Indie game of the week: BOMBANANA!

In our weekly indie section, we’re recommending BOMBANANA!, by Lefto Studio and TARK.

After Wanderburg’s castle on wheels, this week is chaos on the couch. BOMBANANA! launched on September 2, 2026 on PC (Steam), and in a few weeks it’s become the party game everyone recommends to “stress-test a friendship.” As you’d guess from how cute the monkeys are, it’s not a serious bomb-disposal simulator: it’s three-player mandatory co-op where each player is a monkey with a different limitation and only part of the information needed to defuse the bomb. If Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes rings a bell, you’re in the right neighborhood, except everyone is in the game world: the mute monkey has the manual, the deaf one sees the scene and acts as the go-between, and the blind one fiddles with the wires. Foolproof plan.

Here’s why I’m featuring it (and what to expect if you set it up with friends).

What is BOMBANANA!?

You’re on a defusal squad that, in practice, should not be anywhere near a detonator. Three fixed roles: the blind monkey handles the bomb but can’t see colors or screens; the mute monkey has the right manual but can’t speak; the deaf monkey sees the room and their teammates but hears nothing. Each round is a race to communicate, read gestures, use emotes, or throw bananas until the module is disarmed… or until the whole room goes up.

The campaign has 30 handcrafted levels in different settings (van, plane, and more), with puzzle modules that ramp up. When you finish, there’s endless mode and customizable challenges to keep squeezing chaos out of the formula. Lefto Studio (Istanbul) arrives with noisy co-op experience: people on the team worked on titles like Liar’s Bar and We Are So Cooked, and it shows in the pacing: short runs, clear rules, and plenty of room for accidental comedy.

What draws me to this title?

I love the bomb-defusal co-op premise (and I like monkeys), and this feels like one of those fun weekend games with family or friends (the kind I drag everyone into at the holidays). On Steam, the Next Fest demo already pulled in millions of players; launch arrived with over a million wishlists and overwhelmingly positive reviews (around 96% on the store page).

The price on the European Steam store is around €7.99, easy to justify for a night of laughs: buy it, invite two more monkeys, done.

But enough words: here’s what it looks like in motion:

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Why it hooked me

Visually sharp and absolutely a solid party co-op. It works surprisingly well even with strangers in matchmaking, according to a lot of recent reviews. Lefto and TARK have announced more content and console and mobile versions down the line; on PC right now it already feels complete for what it sets out to do.

If you want something contemplative or solo, skip it. If you want an excuse to get people together on a Friday, it fits.

Will you enjoy this game?

• Yes, if… you like local or online co-op, absurd humor, puzzles under pressure, and games that spawn stories (not just wins).
• Not so much, if… you don’t have two other players, timers stress you out, or you expect dozens of hours of campaign: many people finish all 30 levels in a few evenings.

If you’re still on the fence, the launch trailer captures three-player chaos better than another paragraph:

The one caveat

Campaign volume is modest if you binge it: the payoff is endless mode, custom challenges, and the updates the studio promises, not a hundred-hour novel. The entry ticket is low, though, and the loop stays fun as long as the modules and your squad keep changing.

Conclusion

BOMBANANA! is my indie of the week because there’s still room on PC for silly, brilliant co-op, and the post-launch buzz isn’t hollow: the community is actually playing it.

• Game: BOMBANANA! (Steam)
• Official site: bombanana.leftostudio.com · Publisher: TARK

Next week, another pick. If you have an indie you think fits this section, email me at contact@inlobby.gg.