Info about Serial Cleaner:

Official game description:
Serial Cleaner is a fast-paced stealth action game set in 1970s America where you play as a professional mob cleaner. Your job is to dispose of the bodies, clean away blood stains and hide evidence - all while avoiding the police.
Stay out of sight, work quickly and make sure no trace of the crime remains. A good cleaner never gets caught!
Whether it's stowing them in your wagon or tossing them off a skyscraper - make sure those bodies don't see the light of day!
Who knew bodies had so much blood?... Vacuum up as much as you can to ensure the police don't suspect a thing!
Murder weapon left behind? Incriminating documents left scattered? Whatever it is, make sure the police don't get to it before you do!
The best cleaners are never seen or heard, so use every trick at your disposal to hide and avoid getting caught!
– Twenty story-driven contracts to complete in the 70s-inspired campaign
– Eleven themed outfits to unlock
\- Clean up and jive to the funky 70s inspired soundtrack
– Multiple 'Challenges' for each campaign contract with community leaderboards

Release date: Jul 14, 2017

Categories: Stealth Gameplay, Top-Down Perspective, Crime Simulation, Story-driven, High Replayability, Action, Single-player

Feature scans:
- Proton/Linux: score 10; verdict: Works Well; summary: The user feedback indicates that the Linux version of Serial Cleaner runs excellently without any issues. The game is reported to work smoothly with no notable problems.
- Steam Deck: score 60; verdict: Tinkering Required; summary: The analysis of user feedback for the Steam Deck experience of this game reveals significant issues with language and text display, particularly when using Chinese. Controller compatibility is also a major concern, with users reporting frequent problems. However, there are also positive reviews highlighting the game's enjoyable gameplay and smooth performance on the Steam Deck.

- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price:
  - Community fair range: $5.00 - $15.00
  - Reasoning: The evidence suggests that while the game is enjoyable, many users find it most appealing when purchased at a discounted price, typically around a few dollars. Some users explicitly mention that they would recommend the game at full price due to its value, but the general sentiment leans towards a lower price point, indicating that the community considers a fair base-game price to be on the lower end. The mentions of sales and bundles suggest a price range that is more accessible and perceived as good value for money.
- Playtime Metrics:
  - Game completion: 20.0h
  - Story completion: 5.0h
  - Session length: N/A
  - Endgame: 3.0h
  - Reasoning: The evidence provides multiple data points for playtime metrics. The first quote mentions nearly 20 hours of gameplay, which aligns with the total game completion time. The second quote specifies approximately 5 hours to finish the story mode, which is used for the story completion metric. The third quote breaks down the playtime into 6 hours for main missions and 3 hours for bonus contracts, supporting both the game completion and endgame metrics. The fourth quote indicates a personal playtime of 8 hours to achieve 100% completion, further supporting the game completion metric.
- Time-to-fun:
  - Summary: The game starts fun and addictive early on, with its unique art style and music enhancing the experience despite some repetitive elements.
  - Stance: Fun immediately
  - Anchor: Clearing the first few levels and getting into the gameplay loop.
  - Time to anchor: 0h 30m
  - Friction: Repetitive gameplay; Non-customizable controls; No checkpoints
  - Unlock drivers: Addictive gameplay loop; Unique art style and music
  - Conditions: Playing on the go (Steam Deck); Enjoying stealth gameplay; Appreciating 70s aesthetic and music
- Player Archetypes:
  - Stealth Enthusiast (sale)
    - Motivation: Enjoyment of stealth and strategic gameplay.
    - Playstyle: Strategic and patient, focusing on avoiding detection and completing tasks meticulously.
    - Experience: familiar
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: stealth lover; strategy gamer
    - Reference games: Gunpoint; Party Hard
  - Completionist (sale)
    - Motivation: Completing all achievements and mastering the game.
    - Playstyle: Thorough and persistent, aiming to complete all levels and challenges.
    - Experience: veteran
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: achievement hunter; completionist
    - Reference games: N/A
  - Casual Gamer (sale)
    - Motivation: Relaxation and enjoyment without a significant time investment.
    - Playstyle: Casual and relaxed, playing for short periods and enjoying the game's simplicity.
    - Experience: newcomer
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: casual player; retro fan
    - Reference games: N/A
  - Value Seeker (sale)
    - Motivation: Finding enjoyable and valuable gaming experiences.
    - Playstyle: Balanced, enjoying the game for its overall experience and value.
    - Experience: mixed
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: value hunter; bargain gamer
    - Reference games: N/A


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:
- Engaging and Fun Gameplay (weight 0.67): The gameplay is widely praised for being entertaining, enjoyable, and fun. Players appreciate the smooth and engaging stealth mechanics, which are simple yet challenging.
- Attractive Art Style (weight 0.44): The game features an attractive and charming art style with retro pixel-art visuals. The 1970s-inspired graphics and color palette are well-received by players.
- Interesting Story and Humor (weight 0.34): The story is noted for being interesting and engaging, with humorous elements that add to the overall enjoyment. The lighthearted and charming tone is appreciated by players.
- Well-Designed Levels (weight 0.34): The level design is praised for being interesting, well-designed, and varied. Players enjoy the challenging and complex layouts, as well as the diversity in map sizes.
- Unique and Innovative Concept (weight 0.25): The game's concept is frequently described as unique, innovative, and creative. Players find the gameplay mechanics engaging and different from other games.
- Great Visual and Audio Style (weight 0.23): The game's stylish visuals and enjoyable music are frequently praised. The retro visual style and funk-infused soundtrack contribute to the overall pleasant ambiance.
- High Replayability (weight 0.17): The game offers high replay value through achievements, challenges, unlockable content, and bonus levels. Players appreciate the additional content like outfits and missions.
- Good Value for Money (weight 0.1): Players feel that the game offers good value for its price, especially when on sale. The combination of enjoyable gameplay, unique concept, and additional content contributes to this perception.

Common complaints:
- Repetitive gameplay loop (weight 0.29): The gameplay can become repetitive and boring quickly, leading to frustration among players.
- Control and achievement bugs (weight 0.27): Players encounter bugged and unresponsive controls, as well as issues with achievements not unlocking properly.
- High difficulty and patience required (weight 0.26): The game requires a lot of patience and can be time-consuming, with later levels being particularly difficult.
- Police AI behavior issues (weight 0.21): Players report various issues with police AI, including getting stuck, maintaining aggression, and behaving unfairly in certain situations.
- Progress lost after updates (weight 0.19): Multiple players have experienced lost save data, progress, and unlocked items after game updates.
- Controller compatibility issues (weight 0.18): There are issues with controller support and compatibility, including problems with controller bindings.
- Predictable and unfair AI (weight 0.17): The AI behavior can be predictable and sometimes feel unfair, affecting the gameplay experience.
- Update introduced bugs (weight 0.1): Recent updates have introduced various bugs, affecting gameplay and overall experience.
- Button and interaction issues (weight 0.1): Players report difficulties with button interactions, including accidental presses and buttons not responding.
- Initial difficulty and boredom (weight 0.09): The game can be initially difficult and boring, which may deter some players from continuing.
- Tedious cleaning mechanics (weight 0.09): Cleaning blood, particularly in certain contracts, can be tedious and annoying for players.

Gameplay feedback:
- Crime scene cleaning gameplay (weight 0.62): The game revolves around cleaning up crime scenes, including removing bodies and evidence, often under the pressure of avoiding police detection. Players take on the role of a cleaner, managing crime scenes for various clients like the mafia.
- Variety of enemy behaviors (weight 0.32): The game includes various enemy types with different behaviors and patterns. Enemies have vision cones and specific patrol routes that players must learn and avoid.
- Engaging and challenging gameplay (weight 0.27): The gameplay is described as entertaining, engaging, and challenging. It requires patience and meticulous planning to complete missions successfully.
- Top-down stealth mechanics (weight 0.24): The game features top-down, level-based stealth gameplay. It includes basic stealth mechanics with a unique setting and cool visual style.
- Progressive difficulty increase (weight 0.23): The difficulty of the game increases progressively, with later levels becoming more challenging. This gradual increase keeps the gameplay engaging and tests the player's skills.
- Hiding and escaping mechanics (weight 0.18): Players can use hiding spots and cover mechanics to avoid guards and surveillance. This adds a layer of strategy to the stealth gameplay.
- Randomized item placements (weight 0.16): The game features randomized object placements and procedurally generated elements in missions, adding variety and replayability to each level.
- Avoiding police detection (weight 0.16): A core mechanic involves avoiding detection by the police while collecting items and cleaning crime scenes. Players must be stealthy and strategic to succeed.
- Unique 1970s crime theme (weight 0.14): The game is set in the 1970s with a unique organized crime theme. This setting adds a distinctive atmosphere and context to the gameplay.
- Story and bonus contracts (weight 0.11): The game includes story contracts and bonus missions based on classic movies. These add depth and additional content to the gameplay experience.
- Collectibles and special missions (weight 0.11): Players can find collectibles such as costumes and movie tapes, and participate in special missions. These elements provide extra challenges and rewards.
- Simple and intuitive controls (weight 0.06): The game features simple controls involving the keyboard for movement and actions, making it accessible and easy to learn.
- Game size and duration (weight 0.06): The game size ranges from 1-5 GB and offers approximately 5-10 hours of gameplay, making it a manageable and engaging experience.

Performance notes:
- Gameplay stability (weight 0.16): While some players report smooth gameplay, others have experienced buggy gameplay and significant controller issues.
- Platform-specific performance (weight 0.14): The game runs well on Linux and Windows 10, with reports of stable framerates and no awful loading screens.
- Technical and loading issues (weight 0.13): Players have encountered various technical problems, including loading issues and minor glitches.
- Controller support issues (weight 0.13): There are significant issues with controller support, including problems with triggers and specific buttons.
- Game launch and save issues (weight 0.11): Some players have reported that the game does not launch, and there are issues with saved progress and game saves.
- Text display problems (weight 0.07): There are reports of issues with text display, particularly on Steam Deck.

Recommendations:
- Worth buying on sale (weight 0.25): Many players suggest purchasing the game on sale or as part of a bundle for better value.
- Recommended for various players (weight 0.19): The game is recommended for a wide range of players, including collectors and those looking for a short break from more demanding titles.
- Positive general recommendations (weight 0.18): Several clusters generally recommend trying the game and find it worth the time, especially for fans of specific genres.
- Recommended for stealth game fans (weight 0.11): The game is highly recommended for fans of smart stealth games due to its originality and stylish presentation.
- Controller recommended for gameplay (weight 0.08): Using a controller is strongly recommended for an enhanced gameplay experience.
- Suggestions for game improvements (weight 0.07): Players suggest adding more incentives for exploring small details and introducing a multiplayer mode.
- Not recommended due to technical issues (weight 0.04): Some players do not recommend purchasing the game due to technical issues.
- Recommendation for specific in-game content (weight 0.04): Players recommend playing the movie-themed bonus contracts.
- Specific gameplay improvement suggestion (weight 0.04): A suggestion to highlight blood stains when using the cleaner's vision.
- Interest in game's sequel (weight 0.03): Some players express interest in getting the game's sequel.

Other player notes:
- Localization and personalization features (weight 0.08): The game offers a unique feature that uses the player's IP address to situate the action in their city. Additionally, it is fully translated into Brazilian Portuguese with excellent contextualization, enhancing the gaming experience for local players.

Emotions:
- Frustration (weight 0.25): Players are frustrated primarily due to technical issues such as lost progress, bugs, and poor controller support. The high difficulty, lack of mid-level checkpoints, and repetitive gameplay also contribute significantly to this frustration.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.25): Players enjoy the game's unique and addictive gameplay, interesting story, and stylish presentation. The engaging stealth mechanics, fun gameplay loop, and atmospheric music are also highly appreciated.
- Disappointment (weight 0.11): Disappointment stems from the game's lack of depth, repetitive nature, and various bugs. Players also feel let down by the underdeveloped mechanics and the game becoming boring quickly.
- Satisfaction (weight 0.08): Players feel satisfied with the game's overall experience, diverse levels, and engaging story. Completing the game 100% and the satisfying gameplay mechanics also contribute to this sense of satisfaction.
- Joy (weight 0.07): Joy is derived from the game's fun and addictive gameplay, unique concept, and stylish presentation. The enjoyable stealth mechanics and humorous elements also bring joy to players.
- Excitement (weight 0.06): Players are excited by the game's unique and engaging gameplay mechanics, immersive experience, and challenging gameplay. The unique concept and entertaining nature of the game also contribute to this excitement.
- Anger (weight 0.03): Anger is primarily caused by severe bugs introduced in updates, lost save data, and game issues. Players also express anger over perceived disrespect for PC gamers and spyware concerns.
- Appreciation (weight 0.02): Players appreciate the game's unique gameplay, effort by developers, and humorous elements. The sympathetic visual style and pleasant music are also highly valued.
- Relaxation (weight 0.01): The relaxing gameplay and good music contribute to a sense of relaxation for players. Activities like wiping bloodstains also provide a calming experience.
- Engagement (weight 0): The game requires logical thinking and patience, which keeps players engaged. The challenging nature of the game also contributes to this engagement.}