Someone is Actually Making the Video Game Played on 'Community'

The internet being, you know, the internet, it was only a matter of time until someone actually made a playable version of the 8-bit video game through which the "Community" characters navigated in the May 17th episode "Digital Estate Planning." Yes, "Journey To the Center Of Hawkthorne" is now real, thanks to someone on Reddit, and you can download it here.

It's a work in progress with only three levels to explore so far, but what's there is an impressively detailed recreation of what we saw on the episode of NBC's awesomely strange sitcom -- there's even a character select screen on which you can choose to play Jeff, Britta, Abed, Annie, Troy, Shirley or Pierce, as well as additional characters like Pillow Man, Constable Reggie, or Brittasaurus Rex. The creator is crowdsourcing coding help, so if you've the time, talent and inclination, you too can help make Hawkthorne happen.

"Community" has been renewed for a 13-episode fourth season, though one that will not involve creator and former show-runner Dan Harmon in a significant way. It remains to be seen whether the series will be able to maintain its distinctive voice without its guiding creative force, one that's earned it the kind of passionate following that commits to devoted acts of fandom like the one described above.