The game starts soon after the end of the Six-Year War between Arstotzka and Kolechia. However, the players don't get much information about the conflict itself. The only knowledge is that it has just ended and that the city of Grestin got divided into two parts as the result of that war. This is where the player's role comes in.

Inspecting the immigrants

The player's task as the border inspector in the Grestin border checkpoint is to inspect and check the immigrants coming from Kolechia and wishing to enter the country of Arstotzka. You have been chosen to this job via a lottery. The job may seem to be boring, but it's also very demanding as the people who come to your checkpoint may sometimes be a dangerous criminals, terrorists, smugglers, and thieves. You need to carefully check every possible aspect before letting someone through the border.

Moreover, you need to work hard in order to maintain your family, including your wife, your son, your uncle, and your mother-in-law. Every working day ends with a sum up of your earnings and your bills. You need to be payable to keep your family members healthy. Of course, you can always decide to accept a bribe and increase your income this way, but you must watch out not to get caught by the Ministry of Admission, or they will fine you for violating the immigration protocol.

Story mode

Papers Please consists of 31 playable days with 20 different endings. Those endings are determined by the decisions you make during your work as the immigration inspector. Although the basics are quite simple to master, each day brings new regulations, rules, and challenges to tackle. As it was said you need to mind yourself, or you can get a solid penalty.

At your disposal are various MoA systems. You can inspect the immigrants, use the scanner to search for possible weapons or explosives on them, or take their fingerprints to verify their identity if their photos don't match their appearance, of if their documents include mismatching names.

Reception

Papers, Please received a very good opinions and reviews. Moreover, apart from the positive feedback from the critics, it has also won the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Games Award for strategy and simulation.