We Are OFK impressions: A dreamy, animated TV show you can play with

You could say that OFK isn’t a real band, but that wouldn’t exactly be true. Its members — Itsumi, Jey, Luca, Carter, and Debug — are digital, fictional characters that put out real music. Songs like “Follow/Unfollow,” “Fool’s Gold,” and “Footsteps” have been published by Sony Music Masterworks and released on Spotify and other music streaming platforms. Hatsune Miku is not for you. League of Legends’ K/DA, however, OFK aren’t megastars — at least, not yet. They’re just a group of friends starting to make music together.

OFK is what we do is the group’s interactive biopic spread across five hourlong episodes. Each of these episodes is tied to OFK’s five songs on their debut EP, covering the friends’ and band’s growth on their way to the big release.

Image by Team OFK

Developer Team OFK’s creative director, Teddy Dief, wanted to position OFK separate from virtual megastars like K/DA, and focus instead on a much smaller, more personable story. OFK is what we do’s first two episodes were released on Aug. 18 — each subsequent episode was released weekly from there.

The game’s dreamy, pastel world opens with Itsumi Saito and Luca Le Fae, two co-workers making a fashion mech video game for a huge corporate studio. They’re overworked and underpaid, their creative visions undervalued in an environment where all decisions come from the top. Itsumi’s world is consumed by heartbreak and Luca Le Fae is doing a lot of breaking hearts when they’re joined by an old friend and music producer, Jey Zhang. Carter Flores joins the group for visuals, FX and vocals.

It’s a very LA world, or rather, it represents an outsider’s Ideas LA. It’s all neon lights, creamy colors, and dreamy people with dreamy outfits. These characters look impossibly cool, which made me scoff at Dief’s initial comments on the PlayStation blog, which detailed Team OFK’s desire to create band members that were more relatable and down-to-earth than the likes of K/DA.

Image by Team OFK

After playing, my disbelief only lasted six seconds OFK is what we do. Each character is funny, sweet and chaotic. Itsumi has just arrived in Los Angeles after a split and is trying to determine if her true calling is to play the keyboard. Luca Le Fae is a hopelessly romantic singer-songwriter who’s just been unceremoniously fired from his job. Jey Zhang is a talented and sought-after producer who’s balancing her parent’s perception of her life with her own. Carter Flores is a programmer and visual effects artist who’s hesitant to let other people into their past life, and the creator of Debug the holographic AI. This game, in particular when compared with other games of its kind, is undoubtedly queer. Part 2 of The Last of Us, Which I recently played for the first-time. OFK is what we doBoth queer joys and struggles are present, but it never feels harsh.

OFK is what we doIt’s more like an animated TV show than a video game. The larger story unfolds by itself, while the player can dictate dialogue and other text options. These don’t have a huge impact on the unfolding narrative, but I think that’s the point. These choices have less to do with influencing events and more to do with making them. OFK is what we do’s world my own — something intimate, even though other players will inevitably make the same choices.

Image from Team OFK

Every episode closes with the music video to accompany the song. These videos are small, animated minigames that allow me to maneuver characters in abstract scenes and dance along with the beat. The interactivity is still limited, whether that’s corralling cats in one video or chasing neon lights in another.

OFK is what we do’s story continues to get better with each episode and with each chaotic text message. The characters are fictional, but they don’t feel any less real. This is a series that asks questions about friendship, creativity, and the challenge of making something authentic — and the answers are always complex.

OFK is what we doAvailable on Mac, Nintendo Switch (PS4), PlayStation 5 (PS5), and Windows PC

OFK is what we do August 18 was the release date for this game on Mac, Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4. Team OFK provided a prerelease code that allowed the game to be downloaded on Nintendo Switch as well as Windows PC. Vox Media is an affiliate partner. Although these partnerships do not impact editorial content, Vox Media could earn commissions for products bought via affiliate links. Here are some links to help you find. additional information about Polygon’s ethics policy here.