4.5/5 ★ – vassm's review of Papers, Please.

I've known about "Papers, Please" for years and studied it extensively throughout my undergrad and grad, but I only recently got around to playing it. I played through the game twice (my second playthrough being double the time compared to the first) and had a great time on both runs. In my first playthrough, I only made it to day 15 because I got arrested after having suspiciously "too much money" on my person. On my second run, I managed to escape to another country with the help of Jorji, who quickly became my bestie. I absolutely loved the Slavic undertones of the game. It explores the theme of nationalism brilliantly, and as a fellow Slav, I appreciated how it portrays the negative effects of such ideologies on society. The gameplay itself was enjoyable, though I struggled with the financial aspect. I understand that the difficulty is part of the experience, but managing the family's needs became frustrating. It even got to the point where I resented my family and ended up abandoning them, without much remorse. XD I'm excited to try the endless mode whenever I have some downtime, and I'm also curious to explore the 20 different endings. In my first playthrough, I got ending 11, and then got 16. I'm really interested to see what the other are and might go back to find out. Lastly, I have to mention how much I enjoyed the art style. Despite being pixelated, it felt distinctive and really added to the game's worn-down atmosphere. Overall, I loved my experience with "Paper, Please" and can see why it's so highly regarded. 9.1/10