Just for Fun

Make a Game About Your Friend (the Ultimate Inside Joke)

There are inside jokes, and then there is dropping a link in the group chat titled DEREK'S PARALLEL PARKING NIGHTMARE — a fully playable game about the time Derek took eleven minutes to park outside the taco place. The distance between "we should make that a game" and the game existing is now about ten minutes.

By the Arcade Sandbox team · July 16, 2026 · 5 min read

The formula: one quirk, exaggerated into a mechanic

Don't try to fit your friend's whole personality in — pick their ONE most roastable trait and build the entire game around it:

Copy-paste starters

"A frantic game called [NAME] IS ON THE WAY about my friend who is always 40 minutes late: you sprint through a city while obstacles labeled with their real excuses ('just showering', 'parking', 'leaving now fr') slow you down. The win screen says 'only 25 minutes late — a new record.'"
"A cooking chaos game about my friend who claims he 'basically invented' a pasta dish: keep six pans alive while the confidence meter rises and the skill meter does not. Photo attached for the chef's likeness — bandana included."
"A one-button game about my friend's fantasy football hubris: press to draft, and every pick is somehow injured within seconds. Title: GM OF THE YEAR. End screen shows his real final ranking: 11th of 12."

Attach a (willing) photo with 📎 and the AI draws their game-art likeness — cartoonified, which is funnier anyway. How photo reference works.

▶ THE GROUP CHAT AWAITS

New accounts start with ⚡ 5 free tokens — a 2D build costs 4. One quirk, one prompt, one legendary link.

Make the roast game →

~10 minutes start to finish · they play free from the link · roast lovingly.

Delivery is half the joke

Roast lovingly: the three rules

A joke game lands when the target laughs hardest. Keep it that way:

  1. Punch at quirks, not wounds. Lateness, bad parking, pasta hubris: yes. Appearance, relationships, real struggles: no.
  2. Would they show it off? The best outcome is the friend pinning the game in their own bio. If you suspect they'd be hurt, pick a different quirk — or a different joke.
  3. Get the photo with consent. Use a picture they'd be happy being cartoonified from. (Platform rules also require it: games must be family-friendly and can't harass real people — there's a report system, and the terms mean it.)

FAQ

How long does it take?

The build takes ~2 minutes; with one revision pass you're group-chat-ready inside fifteen. Your first game is effectively free (5 welcome tokens; 2D builds cost 4), then about $4–7 with a revision.

Does my friend need an account to play it?

No — anyone with the link plays in their browser, on any phone.

Can I put their face in the game?

Attach a photo as reference and the AI draws a cartoon game-art version (the actual photo never appears in the game and isn't stored). Use a photo they're okay with.

What if the joke needs to be retired?

You control the game: revise it, unpublish it, or let the link quietly die. Power responsibly.

▶ THEY'D DO IT TO YOU

Honestly, they're probably already making one about you.

Make a game →