Huggy Wuggy (Poppy Playtime)

About

Huggy Wuggy is the name of the primary antagonist in chapter one of the video game Poppy Playtime, which was released on Steam on October 12th, 2021. Depicted as a furry blue creature with yellow hands and feet, large eyes and a red mouth and lips, Huggy Wuggy initially appears innocent but hides a mouth filled with rows of sharp teeth. Throughout late 2021 and beyond, the character was popularized in memes with various references, fan art and other fan-made depictions of him being made around the internet in both video and still image form, similar to Mommy Long Legs from chapter two of the series.

Origin

Huggy Wuggy was originally seen in the first gameplay trailer for the game Poppy Playtime, which was uploaded to YouTube^[1] by the channel MOB Games on September 1st, 2021. The video shows Huggy Wuggy from a distance, slowly walking towards the player, with a final confrontation showing his teeth up close. The gameplay trailer earned 1.2 million views in three months (shown below).

Poppy Playtime was then fully released on October 12th, 2021, with Huggy Wuggy's online presence significantly ramping up in the following months as the game trended on social media.

Spread

Huggy Wuggy's use in fan animations happened as soon as the game launched, with many Let's Play YouTubers using his jumpscare as the thumbnail in their videos, increasing awareness of him. On October 24th, 2021, the YouTube channel Elena^[2] uploaded an original animation called "I Wanna Live Meme" in which the creature Huggy Wuggy says they don't want to die while hanging onto the bar of the walkway, earning 1 million views in two months (shown below).

On November 3rd, 2021, iFunny^[3] user heyheywannabuyafunnelcake uploaded a meme using Huggy Wuggy depicting what it looks like when a crackhead at a gas station sees you have cash, earning 32 likes in one month (shown below).

Children's Content Controversy / "Free Hugs" Song Misinformation

On November 18th, 2021, YouTuber^[4] TryHardNinja uploaded a video featuring a song titled "HUGGY WUGGY SONG 'Free Hugs'" that included references to both Poppy Playtime and Huggy Wuggy. In roughly one year, the video received over 10 million views and 104,000 likes (shown below).

Around late March and early April 2022, reported "moral panic" emerged online surrounding Huggy Wuggy purportedly being shown to children on YouTube Kids and on TikTok. According to outlets like Rolling Stone,^[5] which published an article on the topic on April 9th, "… reports suggest that children are watching videos featuring Huggy Wuggy – which include songs about him hugging people 'until you breathe your last breath' – and getting not-so-good ideas. Such videos are reportedly prompting children to reenact those videos on the playground by hugging each other extremely tightly and whispering the gruesome lyrics to each other."

However, on April 15th, 2022, Forbes^[6] then debunked these rumors in an article and said "… no evidence has been reported that links back to the game itself. Rather, warnings from head teachers and Police have led to misinformation about the content of the game and potential impact on children."

In response to the moral panic regarding the game and videos such as "HUGGY WUGGY SONG," YouTuber TryHardNinja posted a comment on his video around early April 2022 refuting the video's association with the game in an official capacity, as some of the articles had claimed.^[4]

Related Memes

Mommy Long Legs

Mommy Long Legs, also known as Experiment 1222 and Marie Payne, is the antagonist of the video game Poppy Playtime "Chapter 2: Fly in a Web," released in May 2022. She is depicted as a pink spider-like creature with elastic, noodle-like hair and appendages that can stretch hundreds of feet. In the months after the game's release, Mommy Long Legs inspired fan art, memes and became the subject of video edits relating to the series online.

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References