Developer Neven Mrgn, one half of The Incident developer Big Bucket Games, has released his new text-based dystopian sci-fi game, Blackbar.

The game, which was co-developed by James Moore of Panic, has similar traits to old text-based adventure games and interactive fiction. Players will become Vi, deciphering a series of letters from Kenty, an employee of the fictional Department of Communication. Letters are filled with blacked out words that must be filled in to progress through the game, eventually leading to a larger conspiracy.

Blackbar is a text game: a sci-fi story of a dystopian future told through the medium of word puzzles. Reminiscent of text adventures and interactive fiction, it has a unique mechanic centered around the concept of censorship. Censorship is frustrating, but the human spirit can beat that frustration by turning it into a game.

You'll pick up and understand Blackbar instantly; however, its challenges will keep you searching, thinking, and trying for days.

blackbar
Our sister site TouchArcade played Blackbar and thought it was a fun and "incredibly interesting" game:

I'm expecting many more twists and turns throughout the story, all based around deciphering the censorship you're being subjected to. It's incredibly interesting so far. As strange as it sounds, just trying to discover what the censored words are is actually really fun too.

Blackbar is available for $2.99 for the iPhone and iPad. [Direct Link]

Top Rated Comments

gage006 Avatar
151 months ago
Vi? Rather play as Emacs.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hobbbz Avatar
151 months ago
I thought this game looked fun. I downloaded it and seem to have come to the end within only a couple hours of noncontinuous play...a bit spendy at $2.99 if that's really the end. :confused:

A latte at my local coffee shop costs $3.85. That drink entertains me minimally for about 45 minutes.

This game which 2 people put months of work into costs $2.99 and is playable for a couple hours and really tickles your brainparts.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hobbbz Avatar
151 months ago
I was comparing to other iOS games, not other forms of entertainment. I can count on one hand the number of games I've paid more than $1.99 for on iOS. The other games in this category for me were much more involved graphically and took far longer to play through, and thus would have required far greater resources on the creation side than this game.

That said, I did enjoy the game, but I was simply surprised at the short amount of time it took to reach the end. Based on the description saying "its challenges will keep you searching, thinking, and trying for days," I was hoping for something that I could pick up and play for a while over a longer period of time, and this game did not deliver that.

Here's what i put on reddit about it:

If I put my hours into a piece of work, I charge for it.
the only way to change the 99c glut in the app store is to change it. I charge what I do for my work mostly because that's what it's worth and partly to keep away anyone who would pay less.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ahbiteme Avatar
151 months ago
Ending

I got to the screen where I had to enter the character's first name to comply and did so. I thought the ending was pretty weak.

But then I went back and instead of putting in Vi, I put in "NO".

Try it.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheManInBlack Avatar
151 months ago
I've gotten stuck on the one with two three letter words censored and a picture of two women in swimsuits.

you probably won't find anyone who will help you with this one it's close to The End.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
talmy Avatar
151 months ago
Thank you both! :D

----------



When you go on vacation you "xxxx xxxx xxxx xxx" from work. Does that help? ;)

Thanks, that did it!

Just a general observation -- some blanks can be filled in with different words. I quit the program and restarted and some blanks had different words than I used. So there is some flexibility.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

maxresdefault

Apple Releases iOS 18.4 With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music, New Emoji and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:03 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, the fourth major updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating system updates that came out last year. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 come two months after Apple released iOS 18.3 and iPadOS 18.3. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to...
iOS 19 Mock WWDC25 Feature

iOS 19 Expected to Run on These iPhones

Monday March 31, 2025 5:28 pm PDT by
iOS 19 will not be available on the iPhone XR, iPhone XS, or the iPhone XS Max, according a private account on social media site X that has accurately provided information on device compatibility in the past. The iPhone XR, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max all have an A12 Bionic chip, so it looks like iOS 19 will discontinue support for that chip. All other iPhones that run iOS 18 are expected...
iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4

Monday March 31, 2025 11:27 am PDT by
Apple today released new firmware updates for all AirPods 4 and AirPods Pro 2 models. The new firmware is version 7E93, up from the 7B21 firmware that was installed on the AirPods Pro 2 and the 7B20 firmware available on the AirPods 4 and AirPods 4 with ANC. It is not immediately clear what new features or changes are included in the new firmware, but we'll update this article should we find ...
top stories 2025 03 29

Top Stories: WWDC 2025 Announced, iPhone 17 Pro and iOS 19 Rumors, and More

Saturday March 29, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent. A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...
iOS 19 visionOS UI Elements

Apple Codename Provides Clue About iOS 19's Rumored New Design

Sunday March 30, 2025 6:40 am PDT by
Multiple sources have claimed that iOS 19 will introduce a new design with more translucent buttons, menus, notification banners, and more, and there is now another clue that points towards this glass-like appearance. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said the new design project is codenamed "Solarium" internally. A solarium is a room with glass walls that allow in plenty of sunlight, so this...
macOS Sequoia Feature

Apple Releases macOS Sequoia 15.4 With Mail Categorization and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.4, the fourth major update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that launched in September. macOS Sequoia 15.4 comes two months after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.3. Mac users can download the ‌‌macOS Sequoia‌‌ update through the Software Update section of System Settings. It is available for free on all Macs able to run macOS 15. With...
Magic Mouse Green

What to Expect From the Magic Mouse 3

Saturday March 29, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Apple is reportedly working on a new Magic Mouse. Below, we recap what to expect. The two key rumors for the Magic Mouse 3 so far include a relocated charging port, along with a more ergonomic design. It was briefly rumored that the Magic Mouse 3 would also feature voice control, but that was misinterpreted information. Relocated Charging Port While the Magic Mouse switched from...