Bendy is a horror game series and media franchise created by Paul Crawford and Mike Desjardins, credited respectively as theMeatly and Mike D.
Overview Gameplay The Bendy games are set at the fictional studio of Joey Drew Studios, where the player navigates through a first-person perspective and have limited physical actions such as running and jumping. Players are required to complete certain objectives to proceed, which consist of solving certain puzzles by collecting certain objects and of combating enemies that appear through the games by using certain weapons, such as axe, pipe, gun, etc.
Story Set in an undisclosed period in the first half of the 20th century, the series focuses on Joey Drew Studios, a fictional animation studio founded by Joey Drew, which, during its existence, was responsible for the creation of numerous popular cartoon characters such as Bendy and his friends. Before the closure of the studio, Drew acquired the titular Ink Machine, a mysterious device developed by the Gent Corporation in order to create living cartoons: the ink was derived from the souls of Drew's employees, which are additionally responsible for an alternate dimension stuck in a time loop called the Cycle. Each game has different protagonists trying to survive and free themselves from the horrors in the ink realm and against monsters created from the machine such as the Ink Demon.
Characters Bendy, the titular character of the franchise, is a cartoon demon who serves as the mascot for Joey Drew Studios. He manifests in game as the Ink Demon, the Ink Machine's first creation, and a soulless monster that rules over the Cycle, which resets following his death. Other forms of the Ink Demon include a more benevolent cartoon Bendy and a monstrous form called Beast Bendy. The Ink Demon was the main villain of the first game and the spinoff, and the central antagonist of the second game.
Alice Angel is the female star of the Bendy cartoons. The two actresses who voiced the character, Susie Campbell and Allison Pendle, manifest as versions of Alice in the games. Susie manifests as Twisted Alice, a deformed, sadistic Alice who craves perfection, while Allison manifests as Allison Angel, a kindhearted survivor.
Boris the Wolf, one of Bendy's friends, had many clones in the Cycle, all murdered by Twisted Alice. A man known as Buddy became a kindhearted Boris named Buddy Boris. Thomas Conner, Allison's husband and an employee of the Gent Corporation, becomes Tom, a clone of Boris with a mechanical arm. Other versions of Boris include Brute Boris, a monstrous version of Buddy Boris after being experimented on by Twisted Alice, and Borkis, a clone of Boris with glowing eyes, who serves as a secret boss in Boris and the Dark Survival.
Other ink creatures include the Butcher Gang, Bendy's archenemies from the cartoons, who appear as recurring enemies in each game. The members include Charley / Piper, the primate leader of the Butcher Gang, Barley / Fisher, a human sailor, and Edgar / Striker, a spider. Bendy and the Dark Revival adds a female member to the Butcher Gang called Carley / Slicer, a ghost girl. Other enemies include Searchers and Lost Ones, former employees of Joey Drew Studios that have become trapped in the Cycle.
Each game has a different protagonist. The protagonist of Bendy and the Ink Machine and Bendy: The Cage is Henry Stein, an ink replica of Joey's former partner. Buddy Boris serves as the protagonist of Bendy: Lone Wolf. Bendy and the Dark Revival centers on Audrey Drew, the Ink Machine created daughter of Joey Drew. The Vessel(s) are the protagonists of Bendy: Secrets of the Machine.
Other human characters include Joey Drew, the founder of Joey Drew Studios, who indirectly caused the events of the series. Joey dies prior to the events of Bendy and the Dark Revival, but an ink replica of him guides Audrey. Wilson Arch is the main antagonist of Bendy and the Dark Revival. He is the son of Nathan Arch, founder of Arch Gate Pictures, and has disguised himself as a janitor to take over the Cycle with his creations, the Keepers. Towards the end of the game, Wilson becomes Shipahoy Wilson, a fusion of himself and his cartoon character, Shipahoy Dudley, who was meant to replace the Ink Demon.
Other humans-turned-ink monsters include Sammy Lawrence, the former music director of Joey Drew Studios who went insane and started to worship the Ink Demon as a deity. It is implied through audio logs that Sammy had a relationship with Susie Campbell. Norman Polk, former projectionist at Joey Drew Studios, was transformed into the Projectionist monster. Bertrum Piedmont, a world-renowned theme park designer hired by Joey Drew Studios, becomes a giant head fused with an amusement park ride.
The Gent Corporation are the presumed overarching antagonists of the series. The company is run by Alan Gray, an unseen character. Gent created the Ink Machine as well as other technology found throughout the Cycle.
Development The Bendy franchise was inspired by the BioShock series, as both of them are set in the 20th century and both of them have an antique style. The idea for the concept of the series came from Paul Crawford (also known as TheMeatly) when he thought about a world that could resemble a cartoon sketch.
Games
Bendy and the Ink Machine (2017–2018)
Bendy and the Ink Machine is an episodic survival horror game and the first instalment of the series. The game consists of five chapters and a final "behind the scenes" chapter, released from February 10, 2017, to October 28, 2018.
Boris and the Dark Survival (2020) A prequel to Bendy and the Ink Machine was released on February 10, 2020, as part of the original game's third anniversary, on PC and mobile platforms. Players play as Boris the Wolf, an unnamed Lost One, and Sammy Lawrence. From an up-top vision as he navigates his way through Joey Drew Studios, running away from the Ink Demon, Alice Angel, the Butcher Gang, and the Projectionist. A teaser from Secrets of the Machine hints that the game will get the Bendy: Lone Wolf update. In 2024 it was announced that it would be discontinued and another game called Bendy: Lone Wolf based on this game would be released. Users who already owned this game will receive Bendy: Lone Wolf for free.
Bendy and the Dark Revival (2022)
Bendy and the Dark Revival is a first-person survival horror video game developed by Joey Drew Studios Inc. it is the third instalment of the Bendy franchise and sequel to Bendy and the Ink Machine. The game was released on November 15, 2022 for Windows, on March 1, 2023 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and on July 11, 2025 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch to mixed reviews from critics. Players control Audrey, an animator who must navigate the world of Joey Drew Studios while avoiding creatures, occasionally solving puzzles along the way.
The game takes place roughly 10 years after the events of the original game and follows a character named Audrey, an animator who works for Arch Gate Pictures; the company that took over Joey Drew Studios after its bankruptcy.
Release Problems (2019–2022) Bendy and the Dark Revival was announced on April 14, 2019. However, Mike Desjardins stated on February 13, 2019, that it would not serve as Bendy and the Ink Machine 2. A gameplay trailer was released on June 24, 2019, announcing the game's release for Fall 2019.
However, in December 2019, a new trailer was released to say that the game was being delayed and will release sometime in 2020. Another trailer was released on June 1, 2020, revealing that the game would be released in its entirety with all five chapters included, unlike the first game which was released episodically. The trailer also suggested the game would come out in the latter half of 2020. However, on November 30, 2020, the developers announced that the game would be releasing in 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The developers also cited that the game will be ten times bigger than the original game and that they didn't want to rush the game.
The game was nominated for the Outstanding Visual Style category in the 2022 Steam Awards, though lost out to the PC port of Spider-Man: Miles Morales.
Bendy: Secrets of the Machine (2024)
On April 2, 2024, the Steam store-page for Bendy: Secrets of the Machine was released to the public. So far, the game seems to be about the abandoned Gent Corporation and its mysteries. It was released on April 14, 2024. The game follows Riley Wells, a young woman chosen by the Gent Corporation to explore the Machine. Riley awakens outside a house in the middle of nowhere and upon entering, finds it to be an ever changing reality. The central hub room is that of a mysterious room with four doors and a sign labeled "Escape Your Cage". Based on Riley's actions, the player can interact with the room by collecting cans and throwing them at various things in each of the rooms, learning things about Gent, as well as revealing things about Riley's past.
It is revealed that Riley had an interest in drawing as a child, until one day her parents were killed in a car accident. This resulted in Riley drawing vicious and macabre things, among them being a killer car. Her work was eventually discovered by Joey Drew Studios who hired her, but later fired her when her work became too dark. This culminates in her malicious car manifesting and chasing Riley.
The game is full of Easter eggs and secrets, some of which hint at future games and updates. Riley can be attacked by the Ink Demon if she stands in one place for too long, destroys a certain number of Bendy cutouts, or on the PC version if the player holds the shift key and types K414. The game frequently updates. Several updates led to players being unable to enter the house as it had a condemned sign in front. This was later removed but readded as a condemned second house when walking backwards from the spawn location. Another update introduced a crudely made Bendy mascot costume that follows the player and whispers a distorted message. Playing it in reverse reveals that it is the lyrics to DAGames Bendy tribute song "Build Our Machine".
Bendy and the Ink Factory (TBA) Bendy and the Ink Factory was revealed on August 27th, 2025 as the final installation of the Bendy Saga.
Spin-offs Bendy in Nightmare Run (2018–2021), Bendy's Nightmare Run (2026) A mobile spin-off, titled Bendy in Nightmare Run, was announced on January 26, 2018, and was released on iOS on August 15, 2018, and on Android on September 27. Developed by Karman Interactive and published by Joey Drew Studios Inc, the game introduces the cartoon versions of Bendy, Boris, and Alice Angel in an endless runner game, featuring four episodes with a different "boss" cartoon monster, as well as collectible items and 6 power-ups, including but not limited to bacon soup cans that act as a currency to buy abilities and upgrades. The game (previously discontinued) is now re-released with new content planned for 2026, now developed by Broken Circle Studios and re-named as Bendy's Nightmare Run. The game now remains in active development with 10 major planned updates and released on August 19, 2026.
Bendy and the Brine Barrel (2025) A joke game released for 2025's April Fools on April 1st, only for Windows. The game is a remake of the original release of chapter one of Bendy and the Ink Machine, Moving Pictures, but with everything based around pickles. The game was downloadable from a subpage on the Joey Drew Studios website that was linked to by a QR code that was added to an update to Bendy: Secrets of the Machine and later removed at the end of April 1st.
Animated shorts