diff --git a/pkgs/games/tintin/default.nix b/pkgs/games/tintin/default.nix
index dc696d05558..9b58725a392 100644
--- a/pkgs/games/tintin/default.nix
+++ b/pkgs/games/tintin/default.nix
@@ -1,4 +1,9 @@
-{ stdenv, fetchurl, zlib, pcre }:
+{ stdenv, fetchurl, lib, zlib, pcre
+, tlsSupport ? true, gnutls ? null
+# ^ set { tlsSupport = false; } to reduce closure size by ~= 18.6 MB
+}:
+
+assert tlsSupport -> gnutls != null;
 
 stdenv.mkDerivation rec {
   name = "tintin-2.01.92";
@@ -8,7 +13,8 @@ stdenv.mkDerivation rec {
     sha256 = "0id8rd2yhh6ccjnlwyixflsay1rq3sw6pwlhz1ic3nzj22cd91ik";
   };
 
-  buildInputs = [ zlib pcre ];
+  nativeBuildInputs = lib.optional tlsSupport gnutls.dev;
+  buildInputs = [ zlib pcre ] ++ lib.optional tlsSupport gnutls;
 
   preConfigure = ''
     cd src