When the TV decides to Murder your Girlfriend - The Game

You just wrapped up explaining to your girlfriend Amanda that ever since she plugged her TV into the cable its been plotting to kill her.

Problem is, she thinks you're crazy.

And has now gone back to her apartment...

...where her TV is waiting.

Only you can save her.

Gameplay
When the TV decides to Murder your Girlfriend - The Game is actually an adaptation of a book of the same name. It’s also a submission to Ectocomp 2025.

We begin in our own apartment. (We're Todd, by the way) The first half of the gameplay takes place here, and its puzzles center on the objective of leaving your apartment. The second half is set in Amanda's apartment (Spoiler - click to show)where we prepare to duke it out with her evil TV.

Gameplay primarily consists of interacting with household appliances and enlisting their help. It doesn't take long for us to notice that these appliances are A, sentient, and B, haunted. Possessed, maybe?

"Hey, Todd. Who's your favorite appliance? Just kidding. We all know it's me. So, what can I zap up for you?" Slender gray tentacles, like the finest strands of spaghetti, snake out lovingly from behind the control panel.

It did take me a moment to piece together that we're the only ones who can see this. No wonder Amanda thinks we're crazy.

Puzzles are straightforward and evenly distributed throughout the gameplay. They engage without being too difficult. However, that means if you were hoping for a puzzle-fest, you feel may underwhelmed by what the gameplay has to offer.

Mechanics
(I’m not sure what system this game uses. I’ll update this review later.) This is a choice-based game that behaves like a parser. Instead of imputing commands on a keyboard, the player clicks on buttons to perform an action.

You can also see:
- [Your Television] [talk]
- [Cable Cord] [connect]

Exits and anything with interactable content are listed at the bottom of the screen along with your inventory. If you’re holding something that has an immediate application, the game will list it for you. No guess-the-verb here!

You're holding:
[Your Trusty Philips Head] [drop]

This format felt streamlined and easy to use. I adapted to it quickly.

Story
The game’s strengths are grounded in its writing and characterization because, truth be told, (Spoiler - click to show)you can predict the ending way in advance.

In her apartment, (Spoiler - click to show)we find Amanda hypnotized and held captive by her TV. We appear, fight the TV, and escape with Amanda. No unexpected plot twists or developments. And the game doesn’t need any of that. I was satisfied with this trajectory. I think that’s largely thanks to the witty, household appliance characters. If their characterization were lacking, I’d probably feel otherwise about the story.

I do have one complaint. I wish our interactions with Amanda had more depth. (Spoiler - click to show)She’s been hypnotized, so I understand that she’s not going to be particularly alert or responsive. But something about her portrayal feels overly “damsel-in-distress.” Her character doesn’t extend beyond the role of “the girlfriend.” Who also needs to be rescued.

Then again, the game is an adaptation. Perhaps it’s like that in the book as well.

This game vs. The Little Toaster
The storyline of sentient household appliances immediately reminds me of The Little Toaster. Except, I’ve never liked The Little Toaster. Too disturbing. This game? I can handle.

Characters
Characters are the best part.

The toothbrush's yellow tentacles point at its power button, then your eyes. "I'm watching you, Todd."

Particularly, the sentient appliances.

The writing reveals them to be humorous NPCs (a feral vacuum cleaner?). They are fun to listen to and fun to interact with; Important considering their role in nearly every puzzle.

Asphalt, lines, and cars. *Lots* of cars. You find yours cuddled up next to a sexy red scooter. You get the impression the scooter isn't a huge fan but is too kind to roll away.

Characterization-wise, the appliances offer plenty of attitude. A blend of stubborn snark and an eagerness to assist Todd in saving Amanda. And while some of them view you as Amanda’s oddball boyfriend, they all agree that her TV has gone too far.

Todd’s cool, too. After all, he can communicate with household appliances and see when something is haunted. According to the (Spoiler - click to show)car’s dashboard, he has “mind powers,” but aside from that, we get no further explanation. However, this suits the game’s purposes just fine.

Visuals
The game has a clean appearance with a black screen, white text, and orange links set into dark purple buttons. Reminds me of Halloween!

Final thoughts
I had fun with this!

While I haven’t read the book, the overall premise of saving-your-girlfriend-from-a-bloodthirsty-TV certainly piques one’s curiosity. But when taking a book’s concept and turning it into gameplay, there is risk of that concept losing its essence and feeling contrived. Not the case here.

When the TV decides is a well-rounded adaptation that strikes the right balance between gameplay puzzles and overarching story, and the NPCs’ humorous dialog brings it all to life.

Great option for Halloween.