Info about The Precinct:

Official game description:
Discord
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About the Game
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You are Officer Nick Cordell Jr. As a rookie beat cop fresh out of the Academy, you’re on the front line of defence for Averno’s citizens. Dive into a world of thrilling car chases, sandbox crimes, and a healthy dose of 1980s noir as you protect the populace and solve the mystery of your father’s murder in the line of duty.
Take to the Streets
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A love letter to classic cop movies, The Precinct combines police sim with action sandbox spectacle. Patrol the streets and respond to callouts to fight criminals petty and powerful. Choose your own tactics in thrilling chases and shootouts. Feel the shifting power struggles of Averno's gangs in a living city full of sandbox crimes, from parking infractions to bank heists, street racing to drug deals.
Hot Pursuit
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Speed through the city in intense car and helicopter chases and pursue your mark through twisting alleyways before bringing them to justice. There's no need to be a lone wolf: You've got Averno's Finest backing you up, with an in-depth support system that allows you to call in squad cars, roadblocks, spike strips, and more.
A Sleepless City
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Explore the ever-shifting criminal underbelly of Averno City. Deal with yuppies, bums, street vendors and furious taxi drivers from the Projects to the Financial District. Chase perps through neon-lit alleys, rain-soaked streets, and grand, decaying parklands, all subject to a day/night cycle and dynamic weather. This is the 1980s East Coast in all its neon-noir glory.
Key Features
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*   Explore a vibrant, living city by foot, squad car and helicopter
*   Respond to sandbox crimes ranging from parking violations to gang shootouts
*   Engage in intense vehicle chases through destructible environments
*   Go it alone or call in backup with an in-depth support system
*   Investigate the gangs who rule the city and the dark conspiracies keeping them in control
*   Day/night cycle with dynamic weather

Release date: May 13, 2025

Categories: Police Simulation, Open-World Exploration, Vehicle Mechanics, Top-Down Perspective, Action, Narrative-driven Gameplay, Dynamic Day/Night Cycle, Dynamic Weather

Feature scans:
- MTX: score 10; verdict: Mixed Feedback on Pricing; summary: The game has received mixed feedback regarding its pricing and content. While some users find it overpriced, others appreciate the free updates and are willing to purchase additional DLCs for more content. Overall, there is a demand for more content and improvements, but the game is seen as a good value by some players.
- Wiki: score 10; verdict: Needs Improvement; summary: The primary issue identified from user feedback is the excessive handholding in the game. This includes overly detailed instructions during story events and tutorials, which detract from the overall gaming experience. Users feel that the game's constant guidance reduces the sense of exploration and immersion.
- Proton/Linux: score 10; verdict: Works Well; summary: The game is reported to work well on Linux, with users experiencing good launch reliability and performance. Specific mentions include successful operation on Linux Mint and Fedora with Proton, with some users reporting better performance on Linux than on Windows 11.
- Steam Deck: score 50; verdict: Tinkering Required; summary: The analysis of user feedback for the Steam Deck experience reveals a mix of positive and negative aspects. While users appreciate the game's visual appeal, controller support, and overall enjoyment, significant issues related to performance, particularly the 30 FPS cap, battery life, and load times, detract from the experience. These technical barriers need to be addressed to enhance user satisfaction.

- Hardware Profile:
  - Summary: The game exhibits poor performance across both hardware cohorts, with significant reports of low frame rates and optimization issues, particularly on lower VRAM systems.
  - Sample size: 40 (0% coverage)
  - Audience skew: Review sample is mostly Windows-based.
  - Windows <8GB VRAM (negative, 16 reports): Players report consistently low frame rates and poor optimization, even on low settings.
  - Windows 8-11GB VRAM (negative, 11 reports): Despite higher VRAM, players experience unstable performance and poor optimization.
  - Caveats: 40 of 8431 reviews expose hardware metadata.; Review sample is mostly Windows-based.
Feature extractions:
- Community Price:
  - Community fair range: $15.00 - $25.00
  - Reasoning: The evidence shows that many users find the game enjoyable but feel that the current price of around $30 is too high for the content and experience provided. Several reviews mention that the game is worth purchasing at a discounted price, suggesting a fair price range would be lower than the current base price. The general sentiment is that the game is fun and has potential but does not justify the $30 price tag.
- Playtime Metrics:
  - Game completion: 17.0h
  - Story completion: 15.0h
  - Session length: N/A
  - Endgame: N/A
  - Reasoning: The evidence provides direct and indirect mentions of playtime metrics. The first quote mentions a very short main story completion time of 20 minutes, which is likely an outlier or exaggerated. The second quote mentions finishing the game without specifying the time taken. The third and fourth quotes provide more concrete evidence, mentioning around 15 hours to complete the main stories and reach the highest level, and around 17 hours to complete the game fully with all achievements. These quotes help estimate the typical playtime for game completion and story completion.
- Time-to-fun:
  - Summary: The game initially engages players with its tutorial and storyline but quickly becomes repetitive, relying on unlocks to maintain interest. The addictive nature and customization options are highlights, but the repetitiveness and lack of useful equipment hinder long-term engagement.
  - Stance: Fun then drops
  - Anchor: Completing the tutorial
  - Time to anchor: 0h 30m
  - Friction: Repetitive gameplay loop; Lack of useful equipment and vehicles; Limited customization options
  - Unlock drivers: Progression system with rewards and punishments; Engaging tutorial and storyline
  - Conditions: Customization options for officer design; Addictive nature of the game
- Player Archetypes:
  - Casual Police Simulator Fan (sale)
    - Motivation: Enjoyment of casual police simulation gameplay
    - Playstyle: Relaxed and casual, focusing on the core policing activities
    - Experience: mixed
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: Casual gamer; Police simulator fan
    - Reference games: GTA2; Police Simulator
  - Critical Analyst (deep sale)
    - Motivation: Identifying and critiquing game mechanics and technical aspects
    - Playstyle: Analytical and critical, focusing on game design and technical performance
    - Experience: veteran
    - Purchase stance: deep sale
    - Labels: Game analyst; Critical reviewer
    - Reference games: GTA; True Crime: New York City
  - Social Multiplayer Advocate (sale)
    - Motivation: Desire for multiplayer and co-op features
    - Playstyle: Collaborative and social, focusing on multiplayer experiences
    - Experience: familiar
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: Multiplayer enthusiast; Co-op advocate
    - Reference games: GTA Online; Police Simulator: Patrol Officers


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Highly praised game quality (weight 0.64): The game is widely appreciated for its overall quality, with players describing it as excellent, very fun, well-made, and enjoyable. The graphics and gameplay are particularly highlighted as strong points.
- Realistic police procedures (weight 0.47): The game offers a detailed and realistic simulation of police work, including investigations, evidence gathering, patrols, arrests, and various policing techniques. Players appreciate the realism and variety in police activities.
- Engaging and addictive gameplay (weight 0.38): The gameplay is described as fun, engaging, and addictive. Players appreciate the high replayability and the variety of situations and missions, which keep the gameplay fresh and unpredictable.
- 80s setting and nostalgia (weight 0.28): The game is set in the 80s and captures the retro vibe and atmosphere of that era. Players enjoy the nostalgic elements and the aesthetic reminiscent of 80s action films and police dramas.
- Addition of K-9 units (weight 0.21): The inclusion of K-9 units is a popular feature among players. The ability to use police dogs for various tasks, such as chasing criminals and sniffing out narcotics, adds enjoyment and variety to the gameplay.
- Free updates and developer support (weight 0.2): Players appreciate the regular free updates and new content provided by the developers. This ongoing support adds value to the game and keeps players engaged.
- Exciting car chases and shootouts (weight 0.16): The dynamic and exciting car chases and shootouts are highlighted as strong points of the game. Players enjoy the action-packed gameplay elements.
- Immersive atmosphere and music (weight 0.14): The game's atmosphere and music are highly praised for their quality and immersion. The soundtrack and ambiance contribute significantly to the overall experience.
- Controller-friendly and smooth controls (weight 0.09): The game is praised for its smooth, responsive, and intuitive controls, making it controller-friendly and enhancing the overall gameplay experience.

Common complaints:
- Repetitive gameplay (weight 0.36): Many players find the gameplay, including missions and tasks, to be repetitive and monotonous, leading to boredom after a few hours of play.
- Story lacks depth and length (weight 0.31): The story is frequently criticized for being short, uninspired, and lacking depth. Players feel it is underdeveloped and does not add much to the overall experience.
- Poor driving controls (weight 0.23): Driving controls are reported to be clunky and difficult to handle, with issues in car handling and unrealistic vehicle physics.
- Presence of bugs and glitches (weight 0.19): Players have encountered various bugs and glitches, ranging from minor issues to more noticeable problems that affect gameplay.
- AI behavior issues (weight 0.19): AI behavior is criticized for being unrealistic, illogical, and sometimes causing collisions. AI partners and opponents are noted to be particularly problematic.
- High price for limited content (weight 0.15): Many players feel that the game is overpriced for the amount and quality of content it offers, suggesting that the price could be lower.
- Small and limited map (weight 0.14): The map is criticized for being small and not varied enough, leading to a lack of exploration and familiarity with the environment.
- Game feels underdeveloped (weight 0.09): The game is criticized for feeling like an early access title or a demo, with a lack of content and variety in gameplay.
- Lack of NPC dialogue and pathfinding (weight 0.08): The game is criticized for having poor NPC dialogue and pathfinding, contributing to a lifeless and repetitive world.
- Shootouts lack depth (weight 0.06): The shootout mechanics are criticized for being uninspired and boring, lacking depth and offering a simple combat system.
- Limited replayability (weight 0.05): Players find the game to have limited replayability due to its repetitive nature and lack of varied content.
- Voice acting inconsistencies (weight 0.05): Voice acting in the game is reported to be hit and miss, with some performances not meeting expectations.

Gameplay feedback:
- Variety in police activities (weight 0.28): The game offers a wide range of police activities, from minor offenses to major shootouts, including patrol duties, detective work, and undercover operations. Players can engage in different types of patrols such as foot patrol, cruiser patrol, and helicopter patrol.
- Top-down perspective (weight 0.22): The game features a top-down view reminiscent of early GTA games. This perspective is combined with a detailed urban atmosphere and an 80s setting.
- Realistic police simulation (weight 0.21): The game is a police simulator with a variety of missions, including investigative elements and K-9 unit operations. It aims to provide a realistic cop simulation with various callouts and duties.
- Arcade-like gameplay (weight 0.2): The game offers a fast-paced, arcade-like take on police work, mixing arcadey gameplay with real police situations. It includes various police vehicles and routine gameplay.
- Patrolling and responding to calls (weight 0.2): Players spend a significant amount of time patrolling the city and responding to emergency calls. This includes patrolling streets on foot, by car, or helicopter, and dealing with various crimes.
- Dynamic chases and shootouts (weight 0.14): The game features dynamic chases on foot and by car, as well as high-speed pursuits and shootouts. These elements are modeled after 80's cop movies.
- Character and weapon upgrades (weight 0.13): The game features a progression system with character upgrades, weapon upgrades, and character customization. Players can develop their characters and unlock new abilities.
- Story and side missions (weight 0.13): The game includes a story mode with cinematic storylines and additional side missions. Players can engage in various mission types and patrol duties.
- K-9 unit operations (weight 0.1): The game features a K-9 system for tracking suspects, including the ability to sniff out narcotics and track criminals. Players can patrol with a K-9 companion.
- Open-world gameplay (weight 0.1): The game offers open-world exploration and policing, with street-level chaos and randomness in gameplay. Players can explore an open-world environment.
- Investigations and evidence gathering (weight 0.08): The game includes investigations and crime scene examinations, where players collect gang evidence and simulate police procedures.
- Procedural crime generation (weight 0.07): The game includes a procedural crime sandbox with procedurally generated crimes. Players can engage in open-world crime investigations.
- Customization options (weight 0.06): Players can customize their vehicles and loadouts, adding a layer of personalization to the gameplay experience.
- AI interactions and behavior (weight 0.06): The game includes interactions with NPCs and features partner AI behavior. Players can experience various AI interactions during gameplay.
- Role-playing as a cop (weight 0.06): Players can role-play as a police officer, engaging in various police activities and chasing criminals with a K-9 partner. The game offers a role-playing experience as a cop.
- Unlockable content (weight 0.06): The game features unlockable weapons, vehicles, and abilities. Players can customize weapon loadouts and modify vehicles, adding to the gameplay experience.
- Backup support system (weight 0.06): The game features a SWAT backup system, although there are mentions of backup ineffectiveness. Players can call for more backup options during missions.

Performance notes:
- Positive performance feedback (weight 0.12): Some reviews highlight that the game runs well with no bugs or crashes, and it performs decently even on lower-end systems.
- Controls and mechanics issues (weight 0.11): Reviews mention issues with controls and mechanics, including twitchy driving, slippery controls, and odd acceleration and field of view.
- Steam Deck compatibility (weight 0.08): The game has mixed reviews regarding its performance on Steam Deck. Some players report it runs perfectly, while others mention issues like a 30 FPS lock.
- Graphics and settings (weight 0.05): Players have commented on the graphics settings, noting that the game can run on high settings but also mentioning that the graphics aren't top-tier.
- No DLSS support (weight 0.02): Some players have noted the absence of DLSS support, which could enhance performance on compatible hardware.

Recommendations:
- General recommendations to buy (weight 0.21): Many reviewers generally recommend buying this game, often strongly endorsing it without specific conditions.
- Desire for additional features (weight 0.2): Players have suggested various improvements and additional features, including better NPC behavior, more crimes, undercover play, and additional vehicles.
- Recommended for police game fans (weight 0.18): This game is highly recommended for those who enjoy police games, police sims, and sandbox police experiences. It is particularly appealing to fans of 80s police movies and classic GTA games.
- Recommend with conditions (weight 0.17): Some reviewers recommend the game with certain conditions, such as waiting for a sale or being able to tolerate some jank for a cool concept.
- Positive overall experience (weight 0.13): Many reviewers have a positive overall experience with the game, finding it fun and worth the price.
- Worth it for specific audiences (weight 0.1): The game is considered worth buying for specific audiences, such as fans of old-school GTA, dark humor, and those who appreciate 80s aesthetics.
- Multiplayer and co-op modes (weight 0.1): There is a significant desire among players for multiplayer and co-op modes to enhance the gaming experience.
- Wait for improvements or sale (weight 0.09): Some reviewers suggest waiting for a sale or further improvements if you want a more polished experience or stronger story.
- Future expectations (weight 0.04): Players are looking forward to future DLCs or the developer's next game, indicating a positive outlook on the game's potential.

Other player notes:
- Add drinking coffee in patrol car (weight 0.02): Players have suggested adding the ability to drink coffee while in the patrol car, likely to enhance immersion and realism.
- Controller support on PC and Steam Deck (weight 0.02): Players have reported using an Xbox controller to play the game on both PC and Steam Deck docking station, indicating good controller support.
- Request for Turkish language patch (weight 0.02): There is a request for adding a Turkish language patch, which would make the game more accessible to Turkish-speaking players.

Emotions:
- Enjoyment (weight 0.26): Players enjoy the game's fun and addictive gameplay, including combat, driving mechanics, and the unique police perspective. The open-world setting, variety of missions, and engaging police drama tropes, along with good voice acting and a lively city, contribute to a thoroughly enjoyable experience.
- Frustration (weight 0.14): Players are frustrated with various technical issues such as bugs, AI behavior, and performance problems like FPS drops and crashes. Repetitive gameplay, unclear mechanics, and issues with driving sensitivity and car physics also contribute to this frustration.
- Satisfaction (weight 0.13): Players feel satisfied with the game's unique proposal, engaging story, and addictive gameplay. The variety of activities, well-developed city, and continuous updates, along with the game's balance and authenticity, contribute to a positive and rewarding experience.
- Excitement (weight 0.1): Players are excited about the game's dynamic and varied gameplay, extensive customization options, and the potential for future updates. The variety of vehicles, weapons, and abilities, along with the immersive gameplay and intense action, contribute to this excitement.
- Disappointment (weight 0.1): Players feel disappointed due to the game's lack of depth, repetitive gameplay, and short story. The high price relative to the amount of content and the game's underdeveloped state also contribute to this disappointment.
- Excited (weight 0.03): Players are excited about the game's future potential, car chases, and police procedures. The dynamic and interesting gameplay, along with the game's potential for additional updates and improvements, contribute to this excitement.
- Nostalgia (weight 0.03): Players feel nostalgic due to the game's retro vibe and atmosphere, reminiscent of classic games like Police Quest and early GTA titles. The 80s setting and homage to classic action games evoke a strong sense of nostalgia.
- Hopeful (weight 0.03): Players are hopeful about the game's potential for future improvements, including multiplayer mode and additional content. The developers' responsiveness to feedback and the potential for sequels with a bigger scope contribute to this hope.
- Appreciation (weight 0.03): Players appreciate the game's positive aspects, such as the variety of missions, good graphics, and quality dialogue. The inclusion of community feedback and the game's overall positive experience contribute to this appreciation.
- Joy (weight 0.02): Players experience joy from the game's positive atmosphere, enjoyable gameplay loop, and fun car chases. The game's soundtrack and easy-going nature also contribute to this joy.
- Boredom (weight 0.02): Players feel bored due to the repetitive nature of the gameplay and tasks. The lack of variety and lifeless feel after extended play contribute to this boredom.
- Frustrated (weight 0.02): Players are frustrated with the game's numerous bugs, stability issues, and performance problems. The high price relative to the short duration and content also contribute to this frustration.
- Hope (weight 0.01): Players have hope for new DLCs, additional content, and improvements. The developers' engagement with the community and potential for off-duty activities contribute to this hope.
- Satisfied (weight 0.01): Players feel satisfied with the gameplay, finding it worth the price and enjoying the variety of equipment and upgrades. Regular updates and a good price-performance ratio contribute to this satisfaction.
- Surprise (weight 0.01): Players are surprised by the extensive content and nostalgic atmosphere of the game. The game exceeding expectations and fully working systems like the subway contribute to this surprise.
- Amusement (weight 0.01): Players are amused by the chaotic and random nature of the game, along with accidental humor. The humorous take on police work and chaotic city dynamics contribute to this amusement.
- Appreciative (weight 0.01): Players are appreciative of the overall game quality, regular updates, and future potential. The free updates from developers and the game's positive aspects contribute to this appreciation.
- Disappointed (weight 0.01): Players feel disappointed due to the lack of a third-person view, not good value for the price, and the game feeling lifeless. The lack of expected content and features contribute to this disappointment.
- Nostalgic (weight 0.01): Players feel nostalgic due to the game's noir climate, detailed environment, and setting in the 80s. The homage to classic GTA Trilogy and 80s action films evoke a strong sense of nostalgia.
- Enthusiasm (weight 0): Players are enthusiastic about the positive experiences with various aspects of the game. The overall enjoyable gameplay and engaging atmosphere contribute to this enthusiasm.}