Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes

Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes is a multiplayer game about defusing bombs. It is the commercial version of a prototype originally created for a 2014 Game Jam. Only one player plays the game on the screen. The other player, or more players, are not allowed to see the screen and only read a bomb defusing manual freely available at bombmanual.com. It can be read online or printed out. They are the experts who can help to solve it, but they cannot see or touch the bomb. The player controlling the game is inside a room and views a briefcase that contains a bomb from a first-person perspective. It contains different modules based on coloured wires, words, dials, maze patterns etc. that all need to be solved before time runs out to defuse the bomb. The briefcase can be rotated freely and the game player can manipulate parts of the modules. There is a timer on the bomb showing the remaining time.

Because of the complexity of the patterns and the many variables, the player viewing the bomb cannot solve the modules and needs to relay the visual elements to the other players so they can consult the manual and tell what to do. The gameplay thus relies on efficient communication and feedback, either online using a voice chat service or as a local multiplayer game with the other players in the same room. Bombs are procedurally generated so they are never identical. There are however different difficulty levels for the bombs based on the amount of mistakes (strikes), the time limit and the amount and complexity of the modules. Each module has a light in the top right corner and once solved it turns green.

Initially released with one version of the manual, there are meant to be multiple ones and when starting the game the correct manual needs to be verified in-game through a code. The game supports VR for the game player through Oculus Rift or Gear VR.