Yesterday the first official gameplay trailer for developer DRAMA’s upcoming bodycam tactical shooter, Unrecord, was released. To say fans online are divided is an understatement. Some of the most significant contentions revolve around the ultra-realistic body cam-style footage mixed with the police-centric story.
When clips from the game were released in 2022, it started making waves for its lifelike visuals, with many debating whether it was actual in-game footage or pre-rendered.
Since then, very little information about Unrecord has been released. The FAQ for the game describes it as a narrative game that takes inspiration from realistic FPS games. The FAQ also lists the police tactical shooter Ready or Not and the narrative adventure title, Firewatch, as key influences.
The trailer for Unrecord opens with an officer walking towards a building, checking their weapons and heading inside to track down a suspect. The lifelike gameplay footage shows the officer killing several suspects before reaching an interrogation segment.
First early gameplay trailer for “UNRECORD”, the bodycam FPS. Wishlist on steam now!@unrecordgame pic.twitter.com/gVa7q0YOGu
— Alexandre Spindler (@esankiy) April 19, 2023
In the last 24 hours, responses to the realistic gameplay footage were decidedly mixed, with some being blown away by the visuals and others feeling deeply troubled by the game itself. Much of the narrative online is about how even though Unrecord is undoubtedly impressive, releasing a bodycam-style shooter when we are living in a time where bodycam footage of police ending the lives of civilians is a mainstay is nothing short of problematic.
Only time will tell if all of the real-world controversies coming out of America concerning its less then stellar police will have an impact on the sales of the game on release. Still, stepping into a policeman’s shoes, even in a game, doesn’t excite me and judging from the narrative online, I’m not alone.