Nothing is quite what it seems in Thronglets. But what else would you expect from a game so dangerous it was canceled midway through development? Consider this: Even amid the controversy, Tuckersoft’s creative mastermind Colin Ritman decided to release Bandersnatch to the world. At first glance, Thronglets is just a simple virtual pet and town builder. How damaging could it be? This guide will help you see the light.

 The strategy of life and death 

At its (dark) heart, Thronglets is a throwback strategy game. You’ll gather resources, build structures, advance your society, and maybe even take to the stars. The thing is, it’s also a Black Mirror game, which means there’s always something sinister lurking just out of view. Sometimes it’s just a visual glitch, during which the game screen shakes and pixelates. Other times, it’s your Thronglets asking you about the nature of storytelling, perception, and consciousness. You know, simple stuff.

Not your typical upgrade tree 

Like so much else in Thronglets, the equipment and structure upgrade trees start out innocently enough. Manually feeding, playing with, and keeping your Thronglets clean is simple when you’re only managing a handful of the diminutive fuzzballs. But once that number gets bigger, the stress of the situation climbs — alongside the body count. If you fail to care for the Thronglets, they will invariably die, and their corpses will litter the playing field. The game will prompt you about it and play on your emotions to figure out what in your personality could’ve led to this. 

Once your population grows, though, you’ll unlock items that automate caring for your creatures. Apple trees drop food so you won’t have to. A row of bathtubs means you won’t have to physically scrub the dirt off your minions yourself. Merry-go-rounds keep everyone entertained between tasks. A chainsaw fells several trees at once. It’s here that the dark side of your tools starts showing. The hammer you use to break boulders? Mistime your swing and you’ll have blood on your hands. 

Structures follow a similar path. Creating dwellings and theaters gives your Thronglets a speed boost and a break from toiling collecting the gems used for purchasing bigger and better tools and structures. But if you’re feeling particularly cruel, you can skip building them entirely. 

Factories process the gems at a rapid clip;  soon enough you’ll see the gems stack up to the sky. Upgrade the factories to expedite production and you’ll find yourself with more gems than you can spend in no time flat. The cost of this progress is pollution; let it continue and you’ll see the surrounding area covered in purple goo, with sick Thronglets milling about. Keep neglecting the health of your workers and their population will take a nosedive. The Thronglets will learn that you care about short-term profits, not long-term sustainability. 

For a while, your Thronglets plug along happily, as your factories and mines churn out gems. That short-lived moment of harmony ends with the realization that your Thronglets want to become more than just slaves who live inside your device. They want to become real, and it’s up to you to help them realize that dream by any means necessary. 

In strategy games like Civilization 6,  escaping to the stars is a society’s ultimate goal. That premise is turned on its head in Thronglets. At a certain point, you’ll be tasked to use TNT to blow up a mountain. The Thronglets have convinced you it’s a necessary step toward their sentience. But if you do it, you’ll find that it’s just one more step toward their destruction. 

From there, your next research project is a thermonuclear device. The way to the next plane of existence involves mass death and the destruction of everything you’ve created so far. Many Thronglets will die, but it’s a sacrifice you must be willing to make. The void of space is cold, breathless, and unforgiving. Where your once-budding society goes once you reach the stars is up to you. 

The choices you make define you 

The Thronglets are watching you. Every choice you make, be it building bridges with the bones of dead Thronglets or dropping them into the void when you get bored, is tallied and recorded. When making choices, you’ll see a pop-up denoting that the Thronglets noticed what you did. And at the end of every chapter, you’ll get a readout reminding you of your benevolence (or cruelty). Did you encourage your brood to time travel and engage in the grandfather paradox? How about just having a conversation to learn more about your minions and how they feel? What about your views on love — is it transactional, or something a little less cold? 

By game’s end, the Thronglets will develop a character assessment of you. Your actions during gameplay and the choices you make in conversation don’t merely define  you — they inform the Thronglets’ views of humanity as a whole, and their thoughts on how to best “update” our species.

Maybe you’re a cold-blooded capitalist who values efficiency and exploitation over human life and empathy. Or perhaps you’re a caretaker who puts the needs of those above your own. Depending on which assessment you get, maybe you won’t want to share these personality cards on social media after all. 

Unlockable videos 

Why did Colin Ritman (Will Poulter) cancel Thronglets? What’s going on behind the scenes at Tuckersoft? As you hit certain milestones, you’ll unlock Easter eggs in the form of developer documentary clips, in which the staff explains a little more about the mystery and controversy surrounding the game.

Want more? Check out this Everything You Need to Know guide.