1. Boelens

   Aug 8, 2013

   10

   This is an AMAZING game. I didn't expect to like it as much as I did, I thought it'd get boring after a while, turns out, it doesn't. So many things are added that keep it fun and exciting, and some of the smaller things are great too. This game really brings me to think about morals, when do you break the guidelines? What do you risk, letting someone with a weapon through, and being able to feed your family from a bribe, or do you be a good guy by the book and detain him? This is an amazing game, and I hope everyone else enjoys it as much as I do.… Expand

   • 30 of 33 users found this helpful
2. d0mokun

   Sep 13, 2013

   10

   Actually the most fun I've had from any game for a long while now. The graphics are a great nod to the past, the music fits perfectly, and best of all it's a right challenge. Easily recommended by this fantastically great chap.… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
3. Doghealer

   Sep 23, 2013

   10

   This is a perfect example of what all indie developers should strive for.
   
   You play a citizen of Arstotzka, which exists in the game's fictitious world (though with very obvious links to our real world), and you have been chosen as the border inspector of your area. Your job is to ensure that all authorized persons get in and all unauthorized persons don't. At least, as far as the Ministry of Labor is concerned.
   
   You can't neglect your personal life, however. You still have a family to take care of. And since you get paid by the person rather than by the hour, you must either work quickly and accurately, or you'll lose everything.
   
   Over your new career, you can expect to meet lots of interesting people. Some have lost their passport. Some are looking for other people. Some are criminals. And you're the one who casts the final word on whether they enter your country or not.
   
   This is the only game I've played in which a LACK of quality-of-life features actually works TOWARDS the overall feel of the game. It puts an astounding amount of effort to emulate the job of border inspector, down to every motion. Papers have to be clicked and dragged to open and read them, and stamps have to be applied, and then papers have to be handed back to the entrant. A similar game could have just had you click on one of two buttons labeled "Approve" and "Deny" to automate the process, but I feel that NOT doing that helped the overall feel.
   
   Always remember: Glory to Arstotzka.… Expand

   • 1 of 1 users found this helpful
4. jonzes

   Aug 28, 2013

   9

   Wow, what an original game. It has been well described by others so I will just say it may not be a game I play for 40 hours but it IS a game I will tell all my friends about and I will remember some of the things that happened in it long after generic shooter #213 and generic RP #695 are both long forgotten. So totally worth the ten bucks.… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
5. UjuidarEhcram

   Sep 28, 2013

   9

   It's kind of surprising how fun this game is, considering the overwhelming feel of misery and oppression the game has. Papers, Please is a game where you play as a border inspector, checking over paperwork, looking for inconsistencies, and making choices that impact many lives, including those of your family.
   
   The gameplay can get intense at times as you hurry to process as many people correctly as possible. Papers, Please had me hooked very quickly, and never let go. I'm planning to continue playing even though I've beaten the story twice, just to get all the endings and maybe try out endless mode. There's not much music, but what's there is great and fits the game incredbily well. The graphics are beautiful. Arstotska is mostly devoid of color, and this game looks as it should. The game controls almost entirely with the mouse, allowing keyboard shortcuts if you have the money to buy them and increase your efficiency.
   
   I picked up Papers, Please at full price, and it was absolutely worth it. This is one of the best indie games I've played, and I think it's absolutely worth $10. I'd recommend it to just about anyone.
   
   Note: the game has a little non-sexual nudity that can be disabled in the options.… Expand

   • 1 of 1 users found this helpful
6. iseeall

   Oct 4, 2013

   8

   This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The game has a great and unique concept and I must say I enjoyed the setting (working as a customs official in a totalitarian country) a lot. The presentation is great, the music is also very much fun. The author is obviously a genius. Still I'm not giving it a 10 but only 8 because the game somewhat lacks in actual gameplay. The gameplay is just about matching overwhelmingly large quantities of data, and this is very tiring and leaves you just exhausted and with a headache rather than providing a fun experience. Surely, the author tried hard to keep the small portions of fun coming in: here you get a spy, here an official, here a funny old man. All these small random events kept me engaged for a while. Still, all in all the game starts pretty difficult (and difficult in bad way, meaning that it strains your attention and patience instead of your intelligence). I was more stressed to get all those people's documents checked than reading those fun conversations. The author's goal was to show how bad the USSR was, and he did it very well, and while playing this game I kept having this "oppressed" feeling even though I somewhat enjoyed denying entry to people (at first). Unfortunately, as a game, "Papers, please" is not entertaining. It's a clever piece of art, but not fun enough and with too simplistic mechanic to make a great game. Btw, I took the $1k bribe and a few days later neighbors found out about it and I lost. I didn't understand if this is a random event or it's inevitable. In any case, this was a very annoying ending since I had to play 3 or 4 extra days just to find out that the (unexpected) mistake I made earlier inevitably leads to a failure. Anyways, I think the author tapped on a very interesting topic here. Other games in similar style could follow.… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
7. Dcruize

   Sep 29, 2013

   0

   Based on the positive reviews and score this game has received on Metacritic, I gave PP a try. I was utterly disappointed. The gameplay is entirely based around being presented with information and then having to verify that the information matches criteria specified at the start of each day. A typical early scenario would involve being handed an ID card and a work permit. You would have to check the following information; same ID/name on both papers, dates are correct, photo on ID matches the person handing it to you. After that, check the immigration rules for the day make sure people are allowed to enter from that country. And that is it all you do is pattern match. If that sounds like fun, give it a try. If your brain isn't wired to find pattern-matching fun, avoid like the plague.… Expand

   • 1 of 13 users found this helpful

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