Why is this game SO HIGHLY RATED?

Don't judge a book by its cover. That HAS to be story behind Cruelty Squad because there's got to be a reason this game is rated OVERWHELMINGLY POSITIVE!
Distractible is Life ► open.spotify.com/show/2X40qLy...
Edited By ► / lixiantv
Cruelty Squad ► store.steampowered.com/app/13...
Horror Outro ► / haunted
Happy Outro ► / minimusicman-crazy-la-...

[@unusualanimaltobesighted8925]

"The dev put an incredible amount of thought and effort into every aspect of the game, and then put twice as much effort into making it seem like they didn't." This random review pretty much sums up the artistic choice of the game.

[@thecomicalraptor]

that does sum it up pretty well

[@iammatthew4797]

it's surprisingly hard to be bad at something you're good at

[@charlieianzo5513]

Aye lookie here 29:20, totally not a familiar reference.

[@enricawilcraft2769]

it's just garbage

[@iammatthew4797]

@@enricawilcraft2769 if you genuinely think that, you weren't paying attention

[@jok3roundsquare]

This is like those games you find as a teenager but you look for as an adult, as you can't find it, and you cant remember the name, as you have some wierd memories of it questioning if it is reality or just a dream you have.

[@gdaygerman29]

Like LSD dream emulator?

[@filtratedmars6711]

@@gdaygerman29 no

[@joshualeahy2162]

YEP

[@thatoneguy5043]

omg i have experienced this WAY too many times

[@gdaygerman29]

@@filtratedmars6711 yes

[@merasmurry1460]

Mark: "can I eat their bodies?" Game: "Yes, but not currently."

[@Daniel_Lancelin]

The thing about harvesting organs was also correct.

[@dragonoverlord2010]

Honestly, the flamethrower is so much better for cannibalizing your foes (and bystanders who get in the way). You don't even need to be a homunculus to enjoy it.

[@anotherguy687]

POWER IN MISERY TRAVERSING THE GRIDS OF DEATH

[@Sentanette]

real

[@nienbloon]

Bro, Murder Miners and Castle Miner Z were those games for me dude

[@MrSlimeMan01]

Just watched pyrocinical’s 4 hour video essay on this game, safe to say I’m very interested in how mark does

[@deepw3bs]

How was it

[@BlueThiccerFish]

@@deepw3bs i found your music by this random comment damn!

[@Kridstal]

I LOVE MR FAT FURRY MAN

[@The_Grecian_Empire]

@@Kridstal 💀

[@smobysmobe8696]

He dose it wrong

[@ceez909]

Mark: "Can I eat the bodies? Can I harvest the organs?" Me: That's just the tip of the iceberg of shit you can do here

[@tariqalnasser4146]

Lmao

[@sufficientphrase7769]

Him asking that means its starting to work

[@skorgeypoo12]

minecraft playthrough but it's moded to be as realistic as possible

[@midknightgraze]

​@Çhrîzîñ Pęžěť 4 ☮️ Peace

[@UtopssAKAPJ]

Really? this game is F ed up and kinder into it and don't know why, is it hypnotizing me

[@lebronspacejam2james255]

Mark has barely scratched the surface of this game, he hasn’t even unlocked the intestine grappling hook yet!

[@heyitsenso]

I'm sorry the ~what~

[@lebronspacejam2james255]

@@heyitsenso the GRAPPENDEX

[@Counter-Chicken]

@@heyitsenso lol by endgame you’re swinging around maps like fucking spider-man with a grappling hook appendix, pushing yourself forward at alarming speeds and triple jumping by blowing masses of snot out of holes in your back and feet, or just bypassing that entirely and reversing gravity on yourself at will to get out of bounds and kill your target through the floor using a radiation gun that would normally kill you if you weren’t on the secret difficulty level that’s only activated by switching to 640x480 resolution to access a specific room EDIT: this is just like Gorbino’s Quest. this is the Gorbino’s Quest of youtube comments

[@Jo-er6tw]

THE. WHAT!!

[@Jo-er6tw]

@@Counter-Chicken I’m sorry whaaaaaaaaaaat

[@calpal7149]

This game is that strange feeling you get when you're sick where you just feel off, like it isn't specific, your whole body just doesn't feel right

[@chugetnuget6230]

Yeah kinda.

[@Makaponpon]

its like normal but 2 inches to the left

[@Cinkodacs]

@@Makaponpon 2 light-years. It definitely looks like it's at least 2 light-years off.

[@A_local_lesbian]

and the feeling of drifting in and out of sleep after pulling an all nighter

[@octohunter7775]

I think that's called Malaise.

[@quinnrose4264]

this game scratches an itch in my brain that nothing else can. i want more games to be this.

[@greasedumpster9781]

same, i think it's because i'm autistic this game is like overstimulation but good

[@WHOTHE_]

play juice galaxy it has the same vibe

[@greasedumpster9781]

@@WHOTHE_ played it already similar, but cruelty squad is definitely more disturbing/gross and violent still a good game though

[@XmortoxX1990]

I hope for an expansion or a sequel to this.

[@Aestareth_]

that's how i feel about ultrakill

[@lukevankleef4245]

I was so happy when Mark said ''Can I eat the bodies? Can I harvest their organs?'' he's getting into the CEO mindset!

[@minimanbeast1014]

You mean the CEO GRINDSET

[@EternalJoviality]

??

[@timothylloyd3780]

Turn the mindset into a grindset

[@minimanbeast1014]

@@timothylloyd3780 exactly what im saying

[@ThGtKpr]

LMAOOOOOOO

[@Sunbro413]

"I feel like morality doesn't exist in a place like this" NOW you're starting to get it.

[@Blueoceandog]

NOW you're thinking with Portals tm

[@anthonyst-onge]

The CEO mindset is starting to form

[@JeanMarceaux]

neither morality nor mortality

[@_.Dylan._]

@@anthonyst-onge The Renovator

[@moki4541]

Imagine Momiplier playing this

[@haydenmcturk2329]

Cruelty squad is a good game disguised as a bad game, not only does it have extremely deep commentary about life and existential dread but its also extremely fun.

[@kelvincoolidge995]

It’s just like gorbinos quest this is the gorbinos quest of life

[@jenntokki]

Mark asking if he can harvest their organs then freaking out when he successfully acquired a pancreas absolutely took me out

[@RodWaffle]

It's Overwhelmingly positive cause this shit hits like a bag of bricks going at 90 mph

[@reydragonclaw1128]

I was confused for the first 2 minutes but then it smacked me in the face and something clicked, and abruptly i was like, *"yes, this all makes sense, i understand exactly what is happening and why and i dig it"* idk how else to explain it lol

[@funne4993]

you dont get it

[@Kermt]

@@funne4993 What is the meaning then? I was and still am extremly confused by this game

[@PastTimer]

@@Kermt very simple. It's a game in a world where corporations took over the world and deleted the concept of death. Human life is worth nothing, you are worth nothing. The only thing significant about you is your new worth and if you aren't willing to stomp over others to increase it you will get nowhere. So basically our future in a few years. Very fun, colorful, positive game.

[@Ok-fj2gw]

@@PastTimer sounds like an anime I’ve watched

[@amaranami]

This was the most intense “hello, my name is markiplier” I’ve heard in a while

[@awayoflife8080]

He is super serious about this game

[@3deanimations557]

smae

[@fl3shy_s0ul]

honestly though

[@ZyNessy]

Yeah

[@MammalianCreature]

Look at his face. That is the face of a man on a mission, a mission to find out why Cruelty Squad is so highly rated.

[@abood_is_alive]

Honestly it's amazing how fast mark managed to adapt to the cruelty squad world

[@keltzar1]

Exactly what I was thinking. Like he adapted to eating flesh, reloading funky, and exploring faster than I did honestly.

[@Hayden-pg4og]

Well, yea, it’s a weird indie game and guess what his career revolves around

[@abood_is_alive]

@@Hayden-pg4og fair point...

[@devilkris07]

Game: You don't have enough money Mark: I have 500 dollars. How much more do I need? Me: I ask myself that question every month to pay my bills and student loans..

[@TheWoodlandBeast]

this game is a genuine piece of art that definitely can be analyzed to have deeper meaning one of my favorite lines is when some random guy at a party says "when the beat drops im going to kill myself"

[@jorts_master69]

I completely lost it at the one guy I had to kill for spending corporate money on Pop figures and when I came in, it didn't even occur to him why and he just asked "Oh hey wanna check out my collection?"

[@SardonicCrows]

And the beat NEVER drops

[@StormForthcoming]

@@SardonicCrows that’s I how life feels ngl

[@lambda653]

Sort of? It's message is definitely complex and deep I'll give it that but I don't think it's the kind of message you could apply to the real world and get results. It's too specific, it doesn't account for the broad range of possible outcomes there are and as such it's reduced to an interesting thought experiment.

[@kagemushashien8394]

To me, it is some gun crazed lunatic who took drugs.

[@krampus9376]

“It’s a compete mishmash of random bullshit in various different styles and nonsense” *sounds like the typical markiplier experience*

[@awayoflife8080]

Yup but more like early mark

[@Crud4brains]

@@awayoflife8080 tree s

[@amanibob1416]

True dat

[@notskuuLL]

Yep, just about right..

[@nu_jasuu6873]

*Unnus Annus be like*

[@lillianinspace]

I love that Mark instantly thinks about seizure warnings as soon as there are any flashing lights.

[@binbows2258]

THE SUN SMILES AT YOU WITH ETERNAL MALICE.

[@CondoggsOW]

My favorite description of this game was from a random steam review. "The dev put an incredible amount of thought and effort into every aspect of the game, and then put twice as much effort into making it seem like they didn't."

[@xbyta]

LOLL

[@StrafeyCW]

that because they didn't make it just "seem" like they didn't. they really did not

[@math3undersea]

@@StrafeyCW You don’t understand

[@VegaFic]

@@StrafeyCW You don't get it

[@koumori9214]

@@StrafeyCW bro lacks the CEO mindset

[@christopherseratte6647]

"I acquired a pancreas. Why would I acquire a pancreas?" Well mark, as a diabetic I could tell you at least ONE reason that I would acquire a pancreas.

[@derpydergann]

Same.. Just; fuckin SAME

[@thunderbear06playsstuff63]

I love that I'm not the only one who thought of that joke lol

[@joshwaeiss2436]

He's questioning the logic in a video game setting. Chill bro.

[@DeadendAcademic]

@@joshwaeiss2436 no shit Sherlock they were clearly joking

[@jakkothy]

same bro

[@remryr]

9:44 "a lot of something is missing... like context, and uh... a sence of place in the world" my guy described the slurpcore of the game pretty well

[@the_furf_of_july4652]

There’s a clear difference between doing a bad job of making something and putting a genuine amount of effort and talent into making something bad. Even if this wasn’t a genuinely decent game, the sheer amount of work that went into making it as counter to everything that is known as good as physically possible is extremely impressive. But it’s also a good game on top of that. Which is mind-blowing to say the least.

[@HexenStar]

LOL That's like to be impressed if a pile of shit reaches the edge of the toilet bowl...

[@Nyghtking]

So all I really know about this game is I heard it takes place in a reality where death has been overcome and people can just buy their way back to life if they die, you're tasked with killing people who screwed over your employer but it's also kind of pointless at the same time since the people you're killing can just buy themselves back to life. Since death doesn't matter people have essentially become psychotic and apathetic.

[@41tinman41]

The real punishment is the fact that a chance of resurrection is taken away from them. One day they will run out of “lives” despite the easy access to these “resets”

[@grievance5_566]

pogger

[@KudaKeileon]

So it's Repo! The Genetic Opera?

[@jkterjters]

Immortality sounds cool until you outlive your natural lifespan. Then you begin to wonder why your life, your ‘story’, never feels complete. Then you begin to seek [The End], because nothing without an end is complete.

[@nakedstatue8517]

@@jkterjters No, I'd like to be immortal.

[@jackbellinger8679]

Fucking hilarious how he off hand asks, "Can I eat the bodies? Can I harvest their organs?" as a joke and the answer is yes because this game is like that.

[@iamthehype3684]

Yeah. I think the dude who made this game is clinically insane. For better or for worse that's how you can make a game as... interesting as this.

[@sycamorph]

@@iamthehype3684 He made it on drugs.

[@CH51234]

@@sycamorph he'd have to be on drugs for a LONG time

[@massgunner4152]

@@sycamorph His body is made of Ilicit substances.

[@sadflix8754]

@@iamthehype3684 or he just played LSD Dream Emulator and said “what if this was a troll face meme shooter?”

[@taintedcain1115]

I love the fact that the video he watched in the beginning isn't just random bullshit it's actually kinda explaining to lore

[@vilirajala6349]

I played this game for a little bit over 50 hours, i got every upgrade, every gun, every ending. After that spiritual expirience of diconnecting and reconnecting to the divine light countless times, descending to the trauma loop and embracing the CEO within all i can say is, in the words of the final ending. "Finally a beautiful fucking nerve ape".

[@Illogical.]

It looks like what I imagine a normal videogame would feel like after a long time of complete sensory deprivation, and possibly a lack of pattern recognition.

[@Cbd_7ohm]

After taking some dxm.

[@jaz58107]

💯 I've been having troubles with day blindness bc it's so bright atm in 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿. I'm all over the place, was starting to go nocturnal again bc I keep getting panic attacks 😵‍💫

[@TheBetterBleedingBladesYouTube]

@@jaz58107 Why are you mentioning this?

[@jaz58107]

@@TheBetterBleedingBladesKZbin I'm not used to seeing bright sun & longer days in Scotland so my eyes need to adjust again... it's giving me panic attacks - not the game bc I don't play them.. just watch other people lol. I only use my Pixel 5 Google phone.

[@TheBetterBleedingBladesYouTube]

@@jaz58107 Ik, that’s not what I asked- I was wondering how it was relevant to the original comment.

[@PantherCat64]

If anyone wonders what the story is to this game, here it is: Death became cheap, about $500 for coming back to life, This is *with* inflation by the way. You're in debt somehow so you get employed as a uber hitman as chance to pay that off. That's about it.

[@faaaaario]

And in one of the secret endings, you basically restore the original concept of death, driving humanity into killing themselves. Or at least that's how I interpet it.

[@trogdor8764]

But all of the people you are sent to kill are rich ballers protected by private security. Can't they logically just get reincarnated too?

[@PantherCat64]

@@trogdor8764 yes, and they do. One target straight up hires you to kill him so he can have a laugh. The only reason you wouldn't want to die in this world is mostly due to your divine light being severed, that's expensive to get back.

[@andipape3270]

Thank you for this explanation. It’s still trippy af

[@merasmurry1460]

No I pretty sure it's about boredom and setting up a 30 year plan at a company where at the end you full-filling the america dream of owning a house in the hills only to then realize that everything you worked for was just apart of your life long plan and you have affectively removed everything that made you human by a gaining the "ceo mindset" a.k.a the "devine light". At the end you realize that it was all worthless and everything you work for has left you empty. Your character basically planed out there entire a career and spent every day going through the motions a.k.a the daily grind, and when you finally get the house the level description mention that it's the conclusion of your "30 year plan" but you still have targets to kill, as in you still have to do the daily grind because that's all you know in life. So everything you planed and work for was secretly just another step in your life long plan. In the third ending your character dies, and sadly as their life flashes before their eyes they're bored of it, their entire life was nothing but the daily grind. But they manage to convince themselves that at least they had a goal and achieved it unlike the others. It's a great commentary on the capitalist system, and how endlessly chasing wealth because that's what you were brainwashed to do by tv, movies, books, videos, and ect, will leave you feeling dead inside and wasting your entire life on achieving a false dream of escaping the daily grind.

[@Rattleboneses]

I love when mark plays games he is fully unprepared for. They just changed armor to do things now.

[@GojGoiOi]

I like that Mark some how connected the entire story and context of Cruelty Squad by just asking alotta questions

[@theparadoxisbored6622]

This was beautiful. "My schizophrenia is trolling me right now" made into a game.

[@kepone3121]

its like being gangstalked by crimean vampires with drip

[@maxwashere.]

@@KitchenWitchery my EXACT thoughts lol

[@notflaz4420]

@@kepone3121 this game makes me feel like im the CEO of ThirdWorld HQ

[@katiemcdowell1276]

I need more of him playing this. This game is so fucking absurd he needs to see it through.

[@strydyrhellzrydyr1345]

Kool.. a chick with an awesome sense of what's interesting... That's seriously becoming so hard to find... Truly...

[@veevee1636]

@@strydyrhellzrydyr1345 what are you talking about 😭

[@Rafael-iq5su]

@@strydyrhellzrydyr1345 my brother in christ wtf are you on about

[@coreythepeanut]

@@strydyrhellzrydyr1345 what

[@dopeyal4755]

Exactly, my sister in Christ. He needs to accept the belief, the ideology, the CEO mindset

[@Hankryptic]

After purchasing this game for myself, I approve of it. It did in fact get me into the corporate mindset, which allowed me to do whatever it took to get that job at FinTech that I so desperately desired. Apologies to the guy that thought that was gonna be his dream job...

[@ringtail5021]

mark would shamelessly copy pyrocynical 1 year earlier

[@VerbDoesStuff]

lol

[@MelvinDukowski]

Cruelty Squad shows that breaking literally every rule of what makes an appealing and marketable game can result in something truly special.

[@kylethewolf]

I mean, Death Grips made the same but in music

[@magmasajerk]

@@kylethewolf I wonder how big the overlap between Death Grips' and Cruelty Squad's fanbases is. Gotta be significant.

[@wiildsage]

Philosophical commentary aside, this game kind of nailed what it feels like to be a very specific kind of depressed/stressed. Like not raindrops hitting the window, sad indie music depressed, but so pushed past your limit that it feels like there's this weird atonal dirge playing everywhere you go that makes you feel anxious but anxious in a way where you just have to keep moving and everything is super ugly and overwhelming but also kind of goofy and ridiculous and surreal. And like, the things that are funny either make you want to laugh extra hard because they're a reprieve from the anxiety or they get a little "hhh" exhale laugh because you're too tense to actually laugh. Like, this game feels the breakdown you have when your car dies while you're driving from your primary minimum wage job to your secondary minimum wage job and you know your boss is going to yell at you even though you have a really good excuse for being late.

[@popdoom4979]

I FELT that man

[@Refixul]

That's so accurate it hurts

[@thiccdogo6624]

Couldn’t describe it better myself

[@katauna7089]

Wow that's much too real friend

[@bluehullabaloo5540]

Ow dude, that hurt. And too many people relate.

[@bubwubs9532]

Glad to see mark took his first step in his brand new 10 year plan

[@r0sewtf_92]

17:19 yeah this game encapsulates a feeling i haven’t felt in a long time and i don’t think i was ever meant to feel, the feeling of extreme anxiety mixed with sleep deprivation and a consequent loss of sense of self and moral compass, it’s terrifying but also comforting to see it understood and mirrored in this way. well f**king done devs😎👏

[@trueblueflare]

I've never actually played this, but when studying game design I found out about it through a video explaining the value of deliberately ugly games.

[@the_ecips9692]

You don't have a link to said video by any chance? Sounds really interesting!

[@steamyninja8881]

Yeah! Pass that link man

[@JacobCrossMusic]

Wasnt that Jacob Geller?

[@joeb0y]

Ya I'm 99% sure it jacob if it has max pain in max pain 3 with the words "ugly game" that should be it

[@sandyk9300]

@@the_ecips9692 the channels called videogamedunkey

[@janinecat1865]

A great man once reviewed it thusly: "It's protest art, against life itself."

[@IdontKnow-nm8bz]

Whomst tho?

[@janinecat1865]

@@IdontKnow-nm8bz Mandaloregaming

[@jarryljovenir3488]

@@IdontKnow-nm8bz A point in the horizon, a melting scene from your childhood. Your mortality is showing. A frantic drift towards nothing, biology doomed to an infinite recursive loop. Teeth with teeth with teeth. Take a bite. Serene scene of a coastal town, warmth of the sun. Bitter tears. Lust for power. This is where you abandoned your dreams, you are a high net worth individual, an expanding vortex of pathetic trauma. Finally a beautiful fucking nerve ape. A pure soul is born, its neurotransactions stutter into being. 30583750937509353 operations per second. Beuty eludes your porous mind.

[@jarryljovenir3488]

@@IdontKnow-nm8bz The value of life is negative. The balance of being is rotated 38 degrees. The surface is full of cracks, a turgid light shines through. Fleshy primordial bodies sluggishly roll down the slope. Only you slide upwards, with a celestial step. You become beautified, a saintly figure. Your pristine idiocy reveals a safe path through the impenetrable fog of Life, Your dull sword cuts through the weak tendons and membranes of the garden of corruption. sit on the throne of contentment and ferment, inspect the eternal blue skies of your kingdom. You come to a realization. You pick up an onion and begin peeling,

[@jarryljovenir3488]

@@IdontKnow-nm8bz Onion layer one. Onion layer two. Onion layer three ... Onion layer n^n. Acons have passed and the onion is fully peeled. Nothing remains. It's perfect. You get lost in the point that remains where the onion used to be. Synaptic cascade, neurological catastrophe. The point becomes infinitely dense, the universe condenses into a unicellular being. It screams sin, It craves happiness. It's done with this world. It tries to commit suicide but fails. Sad pathetic mess. You feel pity and disgust but in a way only a being of pure grace can, in your violent mercy you terminate the worldlife.

[@shaquilleoatmeal5920]

1:10 "Flashing lights incoming. Coast is clear when music stops." THE BACKGROUND MUSIC STOPPED AND I THOUGHT THE COAST WAS CLEAR UNTIL HE PLAYED THE VIDEO

[@nicholasmolberg1043]

He got the tranq pistol. Laugh with me flesh automatons.

[@turnoverhd435]

Honestly, i love this game, its a deliberately ugly form of "protest art" its unironically a fun and layered story, with a cool gameplay loops and a grappling hook. i love it, no matter how much it tears my eyes.

[@williamjacob2060]

its weird it looks awful but i like the design makes me think of some 90s cartoons gritty dirty design but it works and in a way tells you about the world

[@grandhierophantkhatep685]

Skill with the grappendix is the skill ceiling and I will hold to that belief

[@funne4993]

you dont get it

[@gzz8913]

The plot is as follows: you are a guy in debt to a "friend" who runs a stock monopoly, he uses you to deal with any competitors and/or problems by killing them. Mostly this monopoly is thoroughly knitted together with a drug association that is the reason for the strobe effects of the game (you are drugged, and potentially mutated for better use)

[@DioBrando-mr5xs]

Nah.

[@katiekawaii]

That's actually really interesting, the idea that the world isn't weird at all, you're just drugged and seeing it that way.

[@mnemic6033]

Thank you my man thats ACTUALLY the whole plot

[@demitrysualokin2796]

@@katiekawaii nah, the world is pretty fucked as we can see through the dialogues, ending and stuff. And we dont kill them forever, because you can buy a body back again just for 500 dollars, do you think it will affect multimillionaire CEOs were killing the entire game? Thats why the game's called "cruelty squad", not "killing squad"

[@merasmurry1460]

actually it's about how the capitalist system just leaves people dead inside, at the end of the game you get the dream of owning a house in the mountains and you're just killing people (a.k.a doing the daily grind) until you die, it's an endless loop of cruelty that leaves everyone dead inside to the point where one of your targets thanks you for talking to then and listening to there problems even though they know your gonna kill then, and the only way out of this system is to die.

[@keltzar1]

I appreciate how quickly he's picking up on stuff. Like, he's talking to the NPCs, he's exploring and finding extra weapons, figuring it how to use good vantage points, eating human flesh. I can totally imagine a point late in the game where he's intestine grappling with style, then takes a step back and just goes, "whatbthe fuck am I doing?"

[@leoarts093]

A series of this just Mark going through and experimenting on weird games he finds would be so much fun

[@un1d]

The “wowie this game is like drugs” comments are understandable but the game is incredibly depressing and nihilistic when you pay attention and don’t get distracted by the visuals (which is hard, granted).

[@lorde_spooky]

Kinda like drugs, incredibly distracting and seemingly fun in the moment but there's something darker lying beneath the surface

[@eltiolavara9]

@@lorde_spooky i... guess?

[@ADodoBird]

@@lorde_spooky like drugs, still depressing and nihilistic

[@starlit8223]

@@ADodoBird like drugs

[@BOOGiNS]

Society is based on nihilism

[@ImCarrotsforBananas]

This feels like the video game you'd see in a 90's infomercial about how violent video games make you kill people

[@M.J44]

Not even, this is what they think all violent videogames are like

[@legoyoda2267]

I subjected myself to this nightmare of a game and I absolutely loved every second of it

[@CricetoFunni]

"Can I eat the bodies? Can I harvest their organs?" he's learning

[@TheRealGuywithoutaMustache]

This entire game looked like a whole psychedelic trip to me, I don't know what to think or feel about it, except say that it's trippy.

[@Deadbeatcow]

I've heard the gameplay mechanics are extremely solid which would explain it's massive positive rating on steam

[@guyman8511]

Eyyyyy, the man himself has arrived.

[@dbone3356]

You're late.

[@landoncrowther794]

Oh ip

[@Oisin14]

Reminded me of that one LSD simulator mixed with Dusk

[@colekiesler6218]

Markiplier: “This game is weird.” Also Mark: “Having a dulled feeling is the only not so weird thing in this game.”

[@UtopssAKAPJ]

this game is messing with my head 🤪

[@androendiel]

@YeaMan YeaMan SureMan

[@SourPill]

Please, upload another part. It’s Been so much fun watching and we want you to finish the game ❤️

[@beastlysparrow2002]

i agree get the word around and lets make it happen

[@smobysmobe8696]

He shouldn't he plays so bad my brain hurts watching him play

[@gravity_TM]

I love the flashing lights warning at the beginning of the video and how you know it's safe to look back when the music stops. I personally don't have a epilepsy or any other problem with flashing lights but i warmed my heart to see it.

[@thewickedjester7495]

This looks like someone tried to develop a game blindfolded and had to rely on someone else to tell them what was going on. Like some kind of bizarre trust exercise

[@mishking9547]

This game definitely is deliberate and has a purpose.

[@Thewolfobsessedgamer]

@@mishking9547 yeah, the dev went out of their way to purposefully break every rule and guideline in game development and somehow actually made a really cool game

[@Salmy957]

It's a good game

[@mistry6292]

@@Thewolfobsessedgamer dev isn't even a dev. he's an art student. as in learning actual art. he has no prior programming knowledge and game design sense. he's making a mech game rightnow. really waiting for that. CS was a blast.

[@youngestchild1103]

Creator:"explain to me what a video game is so I can program one". Friend: "so it's got pictures and words, sometimes music". Creator:"Say no more"

[@supernightslash]

This is one of the most shockingly deceptive yet INCREDIBLY well made games that I've ever played. It's an astonishingly deep and intricate immersive sim game purposely made to look as unbelievably dogshit as possible.

[@nathanhall9345]

It looks like it plays very well, very quick. And it takes LOADS of effort to make something this actively, hostile-ly ugly.

[@Kfo221]

How the hell is this shit show of a game a sim?

[@supernightslash]

You're looking at it from its appearance. And you're right, it looks ATROCIOUS. That was an intentional in design. The developers purposely made the game look as unbelievably dogshit as possible. However, the gameplay is very well thought out and executed with you being able to tackle missions in many, many ways of your choosing. The game controls and plays very well. Please give it a shot.

[@TheMightySinjo]

I'd not necessarily say 'unbelievably dogshit', it is rather just well designed to be an assault (and insult) to your senses; Overstimulation, if not even stimulus overload, which considering the themes and what not, fits the whole thing quite perfect; Pain upon ears, eyes, soul and mind.

[@heimskr2881]

It's goal for the graphics wasn't to make it look dogshit, it was made with the goal to emulate the graphics from the ps1 days. Interesting design choice considering PS1 graphics are just so dated that apparently most people don't see it and just assume the graphics are shit and nothing else.

[@ceebbees12345]

Ah man, I dunno why I can't find more games like this. Styles like this just bring me such satisfaction. I've learned to call em shitty graphics, but truthfully the chaos of the design is exactly what gets me in the mood to have fun

[@task_failer8223]

“Can I eat the bodies? Can I harvest their organs?” Yes

[@avion3033]

Im so psyched you are playing this. This game feels like the devs spent all their life force making this game good, and then double that making it look like they didn't.

[@cicadaknight3048]

I read someone else posting this exact same analogy in the Steam reviews I think

[@bomes2084]

@@cicadaknight3048 same

[@avion3033]

@@cicadaknight3048 correct, best possible way to describe this game imo lol

[@primalking522]

Honestly best way to put this game is "Did I just take drugs?"

[@rokkraljkolesa9317]

*dev

[@TheMightyKawama]

The interesting thing about Cruelty Squad is the developer actually holds a degree in art and shows great understanding of art because the game breaks just about every art convention on beauty as possible and it's that way by design.

[@nakedstatue8517]

Fake

[@PochitaJoint]

@@nakedstatue8517 ratio

[@nakedstatue8517]

@@PochitaJoint You're a Twitter teen, huh...

[@cheesedip3864]

Ratio

[@TARINunit9]

He's actually just pretentious. And I know this because he stalks random websites (such as Wikipedia) looking for insults so he can spin them up into a fake persecution complex for the purpose of marketing

[@potential_threat]

Wish you’d do a series on this game, it’s so bizarre and weird.

[@smobysmobe8696]

He shouldn't hes so bad my brain hurts when I watch him play

[@TCM464]

​@@smobysmobe8696Mate, calm down. He's just as confused as the rest of us were when we started. Everyone learns at their own pace. You can't get an S-Rank on every level first try.

[@Unikay]

"Sacrifices are necessary" "I wish more people understood that!" "Its making me depressed" "As you should be!" Mark is really getting taken over by the game

[@Leloup6760]

"I can't say I'm not enjoying what I'm doing..." *He says after running around murdering people for 20 bc he was told to do it*

[@funne4993]

you dont get it

[@bassboosts3577]

@@funne4993 Someone who doesn't "get it" would waste their time commenting this on everyones comments. Come on man let people live.

[@ryanbreich4070]

@@bassboosts3577 cope

[@bassboosts3577]

@@ryanbreich4070 unfortunately

[@HalfBreadChaos]

I think the reason the reviews are so good, is because the storepage makes it immediately apparently what you're getting into. So people who aren't interested won't waste their time, and people who are intrigued enough to buy it will not be disappointed, and will thus rate it positively. Since only people who are interested enough to buy leave reviews, it's the ultimate utilization of selection bias.

[@Valanway]

That and it's a just a plain ol' good game. Bias can often overlap with the objective truth. I've seen a lot of people be turned off it one or twice (or more) eventually have it click and get really into it. That's was a common sentiment with earlier reviews.

[@yu1zy]

Genuinely fun game if you enjoy stealth shooters and games with quake-like momentum based movement. There is so much more to this game than shown on this video, including more storyline. I was thinking "wtf is this" for like the first hour before I realized holy shit, this game is sick lol

[@PanPakapon]

Nah it’s moreso just… the game is good. Play it, getting good at it and breaking it over your knee is so fun.

[@pidza_hub7532]

This seems demeaning to the praise, so I'll remedy that by saying that games being marketed well should warrant this response

[@RealMephres]

The game's genuinely good, though and has a great, hidden, deeper story to it. Well worth the money.

[@dreambigprod.7141]

One thing I particularly enjoy about this game I haven't seen many talk about, the music is just as insane and trippy as the gameplay!

[@MimsTwo]

Watching this for a second time, trying to understand the magnificence that is this game so that as a game dev I can learn from this. :)

[@aspentree9731]

Not gonna lie, this game is oddly endearing? I love the humor, I love the ridiculous acid trip aesthetic, and I love the nonsensical nature of the whole thing. What I don't love is how horrendously unsettling it gets every so often, that's where it gets me. How is something so brightly colored so oddly terrifying?

[@jingbot1071]

Because the horror was cryptocurrency the entire time.

[@2ndFox_]

The characters are uncanny

[@zarnox3071]

It is unsettling because it is a dystopia where nothing has worth.

[@commanderfoxtrot]

@@zarnox3071 and yet oddly realistic. _But we can prevent that, indeed we can._

[@tacticalotl7606]

THIS GAME TERRIFIES ME BRO idk how people see it like that this genuinely gives me anxiety

[@landanmentzer5247]

I like the fact the whole premise of this game is that your basically an assassin on an extremely high acid trip. Props to the creators to recreating a game that simulates that.

[@kgb4150]

Fun fact: the author of the game confirmed that everything that is happening there is real and not a product of hallucinations, so this really is how the world of Cruelty Squad looks like.

[@420roachdoggjr]

That isn't the premise lmao. Psychedelic graphics doesn't mean the character is on drugs. Get your facts straight before posting.

[@kagemushashien8394]

@@hurdygurdyman5136 Can you simplifie that please.

[@kagemushashien8394]

@@kgb4150 It's one dimension I do not want to hop to.

[@The_plant_child]

Boo 🍅weird art doesn’t mean drugs

[@minsugar9482]

18:51 thank you lixian for your wise words

[@michalwamp]

The story and lore is so good I would love to see you play it all the way through 3 endings.

[@nado1908]

As someone who 100%d this game, Mark hasn't even scratched the surface of what this game has and what it lets you do.

[@bendymelons1133]

Agreed

[@grimingage1180]

how much time and what does it all mean

[@kgb4150]

@@grimingage1180 1) A lot 2) Gorbino's quest of life. Sun is looking at you with eternal malice. CEO mindset. Golden age.

[@Zealox]

@@kgb4150 over 500 hours of pumping gameplay!

[@dedewont2559]

@@kgb4150 is it free?

[@Thorne-In-Your-Side]

This game feels like cyberpunk, and then, suddenly, you realize that all of the technology is flesh-based and biological. (The doors have faces, because they *are* faces.) Then it becomes...flesh-punk? The dystopian-capitalist setting which depicts corporations as an all-encompassing and yet unquestioned force beyond humanity lends itself to some form of sub-punk, but I've never really seen something go for that kind of futuristic world while also keeping an aesthetic so centered around body-horror. In that regard, Cruelty Squad is very unique.

[@akyumulo]

Right? It's seriously so unique

[@ratbones9156]

pretty sure it actually has a name. its called biopunk i think

[@andthebanshees]

yes biopunk is definitely the word you're looking for

[@thejunktownsheriffkilliand4800]

welcome to biopunk

[@trogdor8764]

I interpreted it as simply the protagonist's own warped perception of the world caused by whatever combat drugs they're on. It explains not only the crazy colors but also the weird scale of things (for example, the giant doghouse)

[@animaidan400]

You should play more Cruelty Squad Mark!

[@smobysmobe8696]

He shouldn't hes so bad my brain hurts watching him play

[@loofig6939]

4:13 Markiplier starts rapping

[@zombiesalmon4997]

This game seriously has some of the funniest dialogue ive ever seen in a game. Im glad its becoming more and more popular because honestly it deserves it

[@K0sm1cKid]

Chunko Pops

[@EvilLordCanas]

Blacksuppositoried and debased.

[@odinson4184]

It’s all because of the leftists.

[@dr.tacophd1239]

Proof?

[@ultimateinternetman4335]

interior design is all about minimal scandinavian sewers right now

[@HellfireTheAwesome]

Cruelty Squad is the true definition of "Don't judge a book by its cover" It's almost a crime how something so ugly can be SO FUCKING UNGODLY FIRE SWEET JESUS

[@endeavor1664]

I honestly love the ugly aesthetic, a bit painful on the eyes at time but it adds a certain mood to it that could never be accomplished if this game was, say, hyper realistic like some AAA titles strive to be

[@mt000mp]

@@endeavor1664 it's called Origasm

[@viktorzelenka9157]

This truly is the gorbino’s quest of videos

[@necromech_]

the degree of separation between his fans and the core fanbase of cruelty squad is astronomical

[@sugarcubes147]

I am so glad that Mark has been enlightened of Gorbino’s quest

[@doctorfunkybonesesquire8800]

The fact that mark not only enjoyed this with all the absolute maddness going on but learned how to play without the tutorial kinda shows how well built this game was.

[@LunachYT]

Mark is an actual genius, shouldn't forget about that as well.

[@Mate_Antal_Zoltan]

honestly, the controls in this game are fucking horrid what this shows is that games don't need tutorials, not that the game is good because you can learn it without a tutorial

[@K0sm1cKid]

@@Mate_Antal_Zoltan When I reassigned the controls to better placements it got a lot better

[@Mate_Antal_Zoltan]

@@K0sm1cKid I toughed it out with the controls the dev intended, but on repeat playthroughs I did try more "normal" controls, and it did work way better

[@l0uisinana]

this was so odd, in the beginning i too was like wtf is this, why would someone make this, why would anyone play this but after watching about half of the video i started to see the odd appeal of it? and atp i wouldn’t mind a part two cause it really was oddly entertaining and interesting and fun to watch

[@durk5331]

For me, I wound up watching the whole thing not knowing what to think, the game just kinda grabbed my attention and wouldn't let go...

[@Judith333]

I still don’t see the appeal after finishing the video

[@gloriousbeard9054]

@@Judith333 Hey guys, point and laugh, we found a flesh automaton! I bet he’s powered by Neuro-Transmitters!

[@Judith333]

@@gloriousbeard9054 boo hoo game still sucks 🤣

[@gloriousbeard9054]

@@Judith333 Bro it was a joke Chill Man you should go and buy a copy of Gorbino’s Quest, maybe you’ll feel better.

[@Cowmaster79]

I subjected myself to this nightmare of a game. Thanks Mark

[@profilename4974]

Inflation man said game good

[@maxidermy]

this game confused me and zoned me out so much, that when my alarm went off on my phone as you were playing, my brain deadass normalised the sound as part of this wacky ass game

[@luckygaming2156]

Bruh you too wtaf lmao its funny cause I actually noticed I had my alarm litterly 10 mins in and was like is that me? Can't be, then finished the vid and noticed after smh 😂

[@daveinthemicrowave4810]

20:06 that's actually Ted Kaczynski's cabin, also this level includes Osama bin Laden's complex. And yes that's actually confirmed by the developer. lastly the streets in that level form a pentagram.

[@kindablurry8334]

Yo wtf is the una bomber in there ? Im watching that game for the first time what im so confused

[@discipleofdagon8195]

@@kindablurry8334 Gorbino's Quest

[@Stylish_CRS]

@@discipleofdagon8195 500 hours of gameplay!

[@agabrield]

@@Stylish_CRS This is the Gorbino's Quest of life

[@eddie-spaghetti3271]

Also I might be crazy, but there are 2 towers that look a lot like the twin towers in the background

[@JacobExCraze]

He went into power in misery difficulty. Ratio + Divine link severed.

[@NoahRutjes]

i love looking at you playing this game so much and i literally can't explain why

[@hallava]

this game looks like what shoving cold spaghetti in your mouth at 4:17AM and dreading the workday in the morning feels

[@nats9557]

Thats so weirdly specific wtf

[@hallava]

@@nats9557 it is. but am I wrong though?

[@jjjamie3935]

naw naw it feels like waking up in a cold sweat with somewhat high temperature, no air conditioner or electric fan on and the hairs are all stuck to your neck and u got this sick ass sore throat from that 5 hour nap and it's like 7pm in the evening and your tongue is so dry but there's this weird or awful taste in it

[@Monkey-si2uo]

I know exactly what you mean

[@Trrippy_Shades]

Who would ever eat it cold tho,that's the real scare here.

[@user-hz4hc6ro3w]

10:55 "Can I eat the bodies? Can I harvest their organs?" Yes, Mark. Yes you can.

[@Cuktisntfunny]

16:03

[@nebelwanderer4974]

15:17 *PANCREAS ACQUISITION COMPLETE.*

[@joannadzenowski6214]

He literally said that as soon as I read ur comment

[@kingviper3444]

@Check my channel no, no I don't think I will

[@Xxazer23]

I think what I personally find so enjoyable about this game, and any game of a similar ilk, is that it's something so refreshingly new and different whilst feeling simultaneously nostalgic and familiar . There is no way any modern day game studio would make a game like this, but in the era of ps1/early PC you would occasionally stumble upon weird and esoteric shit like this.

[@Chroma710]

This video is like the Gorbino's Quest of KZbin. 500 hours of mindpumping action.

[@SWISS-1337]

Markipliers complete bewilderment and terror as he's starting the game is the best. "Stocks are going up.... Bouncy?"

[@beardiedragling9803]

Ha yes

[@classicallemur1190]

Cruelty squad was clearly made with talent as it seemly does the exact opposite of what a good game does, implying the creator knows how to make a good game

[@sinkdemon5813]

Yeah, the same with the aesthetics, it's doing the opposite of what you're taught in art schools

[@thewolfPrince]

Only an artist can correctly do art the wrong way.

[@fireblade295]

"Talent"

[@thewolfPrince]

@@fireblade295 Just because you don't like it doesn't mean that the game wasn't made by someone who knew what they were doing

[@jartecus]

@@thewolfPrince maybe they meant that talent =/= skill? Their way of phrasing it was very cryptic though.

[@katiesherman6517]

Ok, my favorite part is definitely, at about 25:00 when Mark's like "What kind of dog - THAT DOG!!!" That killed me! XD

[@justhere4637]

Well it is at 25:48 actually and it scared me with the jumpscare.

[@bramsolacarotte3802]

Pyro reference

[@Jayfett123]

So guys we did it

[@swimmyswim417]

This whole thing is so strange, but I can tell it’s nailing the aesthetic it’s going for. Is it one that appeals to me? Heck no. But I totally appreciate everything it sets out to do. Looks absolutely fascinating and I’m tempted to actually check it out.

[@napoleonblownapart9043]

You should, its a genuinely fun game with surprising amounts of depth.

[@thegrandnil764]

I

[@sakkuyniron9756]

@@napoleonblownapart9043 The true successor to Mario 64

[@muufle]

the game is one of the top 10 games on steam for quality, it's the type of game that the devs spent years and years purposely making the game look bad after spending tens of years trying to make it as good as possible lol

[@_gr33nagust1n_8]

This whole game feels like it was made by someone who went completely insane. It all feels like a dream. Not a good dream, not a nightmare, but a dream that's so nonsensical that it sounds completely outlandish when you wake up. But when you're asleep and in the dream, it all makes perfect sense. I like stuff like this because it's just so fascinatingly weird and outlandish.

[@glitchboy1890]

As a Cruelty Squad fan. You are not wrong

[@nakedstatue8517]

It feels unsettling to me.

[@snipergod5216]

@@glitchboy1890 I played through the game and it is SURPRISINGLY deep.

[@jayisarunaway]

This is the type of weird I: 1. Do not understand 2. Do understand 3. Wish to achieve

[@dabbingperson9236]

Fun fact: In the second level, there is a reconstruction of Osama Bin Laden’s compound. And there’s also the twin towers in the level Apartment Atrocity.