Inside (video game)
A 2016 puzzle-platform horror game from the creators of Limbo.
Inside (written in all caps) is a puzzle-platform horror game from 2016, created and published by Playdead. Players guide a boy through a dystopian world, navigating environmental puzzles and trying to keep him alive. It is the studio’s second title, following 2010’s *Limbo*, and uses a similar 2.5D perspective. Development began shortly after *Limbo*’s release, initially using that game’s custom engine before switching to Unity. Playdead added their own rendering routines—later released as open source—to achieve the game’s distinctive look. A grant from the Danish Film Institute helped fund the project. *Inside* was first shown at Microsoft’s E3 conference in 2014, with a planned 2015 launch that was pushed back to 2016. It came out for Xbox One in June 2016, Windows in July, and PlayStation 4 in August, followed by iOS in December 2017, Nintendo Switch in June 2018, and macOS in June 2020. Critics praised the game as an improvement over *Limbo*, highlighting its art direction, atmosphere, and gameplay. It earned several independent awards for technical achievement and was nominated for many honors, including game of the year. Like *Limbo*, it appears on multiple lists of the greatest video games ever compiled by journalists.
In gameplay, *Inside* is a puzzle platformer. The unnamed boy explores a mostly monochrome, surreal environment presented in 2.5D. Color is used sparingly to draw attention to the player character and certain parts of the world. The game is largely silent, with only occasional music, the boy’s sounds, dogs barking, and equipment noises. The character can walk, run, swim, climb, and use objects to get past obstacles. In some areas, he uses a device—similar in appearance to glowing orbs found later—to control bodies and solve puzzles, a mechanic compared by IGN’s Marty Sliva to one in *The Swapper*. Hidden rooms contain glowing orbs; deactivating all of them in a single playthrough unlocks an alternate ending. Deaths are numerous and graphic, including drowning, gunfire, tranquilizer darts, dog attacks, security machines, and shockwaves. This earned the game an ESRB Mature rating, a step up from *Limbo*’s Teen rating. After dying, the game resumes from the last checkpoint. Later, the player controls a monster called the Huddle, which is invincible and very strong, though strategy is still needed to navigate certain areas.
- Developer
- Playdead
- Publisher
- Playdead
- Initial release date
- June 2016
- Initial platform
- Xbox One
- Other platforms
- Windows (July 2016), PlayStation 4 (August 2016), iOS (December 2017), Nintendo Switch (June 2018), macOS (June 2020)
- Engine
- Unity (with custom rendering routines later released as open source)
- Funding
- Partially funded by a grant from the Danish Film Institute
Lore & Background
Inside is a puzzle platformer set in a surreal, mostly monochromatic 2.5D environment. The player character, an unnamed boy or young man, can walk, run, swim, climb, and use objects to overcome obstacles. At select areas, he can use a device to control bodies, a mechanic compared to one in The Swapper. The player can die in many ways, including drowning, being shot, mauled by dogs, or blown apart by shockwaves; deaths are presented realistically and graphically, earning an ESRB Mature rating. Later, the player controls a monster called the Huddle, who possesses great strength and cannot die when controlled.
The plot follows the boy escaping masked guards, dogs, and vehicles, crossing a road block, a farm with parasitic worms, an abandoned city of zombie-like people, and an underground facility. He uses a mind-control helmet on some zombies, acquires a device from an underwater siren-like creature, and eventually enters a chamber containing the Huddle, a monstrous mass of conjoined human bodies. The boy is pulled into the Huddle, becoming one with it. The Huddle escapes, crashes through offices, kills scientists, and rolls down a forest hill to a grassy coastline. An alternate ending, unlocked by deactivating hidden light orbs, shows the boy pulling a plug from a computer, then taking the same stance as the zombies.
Development began shortly after Limbo's release, using Limbo's custom game engine before switching to Unity. The team added their own rendering routines, later released as open source. The Huddle was conceived in 2010, with animations inspired by the motion of Nago from Princess Mononoke, the squishiness of Gish's main character, and crowd surfing. A custom physics model using a 26-body simulation drove the Huddle's movement.
Reader's Guide
Inside was released to critical acclaim, with critics noting it as an improvement over Limbo, praising its art direction, atmosphere, and gameplay. It was nominated for numerous accolades, including game of the year, and won several independent awards for technical achievement. Like Limbo, Inside is included on multiple lists of the greatest video games of all time as compiled by game journalists. The game's alternate ending and main ending have prompted various theories from journalists and players. One theory speculates the boy is controlled by the Huddle throughout most of the game, leading him to free it; another suggests the boy is controlled by scientists who put him through dangers to improve the Huddle. A metafictional interpretation, based on player agency, posits that the boy is controlled by a renegade force represented by the player, and pulling the plug in the alternate ending ends the boy, the blob, and the experiments. The game's development was partially funded by a one-million-dollar grant from the Danish Film Institute.
Did You Know?
- Inside was partially funded by a grant from the Danish Film Institute.
- The Huddle's animation was inspired by the motion of Nago from Princess Mononoke and the squishiness of the main character of Gish.
- Playdead released the source code for their custom rendering routines under an open source license in March 2016.
- The game's alternate ending is unlocked by deactivating all hidden light orbs during a playthrough.
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