Family Reunion: The Appetizer
What is Family Reunion: The Appetizer?
Family Reunion: The Appetizer is a demo about making a family dinner pass faster while playing as a child. Choose an archetype, interact with people and objects, and use imagination, conversation, and exploration to reach zero time.
Family Reunion: The Appetizer is a simulation and role-playing demo inspired by the mechanics of a family dinner when a child wants to do anything but be there. The demo lasts through The Appetizer and runs about 10–30 minutes depending on playstyle. Players choose Introvert, Chatty, or Adventurer, then interact with people and objects to make dinner time reach zero faster. Actions can include exploring the house for items, gathering ideas, dealing with family interventions, and getting food to boost skills. It is in development and available in English and Castellano.
How to play Family Reunion: The Appetizer
- Pick Introvert, Chatty, or Adventurer to set a way to survive the dinner.
- Work toward making the dinner time reach zero as quickly as possible; it starts very slow.
- Use imagination, conversation, and exploration to make time pass faster.
- Interact with people and objects to unfold new abilities and events.
- Explore the house for items, gather ideas from actions, avoid or ally with family interventions, and get food to boost skills.
Family Reunion: The Appetizer controls
The developer does not list specific controls on the game page. Click the play frame above and try the keyboard, mouse, or touch; most jam games show their controls on the first screen.
Tips for Family Reunion: The Appetizer
- Choose the archetype that matches the preferred way to handle the dinner: Introvert, Chatty, or Adventurer.
- Interact with people and objects often, because new abilities and events unfold as you do.
- Use exploration, conversation, and imagination together to make time pass faster.
- Get food to boost skills.
- Family interventions can be avoided or made into allies.
Family Reunion: The Appetizer FAQ
What is the objective?
Make dinner time reach zero as fast as possible; it begins very slow, so use imagination, conversation, and exploration to speed it up.
Which playstyles are available?
Introvert, Chatty, and Adventurer, each offering a different way to survive the dinner.
How long is the demo?
About 10–30 minutes, depending on playstyle.
Where can it be played?
In a browser or on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
About this game
Read the full developer description
FAMILY REUNION: THE APPETIZER (DEMO)
Family Reunion takes inspiration from the mechanics of a family dinner when you are a child and all you want to do is everything BUT being there.
This demo lasts through The Appetizer (about 10–30 minutes depending on your playstyle).
You can play it in your browser or download it for Windows, Mac, or Linux.
Still in development—would love to hear your thoughts.
DINNER'S BULLET TIME
The objective of the game is to make the time reach to zero as fast as you can, but it starts being suuper slow! You have to use the resources of your imagination, conversation and exploration skills to make the pass by faster.
CHOOSE YOUR PLAYSTYLE
Select between three archetypes : Introvert, Chatty, or Adventurer. Each offering a different way to survive the dinner.
BEAT BOREDOM
As you interact with the people and objects around you, new abilities and events unfold:
- Explore deep into the house for looting items
- Gather ideas from your actions to broaden your mind
- Avoid your family interventions or make them your allies.
- Get some food for boosting your skills.
Languages Available: English - Castellano
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PRESS
ROCK PAPER SHOTGUN: “A unique and chaotic time-attack adventure game”
https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/family-reunion-is-a-dinnertime-simulation-game-that-captures-the-wonder-and-boredom-of-being-a-loosely-disciplined-7-year-old
KILLSCREEN: "A speedrun through dinner lands"
https://www.killscreen.com/a-speedrun-through-dinner-lands-in-acmis-wobbly-showc...
AWARDS
Featured Exhibitions
- High on Websites (Larpa, NY, 2025)
- New Game + (Museum of Moving Image, NY, 2025)
- EVA play (CCK, Buenos Aires, 2025)
- Leftfield Collection - MCM (Birmingham UK, 2026)
- Boston CyberArts (Boston,2026)
- Wobbly Exhibit at ACMI during the Melbourne International Games Week (Melbourne, Australia, 2026)
Contribute with your family dinner experiences in my database for the game!
https://forms.gle/dZvxSSVhx3SmJVyg7
Join the discord!
Description from Family Reunion: The Appetizer on itch.io, by waibinin.
Screenshots
Not listed by the developer: controls, release date. We left these out rather than guess.