Your Phone Dies in 20 Seconds

About Your Phone Dies in 20 Seconds

Your Phone Dies in 20 Seconds is a tiny piece of interactive fiction by Crimson Arcade, made in Twine for My First Game Jam in June 2020 as its maker's first game. It plays free in the browser on itch.io.

You are walking home from work. You are being followed. With only 20 seconds of power left on your phone, you can try to reach people you think could help you. The text is plain and the choices come fast: your timer is running out while you decide who to call or message, and the people you reach do not always listen.

The maker wrote in 2021 that the game came from her own fears as a woman walking home alone at night, and that she wishes for a future where no woman has to worry about her safety walking alone. There are seven endings, and each attempt is so short that you can play again and again to find them; players praise exploring the endings and call it short but powerful, while some find the characters stereotyped and wish it had pictures.

It is small and simple, and frightening because it is so ordinary. It suits players who like very short text horror built on a real fear, and want to see how many ways a walk home can end.

How to play Your Phone Dies in 20 Seconds

1. Open the itch.io page and play in the browser.
2. Press Start and read quickly; you have 20 seconds.
3. Click a choice to call or message someone, or to act.
4. See where your choices lead, then play again to find the other endings.

Tips

• You do not have time to read everything; decide fast, as you would in the moment.
• Try something other than calling for help; not every ending depends on the phone.
• There are seven endings to find.

Questions