The Quiet Man - Just Bad Games

[@crazydud3380]

This one is sad. Such a missed opportunity! Being placed in the role of a deaf character had a lot of potential for fresh new ideas, and all they did was press the mute button on your TV. FUN!!!

[@JoeyDoesStuff1120]

I really like this idea if the game had a show don't tell story, not show and mute your tv

[@Aikoxq]

Crazy Dud 33 Best game ever! 😁😁😁

[@Aikoxq]

Kyles Isler That was sarcasm bro. ALL THEY DID WAS GO AND PUT UR TV TO 0 AND IMAGINE THE PEOPLE WHO TESTED IT WITHOUT SOUND MAKING POOR Rerez PEOPLE GO THRU ALL OF THAT FOR SOUND, THATS JUST SAD. I HOPE HE LITERALLY ATTACKS THE PERSON WHO MADE IT! (Jk but seriously I feel bad for Rerez)

[@Aikoxq]

Kyles Isler Well try working for this disappointment for a game... I’m a gamer and I’ve seen some trash games but this is THE WORST so far!

[@wannabehistorian371]

Shamel Walls Um... so that’s why OP said that the game idea was done poorly. WTF are you on about.

[@jasonmohn1472]

Crazy thing is they did the no sound FROM THE START! The sound was added on later. They said they wanted the player to feel what it was like to be deaf, except that's not how being deaf works. Deaf people can understand people just differently, not just a silent world. Might have been OK if they did make from the view of a deaf person. Like all the dialogue is heard through the voice of the main character only, cause his internal thoughts are all you get. Have the dialogue cut out if he isn't looking at a person. Have him misinterpret stuff sometimes cause that happens. Things like that would have been interesting. Although with such a garbage story not sure if that would have helped.

[@SuperCosmicMutantSquid]

I guess that's why a lot of people are questioning the validity of the character's deafness considering how they try to use it in the story makes no sense. I could get the idea of lip reading but as the review pointed out, there were too many times when Dean, our POV character, is away from the person he's supposed to be 'listening' too. The only scene that I felt had 'impact' with him not being in focus with anything was that moment with his dad because if the idea is that Dean can read lips, him looking away would have been a sign that he was WILLINGLY avoiding his father but his father knew this and kept talking anyway, as a sort of moment where he didn't see this moment as his son not being able to hear him but him refusing to listen to him. And he kept talking because he felt like he just had to get it out and by some hope, maybe Dane would turn and 'listen'. And then the magical elements happen and I noped out because then that just overdid the whole emotional abuse story they were trying to do because then it turns out that daddy somehow planned all of this and willing tried to break his son out of this mindset without any thought of what could happen if it went wrong and then he also encouraged his son to kill Taye which means he lead him to MURDER someone? WHAT?! Wasn't this supposed to be the story of someone who was deaf? I am confused now!

[@hedgehog3180]

Sorta seems like they never actually talked to any deaf people.

[@ScrambledAndBenedict]

It would have been kind of interesting if the character in the game had just recently gone deaf. Like, the first stage he can hear, there's an accident, and then he's deaf. And that's his motivation for going after these gangsters(?), is he blames them for crippling him. And then that could be the game's "level progression" of sorts, where you slowly gain the ability to read lips and the like. Like, the stronger it gets the more words you can glean from people or something. It's a cliche revenge story, yeah, and it probably wouldn't have been great, but at least it would have used the guy's deafness in a more realistic way.

[@FruityGroovy]

Ironically, this game is probably even less accessible to deaf people than regular games, because at least the majority of modern games have subtitles. Some times even with audio descriptions.

[@poisonempress]

@@hedgehog3180 no surprise there, a lot of people like to add disabled or impaired characters just to seem like they care about others. But they have no interest in actually understanding the people in the real world with these conditions.

[@Empyric]

I feel like this concept would have made a brilliant detective game. If there were subtitles only when the protagonist could read the speaker's lips, and the rest was blotted out, it could have lead to a really cryptic story that you could enjoy trying to decode.

[@PointsofData]

Hey while youre reminding me of it let me recommend The Tales of Max Carrados, the audible version is read by Stephen Fry. It's about a blind detective, and the author is ranked with Conan Doyle and George Orwell.

[@1Hol1Tiger]

See, that would have been a GOOD idea

[@benedictrogers1478]

The core idea, a removal of all sound cues to immerse you in the idea of being a deaf character, is actually pretty decent, but you definitely do need to provide information that the character is getting somehow. You'd also likely want to focus the gameplay on reacting to visual cues. I'd really like to see another studio take a crack at a soundless action game because honestly every time I remember The Quiet Man I think it's a cool idea.

[@aribantala]

See, for me at least, the most infuriating part of this entire game is that they could have Oh So Very Much Easily build the game like an Interactive Story - Beat em Up Combo... Because this game is built on Unreal Engine 4. Instead of muting all conversations, make them slightly muffled. And instead of making the cutscene an FMV, make them in UE, UE is very much capable on making highly realistic pre rendered cutscene. And we don't have to film an awkward FMV in Bulgaria when the setting is in NYC. the studio is backed by Square Enix ffs And like, in that cutscene, we force our view to what Dane see... Until we unlock the Sound... And adding to unlocked sound, add extra prespectives, maybe we can look from what Taye see, or what the Father see... Or even make the camera a limited freecam mode where we, as the player, can analyze the scene much better. There's so much insane potential to gain with the concept. But this is a Dying studio's farewell note... then again, they could have gone with a bang instead of a blip like this

[@drpopandfizz]

funny enough, there is a small indie detective game from a few years back called 'unheard' that basically makes it so you can't see anything the normal way, instead, it's from a top down perspective, with people just bubbles, and all you can do is listen in to different parts of the scene and try and figure out what happens. It's rather short, but it is unique and enjoyable. So doing a game with one sense taken away can work, but it has to be implemented well. Quiet Man just isn't.

[@davidromeroblaya7920]

Fun Fact: the graffitis in the Sol 33 hideout are random spanish catchphrases. Imagine a game where one of their stages take place in the hideout of a criminal gang of London and the walls are covered with intimidating sentences like "it's raining cats and dogs" or "it's not my cup of tea".

[@nittayoshifumi8252]

same energy as "random tattoos in foreign letters" and "t-shirts with odd words"

[@andrewollmann304]

11:15 Not catchphrases, idioms-phrases that don’t translate literally. The one at this timestamp says “te conozco, bacalao, aunque vengas disfrazao.” Literally, translated, it means “I know you, cod, though you come in disguise.” In essence, it means “I know what you’re up to.”

[@erasedoggO316]

Thats how we INTIMIDATE people!!!

[@erasedoggO316]

​@@andrewollmann304 si

[@Scuttlest]

'Sound Mode' might be the most middle-fingerish way to encourage replayability I have *ever* encountered.

[@billy-waynejeffcoat4828]

Hmm I wonder if they'll make a game with a blind main character and include no visuals, you just gotta hear and feel your way around with vibrations

[@SakuraAvalon]

@@billy-waynejeffcoat4828 I mean, if handled really well, taking full advantage of the PS5's controller, and the high quality sound Sony's bragging about, it could be a really clever, and unique game(as long as it's a short game).

[@sirspookybones1118]

@@SakuraAvalon could work on switch too

[@jacobc8036]

@@billy-waynejeffcoat4828 I remember a game like that, you had to hide from a blind monster and use some sort of echolocation to see around, you could stomp to make a huge sound wave to get a better view but it also alerts the most to your presence. basically, all you see are your footsteps, the rest of the screen is black. Markiplier played it but I can't remember the name of the game

[@skylarmccloud4080]

@@sirspookybones1118 Or VR

[@almightyk11]

Ways this could have been great. 1) Muffled speech (like the ambiance), with subtitles shown when you can see the face. 2) Narration and dubbing through the characters voice in their head. 3) Bird mask is expositing to other criminals, which Dane can't hear. 4) Investigation into various things, using lip Reading to get info. Basically daredevil but deaf instead of blind

[@nathanblevins9870]

Or maybe have options to have the voice to hear but not to our main character

[@SuperCosmicMutantSquid]

Can we also get rid of the supernatural elements? There is already a solid story there if worked on and the supernatural elements come off as trying WAY too hard.

[@almightyk11]

@@SuperCosmicMutantSquid That is more subjective. I was talking purely from a core design perspective.

[@ladyabaxa]

@@nathanblevins9870 This is the sort of game where the survival horror staple of files you find and pick up would work well because that stuff is visual. Doesn't need to be loads of text either. The Siren series did quite well with its archives by having a mix of text, drawings, photos, knickknacks, weird religious stuff, and things sentimental to the various player characters. Even audio files would be viable if there's an option to say plug it into a computer and have a program listen and transcribe it for you.

[@Mattfromthepast]

Wait, if the character we are controlling can read lips then why don't we get subtitles so we know what the character knows?

[@rerez]

EXACTLY.

[@wilmagregg3131]

@@rerez somehow the game feels even more horrible now that i know the people who made prey made it TO FALL SO FAR no wonder they sold the studio to bethsda the very same studio that stole the prey series from them

[@ravenclawtom]

or have the main character from the perspective of inside his head say the lines

[@MobyTheLion]

Budget probably

[@Jolis_Parsec]

Wilma Perkins This was all that evil nerd Todd Howard’s doing, I’m telling you! 🤣

[@BubbleGum566]

8:51 Actually Day one when this game was released, it didn't have a sound option. A few weeks later sound was patched into the game. So let that sink in.

[@Fakan]

Dear God.

[@AbandonedHub2]

Oh god, I don't even want to imagine

[@IzraelGraves]

sO lEt ThAt SiNk In

[@actionjackson4982]

Lmao no wonder why the studio shut down.

[@chamber_hiro256]

Do you remember how big the patch was?

[@RGT85]

You know. I could live without sound mode on the first play through if the game was like 3 hours and good. Try and draw your own conclusions and then your second playthrough you learn everything. And the incorpating of an Egyptian God is kinda neat. But holy hell did they waste this opportunity. I almost wonder if Squenix forced them to rush the game.

[@nobodyjustme2208]

I though that birdmask guy was supposed to represent Death himself, Grim Reaper, some kind of medieval plague doctor or a mad Spy cosplayer

[@nobodyjustme2208]

I didn't realize that I accidentally made a pun

[@swinelias]

@@nobodyjustme2208 i thought that the one that was supposed to reference death was Anubis.

[@PunakiviAddikti]

Most of the time, when a bad game is released it's due to rushing. And it's always the publisher rushing the dev team.

[@WillieManga]

And we're not talking about three hours of pure cutscenes. We're talking much more gameplay. Probably a first person horror game. Yeah, a horror game where you can't hear anything aside from ambient music. That'd be kinda cool, actually.

[@heiselproductions_01]

So, let me just say, from a lighting, texture, and environment standpoint, The Quiet Man is a wonderful game. It does a great job blurring the line between in game cutscene and live action video. But the character animation, combat, HUD, plot and ham fisted Easter eggs completely destroy that compliment into oblivion.

[@np8139]

They really could have had the people that care about Dane at least attempt to communicate with him in sign language because that's what people do when they have a deaf loved one. Then, they could have subtitled it to not make the story incomprehensible the first playthrough.

[@AnimatedTerror]

Quiet mode should have been an unlockable mode. With sound being in the base game.

[@CommodoreFan64]

@@AnimatedTerror Agreed 100%

[@skyblade7438]

Or, hell, just have subtitles to represent him lip reading. It would lend credence to the bird mask thing, too, because the mask means you can't lip read them.

[@np8139]

@Lassi Kinnunen I think the gimmick could've been good if they didn't execute it so poorly. First, they should've hired a deaf writer to write the whole thing or at least assist. If your main character has a disability, you absolutely need to get feedback from someone with that disability. I think they should've given you the option at the beginning to play with sound or in deaf mode, but recommend deaf mode for the unique experience. As others have mentioned, they could've also added subtitles for the main character reading lips, but have none when he can't see them to add to the immersion. As you noted, it doesn't make sense how Dane can tell when anyone is speaking even when he can't see them. I agree that the deaf gimmick feels like an afterthought. The shitty gameplay is an entirely different issue. If they had gotten the story right, it could've been a very rare good example of disabled representation in video games. Deaf gamers deserved so much better than this piece of garbage.

[@shawklan27]

@@AnimatedTerror word but it wouldn't make the game stand out enough

[@adamco.7141]

“Yeah.....some obese...kitty cats.” Hey, uhhh, in terms of dialogue? We’re lookin’ at a perfect 10. This deserves my subscription. Thanks for the laughs, Rerez!

[@BATCHARRO]

The story's basically like a straight to DVD low budget action film from 2006. The kind you get in a pack with 7 other movies you wish you'd never seen at Walmart.

[@Deadhead-kq4hr]

They just probably wanted show off the photo realistic graphic cut scenes

[@shawklan27]

More like a plot for a dark emo fantasy

[@anasevi9456]

Ana Sevi 1 second ago No wonder Bethesda hired them on given the mutual appreciation for autistic babble storylines riddled with plotholes.

[@madd9820]

and they'd be on two blank discs you'd have to flip. 😂

[@cujoedaman]

2006? They're still doing it today! :P

[@killianauguste7699]

If i'm not mistaken. The "audio playthrough" wasn't originally in the game. It was added after players complained about the game.

[@LeeONardo]

It was always intended. The game had no sound because they wanted it to go viral with people discussing what the plot was about etc. When you beat the game when it first released at the end of the credits a countdown would appear which was when the sound patch came out. The only problem with the whole viral thing was that the game was trash so people only discussed THAT part and as for the plot most people just created their own funny stories based around it which were always more interesting than the canon plot!

[@LeeONardo]

@James Campbell Yup, pretty much it.

[@planescaped]

@@LeeONardo Ouch... that's kinda sad. XD

[@theshygirlnextdoor8337]

If you want a deaf protagonist, that’s fine. If you want to immerse the player by making the cutscenes silent to mimic the deaf character, that’s fine. What I want to know is what dip thought it would be a great idea to do both without subtitles.

[@musek5048]

or at least give you the OPTION of enabling subtitles?? but noooo they must want to torture you with their interpretation of "art".

[@IchiEyes]

I think it could have worked if there was actual expressive physical acting. George Miller said his preferred version of Mad Max Fury Road is no audio besides the score, and the acting kinda reflects that. Even when characters are just talking, you can get a lot of what they're saying based on expressions and physical movement. This is just terrible

[@skyrimosity7842]

Yeah, they should have at least had subtitles for everything the protagonist sees and understands. If the point of the overall silence is to make the player feel like they’re in his shoes, it makes no sense to not give the player the information that he is getting.

[@LeSarthois]

This reminds of old Cold Fear, a survival-horror game on Xbox (original). Only for one point, tho : the first part of Cold Fear take place on a Russian merchant boat, so obviously, directions in the boat are all written in cyrillic. How does the game deal with it? Well, wen you walk to the writings, and look at them, the translation appears as subtitles. It's unintrusive, and ironically, it would have been a great mechanism for a deaf character! You want to focus on one character speaking : look at him and make subtitles appears! It would have been interesting too to have several people speaking in a scene, forcing you to turn your haerd to follow everything. How did a game that has nothing to do with deafness make a better system than this game?

[@Kalvinjj]

To be honest I understand the reason they went with fully silent and unsubbed 1st section, with the subbed and spoken 2nd play trough, given (as they've concluded in the video as well), you can really formulate an entirely different story on your head that then gives you a "What, it was actually THIS!" feel on the 2nd time, but... it just didn't really work. It could have been epic, but it just wasn't, there was too much weird stuff that didn't connect and was impossible to interpret without text, and WITH text. Heck, I'm still wondering if the protagonist is actually deaf or just showed he couldn't hear them on the 1st scene and this all was made to seem he's deaf but he's not, just a big "silent man" reference... The concept of entirely different stories through different playtroughs is common on visual novels and the good ones can do wonders with it.

[@Shadyboyo]

This game took “show don’t tell” way too literally

[@starpokeheart664]

To the point it basically says "Only show, no tell"

[@justin2308]

Before now, I never thought that rule could ever ethically be broken…

[@dingdongbells3314]

As a writer, it pisses me off to no end that sound mode is something you can unlock... not because that's bad, but because they did EVERYTHING wrong about it. Like, the fact that some of the "establishing shots" had dubbed over audio are wasted on that audio not revealing somekind of dramatic plot twist that even those who could read lips weren't aware of. Trust me, the fact that the character hears and knows things we don't can be used to FANTASTIC dramatic effect, if you actually structure an interesting and clever plot around that. Even the fact that sometimes the camera isn't focused on their lips could've been part of some brilliant trickery, such as even fooling deaf audiences who can read lips into not realizing some secret aspect of what's being discussed. Like, as a writer, I think it's downright CRIMINAL that a premise with such amazing possibilities went to such pathetic waste. I can't program. I can't act. I can't develop levels. And yet I'd still like to think I could've done a better job.

[@SLKibara]

You just described most fictional media in recent memory. Great concepts, but terrible execution.

[@LnPPersonified]

I can't agree more. I've never heard of this game until today, but after watching this video I feel a quiet (heh) rage at what could have been but wasn't, with this frustrating mess in its place.

[@Konh-Minh]

Oh, and since you're a writer, it probably goes without saying, but the story itself is ATROCIOUS. With sound mode on and the plot summary, it baffles me to no end how the game even got out to market with a plot that terrible. To give a comparison; _A 6th grader who just learned how to write could do better than this plot._ "It's Just Bad" is an _understatement._ This is "bottom of the barrel" levels of "just bad."

[@wannabehistorian371]

In The Mind of Kibara I thought most recent media was sequels and cash cows? At least that’s what everyone says.

[@Konh-Minh]

@@wannabehistorian371 Some are good original compositions tho. And most sequels turn out good. DMC5 was a good example, with the Last of Us 2 being the opposite. Don't know too much about cash cows though, are they the pre-order special editions?

[@KyuJuEX099x]

Can never get enough of Taye's "Nutcracker Symphony" at 12:56 and 18:38.

[@brandonsanchez8197]

I could feel the ghost of wasted money creeping in..

[@marytijerina9764]

Same

[@dubstepbee6892]

this game does not make me a quiet man

[@musek5048]

except this time, the value of the game is so bad its unheard of

[@marytijerina9764]

Also, mythology key jangling!

[@nagsterthegangster]

Wasted money = made money. Plus, you can't sue a company that doesn't exist anymore, nor can you go after individuals for their work at a company as they are protected under that companies identity unless they commit a criminal act. Look at every game that sucks lately, then go google the dev companies and just go to the wiki and look at the MOST RECENT transition of power. Boomers buy out the game companies, work the devs to death, rush out unfinished games and steal the profits under the guise of "promised bonuses" and "raises" that never come through. It's a business schematic, not a game industry anymore. You think Escape From Tarkov is worth $80 MINIMUM to test someones beta? That shits a business scheme. Just like WarZ (Infestation, Survivor Stories), DayZ, and so many other sandboxes of broken promises.

[@Dreigonix]

This game _defines_ style over substance. It really should’ve just been a movie.

[@Mgauge]

Let’s be honest, this is a terrible movie held together with marginally better gameplay.

[@XiaoFury]

Maybe a cheesy Syfy B-movie.

[@sonicplays8740]

@Lassi Kinnunen 81 They really should've made something closer to a detective game in a cool fiction like Ace Attorney (with some over-the-top and still grounded logic for everything that's happening). Atleast that's what a guy commented.

[@Deadsea_1993]

Even then it would have been a terrible movie. The sound helps you understand What is happening and yet it makes it even worse cause of the plot holes and terrible writing. The dad is completely unlikable, the kid saw his mom get gunned down and yet the story forgets that completely and makes the gunman into the best friend and boss of Dane. Wow. Let's also not forget about supernatural elements in this game that are totally unexplained. Why is this mask enchanted ? I swear this was like a combination of The Crow and Unbreakable, just a really bad version of those too. Mainly because important and well written story elements were made in those movies.

[@sonicplays8740]

@@Deadsea_1993 I feel like it should have gone for a noir detective feeling, or atleast stay a bit more grounded (the character may be mute, but he still thinks, and those thoughts would be more than enough to let us understand him better).

[@deathsceane]

The plot sounds like somebody wrote a story based on the vaguest description he got of The Crow but never saw the movie or read the comic.

[@Pinka13]

They seriously named the singer character "Lala?" Obvious teletubby reference aside, that's like naming a teacher character "Professor SmartyPants" or a soldier character "Colonel BoomBang"

[@ilikecurry2345]

Various obviously cued character names that match their professions to a childish T (all made up, of course): A plumber called "Lou" A taxi driver called "Destine Nation" A waiter called "Fud Toyoo" A clerk called "Doormat" ...Wait...

[@Rad-Dude63andathird]

Gotta love how the guy who grew up *deaf* can talk just fine and doesn't have that distinct deaf accent. Edit: Please don't come into this reply section, unrelated arguments are happening.

[@duskonanyavarld1786]

Of course he cannot hear his accent.

[@duskonanyavarld1786]

All the voices in the game is a result of Danes imagination.

[@rnullpalmer]

@nobodyelse09 it's "trans" or "a trans person", not "a trans". saying that is like saying "a black". also, can video game protagonists not be trans anymore? every time i see a game where the focus is on anything other than a generic white guy or a girl with boob armor, the comments are full of high school juniors complaining about "feminism" or "sjws" or whatever the current buzzword for "people who aren't me" is.

[@idontrlyhaveanamebutihavec9918]

doug whitehouse literally no one said that, it would just be shitty if they used it frivolously like it doesn’t matter. The story doesn’t have to centre their transition, but throwing it in just cuz is just gross and disrespectful to trans folk

[@rnullpalmer]

@@idontrlyhaveanamebutihavec9918 im a trans man and if a protagonist turned out to be trans that would be super cool lmao

[@KH12foreve]

The worst part about the game is that the sound mode wasn't a part of the original release. It came out a week after the game came out as a patch called "answers".

[@hattyblue1258]

When he said “fart mouth”. I felt that✊

[@TheFLOMAN76]

I f****** spit beer out of my mouth...lol!!

[@pcachu]

Well, you know what they say; he who felt it, dealt it.

[@robbysauce3571]

methane and methane accessories...

[@gabrielboorom6196]

*Imagines a gameplay with just fart sounds.*

[@gabrielboorom6196]

@Ali Zaidan Thamyeez Meow! *fart*

[@LadyBrightcynder]

12:38 "Why does this car's headlights pass right through Dane?" Because he's a birdghostman, obvs.

[@otaking3582]

They really half-assed this concept. Either they should've made the cutscenes like an _actual_ silent movie, where you can understand what everyone is thinking even without dialogue, or they should've given subtitles. If the idea was that the player is meant to experience what it's like being deaf, they shouldn't have our protagonist be able to read lips while also not offering a translation. The worst part is that people that are *_actually deaf_* wouldn't be able to fully appreciate this game!

[@phoenixwhiler943]

If quiet place came out they could've learned concepts from that

[@mariawhite7337]

That is actually a really cool concept. To make a game like a silent movie when there is dialogue and such. Edit: If anyone wants to know what I am thinking of for the concept. Basically combining Cuphead and Paper Mario. You are a cartoon character in a world when a great evil comes by and takes away the color and sound. Now you must go in and find the sounds and color for the world. Your first task is the Zelda esk maze to find the legendary weapon in the middle. This is a musical instrument and gives us music once we find it. The more you progress in the game the more color and noise are granted back into the world. Other characters are like you musicians, or artists, and it would be RPG kinda in the way it is in my head. So That is what is in my head.

[@KnakuanaRka]

Yeah, that would be way better; with this, it winds up looking like they don’t understand how deafness works at all! On the one hand, by zeroing the sound and giving nothing to compensate, they seem to think deaf people can’t understand the world around them; on the other, Dane’s deafness seems not only to be tacked on at the last minute without impacting anything else, but may even be totally made up, given how multiple people talk to him while facing away/behind him/wearing masks and he has no trouble understanding.

[@otaking3582]

@@KnakuanaRka Maybe they think he's like Daredevil in reverse, where he's able to tell what people are saying just by feeling the sound vibrations on his skin (makes as much sense as anything else in the game).

[@MountainMemelord]

@Maria White That's kinda the plot of Kirby and the Rainbow Curse.

[@sonnitude]

You guys missed a perfect opportunity! You should have had “It’s just bad” with absolutely no audio, just the text. Would have fit this game so well.

[@elixier33]

This game is amazing compared to Gollum Lord of the Rings

[@bjarnivalur6330]

It looks like it was supposed to be a movie but then someone remembered that "Oh, yeah, we're a game studio"

[@shawnfields2369]

I agree.

[@AcDc66662]

you mean ''we're a game studio and everything gonna end for us so fuc k up the story ''

[@aliekexie8467]

Not the first time this happened. There was a game called Bunker that I feel would work better as an indie film than a point and click game.

[@shawnfields2369]

@@AcDc66662 Yeah, dude, agree.

[@BinglesP]

To be fair, I’d do that, but because video games get publicity from more channels I actually care about, and also because being a cartoon makes appearing in Smash impossible

[@Fluffkitscripts]

As Yahtzee once said “the camera is like the working class. If you can’t properly control it it will actively attempt to kill you”

[@konohamaru4927]

The Gameplay: "I'm badly broken." The Story: "Hold my mask!"

[@cryptidproductions3160]

The story is the most frustrating part because it seems like it could've been good if they lead with the Supernatural element implied at the end instead of just wedging into a mediocre b--action-movie grade plot

[@montague4931]

Legend has it that after hearing about this game's vague and convoluted narrative, Tetsuya Nomura fell to his knees in utter defeat...

[@XiaoFury]

LOL! Seems like SquareEnix isn't interested in the word "cohesion".

[@aidangordon2713]

"Square Enix: Confuse the player or you're fired!"

[@sonicplays8740]

@@aidangordon2713 But what about the Keyblade? He is using magic without the KEYBLADEEEE.

[@kalosianporygon]

16:28 If you look closely at the cup, it's written: "This cup is filled with pee."

[@ds3930]

The cop was obviously a G’ould from Stargate because his eyes glowed.

[@rerez]

Indeed!

[@fluttershystayshigh4202]

Tilk: Then i... as a supreme Jafaa.. shall hunt him down to gather information about Apaphus!

[@useless4692]

@@rerez Can you play Hunt Down the Freeman next?

[@KamenRiderGumo]

A Goa'uld...yes. Then, at least, the Horus connection makes SOME sense...

[@Safarichromosomeslol]

@@useless4692 Oh yes!

[@divaprincess98]

If I were a designer for this game, I would’ve had subtitles on when characters were in front of the protagonist talking to him. If characters were far away or had their mouths concealed, then the subtitles wouldn’t appear. That would’ve been a more accurate representation of how deaf people communicate.

[@CaspisSinclair27]

Of course Dane could survive two gunshots to the back. He's deaf, after all. Deaf people... umm... bullets... eh hmm.

[@SakuraAvalon]

Deaf people can't hear Death's call.

[@kronemerj]

@Sean Wilkinson apparently not

[@gracekim1998]

Magic?🤔

[@magicfishhobo381]

Part of guns design is making a loud noise to surprise your body and weaken it before the bullet makes impact. Deaf people can't hear the gunshot and therefore their bodies can't be caught off guard. Either that or Dane's got some really sturdy clothes.

[@PKMN37]

Over the years, there have been many stories told without dialog. When a show like KND had a silent episode, the story was told through visuals and changes in the music. In other words, if we can't hear the characters, they need to express how they feel with clear body language, which is something this game failed to do.

[@PKMN37]

@E.LA.O Correct

[@kevinthepilgrim]

Bojack did the same.

[@sarafontanini7051]

hell buffy the vampire slayer did it too. granted the beginning and of the episode have dailogue but the rest doesn't and it still ahs music sand stuff to like help tell the story

[@edge247]

Jesus Christ here comes SquareEnix batting zeros left and right

[@edge247]

@Winston Smith They also published Left Alive : Front Mission

[@edge247]

@Winston Smith This is a comment section

[@cyrus2395]

Holy mackerel bud, take it easy, it was merely a comment on a KZbin video. I'm sure the op knows SQEX has made good games, you don't need to go after them for such a little thing

[@edge247]

@Winston Smith Yeah I know, cool right!

[@edge247]

This comment thread is a god damn train wreck.

[@EternalGuardian07]

14:04 I actually like the twist of the scene's mood and it deserves to be in a better story.

[@ninthaeon8106]

This is the first video in this series that actually made me a little sad. This looks like a game that could have been a beautiful artistic piece that got marred by bad gameplay and some questionable story choices. It really seems like an interesting idea.

[@beancheesedip8337]

Wow, after you guys actually went into the symbolism the game was showing, I almost feel bad. Its a neat idea, incorporating Egyptian mythology into a contemporary setting, even if it is a bit hamfisted, and the supernatural elements almost could've worked if it was more explicitly hinted at, instead of it just... happening. The whole game looks and feels low budget and rushed. The graphics aren't terrible, Dane's character model looks pretty decent, a lot of the environments are clean, with some nice detail, like the rain drops in the puddle, even tho there was no actual rain. I feel like if they had a higher budget, better actors (at least for the dad, he was terrible), better game design, better writers, it might've actually worked. I know that it sounds like I'm saying "Well, if the game were completely different, it could've been good!" but I'm not. At least, I'm not trying to. It feels like the pieces were there, but the development team just ran out of time, money, fucks to give, or all three. The one thing that actually doesn't make sense is why make the main character deaf? Don't get me wrong, it could be a cool idea if handled properly, but aside from the one scene where he tells the gangsters he's deaf, I don't think it's ever utilized once. It can't be a representation thing, considering he acts exactly how a non-deaf person acts. For a good example of how to portray a character with a disability, imo, is in the Daredevil Netflix show. Charlie Cox, who plays Daredevil, actually acts like a blind man. Obviously, Daredevil isn't 100% blind, given that his other senses make up for his lack of vision, but when Matt Murdock is talking to people, even if they know he's Daredevil, he's rarely looking directly at whoever he's talking to. Often times, he's looking just in their general direction, or at their torso, or sometimes he's just got his head cocked toward whoever he's talking to. Its subtle, but its a good way to show that the character is actually still blind, even if he can "see" in ways that don't involve his eyes. But, the Quiet Man doesn't do any of that. It just feels tacked on, like we're supposed to be blown away by the mere concept.

[@XmortoxX1990]

This is the timeline where we are not having Prey 2 but we got The Quiet Man.... *feelsbadman*

[@fallingdownholes]

I'm glad we got Arkane's Prey instead.

[@csmead209]

This is also the timeline where mobile gaming fucked up Pokémon's identify.

[@Vladimir_Kv]

14:55 I don't know why this was a revelation for you, Rerez. It's basically the plot of 33% of B-rate soap operas (others being "they are lovers but secretly siblings" and "money"). Protag had a mother, she was killed, later in life he crushed on a girl that looked 1:1 like his mother. Oedipus at its finest.

[@marytijerina9764]

And we all know how THAT ended

[@Dorelaxen]

Remember when you could by ANY game with the Squaresoft name on it and be confident you were getting something good? Been a hell of a long time since those days.

[@mrdeatheli]

Decades.

[@renthegigglefox]

I've played a few games, and watched a few movies where the "it makes more sense the second time" was successful without being so hamfisted. A lot of plot points in the original Mass Effect make way more sense if you replay it after seeing it all the way through, but this is not required, just icing on the cake. And the movie Sucker Punch makes almost no sense unless you watch it a second time, which, for me, make it an amazing movie, as nothing is made plain, and it's up to you to figure out the reality of what's happening.

[@chacrawarrior]

We need to sabe this game, quick, someone calls "Bad lips Reading" maybe the Mask is related with seagulls and Lala is a stick.

[@alessiominervini1175]

Dane is beating Hooligans by the seaside

[@Dreigonix]

EYE OF THE SPARROW

[@konzentrationsmangel7932]

I was thinking the same.

[@2Scribble]

This is Bad Lips Reading - I DON'T CARE!!!!!!!

[@nthgth]

Definitely thought of that with "obese cat" lmao

[@JHaru777]

I think playing a deaf character would fit better in a more normal mystery game. And being deaf, you have a button to read lips but there would also be times when you have to choose either to do that or use your eyes to find clues or pay extra attention for sneak attacks in certain areas. Or if they have music or obscured sounds, they could use it to try and trick you into thinking something or nothing is happening. It's just not that hard to make this concept work.

[@poopstainsmcgee3766]

"Yeah, some obese kitty cats" Turns out they were just talking about r/chonkers in that cutscene...

[@Mvmrobots4030]

Watching silent mode is like watching the last episode of a tv show you haven’t seen on mute

[@stephaniereed3848]

They could have at least used good fight choreography. It looks sloppy and the main character is the least intimidating guy ever.

[@Terabit3]

Discount Leonardo DiCaprio

[@drakkenmensch]

Instead what they had was punchbag thugs who automatically snap into position to be in the best punch-receiving pose even if they're lying down when Mr Silent starts his swing.

[@OdaKa]

@@Terabit3 With a Steven Seagal complex

[@shawklan27]

He looks like a rejected boy band singer

[@artry93]

God, the machismo of the cultural stereotype street thugs, the criminal/entertainment institution, the crime lord's beautiful love interest who career is a singer and her partner is possessed and controlled of her whereabouts and the baby face main protagonist in this game couldn't be cringe worthy and millennial/film noir cliché alongside the story itself. 🙄

[@CandGoods]

Kinda feels like the developers didn't even bother with consulting with anybody/any advocacy organizations for deaf/hard-of-hearing individuals, which probably would have helped with the nuances of how this main character interacts with the world and all.

[@expendableindigo9639]

They didn’t.

[@positivea9111]

Why can’t they do sign language that would make the game a little realistic.

[@positivea9111]

A guy with no content What do you mean learning how deaf people worked?

[@positivea9111]

A guy with no content It alright

[@gracekim1998]

@@positivea9111 and subtitles because not everyone knows sign language 😅

[@syntaxerror9994]

This game just makes me want to know the behind the scenes story. A beautiful trainwreck of game development. Also the deaf angle seems like something they came up with at the last second as nothing but that first cutscene alludes to it.

[@TheRealGaucelm]

"Yeah, some obese kitty cats" I'm dying

[@bbbrandon01]

This seriously makes me think somebody wanted to make a super interesting movie with all these characters and stuff, but they were told they had to make a game without knowing how to make a game. I would love to see this concept as a movie

[@QueenCheetah]

Being hearing-impaired, I often rely on lip-reading to help me understand other people. It's thoughtful of them to make a game that perfectly simulates the general frustration I feel nowadays since everyone's wearing masks (which doesn't help with the whole lip-reading thing). So thanks, Human Head... but I still hate it.

[@Fate263]

Wow... See, the issue is that if it was subtitled, MAYBE it could be more tolerable. But then... that still wouldn't save the fighting mechanic, though... Edit: DAFUQ?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! You have to beat it once... JUST TO HEAR SOUND!?!?!?!? This shouldn't be JUST bad... IT'S F'N BAD!!

[@SheepUndefined]

I could kinda see a deaf protag thing being a neat concept if you like, had subtitles over each characters head in a game. If they were facing the other way, said subtitles get blurred, and if someone's wearing a mask, same result. Maybe there could be a mechanic where you smash people's masks to get essential information, too, like, commanders giving important instructions to troops or something, in order to get a leg up in a battle? Idk, just...something so the deafness is an actual mechanic and not an aesthetic lopass-filter placed over the audio.

[@nellancaster]

I think there's one plot hole that you missed: remember when Cop Pop blames Dane for, and I quote, "killing his own mother", while we see for ourselves that it was Taye who shot her? So what the hell is that supposed to mean? Did he guilt-trip Dane because kid can't stop a speeding hot lead of death from punching a hole through his mom?

[@KasumiKenshirou]

Maybe because he hung out with dumb ass kids that would shoot each other over a pair of shoes.

[@jacobc8036]

that is what I wanna know! and why he got away with all this! orchestrating a mass murder/kidnapping, abusing his son. I think this might be the first case of a reverse mary sue. a character that is Imperfect to the point of it breaking the immersion

[@cyrus2395]

Uh... Please don't take my word for it, maybe his intention was to emotionally abuse his son to make him into a tough killer? Or something?

[@nellancaster]

@@cyrus2395 Actually, you know what? That kinda makes sense. I don't like it, but it does.

[@jacobc8036]

@@cyrus2395 if so that is even worse. all he saw his own son as was a tool for revenge. this isn't righting a wrong this is petty revenge. Robert the cop was a psycho!

[@Hedrakk1]

Ah... Guys, thank you so much for this episode of Just Bad. I’m running through a rough time right now and while I’m watching you episodes I’m getting a break from sadness... Never underestimate the power of your work. Every time you get something out, someone somewhere gets a break from his or her rough time. Thank you so much.

[@kevinthepilgrim]

Hope evrlerything is better for you, mate.

[@DEMENTO01]

i had this in my steam wish list, lemme see how much i wont regret never buying it

[@Goldieboi]

At this point, it’s probably free

[@EpicLebaneseNerd]

picked it up for $6 , great value, wait for it to drop and pick it up.

[@the8earthlyknights292]

It makes great kindling!

[@Chard0x]

I know this game sucks, but the mask guy has given me an inspiration (even though I've never heard of The Quiet Man until last month & forgot about it) to make a character with that mask but with a COMPLETELY different story. So, thanks Rerez! You gave a character creator who hasn't heard of The Quiet Man (until last month, but forgot) an idea for a character!

[@BugsyFoga]

The live action cutscenes were kind of interesting.

[@rerez]

Well preformed by the actors believe it or not. They were just given questionable dialog and were poorly directed.

[@WarHog935itchy]

Rerez this type of a cut scenes it's very interesting but it's cursed sorry the my English is average at best and one thing can you review well i don't know any garbage AAA games like anthem 76 and Casino basketball by 2gay?

[@joeybebop]

And I get an ad for Sony,s new noise canceling headphones.. 🤔

[@J.unishere]

Literally all I could take away from this game is "Birds are bad."

[@alexandreturcotte6411]

Especially the Seagulls.

[@RainbowGravity92]

@@alexandreturcotte6411 everyone can agree that seagulls are the worst.

[@nthgth]

Seagulls... Stop it now!

[@Kalvinjj]

The whole concept of making you think something at the 1st play through and then shattering your beliefs on the 2nd one with the lines would be so goddamn epic if it had worked and didn't have so many incomprehensible parts and unconnected stuff, heck even the whole deal about the sun and moon girl and how they look alike could have been so well used... After the 1st time he started talking I was really 50/50 into believing the whole deal about him being deaf is just a misunderstanding of the sing he showed to the 1st guys just to show he didn't hear them, and then the whole "silent man" thing on top.

[@Magitek1112]

Heck, there are games that do that idea (make the second playthrough changing everything because you can now hear things you couldn't before) and make it work, like Nier Replicant.

[@jayarby8494]

*I WAS LITERALLY JUST WONDERING WHEN YOU WERE GONNA COVER THIS GAME*

[@FainthedCherry]

_A Tangle pfp, a person of cultre_

[@chaffXgrenade]

Not gonna lie--that attempt at an Egyptian mythology connection kinda seemed cool Like, that's *the* most genuinely interesting interpretation of this game's story I've ever heard 😄

[@Ars-Nova258]

YES!!! YOU GUYS TACKLED ONE OF MY FAVORITE BAD GAMES TO WATCH PEOPLE SUFFER THROUGH!!! SUBBED

[@rerez]

Glad you could enjoy our descent into madness. :D

[@npiper]

Unfortunately Roundhouse Studios has reportedly been closed as a part of the Zenimax/Bethesda/Microsoft restructuring this month (May 2024) and the employees sent to The Elder Scrolls Online Gulag... I mean ZeniMax Online Studios.

[@FainthedCherry]

Just as I was looking for something to watch, thanks Rerez!

[@spork8655]

I actually really like the concept for this game...too bad the execution wasn't there.

[@eldridgecharles1313]

Rerez: Complains about a woman looking like protagonists mother Me, an intellectual: **Hides Devil May Cry 1 CD in pocket**

[@xxAntiOtakuxx]

Not a fair comparison because SPOLIERS Trish was made by Mundus to lure Dante to the castle and she was made to look like Dante's mother on purpose. Silent Man? As the opening to the great movie "Rubber" says, "no reason."

[@eldridgecharles1313]

@@xxAntiOtakuxx lol I thought silent man actually had feelings for Lulu or whatever her name is. And in my mind I was like "Well, add another to the list of *protagonists with mom fetish* "

[@grinbrothers]

I imagine this could be an entertaining game to at least dub over. Oh gosh though; I recall seeing this game at one of Square's E3 presentations and always wondering what happened to it. It managed to grab my attention as a neat-looking beat em up with an interesting concept in it's protagonist but then it just disappeared and I heard nothing about it. Thanks for covering it and informing me as to what happened to it... and making a hilarious video as a result. The glitch showcase and Horus symbolisation explanation had me chuckling constantly.

[@Aupsic-hh5sy]

That horus screeching and the machine going haywire killed me lol

[@udemeebong3242]

"You're able to punch Taye over and over again...in the junk." 🤣

[@xXkongergateXx]

This game could of been like marvel's daredevil (obviously daredevil was blind and not deaf but similar in the same context that they both are normal people who had a tragic childhood story that gave them a disability that made them into ass kicking hero's) would of been sweet.

[@teddyinjapan]

Just think if they took the same concept from this game for daredevil Daredevil is blind so... no visuals, only sound

[@kenaprito8557]

Yeah what if a daredevil game where we play from his perspective and only seeing through the sound wave of the object surrounding him

[@kazuhiramiller2121]

@@kenaprito8557 Actually there's game like that, just can't remember the name. It's a horror game tho

[@kenaprito8557]

@@kazuhiramiller2121 i remember a mobile game that use this concept but i forgot the name

[@xXkongergateXx]

@Dorian Green You mean visually right? I could see something like that as the way too see in a daredevil game where the player would be "blind".

[@therawmanchannel]

Like AVGN said once “this is not a game this is like watching a movie”

[@jacobc8036]

When did he say that again?

[@therawmanchannel]

In the Plumbers Don’t Wear Ties Episode

[@jacobc8036]

@@therawmanchannel oh yeah than he said "...a bad movie" I remember now thanks

[@matthewglick9822]

The nerd needs to do a video on this.

[@nguyenquyetthang1326]

@@matthewglick9822 it's too recent for him, unless he sees the real need or the community really wants him too

[@vanessabarnes2869]

okay this is the third time when im feeling really bad and depressed you guys come out with a video that makes me happy again so thanks for that anyway, my little bro kept telling me to never get this game but i kept wanting to cause it looked kinda cool but now? holy crap this game is bad thank you for saving my time and money rerez

[@hunkymccree8458]

13:01 as of today every final boss should have a nut punch phase where you just punch their nuts to oblivion

[@Scarletdex8299]

Randy Pitchford tried this. Didn't help their 14-years-in-the-oven nuke game

[@AluminumFusion22]

I remember seeing Grace from SSFF talking about how underrated The Quiet Man is, and while I love her and Derek's content, I highly disagree after seeing this. This game is a mess on so many levels, it's amazing. 🙄

[@EpicLebaneseNerd]

it is an underrated gem, i had a fun time playing it and the story is interesting and it gets better the second time.

[@liswatching3241]

LLR 'Lazy Lebanese Reviewer' 80 bruh, no

[@neighandwhinnymchorse2100]

How could anyone at all like this game. The only way it could make sense is if someone was being a contrarian. It's downright objectively bad.

[@davebob4973]

did you play it or watch a longplay first? because without the reference youre just watching 2 people talk about nothing

[@DissolvedGirl]

What makes me so sad about this game is that it really could've been some experimental/ art-house style experience in the same vein as something like Kane and Lynch 2 or NieR: Automata (both games also published by Square) but the ideas were so poorly realized it just became a disaster. I would love to see this idea taken and done right! Imagine if after the sound mode was unlocked, playing through the game with audio would let you hear dialogue you missed the first time around that would act as missing puzzle-pieces tying up the story or even revealing new plot twists? This could've been something.

[@memelord8769]

At least everyone is wearing masks

[@rerez]

2020 is wild.

[@jacobc8036]

is our defense you are not supposed to pass them around. least they are trying

[@DYNANiK]

IMHO this is the most underrated gaming channel on YT!

[@FigureFarter]

Finally, a game about intro... bad people called extroverts

[@bulgarianreaper6587]

You guys should cover Ride to Hell: Retribution

[@leoboi4957]

We need a just good games series

[@crackernuts2503]

If that was the case I would love them to play Arms in Nintendo Switch 😍

[@ablosch2452]

I always thought the bird mask was supposed to be like the villain was supposed to be like a plague doctor mask to be like some sort of death bringer or something.

[@MrThugergnaut]

I remember this game alright. The review from Angry Joe was pretty funny imo.

[@tjenadonn6158]

Jim Sterling had an excellent take on this as well.

[@KeyToAeris2024]

SEGA Dreamcast Worst game of 2018 is a game nobody has heard of Angry Joe 2018.

[@AllknowingUnknown]

I grew up in the dead community and one common trait of dead people is they can feel even the tiniest vibration. That could've been a great way of detecting your enemies to a limited degree.

[@mryesgaming]

Dead!?

[@epoxylung]

this makes me think a game from the perspective of a deaf person using the nintendo switch HD rumble would be pretty neat

[@AllknowingUnknown]

@@mryesgaming Yeah those zombies are an interesting bunch 🤔. Jk I meant *deaf*

[@gracekim1998]

I think spellcheck did the stupid thing of changing ‘deaf’ to ‘dead’ it happened to me too😅

[@justin2308]

Wait, the vibrations thing is actually a real trait? Some places I’ve looked at said it’s a fairy tale.

[@yoancampion9836]

Unlocking sound mode as a achievment for completing the game. Why not selling sound mode as a DLC while you're at it.

[@Magitek1112]

To make things worse, the sound mode wasn't even in the game originally, it was patched in a week or so after release.

[@deios]

Or just get lootboxes $1.49 or so to unlock 1 scene dialogue.

[@stormbunevitch4933]

Or sell the sound mode for 59.99

[@Circaninesix]

This game actually looks really good. The change from live action to gameplay isn't even that jarring. To bad it wasn't good. Looks like it had the elements in place to potentially be great, but something clearly was missing. Like interesting gameplay. It is a videogame after all.

[@FizzleFX]

Thomas was alone. Looks simple. Got better story and gameplay.

[@gantz22ify]

There is audio... locked behind a New Game Plus and released only via patch when people complained.

[@hudde814]

Looks like you didn't watch the whole video

[@gantz22ify]

hudde814 You’re right. Also, I wasn’t defending the game at all. Thing is, the patch was released later when people complained, meaning that they meant the game to be silent all along. My thoughts is that the Horus mythology would have worked better if it had been more coherent.

[@KotaonPC]

I really like these captions :) yay. 3 lines is sometimes too much but these maintain the pacing and delivery of lines of dialogue.

[@KeybladeMasterAndy]

I actually kinda like the idea of the story being silent, but there should be some visual storytelling to help the player understand what the scene is about.

[@ricardoparente5824]

12:52 started laughing too hard, so much that my colleagues went to check if I was okay!

[@Derpenscruben]

IMO; one fix that could've saved the first go with the story is having all of Dane's internal dialogue be present, along with anything that he directly said; With anything he couldn't read from a person, have the actual dialogue heavily muffled to where its intelligible. Doesn't have to be dead-on right when he's reading a person, have an aspect where it is open ended to make people think of what the true plot is. But at least have something to fill the gaps. Summarize what a character is saying, and his direct response.

[@blackwar12]

a continuous punch to the junk. best metaphor for that game.

[@cet9763]

Teacher: You Can't hear pictures This game:

[@Terrtail]

The funny thing is that the sound mode was put into the game on a patch AFTER release, because the game originally didn't had that option at all, they put that in just because of the backslash they received.

[@joelnod]

jokes aside, the quality actually looks amazing (other than the irl cutscenes)

[@bigbigbigbigbigman]

Not really...

[@The1of1000]

Yes, the animations, graphics and cutscenes all look relatively impressive.