The Precinct Review – Finally, A Polished Cop Game That Gets It Right

The Grand Theft Auto series has been one of the most popular gaming franchises of all time across all platforms. Apart from the graphics, gameplay, story, and everything else, being able to do what you want while avoiding cops has its own thrill and fun. But I don’t think I’ve seen many games where you’re playing as a cop and, you know, doing good things and arresting those criminals.

Some might find playing as the good guys to be more boring – though I’ll argue this point. Playing the Police Quest series back in the 80s was a memorable experience for me as a kid, and I’m glad someone else agrees with me. The Precinct is a GTA-inspired, well-polished game where you play as a cop who upholds the law.

You’ll be playing as Officer Nick Cordell Jr, a rookie cop who just got out fresh from the academy while trying to solve the murder of your father in the line of duty. Your father was a popular cop, which adds weight to your character’s motivation. As a cop, this means you have to be gentle with your guns, but this doesn’t mean the game is boring.

The personal storyline gives you something to work towards beyond the daily police tasks, and it’s handled well without being overly dramatic or clichéd.

Gameplay Mechanics

Sure, there are mundane tasks at times to be performed, such as checking for parked vehicles and issuing tickets, but all these tasks are actually quite optional. Each start of the day, you’ll be given a few options to choose from. Do you want to search and fine people for parking violations? Do you want to take to the road with your car and patrol the streets? Do you want to ride the helicopter and provide air support to the ground units? The choice is yours. This way, you can pick the things you like and possibly never have to juggle the things you don’t want to do.

The quick handbook is worth a read that guides you through various situations and what you should do in these situations, especially regarding the use of authorised force. For example, a running mugger doesn’t warrant you to start shooting and killing. For lowly criminals like this, a tackle is usually more than enough. At times, you may need to take your baton out to wear them down or let your taser fire a few shots.

Various things can happen while you patrol the streets apart from mugging: vandalism, burglary, assault, gang fights, and more. Criminals can run away from you, in which case you’ll have to chase them down on foot. There is stamina and you can also call for more support. Once you subdue them, you’ll have to do what a cop normally does: read their rights, check for ID, frisk for any illegal or dangerous items, and then write down what the charges are. You can then decide whether to let them go, issue a fine, or arrest.

The game smartly offers these options through a dial menu in-game where you can pick the actions and offences to add to the list. Picking the right actions and offences will grant you more XP to level your character up later. Choosing the wrong one will penalise XP, and so on. So being a bad cop or not paying attention to the handbook simply means you’ll be levelling up slower.

When you stop a car, you’ll also have extra options to ask them to get out of the car, use the breathalyser to check if they’re drunk, and open the boot to search for any illegal items. Again, all these will grant you more XP when done correctly.

Progression and Variety

These are interesting to do at first but obviously get mundane and boring towards the late game. There are skill points and things to unlock (such as new vehicles and new weapons) with your XP, but as you unlock the important ones, these trivial tasks become… trivial. Thankfully, you can skip these parts and just get to the point – issue a fine or arrest. You’ll get much less XP this way, but at least you don’t have to go through all the menu and action selections each time.

I wish there were more upgrades and skills to unlock, but I have to remember that this isn’t a AAA game. There are nice things to unlock, such as controlled breathing to gain stamina while you’re chasing a criminal or being able to shoot a two-handed weapon while you’re driving.

You can also call for backup and support, such as deploying a spike strip or roadblocks when you get enough support points. You gain support points while being close enough during a police chase (both on foot and in car).

Beyond Daily Police Work

Now, all these daily cop tasks are just things you can do while unlocking the story as you play along. Doing these tasks will give you evidence to collect so you can capture the captains and leaders of prominent gangs in the city. You’ll also go through a few different things while playing The Precinct, such as a serial murder mystery and car racing. Once you complete them, the main story continues.

Street racing and time trials give plenty of leeway, so you usually don’t have to be super perfect with your driving. It’s pretty good to avoid frustration and having to repeat the same race over and over just to get that Gold medal.

The variety keeps things fresh when the standard police work starts to feel repetitive. The racing sections feel natural within the context of police work, and the mystery elements add depth to what could otherwise be a simple cops-and-robbers game.

Technical Performance and Polish

Overall, The Precinct offers really nice and fresh, good game mechanics. The graphics are solid and everything feels smooth and responsive. I love how siren lights are reflected onto the pavement or building walls, and the character animations are spot on. The vehicle driving is responsive and has that GTA vibe too. Thankfully, you don’t have to follow the red lights or be extra careful not to hit anyone while you’re driving. You can hit pedestrians, but they don’t die (which would be super annoying if they did and it was game over).

I’m actually surprised at how polished the game is, and so far, it’s been bug-free. There was a case where I was on chopper duty and saw a police patrol car ramming a car and throwing it into the ocean. And here I thought, that’s it, I’m gonna call this one a loss. But then I saw the suspect swimming to the shore, finding a stair, climbing up, and still trying to run while the backup officers came and tackled him down. It’s really awesome to see this level of detail and AI behaviour.

The attention to detail extends to the smaller interactions too. Radio chatter feels authentic, the city feels alive with various crimes happening organically, and the equipment you use behaves realistically. For an indie game, the production values are impressive.

The Precinct Review Conclusion

The Precinct manages to fill a gap that’s been missing in gaming for years – a proper, polished, sandbox police simulation that’s actually fun to play. While it may not have the budget or scope of a GTA game, it makes up for it with solid mechanics, thoughtful design choices, and genuine respect for both the player’s time and intelligence.

The game strikes a good balance between realism and fun, offering enough depth to keep police procedure enthusiasts happy while remaining accessible to casual players. The story provides a bit of motivation beyond the daily grind, and the variety of activities ensures you won’t get bored too quickly. Sure, the story and dialogues are just okay, but it’s the GTA-style gameplay as a cop that sells this game.

If you’ve ever wanted to play as the good guy in an open-world crime game, The Precinct delivers exactly what you’ve been waiting for. It’s a solid recommendation for anyone looking for something different from the usual criminal-focused games in this genre.

Note: I’ve completed the game in 13.3 hours.

Disclosure: The Precinct review licence was supplied for reviewing