| Bad Day on the Midway | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Inscape |
| Publisher(s) | Inscape |
| Designer(s) | Jim Ludtke |
| Platform(s) | Windows, Mac |
| Release | November 28, 1995[1] |
| Genre(s) | Adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Bad Day on the Midway is a 1995 CD-ROM game written and directed by The Residents, animated and designed by Jim Ludtke, developed and published by Inscape. In March, 2022, the game's copyright holder Cryptic Corporation and former Inscape CEO Michael L. Nash allowed the game to be released as freeware.[2]
The game takes place in the titular Midway where the player first takes control of Timmy, an easily amused 10-year-old boy, but is soon able to switch perspective and control to a number of different characters as they navigate through the fair. The goal isn't made very clear, as the game is considered first and foremost to be more of an interactive narrative and visual experience, but there are various ways to die during gameplay, and multiple endings can be achieved depending on which characters are left alive at the end of one in-game day.
The character Timmy was later brought back in a series of short videos by the Residents in 2006. In 2012, a novel was published based on the game's story, along with a CD of "reconsidered" music from the game's soundtrack.[3]
The game was optioned by Ron Howard at Imagine Television for a proposed series to be directed by David Lynch.[4] After two years of meetings with Lynch, the project was dropped because a script was never agreed upon. Had the project moved forward, The Residents would not have been creatively involved as their contract only gave them consulting roles in the pilot.
- ^ Leary, Sean (November 26, 1995). "Showbiz this Week". The Dispatch. p. 67. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
The Residents' Bad Day on the Midway" will be released this week, bringing the eyeball-wearing weirdos onto your video screen once again.
- ^ "The "it just works!" package for Bad Day on the Midway". The Residents: Bad Day on the Midway - Infosite. Archived from the original on 2023-02-06. Retrieved 2023-09-25.
- ^ "Historical - The Residents". www.residents.com. Archived from the original on 2018-01-03. Retrieved 2018-01-02.
- ^ "The City of Absurdity: David Lynch, PICTURE FACTORY". www.thecityofabsurdity.com. Archived from the original on 2018-02-17. Retrieved 2018-01-02.