HEADLINER (2017)

Developer: Unbound Creations
Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux
Genres: Adventure, Indie
Rating: 3.9 of 5, 932 player ratings
Typical playtime: about 2.0 hours
Where to get it: Steam

The 3D catalog: game boxes on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalog in 3D

The same catalog has a room you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real games from it when you tell them what you feel like playing. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this game is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

More games like this Watch the trailer

or watch the trailer on YouTube

How it feels

A tense, morally weighty 45-minute loop where you curate news bias against a backdrop of dystopian civil unease.

thought-provokingshortatmosphericdarkcasualpoliticalstory richreplayable

What players say

Players are split on Headliner. Some find its choice-and-consequence system engaging, but many call the game short, the characters bland, and the political message heavy-handed. A common recommendation is to skip it and buy the sequel, NoviNews, instead.

Screenshots

More games like this

More by Unbound Creations LLC

This page is from Underplayed Gems, a catalog of older and overlooked games. Not quite it? You can browse by platform and genre, or take this one into the 3D catalog and ask the Catbot for something closer.