JT7 Launcher

Let's get youPLAYING

Windows iPhone & iPad Android Mac Linux
Mac, Linux, Android, iPhone and iPad are new and still being tested. Here's how to run them.

Installation.

Windows

Windows
Watch the whole install on Windows in 2 minutes, then follow the steps below.
  1. Download JT7 Launcher. It's the app that installs Project Playtime, starts it, and downloads every mod update for you, including updates to itself.
  2. Open JT7Launcher.exe. Windows will probably warn you about it, and your antivirus might flag some game files. Both are false alarms. Click More info, then Run anyway, and read About the virus warnings below to see why.
  3. Click the Project Playtime Rewrite tile to start the download. A progress bar on the tile shows how much of the game has downloaded. You can leave the launcher running in the background. If your internet drops or you close the launcher, just click the tile again and the download picks up from where it stopped.
  4. Once the download finishes, it installs on its own and grabs the newest mod update. Wait until it says “Project Playtime Rewrite is installed. Click it to play.”
  5. Windows will ask if the launcher can make changes. Click Yes. This sets up the network your games run on so your friends can join you. If you clicked No by accident, right-click the tile and pick Set up multiplayer network.
  6. Click the tile to play. Always start the game from the launcher, because that's how you get updates and the right network settings.

Mac, Linux, Android, iPhone and iPad are new and still being tested

They run the same Windows version of the game through a compatibility layer, the same way a Steam Deck runs Windows games. It can be slower than on a Windows PC, especially on a Mac. If something doesn't work, tell me what happened and send me the logs listed in your section below.

iPhone and iPad

iPhone & iPad
Watch the whole install on iPhone and iPad in 4 minutes, then follow the steps below.

iOS kit 2.0. The kit is the start file and touch controls. The first time you start it, it installs the game right on your iPhone or iPad, and after that the game updates on its own. You only need a computer once, for about 15 minutes, and a friend's Windows PC is fine.

  1. The one time on a PC. On a 64-bit Windows PC, install iTunes from the Microsoft Store or apple.com, then iloader from SideStore's site. Plug in your iPhone or iPad, tap Trust on it and enter your passcode. Keep it plugged in until step 4.
  2. Open iloader, sign in with your Apple ID, pick your device and choose Install SideStore. On the device, turn on Settings › Privacy & Security › Developer Mode, which restarts it, then trust your Apple ID under Settings › General › VPN & Device Management. Install LocalDevVPN from the App Store, open it and tap Connect.
  3. On the device, in Safari, download the newest StikDebug .ipa from StikDebug's releases page, open it with SideStore and install it. StikDebug is what lets the game run fast.
  4. Back in iloader, open Manage Pairing File and press Place next to SideStore and again next to StikDebug. Each one says the pairing file was placed. That's everything the PC is for, so you can unplug now.
  5. In Safari, download the newest Madeira .ipa from Madeira's releases page, open it with SideStore and install it. Apps from SideStore last 7 days at a time: before then, connect LocalDevVPN, open SideStore and tap the 7 DAYS counter under My Apps to refresh. No PC needed for that.
  6. Connect LocalDevVPN on Wi-Fi, open Madeira, go to Settings and tap Enable JIT. Madeira uses StikDebug for it on its own. You're ready when JIT and Memory+ both show a green check. While you're there, set the pointer mode to Relative, so swiping the screen turns the camera. Each time your phone restarts, open StikDebug once before you play.
  7. Tap the iPhone & iPad button above and open the download in the Files app, which unzips it. In Files, go to On My iPhone or On My iPad, then Madeira › wine › drive_c, make a folder called Games and in it one called Project Playtime, then move JT7-iPhone.exe into Project Playtime. Rename JT7-Madeira-controls.json to madeira-control-presets.json and leave it in the main Madeira folder. Skip that last part if you've made your own Madeira touch layouts, because it replaces them.
  8. In Madeira's library, tap + and pick Games › Project Playtime › JT7-iPhone.exe. Tap the new game to name it, and for Resolution pick the This screen's shape size around 720p. It fills your iPhone or iPad with no black bars. Go one size lower if it runs slowly.
  9. Tap the game. The first time, it installs the game, about 16 GB, so have 18 GB free and stay on Wi-Fi. Keep Madeira open with the screen on until it's done. If it stops, just tap the game again and it carries on where it left off. Then the game starts, and from now on it checks for updates every time you play.
  10. Tap the game to play. If the start screen shows the JT7 logo and the main menu has the bot game buttons, the mod is working. A Bluetooth controller works best, and on an iPad a keyboard and mouse work too. For touch, open the Session menu and pick Controller layout, then JT7 Survivor or JT7 Monster, the iPad one on an iPad. Madeira labels buttons by key: Space jumps, Ctrl crouches, Shift runs, E uses, R rolls, G is the monster's power, T switches the view, Tab is the scoreboard and Esc pauses.
  11. For multiplayer, install Tailscale from the App Store, sign in and connect. Your device can join friends' lobbies. Hosting from an iPhone or iPad isn't ready yet.

If something goes wrong, turn on extended logging in Madeira's Settings and send me that log and Playtime_Multiplayer/Binaries/Win64/ue4ss/UE4SS.log from the game folder.

Android

Minimum

A 64 bit phone with Android 8 or newer.
8 GB of RAM.
A Snapdragon 865 or newer, or a chip that's just as fast.
30 GB free to install. The game uses about 14 GB once it's in.

Recommended

Android 12 or newer.
12 GB of RAM or more.
A Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 or newer.
A controller, or a phone big enough for the touch buttons.

Snapdragon phones run it best because the game uses graphics made for their chips. Phones with MediaTek, Exynos or Google Tensor chips use a slower graphics mode, so expect lower frame rates. Phones with less than 8 GB of RAM usually close the game when it runs out of memory. Android is still in testing, so these may change.

Android
Watch the whole install on Android in 2 minutes, then follow the steps below.
  1. Download JT7 for Android. It's about 170 MB. Open the file when it finishes. If your phone asks, allow installing apps from your browser, then tap Install. Android may warn that the app was made for an older version of Android. That's expected, because the part that runs Windows games needs it. Tap More details, then Install anyway.
  2. Open JT7. The first time it sets itself up, which takes about a minute.
  3. Tap Install to download the game. It's 13.5 GB, so use Wi-Fi and keep the app open. If it stops, tap Install again and it picks up where it left off.
  4. For multiplayer, tap Set up multiplayer. It sends you to the free Tailscale app and copies the JT7 key. In Tailscale, open settings at the top right, tap Accounts, then the three-dot menu, pick Use an auth key, paste it and connect.
  5. Tap Play. The left stick moves, swipe the right side to look, and the two big buttons are your left and right hands. Hold a hand button and drag to aim. As the monster, switch to the JT7 Monster controls from the game's side menu.

JT7 for Android is built on the open source Winlator app. Download its source code.

Mac

You need macOS 14.6 or newer and about 30 GB free. Apple Silicon Macs run it best.

Mac
Watch the whole install on a Mac in 2 minutes, then follow the steps below.
  1. Download JT7 for Mac. It's about 570 MB. Double-click the zip to unpack it, then drag JT7 into your Applications folder.
  2. Open JT7. If your Mac offers to install Rosetta, click Install.
  3. Your Mac will say Apple could not verify JT7, because it isn't from the App Store. Click Done, open System Settings, go to Privacy & Security, scroll down and click Open Anyway next to JT7, then enter your password. If it says JT7 is damaged instead, open Terminal and run this, then open it again: xattr -drs com.apple.quarantine /Applications/JT7.app
  4. The JT7 Launcher window opens, just like on Windows. Click the Project Playtime Rewrite tile to download and install the game. If the download stops, click the tile again and it picks up where it left off.
  5. For multiplayer, install the standalone Tailscale app and open it once. Then right-click the tile and pick Set up multiplayer network. If your Mac asks to allow a VPN configuration, click Allow.
  6. From now on, open JT7 from Applications or Launchpad to play. It updates the game and itself every time.

If something goes wrong on Mac

Right-click JT7 in Applications and pick Show Package Contents. Send me Contents/SharedSupport/Logs/LastRunWine.log and the game's ue4ss/UE4SS.log, plus your Mac model.

If the app won't run at all, there's another way that uses CrossOver: install CrossOver, where the free trial works, open it once, then paste this in Terminal: curl -fsSL https://jt7code.com/files/jt7-launcher.sh -o ~/jt7-launcher.sh && bash ~/jt7-launcher.sh

Linux and Steam Deck

Linux
Watch the whole install on Linux in about a minute, then follow the steps below.
  1. Open Terminal. On a Steam Deck, switch to Desktop Mode and open Konsole. Paste this line and press Enter: curl -fsSL https://jt7code.com/files/jt7-launcher.sh -o ~/jt7-launcher.sh && bash ~/jt7-launcher.sh If you used the Linux button instead, run bash ~/Downloads/jt7-launcher.sh. You don't need to install anything else, because the launcher gets what it needs.
  2. It downloads and installs the game into ~/Games/JT7, so you need about 30 GB free. If the download stops, run it again and it picks up where it left off. If something goes wrong, send me ~/Games/JT7/state/game.log and the game's ue4ss/UE4SS.log.
  3. When it asks about the multiplayer network, type y and enter your password. This lets your friends join your games.
  4. After the first time, open JT7 Launcher from your app menu to play. It updates the game and itself every time.

About the virus warnings

“Windows protected your PC” shows up for any program that isn't signed by a big company. JT7 Launcher is made by just me, so it isn't. Click More info, then Run anyway.

Your antivirus might flag game files. The mod loads itself into the game through three small files, dwmapi.dll, dxgi.dll and xinput1_3.dll. They sit where Windows expects its own files so the game picks them up. Some real viruses use that same trick, so antivirus programs flag these files on sight, even though here all they do is start the mod.

If Windows Security removes one, open Windows Security, go to Virus & threat protection, then Protection history. Pick the blocked file, choose Actions, then Allow on device. Only do this for files inside C:\Games\Project Playtime. Then see No bot game or JT7 Online buttons below to put the file back.

With friends

  1. On the main menu, open JT7 Online. Pick Create an account the first time, and Sign in after that.
  2. One person picks Host a lobby and chooses a map.
  3. Everyone else picks Join a lobby and clicks the host's game.

Up to 7 players fit in a lobby, and the match starts once everyone's ready.

New monster: CatNap

CatNap from Poppy Playtime: Chapter 3 joins Huggy, Boxy and Mommy. When you play a bot game as a survivor, he's one of the monsters hunting you and the bots. When you play as the monster, you can be him. Just use the arrows on the monster select screen until you reach his page.

  • Claws: Use the left and right mouse buttons, or the triggers on a controller. Each hit does 20 damage. Each hand cools down on its own, so switching between left and right lets you chain hits together.
  • Red Smoke: Press G on keyboard and Square/X for controllers. It leaves a cloud of red gas for 12 seconds that slows down survivors and hurts them while they're inside. You can use it again 18 seconds later.
  • Skins: Pick Original, Ashen or Crimson in Customize.

New monster: Doey

Doey the Doughman from Poppy Playtime: Chapter 4 joins Huggy, Boxy, Mommy and CatNap in survivor bot games, and you can pick him on the monster select screen. He's over 4 meters tall but still fits through every door.

  • Punches: Throw left and right punches with his soft dough arms. They reach a lot further than they look.
  • Long punch: Press G on keyboard or Square/X on a controller. His arm stretches way out to catch survivors who think they got away.
  • Knockdowns: When Doey knocks someone down, his head pops right out of his body.
  • First person: You see his big dough arms swing for every punch. Press T or click the right stick for third person.

New monster: The Prototype

The Prototype from Chapter 5 is just as huge as in the real game, and he's the fastest monster. One swipe of his claws knocks a survivor down, then he finishes them with a stab you see up close.

  • Unlocking him: On the monster select screen he's a black shadow called ???. Win a Battle Royale match in a public or custom lobby to unlock him. His page shows your Battle Royale wins.
  • First person: You see his bony claws sweep across your view when you swipe.
  • Public matches: CatNap, Doey and The Prototype can all be picked in public matches, not just in bot games.

Chapter 3 GrabPack arms

When you play as a survivor, your GrabPack arms move just like they do in Poppy Playtime Chapter 3. That goes for standing still, walking and sprinting.

Controls

You can play with a keyboard and mouse or a controller. When you're a monster, press T or click the right stick to switch between first person and third person.

Updates.

Every time you open JT7 Launcher, it checks for a new mod update and installs it. It keeps itself up to date as well. If you want to check right now, right-click the tile and pick Check for updates.

If something goes wrong.

The download stopped

Just click the tile again. It starts back up from where it stopped, so you won't download anything twice.

Not enough space, or the install failed

Clear up about 28 GB on your C drive and click the tile again.

No bot game or JT7 Online buttons

That means the mod didn't load. Some antivirus programs lock away mod files like xinput1_3.dll in the game folder. Check your antivirus to see if it grabbed anything. Then right-click the tile, pick Open install folder, and delete the file JT7\update.sha256. After that, pick Check for updates and the launcher puts the mod back.

Friends can't see or join my lobby

Everyone needs the multiplayer network. Right-click the tile, pick Set up multiplayer network, and click Yes when Windows asks. Make sure everyone started the game from the launcher.

Nothing above helps

Right-click the tile and pick Reinstall from download link to get a fresh copy.

Still stuck? Send me a screenshot of the launcher window.