The game prizes has gotten a lot of attention recently, with several high-profile announcements during the show, but there was one game that caught my attention more than any other announcement made last week, and it wasn't even during the show itself. My personal highlight was the associated Day of the Devs presentation the day before, which focused on upcoming indie games. For its intriguing strangeness, unique aesthetic, and captivatingly absurd sense of humor, Blippo+ It's my most anticipated game of 2025.
There were plenty of highlights at the Day of the Devs showcase, which showcased 20 upcoming titles across a range of genres. One of the biggest reasons I've always loved indie games is because they often take bigger risks when it comes to their overall eccentricity, embracing the weirdness more fully than many AAA titles tend to do. Whether it's a particularly wacky sense of humor like Jazz Punkexceptionally silly combat like Thirsty Suitorsor just being totally weird like Kentucky Route Zeroindie games tend to lean more into their weirdness and whimsy – and that's especially true for Blippo+.
The trailer for Blippo+ was probably the most vague and confusing one presented on the entire show, and it immediately made me want to know more. Instead of featuring any kind of concrete gameplay, it featured a series of clips from fictional television stations that were purposely in low-quality black and white, referring to it as a “revolutionary television experience.” This ranged from talk shows and advertisements to a news show and something called The Rubber Report – none of it made much sense and was the highlight of my day.
Blippo+ publisher has a great track record
Fans of Panic games should keep an eye on this new title
Blippo+ is the debut release from developer YACHT, who is working in collaboration with Telefantasy Studios. After doing some research on the latter on Telefantasy website, I discovered why the images featured in the trailer look so vintage: the studio specializes in keeping old analog television equipment for filming, resulting in pieces that look like they came from another decade. The company's work has been receiving a lot of exposure lately, having previously worked on all the promotional material for Sabrina Carpenter's current Short n' Sweet Tour.
The game's publisher is also a selling point in its own right, given the company's history. Blippo+Publisher Panic previously helped produce two of my favorite games of recent years: 2019 Untitled Goose Gameand this year Thank God you are here!which I reviewed last summer. Both are delightfully eccentric in their own way, one essentially a puzzle game about being an idiot and the other about helping the weirdest, most aggressive British people you've ever seen.
I'm not the only one who thinks so either – Thank God you are here it currently sits at 90 on Metacritic, and Untitled Goose Game He's not far behind, at 81 years old. There are some publishers who have such a stellar track record of releases that I – for better or worse – begin to expect each release to be, quite simply, a certified success. Alongside the aforementioned titles, the company was also behind some other critically praised games, such as the narrative adventure Fire Vigil and turn-based RPG bowcreating a catalog that gives me a lot of hope Blippo+.
Blippo+ is interesting beyond its editor
The game's first trailer left me with a lot of questions
It's important to point out that I don't just love the idea of Blippo+ just because of the developer's choice of collaborators – the game also has many advantages in its own right. I've always loved the comical concept of weird, fake television shows, like the many made-up shows featured on 30 rock or Rick and MortyInterdimensional Cable. Those presented in Blippo+ seem to take that weirdness to the next level, with disturbing characters and ridiculous concepts that raise far more questions than they answer in terms of what the game is about.
That alone is another reason why this game intrigues me so much: I barely understand what it is. It could be a kind of voyeuristic title like Don't feed the monkeys series, where players are more interactive participants? Is it more in the style of a unique FMV game that leans more toward watching than playing? I have absolutely no idea, and this makes me want to play even more.
The stylized nature of the project also piqued my interest – it takes the already strange nature of the game and really helps solidify the intended tone. It manages to give off vintage and sci-fi vibes at the same time, creating a mix that feels purposefully a little unnerving. It's a game with a clear aesthetic vision that's probably more than meets the eye, and regardless of what specific gameplay it has in store, seeing more of these eccentric clips is very appealing.
What players can expect from Blippo+
Although much is unknown, some elements can be inferred
Many specifics about Blippo+ have been intentionally left vague, but there are a few things that seem likely about the upcoming game. For one, it's implied that there's something sinister going on about how the player is able to interact with channels. In the trailer, the narrator states: “Don't like what's happening? You can always change the channel”, and is then abruptly interrupted by a static screen that says “Unstable signal.” This could mean that players are somehow trapped in the television viewing experience or have less control over what they see than the announcer suggests.
The implications of this could be in a number of ways: perhaps players should work to escape the clutches of the Blippo+ in some way, or may interact with FMV in a similar way to games like Immortality to find out more about the TV provider. Of course, I could also be completely wrong in all these conjectures, which is part of the game's charm. There's still a lot to learn Blippo+ sure, but whatever it is, it's the announcement of Game prizes week that I've been thinking about the most, by far.
Source: Panic/YouTube, Telefantasy Studios