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112 Operator? That’s a mistake surely? Well no, actually it isn’t. 112 is a common emergency services number that works across most of Europe and in the UK, as well as in other places around the world. We aim to be informative and educational here at TheXboxHub you know.
Anyhow, 112 Operator is indeed the title of this sim game which sees you take control of the three emergency services: ambulance, police and fire brigade. As the operator, your role is crucial in managing these resources and supporting them in responding to incidents as they crop up, or are called in.
The action takes place across thousands of different cities across the globe, which have been accurately mapped according to the real world geography. This attention to detail will surely delight sim geeks, and you start off with a small area to manage before more districts are gradually added to complicate matters.
Each unit is denoted by colour and a small image to keep things clear, and incidents will begin to pop up on your map. You will need to direct the appropriate unit to deal with the problem, and a brief description is given to support your decision making. An on-site graphic will also pop up which is basic, but provides depth and satisfaction as you watch your units deal with the bad guys.
Loads of different units are unlocked and can be purchased as you play, but the key thing to watch out for is that they have capacity to carry people (squares above the unit will confirm this), as not all will. Motorbikes and helicopters can be really useful for example, but have little or no capacity to transport people. This means backup will be needed before the unit can return back to base, i.e. taking prisoners to the cells or casualties to the hospital, and this will cost you more precious resources.
At times certain large scale events such as extreme weather, forest fires and VIP travel will demand your attention. In between each shift you will have the opportunity to review and modify your units, catch up on emails and objectives, as well as hire dispatchers.
As you progress and you are promoted, you will be responsible for more districts in the city. You will be able to hire dispatchers to help you manage your workload. The CPU units are very hit and miss, sometimes dealing with incidents quicker than you ever could, whilst at other times leaving a unit right next to an incident without instructing it to move in and deal with it.
In the early stages of the campaign, as well as directing units, you will be responding directly to emergency calls. These vary from pranks, to genuinely dramatic exchanges full of several dialogue choices to respond with at each stage of the conversation. Your aim is to assess what’s happened and get the location, but it’s not always as straightforward as you think.
There are numerous different scenarios and the conversation mechanic is really slick. If you hesitate in responding the caller will prompt you which is quite impressive as well as a little creepy. Perhaps most importantly, the outcome will affect the game from minor ways such as losing time as the caller is located, to more serious consequences which can result in game over.
Visually, the presentation is minimalist with neon strands of colour that make it easier to identify unit routes, as well as the topography of the city. The style reminded me of Defcon, although on a regional rather than worldwide scale. It’s a classic sim presentation choice as it’s functional and looks easy enough on the eye. Another nice touch which makes 112 Operator feel like a bona fide sim game is the addition of real life crisis management tips and first aid guidelines to the loading screens. It matches the serious tone of the game, clearly put together by a dedicated team.
There are four difficulties to choose from, however I went for the easiest and at the business end of the campaign, I was glad I did. Thankfully, as is the case with many sim games, you can pause the action to take a moment to think, especially if you are overwhelmed by incidents popping up all over the city.
In terms of sound, 112 Operator is a very stripped back affair which matches the minimalist visuals. There’s no soundtrack as such, just SFX which is made up predominantly of all the dispatchers communicating. Some of them sound like randoms you would encounter whilst on Xbox Live but when they are all chatting over each other the wall of sound can be extremely grating. Thank goodness for the sound settings.
I did encounter a couple of issues whilst playing 112 Operator, which were more than a little concerning. Firstly, certain units would seemingly “stop working”, and by that I mean be unable to deal with incidents and teleport to and from them, at times the audio getting stuck with them declaring they can’t do what I wanted over and over again. The other, more serious problem, was an incident glitch towards the end of the campaign with regards to escorting a VIP. When it spawned it got stuck, and created literally hundreds of incidents on the same spot in quick succession which I couldn’t clear, and even with a restart of the game, progress past that level.
You’d be forgiven at first for looking at 112 Operator and thinking that the gameplay is complicated and surrounded by detailed menus. However, it’s actually pretty accessible and won’t take you long to get into the swing of things. On the flip side, this shallow gameplay means things get repetitive pretty quickly, it all hinges on how much of a sim fan you are. This is unapologetically for the strategy and sim buffs.
The main way to play is the campaign mode, and you get to choose which city you would like to base yourself in. It’s largely the same despite the different geography, with you playing through the same story, with the same calls coming in. The order and mixture of the incidents themselves will differ during each playthrough though. Otherwise you can play free mode, or choose from different historically accurate scenarios to manage. In each case the core gameplay is the same so I felt these modes didn’t add much to the overall package.
112 Operator has actually been around for a few years, and has only now made its way over to Xbox. New features have been added for the occasion, and include bigger and more numerous city maps, new calls and events, a redesigned campaign mode and more. It’s safe to say that Xbox players are getting the most comprehensive version of the game to date.
As far as taking charge of the emergency services goes, 112 Operator is surely the best way of stepping into the role. It may not be the most stimulating game for the senses, but there’s something undeniably enjoyable about crisis management.
112 Operator is now available – https://www.thexboxhub.com/112-operator-command-the-chaos-in-this-emergency-management-sim/
You can purchase 112 Operator from the Xbox Store – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/112-operator/9n47lb5qqgfs
911 Operator Review – https://www.thexboxhub.com/911-operator-review/