So awhile back I was thinking, “You know what would be funny? A screen saver that fakes a kernel panic!”

For those of you who might never have seen one, a kernel panic is basically the most shocking crash that you can get on a Mac. It’s Apple’s equivalent to the famed Blue Screen of Death.

What a great way to play a prank on someone, or frighten yourself.

So here is the end result, a harmless screen saver that faithfully emulates the horrifying experience of a kernel panic. It comes complete with a misleading Quartz Composer Preview so that the effect is all the more terrifying.

Update: KPSaver is now 64-bit and compatible with Mac OS X 10.6 and above. Legacy users can download the old version here.

If you enjoy KPSaver, please consider supporting it with a PayPal donation.

Download KPSaver

Enjoy KPSaver? You might find our free Mac app Cursorcerer useful, and Say hi to @Doomlaser on Twitter

Doomlaser is an independent studio building videogames, interactive software, and experimental tools.

The work spans indie releases, commercial titles, and research-driven projects, with roots at Tapulous, Apple, and Niantic.

We began with small, focused projects like Kernel Panic Screen Saver, Friend Photos (a Facebook screen saver), and Mac system tools like Cursorcerer.

The studio started as a solo effort by Mark Johns. Its scope expanded when Kevin Coulton joined, and together we created Space Barnacle, our first fully original game, developed for the TIGSource B-Game contest.

Since then, Doomlaser has stayed intentionally small, hands-on, and oriented toward experimentation at the edges of games and tools, including recent exploration of neural-network-driven workflows for game systems and creative software.

Selected work

Selected work includes Hot Throttle (Adult Swim, with the venerable Cactus), Space Barnacle (with Kevin Coulton), The Hunger Games (iOS) (Lionsgate), Das Cube (with Alec Holowka and Danny B), plus projects like Standard Bits, Owl Country, and Shit Game.

Experimental augmented-reality and future-facing technology work for Niantic (of Pokémon Go fame).

Co-wrote the hit iOS game Tap Tap Revenge and its spinoffs at Disney-owned Tapulous (along with this charming man).

Interned at Apple developing software for clickwheel iPod games, and appeared as a character in Apple’s Texas Hold’em.

Mac system tools including Cursorcerer.

Videos

Media

Indiegames.com — Interview: Mark Johns (Space Barnacle, Rotrix)

FingerGaming — Interview on Tap Tap Revenge / Tap Tap Dance

Kotaku — Tap Tap Transforms from iGame Into iMusic Platform

Arte TV (France) — Hot Throttle at Babycastles, NYC

Links

Twitter, GitHub, YouTube, Giphy, Tumblr, SoundCloud, AngelList, ArtStation, Instagram, MobyGames

Contact

killradius@doomlaser.com