Is it worth playing LOCKDOWN Protocol in 2025?

LOCKDOWN Protocol is a first-person shooter online multiplayer experience that encourages players to set aside their petty grievances and work together to survive. Mirage Creative Lab took advantage of the impressive horsepower of Unreal Engine 5 to capture detailed visuals and offer a gaming experience worth revisiting with friends.

Unlike other games with social deduction, like Among Us, this game can induce a bit of anxiety since all players have the same gameplay capabilities, meaning all bets are off about who the potential culprit is. Players can hurt one another, sabotage tasks, and eliminate the wrong target, potentially ruining their chances of success.

Disclaimer: This article contains the writer's personal and subjective views about the game.

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The gaming community shouldn't miss out on LOCKDOWN Protocol

Employees should keep their eyes peeled for potential dissidents in this game (Image via Mirage Creative Labs)

The developers of Mirage Creative Labs reached out to the gaming community through Kickstarter to help them manifest this dream project into reality. Their generosity paid off tenfold after the game launched on PC. Players can instantly feel the pressure as time ticks slowly while they accomplish various tasks and survive the looming threat of dissidents.

LOCKDOWN Protocol shares plenty of similarities with Among Us, but it is much more thrilling since players can experience this from their character's point of view in first-person mode. There is no telling if a potential employee could be plotting another player's death without having eyes on their backs.

As employees work to get the job done, embedded dissidents can sabotage their efforts by tearing them apart internally. The developers added an impressive real-time audio feature for voice chat to isolate certain voices if a player is in a different room. This is a perfect opportunity for dissidents in the LOCKDOWN Protocol to lure unknowing employees to their untimely demise.

Certain tasks require employees to move objects and other items, which opens a small window of opportunity for a dissident to strike. Players must work together to progress through these trials and survive the looming threat of dissidents who look exactly like them. The key to victory is to figure out who the culprit is and stop them before it is too late.

Players can interact with the environment and pick up smaller items, such as a screwdriver that can be used as a makeshift knife to eliminate others instead of a tool to unscrew nuts and bolts. Tensions are ever rising, especially after some employees slowly die out and the dissidents leave no trace of their activities.

Players should never turn their backs on someone they do not trust in LOCKDOWN Protocol (Image via Mirage Creative Lab)

There is a constant sense of paranoia surrounding the possibility of an innocent employee doing their job and getting by with their day-to-day life, also being at risk of being murdered by a dissident, and vice versa. Dissidents are outnumbered and must learn to play well with other employees to gain their trust and avoid raising suspicions of their true intentions.

The employees are in a race against time. Even after eliminating all possible dissidents, their chances of succeeding in the mission are still not guaranteed since other tasks must be accomplished. As their number slowly dwindles, employees must hustle to reach the next room.

Mirage Creative Lab implemented a unique feature that blends a player's health and stamina bar. This is another challenge for them, especially for dissidents to consume their bars wisely as they meet their objective of sabotaging the employee's efforts.

Sprinting and other physically demanding activities can quickly deplete the stamina bar. Once a player is out of stamina, the health bar will serve as a secondary source. Dissidents and employees should weigh their options strategically to avoid being left out in the open and defenseless.

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Verdict

LOCKDOWN Protocol will not allow a player to catch a break (Image via Mirage Creative Lab)

LOCKDOWN Protocol is not for the faint of heart and can seriously cause strains between friendships, especially if one is on the opposing side. Mirage Creative Lab was inspired by other social deduction games available today and opted for a much more immersive experience with real-time reactions from other players.

Other than the realistic yet simplistic gameplay and concept, LOCKDOWN Protocol is free to play on PC. There is no word about a potential PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S port, but it is still a game worth playing with friends. This game can sharpen deduction and observation skills and teach players to spot a person with false intentions.

Mirage Creative Lab struck gold by integrating cutting-edge technology into the gameplay and providing the players with the necessary tools to survive. If you are a fan of social deduction games like Among Us, LOCKDOWN Protocol is a one-of-a-kind experience that the gaming community will have a blast with in 2025.