Hi, How Are You (video game)

Lore & Background

In Hi, How Are You, the player takes control of Jeremiah the Innocent, a character based on Johnston's mural on the University of Texas campus. Jeremiah starts as a human but is changed into a frog by Satan. The main goal is to direct Jeremiah along a path by tilting the device without falling off. To complete a level, all green blocks must be touched before proceeding to the exit. Silver trophies require touching all green and red blocks or all green blocks and beating the clock. Gold trophies require touching all green blocks, all red blocks, and beating the clock. Numerous obstacles and enemies challenge the player, and the game uses the device's accelerometer to control characters.

Reader's Guide

Hi, How Are You was featured in The New York Times on September 28, 2009, and was described as 'a psycho-religious version of Frogger.' Pocket Gamer stated that the game 'sets a new iPhone benchmark aesthetically.' The soundtrack, consisting of several songs by Daniel Johnston, was praised by Slide to Play for adding to the game's tone. The game represents a unique intersection of independent music and mobile gaming, bringing Johnston's outsider art to an interactive medium. Its reliance on tilt controls and its surreal, religious-themed narrative distinguished it from other platformers of the era. The game's reception highlighted its visual and audio design as standout features, though its niche appeal limited its broader cultural footprint. It remains a notable example of art-game adaptation from a musician's body of work.

Did You Know?

• Players control Jeremiah the frog, who is based on a character from Daniel Johnston's mural on the University of Texas campus.
• The New York Times described the game as 'a psycho-religious version of Frogger'.
• The soundtrack consists of several songs by Daniel Johnston.

Gameplay & Core Mechanics

The player steps into the shoes of Jeremiah the Innocent, a character drawn from Daniel Johnston's famous mural on the University of Texas campus. Though he begins as a human figure, Satan transforms him into a frog, setting the stage for a quirky platforming adventure. Navigation relies entirely on the device's accelerometer: tilting the phone or iPod Touch guides Jeremiah along narrow pathways without letting him tumble off the edge. Each level demands that the player touch every green block before reaching the exit, but the trophy system adds layers of challenge. A silver trophy requires either touching all green and red blocks or clearing all green blocks against the clock. The gold trophy demands the full package: every green block, every red block, and a time victory. Scattered throughout each stage are numerous obstacles and enemies that test the player's reflexes and spatial awareness, making the tilt-based movement both intuitive and demanding.

Artistic & Musical Foundation

At its core, Hi, How Are You is an homage to the singular creative world of Daniel Johnston, whose art and music form the entire aesthetic and sonic identity of the game. The protagonist, Jeremiah the Innocent, is not an original invention but a direct nod to a character from Johnston's well-known mural painted on the University of Texas campus. This connection grounds the game in a specific, recognizable piece of outsider art rather than a generic fantasy setting. The soundtrack carries Johnston's musical voice throughout, with several of his songs woven into the experience. Reviewers recognized this integration as more than decorative; Slide to Play specifically highlighted how the music deepens the game's overall tone, suggesting the audio and visual elements work in concert to create a cohesive atmosphere. Pocket Gamer went further, declaring the title a new aesthetic benchmark for iPhone games, a testament to how Johnston's distinctive visual style translates into a digital platforming context.

Reception & Critical Response

Hi, How Are You attracted notable mainstream and industry attention shortly after its launch. The New York Times featured the game on September 28, 2009, coining the memorable description of it as "a psycho-religious version of Frogger," a label that captured both its platforming DNA and its deeply personal, faith-inflected narrative about reclaiming a lost love from Satan. The coverage was not limited to American outlets; the Guardian in the UK and NPR both picked up the story, indicating the game's cultural resonance extended beyond the typical mobile-gaming audience. Within the mobile gaming press, Pocket Gamer offered a particularly strong endorsement, stating the title "sets a new iPhone benchmark aesthetically," a bold claim that positioned it among the most visually distinctive apps on the platform. Slide to Play also weighed in, singling out the Johnston soundtrack as a key contributor to the game's mood and identity. Together, these responses painted a picture of a small, artistically driven title that punched well above its weight in terms of critical visibility.

Development & Platform Context

Hi, How Are You was the product of a small creative team: Peter Franco and Stephen Broumley, working under the banners of Dr Fun Fun and Smashing Studios. The game was built specifically for Apple's mobile ecosystem, targeting both the iPhone and the iPod Touch, which placed it squarely in the early era of serious mobile gaming. As a third-person platformer, it leaned heavily on the hardware's accelerometer, making the physical act of tilting the device a core part of the gameplay loop rather than a novelty feature. The narrative premise—Jeremiah the frog on a quest to win back his true love from Satan—gives the title a distinctly personal, almost confessional quality that sets it apart from the more generic adventure formulas common in mobile games of that period. The collaboration between two developers and two studio identities, combined with the reliance on Johnston's pre-existing art and music, suggests a project driven more by artistic vision and fan devotion than by commercial scale.