Last week was Indie Games Week for the NJL on our Twitch channel. One of the unique games we had fun playing and hope our viewers enjoyed to watch was RIOT - Civil Unrest. Developed by Leonard Menchiari and published by Merge Games, it is described as a “Riot simulator based on real events that have been influencing the Western civilization in the past few years.” With campaigns based all over the world like Italy, Greece, Spain etc., each area and scenario has its own background, history, and story to tell. Who better to play this game than the NJL’s own anarchist to all things timely and respectable Mr. Mike is Fired! After giving us some of his time and a few “Aaaaaaaahaaaaaaaas!” Mike was kind enough to discuss his initial feelings about RIOT - Civil Unrest, and why this may just be the Indie game to keep an eye on.
Spoilers below
Jay: So usually I’d start off with what you like from the game first, but after watching your stream let's go with what you didn’t like off rip lol.
Mike is fired: As far as dislikes go I don’t have too many. I felt like the graphics could have definitely been better, but that is mostly because I don’t care for the 8 bit genre in today’s games. That’s more of a personal thing so I won't knock the game for it too much haha. Also to be real, what I would like to see the developer add is more riots from America. The only riot I remember seeing was the LA riots from the 90’s, and we all know America has a much darker pass. So I would like to see them touch on some of those things in our past in the future.
J: It’s funny with you saying that I only was able to think of the LA Riots, but in truth over the last few years we definitely had some important riot situations in America. The Dakota Access Pipeline, Fayetteville, The Occupy movement even. Maybe not as big as the riots overseas, but big time major for America’s history with the type of situations that can lead to riots.
MIF: Right! RIOT is way more interesting than I originally expected it to be. I liked how they took some of the worlds biggest riots, and put you right in the middle. They allow you to play as either the cops or the rioters, and personally I enjoyed playing with the civilians the most. The rush of taking on the law while trying to rally the troops, and keep all four groups of rioters in line is definitely something that will keep you engaged.
J: What were some highlights for you then Mr. “N.W.A.” lol?
MIF: There are a few things that I enjoyed from the game, like how well equipped, and resourceful the rioters were. One of the levels allowed you to shoot rockets at police generators and throw bombs all over the place! I didn’t spend too much time on the police side of things so I can’t say much about them, but I will say that the tear gas they have is no joke. I played one level as the police and cleared so fast because the crowd could not get pass the gas. J: Yeah for an 8 bit design, which I’m not too big a fan of either, it was surprising how layered and detailed it was. Even watching how the two forces would oppose each other was crazy. This definitely took me by surprise watching you play. Any final thoughts? Grades? MIF: Seeing as this was the first time I’ve played a game like this it was much better than I originally thought it was going to be. Keeping it 100, for me it isn’t something that I would pick up and play on the regular, but I can see this game being appealing to a lot of people. I’d have to give the game a C+ for what I like, but it definitely is heading in the right direction and am interested to see what it can become in the future.
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