Although we’ve only published two games, fans of UNMEMORY and DELETE AFTER READING already know that fun facts are a staple of our studio. We love to include nods to pieces of popular culture that have inspired us or been part of our lives. Sharing these fun facts is a way to connect with anyone who might have enjoyed these cultural gems as well. If you haven't, there's still time!
Wooly Bully - Sam The Sham & The Pharaohs
This famous, catchy, and rambunctious song inspired the final song in Pineapple. The idea of having a song at the end of each level to summarize the moral of the joke came from the Farrelly brothers' film Something About Mary. The song by Sam The Sham & The Pharaohs appeared serendipitously, and since understanding non-native English can sometimes lead to unique interpretations, Pineapple tells a story about a bully, which led us to the song more for its phonetic appeal than its meaning. We had known Wooly Bully from our ska music days listening to Bad Manners. It seemed perfect in rhythm and tone, so we rewrote the lyrics, and our musician Xavi Paradís worked his magic to create this adaptation.
Little Caesars Pizza
When developing the pizza prank, we needed a name for the business. Inevitably, it had to be Little Caesars Pizza Delivery, a nod to the film Home Alone with Macaulay Culkin.
The Witch’s Phone Number
In the pizza prank, La Bruja must give her phone number, and she says 555-0134. This number is iconic to us because it appears in two of our favorite movies: Memento and Fight Club. There’s no apparent connection between the two, but the coincidence delights us. More on this here.
The Library Books
To pull off the library prank on The Witch, you need to find the book assigned to her homework among a plethora of titles. While most are fictional, a few real ones pay homage to our favorites:
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. What can we say about this classic?
The Gospel of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. We've been devout Pastafarians for years. Sublime, intelligent humor. Learn more.
The Philosophy of Time Travel by Roberta Sparrow. This book isn’t “real,” but as geeks, we loved the idea of it being available in a school library. Read about it.
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin. An entertaining book about a pair of game designers that we adored. Check it out.
The Game’s Opening Scene
When The Witch forces you to dip your lollipop in toilet water and then lick it, this scene is inspired by a passage in The Solitude of Prime Numbers by Paolo Giordano. It describes a bullying incident later avenged, though not with pineapples. The victim becomes the official photographer at the bully's wedding—you can imagine how those photos turn out. Learn more.
E.T. The Extra-terrestrial
In the Christmas prank, when The Witch screams upon discovering her gift under the tree, there's an homage to the iconic scene of the bicycle silhouette flying in front of the moon. This time, however, instead of an alien, there's a pineapple in the basket. More about E.T..
Hack-a-key
For the trunk prank, we were inspired by a real-life anecdote. Someone once broke into our car and left a message. We wondered how the “thief” did it, and a friend explained the existence of remote key interceptors.
Chris Elliott
In the movie theater prank, The Witch and her friends plan to watch a horror movie starring Chris Elliott. The actor’s name isn’t a coincidence—it’s the same as the star of the legendary TV series Get a Life, which made us laugh so much. Read about the series.
Bart Simpson’s Prank Calls
Continuing with the movie theater prank, most of the actors' names on the movie posters are taken from prank calls in The Simpsons: I.P. Freely, Oliver Klosoff, Seymour Butz, Tess T. Culls, etc. Even the fake name The Witch gives when ordering pizza (Anita Bath) is a nod to a classic prank call.
Gomez, The Robot
Gomez the robot also appeared in our previous game, DELETE AFTER READING.
Brutus
The Witch’s dog is named after the son of Roman Emperor Caesar, but the inspiration came from another source: a song by Los Nikis about a dog named Brutus, the terror of the neighborhood.
In conclusion, we always try our projects to be a vibrant tapestry woven from the threads of pop culture and personal anecdotes. In Pineapple we also wanted to share love for humor. As we continue to explore the intersections of storytelling and interactive media, we hope Pineapple leaves a lasting impression, reminding everyone that even in the face of serious issues, a touch of humor can make all the difference.