Version One: Baby Bot

Baby Bot is an analogue synthesizer and 10-step sequencer designed for group interaction, serving as a precursor to Bot Party. In this project, Perry explores themes of human connection through collaborative group music-making, emphasizing these ideas through a two-player modular synthesis interface. The design encourages players to interact with each other to create music, aiming to foster a sense of shared creativity through social connection. The head of the bot is a synthesis unit connected via an open CV patch cableto a 10-step sequencer. While one player controls the sound, the other can manipulate the pattern the music is creating.

Game Play Footage

This video serves as promotional content for Version Two while highlighting Version One. At the time of its creation, Version Two was still in development. In the video, Perry discusses how Bot Party encourages prosocial behavior through collaborative music creation. She also shares insights into her game design process, describing it as ecological. This ecological approach to game design emphasizes the creation of an engaging game environment. In this method, each player interaction is carefully crafted to influence or enhance the overall game environment.

Version Two: Sound Spectacular

Version Two marked a transformative phase in the game's evolution, where the original modular synth concept expanded into a collaborative, inclusive experience that laid the groundwork for its future success. This version introduced new mechanics designed to encourage physical connection among players, creating moments of shared joy through touch-based interaction. No longer just a sound experience, it became a fully immersive sound ecology—a place for fostering meaningful connections. This version's sound and motion design was developed in collaboration with Frieda Abtan. A key feature was a group interaction mechanic: a soft rainstorm soundscape would emerge when all players linked hands, continuing as long as the entire group remained connected. Additionally, each player was given a specific character, complete with their own sound identity within the world. This version also introduced three distinct sound environments, which players could navigate through via touch and motion, further deepening the sense of shared exploration and collective experience.

During this period, extensive prototyping and playtesting significantly influenced the game's development. Early wood mockups evolved into durable and functional designs, while feedback from playtests guided every step of the process. Public showcases of Version Two provided valuable insights, revealing which elements resonated most with players and highlighting areas for improvement. Community engagement, supported by exhibition documentation and recordings, was essential in refining and expanding the game into an experience that players found enjoyable, relaxing, and deeply satisfying.

This stage of development was more than just a step forward—it was a turning point that solidified Bot Party’s identity. Version Two became the bridge between an experimental idea and a fully realized game, paving the way for the global recognition and acclaim it would later achieve in Version Three.

Version 2: Game Play Footage

Version Three introduced a new structured game level called "Little Secret Cyphers," an interactive sound game co-created by Phoenix Perry and Charlie Ann Page that explores intimacy through physical play and human connection. In this version, participants hold small, custom-designed robots—referred to as "bots"—and generate music through physical contact with one another. The bots utilize a "bot-to-skin-to-skin-to-bot communication protocol" (BSSB) to transmit encoded messages via human touch, encouraging players to hold hands or make direct skin-to-skin contact to initiate musical interaction. Each point of human connection transmits one byte of data to the bots. At the end of the experience, players receive a score, but there is no competition between groups or individuals. The focus is on achieving a shared goal: making the bots as happy as possible through cooperative play. The sound design for this version was created by Brian Jackson, further enhancing the immersive experience.

Bot Party is a testament to Perry's values, the implementation of an ecological approach to game design and her positionality as a disabled game creator. It also demonstrates that game design loops centred on increasing social interconnectedness and joy can be as impactful as those driven by escalating challenges.