Tim Constant, a video game creator, took 18 months to develop the game "Not Tonight", a politically-charged sci-fi thriller based on an apocalyptic post-Brexit Britain, complete with a macabre funeral version of "God Save the Queen".
The main character stars a nightclub bouncer who recently lost his British citizenship. Due to his predicament, he is forced into a life of doing odd jobs at the behest of a totalitarian government.
The protagonist, now a victim of the gig economy, must check the identities of characters and permit them to either enter his employer's bar and later. He is later charged with letting people into the country.
"Person of European Heritage #112: Welcome to Relocation Block B, your new home," the game starts. "Your designated role is 'Bouncer'."
"Work hard, stay out of trouble, and we might let you stay in the UK," the government mantra says.
"In an alternative Britain where Brexit talks have collapsed, an extreme far-right government has taken power," the games website explains.
"Citizens of European heritage have been rounded up and exiled. Forced out of your previous life, you find yourself in the midst of a booming gig economy, fighting to scrape by and return to the city you call home."
I am LOVING #NotTonight. Doesn't hold back on the difficulty, but isn't impossible either. More streaming of this to come soon. pic.twitter.com/l5qc8Dz1IG
— Kate ❤️💜💙 (@Zen_r0b0) August 17, 2018
The 16-bit shocker is reminiscent of role-playing games (RPGs) from the 1990s, and has been compared to the 2013 independent game "Papers, Please".
The game featured a character from the fictitious Communist country, Arstotzka, employed by the Ministry of Administration to "decide who can enter Arstotzka and who will be turned away or arrested," the website FAQ states.
<p">Due to the game's sensitive probe into Britain's future, the game's creator was initially cautious. "If you look at politics and video games as a whole, they're generally not approached because it can put people off," Constant said.
Hey all! If there's anyone who picked up Not Tonight over the weekend, would you do me a solid and consider reviewing it?
— Mike Rose (@RaveofRavendale) August 20, 2018
The right-wing crazies have turned up, and started negative review bombing the game because "propaganda" ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ https://t.co/ryXTEvBazb
However, some believe that using video games to test run political scenarios can be useful.
"It's a chance for you to live in a dystopian Britain, which is very different, so it has an effect because you will understand the consequences and the impacts-you will make choices, and you will try to reason with them," Oliver Mauco, Game in Society founder and Science Po University professor said.
Not tonight is fantastic, was not a big fan of papers please, but this takes the basic concept and just kinda expands on it I feel. Well worth a look I would say.
— Max Boardman (@Millbeeful) August 20, 2018
PanicBarn, the Somerset-based creator of Not Tonight, was founded on August 1, 2012. The game was published under indie gaming label No More Robots.
The game was one of the top 10 bestsellers on the Steam downloading platform, which released it August 17. Currently, it is only available in English for PCs, but will arrive to consoles in early 2019.
