Anarchy Reigns in RIOT: Civil Unrest Launching Now

Tuesday, February 5, 2019, Manchester, UK — Merge Games Ltd., is proud to announce the release of RIOT: Civil Unrest, a real-time riot simulation experience on PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch, born out of the real-life experiences of its artist and creator, Leonard Menchiari. During the summer of 2011 Leonard attended the NO-TAV protests in northern Italy. There he witnessed first-hand the actions of both the protesters and law enforcement officers. Thinking the interactive nature of video games would make it the perfect medium to show how riots develop, Leonard put to good use his documentary-making and pixel art skills.

RIOT: Civil Unrest is a unique, thought-provoking experience that places you at the heart of some of the world’s most recent confrontations. A complex strategy game, RIOT: Civil Unrest sets players objectives for each scenario. It’s then up to the individual to choose how to tackle each situation, employing different strategies and tactics in order to achieve the perfect outcome. Discover if you can dispel an angry crowd or overcome a well-equipped militia. Player performance is rated, aggression can lead to a quick, successful outcome but a softer approach may have the same resolution without damaging public opinion.

Spread across four campaigns and featuring over 30 individual scenarios, from Oakland in California, to Tahrir Square in Egypt and Caracas in Venezuela, RIOT: Civil Unrest lets players control either the protesters or law enforcement, in an effort to portray a balanced view of each event.

Play as the Police

• Employ numerous crowd-control tactics, both passive and aggressive.
• Command Assault, Tactical and Ballistic squads.
• Call in police trucks, water cannons or even a tank!
• Choose whether to use smoke grenades, rubber and plastic bullets, or even live ammunition.

Play as the Rioters

• Instruct Rioters (armed and passive), and Journalists.
• Incite rage and cause the masses to act aggressively or try to calm the situation with tactical crowd reformation and retreats.
• Attack authority with Molotov cocktails, fireworks, paper-bombs, rocks, street furniture and the power of the media.

Multiple Modes

• Sixteen campaign levels split over four scenarios; Keratea (Greece), NoTAV (Italy), Indignados (Spain) and the Arab Spring (Egypt).
• See the story unfold from both sides - play over thirty scenarios as the Rioters or the Police.
• Single player mode - play against the computer AI.
• Versus mode – play with or against a friend or AI on the same computer.

Create your own riots! (PC ONLY feature)

• Name your riot, create a description of the event and add many other details (where, when, links etc.).
• Add your own background images.
• Place and edit sprites from a library with more than 700 objects.
• Add lighting and weather effects, vehicles, particle effects and filters.
• Customise the characters’ skins, clothes and gear.
• Set your own gameplay rules outlining the rebels and police teams, and their objectives.
• Share your levels on Steam Workshop!

RIOT: Civil Unrest launches this week on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch and launches next week on PC. Dates and pricing are:

• PC - Tuesday, 12 February - $16.99 / €16.99 / £12.99
• PS4 US - Tuesday, 5 February - $19.99 / €19.99 / £14.99
• Xbox One - Wednesday, 6 February - $19.99 / €19.99 / £14.99
• PS4 EU - Wednesday, 6 February - $19.99 / €19.99 / £14.99
• Nintendo Switch – Thursday, 7 February - $19.99 / €19.99 / £14.99