Papers, Please turns 10 years old, gets heavy discount, Game & Watch-style demake, more

A decade has passed since Lucas Pope unleashed “Papers, Please”, a game that has carved itself a prominent spot in the annals of indie gaming history. To commemorate the 10th anniversary of its release, the developer is offering the game at a heavily discounted price and has introduced some other goodies too. The catch? The discount is only available until the weekend!

In Papers, Please, you’re tasked with making difficult decisions that straddle the moral and ethical line, determining the outcome of not only individuals, but entire families attempting to gain passage through the checkpoint. I know, all pretty heavy stuff, right? Oh, and if you don’t properly check papers and accidentally admit enough people who aren’t supposed to cross (smugglers, spies, and terrorists), then your character suffers the consequences if you know what I mean.

A heavy discount for a heavy game

If you’ve missed out on the chance to immerse yourself in the dystopian world of Papers, Please, now is the time to grab it. I wrote about it over on Chrome Unboxed back when it first released on Android last year and gushed about how gripping the choices are that you must make as a border guard.

The game’s price has dropped to a mere $1.99 on Steam, Humble, GOG, the App Store, and the Google Play Store too. You can also purchase new shirts, stickers, posters, and even the game’s soundtrack over on the official website’s 10 year anniversary splash page.

A Game & Watch-style nostalgic “Demake”

Pope has taken the retro feel of Papers, Please one step further by releasing a “demake” of the game named LCD, Please. This can actually be played right in your browser! The name itself is a nod to the LCD devices of a bygone era like the Game & Watch. This is ironic though, considering the original game already sports a pretty retro look.

The communist state of Arstotzka has just ended a 6-year war with neighboring Kolechia and reclaimed its rightful half of the border town, Grestin.

Your job as immigration inspector is to control the flow of people entering the Arstotzkan side of Grestin from Kolechia. Among the throngs of immigrants and visitors looking for work are hidden smugglers, spies, and terrorists.

Using only the documents provided by travelers and the Ministry of Admission’s primitive inspect, search, and fingerprint systems you must decide who can enter Arstotzka and who will be turned away or arrested.

I’ve personally played the game but have not completed it. Few games make me feel bad about making decisions, but that’s kind of the point here. Have you played Papers, Please, or are you going to pick it up on your platform of choice for two bucks this week? Let me know in the comments!

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