Just in time for Halloween, Poppy Playtime appears to have gone viral among the popular Let's Players. One can hope that, by taking cues from predecessors in the corrupted nostalgia genre, it will also serve as a redemption for those whose creators have fallen from grace.The player watches a video cassette from the 1980s that contains a Poppy commercial. She's an artificial intelligence doll designed to respond to human commands and speak. All you have to do is polish her shoes and ask her questions. Poppy concludes the video by stating unequivocally that she is a real girl. A letter follows, instructing you to locate and display a flower in the old Poppy Playtime factory. Cut to you arriving at the factory, where it is revealed that you are a former employee. You want to track down your friends who have mysteriously vanished.It appears simple enough: get in, find the flower entrance revealed in spliced footage on the videocassette, and get out. In fact, the first part of the game isn't all that difficult. To progress, one must solve some puzzles and learn how to use a tool called a GrabPack to reach for hand locks located on arches, assemble some toys, and reboot the electrical system. The tutorial video warns you not to use the GrabPack on people because you may accidentally decapitate them and brandish their head like a trophy. Poppy playtime is a free horror game that you can play in 2022.

The problem is that you have to deal with a security system that is only partially functional. A stray videocassette reveals that the head of Innovations, Laith Pierre, who you saw in the advertisement, devised a trespass warning. If you enter the factory, motion sensors will sound the alarm and summon the police. Continue on and you'll see the security system's creative side, but "No spoilers!" as Laith puts it. (According to the Internet, the use of that slang began in 1982, so technically it makes sense for Laith to say it, but you can sense the writers' tongue-in-cheek tone.) A player can try to leave by going to the exit, but the character will not leave.