The New Stanley Parable Game is Completely Unhinged

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The music in this video is from the Stanley Parable Ultra Deluxe Edition OST by the Blake Robinson Synthetic Orchestra

[@Leadhead]

Massive thanks to the developers at Crows Crows Crows for giving me this opportunity! Enjoy! ❤

[@LowProfile0247]

Your voice sounds so nice! It’s honestly impressive how much progress you made :3

[@Ali_Al-Nasir]

Im soo excited Imma buy it as soon as I get my Steam giftcard edit : amogus

[@pix3lhunt3r46]

what if u don't turn the brightness down till you cant see the computer (turn the brightness up till u cant see the chair)

[@glados5807]

crows crows c r o w s. leadhead my dude wish you the best in life!

[@evelyniris6899]

Leadhead sister, I just found out you're trans and omfg I realized our voices tend to have the same pattern when speaking, but your voice is like 50x better than mine. Loved the video! Gonna have to pick up Stanley Parable 2 now

[@dafire9634]

imagine leaving a negative review on the game, and then finding yourself immortalized forever in the game, they got roasted so hard they'll have to go into witness protection after this.

[@Yuti640]

Witness Protection for what?! No one was convicted of anything!!

[@deadset15-hrvavik17]

@@Yuti640 ya beat me to it XD

[@indeepjable]

they were convicted of having an opinion, of course

[@veteranscout1021]

@@Yuti640 “Michael was never actually in witness protection.” - Some Australian Speedrunner

[@biivamunner3122]

@@indeepjable I think Cookie9 might be a fake one though

[@groofay]

The Stanley Parable can have all the sequels it wants, nothing they do will ever surpass the broom closet ending.

[@hyp0cr1tical]

The broom closet ending is my favorite ending

[@3rdnusskern]

I low-key forgot about until I read this, and almost spat out my drink lmao

[@lyricbot8513]

Oh, did you get the broom closet ending? The broom closet ending was my favourite!

[@soooreal]

i made this joke

[@dannyboy5339]

@@soooreal bro literally everyone loves the broom closet ending, you can’t make an opinion 💀

[@erikm8373]

It's nice that there's a game out there that doesn't just let you experience the concept of Death of the Author, but actually ties him up for you and hands you a lead pipe so you can do it personally

[@fish2845]

good analogy bro

[@dantecarangelo1083]

An author... chooses...! A character... obeys...! ...OBEY!

[@stpidstuff]

@@dantecarangelo1083 Andrew Ryan

[@skew5386]

am I in the minority for having no resentment toward the narrator? I always liked him a lot and whenever I play I always do the "correct" ending to make him happy before I leave

[@cresoma]

Nah, I liked him as well! He wasn’t ‘bad’, charming if anything, just that he had a flawed view towards his art

[@Lumberjack_king]

If you want to make him happy stay in the calm music room it's really nice

[@kovacsnovak6745]

honestly I would do the same.

[@harrylane4]

He just wants to tell a story about his friend Stanley

[@xeroxoid7967]

He's that quirky, fun friend you can't help but follow along. It was honestly breaking me having to Use the Skip button and seeing him slowly break.

[@lukaswithakay]

Frankly, the jump circle was an incredible experience. So incredible that I wasted all 36 jumps on the first go.

[@agentshillbot]

I only jumped 8 times, didn't want to peak too soon

[@AGrayPhantom]

Wait, the game limits you to 36 jumps FOREVER!?

[@agentshillbot]

@@AGrayPhantom that's actually one of the achievements! "you can't jump"! 😂

[@user-kx6vj4fg7l]

I thought that I was _supposed_ to jump 36 times until something would happen. not my proudest moment…

[@realdonutking123]

dude same

[@DKannji]

In the Stanley Parable I was taught the importance of making choices, and the Ultra Deluxe edition did one better and taught me how to make a joke. And now I know how to end a joke when I previously didn't. I am donny with the funny.

[@_fudgepop01]

don't forget to get me a survey form with at least 10 pages (with redundant/duplicate questions) -- just to ensure that i'm paying attention, of course

[@DKannji]

@@_fudgepop01 My goodness is it 4:30, I'm supposed to have a bag, sack, and crack.

[@MystikGaming20]

Remember, you have to tell your joke in no more than 18 seconds, bathroom breaks allowed.

[@8888BALL]

That took more than 18 seconds I'm a slow reader

[@bananabro1010]

You gotta make sure your arm is raised, it looks like 16 degrees to me, better fix that

[@takahashierik]

The Memory Zone and Skip Button ending were pretty interesting to me. The Narrator tried to make a game that would please "everyone", and in doing so not only he undermined the meaning of the original game, he also trapped himself and Stanley in a concrete box, with nothing to do except be bitter and repeat his own thoughts for hundreds of years. It's quite dark

[@withedoter6277]

He pleased the players and got ignored. Players wouldn't get anything new from the Narrator cos he's too scared to share. Both got stuck in a loop, until the Narrator gave up. And the players press on.

[@Unkle_Genny]

@@withedoter6277 “And the players press on” Wow, nice wordplay there lmfao

[@withedoter6277]

@@Unkle_Genny Yes, hehe🤣 After I wrote that, I was like "damn, I need to get it in one of my TSP fanfics🌟" (Your icon did me a spook🤣)

[@thevioletskull8158]

I don’t think he trapped them there

[@withedoter6277]

@@thevioletskull8158 More like, did that by freak accident (since even he didn't know that the door would disappear 🥺

[@yousaysilver]

legitimately surprised that there wasn't a solid 5 minutes in this dedicated to the skip button scene because when my friends and i played it it utterly Destroyed us

[@arbi9506]

Yeah, that was disappointing. The skip button ending is the best part of the entire game alongside the epilogue that continues from it, but I'm convinced that maybe Leadhead reset before it ended since you have to push the button a lot for it to end

[@foxbot735]

@@arbi9506 I think it was probably left unmentioned to allow people to experience it for themselves

[@EpicSandwich301]

Same. I expected at least 5 min talk about the skip button ending and then another 5 min talk about “Stanley” button in the prologue

[@AlexanderrRobinEvans]

That ending messed with me a little more than I’d like to admit. Like, I know it’s supposed to give you a bit of an existential crisis but wow. I was a mess. I’ve genuinely never been so scared by any work of fiction ever, that ending outdid every horror movie for me. And even after terrifying me it’s still my favourite ending just because of how brilliant it is

[@sinnombre973]

i think that is the better and most depressing ending of all. it leaves you with a feeling of emptiness. like lisa the painful, to say some example.

[@tonyc.4392]

I usually don't care about spoilers, but The Stanley Parable has historically done some things that make it almost impossible to talk about without spoiling at least some part of it. I'll play the new version and come back to your video. Sorry to rob you of a view. Thanks for making it, though. You do good work.

[@Jay_Da_Goat366]

Ditto here I’m waiting for my bank to give me my money to get it. Love your vids I’ll be back too.

[@SianaGearz]

It's still a view if you watched 30 seconds.

[@tamsao2604]

ditto

[@tonyc.4392]

@@SianaGearz I didn't know this! In that case, my view counted before I decided to press pause.

[@felixpopovici8698]

played it and then watched the video best decision of my life

[@HVAC_Sean]

When I made it to the Skip Button room, I felt sympathy for The Narrator. I felt bad. I saw how absorbed he was in the opinions of others and how negatively it was affecting him. I never pressed the skip button until either A) The audio looped or B) There was no Narrator to listen to. Listening to him further lose himself after every skip was horrible, and when he disappeared entirely after his impassioned and frustrated outburst, I felt so cold and alone. I payed attention to every little detail, like the fire alarm, the potted plant, and the fan. And how they all withered and died. When the roof caved in and nature took root, there was solace. A moment of solace before i had to skip again, and it was taken away from me, as the narrator was. This legitimately terrified me; the cold, black space surrounding me and the horrific noises emanating from outside. I don't know how many people actually sat and listened to him every skip cycle. I can't imagine this experience carrying the same weight without having done so. I wanted the narrator back. The Ultra Deluxe Edition reminded me a lot of The Beginner's Guide, and that's a compliment. While trying to avoid reading into the artist via the art, it still felt like I was exploring someone's emotional experience. And also experiencing pettiness, spite, and animosity towards game design trends. I liked the pre-game text on the screen. His parting words pre-Epilogue left me feeling lonely. It left me chewing on what it said: It doesn't know me, and I don't know it. I wanted to find the text ASAP. But all it wanted to do was over-saturate. Now that I'm done playing it, all I really want is the soundtrack. Seriously, the soundtrack was the most beautiful part of the game. I can't seem to find it, anywhere.

[@emblemblade9245]

The skip button ending was just…haunting, goddamn. I would’ve loved to just explore in that empty space while the music played

[@picoultimate7707]

The Crows Crows Crows YT channel officially released the game's soundtrack for you to listen to as you please, with just about all the songs from the original game and the re-release, as well as some unused songs and songs used in teasers leading to the original's release.

[@HVAC_Sean]

@@picoultimate7707 hell yeah, thank you so much for letting me know!!

[@0Blueaura]

@@HVAC_Sean narrator closes the book, and with it this chapter of his life, moves on. Stanley on the other hand, can finnaly put himself to rest, deserted, he found memory zone, his bucket, and the settings person. Cheering him that the story will never end as long as he stays, but it isnt truly new content, the story is over, finished. He dies next to the office computer, finnaly at peace. Until the next game reboot.

[@maxzachry9277]

It’s too bad we’ve lost the Guy Fieri from the steam homepage forever.

[@Tomboeg]

Who?

[@captaineldeezee1336]

@NikkiMVee Have you got a source?

[@Nugcon]

Everytime you replay the game an overlay of Guy Fieri in the screen should become more and more opaque. That would be a good easter egg

[@Eurasian_]

@NikkiMVee Unfortunately, the story is faked, or whatever real evidence exists is nowhere to be found.

[@thatamericannarrator8247]

@@captaineldeezee1336 It was a joke in the dev logs sent out to crows crows crows email subs.

[@redshuttleredacted6422]

"THE STANLEY PARABLE [insert number here]" with the custom subtitles literally reminds me of what fans do when they create fan-fictions and fan-made games of well-known games.

[@emblemblade9245]

Yeah, it’s totally wacky and they have every right to do it, and the right to ignore criticism, but they will never be making an official product, a true “Stanley Parable 3”, so I have to totally reject what the computer said in the epilogue. What possibly gives him or her the power to make more Stanley Parables? It’s just another fanfic

[@TheGogglebrothers]

I would expand upon this and say that the bucket itself is a metaphor for the Stanley Parable. Its a generally unimportant object that serves one specific purpose that is constantly portrayed as if it is the greatest and most important creation ever for no particular reason. People get overly Attached to the bucket potentially to their own detriment and other people cannot convince them that it is anything other than a bucket. The bucket is to Stanley (and by extension the player) what the Stanley Parable is to the narrator. In one ending the narrator even deletes every bucket in the game and concludes that the entire game baring Stanley and the narrator himself is a bucket. That or its just a bucket and I am becoming convinced it's more important than it is, meaning that it actually is as incredible and important as the game says it was, meaning that I was right and its not. I fucking love this game.

[@kidkangaroo5213]

Davey Wreden is a true chaotic neutral, me thinks

[@cractor6307]

I love that reading. Honestly I was thinking that the bucket was just a way to represent media itself. Something that we hold onto and attributes extreme value for not real reason. My main lead was the lovecraftian ending. This idea that once you leave the bucket you feel hollow so you need to pick it back reminded me about obsessive fans.

[@emblemblade9245]

Funny enough I never even thought of symbolism with the bucket, I just saw it as a wacky idea that carrying around a harmless normal bucket turns the world into a cult-base and distorts the endings into funny and surreal situations (as if the original setting wasn’t already full of distortions!) Sure there were times where the narrator begged me to get rid of the bucket, but again I just got distracted by all the cult stuff to think that it meant anything beyond “the bucket turns you crazy and obsessive”. To be clear though I’m not ignorant to other symbolism in the game, I just totally didn’t think about it with the bucket

[@digadeh]

Wow

[@leddy7904]

Spoiler and fun fact: In the cave of Jim buttons, one of them, tucked away in the corner, it says Stanley. I got it after pressing literally every other button in the room. I wonder what significance it has... Stanley was wandering the desert, was Stanley perhaps without the Narrator for all that time, it was the same desert from the original Memory Zone ending, after so long and so many skips, it feels like a continuation of that. Did the Narrator perhaps miss Stanley? Either way just a curious detail

[@EpicSandwich301]

I personally think that the moment the sealing started to destroy Narrator got out, but since he is kinda… Ya know… he made this button. Why? We will never know

[@DawnAfternoon]

Its funny how the game is all about ludonarrative dissonance, and you dont feel like Narrator's character Stanley at all. But when you get to that button you became Stanley. You went from having Ludonarrative dissonance to fully being immersed as Stanley.

[@hurricanejaney]

i think it has something to do with the original button scene, where we’re meant to imagine we are Jim, fully take on the life of Jim, so that we are satisfied when the button says “our” name. we have become Jim. through playing the game, we have become Stanley, so finding that button is weirdly nostalgic and heartwarming

[@pineapplepenguin1759]

Spoiler: There is actually a new 20th "normal" ending (and I assume there is a bucket version of it as well) unrelated to the "new content" section that you get by going up and down the elevator that takes you to the mind control facility

[@ziggyzag07]

Another one by the cargo lift, there's a vent that leads to a ending

[@caltheuntitled8021]

There are bucket versions of both of those endings

[@cresoma]

There’s also a new ‘ending’ for falling to the bottom of the mind control facility, but that’s more akin to the out-of-bounds ending than a regular one

[@caltheuntitled8021]

@@cresoma It does actually end by itself, though, unlike the window ending where you have to reset it yourself. There’s also a bucket version of that ending.

[@cresoma]

@@caltheuntitled8021 True, true! I just thought of it that way since the game turned an oversight into a feature of sorts

[@BryceDixonDev]

For me, there's also a big message about fans of a property making demands of its series. So often can you find fans both asking for a sequel, but also upset when one comes out that changes anything.

[@chunkygumby443]

The whole skip button ending has to be my favorite part of the game because of just the emotions and dialogue the narrator shows during each skip and when you go through each skip, there's this moment where the narrator just stops talking for the rest of the ending and you feel truly alone and lost. It's one of my favorite moments in the game as you see a man lose himself to the loneliness then be gone, bone chilling then the game restarts.

[@emblemblade9245]

The part where the plants came in and then disappeared and then you hear the demonic howling outside was just holy shit

[@CynicalMartian]

Oh shit this reminded me to play The Stanley Parable again so I can get the "go outside" achievement. Thanks Lead!

[@lukaswithakay]

But can you get the Super Go Outside achievement 🤔

[@user-cd4bx6uq1y]

The monster has been awakened once again. Time for some good memes about that achievement!

[@stevenbobbybills]

The Steam reviews are referred to as "Pressurised Gas" in the PS4 and PS5 versions (and presumably all other console versions) of the game, and I just find that hilarious. Especially since the references to all of the games (and movie) that are name-dropped or shown on lists in the Ultra Deluxe content are to actual games (and an actual movie), the Payday Dallas mask is still in the Confusion Ending's winding corridors, and the Games ending, whilst modified, still has two actual video games in it. Some doors, even the Firewatch tower one, still have the Minecraft door noise, with the Memory Zone also having framed portraits of the Narrator's Minecraft house and the Portal 1 first test chamber. Oh, and one of, and I believe exactly one of the still-functioning name buttons in the Epilogue's piles actually say "Stanley" instead of Jim. Back right pile. And if you stay in the Broom Closet long enough, you don't just get a Property of Stanley sticker, you also get a bucket sticker! On the bucket. It's a sticker of the bucket itself. It goes to the left.

[@infiniteplanes5775]

If I’m correct, it was because Nintendo and the other big companies making the platforms didn’t want a rival company like Steam to be mentioned

[@elizathegamer413]

The most important part of the epilogue in my opinion is the achievement, i love getting test achievements it's also fun to, once you finish the epilogue, bring the bucket with you back into the "new content room" also i didnt realize this but there really is a custom windows movie maker video for whichever figurine you find fifth. I know that because there was a completely different one i saw on youtube. How awesome.

[@withedoter6277]

Getting the test achievement is probably one of the best moments in the game. Our Narrator, so terrified, I like it🌟

[@MarkMonthie]

@@withedoter6277 Yeah, that actually threw me off a bit. The Narrator thought that he was the all powerful creator, and yet there’s some entity that is doing stuff beyond the Narrator’s control. It was a really thought-provoking turn of events. And it wasn’t even just confusion, you could hear the fear in his voice that there was this unknown entity above the Narrator’s control. Truly an amazing moment.

[@L0rdLogan]

If you do the secret ending with the bucket, the bucket disappears, you do the secret ending again and get the bucket back, when you pick it up he says "And try not to lose this one, you dolt" - this game is brilliant

[@angel__king]

This game is fantastic. I love a game that genuinely makes me wonder how much left. I’ve litterally been trying every ending with the bucket just to see if anything changes. Also I love that they changed the games in the “you don’t wanna play my game” ending to fire watch and rocket league instead of Minecraft and portal. Also the memory chamber hit me different with the idea that yeah memories are beautiful and calming but that doesn’t remove the bad ones from existing no matter how much we push them down

[@nintendude794]

Memory Zone hits different when you think about it in the context of Davey’s Game Of The Year Impostor Syndrome blog post and his other game The Beginner’s Guide.

[@staryoshi06]

@@nintendude794 It even had lietmotifs from the beginner's guide

[@calistusjay60]

All of the new content gave me beginner’s guide vibes more than Stanley vibes.

[@Tom-101]

@@calistusjay60 Yep, because it's basically meta-stanley parable and beginners guide is meta-game making.

[@MicRouSn7]

Kinda breaks my heart that you missed so many details like one of the buttons in the epilogue actually saying your name. Or what happens if you actually go about using the fast forward button. Both gave me chills.

[@celestialcolosseum]

Also, the cookie9's blog review part in the epilogue being the same person who started that epilogue apocalypse ending with the steam review which is also an interesting detail.

[@MicRouSn7]

@@celestialcolosseum I didn't notice that! I'll have to go back and see for myself.

[@MDG-mykys]

Spoilers!

[@MicRouSn7]

@@MDG-mykys I didn't say what happens. But okay.

[@MDG-mykys]

@@MicRouSn7 I was joking about this thread in general.

[@Medibeans]

12:20 There's actually a button that says Stanley! Go around pressing every one and you'll eventually find it in a cluster of Jims. Somehow, this little detail manages to be one of my favorites in the entire game.

[@WilliamKKidd]

"In a million years you will not predict where this is going to go" later... "So it's basically the same game, but you have a bucket and new narrator dialogue"

[@smileyp4535]

I mean would you have predicted that?

[@jochrisjo33]

I find that offensive. My best friend is a bucket.

[@interdimensionalgoober8769]

Ah yes, most plots are simple when you cut out all of the details as well as the epilogue, a genius observation

[@WilliamKKidd]

@@interdimensionalgoober8769 the epilogue isn't the main part of the delux edition... And if it is, that's sad... The main part of the delux edition is the different dialogue in the main map, not the 20 minute epilogue.

[@interdimensionalgoober8769]

@@WilliamKKidd ok for one spell deluxe right, secondly you ignored all the symbolism snd commentary you cut out in the original comment, thirdly you ignored all the new non bucket endings, and finally i never said the epilogue was the main part of the new deluxe edition, its just literally the story’s ending and by ignoring it you missed the point entirely.

[@Raybro16]

Just finished the Epilogue. There are so many stand out moments in this version of the game. As poignant and complete the ending is, I think the most stand out moment to me was after I finished collecting the Figleys and the Narrator had me go back to the Memory House to reminisce on said Figleys first in order and then on reverse order all the way back to Stanley’s office. The game went in a direction that I absolutely did not see coming; The Narrator brings reflecting on why he made the Stanley Parable, about how he felt lonely and making Stanley up and having him go on The Narrator’s adventure made him feel less so. It was then he decided that he felt that he got what he needed from all of this and was ready to move on with his life, leaving Stanley behind, but not before reminiscing on the Stanley Parable again from the beginning. To me, at the time, I felt as though I stumbled onto something truly profound but was too confused and mind blown to even process it and understand what I had just witnessed. However, after watching your video piece by piece so I don’t spoil everything for myself until I experienced everything myself I think I finally have a word for what I experienced and what the Narrator had so desperately sought after; Closure. I most likely forgotten a number of things with that entire sequence but i can’t be assed to scour the internet for everything to collect all my thoughts, especially at this hour of 9:34 PM as I’m writing this, so I’ll leave it at that. Maybe I’ll revisit this comment if I can be bothered and add more of my thoughts on this entire experience but for now I’ll leave this as is

[@emblemblade9245]

Yeah, the epilogue was poignant, but the figley ending is in my eyes the “golden ending”. I loved the message of learning to not hold the past on a pedestal, to stop digging through every memory to endlessly try to drink in nostalgia, and to instead use the past as a means to move forward in life, while still leaving a little space in your mind to come back when you feel like, to “go through the office one more time” so to speak.

[@Raybro16]

@@emblemblade9245 took the words right out of my mouth XD

[@sadpuppetshow5113]

@@emblemblade9245 I like to think the epilogue is a continuation of the figley ending

[@completelyroundoak]

There was also the ending where you get lost in the original stanley parable mod. Instead of taking you into minecraft and Portal, now it takes you into Firewatch and Rocket League respectively with different commentary on those games.

[@Bluuzell]

I wonder why they changed that? Copyright issues, or just updating the game with new content?

[@seanhf2870]

@@Bluuzell I'm pretty sure it's just to keep everything fresh and new. Valve and mojang seems to be okay with the reference in the original game, and if there is copyright issues, they would have updated and remove it from the original game.

[@devilbob]

@@seanhf2870 Nah, it's copyright, since Minecraft now belongs to Microsoft.

[@seanhf2870]

@@devilbob There are tons of other actual big games with minecraft easter eggs that's still exist and running. And that's also after the microsoft mojang thing. You would think that microsoft would tell the developers to take them down immediately right?

[@VikingArelius]

I wanted to wait until after I sank my teeth into the game before I watched this. I was glad I went in blind. Spoilers ahead - the bucket is a fucking great comedic device. When I picked up the phone and went down the rabbit hole with the bucket, I lost my shit when the bucket was on Stanley's bed with all the candles in the room. Is This... A Bucket? is a hilarious side ending to what would have been the alternate game ending with a bucket. There's so much I could explain but I can't, I don't have the words to describe how much I love it.

[@swimmyswim417]

The white void ending with the bucket is going to stick with me for a long time XD especially since it’s foreshadowed in the bucket tape recorder ending… though nothing could’ve prepared me for the looping basement bucket ending. What’s usually an existential nightmare turns into an absurdist tale where bucket companions are a normal part of an emotionally healthy lifestyle. 10/10 would bucket again

[@NYKevin100]

I really love to hear other people's interpretations of this game, because they're so different from mine, and it's really fascinating to see how different people can come to wildly different conclusions about the same piece of art. After all, multiple interpretations is the whole point of death of the author, and it's good that the game is large and admits more than one way of looking at things. Personally, while I did pick up on the death of the author themes, I always thought of the game as being about choice in narrative games (such as Mass Effect and that game that Telltale repeatedly re-made before they went under). To my mind, the core idea of The Stanley Parable (pre-Ultra Deluxe) was this: You can't *really* make a game where choices matter, at least not in a fundamental sense, because all of the content has to exist in advance, long before the player is involved, so the best you can do is let the player choose from a limited menu of predefined options, and that's always going to be unsatisfying on some level. In the Blue Door and Real Person endings, the player insists on making choices the Narrator isn't prepared to support, and the game breaks. In the Confusion ending, the story gets all out of order, and the Narrator resorts to introducing a UI element (The Line™) which tells the player exactly where to go, and then changes his mind and tells the player to deviate from it, but neither choice really works out (in the sense of providing narrative closure). In the Countdown ending, the player is prompted to try pressing all sorts of random buttons (which are a metaphor for choices) scattered around the room, but it's futile, because you cannot prevent the bomb from going off. And so on for all of the other endings. In this sense, The Stanley Parable and Undertale are at odds with one another: They both ask the question "Do our choices (in video games) matter?" but they want us to come to directly opposing conclusions.

[@wolfsongaz]

You feel Undertale comes to the conclusion "Your choices in games do matter"? It seems like its the opposite, that a sufficiently completionist player will want to see everything and do every choice, leaving the only real choice being what order you do it in, at least for that sort of person. Many people are just happy with the pacifist ending and choose to stop, but the genocide route goes hard on this point so if you never did it you wouldn't really notice. Its "you can't really have choices matter in a game" in a different way, one that focuses on the players desire to do everything rather than on the inherent nature of everything being a preset path no matter how many there are.

[@OhNoBohNo]

i feel like the things i've come away with from Undertale are that your choice might not 'matter' too much to a pre-created game, but it might matter a LOT to you.

[@calsalitra4689]

The only type of game where choice can truly matter is in a completely randomized sandbox like Dwarf Fortress.

[@FernieCanto]

It's always been pretty transparent that Stanley Parable is exactly what you say: a cynical commentary on the technical aspects of video game design (remember that it came out in 2013, where "Your choices matter!" was all the rage, and players were adamant in *not* understanding that every single player input is "a choice" that ultimately "matters"). The whole language of the game is soaked in that early 2010's "I'm so meta" feel, in which nuance is a bad thing and sarcasm is conflated with wit. There isn't really a lot of "interpretation" left to do once you understand the historical context of the game. However, youtubers just love adding this sheen of phoney philosophy and trendy buzzwords ("Ludonarrative dissonance!" "Death of the author!") to make everything look bigger than what it is--but really, The Stanley Parable is the kind of game that's made not by artists, but by programmers: it only talks about the mechanical aspects of design, while being oblivious to the human aspects. I mean, "choice" is a concept that's been under heated debate for literal thousands of years by philosophers, neuroscientists, theologians and everyone else; while this game's understanding of choice boils down to "videogaemz amirite?", and it blows gamers' minds.

[@damsen978]

Nope, it is possible. You can program for a generation of lore and options. The closest a game has done this is Dwarf Fortress, but it's not presented as a multi-choice game.

[@MrPikachuTheMadman]

The fact that Penelope went as far as editing the video files that play in the game to credit her Patrons shows her dedication. Now I want to Rickroll people using this trick > : )

[@TheStashOfNash]

I was going to watch this video, having played and watched the original and fully taking in the fact that I was going to be spoiled, but hitting the 5:20 mark I outwardly laughed out loud and realized that this is not a game that should be spoiled for me. I really do need to play this. Edit: I played the intro to the game and I’m so glad I experienced it completely on my own. A truly special turnaround.

[@TheNerdySimulation]

I've spent that last 24 hours playing The Stanley Parable Ultra Deluxe and I come away feeling obliquely melancholic. The Epilogue had me feeling as though my eyes were about to burst with tears, whilst also refusing to open the flood gates. I love this game with my entire being and hope one day to make something even half as wonderful.

[@_-Lx-_]

Was it during a Tuesday by chance?

[@Phrosphor]

Playing the Ultra Deluxe Edition yesterday was like meeting up with an old friend you haven't seen for 9 years and reminiscing on the old times. It was good nostalgia and some crazy new twists. Thanks for making this video.

[@Tom-101]

Agree there, the narrator really does feel like an old friend at this point. It's why the tone of this death of the author fuck the narrator kinda style doesn't really gel with how I feel about the game.

[@falpsdsqglthnsac]

i didn't know your name was penelope so i deadass thought that they just added another character named penelope. i was so confused lmao

[@fractarus4729]

LOVING THE VOICE PROGRESS!!!! And can’t wait to play this later today!!

[@SubSpace-bs5fr]

yeah she's done it so well, you can here the difference in takes 'cuase of it. lol

[@trashcollector6184]

I WAS THINKING THE SAME. It’s crazy how every new video her voice sounds a bit different

[@JacksonD2]

Her?

[@haja.]

@@JacksonD2 trans gener

[@jack-jack7914]

@@haja. grans tener

[@cornbonzo7027]

death of the author was something i experienced for the first time because my pixel art was used in an r/place presence. and it got tweaked in ways i was annoyed by but it was completely out of my hands by that point. it was a really eye opening experience. thanks for the vocabulary piece, i didn't know it had a name

[@HankRichard]

What was the original?

[@cornbonzo7027]

@@HankRichard it was the logo for the game deep rock galactic. However it was tweaked and lost it’s consistent kerning and letter width

[@kekkres]

@@cornbonzo7027 i mean thats not death of the author, thats art theft

[@cornbonzo7027]

@@kekkres art theft? I specifically made the pixel art in hopes of it being used for r/place, I proposed it to the community. I remained part of the community while others added to it. I wanted to fix it up but that would conflict with the pixel art people were proposing, and pixel art is cooler than consistent kerning, so it won. I’m not angry, I’m a very details-oriented person, I’d prefer to have one thing with perfect detail than several smaller things, but I understand that the game is more than a logo. I’m just glad I got to make something and have it be immortalized on r/place

[@Nov-5062]

The Stanley Parable is one of my favorite games ever, and your take on the game's meaning is very smart. However I think you kinda underestimated the narrator's impact on the whole game. Not following his orders won't just piss him off but might also make him realise that without your choice, right or wrong alike, there is no game. the game has a holy trinity of the player, the narrator, and the story, and the endings show what happens when you drop one of those. About the Ultra Deluxe edition, well, I have a lot of things to say about it...

[@Daburubareru]

I can imagine how the developers have been through while received the amount of negative reviews, make sense why they make that level as a response of "revenge". Huge respect for the developers who made a great game

[@Oyakinya-Izuki]

Dude, just use the Skip button to skip these bad reviews

[@negativefg7922]

@@Oyakinya-Izuki NO STANLEY DON'T PRESS THE SKIP BU...

[@Daburubareru]

Are peoples gonna really comment so late :|

[@Oyakinya-Izuki]

@@Daburubareru it's been 696969696969 years since that comment was posted, thanks to the skip button we skipped quite a lot...

[@Flamme-Sanabi]

A story can evolve without changing one word of itself, when Frankenstein's Monster released, everyone thought that Frankenstein was the monster. Now, some moron think that Frankenstein's creation was the monster.

[@shadowcween7890]

Frankenstein's monster was just like a sad child, while Doctor Victor Frankenstein was a true villain

[@Lumberjack_king]

I still think it's fitting it's creation now given the name of the true monster it's creator

[@vaiyt]

frankenstein was not the song, it was the band.

[@garbagecan7718]

Your voice is getting better, more power to ya

[@zoetropeyzy]

Oh my god, I was staring at this game’s steam page waiting for it to release, and then this notification pops up! I’m kinda scared to watch this out of fear of spoilers but I’m also so curious to hear what you think about one of my favorite games of all time!

[@hamburglr1]

Isn't this game old? Why is everyone suddenly obsessed with it again I'm confused

[@DemonixTB]

@@hamburglr1 a new game part sequel part remaster released about an hour ago. but yes the original Source mod released in 2011 and the standalone game in 2013

[@hamburglr1]

@@DemonixTB oh ok that makes sense then, it's all over my KZbin and I was so confused why everyone was playing it now 😂

[@Mr_Crypt]

@@hamburglr1 bro i lost braincells reading your comment but i wont judge

[@hamburglr1]

@@Mr_Crypt must suck not being able to read

[@OriginalContent89]

"Stanley's entire existance boils down to pushing a button when someone tells him to" Me who works on a computer all day: Wow I wasn't expecting the personal attack 😭

[@eltiolavara9]

the spoiler warning made me wanna play trough most (not all, i didn't have the patience to redo every single ending with the bucket) of the game, and holy shit was the skip button segment powerful

[@aceofflames4572]

That has to be one of the most terrifying sequences I've ever played in a video game

[@eltiolavara9]

@@aceofflames4572 I KNOW RIGHT

[@subprogram32]

The skip button sequence gave me big Soma vibes.

[@meh-ru1uk]

it was the thing that has genuinely terrified me. The silence, white noise and the insanity of The Narrator is like... it puts great fear into me

[@eltiolavara9]

@@meh-ru1uk yeah holy shit the silence and then the narrator rambling to himself

[@A_Salted_Fishe]

I was very late to The Stanley Parable, and so in order to get the achievement "Go Outside" I can only play the game again September 2023 I'm looking forward to it tremendously

[@flintfrommother3gaming]

You can hack achievements im Steam and tbh I am a bit sick of people cheating achievements in TF2.

[@emblemblade9245]

Ultra Deluxe is a different game entirely, you can play it now and not miss the achievement in the 2013 game

[@coderamen666]

I just messed with my system clock to get it lmao

[@A_Salted_Fishe]

@@coderamen666 I actually waited the entire time lmao, got the achievement last year

[@edgelordneko]

I love this. Creators knowing they cannot out-do the art of the first game, so they don't try to make something better, rather something close that leads us far.

[@HeavyMetalMouse]

In my own playing of Stanley Parable, the strongest theme I took from it was an exploration of the 'Implied Contract of Gaming' and how it can be used and abused. When you play a game, you are putting your trust in the game's creator to guide you along an interactive experience that will provide you some emotional result - usually entertainment and fun, but beyond that things like a feeling of overcoming a challenge, or of catharsis in engaging in scenarios that would be too dangerous, scary, or unpleasant to do in real life. We trust the dev, and the game, and in turn they give us the experience they promised us, whether that be a high octane energetic beat'em'up, a challenging puzzler, or an introspective narrative walking sim. As players, we are conditioned to trust the game and its instructions, because not doing so leads to frustration as we attempt to do things the game is not programmed to permit; we are conditioned to trust that following the instructions and playing the game 'correctly' will be rewarded with the promised experience. The Stanley Parable, in essence, is a game about breaking that contract. Every ending outside of the 'do what the narrator says' ending involves violating that contract 'just to see what happens'. Breaking the game for the sake of breaking it; in any normal game, the attempt probably wouldn't be acknowledged explicitly, and such things are simply another way to enjoy a game beyond its intended experience, in much the same way that taking apart a radio is an alternative to listening to music on it - the voice on the radio doesn't acknowledge your unplanned actions, it can't, but you still derived some new entertainment or enrichment from the process. Perversely, in the Stanley Parable, there is *actual gameplay* prepared and planned for when you go 'off script'; not only are you *expected* to break the rules, but the game only really exists as itself when you are 'breaking the rules', to the point that the player comes to see the narrator as merely another element or obstacle of the game rather than a trusted source of information on how to enjoy the game... and this is *intended*. The 'real' rules of the game are the instruction to break the rules and try things, to experiment and test the story to its limits. The narrator chastises you for 'ruining' his story, but the game itself rewards you with more content as you explore the choices that exist outside of following the narrator's instructions, ironically letting you know that you're 'doing it right'. Stanley Parable demands the player to break the contract, and it is to the benefit of the player's experience. I like to think that this was, in part, a reaction to a theme that got popular for a little while of games that broke the contract against the player - games where you put your trust in the game to give you a promised experience and instead it berated you for doing exactly what it told you to do, what it *required* you to do to progress, where it punished you for trusting it. Games where you're given a familiar interface, and the option to choose violence, only to be told how much of a monster you are for making that choice which the game itself gave you and the devs made content in service of. Games where you follow the instructions, even to fulfill some innocuous task like solving a puzzle, only to 'achieve' some horrible outcome as a result, and then blaming you the player for it (whether in jest, or seriously). Sometimes in these games you are given an option within the game other than to do the 'bad instruction' and still progress, which can be an interesting exploration of that dynamic; other times in these games, your only option is to either do the 'bad thing', or stop playing the game, the ultimate betrayal of the contract. The Stanley Parable gives you a world of choices (as long as those choices involve walking around and pressing a contextual 'use' button), and rewards you for going off-path with the catharsis of causing the suffering of vaguely British man, along with a wild ride through absurd scenarios 'off the path'. It says "Play. Have fun. Nobody can stop you, and nobody can judge you. Well, they'll try, but they can't really do anything about it except try to make you feel bad."

[@emblemblade9245]

I’ve never seen such a perfect analysis that gives form to my unshaped feelings and experiences from the game. Sorry this comment didn’t get more attention, it really should be seen!

[@minecraftveteranyoda4476]

Just played the game, the first ending I got was Stanley arriving on a stage in front of a roaring crowd, before doing what I can only assume is fainting. The title is no lie,

[@docmarion8902]

For the ones that though watching this video was enough, just stop and go play this game. I cannot assure you how great it is. Leadhead purposefully avoided spoilers on lots of great moments and major stuff. It’s mind blowing and hilarious, plus it comes with the original game. Just don’t miss out.

[@randall556]

12:20 Actually one of the Jim buttons in the Epilogue says "Stanley". Only Stanley button in the game

[@JaxontheOkay]

another interesting thought i very recently noticed. of course the entire premise of the game is paradoxical. to make a choice and grab your life by the reins and be your own person, you have to follow what you're told and follow the straight and narrow. but you get basically the only happy ending. every other ending where you go off the beaten path and make a true choice, you go insane, or jump off a cargo lift to end your life, or get stuck in an endless cycle of resetting the game until you don't even know if you got the ending or the path is still going. is it sometimes best to just do what you're told if they know what's best for you?

[@AfutureV]

I find the idea that this game is in any way a “Death of the author” just very funny. You do exactly what the developers want all the time.

[@LukeLavablade]

All of the time except when you actually stop playing. They can't control how you interpret why the game exists.

[@placeholderdoe]

I love your new talking voice! It just fits, have a nice day!

[@bitcoinzoomer9994]

It's so fucking obvious it's sad

[@jamez6398]

The freedom ending, where you follow the narrator's instructions exactly, is actually my favourite ending...

[@emblemblade9245]

It’s funny, because after playing all the new content and all the crazy shit with the bucket cult, I feel like I can do the freedom ending and actually feel free, instead of controlled by the narrator, unlike in the beginning of the game where it feels ironically unsatisfying because of the strong urge to disobey him

[@handyes42]

How could you mispronounce "Broom closet"? Please learn English again.

[@Q269]

16:30 skip the spoils but keep the algorithm happy

[@realdonutking123]

fun fact: in the epilogue, there is actually one button that does say stanley instead of jim

[@goobiscool5363]

After stopping this video at the start and dedicating a whole night to playing through this game entirely. God i'm so glad I did and stanley parable continues to be my second favorite game of all time. Great video as always lead, keep it up :o)

[@harleykf1]

What's your favourite?

[@goobiscool5363]

@@harleykf1 celeste!! celeste is my all time favorite game

[@harleykf1]

@@goobiscool5363 Ah nice! Mine is Portal 2.

[@c.johnson1408]

Thanks for explaining ludo narrative dissonance in such a simple sentence, I've heard it before I just never got it

[@cloudtender8813]

I Originally subbed because of your voice But it changed dramatically inbetween the past few videos so gl with your Channel Keep your crown up queen Cya o7

[@Cronosonic]

If you haven't already played it, I also would implore that everyone also plays The Beginner's Guide, also by Davey Wreden, which is also has themes revolving around The Death of the Author, albeit in a much darker context. Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe feels like a more positive/lighthearted thematic follow-up to The Beginner's Guide in many ways.

[@NoukonGlobal]

Before watching anything here, I'm guessing the new content is meta-commentary on releasing sequels and remasters.

[@DarrellThody]

I actually told the computer _no._ For as snooty as the narrator is, as a creative myself I empathize with his attachment to what he creates. It means a lot to him, even if it goes horribly wrong he's still in on it. Rifling through papers when you make the wrong choice, to really sticking it to you when you enter an unfinished room, he has a plan. But he's lonely, but he still depends on Stanley and Stanley depends on him. The end is never the end. When I walked into the memory zone, it was essentially a place full of things the narrator held dear, like he was sharing something special with you. revisiting the ruins of it made me somber and a bit upset. So when deep in those ruins there lay those old Stiggly Wigglies I collected each and every one, because they belonged to the narrator. And when an outside voice wanted to do sequel after sequel I was kind of disgusted at the thought. The new NEW content that the narrator introduced was HIS, but the new number every time I'd boot up the game was a mockery of his passion, even if he isn't the best storyteller. Ultimately the narrator is patient. Easily annoyed and frustrated, sure, but he will always wait for you, Stanley, or Jim, or whoever to make a choice. He's flawed, clinging tightly to The Stanley Parable- but I can't help but love him for when he gets excited even when you're going against him, or his theatricality when he tells you to pick up the phone. He just cares a lot.

[@pitori.]

As a french guy that DID not expect memory zone song but was very happy about it

[@PenelopeNaomi]

Great video Penelope! I adore your voice.

[@bitcoinzoomer9994]

Horrible take, man.

[@PenelopeNaomi]

@@bitcoinzoomer9994 excuse me?

[@dutchporcelainplate]

havent been here for a while, your voice has changed alot. congrats!

[@bitcoinzoomer9994]

Stop enabling his illness

[@Axolotl720]

@@bitcoinzoomer9994 stop speaking in thirdperson

[@r033cx]

12:21 One button actually says "Stanley"

[@SlimeBeast-xp7xf]

"I wonder what they'll do with this expansive update of a immensely innovative item, on an iteration of the source engine" "Have a fucking bucket"

[@NotThatSarahLevy]

There are a few differences before the 'new content' door shows up. I found a new ending along the main path

[@Unkle_Genny]

3:54 I love the details in this image here. You get a guy to change his profile pic to the BLU Scout from TF2, and his username to Scout’s canonical first name of Jeremy, throw in the fact that he in the lore believes himself to be the son of Tom Jones - a fact only a real TF2 lore nerd would know - AND topped it off by having the messages from the account read almost exactly like how Scout would probably actually say them. So much effort for a single goofy image for this video, and I love it!

[@madgebishop5409]

12:24 one of the buttons will say Stanley not Jim, just go through and press them all and you'll find it

[@jossebrodeur6033]

I honestly think the Steam Reviews are better in the console port, because they're literally called "Pressurized Gas" reviews and frankly that's just ten times funnier to me.

[@kabobawsome]

It's amazing that this started as some vaguely horror themed Half-Life mod.

[@bernienoma2477]

I just played and finished this game. Holy wow I needed it. I bought it as self care after dealing with a Transphobe. The game kept making me think about how cool a version of this around Transness would be so cool. Extra cool that your vid is the 1st post game vid I'm watching 🤣😁🥰🏳️‍⚧️

[@minillaman6717]

3:07 that story was too specific for its not to be true

[@mrsteamie4196]

Oooohmg your voice! It sounds so so different now. And yet still very nice :) Glad that things are progressing, I hope that you have continued to feel more and more comfortable within yourself.

[@jobennett9996]

hi, i haven’t come across your videos in a while, but i think this may be the first time i’ve heard your voice since your transition and WOW YOU SOUND SO NICE I LOVE THE NEW VOICE!

[@luigifan001]

It is a bit if a dissapointment that the Narrator does not make use of the console's unique characteristics. For example. Maybe he can say something about scanning an amiibo or using the move controller or about the switch's portability.

[@iantaakalla8180]

It would have fit very well into the real ending of The Stanley Parable. Each console has a slightly different flavor of using the new features and that can fit into the whole sequelitis ending of The Stanley Parable by marketing it as giving a different set of features for each console when in fact each console-specific feature is very slight. That would really feel like you would be milking the game down to its core.

[@Drawoon]

Damn, your voice has changed a lot over the past year. Congrats! I know how difficult that is.

[@bitcoinzoomer9994]

Don't congratulate him. He's irreversibly hurting himself to fulfill his vices.

[@Drawoon]

@@bitcoinzoomer9994 What do you mean? There's nothing irreversible about changing your voice. You're just broadening the ways it can sound, and you can change it back whenever you want.

[@Mr.Electricc]

One thing I love in the epilogue is the one Jim button that says Stanley

[@palomarivera5475]

I liked that the Stanley parable UD had a lot of ambients and assets that reminded me of the beginners guide (another game by Davey that I adore)

[@HankRichard]

The stanley parable is one of the best games i ever played. i went in blind and i loved it

[@stacksmalacks8826]

Ahhh Lead's voice is so cute now. Another great video, always need more Leadhead in my life.

[@neurofilterband]

Thank you for making another excellent video. I really enjoy your videos on Davey Wreden's work - always fun to hear your thoughts and ideas. I hope you're doing well - every new video that you release is always something that I really look forward to watching. I save them up til I can give them my full attention. As an artist myself, your analyses of so many different topics/mediums has shown me some important new perspectives that I have been able to apply to my own journey moving forwards. Thanks Lead!

[@greenfawkes]

This is exactly the type of game you would be playing.

[@Gulliblepikmin]

I just finished playing every new part of it besides [Spoilers ahead!] the settings world champion room and I was grinning like a madman throughout all of it. 10/10.

[@SirCowduck]

3:09 Okay that example kinda gets at my whole problem with DotA. Without your intent, that song literally wouldn't exist. Whether it's clearly expressed in an instrumental piece of music doesn't change the fact that it's an important part of the context of the work. Even if people take a different meaning of it because of their own different experiences, the song was still inspired by something as simple as disillusionment with the quality of fast food, and knowing that context can even improve how it's viewed if a song inspired by something relatively mundane can evoke the level of sadness of more serious topics. It just feels pretentious to me to say that somehow the person who put all of the effort into bringing some game or story or piece of art into existence, doesn't matter at all just cuz I don't get the same impression from my limited experience of it.

[@esqx0878]

"... and she backliped all the way to work." This made me laugh for like 10 minutes when I played the game, even know it puts a smile on my face

[@LunarShimmer]

I never did play The Stanley Parable in the olden days, so I didn't mind watching this and getting spoiled. To everyone who's curious but also wants to play it: _Listen to her,_ come back later, this is damn good. And really funny.

[@itcouldbelupus2842]

Listen to her*

[@LunarShimmer]

@@itcouldbelupus2842 ah, my bad, ty. not a regular viewer.

[@itcouldbelupus2842]

@@LunarShimmer no prob

[@maevara_]

heyy, actually in the base game there's many differences too (withtout the new content) like the games ending have differents games, or there''s some easter egg ending like when you glitch to fall of the mind control facility ect

[@facundoaloi3809]

Im proud of how far you have gone, ive been following you till the 2000 subs. Im very happy for you

[@eldinneufeglise3196]

You can get 2 stickers on the bucket, just stay in the broom closet for an extra minute.

[@crabeatcrab6011]

bruh i didnt watched in a while so i was surprised when i heard ur voice, but congratulations on figuring urself out 👍

[@bitcoinzoomer9994]

How is deciding to pretend to be a different gender "figuring yourself out"

[@crabeatcrab6011]

@@bitcoinzoomer9994 because she probly didnt know she was a girl she figured it out wdym

[@approximateCognition]

You can't fool me, the Mozzarella Song is clearly a JoJo reference ;3 Also, your voice is really progressing along well! Great work as always Penelope!

[@approximateCognition]

@@howtomundane3109 The only "drug" I've been on in my life is caffeine. Go take your thinly-veiled bigotry elsewhere, got it?

[@aitoralvarez1212]

I had stopped watching your videos for a while (lack of time) and now that I've just come back and heard your voice I'm really glad that's working out for you :)

[@Tom-101]

You could call The Stanley Parable a game about death of the author - where the author is still alive, and kicking - at you.

[@slabbieyt3245]

One of the buttons at the end of the game actually said Stanley so... I guess they figured out how to do the customization!

[@muffin_crow]

Oh, did you get the broom closet ending? The broom closet ending was my favourite! XD

[@biblicallyaccurateangel2476]

not gonna lie i absolutely adore the narrator, the zending honestly makes me so so sad 😭

[@CaptainJZH]

Confession: I've been using your video to figure out what I gotta do to "progress" when I feel like I've found everything - I had just gotten to the Bucket Endings and was feeling a bit lost as to what to do next, so I watched up to that point in the video then stopped. Now I'm gonna go collect those Stanlerines :P

[@TDGalea]

Spoiler: 12:20 One of the buttons actually does say Stanley here. You can also head back into the TSP2 showroom _with your existing bucket_ for some extra fun dialog.