Encoded War

About

Encoded War is a single player casual simulation game. It was developed by Somnolent Team and was released on January 20, 2023. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

YOUR COMMANDYou will become the morse coder, tasked to submit the encoded war message logs.CONTROL Easy-to-understand point & click control, but war will never be easy on you.STORY MODEWe will order new tasks each day in the Story Mode that will highly challenge your morse coding skill.ENDLESS MODEThe Endless Mode is the test of your pace. Those who are slower than 10 seconds are unaccepted. W…

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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78%

Audience ScoreBased on 27 reviews

story8 positive mentions

graphics3 negative mentions

Engaging gameplay inspired by Papers Please with increasing difficulty that keeps players entertained and challenged.
Effective educational tool for learning and practicing Morse code, with some players praising its utility for skill improvement.
Well-executed pixel art and sound design that immerse players in the WW2 setting and atmosphere.

Short story mode with limited replayability and unmemorable, poorly translated, and sometimes immature storytelling.
Lack of key rebinding options and some unresponsive controls causing frustration during gameplay.
Presence of controversial and sensitive content handled insensitively, along with a minimal and underdeveloped settings menu.

story
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
42%
42%
16%
The story is generally considered short, with some appreciating its dark, Papers Please–like tone and player-influenced direction, but many criticize it for poor writing, awkward translation errors, and unmemorable or immature narrative elements. While it adds some challenge and thematic depth, the story often feels forgettable and detracts from the overall experience, which is primarily praised for its gameplay rather than plot.
- “A revamped story where your actions can impact the direction of the story similar to Papers, Please.”
- “Great storytelling; the only con is that it was short.”
- “The gameplay itself is interesting, and the story mode continues to add new wrinkles that increase the difficulty in fun and creative ways.”
- “The story is really badly written and immature, but I had tons of fun with the actual gameplay and would recommend it based solely on that.”
- “But please, this is a callout to all indie devs: before you release your game, especially for money on Steam, get someone to double-check all the translations for you, because it quite frankly absolutely murders the story, which, talking about that, is very forgettable.”
- “These don't add anything of value to the story and end up detracting from it overall.”
gameplay
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
28%
27%
The gameplay is engaging, challenging, and progressively difficult, drawing positive comparisons to Papers, Please while maintaining its own unique mechanics that keep the experience fresh and stressful in a good way. Despite a poorly written and unmemorable story, the gameplay remains fun and rewarding, with new elements introduced over time that enhance difficulty without causing confusion. Overall, the gameplay is the standout aspect that makes the game worth playing.
- “The gameplay itself is interesting, and the story mode continues to add new wrinkles that increase the difficulty in fun and creative ways.”
- “They keep the gameplay loop interesting and genuinely stressful (in a good way).”
- “The story is the most unmemorable mess you can imagine. This game is for the gameplay, not for the story. It tries to tell a story, but it just ends up being unmemorable and not that interesting to read through, especially because of all the translation mistakes which further butcher it. However, it doesn't really negatively impact the gameplay, as the 'story' in the gameplay notes is a lot better than in the cutscenes.”
- “Gameplay difficulty is increased as time goes on (à la Papers, Please), which keeps it entertaining and engrossing!”
- “And it never made the core gameplay feel confusing, which helps make it feel like less of a problem.”
graphics
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
60%
The game's graphics effectively establish its setting and time period, delivering a well-thought-out and immersive aesthetic. While not groundbreaking, the visuals fulfill their purpose and are complemented by strong sound design. The limited graphics options in the settings feel somewhat basic, typical of many indie games.
- “As I said, the overall aesthetics of the game accomplish what needs to be done; they immerse you, feel well thought out, and are complemented by some really nice sound design; in other words, they are exactly what you would expect from a game of this type.”
- “But enough about the settings; let's return to the aesthetics.”
- “The game's aesthetic greets you as soon as you start playing; the graphics aren't revolutionary, but they do help you understand the game's setting and the time period it takes place in.”
- “I know there aren't many graphics or keybinds that can be changed, but the settings menu currently feels more like a filler than a menu, which is sadly far too common in indie games.”
- “The game's aesthetic greets you as soon as you start playing; the graphics aren't revolutionary, but they do help you understand the game's setting and the time period it takes place in.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game offers limited replayability in its short story mode, lacking multiple endings like Papers Please, but includes an endless mode for extended play. Overall, it's a decent experience, though best enjoyed on sale for value.
- “The game's story mode is short, as reflected by my playtime, and it lacks the replayability of similar games with different endings, such as Papers Please.”
- “While the game offers an endless mode, it doesn't quite make up for the limited content and replay value in the main story.”
- “Overall, I would recommend waiting for the game to go on sale to get your money's worth due to its limited replayability.”