Panic Invites Players for a Big Walk in Its Downtown Portland Offices

Big Walk made me motion sick, but I want to play it again. The new video game invites players into an open world setting where they can talk to their friends, solve puzzles, explore, or—dare we say—kiki?

We got a chance to demo the game at the Panic office in downtown Portland, and soon so can you. Starting March 9, Panic is inviting fans to come play it in their studios.

You remember this game’s developers, House House, from their smash hit Untitled Goose Game (2019)—also published by Panic—wherein one plays as a mischievous goose with the power to “HONK” at and prank foolish townsfolk. The two games don’t have much in common in terms of visuals or play experience. Big Walk’s renderings are vibrantly colorful. The puzzles your avatar collaborates on have a playground modernism feel—bright, primary colors and rounded, soft edges—but the world surrounding them mimics idealized nature, with moving grasses, delicate trees, and glorious sunsets.

All open world games are inevitably compared to Nintendo’s 2017 groundbreaking hit The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, but a similar feeling of awe was palpable when we exited the starting area and happened upon the valley we were about to explore. We did so at night, but were carrying pink light-up balls that lent the green grasses magical two-toned hues.

Still, there’s mischief and humor present in the game. You’re not exactly pranking your friends (you could!), but you can pick up their avatars and carry them on your shoulders or dropkick them. The blobby little figures look like bi-ped ants walking upright, with their tri-section bodies and rounded noses that move and expand every time a player speaks.

Talking is a major part of Big Walk. And the game’s proximity chat may be its defining feature. When your avatar walks away from the others, your voice becomes quieter and vice versa. This means when you’re lost, you can really get lost.

“It feels so awesome to find people again,” said Cabel Sasser, Panic co-founder and one of the hosts of our demo session. Finding a lost teammate was an experience I provided my demo-mates over and over again, as I evidenced my tendency to wander off. It was difficult not to want to simply tromp off and explore the valley—described by Panic as an island, though we only saw one small area of it.

Sasser estimated that the game contains at least ten to 15 hours of puzzles for groups of friends to unravel. Once that’s finished there isn’t a plan to add more islands or downloadable challenges. The experience is meant to be finite, which one might identify as something most Panic games have in common. Goose Game, Firewatch, Herdling—every Panic game I’ve played could be finished in about a weekend.

It seems a little unlikely a group of friends could make plans to hang out for ten hours straight, so the idea seems to be that Big Walk should be played in a few sessions. Only the game’s host needs to remain the same from play to play, unless the group wants to start over. New players can join existing playthroughs, and Big Walk could even serve as a meet-up spot for those who want to chat and also do something with their hands.

The challenges my team unraveled required all of us working together (think ropes course, but we never actually did a ropes course). Sasser said the obstacles scale with the number of players, and Big Walk can accommodate groups of anywhere from two to 12. Idea alert: How do we get the City Council to play?

Asked about the inevitability of Big Walk being used for team building endeavors, Sasser mused: “The goal was not additional, increased capitalism, but instead having quality time with your friends.” He then added, “I’ve joked about wanting to do [remote] meetings in Big Walk. I feel like that would be better in many ways—maybe harder to share a file, but more entertaining.” If anything, participants would have to stay engaged. An avatar abandoned falls asleep—as we found out when I left to walk around the office looking for Dramamine.

The first person view of my avatar—no defined names given the blobs just yet, Panic hopes players will create lots of fun terms—was probably the main thing that made me dizzy. It was potentially my own fault for jerking my vision around in circles, as I tried to see everything. Panic’s staff expanded my frame of view, and it helped immensely. It also helps to focus on the dot at the center of your screen, which players use to select. Further advice: Play in a lit space. Sit back from the screen. Motion seems a little smoother with keyboard and mouse.

Panic plans to offer in-studio Big Walk sessions right up until the game finally hits computer and Playstation platforms, and since the release date has yet to be announced, that could be for some time.

Grab three friends—or people you at least sort of know—and sign up to play Big Walk at bigwalk.game and forms.panic.com/big-walk-preview.