The Stanley Parable's Thematic Sequel

[@Leadhead]

Just so that everyone knows what's going on, today is the 2 year anniversary of the channel, so I've pushed next weeks video up to today. Love you guys ❤️

[@mikemarks6136]

Its crazy to think you was at 5k subs last month!

[@ralfkalmarson3367]

Love you too

[@tali4260]

Happy 2 year anniversary!

[@thealandude9146]

Happy anniversary :D

[@thisisafalseaccount105]

If you were to get watch dogs legion would you wear a pig mask?

[@mglps6316]

“If someone tells you what a story is about, they are probably right. If they tell you that that is all the story is about, they are very definitely wrong.” Quote by Neil Gaiman

[@TheHaddonfieldRegistry]

Wow, that's a beautiful quote, thank you.

[@zomega4075]

Something about a cigar

[@DoomguyIsGrinningAtYou.]

Doom is a story about messing with things we have no business messing with. Doom is a story about the horrors of space, the unknown, and the darkness. Doom is a story about hell and heaven. Doom is a story about a relationship of an unreasonably angry marine and his Big F#ckin Gun. Doom is a story about revenge for the death of a cute little rabbit. Doom is a story about shooting a hole into the surface of mars just to spite the annoying robot guy telling you not to. Doom is a story about not giving a f#ck about the story.

[@zomega4075]

Woah woah woah, You have that quote wayyyyy outta context now! Has no buisiness being here!

[@soulmechanics7946]

It is, in fact, only about what It is about. That is all that any of It has ever been about. I am that I am.

[@HMM050]

The line that broke us all; “I’m fading and I need to know if it’s going to be ok.”. This game was beautiful and the soundtrack is beautiful

[@defectus1769]

@@Marzsala The very end of Tower, when the player is getting crushed in the puzzle room. Although I think it's slightly misquoted, it should be "I'm fading, and all I want is to know that I'm going to be okay!"

[@HMM050]

@@defectus1769 probably is misquoted, this comment was kinda off the cuff.

[@Nova_kxne]

simp.

[@plasticballs]

@@Nova_kxne nerd lmao

[@VerbDoesStuff]

i don’t wish to make this negative, but i just find it funny and ironic that you say “the line that broke us all” instead of “the line that broke me” because you’re becoming the character davey wreden, projecting yourself onto others

[@mitori]

call 911 I just witnessed a murder the author is dead and we killed him

[@paolopasini8200]

The author is dead. The author remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers? What was holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned has bled to death under our knives: who will wipe this blood off us? What water is there for us to clean ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we have to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become authors simply to appear worthy of it?

[@seatyourself7082]

@@paolopasini8200 very few people are going to understand this. For those who didn't waste their life reading about philosophy, look it up, change "author" with god.

[@seatyourself7082]

Buz really, this is such a great comment. Comparing an author to a god is so good. You can think about the enlightenment the same way as the analysis of a piece of art, and you'll see that through the analysis we killed the author. The mythical aspects fall away, or we understand the mythical aspects, and because of that the art becomes it's own, not the art of the author. We can say that the world is a piece of art

[@seatyourself7082]

Yeah probably, that sounded bit arrogant XD

[@seatyourself7082]

Hoi flo

[@jammin023]

This is exactly what I found most egregious about the way English Literature was taught to us at school. We were told to always be looking for *what the author intended*. Our own response to it was deemed irrelevant. Until that point I had been a voracious reader, and they managed to kill that off. It was years before I could simply enjoy reading a book again without reflexively trying to dissect it and try to look at it through the author's eyes instead of my own. I never had that problem with music, because I didn't study it at school. I produce music myself so I'm happy to analyse it, but always aware that I'm doing so from *my* perspective, not trying to figure out what the creator intended. It took years to recover from my English teachers but I can now enjoy hearing about other people's interpretations of a book and let them exist alongside my own (only after I've read it without such influences). Sometimes another person's viewpoint (including the author's) can really add something to my appreciation, or illuminate some part of the work that had been in darkness for me, and sometimes I simply disagree and prefer to keep my own viewpoint, and *that's ok*. I really wish this were the way it was taught in school. There is no right or wrong response to art; it is always a separate collaboration between the artist and each individual conscious observer - that's what makes it art.

[@alberttrita5858]

what upset me the most was a test in which we had to give our opinion about a poem. It turned out that the teacher wanted some critic's opinion instead of my perfectly legitimate "I like the poem and I think the use of metaphors added to the picture it was painting".

[@zatchbellgaming3433]

I hate how I can't save youtube comments. You honestly made me tear up a bit. That hit way too deeply. I think that's something I needed to hear.

[@randomlyrapid8996]

@@zatchbellgaming3433 If you use firefox you can take a screenshot it with the "..." up on the url bar.

[@savagenovelist2983]

My favorite English teacher also taught college english at the same time. I’ll always remember when he said “Every English teacher you’ve ever had has been unintentionally making you hate reading.” It blew my mind.

[@KittyKatty999]

PREECH THIS TRUTH!! I LOVE writing and being creative. I do it almost every day on countless different projects of mine. But never in a *MILLION YEARS* would I want someone to be FORCED to do homework on it. For their to be only ONÉ right answer, that decided some poor kid's future. Secondary school/high school was MISERABLE entirely because of over controlling teachers and staff, who got sick kicks out of saying my way was always wrong, even when it came to non school things. If I ever get my stories completed, and maybe even popular, I will use my fame to call out the bullshit in education, in full detail. *ESPECIALLY* when it comes to English class, that is almost fucking useless in teaching you how to be a writer or poet. The saddest thing is, for years I *hated* reading or talking about poetry, cause my school forced me to analysis the most depressing poetry on the planet, AND the creators in the same toxic way the game narrator did. One of those poets *killed herself,* which I had to constantly include in my analysis homework. *AS AN ANXIOUS KID ABUSED CONSTANTLY BY SCHOOL MIND YOU!"* I even said without irony "Poetry is just *fancy complaining you get paid and famous for.* TLDR: *FUCK THE OUTDATED AND MALCIOUS EDUCATION SYSTEM, THAT MADE ME DESPIE POETRY FOR YEARS*

[@DoomguyIsGrinningAtYou.]

"-You have to firmly adopt the philosophy that once you put out a piece of art, it's no longer yours." Disney and Nintendo have left the chat.

[@ihaveaplan.ijustneedmoney.9777]

Iwata: "If people does something for the love of our games, never treat them like criminals" Nintendo after Iwata's passing: (literally treated the melee community as criminals)

[@EmployeeKB]

They don't see it as art, though. It's money to them.

[@rudolfambrozenvtuber]

​@@ihaveaplan.ijustneedmoney.9777 Iwata was almost certainly the mind behind the current Nintendo approach to these things

[@AugustRx]

Those are products not

[@shallot4991]

nothing scares me more than an intentionally unfinished game

[@dexnacorn7807]

you look scared in your pfp

[@bkrcovers2906]

"cough" MGS5 "cough"

[@thesenate6498]

@@bkrcovers2906 ha nice

[@Raybro16]

When I replayed this game recently, i was struggling with me and my best friend, who i knew online for 8 years, splitting up. As hard and gutwretching as it was, i saw my self in this version of Davey Wreden, and i kept asking myself "Did I do something like what Davey did?" Me and my friend connected through art, and we shared and played around with ideas that we made with our characters we created. We used to talk about that stuff every day. However, looking back through this game as a lens I start to see stuff that, as hard as it is, I acknowledge. I basically grew obsessed with our characters and our ideas, only wanting to talk about those things because that's what made me happy. During 2019, they became less and less responsive until eventually they just stopped messaging to me. I knew what that meant for our friendship, but of course i tried playing it off; "they're just busy" or "they're probably depressed and don't want to talk today", "Things are okay between us"... They weren't. In September, reality began to settle in and eat away at me. In December, the pain became too unbearable and I messaged them about it, about what what was happening between us, and got in a disagreement about how they don't want to talk about our characters, but i want to just talk to them again about whatever and i could care less about that. There's more to it, but it's painful ti think about. We didn't speak for 3 months, and i cried almost every day during that time. Eventually, though, i messaged tbem and asked if we could start over, told them how miserable i was and how muched i missed them. At first, we did. things seemed like they would work out okay. But two weeks in, they slowly became quiet. I knew this would happen, but i just had to reach out again, tell them how i felt that i was the one who was trying to make things work, how much i wanted to make it work You wanna know what he did? They pushed me away; blamed me and our friends for their depression, accused me of wanting the older version of them despite me saying that i knew they were a different person, how I and our friends "encouraged" toxic behaviors which led him to attempt suicide twice, attempts that they reached out to ME for help! That fucking asshole blamed me for everything they had to deal with in his shitty and depressed life while I tried to help support them through it! Then they blocked me. "Don't ever message me again", they said. I still have that message saved in my computer. You wanna know the funny thing? I don't know if they're even right. I keep asking myself "what if they're right, what if i did hold on to their old self like they said? Or what if i was a factor in their depression? Or what if i did something wrong in our relationship?" Only to spiral around and go "no, it's their shit that he refuses to seek help for. They most likely got bipolar disorder or something, its their shitty mental health they need to fix." or some other excuse. And i just go in circles. Its been two months since that day. I still don't have an answer, and i most likely will never get one. It still eats away at me, and it doesn't help that I've been stalking them on twitter, watching to see if there are any cracks forming ever since that day. I've been talking to my therapist about all of this since last year. Least I'M the one who's trying to work through my shit, but what has he done? Blame, blame, blame. I dont even know why I'm sharing this here. Maybe they're right, or maybe its the grief thats talking. I've done things that i regret, that maybe i pushed some things too far and did things i shouldn't have done with them. maybe i took advantage of our friendship. I own that, i accept that. Maybe those things are what caused all this to happen, i think sometimes. Or maybe they're just a fucked up person, i think other times. I miss them. Edit; i just want to say thank you for all the advice and sympathy you've all been sharing with me. As hard and slow and still painful as it is, I'm slowly getting better. I don't know when or if I'll be fully ok with this, but I'm still learning to live with this.

[@MegaBeeYT]

Man, I feel sorry for you, and I would try and give you good help and tell you that you should reconnect, but every part of me is telling me that you did good, I know some random guy on the internet isn't the best person to get advice from... But you did good, and never let anyone tell you that your decisions and your choices are the cause for their failure

[@roge220]

Hey, it's real cool you're getting professional help. Good on you. After reading your comment, I could also see myself in that situation, had I gone any further. I'm glad it didn't end up that way with my best friend, but yeah, it's really hard when that "what if" hits you.

[@nectarnut9262]

Oof. I don't have anything to say, but it sounds rough. Hope you'll feel better about this somehow. Sorry if this sounds insensitive. Maybe it's better if I just... hush.

[@Historysmack214]

Do you want to play Xbox homie it always helps me out

[@jlco]

If you're really doing all you can to resolve the conflict, then perhaps it's up to them. I don't know if you're doing all you can; I couldn't know. If they haven't isolated themselves socially, maybe someone can still get through to them. But if they've pushed you away, then most likely, the more you try to reach out, the more they'll resist it. There might not be anything else that is up to you to do. I don't know. Should you try to move on? I have no idea. Am I saying anything you haven't already thought of? Maybe not. Should I say anything? I don't know. But in any case, I really hope you can figure it out. Whatever _it_ is.

[@coopersutton9314]

Well done man, I really enjoyed your thoughts on the analysis of art. Especially art not belonging to a certain group or person, but rather everyone who watches that art and their representation of it. Thanks again and good luck with the rest of your videos! (:

[@inconnn]

how did you comment before it went public? was it unlisted?

[@HMM050]

Inconcinnus probably patreon perks, or maybe just an error

[@user-lq3tv4nd8w]

HazzaMate no its petreon

[@_DanerJimenez_]

And boom, he gets dopamine

[@Glennjamyyyn]

With that last line that Leadhead said, I'm torn on how to interpret it, as either a nod that Leadhead isn't analyzing Davey's game but instead his own interpretation, or a nod towards parasitism of taking ones work and framing it as your own and feeling good about it, or if I should be trying to interpret Leadhead's motives at all!!!!! MY BRAIN IS MELTING

[@ChestersonJack]

Well... how do YOU feel about it?

[@vegisamalzero3681]

You aren't interpreting leadhead's last line, your interpreting Glennjamin's last line.

[@ShevkoMore]

Brain melting? Simple fix: Everything is true. Everything is false. Nothing exists... As well as everything.

[@edenfeledrum1540]

@@ShevkoMore schrödinger's game

[@MegaBeeYT]

@@ShevkoMore Everything is Fake, but if we take that as true, then the fact that Everything is Fake is also fake, but that'd make everything true.... If everything is true tho, that should mean that Everything is Fake is also true, which makes everything fake.... And well..... Ect

[@samstassi5238]

I want to thank you as a student in a Literature class. So much of that class is trying to find what the author meant or the objective truth. You have shown me that there is so much more to analysis than that. Thank you again.

[@BarioIDL]

author: describe the chair student: it's a nice chair teacher: the veteran had a vietnam flashback

[@Idk-bw3ib]

My farts are better than leadheads farts

[@ewanmcdonagh6221]

Ah, so every copy of Mario 64 IS personalised!

[@duuqnd]

Wario show you fun!

[@humankerbal3623]

w h a t how does that

[@ShevkoMore]

No, YOU will think it's personalized, therefore destroying the intention of it

[@throwawayemail6269]

Bioshock* But I did think the same thing. Intriguing how it works.

[@DoomguyIsGrinningAtYou.]

Mario 64 for DS is also personalised!

[@owen351]

The Beginners Guide put everyone through a roller-coaster of emotions. This is a fantastic video :)

[@nathanlunday169]

There is something so honest about this video, and the production value is up there with channels that have millions of subscribers. You really do have a shot of making it very big on KZbin or any other platform for that matter. Keep doing whatever it is that you're doing

[@reversev9778]

It’s quite crazy that you can look at a channel and know it’ll be big, but I swear that this channel will be big one day. If not tomorrow, than the next day

[@connordarvall8482]

Is being big an important outcome?

[@daruistube2007]

@@connordarvall8482 After watching so many big KZbinrs I've seen how much of their newer content becoming less of an experience to them, but more of an experience to us, well most big ones that I've watched

[@AshT8524]

While I was playing the game My heart sank when I read "The fact that you think I am frustrated or broken says more about you than about me"

[@chrisisclueless439]

Just want to tell, there's a secret audio file in the tower folder, it's Davey arguing. Also if you beat the invisible maze in the tower level (which is impossible) Davey would just say Damn. And in the down level if you turn off narration, the door would take a hour to open and close.

[@LeafyLeafeons]

i know this comments is 3 years old, but if you have any evidence of the audio file of davey arguing, that would be nice to see, any evidence i find online is just audio files from the stairs level, which is the only thing that is remotely close to what i believe you're talking about, thanks.

[@RenderingUser]

@@LeafyLeafeons i just checked myself. download the game, go to sound folder, then the folder called "16. Tower" then you will see a file called demo.wav. very interesting dialogue

[@TheTSense]

13:58 As a creater, a writer, myself, I know what it is like to have no reader. To upload 2.000 pages of story to some random abandond site on the internet, because you want the world to know what you did something but at the same time do not want to deal with anyone. All that character development, forshadowing, complex story arcs. All for nothing. And if someone, anyone, at any time goes out of his way to analyze my work and make a text, a paper, a video or a blog about it... you bet I consider you part of the development team. My team. Because there are two groups: Creators and Consumers. And if you add, then we are on the same team. The feeling you have is different: You are not on the same level. You do not create the content, you create content about the content. You still create.

[@Ikcatcher]

You reminded me of a Pokemon fanfic I stopped writing years ago because I lost the motivation to keep writing a messy and stupid story that feels more like self insert. But every now and then I still get a notification of someone commenting on my story saying they liked it and it still made me feel good about myself. I feel good that something I spent countless hours on still matters to someone out there, even if it doesn't matter to me anymore. Someone made a logo for my story and I still use it as my KZbin profile pic to this day, it's something I can't let go off no matter how many better pictures there are.

[@alberttrita5858]

And this is why I probably won't do art for a living, people want a meaning. Although it would be funny making something and giving a different explanation to every person that asks about just to cause chaos.

[@janhib4712]

@@Ikcatcher can I read your fanfic?

[@Ikcatcher]

@@janhib4712 www.fanfiction.net/s/11640662/1/Pokemon-Super-Mystery-Dungeon-Here-Comes-The-Hydroflames

[@cottn6113]

So there's this small, incredibly under-recognised youtube channel that is so good it has almost made me delete my youtube channel two times now. It's called Leadhead.

[@Poodle666]

Had to stop watching so I could play the game myself. Will come back in about an hour and a half

[@soundwaves8619]

we'll have a box of tissues waiting for when you get back

[@vap0rw1se]

@@soundwaves8619 Crying towel, you mean.

[@croix9468]

It's been an hour, how u doing so far?

[@etrun3871]

I have a pillow to cry into if you need it

[@AstorEzequiel]

I can give you my shoulder and a few pat pats

[@vap0rw1se]

Beautiful. At the end of the game I didn't really analyze it, I just cried, since it was such a wonderful game. Now, I know you might not trust the words of a raccoon, but trust me, you've put a whole new meaning behind The Beginners Guide, one of the best games I've ever come across. And, truly, thank you for making this video. I didn't realize that my subconscious mind was secretly screaming at me for someone to make a deep analysis on not only the feelings, thoughts, and experiences of in-game Davy Wreden and Coda, but also themselves and their opinion on the game and what they think of it through themselves. Thank you.

[@monkeygamingify]

Redofreko yep coda is a fiction character based on Davey wreden

[@hungiie]

Leadhead is just 'A postmodernist literary perspective but applied to games: the channel' and I love it so much

[@djdjukic]

I'm not sure I love it, but I enjoy it. But I sure as hell don't love that I enjoy it.

[@marcoswolffenbuttelmoreira4404]

@@djdjukic And why is that?

[@djdjukic]

@@marcoswolffenbuttelmoreira4404 I'm not a fan of reading too much into things. I prefer reviews to literary analyses. Looking back on this one, Leadhead was 100% right with his take, and I still think about this video and this game from time to time.

[@Leadhead]

Oh my Lord. I was just rewatching this old video of mine, and I forgot that this comment was the motivation behind the slogan on my new channel banner. Thanks for the awesome quote lol

[@hungiie]

@@Leadhead no worries, thanks for the awesome content

[@SirFooplesTheThird]

The Beginners Guide is a must-play for everyone. Literally everyone. Gamer, non gamer, male, female, young, old. Everyone will feel something during this game

[@Monkey_30000]

In a feelings way like To The Moon or a psychological way? Or both?

[@Monkey_30000]

@shakespearean sonnet Lawn mower Bosch AdvancedRotak 750

[@SirFooplesTheThird]

@@Monkey_30000 it depends on who you are and what you've experienced really

[@SirFooplesTheThird]

@shakespearean sonnet i was speaking in general terms

[@keyboardwarrior6413]

shakespearean sonnet make and female are sexes. Non binary is a gender. Every non binary person is either male or female.

[@AmunRa1]

I can really relate to how Leadhead feels about feeling like he's "inserting himself" into other people's art... I play a game called Final Fantasy XIV. One of the little features in that game is the ability for bards to actually play music. I'm one of the people of that game who does in-game performances , using four characters I've arranged into a little quartet. People really, really like my music, and I've managed to completely fill up venues with eager fans. People treat me like some kind of musical genius... but none of my music is my own. I'm not talented enough to compose a masterpiece from scratch, mostly what I do is I take saxophone or string quartets, convert them to MIDIs, occasionally do a little tweaking so they fit in the octave limits, and use them to puppet my characters. I am essentially just feeding sheet music into a machine. When my 'fans' shower me with praise, it feels nice, but then I'm reminded that none of my work is my own and I feel like a fraud. I can't even call myself a cover artist because I'm not even really playing it! I'm taking someone else's composition and feeding it to a program. No talent in that... I'm trying to learn actual music theory right now so I can compose my own stuff, but so far, nothing substantial. Nothing nearly as listenable as "Smiles and Tears" or the "Pokemon Red/Blue Suite" or "Libertango" or any of the other songs people love having me play. All I can do is keep practicing and hope I can hope one day be as talented a composer as the people I'm ripping off.

[@hooman69]

Same situation here man, i feel ya

[@GunnarClovis]

As a game developer, The Beginner's Guide is one of my absolute favorite games of all-time, and it makes me _sob_

[@masterchris1013]

This game made me cry because I put so much of myself into figuring out what work means. I’ve always told people that these videos about media dissection are just one persons point of view, but you are not wrong to say that they “taint it with your point of view.”. I don’t know what to think personally, but I never listen to an “analysis” before I play a game but after I watch them I leech their opinions into my head. I enjoy these videos so much and I want you to know that, but I can’t promise their good, just that they infect me with a different view, and I generally enjoy it. I really hope you read this, and I love your vids.

[@GeorgeCowsert]

Honestly i never even would've considered the Stanely Parable as an art piece before you pointed it out. I always thought it was an elaborate joke.

[@viciousbadger6968]

It could be both :)

[@ShevkoMore]

Or none...

[@otherlego]

The best pieces of art can still be funny

[@masondickerson9466]

I'd say humor is inherently artistic.

[@RenderingUser]

id honestly go as far as to say, all games are works of art. video games are quite literally the medium where every single form of creation meets together

[@SamanthaSaunderz]

When you spoke about subscriber bomb, it hit me, I have had bomb recently and it's made me worried about over thinking how I look at games and how I approach them in each Essay I make. Thank you for your incredible content dude! Keep it up!

[@ItsJustPage]

As someone who is exclusively a viewer rather than a creator, When I watch video essays I want to see what the creator of that piece thinks, rather than someone who creates their art to impress their viewers. Of course there will be things viewers, my self included, will dislike and potentially have a highly negative reaction to it. but you shouldn't let that compromise the view you have, within reason, but certainly not before the video has been released. and at the end of the day, people have subscribed for what you have made, so why try to change the spirit and personality of the video.

[@bekkayya]

Looking into the beginners guide is like looking into a fractal of all the parasocial relationship I have with all my games and media. Every time I try to nail it down, apon closer examination im in the exact same place. Thanks for your perspective

[@anizan1004]

As a musician I always felt that something wasn't right when I or someone was analyzing someone's music. It always felt... wrong... "But is it really what the artist wanted to represent in this piece? Is there even a story? What if his intention wasn't even to have a story in a first place?" Is what I always asked myself. Whenever I tried to analyze someone's work, I always felt like I was doing something wrong, like I shouldn't do it and there is no reason for me do it at all. I was jealous of oneself's artist work, I was jealous of other people's "creative mind" analysis. I was trying to make a story where the story might have not been at all. I was listening a piece for not what it is. I wanted to match others because I felt jealous. I don't know if whoever reads this can relate to this comment or not, but the video has helped me to understand it all a bit better. Thank you for this analysis Leadhead, you opened my mind and made me understand myself and art a lot better (a bit ironic, isn't it?)

[@ItsJustPage]

Surely the point of art is to be interpreted by the viewer, whether right or wrong we just won't know till the artist says what the feeling and story was when writing it. I tend to listen to music, but i don't hear what the artist is saying within the word. at least that was until I watched a breakdown of Hey Ya by outkast, and the song directly calls out the listener for not listening to the words hes trying to say and rather listening to the music. Maybe im right, maybe im wrong in my interpretation of if an artist wants me to listen or dance to the music, but i will be the one to make that choice, and the artist can't change that.

[@everydaysniper9390]

The beginners guide is the only piece of media that has made me cry, ever

[@avraelasgard]

I cried when i played this game. Twice. At least. Even again after i replayed it. I dont think a game has ever hit me emotinally this... directly, as this one. No piece of art for that matter. For the entire playthrough i didnt know if Koda was real or not, and i honestly still dont. This is a story as it could have happened, which makes it so much more emotional.

[@DeosPraetorian]

Coda isn't real

[@geliussun]

You just had to make me cry with that song in the end, didn't you? Absolutely awesome video, man, I'm on a spree of watching everything and liking every video I watch. Glad I found you

[@indi1769]

What's trippy is that what Leadhead says in the vid about interpretation of art applies to the interpretation of the interpretation of art - everybody watching this video will come out with something different. So it's not Davey's Beginners Guide, it's not Leadhead's Beginners Guide, it's now Indi's Beginners Guide. And if I were to give my interpretation of Leadhead's interpretation, then it'd just keep going. And honestly, that's super interesting.

[@superdrumslps]

But isnt reading this comment also some kind of interpretation? So the cycle just never stops as long as someone will read it.

[@user-ld6th3vw8e]

this game is one of those things that makes you really sit back and think about the stories we can tell with the tools we have and it astounds me every time

[@SirRiconious]

"...is me projecting my personality onto him" yep, you've played this game lol

[@Dexobite]

I can’t explain how much I love this game, for so many reasons. Thanks for covering it, because it means a lot to me.

[@seniorobjective7649]

The beginners guide is one of the few games that actually moved me, it definitely made my feel something that I didn't sign up for. I just wanted to play vidya, I didn't want to have to cry doing it.

[@Thombon]

these are getting better and better, well written you said some really interesting things! Thank you

[@purity4727]

just found your channel 6 minutes ago, and imagine my surprise checking your uploads and seeing this uploaded 10 minutes ago. the beginner's guide is my favorite game of ALL time. you got yourself a new subscriber, buddy!

[@gangstasteve5753]

leadhead you are seriously probably my favorite youtuber. the way you explained every game could get me more interested in it than any trailer, review, or gameplay ever could. when you made the video about how you finally understood hitman, i had finally understood it as well. You got me to install the master cheif and really get into halo (i didnt play any halo campaigns, i just did multiplayer). If you hadnt made these videos then i wouldnt have gotten into these games. Seeing how you analyse every game for everything good about it inspires me to see how there are a lot more masterpeices of games than you would first expect when playing them the first time and just rushing through them. Im really glad i found your channel because i truly do enjoy games more because of it. thank you.

[@Ezienne844]

This is so interesting that you interpreted it this way. True to form, as an artist and a game developer, it met something MUCH differently to me. I felt like I was being spoken to. It's the game that I think had the most impact on me in creative terms, and I'm terrifically happy to see people talking about it - irony in tow or not.

[@cookiecan10]

Can you explain a bit more what your interpretation is?

[@Ezienne844]

@@cookiecan10 Absolutely! Because I was an artist, and because I was MASSIVELY struggling with my own creative processes I related on a deep and painful level with Coda. It's a popular theory that Coda is in fact, just another facet of Davey's ego, and this actually occurred to me during my own first play through. The themes that emerge from those two contexts are very rich, such as self-sabotage, when art is worth creating, from where we find fulfillment and IF that fulfillment can ever truly be dependent or self-sustaining. The conclusion I drew at the end was that the creative process naturally spawns traps of attention-seeking, obsessive comparison, and endless sinkholes of self-doubt and feelings of inferiority. It's normal, and even expected to encounter these things - but they can be fought against by creating for your own self, by being careful what you value in that process, and by never losing sight of yourself during. Of course, that's much easier said than done, but if it weren't, would we have such an exquisitely tortured piece like The Beginners Guide?

[@XohjaiSbarkeater]

This really touches on the Idea that everything you experience is unique to you.

[@jawsome6828]

Leadhead, your content is really inspiring and special, they are quite amazing and different . You're videos have helped me understand and interpret different aspects of video games and life in general because every upload of your's that I have watched has left me learning or understanding something more. Thank you :)

[@hipunpun]

Thank you for covering this game ❤

[@amypb467]

This is the kind of video essay that I just love, exactly the right mix of philosophy and personality and discussion in such a well presented way. But it's hard to say something like that about the video, because now all I'm thinking about is how this is only my personal experience of the video and arguably not the video itself, and that the person below me in the comments has their own version of it that's completely different and now belongs to them! My brain might hurt if I think more so I'll just add it to my favourites and subscribe :)

[@AwkCrafty]

Keep up the work dude! Amazing!

[@cottodotto]

This video left me with the same bittersweet feeling, just like the game. I want to thank you for this ❤

[@groblivsochbauggr]

Now that's cool fontstyle there for your game there

[@aryahastings8101]

every year i come back to watch this game, davey wreden is incredible

[@bobbluered8984]

I am so glad you decided to talk about the Beginner's Guide. It's very close to my heart, and I love your insight.

[@leavehigh5408]

Congrats on the 2 years anniversary! ❤️ Keep doing what you're doing!

[@LJustChill]

Well said. Looking forward to each and every video :)

[@Quintuplin12]

Thank you for making this video. It seems so extremely personal to you, that releasing this video with all the implicit self-criticism included was brave of you, and laudable. The Beginner's Guide is such a powerful and empathic critique of criticism itself; and our understanding of the role of an observer in art. But it is also only one perspective in a conversation. It is worth remembering, but not the only way to interpret the world, and like many such pieces, applies perfectly to its own scenario but imperfectly to others. Ultimately, I find the Beginner's Guide to be an excellent starting point to reaching an understanding of the human on the other side of the screen; and we could all use more of that no matter what other lessons we learn elsewhere.

[@brodywubs]

Happy Birthday, Leadhead!!!

[@cenispickdock]

as a gamer i never heard of this game but i am intrigued from the topic of this video

[@Razruer]

Wonderfully artistic video, new sub earned!

[@eggofwah4852]

I remember seeing a playthrough of this game. I almost cried and eventually DID CRY at the end.

[@scottsofian]

I have been having an absolute blast watching your videos. Brings much more depth to such intriguing games.

[@TylerTraverse]

I played this game when it had first came out. It's one of the most artistic things I've ever experienced. Davey's a genius

[@rd_ctrlr5311]

I could completely feel how much this video essay meant to you and just what you learned from it as I watched, getting closer and closer to the end. It made me smile hearing it. This was a beautiful video. Thank you for doing what you do. Keep up the good work and keep being human.

[@MeitanteiKevin]

Hey, just discovered your videos and just wanna say: i love them. And thank your for this video. the beginners guide means a lot to me aswell and it's interesting to hear your opinions and experiences. Keep going!

[@Simonkipnerssoul]

I think something Beginners Guide doesn't get enough credit for is how authentic the level design felt. The levels are much more "lofi" and less developed then the levels in Stanley Parable but it made them feel much more believably amateur (assuming Coda is even a real person/developer). They resembled a lot of "artsy" or surrealist Garry's Mod and Half Life 2 mod maps I've played before, right down to the simplicity of the textures and assets. Playing through Codas levels gave me nostalgia for being in highschool playing through weird puzzle levels in GMOD.

[@malixcrash4126]

You know, I remember playing this game a long time ago and initially felt disappointed cause I thought by the pictures it was going to be some meta game like the Stanley Parable. Funny enough it both was and wasn't. I decided something about it felt important to me, so instead of stopping I saw it through. By the end I was... Confused. It felt like there was a message there, but I wasn't really seeing it. I felt there should have been an interpretation I could give but it was just, foreign, and I felt any observation I could make was probably wrong. It's good to know that people did get something out of it though.

[@dogzilla8you]

Finally played this game for myself. The dynamic between Davey and Coda reminded me very strongly of a the relationship between myself and a friend I am trying to distance myself from. Coda really reminded me of myself, as a creator. I think its interesting to see how different people that play the beginner's guide relate to different aspects of the game, and how their interpretation shapes how they feel about this game too.

[@itzalion]

Now we need someone to make a video game that analyzes Leadhead's videos, especially this one.

[@unformattednolastname4010]

I honestly love your channel. It lets me appreciate games just that much more than that bittersweet feeling of seeing a games story and special art style be complete. Good job.

[@gamecasthaawsome6398]

Dear Stanley Parable, Still waiting for ultra delux. Thanks and yours truly me.

[@evanssevenelevens2302]

not the time and place?

[@gamecasthaawsome6398]

@@evanssevenelevens2302 just a joke

[@antaresmaelstrom5365]

Every time I play the game, I wonder: "Did Coda ever actually create a 'solution' for the door puzzle?" The descent is the only time it is mentioned in-game and the solution is never mentioned. The placement of the inner-lever and the way it pops in makes it look like an added bit. And the last time we ever see it, in the Tower, when 'Davey' has accepted his failing ... there is no lever on the inside anymore.

[@thotrot8262]

watching you is currently one of my favourite things that i didn’t realise i was doing until i noticed i wasn’t subscribed yet. your videos are amazing and the amount of games that you talk about that i’ve actually seen before kinda blows my mind since a lot of other people don’t cover them or at least don’t talk about something new with them. your videos are so great to me because how they’re laid out is almost exactly how my brain works. everything you say is stuff i’ve noticed myself about the game or something i 100% agree with. you bring a different type of video essays genre to the table in my opinion because it feels like you’re just saying whatever comes to mind instead of talking from a script. i could honestly compare you to Big Joel just in how comfortable it is to listen to your videos. it’s like the feeling of those weirdly deep conversations you have with friends in the middle of the night but ready to play any time. Weird comparisons aside, your videos are truly amazing and i greatly look forward to whatever you post next! ❤️💙

[@sinusoidal5974]

Notice me, senpai owo

[@thoregrimm6042]

You know what? You have just made me subscribe. I came to the same realisation. Thank you Lividity Captive.

[@aperture102]

Ryan Roth did such a good job on the soundtrack. Va always makes me incredibly comfortable, but when Rooftop started playing during the video I almost cried. The unused songs available on the Cutting Room Floor are just as beautiful, and his ambiance album too. I've spoken to him, and even used his stuff for a few school films. A truly wonderful man

[@brynshannon6692]

I think, currently, that it's unfair to say art doesn't belong to the artist after it's put out into the world. The artist had a thing they wanted to convey, and thus created the art. The thing they wanted to convey could be a complex message, which an analyzer may get, but it could be a simple message as well, like "Do you wanna see how fun it is to butcher demons with your bare hands?" :P But back to my point. All art is subjective, but it's... silly to say that the art no longer belongs to the artist. Art is another form of communication. Language can only get you so far - even that is always up to interpretation, and so many problems in life will come from interpreting it wrong, and even if we get the most basic ideas across, we may never get the full message of what someone wanted to say. Hang on, did I just do what The Beginners Guide warned about to art as a whole concept? o_o

[@logangustavson]

In this world, for all intents and purposes, you are the sole consumer and perceiver of everything. Whether that 'thing' is 'yours' or not is completely irrelevant. For example, the experience and sensation I get from rubbing a rock with my hands. Do I own that? Does the rock? No, right? The 'owner' of that subjective experience is irrelevant. Of course, this gets complicated with the fact that other sentient beings exist, but ultimately, no one can truly lay claim of ownership to an experience or creation for ultimately such a claim is inherently meaningless. I base my comments logic off the notion of Solipism , which states that only one's own mind can be known for sure to exist.

[@minetrooper9614]

I saw this somewhere before and didn't think much of it, but it's so nice to see someone properly trying to understand it.

[@user-lq3tv4nd8w]

Great vid

[@dominikgamer8107]

WELL DONE UR THE FIRST COMMENT GG

[@user-lq3tv4nd8w]

DominikGamer Petron ma boy

[@kronosbach5263]

Tuly A mad Lad

[@panskii3632]

You give me vibes of a foggy summer night getting stoned and think about deep thoughts and idea's. I mean this in a good way.

[@TheRedKing247]

I think in times like these it's important to remember the definition of art: Anything that was specifically designed to give a person an experience. As such when dealing with art, you can only really talk about the experience provided to you, not really anything about the artist as you may experience it different from what they intended, nor the other audience members as they might experience it differently from you. That means you can and should only really be talking about the experience itself. Of course this brings up specific questions about the experience like "What did the author intend for this piece of art?" and "How should the audience interpret the art?" but it's important to remember that those will always be hypothesis and not definitive statements on a piece of work, and you should always try to qualify them as such and never stray further into the territory of talking about the audience or the author themselves. That being said, any piece of art is always a two way street, and your experience of a piece of art is owned by you and you alone: sharing that experience is an entirely valid and potentially praiseworthy action, not being a leech, and should be congratulated as long as it doesn't stray out of the confines of being your experience.

[@hessery5418]

You really capture the essence of what the game is for me, and recreate it with this video. I get the same depressive feeling playing and watching both respectively. Its nice to know someone else understands and has the ability to convey the same feeling that i have.

[@corpklinger9159]

Huh, it's fun hearing an analyzer's viewpoint of this game. It has been a hot minute since Ive played this game, but I do have different thoughts on it. For me, watching and making an analysis was always for any of four reasons. 1.) Deriving further enjoyment out of an artpiece/expressing your love (or hate) for an artpiece by thinking about its themes 2.) A social act between other people to compare how you each thought about the game 3.) Exploring other peoples' worldviews by engaging with each other analysis'. 4.) Just finding analysis as a fun mental exercise in itself. As such, I didn't really connect any of the themes you talked about. As far as I'm concerned, all art is to a large degree others' ideas arranged together in a new, personal way. As such, I find analysis no more parasitic than game creation itself. I had viewed the story as an exercise in unreliable narration told through the narrator's analysis. He builds repertoire in the beginning by telling you who he is, and making some nice points about the early levels. However, as the levels go (drag, in some cases) on, his analysis becomes more and more unraveled. Especially if you've played any amount of source maps/done 3D modeling - the narrator's analysis will sharply clash against your experiences and natural analysis. Many of the maps often fit a various cliche of source maps on the steam workshop - something I believe was intentional. Thus the narrator's repertoire is questioned and undermined by his increasingly farfetched analyses. Thus setting the stage for the narrator to go down a dark and darker path, until we reveal the narrator is intrusive, a bit obsessive, and has shown us these maps against the wishes of his "friend".

[@dougiedoug1663]

13:04 is that cv-11 video I sees in the recommended. but seriously there is just something so real and honest about your videos that keeps me coming back

[@Okamare]

I have no connection to this game, the struggles it is writing about, or the troubles you have with your art. I am not an artist or a poet, nor a KZbinr. In every way shape and form, theres no reason for me to have the type of emotional reaction i had to that last fucking line. but for some reason, i balled. i dont know why but i cried for the first time in months, now that may not sound like a big deal to alot of people. but considering some things that have happened in that time, why the fuck is that THAT LINE what did it. There is no reason a 19 minute long video about a game ive never even heard of, talking about a plight i will never have to face, should be the thing that finally brings me to tears. and im struggling to find out why it did. But after some thought, i might have figured out why, and its rather simple. its because you are openly talking about what seems to be a major problem in your life, and seemingly found as close to an answer as you can. To see you struggle, then see that same struggle echoed in someone elses art, then watching you use it to help yourself get over that struggle WITH that piece of art, is something that escapes describe-ability. and something that i hope to find soon. The happiness and hope that this video fills me with is immeasurable, the hope that one day, i will find a work of art so passionate and close to me that it makes me rethink the way i do and understand what i love, is amazing. In short, ive never had a piece of art mean nothing to me, yet affect me in that way, and for that, i thank you.

[@noneofurbusiness906]

I always enjoy your analysis

[@korarain8190]

I remember watching jacksepticeye play this game a while back thinking nothing much of it coming in. But the more I watched, the more I was intrigued. Each map was so unique and seemed so deep with meaning to find at the end everything we have been perceiving was just that: what WE perceived. I will say, I absolutely LOVE this game, front and back. It’s absolutely beautiful and was done so well and I’m glad that you made a video on it. Keep up the fantastic work leadhead, love you b 😌 Also, I DIDNT KNOW YOU WERE MAKING A GAME!! THATS SO COOL OMG YOU SHOULD MAKE A VIDEO WHEN IT RELEASES SO I CAN BUY IT Edit: wow, that ending hit hard. “Since I haven’t finished making an analysis video of Davey Wreden’s beginners guide, I hope you enjoyed my analysis video of leadheds beginners guide” seeing your explanation of what this game means to you, gave me even more perspective of what this game may really be about: it’s about everything and anything. Hell, even I may perceive this video differently than what you intended, and that’s okay. Although I think I understand the point. You can’t burden yourself for understanding a game or a piece of art in your own way. Instead of saying “this is what it means”, one must say “this is what it means to ME” because this game can mean multiple different things to different people. This is something I feel that even I can work on, since I really like explaining games or movies that I love, while never understanding the true meaning. As humans, we love seeing ourselves in other people. Weather if it’s in them or in their work. And I think it’s a beautiful thing

[@jreex4879]

Watching this video resembles same feelings to me as when I was playing the original game. Same sorrowful feelings. Even the same sorrowful song in the end. Love it.

[@Kardeist34]

Hey Leadhead, I have watched alot of your videos, since youtube recommended your channel to me yesterday. I like your content, but for some reason, I always feel some weird pain in me whenever I watch them. Meh, whatever. Also, whoever is reading this: Stay healthy, may fortune find your ass and lift it up

[@bluspoid3936]

I love your analysis of these abstract games. They really bring the best out of your writing.

[@fancyglassesgamer]

Okay now this is epic

[@frankpark3289]

Thank you for such great videos. Your channel reminded me the beautiful and precious side of this platform, and the priceless value of video essay as medium.

[@sunfirejr]

I think that this video really is one of your best, art is art and art means a lot of different things to different people. Just because I've never played a game doesn't mean it can't mean something to me. But also artistic games poison themselves, your friend tells you a game is good so you play it and the game becomes good, a friend says that a game is bad you play it and it's bad. Someone said to me persona 4 is bad and I went into p4 expecting a bad game that wasn't what I liked about persona and that's what I got out of it, if I went into it completely isolated from anothers thoughts I think it might have been good. Is it their fault I didn't like it or was it my own? I'll never know.

[@jakub_zawadzki]

This was a really amazing video. I think you managed to encapsulate the thoughts that I had over the past few months, but wasn't really able to vocalize myself. Thank you. Thanks a lot.

[@KuroiPK]

Im a big fan of the “death of the Author” concept. I really don’t think that any analysis is more correct than anyone’s else, including of the creator. I think along the way an analysis is just an artwork atop of an already existing one, which in the end everything is. (Originally is just a fantasy)

[@emberytp]

Thank you for writing this. I watch a lot of video essays and I always had wondered if my experience of a game is being ruined by watching someone else's meaning be explained to me before havig time to form my own. I remember not understanding the​ Beginner's Guide the first time I played through it until I saw the "stop adding lamposts to my games" line and it all finally hit me, but I didn't give the game the chance to see where this fallacy begins and where it starts to snowball. Thanks again for making this video

[@cameronfink7325]

Does anyone know the name of the song that plays in the area with the house? With the box head that says “clean” Edit: I found it, it is called “Va”

[@customersupportdeer6150]

Well done, now I have an existential crysis/ depression about my paintings... None of them are 100% original work, so by adapting and changing the creations of others, I feel like I stole their work and am myself unoriginal and worthless.

[@benhaw9678]

Every game is unique to the person that played it? I guess that means... Every copy of super mario 64 is personalised.

[@Skimeric]

Literally just bought and played this game a week ago, and out comes your video. Perfect timing for me :D thanks

[@MelonSqueezy]

I. Love. This. Game. Thank you for making a video about it.

[@Ikcatcher]

That final shot of rising into the sky and eventually see an endless sight of unseen mazes really hit me, despite not knowing what it really meant till now

[@irishgamer190]

You’re quickly becoming one of my favourite KZbinrs. You’re well thought out and well spoken, keep up the great work

[@markeb1312]

Keep the great videos coming!

[@domantasadomaitis1431]

First time seeing this chanel, I feel like I have found myself lost within myself. This video essay showed me more about me than the game, artist and the author. It humbled me. This is a real experience that made me think about a lot of diffrent aspects of life. Looking forward for more of your work.

[@KoopaKaper]

That last line was genius. This whole video was genius. Your whole CHANNEL is genius