Candy Box!
| Candy Box! | |
|---|---|
| Developer | aniwey |
| Series | Candy Box! |
| Platform | Browser |
| Release |
|
| Genres | Incremental, role-playing |
| Mode | Single-player |
Candy Box! is an incremental online text-based role-playing game that runs in web browser. It was developed by a 19-year-old French student using the pseudonym "aniwey" and released in April 2013. Candy Box! uses ASCII art for the visuals.
A sequel, Candy Box 2, was released on October 24, 2013.
Gameplay
[edit]
The game revolves around candies, which players begin to receive, at a rate of one per second; however this number may increase with further gameplay. Gameplay appears very sparse initially, but options appear as the player performs actions.[1] For example, candy can be eaten or used to purchase items.[2] Players can eventually undertake quests and kill monsters in order to gain candy. By performing quests, the player obtains items which can be accessed in their inventory.
Development
[edit]Candy Box! was developed over a period of two months by independent developer "aniwey",[1] a 19-year-old student from Caen, France. It was released in April 2013.
Reception
[edit]Kotaku noted that "Candy Box!'s curious combination of ASCII 'graphics', role-playing elements and resource management has caught on with hundreds of thousands."[3] According to Mashable, the "charming ASCII art style belies a very deep game that can quickly get addictive".[4] PC Gamer editor Shaun Prescott found the game particularly addictive, describing it as "Cow Clicker as RPG."[2] Justin Davis of IGN stated that, together with A Dark Room and Cookie Clicker, Candy Box! has become one of the most well-known incremental games.[5] Rock, Paper, Shotgun named Candy Box! number 21 of The 50 Best Free Games on PC in 2016.[6] During the 17th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Candy Box! for "Casual Game of the Year".[7]
Legacy
[edit]A sequel, titled Candy Box 2, was released on October 24, 2013.[8] The source code of Candy Box 2, written in TypeScript, was released under the GPLv3.[9] It received broad public reception[10][11][12][13] and was recommended in a PC World review in October 2013 with the words "Play this right now".[14] Julien "Orteil" Thiennot, developer of Cookie Clicker, one of the most popular idle games of all time, has cited Candy Box as one of his main inspirations.[citation needed]
References
[edit]- 1 2 Bishop, Rollin (3 May 2013). "Candy Box Browser Game Features Lots of Delicious Candies". Geekosystem. Archived from the original on 19 December 2013. Retrieved 27 October 2025.
- 1 2 Prescott, Shaun (2013-05-02). "Candies is an ASCII browser game about questing and candy". PC Gamer.
- ↑ Good, Owen (2013-05-03). "Candy Box: A Game That's Simple, Sweet, and Strangely Compelling". Kotaku. Archived from the original on 2013-05-08. Retrieved 2013-05-07.
- ↑ Stark, Chelsea (2013-05-03). "Questing Meets Candy in This Odd ASCII Browser Game". Mashable.
- ↑ Davis, Justin (2013-10-10). "Inside Cookie Clicker and The Idle Game Movement". IGN. Archived from the original on 2016-02-15. Retrieved 2016-02-09.
- ↑ the-50-best-free-games-on-pc on Rock, Paper, Shotgun (2016)
- ↑ "2014 Awards Category Details Casual Game of the Year". interactive.org. Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
- ↑ Matulef, Jeffrey (2013-10-25). "Surreal ASCII-based RPG sequel Candy Box 2 is out now". Eurogamer.
- ↑ source code Archived 2016-03-01 at the Wayback Machine on candybox2.net
- ↑ Mcgowan, Colin (2013-11-04). "Candy Box 2 and the beauty of the smart stupid game". Killscreen. Retrieved 2025-05-29.
- ↑ Matulef, Jeffrey (2013-10-25). "Surreal ASCII-based RPG sequel Candy Box 2 is out now". Eurogamer.net. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
- ↑ Farokhmanesh, Megan (2013-10-23). "Browser-based clicker Candy Box 2 launches tomorrow". Polygon. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
- ↑ Smith, Graham (2013-10-24). "Ye New Sweet Shoppe: Candy Box 2 Is Out Now". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
- ↑ Ralph, Nate (2013-10-24). "Play This Right Now: Candy Box 2". PCWorld. Archived from the original on 2016-09-29.
