GAME · RELEASED

INSIDE

Guide a boy through a quiet, unsettling puzzle-platform adventure where the scene itself gives you clues about what to do next.

Puzzle Adventure

Release Date JUN 29, 2016

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The boy stands below a narrow pool of light in an industrial space.

Figures stand in a large dark room while the boy watches nearby.

The boy runs beside a large tilted structure and metal stairs.

The boy passes a glass room in a dim industrial building.

The boy carries a glowing object toward a boarded structure.

Game Overview

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Developed · Playdead. First released June 29, 2016 on Xbox One; PC followed July 7, 2016

INSIDE starts with a boy alone in a forest. People and machines are pursuing him, and the game offers almost no written explanation. You move him from left to right through a strange world, hide when danger is nearby and interact with objects to keep going. It is a dark game with disturbing images and some violent deaths, so its spare look is not the same as a gentle story for young children. Playdead, the studio behind LIMBO, made and published it.

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At first, you may wonder where the quest list or map has gone. There is none: the immediate scene is your guide. Look at what blocks the path, what can move and what reacts when the boy approaches. A ledge may call for a jump; a heavy object may be something to drag; a switch or cord may change the room. The boy can run, jump, climb and interact, but the game rarely labels those actions on screen. Some sections test timing or stealth as well as puzzle-solving. If you fail, the game restarts close to the obstacle, so you can change one move and learn what the scene is asking. The story remains deliberately open to interpretation.

INSIDE first released for Xbox One on June 29, 2016. Its PC release followed on July 7, 2016, and later versions reached other systems. The date here records the first public release, not the later Steam date. The official cover shows the boy and the original red INSIDE title. Playdead's own screenshots below show the side-on camera, obstacles, shadowy rooms and places to watch closely without claiming to explain the ending.