POOLS - An Eerie Poolcore Liminal Space Game with MC Escher & Jared Pike Inspired Architecture!

POOLS - An Eerie Liminal Space Poolcore Game with MC Escher & Jared Pike Inspired Architecture!
For this video I've skipped the first two and a half levels because they're pretty similar to the last build I covered (except with some small changes and the excellent audio/visual upgrades). If you'd like to see those levels you can check out the video here: • POOLS: A Poolcore Limi...
POOLS Releases on Steam Tomorrow: store.steampowered.com/app/26...
00:00 Level 3 - WC Escher
10:46 Level 4 - Flamingoes, Giant Heads & Waterslides
22:56 Level 5 - Vintage, WC Escher Returns & Suburbia
47:19 Level 6 - An Epic Sauna, Chess, What Are Ewe Doing Here?
#pools #poolcore #poolsgame

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

I covered a few levels from a Beta build of this last month, but the full game releases tomorrow and it's very impressive. The new levels are really cool and have lots of interesting stuff to discover. Also, the audio design has had a serious upgrade, especially with regards to the footsteps. For this video I've skipped the first two and a half levels because they're pretty similar to the previous build I covered (except with some small changes and the audio/visual upgrades). If you'd like to see those levels you can check out the playthrough I did here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rKmap4eDabhlqa8

[@nicholasyost8400]

This is one awesome looking game! Thank you for taking the time to show us this!

[@Geckotr]

is this a UE5 game? Looks like it a lot

[@nicholasyost8400]

@@Geckotr Checking right now... I just posted to Tensori asking them. Here's hoping they are willing to answer.

[@nicholasyost8400]

@@Geckotr Unity Engine.

[@trustnoone81]

I have a theory that the current memetic success of the "liminal spaces" trope is due to overcrowding of real worlds venues. I think we're all collectively fed up that every single hotel we visit, ever single pool or waterpark, or parking lot is crawling with people. So much that our collective unconscious is fascinated with huge deserted instances of these venues.

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

That's an interesting theory. I think you may be on to something there.

[@elijahgavin6706]

That and the implication that these spaces are constructed to occupy life, and are devoid of them, but not decrepit or in ruins. The implication being that something abrupt and unexplained rendered these spaces vacant.

[@darkflame1254]

Yeah right,nobody goes outside,dude😂

[@elizawulf8180]

Places that lack people - abandoned buildings & failing malls & parks - also tend to have a nostalgic sadness to them. And sometimes represent the loss of cultures, ambitions, or communities.

[@wumbo6969]

@@darkflame1254projecting?

[@shortinos]

Everytime i see these games i think of the poor guy that had to tile this place.

[@holysayingsofrobin4055]

I've been wading for you to dive into this game again.

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

It makes a big splash!

[@mikeeslin9348]

Boo! Boo, I say! 😅

[@MasterMarx]

Welp, that "wet" well

[@SoulCharizard]

That’s it to the backrooms you go!

[@jazzal7]

Not pictured: your character using 100% effort trying not to slip over

[@Fossilight]

I will say I love how you react to music, doors closing out of nowhere, etc. It feels authentic and gives the videos more personality besides me watching a really good gamer play.

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

Thank you very much! glad you like my playstyle! I try to add a little personality where I can.

[@Twisttheawesome]

Props on a liminal space game that doesn't have a stupid monster appear out of nowhere for no reason.

[@eolond1003]

I've found that the best use of horror in liminal games is when they imply that something *might* be after you, but you never find out for sure. Just something to put the idea in your head, and let your imagination do the rest. That being said, liminal spaces on their own can be creepy enough, so monsters aren't needed.

[@HushtheMag]

Oh so there's no creature/person after you? Thanks for saving me over an hour of nothing lol

[@Mekkablood]

Something so calming about these poolcore videos. Wish this existed in real life.

[@eolond1003]

It's all fun and games til you get lost in the saunas and end up as a steamed ham >:(

[@GYTCommnts]

Somewhat they do, in some hotels with internal pools. Of course not so massive, but if you go to one of them off season with few people, or if you go to the internal pool at a time when nobody goes, you totally could get similar vibes... That mixture of calm and eerieness.

[@internetbadlands7996]

poolpilled lLEAVME EALOONE NOW YOU HVA E! M1 MINUTE TO LEAVE MY HOUSE JONOTHAN

[@retrodruid4785]

The ending leaves a lot to interpret. The person we play as finally found the exit, but doesn't go to it and instead leaves their camera on the table and walks back. Why did they decide to not to go to the exit? It's a very interesting ending.

[@user-mz7pb7nt4y]

And the way back is blocked by statues that were basically chasing them... Since one of such statues (as far as I can see) is waiting for them at the exit, I took it as them being circled and accepting their fate (whatever it is since we never saw the statues doing anything except silently following them). Sure, they could take the risk and trust the one at the exit but the loss of hope was also possible. (Then again, who and how obtained the tape to watch it...)

[@warc9caw604]

Idk I thought the ending was the protag leaveing. Like maybe they turned off the camra and took the tape out and then left. The person at the end watching the tape was the person you played as

[@user-mz7pb7nt4y]

​@@warc9caw604 It would be a happy ending for sure but I haven't noticed any other exits. Only the one they chose to turn away from and the one they came from... filled with statues. Like, even if they just stand there ominously, I don't know if it's possible to leave with them blocking the way.

[@warc9caw604]

@@user-mz7pb7nt4y maybe, but maybe the statues where helping all along. By chaseing the player they guided them to an exit and instead of blocking the player at the exit they where holding the door open for them. After all, the statues never attack you even if you walk up right to them.

[@user-mz7pb7nt4y]

@@warc9caw604 wow, I never looked at it that way. I just automatically assumed that it's the same as with all this stuff that only moves when you don't look. But wait, what if the person realized this but found such help suspicious that's why they didn't proceed? Well, now I like your version too much, but now it raises a question why and where they actually went... Speaking of help, I vaguely remember that at some point there was a hand of a statue pointing in a direction for us to follow.

[@crocodyllul]

I do not want to give much thought to the underwater toilets, but the brain betrays me.

[@Ishimanian]

Surprised with how there’s some focus on ambient sound there was none of that rumbling hum that those enormous overhead AC/Heater units had represented. Those were universal to every big indoor pool I went to as a kid.

[@MoogMonster554]

A live sheep lying on a couch inside a liminal space swimming pool is probably the weirdest thing I'll see today.

[@justaghostinthesea]

The demo scared me more than the Dead Space Remake, and that's my favorite horror game of all time. I can't wait to play this.

[@Hellvard]

Really? It has very nice aesthetics, gives you some feelings of dread, but it soon gets boring to me. Just a walking simulator. No threats, nothing to achieve or solve.

[@RASD87]

This is what architecture is like in my dreams.

[@unstopitable]

Some really interesting materials and lighting. Would love to see this taken to the next level with a good story and characters. Still, it's beautiful in its own unsettling way.

[@Elshiki]

11:41 ඞ

[@spider_plantt]

I was so excited to see this pop up in my feed! the team did an amazing job expanding from the beta and the detail is incredible! one of my fave poolrooms games to exist!!

[@pumpkinhills7611]

Absolutely love how calming this game looks! Can't wait for you to play the full release!

[@pingstar8604]

I am Korean and like horror games and fantasy and dreamy things. I subscribe and watch them, but this kind of horror game gives me a different feeling and fear than the dark and dark ones

[@Siranoxz]

The fear of this game is that your all alone in a bizar environment.

[@cursed_spectre]

Guys i need to know if i am the only one feeling like that is as close as it is to my dreams, not talking about the pools directly but the spaces and shapes. Do you feel the same?

[@Krystalmyth]

Love how you play cinematically. It's how I like to do it. Even when I play alone I try to move the camera in a cinematic way. You move with emotion.

[@Napfkuchn]

Please never stop, i really like your videos.

[@DavidAbyssal]

The bed in the railway makes me wonder if the way out was through sleep... (And the 'bed' in the catacombs)... The chairs are something else too...

[@tensori-ltd]

Again, thank you for playing!

[@ryacoli]

love your videos and this game is genius! so philosophical

[@ddreamer0001]

Love it ❤ i wish there were more atmospheric games like this one

[@SummerCherry]

Yay!!! More pools! Thanks alpha!

[@MilkCrate801]

I think the most dangerous risk when traveling in the pool rooms would have to be slipping on the wet tiles and falling on your head

[@suburbantimewaster9620]

This game looks awesome!

[@user-Miha.]

It's my dream to be in a pool like this.

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

Would be an epic theme park!

[@SamsonScorpio]

Spooky! I would love a horror themed water park.

[@hottestmanevar]

Now we need is a "Poolcore" music style!

[@Josh-cz3ym]

"Poolcore" lmao

[@FrankW3st]

Sounds like a genre of metal lol

[@ianfinrir8724]

​@@FrankW3st Like Grindcore but more chill.

[@MforMovesets]

I saw KZbin shorts with that theme. When IGN showed the game I thought its one of the many ultrarealistic fake games. I guess it exists. Another game on my list from this channel.

[@sadadokis2709]

At 31:09 there are two hands at the entrance. Gave me the creeps when I saw them the first time

[@JTRaptor1]

I Love This Backrooms Game This One Is The Most Detailed Backrooms I’ve Ever Seen ;)

[@user-on3yu9ht4d]

But hears a more important question, where's the food bar.

[@Sebastianmaz615]

Creepy. You're being followed. 4:40. There's really nothing to indicate that the person following means any harm, but I'd damn sure try to stay way ahead of them. 😯😳😐

[@futurehomes8284]

How do you know they’re being followed? I don’t see anything lol.

[@eolond1003]

@@futurehomes8284 I think he mistook the wet spots we left behind as coming from something/someone else. You see our guy zoom in to them ~4:53

[@Sebastianmaz615]

@@futurehomes8284 I thought I heard extra footsteps, & then the closeup of what looked like footsteps on the white tile. Could be my scared imagination though. 😀

[@kylazyx7873]

All the tiles in the world are not enough to create something like this… and that giant sauna… the game is frightening precisely because of the scale of the idea itself, its incomprehensibility and illogicality...

[@vasilybullock7967]

If i had a nickel for every time you did a liminal space pool. Id have 2 nickels

[@elijahgavin6706]

To me this game is in no way horrifying, just eerie and fascinating

[@AntipaladinPedigri]

3:15 everyone is looking at each other's flesh pool-noodle

[@Siranoxz]

I imagine the chlorine smell..

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

And the heating bill!

[@kirovnoir2256]

These brick sections remind me of old Doom maps :D

[@Super787B]

Is there anything coming out like this but with a mall theme like anemoiapolis? I don’t think that game is getting a chapter 2 sadly.

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

Ah damn, has Anemoiapolis chapter 2 been cancelled? Loved that game. I haven't seen any other mall ones in development. Will keep an eye out though.

[@chuuska1972]

1:05:15...Awww

[@hopper8514]

This is very cool and very trippy but I can’t really get myself to watch all of it because it just gets boring to me, it’s just walking around in a place with a lot of water. Still very cool though, and I love the sound of the character moving through the water :)

[@larajones175]

Ty luchshiny Beta !!

[@hagnekore]

1:10:43 ok that got me

[@illostr8]

This game makes me think about Stanley Kubrick s The Shining

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

The Shwimming!

[@jimyvanloock3510]

31:16 that whole area reminds me of a painting I saw, pretty popular. Now what was it called...

[@thesidneychan]

Escher staircase.

[@DemstarAus]

Is the space complete and determined, or is it procedurally generated? As in, every time you load it up you have the same options of where to go? Could you learn the layout?

[@StygianPhoenix]

Just something off about leaving wet footprints but no wet sounds with the footsteps :P maybe they're wearing wooden shoes and no socks haha

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

Hi! There are wet sounds for the footprints. If you listen when you get out of the water your feet make squelching noises for a while until they dry off.

[@joshuamohlman]

The real question is, can we pee in the pools?

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

No peeing in the pool!

[@MaksMayson]

​@@AlphaBetaGamer What about underwater toilets on level 3?

[@fozzibab]

"Poolcore" is absolutely *not* a genre and you'll never convince me otherwise!

[@Ilikethe_wind9472]

33:55 Level 0 but with pools

[@kerbal666]

Do you know where you're going or does all routes lead to the same place?

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

Hi! There are multiple routes, but generally you end up going in the right direction towards the exit.

[@user-zf8sf4vo6n]

6:57 is this some kind of modern art joke?

[@jirkavoj-2000]

5:35 For moment i thought the player fliped till it was just droped cam,.

[@definetlyme6120]

The rough water kinda annoys me, since the only thing moving it would be the player.

[@thesidneychan]

34:56 Jumpscare.

[@summerdragonfly]

👍🏻✌🏻

[@gamertater9499]

What’s the musicthat plays at 9:13?

[@irisirisirisirisirisiris]

hi just letting you know, the description and chapters on this video are incorrectly labeled as WC Escher (instead of MC)! love your content btw, this video made me get the game lol

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

Hi! Thanks, glad you like the vids! The WC is just a little play on words (WC is a water closet/toilet)

[@irisirisirisirisirisiris]

@@AlphaBetaGamer omg, i feel silly for not getting it sooner HAHA very clever!

[@rgerber]

this sounds like Duke Nukem 3D

[@Enzwurm]

Feel like poolcore genre really has potential. It gives such lost vibes to me. Still think just walking through it like a museum is not the most exciting setting yet. There needs to be something more threatening imo. Like rising water levels, hunger/thirst, a killer on your heels or some more abstract threat. Not just some jumpscares.

[@TuriGamer]

11th times a charm lets get it

[@moniquesantrifcer1447]

Another poolroom for jolly to spend 6 hours in

[@shortinos]

Her: im just going out with the girls tonight babe Him: ok honey have fun Her 1 hour later: 20:11

[@joeo2533]

Me and the bois: ain't no party like a man dingo party😤

[@bensoncheung2801]

💧💧💧

[@KenLieck]

"Level 3: WC Escher? WC = Water Closet?

[@thesidneychan]

Pun on MC Escher

[@KenLieck]

@@thesidneychan I know Escher, but what's the pun? The title says it's a "...Game With MC Escher..." but the chapter headings say "WC" instead. I assumed those were typos ..

[@thesidneychan]

@@KenLieck yes, WC means Water Closet. The back part of the toilet bowl. It's always referred to by its acronym, WC. No one actually calls it Water Closet. MC Escher, WC Escher. The pun is on the name of the artist and the toilets and water in the chapter.

[@KenLieck]

@@thesidneychan Got it then. PS: E(scher) = MC²

[@asuka_the_void_witch]

what ruins the immersion is that the PC is wearing clunky shoes inside a swimming pool area. would be impossible to ride any slides with those shoes on

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

I kinda feel that if you end up in one of these liminal places then you're there accidentally, so it's unlikely you'd be dressed for the occasion. I'd totally ride the slides with shoes on though - there are no lifeguards to stop you! :)

[@rewrez3187]

Olá, tudo bem? Qual propósito do jogo? Abraço

[@Dubfiance]

How much will this be?

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

$9.79 I'm not sure if it'll have a launch discount too

[@Dubfiance]

@@AlphaBetaGamer tbh it sounds like sale price since it isnt .99 it's .79

[@Dubfiance]

I was wrong

[@JohnDoe-oz9vz]

25:05

[@grimgrahamch.4157]

6:58 Me taking a shit after a shower regretting my decisions in life while god judges me with disgust at my lack of grooming standards.

[@StyleshStorm]

Is this a reupload or the game got updated?

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

Hi! The last build was a Beta demo, this is the full release, with two large new levels.

[@StyleshStorm]

@@AlphaBetaGamer cool. mahalo (Hawaiian ty( for the quick reply and your continued videos of liminal space games. If it wasn't for your channel I wouldn't have found some. This odd little sub genre of eerie horror is underrated now. Not many people make games centered around nostalgia, surreal and "backrooms" content. ;/

[@jvoz671]

I don't like this one as much as the one you played before. Mainly because it leans more on the MC Escher's impossible geometry. It just gets to be the norm if everything is the way it is. At least the last one had moments of both normalcy and eerieness spread out. Also, despite its name the focus was less on pools. More like "weird modern art" and occasionally water.

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

Hi! This game starts off reasonably normal, it's just that I've already covered the early levels in a previous video so I skipped them (this video starts at level 3)

[@juanblanco7898]

>poolcore TIL

[@HiGlowie]

“Poolcore” Are we just putting anything before “core” these days?

[@rie-hmjrie]

여기 청소하려면..😅

[@user-km5xu8om7r]

54:25 It’s the spirit of “FBI! Open up!”

[@messaoudimohamed2113]

Hi can you please play backrooms realm of shadows please

[@jurisfootrag]

To me, the literal definition of a liminal space still doesn't resonate with the feeling I get from them, if that makes one iota of sense.. I prefer it just be an either you get it or you don't thing lol

[@ianfinrir8724]

I don't understand how liminal spaces are supposed to be scary.

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

It depends on the game, but liminal spaces on their own aren't really meant to be scary in a traditional sense. They're eerie and unsettling abandoned places, often with surreal architecture. When you're in them you may feel disorientation or a loss of sense of place.

[@ianfinrir8724]

@@AlphaBetaGamer I don't know, it just feels like everybody gaslit themselves into being spooked by them.

[@Pleasestoptalkingthanks]

@@ianfinrir8724Eh, it comes and goes with the times. Once upon a time people thought Jeff the Killer was scary. Unknown things are scary. Sometimes “scary” just means “something mildly uncomfortable or disconcerting because it doesnt make sense.”

[@shivernaut9884]

Just try and start with immersion. And let whatever feeling it illicits flow, it can be peaceful or scary or frustrating or boring depending on the person.

[@d1oftwins]

@@ianfinrir8724 Liminal spaces are not necessarily about being "spooked", for most it isn't about that at all. It's more about seemingly familiar places that feel off. It's a feeling of loneliness and yet feeling someone or something is there with you, it's a feeling of nostalgia and reflectiveness, a feeling of the past of a certain forsaken place, the imagination of how a place was once full of life and now is not, a longing for a connection to the past, the thought that you have been in this place before. It is the feeling of uncertainty of where you are and if this place is real, a place that feels like a limbo or just a dream, it's like time stands still and the place is a time capsule. Nobody is gaslighting themselves here, it is the search for a mood that is seemingly universal for those who are willing to engage with it or maybe are just naturally drawn to it.

[@Mirakelpung]

At first I thought "what is this, Zoomers are afraid of Bathhouses now?" but then I saw the underwater toilets and realized that I too would be very frightened to be in a Bathhouse with hygiene standards like that. Terrifying.

[@facupov]

Or just another walking simulator

[@TheCynicalNihilist]

What do people get out of these games? Technically its very nice looking but thats it. Theres been 1000 of these games and the liminal space/backrooms vibe is so over saturated its not even eerie anymore.

[@AlphaBetaGamer]

Hi! I just love the vibe and being able to explore surreal uncanny spaces. Especially if they're designed well. There are a lot of Backrooms games (and lots of terrible ones), but there's still room for good ones, same as any genre. And I can only think of three substantial poolrooms games (this one, Anemiapolis and Dreamcore)

[@Bob-yt6se]

Why do these artistic people not just draw architecture blueprints or paint pretty pictures? Why pretend you are making a game when there is no gameplay?

[@SammaS423]

Walking simulator fr fr

[@HushtheMag]

Boredom: The game.

[@Morrneyo]

I think they wanted to put too much things in a single game. Ideas gone too far I guess

[@gdolan9]

I'll be honest this seems like the most uninspired walking simulator. Sure it's visually appealing but besides that there is little substance in this game. I think what makes liminal spaces and backrooms so interesting is the feeling of dread that it instills in you but the only dread from this game is that there's nothing to do besides walk and that you just wasted money

[@lanchanoinguyen2914]

pool room again?so boring subject

[@art-fw7ci]

I really don't understand the point of this.

[@Pleasestoptalkingthanks]

I wonder…if theres ambient dripping occurring, that implies this place falls into disrepair. I wonder who takes care of it all.

[@poolsofbloodinyourstomach]

omG liMinAL sPAceS