which you often ask for. There will be many additional settings that will allow you to adjust the gameplay style to your preferences. (Shootouts on/off, ambushes on/off etc.)

Glory To Acaristan!
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

I'm back to playing around. I've learned one very important lesson, that I don't need to smash open every piece of cargo. If under the UV flashlight it shows the snake symbol, then it has contraband. If not, I don't need to smash it open and use up my tools. Silly me, I saw that in the tutorial missions and didn't learn the lesson.

Sometimes I get mail in the morning. And sometimes the mail isn't very nice! I'm in luck though, since the bullet doesn't have my name on it :wink:

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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by Blackhawk »

So, he'll be sending you a bill for the bullet?
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

Blackhawk wrote: Fri Mar 10, 2023 7:32 pm So, he'll be sending you a bill for the bullet?
:D

This is the kind of audit you want to see, everything OK and two hundred bucks in your pocket.
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These are the audits you want to avoid, where you make less money because you didn't catch something
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And this? Well, it must have been before I had my coffee :roll:
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And this is one you absolutely don't want to see. I let someone in and missed a bunch of fails. That costs me money!
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

And sometimes you do get a nice letter, although for the wrong reasons. I missed those problems with his car :?
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

Some smugglers are really clever, like smuggling goods in papier-mâché goats :wink:
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Meanwhile, I've been involved in more non-border guard type activities, including... well, spoilers so I can't tell you :D. But it makes me happy that most of the time I'm back at my border post doing inspections and fighting off the occasional rebel attack :roll:
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

I'm way past my concerns about grinding :D. A lot of non-border post stuff has been happening, which as spoilers I won't mention.

This is a five minute video recording a night time attack on my border post. We survive thanks to our shooting and that I upgraded my soldiers before this.

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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

And I've finished the story. Eighteen and a half hours total play time. I definitely feel like I got my money's worth. No bugs to speak of, just some clipping errors but they were minor. The sale on the game continues to March 23rd.
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by TheMix »

Got a bit hairy there near the end. Bet you were wishing you had some of those grenades...

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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

TheMix wrote: Sun Mar 12, 2023 1:27 am Got a bit hairy there near the end. Bet you were wishing you had some of those grenades...
I could have bought some but the blast range on those is pretty small and while I'm fooling with a grenade I'm not shooting, so I passed on them.
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by Blackhawk »

TheMix wrote: Sun Mar 12, 2023 1:27 am Got a bit hairy there near the end. Bet you were wishing you had some of those grenades...
Or at least a papier mache goat.
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by Unagi »

jztemple2 wrote: Sun Mar 12, 2023 12:04 am
We survive thanks to our shooting and that I upgraded my soldiers before this.
And the attackers, thankfully, wore red lights on their heads.
:D
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by wonderpug »

Any tips for driving? The WASD controls seem really clunky given how narrow the roads are and how tight some of the turns are. That's my main nit to pick so far, otherwise I'm enjoying it a good bit.
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

wonderpug wrote: Sun Mar 12, 2023 12:55 pm Any tips for driving? The WASD controls seem really clunky given how narrow the roads are and how tight some of the turns are. That's my main nit to pick so far, otherwise I'm enjoying it a good bit.
The in-vehicle driving view is safer in my opinion. And keep your siren on, it moves other traffic out of the way. Otherwise it's just old-school WASD bang-bang driving. You young kids just don't have the experience :wink:
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Re: Contraband Police - Take over the duties of a border guard inspector in a communist country of the 80's

Post by jztemple2 »

So the new Endless Mode was released a little while ago and tonight I gave it a try. It is called "Inspector" in the game.

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Basically after the optional five day training (same as in the Campaign game) you get to do your daily job of inspecting incoming vehicles, checking documents and searching for contraband. There are now more things to look for and more tools to find them with.

In the campaign game there were mandatory missions across the map that advanced the story. Now in Endless/Inspector mode these missions have been altered to be instead optional things you can do. In addition, once you visit a location you can now fast travel to it, avoiding the tedious driving. This does mean you avoid running into any ambushes, but it also means you can't hunt down the bad guys to get rewards. You can however still drive on the map to go do the missions and still get the chance to get ambushed and/or kill the rebels.

This from the devs has more details...
Inspector Mode, a.k.a the Endless Mode, was created for players who prefer greater gameplay freedom and further options for expanding their outpost. Sudden forced interventions, player rest and movement area restrictions have been removed.

In the new mode, we take on the role of Nikola Roznikov, the previous commander of the border crossing in Karikatka, who was entrusted with the task of rebuilding the ruined post.

Inspector Mode Key Features:

• Unlimited gameplay time.
• Increased outpost development options - Each of the 10 outpost elements has its own unique function and 3 levels of improvement.
• 10-step police career path.
• New documents for inspection.
• Over 20 new entry regulations.
• Most wanted mechanics. Arrest a wanted criminal based on a photo!
• Renovated map with the option of fast travel to previously visited locations.
• 5 new daily missions such as: Air Smuggling, Patrol or Black Market Trade.
• 2 new police cars: Micros and Varilla.
• 25 new Steam achievements to earn.
And as before, there is a demo if you wish to check it out!
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