Why Co-op Horror Games Should be Funny (And Not Scary)

[@Valefisk]

Play War Thunder now with my link, and get a massive, free bonus pack including vehicles, boosters and more: playwt.link/valefisk

[@teeteenine2222]

"that makes it better. GIVE US THE BIGFOOT CUT"

[@Nothinggaming_.]

this dev has also made a VERY good single player horror game that hits just as well as LC, it's called the Upturned, and honestly, it's the kind of game you'd love making a video on imo.

[@Chaos_Senpai]

Speaking of bad games

[@mateimarian1937]

Stop taking sponsorships from Gaijin, they're a horrible predatory company on par with EA. A simple google search can show this.

[@teaflavouredcoffee83]

bawling

[@yak3868]

I feel like lethal company is so good because both parts are genuine, you have genuine fun with friends, but the scares are usually genuinely terrifying

[@BroKenYaKnow]

it's basically running procedurally generated jumpscares/chase scenes. Every run has a different map, different monsters, different dead ends, etc. While it's also predictable to some degree. You can do run without ever seeing Bracken or never see him the entire time. Either way, you can avoid him just by not looking too long. You can be in a group of 3 on the ship dancing with your friends just to all die in about 5 seconds from an eyeless dog cause the door opened for .05 seconds. It's incredible

[@some_shitposting_idiot3023]

A big problem though is its difficulty is just unfair at times

[@afez2752]

​@@BroKenYaKnowSeeing the ghost girl the first time is some scary shit.

[@wynterfoxx2517]

@@some_shitposting_idiot3023 Yeah, difficulty can vary like crazy. Sometimes you'll find stuff worth hundreds of scrap soon as you enter, and sometimes you'll have the building's only two entrances camped by monsters for an entire day.

[@kenjethao7774]

theres a video where two guys are looking for scrap and one guy swore he saw something. The other doesnt believe him and they argue until he hears a short scream and turns around only to see a brief glimpse of something. blood splatter on the ground, and no body. It was both terrifying and hilarious.

[@StarWarsGirl2011]

proximity chat in these games multiplies the funny factor by 1000 i love it so much

[@BlueTeam-John-Fred-Linda-Kelly]

Is prox chat really that rare? I'm new to PC gaming and while on console I usually didn't play multiplayer.

[@TheGreatThicc]

​@@BlueTeam-John-Fred-Linda-Kellyit kinda is. Most games that are team based just have your voices always sounding like you're 10 feet apart.

[@MUGENanaya]

@@BlueTeam-John-Fred-Linda-Kelly Surprisingly yes, at least in this genre. It's definitely lifted up by the FX, both for spooky atmosphere, deep immersion, and comedy factor. From the genuinely eerie echo that rings when you speak in the more enclosed spaces, to the sheer hilarity when you see your funny friend try to speak through a face-hugger, only to be muffled, and that muffled speech to grow in distance and then disappear when they then fall off a cliff.

[@FarremShamist]

@@MUGENanaya The proximity chat in LC is so, SO amazing. It sounds alright just on a quality point, but the effects and everything just make it all add up and feel right, it's immersive, and further... It's just hilarious Having doppler effect on it is just icing on the cake tbh

[@thetageist]

Absolutely. Games like Lethal Company, where the voice chat cuts off upon dying or entering/exiting the building, basically give you "perfectly cut screams" in the game itself, and I love it so much.

[@Solll0]

The True Horror Experience Is Cowering In A Bush For 20 Minutes

[@nishatelya7576]

Average Arma survival experience

[@ForTheJerusalem]

Ah good old Tarkov.

[@iconica9516]

f-f-fortnite

[@kaderobertson2489]

Queen DELTARUNE lookin ass

[@sophisthemlock246]

@@ForTheJerusalem Only to be killed by either a boss, a scav with a TOZ or someone who has unnaturally good spatial awareness.

[@_mwk]

Lethal Company is better at making you panic than scaring you. The "OPEN THE DOOR OPEN THE DOOR CLOSE THE DOOR CLOSE THE DOOR" moments are the best part.

[@That_Emi_]

I think the real panic and the real scares go hand in hand to make the game immaculate. You get scared out of no where because a thing you weren't expecting to kill you does, regardless of if you see it or not. Meanwhile you panic because there's a thing in front of you that you absolutely know will kill you either because it looks dangerous or you saw it kill one of your friends. And the absurdity of some of the monsters go hand in hand with the ones that are morbidly horrifying. On their own Hoarding Bugs aren't that scary, I mean it's what happens when you fuse an autism creature with a fly they're not particularly terrifying. But they add more red dots, which can freak the player on cams out, who can call to you on radio that there's enemies near you and to stand still, which will make you respond, which means the even scarier monsters in the building can then hear you and kill you.

[@cainprescott4937]

I think Lethal Company's in a nice sweet spot where it starts out scary, and as you get more experienced the initial scares begin to go from being scary in the traditional way to being scary in the "oh god, oh fuck, this is going to greatly affect our earnings if we somehow make it out of here" way.

[@That_Emi_]

@@cainprescott4937 which is good, because as we all know there's nothing more terrifying than late stage capitalism

[@MrProg-ey3tl]

@@That_Emi_ It's not "late stage capitalism", it's just capitalism lol

[@That_Emi_]

@@MrProg-ey3tl ehh you say that but I feel like an unnamed company sending you to get random shit from planets filled with unnamed horrors is a bit later on in capitalism than having to flip burgers to survive

[@ryanstudham640]

A lot of credit of Crypt's spooky factor should be given to Crypt's aesthetic. In a first person lost-in-the-woods game you're already comfortable just because they're so ubiquitous. In Crypt, you don't know what to expect from the very start because the gameboy-like shaders are very alien to most players, making them ask "If this is different, what else could be?" and allowing them to build their own fear much more efficiently.

[@TextualDeviant]

Ah, yes. Efficiency. Valefisk: _makes game_ Valefisk: "Say hello to the Scream Extractor." Valefisk's friends: "Hello. Hey, where are you going? C'mon, we'll talk! We'll have a latte!"

[@aidbotwoody939]

Crypt 2 now it's multiplayer

[@migueeeelet]

I think one of the bigger things that Lethal Company brings is that your teammates can die (often in dumb situations), which gives you a more spectator view. Similar to laughing at someone getting jumpscared in a video. It's a different perspective, and well worth using.

[@woodsytheowlscharedcorpse4761]

It also gives death a bit more meaning than a lot of these games do. Not only are you cut off from the live players for a few minutes but you also actually waste tools and resources meaning you really do need to survive and be a bit careful if you want to see more of the game.

[@shadowflame3543]

@@woodsytheowlscharedcorpse4761 and even sometimes something kills you so randomly that you're just left speechless for a while before bursting out laughing (my reaction to getting eaten by the fucking worm)

[@woodsytheowlscharedcorpse4761]

@@shadowflame3543 Also my reaction to accidentally killing one of the head crab bugs by exiting the dungeon.

[@Rurike]

Also makes it great for multi streaming cause each view is a unique experience

[@ivgorm9365]

"If it's seriously dull to play or if it's lacking some big funnies it's just gonna suck" shows phasmophobia gameplay very based

[@S0appy-t8w]

Phasmophobia so boring frfr

[@Storm-_-rider]

@@S0appy-t8wit’s grate to mess around with friends tho

[@whiskas7078]

It's great if half the squad is a bunch of pussies. ie. Me and my friend's gf lol

[@americankid7782]

@@S0appy-t8wfor phasmophobia, most of the fun relies on you and your friends. Having one of your friends yelling at you as they die is the funniest thing ever.

[@zexionfan15]

Honestly, Phasmo as "intended" on low difficulty is quite boring, but a huge part of the fun of it for me comes from 1 or no evidence runs. That forces you to stay longer, take more risks, and pay more attention to ghost habits.

[@assailant8722]

One thing that I think multiplayer games can do to be truly scary in ways single player really can’t as effectively is organically making you feel helpless. Like yes, in a single-player game, you have the feeling of being alone. And that works for awhile, but you DO acclimate to it. But compare that to a multiplayer game. Lethal Company, for example: you’re going through the bunker, chatting with your friends, cracking jokes, gathering scrap. Not scary in the slightest. But then, for just a moment, there’s a scream that gets quickly cut off, you turn and see a Bracken holding your friend’s corpse for just a second as it darts around a corner and disappears, and suddenly you’re alone. It’s dark. Blood trails on the floor where just moments before you and your pal were happily cracking wise. And the jovial banter is replaced with crushing silence. That feeling, of being suddenly RENDERED alone after getting used to just vibing with your friends and knowing there’s nothing you can do about it, is a truly unique kind of horror that single-player games just can’t effectively replicate.

[@vivil2533]

Let me add to your point with a question. What is scarier. An NPC getting its neck snapped by a monster. Or another player getting their neck snapped. A npc getting killed is a cutscene, a player getting killed is something you KNOW can happen to you. Add to that the cutoff scream. An npc screaming is a voice actor in a booth reading a script, your friend's scream is genuine.

[@Totasfunnynumber]

It's like House Beneviento in RE8. You go in with ways to protect yourself, and you're used to those tools being the solution. Then, in the blink of an eye, all of your weapons have been taken away from you

[@joskarifinaukr6503]

@@vivil2533 Same concept with PvP games rather than PvE, for me at least. Or even better is when they're mixed. Take Elite: Dangerous, for example. I could be minding my own business trading cargo when suddenly I'm interdicted by a pirate. If it's an NPC, it's usually a straightforward matter, I can choose whether to escape the interdiction, submit and crush the pirate, or submit and outrun him, and it very rarely gets my adrenaline flowing. Even if I choose wrong and get into a fight I can't win, escaping is still pretty easy. But if that pirate is another player, immediately everything shifts into high gear. Players almost always outfit their ships better than any NPC does, their combat rating means nothing because one could easily be a Deadly or Elite combat pilot who reset his save file or is using a smurf account, and they are almost always unpredictable. I've been stopped by gentleman pirates who informed me of their intent before interdicting, and who guaranteed safe passage for a period of time in exchange for voluntary "fair" tribute. I've also been stopped by ruthless cutthroats who found it simpler to shoot first and loot the scraps. Every encounter is amped up to the max when you don't know what kind of pilot you've run into.

[@zackl2000]

I think thats exactly it, Lethal company plays like a horror movie that has a group of survivors, they get picked off when they make minor mistakes, they start out typically happy making jokes and such, and then stuff falls apart and they become more panicked.

[@aidanfitzpatrick-oneill2072]

This is something that many games kind of achieve but rarely ever make it feel genuine, I think it makes a big difference

[@Milkythesquid]

Phasmophobia is the modern poster child for Multiplayer Scary Game™ but the fact that you can basically "solve" it kinda ruins it (go in with thermometer, find cold room, put all equipment in there and wait until you find the ghost) couple that with the fact that the ghosts don't really interact with the player in any meaningful way and they all pretty much do the same kill animation of "Stand there in the flicker light until you go spectator" and yeah it gets pretty stale pretty fast. Lethal Company is almost like the antithesis of it, all the monsters do their own thing and have their own behavior so dealing with one is entirely different than dealing with any other one and there's also the fact that you can't "solve" it due to the random generation aspect of its factories and houses. Plus if you get bored of the gameplay loop it's always funny to hear someones audio get cut off by a landmine

[@zexionfan15]

Honestly, Phasmo as "intended" on low difficulty is quite boring, but a huge part of the fun of it for me comes from 1 or no evidence runs. That forces you to stay longer, take more risks, and pay more attention to ghost habits

[@arcanetomb9564]

100%, i used to play phasmo with a group of some friends and it just kinda got stale, but at this point i feel like we all already have had more fun and been more scared in lethal company than we ever had in phasmophobia and also a name i recognize, neat

[@FirestormHF]

I think that's because Phasmophobia is a puzzle game where the puzzle can kill and it also has multiplayer. Considering how it started its staying power is mostly due to updating it and just how badly most mimics fail to grasp why it works. Lethal company took the good ideas and made its own thing out of em.

[@killerwithoutcanary]

shovel time

[@dynamo8846]

Cant wait to see a summary of CNA, the dogfights over north africa was cool as hell :)

[@mark-gj4mb]

Another thing I love about Lethal Company is that the monsters all have weird quirks about them that can be exploited. In most MIHGs, the monster is just some big guy who paths towards you and you beat him by running in the other direction. But things like dog monsters that are blind and only respond to sounds like footsteps, music, and YOUR VOICE shake that up so much. Walking back to the ship past these things with 2 other friends when you're all full up with loot is simultaneously hilarious and terrifying. Or monsters that are the opposite, deaf but with good vision. All of it culminates into these moment by moment interactions that become even more chaotic when 2 or more monster types interact together

[@catpoke9557]

This game is like Rain World but co-op and comedic lol

[@TheSpike848]

Reminds me a lot of SCP containment breach in that way. Even have a guy that only moves when you break LOS.

[@Ze_eT]

@@TheSpike848 Weeping Angels are quite common to be fair. SCP-173 from SCP, Coilheads in Lethal Company, Endoskeletons in FNAF: Security Breach, and Miss Delight in Poppy Playtime C3 all are exactly this.

[@thespiffingbrit]

Sorry Vale I cannot keep up with your new rapid upload Cycle. Please go back to uploading once every 2 years please. Sincerely A concerned Viewer 😮‍💨

[@belyq-s5w]

Take your words back, NOW

[@kookwater456]

I loved seeing the British man again trying to explain what the Monster in Crypt was in the most British way possible. “What a spooky bein’. What a spooky bein’”

[@deadpan904]

A DRUNK british man ( drunk in the original Crypt video )

[@dasamont8274]

One of the best and scariest parts of "Escape from the backrooms" is definitely the monsters pretending to be one of your friends. Like I've only watched videos of it, but that shit got me tense even as a viewer. It also helps prevent that herd-mentality of going to stay in a group with your friends, but I can only imagine how effective it would be if two features were included. The first is the group-splitting from Labyrinthine, so your group could suddenly lose a member, and now the group would be scared of allowing the lost member to come close in case it was an imposter, and the lost player would be scared to approach other flashlights. This was especially apparent in the video I watched where the player knew that all his friends were dead, but still a flashlight was coming towards him and trying to regroup. The second way would be to fuck with the proximity-chat by having monsters able to silence players, so they couldn't communicate, and maybe have the game save proximity-chats for short periods during sessions, and then play them back coming from a monster, and by combining these so a player would be silenced and their voice was instead played directly from a monster's location. All these together would be terrifying if done well, and potentially hilarious if a bit scuffed.

[@That_Emi_]

Well, you know what the cool kids say, when you code it they will come. Sounds like a fun casual project to make in your spare time to add to Vale's growing list of MIHGs to play on saturdays :3

[@saratoga6663]

The face hugger centipede in Lethal muffles you so if you try to communicate you don’t and it’s really panicking when you just watch your friend slowly suffocate to death while trying to say something important

[@heck_n_degenerate940]

The moment I heard about lethal company and found out what it was about I knew it was the perfect game for Vale and his group. Edit: Turns out this video is actually a video essay and not just a full vid about goofy lethal company shenanigans. Oh well, I'm sure that video will be made soon enough.

[@sank_zr]

MY REACTION TOO LOL

[@jamescampionn]

please Vale we are begging you to release the coop horror shenanigans as their own videos here or on a second channel!!

[@mr_eden7572]

So very true, I miss the silly video game videos Val used to upload before he started doing the longer ones (which I enjoy as well) but still I need more Vale videos!

[@torbergqvist8151]

The fact that Valefisk is apparently a "game developer" and not like, KZbinr or something is deeply hilarious to me

[@mranderson9553]

lethal company is great for three main reasons, the first and obvious one is the voice chat and all its modifiers, the joy and horror of bumbling around and discovering things like monster info, and the fact that everything serves as a double dip for usefulness and funny, the stun gun is useful but funny, the jetpack is great for speedruning about is just as likely to blow you up, ladders and rockets can accidentally kill you, its the perfect mixture of utility while still being useful

[@_charlie]

Regarding separating players during the game, Lethal Company's inverse teleporter is perfect at that. You teleport in alone. You hunt for scrap as you hear creatures starting to crawl out the vents, but then you hear your friend through the wall. They say they know where the exit is if you could just reach the-*snap* but they're suddenly cut short by a crack and you once again alone and helpless in the dark.

[@Kali_io]

Honestly being a part of the arma video was on of my scariest video game experiences

[@Capum5]

I've always wanted to play one of these with my small group, and we finally got together for Lethal Company. We couldn't believe it when we stopped for the night and it was 6 hours later, it was hilarious, terrifying and filled with plenty of stupid decisions. We ended up always having one person in the ship giving directions, and it's so good when they slowly realize everyone is dead. Or the radio person inside hears them panic and then go silent. It does prox chat so well.

[@HazzorPlaysGames]

20:47 "Stop playing with the door you invertebrate" - The crab people will remember this.

[@DodgeThatAttack]

I think a big thing to notice with the better / more popular co-op horror games is how goofy everything looks _from an outside perspective._ Your characters will look silly with unrealistic animations which breaks the tension and leads to good times with your friends. But the trick is that when your friends are gone, all of those issues disappear with them, and youre left with a much more realistic horror experience. Except now you really *are* truly alone and lost. You cant know theres a checkpoint or save file coming up. These games will unapologetically let you die bullshit deaths, scared and alone, actually alone- just moments after one of the silliest moments youve ever shared. Eventually, that possibility to lose control at a moments notice will eat away at you even when youre completely safe. Its *real* fear. Its perfect.

[@Otterdisappointment]

14:08 the heavy darkness and the smoother animation makes this perfect because you can’t see the monster that is probably crudely designed and animated but it looks like he’s ripping your buddy apart on the other side of the obligatory video game barrier. You’re safe but you can’t do anything.

[@Ch1l1C0nCarnag3]

Once Lethal Company has a mimic enemy, the loss of allies will become even more terrifying, because you won't know if that guy you saw running off in the distance is your friend who is just too far for proximity chat, or a mimic who will try to get close to you and turn your insides into outsides. But they can also make it hilarious by having it act exactly like a player would; spawn it with a clown horn or airhorn that it will periodically blast like any normal person would.

[@Phreias]

good news about the mask they just added. no voice but i ran into one thinking someone came down to save me 😢

[@vaelophisnyx9873]

it does spin in place, a thing a lot of players do to request a teleport

[@bllllllllackbirdie]

seeing lethal company supports modding will probably make this games lifespan a long time. cant wait to see what kind of sick mods it has in a few months.

[@slava0135]

You forgot to mention SCP: Secret Laboratory, one of the better games of this genre. Both funny and scary, while also supporting more than 30 players in a round. I hope it will get a rise in popularity after Lethal Company success. Should definitely try it out with your friends.

[@JoeyTM]

Big agree here. SCP SL can range from absolutely insane when even the SCPs are messing around to downright horrifying as you hear a 096 with 1k hours murder the entire MTF squad and you're alone.

[@marrowkaiproductions7053]

Eh SL is more of a Shooter with horror elements

[@draconocor]

@@JoeyTM honestly I don't find 096 scary anymore because of just how bad it is

[@JoeyTM]

@@draconocor the scariest 096s are the ones that know to retreat

[@commisaryarreck3974]

Honestly Secret Lab can be terrifying But also ridiculous, getting perfect audio as the doggo is just...magnificent Being able to hotkey and edit that little clip as well and then play it "No i don't want to die, no noooo-" "Yeah, we're over here come over quickly" "Thank god you're here, let's get out" or funny clips is incredible On the other hand barely escaping, stalking trough heavy containment with a handgun if you're lucky, hearing MTF from one side and several SCPs from the other...dear god that's nerve racking

[@VanillaWinters]

Recently my friends and I played Lethal Company and while it was late and waiting on a teammate to make it back to the ship we’re just talking and laughing, then a blind dog jumped through the door at top speed killed one friend while myself and my BF just STOPPED talking and moving, it left and I closed the door and we just started laughing more. The game keeps you so tense even if you’re in the safety of the ship, I was on terminal duty trying to guide everyone, and I heard the stomping and a dog outside. I had to cut myself off and just stay quite. So quickly from laughs and chatting to holding my breath.

[@Adalore]

In the whole context lethal company also lends very well to people playing up the bit or clutching as everyone watches the single survivor in the peanut gallery going "OHHHHHH" as they attempt to survive.

[@ZoeyMeadows]

I'm an actual game student for game design at a college (don't wanna name it for safety reasons but still), and I've gotta say, by my professional opinion, this video was certainly the game design video of all time.

[@c5dynomite]

If you want a terrifying experience with Lethal Company take the inverse teleporter in for a blind jump solo. The fear of not knowing where in the map you are+being completely alone waiting and praying that you hear a voice signifying you're near an exit is genuinely bone chilling.

[@alba_tramonto]

Learning Vale listens to Well There is Your Problem Podcast really threw me for loop, YAY LIAM!

[@bengrizzle3292]

My favorite KZbinr name-dropping my favorite podcast? Wasn't expecting that today

[@Night-xn1ks]

The hardest I've ever laughed in a game is my friend screaming as he beat a bug to death with a shovel in this game as 3 of us sat around watching him. I understand what you mean

[@randomfoxyboi8687]

It's always nice to see Vale takes a break from Campaign for North Africa to deliver us quality content

[@hades_head_empty]

29:58 it's made by the same dev as iron lung so it makes sense that it's another banger

[@thornels]

A Valefisk video essay is a definite surprise, but I am all for it

[@Nothinggaming_.]

this dev has also made a VERY good single player horror game that hits just as well as LC, it's called the Upturned, and honestly, it's the kind of game you'd love making a video on imo.

[@rambbler]

Of course the dev who made It Steals and The Upturned made Lethal Company. That just makes so much sense.

[@frostijjj]

The Bracken, Coilhead anf Jester are all amazingly designed enemies, the Bracken is silent and only tries to kill you when you can't see it, sneaking up and snapping your neck, the Coilhead is basically just a weeping angel which is still one of the best horror concepts, and the Jesters windup sound is one of the scariest things you can hear while deep in the facility

[@OscarLT321]

I think Phasmo is more comparable to DbD than the rest of these horror games. It catches the masses by being 'horror' but keeps players with competition. This means if you play a lot the scary factor goes down, but you are more focussed on getting better. Ask any player of those games with 200+ hours if they think the game is still scary. They play because they want to be good at the game. That's just my two cents, thanks for the video!

[@Sup3rAJ2]

lethal company nailed it flawlessly, the game is genuinely terrifying but it doesn't come at the cost of the goofs. one minute you could be screaming for your life as you run (fruitlessly) from a bracken, the next minute you're ragdolling from a landmine you tripped on. I already have 20 hours on the game, but it's still funny each time we miss jumps (because we weigh 1 tonne) and fall to our deaths.

[@TrapeZoid_-117]

This is actually pretty obvious when you think about it. Half the fun of watching a horror movie with your friends is making fun of that one friend who freaks out at the slightest noise.

[@skylordmax7108]

Something I love about lethal company is that one person can play the game like duskers, and you just see people get killed on the monitor. I've had a moment where some friends of mine were lost in the main structure and I was trying to help them get back, all while some monster was stalking me outside.

[@beanseater6786]

12:44 Actually Lethal Company has something like this. There's an event on Experimentation where the gate at the main entrance can close, one time it split me up from my friends so I had to go in the fire exit to find them and show them the way out.

[@Virtrial]

YES MORE VIDEO ESSAYS FROM MY FAVOURITE VIDEO ESSAYIST

[@cakepigs]

I feel like the flowerman/brackern is almost the perfect implementation of the crypt. It perfectly acts as a stalking enemy with it running away if spotted however if you stare too long it decides it can't go back to stalking and just ganks you. also glowing eyes in the dark are lizard brain spooky.

[@byteland_]

Why do I think that Vale is going to take some inspiration from this new game to make a new "funny" activity?

[@Zenyx64]

You're REALLY good at video essays. Would watch more any day of the week :)

[@tobinjacobson4315]

This was a really well done video essay, plus I'm just happy that we get two Vale videos so close together. Now I want a full video on Lethal Company, it looks like a fantastic game

[@Happy156]

Regularly playing co-op horror games is like sifting through a pile of horse manure because one of your horses ate a diamond.

[@Zefar77]

So many of the starts of the videos I've seen people are having a happy go lucky attitude where the pillage what they can find. Then spooky noise is made it's instantly turned to horror. Then there are a lot of fun clips too which is also good. Love all of those clips on shorts. Specially when Braken takes someone out and the other person doesn't notice and when they do notice he's gone, he/she quietly calls out their name but no response. The dread kicks in real hard at that point.

[@eliseosterbrink8000]

It's also worth noting that some people don't get scared by anything or use humor to cope with things that scare them. If there is no funny aspect to the game and all it has is horror, its impact will be severely damaged by anyone that fits into either of those categories. Imagine someone going around, laughing their ass off at literally everything they're confronted with, and their mood infecting everyone they're playing with. If all you've got is that scariness and it gets stripped away by the wrong kind of person, your game isn't going to be all that fun to play anymore. Laughter absolutely murders fear. And there will always be someone who will laugh in the face of fear.

[@MooshDaMoosh]

the fact you played somewhere in the shadow on 9/11 just amplifies it

[@gonchizamora6742]

7:45 Ahhh the good ol' slenderman from 1912 absolute masterpiece 😂😂

[@bananabandman3]

No way Vale called the ice cream truck song “Christmas music”

[@sundalius]

I'm glad this came so quickly. I knew we'd get here, but didn't know when. o7

[@ForumArcade]

I really liked the one with the mushroom people where you're going down a bunker of some kind. It was a first person shooter with wildly overpowered enemies, where you had to use stealth wherever possible and strategic fighting where necessary. Pretty fun. Can't remember the name of it right now.

[@wydx120]

"GTFO"?

[@ForumArcade]

GTFO, that's the one.

[@skyler2597]

“They could be following the traditional formula the one that Slenderman made popular way back in 1912”… - Valefisk

[@commandercoley5006]

i was looking for this comment

[@MrsProudlyCanadian]

I'm playing Lethal Company and love it despite being a coward. Another game I recommend for at least one session is In Silence, it's another one where one of the players is the monster, but it hunts by sound, so great for panicked whispering over proximity or everyone splitting up to avoid the one guy that doesn't know how to shut it

[@x8c8r]

Lethal company is all shits and giggles until someone giggles, finds a jester and everyone shits

[@SurrealRandomThings]

Lethal company is still in early access as well, the game developer has some amazing games you should definitely play; in particular, It Steals, and The Upturned.

[@tkellaway]

The old-school mod for hl2 called zombie master was a different take, where one player would be playing an RTS and spawning enemies. It wasn't super horror focused but I think a modern horror spin on that would be great.

[@lucifersatan8240]

Another tip: yes a monster is scary, but not nearly as much so as the environment itself being hostile. Having a living maze that grabs people and pulls them into walls is much scarier since you know that the monster is the very thing you're exploring, and it doesn't have to chase you to catch you.

[@zogian5991]

I was not expecting to like/enjoy a 35 minute vidya game essay video from the funny torture man, but I did

[@AlexJoneses]

Phasmophobia is honestly at its peak when everyone is separated or maybe in teams lf two snd everyonr is tryng to communicate on the radio, and then you see the lights go off and a cutoff scream on the radio. thats peak group funniness and horror

[@Meteorite_Shower]

Valefisk: _(produces a funny, well thought out video essay)_ My brain every new chapter: *SNIPIN'S A GOOD JOB MATE*

[@dexterity494]

8:50 I'd like to suggest the name "phas-like" similar to soulslike, roguelike, etc. But people might also confuse it for something to do with fnaf lol

[@kabob0077]

Lethal Company shows exactly why I think Voices of the Void needs Multiplayer.

[@MUGENanaya]

Honestly a fascinating study in the field of scary-funny horror games is Slender Fortress (TF2 Mod), and its children Midnight Horrors (ROBLOX Game) and Terrors of Nowhere (VRChat World). When everything occurs correctly these games can legitimately scary and horrifying, even if these games can also have like, 12+ people in a game at once. Whether through the sheer horror and suspense of Slender Fortress' Weeping Angels, to the alarming terror of seeing V2 sliding at you at Mach 2 in Terrors VR, if arranged correctly there's an equal amount of fear for everyone in this big table.

[@Iced_Tea200]

Two valefisk videos in the same week! It must be my birthday. Or my meds are wearing off, it was a good one fellas.

[@hades_head_empty]

i think this balance between funny and scary is so good in coop horror videogames (as also seen in ttrpgs, for example dimension 20 neverafter), is because it adds contrast. you need more lighthearted silly moments to make the horror feel more grounded. no one wants to play a game that's sad and scary 24/7. tension is a way to cause terror, but also breaking up tension with laughs is more reliable in groups. people naturally try to joke when scared, so leaning into that without breaking immersion can work well. i feel like i keep repeating myself but anyway. i just think this is neat. imo all good stories/experiences require some kind of contrast. i could definitely articulate this better, but i'll save it for my actual essays bc i'm already writing *so many* as an english major rn lol.

[@hades_head_empty]

just remembered that there's a word for this lmao, comic relief

[@darthrak2067]

if you didnt know there is a different type of structure in lethal company its just on the later moons

[@voidboi0]

I loved playing through Crypt! It's how I found our channel. I got turned around so many times, I have a playthrough on my channel. But it was a very unique experience. As for this video, it was really put together and I think you made a really good case for focusing on fun first.

[@badger273]

I think it's the fact you're pairing the horror with the funny and an objective you have to focus on is what makes games like Lethal Company work. Contrasting the horror with the funny makes the game all the more horrifying when it decides to completely drop the funny and beat you with a metal pipe, and giving you something you need to focus on means you will get distracted, which gives more opportunities for both funny AND horror

[@gotgunpowder]

you should look into The Upturned. It's by the same dev, and it manages to be a comedy horror game that nails both ends the same way this game does.

[@seamusrichardson6011]

I remember that we stuck the lightswitch behind the loot pile in lethal company because we kept accidentally turning off the ship light

[@ColetrainExpress]

I just noticed that his profile picture for steam is a reference to Franz Kafka's book of the man who miraculously transforms into a cockroach; also known as The Metamorphosis.

[@NM-wd7kx]

The character's name is Gregor Samsa, he's been using it for a while

[@aydinmarriott5098]

I was a good 15 minutes in waiting for the usual Valefisk extended shitpost but then realised this was a video essay; a good video essay. Great vid vale

[@GerinoMorn]

7:46 "In 1912..." Fuck, I must have switched timelines again

[@codefreak8]

Love falling off a catwalk that has no railing and my teammates being unaware.

[@the-t-doggames1553]

It reminds me of SCP:SL but more focus on you having to be alive. Funny as hell

[@Matthew0640]

I play this rather large roblox game called Rogue Lineage. It’s a perma-death rogue like with both pvp and an open world. Meaning while running around, a person 10x farther into the game can kill you, making you restart from nothing. This game KILLED my fear response, the mortal fear you get from having days of progress be threatened is nothing like any horror game. Not once has a single horror game ever scared me since I started playing it. A jumpscare doesn’t have stakes, and the paranoia is trumped by knowing any second a single mistake means you lose everything. 10/10 game.

[@brytheguy4515]

An idea I had for something like Labyrinthine's split-up mechanic would be something that grabs you and drags you underground or into trees or something, then you spawn in a different part of the map

[@Loolilol]

Meet The good-bad horror game video essay! *Sniper's intro music*

[@spacecat76]

omg ty, I knew it was a TF2 song but I was struggling to figure out which one!

[@Loolilol]

@@spacecat76 you are welcome.

[@LunarPriestessYT]

Lethal company with mods is next level silly fun

[@joganesha4151]

Comedy is certainly one way to lower your guard. It gives a sense of safety knowing that, yes you're laughing. A guy falls into a pit because he missed the jump by a centimeter and the cut scream reminds you of perfectly cut scream videos. Morbid yes, but the videogame's comical nature of deaths just made it funny. But then as you laugh.. you hear the violent tipper tapper of something. You get hit once, you turn around, bam COILHEAD! You take a step back, keeping your eyes on it. Without realizing it, you fall into the same pit your friend just fell into. You scream, but the scream becomes cut off as you die from the drop...snap.

[@commisaryarreck3974]

One moment you're laughing yourself half to death due to the idiocy of your friend The next you're terrified as you realize you're hunted, get split up and are all alone

[@Λεμόνι]

A fun good-bad singleplayer game is "Voices of the void" nothing compares to an invisible alien breaking in to your base, throwing a table at you, eating your cat and kicking you in the nuts (and also it's free)

[@LuxLuciferVT]

proxy chat in lethal company is incredibly well implemented because there's nothing as hysterical and terrifying as exiting a building while someone's last words or scream is cut off and echoing.

[@LordRazer3]

17:17 ok your friend is actually scary...well he unnerves me greatly with how he goes from from silent stalker to new's broadcaster

[@PattPlays]

16:54 when the bell beaker scyrhian murder genes kick in

[@nethlexcitron]

29:33 "you, yes you, shitting in the toilet" Bro.... How did he know? 💀

[@korumann]

Honestly, I tend not to enjoy horror, but MHGs like these are truly fun, because it's not about being scared. Also, Vale has been teasing the CNA vid for nearly a year now, I can't wait!

[@coriohttv]

Something I really love about Labyrinthine is that the Case File part of the game keeps it fresh, especially when you get the rare map types like Legally Distinct Foggy City or Dracula's Castle! Although my favourite is probably Carnival since the monsters that spawn there are awful, especially the Marionette.

[@sniclops15]

Lethal Company and Phasmophobia are two great examples of coop horror games Both can be unsettling when playing solo, but screamingly funny when hanging out with a group.

[@RoyalFusilier]

This is the take I can most agree with, I think Phasmo gets too much flak... though I have to admit, Lethal Company is way more dynamic.

[@scottpayne7862]

My thought for a torture horror game is that there is no hostile enemy. just sound cues and your imagination. a game designed to make you think there's something lurking, about to strike, without anything being there.

[@shadowboy0126]

Lethal Company nails the funny and fear factor with its prox chat and also its ability to create what i would call "Horror Movie Moments" where you'll be talking to someone, they stop responding, then you turn around only to see some vague shape within the darkness carry off their corpse into the unknown. It is both terrifying and hilarious to see your friend get murdered outta nowhere

[@Callsign_Napalm1967]

I figure it like this: in the games, the bad guy is either an obstacle (lethal company, slender man, etc.) or the bad guy is the goal (Bigfoot, phasmophobia, etc) in one you’re attempting to complete an objective and the bad guy gets in your way, in the other, the objective you’re attempting to complete is directly related to the bad guy, such as killing or identifying it

[@aydenD0Texe]

I’m convinced that Lethal company has some secret tech that analyzes any situation and players’ mic, to find the perfect timing to make something happen

[@truemetalsonic]

From what I've seen of lethal company, players going back into the building or a room and calling out for their team mate but get no response is exactly like a horror movie. Talking on radios to hear monster noises, screaming and muffled gunfire is very chaotic and unsettling but it's my favourite part of a video. After that people either dip out or make an attempt to get the corpse or the loot. Think of the profits.

[@Palgineer]

Will we finally see the first full playthrough of Campaign for North Africa game ever recorded? Truly, this is a historic moment.