LOCKDOWN Protocol Review — Chaotic Social Deduction, Great With Friends
A first-person social-deduction game that nails tense task play and proximity chat — amazing with a group, frustrating solo. Fun core, shaky post-1.0 support and questionable monetization leave a bitter aftertaste.
LOCKDOWN Protocol is basically a 3D, real-time Among Us with guns, defibs and proximity voice — and I mean that in the best way. The core loop of doing tasks while hunting for dissidents clicks immediately; the problem is everything around that loop.
You play in first person in lobbies of 1–16 players, doing interactive tasks around a map while a few dissidents try to sabotage and kill without getting caught. Communication is a big part of the game — proximity chat creates hilarious paranoia and brilliant emergent moments. There are revival mechanics (defibs can bring you back), asymmetric tools for dissidents and a surprising amount of depth in task design compared to other social-deduction titles. The game leans into real-time action more than classic turn-based deduction, so expect chasing, shooting, and quick decisions. Customization and cosmetics are very visible in lobbies — which is fun until you realize much of that is paid DLC. Unfortunately many players report stability, mic/input quirks, and hacking/griefing in public rooms, and the long-promised extra maps and modes never materialized after 1.0. Bottom line: brilliant core design and chaos with friends; rough edges in moderation, updates and monetization.
LOCKDOWN Protocol is a blast in the right company — a flawed gem. Buy it if you have friends to play with and patience for rough edges; skip the DLCs unless the price drops.
Pros
- Great core social-deduction loop — tense, emergent moments with proximity chat
- Fantastic party vibes when you play with friends — unpredictable and hilarious
- Interactive tasks and revival mechanics add real depth beyond 'find the impostor'
Cons
- Development feels abandoned post-1.0: few new maps/modes and heavy cosmetic monetization
- Public lobbies plagued by griefing, hack reports, crashes and annoying mic/input bugs
Player Opinion
Players agree the core gameplay is fun and shines with a good group of friends — many call it a better, more chaotic Among Us. The main complaints are loud: developers moved to 1.0 and largely stopped meaningful updates, cosmetic DLCs are pricey, and public lobbies are often ruined by hackers or toxic players. If you like social deduction and proximity voice and mostly play with friends, you'll probably love it; solo players who expect polished public matchmaking and steady post-launch content may get disappointed.