"Not For Broadcast is a full motion propaganda simulator developed by British video game studio NotGames and published by tinyBuild. The game released with its first episode in early access on 30 January 2020.[2][3][4] The full game, including the third and final episode, was released worldwide on 25 January 2022.[5]
The game takes place in an unnamed European country (resembling the United Kingdom) in the mid-1980s[a][b], where a new progressive political party named Advance has won a surprise landslide election victory and begins to handle the country in an authoritarian dystopian fashion. The player takes the role of Alex Winston, a studio director in a national television station, having to produce a live broadcast, play adverts, censor swear words, and avoid interference in an effort to keep the viewership high.[6]
On early access release, Not For Broadcast received positive reviews, with praise going to its gameplay and mechanics while being criticised for confusing political storytelling. The player plays the role of studio director Alex Winston in the production control room of the National Nightly News.
The player uses the vision mixer to select which camera feed to broadcast. After a two-second broadcast delay, the feed selected is broadcast. The player is required to censor any profanity or objectionable language by bleeping out the word as it is broadcast. At later levels, the player can also add sound effects such as applause and canned laughter to the broadcast. The player also uses a waveform monitor to control any interference. An audience meter gives feedback on the player's performance: good editing will help raise viewership, while poor editing, failing to censor or allowing interference to interrupt the broadcast will lower viewership. If the audience meter falls to zero, the player fails the level.
During each broadcast, the player selects three advertisements to play during breaks. The adverts selected influence the game outcome by promoting Advance or its rival Disrupt, increasing the player's earnings by promoting companies in which the player holds shares, or unlocking variations in the storyline.
At the end of each broadcast day, the player is graded on their broadcast. The player is given the option to watch their broadcast as well as the unused footage.