Parents' Guide to Due Process

They say that teamwork makes the dream work. And that's the driving force behind Due Process's take on the first-person shooter. The game puts a massive focus on working together as a team to develop strategies, execute plans, and act as a cohesive unit. Each match starts on a procedurally generated map. The randomness of these newly created stages helps to keep players from memorizing levels. Then there's the planning phase, where players are given a layout of the map and the opportunity to physically draw out a game plan while discussing tactics. From there, players pick their loadout from an available arsenal before engaging the enemy. One unique and useful feature here is that any of the lines and marks drawn on the map during the planning stage actually appear in the match for the team to follow. It's a great way to make sure players follow the plan and understand their roles.

In theory, these features can make for some intense tactical matches, with superior planning ultimately winning the day. Unfortunately, that would require some expectation of professionalism from other players, which might just be too high a bar to hurdle. Unless you jump into Due Process with a team of five ready to go, you're going to get placed into a random group. This is where the better aspects of the game quickly start to fall apart. Often, there's at least one player in a random group that gives in to toxic or just plain juvenile behavior. It's bad enough to deal with these players acting like it's open mic night at a comedy club. But giving these players the opportunity to express that visually in the planning stage usually leads to at least one or two inappropriate images dropped onto the map. The game's a breeding ground for toxicity and there's not a lot to be done about it. It's a shame, because when it's firing on all cylinders with a strong team effort, Due Process can be a lot of fun. But finding that in random matchmaking is about as likely winning a lottery jackpot.