Black Mirror‘s seventh season is going to feature two in-world sequels. We’re getting a direct followup to the show’s iconic “USS Callister.” We’re also getting another story connected to the show’s 2018’s interactive special film Bandersnatch. But before we even get a chance to learn more about Will Poulter’s Colin Ritman, we’ll get to once again actively engage with his story. The streamer is letting us play one of the character’s long-lost forbidden games. Netflix has announced a free, sinister new Tamagotchi-style retro mobile game called Thronglets. It’s a tie-in to season seven’s upcoming episode “Plaything” that will force you to face some difficult existential questions.
The fourth episode of Black Mirror‘s seventh episode, “Plaything,” will see Poulter back as acclaimed video game designer Colin Rittman. The previously released episode synopses and accompanying season seven trailer teased the story. From Netflix: “In a near-future London, an eccentric murder suspect is linked to an unusual video game from the 1990s — a game populated by cute, evolving artificial lifeforms.”
Now we can actually play the very same fictional video game that will play an important role in the episode. The streamer has released Thronglets, a mobile game that—in true Black Mirror fashion—is not nearly as cute as it seems. The streamer’s Tudum describes the game as “part virtual pet, part village manager, part strategy game, and part existential conundrum.” Here’s what players can expect:
Thronglets is a simple virtual pet, kind of like a Tamagotchi — for roughly the first 10 minutes. Then things get more complicated as you manage an ever-growing population of the little yellow guys. On the surface, it’s all pretty standard fare: Keep everyone clean, fed, and exercised, and your population will continue to grow. There’s always a carrot at the end of the stick to pull you along, be it an upgraded tool, a new type of building, or a thermonuclear device.
While time and resource management will be a big part of the game, it will quickly get weird. And creepy. Netflix says, “in true Tuckersoft fashion,” the fourth wall will start to break down. Then the Thronglets will “start communicating directly with you, the player.”
Tudum provides many more details on the specifics of both the gameplay and the Thronglets communication. But the less you know going in the better. Experience the game the way you should experience a new Black Mirror episode. Don’t know exactly how weird and upsetting everything is going to get.
