How Papers, Please And Real Events Inspired VICE Undercover

We first met Meg from The Gamer at Gamescom 2023, where we had a fantastic time showcasing VICE Undercover for the first time. However, we wanted to connect further, so we arranged a video call just before the winter holidays. Following that call, Meg wrote another wonderful article about the game. You should read it. Now!

In this article, Cos Lazouras discusses how VICE Undercover is influenced by actual historical events and the game"Papers, Please."

Vice Undercover draws inspiration from real-world events and blends fact and fiction to create an engaging world and narrative. Some characters and plot points are inspired by real counterparts, such as Kevin Mitnick being the basis for Vice Undercover’s hacker Astra. Other elements are pulled straight from history, such as the inclusion of Robert Schifreen, the first ever person to be convicted of hacking.

Lazouras reminds me Ancient Machine is a “micro company” with him and Albert Ramon at the helm, with help from a few others and contract workers. The team have called in a lot of favours and had help from industry friends and various talent to help build the game, with Lazouras saying, “It's great how many people have supported us as a little indie and it's made the game so much better as well.”

But why are we just quoting the article, go ahead and read it here! And thanks again for hanging out with us, Meg.