{"id":135621,"date":"2025-05-06T15:00:31","date_gmt":"2025-05-06T15:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/developer.apple.com\/news\/?id=wt9blabn"},"modified":"2025-05-06T15:00:31","modified_gmt":"2025-05-06T15:00:31","slug":"random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/2025\/05\/06\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck\/","title":{"rendered":"Random access memories: Inside the time-shifting narrative of The Wreck"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"inline-article-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck.jpg\" data-img-dark=\"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck.jpg\" data-hires=\"false\" alt=\"The main character of The Wreck, a writer named Junon, is seen in animated form standing in a hospital hallway. The top half of the halls are a salmon color and the bottom half are a dingy white tile. Junon is wearing a black sweatshirt and black glasses and looking at the camera. \"><\/div>\n<p><em>The Wreck<\/em> is filed under games, but it\u2019s also been called a visual novel, an interactive experience, and a playable movie. Florent Maurin is OK with all of it. \u201cI like to think we\u2019re humbly participating in expanding the idea of what a video game can be,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p>Maurin is the co-writer, designer, and producer of <em>The Wreck<\/em> \u2014 and here we\u2019ll let you decide what to call it. <em>The Wreck<\/em> tells the tale of Junon, a writer who\u2019s abruptly called to a hospital to make a life-changing decision involving her mother. The story is anchored by the accident that lends the game its name, but the ensuing narrative is splintered, and begins to take shape only as players navigate through seemingly disconnected scenes that can be viewed multiple times from different perspectives. <em>The Wreck<\/em> is far from light. But its powerful story and unorthodox mechanics combine for a unique experience.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe tried to make a game that\u2019s a bit off the beaten path,\u201d says Maurin, who\u2019s also the president and CEO of The Pixel Hunt studio, \u201cand hopefully it connects with people.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p class=\"sosumi margin-top-small\">ADA FACT SHEET<\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-article-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck-1.jpg\" data-img-dark=\"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck-1.jpg\" data-hires=\"false\" alt=\"In this screenshot from The Wreck, the main character, Junon, walks away from a kitchen that's on fire. Behind her, flames erupt from the stove and sink area.\"><\/div>\n<h3>The Wreck<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Winner:<\/strong> Social impact<\/li>\n<li><strong>Team:<\/strong> The Pixel Hunt<\/li>\n<li><strong>Available on:<\/strong> iPhone, iPad<\/li>\n<li><strong>Team size:<\/strong> 4<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Maurin is a former children\u2019s journalist who worked at magazines and newspapers in his native France. After nearly 10 years in the field, he pivoted to video games, seeing them as a different way to share real stories about real people. \u201cReality is a source of inspiration in movies, novels, and comic books, but it\u2019s almost completely absent in the gaming landscape,\u201d he says. \u201cWe wanted to challenge that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Founded in 2014, The Pixel Hunt has released acclaimed titles like the App Store Award\u2013winning historical adventure <em>Inua<\/em> and the text-message adventure <em>Bury Me, My Love<\/em>. It was near the end of the development process for the latter that Maurin and his daughter were involved in a serious car accident.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was honestly like a movie trope,\u201d he says. \u201cTime slowed down. Weird memories that had nothing to do with the moment flashed before my eyes. Later I read that the brain parses through old memories to find relevant knowledge for facing that kind of situation. It was so sudden and so intense, and I knew I wanted to make something of it. And what immediately came to mind was a game.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-article-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck-2.jpg\" data-img-dark=\"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck-2.jpg\" data-hires=\"false\" alt=\"In this screenshot from The Wreck, a nurse with black hair wearing blue scrubs talks to the main character, Junon, in a hospital hallway. Dialogue on the screen says, &quot;Why do you think I'm here?&quot; &quot;I'm sorry.&quot;\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"typography-caption\">\n<p>Junon&#8217;s interactions with the hospital staff drive the narrative in <em>The Wreck<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>But Maurin was too close to the source material; the accident had left a lasting impact, and he separated himself from the creative process. \u201cI think I was trying to protect myself from the intensity of that feeling,\u201d he says. \u201cThat\u2019s when Alex, our art director, told me, \u2018Look, this is your idea, and I don\u2019t think it\u2019ll bloom if you don\u2019t really dig deep and own the creative direction.\u2019 And he was right.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That was art director Alexandre Grilletta, who helmed the development team alongside lead developer Horace Ribout, animator Peggy Lecouvey, sound designers Luis and Rafael Torres, and Maurin\u2019s sister, Coralie, who served as a \u201csecond brain\u201d during writing. (In a nice bit of serendipity, the game\u2019s script was written in an open-source scripting language developed by Inkle, which used it for their own Apple Design Award-winning game, <em>Overboard<\/em>, in 2022.)<\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-article-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck-3.jpg\" data-img-dark=\"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck-3.jpg\" data-hires=\"false\" alt=\"In this screenshot from The Wreck, a woman with short blonde hair is sitting in a softly lit room. She is saying, &quot;So what's the play? Idiot or goldfish?&quot;\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"typography-caption\">\n<p>Junon&#8217;s sister might not be an entirely welcome presence in <em>The Wreck<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The story of <em>The Wreck<\/em> is split into two parts. The first \u2014 what the team calls the \u201clast day\u201d \u2014 follows Junon at the hospital while she faces her mother\u2019s situation as well as revealing interactions with her sister and ex-husband. Maurin says the \u201clast day\u201d was pretty straightforward from a design standpoint. \u201cWe knew we wanted a cinematic look,\u201d he says, \u201cso we made it look like a storyboard with some stop-motion animation and framing. It was really nothing too fancy. The part that was way more challenging was the memories.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Those \u201cmemories\u201d \u2014 and the backstory they tell \u2014 employ a clever mechanism in which players view a scene as a movie and have the ability to fast-forward or rewind the scene. These memory scenes feel much different; they\u2019re dreamlike and inventive, with swooping camera angles, shifting perspectives, and words that float in the air. \u201cI saw that first in <em>What Remains of Edith Finch<\/em>,\u201d says Maurin. \u201cI thought it was an elegant way of suggesting the thing that triggers a character\u2019s brain in that moment.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-article-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck-4.jpg\" data-img-dark=\"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck-4.jpg\" data-hires=\"false\" alt=\"The main character of The Wreck, a writer named Junon, is seen in animated form standing in a hospital hallway. She is wearing a black sweatshirt and black rimmed glasses. Three shimmering phrases float in the air around her: &quot;impacts the body,&quot; &quot;impaired,&quot; and &quot;long-term.&quot; \"><\/p>\n<div class=\"typography-caption\">\n<p>Junon&#8217;s thoughts are often conveyed in floating phrases that surround her in stressful moments.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Successive viewings of these memories can reveal new details or cast doubt on their legitimacy \u2014 something Maurin wrote from experience. \u201cI\u2019ll give you an example,\u201d he says. \u201cWhen my parents brought my baby sister home from the hospital, I remember the exact moment they arrived in the car. It\u2019s incredibly vivid. But the weird part is: This memory is in the third person. I see myself tiptoeing to the window to watch them in the street \u2014&nbsp;which is impossible! I rewrote my own memory for some reason, and only my brain knows why it works like that. But it feels so real.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Throughout the development process, Maurin and team held close to the idea of a \u201cmoving and mature\u201d story. In fact, early prototypes of <em>The Wreck<\/em> were more gamified \u2014 in one version, players grabbed floating items \u2014 but playtesters found the activity distracting. \u201cIt took them out of the story,\u201d Maurin says. \u201cIt broke the immersion. And that was counterproductive to our goal.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"inline-article-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck-5.jpg\" data-img-dark=\"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/random-access-memories-inside-the-time-shifting-narrative-of-the-wreck-5.jpg\" data-hires=\"false\" alt=\"This screenshot from The Wreck depicts a car accident taking place from inside the vehicle. A blue tin labeled &quot;Sparrow Peppermints&quot; is flying through the air. Outside the windshield, the bright light of a fire can be seen.\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"typography-caption\">\n<p>Items in <em>The Wreck<\/em> \u2014 like this tin of peppermints \u2014 often carry a larger meaning.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Maurin admits that approaching games with this mindset can be a challenge. \u201cSome players are curious about our games and absolutely love them. Some people think, \u2018These don\u2019t fit the perception of what I think I enjoy.\u2019 And maybe the games are for them, and maybe they\u2019re not. But this is what we\u2019ve been doing for 11 years. And I think we&#8217;re getting better at it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/developer.apple.com\/design\/awards\/\" class=\"icon icon-after icon-chevronright\">Meet the 2024 Apple Design Award winners<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Behind the Design is a series that explores design practices and philosophies from finalists and winners of the Apple Design Awards. In each story, we go behind the screens with the developers and designers of these award-winning apps and games to discover how they brought their remarkable creations to life.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Wreck is filed under games, but it\u2019s also been called a visual novel, an interactive experience, and a playable movie. Florent Maurin is OK with all of it. \u201cI like to think we\u2019re humbly participating in expanding the idea of what a video game can be,\u201d he says. Maurin is the co-writer, designer, and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":135622,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[55],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-135621","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-apple-developer-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135621","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=135621"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135621\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/135622"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=135621"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=135621"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=135621"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}