I’ve recently fallen down a rabbit hole of fake video games. Not fake like fraud, but fake like art; games that don’t exist to play, but do exist to tell their stories. I’m super into it but finding more is kinda difficult, so here we are!
What fake games do you like? Why do you like them? Pictures, links, videos, whatever.
I really enjoyed Petscop (video 1/25 linked) and Valle Verde (video 1 linked, Spanish with subtitles), both series are let’s play style, exploring fake games to tell their stories. Petscop is much more narratively involved, and tells a great story (you’ll probably want an explainer video afterwards… it’s involved) while Valle Verde is more ghost-in-the-machine horror.
I found this rabbit hole through this video, from Super Eyepatch Wolf about fake video games, why they are made and how they “work” as an art form. Their content is weirdly enjoyable to me, and pleasingly entirely too long. Plus they have their own fake video game.
Edit for clarity: Fake video games is a super broad category. Pictures with gameplay hud that implies a video game, videos of gameplay or cutscenes styled after games count (even those weird live action “games” people record for TikTok count), books or stories that describe gameplay for games that don’t exist count, even soundtracks modeled after game sound tracks count. So if it’s a game or part of a game that doesn’t exist, it counts!
Not sure if it’s really what you’re asking about but the Aqua Teen Hunger Force series has a few fake video games during the series. The Video Ouija episode has two, “Video Ouija” (a game where you summon/talk to ghosts) and “Insult Master” (a game where you insult your opponent), I’d play either of those if they existed LOL. e.g.
Frylock: Okay, Meatwad. Time to put the game up. It’s gettin’ late.
Meatwad: Come on!! Just one more dead person, please? Just one more dead guy.
Frylock: All right, one more.
Meatwad: Spirits that haunt this house. Tell me…what was we talkin’ 'bout?
Game Ghost: My sister’s baby.
Meatwad: Oh yeah, one them other dead boys told me about that. How she doin?
Game Ghost: She’s dead. We’re all dead.
A game I’m not sure I’d play is the one featured in the Black Mirror episode Playtest. It’s basically an augmented reality game that auto-generates your personal fears that you get to experience in realtime. Maybe it’d be interesting to try once, safely, but I don’t know how often I’d want to test my sanity in that way.
I’ve never watched Black Mirror, but as someone who occasionally has nightmares there’s no way I’d play a horror game that is powered by my own thoughts
Your mention reminded me of a false pretense game from Adult Swim called Glittermitten Grove. I would consider that itself a fake game in the way a storefront might be a fake cover for a drug operation, except the drug in question is Frog Fractions 2.
Video Quijia would be cool as hell if it was multiplayer and the game was just fighting to move the planchette. 🤣
Yep those all count :) I’ll have to watch those episodes again! Same with the black mirror one, those are all good but man I gotta be in the right mood for ‘em… lol