Bars of Black and White

About Bars of Black and White

Bars of Black and White is a Flash game by Gregory Weir, released on Newgrounds in February 2009, where it was front-paged and placed third for the day. It still plays in the browser through Newgrounds' Flash player.

You cannot remember the last time you left your room. Then a barcode reader arrives in the mail. Its maker calls the game a room escape with a new twist: you scan the barcodes of the things around you, and what they tell you shows the world is not what it seems. The question it leaves you with is whether the world is insane, or you are.

Everything is drawn in rough black line art on white, which makes the quiet room feel more and more wrong. Players remember it for its creepy atmosphere and the idea at its centre; one recent review warns the navigation can get confusing.

It suits players who like their horror quiet and strange, and who enjoy escape games that turn into something else.

How to play Bars of Black and White

1. Open the game's Newgrounds page and press play on the game.
2. Press Begin on the title screen.
3. Click around your room to look at things and pick them up.
4. Use the barcode reader on what you find, and follow what it shows you to get out.

Tips

• Scan everything; the barcodes are how the game talks to you.
• Keep track of where you have been, since moving between scenes can get confusing.
• Play with sound on and the room quiet.

Questions