This is the only rule of the free game, which is one of the most popular on Steam.

Click tens of thousands of times and you will get… a jpg image of another banana. And invest.

Click on the banana image. This is the only rule, the only task and the only goal of Banana, a free game on Steam that has nevertheless found its audience. As of this writing, it has just reached its all-time high for the number of concurrent players. at least 38,591 players click on banana. Of course, this did not allow it to reach the first place among the most popular (it is currently in 30th position), but it has overtaken Cyberpunk 2077, Overwatch 2 or Diablo IV.

“Banana” has precedents, of course: it’s exactly the same (but with different food) as “Egg”, an egg-clicking game that appeared on Steam a few months ago, without the pain and glory, but which is an effect infection. Banana’s success in recent days has forced them to recruit players at a fast pace. This is exactly how Steam memetic codes work, so self-sufficient and incomprehensible to the average observer.

In any case, these are not the first games of this type, although in the beginning many of these games, known as “clicker games” or “idler games”, were born with a satirical spirit and reflections on the mechanics of video games such as Progress Quest. considered the first of the genre, or “Cow Clicker”. At first glance, an absurd subgenre, but precisely its penchant for abstraction made them an excellent vehicle for theoretical reflection.like Ian Bogost did with Cow Clicker.

However, there are those who find additional interest in them: after many clicks, the player can receive prizes. For example, if you play for one hour, you will receive a special banana every 18 hours: for example, bananas with diamond or dark matter, which are useless, but which many players put up for sale on Steam. Most of them cost two or three cents, some have prices approaching one hundred euros.

What’s the use of all this? None, just pure speculation with images, which, let’s not forget, are sold not for real money, but for virtual amounts that can only be reinvested on Steam. Some may think that this fuss is close to an NFT pyramid scam, but in fact we are facing another meta-game that you can participate in even if you have stopped clicking on the original Banana, and in which you are facing with suggestions. and demands, for nothing… for nothing. This is the main goal of this absurd and intriguing game. Complete non-existence.

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