Player Non Player, a work featured in the new exhibition "Escape, Générations numériques" by the Institut français

The development story of Player Non Player is rather unusual for a video game: it originally stemmed from a collaboration with the electro-pop group Agar Agar, who released an album of the same name in 2023. Jonathan Coryn, the game's author and developer, met the two members of the group during his studies at the Beaux-Arts de Cergy. Over the course of this long-term project, the two universes influenced each other, and the game features some of the same characters and shared themes. The result of nearly six years of work, Player Non Player remains a very personal game that explores themes such as loneliness, grief, and the ability to care for others. 

Player Non Player is set on an island dotted with strange, brutalist-inspired buildings. The player meets four characters who live there, gradually gaining their trust. This can be done by, for instance, petting or carrying them, as the game explores themes of care and consent. Blending the dating-sim genre with puzzle games in the vein of Myst, Player Non Player creates a melancholic universe where music is omnipresent. An intimate experience that is both sensual and challenging, Player Non Player also includes numerous nods to other references within the video game world. 

Decidedly queer, Player Non Player explores how gentleness and violence can be subtly intertwined. The main game mechanic, the ability to caress objects and beings, introduces the question of consent. This issue is also addressed through specifically video game-related themes, such as the quest mechanism and the idea of needing to help other non-player characters. Themes of grief and separation also permeate Player Non Player, a game where you help others overcome their traumas to "depart" in peace. 

In 2023, Player Non Player won the prestigious Most Amazing Game award at A Maze (Berlin), a leading festival in the field of art and experimental video games. Exhibited internationally, Jonathan Coryn's game captivates with both its character writing and accessibility. Not devoid of humor despite its sometimes tragic themes, the game was also conceived as a broader transmedia project, exemplified by the character Notyet, who also appears in the Agar Agar music video Trouble, co-directed with Mélanie Courtinat. During a Playtest Tour, the game could be tried out alongside the band's concerts.