I’m going to level with you: I don’t know what the fuck to make of Blippo+. Simply put, it is so unlike anything I’ve played before, and so unlike a traditional video game, it’s very difficult to articulate how I feel about it. So get ready to read a slightly jumbled review of Blippo+, which ironically mirrors the feeling of channel surfing in the game.
The easiest way to describe Blippo+ is that it’s a cable TV simulator FMV game, but it’s cable TV from an alien planet (called Planet Blip). There’s a loose narrative running through the game, focusing on news from Blippo Public Broadcasting that thousands of devices on a “blue and white planet across the universe” have started picking up Blippo TV, insinuating that the player is using one of these devices and so the in-game news reports are discussing your situation. It was a really cool way to contextualise the game, and helped provide a bit of narrative structure to a game that can otherwise become a bit baffling.
As it’s a cable TV simulator, you’ll be flicking through channels, watching short minute-long TV shows before deciding if you want to stick with that channel or see what’s on elsewhere. There’s no interactivity beyond channel surfing, so you’re best off settling on the sofa and playing on the TV or on a handheld to get the most from the game.
The programming on Blippo+ has a delightfully retro aesthetic. It puts a smile on my face that somewhere there’s an advanced alien race whose broadcast media is roughly on a par with our 1980’s British TV, right down to the funky music and Teletext equivalent. Flicking through the TV guide and watching anything is akin to a fever dream: some of the stuff you’ll see on Blippo+ is so bonkers that I genuinely don’t know what to make of it. Below is selection of some of the shows you can expect to see in the first hour:
- Confetti Cowboys: Two blokes in cowboy outfits mess around in a very cheap-looking spaceship
- Brain Drain: A scientist conducts experiments on a particle long enough for it to develop a brain, which he then proceeds to interview.
- Bushwalker: First-person wilderness survival show while a voice rasps “BUSHWAAALKER” in the background
- Tantric Computing: My personal favourite, a close up of a hand caressing an 80’s style computer mouse and flicking the scroll wheel as they moan suggestively while saucy music plays in the background. I don’t know who on Planet Blip is watching this but I would very much like to meet them.
These are just a few of the many, many shows you’ll find across the 10 or so channels available at the start of the game, with more channels opening up after watching a certain amount of Blippo+. They all share the fuzzy, low-budget visual style and while some shows are seemingly just there to entertain (or baffle), some feature news or talk show segments which help drive forward that overarching narrative concerning Earth and Planet Blip.
There’s also Fentofax, the Planet Blip equivalent of Teletext, which has some fun pages to scroll through. Trash Type was my favourite, a confessions platform where viewers can text in their complaints and insults, such as “It’s called a talent parade for a reason, Alan”, or “My bedtime is too early!”. It’s silly but makes a nice diversion from your regularly scheduled broadcasting, and gives a little bit of interactivity to a game that largely involves nothing but watching TV.
It feels wrong saying “nothing but watching TV”, even if it’s accurate, as I enjoy visual novels which are often “nothing but reading text”. I’m not sure why but Blippo+ just didn’t click with me in the same way though. It was a bit frustrating not being able to skip through at my own pace, like I can with a VN, and at times it actually reminded me of why I don’t watch broadcast TV anymore as I don’t enjoy being locked to a schedule. Despite the fun aesthetic of the shows, I didn’t really enjoy watching the TV shows. There were a few that were fun momentarily, but ultimately if I don’t want to sit down and watch actual TV, it’s unlikely I’m going to want to sit down and watch fake TV either.
The one area I did really enjoy about the game though was the soundtrack. It perfectly captures the essence of 80s TV with pop tunes full of big beats and synths, with tracks that sound like they’d be at home on Saved by the Bell. There’s one track that I’m 99% sure I still hear every time I get put on hold with the GP, and every tune I heard during my time with the game did a fantastic job of contributing to the atmosphere.
Blippo+ is one of the most unusual things I’ve ever played. It’s not a game in the traditional sense, and for those that enjoy the unhinged, 80s style programming on offer here, you’ll get a kick out of sitting back, scrolling through the channels and catching the latest episode of Quizzards. For me though, I just wasn’t a fan of what was on offer and when those TV shows make up 99% of the game it unfortunately leaves little else to enjoy.
