Pathologic is Genius, And Here's Why

[@casscain5196]

january 2020: daniil dankovsky's fun steppe vacation may 2020: artemy burak'sh tormentous nightmare

[@davidfasthands474]

Underrated

[@ArtoriaZz2137]

does any1 know what music plays under it?

[@joaomartins2541]

Plague.

[@Vellzi]

@@ArtoriaZz2137 El Tigr3 - She Swallowed Burning Coals

[@caitmonroe9349]

July 2020: The Changling's narrative is starting to feel kind of repetitive and it's clear we're being messed with.

[@bentonic4998]

Next time someone tries to argue with me, i'll hit them with the ol "YOU ARE BROKEN. I, ON THE OTHER HAND, AM USED TO WINNING"

[@Jessica-tc1ug]

and say it in the most robotic way possible

[@timothymclean]

What a prickly prick.

[@chewychibi03]

Ahahahaha

[@myopicmanatee6432]

Make sure to throw in random Latin words to show your intellectual superiority.

[@AlasKenn1]

It's like T-posing with words

[@evanahearne1479]

There's a positive review on steam that describes Pathologic as like "reading Dostoyevsky but the book is beating the shit out of you" and i really feel like that sums up the vibe

[@jazwhoaskedforthis]

That is perfect I hope hbomb sees this

[@lovaszaron3138]

Accurate.

[@jadeharley7190]

PLZ I just had to read it for a class this semester

[@tmbabe13]

come to think of it reading the underground man had a similar vibe to trying to read some of pathalogic's (particularly the og translation) dialogue and understand it

[@Stutts1895]

@@jazwhoaskedforthis 89

[@mizushimo]

It just hit me that this came out 2 months before we were all dodging the actual plague in real life "So a plague is starting, but no one with the power to take proper action will help because everyone has their own agenda."

[@Hendlton]

And now food costs more and more each day...

[@QuilloManar]

And you have to spend a considerable time convincing the main people in power that there even is a plague for them to do anything about it.

[@2ndeaster]

Death Stranding also released around the same time and it's about an essential worker doing an important delivery in a world where people disconnected from each others. Kojima and Harry got an explanation to do...

[@dylanintefilin]

i literally double checked the release date of this vid when he said that line 😭😭😭 fuck

[@Jalae]

So, hbomberguy caused the plague by putting a part of his soul into a video about surviving a plague. This is a normal thing. perhaps we could make a better world by putting our souls into things talking about idealistic happy fantasy worlds.

[@shneancy220]

A 2 hour long film me: eh, a tad too long innit A 2h YT video me: ayyy, how about a 3rd rewatch

[@sofo02]

Hahaha fourth time still going strong

[@jdthejugoo]

The story of this game is so engaging I like hearing about it

[@matthewkopeck8540]

Wait you seriously wouldnt watch a movie because it's 2 hours long

[@shneancy220]

@@matthewkopeck8540 yes, everything I write on the internet I write being extremely serious, all my words expressing my deepest thoughts and feelings.

[@matthewkopeck8540]

@@shneancy220 then I dont see how the original is even relevant if you were being sarcastic in the first place? Jeez, you 13 year olds are dumb.

[@allysonmccartney2150]

An interesting detail I noticed: at the end of the opening play all of the characters exit the stage but they all exit in different ways. the bachelor takes the stairs thereby ruining the illusion of the performance. The haruspex exits back through the wings of the stage as most stage actors would. And lastly Clara hops off the front of the stage like a child. Just an interesting detail

[@TheKing-qz6mb]

That's a solid observation good on ya!

[@maxmad7641]

This man is BIG BRAIN

[@misteryA555]

The bachelor also likes to take what he sees as the most logical route. The stairs are in view and easy to use so why wouldn't he take them? The haruspex goes behind the scenes because his role in the town as a menkhu is largely behind the scenes. He understands the inner workings of his town, like all the backstage work in a play. And the Changling jumps off the stage instead of either exit because she... I dunno, understands that this is all a game and therefore isn't confided to the same rules as the other two?

[@sarahelster6835]

@@misteryA555 what is even more important is that the imaginary wall between the stage and the viewers is the first fourth wall. That's why we even use the word fourth wall, it all began in theater

[@sonyblank1487]

@@misteryA555 without a certain other video, I'd say it was her extreme rejection of the social convention of the play, the world itself, and her interactions.

[@cosmoknott4451]

On my 6th rewatch and only just now realizing that there are worm people in this world probably because there are worms in the kids' sandbox.

[@olivialanc9035]

HOW DID I NEVER GET THIS OMG-

[@Omnicide101]

Cosmo Knott Is Genius And Here's Why

[@dewayner5388]

You think that’s bad, I’m only just realizing the text description at character selection is yet more purple prose to tell you how the character sees their own history and role

[@stagpie6449]

The sickness is also called the Sand Plague iirc!

[@ONE-vt1fz]

@@stagpie6449 in pathologic 2 it was changed to sand pest! as in theres something infecting the sandbox!

[@forgot7en]

In this video, you can see the clear rate of the Day 1 achievement is 13.2%. 4 years later, I checked the achievements, and the Day 1 clear rate is 16.5%. In 4 years, there has only been a 3.3% increase of players who actually went this far. And yet, somehow, it has 88% positive reviews from 2942 users. One of the top POSITIVE reviews literally states "made my mental illness worse." EDIT: Apparently it's an increase of about 25%. Thanks random math nerd

[@waytogo8014]

Whats not to like with pessimism and mental illness?

[@EdeN_2006]

So true ​@@waytogo8014

[@SixArmedSweater]

To be fair my favorite game, We Know The Devil, made MY mental illness much worse, but in a beneficial way.

[@rane1442]

@@SixArmedSweater this game looks cool as hell! Thanks for mentioning it I just bought a copy

[@michaeluwuowo]

​@@rane1442how's it going now?

[@leilas5419]

i watched this when it first came out and all these years later "DANIIL DANKOVSKIYS FUN STEPPE VACATION was just the tutorial for ARTEMY BURAKHS TORMENTOUS NIGHTMARE" still lives rent free in my head

[@leilas5419]

as a native russian speaker i feel like i should play this in the original russian script at some point

[@riirah1010]

IT'S MY FAVORITE PART

[@ashikjaman1940]

She Swallowed Burning Coals was the perfect song choice

[@riirah1010]

@@ashikjaman1940 THANK YOU I have been looking for this music for months!! IT'S SUCH A BOP

[@0meAcat1]

Hahaha every time

[@nessie6899]

It is vital that everyone know that in pathologic 2 the bachelor is so short that in one of the parts where you meet him outside of isidor’s house the devs had to make him float a few inches off the ground in order to make him easily noticeable so you don’t step on him. This fact is important to me

[@eldritch_midnight6007]

I thought he was short in classic HD but I wasn’t sure if that was true for every character or just the bachelor

[@dani.2479]

I'm making an AI dungeon scenario where it's just this but the bachelor is just a fucking dwarf with a scalpel

[@nessie6899]

@@dani.2479 that’s just the bachelor in-game. Little gnome man who loves causing problems

[@dani.2479]

@@nessie6899 nah im straight up making him a fucking dwarf

[@nessie6899]

@@dani.2479 honestly good. thank you for your service

[@thejudge1728]

This reminds me of a tweet I've read a while back. "A Russian book is only truly good if either the writer, the reader, or the characters suffer" and the reply "And only if all three suffer, can it truly be considered a masterpiece".

[@orgax]

Perhaps It makes sense if we remember that we Russians have never had good times, there has never been freedom, wealth and security for ordinary citizens.

[@АртёмВласов-т5ю]

@@orgax ооо, либераху порвало

[@orgax]

@@АртёмВласов-т5ю Причем тут либерахи, ты собственную историю забыл?

[@PierreDalique]

Suffering is just an essential part of Russian culture. Doomer Kingdom. And I like it

[@Altropos]

Me: looking at my 1600 page copy of War and Peace * Nods sufferingly

[@EpicScizor]

So as it turns out, if you *don't* kill the kid, they rescue you from jail later. So Harry clearly never tried the "don't kill the kid" route 😂

[@boogiebong420]

OMG thank you for sharing this information 😭

[@AuroraIceFlame]

So there is a small reward for choosing to be good for once, huh kinda surprising for this game.

[@DabbleDo]

I love playing Pathologic. It’s easier than people think. You just press play, and this nice British man explains it to you!

[@imakerbadcontentrbad8664]

Ah, so it's just like LittleBigPlanet! Lemme get the kids, gonna boot up Pathologic for family game night!

[@langerjunge]

Is that the one where he tells you to walk through the door to the left, not the one to the right?

[@Tp_hedgelinghog]

​@langerjunge I love The Stanley Parable. It is so good.

[@childecamehome7149]

​@@langerjungeoh my god the stanley parable, so good

[@boogiebong420]

​@@langerjungethis has got to be the best reply ever written

[@Mistheart101]

I just wanna note something someone said in the premiere chat: Most kids are all "I wanna have magic powers!" and these kids are like "I want this bachelor of medicine to realize his quest to conquer death is ultimately futile."

[@worldwar2freak12]

Russians.

[@tomhill3248]

I don't. Immortality sounds sweet.

[@shizotypical]

I mean, Klara did have magic powers, was it that great of an experience for her? These kids know.

[@melissahourihan2344]

my times playing dolls as a kid would get dark sometimes too I get it.

[@AmonDevilman]

I once put my toys trough a literal Ragnarok.

[@PineappleLiar]

One moment that’s stuck with me from playing this game was a moment in the Bachelor Route when you need to break Artemy out of prison for one of the day’s quests. There are three guards there, and usually you’re supposed to go to Grief to get his thugs to kill two of them, while you finish off the last. I didn’t know that, and just fully committed murder on 3 innocent men just to get Artemy out. It’s the one part of the Bachelor’s route where you actually have a reputation low enough to cause you problems, unless you’ve just been murdering civilians the entire game like a weirdo. The part that stuck with me wasn’t the actual murder, though, but what happened after. With the prison break done, I needed to go tell all the folks in power that I’d completed everything they wanted for the day, an act that’d give you a notable reputation boost. That walk back to Vlad’s place, having to avoid the town as a genuine criminal, only to be absolved of your crimes only moments later was the slimiest a game has ever made me feel. It really sets in that ‘reputation’ isn’t truly about how moral you decide to be throughout the game, but how much what you do happens to benefit the Powers That Be.

[@janecowie3626]

Banger reply

[@cheezemonkeyeater]

Just like how it is in real life; you can do all the crimes in the world, as long as you have rich enough friends.

[@steviebea]

this is a super cool insight omg

[@janecowie3626]

Found this reply again today and yeah past Jane, its a banger

[@yetanotherkeyblader3572]

@@janecowie3626 Anything you want to tell future Jane when she returns in another 2 months?

[@lunaraydue1340]

It's fair to criticize the fact that none of the NPCs are doing anything or talking to each other when you enter a room, but if you think about it... Doesn't that illustrate the themes of the game and the secret ending? The fact that they're dolls who only act when their god decides to play with them?

[@coynelaundry]

shes spittin

[@zarawhelan4132]

K why was this actually an amazing take?

[@moosekilzer8690]

Especially with the addition of this being a stage play, since extras often freeze in the background

[@jamesf4423]

It’s genius stuff

[@PeeksAndGeeks]

@@jamesf4423very

[@nixnox1962]

Ukranian Russian here, I might be able to explain the "Dragon/Leviathan" bit. So its not them using weird words just cause. The phrase Immortal Dragon has cultural connotation because our folklore and children's tales often feature a superhuman tank of a knight called a bagatir fighting various enemies, like baba yaga, koschei the "death-less" , and a dragon named zmei gorynych. They essentially created a smorgasborg of Slavic folklore as a backdrop for the story and this phrase is a small example, they combined the famous titles of two villains central in our cultural folktales, and this led to: "the dragon without death". Or a little more concisely: "the immortal dragon" as seen in the "out of place" translation. Leviathan may make more sense to English players in context but it loses depth when the cultural/nostalgia feeling is replaced by a simple overused metaphor. It isn't a fully faithful translation, but I got no problems cause this may actually be impossible without a player having intimate cultural and lingual knowledge of the origin. But yea 95% of quirky translation here is just direct or adapted translation of a creative mash of slavic slang, references, idioms, etc. used in this story to draw in Slavic players by drawing on their memories and cultural identity with clever and subtle slips to create a feeling of even further depth in the setting and and increases the game's inherent draw to that subsect of players.

[@patrickoleary1425]

This was really interesting to learn. Thx for clearing that up.

[@WaaveLvl0]

That's extremely interesting. I love the discussion around translations vs transliterations, it's just so incredibly complex when you have to weigh out what's better for the story; keeping the intention faithful to the original language or creating a clearer narrative to the non-native audience. In a situation like this I think going with the literal translation would've been the smarter option, the strangeness of the phrase in English really works for the tone and things like this also may lead to some of the audience learning details important to the game like your explanation of Slavic culture being directly tied to to it or just really cool facts in general.

[@moongoose8768]

Think a lot of ppl don't wanna spam yr replies, but we all thank you for explaining.

[@KasumiRINA]

Translating culture specific terms from Slavspeak into WASPspeak: "Bagatyr" is just a knight errant, comes from Mongolian title "Baghatur" "Zmei" or "zmiy" means literally "snake", and Gorynych is the name of a multi-headed hydra "Baba" is a dismissive term for a woman. "Baba yaga" is just a forest hag So russian folklore is not that confusing... really a mish-mash of Greek, central Asian and local Tatar/Bulgar/Slavic/Baltic legends, you got common Indo-European themes like phoenixes, being called just... "hot bird", princesses turned into frogs, and the most unique things are Yaga's hut having giant chicken legs (yes, her house moves), and Koschei being a skinny old man whose immortality is hidden in a nesting doll of needle-in-an-egg that's in-a-duck which is in-a-hare. Other themes are very similar to stuff from Greek myths renamed.

[@GreebleClown]

So it’s like the difference between calling someone a dragon and comparing someone to Smaug? There’s a bit of a nuance to it if you know exactly *which* dragon is being referenced... cool! I’ll have to look up the folklore, it sounds interesting!

[@themanontheclaphamomnibus]

Another thing the game doesn’t tell you - those angels made of blood? If you stand still, they won’t infect you. They just hover right next to you for a few seconds and then fly off. It’s easier sometimes to do that, but it can increase the risk that something else - a grey cloud, rat, or infected person - can get you while standing still.

[@tortis6342]

Very interesting.

[@dontworryhouston]

Rats along with these are brutal

[@gabrieleperine2124]

If I try this and you're lying, I will hunt you

[@hedgehog3180]

I guess this means that the plague was genetically engineered by the guys from Jurassic Park.

[@MoonShadowWolfe]

The monsters that make you stand still to avoid them teamed up with the ones that you run from?! Damn it!

[@PineappleLiar]

Great job everyone, since this video’s been released, we’ve gotten the Pathologic first day completion achievement up to a whopping 15%!

[@boch2411]

how much is it now?

[@PineappleLiar]

@@boch2411 15.3%

[@jamesonsockstoes5470]

Lol

[@handlehandlehandle]

Wow!

[@Endeva09]

Tekkers

[@citruslllad]

1:31:10 the girl in the street is the same as the girl in the garden, right? unless it's just an instance of the same character design being used, i wouldn't be surprised if this was the girl's way of inserting herself into the story. she decides her toys need a bit of help, so she imagines herself there helping them. incredible

[@aerrowqueing]

Holy hell - I just read this comment after watching the video again after ages. And that is actually relevant, becuase Hbomb even emphasises how she doesn't appear often AND she doesn't always - what does she carry? Yes, exactly, the best and most broken item in the game that is really hard to get, but she gives it to you for some flowers, presumably a resource much easier to come by than most other in the game. I think it's definitely intentional. Man, I really don't want to play this game (because I suck at playing games in general), but man, do I wanna play this game.

[@carag3921]

I've played the game (bachelor) and the npcs appear over and over. The thing is, that she doesn't usually have the medicine and it's very rare that she does have it.

[@0ptimuscrime]

“Your main quest is getting these warring factions to admit that the obvious problem exists.” Hmmm, wonder what that’s like

[@thevoidwantssanrioplushies9882]

I yelled "Global warming" and scared my cat T_T

[@jacksonelh]

TooLateToTheParty not really to be honest, pillars is the only example I can think of.

[@Grisolder]

@@jacksonelh Well, it is also definitely a Bioware thing : think about Dragon Age Origins, or Dragon Age Inquisition, as well as the whole plot of the "Mass Effect" trilogy.

[@jacksonelh]

Grisolder I haven't played any of those haha. pretty much the only rpgs I haven't played yet

[@gulfgiggleanimations4472]

What’s that? I couldn’t hear your joke over the sound of people drowning in the boiling ocean.

[@Suthek]

Imagine if the horrible translation was something unique to the Bachelor. He's not from there, he may not speak their dialect (or even language) all that well. Imagine getting turned off by the near unintelligible conversations and then you decide to play the Haruspex and suddenly everything is written perfectly crisp and clear.

[@thegreensunsetgroup2501]

I think that's the next logical step to make this game worse (worse in this context means better because it's pathologic)

[@epicgamer-ny4fj]

Don't give them ideas! Your lucky they even let you understand what the language they are speaking in the FIRST place!

[@Gloss613]

this is the opposite of playing as a malkavian in vampire the masquerade: bloodlines, no one understands you, and you can't understand anyone

[@bookbook9495]

@@epicgamer-ny4fj cough cough butchers

[@D00000T]

Second terrible idea to make the game worse (and better for pathologic) : force the player to only play the bachelor up to a certain point on their first time and have almost all the text be in untranslated Russian. Once the player gets fed up and goes back to the main menu, give them the ability to play the haruspex with perfect translation

[@ctoconnor1732]

Harris says that Pathologic is the most alone you can get with your thoughts in a game. he says this because clearly, hes never depersonalized while playing solitaire for multiple straight hours

[@jamesduffy7549]

Both of you are casuals. True dissatisfaction comes from 72 hours of bloxorz on coolmath games

[@finnorourke4861]

Nothing hurts more than grinding for 30 humanity in the depths, and missing 1 sunlight maggot...

[@zlodrim9284]

System Shock 2 is probably the game that made me feel the loneliest.

[@AnimeDreamer141]

@@zlodrim9284 i see you've never played chess against yourself

[@maxmad7641]

B l i g h t o w n y o u f o o l s the place of 0 fps and home of gross swamp, things? Reminds me a lot of pathologic 2 on console

[@takacsnic]

at 9:04 when he says, "you might be wondering why I'm reading the words out when they're on the screen, and that's because some people like to listen to these videos," it felt like a nice moment as right then I was in an art class and listening to this while doing an assignment, idk it just made me smile. He puts so much work into these videos for anyone to enjoy it however they can.

[@cobalt2672]

Revisited this video recently and had a thought - The Bachelor's mission updates after the twist because he *finished it*. He did, in fact, discover immortality...just not in a way he ever would have wanted.

[@g.j.9515]

yeowch..

[@jaebebifi]

This broke my brain thank you

[@ShiraCheshire]

I unironically love that we live in a world where a guy can talk about a video game for 2 straight hours, praising it constantly, only to tell you not to play it.

[@k_a_y_l_e_e]

and, bonus, he got paid to do it. (talk about the game, i mean, not play it, because youtube.)

[@akillen77]

It's a very unfun game

[@tsartomato]

noah often makes 4 hours long videos like a vid on EVERY COD GAME from storytelling standpoint

[@TheGreenskullgaming]

but you should play Pathalogic 2, just as dread inducing but more user friendly and feels a lot better to play (god does it still hurt though)

[@Rissa_1322]

those are the best ones. I almost never want anyone to play anything i play because they can never have MY experience and if they don't love it like i love it it will CRUSH ME

[@AnesthesiaCat]

The I'm Not Dead achievement has gone up to 14.3% in the 201 days since this video was posted. I wonder how responsible it was for that.

[@nidianelto7193]

The best part about it, is that all of the days achievements went up (at least the achievements that Hbomb shows at 26:05) meaning that not only did he get more people to buy and play the game, but that a majority of them made it past day one and even up to day five, otherwise those stats would have dropped down even more.

[@matthiasman]

In fairness... people have had a lot of spare time since then...

[@AnimatedTerror]

matthiasman haha! What ever could you possibly be talking about!

[@vetreas366]

@@AnimatedTerror Pathologic LARPing ofc

[@theworldmushroom2581]

The fact that the advice about Nina is the most replayed part if the video implying people went back to remember it while playing the game makes me really happy

[@katyadade1041]

I am from Russia, many of us played it as kids with no internet, it felt normal-paced because we usually didn't have too many games to play. So we never questioned if it was weird.

[@pestilenssi8979]

That's amazing lol

[@pedrosaraiva]

Imagine the reaction a child who’ve only played this game would have towards, say, mario 64.

[@fyfrrez]

This game actualy like living in Russia. So we felt at home.

[@zab416]

@@pedrosaraiva That would be kind of a mind fuck. Probably at first "TOO BRIGHT" and then they'd get into it but keep wondering where the deception parts were. Would not be freaked out by the haunted house level but maybe still by the eel? That is my guess on this hypothetical kid.

[@pedrosaraiva]

@@zab416 ahah yeah I thought the same thing “wait, how am I supposed to know how hungry mario is? Do i have to guess based on in game time? Also there’s no food anywhere”

[@majorghoul9017]

Giving you a 6 shot revolver and then pitting you against exactly 7 guys is hilarious

[@clsisman]

It’s extra funny when you’re Clara and it takes you 12 hits to floor the last one and four for them to floor you 🫠

[@wahbl997]

The game is actually unrealistic here. In real Soviet Russia there is always a way to unsheathe your balalaika or make your pet bear or your babushka fight the 7th one. You are never lost in real Soviet Russia.

[@maggiem6209]

That has to be the most meanly obvious joke at a player's expense I've ever seen in gaming. 😂

[@090giver090]

@@wahbl997 The game is obviously set before the Revolution. So, this is what we had to get along in those dark tsarist times. 😆

[@PhobosTK]

Which is funny, considering that it looks like Russian/Soviet Nagant revolver that had a 7-round cylinder

[@MagusMirificus]

Man, the Bachelor's story hits different when you've had unaccomplished life goals sitting on your list for two years, set before the plague completely wrecked everyone's priorities.

[@tremorstudio9766]

After Ruby videos, I understand Daniil more

[@Captain_Pink]

bruh 💀💀💀💀

[@goodsirbear-7579]

Oh, hey man

[@MagusMirificus]

@@goodsirbear-7579 Hullo, old friend. Good now.

[@wail4084]

4 years, you waited 4 years for that joke.. respect, honestly.

[@grilledcheese2084]

What joke?

[@drendraleigh4722]

​@@grilledcheese2084"I'm gonna use this in a future video and pretend a philosopher wrote it" But it turns out(As things kept turning out) that a philosopher DID wrote it!!

[@FirstLast-wk3kc]

Oh gosh i didn't notice he used said phrase!

[@ShayLaLaLooHoo]

Cite your sources, _Bachelor!!_

[@FirstLast-wk3kc]

@@ShayLaLaLooHoo ye!

[@TheHazmat347]

"honey, it's 4pm, time to watch Pathologic Is Genius and Here's Why again" "yes dear"

[@assadissa2]

You mean 4 am

[@Gothstana]

@@assadissa2 Time is an illusion, Pathologic is Genius is eternal.

[@kainreaverz]

Iba a escribir un comentario diciendo algo así, pero en español.

[@jlee7811]

I’m on day 4 of trying to finish this video

[@agalwithnoname]

@@kainreaverz JAJAJAJAJA yo también

[@oliverp3545]

A pretty meta thing that Hbomb didn't mention is that with as the bachelor as your first playthrough the town, exploring a place that doesn’t make sense to you is really fitting. But the moment you play as the other two, you're playing with the knowledge you have of the town, which makes sense as they’re both residents of the town. This means that as separate playthroughs the knowledge you had to fight to gainmin the first, comes as a given for others.

[@shuraito]

wow great catch. now that you mention it, maybe they should have made the first playable character danil and unlock burkah after the first playthrough. it would have fit the narrative a lot.

[@raz802]

Actually at 6:45 and again at 38:40, it is mentioned. Perhaps not as deeply as you elaborate on here, but still in a meaningful way I think.

[@cybercrasherstv]

​@@shuraito I think burkah being playable at first makes a lot of sense with this in mind tho. Burkah hasn't been there in a while, so it would explain not fully knowing where everything was, combined with being chased around and not having the time to relearn where everything is now. Especially since there's a giant towering staircase that has a baby inside

[@jaccobbailey8247]

I’d say that’s also why Artemy was allowed as a first playthrough as well. Artemy has been completely disconnected from his home and culture for years at this point, so he only has the general customs still memorized. By the time that he’s returned home, almost everything around him has changed, for better or worse. So it makes perfect sense that you can play his campaign first as well; hell, from the perspective of a first playthrough it almost makes more thematic sense that all the localized words you can use as the haruspex make no sense to you until quite some time into the game - they probably mean much less to Artemy than they did when he lived here years ago. His culture has been morphed and altered without his presence and he’s disconnected from both his people and the steppe. Things are strange, and it’s not until he returns to the kin that they start making more sense. Honestly, I’d say it’s almost as good of a first playthrough as the bachelor

[@donkylefernandez4680]

It makes the Changling's omniscience even funnier

[@diesirae1128]

It's because it had all started as a play. The writer of the game and the founder of Ice Peak Lodge, Nikolai Dybovsky (the Haruspex's face is his btw) has some theatrical background and had tried to stage his play but it just wouldn't work. Once exposed to the game development Dybovsky's got the idea to make a game out of his play. He had an opportunity to present his idea to a producer who loved the script (they say he gave a couple of copies of it to his coleagues to read just for pleasure). And yes, it was just as long as an average novel, that's why the player has to read so much: there was no way to let the characters actually say all they had to. So Pathologic is basically a piece of unconventionally written literature. The author wanted to tell a story and share his ideas and just happened to get access to staff and money nesessary to create a game. so he did.

[@profeseurchemical]

thats really interesting. i wonder which is better? the game we got or the play that could of been? either way its still a really compelling story. i personally think you get more from it being an interactive experience but also that the barriers to entry of said experience were too high. maybe the sequel fixes that idk

[@anduro7448]

basically , you are playing a novel

[@PatchworkPS]

This is such crucial information! Thanks for posting it.

[@BartMassey-PO8]

Thanks for this information! I would love to read a translation of the original draft of the play. I'm really curious about its evolution into a video game script. For example, I'm guessing the Polygon wasn't in the original. The Polygon sounds to me like it is (a) a really obvious video game metaphor, and (b) a bit tacked-on, without much dialog or code compared to the rest of the game. Be nice to know if that's how it played out, or if I'm way off base.

[@scouts.3958]

I'm in the artistic side of game development and a writer, its my DREAM to make a novel-like game that's not a dating sim or something of that caliber. pathologic is wonderful use of the medium because of how everyone is acting concurrently. in a book or a play, you may have a sense of the dramatic irony between scenes that gets resolved in the following chapters, but it doesn't hit as hard until you're fighting for survival and the asshole you were just playing as, a man who's shoes you've walked in and perspective understood, set the cure to all your problems on fucking fire without a second thought.

[@enenome9810]

Sometimes I wonder why the phrase "delicious egg" haunts me. Then, I return.

[@captaincrazycreative]

This sounds so ominous...

[@Chest3rTheSquirrel]

look at that, there's just a little fella

[@ArkayeCh]

Playing Bachelor: "I hate this entire town." Playing Haruspex: "This entire town hates me." Playing Changeling: "Just like the simulations."

[@h4jlk790]

Bachelor: “the town hates me” Haruspex: “the town hates me and thinks I’m a killer” Changeling: “just like the simulations.”

[@Hopeitsagood1]

Bachelor: EFF U Haruspex: EFF ME Changeling: Just like the simulations

[@expectationofplenty]

@@h4jlk790 hugs 🫂

[@vulpesignis2201]

Average barchelor fan: i uant to have fwan Average haruspex enjoyer: damn this story is better than harry potter Changeling: *Changeling*

[@nickmontalbano9573]

Watch those wrist rockets.

[@MethCrystal666]

Daniil Dankovsky's fun steppe vacation in the streets Artemy Burakh's tormentous nightmare in the sheets

[@plutarchvonpluto6439]

I don't want to ruin those 420 likes...

[@paperbackwriter1111]

honestly, that soundclip is just so funny to me

[@tadhgknight3484]

Can someone give me a time stamp because this is a two hour video and sometimes ya just wanna listen to that clip

[@MsAnimeEagle]

@@tadhgknight3484 1:05:45-1:05:55 Enjoy (｡´∀｀)ﾉ

[@SputnikBeepBoop]

@@paperbackwriter1111 It's my absolute favorite part of the video

[@vincenzoorasi2498]

"you are broken Lara. I, on the other hand, am used to winning" is something you'd expect Shadow the hedgehog to say, swiftly followed by "you're a beta male, Sonic!"

[@deviouscrackers]

I read it in his voice lol

[@PermianExtinction]

I'm literally always going to comment every time I see someone mentioning this line-it is mistranslated. Yes even in the updated TL. Daniil isn't being nearly as goofily rude as it comes off, he's telling her not to worry about HIM (because that's what she was worried about, that he was going to be executed by the Inquisition), literally just saying that she's a doomer. The line is more like, "Your spirit is crushed, Lara."

[@deviouscrackers]

@@PermianExtinction it's still really funny to make fun of the line though

[@tgreaux5027]

*EGGS*

[@Ahrone1586]

@@PermianExtinction i dony understand

[@andrewherrmann5243]

I might be disgustingly late to this idea, but I thought I'd bring it up: the sound of a child crying that plays whenever your reputation goes down... Is one of the kids from the garden making that noise, weeping because their story has taken yet another turn for the tragic? Again, this has only occurred to me as a possibility after listening to this video about a dozen times. (btw sorry mr. bomberguy, my job won't let me have my phone out :(

[@NWolfsson]

Indeed, there is a child crying when your reputation goes down, _and_ a child clapping excitedly when it goes up. It may be the boy, even: IIRC he says that he prefers a nice story but the girl gets to call the shots and likes them twisted.

[@tmbabe13]

i think it's like a pretty small detail but something i also notice is just the psychology of like.... the stats are like. "exhaustion" which goes up, "hunger" which goes up, "infection" which goes up rather than like decreasing health/energy/stomach room or whatever you know? i don't think i'm wording this well i just mean there's a certain negativity and pessimism to it, watching yourself get more exhausted and infected and hungry rather than less healthy/energetic/whatever. it obviously doesn't apply to every stat but it's something that specifically stood out to me i guess

[@roadworkaheadIsurehopeitdoes]

I was actually just about to comment that! They've effectively eliminated any satisfaction players can get from maintaining full bars by associating them with bad stats rather than good ones. It's genius

[@petewerehere]

Entropy never stops building

[@SeppelSquirrel]

To complete the psychology, Health could have been renamed "Pain," and Reputation could have been renamed "Infamy."

[@Jay-qh6uv]

The fact that you can't make the good thing go up, you can only make the bad thing go down, definitely seems intentional. You can be miserable and in pain or slightly less miserable and in pain.

[@SuperShyerGuy]

Two minor things: 1. Given that the 'burning out the infection' mechanic returned in Pathologic 2, I think it was likely intended. Either that or they just liked it so much they decided to keep it. 2. Clara CAN actually equip a weapon - the scalpel. It makes fighting as Clara SO much easier, and it's pretty sneaky of the devs to make you think she can't equip weapons by basically only ever giving you the knives. I got all the way to Day 9 before I figured this out, so it's not surprising no one else apparently knows about this :P i love this video so much, it made me play the game

[@krasmazov1959]

Oh, but isn't clara's reach slightly longer than the bachelors? I kinda find her hand to hand fightin' easier...

[@NotBamOrBing]

@@krasmazov1959 it's a ranged attack i'm pretty sure, which is incredible in a game where most enemies only have melee range attacks

[@maboilaurence8227]

She can actually equip both the scalpel and a small pistol both Danil and Artemy can't use, but her ranged attack is so strong I never felt the need to use either of them

[@aprokhozhy]

Oh goddamn. The polyhedron IS a metaphor for videogames. “A building made from it’s own blueprints” is literally what code is

[@melchezediek]

Damn, okay, everyone seems to find a comment for this video that blows their minds, and this is the one that did it for me. I love this fact, and the revelations from the super secret endings; they show that unlike most deep dives into a game and it's philosophy and underlying meaning, hbomb isn't actually reaching like one might for a book report. What he's picked up on still might go unnoticed even to others who got all the endings, but are almost certainly what the devs were trying to communicate. Makes this whole video feel, I dunno... Consequential? I think that's a fitting word.

[@CallMeMrStopmotion]

420th like

[@TheStrix]

🤘

[@hiddengardenflowerdance]

@@CallMeMrStopmotion 1st thought since 12 years old

[@clsisman]

Yeah, and this is why in one the kids are like “only children can see the polyhedron for what it is, you’ll only see a bunch of ladders and walkways” (paraphrase). It’s a commentary on how looked down upon games were as an artistic medium “for kids” at the time of its release. And seems this way it makes sense all the kids go to the polyhedron when the plague breaks out. Realistic honestly, I can totally see kids hiding from the horrors outside by playing video games. And then in two if you pick the nocturnal ending you get to go talk to all the developers who are in the polyhedron and they tell you what making the game was like for them.

[@drebbmebben5322]

"THAT'S what the game looks like???" -My loving partner who has heard me listen this video hundreds of times, but apparently never looked at the screen

[@BassicallyKiyash]

This might be a personal opinion, but I like pathologic graphics MORE than pathologic 2. I think it's quite charming and sets the scene very well

[@flaherty9248]

@@BassicallyKiyashFeel the same about fallout nv, never use graphics mods cause I like the charm of how shitty the base game looks

[@BassicallyKiyash]

@@flaherty9248 legit, i was disappointed when i saw pathologic 2

[@flaherty9248]

@@BassicallyKiyash eh I think pathological 2 still has its charms but it makes everything seems for dated rather than just artistic choice from the 1st game

[@BassicallyKiyash]

@@flaherty9248 agreed

[@Freezer94]

Wow, I can't believe Daniil Dankovsky plagerised that quote.

[@lindseyclair921]

Dankovsky you prickly prick, you’ve plagiarized us all!

[@lrose5522]

It finally all comes full circle

[@theleaningaxehd]

I waited years for this punchline

[@HugoRBMarques]

Cite your sources!

[@alexdyer5369]

@@theleaningaxehd I feel like I've had a 5 day glow, knowing this came to fruition.

[@Joe-vz4yc]

26:54 "a plague is starting but no one with the power to take proper action will help because everyone has their own agenda"

[@kellanlevi5663]

Yeah that line hits different after it started happening literally in the real world

[@bumblenbee4013]

That line hurts, I remember rewatching this December 2020 and feeling intense grief.

[@jhonshephard921]

I immediately checked if this was made before or after 2020 when I heard that line but man it predicted a LOT of what happened during it.

[@landlockedcroat1554]

unrealistic

[@TheInfernalOnionz]

Not like in the real world haha ha ha hahahaHAHAHAHAHAH OH GOD

[@redmilo92]

3:06 Part 1: What is Pathologic? 9:07 Part II: Futility and Disempowerment 25:35 Part II.ii Day Two 40:39 Part III: The Writing 43:30 i: Lies 44:40 ii. Perspective 48:45 iii. The Dialogue System Itself 56:14 Part IV: The Jank 1:05:55 Part V: The Haruspex 1:21:27 Part VI: The Endings 1:34:48 Part VII: The Changeling Debate 1:52:25 CONCLUSION

[@skootz24]

I love you.

[@anadice9489]

can't believe this video has a whole table of contents

[@jamesmeow3039]

51:40 Go onion.

[@meris8486]

Those ii's give me flashbacks to school homework.

[@emmathomson4841]

+

[@ohnothepineappleohno1524]

Shopkeeper is seriously looking you dead in the eye and telling you a egg is worth 1650$

[@KiraTesla]

Assuming it's rubles, and using today's exchange rate, that egg is about $18. Completely ridiculous

[@Nixahma]

​@@KiraTesla I thought to myself "hm that's not that bad" and then I remembered that's for a singular egg and not even a carton

[@rili424]

the “keep looking at the haruspex. it’s a nice model.” line at 1:34:20 is made infinitely funnier by the fact that the haruspex’s appearance is based on nikolay dybowski, ice pick lodge’s founder and pathologic’s creator

[@Wells13555]

I don't think you linked this at the right time slot

[@SapkaliAkif]

​@@Wells13555 It's on the bottom part of the screen in the dialogue

[@tortis6342]

lol that is exactly the kind of thing I would do.

[@paperbackwriter1111]

„Nobody‘s gonna notice I called myself hot, it‘s hidden behind a lot of requirements“

[@jcs6387]

a plague is starting and the people in power have no idea what they are doing and you feel completely powerless *haha i love fictional video games*

[@ImperativeGames]

IKR? Next pandemic will be even funnier because it seems no one will learn anything from that one. Why the fuck vaccine takes so long?

[@user-yl2so8db5t]

Imperative Games because that’s how science works. A year is an incredibly short estimate for a vaccine considering it takes years and even decades to run trials for this type of thing usually to account for the diversity of millions/ billions of people with differing conditions. In the meantime, the government is supposed to contain the situation til a vaccine is developed and... well. It’s not. Blame fully lies with gov.

[@ImperativeGames]

@@user-yl2so8db5t One would assume that modeling how the immune system works would be a much higher priority and the international project would be created and properly financed... Because viruses don't have (national) prejudice and a real threat to everyone...

[@dylanparry8364]

Escapist fiction is just my favourite 😭👌

[@Merahki3863]

@@ImperativeGames we already have general models of the immune system and the human genome. That describes a normal person. The problem is quite a high percentage of people aren't normal and the factors are so intricate it's hard to measure why. Top quality research requires measuring people over a long time (decades) very invasively and having a wide sample to make sure the people you are studying aren't 1 in a million. To get a full picture you also need to study what doesn't work, to really get a fuller picture of what's going on. Nobody is going to sign up for that lifestyle and very few follow through with it. Researchers do a lot of low quality less invasive research and that's just how it's gonna be if you live in an ethical society.

[@c423ll1]

11:58 "the game has fight mechanics the same way a car driven of a cliff has flight mechanics" might be my favorite phrase on a videogame criticism ever

[@wildercerrate7295]

For real that's yahtzee level of wit

[@thecheshirespy5002]

I fell asleep listening to this, and thought I imagined most of it up. The hunger, the price change, especially shmowder. I'm astounded that my brain made none of this up except for putting into a Stardew valley art style.

[@ryanisverycool]

now i wanna see stardew valley pathologic

[@tatltails3923]

@@ryanisverycool That's just Fear and Hunger, actually

[@JD-xr5od]

Something that stands out to me which the video doesn't really mention: The Haruspex studies surgery for 10 years and then returns to his hometown. In theory he's not actually any less of a doctor than The Bachelor, and in fact The Haruspex is strictly more skilled at curing the plague. Yet The Bachelor is a high status person who gets to suck up to the rich and powerful in town while The Haruspex exists on the fringe of society as a wanted weirdo. This is probably meant to reflect a certain difference in the philosophy of someone who studies classical medicine and someone who specializes as a surgeon. See, for most of the last 2500 years of Western medicine doctors tended to insist on philosophical rationalism and tradition: They believed the work of someone like Galen discussing the four humors and the products of their imagination over their eyes and ears. This led to treatments that were often worse than the disease, and an uncompromising arrogance that kept medicine intellectually stagnant for centuries. Doctors were highly regarded fools whose fear of looking bad made them absolutely confident in prescribing treatments based on nonsense. Surgery on the other hand was a little different. It was still based on the work of Galen, but a surgeon couldn't ignore reality the way that a general physician could. The Haruspex's role as a dissectionist is of particular symbolic importance, because it was when surgeons were finally allowed to dissect human bodies that we began to really understand anatomy and how to surgically treat disease. Quite literally, The Haruspex is allowed into possession of secret knowledge about medicine that is denied to a spiritual student of Galen like The Bachelor. This reflects their true roles in the story, and their respective plots. The Bachelor is simply a *witness* to events that are largely going on without him, having a marginal impact that tilts things one way or the other while blundering about and doing damage he can't even see; he represents philosophical rationalism. The Haruspex on the other hand has been initiated into the empirical surgical traditions, and through close observation of the natural world is able to devise a true cure for the plague: he represents philosophical empiricism and science. Hence their acting as foils for each other, The Bachelor is the bad guy *exactly because* he is the appearance of truth dressed up as Rational Science suppressing actual knowledge and science as practiced by The Haruspex.

[@JD-xr5od]

Notably this is also a metaphor for how the Soviet Union treated the subjects of economics, genetics, etc.

[@theoneandonlymichaelmccormick]

John David Pressman Yeah, it’s kind of funny how Burrakh, a man who’s studied surgery for ten years, and comes from a long line of proud pathologists and medicine men, is seen as a quack by Dankovsky simply because his cultural and religious values are different. Fuck, Dankovsky’s a BACHELOR of medicine. The bastard’s only finished his undergraduate degree, and yet he thinks he has the right to boss around an entire town, sticks his nose up at a trained surgeon, and single-handedly attempts to conquer death itself? God, Dankovsky sucks.

[@justalostlocal]

@@theoneandonlymichaelmccormick Yet there're so many Dankovsky in our time. Those prickly pricks will ruin us all.

[@theoneandonlymichaelmccormick]

L Lin If Dankovsky existed in the age of the internet, his profile picture would be a marble bust of a Greek philosopher.

[@steinmaniac7920]

@@theoneandonlymichaelmccormick uncool, dude

[@Sins...]

Of course Dankovsky has so much walking to do, he's gotta meet his daily Steppe goals.

[@cmd5789]

Dad? I didn’t know you watch youtube

[@jobotherobohoboanddr.rappa5073]

Haaaaaaaa ha haa

[@Ender11037]

Angry like.

[@tortis6342]

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa I'm laughing but it hurts.

[@WangleLine]

bwahahhaha

[@BlondTimeWaster]

So now I'm a girl in a small Russian town in the middle of the plague. It's time to start speaking like I have a PhD in philosophy.

[@i.147]

dont forget to stock up on needles and painkillers in case a doctor willing to trade walnuts passes by!

[@psychic-paranoia8020]

Accidentally kill a child while trying to heal them.

[@kingcrimsonwashere8736]

And remember to keep a Derringer in your back pocket!

[@animechnik8740]

С какого ты города, зай?

[@whereisawesomeness]

Quote Nietzsche without bothering to understand his ideas

[@ohnoitslils]

no matter how many times I watch this, 'GO ONION' catches me off guard and utterly incapacitates me

[@sarahtonin6367]

"Don't catch the plague, shithead" has to be some of the best life advice I've ever heard.

[@Crusader1089]

It was basically government policy here in the UK

[@Paledomain]

aged like fine wine lol

[@pentax2551]

That part really cracked me up

[@Earthstar_Review]

It worked for me!

[@bisnecronomidol6559]

@@Crusader1089 Convict-19

[@UmbreonMessiah]

The Changeling's story makes more sense if you know the mythology behind Changelings in Europe: faeries were said to replace peoples' babies with changelings as a prank, or if the child was the envy of another family. That there is another, evil version of the Changeling just roaming around the town that nobody seems to notice is part and parcel to the name. She's *actually* dealing with someone replacing her and giving her a bad name.

[@варкававилон]

It's an interesting theory, but her original name has nothing to do with a creature from english mythology. Her name in russian is Samozvanka, which means imposter, while russian word for changeling as a mythology creature is perevyortysh or oboroten'

[@AnimatedTerror]

лови, ловински! But still, it can’t be coincidence that the developers chose to swap her name to “changling” for the English translation/release.

[@ohno7345]

@@варкававилон Yes, but these two creature’s names both have the theme of replacing/trying to impersonate another; imposter is an obvious nod to this and the myth of the Changeling is also good proof to use in this theory.

[@Tinyvalkyrie410]

Jesus this game just acquired a whole new terrifying context. I remember when I played this originally I thought, wow I am so glad I live in a part of the world where this kind of thing could never happen. Welp. Today I panicked because I saw toilet paper at the store for the first time in over a month, and literally raced a lady to it. I’m in a wheelchair so I had the speed advantage but not the reaching the shelf advantage. I am a young woman in a wheelchair. She didn’t even spare me a glance as she ran off with it. I also found an old dust mask in my barn, realized it was full of mouse poop, and still considered wearing it. I am chronically ill and haven’t been able to see any of my doctors in a month because it’s considered elective now for me to like... function. I’m contemplating stock piling my medications, because even if supply lines stay stable, going to the pharmacy once a week feels risky. Based on statistics, I probably won’t get the virus, and if I do I probably won’t die. That said, I’m pretty sure this is going to cost me years off my life in myriad other ways. What a time to be alive.

[@someoneprobably1802]

Well, I hope you good, stay safe comrad.

[@d.h.k.c8113]

The strangest correlation between real life and video games, is that the harder the playthrough, the more rewarding the lore and story you unearth in the process. You see a darker, less compassionate side of the other NPCs, even though your character deserves their compassion the most. And it’s only through playing as another character, as that woman who snatched that last item from the shelf, that you might understand her desperation or motives (which of course, in real life, you can’t do). Therefore, it makes it all the more satisfying when you have the good ending. Yeah, the playthrough was a living hell, and I couldn’t necessarily categorize it as “fun”, but damn if I didn’t earn this good ending. I’m sorry that “key item” wasn’t within your reach, and that you may have to hold onto other key items just to survive the end game, but I also hope that it serves a greater purpose or has a deeper meaning. Because as we know, unlike video games, not everything happens for a reason.

[@laurencewood5490]

I hope you stay safe ! :^)

[@benburke3015]

40:55 the distance Harry went to complete this joke 4 years later could circle the entire circumference of the earth 50 times over lmao.

[@KommissarAzuraCh]

In the other video, which time stamp did he used the quote?

[@darkchaosruler]

@@KommissarAzuraCh Its the Plagiarism video, 3:37:18 to be exact

[@KommissarAzuraCh]

@@darkchaosruler thank you! I knew it was in the plagiarism video, but i couldn't remember where he said it. Thanks!

[@Uffda.]

@@darkchaosrulerthank you!

[@teodoraristic822]

This is *MY* sleepover and *I* get to choose the movie!

[@nicolesong6199]

mood

[@yerthebestaround9654]

7 hours of Pokemon Omega Ruby?

[@jimmykeffer7401]

But we always watch Pathologic is Genius and Here’s Why

[@Taz31415]

@@yerthebestaround9654 Pierce Brosnan at Mrs. Fitzsimmons sea bass.

[@MrInurbutt]

@@nicolesong6199 theway too loud 00 cc in

[@WrenderUntoTheDM]

One thing I found funny when trying out Pathologic that didn't get mentioned, is that you pick up money as you walk around. Imagine the Bachelor, walking around from place to place and- ooh, a coin!

[@MossyBear]

It's hilarious when you're on the run from hostile npcs and the money keeps coming

[@doxaforthesoul]

I can actually imagine that just fine, yeah

[@kriffapher]

I’m imagining it right now. Yes.

[@dragomegaman3711]

I'm imagining it too 😂

[@garrottingonabudget5626]

Still can't believe that Tommy Tallarico made the soundtrack for this masterpiece.

[@sarahroberson6036]

He did…no way

[@bugdracula1662]

Not only that, he was the first American to eat an egg!

[@juliacorinnaalice8124]

His mother must be very proud!

[@ohno8774]

It doesnt surprise me - hes worked on over 400 video games

[@brynnp1165]

@@ohno8774 *500 video games!

[@dyld921]

00:00:00 Intro 00:00:30 Title 00:03:00 Part I: What is Pathologic? 00:09:00 Part II: Futility & Disempowerment 00:25:28 Part II.ii: Day Two 00:33:46 "Recontextualising" 00:40:37 Part III: The Writing 00:43:28 i. Lies 00:44:37 ii: Perspective 00:56:01 Part IV: The Jank 01:05:52 Part V: The Haruspex, or the real Pathologic starts here 01:21:25 Part VI: The Endings 01:22:48 The Bachelor's Ending 01:24:10 The Haruspex's Ending 01:34:43 Part VII: The Changeling Run 01:49:21 The Changeling's Ending 01:52:24 Conclusion 01:54:13 Pathologic 2 01:58:45 Credits

[@xydo4art]

Thank you for the work!

[@Amazatastic]

I love you

[@harrysachz6395]

ARTEMY BARUKH'S TORMENTOUS NIGHTMARE

[@badlamprey891]

I'll often replay this entire video JUST for "Danil Dankovsky's Fun Steppe Vacation was just the tutorial for Artemy Burakh's TORMENTOUS NIGHTMARE!"

[@caitmonroe9349]

For me, it's for DELICIOUS EGG.

[@Flowtail]

"Ooh, a lemon!" is excellent, too

[@badlamprey891]

@@Flowtail And now I'm rewatching this again...

[@atish365]

Song link please kind sir.

[@anewhero1216]

I always watch at least mostly for “GO, ONION!”

[@Methus3lah]

27:03 “A plague is starting, but no one with the power to take proper action will help because everyone has their own agenda.” This aged well.

[@slevinchannel7589]

„To read makes our speaking English good." -Cody, from Some More News. „Dictionarys are Part of the Reptilian-Movement’s Plan to Make us Understand Words!’ -Hbomberguy, the Hbomberguy-Guy. I cant be the only one who sees the resemblance. Both are epic and do social Commentary on YT. So if youre Fan of one but not the other: Duh!

[@D00000T]

Pathologic 1&2 are my favorite Covid simulators

[@SamHaeger]

I keep watching this through the pandemic, it's a weird catharsis.

[@ChariMahariel]

@@D00000T I ironically got COVID soon after trying this game

[@jangoneko3875]

aged like fine fuckin cheese, holy shit

[@trappedontheinternet]

I'm rewatching this video, and imo: "The game has fighting mechanics in the same sense that a car being driven off a cliff has flight mechanics" was an underappreciated line.

[@ArcturusAcerbic]

This is a 2h long documentary depicting a man developing Stockholm syndrome towards a game. 10/10 fun.

[@bigmouthprick5852]

@@oneiric1213 I am looking for it on the wiki page. Where does it say that?

[@lordbuss]

@@bigmouthprick5852 "Stockholm syndrome is a "contested illness" due to doubt about the legitimacy of the condition", at the begining.

[@thatannoyingguyinthecommen5970]

@@sambeckettcat everything you have written here is a Complete fabrication of the truth with absolutely zero evidence to back up such a claim, if this was even remotely true then there would be alot of source material in Google or any other search engine in the UK (I'm not in a censored country) that would offer to agree with this ludicrous statement, iys a very entertaining and enjoyable little anecdote that belongs firmly in the fictional corner right in between Where's wally and stig of the dump...

[@thatannoyingguyinthecommen5970]

@Dante Galand did you really just quote a wiki page and try and make out it's facts?? Bro I could literally start a wiki page right now and say what ever I wanted and it would never be fact checked and I could post it and say its 100% Gospel 🤣🤣🤣 gtfoh with this haha

[@Frostgiantbutsmall]

@@thatannoyingguyinthecommen5970 Wikipedia is actually pretty anal about making sure pages have accurate information. It's possible that you'll find misinformation, but that's more rare than you'd expect.

[@hobihope2981]

I genuinely thought the baby crying noise was a video editing choice you'd inserted for a black-comedy-type joke. I was wrong. It's actually in the game.

[@shotgun6X]

WHAT?

[@hobihope2981]

shotgun6X YEAH. Apparently it's supposed to be the "gods" of the world (the kids playing the game) crying because you did something bad. Also, love your pfp

[@shotgun6X]

@@hobihope2981 Thanks. And man, that is p weird, I thought it was for affect and laughed lol

[@neckpeck2738]

@@hobihope2981 i saw it more as a painful reminder that that NPC you killed without much thought had a family and people who loved them and will mourn for them, and you just tore a person out of a community without thinking about what you'd done.

[@dorianisweird5215]

@@neckpeck2738 i thought the exact same thing, like it's a kid crying because you killed their parent.

[@KittyThaliaX23]

“You will inevitably do harm. As for Brainy, he has no regard for casualties at all” god it’s their stories! She’s always known, even before the game’s started.

[@gabbystorm4909]

I also love thinking about it from the perspective that of course she would! She is only playable once you have played it once already, so even in that sense it makes sense that as the player you would understand better.

[@cgkase6210]

You could even guess in the universe of the game, the Changeling has seen it before. She becomes aware of the game, and seemed aware of it before even meeting the Children. Her waking up in a dug grave could be seen as her waking up from a previous game, where she died.

[@av3stube480]

That's pretty interesting, but I can't help but notice she's kind of a hypocrite since she kills a kid she's trying to heal...

[@cricketx7653]

@@av3stube480 she doesn’t do that on purpose though? she tried to heal him and we have no evidence to support that she had any clue that would happen

[@swordwarriormagewizard]

"Your surgical hands do more killing.." the roast!

[@meganvincent5381]

My sister pointed out something really interesting about the changeling. Her name literally matches the European folk creature that snatches children and replaces them with an evil version of the child. She said that it could've been a botched changeling job because she was left in a shallow grave. I just found that super interesting and never noticed it before and it was staring me in the face lol

[@cottage-core_]

"A plague is starting but no one with the power for taking proper action will help..." This aged...

[@michaelvanhaverbeke6069]

+

[@KAXSH]

Like a fine wine

[@franziska9260]

like honey

[@theblackbaron4119]

'Aight, I already started to build a giant polyhedron. It's a bit more batshaped though.

[@savagenovelist2983]

*WELL*

[@BelligerentSky]

This video infected my brain because I watched it shortly after getting a job in food service and every time I went to grab onions out of the cooler I said to myself "go, onion, i need to collect the tools"

[@joelovedaymusic8385]

Hahahaha I love that! I guarantee I'll go the other way and start referring to "oynons" while I'm cooking

[@SOLO.SHAD0W-HAWK]

I laughed way to long and... thx

[@cassiopeiawarrener9654]

Meanwhile, every time I handle eggs the spirit of Harris Hbomberguy Brewis rises in my head speaking directly into my soul 'delicious ... e g g.'

[@versebuchanan512]

The walk-in, or your station mise? You're in the business, don't call it a cooler unless you're at somebody's uncles bbq, linedog.

[@NeoNovastar]

​@@versebuchanan512i highly doubt bro is paid enough to give that much of a fuck lol

[@CleverChina]

«Бессмертный Дракон» or “Immortal Dragon” is a synonym for the Devil in Russian literature, especially the classics

[@ITSMANATIME]

Or a being that embodies the essence of Evil, if you look at it from a pre-Christianity point of view. Or it could simply be referring to him as a dragon because dragons are thought to have very long lifespans. Hard to say which it is since we don't hear the Bachelor's intonation.

[@PurpleBear1625]

It probably refers to the embodiment of sin that is ever-present within the human condition but can be overcome in individuals with enough persistence. But I don't know enough Russian-orthodox mythos to be sure.

[@andeve3]

that's pretty metal

[@m_worm]

there is an emotion evoked by the knowledge this video was published in november 2019 that i cannot name but it is absolutely looming for two straight hours. very well done

[@midgematic8659]

The Bachelor: *says something pretentious* The Player: Im not with him. Ive never met this man before in my life

[@LAAV69]

This so hard

[@lilcarttheoneandonly]

nice pfp, spleens is best cat

[@inkaf225]

@not Shane kid you're clearly a kid for dissing grey.

[@sebastianquintana5412]

As a med student i can confirm that clinics and surgeons often end up trying to hunt each other down

[@zab416]

Shit I've shown a few med students a screenshot of this game. I didn't mean to help fuel the ongoing blood feud. Or the bureaucratic cat and mouse. I'm not sure which is more deadly.

[@tylerbeaumont]

Pathologic is just an analogy for trying to find the right number to call for an uncommon treatment while working in first appointments prove me wrong

[@zab416]

@@tylerbeaumont Scenario in your comment gives me a similar sense of looming horrible doom as Pathologic, this is a solid game theory.

[@ThatOneIrishFurry]

Do you also wake up everyday looking at your original goals for life then continue your quest helping deal with the unexpected plauge?

[@Chloe-kd6zq]

🔝🔝✨🔝🔝🔝🔝

[@Snpaulie]

The 3 million views are just the same 30k people watching the video again

[@botanicallyaberry6406]

I saw this comment while currently rewatching this video for the nth time this year lmao

[@WetRatGaming]

On my hundredth rewatch, I feel called out XD

[@vladimirstok149]

what the fuck is wrong with us :((

[@WolfHreda]

@@vladimirstok149 Nothing is wrong with us. Snpaul is obviously the Shabnak trying to single us out and pick us off. Damnable steppe demon...

[@veelogation3890]

its so good tho

[@grimsladeleviathan3958]

Fun fact: The one and only time I have ever fallen asleep while on my computer was when I was playing this game. Genuinely, no joke. I was walking for so long that my head just fell forward and I took a nap for like 2 hours. Thanks for introducing this game to me, Mr. Bomberguy.

[@leon6777]

21:40 "People only fear bloodshed, when it's *their* blood, and *their* shed" is an excellent line.

[@kaykeunil]

It really is. It also makes me go “what the fuck why would you say it like this what do you mean” at least once

[@Axius27]

"Yeah, that's right, STAY OUT OF MY SHED!"

[@sebastianquintana5412]

Explain big words magic man

[@tei4724]

@@sebastianquintana5412 y'know just a first thing to come to mind but... I think it's saying that people only start to worry about violence and death when they are being affected.

[@AdroSlice]

@@tei4724 That much is obvious, the questionable part is the "And Their Shed". Change that and to an Or and you have two examples to distill one common meaning, but if it's *and their* shed it just seems a bit silly. Which, I mean, it could just be a silly joke added to the already sufficient line prior to the "and".

[@r.l.189]

Boy, don't I have the attention span to watch a 90 minute movie without being on my phone anymore. But I sure can watch a two hour video about a game I haven't played for the 7th time!

[@xyzzyxzyxxyz]

lol that is so true. KZbin content is getting so insanely good, I'm constantly surprised and the bar just keeps going higher. Meanwhile the movie industry has its bar lowered every year, movies just aren't worth it anymore, there are a few good ones every year though.

[@philipbearman6431]

Same

[@Lucas_Nuts]

@@xyzzyxzyxxyz It depends what you watch in here lmao, there's literally the type of content that will cringe the death out of you and there is the..... Well.... The NSFW part of youtube. But yeah, this video is great guys, haha, ahah.

[@m00nrac00n]

@@xyzzyxzyxxyz KZbin has some of the best and most underrated content we ever had. Im afraid its not forever ... like where will this video be in 30 years ? Probably gone and forgotten. Makes me think we need to find a way to save all of it so we wont end up with a decade of lost media.

[@sorryifoldcomment8596]

@@m00nrac00n 100% agree Honestly, we need people downloading all of these things. Like in physical form. It's a lot of work but it needs to happen. I think about it a lot.

[@brendonbarnes9551]

My name is Brendon, I was listening to this video while halfway paying attention and "YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO TAKE THE DEAL, BRENDAN" scared the shit out of me.

[@blackshirts_and_breads]

did u take the deal tho

[@vegronica9006]

Now you know how I feel watching his Fallout: New Vegas video. "Veronica, NO!"

[@kattastic9999]

I have been trying to find the moment that line is said, for months, and have no other option but to ask you for a time stamp.

[@wesleywyndam-pryce5305]

@@slevinchannel7589 why are you spewing bad takes completely unrelated to what your commenting under all over this video comment section?

[@stevenyoung9738]

@@slevinchannel7589 curb your own self importance

[@Jack-pt6bo]

I genuinely don't think Pathologic 3 would be here without this video, this game gained so much popularity from it and the studio were really struggling with money, which is why they couldn't add The Bachelor to 2. I'm so happy. Thank you hbomb.

[@lucidiabautista2085]

"Danil Dankovski's fun steppe vacation was just the tutorial for Artemy Burakh's tormentous nightmare!" Loved that quote.

[@thefalloutwiki]

Lucidia Bautista the comic sans was a good touch

[@LostTimeLady]

Best bit!

[@thefalloutwiki]

so funny

[@angelad4757]

1:05:45 for anyone looking. Also for me later, bc that transition is a banger

[@LostTimeLady]

@@angelad4757 I absolutely agree! (The REAL Pathologic starts here!)

[@zerotrooper1991]

Some part of this footage you may notice that author walks diagonally. This is a weird bug caused by amateur game engine programming, the character actually walks slightly faster if you press W and strafe. It was the first actual game made by this studio. I'm from Russia and remember time the original Pathologic came out, one game magazine rated it 4.5/10, and the other gave it GOTY title. It was weird thing i tried by myself few years and had a lot of fun but also a lot of pain. Also the writing style and theatre references are caused by the fact that Nikolai Dybovsky, lead producer and chair of Ice Pick Lodge always wanted to wrote drama and it just happened that it was easier to start a small game studio and create a game. I read a lot of his interviews for the last 15 years. He became kind of a meme in russian gaming community with his GAMES AS AN ART way of doing things, but also Ice Pick Lodge games became cult thing thru all these years.

[@piratekingomega3292]

can you describe how exactly he is viewed as a meme in russia?

[@eliyugend4660]

@@piratekingomega3292 i'm assuming but sounds kinda like if david cage wasn't a total hack

[@lolkek4968]

@@piratekingomega3292 Nikolay Dybowski is a meme of the Russian gaming community. For most geniuses like Hideo Kojima in memes about "Kojima is God", for some - Peter Molyneux from the world of game promises.

[@ossiehalvorson7702]

@@lolkek4968 I think CDPR finally overtook the throne on hype train broken promises after all these years lol

[@sheevinopalpatino4782]

@@ossiehalvorson7702 :(

[@edibleph4596]

Funny thing: Oyun in Turkish means Game, so when hbomberguy says around 1:19:14 "Oyun is trying to make you give up and stop playing and I'm not gonna let him." ... well, I don't know if the game developers were consciously doing this, but that is pretty meta all around, huh.

[@3efsanekz592]

Wow, I didn't realise it before (probably because of the accent). That actually feels pretty meta.

[@darkarts2412]

@@3efsanekz592 cok garip bir oyun

[@OfficialChisco]

Oh Pathological video essay. The time for you to assist me has come again. The hour grows late yet I find myself not tired. Sing me to rest as you have done many times before. Only you, a video I’ve watched like 6 times all the way through can do this task for me

[@Amazatastic]

yep

[@thestarsave44]

Timestamps INTRO: - 0:00 INTRODUCTION - 0:29 PART I: WHAT IS PATHOLOGIC? - 3:04 PART II: FUTILITY & DISEMPOWERMENT - 9:01 PART II.ii: DAY TWO - 25:28 PART III: THE WRITING - 40:37 PART IV: THE JANK - 56:12 PART V: THE HARUSPEX (or,) THE REAL PATHOLOGIC STARTS HERE - 1:05:54 PART VI: THE ENDINGS - 1:21:23 PART VII: THE CHANGELING RUN - 1:34:44 CONCLUSION - 1:52:23 PATHOLOGIC 2 - 1:53:54 CREDITS - 1:58:43

[@Secret07261]

Go, Onion!: - 51:43

[@supertinheng]

🐢

[@livecolours7796]

existential dread 2:10:49 *post 2020*

[@SunnyAznable]

MVP time stamping here.

[@axediepied6993]

whats the song on 1:05:54

[@BAsgeirr]

Praise be to the gods, for Russian is my native language and I had none of your concern regarding translation. There is a meaning to the Immortal dragon in Russian culture, but it is pretty recent and known to a select group of people who watched a specific movie called To Kill a Dragon, where the biggest plot twist is, when you kill the dragon you become one. The game is full of references to references , some-times it is absurd how much you need to know about classical Soviet cinematography or literature to understand them.

[@buchling1]

Isn't that also the plot to Dragon's Dogma?

[@BAsgeirr]

@@buchling1 I don't know this game, so sorry I can't answer that.

[@hiddenshadow2105]

@@buchling1 He is referring to the Evgeny Schwartz's play/movie 'To kill a dragon', en.wikipedia.org/wiki/To_Kill_a_Dragon But the motif of killing the dragon-becoming the dragon is more ancient. Here is 1961 USSR cartoon, credited as Burma/Myanmar folk tale. kzbin.info/www/bejne/jpXaZqKXZrlradE, so Dragon's Dogma, being a Japanese game, could have used a similar myth.

[@buchling1]

@@hiddenshadow2105 Thank you for knowing/researching that and sharing it. I'm always pleasantly surprised when between all the jokes and weirdness I can actually learn something in the KZbin comments.

[@hiddenshadow2105]

@@buchling1 You are welcome

[@sugarkane1571]

I’d argue that the revelation that you’re a toy is much better than a movie’s revelation that it was all just a dream. When you wake up from a dream, you’re absolved of all responsibilities and consequences you had in the dream since, well, it wasn’t real to you. So you have protagonists ultimately didn’t do anything wrong or right or anything at all, since it wasn’t real to them. It throws away any kind of importance to actions since you know it will be meaningless to the main character. An ant that is a dreaming person will wake up without any changes to their life. But for a character to discover that they’re a toy for a bunch of kids, what’s so different from this to meeting the big and cynical man upstairs? Their life may not have much meaning to the kids, but this doesn’t change the reality they live in. Even if dictated by some kids, their actions still have consequences for the town and themselves. They still have to eat, sleep, avoid the plague, etc. They can’t leave the reality they live in, they just got a chance to see what’s above their reality. An ant seeing their ant farm tank for the first time doesn’t change how they’ve worked to feed the colony.

[@joaoassumpcao3347]

Also, the game uses the twist not as a "haha gotcha" moment (which is usually how the dream/hallucination plot twist goes), but more so as an extra twist of the knife for the characters. "Yeah, it's all miserable, Bachelor. Wanna know something else? You're a toy." Hell, the conversation right after that, in the theatre, addresses you as the player and asks you not to abandon your character. I really like it because it raises the point that if you felt your actions were important when playing a game, does it really make a difference if it's actually a game inside a game? Either way, it isn't real to you (the player).

[@oohdannyboy]

​@@joaoassumpcao3347Reminds me of that scene from Assassin's creed where Minerva talks to Desmond through Ezio.

[@bakedfish947]

Have listened to this video almost weekly for years, and just now realized that the reason the time period is so ambiguous is most likely because the town is imagined by children who likely don’t know a lot about historical congruence, and just smash everything together regardless of whether or not it makes sense in the setting

[@latrodectahespara2728]

"I put a lot of effort into my visuals, but, y'know... that's fine." I'M SORRY HARRIS I HAVE ADHD

[@obliviousotterI]

MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOODUH

[@DoomedDruid]

I listen to these at work

[@caatko1388]

Same thoughhhh Not sure who this guy is but he has a nice voice... And I'm a sook that hates jumpscares 😭

[@therandomdickhead5744]

Same, had to rewind the video several times because I was too busy staring at something in-game to understand what he was saying. Like, not even important shit, aka wtf is that rat animation lol

[@bagds0]

Same. I suspect quite a few of us do.

[@obviousghost5895]

Oh my God, I finally figured out why those little real-person pictures are so unsettling. They're headshots. Because the characters are all... actors.

[@PanAndScanBuddy]

Notkin has the best one. Creepy

[@Azhini]

And all the minor characters are dolls, literal playthings

[@quantras2673]

Haruspex's headshot is actually Nikolai Dybowski, the founder of the studio and the main guy behind Pathologic classic and 2. Bachelor's was one of the game designers iirc.

[@lunardogs2416]

@@quantras2673 who was the changeling??

[@quantras2673]

@@lunardogs2416 Pretty sure it was one of the devs sisters, but I couldn't tell you her or the devs name.

[@alanatedmon3906]

57:55 Interestingly enough in Pathologic 2, if there is no room in your bag and you pick up one of the babies in the infected district, they'll also fall onto the ground as a bag. :/

[@bookbook9495]

That is the best possible outcome. I love that

[@jjjm7322]

Does it play a sound effect or something to let you know you dropped it?

[@SpiderPig42]

I grabbed the baby, didn't realize my inventory was full so it auto dropped the baby, then collapsed on the ground because I got infected. It was terrifying when I checked my inventory and the baby disappeared

[@heartpng]

@@SpiderPig42 oh my god that's hilarious

[@JohnCena-fp4qg]

There’s a fuckin sequel

[@AnnissXD]

Cheers to everyone else here to rewatch this gem as celebration of Patho 3's announcement!

[@shuraito]

we did it, we finally did it.

[@zacpackkattack]

I didn't even hear about 3. I just come back a few times a year and listen to this and his other essays, they are so much fun!

[@kesshikou]

>Watch a quarter of review >Play Pathologic 2 >"Huh I must be starting as one of the other characters!" >Play a considerable amount and die a lot >Watches rest of review >ARTEMY BURAKH'S TORMENTOUS NIGHTMARE

[@alecchristiaen4856]

What I find fascinating is your brief stint talking about immortality through art. Achilles was foretold he would either die young in the Trojan war or live long enough to see his name forgotten. He chose the former, and to this day we speak of the achilles heel. Gilgamesh was forced to give up on his quest for immortality, but the tale of this quest lives on today and is considered the world's oldest poem, being older than the entirety of the Imperial house of Japan. Pathologic joins a chorus of art proclaiming that art begets immortality, and actually does so with a question mark, asking us if this immortality is even good. It's a weirdly...nihilistic bend to the idea. These heroes of yore have become immortal in the written word, but the likes of Socrates detested the written word, as it can't defend itself, it can't change, it can't learn, it can't redeem itself. They've become immortal, and in that immortality have they been petrified. Achilles is remembered for his wrath and bloodshed, and his pettiness causing the death of many (including those he loved); Gilgamesh was such an asshole, the gods literally created Enkidu to bring him down a peg. In pathologic, you'll likely do AWFUL things. Maybe, ironically, the ones that do what they must to survive are the ones least excited over the chance to see their deeds immortalized. Maybe their mortality in spirit can be a solace; a universe that can forgive as it forgets. Thanks, I listend to you for so long, I started musing on the nature of nature like a total cockwomble.

[@normalperson4sure]

this is such a great encapsulation of an idea that i've been trying to articulate for so long, but even better. immortality through art isn't real (you're still fucking dead) and when it works it's very rarely for the GOOD things you've done. brilliant work, i hope other people see this comment because it's criminally undervalued right now!

[@ava_marie_v]

Wow, I cannot believe I ran into such an incredible comment under a Pathologic review.

[@kingalphawerewolf]

I take some umbrage with this statement. Hero's in the Greco sense are remembered for both good and terrible deeds. In that sense, Stalin, as much as the wright brothers are Heros. But Stalin and other terrible doers are more commonly immortalized because our brains latch onto negative things much more easily then good ones. Because evolution has built the lesson that failure is the greatest teacher into our literal biochemistry. You'll remember fucking up and falling out of a tree far more easily then the many times you did it perfectly fine. Which is why art should work hard to immortalize good things, even small good things. This obsession with morally grey and villians and things is a self-feed back loop. Finding superman being a pure do gooding man 'cringy' or boring, isn't a good thing. And finally immortality through memory can be called untrue for a dry inhuman scientific way. But we define ourselves by those around us, and that important aspect can live on far after we've gone.@@normalperson4sure

[@258hunterkill]

I love this idea, and I think this is an excellent expansion of what Harris was saying in that section of the video. To take it a step further, I would say these characters immortalized in stories are not actually unchanging, not caught in status. For example, as a society, we don't remember Cinderella from the Grimm fairy tale we (mostly) remember it from the Disney version and 1000 new version have been created in the last 80 years drawing a lot from that version. In the same way, a response to the nihilistic viewpoint is that I don't remember the story of Pathelogic from the game. I remember it from a thought-provoking entertaining, even hopefully 2 hour video about Pathologic. It's an immortality of change, but not choice and also of the goodness to always be what you are needed to be until you are forgotten.

[@Crusader1089]

The Odyssey of Odysseus is also considered to be a Greek meditation on the different forms of immortality, including literal immortality, with Odysseus eventually deciding that family was the true immortality. It's also worth noting that the Achilles heel did not present itself in the original and oldest legends of the Trojan war, and was likely a Roman addition.

[@Willow.Delilah]

After letting this game sit in my steam library for a couple of years now, I finally decided to start playing it. The first thing I noticed was the Brechtian style to most of it (look, I paid way too much for my theatre degree, so the rest of you have to suffer with me). The game's titlecards tell you what happens by the end of the day, the text of the game calls attention to itself as a game (the play in the beginning does this really well to cement this idea). Brecht's idea was to alienate the viewer (or in this case player) from the work they were engaging with, and (hopefully) cause them to question the "world" of the play by drawing deliberate attention to it's theatrical elements. Sets would transition in full view if the audience, characters would act in a way which was not quite natural, and he would display title cards which spoiled events later in the play (like when he told you Swiss Cheese was going to die in "Mother Courage and her Children"). Brecht has had influence in a lot of Marxist art, heck Philosophy Tube uses a lot of Brechtian techniques in his videos. Anyways, thanks for reading my novel of a comment.

[@KOTEBANAROT]

Dude thats really interesting! Im gonna read up on that further

[@soupalex]

this comment actually was quite _novel,_ so thanks!

[@wj2429]

You dont have to apologise for knowing things, my dude. Brecht is great.

[@Kirbita22]

"novel" you are like a baby. write an entire essay in the comments next time coward (but jokes aside this was really interesting thank u for the term)

[@k_a_y_l_e_e]

idk why but this might be my favorite comment i've ever read on youtube

[@desif2861]

Wait, you mean "Pathologic is Genius, And Here's Why" isn't your favorite bedtime story for several years running? I truly can not relate.

[@ald7282]

i love the pathologic subreddit. most of it is dicussion and asking for advice, and then you get posts like "ARTEMIY TOPS DANIIL"

[@aphemorpha]

ok but theyre so right

[@silviastarlight5]

Those people are so real for that

[@mystic_spider]

Have you _seen_ the "we complete each other" line from Daniil?

[@ravensworkshop8106]

@@mystic_spiderLITERALLY

[@tortis6342]

youtube has started recommending me Pathologic memes and basically all of them are the second one.