Gods With Badges is a police-themed narrative tactics game from Strange Scaffold, revealed with an announcement trailer at the Triple-i Initiative showcase. It mixes grid-based isometric combat with branching conversations, and it builds one of its systems around a body camera you can leave running or quietly switch off.
Quick answer: It is a turn-based tactics game set in the city of Skarhelm, starring returning officer Carol McClellan. You can wishlist it now on Steam; no release date is currently confirmed.
Who Carol McClellan is and where the game takes place
You play as Carol McClellan, a police officer walking back into her precinct after twenty years away. Past violence pushed her out, and her return makes her something of a legend among the officers she now works alongside. She wears a standard tactical service uniform, dark blue-grey with a yellow badge on the shoulder.
The setting is Skarhelm, a futuristic city that stretches from polished leisure districts down into a crowded, neon-lit underbelly. The trailer leans into that contrast, dropping the camera down a vertical skyscraper chasm packed with glowing signs, then cutting between an elite outdoor plaza, armed figures on the street, and an ailing veteran. Graffiti reading “WATER WASTER” and “KILL CITY” sets the tone early.
How combat works in Gods With Badges
Fights play out in turn-based, grid-based isometric battles. Characters stand inside yellow selection rings, objectives sit on the HUD as orange diamonds, and tactical turns draw targeting arcs and purple outline bounds. You end a turn with the “END TURN” button and can pause mid-encounter.
Three attack types show up in the trailer. Each has its own in-game description:
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| SHOOT | The equipped weapon’s standard attack (example damage 13-15) |
| MELEE ATTACK | Guaranteed damage that scales with the attacker’s maximum health (example damage 6-8) |
| ARREST | Restrains a surrendering enemy and takes them out peacefully |
Encounters come with specific win conditions rather than a single “clear the room” rule. One sequence asks you to “Eliminate all hostiles in the area.” Another runs on a timer, tasking you to “Stop the train before it leaves with the bomb” with three turns left on the clock. An officer named Hoffman turns up cheering as an explosive goes off, shouting “Justified force, baby!”
The non-lethal arrest option
The ARREST ability sits in the turn-based action menu next to a surrendering enemy. Picking it restrains that unit and removes them from the fight without killing them, giving you a peaceful route when a hostile gives up rather than a straight kill.
The body cam toggle and dialogue choices
Conversations run through a branching dialogue interface, and a body camera indicator sits at the top of those exchanges reading “BODY CAM: ON” or “BODY CAM: OFF.” You can switch it during a conversation, and the trailer shows that toggle flipping to OFF right before Carol picks an aggressive line with a suspect named Earnest Crell. When he taunts, “What are you gonna do? Arrest me?” the options on the table include “You’re under arrest,” “Walk away, before you get hurt,” and “Guess I need to teach you a lesson.”
The recording state shapes how those interactions play out, letting players cut the camera before choosing illicit or threatening responses. It frames the police role as a choice rather than a fixed script.
Other conversations carry the story’s weight. One with Stella Rife has her pressing for news about her son, Felix, who fought an officer during the TandTech hijacking, with Carol able to reply either “You’ll have to wait for the report” or “We were just doing our duty, ma’am.” Another, with Terry Jones, plays out while the camera stays on and dwells on charged choices like “That’s it. It’s him or me.”
Release and where to wishlist
The trailer ends on a title card with the Strange Scaffold logo and a Steam wishlist prompt. No release date has been attached to the game yet. For now, wishlisting on Steam is the only way to track it.
Gods With Badges appeared as part of the Triple-i Initiative’s October 2026 showcase, a presenter-free, ad-free run of indie announcements, and it stands out there as one of the few entries putting police procedure and the ethics of recorded force at the center of its mechanics.
