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Not for Broadcast is a unique and nonlinear experience that is unlike most other games on the market. The player controls the narrative by manipulating the way the news broadcasts are edited, either driving propaganda into the minds of the civilians in this game, or revealing the truth to the people at the cost of the character's livelihood.
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The amount of information that’s barraged at the player that must be managed in real time might be a bit overwhelming for new players. Any beginner tips that an experienced player might not think about may be what helps a newer player succeed.
7 Use the Keyboard and Mouse Appropriately
It’s better to use the keyboard controls while playing Not For Broadcast than to use the mouse control – except for using the scroll wheel to fix or prevent interference. This will make it far easier to create seamless editing than it is with the mouse.
It’s quicker to press one of the number keys to switch between one of the four screens than it is to manually click on one of the four buttons on-screen. On the flipside, it's quicker to fix interference with the mouse’s scroll wheel than it is to drag the yellow knob up and down.
6 Remember to Censor Swears
Letting an uncensored swear slip through can end up causing a drop in the audience’s rating of a player’s newsreel. After all, it is expected by the audience that the show is kept clean and friendly – safe for children, in other words – and though it may seem harmless at first, letting many swears through will cause a massive drop in the ratings.
As the broadcasted screen is two seconds behind what the player gets to edit, once somebody on-screen starts to swear, a player needs to hit the “Censor” button or hold down the space-bar before it gets aired on national television.
5 Watch for the Lights
An easy way to tell if one of the four clips should be shown is to look at the lights that are next to them. It’s easy for players to miss these, due to them being small and subtle; however these lights will be able to alert a player which clips which work at what point.
A red light under a particular clip will show that the clip is not at all good to show. An orange/yellow light shows that the clip is alright, but there are better options. As such, a green light will alert that this clip would be optimal.
4 Prepare for Interference
Interference will be one of the worst things to deal with in Not for Broadcast, as it can decrease the viewer ratings by a long shot if the player is not prepared. In short, interference will occasionally occur, completely cutting off the player and viewers from watching the broadcast. The player can use the scroll wheel to fix it.
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It’s best to try and completely avoid the interference ahead of time, or to prepare to fix it as soon as possible. The longer the interference goes on, the lower the viewer rating will drop in the sim.
3 Choose Headlines Carefully
Headlines are an often overlooked part of Not for Broadcast. This is due to the fact that the two headlines given at a time can convey the same information as one another, but they are worded in different ways that would make people think more negatively or positively of the subject in question.
There are more drastic choices (such as showing a football player’s new wife vs. getting a little too drunk at a bar), but some players might not even realize how different two headlines are until it’s too late. As such, it’s best to think carefully about the implications of each headline before the time to show either of the two runs out.
2 Don’t Sweat Mistakes
It may sound like it’s easier said than done, but one of the quickest ways to fail a level is to start panicking after making an honest mistake. Perhaps the player chose the wrong video, didn’t censor swears in time, or ran out of time to choose a headline in this 1980s-esque game.
Whatever the case is, if a player grows panicked and starts switching between the cameras like crazy in an attempt to fix their mistake, this will only hurt the playthrough. It’s best to calm down, take a breath, and let the mistake go through before improving the rest of the day.
1 Pay Attention to More than Screens
Although the main focus of Not for Broadcast is to create the narrative, a player should focus their attention on more than just the screens. If they do, it’ll be easier to tell when it’s time for an ad break, or when interference will be coming. Ad breaks will be announced, and interferences always have an audio cue.
A sharp-eared player will know when either of these will occur, and thus have time to prepare accordingly. If not, though, the viewer ratings will drastically decrease (specifically during interference). As such, it’s important to keep an ear open for audio cues.
Not For Broadcast is available now on PC.