Video games that let you go goblin mode

It's time to go goblin mode. A counterpoint to radical softness, GOING GOBLIN MODE is about finding a grody little guy, pointing at him, and saying, "that's me." Pat Gill gives us a tour of the top five games that let you go goblin mode, and where they rank in terms of gobby goodness.
0:00 What's goblins
2:30 Of Orcs & Men
3:20 Middle-earth games
4:08 World of Warcraft
4:25 Untitled Goose Game
5:23 Force Unleashed
6:52 Ghost Trick
7:42 Hitman
8:50 Total Warhammer
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[@mudstick]

cant belive pat forgot the most important facet of a goblin-like game, which is being able to point at a guy and say "get em, boys!" and have multiple other shitheads emerge from the woodworks and *get* that guy

[@nerdherder9340]

The true power of goblins is friendship

[@sarahbearbabygirl]

excuse me it’s spelled GIT

[@coopermckinlay4023]

The Overlord games do a good job of this. They're Pikmin, but instead of commanding carrot creatures you have a battalion of nasty little wretches that squabble over trinkets and piss on everything.

[@osaw117]

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood had this mechanic and it was glorious. The first time I pinged a guard, and a candy colored assassin rose out of a wagon of hay like Jason & despawned the sap, a core memory was formed.

[@McFS15]

@@coopermckinlay4023 yes, Overlord would have been perfect for this video

[@victoriahawco3893]

Pat refusing to adhere to his own scoring system is very goblin of him

[@yungoldman2823]

I wouldnt call him a goblin really, pats already his own thing you know? you would call like a squirrel a goblin, but pats already a thing

[@KevinBerstene]

The fact that he created a scale just so he could break it on a majority of games is the most goblin review method I've seen

[@borger298]

Goblins love committing crimes

[@paulkim8539]

@@yungoldman2823 I have a backyard of squirrels going Pat mode

[@Dollightful]

"Heeehoo factor" is how I shall judge all experiences from now on

[@sethamederat5841]

well thats a convergence of fandoms i didnt expect to see today

[@ohno417]

Thank you for including Untitled Goose Game, the only game that actually made me audibly go "heeheehoohoo" at numerous points during my playthrough. Perfect, feathery goblin right there

[@TheWretchedOwl]

This has convinced me that I would love to see Untitled Goblin Game in the future

[@claytonandres1194]

This video convinced me that the Pikmin series could seriously benefit from making the little guys 50% nastier and giving all the enemies monocles to drop and pearls to clutch.

[@Rich_P_Anya]

I think that's what Overlord was (kinda) going for

[@janecowie3626]

overlord

[@EteamProductions]

Yeah dude you're thinking of Overlord (2007)

[@devforfun5618]

overlord felt pretty goblin for me, you are human but you were raised by goblins to be their leader you can even sacrifice goblins to improve your weapons, and then sacrifice other goblins to resurrect your favorite goblins

[@Rich_P_Anya]

I was thinking the same thing

[@stopmikeandjim3196]

This is the correct answer. I always loved how they would gleefully tear up a pumpkin patch, then use the biggest gourd chunks as helmets

[@devforfun5618]

@@stopmikeandjim3196 i remember spending 30 minutes killing gnomes to give my entire army a pointy hat

[@AllisonIsLivid]

Oh yeah, those games definitely should've made the list. And also, they should make more of them!

[@bofurlong8944]

Overlord was so gooood

[@rosesinrain]

i love polygons dedication to nontraditional games journalism so much. never stop, please

[@vogelvrouw]

Yes its so good!!

[@singledigitdan]

Every time I watch a Pat video I agree so much I say omg he’s just like me. Where all my Patrick moders at

[@sarahbearbabygirl]

*points at pat* that’s me

[@Pomlithe]

He just like me fr fr

[@FabriSlv]

Pat is like us, but better

[@mossymagicks]

he IS just like me fr fr

[@grantm1528]

Love the video! Some more goblin suggestions: -Dishonored. Covers a lot of the Hitman points but you're also crawling through sewers and hanging out with rats and eating grapes off the floor. -Katamari Damacy. You're a little green guy who ruins everything. There's no nasty factor but plenty of mischief. -Scribblenauts. There are few games where you have as much freedom to cause problems as this. -Skyrim. This game encourages goblin behavior at every opportunity. Collecting junk, eating piles of garbage, putting buckets on people's heads.

[@arathain2]

I think Katamari has some nastiness factor. You're breaking everything. You're sucking up not just everything, but everyone. Then making them into stars. It's portrayed as all a bit of a laugh, but isn't that very goblin. Good call, definitely a Goblin Game.

[@grantm1528]

@@arathain2 Good point, it's a bit nasty if you think about it!

[@alphabetbeer]

Ooooh Katamari is a very good pitch. If it weren't so methodically soothing to play it would be 100% pure goblin

[@benmorris118]

Skyrim and fallout too. Getting your character hooked on mad drugs so you can slow down time and splatter anything from humans to deathclaws with weird improvised weaponry feels pretty goblin. Especially with my approach of "that area seems well fortified... there must be stuff I want in there. Better pop some pills and get nasty"

[@thegreatgoobert5847]

Another good one would be team fortress 2 since everyone who plays that game has lead poisoning and throws piss at you

[@mudstick]

ive never had a more parasocial relationship (i dont know what that term actually means) than the connection i felt to pat when he explained why a ghost cant be a goblin but a cat or a goose can. its "ghosts AND goblins" for a fuckin reason, people

[@ben_burnes]

You are using it correctly, parasocial relationships are one-way. You know Pat and like the stuff he does, Pat doesn't really know who you are.

[@tristanwindham1891]

ahem, the ghost of a goblin

[@karr1265]

Google is free if you need to look up a word

[@roxas_rucksack1042]

My favourite thing about Pat’s videos is that there’s always like a few seconds at the start where you don’t grasp the concept yet and then you just do and it continues to inform the way you think for the rest of your life-

[@vogelvrouw]

Yes! At first youre like "whats he talking about" then it quickly turns into "oh wow hes 100% correct and i know Exactly what hes going for"

[@ShapezPuller64]

It all clicked when Pat talked about how Goblin-core can be a tool to express messy desires in a way which doesn't hurt people. Like, suddenly, I vibe with it.

[@fantage20012]

I'd have to say that the appeal of goblincore to me is more "you do not exist to be consumed by others"

[@qwertyqeys]

I think my first true taste of goblin gameplay was goat simulator. Not only was that game just perfectly dumb ugly fun for me, but the easter eggs hidden around the map really added to it, like the ability to drag multiple bodies up a hill to a pentagram to become an even uglier goat, or a hidden steroid goat form that lets you attack people and physics objects with especially high force

[@Daedelean]

I had a huge grin on my face the entire time watching this

[@jezzuh9120]

Playing Junkrat only in OW2 has caused me to renew my commitment to causing rumpus and ruin. Spawncamping, jumpscaring Pharah, rolling out an exploding tire while in the center of the enemy team. It's great. Full goblin mode.

[@JKXYGolden]

Was similarly confused by the "Ghosts vs. Goblins" dichotomy until the cat example. Solid argument, I'm convinced by Pat's logic here

[@bingoblackdynomite]

Pat absolutely breaking Simone around 7:20 truly displays the power of going goblin mode

[@ColinsScienceProject]

Humans Fall Flat is the most goblin mode fun I’ve had in a multiplayer game. Just seeing your friends on the cusp of solving a puzzle before you run in and yeet one of them off a cliff is pure goblin gold

[@2clam4jam]

SSS killing a boss in hitman in 2 seconds by hitting them with an exploding golfball they found is a peak goblin moment

[@kaylynns8878]

assuming you're talking about SecretSleepoverSociety (unless there's another "SSS" that's streamed hitman) and yes, those streams are full of goblin moments. Julia playing with the grape smasher for, like, 30 mins is what my mind went to immediately. Now that I think about it, I feel that Julia goes goblin mode in games p frequently XD

[@JohnGottschalk]

I think using Goblin in this way predates 2021, I'd like to refer to Marian Churchland who wrote a blog called Hchom from 2009 to 2017, where she posted about the things she liked, primarily fashion, foods and shiny objects. The first depiction of herself as a goblin was February 22nd 2010, this coalescing with this Goblin attitude of hoarding little things and letting your more appropriate self take a hike for a little while as you indulge yourself in all your whims and wills, essentially taking on a modality of Goblinliness. All this to say I think the idea of relating to Goblins is much older than Leon's "Goblin posting", and it was diving into this more than 10 year old tradition that can be seen (at least) in Marian Churchland's autobiographical blog.

[@kalidwapur]

You're truly an internet academic.

[@JohnGottschalk]

@@kalidwapur I know you're taking the piss, but regardless: thank you.

[@kalidwapur]

@@JohnGottschalk I am honestly not. I'm actually really impressed.

[@JohnGottschalk]

@@kalidwapur Honestly I'm cheating, I have in fact just been on the internet since before 2009. I can still remember when people were moving from LiveJournal to Wordpress, as wild as that decision seems today.

[@kalidwapur]

@@JohnGottschalk don't worry I too am old and crusty.

[@Michael_Lindell]

Great work Pat! I'm sure the viewers will be goblin' this up!

[@polygon]

ayo

[@egan452]

I feel like there's potential to have goblins with intent that works for them by making them punks. They've got good reasons to be pissed, and they're gonna do mischief about it because what else can they do?

[@missingdev0948]

Protest peacefully with extreme violence

[@marcelinecorbin1257]

Well, one of the main parts of intent as I see it is the lack of reason to be pissed, but being pissed nonetheless

[@workchannel8053]

Omg i want punk goblins so bad now

[@DigitaIJustice]

I was going sicko mode. Little did I know I should be Going Goblin.

[@Rich_P_Anya]

No

[@DigitaIJustice]

@@Rich_P_Anya ok

[@mirrankei]

I really love the Ghost Trick discussion which does not have any spoilers at all

[@rungus9651]

Indeed, but I am still happy that he talked about it since I haven’t seen a lot of people talk about this game that I love

[@HeraldOfOpera]

Of course, if you've already been spoiled there's some additional subtle humor.

[@YayaIWin]

Pat this is a good video, and maybe this was left on the cutting room floor for video length purposes but, my first thought when I thought about a game where you are living the worst version of yourself I thought of Disco Elysium and I was very sad to not see a Goblin Mode rating for Harrier Du Bois

[@friend_xtra]

as much as i love DE, Harry has a reason for being a walking trash fire.

[@ambermiller3751]

this version of in the hall of the mountain king is the background soundtrack of my brain now update after finishing the video: there's like 3 different versions and i meant the first one but they're all perfect actually. as is the rest of the video thanks guys

[@penguin112493]

I have so many questions about how this video was pitched and written, but by god is it a perfect video.

[@trashkhan9710]

Pat is the trinket I'd steal if I were to goblin mode

[@takemetoyonk]

7:44 I literally started cry laughing at this point because I realized how much the franchise would flip on its head if the hitman was a crouching goblin that just happens to succeed and murderize everyone

[@b0bbarkerftehw]

Honestly Ben Schwartz is goblin mode. He'd put a little cheese in your shoe just to make question yourself

[@korbendennis3308]

Well known tabletop goblin game designer Viditya Voleti deserves to be interviewed about Goblins

[@McJohnstable]

I hadn't heard of them until reading your comment. Looking it up they have some really neat looking stuff! Thanks!

[@JesseNapalm]

Overlord? OVERLORD?! You're not the goblins but you ARE controlling them.

[@chrismanuel9768]

Also your intent is something like "excuse me that was supposed to be OUR treasure and you stole my share, so now I'm taking ALL OF IT", which is pretty fucking goblin

[@willkersey7340]

The only thing i could think about the whole video

[@thefollowingisatest4579]

For me, the heeheehoohoohehehheeHAHAAAHAAHHOOOOHHHAAAAheehee factor is the most important one for making me feel like the little goblin I am. Also, while I appreciate you sticking up for us little gobfemmes to be nasty, I don't appreciate you forgetting the 2003 console rts Goblin Commander: Unleash the Hordes. How could you Pat?!

[@LokiFES_]

Hi Thanks for the comments and also Congratulations you have been selected among our shortlisted winners 🎁💐 Telegram the above username so we can sort this out..

[@dominateeye]

I think the summary of what goblins are could have benefited from a touch on the antisemitism present in certainly the Tolkien concept of goblins, for the sake of cautioning people against causing inadvertent harm when going "goblin mode". The rest of this video is flawless, though. Who knew there were so many different versions of In the Hall of the Mountain King?

[@LokiFES_]

Hi Thanks for the comments and also Congratulations you have been selected among our shortlisted winners 🎁💐 Telegram the above username so we can sort this out..

[@profeseurchemical]

if we are talking about this, then the size thing too.

[@dreadbias1579]

For YEARS i have been in search of good goblin games and this video encapsulates the struggle perfectly. WHY IS IT SO HARD TO BE LITTLE AND GREEN

[@bretscofield]

Polygon has some of the best video essays out there about so many things.

[@LokiFES_]

Hi Thanks for the comments and also Congratulations you have been selected among our shortlisted winners 🎁💐 Telegram the above username so we can sort this out......

[@wellurban]

There are plenty of options for goblinesque play in Stray, though of course the ridiculous cuteness offsets the natural goblin tendencies of cats. It would be fun to see a sequel or DLC for Stray that really emphasises the mischief!

[@medulasa1]

I really miss the more regular Polygon videos on youtube, they were such a huge comfort in trying times

[@kieran.grant_]

The lens of goblin mode genuinely makes me want to play every single one of these games.

[@EdKauffmann]

how does this video not even mention Wario? he’s the ultimate avatar of goblin-mode glee

[@HeraldOfOpera]

He sold out and is now a wealthy video game magnate, that's why.

[@carlosleonelli1139]

@@HeraldOfOpera isn't selling exactly what a goblin would do...

[@arathain2]

I am, by and large, a polite, thoughtful person. Yet in my soul lives a little goblin, as it does in all of us. Mind is small and quiet, but I love it nonetheless. Videogames are where I let my goblin out, so this spoke to me. My fave Total Warhammer races are Greenskins, Skaven and Nurgle, so you called it there. When I played Heroes of the Storm I was very partial to playing Murky, a true goblin if ever there was one.

[@LokiFES_]

Hi Thanks for the comments and also Congratulations you have been selected among our shortlisted winners 🎁💐 Telegram the above username so we can sort this out.

[@gaurwaith993]

Earlier today I was thinking I haven't seen a Polygon video in a while. Then Pat dropped this masterpiece. I have been sated.

[@Cruxador]

So the ideal goblin game would be Warhammer goblins with force grip and the goals of a goose. Honestly I think the perfect goblin game would have different segments, stealth ones kind of like goose game, but then once you beat the stealth portion you can play as a goblin warlord like in Overlord series (surprised it didn't make the list) or a force gripping shaman, or an ogre who just physically wrecks everything like in a Rampage game

[@bokavordur]

The ska version of "In The Hall of the Mountain King" is a lovely touch

[@bopabino1816]

The Destroy All Humans series deserves an honorable mention. I feel like Crypto is effectively a space goblin

[@uberwitz2193]

His intent would rank low, but i gotta say he's at least a 7/5 on nastiness and the heeheehoohoo factor is fuckin' outta this world.

[@tomrivlin7278]

Hey Pat, I just wanted to say this video made me burst out laughing multiple times, and I was simply grinning for the rest of it. Thanks for increasing the heeheehoohoo score of my day today

[@kokarandelin]

This is now required viewing since goblin mode is The Oxford Word of the Year 2022

[@Michael_Lindell]

That Gooseblin has some serious fowl intent...

[@polygon]

hey

[@keenanhosfield6734]

You have to play Overlord (2007), that's pure goblin nonsense

[@liquidl5380]

I'm dying over the top tier Ghost Trick joke 🤣

[@umbrafigueroa9738]

Accidentally discovered goblin mode while preparing for a campaign of dnd. I had no character and asked the DM if I could make a little goblin. Within minutes of playing I realized how much freedom this character gave me.

[@voldrik1364]

I'm surprised you didn't mention the Overlord games. You don't play as a goblin but the whole game is about commanding your group of little nasty boys to run around and wreck stuff up to make you the ultimate king nasty boy. The Darkness also had some fun gobliny bits. You could make goblins crawl out of the shadows, kill a guy with a saw and then pee on him lol

[@victoriahawco3893]

This is exactly the kind of content I subscribe for

[@catbot6037]

An ideal polygon video. Keep it up!

[@JohnGottschalk]

Ok, aside from the DnD books, I'm now curious what's on Pat's shelf.

[@RevolutionarySamurai]

a Pat Video knocking it out the park ONCE AGAIN

[@snazwonk2066]

i go goblin mode in Elden ring as invader and throwing dung pots at people while running around whole body covered in fungus.

[@sintua]

Overlord shoulda been on here!!! While you ostensibly play the massive BBEG, the real stars of the show are the goblins - they orchestrate your return, they run around causing the havok, and they go full on Goblin Mode on everything!

[@Bo-kq8tn]

I always forget goat simulator exists but man, that is also a perfect goblin game up there with untitled goose game

[@LokiFES_]

Hi Thanks for the comments and also Congratulations you have been selected among our shortlisted winners 🎁💐 Telegram the above username so we can sort this out....

[@reneeaudette3618]

Another banger. Another banger from Pat Gill, the man who will NOT stop putting the Dvorak New World Symphony in the background of his videos

[@Skip-Towne]

When I saw the video title I assumed someone had made a goblin version of Untitled goose game. While I'm sad that is not the case, this is good nonetheless. Thank you for the goblin game round up. Edit: and then right after I post this comment you mention the goose game 😅

[@KyleS.1987]

Slimer's totally a goblin, so I think ghosts can be goblins.

[@friend_xtra]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/aKjcn6aqhLuBmrs

[@scobeymeister1]

I think he's getting at archetypes in his distinction. Through that lens I'm not sure I'd count Slimer as a ghost even though he is on a technicality

[@frankcaggiano8282]

The gamecube game "Geist" would be a banger of an addition here. You're a ghost who can take control of objects and animals to scare soldiers, who you can then take control of when they're scared to sneak about levels and get through security clearances, etc. Game was a masterpiece even back then, and the multiplayer was super legit. 11/10 heeheehoohoo if you enjoy terrifying innocent pupper to take over its body and then lead it into an exploding crate

[@pointynoodle]

I want a sequel to this. "I need to be told to eat my captives." delightful. Goblin/10

[@mdrdumbprivacysettings5473]

There are some great suggestions for more goblin gaming in these comments, I certainly would not mind a follow up video of Pat playing out his inner goblin in them and telling us how much heeing and hooing he got up to.

[@BlueBeetle1939]

Much as I try I can never bring myself to not play Grom the paunch he's just so much fun and the upgrades from the cauldron are sick

[@TalenkauenTV]

You should update this to add Chop Goblins to the list. Granted, you don't play a goblin, but the titular Chop Goblins are definitely peak goblin-mode energy

[@adambud11]

You convincing Simone of your viewpoint vis a vis ghost vs goblin mode was a highlight of KZbin for me

[@IceyAwesome]

Surprised that Goblin Commander isn't on this list. I don't know how highly it would rank, but Goblin's in the name! You get to play as different kinds of gobs!

[@LokiFES_]

Hi Thanks for the comments and also Congratulations you have been selected among our shortlisted winners 🎁💐 Telegram the above username so we can sort this out......

[@BestgirlJordanfish]

God it’s mid January now and it’s been a good while since we’ve had a video now. Did Jenna hold the company together?

[@rionsanura]

this video's heeheehoohoo factor is off the charts tbh i have been snickering nastily to myself for ten whole minutes

[@rionsanura]

and THEN y'all started Hall of the Mountain Kinging it, the most gobliny possible soundtrack!!!!

[@authorincognito]

The cat going ghost mode vs goblin mode is a paradoxical argument considering it's Ghost Trick, I feel

[@CptRonSolo]

I find it hilariously gobliny that you failed wow just because the lady goblins arent ugly lol, their intent and heeheehoohooness is very goblin but you right lady goblins in wow arent very nasty

[@thelizardking4016]

Common Pat W. I swear his videos never miss

[@modestMousse]

I first watched this video a few months ago, but I keep coming back to this video's concept because I think, culturally, there IS something fantastic about the idea of goblin mode. The concept of "does your back ache from carrying the hopes and dreams of precarious worlds" feels acutely right in a world fraught by crises like climate change. Thanks a ton, Patrick!

[@zu_1455]

Intriguing premise, slick writing, great music, flowing pace, snappy editing....how can this vid get any better??? Simone cameo.

[@beemaack]

SOCIETY (or at least one member of it) HAS BEEN WAITING FOR THIS VIDEO!! There are so many wonderful goblin tabletop rpgs too: Goblin Quest Goblin Country Goblins in the Shadow Goblin Errands In terms of fiction, you simply must read The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison. Though it’s not really about the nastiness of goblins.

[@spikemaw]

If you're looking for goblin TTRPGs, Goblinville Gazette is pretty fun!

[@scatterbug]

There needs to be more goblins in every aspect of life. Also, I think Styx is my hero.

[@bwagner23]

Cherry on top of this very good video is the surf rock version of In the Hall of the Mountain King at the end. I need it. It is truly Goblin Mode Music.

[@LokiFES_]

Hi Thanks for the comments and also Congratulations you have been selected among our shortlisted winners 🎁💐 Telegram the above username so we can sort this out..

[@JP_knees]

never thought I'd get roped in so easily with an 'are you tired of being nice?'

[@THEBEEDOOBOP]

Banger vid pat. I could hear your gem-appraiser voice talk about the “hee hee hoo hoo” factor until my casket drops.

[@stephgilliam]

I am a folkloric goblin and the house in which I cause problems is my own. My posture is vile, I am a nasty little creature, and my hee hee hoo hoo level is off the charts. So this is a great video for me, that's what I'm saying.

[@SPAMLiberationArmy]

This video speaks to me. - Enclave (2002) is a mid-tier fantasy action game I've replayed about a hundred times entirely because the Dark Campaign has a playable Goblin race. - Skyrim has at least one Goblin player race mod. - City of Heroes fan servers have a robust enough costume and power system that you can make a convincing Goblin (trust me, I've done it), and you can play villain-side missions to really get into the nastiness and chaos.

[@Titleknown]

...Still shocked that Pat didn't bring up any of the Wario Land games in this vid, because those games really are some of the most Goblin Mode games out there.

[@LokiFES_]

Hi Thanks for the comments and also Congratulations you have been selected among our shortlisted winners 🎁💐 Telegram the above username so we can sort this out..

[@pliable-head]

Played a goblin wizard in DnD for a year and a half and she remains my favorite character I've ever been. Being a goblin is so important to me, I'm so glad to know Pat feels the same way. hee hee hoo hoo forever >:)

[@TheCrackingSpark]

use me as a heeheehoohoo button

[@foreverclassic105]

Polygon continues to have some of the best gaming videos on YT

[@russull5589]

Patrick it's been weeks since that one stream and the dang Marlins song just gobbo'd its way out the back of my brain to say hi and loaf on my mind couch for a while. Thanks for this apparently permanent addition to my memory, bub.

[@ZachZRipper]

Would probably be good to point out just how blatantly antisemitic the history of European goblin portrayals are... I mean just look at the "Knocker" spirits....

[@nevisysbryd7450]

No, they are not. Goblin lore in Europe precedes any significant Semitic presence (outside of the Anatolian farmer migrations in the Stone through Bronze Age). Knockers date back to at least the Anglo-Saxon period, long before any significant presence of Jews in England.

[@ZachZRipper]

@@nevisysbryd7450 dude... It's right in Celtic folklore history books that in the 11th/12th centuries it was believed knockers were the spirits of Jews that died in the mines....

[@nevisysbryd7450]

@@ZachZRipper Apparently I mixed up the Cornish knocker with the English knucker. The point still stands, though. A _few_ written sources (mostly restricted to socioeconomic elites in the 12th century) among other, contradictory origin stories describe them as the ghosts of Jews, and was likely attaching a new origin story to a pre-established folklore creature. This was, at best, anti-Judaism, not anti-Semitism (which are distinct and were especially so at that time), given that practicing Jews were obviously not going to go to the Christian Heaven, given how that works in Christianity. This is hardly a negative depiction, either, given that the knockers were overwhelmingly ambivalent to benevolent. This is also totally ignoring the Welsh equivalent Cobylnau, Germanic kobold, or their possible to likely origins in Greek kobalos, Norse dwarves and other spirits (including direct affiliations with elves across in some stories), or any other comparable creatures in European mythologies from the Early Middle Ages or prior, preceding anti-Judaic/Semitic Christian bias or _contact._ And all of _that_ is without considering analogues found in places outside of Europe or prior to any contact with European or Christian prejudices. There are analogues found throughout Asia and in parts of Africa and the Americas. If you want to argue that some _specific_ instances of goblins have been anti-Semitic in intent, that might hold water. Rowling making them hook-nosed bankers well-dressed in black makes it a plausible allegation. The entire _concept_ of goblins long precedes anti-Semitism being a thing, and most instances are unrelated.

[@nevisysbryd7450]

As for noses-people are jerks about noses in general, and it tends to run along genetic and environmental lines. It is not something particularly about Jews outside of where it is specifically about Jews. kzbin.info/www/bejne/bXm6aoydZ5qggKM

[@dreaminpng]

I’m kinda surprised at the glaring omission about the anti-Semitic roots of the Western European goblin in the history of goblins section at the top of the video. Like, it’s extremely well documented, and given the increasing anti-Semitism we’re seeing atm it feels kinda off to not even acknowledge it? Especially given how Polygon videos are usually pretty good about not sweeping this kind of thing under the rug.

[@LokiFES_]

Hi Thanks for the comments and also Congratulations you have been selected among our shortlisted winners 🎁💐 Telegram the above username so we can sort this out..

[@medakahn5497]

agreed! i don’t think goblincore/‘goblin mode’ is (usually) antisemitic or anything like that, but the jewishness of goblins is pretty crucial to a lot of their history and also their appeal! (cf. the ferengi in DS9, prime example of goblins and VERY jewish, albeit something i know fellow jews have mixed feelings on lol). Like i think you have to talk about jewishness also as a feature of the positive aspects of goblinry

[@nevisysbryd7450]

No, they are not. Lore about creatures like goblins long precede significant Jewish presence in Europe and appeared in Africa and the Americas prior to ANY contact with Semites.

[@Kierkergaarder]

This is beautiful. Your meditations on the nature of goblinhood are profoundly insightful. Thank you.

[@kuridongo]

very happy for the inclusion of leon’s school of goblin posting would’ve loved the inclusion of goat simulator, and discussion of being a deity goblin in The Sims

[@readitandweep902]

maybe you shouldve talked about the antisemetic origins of goblins? this feels very tone-deaf. the reason goblins have those traits is because they were being compared to the real-life scapegoat of jewish people. to not talk about how much that sucks makes for worse journalism.

[@nevisysbryd7450]

Goblin lore predates antagonism (or even significant direct contact) between Europeans and Jews and similar entities appear in the folklore of places that had no contact with Semites. They are not anti-Semitic.

[@Mikaeus_Un_Hallowed]

Love your video essay ideas

[@Kryptnyt]

Dota 2's Goblin Techies were Goblin In a Nutshell for a very long time, though they had a rework a while ago that severely reduces their annoyance. Also there's always the classic, the red MTG goblin deck.

[@hurgcat]

rip dota all stars techies, the most cancery cancer to ever cancer a moba. truly chefs kiss

[@CHANNNGEPETE]

absolutely fantastic video, 10/10 perfect for all the funny little green guys out there We need more high quality goblin games where you are small and green too!

[@mr.fantastic2211]

I did NOT expect to see Ghost Trick in here. I didn't expect to see Ghost Trick anywhere at all!

[@TheRauzKindred]

Spy Vs Spy the game was one I could think of that hits that note, sure you play as cartoon spies from various unknown factions trying to steal "intel" from one another, but good lord most of that went out the window and boiled down to just petty funny nastiness simply because the other guy hit you in the face with a pie and stole your stuff and you wanna get even now, it especially rang true in the multiplayer mode which was just a Tom & Jerry esq free for all. Overlord 1 and 2 I think might fit the bill for this criteria, sure you play the "evil overlord" but you mostly control the little goblin like minions and cause immense amounts of property damage and chaos.

[@mikek7660]

Your exposition on the definition of goblins kind of deserves it's own video

[@pinstripeowl]

More reviews should assess the criteria of how fun things are to goof off in. Perfect video