This is the two hundred seventh entry in the Scratching That Itch series, wherein I randomly select and write about one of the 1741 games and game-related things included in the itch.io Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality. The Bundle raised $8,149,829.66 split evenly between the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund and Community Bail Fund, but don’t worry if you missed it. There are plenty of ways you can help support the vital cause of racial justice; try here for a start. Lastly, as always, you may click on images to view larger versions.

Our two hundred seventh random selection from the itch.io Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality is toddling into view, saying hello to each of its toys. It’s Bonbon, by Aetheric, and its tagline in the bundle reads:

A short horror story, about your childhood.

It’s about a childhood, for sure. Just not mine.

Bonbon sounded familiar, and I soon learned why: it was covered over at Rock, Paper, Shotgun back in 2017. I remember being intrigued when reading that piece, but then I forgot about the game, so it’s a pleasant surprise to have it pop up in the bundle. I also did not realize that developers Aetheric are more recently known for Temple of Snek, which left early access in 2023. It’s always nice to trace new works from independent developers.

As the tagline suggests, Bonbon is a short horror story about childhood. But it’s a very specific childhood: one set in Britain in the 1980s. The Rock, Paper, Shotgun piece praises the set design, replicating the back yards and interior decor and even television programming that a child in 1980s Britain would experience. I cannot comment on the authenticity, but I can say that the domestic environment I explored while playing felt convincing. Bonbon offers a sequence of these small playable areas, with players inhabiting an unnamed toddler from a first person perspective. There are objectives, mostly about putting away toys. Players can pick them up, look at them, and say hello to them (each has its own name). Naturally, the hello comes out as a glitchy, synthesized voice that seems to take all the effort the toddler can muster. Completely normal toddler behavior, nothing amiss here.

Since Bonbon is easily finished in less than an hour, I won’t say anything more about what happens. But I will say that the decision to have it star a toddler is inspired. Bonbon is about the ways a child may not be able to distinguish reality from fantasy. Childhood toys are also friends. Fantastical things, that may seem unnerving and horrifying to us as adults, are simply accepted. Monsters may be hiding anywhere.

Bonbon is also, I think, about much more than that. But I admit I don’t fully understand it. I had some assumptions going in (the itch.io page mentions suggestions of child abuse among the content warnings), but never figured out if they were correct. There are some hints of family problems, and I kept looking for ways that the toddler’s mind might processes these into a childlike understanding, but I’m not sure if I found them. I certainly found some creepy stuff, and a few jump scares. I listened to a bedtime story, a really weird fairy tale that I suspect was supposed to tell me something (I even have a guess of what it might be, but it feels like a reach). I admired the way several scenes were constructed and presented. But I’m not sure what it all means.

Having said that, I much prefer a game that leaves me pondering its meaning than one that lays it out with the grace of a sledgehammer. And as horror experiences go, Bonbon avoids many of the cliches and tropes that often define the genre. I’ve written before about how horror games rarely scare me, and Bonbon didn’t either (although I admit to being startled by a jump scare), but I admire it more than the other horror games that have come up in this series. It’s focused. Each scene has a purpose, even if I wasn’t always sure what it was. And it nails the feeling of being a child in a big world they don’t always understand. This isn’t your run of the mill grownup horror, full of surreal landscapes that reflect a protagonist’s crumbling psyche, and darkened labyrinths to stumble through. But there is darkness, because what child isn’t afraid of the dark?

I can’t tell if my confusion about Bonbon means it fails to convey its themes, or if I’m just not picking up on things that other players would. I find myself wanting to recommend it anyway, if only because I’ve kept thinking about it long after I finished playing. If you’re a horror fan, or if anything I’ve written above sounds intriguing, consider giving Bonbon a look. If you missed it in the bundle, it’s sold for a minimum price of $2.99.

That’s 207 down, and only 1534 to go!