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{{Primary sources|date=August 2022}}
{{Infobox video game
| title = Thimbleweed Park
| image = File:Thimbleweed Park cover art.png
| caption = Cover art by [[Nina Matsumoto]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.spacecoyote.com/thimbleweed-park-key-art/|title = Thimbleweed Park Key Art ⋆ SPACE COYOTE|date = 24 February 2018}}</ref>
| developer = Terrible Toybox
| publisher = Terrible Toybox
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| designer = {{Unbulleted list|[[Ron Gilbert]]|[[Gary Winnick (game developer)|Gary Winnick]]}}
| programmer = {{Unbulleted list|Ron Gilbert|[[David Fox (game designer)|David Fox]]|Jenn Sandercock}}
| artist = {{Unbulleted list|Gary Winnick|[[Mark Ferrari]]|Octavi Navarro}}
| writer = {{Unbulleted list|Ron Gilbert|Lauren Davidson}}
| composer = [[Steve Kirk (composer)|Steve Kirk]]
| series =
| engine =
| platforms = {{Unbulleted listubl|[[Microsoft WindowsLinux]]|[[macOS]]|[[Windows]]|[[Xbox One]]|[[PlayStation 4]]|[[Nintendo SwitchiOS]]|[[LinuxNintendo Switch]]|[[Android (operating system)|Android]]|[[iOSAmazon Luna]]}}
| released = {{Collapsible list|titlestyle=font-weight:normal;background:transparent;text-align:left;|title=March 30, 2017|{{Unbulleted list|'''Linux''', '''macOS''', '''Microsoft Windows''', '''Xbox One'''|March 30, 2017<ref name="kickstarter.com">{{cite web|title=Update 28: Release Date Locked In!! · Thimbleweed Park: A New Classic Point & Click Adventure!|url=https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thimbleweedpark/thimbleweed-park-a-new-classic-point-and-click-adv/posts/1817770|website=Kickstarter|accessdate=27 February 2017}}</ref>|'''PlayStation 4'''|August 22, 2017|'''Nintendo SwitchiOS'''|September 2119, 2017|'''iOSNintendo Switch'''|September 1921, 2017|'''Android'''|October 3, 2017}}'''Amazon Luna'''|December 17, 2020<ref>{{Citation |title=New on Luna+: Thimbleweed Park | date=17 December 2020 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Z81gC62-ao |language=en |access-date=2022-12-18}}</ref>}}
| genre = [[Point-and-click adventure game|Point-and-click adventure]]
| modes = [[Single-player]]
}}
 
'''''Thimbleweed Park''''' is a [[point-and-click adventure game]] developed by [[Ron Gilbert]] and [[Gary Winnick (game developer)|Gary Winnick]] for [[Microsoft WindowsLinux]], [[macOS]], [[iOSWindows]], [[Xbox One]], [[PlayStation 4]], [[LinuxiOS]], [[Nintendo Switch]], [[Android (operating system)|Android]], and [[NintendoAmazon SwitchLuna]]. The game was revealed on November 18, 2014, along with a [[Kickstarter]] [[crowdfundingcrowd-funding]] campaign with a goal of [[US$]]375,000, and was released on March 30, 2017.<ref name="kickstarter.com">{{cite web|title=Update 28: Release Date Locked In!! · Thimbleweed Park: A New Classic Point & Click Adventure!|url=https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thimbleweedpark/thimbleweed-park-a-new-classic-point-and-click-adv/posts/1817770|website=Kickstarter|accessdate=27 February 2017}}</ref>
 
The game is a [[spiritual successor]] to Gilbert and Winnick's previous games ''[[Maniac Mansion]]'' (1987) and ''[[The Secret of Monkey Island]]'' (1990), and is designed to be similar to graphic adventure games released in that time period, both visually and in gameplay-wise.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://blog.thimbleweedpark.com/about|title=About|date=December 31, 2014|website=Thimbleweed Park|access-date=May 26, 2016|archive-date=April 22, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160422160647/https://blog.thimbleweedpark.com/about|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2014-11-18-maniac-mansion-creators-launch-kickstarter-for-spiritual-successor-thimbleweed-park|title=Maniac Mansion creators launch Kickstarter for spiritual successor Thimbleweed Park|last=Matulef|first=Jeffrey|date=November 18, 2014|website=[[Eurogamer]]|access-date=May 26, 2016}}</ref>
 
== Gameplay ==
[[File:Thimbleweed Park screenshot.png|thumb|leftright|Similarly to early graphic adventure games, the game features a verb list. The player characters are controlled by building sentences by clicking on verbs, characters and objects.]]
''Thimbleweed Park'' operates on the same principles of early graphic adventures games, in that players navigate various scenes from a third person perspective, using various "verb commands" to perform actions, such as "use", "pick up", and "talk to". Verb commands can be used to perform actions such as allowing a character to pick up an object into their inventory, to converse with another character, or to use an object on another item. The game's story is played out across a series of chapters, in which players must complete a specific set of goals to advance to the next chapter, solving a series of puzzles, some of which require the use of more than one character. The game features five different player characters, with the ability to switch between them in the middle of gameplay, similarly to ''[[Maniac Mansion]]''.<ref name=":0" />
 
The game is played similarly to early graphic adventure games; it is seen from a third person perspective, with a view of the area taking up the majority of the screen, while the bottom portion is taken up by the player's inventory and a list of verbs, such as "use", "pick up", and "talk to". By clicking on a verb followed by one or two items or characters, the player character will attempt to perform the action described. An example given in the reveal trailer was "Use balloon animal with corpse", performed by clicking on the verb "use", the "balloon animal" item in the player's inventory, and a corpse found in an area in the game.
 
The game has five different player characters which the player can switch between in the middle of gameplay, similarly to ''[[Maniac Mansion]]''.<ref name=":0" />
 
== Plot==
[[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] agents Angela Ray and Antonio Reyes arrive at the town of Thimbleweed Park to investigate a murder. Their investigation leads them to several [[Person of interest|persons of interest]]: Chuck Edmund, the recently deceased owner of the PillowTronics robotics company; Ransome the Clown, cursed to wear his makeup forever after going too far in his insulting performances; Delores Edmund, computer programmer and niece of Chuck; and Delores's downtrodden father Franklin.
 
Franklin attempts to pitch his business ideas to Chuck, but is murdered at the town hotel and becomes a ghost. Delores discovers that Chuck has written her out of his will, angered by her choice to pursue a career in video games. Ray and Reyes gather blood samples, fingerprints, and photographic evidence, and arrest vagrant Willie T. Wino, who protests his innocence. They leave town, but return incognito to pursue other agendas: Ray has been tasked with stealing computer secrets, and Reyes wants to clear his father of causing the fire that burnt down the PillowTronics factory.
 
Ray, Reyes, Delores and Ransome infiltrate the factory. Delores disables the security systems and discovers that Chuck has uploaded his personality into the factory computer. Chuck reveals that everyone in the town is trapped inside a video game that keeps repeating, and that the group must free themselves by deleting the game.
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== Development ==
On November 18, 2014, Gilbert posted an update to his blog, in which he revealed that talks about the game had begun "several months ago" while he and Winnick had been discussing how fun their time developing ''Maniac Mansion'' at [[LucasArts]] (Lucasfilm Games at the time) had been, and how they liked the "charm, simplicity and innocence" of the adventure games of that era. Winnick proposed that they should make a new game in the style of their old ones; as such, it is designed as if it had been made in 1987 and as if it were "an undiscovered [[LucasArts adventure games|LucasArts adventure game]] you've never played before". Gilbert agreed, and suggested that they should crowdfundcrowd-fund it on [[Kickstarter]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=http://grumpygamer.com/kickstarter|title=Please Join Us On Kickstarter|last=Gilbert|first=Ron|date=November 18, 2014|website=Grumpy Gamer|access-date=May 26, 2016|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160410072904/http://grumpygamer.com/kickstarter|archivedate=April 10, 2016}}</ref>
 
Development started with Gilbert and Winnick building the game's world and story, designing puzzles using puzzle dependency charts, and creating characters around the puzzles. From the start, Gilbert says, they wanted to parody the TV shows ''[[Twin Peaks]]'', ''[[The X-Files]]'', and ''[[True Detective (TV series)|True Detective]]''.<ref name=":1" /> The game's production was planned to last for 18 months, with Gilbert programming, Winnick producing art, and both writing and designing. Six months into development, an additional artist and programmer was hired along with a part-time musician. Development began on January 2, 2015.,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://blog.thimbleweedpark.com/day_1|title=Day 1|last=Gilbert|first=Ron|date=January 2, 2015|website=Thimbleweed Park|access-date=May 26, 2016|archive-date=August 3, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160803143039/https://blog.thimbleweedpark.com/day_1|url-status=dead}}</ref> and was accompanied by a podcast that documented development and included some of their weekly check-in meetings.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://blog.thimbleweedpark.com/podcast1.html|title=Podcast 1|date=April 13, 2015|website=Thimbleweed Park Blog|access-date=Dec 13, 2020}}</ref>
 
=== CrowdfundingCrowd-funding ===
A month-long crowdfundingcrowd-funding campaign for the game was launched on Kickstarter on November 18, 2014, with a goal of [[US$]]375,000; people who pledged at least $20 received a copy of the game.<ref name=":0" /> At the end of the campaign, on December 18, 2014, they had managed to raise US$626,250 from 15,623 people; they had also managed to reach a number of "stretch goals", which would allow German, Spanish, French, and Italian [[video game localization|localizations]] of the game, full English voice acting, and ports to [[iOS]] and [[Android (operating system)|Android]]. The German localization is planned to be done by Boris Schneider-Johne, who was responsible for the German localization of ''Monkey Island''.
 
After the end of the campaign, there was a 14-day period of waiting for credit cards to clear; Gilbert and Winnick finally got access to the money on January 5, 2015. Kickstarter took a 5% cut, and [[Amazon.com|Amazon]], who handled the payments, took a 3–5% cut; this added up to $57,198 of fees. Additionally, another $4,890 was deducted from the raised amount due to failed transactions; in the end, they had $564,162, plus around $8,000 from people who had pledged via [[PayPal]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=https://blog.thimbleweedpark.com/money|title=I Got Nothing Done|last=Gilbert|first=Ron|date=January 6, 2015|website=Thimbleweed Park|access-date=May 26, 2016|archive-date=April 9, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160409045219/https://blog.thimbleweedpark.com/money|url-status=dead}}</ref>
 
According to Gilbert, a lot of the failed transactions were from people who had problems with Amazon, and who then went on to pledge money via PayPal instead; because of this, he suggested that perhaps only half of the $4,890 had been lost. Budgeting was done around the money from Kickstarter, while the PayPal money was to be a safety net, or for potential added improvements to the game.<ref name=":2" />
 
=== Game engine and tools ===
Gilbert had already started to look for adventure game [[video game engine|engines]] in August 2014,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://grumpygamer.com/2d_engine_recommendations|title=2D Point and Click Engine Recommendations|last=Gilbert|first=Ron|date=August 3, 2014|website=Grumpy Gamer|access-date=May 26, 2016}}</ref> but because of his experience of always wanting to modify engines to do exactly what he wants from them, he decided it would be easier to create his own engine.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|url=https://blog.thimbleweedpark.com/engine.html|title=Engine|last=Gilbert|first=Ron|date=January 5, 2015|website=Thimbleweed Park|access-date=May 26, 2016}}</ref> He already had a 2D graphics engine written in [[C (programming language)|C]]/[[C++]] that he had used for his non-adventure games ''The Big Big Castle!'' and ''Scurvy Scallywags'', which he decided to use for ''Thimbleweed Park''; [[Simple DirectMedia Layer|SDL]] was used for handling window creation and input, while Gilbert's own [[Source code|code]] was used for rendering the graphics. The only other thing that was needed for the engine was a scripting language; Gilbert had looked at [[Lua (programming language)|Lua]], and while he considered it "easy to integrate and highly optimized", he disliked its syntax. He considered making his own scripting language, but due to time concerns, he chose the language [[Squirrel (programming language)|Squirrel]] instead.<ref name=":3" />
 
Winnick mostly used [[Adobe Photoshop]]. According to Winnick, the style they were aiming for would lend itself very well to being drawn entirely digitally from the start. He drew the initial concepts and layouts as sketches.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://blog.thimbleweedpark.com/thimblecon87|title=ThimbleCon '87|last=Winnick|first=Gary|date=January 7, 2015|website=Thimbleweed Park|access-date=May 26, 2016|archive-date=April 8, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160408223901/https://blog.thimbleweedpark.com/thimblecon87|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>[https://dwellersincluded.com/2017/03/30/review-thimbleweed-park/ review-thimbleweed-park] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170519023238/https://dwellersincluded.com/2017/03/30/review-thimbleweed-park/ |date=2017-05-19 }} on dwellersincluded.com (2017-03-30)</ref>
 
=== Updates ===
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{{Video game reviews
| title =
| MC = PC: 84/100<ref name="MCPC">{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/thimbleweed-park/critic-reviews/?platform=pc |title=Thimbleweed Park for PC Reviews |website=[[Metacritic]] |publisher=[[CBS Interactive]] |accessdate=September 27, 2018}}</ref><br />XONE: 84/100<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-one/thimbleweed-park/critic-reviews/?platform=xbox-one |title=Thimbleweed Park for Xbox One Reviews |website=[[Metacritic]] |publisher=[[CBS Interactive]] |accessdate=September 27, 2018}}</ref><br />PS4: 86/100<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/playstation-4/thimbleweed-park/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation-4 |title=Thimbleweed Park for PlayStation 4 Reviews |website=[[Metacritic]] |publisher=[[CBS Interactive]] |accessdate=August 29, 2018}}</ref><br />iOS: 83/100<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/ios/thimbleweed-park/critic-reviews/?platform=ios-iphoneipad |title=Thimbleweed Park for iPhone/iPad Reviews |website=[[Metacritic]] |publisher=[[CBS Interactive]] |accessdate=September 27, 2018}}</ref><br />NS: 82/100<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/game/switch/thimbleweed-park/critic-reviews/?platform=nintendo-switch |title=Thimbleweed Park for Switch Reviews |website=[[Metacritic]] |publisher=[[CBS Interactive]] |accessdate=September 27, 2018}}</ref>
| Destruct = 9/10<ref>{{cite web |last=McClusky |first=Kevin |date=March 30, 2017 |url=https://www.destructoid.com/review-thimbleweed-park-428010.phtml |title=Review: Thimbleweed Park (PC) |website=[[Destructoid]]}}</ref>
| EuroG = (Recommended)<ref>{{cite web |last=Khaw |first=Cassandra |date=March 31, 2017 |url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2017-03-31-thimbleweed-park-review |title=Thimbleweed Park review |website=[[Eurogamer]]}}</ref>
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===Awards===
The game was nominated for "Best Comedy Game" in ''[[PC Gamer]]''{{'}}s 2017 Game of the Year Awards;<ref>{{cite magazine |author=PC Gamer staff |date=December 8, 2017 |url=http://www.pcgamer.com/nominees-pc-gamer-goty-2017/ |title=Games of the Year 2017: The nominees |magazine=[[PC Gamer]] |accessdate=January 11, 2018}}</ref> for "Best Mobile Game" in ''[[Destructoid]]''{{'}}s Game of the Year Awards 2017;<ref>{{cite web |last=Andriessen |first=CJ |date=December 12, 2017 |url=https://www.destructoid.com/nominees-for-destructoid-s-best-mobile-game-of-2017-475854.phtml |title=Nominees for Destructoid's Best Mobile Game of 2017 |website=Destructoid |accessdate=January 11, 2018 |archive-date=July 21, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200721074309/https://www.destructoid.com/nominees-for-destructoid-s-best-mobile-game-of-2017-475854.phtml |url-status=dead }}</ref> and for "Best Adventure Game" in [[IGN]]'s "Best of 2017 Awards".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ign.com/wikis/best-of-2017-awards/Best_Adventure_Game |title=Best of 2017 Awards: Best Adventure Game |website=IGN |date=December 20, 2017 |accessdate=January 11, 2018}}</ref> It won the award for "Best Ending" in ''[[Game Informer]]''{{'}}s 2017 Game of the Year Awards.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Favis |first=Elise |date=January 9, 2018 |url=http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2018/01/09/the-2017-adventure-game-of-the-year-awards.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180110064621/http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2018/01/09/the-2017-adventure-game-of-the-year-awards.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 10, 2018 |title=The 2017 Adventure Game Of The Year Awards |magazine=[[Game Informer]] |accessdate=January 11, 2018}}</ref> In [[Adventure Gamers]]' Aggie Awards 2017, the game won the award each for "Best Traditional Adventure" and "Best Adventure of 2017", and also won the Reader's Choice Award each for "Best Story", "Best Writing - Comedy", "Best Setting", "Best Acting (Voice or Live Action)", and "Best Sound Effects"; while it was a runner-up each for "Best Character" with Delores Edmund (both original and Reader's Choice) and Ransome the Clown (Reader's Choice only), "Best Concept" (Reader's Choice), "Best Graphic Design", "Best Animation", and "Best Music".<ref>{{cite web |author=AG staff |date=February 21, 2017 |url=https://adventuregamers.com/articles/view/34564 |title=The Aggie Awards - The Best Adventure Games of 2017 |publisher=[[Adventure Gamers]] |accessdate=March 26, 2018}}</ref>
 
{| class="wikitable sortable"
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| Best Indie Game
| {{Nom}}
| rowspan="1" style="text-align:center;" | <ref>{{cite web |last=Gaito |first=Eri |date=November 13, 2017 |url=https://www.bestinslot.co/golden-joystick-awards-2017-nominees/ |title=Golden Joystick Awards 2017 Nominees |publisher=Best in Slot |accessdate=January 11, 2018 |archive-date=January 10, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180110003232/https://www.bestinslot.co/golden-joystick-awards-2017-nominees/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|-
| style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2" | 2018
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| Game, Original Adventure
| {{Nom}}
| rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;" | <ref>{{cite web |url=http://navgtr.org/archives/3351/ |title=Nominee List for 2017 |publisher=National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers |date=February 9, 2018 |accessdate=February 18, 2018 |archive-date=February 15, 2018 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20180215172210/http://navgtr.org/archives/3351/ |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://navgtr.org/archives/3365/ |title=Horizon wins 7; Mario GOTY |publisher=National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers |date=March 13, 2018 |accessdate=March 15, 2018 |archive-date=March 14, 2018 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20180314070824/http://navgtr.org/archives/3365/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|-
| Writing in a Comedy
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[[Category:2017 video games]]
[[Category:Android (operating system) games]]
[[Category:Ghost videoIndie games]]
[[Category:Indie video games]]▼
[[Category:IOS games]]
[[Category:Kickstarter-funded video games]]
[[Category:Linux games]]
[[Category:MacOS games]]
[[Category:NintendoMetafictional Switch eShopvideo games]]
[[Category:Nintendo Switch games]]
[[Category:PlayStation 4 games]]
[[Category:Point-and-click adventure games]]
▲[[Category:IndieRetro-style video games]]
[[Category:Single-player video games]]
[[Category:Terrible Toybox games]]
[[Category:Video games about artificial intelligence]]
[[Category:Video games about clowns]]
[[Category:Video games about ghosts]]
[[Category:Video games about police officers]]
[[Category:Video games developed in the United States]]
[[Category:Video games featuring female protagonists]]
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