Unveiling the Origins of 2026’s Most Disturbing Video Game Moment

Typically, when you mention something in a video game that made you cringe, it’s often tied to gore or something unsettling. However, Mixtape’s most shocking moment doesn’t stem from violence or sickness; instead, it might just make you feel queasy if you’re sensitive to slimy sounds and the awkwardness of first kisses.

In the early stages of Beethoven & Dinosaur’s new music-infused narrative adventure, we meet Stacey Rockford, a music curator on the brink of moving to New York. As she reminisces with friends about high school, Stacey connects memories to songs. When she stumbles upon a mixtape from an old crush named Colin, she recalls him as her first kiss. At this point, Mixtape shifts from its usual stuttery, Spider-Verse-inspired art style to something more graphic—an artistic choice the game employs for comedic effect. In a particularly smooth transition, players take control of this flashback, guiding the two teens as they awkwardly navigate the complexities of kissing.

Naturally, I had to ask creative director Johnny Galvatron and producer Woody Woodward about the inspiration behind this scene.

“It’s a bit sad to say that the whole team was involved,” Galvatron admitted. “I came up with the concept, but the real grossness comes from the contributions of the entire team.”

Woodward explained that they aimed for a “gross-out, Ren and Stimpy kind of vibe,” which can only be achieved by getting up close and personal with experiences often kept at arm’s length in video games. Even something like a God of War sex minigame doesn’t delve into the details the way Mixtape’s makeout scene does, leaving nothing to the imagination.

“We discussed how to use the medium to evoke feelings you don’t typically experience in games, like being grossed out, awkward, and embarrassed,” Galvatron shared. “It’s a quintessential teenage experience—the first kiss that drags on too long and feels just wrong. We spent a lot of time perfecting the ropes of saliva in a particle system, and I think we really captured what we set out to convey.”

Interestingly, the developers at Beethoven & Dinosaur found the scene just as off-putting while creating it. Some even resorted to using placeholder audio to avoid the constant slurpy sounds of a cringe-worthy makeout session.

“When Roman [Maksymshyn, technical director] was working on it, he switched the awful tongue sounds to bird and nature noises to make it bearable. Then, at the end, he’d flip the switch back to the original sounds, check it, and exclaim, ‘Oh, jeez!’”

“He said, ‘I can’t handle mouth sounds for another two hours,’” Woodward added.

While the makeout minigame is undoubtedly the game’s most memorable gross moment, Mixtape also features the kind of crude humor you’d expect from a teenage coming-of-age story, which may or may not resonate with everyone. If the makeout minigame sounds particularly unappealing, don’t fret; the game is structured around songs, each with its own unique set piece and mechanics, ensuring that you won’t have to repeat that cringe-worthy moment.