How many of your phones would unlock if I tried 0451?
In the later stages of Fullbright's Tacoma, you have to enter the code 0451, a set of numerals that has become synonymous with a lineage of games labelled as immersive sims (as explained in this video). Such games generally offer a specific set of tools and systems so that their interaction provides emergent, open-ended gameplay – unpredictable results from the combination of predictable variables. Tacoma decidedly does not fit that sandbox gameplay mould, but its inclusion of 0451 is more an homage to the overall legacy of immersive sims rather than a desire to be lifted into their pantheon. There are in fact a few recurring narrative elements inherent to immersive sims that Tacoma unifies and streamlines with a very clever conceit.
Welcome to Playthroughline, a design team composed of writer Joannes Truyens and web developer Matei Stanca. We are working on Neurocracy, an interactive narrative experience that allows you to solve a murder in a near future world by diving into the Wikipedia of that world.