This game about channel surfing surreal alien broadcasts used to be exclusive to a 1-bit console with a crank—but now it's coming to Steam

Blippo+ | Switch and Steam Release Date Trailer | Coming Sept 23rd - YouTube

Playdate received an oddity called Blippo Plus earlier this year. It turns the handheld console into a strange little television, so that twisting the crank feels akin to switching channels on an old analog TV dial. Sometimes you'll find a cryptic animation, or else a live action musical performance. Some channels show a mysteriously static logo, whereas others might feature a full-blown variety show. It all plays out in real time, so you can't rewind and fast forward it. You just have to watch it like ye olde TV.

The broadcasts in Blippo Plus emanate from Planet Blip, meaning a lot of it may seem inscrutable to viewers not au fait with the orthodoxies of alien popular culture. Part of the fun of Blippo Plus is making connections across the disparate channels, and beginning to understand the arcane ways of aliens, though it's also chock full of references to real life broadcasting history. For the hypnagogic heads among us, the vibe is reminiscent of the old 'n' noisy James Ferraro albums (though it's actually YACHT doing the soundtrack).

This bizarre game made for a bizarre console is on its way to PC, and as you might expect from software making the jump from a crank-controlled 1-bit device to big screens, it's probably going to be a different experience. For starters, it's in color, which lets the studio lean heavier into woozy CRT stylings. There's also a program guide, which I don't think is in the Playdate version, though channels still air whether you're watching or not.

Blippo Plus is a collaboration between Telefantasy Studios—a California-based studio dedicated to "the spirit of late-night cable television"—and Noble Robot, which is working on the '00s desktop sim Dreamsettler. Playdate veteran Dustin Mierau is also involved. Naturally, Blippo Plus is published by Playdate creator Panic, who also published Untitled Goose Game and Thank Goodness You're Here! It hits Steam and Nintendo Switch on September 24.

Shaun Prescott is the Australian editor of PC Gamer. With over ten years experience covering the games industry, his work has appeared on GamesRadar+, TechRadar, The Guardian, PLAY Magazine, the Sydney Morning Herald, and more. Specific interests include indie games, obscure Metroidvanias, speedrunning, experimental games and FPSs. He thinks Lulu by Metallica and Lou Reed is an all-time classic that will receive its due critical reappraisal one day.

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