[Nintendo Switch] Firefighting Simulator – The Squad Review

Firefighting Simulator – The Squad from Astragon Entertainment and Chronos Unterhaltungssoftware is ready to go on Switch. Check out our Firefighting Simulator – The Squad review!

Firefighting Simulator – The Squad from Astragon Entertainment and Chronos Unterhaltungssoftware is ready to go on Switch. After a PlayStation 5 launch near the end of 2022, it’s now made its way to Nintendo’s console. Will you take on the challenge of protecting a large city on the North American West Coast from the deadly fires that can break out at any time? Remember, when a fire starts to consume a location, every second counts!

To add to the game’s authentic feel, Firefighting Simulator – The Squad features real firefighter equipment from manufacturers such as Cairns, MSA Safety G1 SCBA, Leatherhead Tools, and HAIX. On top of that, it also includes officially licensed firefighting vehicles by Rosenbauer America. But before you get to use all of that, you’ll first need to go through training so that you can learn the basics and actually have a chance of putting some fires out and saving some people. You’ll be thrown right into the action as you arrive at a burning house where you need to not only put out the fire but also save someone who has been injured!

You’ll be taking control with the left analog as you use the right one to move the camera around as needed. Pressing in on the left analog stick will make your character sprint. Pressing in on the right analog stick will make your character change its objective. You can activate your flashlight with the A button, which will sometimes be needed to get a better look at things. The B button will be for crouching, while the Y button will need to be pressed to interact.

Pressing the L button will open up the command wheel, which is a very important thing to remember! The command wheel will allow you to order units to use this or that tool to take care of the situation. By moving the selector with the left analog stick, you can select the tool that is needed. You should also always consider what tool to carry with you to complete your next task. You might need to use a crowbar to open up a door, use a Halligan to breach a locked door or use the always classic axe to do some door remodeling in order to get the job done. And if there’s no door, why not try to make your own? The circular saw is great for cutting locks that would otherwise prevent you from accessing an area.

You can then use said tool by pressing the ZR button. Since you can play this one either on your own or with others in online multiplayer, you will need to consider issuing some commands to your AI companions when going solo. This is done by using the D-Pad. If you want your companions to attack the fire, you can have them do this by pressing the R button and pressing up on the D-Pad.

When driving a vehicle, you’ll steer it with the left analog stick as you use the right analog stick for the camera. Pressing the X button will switch the camera so that you can get a better view as needed. You’ll accelerate with the ZR button and can brake with the ZL button. The L and R buttons will be for activating the left and right turn signals, respectively. Press up on the D-Pad for the siren, press left for the headlights, and press right for the emergency lights. Oh, and you can use the vehicle’s horn by pressing the A button!

As soon as your first mission is over, you’ll be asked if you feel that you’re ready to take on new missions around the city or if you should maybe take things a bit more slowly and visit the Training Facility to get some extra pointers on this and that. You can learn about dealing with doors and walls, dealing with windows, using the ladder and the circular saw, learning more about fire propagation and growth speed, how to best extinguish fires, how to deal with smoke, recognizing back drafts so that you can avoid any unnecessary danger and more.

Something very important is being able to identify when a fire is not a regular fire but a greased fire. Using a water hose on it will not only keep you from extinguishing the flames, it will make things worse! To deal with these, you’ll need to use chemical agents to counter the greased fire. Grab a portable CO2 extinguisher to be able to quickly cover the area before the fire continues to spread, or else you’ll be caught between a rock and a hard place!

Firefighting Simulator – The Squad allows you to take on a new sim experience for a dangerous job. This is one you can play on your own with AI companions to help you out during missions, or you can go online and find other firefighting sim aficionados to complete as many missions as possible. Put out different types of fires as you try to save all of the victims in each scenario, which will certainly need medical attention! Some cuts here and there had to be made to get the game running on Nintendo Switch. While you’d expect smoke in a firefighting game, the amount of fog around each area is a bit on the heavy side. Textures have also taken a hit, and the framerate dips every now and then as things get busy. Oh, and your console’s battery will take a hit when playing in Portable or Tabletop Mode. But that’s what needed to be done to get the fire physics going. Firefighting Simulator – The Squad is out on Nintendo Switch with a $34.99 asking price.

Disclaimer
This Firefighting Simulator – The Squad review is based on a Nintendo Switch copy provided by Astragon Entertainment.