Firefighting Simulator – The Squad

Firefighting Simulator – The Squad is a firefighting simulation in which a response team fights fires and rescues people in a fictional US city. Instead of fast racing or action sequences, the alarm drive, the situation at the scene and the teamwork of the firefighters determine the flow.

The game combines more than 40 locations with a dynamic fire simulation. Solo players command three AI teammates. In co-op, up to four players can split the tasks among themselves.

Firefighting Simulator – The Squad was released on Nov 17, 2020 for PC. On Dec 6, 2022, separate versions followed for PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S. The Nintendo Switch version was released on Sep 28, 2023.

The game was developed by Chronos Unterhaltungssoftware and published by astragon Entertainment. The base game is available separately on all listed platforms.

Firefighting Simulator – The Squad has been released for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch. The PS5 and Xbox Series versions are standalone console releases from December 2022, not just previous versions via backward compatibility.

On Nintendo Switch, the game can be played in TV, tabletop and handheld mode. For the PS5 version, astragon mentions support for haptic feedback and adaptive triggers on the DualSense controller.

Each mission begins with an alarm and the drive to the fire. There, you need to assess hazards, deploy hoses and equipment, bring fires under control and rescue people from buildings. The firefighters must respond to the spread of the flames.

The missions allow several approaches. Rescuing people first or tackling additional fires early changes how the mission unfolds. A tutorial explains the controls before the harder scenarios begin.

On PC, the game requires Windows 10 64-bit, 8 GB RAM and 12 GB free storage space. Steam lists an Intel Core i5-4440 or AMD FX-8150 as minimum processors, and a GeForce GTX 750 Ti or Radeon RX 460 with 2 GB VRAM as graphics cards.

Recommended: 16 GB RAM, a Core i7-3820 or FX-8350, and a GeForce GTX 1070 or Radeon RX 5600 XT with 8 GB VRAM. DirectX 11 and a broadband connection are also listed in the technical details.

The fire simulation accounts for water, smoke, heat and spreading flames. Backdrafts and flashovers can make the situation worse. Grease fires as well as fires caused by electrical systems or chemicals also require attention.

These effects are more than scenery: they affect where a crew can stay and which fires should be extinguished first. The physics also depicts damage and destruction caused by the spreading fire.

Missions take place in residential buildings, commercial areas and industrial facilities. astragon also cites forest and aircraft fires as scenarios. Different buildings, hazards and access points mean that the approach does not play out the same everywhere.

The city is modeled on the North American west coast and covers about 60 square kilometers, according to Nintendo. Emergency drives connect downtown, suburbs and industrial areas.

Five licensed vehicles from Rosenbauer America are ready for alarm drives and firefighting operations. These include the TP3 Pumper as a classic fire engine and the T-Rex with a hydraulic platform.

The vehicles are more than decoration: they transport the crew to the fire and are among the resources available at the scene. On PC, you can also follow the drive from the cockpit view.

The gear includes helmets, boots and breathing equipment based on well-known US manufacturers. The game uses brands including Cairns, MSA and HAIX. Hoses and tools are used at the scene to rescue people and put out fires.

Equipment is one of the recurring tasks of everyday emergency work. What matters is less collecting new items than using the available tools correctly in changing dangerous situations.

In online co-op, up to four players can head out together. The group can split roles: while some fight the fire, others take care of rescue and securing the site.

Co-op mode is part of the game on PC and consoles. Nintendo lists online matches with one to four players for the Switch version. Cross-platform play is therefore not automatically guaranteed.

Even solo, Firefighting Simulator – The Squad is fully designed as an emergency game. Three AI-controlled firefighters accompany your character. A command menu lets you assign tasks, while the player takes on the hose, tools or rescue themselves.

This keeps the teamwork of a crew intact without friends needing to be online. The system does not simply replace human teammates with silent companions, but makes commanding part of the single-player mode.

An extensive tutorial introduces alarm drives, firefighting and coordinating the crew. According to Steam, the PC version supports gamepads and common steering wheels. On PS5, haptic feedback and adaptive triggers make use of the DualSense controller's features.

The radio chatter and character voices are recorded in English. German is among the supported subtitle languages. On Nintendo Switch, the store also lists TV, tabletop and handheld modes.