The scariest Backrooms horror game? [Backrooms 1998]

[@EL1991_]

The back rooms creepy pasta was scary till people got way too specific about it. The unknown is scary, the details are absurd.

[@Randomeaninglessword]

Exactly this. All the "lore" and whatever else isn't just stretching the concept thin, it's ripping it to pieces.

[@rwrw418]

Agreed, it’s a concept that gets less interesting the more you expand on it

[@thegavinside]

This perfectly explains every decent creepypasta that goes big. One good writer makes a good concept, and then a bunch of people who aren't good writers expand on it. It's like building a solid brick house and then painting it with polka dots. Underneath it's strong but now the surface just looks ridiculous.

[@NotHarpoGroucho]

I agree fully. Especially since half the "levels" that people made up are just memes like "Oh haha Level 420 has an evil snoop dogg on it haha" "haha level 69 you have to _______ one of the creatures haha"

[@stanmarsh4566]

@@rwrw418 The concept in general its getting boring. Its just the same thing over and over again.

[@CochetVolaille]

if i remember right, the original backrooms post was something like "what if you could glitch outside of reality like you can glitch outside of the map in a video game" and people over expanded upon it, or completely misunderstood the concept of it. the scary part of it wasn't that it was full of monsters but the concept of being stuck outside of reality, with no real ability to find your way back into it

[@AFKay-sv1dl]

Change yellow wallpaper walls to some concrete/brick/wooden/etc. walls and you have another "Purgatory for your sins" type of game. So it's basically just a clickbait game that has nothing to do with original concept of backrooms

[@Raps-2k]

Bruh what

[@rosethorne9155]

Right! Like being trapped in a liminal space, like an old rec center hall or an airport or a basement or something. And you THINK you've been there before and know the way out...but it goes on forever. I've had nightmares like this. Nothing but you and the maze, and you can't wake up, and it goes on and on until the sameness itself becomes the nightmare...

[@AveryHyena]

Nope. That was what came second. What came first was the original liminal space image of what became known as "the backrooms" to reddit or another alike site.

[@aldagosto1413]

I remember when John did the video before the backrooms blew up, I thought it was a cool concept bc of what you just explained. I think in the end all the monsters in the backrooms were people turned crazy by being stuck in the backrooms.

[@seancrosby6837]

I don't understand why they gave the character a voice, but then use the microphone horror game gimmick. I find the microphone gimmick only to work if it's a silent protagonist, because then it makes it seem like you are the one who is making too much noise. But in this game, the character just talks but the microphone thing doesn't go up, but if you talk in real life at the same time it goes up for you. It's just a very strange decision.

[@Kaleidio]

he shuts up when the microphone mechanic is actually active. in the first fifteen or so minutes it does nothing until the first monster encounter

[@realrazors]

the game really said Shut the fuck up gamer

[@bozotheclown1142]

It's more game mechanics yo

[@gbrown932]

But you never shut up so who knows?

[@arcticfox037]

Alien: Isolation does the same thing afaik, but your character is virtually silent outside of at the end of objectives and during cutscenes

[@LAURA---]

When John says “oh no 🥺” when something fails to scare him or when he just tells the monsters to shut up 😂

[@XeresKyle]

He talks though as a coping mechanism to keep him from getting scared.

[@Jeltea]

@@XeresKyle Or cause he's a KZbinr and it would be borning to hear him not talk lol

[@girlbosswesker]

@Nahid Ferdous nah, it can be used to help. If I pretend I'm playing with someone in the room I'll talk and jumpscares aren't as effective

[@XeresKyle]

@@Jeltea I understand that. That's not what I mean. I kinda think though that when he's nervous or when something is suspenseful, he kinda gets frustrated at little things or he gets more assertive as to confront his fear head on. It's like his way of telling his mind he isn't going to let his anxiety or anticipation of a jump scare get the best of him. So he talks to break up that tension so he can be more cognizant and prepared mentally for a jump scare. Just my evaluation.

[@Dhairyasheel192]

Your sentence seems to be incomplete.

[@mylenaurelie]

I love the "no jumpscare" mode omg so many games need this. when you rely only on jumpscares it's kind of a cop out and you don't have to make anything actually creepy as long as there's jUmPsCaReS

[@Xenorvya]

Agreed, it's a really weak way to make a game "scary", it's cheap and overused.

[@NintenDak]

the only point for most of the jumpscares in this game are to make you scream or make audible noise for your mic to pick up.

[@Xenorvya]

@@NintenDak Figured, but they're still pretty cheap. Things appearing on your screen like that for no reason, it's pretty upsetting even.

[@NintenDak]

@@Xenorvya Eh, without them, it ruins the whole point of the mic thing. Cuz then there'd be nothing to lure the monster to you. Also Kinda just ruins the fear factor of the monster because, Nothing to lure him to you, so chances are he's just gonna roam around while you stay as far away as possible. I think the jumpscares in this game, while cheap, are necessary. After you get the shock from being scared, chances are if you scream, you are put in a position where you have to move and find a spot to hide.

[@geet9830]

plus the entire scary factor of the backrooms is the eerie atmosphere. the jumpscares completely miss the horror of the backrooms

[@kristanicole8123]

so glad to hear John talking about typeface again

[@noellemb123]

You read my mind

[@boudicaastorm4540]

You know, I knew he was gonna take that wallpaper to hell and back too 😂

[@exeledusprince9165]

This game would be better with the "jumpscares off" option, I think. The environment and pursuer alone and listening out for it would suffice just fine if it were a bit more persistent.

[@Bane_Amesta]

Now I want to see a playthorugh with the jumpscares off, some of them were really upsetting.

[@nadergrinder]

The jump scares in this game are just flat out annoying. No substance or reason to them, just random bodies popping up and disappearing. It’s so goofy lol

[@happyhollow-days2871]

@@nadergrinder there is some reason - although it is flawed. They're there to get you scared and jump, making noise - and getting the monster's attention. They're too predictable, though

[@JeffReams]

I agree .... jump scares in most games are a cheap way to "scare" the player.

[@michelleh1999]

Really cool game concept! Idk about it being it a "Backrooms" game though. Seems more like a standard "trapped in a personal hell/punishment" world but with a Backrooms aesthetic slapped over it. (and as other people mentioned, the murdered child being heavily based on a real life murder case is a bit much)

[@Bane_Amesta]

Agree. Change the backrooms background and this is literally another "collect x number of items to escape" game. With a high dose of Slender jumpscares that doesn't really add that much either.

[@BasedOverflow]

Wait what? The murder thing was based on a real one? That's kind of tasteless, it's not like it's hard to make up a fake one for your story or something...

[@rexss90]

If this game is based on a real murder, that's pretty disrespectful, but movies do it all the time and we just accept it no?

[@bluemooninthedaylight8073]

This game is typical indie horror game garbage: PT hallway changes, generic hide from monster, jumpscares, mannequins, find key/use tool to find more spookiness, too much blood, and if true being based on an actual child murder, tasteless subject matter. I like seeing passion, attempts to push the envelope, and genuine craft, but this game has none of that.

[@samwisegamgee1243]

Yeah this game went very much the "psychological horror" route.

[@rexss90]

The backrooms shine when there is a feeling of a threat, but no threat, wondering aimlessly deeper into the maze of dark rooms, none of them looking exactly the same yet none of them looking super unique. This game does not do it justice. My favorite backrooms games are games that have no jump scares, and sometimes no threat at all, they just make you feel anxious. I also prefer backrooms games that aren't just a copy and paste terrible looking office building, there was one made about an indoor waterpark that manlybadasshero played and it is still my favorite backrooms game.

[@azzy-551]

thats the thing, the backrooms was never really horror. it's spooky but I wouldn't call it terrifying. it's about liminal spaces which aren't really meant to be scary just an unsettling nostalgia. it's hard to imagine a backrooms game that isn't just a walking simulator but that's kinda what the backrooms are.

[@_silience]

Is the game called "Anemoiapolis"? If so, yeah I thought it was a pretty good take. There weren't jumpscares, but you occasionally sense you're not alone.

[@rexss90]

@@_silience I believe so yes.

[@samwisegamgee1243]

That reminds me of a game John played a long time ago, "The Space Between". While it didn't advertise itself as a backrooms game, it did include moments where you had to traverse through lonely hallways and you weren't sure if you would encounter anything. It was really well done, no jumpscares, loud noises, chasing enemies, etc. I wish some devs understood that less is more sometimes.

[@annaelisavettavonnedozza9607]

That fried chicken reference is loosely from a actual true crime case. During the Oakland child killings, Tim King was abducted. His mother made a public plea for his return, & attempted to make him real to the perpetrator/s by letting them know fried chicken (KFC) was his favorite meal. After his body was located the autopsy found that whoever had killed him had fed him fried chicken before they killed him. Pretty grim stuff, & I don’t think they ever tech found the killer (although I do think the person responsible is dead).

[@RozettaVyper]

The case is still open. It is likely the killer is dead or maybe he's in prison for a different crime. The police had I think 2 or 3 eyewitness drawings of the possible killer. I sometimes follow case stories. One of my morbid curiosiies.

[@robwaters2948]

Oakland, California?

[@mp80085]

@@robwaters2948 Oakland County Child Killer was in Michigan

[@Just_JoshE]

@@PETSEMATARYTWO No. Oakland County , MI

[@fumomofumosarum5893]

still it... sounds very silly, in a game, especially if you don't know it's based on a true crime case.

[@mikethedigitaldoctorjarvis]

John is the only guy i watch for the horror genre ! No over the top reactions to jump scares,plays smart and always gives a fair judgement of a game !

[@pengwin_]

i agree, which is why i wish he'd finish dark deception

[@kinoate]

There's other horror youtubers like that, supergreatfriend comes to mind

[@Leon14000]

I seriously don't think I could ever get tired of you talking about typeface. You've said numerous times it's not that impressive but I still think it is, being able to look at something and just be like "yep, I know what that is." My dad does the same thing with airplane engine sounds.

[@jenh101]

I love the bit at 9:45. John: rushes back into the room… ‘Ladies…?’ (Gasp), ‘he took all your heads!!’ His shocked indignation on their behalf is so sweet. This sort of thing is why I love this channel. Also, there’s very little yelling. That too.

[@cherubas]

That feeling when someone uses the real life abduction, m*********n, and murder of 11 year old Timothy King by the Oakland County Child Killer to sell a backrooms game. It would take 15 extra seconds to come up with an original name and chilling aspect to the story. It feels pretty distasteful and dirty, which is a shame because mechanically I really like the gameplay in this game.

[@creationofroses90]

This really happened

[@Rainbow35a]

Oh my god, that's horrible, I didn't know it was based on a real life case! That's really tasteless and insensitive, so I'm glad you pointed it out. And yeah, it would've taken only a few seconds to even just change "Timmy" to "Jimmy" and make him 12 instead of 11, or something like that, so that it wouldn't be directly using the actual murder of a real child.

[@creationofroses90]

@@Rainbow35a I didn't know it either until I just looked it up

[@AshKetchumRawkz]

Oh man is that really what's going on in the game? Here I thought it was gonna be like a slightly altered version of the CGI Backrooms found footage series, which would have been neat those vids are amazing. It's always pretty tasteless to use real world people like that, I still think YIIK has been the worst case of it yet.

[@HystericHeretic]

Yeah and using a recording of a child is really disturbing... I don't think they should've done that.

[@KilurDragon]

Timothy King was killed in 1977. Apparently the serial killer is still unknown. 4 children were killed and assaulted. Their bodies found in public places. Like a parking lot's corner and another spot in a ditch besides the road. So it hits hard when they put Timothy King in the game. Timmy's story isn't a happy one.

[@iamahiphopfan3759]

I don’t think I’ma huge fan of using a real kid’s murder to add backstory to your indie horror game

[@pengwin_]

pretty fucking tasteless then actually

[@PeskyRaven]

The hell with those devs for doing that. I agree with yall, tasteless. Lets profit off a real life freaking horrific event since we're too lazy and bland to come up with our own ideas. Not supporting this crap.

[@KOTEBANAROT]

i already kinda disliked this game, now i think the dev is a dumb bint for doing that

[@SirPembertonS.Crevalius]

I always found the backrooms real interesting simply because it plays on the fear of the unknown. Backrooms are supposedly endless, and with that, the creatures in it as well.

[@homeland1128]

I always find them cringe ngl but to each their own ig

[@deadhookerundermybed]

And now it's destroyed with lore stuff and explanations for every single room and creatures.

[@astrea4020]

Exactly. I think if more game developers would branch out past the first levels of the back rooms and get into like districts and maybe get into the complex colonies and organizations that exist it would be very interesting.

[@SirPembertonS.Crevalius]

@@homeland1128 It's gotten to a point where the idea has been exhausted, I will admit. Not the scariest concept but interesting at the least. I truly wish more sci fi horror or eldritch horror was more common.

[@Knapperoni]

The original post was the scariest since you only saw one small part of the backrooms and you don't ever get to see the monster, but like most horror things it's been overdone and now has a bunch of stupid lore that leaves nothing up to interpretation

[@feralpoodles]

why did they feel the need to use a real life child murder case for their backrooms game. like what does that have to do with the backrooms at all in the first place lol

[@limmiedee7405]

absolutely nothing. I don't have an issue with using true to life cases as inspiration, but if you're just shoving it in without any rhyme or reason then it's utterly disrespectful to the people affected and an insult to your target audience. backrooms style games already have so little going for them, the least they could've done was something original. very unfortunate

[@bluemooninthedaylight8073]

@@limmiedee7405 I think there's also the issue of how long ago the crime occurred. A very old crime from a century is one thing, but when you have family and friends who are connected to the victim and still alive, it becomes exploitative and gross. It's very hackneyed to just shove a real crime in, and those who do so, reveal themselves as having a real lack of understanding and care about creating good horror. Horror isn't just about scares, it too can and should have some real substance to it.

[@harrylarry6324]

@@bluemooninthedaylight8073 I feel like this game was trying too hard to be theorized so that it could reach out as if it was supposed to be a “clever” way to connect to irl events. A way to appeal to lore hunters. But instead of taking the time to create fictional irl clues, they instead decided to take something that actually happened. It’s honestly disgusting, and I don’t understand why people can’t find the capacity to create an original and creative idea for the back rooms, when it has huge potential to be creative, besides pure and simple laziness in terms of creativity.

[@bluemooninthedaylight8073]

@@harrylarry6324 My guess is laziness, a lack of creativity, and general thoughtlessness, like you say. Exploitative works have an issue where sensitive topics are used with little thought or tact and are done so only for shock value. The creators of these works think they can do so because they follow a loose structure of moralistic payback. But it's cheap, lacks substance, and doesn't excuse using a real-life situation as fodder for a C level horror game.

[@ScarasRealLover]

Not to mention making the child the monster instead of his killer 💀

[@electron1343]

i dont think the game developers know anything about the backrooms. everything that makes the backrooms cool is gone from this game and its more like its own thing.

[@AngeliqueStP]

The one tip I would pass on to this games' creator: Screaming in the player's ear Is. Not. Scary. ...it's just fucking obnoxious. Knock it off.

[@frightfang]

The Backrooms have always reminded me of the House of Leaves book. There is something really scary about the idea of an unlimited, impossible space in something that should have only so much space.

[@aeong_bread]

looks like there’s a new book for me to read, thanks :D

[@frightfang]

@@aeong_bread It’s a good one but don’t expect it to be your typical read. It’s very unique as far as books go.

[@kristianwilliams441]

@@aeong_bread my big piece of advice to you is to take your time reading House of Leaves. It's absolutely not a book to rush through - I read it over the course of two months with a book club, and that felt too fast.

[@eldritchtoast]

The author's sister, POE, did an entire album for the book as well. I recommend listening to her music while you read or even after.

[@donnybuoy]

​@@aeong_bread Good luck! It's a doozy, lol. One of my favs but it isn't an easy read. Not because of the content but because of the format and structure. It's very... unconventional.

[@robinthrush9672]

I think the jump scares are to get you to break silence and I just love how unimpressed you are by them and how much you sass the system.

[@maynark]

That "loading bar" analogy for the jumpscares is a great way to put it. I think the reason the developer put so many of them is to try to get the player to scream or yell, thus notifying the child monster through the microphone recognition, but at some point it just gets annoyingly repetitive and ends up making the game less scary, ironically.

[@thacobell4700]

Meh, the backrooms were scarier when they weren't full of monsters. It kind forgets the whole "liminal space" horror it was supposed to invoke.

[@Just_JoshE]

THe internet really knows how to take all mystery and intrigue out of something for the sake of stamping their name on it. They really ruined the mystic horror of the backrooms by making it every SCP or indie horror game.

[@anacsadder]

I like watching backrooms videos because the architecture is fun, but reading the comments arguing over lore makes me roll my eyes at how complicated the concept has gotten. Apparently there's a summit level, or something, that's a frozen mountain landscape, so the backrooms aren't even really rooms anymore, lol.

[@radiantsquare007jrdeluxe9]

@@anacsadder apparently, the back rooms even have “groups of interest” now

[@neardarkroad1347]

@@radiantsquare007jrdeluxe9 "group of interest"?

[@Shaderaygun]

The original backrooms image literally mentions that you might not be alone down there though. It always had monsters.

[@magebabe7613]

I thought it was a pretty decent game until the ending. Idk, something about the story reveal just bothers me in a way I can't quite put my finger on. We find out about Timmy and I was just like "alright now, c'mon this is lame". And then to read comments saying it references a real life crime just feels icky. I'm not someone normally bothered by a lot of things but even before I knew that info it just really sat wrong with me. Still I enjoyed the video thanks to John. The complete chill over jumpscare after jumpscare always gives me a good chuckle

[@psychobot206]

Love the idea of liminal spaces and horror games, just wish it was done in a smarter way than “hurr durr monster”

[@Michele1ELL]

This one is in my opinion. It’s basically like the character being in hell because of his actions, and the monster in this game actually relates to the story

[@mochiyeosang1908]

I feel like this could be used as a really good psychological horror base.

[@Slipperyslab]

Ever heard of Anemoiapolis

[@psychobot206]

@@mochiyeosang1908 My thoughts exactly, I’d make it almost like a “walking simulator” maybe sort of like Layers of Fear but better.

[@mochiyeosang1908]

@@bungiecrimes7247 read their last reply lol

[@TheTrueGOATS]

"I know you can't see me, but I'm standing right beside you" and the whisper about shadows not being shadows are stock Halloween haunted house sound effects.

[@bloiboppin8923]

I don't know If anyone else feels this, but the backrooms games as of recently seem so uninspired. Sure I like the concept and some are innovative with it (this game I'd fairly decent from what I played) but most games are just copy paste experience. Anyway keep up the great content, and I apologize for my rant

[@mochiyeosang1908]

The only thing they can really do with this type of concept, something already quite filled out in its depth, is make a decent story and maybe add a few mechanics. I'd say its a good starting ground for new and aspiring game makers. But then again, the only PC game I play is Minecraft so what do I know.

[@bloiboppin8923]

@@mochiyeosang1908 you are absolutely correct

[@bloiboppin8923]

@@mochiyeosang1908 and nothing wrong with some good minecraft 💪

[@RuneTacticss]

@@mochiyeosang1908 Not necessarily, there are hundreds of floors that you can use, or even create your own. Look at the Roblox (Yeah I know) game Apeirophobia for example, it throws you into several different backrooms experiences that are all pretty different and it keeps things interesting, most games just keep it to the 1st floor and that's it when there's way more to it

[@MegaPollen]

Yeah, wish there were more games that explored the other levels. Or even explore the backrooms from the the viewpoint of the different groups that live behind the walls.

[@DiddlesDankovsky]

I enjoy watching John play almost anything, but the fact that this game uses a real life child sexual assault and murder case for cheap scares is honestly disgusting and uncomfortable

[@sonicfangal2000]

I understand. It upset me too, but I tried to look, I don't think the game used a *real* murder case. Just used "real" footage for added effect. I tried to look it up and the only thing that came up was Timothy Wistley; who was possibly killed by his own mother.

[@petrifiedviewer]

@@sonicfangal2000 look for Timothy King, Oakland County, MI

[@Kelekona]

@@sonicfangal2000 @FlyingPinkPigasus I'm actually pretty sure they're also referencing the murder of James Bulger. Please take care when reading it as it is extremely disturbing. Basically, two ten year olds lured a two year old boy and committed atrocities against the two year old before killing him. But yeah using real life cases is a bit yeahhh.

[@sonicfangal2000]

@@Kelekona Oh yeah, I remember that case. I heard what happened. It might be that, I definitely think it's a reference, however, I don't think this game on particular is based on an actual one

[@ScarasRealLover]

For real. Of all the things they could have picked to base a monster on, they chose this? If I was related to that kid I would sue the hell outta the creator. It's gross

[@WolfangCerberus]

I love how desensitized he is with the jumpscares lol. Played so many nothing scares him anymore. Cracks me up when a scare happens, not even a flinch as he calmly says “Oh no…” haha

[@liv1297]

I know this is kind of a small thing to highlight but, i really appreciate that you don’t put ads in the middle of your videos, john. i love you and your content, and i think i get to appreciate watching your videos whole lot more without being interrupted by ads. thank you very much, you’re so kind to us. :)

[@TheCheese06z]

john's gentle uh-oh when the jumpscare mannequin ran at him lmfao

[@cleareyedliar]

i almost think a backrooms game would be better as a roguelike... i'm on observation duty has a lot of weird vignette, randomized sequences that are just bizarre and would be strange to stumble upon. i don't think the backrooms work very well as a plot on their own - they're a great vehicle with a lot of worldbuilding, but not much beyond that. there's a game called backrooms survival that's in early access which i feel has more potential, if they ever get the bugs worked out - many different levels are coded in, with different enemies and environments.

[@AshKetchumRawkz]

Have you checked out No Delivery? It's kinda like what you're describing, though the dungeons are all themed after a pizza place and it's an RPG.

[@cleareyedliar]

@@AshKetchumRawkz i'll have to give it a look!

[@vickybabadoo9927]

The only thing I didn’t like was them basing the story off of an actual case, they could’ve at least switched it up at lot more

[@anythingshouldhappen]

I’ve always felt kind of “uncomfortable” when game developers make the cases in their game very similar to real life ones. it’s almost seems like a mockery. just my opinion though.

[@RozettaVyper]

The Backrooms was cool at first until all of these indie horror devs decide to milk it. Much like with Slender Man, it's losing it's luster. I thought Siren Head would last much longer but that fizzled out faster than I thought.

[@wlot28]

Needs innovation, Kane is the only one doing that but unfortunately he's not a dev

[@iamahiphopfan3759]

@@wlot28 unfortunately indie horror devs aren’t exactly the kings of innovation

[@name8895]

Too bad this game is lacking in subtlety and completely misses the soul of the backrooms and liminal space concepts

[@khamomilekitty]

Agreed. Ig that happens when they think adapting real life gruesome murders into a game was a good idea. Shit for brains dev.

[@AveryHyena]

What are you expecting? Every one of these things is made by teenagers who think they can get famous doing this stuff and be the "next fnaf"

[@lyaen443]

Thanks for the content John, love it as always! Also, side note, the child (his name, age, and story of his last meal) are all true. It's the only thing that bothers me about the whole game. It's fantastic! But feels disrespectful to the actual child who was murdered. His mom did put out a plea and said his favorite meal was KFC. But obviously the devs HAD to change that part for legal reasons. Couldn't even give the child another name at least or something to differentiate it a bit more from real life? Ehh... But that's just my two cents.

[@Cove_Blue]

I thought the story sounded familiar. Yeah I agree, feels disrespectful

[@makona2002]

Wait what? This is based on a real event? That's messed up.

[@Bane_Amesta]

Damn based on a real event? I hope John sees this and call the devs out. That's just messed up, and also cheap lazyness from them. Is really that difficult to change a name and a date?

[@daisyelizabeth5462]

it really feels like they used tim and his story as props, i feel like they didn’t treat him as a real person who lived and died

[@jordyn2896]

wow, that's highly disrespectful. using a family's trauma for a silly videogame story.. i hope they give a portion of the money towards the family or something.

[@marianneguevara8279]

I really dig the whole Backrooms lore and seeing John play any horror game or game in general brings me a great amount of joy!! I admire the aesthetic of the game but the story does feel derivative. It feels to me like your typical psychological horror with a backrooms skin on.

[@RedUnit10]

Backrooms is scarier when it was just endless cubical like rooms, because nothing is more frightening than office work.

[@ainz0617]

lol

[@zacharyacevedo7774]

I just wanted to say thank you for never putting ads in your videos. I love being able to watch your entire videos without having to get side tracked with stupid ads like some KZbinrs.

[@half-magic8847]

I’m sure someone has already said something like this, but the child that was murder in this game was inspired by a real kid who was murder, Timothy King. In my option it’s kinda mess up to just put something like that in your game.

[@loxmotik]

not to sound stupid or disrespectful but why is it wrong to write something inspired by a real tragedy?

[@SvarogAristaeusAllen]

@@loxmotik From what i'm seeing in the comments it wasn't inspired, but outright lifted and put into the game-- at which point the dev is saying that a real life missing child went missing because of some fictional creepypasta nonsense, which is very tasteless.

[@loxmotik]

@@SvarogAristaeusAllen oooh i see then, thank you for explaining

[@samwisegamgee1243]

@@loxmotik they're also profiting off of the tragedy. The game is $10 or so on Steam, and I doubt the proceeds are being donated. It's different when games are inspired by fictional pieces of violence (i.e. movies, other games, etc), but it's tasteless to make money off of someone else's suffering/trauma. Just my two-cents.

[@realafah]

I see some similarity, but thats it. They don't seem that much the same, as in, not the same person or case

[@thegrumptastic]

I never get tired of Johns almost loving contempt for the viewer. Its so well done.

[@melanied917]

This game is loud just for the sake of being loud with these ambient sounds and annoying jumpscares lol Also missed ya john!

[@HAMBURGERJOHNATHAN]

It's a little strange how many objects are here, the backrooms is defined by it's emptiness I think. The game being set in the backrooms seems like an after thought, they don't really do much with the setting. It could take place in any area and it would work.

[@CazzytheBee]

John:*takes a few steps* Game: AHHHHH BE SCARED *loud jumpscare noises* John:-_-

[@dreamonstardust]

Honestly, I feel like the Backrooms lost any appeal it had. It's gotten out of control, not just with mediocre game adaptions, but in the lore itself. There's now a wiki for it much like the SCP-Foundation, where people can write new levels of the Backrooms, most of which lack subtly. The original appeal of the Backrooms was that it was this liminal space that went on endlessly. It was supposed to feel familiar, but wrong. There was just the yellow wallpaper rooms. Now it just feels like someone took the Ikea SCP and turned it into a vehicle for standard horror tropes.

[@iota1175]

SO fucking true it's insufferable how the internet ruined one person's perfectly good one-paragraph horror story by turning it into a vessel for overdone horror tropes instead of the unnerving concept it was meant to be

[@Scarshadow666]

@@iota1175 Tbf, humanity has been doing that with the horror genre for a long time, even before the Internet. Movies like Abbott and Costello Meet "Insert Universal Movie Monster Here" came about when the Universal Monster Movies were no longer scaring audiences as they used to before the Hammer Horror remakes appeared to make them bloodier/gorier to appease audiences, older slashers were considered scary until they started reusing horror tropes a lot and then gave rise to meta-slashers. Even horror franchises from authors like Stephen King, Clive Barker, and H.P. Lovecraft have all had lore built up beyond what their original books were like. Makes me wonder if there's some weird natural instinct we have when it comes to things that scare us, where we take that scary thing and build on it to purposely make it less scary because our brains are wired to not stay complacent with scary stuff staying scary. Might be part of why stories like the Backrooms and SCP ended up getting added lore to make it less scary over the years (albeit just speculation on my part). ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@iota1175]

@@Scarshadow666 good insights! although i think it's also worth noting that when horror was overdone (and then parodied, and re-done, and etc) before the internet it was often a lot more artistically motivated because there was less profit from putting so much time and effort into something like that if you didn't legitimately care about the genre. now, even someone doesn't care much about the concept, they might hop onto a misinterpretation-train of it just because that's the content that's currently popular. (i appreciate how john is one yter that doesn't do this, for example how he didn't play poppy playtime due 2 the questionable morals surrounding it despite it being very popular)

[@v0id525]

The problem is that the whole endless hallways deal is just boring, liminal spaces don't add anything spooky by themself.

[@bluemrpony]

I actually thought this game wasn't half bad but then I realised it is based on a real life child murder case and that's just so insensitive, I cannot even comprehend. Like when I see the monster I just feel sad not scared. The least devs could've done was to change the name and some little details

[@bigsexy8707]

Nah, i doubt the child cares... because they're fucking dead

[@Riccardo_Mori]

I completely agree with you about jumpscares. That's why I suggest you don't waste your time with games like Grainwind Incident 77 and Sanevol Incident 44. They both have a somewhat interesting atmosphere but abuse jumpscares in the exact manner you described - they get annoying soon. Cheers! //Rick

[@ChromaSoul]

Okay I'm a huge Backrooms fan and I've got a few critiques... This game is way too linear. I suppose that's expected from a horror game, makes it easier to feel confined and steer the player.. but the Backrooms is better when it's never ending, sprawling, and open for someone to get lost in. I get that might not always be possible when it comes to actually developing a game, but still. This game is also way too dark.. Again, horror game, I get it.. But the Backrooms are usually well lit. Most might think this isn't scary or doesn't work for a horror game, but that's why you add in the occasional dark room or nook to explore. It's not the darkness that makes it scary, it's the panic you feel by being stuck in this vast, never ending place while hearing sounds. There were also too many "things" in this game. This critique isn't a huge deal, but personally I think the Backrooms are better when it's very minimal with no boxes, ladders, mannequins, tables, chairs etc.. These things have to be used extremely sparingly. Or like maybe a big open room full of chairs lined up perfectly. The monster or "entity" in this game isn't scary. I mean maybe if you're 12 years old.. "scary tentacle monster" doesn't do much for others. (Smilers and Frowners are also lame btw) .. The best entities (imo) are the humanoid ones, that move like humans but are just off, have an unclear face or expression, who are always watching you... You have to limit the amount of screen time the entity gets to make it more scary. Make the player feel hunted in an effective way. Just showing the player a tentacle monster walking around isn't scary. All of this said, I get this might not be the best formula for a game, but it's a lot of these things that make the backrooms lore terrifying.

[@chrissixtytwix]

I think another part of this that I don't like is the fact that they used a real child murder case as their "inspiration" as many have said, but it's so obvious that they're using Timothy King's case because of the fact that Timothy was also fed the same "spicy chicken" (KFC is what I believe was the actual chicken was that was mentioned by his mother in a news interview, and fed to young Timothy at the time) before his murder, they mention "Loakland" (Which is obviously a reference to Oakland, the main hub of the Oakland County Child Killer and his victims). It's kind of a tasteless way to make a game, they could have altered more of the story to make it a bit less obvious, but they didn't and it's just kind of, disgusting for lack of a better word. (Edit: added some detail I felt was needed)

[@chazfromouterspace]

Watching John just be unphased by just about any horror game is hilarious and a let down like "dam nothing phases him"

[@rapidojade3646]

That's what happens when you play too many horror games. I'm easily jump scared unless i'm expecting it and i don't play horror games (7 days days is an exception)

[@unknownuser5895]

Adding furniture to The Backrooms turns it into another generic "Escape the haunted house with the monster inside it" game

[@PeskyRaven]

Thanks for the upload John! Have a wonderful vacation. Lots of love and support to yourself, Kimmy, Belle and family.

[@tehdmanvids3]

BABE GET UP, NEW JOHN WOLFE VIDEO JUST DROPPED

[@iota1175]

i fucking hate how the protag keeps saying "guYs this IsN't Fuhnny!!" like literally any person in real life would, upon noclipping out of reality, assume that their friends built a massive bloody torture maze with animated mannequins in it for the sole purpose of pranking them

[@Asaylum117]

John Wolfe seriously has balls of steel. This dude isn't scared by a lot of the scares the game throws at you, even unexpected ones. If I was in a zombie apocalypse, I would definetly pick John as my survival partner. XD

[@uthmanibn-jafar1159]

He never gets scared by anything he plays. Honestly makes it less fun to watch.

[@zeldabob888]

This game is neat but why does the protagonist pick up a crowbar, use it to break into a barricaded door, but not use it to open the locked door? Also, what kind of news broadcast calls a person "Little [Name]" instead of their first and last names lmao

[@joshualuke7003]

You're spot on about jump scares. They can be really effective but they have to be earned and then they can be played with, constantly teasing out a second one that might never come so you're kept on edge for ages and things like that. If there's one every two minutes you just become desensitized.

[@alicemeilani]

So far, I think john is the only youtuber that so talkative when playing this game from my subscribing list and its cool

[@MarcoCarag]

Yep, my guess is that "No Jumpscare Mode" would be even scarier for me. I was too numbed by the jump scares that I found them to be annoying rather than scary.

[@vulpinitemplar5036]

Always great to see John be impervious to terrible jumpscares.

[@coldplayhetaly]

I wish these backrooms games would take advantage of the liminal space idea and build on themes of nostalgia, loss, and the uncanny side of loneliness.

[@ChromaSoul]

+1

[@HadalStreetlights]

they fail for the same reason a lot of creepypasta fails. they are interested in the style over the substance. they care not for metaphor or allegory, preferring only the surface details that result from those symbolic depths. these are the same people who enabled the endless parade of slenderman content without understanding what made the work they were inspired by tick. rather than capitalizing on the voyeurism and anxiety thoroughly embedded into Marble Hornets, they turned Slenderman into another weeping angel. unfortunately, it seems like a lot of horror fans are not intellectually interested in the material but rather just in the pure visceral moments of fear and shock. which, okay, i get it, and that's valid, but it doesnt lead to better content, and it isnt gonna support your goals for the content you like to consume, long-term. the classical great monsters and motifs of horror have always had some kind of intellectual/emotional symbolism underpinning their machinations. ALL OF THEM. Vampires talk about class and the parasitic nature of the upper classes. Werewolves talk about our proximity to nature and our vulnerabilities to impulse. Ghosts talk about our history and the effects the past can have on us. Fairies talk about our proximity to nature as an adversarial and external adventure. Sea Monsters and the threatening oceans and perils of sea travel. Michael Myers and the unsafe "safe" suburban environment. Leatherface and the terrors of rural isolation. Jason Voorhees and the perils of hormone-addled adolescence. Freddy Kruegar and the deceptive danger of parental secret-keeping. The zombie speaking on our fear of being reduced to an autonomous subjugant. The kaiju, and its associated terror of global annihilation and the consequences of nuclear war.

[@solidslfy2879]

@@HadalStreetlights This comment absolutely sums up the state of horror nowadays, it really is style over substance especially in indie horror lately where it's getting increasing amount of VHS aesthetics where it doesn't really benefit the experience but rather just a popular gimmick as an example

[@HadalStreetlights]

@@solidslfy2879 so i think the original VHS does a really nice job of using its aesthetic gimmick. it complements the plots of the segments, ties into the bookending narrative, and even supports the mystery of the overarching plot. VHS tapes are kinda creepy and the way you can record over them makes for an intriguing medium. not every VHS takes advantage of this, though as the series turns into a simpler found footage anthological style that deemphasizes the format. the first VHS is the type of film id like to own on VHS. it's creepy, atmospheric, and suits its medium well. horror isnt dying or anything. lots of excellent horror films are still coming out. for all the trash he publishes, Blum does come out with bangers from little people, and A24 is rapidly becoming a titan of serious horror films. but people seriously do need to wake up and recognize that horror is a thoughtful genre, and isnt as dumb as popularly thought.

[@solidslfy2879]

@@HadalStreetlights I kinda agree but sadly horror is one of those genres where for every 10 crap horror game/film there is at least 1 or 2 good ones (this isn’t even considering masterpiece games) also VHS aesthetics can be hurtful to the eyes for a lot of people and I’m sure people turn them off if devs put the option for it which kinda defeats the whole point of vhs and proves u don’t need it, SH2 didn’t have vhs and it was scary same amnesia the dark descent, my point was that a game could be incredibly scary if it doesn’t constantly copy popular formula just saying, also I don’t think vhs never did anything good I think most inspiration of the vhs aesthetics is found footage and puppet combo games which they themselves have an 80s style of games so it makes sense plus they use it effectively but this game for example just completely missed the point and I hate to admit this but even the back room game that John Wolfe later played didn’t need vhs or even the creepy pasta itself that popularized it in the back rooms feels completely unnecessary because the original back rooms idea didn’t need it and got famous nonetheless, but in my opinion games thinking adding a blur and vhs effect makes it better it doesn’t be that’s what I think at least tell me your thoughts

[@psychobot206]

I feel like The Stanly Parable was kind of the first Liminal Space game in a way

[@wlot28]

Nah, that's gotta go to Myst

[@psychobot206]

@@wlot28 Yeah I was born in 98’ so I’m legally not allowed to know what you’re talking about.

[@samwisegamgee1243]

For all the true crime fans out there: the murdered child's case seems heavily inspired by the murders of Timothy King and James Bulger. - Tim's favorite food was KFC, and his mom made the same plea as the mom in this game to bring her child back so she can give him his favorite meal. - James was a toddler who was murdered by two older sadistic kids after they kidnapped and tortured him. He probably died from all the torture, but the last thing they did to him was put his body on the train tracks so it was severed when he was found (similar to the child in the story being found decapitated).

[@omgiam2hot]

wtf this is fucked

[@sonicfangal2000]

A lot of people think that the case in the game is real. I figured it was an "inspiration" (poor choice of words, I know)

[@samwisegamgee1243]

@@sonicfangal2000 I don't think people are saying the case in the game is word-for-word real, but it is indeed VERY heavily inspired by real victims, and that's where some of the outrage is coming from. Idk if the dev had a personal connection to the victims or something, but if not, it feels kinda sad for them to profit off of others' trauma. However this isn't a new concept, and most TV shows and podcasts do the same all the time.

[@Polyeurythane]

@@samwisegamgee1243 Yeah. I see a lot of the comments arguing that it was still based off child murder so it’s bad, but they don’t acknowledge the fact that popular media does this all the time. I’d say true crime is a tricky subject because of stuff like this. We sympathize and get angry when watching the recreations by the actors in true crime shows, but those actors aren’t even the real people involved. You have true crime KZbinrs that will do their makeup, have a mukbang, or just discuss the case in a way that either promotes a bias or sounds like gossip. I hear there are several true crime KZbinrs that actually care about the family and get their permission and work with them to provide the story, but to me those people are few and far between. Everyone was obsessed with Tiger King and that discussed a cult and deaths yet I doubt many people actually did anything. I mean it was practically a whole meme that Carole Baskins killed her husband. No one really talks about how exploitative TK was, yet they’ll complain here about some kid getting murdered. I don’t know if any of my points got across but I’m just trying to say that it feels like there’s a heavy double standard and lack of acknowledgment going on in the comments section. That people point out the fact they’re using one to several child murders together to base the story on yet there are plenty of tv shows and movies that are based on the same types of child murders that could be considered just as exploitative by the standard they are judging this game by. I mean for godsakes The Girl From Plainville is about the girl that convinced her boyfriend to commit suicide, and the trailer felt like the show was romanticizing and twisting the narrative and facts to make the girl look more innocent. We humans love drama and true crime, we’ll even support murderers by buying their books about how and why they did what they did, but sure a video game that was a bit too heavily connected to one/two child murder cases is a problem and the creator should be ashamed. 🙄

[@JillLulamoon]

@@Polyeurythane Well, it's more that the all the inspiration from a real kid who was molested and murdered is used in the developer's lame Backrooms walking simulator, including turning Timothy King (sorry, "Little Timmy") into a silly looking monster who chases the player around and jumps out and screams "Ooga booga booga!" that makes it feel particularly gross. I really don't think it's there for anything but shock value, since the developer seems to have no interest in actually exploring the real life murder of Timothy King, instead just lifting the most horrible details of it (like the fact the killer saw his mom plead for his life and fed him chicken, presumably to mock her) to make this cliche "but you were the bad guy all along" story more shocking. And mash it together with elements lifted from another real life murder of a child where some older boys tortured a little boy to death, just for good measure. I also have a suspicion the Dnepropetrovsk maniacs were an inspiration too. Three young men who recorded themselves murdering and torturing people, seemingly for the fun and notoriety. Those are the 3 Guys 1 Hammer people.

[@mamaham]

The Backrooms are interesting, but the unsettling feeling of isolation and the horror of finding that the little life you might find will possibly end you...is really hard to capture

[@harrisonmartin733]

Dear John, I am currently on a three-four day binge of watching your Resident Evil series playlist and I must say, thank you for all of the hours and hours of content! You're often criticizing yourself in some of the older videos but it's a good time "hanging out with you" as you play games. I say that, not in a parasocial way, but more in a way that I would relate your energy to a couch co-op vibe back with my friends as kids/teenagers. It's better than the over enthusiastic KZbin personalities, and feels more genuine. Anywho, I'm currently on the Resi4 (see I said it too guys lol) and am loving it. I watched your horror game tier list video and that's what got me interested in looking up the older playthroughs you have completed. Started with the Silent Hill series. "You're TEARING ME APART LISA!" HAHA! Keep being yourself John!

[@mylenaurelie]

I love when you play these liminal horror games! I've suggested before but I think you would have such a fun time playing Anemoiapolis. It's not a really overt horror game, and is in fact kind of calming. Thanks for always spoiling us with content!

[@fleabaguette9699]

I watched Manlybadasshero play that and really enjoyed it! Definitely not an overtly scary and in your face kind of game, but it for sure creeped me out by the end

[@Whatlander]

12:56 It's a recording of an old type of coin bank. You'd put a coin in the figure's hand; there was a mechanism for the arm to move the coin into a gap in the mouth, as if its eating the money. Basically, it's spookily edited footage of a cute toy. Cheers to the editor for calling John out on missing the drawn door payoff.

[@Hotmonkeybreath]

I just love to have your videos like these playing while I’m trying to get work done, no ads to interrupt the video through so I can always just hear you’re sassy grumpy commentary 😂. Loved your content for ages and felt like commenting just incase you needed some positive feedback!

[@yaemikoshusbando3029]

I remember reading a comment about the little Timmy story being real...

[@lyaen443]

Different murderer but same story, yes. Doesn't sit well with me...

[@yaemikoshusbando3029]

@@lyaen443 Jesus Christ…

[@Skylar_T]

My god...

[@flarpoflarpo]

i am a total hater when the backrooms has monsters in it. i personally think an endless dingy nightmare where you start to slowly be driven insane by the total absence of anything that you begin to invent things is so fuckin cool dude ggggrgrgrgrgr

[@astrea4020]

That’s never been what the backrooms is though? Even the first levels have always had their monsters. It’s part of the whole concept.

[@flarpoflarpo]

the whole concept was a picture of a dingy yellow backroom captioned "if you accidentally noclip out of reality you end up here" or something. no mention of monsters or anything, just your imagination. the short film didnt add or do anything interesting in my opinion.

[@HadalStreetlights]

@@astrea4020 tell me you dont know the history of the backrooms without telling me you dont know the history of the backrooms. this is like saying "BUT SLENDERMAN HAS ALWAYS TELEPORTED AROUND AND MADE PEOPLE SICK" Slenderman was a fucking photo edit. The Backrooms was barely a meme. people just shove monsters in everywhere with no respect to the monster, and this fucking game had the gall to render monstrous the victim of a horrendous real life crime without any respect to him or his family. Just simply not the place to argue in favor of monsters in the backrooms at all.

[@_maliciousIntent]

@@HadalStreetlights The oldest original copypasta of the backrooms included a malevolent entity.

[@JillLulamoon]

Honestly I dont think its possible to make a Backrooms game that's faithful to the original idea that isnt a slog to play. Puppet Combo's Backrooms game was the closest iirc, and a lot of people didn't enjoy that game. A real Backrooms game would be a walking simulator where you wander copy and pasted halls and empty rooms until you died. The Backrooms is incredibly unsettling as an idea. But it just doesn't work as anything but a 4chan post. Not without significantly changing it until it becomes something different (adding monsters, that Level 0 Level 1 shit, etc).

[@anacsadder]

The gameplay was fine. I liked the part where the player has to decipher their location on the map to explore the area and find things. I'm not convinced that setting in the backrooms was necessary. It feels like they only set it in the backrooms so that they could use the name of a popular thing in the title.

[@DrumeMoment]

no clue why this game warrants very positive on steam. layers of fear + PT + typical backroom experience, yech we must be starved for indie horror or something

[@GolemCC]

Honestly John always impresses me with how gentle and considerate he is handling these games. He really did his best to be kind to the developer and find some nice things to say about a product that is basically one long key hunt in a maze filled with flimsy, frequent jumpscares.

[@Nexils]

I thought the original picture and description of the backrooms was pretty clean and simple, with the openness and emptiness and just the haunting idea that something or someone is in there with you as well. This is just some random maze-like-house with an abundance of doors. If they changed the wallpaper, nobody would be able to tell if it were supposed to be a backrooms game.

[@TheRealLetharos]

The way the camera glides at times makes me feel like I'm watching the video for Aphex Twin's "Come To Daddy" Cool game. Spent a few years working late shifts past midnight in a cubicle farm and once you're all alone and closing out shop in the office I got these kinda creepy vibes that you could just poof into another dimension. I was also a father to a newborn and was spending travel time listening to horror podcasts and watching horror games / narrations in my downtime. Lots of that time was spent watching your vids too back in 2016 while making sure my newborn stayed asleep. You're a family favorite, John.

[@rosewilson1052]

So excited for this video. I saw you checking out the backroom games on twitter and this was in the list of them you posted and I was so excited for you to try it out. Beyond some issues, this game was a hoot.

[@Quinlana83]

Very entertaining. Thank you for playing, John.

[@solidslfy2879]

In my personal opinion, this game had a lot of the same issues that plagued indie horror games since forever I would argue, and with the whole "let's throw you into a maze you walk around and collect pages for no reason and avoid a monster that apperently too dumb to enter small holes or that is either blind or deaf" this game happens to combine a lot of elements that people are interested in the current moment with the popular with a backrooms aesthetics and a "scary" monster and VHS, I feel the backrooms as a luminal space that spawned out of a single picture and got re-popularized again could've explained the backrooms much better and why it exists or how it functions, rather then it being a personal hell for your main cheracter for some arbitrary reason that wasn't even explained in the game. as for the jumpscares point that john talked about in the end is also very correct and needs to be pointed out and told to any horror game dev regardless if small or big, a jumpscare can only be good if it charges up and be threating/punishing, the reason why the jumpscares in puppet combo games works well is due to the constant loud noise and screams of the enemy (most notably in the nun massacre) where if you were found out by the enemy you will be punished for it with a loud noise for not being sneaky enough or being careless and running around the whole place and of course this has it's limits and can get annoying sometimes but it's a far better alternative for jumpscares in horror games than deciding to press a red button that activates them randomly ingame but that's my thoughts.

[@queenpika5748]

Backrooms were cooler when people weren't trying to make lore out of it

[@Bhubnipz]

Can you imagine your local newscaster saying “it seems little Timmy ran around, armless, for several minutes….. hoping for his parents to save him”

[@randobudgetgaming]

😂😂

[@Michele1ELL]

Yes, I’ve seen this game and so glad to see you do a play through! Quite a disturbing story, definitely stayed with me a little after seeing it. I’ve never seen the Backrooms used in this way so I really liked this idea

[@KilurDragon]

These backrooms games are like the FNAF and Slenderman fan games. The Nun Massacre update about the backroom is trash...

[@TylerClear]

The puppet combo one was pretty interesting

[@Emily-xk2du]

I love how like 24 minutes in, a jumpscare goes A-BOO!!! at John while he's heading out of a room, and he just turns while casually walking to try to look at it without breaking his stride like he'd seen something mildly interesting lmao.

[@sunflarestar4470]

it might shock you but they expanded on the backroom and now it hallway, rooms, forests, pools, towns, cartoon land, etc. with 1000+ floors of randomness included 🙂

[@ChromaSoul]

Poolrooms and maybe some hallways were cool.. Everything else is too much.

[@_maliciousIntent]

they ruined it

[@captainnotmyname6143]

I enjoy the aspects of other backrooms depictions, like the separate levels of spaces, this one felt like it was a telephone game away from what the backrooms is shown to be in other developers, artists, whatever. Seems like an attempt to make an unoriginal collect x things and escape in a maze seem like it has familiarity with what's popular.

[@princesspasta]

watching john's reaction to the radio broadcast at the end killed me xD

[@aninternetuser7548]

Ok is it just me, or do these constant over-the-top jumpscares remind anyone else of the ridiculous jumpscares in Walden and the Werewolf that John played a while ago on stream?

[@ghostieeboi]

This version of the backrooms try’s too hard to be scary with all the blood on the walls and mannequins everywhere. And there’s too much furniture when there shouldn’t be any at all. It’s a liminal space, we’re not meant to be there very long so why are there pianos and wardrobes everywhere?

[@gabymerman9005]

The off placed furniture is probably the only vaguely fearsome element in this, like memory fragments, following the metaphor of the mental purgatory. The fact that they have no use being there is scary in itself.

[@ghostieeboi]

@@gabymerman9005 even so, it ruins the overall vibe and emptiness.

[@0megaForce]

I honestly think the backrooms is a sorta cool idea but I think it’s a bit overrated, and this game was just another Jumpscare game, waste of a pretty cool atmosphere.

[@chavlaz]

Ditching the large headphones is an intimidating flex

[@noellemb123]

IVE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU TO PLAY THIS. I AM SO FRICKEN PUMPED. ❤️

[@Eviltwin1]

Yeah i think the random jumpscares were to try and startle you enough to be heard by the mic thus leading the monster to you. (Since the avg joe isnt recording a video/Letsplay). Granted there are still probably too many

[@СемёнКурашов-ш4ф]

Has a monster around @ Has a locker behind @ Hides behind an open door @ Get surprised when seen Classic John )))

[@theanimator4098]

The reason backrooms is so popular, is it’s idea of being in a place that’s seemingly infinite making human life feel pointless. It’s also with the fear of the unknown because it’s a large infrastructure that couldn’t be built by humans, but if it wasn’t then why does it have office walls. To expand upon this, there is also over 1000 separate floors and hundreds of creepy monsters. And anything people make is canon because there is no real canon to backrooms since it was popularized by an image made by someone anonymous.

[@HadalStreetlights]

The Backrooms is what the Slendermansion wishes it could be. Except it's just exactly as cringey. Honestly, it feels like there's a group of people who either arent aware, or arent rigorous enough writers to make it on the SCP foundation, desperately ripping them off in an effort to create novel, marketable content to pander toward young people who havent developed standards for narratives yet. or theyre just stumbling across ideas that are strangely similar to SCPs, but failing to explore them in a meaningful way beyond "what if i add monsters to it?"

[@theanimator4098]

@@HadalStreetlights I guess that’s true.

[@HadalStreetlights]

@@theanimator4098 Not that you shouldnt enjoy whatever you enjoy. Just saying a lot of people singing the praises of The Backrooms just arent aware of the other stories that inspired it. I grew up in a similar position re: a lot of horror vehicles, so i recognize this experience as something ive been through.

[@nicklindberg90]

Just here to watch John sass the protagonist all video

[@ThisIsYourGodNow]

it's a shame that they spent a lot of time building a good atmosphere, aesthetic and mechanics and did absolutely nothing with them, opting for an old fashioned bullshit jumpscare fest. I wish indie devs would have more patience and give their games enough dev time to make them the best version they could possibly be.

[@lullabysorrow5746]

Based on a real case, that’s just disgusting. But the back rooms don’t really make a good game, it comes across as boring when it’s a game. This one wasn’t good at all. But as a short fan made video that’s where it thrives at.

[@CleaverMama]

Every time John sits in a crawlspace taunting a monster I desperately wish for them to start crawling, just like in that one game with the nun.

[@randobudgetgaming]

Also in aka manto

[@TheRookieGamerYT]

The crazy thing is that the ending of this game was based off of an actual unsolved case. His mother put out a public announcement for the kidnapper saying that if Timmy (yes that’s his real name) was returned he would be given his favorite dinner, KFC chicken.

[@kathrynyarnton7796]

Day 7 is one of my favourite videos you've done, so I'm so excited to see you play this!!