Protocol

Protocol

Fair Games Studio · 2018 · Action, Indie, Adventure, Dark Humor, Cyberpunk

PC
Mostly Positive74% · 340 📉 Recent reviews down 59%
Best price 31 Fair price
$4.63-40%
lowest tracked $3.17
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Standard Edition · Steam
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$4.63
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Screenshots

About Protocol

Gameplay time: 9-12 hours
In this game, you may find yourself in many deadlocks the only way out of which is DEATH. This game may make you angry more than once. This game may make you re-play some moments over and over.

You were chosen to carry out the Protocol program.

Your objective is to make "first contact" with an alien life form.
Any violation of the Protocol will lead to the elimination of you and the entire operation.
Remember, the fate of the humanity may depend on your actions.
Once signed, the Protocol must be promptly implemented.
Have a nice day!

Plot
The action of Protocol, most likely, takes place in the near future. You are a flippant soldier who signs up for the Protocol program implementation. Packed in a landing box and dropped off somewhere in the Arctic Circle, not far from the Terminus research complex, your main objective is to follow a mysterious AI's orders, who uses you to make ""first contact"" within the Protocol program framework. Any deviation from AI's orders is considered to be a violation of Protocol; leading to the elimination of the complex and staff.

Features
Protocol is a sci-fi comedy with a hint of horror, action and a twisted love story.
Uncover an intriguing plot filled with conspiracies, plot twists, countless expletives, dark humour, and some light-hearted mockery.

Have a Nice Day!
This is a phrase you will love AND hate because you have violated the Protocol AGAIN. If you think that hardcore is when you can defeat the biggest bosses, then try not to die when taking a snowball.

Genre ambiguity
We still can't decide which genre suits this game. Adventure? Puzzle? Shooter? Immersive sim (seriously?)? Walking simulator? Crazy trip? Or, maybe... All in one?

Our other projects:
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DLC & expansions

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Base game + 2 of 2 DLC at today's best prices.

$10.61
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What Steam players say

Recent verbatim reviews from Steam — separate from playze.io community reviews below.

✦ AI summary

Protocol is praised for its humor and dialogue, particularly after the early chapters, but suffers from significant issues that undermine the experience. Players report that much of the game consists of walking and item interaction rather than engaging gameplay until Chapter 4, and the game is plagued by bugs—including softlocks, missing UI elements, and physics issues where items fail to follow the player—that appear to go unfixed due to lack of recent updates. The clunky PC controls and frequent item-dropping mechanics also frustrate players trying to enjoy the game's quirky, self-aware sci-

Recommended May 8, 2026
Have a nice day!
1 found this helpful
Recommended Feb 5, 2026
Protocol, developed by Fair Games Studio and published by Sad Horse studio, is a sci-fi action-adventure that blends first-person exploration, dark comedy, light puzzle-solving, and sporadic combat into a single eccentric package. Framed around humanity’s first official contact with extraterrestrial life, the game places players in the boots of a reluctant participant drafted into a secretive government program known simply as the Protocol. From the outset, it becomes clear that this is not a straightforward sci-fi thriller but a deliberately offbeat and self-aware experience that plays with genre conventions as much as it embraces them. The story begins in a remote Arctic research facility where alien wreckage and classified operations intersect. The protagonist, a nameless soldier, is tasked with navigating the aftermath of an extraterrestrial event under the constant supervision of a controlling artificial intelligence. This AI enforces strict rules that govern behavior, and deviating from its instructions can result in immediate and often absurd consequences. The concept of rigid procedural compliance forms the backbone of the narrative, creating tension between obedience and …
1 found this helpful
Not recommended Jul 30, 2026
I think this is the worst game I've bought in the last 10 years. Complete stuck on the very first scene. What am I supposed to sign the document with? By the time it dawned on me that this was a bug and that there was supposed to be a pen on the desk, I'd burned through a fair amount of nerves and time. Then I spent roughly the same amount of time again trying to figure out exactly how to contort myself and what exactly to press in order to sign it. It gets worse from there. I don't know how much you'd have to hate yourself to ship this as a release. Don't get me wrong, I love difficult games, and I love it when they challenge you. But that means when the game challenges you — not bugs and nightmarish controls. Guys, I don't play games to endure pain and suffering caused by the developers' incompetence. 0 out of 10. I'd have given it 1, but the protagonist's lines, clearly aimed at nothing older than children, don't leave room for that.
Not recommended Jul 8, 2026
uma porcaria
Not recommended Jun 10, 2026
Chapter 4 is gameplay , before that its just walking touching sim. Its very casual , one minigame had some increase in difficulty still meh. 1th chapter and half of 2th annoying, but after, i had few smiles, enjoyed dialogue. Impossible achievement has issues like a random bug where button doesn't appear , consume item it turn to absence of equip but you can create a backup save appdata/local/protocol and have a nice day.
Not recommended Jun 29, 2025
The game itself i think is good but i'm stuck on Chapter 4 in the mini game that you need to scan and put skull to open door and like when i use the thing to tp myself the skull doesn't follow me even after getting back to last checkpoint so i'm softlock which is a game breaking bug i don't recommend it except if the dev fix it but the game didn't have update for a while so i don't think it will ever come sadly

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