Developer: Konami Publisher: Konami Release: 01/19/96 Genre: Adventure
This one has been a long time coming. Snatcher is my favorite Sega CD game of all time and one that I hope gets a re-release someday. But Policenauts has been my white whale for decades. Ever since the previews in issues of Diehard Gamefan I have wanted to play this game bad. The next graphic adventure from Hideo Kojima and company that allegedly has an even more detailed world and story? Yeah sign me up. However Konami would pass on localizing the game. Now that the game has a fan translation I finally made time to play the game. Has it lived up to the decades of hype? Dear god yes! Stop whatever you are doing and play this game!
In the year 2010 mankind’s first independent space colony, Beyond Coast, launches. As it grows in size the need for a police force arises. Five of Earth’s best police officers from around the world are selected to undergo astronaut training to operate in space. As a result they receive the nickname Policenauts. During a routine test of a new space suit Jonathan Ingram’s suit malfunctions and he drifts off in to space and is presumably dead. In reality the cryogenic function of the suit keeps him alive in cold sleep and he is found 25 years later.
In that time the world has rapidly changed, both on Earth and in Beyond Coast. Jonathan becomes a private investigator on Earth and receives a visit from his ex-wife Lorraine with a request to find her missing husband. Although he refuses at first Lorraine is killed by a mysterious assailant after leaving his office. After failing to catch the bomber Jonathan takes the case, both to honor her last request and to confront the mysteries of his past on Beyond Coast.
The process of creating the translation of Policenauts was a herculean task, taking place over the course of almost a decade from 2002 to 2009. The nature of the game’s coding required far more effort than is typical of a fan translation. Bespoke tools were created and progress stalled many times. Translating the game was a massive undertaking. For its time Policenauts probably had one of the densest scripts in a video game with a ridiculous number of made up terms and in depth medical knowledge. I do not envy the fans who worked tirelessly to localize this game for the rest of the world to enjoy. But their work is invaluable in making this classic accessible as it should be. This one is special folks and I am here to tell you why.
Policenauts uses a streamlined interface compared to most adventure games. There is no list of common commands like use, examine, etc. You use the mouse cursor to bring up a menu to examine points of interest or question people. There are no items so there is no inventory. As such the few puzzles are straightforward and not mentally taxing. Overall Policenauts is very linear; usually there is one or two locations to visit at any given moment. If there is crucial information to your investigation you cannot leave. This is the only frustrating aspect of the game. You often must repeatedly inspect everything or exhaust every line of dialogue multiple times to progress. This was also present in Snatcher but at least Metal Gear would nudge you in the right direction eventually. This is my one complaint and even that is minor in the grand scheme.
Lethal Weapon in space best describes Policenauts with Jonathan as Riggs and Ed as Murtaugh. Their camaraderie drives the game and they are some of the most likeable characters in gaming. This is a buddy cop movie in game form replete with all its tropes. You can easily see most of the plot twists coming a mile away. Yet the way they tell the story helps it rise above its rote status. Although the puzzles are slight Policenauts is engrossing thanks to its story and world building. And what a world it is. There is an insane amount of depth to nearly every facet of Beyond Coast. You can easily spend hours learning about minute details about life on the space colony on a medical and societal level. It contributes to the pacing problems but I prefer that level of detail than leaving everything to the imagination.
The pacing of the various acts varies. Most of the actual detective work takes place in the first two acts. These are the slowest and where you will fumble about the most. Once the revelations about the mysteries surrounding Beyond Coast start the game kicks in to high gear and barely slows down. Most of the following acts are long conversations, unskippable cutscenes, and shootout sequences. Speaking of which I like these far more than in Snatcher. The shooting segments in Policenauts require a lot more skill than that game, are longer and more cinematic. They do an excellent job of creating tension, sell the weight of the story’s heavy revelations, and provide a dose of adrenaline in a game that is very text heavy. I will say that the lead-up in the final act is far better than the conclusion which feels a little anticlimactic.
In Closing
What more needs to be said? Policenauts is an absolutely amazing achievement in world building and storytelling and deserving of all the accolades and praise it receives online. For decades the lucky ones who could speak Japanese have extolled its virtues. Now we can all see if it was worth the hype. I am here to tell you that not only does it do so it exceeds it. As of this writing it has been a few days and I am still thinking about the game and the unbelievable ride I was taken on. If this review has not convinced you to give Policenauts a chance nothing will.
