Don't be the pickle.
A fast pixel-art tag game for friends. One of you is the pickle. Run, catch, throw, and don't be holding it when the timer hits zero.
COMING TO STEAM · 1 DECEMBER 2026
The tag game where the tag is a pickle.
Everyone starts as a glove, except one unlucky player. That player is the pickle, and the pickle wants to touch you. Touch a glove and the pickle passes on. Get caught holding it when the timer runs out and you are pickled. It takes a minute to learn and a lot more than a minute to put down.
Six reasons to say "one more round".
The chase
One player is the pickle, and the pickle chases the gloves. Touch a glove and you pass the pickle on; when the timer hits zero, whoever is holding it is pickled and out.
Rounds last 30 to 60 seconds, so there is always time for one more.
- Last one standing wins, alone or in teams
- Pickle-proof for ten seconds after you pass it on
- A keyboard is all you need
Catch it. Throw it.
Gloves do not have to run forever. Swing your mitt as the pickle gets close, catch it, then throw it at someone else.
A throw homes in on the closest player. If it hits nobody, it boomerangs back to you.
- Hot sauce speed, boing jumps, lunge dashes, sour coats and extra reach
- A thrown pickle drifts toward whoever is nearest
- Bots that run, jump and plan, but miss sometimes
Haunt the arena
Pickled players do not leave. They come back as ghosts and flip doors, fans, springs and goo to mess with everyone still running.
Every gadget is outlined in its ghost's colour, and each ghost holds only one.
- Switch gadgets to trap, launch or block the survivors
- Jump to the gadget nearest the pickle
- You are never just watching
Three worlds, three bosses
The campaign starts gently and does not punish you: getting pickled still counts as passing, so you always move on. Collect stars, climb through Sakura Rooftops, the Cucumber Garden and The Brine Jar, and take on a boss at the end of each.
There is also an Endless Gauntlet and a Daily Challenge when the campaign is done.
- 18 levels, a boss at the end of every world
- Stars for catches, bullseyes and wins
- Pickles to spend, and a rank to climb
Play together
Share one keyboard with up to three friends, fill the arena with bots, or open a room online for up to eight players, free for all or in teams.
Every player gets five keys. No controller, no setup, no waiting.
- One to four players on one keyboard
- Online rooms with a four-letter code
- Teams where enemy bodies are solid: block them in
Make it yours
Hats, dyes, glove leather, trails and name styles. Wallpapers, Discord icons and emoji packs, drawn by the game itself. Over a hundred things to earn.
Everything is cosmetic. Nothing you unlock changes how a match plays, so every match is fair.
- Earn pickles by playing, spend them in the shop
- Reward packs you can save and keep
- No loot boxes
Three worlds. Three bosses.
The campaign has eighteen levels. Start easy, win stars, and unlock the next world.
Sakura Rooftops
Learn the ropes on cherry-blossom rooftops. The levels start with one very slow bot and a very short round, and end with the master of the rooftops: patient, and hard to hit.
6 LEVELS · 3 STARS EACH
BOSSSENSEI SPROUT
Cucumber Garden
Smarter bots, trickier gadgets and a doctor who is not on your side. Power-ups hang on the vines, and Doctor Dill catches almost everything.
6 LEVELS · 3 STARS EACH
BOSSDOCTOR DILL
The Brine Jar
Deep in the jar the bots stop playing nice. Seven players to a jar, big team fights, and at the bottom the king of the brine with his crew. He is faster than you. Be smarter.
6 LEVELS · 3 STARS EACH
BOSSTHE BIG DILL
Dress the glove.
Over a hundred hats, dyes, trails and name styles, all earned by playing. Nothing you unlock changes how a match plays.
Hats are just the start: dyes, glove leather, trails, name styles, wallpapers, Discord icons and emoji packs.
Screenshots.
Real gameplay, drawn at the game's own pixel size. Click one to enlarge it. Logos, key art and a fact sheet are on the press page.
From the dev desk.
Catch the Pickle comes to Steam on 1 December
The date is set. Here is what the game is, and what happens between now and launch.
We made the bots worse (on purpose)
They caught everything and tagged everyone. Now they miss, lose the plot and hesitate.
How a round works, in five steps
Run, catch, throw, get pickled, haunt. The whole game on one page.
Join the pickle patch.
Share your best catch with #CatchThePickle and we will share our favourites.
Invited playtester? Sign in to try the game in your browser. Your login decides whether you get the teaser (the first campaign levels) or the full game.
Playtester sign-inGet the launch news.
One email when the Steam page goes up, one on launch day, and the odd devlog. No spam, and you can leave any time.
Quick answers.
When does it come out?
Catch the Pickle comes to Steam on 1 December 2026.
Which platforms?
Windows, through Steam, at launch.
How much will it cost?
To be announced. The price will be on the Steam page, and nothing here will quietly change it.
How many people can play?
Solo against bots in the campaign, one to four players on one keyboard, or online rooms for up to eight players.
What do I need to play?
A keyboard. Every player gets five keys (left, right, jump, drop and ACTION) and every key can be rebound. There is no controller support planned for launch.
Does it need an internet connection?
The campaign, practice rounds and local party all work offline. Online rooms need a connection.