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Police Simulator: Patrol Officers News

Police Duties: Interview, Interrogate, Investigate!



[h3]Fellow officers,[/h3]
As a police officer, you must always make the right decision when handling violations against the law. To guide you through this process, Police Simulator: Patrol Officers offers you a variety of options to interview witnesses, suspects, or other citizens. Today, we're showing you some of the available options!

So, how does all of it look like in-game? Check out the video below to see the entire footage!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
[hr][/hr][h2]When can you interrogate people?[/h2]



In general, it's quite easy: If you want to talk to a citizen, simply proceed to them and start a conversation. However, you should only begin an interrogation if you actually have actual suspicion or reason towards that person. Did you see that they committed a crime or violation? Are they witnesses?

If you have reasonable suspicion that to believe that a person may have committed a crime, you can detain them, frisk them and follow up with additional actions. We'll get back to that later!

If you stumble upon probable cause, you need more details to proceed. This means that more evidence or clues are required: You need to make it believable that a person is very likely to have committed a crime. Probable cause does allow you to search a person or their car respectively and make an arrest.

In this blog post, we'll focus on the situations you saw in the clip above and explain them in more detail.

[hr][/hr][h2]Take immediate action[/h2]



Right at the beginning of the clip, you see a man litter the streets in the distance. With your eagle eyes, you've spotted this violation immediately - and now you can act without having to hesitate!

Without the need for more details, you can issue a fine or at least a verbal warning. This option is available if it is a violation for drivers of car accidents, if you have pulled-over drivers or if these are civil infractions by pedestrians. Whether you decide to let them pay the bill or simply hear how bad they behaved... that's at your own discretion. Do whatever you feel is right.

By the way: You can hand out tickets without detaining somebody first - and not having to fear negative consequences. But detaining them first will reward you with some extra juicy Shift Points.
„During playtests, we realized that a lot of players do not detain citizens before giving them tickets or warnings. That's why we decided that detaining will be made an optional action which is rewarded with extra points.“ - Thomy, Project Manager

[hr][/hr][h2]What if I go too far?[/h2]



Law and order apply to both citizens and officers: If you have crossed a line, well, you'll lose Conduct Points.

Yes, you want to keep as many as possible...

[hr][/hr][h2]Asking for an ID[/h2]



If you have reasonable suspicion that a person committed a violation or if they are a witness, you can ask them to identify themselves. If you request them to do so, they are required to cooperate.

As an officer in Brighton, you are allowed to ask for identification if the person looks like a wanted suspect, probably committed a crime like assault, took part in a robbery, stole a car, violated any traffic rules by car or on foot, violated any laws like littering, drove suspiciously, simply behaves suspiciously, appears to have taken illegal substances, carries an illegal item or flees while being detained.

Yeah.. that's a lot.

We strongly recommend comparing the person's appearance to the photo on the ID. If they don't match, the ID is probably stolen. In addition, people are not allowed to wear any accessories on ID photos. If that's the case, that's quite a strong hint that something isn't quite right.

[hr][/hr][h2]Let's make some progress![/h2]



A car accident? An assault? A robbery? In a city like Brighton, most likely another citizen has witnessed what happened and can therefore be interrogated.

You should always interrogate as many witnesses as possible to find out clues and get an idea of how the accident happened. Near car accidents, this includes both outside pedestrians and the involved drivers. We'll skip a bit over the options for car accidents as we'll have a dedicated clip for that coming very soon!

So, let's focus on crime witnesses: Very often, they can be encountered at the coherent crime scene. The more witnesses you interrogate, the more hints can be collected about the crime suspect. If you reached a point where you collected enough hints, a wanted suspect callout appears. If not enough hints are available, a search for the person is simply not possible. In this case, the investigation is completed automatically.

Here's some useful information: Accident and crime witnesses are being automatically detained without any proactive detaining action of the officer - even if that status might not be legally correct. This decision allows for a much simpler way of handling witnesses. No need to search half a city for this.

[hr][/hr][h2]Use your intuition![/h2]



You're a very good officer full of experience. No wonder that your intuition can help you a lot when speaking with citizens! Using it gives you extremely important information, for example, if their behavior looks out of order.

The intuition system displays information of multiple types in certain situations and is displayed as text overlay beneath the compass at the top of the screen. Possible information gives you hints about potential drug influence, their reaction to questions, and lots of other stuff.

[hr][/hr][h2]Oh no, they're fleeing! Arrest them![/h2]



If you question suspicious people or approach wanted suspects, they'll sometimes decide to flee. Sigh, they could have made their lives a lot easier. Well, in this case, you do have to chase them and bring them to stop. Most likely, you'll even have to draw your pistol or your stun gun to.. uh... politely advise them to raise their hands and give up.

A deadly force like shooting a suspect with a gun needs to be avoided and will be punished by the game! In general, aiming at a fleeing person with your pistol is only allowed when the wanted suspect was probably involved in an actual crime scene you have previously investigated. You can use the stun gun for other cases.

In many cases, you can and have to arrest these suspects afterwards. Simply handcuff them and call for a backup arrest transport. This option is not just allowed after they fled, you can also choose it if you know for sure they carry illegal items, drove under the influence of alcohol, have a fake ID, have a fake driver's license, or drove a stolen car.

[hr][/hr][h2]Search & Frisk[/h2]



Now we get to the point where you rightfully ask: Wait, how do I find out if they carry illegal items?

Well, you can both search and frisk suspects to find out! Frisking a person is allowed if they probably committed a crime, show suspicious or aggressive behavior, show signs of driving under the influence of alcohol or illegal substances or fled while being detained. Everything else goes too far.

The game is even more strict when it comes to searching for a person. This is considered to be more thorough and invasive than a frisk. The officer not only touches the visible clothing of a suspect but also inspects the content of a person's pockets, bag or car in detail. Therefore, it is only justified if the suspect is handcuffed rightfully, carries an illegal item (found out by having frisked them previously), committed a crime, shows signs of driving under the influence of substances, or fled while being detained.

So yeah, there are situations where you can decide to either search or frisk them but not all of them.

[hr][/hr][h2]More to come![/h2]

We hope we were able to give you a few insights into how interrogations work in Police Simulator: Patrol Officers! If you want to see other tasks as well, we'll definitely have more to show in the coming weeks!

If you want to be the first to catch all news regarding Police Simulator: Patrol Officers, join us on all our Socials:


https://store.steampowered.com/app/997010?snr=1_2108_9__2107

Police Duties: Stop the speeders on the streets of Brighton City!



[h3]Fellow officers,[/h3]
After explaining the variety of options when it comes to parking violations, we want to continue with more background information about Police Simulator: Patrol Officers! Today, we'll give you a few insights on how to punish speeders on the streets of Brighton - and how to detect them!

First things first, tho! Check out our clip dedicated to this important responsibility:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
[hr][/hr][h2]So... how do I even spot speeders?[/h2]



As you patrol the streets of Brighton, you should carefully pay attention to the speed limit signs along the sidewalk. These tell you exactly what the speed limit on your currently patrolled street is - usually, the standard speed limit in Brighton is 25mph. Smaller streets, however, are often defined to have a speed limit of 15mph while bigger streets allow for speeds at up to 35mph. Simple rules and simple numbers and some still won't follow them... tss.

If you report speeders rightfully, you will earn Shift Points which, together with Duty Stars, are necessary to unlock new gameplay options and neighborhoods. Of course, the opposite holds true as well: Handing out a false ticket will be penalized by losing Conduct Points and you really don't want to lose too many of them. You're a good officer, after all!

Honestly, catching speeders is quite fun. As soon as we implemented the radar gun for reporting speeders, we even had internal high score challenges to find out who can report the most speeders in one shift. Gotta catch 'em all, you know.

Pro tip! Make sure to find good spots in your neighborhood and remember them. There are locations in the city where drivers tend to drive faster than in other locations (these people, man).

And now... let's get into more detail about the methods you can use to catch these nasty speeders!

[hr][/hr][h2]Your most important tool: The Radar Gun[/h2]



To catch speeders, the radar gun is an important and essential tool for every patrol officer. You can easily equip it straight from the tool wheel to measure the speed of motor vehicles. Handling it is quite comfortable: Just aim at the car and press the trigger to take a picture! The Brighton Police Department has state-of-the-art radar gun models that automatically send the report, photo, and parsed license plate to the HQ. The future is now!

Even though the radar gun can measure the speed reliably at up to 100 meters, the picture itself might not turn out good at such a distance. You should always ensure that the license plate and the measured speed are both visible in the picture if you want to issue a ticket violation. We highly recommend positioning yourself at a safe place with a good view along a street to ensure good results. Stay calm, avoid relocating too much and you'll be good!

You're in luck: The Radar Gun is always by your side. That wasn't always the case!
„Initially it was designed that players need to fetch the radar gun from their patrol car's trunk. But we decided to have it always available so that players can also use it during foot patrols.“ - Christian Heintz, Gameplay Programmer

[hr][/hr][h2]Pacing with your Patrol Car[/h2]



You don't wanna walk and therefore prefer a shift by car? No problem, of course, you can still fulfill your duty as an officer. To catch speeders, you can use your car to measure the speed of others by pacing!

When driving behind another vehicle on the street, that vehicle's speed will be automatically measured. In the screenshot above, you can see the handy bar at the top displaying it! Technology nowadays is truly fascinating. Speeders can immediately be pulled over.

btw: The car itself will be unlocked once you collect enough Shift Points and Duty Stars, making it possible to perform car patrol shifts.

[hr][/hr][h2]Wait, pulling over?[/h2]



Yes, pulling over! To talk with the sinful driver, you need to get them straight to the sideline. Honestly, what you perform is nothing less but the detention of the person inside the car - which can therefore only be performed rightfully if there's reasonable suspicion. Obviously, driving above the speed limit is... quite a valid reason.

To pull over a car, start your signals when you're driving behind them. This will result in a short sequence of sirens and emergency lights to signal the vehicle in front of you to pull over - and what a signal that is.

Here's another tip from our developers:
„Drivers who were pulled over are released from detainment when police officers remove themselves from the pulled-over car. So make sure to stay close.“
One last detail: It's difficult to pull over in a street where there is no free parking spot. So make sure you pull over cars in spots with free parking spots if you want to be as efficient as possible.

[hr][/hr][h2]A small journey through time[/h2]

It took quite a while until we got the radar gun to the point where we're pretty satisfied with it. Below, we've included a GIF, showing off how it looked like in previous iterations.

This version isn't too old and looks already close to the current version but still a bit rough around the edges. Oh and yeah, most buildings were just white blobs.



Obviously, compared to the final version, this doesn't look too pretty - but back then this was only meant to demonstrate how the mechanic could look like once it is actually finished. At one point it could literally not take its eyes away from the cars:
„We had a prototype of the radar gun feature where the game camera followed the car. It was later on abandoned, as it was just too unrealistic and took the player's control away.“ - Thomy, Project Manager

[hr][/hr][h2]More to come[/h2]

We hope we were able to give you a few insights when it comes to speeding violations in Police Simulator: Patrol Officers! In the coming weeks, we'll go into more detail with all other tasks as well - please look forward to it! :)

If you want to be the first to catch all news regarding Police Simulator: Patrol Officers, join us on all our Socials:


https://store.steampowered.com/app/997010?snr=1_2108_9__2107

Police Duties: More details about parking violations revealed!



[h3]Fellow officers,[/h3]
in our last blog post, we've already teased one of your central tasks in Police Simulator: Patrol Officers: The punishment of parking violations! Yes, not even Brighton City is safe from careless car owners. We did mention a few possible offenses but now it's finally time to go into more details.

Wanna see all of the stuff in action first, huh? No worries, take a look at our clip dedicated to this special task:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
And now... let's get into more detail about what you just saw - including some comments from our development team at aesir interactive!

[hr][/hr][h2]Wrong Alignment[/h2]



Right at the beginning of our clip, you can see this clearly punishable violation. The car is parked on the sidewalk which is therefore obviously misconduct. However, there are also other things you can look out for in terms of wrong position and alignment: Parking too far into the street is equally as bad and some people even decide to park their car in the completely wrong direction. Hand out a ticket, officers!

[hr][/hr][h2]Invalid License Plates[/h2]



License plates are like passports: Please ensure that they're still valid - otherwise, you might get into trouble. I remember having an expired ID card when entering a bar once... uh, that didn't go well. Anyway, by inspecting the license plate of a car, you can spot the expiration date. Check the current date to see if the owner has to renew their license. It's for their good as well, huh.

[hr][/hr][h2]Expired Parking Meters[/h2]



Speaking of expiration: You can't park indefinitely in Brighton City, that would only anger everyone else. This is not a garage, after all. You can easily check the nearby parking meters to note down an offense! You'll see a lot of parked cars in the streets but we generate two empty parking spots in succession from time to time to ensure that pulled-over cars find an appropriate spot. However, most of the time we keep everything as dynamic as possible:
„The density and the number of parked cars are dependent on a lot of factors. E.g. in which part of the city the road is, whether it’s a weekend or a weekday, the time of the day and whether or not it’s street cleaning time!“ - Jitesh, Lead Game Designer

[hr][/hr][h2]Blocking a Fire Hydrant[/h2]



Imagine a fire breaking out nearby and no one is able to extinguish it just because a careless driver parked their car in front of a fire hydrant. No need to debate, tow it away! By the way: This is one of a select amount of offenses warranting calling a towing truck.

[hr][/hr][h2]No Parking Zones[/h2]



Hey drivers, you're not the owners of the city - you can't just ignore all rules and signs. This also applies to clearly marked No Parking Zones. Some of them forbid you to park your car at all times, others just at certain times or days. Look closely to check if that's the case!

Our developers have a useful tip for you:
„You can more efficiently check for parking violations when you know the map in detail. For example, certain streets have street cleaning on certain days at a specific time range. If you know this and pay attention to the current day/time, you can specifically check for parking violations in these streets.“ - Thomy, Project Manager

[hr][/hr][h2]Special Parking Zones[/h2]



Brighton is everyone's city. That's why it chose to create special parking zones for handicapped people, easing their day-to-day life at all times. However, some people simply ignore these signs and therefore deserve their punishment. No tolerance, sorry. In addition, taxis also have dedicated parking zones in which others are not allowed to park. To see if an owner of a car has permission for it, check their license plates on which a marker should tell you everything!

[hr][/hr][h2]No Valid Parking Zones[/h2]



Do we even have to elaborate? If it's not a clearly marked parking zone... it's not a parking zone. Simple as that. And yet, some just don't want to follow the rules...

Fun fact: Initially, the "No Valid Parking Zones" were not planned at all.
„Our level designers decided to place vehicles on sidewalks for atmospheric reasons. But in playtests, people tried to ticket those vehicles for unrightful parking, which was not intended or implemented. Instead of removing those vehicles, we decided to keep them and implement the "No Valid Parking Zone" violation. In addition, we added parking spots on some sidewalks for more diversity.“ - Thomy, Project Manager

[hr][/hr][h2]Parking too close to a Crosswalk[/h2]



No, it's not good to park on a sidewalk. No, it's not okay to park too far into the street either. And no, it's absolutely not acceptable to park too close to a crosswalk. Nope, Nein, Nyet.

[hr][/hr][h2]Follow the Tooltips[/h2]

Yes, we know: The parking violations alone offer so much depth that it might be hard to keep track of everything. And sometimes, you might be unsure if punishment is actually the correct decision to make. To help you with that, we have included a number of tooltips guiding you throughout the process, telling you what categories to choose for each and every violation - of course, this is completely optional. With a press of a button, you can hide the tooltips as long as you don't need them. But with a bit of practice, we're sure you'll become a professional in time - we've chosen you to protect the city after all!

[h2]More to come[/h2]

We hope we were able to give you a few insights when it comes to parking violations in Police Simulator: Patrol Officers! In the coming weeks, we'll go into more detail with other tasks as well - please look forward to it! :)

If you want to be the first to catch all news regarding Police Simulator: Patrol Officers, join us on all our Socials:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/997010?snr=1_2108_9__2107

From parking violations and accidents to chases - New screenshots out now!

[h3]Fellow officers,[/h3]
Time truly flies... can't believe it has already been a month since we announced Police Simulator: Patrol Officers!

Back then, we already teased some of the tasks that will await you in the game once we launch into Early Access this spring. A few of them were already shown off in the Announcement Trailer - but now it's time to get even more insights into your duties!



Above, you see one of several precincts in Brighton City. When you first start your shift as a police officer, you begin to patrol the busy streets of Melting Pot, the first available district with five different neighborhoods. Once you step outside the Brighton Police Department, it's time to get to work.

Of course, we strongly recommend to behave fair and lawful. A Conduct Point System will log and penalize abuses of power - while doing a good job will be noted via the Shift Point System and your Duty Stars. If you act accordingly, the game will reward you with new gameplay options and unlock additional neighborhoods.

This means: You start each shift with 100 Conduct Points and will go lower if you behave badly. Once you reach 0 Conduct Points, well, you're fired. No bad officers allowed. In addition, you start each shift with 0 Shift Points and go higher with every correct decision made. At the end of your shift, these Shift Points are converted to experience points.



One of your tasks is to look out for potential parking violations. There are quite a few things to keep in mind when determining an offense. Is the parking meter expired? Is their license plate still valid? Are they even allowed to park here?

In the screenshot above, you can see a fairly obvious case of an improperly parked vehicle. Clearly, it's against the rules to park a car straight on a sidewalk. To fine the owner of the car, you select the correct offense (in this case Position & Alignment) and then hand out a parking ticket. Let's hope they'll learn their lesson.





Here, our officer is in the process of recording an accident. Thanks to our dynamic and fully simulated traffic system, events like these can happen completely organically throughout Brighton. It's important to interview both the involved owners of their cars as well as all the witnesses nearby. This is neccessary to gather as many details as possible about the accident. Were they distracted? Did they speed? Was someone on drugs? The use of stimulants, for example, warrants an immediate call for an arrest transport.



Sometimes, questioning suspicious people might result in them fleeing. Seems like they have to hide something! In this case, you have to chase them and, if absolutely neccessary, draw your stun gun and order them to stop. Put on the handcuffs and call for an arrest transport - your colleagues will do the rest.

But that's not all! In the weeks to come, we'll show off a lot of these elements (and more!) with dedicated gameplay videos, allowing you to get additional glimpses into all the tasks and events Police Simulator: Patrol Officers has to offer.

[h2]Follow us around[/h2]

If you want to be the first to catch all news regarding Police Simulator: Patrol Officers, join us on all our Socials:

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Announcing Police Simulator: Patrol Officers!



Hey everyone,

finally (finally!) we can make it official! Police Simulator: Patrol Officers, a true-to-life simulation game, is coming to Steam Early Access this spring!

In the game, you will join the police force of the fictitious Brighton City and experience the day to day life of a police officer. You will start with citing violations and giving out parking tickets, then work your way towards shouldering more responsibilities. Be part of the community of Brighton City, get to know your neighborhood, and handle daily police work to fight crime during your shift. Always be tough, but fair: respect the law and gain more experience to unlock more neighborhoods, districts, and duties.

You can take a first look at the game in our reveal trailer:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

[h2]What can I expect?[/h2]

Police Simulator: Patrol Officers is published by astragon Entertainment, developed by Aesir Interactive and financially supported by the FFF Bayern! The game is powered by Unreal Engine 4 and will cost 19,99€ (or the equivalent in your region) at launch. After release, we will release several updates as part of the Early Access which will include new features, a two-player coop mode, new districts and much more. All these initial updates are of course included in the base price of the game. Right now, we plan to remain in Early Access up to a year and implement new content based on your feedback and critisisms.

So... what's actually included during the Early Access release? Here are a few helpful bullet points:

  • Traffic system that organically creates accidents
  • Speeding vehicles, traffic jams and other traffic violations
  • Explore the first district and its neighborhoods
  • Various duties such as car accidents, parking regulations, emergency callouts
  • Progression to unlock neighborhoods, cars and modes
  • Casual and Simulation game modes
  • Intuition System


You can take a more in-depth look at all features on our official website.



[h2]Why Early Access?[/h2]

We have decided to head for an Early Access launch first, because we want to involve you, the player community, early on. There are so many police fans out there who are looking for a game that will take their wishes and expectations into account and have them wear their virtual badges proudly right from the beginning until the final release of the finished game.

In order to do this, a police game does not only require a complete simulation of a huge living city, AI characters, traffic, and a bunch of systems but also a huge number of duties, callouts, and interactions between the players and all those features and systems. So far, we have developed a game with all fundamental systems and its architecture in place, and already filled the open world with a lot of content and features that you will surely enjoy.

Let us walk the rest of this exciting journey together and extend, iterate, and improve this game!



You can follow our official socials and join our Discord! Here are the links: