A last-minute digital gift that doesn't look last-minute

How a last-minute gift works

1. Tell us who they are

   Our guide asks the right questions, about 10 minutes: what they're like, their stories and their people, even in a hurry. It saves itself and you can finish another day. Photos if you like, for their pixel portrait.

2. We write and build their game

   We show you the script before building it. It's ready 7 days after we have their full story, or in 72 hours with the rush option.

3. Give it to them as soon as it's ready

   They get a private link. It plays on a phone, a computer or the TV, with nothing to install.

Ideas for what their game could include

• A short story, but theirs

  Three good stories are enough for an Adventure game: a chapter at home, one at their favourite place and an ending with your message.

• Their catchphrase

  The one everybody imitates. In the game, the characters say it, and nobody is thinking about deadlines anymore.

• A boss that needs no explanation

  Their best-known quirk as a final boss: everyone gets it instantly.

If it's tomorrow: the plan B that works

If the birthday or dinner is tomorrow, give a card or note announcing the gift: “Someone is making a video game about your life. It arrives on Thursday.” The wait becomes part of the surprise, and you all play it together when it lands.

Fill in the questionnaire that same night (about 10 minutes, and it saves itself). The sooner it's done, the sooner the 72-hour clock starts.

How to give it

If it's ready in time, on the TV during the celebration. If not, with the note on the day and the link by message as soon as it's ready: “Now you can press play.”

Scenes their game could have

• 

  Their home

  Their living room, their sofa and their dog, who always eats what he shouldn't. Every corner hides a memory.

• 

  The family meal

  Grandma's paella is a puzzle: rice, beans… and the crispy bottom has to be earned. After lunch, the family quiz.

See every scene →

Why it's different

Not a template with their name on it

Some “personalised” games swap the hero's name and little else. We write a story with chapters, and what really happens in their life becomes what you play. Three examples from the demo:

1. What we were told“At his niece's wedding in 1998, he took the waiter carrying the four-tier cake for a cha-cha-cha.”

   What you playA rhythm minigame: you dance with the waiter to the beat… and the cake ends up on the floor, just like that day.

2. What we were told“His little dog Biscuit eats whatever she shouldn't.”

   What you playA puzzle: Biscuit has the car key. You have to fill her bowl so she drops it.

3. What we were told“His old Mini hardly ever starts: every Sunday he pushes it down the road with his mate and the neighbours.”

   What you playA race against the clock pushing the Mini down the road, collecting cha-cha records on the way.

Every game is directed by a person in the studio: they write the humour for that person, play it all the way through and nothing ships without their OK. 16-bit pixel art and original music, composed for the studio.

Price

Choose their edition

You get it within 7 days of completing the guide (72 h with Rush).

Rush 72 h · +40 € Adds to any edition: you get it within 72 hours of completing the guide.

You start free: tell us their story with the guide (about 10 minutes) and pay at the end, once you've seen how it looks. Before building it we show you the script: if it doesn't convince you, we refund 100 %.

Your game will stay online for at least 5 years from delivery; if we ever had to take it down, we'll warn you well in advance and give you a way to keep it.

Changes

What changes include

Before building the game we show you the script: you can change anything there. Once the game is built, you get 1 round of changes with Adventure, 2 with Celebration and 3 with the Special commission.

Frequently asked questions

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