Port Desire, the densely packed city setting of the upcoming immersive sim No Law, draws comparisons to both the verticality of Lisbon and the notorious Kowloon Walled City. This isolated, lawless enclave exists between three neighboring countries, a 'no man's land' policed by a force that maintains the status quo to prevent the city from collapsing.
Creative directors Tor Frick and Arcade Berg of developer Neon Giant described Port Desire as a convenient hub for various clandestine activities, including illegal research and smuggling, due to its lack of direct oversight from any single nation. The game's protagonist, Grey Harker, an ex-military figure wronged by the city's four mayors, is tasked with pursuing them. Players have the freedom to approach these targets in any order they choose.
Frick explained that the sequence in which players confront the mayors will dynamically alter their relationships, the narrative, and even systemic game elements. For instance, a mayor who is an early target might be lightly guarded, but if other mayors have already been dealt with, that same mayor will be more heavily fortified as they anticipate Harker's arrival.
During a demonstration, Frick and Berg showcased a mission to retrieve intel from a hotel room safe. Two distinct approaches were presented. In the first, a stealth attempt was made to pickpocket a guard, which inadvertently triggered an alarm, leading to a direct confrontation. Frick neutralized the alerted gang members with tasers and grenades. The second, intended violent approach, involved Frick using stacked crates to access a ledge, bypassing guards entirely and entering the hotel through the back.
Inside the hotel, the receptionist, Renn, demanded a password to access the upper floors. In the stealth playthrough, the password was found on a note in the lobby and laundry room. In the violent playthrough, Frick resorted to lethal force and bypassed the desk to unlock the door himself. The developers also noted the possibility of interacting with NPCs outside of missions, suggesting that players could potentially confront characters like Renn in their homes to acquire items like keys, further emphasizing the game's non-linear design.
"We want people to try and outsmart the game," Frick stated. "It's a single player game, so if you managed to find some combination that is over the top, hilariously overpowered, cool. It's not competitive. If you have figured something out you should be rewarded."
Neon Giant emphasized that the game does not incentivize specific playstyles. Whether a player picks a lock, climbs through a window, or blows a door open, accessing a room or completing an objective yields experience points equally. "There is no wrong way to play the game," Frick added, demonstrating by snapping a guard's neck in a subsequent violent sequence.
Upon securing the intel, Harker exited the hotel. In the stealth playthrough, a post-mission confrontation involved Frick using a time-slowing grenade to dispatch remaining guards. The violent playthrough saw Frick engaging guards more directly. The game's arsenal appears to extend beyond conventional weapons, with the time-slowing ability hinting at sci-fi elements.
No Law, developed by a team of 24, has drawn comparisons to Arkane's immersive sims, Hitman, and Cyberpunk 2077 due to its detailed world and systemic design. While impressed by the demonstration, the article's author noted that the playthroughs were tightly controlled and reserved final judgment on the game's systemic variety until it can be played independently. The author expressed an intention to test the limits of the game's systems upon release, aiming to "outdumb" the game through chaotic experimentation.