The 1980s is the best setting for a mystery.
Why?
No Internet. No social media. No smart phones. Actually, no cell phones and only doctors had pagers.
Too many movies these days have guys discovering some plot-driving truth simply by Googling it. Back in the ‘80s, folks had to dig for the truth…sometimes literally. Much blood was spilt from paper cuts of endless cabinets of files. And long hours at the library scrolling through microfiche.
Yes, those were the days.
The Occupation by White Paper Games is a “first-person immersive simulation in which you play as a whistleblowing journalist”. What’s the best part about The Occupation?
Yep, it’s set in 1987.
And it’s England.
Here’s the full blurb from the game’s site:
A terrorist attack has left 23 dead & has become a catalyst for the creation of The Union Act. A controversial act which threatens the civil liberties of the British population.
The day is October 24th 1987 and the next 4 hours will determine the outcome of the act and the future of the country. Events happen in real-time and you must make decisions based on the evidence surrounding you.
Is the cost of an extreme action outweighed by the cause of the greater good?
You are the reporter. You decide the narrative.
The trailer shows us opening suitcases, talking to people, entering offices and looking around. And then some more talking to people. Yes, it’s not really action-filled, but guess what?
No sitting around Googling or playing with smart phones or tweeting. There’s something good about that.
And there’s good in finding the truth. Better, finding the evil, which is the truth. And blowing the whistle to bring good to the land.
Your choices and your skill is at play and the better they are, the better our society will be.
