"Later, man…"
"Catch you, Q…"
"Peace, boss…"
On Twitch, in the FPS zone, PJ Larson was wrapping up a session in the Rifle Elite rankings.
As a top streamer for the hit shooter, PJ's daily grind was all about high-stakes matches. But anyone who's played FPS games knows you need laser focus to stay sharp. Three or four hours, and you're cooked.
PJ's peak streaming window was 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. After that, he'd hunt for chill indie games to fill the rest of his airtime.
"Yo, anyone still here?" he called into the voice chat, checking for stragglers.
A young voice piped up. "Right here, PJ. What's the plan?"
It was CoconutCream, better known by his old handle, WinterMelon. Famous in the FPS scene for his epic rants after getting smoked, he'd earned the nickname "Rage Machine."
"No big plans," PJ said. "Just you and me. Wanna find a quick online game to mess around with?"
"Cool, hit me up when you find something," WinterMelon replied. "I'm scrolling through some streams…"
"Dude, you're wild," PJ laughed, pulling up the IndieVibe platform.
The Twitch chat was buzzing:
"PJ's tryna sneak a peek at some streams, but his wife's home."
"Family man vibes."
"Nothing good on IndieVibe lately."
"Didn't Nebula Games drop a new multiplayer? Heard it's got decent buzz."
"BattleForge 2, fighting game. All fake reviews. Boring as hell, worse than old arcade stuff."
"Sells for $50 with microtransactions. Yawn."
"Lmao, you guys are getting fleeced."
"Don't you play Cat Leo, PJ?"
"What, you just crawl out from under a rock? I've smashed three controllers over that game."
"Hahahaha!"
PJ skimmed the chat while browsing IndieVibe's new releases. As expected, BattleForge 2 by Nebula Games sat at the top. He shrugged—fighting games weren't his thing, especially not overpriced sequels.
As for Cat Leo? Complicated feelings. It was a nightmare of traps within traps, designed to drive you insane. But clearing a level? Pure dopamine. Addictive as hell.
"Hey, chat, does the Cat Leo crew have anything else out?" PJ asked. "What's their studio called?"
The chat lit up with answers.
"WindyPeak, got it," PJ said, typing the name into the search bar.
Two games popped up. First was Cat Leo, the controller-killer that haunted him for a week. Below it, a bizarre title with a deliberately janky vibe.
Who's the Daddy?
"What the hell kind of name is that?" PJ muttered, chuckling.
Curious, he clicked the page. The game's description loaded:
Who's the Daddy?
Type: Role-playing, online multiplayer, casual puzzle
Description: You and a friend play as a father and son. Dad's gotta keep the kid safe, while the kid… lets loose with chaos and destruction!
Release Date: Just dropped
Price: $5
"Pfft, what is this nonsense?" PJ let out his signature cackle, a mix of disbelief and amusement. "Yo, WinterMelon! Forget the streams, I found gold!"
The Twitch chat exploded:
"Hahaha, PJ's calling his bro his son now?"
"Rage Machine: 'I see you as a brother, but you see me as a kid?'"
"PJ: From now on, I'm Dad, you're Bro."
"Ethical chaos game, never seen this before."
"Classic WindyPeak. They're all about the weird."
"This is gonna be a riot."
WinterMelon jumped back into the voice chat. "I'm here, PJ! What's the game?"
"Open IndieVibe, search Who's the Daddy," PJ said.
A second later, WinterMelon's laugh echoed through the channel. "What is with this studio and their crazy games? Just came out, huh? Let's dive in!"
With Cat Leo's cred and the game's wild premise, they were sold. Both downloaded it in a flash.
The game loaded, and the dad-and-son characters appeared, sparking howls of laughter from the chat. The models were gloriously bad—pure WindyPeak chaos.
But then, a snag.
"Who's playing the dad?" WinterMelon asked.
"It's one-on-one, so I'll take dad first," PJ said.
"No way!" WinterMelon protested. "I wanna be the dad!"
PJ smirked. "My Rifle Elite rank's 3800. Wanna duel for it?"
Silence.
"…Dad!" WinterMelon wailed, caving instantly.
"You're ridiculous," PJ laughed, nearly losing it.
Roles set, they jumped in. The graphics were rough—borderline amateur. PJ spawned in a two-story suburban house, his "home." The UI was bare-bones: a task bar in the top right corner read, "Protect the kid." Top left showed his stats: health, hunger, oxygen.
It looked janky but harmless.
Then WinterMelon's cackle blasted through the voice chat. "PJ! Yo, come check this out!"
"What? Where you at?" PJ asked, confused.
"Baby room, second floor! How you gonna be a dad if you don't know where your kid is?"
"Hold up, I'm coming," PJ said, navigating to the second floor.
He clicked open the baby room door. A cozy pink nursery appeared, and there, in a crib, was a diapered baby with a blank, mischievous stare.
"…"
Three seconds of silence.
"Is that you?!" PJ yelled.
"Yup!" WinterMelon replied. The baby sprang up like a jack-in-the-box, hands on hips, glaring at PJ with a deranged vibe. "Get ready, Dad! I'm about to wreak havoc!"
"Nooo!" WinterMelon shouted, and the baby did a backflip, smashed headfirst into the window, and flew out through shattered glass.
The whole move was so smooth it looked scripted.
PJ stared, stunned, for five seconds.
Then a scream tore through the stream: "My kid just yeeted himself out the window! You absolute moron!"