Floor 13: Deep State
A document-driven dystopia of clandestine domestic operations.
Floor 13: Deep State is a strategy game released in 2020 by Humble Games. The player runs a secret government agency hidden on the thirteenth floor of a building near London Docklands, operating covertly across the United Kingdom. It was created by the same development team behind the original Floor 13 from November 1991, and the game calls itself a "dynamic document-driven dystopia."
The player is the Director General of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, a front for a secret police force that keeps the government popular by any means. Answerable only to the Prime Minister, the Director can order wiretapping, surveillance, smear campaigns, disinformation, burglary, kidnapping, torture, and assassination. The game includes references to real 1980s and early 1990s events and groups, such as the Irish Troubles, Shining Path, the BCCI scandal, and the apparent suicides of Roberto Calvi and Jonathan Moyle.
Gameplay is menu-driven. Each day, the player reviews reports in the Director General’s office that describe potential scandals threatening the government’s popularity. The player issues orders to eight departments—covering capabilities like surveillance, assassination, interrogation, and disinformation—targeting individuals, locations, or groups involved in each scenario. After reading reports and issuing orders, the player advances to the next day to see results. Scenarios are scripted and unfold the same way without player intervention (though names and pictures may change), but some outcomes are randomized: assassination attempts can fail, and interrogations may or may not yield specific information. Each person or group has ratings for prominence, power, and orientation toward the government, affecting the success of actions and their impact on public opinion. Some scenarios have multiple resolutions, and handling them well can generate positive press and raise approval.
There are two ways to lose. Every 14 days, the Prime Minister reviews opinion polls and fires the player if approval falls below 50%. If the player uses aggressive methods that attract too much public attention, they are retired. If the government still leads after the review, the player receives more money or staff.
Quick Facts
- Title
- Floor 13 : Deep State
- Developer
- Oversight Productions
- Publisher
- Humble Games
- Engine
- Unity 3D
- Designer
- David J Eastman
- Producer
- Shahid Ahmad
- Artist
- Bismuth Works Ltd / Sarah Anne Langton
- Composer
- Len J J Cheung
- Released
- November 2020
- Genre
- Adventure, strategy
- Modes
- Single-player
- Platforms
- Windows, MacOS
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The player takes on the role of the Director General of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, an Executive Agency that conceals a secret police which keeps the government popular by any means necessary. Answering only to the Prime Minister, the Director General has the power to use wiretapping, surveillance, smear tactics, disinformation, burglary, kidnapping, torture, and assassination to maintain the government's popularity. The game contains numerous references to real-world groups, trends, scandals, and unusual occurrences that were newsworthy in the 1980s and early 1990s, including the Irish Troubles, Shining Path, the BCCI scandal, and the apparent suicides of Roberto Calvi and Jonathan Moyle.
Gameplay is menu-driven and presents the player with scenarios through reports viewable in the Director General's office each day. Each scenario represents a potential scandal that may hurt the government's popularity if not properly handled. The player interacts by issuing orders to eight different departments representing capabilities such as surveillance, assassination, interrogation, or disinformation, to use against individuals, locations, or groups involved in each scenario. Each scenario is scripted and will generally always proceed in the same way absent the player's intervention, though some results of orders are randomized. Individuals and groups are rated by prominence, power, and orientation towards the government, affecting the likelihood of success and public opinion outcomes.
Reader's Guide
Floor 13: Deep State received mixed reviews. Reviewers were very positive over the premise, the atmosphere, and the artwork, but believed the UI and the general difficulty were too unfriendly. The game's significance lies in its revival of a 1991 title by the same team, updating the concept of a document-driven dystopian strategy game for a modern audience. Its legacy is tied to its unflinching portrayal of state power and the moral compromises of maintaining popularity through surveillance, disinformation, and violence. The game's references to real-world scandals and groups from the 1980s and early 1990s ground its fictional scenario in historical context, while its randomized outcomes and multiple possible resolutions for scenarios add replayability. The two loss conditions—being fired by the Prime Minister if approval drops below 50% every 14 days, or being retired for attracting too much public attention—reinforce the tension between effectiveness and secrecy. The game challenges players to balance aggressive methods with subtlety, as spying and discrediting can be safer than more severe actions like removal or interrogation.
Did You Know?
- The game is set on the thirteenth floor of a city building near London Docklands.
- The player answers only to the Prime Minister and can use torture and assassination to keep the government popular.
- The game references real-world events including the Irish Troubles, Shining Path, and the BCCI scandal.
- The Prime Minister reviews opinion polls every 14 days and fires the player if approval is under 50%.
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