SCP SECRET LAB'S PROXIMITY CHAT

The art of deception. By Elie Gould

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There's nothing quite like relying on the kindness of strangers when you're in a confusing online co-op horror game like SCP: Secret Laboratory. Each round sees you get dropped into a different role with varying objectives and placed into a randomly generated map right before a catastrophic event lets all the eldritch monsters out of their pens and into the facility; oh, and you're also alongside up to 25 other players who want you dead.

It may seem like an impossible task to navigate all of that, but SCP: Secret Lab has an ace up its sleeve: proximity chat. Every so often, you find a good soul who's willing to help you no questions asked, but most of the time, I find myself begging for my life with a Scientist player who's gone power mad after finding a lone pistol in a locker. Being able to talk to your fellow players completely changes the horror experience.

I'M ALL EARS

Negotiating is a surprisingly big part of