Can You See Me Now? is a chase game that drops you into a colourful 3D world where you swap tactics with other players to avoid being caught by the game’s runners

The twist? The 3D world of the game is a real location. And as you dodge round corners and down cut-throughs from the comfort of an armchair, the runners are chasing you in real time on the real streets of that location: working up a sweat and streaming their taunts via live audio.

Risk playing cat and mouse or hide from the runners to stay in the game for as long as you can to join the leaderboard.

Can You See Me Now? is a live experience – this is what makes it special!  Times for upcoming games will appear here and in the app. 

Subscribe to Blast Theory to hear about future games

To play you’ll need an iPhone, iPad or Android device with an internet connection. The app has been tested to run on an iPhone 7 or newer, running iOS14 or newer. And on mid-range Android devices running Android 12 or newer.

You can take part online from anywhere in the world. Times for upcoming games appear here and in the app. To join the game as an online player, make sure you have the latest version of the app

Download for iOS | Download for Android

Runners play from the real streets of the game. They are equipped with an app that allows them to stream live audio as they run, and see your location so they can track you down.

The game area is approximately 300m by 300m.

If the runner gets within five metres then you are “seen”. Your game is over. The runner announces that they’ve seen you and then takes a photo of the exact spot where they saw you.

If you stay in the game for long enough, your name appears on the leaderboard at the end of the game. Tapping on a name in the leaderboard shows the photo that was taken when the player was seen.

If Can You See Me Now? is live somewhere near you, you may be able to join as a runner yourself. To hear about future games and opportunities to play as a runner subscribe to Blast Theory here.

The game area in the app is a copy of an area in a real city. Runners are based at the physical location of the game and navigate the real streets of the game area to chase online players.

To take part, you come to a venue at the game location where you’re provided with a mobile phone and headset. You’re given a short safety briefing and you’re then free to explore the game with other runners. 

While you don’t have to physically run to be a runner, you will need to be able to navigate the physical game area. Playing the game can be physically demanding so you’ll be asked to confirm you are fit to take part. You’ll also be outside throughout the game so please come wearing appropriate clothing and footwear.

Games sessions for runners are normally 30 minutes, but you can take a break whenever you like. And you can play for longer if space is available.

For those with visual impairments, the app supports Zoom on iOS and Magnifier on Android. However, Android and iOS screen readers are not supported.

To play online, you need to read and input text to log in and to chat with other players. To move your avatar you tap and drag on-screen. Key game events appear on screen as text notifications, however, runners communicate in the game using live audio. There are no captions for this audio.  

For those playing as runners, there is no need to physically run to take part, however, you will need to be able to navigate the physical game area. To chase online players, you use a screen based map and must read names and short instructions on screen. To stream live audio, you tap and hold an on-screen microphone button.  

Blast Theory provide an iPhone XR with a wired headset for runners to use in the game or if you have a compatible device that you would prefer to use, bring it with you and we’ll set you going. If you use an iOS compatible hearing device, we can pair this with the phone we provide. 

Blast Theory stores names you provide, photos and interaction logs – including messages that you send – in its archive for the project. These are kept as a record of the game and may be shared in documentation, marketing or used in academic research. For full details, please check our terms of use.

If you wish to withdraw your consent for these uses or to have your data deleted, please contact Blast Theory using the details at the end of the terms of use.

The game may not be running, check times (and the timezone!) for the game here.

The game is limited to fewer than 50 players at a time, so it may be full. If so, please try again later.

You may be on a slow connection. The game is hosted at the physical location where runners are on the streets, so connections from remote locations may be slow or have delays. Delays over 300 milliseconds may make it impossible to join.

If you’re playing on a mobile / cellular connection, try connecting via WiFi.

Check that your phone is unmuted and the volume is up. You can also try sending chat messages to get the runners’ attention and to see if they reply.

Can You See Me Now? was one of the first location based games in the world.

Created by artists Blast Theory and the Mixed Reality Lab at the University of Nottingham, it  won the Prix Ars Electronica, was nominated for a BAFTA and is credited as a forerunner of Pokemon Go. 

You can read more about the project here