Games have to be playable, but do Playables have to be games? With Mario von Rickenbach and Michael Frei, creativity is everything. We talked to the makers of KIDS, Time Flies and Pocket Boss about Switzerland, game feel and working with Panic.
GamesMarkt: Who are Playables?
Michael Frei: Playables is a small company in Zürich, co-founded by the two of us: Michael Frei and Mario von Rickenbach. We produce and publish interactive and animated projects.
What is the history of the company from founding to today?
Mario von Rickenbach: We founded the company back in 2014. Our first main project was KIDS, a multi-format interactive experience that included a game, a film and an art installation. We later also helped produce and publish other people‘s projects, like My Exercise and TET. Our most recent releases include Time Flies and Pocket Boss, which were both released in 2025.
Your games are artsy, but all very, well, “playable”, in the sense that they all feel extremely good to maneuver or do the thing that needs to be done in the game. Can you tell us more about your design philosophy?
