The Fundamental Flaws of Paranoiac

[@RobinSpellbinder04]

I don't think I've ever heard something as hilariously petty as "I won't translate this game because its just that bad"

[@azatellatia277]

I dont think it's petty, rather than more disappointment at such a bad game.

[@RobinSpellbinder04]

@@azatellatia277 thats fair, in retrospect ‘petty’ was probably the wrong word

[@lisbethsoma2441]

To be fair, even Uri agrees on that point

[@prokiller4860]

Besides VGN translating for free

[@_connorsseur]

Vgperson did ultimately translate a remake of the game, FYI. It was moreso the developer that didn't want for the game to be translated iirc, and vgperson agreed for the reasons you saw.

[@KayderimGameplays]

The earlier version is much scarier, you actually get her aunt's corpse chasing you around the house instead of this shadow thing

[@epicalexfurry4377]

Yeah I was disappointed by the monster’s redesign in the remake

[@Galaxy0237]

I can agree but Maybe there could be a way to mix the 2 ideas. Like maybe it could resemble a corpse but it looks unrecognizable at first gradually looking more and more like who she was

[@localmenace3043]

Huge agree. It really toned down the horror of it all.

[@Kain128]

I was wondering why the monster looked so different. They straight up removed the scariest part of the game.

[@MrDespresso17]

You'd be surprised as to how terrifying the previous version's monster, knowing how a literal crawling corpse can even attempt to contend against Usain Bolt. By the time i saw how speedy it was (through videos of course, i'm a wuss), the fear factor skyrocketed.

[@kennyfromaot7171]

When Paranoiac 2 comes out and it turns out Miura had a torture basement, I’ll be laughing.

[@ampersketch]

Miura has a room full of keys used to unlock more keys.

[@demetriajones3231]

@@ampersketch "to find yet another key in the lampshade"

[@alekthecool123]

​@@demetriajones3231except the key was actually a knife that's actually a key that's a knife actually

[@ampersketch]

@@alekthecool123 And then the key leads to a trap door in the fireplace!

[@Knuckleb0ne]

The suspicion of Miura is intentional in my opinion. I felt the same way as your friend did, but the game is literally called Paranoiac. When you meet him in the game, there’s literally no reason to trust him and his unwavering kindness feels out of place when your mother and assistant are either unkind or professionally polite but emotionally distant. I also think it’s super interesting how the game straight up tells you via the main character that her mother is also mentally ill, but she isn’t given the same treatment by anybody but the main character, who is determined to get her counseling. Mental illness doesn’t always make a person pathetic or sympathetic…sometimes it makes a person mean, distant, unpredictable and difficult. But those people need help too, and the game recognizes that. Probably in the real world her mother would not seek help or agree to help, but this is a game where shadow monsters are real so I like to think her mother does get help and they eventually go to family counseling.

[@river8142]

Interesting point about the mother. I think this might be the only comment here that shows her sympathy

[@danmakes2497]

​@@river8142 makes sense due to the audience only seeing the poor treatment her mother gives her

[@chancefreely]

The hyper fixation on Miura being a serial killer is pretty funny. Honestly, how RPGmaker horror games go, it wouldn’t shock me. Having watched the previous videos done on games by this dev though, it makes sense that it panned out to be wholesome. It’s a nice change of pace to see some more wholesome endings to these kinds of games. Their past works have a heavy focus on healing after tragedy, and I resonate with them a lot.

[@Ace-ql5ct]

The extended bleeping when tearing into her mother was honestly the funniest thing I’ve seen in weeks

[@everest5718]

Even though the gameplay isn’t a good, you can tell the storytelling has always been legendary. This game tackles schizophrenia better than most stories about it, because it approaches the subject with a strong sense of empathy for Miki and Saeki (though this is from the perspective of someone who doesn’t have it, so I can’t say how accurately it handles it).

[@Cosplaybuddygiraffes]

SO happy to hear you talk about another Uri game! Even in the games where you can tell she definitely struggles to blend the gameplay/interactivity aspects, she is an incredible storyteller, ESPECIALLY for the big emotional beats. Paranoiac is absolutely a mess, but man her way of writing characters struggling with mental illness is actually so spot-on. Miki felt so close to home for me, though thankfully my own mother is practically my best friend in the whole world. But, yeah, seeing her struggle with her creative endeavors, putting off essential tasks for “tomorrow”, breaking down, the self victim-blaming, it’s all painfully accurate. On a rewatch of the cutscenes through this video though, I LOVE all the extra tidbits I’ve caught onto now that I’m older. For one, the bad ending is a scarily perfect representation of a phenomenon called “suicide contagion”, or the idea that one person committing suicide leads to a chain of guilt in the people around the victim that causes a higher rate of suicides in them. Second, the trigger for said bad ending being Shinji successfully telling Miki that she’s suffering delusions is kinda genius in a way I’m not 100% sure Uri intended, but is still great. Anyone who’s a mental health professional or lived with a loved one suffering from schizophrenia will say that trying to tell the afflicted person they’re in a delusion when they’re having an attack is one of the big things you’re NOT supposed to do. It just aggravates the person or, worse, worsens their paranoia. You need to ground the victim in reality by reinforcing things that are true and getting them to safety. Do not affirm or deny the delusions

[@manuelvasconcelos8982]

I agree with what you said about paranoiac, yes the gameplay is messy but the storytelling is indeed really fantastic But if i have to be honest, i really want to see minako(miki's b**** of a mother)'s point of view in a form of a prequel, maybe she went through similar stuff to what her dauther did

[@sugarkane1571]

I don’t know much about schizophrenia, but I’ve heard that a way to talk to someone in a delusion is to talk about what you personally see without confirming or denying what they see? Like, the patient says “there are claws growing out my hand”, you can say “well, from what I can see, your hands are pretty normal.” Or “there’s someone watching in the corner of the room” with “I’m sure you see it, but I don’t see anyone in the corner.”

[@lvndr9838]

i have severe chronic depression and an abusive cunt ot a mom so i can say that uri's writing of miki's mother is scarily spot on, from talking shit on family members with mental health problems to laughing in her daughters face when she breaks down from stress.

[@glassphoenix9095]

@@sugarkane1571 i remember seeing a post from someone who had a psychotic break in a hospital and convinced they were turning into a werewolf, and they commended their nurse because she checked that their teeth werent turning into fangs, they werent growing claws or fur, and that as far as she could see there was nothing physically wrong with them, but she acknowledged that that didnt make it _feel_ any less real and their distress came from a reasonable place

[@Zorothegallade-rpg]

I especially like how sympathetic the police officers are to Miki. It's so realistic, even if this one was a false alarm, they don't discourage her from seeking help again if she does feel she's in danger.

[@kyashidioctober8744]

As someone who’s struggled with SEVERE depression I’ve got to admit the two ending, especially the bad ending was a decent representation. Not the BEST, but a pretty good one. The good ending is also AMAZING and arguably even better since it ends with her not all fine and dandy, but doing EVERYTHING she can to GET better. A good story.

[@triela7502]

The original game is not only scarier but actually has a massive wall of text explaining the hiding system before the first chase. Despite the well made character profiles and a more detailed ending/ epilogue. This is the one RPG Horror remake I would argue is worse than the original. I get what they were going for with the more cramped house rather than a massive mansion but the original and it's story are really good.

[@pompeach3542]

As someone who DOES have Depression and BPD (as well as anxiety disorders and adhd), this game has a VERY accurate way of displaying how people with depression fall into pits of self doubt and how society slowly convinces them that everything is their fault and they are to shoulder the blame for everything. I'm personally a firm believer in the idea of 'the good die young' in that people with good hearts, who genuinely want the best for others, are often the easiest for others to blame for everything. Cause they won't fight it; they'd rather take the blame and try to fix something that isn't nor ever was their's to fix. I also kinda like how the mom isn't just framed as a hopeless abuser; while yes that is a very easy situation to fall into, its also often that people sometimes just don't understand or hurt others due to their own issues. The game doesn't excuse what her mom does, but it does acknowledge the fact there's a reason for it. Which unlike the themes in some of Uri's other work (namely Mermaid's Swamp) is a appropriate nuance as someone who has depression like the protag and whose been ridiculed my entire life for trauma responses I just can't fully help (not by my mom thankfully as she's supported me, but by others). I cannot comment on the gameplay as I never played it, but the story is beautiful Uri has such a nice grasp on handling mental illness and trauma in her games.

[@somepersoniguess4945]

if i may give my two cents as someone with personal experience with depression, i think this game handles the issue really well! the conversations with miki's mother and the scenes about miki being unable to write feel especially well thought out, those kinds of experiences (having family/friends not believing you/not taking you seriously about mental health issues and being unable to do both important tasks and things that used to bring you comfort and joy) are very real situations a lot of people with depression or other mental illnesses have to deal with. and the bad ending especially hits hard. when something like this happens to someone you care about, it is SO hard not to fall into that cycle of blaming yourself for whatever happened (whether or not you could've realistically done anything about it doesn't really matter), since your brain is literally working against you. so just seeing the scene of miki's death followed by miura falling into that same exact cycle is just. oof. top tier writing. this part i don't have personal experience with, but i do also like how the story treats schizophrenia. while the hallucinations and situation in general of course cause miki and the people around her a lot of stress (even the brief argument about miki waking up at her house after spending the night at miura's), she and yuriko are never demonized for their condition (except for by miki's mom, but we all know how we feel about her), which is a breath of fresh air. all too often, schizophrenia gets the "ooo crazy psycho killer" treatment in media and the overabundance of that trope just makes the stigma around it so much worse. people with schizophrenia are people, and deserve to be treated with respect like any other person. it's genuinely refreshing to see this kind of topic treated with the kind of respect and thoughtfulness shown here. and even with how horrible minako acts towards miki and yuriko, uri does a really good job of writing her realistically. she has a grounded, believable reason for saying the things that she does, but that doesn't automatically make her correct or excuse her actions. i actually kind of love how the situation is handled in the good ending- miki having to move back in with her mother is a terrible situation to be in, but again it's a very REAL terrible situation. miki still loving and caring about her mom despite everything is also unfortunately a pretty common situation. it's easy to hate a person like this as an outsider (and you'd be right in doing so), but when you're actually IN a situation like this it becomes a lot less simple. terrible or not, that's still the person who raised you. it's a lot easier said than done to just stop caring about a person like that, even if it causes you harm. and i like that the ending mentioned miki telling her mom to seek counseling, because in some cases this kind of abuse is in some way affected by the abuser's own issues and insecurities (not always, but sometimes) and it's just really interesting to see minako's case contrasted with miki and yuriko's. again, there's a grounded reason for it and it would be good for her to get help, but that reason is not treated as an excuse. and i'm glad that even though she has to live with her mom again after all of this, miki still has some genuine support in the form of miura. no matter whether it's depression or schizophrenia or something wildly different, it is so important to have those people who are genuinely patient and compassionate about what you're going through, whether or not they fully understand it themselves. and i do appreciate that small argument after staying over at miura's, it makes him feel a lot more human as opposed to depicting him as someone who's just got this impossibly infinite well of patience no matter the situation. even the most well meaning and supportive people have a limit to what they can deal with, especially when they don't fully know what's going on yet. also i'm definitely in the camp of people who absolutely trusts miura but i can absolutely see why someone might immediately jump to the conclusion that he's a serial killer or something, especially with how a lot of rpg maker horror tends to go. seeing that suspicion not get validated at any point in the game is both refreshing and funny as hell when you've got someone so vocal about not trusting them. thanks for taking the time to read this, hope you're having a good day!

[@puppymaroon964]

Hope you're having a good day too!

[@t.dmattocks6119]

Very good comment.

[@CosiAbyss]

He's had immense growth of his channel, and I'm so glad people realized how good his content is!

[@aclaymushroomwithaberet7084]

thats a fact

[@FlantisFroggu]

I am probably only here because of how good his videos are today, I probably wouldn't like the older ones

[@CosiAbyss]

@@FlantisFrogguHis old ones are absolutely of the same quality as these, I don't think I would have stuck around if they weren't.

[@FlantisFroggu]

@@CosiAbyss but..... "immense growth"???

[@CosiAbyss]

meant that as subscriber growth lol@@FlantisFroggu

[@Xx_psych0-rabbit_xX]

the horrible gameplay in both versions aside, i will say as someone with psychosis the story is...very respectful on the subject for an horror game, any other game miki would probably either end up in an asylum bc shes "insane" and it's scary because shes such a creep, not because she got sent to the torture hospital, or turn into a serial killer ghost because psychotic people are all scary and out for everyone and are threats towards poor non psychotics!!

[@nicoangelo9928]

preach

[@octaviusroosevelt7355]

It's an unfortunate thing, especially since I've known a couple people with psychotic symptoms who were very nice and down to earth, they just sometimes had trouble distinguishing between reality and hallucinations, visual and auditorial. From what I understand from them, that's one of the more common manifestations of psychosis and symptoms of it; it doesn't make you evil, you just see and hear things sometimes.

[@Anonymous-73]

The main theme of Paranoiac from what I can tell is that yes, Mental Illness is a horrible thing, but it’s not an excuse. Miki’s mother has Hysteria, and I did have experiences with someone who had very similar outbursts (that I really would rather not get into) of bitterness, but that doesn’t completely make the mother immune to being called a piece of crap, like Miura says. This also applies to Miki herself, who also does quite a few questionable things due to her Depression and closeted Schizophrenia, specifically in the bad ending where she refuses to seek help and ends up (probably) committing suicide. This kind of consequence happens to a lot of people who brush off things as “just because of their mental health” without actually trying to take care of the situation. In the other ending, she believes it is a real monster (which we’re never told whether the Monster is real or just a hallucination, maybe both in some way?) which it technically is, considering that even if it is fake, it’s still a representation of her guilt and the illnesses that sprouted from it. Her taking care of it doesn’t get rid of the problem, she still needs to seek help, but it doesn’t really matter since it’s still a huge step on the road to recovery. *TLDR* : In my opinion, the games message is that Mental Disorders are no joke, but shouldn’t be treated as an excuse for bad actions and decisions.

[@nekoprankster2184]

I remember watching Markiplier play the original version years ago. If I remember it correctly, the chase sequences had the extra element of the "correct" hiding spot being randomized each time, although you could bypass that randomization by saving during the chase itself and just loading that save. As for the story, I only really remembered the endings and the mom being so terrible. My only real complaint with it is that I really feel like Miki should've kept her distance with her mom, at least until the mom *actually* gets therapy (which is something that can't actually be forced on her, regardless of what Miki tries to say at the end). Tbh, I don't understand why the ending tries to push Miki towards still caring about her mother and keeping her in her life. I wish these types of stories with godawful parents (or family members in general) would just let their characters go No Contact; they don't even have to make Miki feel hateful or resentful towards her mom, just have her decide her mom's a contributing factor to her poor mental health and if she's not going to change her ways, it's better to have her not in her life at all than to have another downward spiral. I get that it's emphasized the mom also has a mental condition, but that's not an excuse, that's a reason to go get treatment so you don't hurt your loved ones like she'd been doing. EDIT: I got curious and decided to look up Paranoiac for more information, and found something in the Extras page linked on vgperson's site. Regarding Miura, Uri says: "At the very beginning, when he helps Miki with her luggage despite his wounded arm... well, okay, duh, he likes her. Watching some LPs, people have pointed out that he likely has ulterior motives to his actions. And they're exactly right. I leave it to your imagination what happens between Miki and Miura after the ending."

[@puppymaroon964]

I like to imagine that Miura helped Miki with her luggage despite his wounded arm because he was lonely and wanted to mean something to someone. I also like to imagine that Miki and Miura eventually become a couple after the events of the game.

[@artsylinna9599]

I would like to say, even Miki's mom was a real (bleep), she was one of, if not the only close connection Miki had left in the world, her editor was professional and distant, Miura was a new guy she'd just met. Her only close option left was her mom. Especially within the culture, it puts a really heavy responsibility on taking care of your parents no matter what they did to you because in the end of the day they are your parents. Miki seems pretty in tuned with that. Although ngl I desperately wanted to see Miki absoulutely losing it at her mother because this women is such a cold b*tch, every word she says absoulutely infuriates me and I just wanna give Miki a hug.

[@allentayoto7387]

IMO, the fact that her mom is also suffering from a mental illness may be the reason why her mom acts like a biatch towards those with mental illness, making fun of them and treating them like their nutcracks. She doesn't want to accept the fact that she belongs on the same boat as them, so her coping mechanism was to be a biatch about it. It reminds me of stories where bullies picked their target because that person reminds them of their past pitiful self. Based on what Miki said, it seems her mom's hysteria is even worse than her depression and possible schizophrenia. Which may be the reason why her mom just laughed at her before hanging up. It was a moment where Miki was really at her lowest, and that just reminds her mom more that they're on the same boat. As a result, her mom's coping mechanism sort of "flared up" causing her to just laugh and hang up.

[@whoopingmuffin9700]

I'm inclined to believe that it's because when your in a relationship like that it's hard to totally detach from a parent if you justify it. It's bittersweet but it also shows that this ending doesn't just fix all of miki's problems which is realistic. She has to realize that her mother is immeasurably toxic and regardless of her mental illness needs to realize that she has to be the one to walk away if her mom won't agree to help.

[@darius4405]

Not everyone has to be like you

[@izzyLPSmaniac]

i honestly really like how this game views depression, mostly because you can actually develop psychosis induced by depression which is something I actually developed when I was going through a really rough time in my life. it honestly just kind of feels like how Miki feels the entire game, I can't exactly put it into words but its super spot on. from how Miki reacts to things and breaks down. While my situation wasn't exactly like Miki's, it's comforting knowing someone can create a story so well surrounded by depression and its effects

[@miniseams]

Your thoughts on the look of the sprites is interesting, this remake has original sprites, where as the strange man series and paranoiac's original game made use of free assets available online, mind you the site is in Japanaese so many don't look them up, but those sprites were originally made for RPG Maker 2000/2003.

[@toastedcherries]

i played the original years ago and loved it. i didnt even know there was a remake but i'll be for sure checking that out too

[@SunroseStudios]

...hearing you and your friends tearing into Miki's mom for being such an abusive jerk was honestly really cathartic

[@JamesJames-li2wv]

What's religion have to do with her mom?

[@pseudonym6895]

@@JamesJames-li2wv People typically don't use the word, "catharsis," in its original context. You can reasonably assume most people won't even know the relevant French-Christian sect for it. They were using it in sense of nuking effectively shitty feelings - like, reassurance in seeing others not buy into or brush off the abusive/ableist trite.

[@JamesJames-li2wv]

@@pseudonym6895 oh ok, btw do you know how to cheaply anesthetize a cat?

[@pseudonym6895]

@@JamesJames-li2wv No..?

[@AnAbsoluteUnit]

Paranoiac despite having some utter gameplay jank, still has the beauty of Uri's writing.

[@kamo7293]

miura: blames himself for mikis death and becomes the next victim kenny: classic murderer right there guys, I can tell

[@moosenman]

It’s always important to have a few stinkers in the mix, I feel. You can’t make great games without knowing what a bad game plays and feels like. You need to know why certain things don’t work. Paranoiac is flawed, but we learn from it. And I enjoy the character portraits! As an insider with depression, Uri did an excellent job portraying the way it isolates you and drives out all motivation. The demoralizing feeling of being told it’s all in your head is spot on too, because you know there’s no real reason to feel what you’re feeling, but you are. Depression still has a hell of a stigma attached to it.

[@reddie1705]

I'm so thankful for you putting the music in the description, so many channels stopped doing it and I thought I recognized music from Hotel Dusk Room 215 before discovering the song list and mentally preparing for all these bangers

[@TheShiningDiamond]

I was also fully convinced with your friend that Miura was going to be some sort of serial killer. But DAMN, for a game that is considered pretty bad gameplay wise the themes and message was pretty good. I wish that the mother didn’t get to have her daughter move back in, but sometimes thats just how it is. Honestly, the way you described the game made me totally forget it was considered bad and the story was very well told from your recap.

[@talinah7720]

After watching a few videos, seeing Ben get so pissed at the mom is probably a better sign of "hey this character is bad" than what the game actually said

[@syankora]

This video hitting different today. Keep being awesome, Ben!

[@caseyjones-esque]

I’m depressed, and tbh I don’t think Uri got it all that wrong. You forget chunks of your life, you can’t be present in the moment, and you can’t sleep. Depression and anxiety have caused some funky nightmares to happen to me as well, so honestly I think Uri actually got it right! She’s weirdly good at that tbh! Like with the characters in Crooked Man being these fragmented pieces of people’s failures, with their names reflecting it like Sissy for a coward and D for someone who kept failing over and over again, with them becoming, to themselves, *only that.* Uri is cool.

[@shining_sun04]

I feel like the monster and the tutorial was better in the original since it was actually a corpse (i think the aunt/ aunt's baby) crawling after you and the tutorial explained the hiding system (no matter how awful it was being randomized and one random one was insta death)

[@Partysol]

I will say out of all the stories this creator has made, This is the one that hits home the most for me. As somebody who has depression and has struggled with my creative passions while blaming myself for things that I couldn't really fix with a family who isn't horrible but doesn't take my issues seriously... yeah this game's story was spot on

[@morganthefey]

24:39 Hello! Professional depression haver here! And yeah this was a good representation of depression for what it was.

[@scarletine5517]

AHHHHH BEN YOU’VE FULFILLED A WISH OF MINE I am going to love this when I get the time to sit down and watch! (now I await Mermaid Swamp hours) EDIT: I finished watching and wow this wasn’t exactly the version I remembered, but the story is just as heart-wrenching I remembered. I couldn’t help, but smile seeing you and the gang go up to bat for Miki!

[@freshlymemed5680]

This seems to be a remake. I saw the original version a while back too and that one was genuinely scary and iirc the monster was the corpse of her aunt's baby.

[@scarletine5517]

@@freshlymemed5680 YEAH THAT WAS THE VERSION I REMEMBERED Wow, I had no idea Uri did a remake of Paranoiac. No wonder it felt different from what I recalled.

[@Mothworx]

“my mom’s not a bad person…” me when I fucking lie

[@PinnePon]

Realising the cycle of grief made me cry a tad

[@awickedloser]

I absolutely adore the games vgperson has translated and I was so excited to see you have multiple videos covering all these rpgmakers. I loved what you had to say about the story and now I'm having a such great time binging your videos. Please keep up the amazing work!

[@Logan..B.]

There's an rpgmaker horror game series that might interest you known as 'Purgatory' developed by Nama. The first game is rather short, but the second game has an astounding amount of content within it.

[@私の名前を翻訳しないでください]

I remember watching ManlyBadassHero's playthrough on Purgatory! It's a neat game that takes place in a pretty interesting world, albeit with some cringey dialogue that can kind of be overlooked.

[@arcaneScribbler]

Now that I've watched through and know why I am giggling so much at the thumbnail of this video. Endless keys! It's neat to track Uri's style evolution with each game you cover, and seeing them in their less polished state here makes me appreciate the later games even more.

[@Xx_psych0-rabbit_xX]

i was obsessed w playing every rpg horror game i could find in middle school but holy shit i didn't even make it to HALF of the original paranoiac, the chases weren't hard-the trial and error hiding spot gimmick made them TEDIOUS to constantly redo, i literally refused to put myself through more than one-two, i don't mind hard chases, i quite like them! but the difficulty felt like absolute bullshit because it's completely beyond your control what will work and what won't, the original game had the chases be even faster and if i remember correctly completely randomized correct hiding spots, fun.

[@azdma7092]

Apparently this game got adapted into a Japanese movie, though I could only find a movie poster of it online.

[@writer-sannightingale6005]

I’m so happy you posted I’ve been rewatching your videos again!

[@puppymaroon964]

Back when I was watching @ManlyBadassHero 's Let's plays of the Paranoiac remake, I thought to myself, "This reminds me a lot of The Crooked Man." Then I rewatched @Nitro Rad 's video on The Crooked Man and I realized that they're made by the same creator!

[@allentayoto7387]

In a way, the fact her own mother is also suffering from a mental illness may be the reason why her mom acts that way towards people who have mental illness. She doesn't want to accept she's on the same boat as them so her coping mechanism was to make fun of them and treat them like nutcracks, when she herself is also not entirely sound of mind.

[@zaratastari2457]

Despite the gameplay being frustating, I think I cried a little about Miki remembering the one person who really loves her despite being taken over by their mental illness.

[@n543576]

I work in a psych hospital and I can assure you 100% what happened at 21:41 absolutely happens in real life and yes there are absolutely evil assholes who would laugh and make fun of their family members who had a mental breakdown. Your response was perfectly appropriate because it's exactly how I feel as well.

[@Jayden_Lake]

Amazing content as always!! I hope your channel gets more recognition as it deserves, your videos are always so well edited!

[@boneheaded8919]

God I can't wait for you to review The Hanged Man soon. Seeing as you did the first three, its only natural you would do the finale

[@spookyruinsfest4936]

I am shaking in anticipation that one day you will make a mermaid swamp video. I fucking love that game, so much...

[@johnathancactus]

i don’t have schizophrenia (just anxiety) but i used to hallucinate shadowy figures nightly, i can confirm that i also felt an instant sense of fear not the best wording tonight but i think the point gets across

[@blazeismyname]

Do you plan to play the 4th game in The Strange Men Anthology? You introduced me to the series and I fell IN LOVE with it. I personally don't have the money or laptop to play the games so in general I thank you so much for talking about them and I think it'd be awesome if you did the 4th one!

[@charcoalwings826]

God I love the music you use for your videos and it makes me so happy to see videos of games I love :3 thanks for making really great content to listen to while I draw!

[@minukyk]

Kenny's distrust of Miura gives me life. Also, oh my gosh your videos just get better and better!!! I am 100% going to watch the full gameplay of this game, just the few snippets i heard of you all form this video really make me want to watch it!!!

[@jaxs-animates7388]

Mad father is easily one of the rpgmaker games i personally love and recommend.

[@wpbn5613]

I'd really like to hear what your thoughts are on Uri's most recent game, Pedestal. It's really obscure, which is a shame because I think it's one of her better games.

[@scaleonkhan183]

7:06 ayo 21:39 I love how angry you got lmao THE ENDING

[@Atharva_57]

I Can't get bored watching your videos, keep making this type of content.

[@KrystalFairyFriend]

This is amazing, thank you for making this

[@frinkywinky]

0:10 fat chance you already know about this game, or at least have heard of it, but i highly recommend fear and hunger!! it would be really cool to see you do a video on it, though it's quite different from the games you usually cover. either way, i love your videos!!

[@inkticious5787]

I had originally written a long winded comment talking about my own experiences with severe depression, guilt, and PTSD, but, decided it'd be best to just say this. It's a pretty decent representation of how depression, PTSD, and guilt can distort reality, make you forget the truth. Make you believe you're some kind of evil person who only causes pain and deserves nothing but a terrible fate. This next part is for those of you who may be struggling. Depression, trauma, and other forms of mental health concerns are hard to deal with, especially alone, but I promise you're never truly alone, because even if it seems like the entire world is against you, I promise there is always at least one person you can talk to. You don't have to fight through your pain alone. No matter what, you are worth every second; don't let anyone tell you otherwise. I know it's hard to get out of that hole but I promise you, you will. You are stronger then you think, and asking for help doesnt mean you are weak, it doesn't mean you're a bother or a nuisance. We all need help, we're only human. If you are struggling reach out to a friend, family member, a doctor, anyone you feel you can trust and talk to, you're not alone, i believe in you, you got this. If someone you know is struggling, or you think they might be struggling, check in on them, give them a call, set some time aside and be there for them. You don't need to be an expert to listen to someone you care about. Just do your best to be there for them. Even just listening to them can help em out a lot, trust me. Life aint easy, but you aint in this fight alone. Stay safe, and if you read this whole thing, I hope it helped you out at least a lil bit.

[@still_salty]

I feel this game was really interesting in concept but fell short in overall execution. The story is really compelling but the gameplay kinda weighing it down. Anyways great video as always, I always look forward to your uploads! I've always liked your narration, the overall flow and presentation is engaging and easy to follow, yet you always leave just enough out to make me interested in playing the games you talk about. Awesome job, can't wait to see what you do next!

[@disabear1044]

Holy shit!!! I was watching the hotel dusk video then you uploaded!! what a treat!!

[@hollowbox5723]

Everytime I see a new vid I go "Ben uploaded again lets goo!!!" Also, I would def check out PEDESTAL, its one of Uri's later games that's suprisingly NOT a horror game (but is very memorable)

[@chilljelloton2089]

I knew I remembered manlybadasshero playing this! He played the second one too I can't remember much of any of it

[@RenoKyrie]

Have you ever heard of the Project Moon series? Lobotomy Corp, Library of Ruina, and Limbus Company are one hell of a ride i would love you to see

[@smugbowkid9919]

Learn from your failures is always good to keep in mind.

[@aureafaix]

Hi there! I figured I'd give my personal perspective on the story from someone who has PTSD and works around social anxiety/depression daily. Long post but bear with me please. Disclaimer, I can only approach this from my own experience, and in no way do I intend to invalidate the positive or negative experience others have had with the game itself. Please keep in mind I won't speak on the Schizophrenia too much as I do not have that condition and at minimum have a basic education on schizophrenia from a psych 101 course in college around 2010 so the information has undoubtedly changed wildly. Also I will try to be relatively impartial since I've not played this game or experienced all the dialog in full. Something else to keep in mind is that I am physically disabled to a degree. While I still FUNCTION to varying levels, my chronic pain can often leave me unable to do the projects I like to do, compounding on the struggle of productivity guilt. Not being able to move when your mind is screaming at you to do something is so difficult to navigate, some days it hurts too much to even cook and I am grateful my husband can step in and help. This is something I've been grappling with on an acute level since around 2019 but has haunted me my whole life, and it has RADICALLY changed my self perception and feeds into my depression in a way I never thought possible. I'm grateful I didn't have an abusive mother like what was depicted in this game, however I've been under the thumb of a mother in law who (in my opinion from recent events) comes very close to this kind of monster. She's not nearly as open in her mocking to ME but based on how she speaks to me about/treats her own sister who's been diagnosed with Dementia for multiple years, I have no reason to doubt she isn't saying this kind of evil crap behind my back for my own problems. The main character's situation is one I do actually relate to in some ways, because up until this year, I opted to see my mother in law as well meaning if not a little flawed in how she handles situations. Every time I gave her a charitable take or the benefit of the doubt it always managed to mangle me in the end. All I can say is that yes, these people DO exist though (at least in my experience) they are not as openly brazen as this mother was depicted. Moving on from that, depression is a mixed bag for me personally. Some days it feels distant, other days, like what I've been pushing through recently, it feel like the world has turned grey. It's hard to grasp at emotions beyond surface level and writing while in this state is extremely difficult for me. I write fiction to unwind, private stories that are only for me and my friends. My creative world in a way keeps me grounded and without it (among other things), I genuinely feel useless and lost for purpose. The aimlessness I noticed in the storytelling connects with me in that way. If I don't have a project, I fall victim to productivity guilt and I often find myself restlessly roaming about my home looking for something, ANYTHING to feel like I'm still worthwhile. Her struggling to write while navigating depression is completely fair, as well as the frustration at being dismissed by her mother and those around her not taking her monster talk seriously. I also recognize that when fighting depression (especially undiagnosed), it's easy to disconnect from the problems of others. It's easy to miss the signs in others if you're not looking for them, and get wrapped up in your own struggles. It's not something worth shaming others for, but it does happen and it can compound on the depression and guilt when a negative outcome takes place. In a way, given her relationship with her mother, I personally see the main character as working through survivor's guilt to a degree, as well as the genuine trauma of seeing a loved one dead. I see a lot of strong points in this creator's stories across the board, especially when you look at this game and the Crooked Man (which is my personal favorite as listening to that game's story is cathartic for me). At the very least the creator's well studied on how depression can affect someone, especially in reasoning. However, I find it hard to fully latch onto the story as a whole because of the underlying plot of schizophrenia. For me, it does take away from the depression narrative and didn't feel necessary to tie the game. When I got to the part of this video where we learned she'd been diagnosed with depression, I DID groan somewhat because at that point it did feel like the dev was saying that all people with depression would hallucinate and come across as unraveled or "speaking nonsense". The reason I think this is a blow to the depression narrative is that leading up to the good ending you don't actually KNOW she has schizophrenia and can easily stereotype depression in general until it's cleared up right at the end and only behind the good ending. Honestly schizophrenia plot point genuinely stumbles for me. It felt like something that was tossed in there to tie the game together and I simply don't think it's necessary. While it's absolutely true that two very real struggles like schizophrenia and depression can happen at once and even heighten each other, it felt like it was shoehorned rather than genuinely thought out. For me personally, it diminishes the scene where the protagonist confronts her aunt's spirit and comes to terms with her. This is personal opinion, but I think the game's story would've been stronger if it was a narrative of breaking away from generational abuses, coming to terms with your past, and moving forward, maybe even following through with the aunt's plotline by giving the protag a child. I simply don't think it necessarily HAD to be a story about undiagnosed schizophrenia helping heal the past, which is how I viewed it at the end of the story. All that being said I personally didn't find offense to this game's narrative structure revolving around depression, given how early this game was in the dev's career, it's a fair shake and I'm happy to see how much they've grown in their storytelling.

[@Mockthenerd]

Sometimes you need the bad to remember the progress towards good.

[@Kev.NTheLich]

I always love the long form videos

[@rawvegankid]

Kenny was completely on the mark. For a woman living alone, a strange man is the epitome of danger, you DO NOT let him in.

[@bappledink2459]

Wait what happened to the weird grotesque monster that scared the shit out of me as a kid!

[@squibbles_]

Maybe I'm misremembering, but I could've sworn the original version gives you a tutorial before the first chase, informing the player that some hiding spots will outright kill you, some give you a second chance, and one spot is the right one

[@BasementDweller_]

Let’s go! Ben uploaded again!

[@jaydinotjd]

Ayo it’s bit city over here (the bat bit got me good) Despite the bad ending being pretty depressing I think it kinda shows the theme more. The reality that suicide tends to raise the likelihood of suicide in others It is often a fear that dissuades me personally Like I get that things will get bad and it won’t always get better as much as I’d like to believe it (though that’s not entirely how life works but unless you’re the villain and it’s you’re tragic anime backstory usually just having a support network helps ✨_a lot_✨) Having people to talk to and to just have fun with and experience moments of peace and calm and just joy in general is not only needed but it is vital to being alive. People can survive and endure a lot of bad shit but that is not the same thing as living. Joy is a requirement to life and I will die on this hill >:(

[@epicalexfurry4377]

17:00 I replayed this recently and I think I figured out what happened here. When being chased the monster goes briefly invisible (I think every couple of seconds) and it can enter a room while it’s in the invisible state which is probably why Ben died

[@chrisr6974]

Mr.Ben Again I gotta ask, where did you come from? I’ve never seen a channel drop banger after banger of videos, I love your style, voice, and the in depth analysis of everything. You are incredible please keep going.

[@runicrune5207]

great to see you getting sponsored! been loving your stuff

[@blackberry4614]

I would totally love to see you talk about Mermaid Swamp, it's one of my favorite rpgs. :)

[@mandalorianhunter1]

I'm so happy for you to bless me on this great Sunday, I'm happy

[@Scavenger6526]

New Ben Again video! Studying can wait!

[@PhazeRay]

So what I’ve learned is the biggest flaw you can have is owning too many key locks.

[@TheSelfCenter]

Another banger from Ben! I love your videos and hope you keep uploading more! ✨✨

[@puppymaroon964]

Me too.

[@JohnHamilton-fp5gg]

Man Ben really hates all the keys like he vented it in the thumbnail because how much he hates the keys

[@jamalshelton5746]

I'm not surprised Ben is a mountain man. You can tell by his coziness factor. Anyway this was a nice video even if the game wasn't the greatest.

[@revel8683]

Cant believe you only have 20 videos. I feel like ive been watching for a while already

[@deltasora]

Hell yes! A Ben again upload is just what I needed in my life at the moment!

[@れいい-q2m]

As an average うり fan I’m glad you’re around to cover the obscure series, love your channel

[@jkvirus308]

I LOVE that anyone who plays this game genuinely would rather lash out at the 'mother'....

[@AJammyDude]

thanks for the upload!

[@maybelijah]

It will be a great birthday, thank you ben

[@ThatGreenMach1ne]

Yooo I also live in the mountains!! Solidarity mate.

[@PirateKiraiOni]

its always a good day when ben upload hey here another like and comment for your algorithm

[@birdup1_2]

Once again, really good video! You never fail to make great content! Also, I bet the raw footage would be really fun to watch! Have you considered posting it on a second channel or smth? Edit: nvm just found that you already did!

[@teasteel4900]

Really interesting. A nice beggining in the series of horror games.

[@kanatahiba]

oh as I watched I noticed the hotel dusk and professor layton ost. Good choice, they're the best as bgm while listening to story explanation

[@skellyaceart]

The suddenly cut scream of Gino at the end of the sponsor segment was hilarious 💀

[@staryam2441]

babe wake up new ben again!! i'm excited bc i couldn't watch hotel dusk bc i've been meaning to play it 🙏 EDIT : wow! this seems like a dread to play but i love the message. as a person who has struggled severely with depression it's beautifully portrayed how guilt and loneliness can eat you alive. i always love the stories in these games.

[@staggbones]

its sad cus i actually found miki to be a compelling character, and the way she tries to do everything to avoid being in that house despite her obligations is really interesting. its a shame the game is such a drag

[@lbearscout8323]

As a man with depression. I do think the story represents it well. Especially the static ghost for this kind of type.... I will say that it could definitely work on the gameplay aspect. But as someone's second game. I feel it was a good learning curve. It's clear this game walked, so the strange men series can run.

[@ShinyPrimarina]

i remember this game was one that I watched a big youtuber play and it also was around that time that I kinda fell out of love for these horror rpgmaker games. This game wasn't like the last straw or whatever, but it was a gradual decline and i just remember this game prominently as an example of me looking at an rpgmaker game and going "eh. whatever" I feel like I'd appreciate it more as an adult than when I watched a playthrough as a teen

[@nobodyasked1383]

New ben again vid yay!

[@cinnamonpumpkin7655]

I wish to make a short horror movie based on this game one day. It's gonna be hard since I'm not a film maker but hey, one can dream !