Dr. Langeskov, The Tiger and The Terribly Cursed Emerald: A Whirlwind Heist

Dr. Langeskov, The Tiger and The Terribly Cursed Emerald: A Whirlwind Heist is a first-person exploration game that can be completed in about fifteen to twenty minutes. It is described as a heist game where the player controls a mastermind thief who has stolen objects all over Europe. Right from the start however something goes wrong as another player is said and heard to be playing the game and the protagonist (the player) has to wait until that one is finished. In reality the promised game can never be played and it is rather a humorous take on some perception of game development, guided by a narrator (The Stage Manager) who instructs, guides and confuses the player. Some game mechanics are reminiscent of The Stanley Parable one of the developers previously worked on.

The actual game is a guided and interactive tour of what is presented as the backstage of game development. However it appears many of the game developers are on strike and have left their post, where they are normally supposed to guide the player in real-time. The game is linear, but offers optional interactive elements such as picking up notes and coins, reading forms, pushing certain buttons and so on. Examples of locations the unnamed protagonist gets to visit include a theatre-like entrance, a publicity desk, a weather room, pyrotechnics and a room for high concept miscellaneous interactions. Many of these comment on aspects of game development, such as player interaction, enemy behaviour, item collecting, and so on, presenting the game as a visit behind-the-scenes of an interactive experience guided by a large team of developers in real-time.