A 'boutique' game. Tom Francis' vision for a Deus-Ex inspired corporate espionage/murder mystery/hacking game doesn't overstay its welcome. The soundtrack is an absolute banger of techno-jazz and the writing is also a real highlight, full of silliness reminiscent of Airplane! and The Naked Gun. The only downside is the game's length; clocking in around 3 hours for any% and about 7 hours for 100% achievements and max level score, the game is over before it really feels like the mechanics are fully realized.

Now before I begin I just want to clarify this:
This is strictly my own opinion. If you disagree with me, more power to you. Just keep the comments civil and respectful.

Hello, everybody, and welcome back to
GAME MODE: ON!

Well, the new year is here, we're ready to start off fresh and hopefully, we can actually meet our goals before next January.

So what better way to begin things than with a game that deals with anxiety-inducing subject matter, overwhelming politics, plenty of fBLEEPes shown on live TV and enough foul-mouthed Brits to give the entire Inbetweeners franchise a run for it's money.

I'm talking about Not For Broadcast, an independent full-motion video game developed by NotGames and published by tinyBuild.
When first announced back in 2019 and went to early access the following year, the game has garnered some attention due to it's ambitious gameplay style and humorous usage of FMV sequences. It was quite the interesting little game and people couldn't wait to get a hold of the full experience.
However, it took longer than expected. Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, production on the game was halted and then spread around until finally, it saw a final release in 2022 on PC before eventually transitioning to consoles the following year. Not to mention, there was a VR version that came out for Meta Quest 2 and later on, PlayStation 5.

Reviews were very positive at the time with people praising the game for it's multi-layered storyline, innovative gameplay mechanics and comical writing even if some took issue with it's more dissonant tone.

After playing the game for almost a full week myself, I can safely say that while it's not a flawless masterpiece, there is alot to love about Not For Broadcast so let's just shut up and get to it already.

STORY & CHARACTERIZATION:
Taking place in a fictional country similar to the United Kingdom and set between 1984 and 1991, you play as Alex Winston, a janitor working for the Channel One station who finds himself being handed the position of broadcast editor and you now have the responsibility of handling the news program. On top of managing your home life, you also have the burden of deciding what needs to be shown on live television and what needs to be bleeped out all the while political unrest is gripping the nation which could very well lead to one of multiple outcomes depending on whose side you're on.

I understand that politics in general have become a very unpopular subject in recent years, I've made a few statements about how useless they are myself, but regardless, politics are here for some kind of reason so really, there's no chance of things changing for the better and our leaders are gonna continue wasting everybody's time all the while doing jack-sBLEEPt about issues that actually matter. Seriously, count how many conferences our governments have had about climate change and how barely anything has been done about it, I fBLEEPin' dare you.
But regardless, if you're gonna do a satire on politics, you have to at least make it worth my time. Thankfully, this game manages to pull it off in many ways. For one thing, there's so many moments that are absolutely hilarious and I just ended up laughing at people either going nuts over silly things or just preferring to go off their rockers for the hell of it. But while the game has a habit of being hilarious, it doesn't forget to take itself seriously as the story deals with the cons of politics in a harsh fashion that feels almost too close to home and it also helps that it doesn't feel one-sided. Regardless of how you feel about the left or the right, both factions have a habit of making decisions that cause more harm than good and try to hide it under the facade of good intentions. Sure, one side maybe worse than the other but that doesn't make up for the atrocities committed by both parties, does it? Violence shouldn't have to be the only resort and no one, especially innocent people, have to die to either prove a point or get what you want.
During my playthrough, I tried to be as neutral as possible which seemed like a lost cause in this day and age but hey, I stood by my beliefs that there are better ways we can resolve current issues and we shouldn't need another fBLEEPin' World War to sort out whatever political conflicts there are at the moment no matter how big they are. But of course, after everything I've done to try and not pick a side, it doesn't matter anyway since in one of the fourteen epilogues I've gotten, the nation could still be going to shit as we know it.
Yeah, as you play through the game, your choices do have consequences which can affect your family, the studio and whatever's going on in the world. It's quite harrowing trying to decide what's best for those you have faith in and who deserves to be mocked and left to go broke and can make for an investing multi-pathed story. Whatever decision you make, you can always have a good laugh, have a good gasp and maybe a good sigh of relief if you're lucky enough.
Part of the story's enjoyment comes from the actors in the FMV sequences. Obviously, the entire cast comprises of nobodies but even then, everybody gives 110% in every scene imaginable. Not only are they able to deliver the comedic aspect very well but when they need to take things seriously, shit does start to hit the fan. Special mention goes out to Paul Baverstock who plays Jeremy Donaldson, the male co-anchor of the news, Jonathan Hawkins as Alan James, a narcissistic conspiracy theorist, and notable soap opera regular Roger Alborough as Peter Clement, a former television presenter turned politician who co-leads the governmental party ADVANCE alongside Prime Minister Julia Salisbury.

GAMEPLAY & CONTROLS:
In a setup similar to that of Five Nights at Freddy's, you're pretty much stuck in this one space looking at different camera angles and sorting out various controls. But instead of warding off killer animatronics, you're trying to censor as much swearing as you can all the while keeping an eye on what you're showing.
As the broadcast editor, you have the power to make the news program look as good as possible. You can switch between four different camera angles, try to prevent interference, apply stock audience sounds when necessary, censor naughty language(and other bits one side or the other doesn't want to hear) and play some ads at the end of each segment. Occasionally, you will have to deal with a few annoying issues such as electrical surges that can shock you if you're not too careful, overheating power-lines that can be cooled off with the fan, the occasional power outages and conks and a bunch of murder-crazy toys that need to be fended off. As the game progresses, new regulations are put into place which can make your job much harder depending on the difficulty you've selected so it's best to concentrate on the task at hand because if you neglect to censor a number of swears, stay on a shot for too long or play an ad too early or don't play it at all, you're pretty much fired. There's also moments where you have to make a tough decision that could further make or break one group or the other which could either fuck up the nation or hopefully make it better by the end.
Since I was playing on a console instead of PC, it took a bit of time getting used to the controls but once I got the hang of it, it's not as bad or as hard as it seems. Kinda like riding a bike, you'll get there soon. Basically, you use the left analog stick to look around the area while using the D-pad to select a switch or a tape. You use the interface buttons to switch between the different screens, you use the R1 button to censor and the other trigger and bumpers are for controlling other mechanics on the broadcasting mixer. A bit complex but again, you will get used to it.
There were a couple times when the control would lock up and I was unable to switch the power on in time for the broadcast and there was one time when the whole game would freeze but after a restart, it should resolve itself fine. It's thankfully a very rare occurrence but it is worth noting.
Once you're done with the broadcast, you can go down to the archives to look at what you've done so far. You can look at a full broadcast, rushes of said broadcast or the adverts that go along with it.
On top of that, there's also these visual novel-type segments where in-between the broadcasting levels, you're attempting to sort your life out and your relationship with your family. Again, your choices when they do pop up do matter and it can either benefit you or cost you dearly.
Finally, there's the challenge mode where you can replay any broadcast and add modifiers to earn rewards once beaten. That, and there's some extra broadcast levels, some of which are DLC with the last one due to be out later this year.

GRAPHICS & PRODUCTION VALUE:
Besides the well-done FMV sequences, the actual in-game graphics are alright. They're nothing to go crazy over but serviceable enough for the type of experience you're in for.
Aside from the decent artistry, we also have a solid soundtrack composed by Jason Orbaum and Christopher Brown where the score not only compliments the story's tone but there's also some banging' musical numbers that can either make you laugh or make you cringe a bit but in a good way.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Overall, aside from a very small and rare technical issue, Not For Broadcast is a solid and entertaining game that provides a good challenge and is able to make a good point about the current state of the political world.
If you have a console or a bloody good PC to run it, definitely get this off the digital store and give it a go, it's so worth the money.

Now as for my plans for this year, just a heads-up that there's a good chance I may not get around to them as frequently as I would like to as I still got my other shit on Letterboxd and Serializd to worry about and I'm already planning on cuttin' the amount I put out on the former site since I'm still a little burnt out from the last two years.
That being said, there are a couple games I wanna get around to and I do have an event month planned for later on so here's to hoping I get those done on time while trying not to overdo it.

Until next time, thank you for taking the time to check out this installment of GAME MODE: ON.

If you liked what you've read here and want to see more, you can go ahead and follow me whenever you want.

And also, don't forget to check out my Letterboxd page for new film reviews every week and keep an eye out for my Top 10 Best & Worst of 2023 lists soon enough.






AFTER-NOTE: Just to be certain, we do apologize for the fruity language. Hopefully we've managed to get it bleeped out in time. If not.... someone's going to be in trouble.

a game that has so much to say but ultimately, says nothing

the mechanics are fun! even in the easiest difficulty, there is some difficulty that keeps you on your toes. Some of the segments were picky on the cameras and the musical bits were nonsensical but it was really a delight to fiddle around with.

the story...the complexities they tried to take tackle at times feel...misconceived. one thing the game gets right: major news networks must be neutral. you do need to show both sides and in a country like (Not) Britain and United States, this is a problem. i do believe you need to show facts, not one side over the other, and that was expressed in my gameplay. But the politics of the game is so painfully centrist it made me roll my eyes more times or laugh that I thought it would.

despite on your politics in real life, making both sides of this games conflict so cartoonishly backwards in their respected camps just really kills the underlining conversations to be had on their actions and what they believe in. Maybe that is the point, and the satirical British writing falls short on me, but it just was more grating to me than intriguing. But there are moments of true genuinity, true writing chops were I'm sitting there like, "Why cant MOST of this game be like this." (also at some point the game really tried to push "not all rich people are evil" and i sat at my desk laughing for a few minutes in a call).

I just...I dont know. I dont hate the game, nor do I like it. It's hard to pin point my exact feelings, but it is certainly an intriguing game. I do see myself playing it in the future to see what would happen in the other endings.

One thing though, the amount of LGBT rep made me smile a lot.

Hugely underrated game. This game came at a time where most licensed IPs were just not as great as you wanted to be in gaming, but they were slowly getting better over time. We'd been burned by many South Park games in the past, but no longer! Stick of Truth feels like a true love letter to fans of the show. It really looks like you're playing an episode of the show, and opening any character's closet will bombard you with references that die-hard fans will truly appreciate.

Even the mere Junk items in the game that have no purpose have references in their descriptions as well.

Stick of Truth, of course, is hilarious. It doesn't pull punches and it gets as wild as you'd expect Trey and Matt to get (who had a hand in the game's creation). The game also plays great, with a Paper Mario-esque combat system and a few different Classes to choose from for your playthrough. It's an Obsidian game, by the way, so yeah. You know it's good from that alone.

Don't overlook this one just because it's South Park. It has some missable trophies, so keep that in mind if you're an achievement hunter. Otherwise, give it a shot if you're a fan of the show. People who aren't fans might still get enjoyment out of this, but not as much most likely.

Score: 87

A very competent, very niche title - if you're interested in hospital sims, it's slim pickings, and Project Hospital is really the only serious title in the running. It's charming and fairly robust, so it's well worth playing if you need that medical itch scratched. It is held back by lackluster UI and bad tutorials, neither are atrocious, but they're still noticeably subpar. Despite the flaws, I continue to come back to this game, it has become a sort of Zen game for me... who knew the medical field could be so relaxing?