Roflpillar is a two-player caterpillar sim
In which you dress up as a caterpillar and wiggle around.
Animal sims have become the latest rage with Goat Simulator's imminent release to be followed by Catlateral Damage and Bear Simulator on the horizon, but there's one other animal sim you may not be familiar with: Roflpillar, the two-player caterpillar sim in which you dress up as a caterpillar.
That's the hook for Gentlemen! and Bad Hotel developer Lucky Frame's latest experimental party game. Two players don a sleeping bag-like caterpillar costume, lay down, and stick their heads opposite one another in a decorative Roflpillar tent where screens are suspended a few inches above each of their faces. It looks something like this:
The point of the costumes - aside from being cute and novel - is that players control their caterpillar by holding a cable to their naval and wiggling around. The actual game itself is a simple third-person affair in which you run around a sandbox eating as many apples as you can to grow. Smash into your opponent and you'll devour a chunk of them. Whoever's biggest by the end of the round wins.
There's nothing about the actual mechanics that are particularly revolutionary, but it's just too darn silly not to get a kick out of. When I played it on the GDC showfloor it was a pleasant enough romp, but featured prominently at the upper floor of the Wild Rumpus party - where it was projected onto a big screen - it drew quite the crowd. It's otherwise been featured in such gaming events as Edinburgh's Tacos, Bluegrass, & Videogames, Dundee's Drop In & Play, Nottingham's Game City, and London's Wild Rumpus. Keep an eye out for it at future events as it's too delightful to ignore.
See how Roflpillar looks in action in the following footage - sans costumes - taken from Game City last October.