Teller’s Duty: Hand-drawn dystopia where moral decisions count

Back in 2013, Paper’s Please was thrust into the limelight by various YouTubers and creators, going on to become a surprise hit that’s beloved by players even today. Many have tried to replicate the feeling of the game in the time since, but that’s a hard ask. Well, developer Hiscory might have cracked the code with Teller’s Duty. 

Teller’s Duty is a game in which you are thrust into the position of a teller at a bank in the fictional location of Kertasia, a dystopian city that follows a long list of bizarre rules when it comes to its money. You’ve never harbored a desire to be a bank teller, but your mom has medical bills to pay, so you do what you must. 

Hand-drawn art and constant rule changes

Teller’s Duty is entirely hand-drawn, from the locations to the people you meet on the job, and there’s a lot of charm in the artwork. For the most part, you only really see two things: The back of your desk at the bank, and the smallest corner of your tiny apartment. However, some events occur at fixed points during a playthrough that offer some insight into what’s going on in Kertasia on a larger scale. 

While you’re handling deposits and withdrawals for the 100+ unique characters who call upon your services, you’ll start to develop a familiarity with them. From the lady in a red hat who always deposits or withdraws large sums of money, to the small boy who only wants to withdraw 20 dollars whenever he visits, every character is memorable. 

Of course, it’s not all straightforward. Kertasia is a state that is constantly changing the rules, and you’ll need to abide by any new rules that are thrown at you if you want to make enough to eat and pay for your mom’s medical bills. 

Teller's Duty feels familiar, yet fresh

If you’ve played Paper’s Please, you’ll be familiar with what’s expected of you in Teller’s Duty. While at work at the bank, you’ll need to pay close attention to identity numbers, IDs, cash amounts, and even whether or not the official stamps in place, to make sure that you’re not accidentally breaking any more Kertasia’s enforced rules. 

Each infraction against a rule will cost you 5 dollars, meaning that you might need to go without food or skip paying your rent for a day if you make too many mistakes. If you don’t save enough for your mom’s healthcare, what happens to her? That remains unknown, but it’s probably safe to say that it won’t be a happy ending. 

At random points throughout a playthrough, the cash counting machine will stop working, and you’ll need to manually count out every deposit or withdrawal. This isn’t so bad for small amounts, as that’s pretty easy to keep track of at a glance, but when you’ve got thousands of dollars to count out manually, it’s all too easy to make mistakes, which end up costing you.

More types of ID are added as the game progresses, so you’ll find yourself comparing multiple numbers to spot any mistakes, and it can be easy to hyper-focus on those small details. However, being too transfixed on one thing can prevent you from spotting glaringly obvious mistakes, so it’s advisable to be thorough on all the details. 

Dystopian morals in question

It goes without saying that in a dystopian state, morals are somewhat loose and dubious. As much as you don’t want to be in Kertasia, you’re now responsible for making decisions that will impact you in the long run. 

Should you take in the stray cat that appears outside your apartment door one day, knowing that it’s going to cost you money to feed it? Should you gamble your earnings in the hope of winning more than you could dream of, or stick to earning your money the hard and long way?

Those decisions in Teller’s Duty feel all the more large and impactful because of the monotony that you face every day, and combined with the ever-changing rules, you’ll find that you begin to question your own choices both at work and outside of the bank.

Teller’s Duty is currently in development by Hiscory, and has no official release date set in stone. If you want to get a taste, you can go and download the demo through Steam to find out more about Kertasia and the rules they can impose.