ZELLE : RPG Maker's Occult Adventure

[@maraganger]

PATREON : www.patreon.com/maraganger TWITTER : twitter.com/maraganger heeeeey sorry for the longer than usual wait. irl's been slapping me left and right so i do what i can to return to creative work in like, timely constraints lmao

[@orcwarchiefreviews]

Hey I don't know if you've ever heard of temco deception franchise might be something to look into the PS1 game is quite fascinating if you're going rom you might need to make a memory card for it

[@brycebucher1895]

"Let your work speak for the stuff you can't say out loud" is something I vibe with a lot

[@Apollo9898LP]

"You gotta go out there and enlighten your own ass sometimes" I think that's maybe my favorite quote from you so far lol Amazing video as ever

[@JuneCrashRadio]

Honestly, Zelle is one of those games that stuck with me. Visually the early 90s cdi asthedic made it a fascination to play through early on but it's beautiful nature and heart stayed with me far beyond the credits. Brilliant recommendation.

[@xanakina]

Zelle is such a cool game and I'm so glad you covered it!! You captured the mood of the game perfectly !! Loved this video!!

[@DanielSantosAnalysis]

I definitely empathize with you when it comes to weirdos trying to misguidedly gatekeep cool art. I really don't understand the mentality behind suddenly believing that this thing you enjoy isn't not cool anymore, just because more people know about it. I have a distinct memory of talking to a kid in high school who said he used to like the band System of a Down, but then he noticed that "preppy kids" started listening them, so it meant the band sucked now. I was a total idiot in high school, but even at the time I saw through how transparently shallow his reasoning was and it stuck with me to never be like that. If you find something that you really vibe with, then it should be shared! More often than not, the creators will truly appreciate it too, because it means that the project they poured their blood, sweat and tears into, can now resonate with more people. Anyways, great video! You always consistently put out bangers, love the work you do!

[@Poruasecas]

I discovered Zelle last year thanks to a friend's "You'll probabaly like it", I had some high expectations about it, specially since I was in an adventure game mood at that time and the visuals seemed like my shit, but I definitely didn't expect it to become my game of the year, much less one of my top 5 of all time, it felt like the planets had aligned to give me one of the best experiences of my life, perfect moment, perfect game, perfet length, and almost 0 knowledge about it(I hadn't watched the trailer so even seeing you could walk around in thrid person came as an insane twist that blew my mind, specially since I was sure the game was about to end). I'm so glad you made this video this game deserves all the attention it can get and more.(also your channel seems cool as fuck, glad I found it while looking for the Zelle OST LOL)

[@anthonywheeler2082]

I love hearing about obscure video games. The visuals nail that horror-comedy vibe. I'll have to track this game down. It looks incredible!

[@oneinathousand2156]

Those 90’s/early 2000’s cd rom games you mentioned towards the end are a weird time capsule of a relatively brief window where post-Myst, a surprising amount of money and labor would go into creating some very deranged aesthetics and plotlines, often but not always trying to ride Myst’s coattails. Stuff like Drowned God, Ring, Faust, Of Light and Darkness, etc. would have surprisingly good voice acting and have state-of-the-art motion capture and pre-rendered backgrounds. Even with all these indie games that sort of harken to that spirit, we have yet to see a comeback of throwing hundreds of thousands of dollars or even millions into games with those sorts of ambitious art projects, and so that subgenre still stands alone in its time, and I’d love to see videos about some of them.

[@ZephRamo]

How on earth is it possible that your editing and music choices just keep getting better ?? A wild ride, once again ! Thank you, Mara !

[@maraganger]

Aaah thank you so much ! Likewise on your newest release. :>

[@aliasagosta]

Gosh those 10 first seconds of the video are already so good, i'm already pulled straight into it!

[@paper_maiden]

Ooooh, this was the good stuff! I live for photocollage, and Zelle clearly makes the best use of Photoshop filters I have ever seen. Thank you for all the feelings sharing, as always

[@DiddlyDiPotatoes]

You've become one of those "see in sub box will watch immediately" uploaders to me for sure. Love the points you make about certain things and Zelle itself looks great. Love the artstyle mix.

[@upg315]

I wrote a whole novel here, but youtube didn't like something about it, apparently, or it glitched, so it went away into the void...So I am just going to summarize. 1. So happy to have found this channel. 2. As a maker of VERY obscure weird games (and things), the idea of people actually gatekeeping them kind of blows my mind? I've never seen that kind of behavior vis a vis my own work or that of the fellow emotional and financial masochists in the same circles, but I have no choice but to believe that they do exist ... I am just really lost in the sauce on this point, because making an obscure game even a TINY bit less obscure is almost impossible in this climate, and if it's weird and niche on top of that, it's basically a lost cause in my experience. Very few platforms offer any kind of reasonable organic discoverability either, and if you happen to be a broken, mentally ill person like myself, you probably don't have time and energy to both MAKE stuff and market stuff. You have to pick one. So it's weird to me that someone could look at something that clearly means a lot to them and say "I don't want the creator of this thing to be able to afford to live." 3. Love the channel. 4. God, I am so confused, though. If the game is obscure, who are they gatekeeping it from, and who is behind the gates with them? There have to be SOME people there, right? In order to feel cool, people usually need to have someone else validate their coolness, right? 5. This idea is going to live rent free in my head for the rest of my life. Admittedly, I am not sure how much life force I have left in me. But however much it is, this is going to drive me up the wall for the duration.

[@maraganger]

a quick example i can think of is like niche internet circles / message boards and how they felt Fear & Hunger's popularity made it "less cool" and suddenly a "shit game" but yeah absolutely, it's dumb especially when considering that i want every creator i like to be able to pay rent lmao

[@upg315]

@@maraganger Hmm, that makes sense. Though I suppose even a niche circle of fans that presumably interact with one another is probably outside of my sphere of comprehension. It's hard for me not to feel like a game has "already made it," at that point, even though that may well be untrue, especially in the financial sense. Still, that sort of thing often seems to be the first step towards /slightly/ more mainstream exposure, since not all those fans are going to be gatekeepy hipsters, and some will likely help with creating a critical mass with word of mouth. I also do wonder if there's a higher incidence of this sort of negative behavior and thinking among players of "maso" games in particular. Games that have a reputation for being difficult or "brutal" (whether or not they really are) tend to attract a certain type of player for a certain type of reason, and those players often seem to fixate on that difficulty or brutality - usually failing to analyze its formal or artistic purpose, and instead seeing it as a sort of purely initiatory and status thing. Reminds me of how rabid some Dark Souls players get because *their* game series has become a downright blockbuster now, as opposed to the kind of janky, mid-budget cult classic it started out as.

[@DunhamLockhart]

Thank you so much for pointing me towards this game, this was an incredible experience.

[@iodinex64]

I am extremely normal about the scythe. I am extremely, very normal about the scythe. That is a cool character design that I feel somewhat positively about and definitely won't obsess over for a long time.

[@maraganger]

god for real ! it's legit such a fun idea to have a sentient object as a homie

[@ZohGaEri]

Zelle is one of these masterpieces that are mostly passed down through word of mouth and I'm SO SO GLAD I had a friend recommend it to me. I still think dearly of it from time to time and it has deeply inspired me and my art in quite an intangible way. Thank you for sharing it with your audience!

[@bookbook9495]

This video has been a beautiful ride- heads up Architect of Games just signal boosted you btw

[@SadTown99]

Ahhh I love discovering actual unique & creative indie games… It’s becoming increasingly rare to find these nicely balanced blends of music/art projects showcased inside of legitimately high quality gaming experiences. 🙏

[@jjpemfr8882]

Yeah, this channel is a banger, good to see more Zelle content, wish more people play It everyday 😗

[@SugarFreeMocha]

Just wanted to say I hope you're well, and I'm glad you're back! Looking forward to watching this with friends.

[@maraganger]

Thank you for the kind words, hope you and your friends enjoy. B)

[@Zafiro_Regio]

i really resonated with the points made about style and religion its one of my sorta guilty pleasures i indulge in when getting on the creative side. great video as always!

[@semaj35]

Every mara upload is an adventure! I love hearing about the games that go left behind, this channel is perfect for that.

[@ThrillhouseToTheMax]

Love your channel, the whole vibe is awesome. Thanks for introducing a new game to me!

[@maraganger]

hella, glad you enjoyed B)

[@ZariWari]

Recently discovered this channel and this is like peak "watch while eating dinner" KZbin videos. Please keep it up, love your style of voiceover and your more niche topics are a big draw!!!!!!

[@maraganger]

aw ty ty B)

[@M4m4.]

great video. i love the vibe with the music choices and scripting style being on point

[@quatsch344]

I am going to be honest, I only found this channel because Adam Millard gave it a shoutout in his latest video, but I really enjoy this video and the types of games covered here. Thanks for shining a light on smaller and to be quite frank more obscure games!

[@grimsdoll]

OMG i've been such a huge fan of this channel for a while now and seeing you talk about ZELLE makes me so happy !! I'm super excited for fumings new game :)

[@slvmb3r]

So glad you're covering this

[@pyramidinu9449]

Mara videos about spooky stuff are so comfy.

[@wintermut_e]

Favorite channel on youtube. I like to make games myself, and your channel and aesthetic is a constant source of inspiration!

[@soulblue65]

Lovely video, great vibes and awesome points made ! As always, this channel be serving :D

[@RyanBeardy]

Great video! I only hear about these obscure interesting titles because of video essays like this! Glad you enjoy making videos on games and topics like these! Keep them coming!!

[@KeiNova]

I'm in the same boat, I'm always looking for new stuff. The issue is that I can't always pick what I'm going to do for the channel. I might just cover mech games but these can be intensely weird if it isn't just things like MechWarrior and Armored Core.

[@maraganger]

Oh yeah I imagine there's a lot to pick for mecha, especially if you don't confine yourself within just video games. Like there's so much cool stuff with non-traditional mech design too !

[@Troygdesign]

Incredible insights here, you put into words what I couldn’t for years , bravo .

[@aubreyhall_]

jus found your channel but my god u are amazing

[@immaJUSTGO]

I only recently discovered your channel via the Yume Nikki video and I've already fallen in love with it! I just love your style of videos! they work perfectly with my habit of listening to random analysis type videos whilst I play games lmao Btw you might've already heard of this game but if not I HIGHLY recommend checking out Signalis, its quickly become one of my favourite games ever made just because I find it so genuinely beautiful I'm interested to see more of the content you make!!

[@paper_maiden]

Again, footage from so many cool games, and I only know a fraction 9f them! Thank you for the food! Will comment again after I finish the video!

[@cthulusauce]

Oh hey I actually have Zelle, though I haven’t finished it yet. Thanks for bringing my attn towards it again

[@bubbletea_]

it's been ages since i've played an rpg maker game. i need to get back into them ;_; so many unique projects from made on this software.

[@rainyjay8156]

Great video thanks for the awesome review. Bunch of interesting games you showed in beginning. What game is at 2:09 ?

[@maraganger]

there's a full list with timestamps in the description

[@rainyjay8156]

@maraganger thanks I didnt notice that. That's a huge help. :)

[@justrenderin1279]

Alright, i'm sold. 5 minutes in and i'm buying the game today. Looking forward to such a unique and strange journey. Especially when i come back to this video and reflect on the journey.

[@brunomoraes9967]

Dammit! You did it again! This totally captured my interest, but I don't know how I'll have time to explore this apparent masterpiece of weirdness! Love your work as always.

[@maraganger]

Thank you ! If it's any consolation just know the game's fairly short, about an hour or two. B)

[@brunomoraes9967]

​@@maragangeractually, this comment REALLY helped! This means I'll be able to try it before my next work vacation ☺️

[@hekset]

I’m so glad this appeared in my recommended, game looks cool, but wow I love how you did this video

[@maraganger]

Glad you vibed with it ! B)

[@birdmanplus6969]

makes my weekend better with a new upload from you! keep doing great!!!

[@svdden_dread]

I was thinking about your channel , and then a notification came about your new video 😍😍

[@maraganger]

Aw hella. B)

[@svdden_dread]

@@maraganger 😁😁

[@Skyehoppers]

I *was* gonna ask if you made all those borders, seems like something you would do haha Super sick vid once again :) Btw whats that game at 29:00?

[@maraganger]

Thank you ! The only one I ended up making was the purple one used for other games than Zelle. Fuming was an absolute beast on their own and didn't wanna overtake their style. As for the game at 29:00, it's HIT ME chapter 2 by Xiri !

[@KaBawm1]

Thanks for the video. Bought the game and had a really good time.

[@NumieXesa]

I didnt expect anyone to mention Malice Mizer in 2023, Great Video 👍

[@itch7096]

id never heard of zelle before this video and it got me hooked on it :0!!! and id love to see you cover 8:11 some time!

[@EmmAX000]

Im glad that you make this video, thank you

[@onnuhhhh]

you show off the coolest stuff that gets little coverage keep up this game looks rad

[@Geno746]

Never heard of this game but this looks awesome. I might need to pick this up for Halloween.

[@BRAINLEAKAGECHEMICALPLANT]

hi. i'm here after watching your nekojiru vid. zelle is one of my fav rpg maker titles and i never thought i would see a video on it so this makes me really happy. i will be watching this later and i am very excited to hear your thoughts on it. ^__^ take care, your videos are very cool

[@marceloflausinofilho5324]

Remember this game going from horror to anime, a bizarre adventure, def underrated

[@ruliak]

Hiii mara haiiii :3 another banger, i really do love your taste in games.

[@skye9751]

thank u for the game recc !!! i had to play it before watching this video ... also i LOVE 8:11 and would love if you covered it in the future !!!!!!!

[@maraganger]

ty ty ! talked about 8:11 a lil in the new vid but idk if i'll ever cover it by itself ; w ;

[@Zeroantagonist88]

Woohoo!! thanks for uploading this!

[@BattleMaidAstarte]

I was just thinking about you before you posted lol

[@sunderark]

When you used terms like "photobashing" I knew an industry artist was talking.

[@pjprjpraj]

I’m easilyyy the biggest Zelle fan. Fun fact, Zamza had red hair when he was young. Around the time he was friends with Adolf and Patrick fighting astaroth

[@Kapendev]

Really happy to see this game! Not many people talk about it :(

[@windchimes8764]

babe wake up new mara video

[@Hiromu656]

It's here

[@dontblinqqtv]

Yo just wanted to say your channel is awesome!! Hope to see more of you in the future 🙏🏿 I haven’t fucked with a channel this hard in a while lol

[@CzarnySmok01]

a new video from maraganger hooray !!!

[@fhjunior6183]

Thanks for the vid

[@dawn9546]

Honestly might play this game, looks dope and it's on steam

[@bonkitybonk9038]

Let's goooooooo

[@somamaddox9369]

Please make short notes what games you are showing. There are easily 30 games I want to play but I dont know what there name is. All of them look amazing. Amazing video. Love that there is a place for obscure games.

[@maraganger]

it's not timestamped yet but here's the list of everything i showcased in this vid, in order of appearance ; usually i keep that shit in a pastebin in the description but i forgot for the old vids B) - Rolypolys no Nanakorobi Yaoki - ABSCESS - Ugetsu Kitan - MELROSE - Soup 0.9 - Psychic Detective - The Residents' Bad Day on the Midway - Roommania #203 - Rasetsu - Segare Ijiri - Mind-Gym - Vangers - Tokyo Wakusei Planetokio - Planet Laika - Doki Oki - Yellow Brick Road - The Dark Eye - Nemuru Mayu Sleeping Cocoon - The Saboten Man - Super Galdelic Hour - Obsidian - Tomorrow is My Birthday - Hylics - Kowai Shashin - Zelle - Copper Odyssey - Yume Nikki - IB - Space Funeral - Paper Angel - Fear & Hunger - An Outcry - OFF - 8:11 - Dream Channel Zero - Chu Teng - Alice Interactive Museum - Refixion - HIT ME - Planet Dob - Disillusion - LSD Dream Emulator - ETCETERA - Garage Bad Dream Adventure - Endonesia

[@somamaddox9369]

@@maraganger thank you very much!

[@fionastirling986]

Ooh could you do a video on Heisei Pistol Show? It doesn’t have an official English translation but there’s an English-subbed playthrough on KZbin and it seems like you’d really like it from the way you described your taste in games

[@maraganger]

I was tempted to but I know Hazel did a really great vid on both ReKinder and Heisei Pistol Show so I feel like I wouldn't have much to say. :

[@maraganger]

@@fionastirling986 Thank you very much haha, but that doesn't really change the fact that I wouldn't have much to say about it, at least for now. ; w ;

[@CazaresComedorDeCasadas]

hey, loved your video! one question, would be possible in future videos to make available a list on the games that show up during the video? a lot of them look amazing but i have no idea what they're called

[@maraganger]

Ty ! I considered but I prefer when folks ask cause it gives that sweet engagement. B) Here's the list though lmao ; - Rolypolys no Nanakorobi Yaoki - ABSCESS - Ugetsu Kitan - MELROSE - Soup 0.9 - Psychic Detective - The Residents' Bad Day on the Midway - Roommania #203 - Rasetsu - Segare Ijiri - Mind-Gym - Vangers - Tokyo Wakusei Planetokio - Planet Laika - Doki Oki - Yellow Brick Road - The Dark Eye - Nemuru Mayu Sleeping Cocoon - The Saboten Man - Super Galdelic Hour - Obsidian - Tomorrow is My Birthday - Hylics - Kowai Shashin - Zelle - Copper Odyssey - Yume Nikki - IB - Space Funeral - Paper Angel - Fear & Hunger - An Outcry - OFF - 8:11 - Dream Channel Zero - Chu Teng - Alice Interactive Museum - Refixion - HIT ME - Planet Dob - Disillusion - LSD Dream Emulator - ETCETERA - Garage Bad Dream Adventure - Endonesia

[@CazaresComedorDeCasadas]

@@maraganger oh my, i hope i didn't bother you asking for it!!! very much appreciated and keep up the good work!!

[@maraganger]

@@CazaresComedorDeCasadas Nah of course not, I'm always happy to reply when folks ask. B)

[@Qu0thTheRaven]

I feel like I need a list of every single game you showed in this video. #instasub

[@maraganger]

i think i posted one in the comments already but here ! - Rolypolys no Nanakorobi Yaoki - ABSCESS - Ugetsu Kitan - MELROSE - Soup 0.9 - Psychic Detective - The Residents' Bad Day on the Midway - Roommania #203 - Rasetsu - Segare Ijiri - Mind-Gym - Vangers - Tokyo Wakusei Planetokio - Planet Laika - Doki Oki - Yellow Brick Road - The Dark Eye - Nemuru Mayu Sleeping Cocoon - The Saboten Man - Super Galdelic Hour - Obsidian - Tomorrow is My Birthday - Hylics - Kowai Shashin - Zelle - Copper Odyssey - Yume Nikki - IB - Space Funeral - Paper Angel - Fear & Hunger - An Outcry - OFF - 8:11 - Dream Channel Zero - Chu Teng - Alice Interactive Museum - Refixion - HIT ME - Planet Dob - Disillusion - LSD Dream Emulator - ETCETERA - Garage Bad Dream Adventure - Endonesia

[@Qu0thTheRaven]

Oh you mightve, I didn't investigate it too hard. Thanks tho!@@maraganger

[@Jibab53]

Awesome video!!! Love your taste in games

[@maraganger]

I've considered but it would clog the screen and ruin the visual integrity of my style. Plus I like the comments, helps to generate engagement. B)

[@Hopeful_Neon]

My favourite part of this game is when a rat mugged me

[@SomaSpice]

6:36 MALICE MIZER MENTIONED IMPECCABLE TASTE CONFIRMED

[@boozeandbullets2084]

some of the games in the intro, can you post the names? I want to look them up

[@maraganger]

Here's a list of every game in this vid, by order of appearance without repeats ; - Rolypolys no Nanakorobi Yaoki - ABSCESS - Ugetsu Kitan - MELROSE - Soup 0.9 - Psychic Detective - The Residents' Bad Day on the Midway - Roommania #203 - Rasetsu - Segare Ijiri - Mind-Gym - Vangers - Tokyo Wakusei Planetokio - Planet Laika - Doki Oki - Yellow Brick Road - The Dark Eye - Nemuru Mayu Sleeping Cocoon - The Saboten Man - Super Galdelic Hour - Obsidian - Tomorrow is My Birthday - Hylics - Kowai Shashin - Zelle - Copper Odyssey - Yume Nikki - IB - Space Funeral - Paper Angel - Fear & Hunger - An Outcry - OFF - 8:11 - Dream Channel Zero - Chu Teng - Alice Interactive Museum - Refixion - HIT ME - Planet Dob - Disillusion - LSD Dream Emulator - ETCETERA - Garage Bad Dream Adventure - Endonesia

[@boozeandbullets2084]

wow ty@@maraganger

[@GhostStxar]

I'm begging you, if you can, please pin this thread. And if you can't, no prob, I think I have a new favorite youtuber, and that more than makes up for it.@@maraganger

[@maraganger]

@@GhostStxar aaaah i wish but pinned are reserved for plugging my patreon, otherwise folks don't see it. 😔 but i'll defo try to come up with a solution, maybe like a little imgur link in the description or something

[@dudunikolaishvili8096]

@@maraganger Perhaps a simple timestamp in the description?

[@legionsreturn]

thanks for the review. whats the song at 6:11?

[@maraganger]

Magic Circle Menu BGM from Nemuru Mayu Sleeping Cocoon

[@smudgetwo]

peak videoing...!

[@the_glove]

I’m going to go to the grocery store by myself and save this video as a reward for going and doing the thing. Fuck the grocery store. I got this 💪😔

[@ummmmiru4919]

just found ur acc and absolutely fkin love ur taste in games and way of thinking about ittt. i was wondering if u ever played omori? its one of my all time favs, i recommend it

[@maraganger]

ye i played omori on release but i'm not a huge fan :

[@ummmmiru4919]

also recently found The Endless Empty that i think might be more your type! ​@@maraganger

[@maraganger]

@@ummmmiru4919 ye lmao I'm mutuals with the dev on twitter

[@TheBabblingBabs]

Excellent video! Love the insight on the aesthetic use of religion, and loved all the beautiful scene transitions and edits!!! You've got a great eye! I did want to point out that I'm not sure how you adjust your audio levels, but you're getting a bit of heavy mouth sounds (wet smacking and such) and it's just a bit distracting from what you're talking about (as a neurodivergent person with Misophonia). It might be your gain or noise gate but I thought I'd let you know and I hope that's not rude of me to say. Love the video and I can't wait to watch more!

[@maraganger]

Ty for the comment, as for the audio, I can only do so much with a lisp. ; w ;

[@prozorozo]

Hey what was the game you showed at 14:18 ?

[@maraganger]

Copper Odyssey, another game I covered on the channel. :0

[@couchmoba]

Lesgo Zelle's so good

[@omk573]

Have you ever seen "garage: bad dream adventure"? I haven't played it but I've been very intrigued by it. It looks completely bizarre so I think it might interest you

[@maraganger]

Yes ! I've even used footage of it in this vid haha

[@omk573]

@@maraganger Ah I see. I hadn't watched the whole video since i wanted to try this game out for myself, finished it a couple of hours ago

[@DamienStarry0w0]

Whats the game shown at 15:01? it looks so pretty!

[@maraganger]

PAPER ANGEL by Slitherbop !

[@blahblahgdp]

What i wanna know is what does it look like to write a script for a video like this. I've been interested since theres a couple games i played as a kid that I never see videos on

[@cloverlake2599]

what game is that at 2:38 :0?

[@maraganger]

Tomorrow is My Birthday by Riley

[@torgo_]

I really enjoyed Zelle when I played it a few years ago. There's this other one called "My Hole is a Mouth of Dirt" which I loved, it felt kinda similar in some ways.

[@Hopeful_Neon]

Man what a funny character. A moon faced man who is supposed to take care of children that become creepy and abusive when punishing children? Man i sure hope no terribly made horror games copy this character

[@freesia_8]

I’ve been waiting 5 years for this video…….

[@frydfish4934]

4.47 why is that a kiwi

[@beat-man5167]

this is giving me warioware vibes

[@darkmaster4868]

Dude you should totally check out world of horror im telling you that smoke is some good shit

[@maraganger]

already did but wasn't too big of a fan gameplay-wise. i dig the art direction tho

[@gregoriodelimaalves6862]

never got to beat it, QTEs are too hard

[@cloudlight3932]

malice mizer gang!!!!