Panic Inc.
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Software development, Video game publishing |
| Founded | 1997 |
| Founder | Steven Frank, Cabel Sasser |
| Headquarters | Portland, Oregon , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Steven Frank, Cabel Sasser |
| Products | Transmit, Nova, Coda, Unison, Audion, Playdate (gaming console) |
| Website | panic |
Panic Inc. is a software development and video game publishing firm headquartered in Portland, Oregon, United States. Established in 1997 by Steven Frank and Cabel Sasser, the company primarily develops applications for macOS and iOS, branching out into the gaming industry in 2016.
Software
Panic’s most recognized product is its premier application Transmit. Other notable offerings include the Nova code editor, which succeeded their earlier web development tool Coda, along with the Unison Usenet client and Audion media player. The company has received several Apple Design Awards acknowledging its software excellence.
Audion debuted in 1999 as a customizable MP3 player, competing with SoundJam MP—later acquired by Apple and transformed into iTunes. Panic discontinued Audion in 2004, making it available as a free download.
After retiring Audion, Panic concentrated on Unison, a Usenet reader introduced in 2004, and Stattoo, a desktop widget for displaying system statistics. In 2007, the company launched Coda, a web development application, followed by its successor Nova in 2019.
| Application | Operating System | Category | Template:Refh |
|---|---|---|---|
| Currently Supported | |||
| Transmit | macOS | FTP client | |
| Nova | macOS | Web development | |
| Prompt | iOS | Command line interface | |
| Panic Pals | iOS | iMessage sticker pack | |
| Playdate Sticker Pack | iOS | iMessage sticker pack | |
| No Longer Supported | |||
| "Code Editor" | iOS | Web development | |
| Audion | macOS | Music player | |
| CandyBar | macOS | Icon management tool | |
| Coda | macOS | Web development | |
| Desktastic | macOS | Desktop annotation utility | |
| Stattoo | macOS | System statistics display | |
| Status Board | iOS | Information dashboard | |
| Transmit | iOS | FTP client | |
| Unison | macOS | Usenet client | |
Video games
Panic entered the video game publishing arena with its inaugural title Firewatch, released on February 9, 2016. Its second published game, Untitled Goose Game, launched on September 20, 2019.
| Game Title | Supported Platforms | Developer(s) | Launch Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| PC (Windows, macOS, Linux), PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch | Campo Santo | 9 February 2016 | |
| PC (Windows, macOS), PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch | House House | 20 September 2019 | |
| PC (Windows, macOS), PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch | Terrifying Jellyfish | 12 September 2023 | |
| PC (Windows, macOS), PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X/S | Coal Supper | 1 August 2024 | |
| PC (Windows, macOS), Nintendo Switch | Franek Nowotniak, Max Cahill, José Ramón “Bibiki” García, Antonio “Fáyer” Uribe | 15 August 2024 | |
| PC (Windows), PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S | Julián Cordero, Sebastian Valbuena | 1 May 2025 |
| Game Title | Supported Platforms | Developer(s) | Launch Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| PC (Windows, macOS), PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch | Playables | 31 July 2025 | |
|
Herdling |
PC (Windows), PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch | Okomotive | 21 August 2025 |
| Playdate; PC (Windows), Nintendo Switch | Yacht, Telefantasy Studios, Dustin Mierau, Noble Robot | 'Playdate' 9 May 2025; Windows and Switch 23 September 2025 | |
| PC (Windows, macOS) | House House | 2026 | |
|
Ratcheteer DX |
PC (Windows), Nintendo Switch | Shaun Inman | TBA |
This collection exemplifies Panic’s strategic approach of collaborating with pioneering independent developers to broaden its footprint within the gaming sector across diverse platforms.
Playdate
On May 22, 2019, Panic introduced Playdate, a portable gaming console created in collaboration with the Swedish company Teenage Engineering. The device includes a 1-bit display with a resolution of 400x240 pixels, a directional pad positioned on the left side, two buttons placed on the right, and a mechanical crank located along the right edge.
Games are distributed in "seasons," with two new titles released each week and automatically downloaded to the device. Users also have the option to buy games from an on-demand marketplace, sideload additional titles, and develop their own games using two provided development environments. While Panic develops some of the games, the majority are produced by independent creators such as Keita Takahashi, Zach Gage, Bennett Foddy, Shaun Inman, and Lucas Pope.
Awards
| Year | Application | Award | Category | Outcome | Template:Refh |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Transmit 2 | Apple Design Awards | Best Mac OS X User Experience | Runner-up | |
| 2004 | Unison 1.0.2a | Apple Design Awards | Best Mac OS X Product | Runner-up | |
| 2004 | Unison 1.0.2a | Apple Design Awards | Best Mac OS X User Experience | Template:Won | |
| 2005 | Transmit 3 | MacWorld | Best of Show | Template:Won | |
| 2005 | Transmit 3.2 | Apple Design Awards | Best Mac OS X Tiger Technology Adoption | Template:Won | |
| 2007 | Coda 1 | Apple Design Awards | Best Mac OS X User Experience | Template:Won | |
| 2013 | Coda 2 | Apple Design Awards | Mac OS X | Template:Won | |
| 2021 | Nova | Apple Design Awards | Interaction | Nominated | |
| 2025 | Thank Goodness You're Here! | Apple Design Awards | Delight and Fun | Nominated |