A few months ago, when I was taking a walk in a national park, near where I live, I suddenly came to an area filled with blueberry bushes. Since we had a good summer for fruiting plants here in Sweden, the bushes were lush with fruit. Not being in a hurry, I stayed to sample the berries. After a while, a sudden feeling of immense appreciation over lifes ability to surprise you with a random treat, came over me. That feeling stayed for a few days and then gradually dissipated. Even as I'm sat here trying to put words to it, I can't really explain what happened. But I do know that it isn't completely unlike suddenly finding a brand new SGS video in my feed.
@@PopcornMax179 We don't have park rangers, berries are free for anyone. Also swedish blueberries is actually called huckleberries in part of the US, it is a different species that is dark purple inside.
Another fantastic thing about INDIKA is that the publisher, 11 bit studios, also donated $50K of the revenue from this game to support children affected by the war in Ukraine
I find it really interesting that when Indika denies knowing Mirko, she does it three times just like how Peter denied knowing Jesus after he was arrested
When Alex said 'can you guys just play the game and not talk about it' I got so upset that that's an idea some people might have. Genuinely my favorite part of watching you guys play these games is you figuring it out and discussing ideas and themes as you go! That's why I love the squad!
It's more that I hate when they're not paying attention to the game anymore cause they're so worried about talking about the game and figuring out what's happening.. like through all of Signalis they were so wrapped up in their theories they didn't even see what was EXPLICITLY said to them that contradicted it all. I like them talking about the game and discussing things but there's a time and place and that's not when the characters are talking, there's scenes playing, etc.
Just watched the whole thing in one sitting. I appreciate the squad just dumping this in one whole chunk instead of cutting it into parts. You guys weren't kidding when you said you guys just record all of this in one whole session. The setting is definitely the standout of this game. So bleak yet so wonderful with barely any use of color (aside from the pixel flashbacks and the icons which is most likely on purpose).
I too love this and hope it's a new trend. Let ME decide how to break it up. Especially annoying when you know in many of these series they likely played the whole thing in 1 big session and are just slowly doling the pieces out.
It's A LOT easier to record group things in just long sessions. Like I'm sure it's hard enough getting the group together so getting together and just being like "look we play for 8 hours" is far better than like an hour or two here and there.
@@LordGek Agreed. As long as it doesn't affect anything like value on UA-cam's side (as in how much Jesse would make for a video like this) just dump a long video. I'd rather have long videos and I'll just quit watching for a bit when I'm bored. Though I don't think every game lends itself well to that approach. It's just much easier and better on these shorter games.
This game is just so uniquely Russian, it's stunning. That early namedrop one of you guys did of Dostoevsky hits the nail on the head. The feel, the atmosphere, the wit of the philosophical dialogue, it all feels like right out of Crime and Punishment, the Brothers Karamazov or Notes from the Underground. There are also traces of other russian authors, but the Dostoevsky influence seems pretty clear. As for the "Russian" feel, it's notably bleak, questioning morality but also just rolling with the punches and just moving on as if nothing crazy actually happened, even though it clearly did. It's probably the game that comes closest to that era of classical literature, so far.
"Do you think old Russian porn is, like, solid?" We're asking the real questions now On a serious note, this game does a good job of showing how much the combination of intrusive thoughts and religious upbringing can really mess with you. That part where the woman is being attacked and Indika's first reaction is to save her but is stopped by the thought of "but are you doing the right thing for Right Reasons, or do you just want to save her for a Wrong Reason" is particularly prime. The woman wouldn't have cared if Indika saved her to fuel her ego and be a hero, in that moment she just needed immediate help. (Not that it's guaranteed that Indika attempting to help wouldn't have ended with Indika herself getting hurt, as the voice points out and ALSO guilts her about). Indika is so convinced that her intrusive thoughts (judging the woman, having raunchy thoughts about Ilya, ect) inherently make her a bad person even if she doesn't act on them that she has to scrounge around, desperately searching for pieces of God in dark corners and abandoned houses to redeem herself from the sin of being human.
As someone who grew up in a doggedly religious household, you hit the nail on the head. My only real question is how much therapy does it take to undo deeply ingrained Christian guilt?
That's one of the big things I never got about *a lot* of religions but especially Christianity. It's all about guilting you into things. Practically the entire religion is about sin and guilt and how being human is inherently a sin somehow. Then there's also another side where you got the people who think they can sin and do whatever they want as long as they go to church and repent and confess. It's weird to me that people would believe in this stuff.. like why believe some almighty being created you just to make you not experience life and instead live your entire life in a convent repenting for the sin of existing? I get some ideas of religions though like especially ancient Greek where it was mostly you prayed to gods of individual things as sort of a "I hope our crops aren't bad this year" type of thing rather than a "SORRY I EXIST!!" The thing I'd have liked to see more of in this game though is how she really ended up in the convent.. she mentions it wasn't her choice and then you see the flashbacks and how the guy died but that doesn't really mean anything about how she got there. Though she said it wasn't her choice exactly.. it seems like it was?
@@Eventide215 For the first part, why do people even believe in this sort of thing, I can only answer for myself but I'd still like to try and explain. I'm sorry this is going to be long-winded. Belief, from the start, is not a logical thing. Most people who believe in a religion would acknowledge that. But we're often told in life to follow your heart, trust your gut instinct, that you'll just "know" when something is right or wrong. I was never an exemplary Christian to begin with, I didn't believe in the Bible because I felt anything written by a man could be easily twisted, but I had two kernels of deep belief- that I believed there could be a higher power, and that I believed that I wasn't a good person. For me, the guilt actually came first, and I believe it does for a lot of people. It's actually not uncommon in children or young people to feel guilty about things out of your control, your brain isn't developed enough yet to fully grasp the complexities of life and so it tends to boil it down to things that happen that are your fault and that aren't your fault. You might see this in children of troubled marriages, they believe that their parents fighting must be because of them, that it's their job to somehow fix it by being an impeccable child. It's also not that uncommon for someone to look at the way heroes and Good People are often portrayed in media and feel that it's a pinnacle they could never reach. "How could I ever be a good person when I sometimes have these mean thoughts. And sometimes I do good things for my own ego rather than a wholesome reason. And sometimes I get scared and don't do anything. A Good Person always does the right thing even when they're scared, etc" These types of thoughts and feelings are not unique to religious types and religious people are NOT the only ones who will take advantage of these types of insecurities in others, but religion can channel and cement these types of thoughts. Sometimes a person grows out of these types of fears and insecurities as they grow older, but sometimes a person doubles down. They want to believe there's a Meaning to it, that it's a test of character or that it's some sort of internal True Morality. People tie it to their religion to justify why they feel the way they do, they enforce those feelings on other people, they grow resentful of people who don't seem to be afraid, who don't have a little voice in their head always telling them that they're somehow failing, they make themselves believe that even if they can't save themselves they can save others by guiding them on the "right path". Sometimes these people grow up to become religious authorities, sometimes they grow up to be parents who forcefully project their insecurities onto their children. On the flip side, there are other people who will be drawn to religion, not because they believe anything or feel bad about themselves, but because they see a bunch of people they can easily exploit and rally to a cause of their choosing. My TLDR: Why do so many religions, even besides Christianity, incorporate and weaponize feelings of guilt? Because humans ARE religion, we create it, and because guilt and fear and self-loathing are powerful human emotions. The greed to twist a narrative to our own personal beliefs is also very human. As for the second part, why does Indika say she doesn't *really* have a choice? In the environment Indika grew up in, she is basically considered property of her father, and family reputation and honor is everything. In these types of small communities you aren't going to survive a winter without the goodwill and cooperation of your neighbors. Indika's father has just killed a boy, that boy was a member of an already persecuted minority and it was in defense of his store, but it still isn't going to look good for him. There's likely going to be conflict from that. On top of that, Indika is no longer a virgin and she's set in what was likely an arranged marriage. Even if the marriage goes through as planned, her groom is soon going to find out, and then what happens to her? Best case scenario is that she's publicly disgraced, everyone will find out, this will not help her fathers reputation and the pride of her bridegroom will be seriously wounded and his family could demand compensation from her father. Worst case, any sort of abuse you can imagine from a man who now has total control of her life. Or, she could 'choose' to go to a convent, something her father likely had to pay for since they clearly didn't want her, and spend the rest of her days praying for her father's soul. She becomes a pious and filial daughter, her basic needs will be met, she's safe from the judgement and anger of the local townsfolk. She could run away by herself of course, as long as she's not afraid of being eaten by wild animals, getting ill and dying of exposure, starving to death, being grabbed by a soldier or any other man as free property, being sold into slavery, etc. So, like she said, how much of a choice is this? It's the choice between the tsar and the butcher all over again, but she doesn't even get the gold.
@Eventide215 While I am sure there are many households like that, to paint the entire religion as 'guilt" is just wrong. Christianity is not about feeling guilty, it is about finding genuine forgiveness for your wrongs, and striving to improve yourself. Not guilt.
Apparently a “yellow ticket” was an informal name of personal identification of a prostitute in the Russian Empire between 1843 and 1909. The document combined an ID card, a resident permit, a license to practice prostitution, and the prostitute’s medical check-up card. Very cool to learn because of this game/ an SGS video! Also crazy to see how well-regulated and normalized the profession was throughout history.
My favorite subgenre of SGS videos is the ones where Jesse finds a super interesting title to show to Alex & Davis and then just sits back and enjoys them figuring the game out
I was looking into the meaning of this game, although pretty straight forward I believe, and a reddit post summed it up best: "Once she opens the artifact and finds it empty, she loses faith; no matter how many coins you gather, there is no reward at the end. Suffering for faith is worthless. She doesn't have to pretend anymore. There is no Devil or God; it's just her, alone with her thoughts."
I think there’s also something to the ending skill tree portion of the game where, if you’re playing it as a Gamer™️ would, you’re likely picking multipliers that should theoretically mean more piety points, which more points = better person. but the names of the skills that you commit yourself to in each cycle of the level up; shame, regret, grief, are emblematic of all the things indika is running from and trying to reconcile with her crisis of faith
god this game rules. clearly such a labour of love. and it’s so strange and silly in ways while also being really meaningful and critical in its theming. just so good!
i was literally thinking "man, i'm really interested in indika but i don't know if i have time to play it myself" a couple days ago, thank you for reaching into my brain and posting this video
I don't get that idea.. You don't have the time to play it yourself, but you have the time to watch a video on it? Isn't that the same thing essentially? You don't have to play it all in one sitting either.
@@Eventide215A person can play a video while doing other work. Much like listening to a podcast or an audiobook, it's in the background, whereas playing a video game requires active interaction.
@@Eventide215The point wasn't that people listen to it "audio only", the point was that it's in the background. Like watching TV, I guess. I watch on my phone while working on my laptop, for example, so yeah I can "watch" the video, but I'm working on a different screen.
I love how the initial discussion the boys had about the idea that the games should be inherently fun is precisely the theme explored in another psychodelic Russian game, "Pathologic".
Another interesting dynamic between Indika and Ilya that feels so poignant is their competing backstories and motivations. Indika is a nun, on the surface seeming extremely devout, but is at odds with the “devil” inside her. And Ilya is an escaped convict, who should be branded forever by his crimes but has had God “tell” him he is basically a walking miracle. They’re traveling together because they both see something they lack in the other based on these surface level things. Ilya needs Indika for her Christ-like life, so she can lead him to his salvation. Indika needs Ilya because if he, a felon on the lam, can be saved, so should she. That ending feels so powerful because like Alex said, they’re coming from opposite ends of the spectrum - both spiritually and from their past - but come to the same conclusion: it doesnt fucking matter.
@CaroGo true. The robotic voices and the rotoscope animation makes it all very creepy. But I do picture what it may look like if it had realistic graphics.
I have only seen the first 30 minutes and this is already the coolest thing I have seen all year Holy hell what a brilliant and surreal mess, fantastic start
A 4 hour SGS video drops while I'm trying to finish my med school applications... I'm just going to choose to forget I've seen this for a while........ (or not)
Spectacular game. I grew up in an intensely religious family, became agnostic as I made my way through college with time to think for myself. I wish when "the devil" says "evil!? There's not a drop of evil in despondency, avarice, or bawdry" I wish they'd upped her black belt level enough to explore ideas better. "silver tongue. You pick bad words and hopelessness to speak on. But convenient to say nothing on Unnecessary infliction of suffering. Of rapist pedophiles and mass murderers." Would have loved to hear his rebuttal. Usually I'm unsatisfied with the level these ideas are engaged on. It's usually non religious/ barely religious people who are capable of low level idea exploration like "wait, wouldn't hell be the party place?" Just unequipped. Uneducated of the opponent they intend to do black belt philosopical ju jitsu with. Indika did great though. The bit about free will and the Tsar. Very fun. And every time the "devil" would lawyer up on her. Loved it. I even think their best line was criminally un emphasized. "Good and evil are lines on a thermometer. God and Satan, that's just you." Because personally I think good and evil exist objectively. I think God and Satan at their best REPRESENT these things. And at their worst you're stuck in a monastery fetching pails of holy water to collect pointless points. That's just me tho
@@0ldar It's creepy sometimes. I watched a video of a lumberjack sawing challenge and the next day got ads for Husqvarna and Stihl. I've never needed or wanted a chainsaw.
@@claytonreeves150 eh its not that deep, they just connected the subject of the video with ads, hoping for a shot in the dark. i turn off all custom tracking where possible personally tho, cuz it is creepy ultimately yea lol
Not sure if anyone else already posted, but at 3:11:33 the reverend mother? is whistling the dance of the knights from Romeo and juliet, by Sergei prokofiev (1935)
a four hour SGS, what a treat! I'm really looking forward to this weird and wonderful game journey with my favorite boys. also, petition to make "whatever! I'm a fresh-faced babe" the next t-shirt.
A friend of mine kept recommending this game to me and finally caved. This game was so weird and different. I loved it. Been hoping Jesse played it somehow. Looking forward to seeing their interpretations.
So from what i've seen it seems there's Americans, British and othere western forces fighting in the "White Army", an international coalition of forces and Russians opposing the Russian revolution in 1917. After the revolution broke out, Russia had been at war with Germany and Austria and suffured great losses. International forces wanted to stop the spread of Communusim and protect the remaining monachies of Europe. There's an awesome game called "Last Train Home" about the true story of a Czech White Army Company making a crazy train ride across Russia to escape the Bolsheviks.
The tricycle racing mini-game gave me some serious NES R.C. Pro-Am vibes, which is awesome because I spent HOURS and HOURS trying to master that game as a kid. BRB, firing up an emulator.
insane steampunk bike: yeah looks legit a hopper dumping out its contents in an industrial setting: that doesn't seem like real tech to me/it's like too...advanced/it's like dinotopia I only say these things out of love
Ok I don't know who else watched the movie Twister on vhs back in the day but there was a little clip with Taz and Bugs Bunny right before the feature film and there was a wind blowing sound in that short that I keep hearing in this game and it's tripping me out lol
Just came back to watching sgs after life just kinda aged me out of UA-cam for a couple years. I went back to the beginning of the playlist and PT came out 10 YEARS AGO. I watched Jesse, totalbiscuit(R.I.P. and long live your memory John), and dodger since before that game ever came out and I just can’t believe that Mr Jesse cox here has provided entertainment for me for over half of my life. Thank you so much for providing me with smiles during my hardest times for the last 13 years Jesse! We all appreciate you endlessly
apparently when hay is compressed when wet it can spontaneously combust, which is why it's so important for the hay to dry for a few days without rain after cutting it before baling it up. a reason why so many hay barns catch fire is the hay getting wet. Source- my uncle is an alfalfa farmer. Also, he might've been pulling my leg, so... do with that what you will XD but if it's true, than it makes sense why they'd try to keep the snow off their hay piles. and if not, than it'd probably mold and go bad
I put on a SHS video without paying attention to how long it is. So it wasn't until 35 mins in, when I had to pause for a phone call, that I realized it's 4 hours long. That much in and I'm sucked in to this interesting and different spooky game. Also I wish I was as lucky as Davis to have these voices, known as Jesse and Alex, in their head.
Scary Game Squad encountered a slavic-style storytelling; it's a rare thing sadly as a lot of games in this style aren't famous AAA titles (Witcher 3 probably comes the closest, but it's a lot more western).
this weird game has such a charm to it... Like i feel like i am back 20 years when a game was just a game that i would play through and enjoy without any bs attached.
1:15:15 "Indika could easily tell a 5mm wrench from a 40mm one just by looking at them" I enjoy that little joke. She must be so knowledgeable to know that the 8 times larger wrench is, in fact, the larger one. Not to brag, but I know a lot about animals. I could tell a cat from a lion just by looking at them.
this game starts amazing, but at the end kinda defaults to a regular walking simulator, it had still crazy scenes, but it's like it forgot about them the more it went on
Damn, youtube really destroyed these dark scenes. The coal pit is borderline unwatchable. Its a Black and grey blocky mess. or is it my pc srewing this up? does anyone else have this problem? Edit: Ok its UA-cam compressing the video because of the static black areas on screen.
What a fantastic game and play-through. It's good to have the SGS back making long form content. As always very funny and entertaining. Hope to see more :)
This game has stuck with me so much since I played it a few months ago so seeing this pop up in my feed was delightful, can't wait to see our take on it because I really loved it :)
I do encourage Alex to come to Finland if he wants smoked fish. My family fishes and smoke fish ourselves. So much so in the slightly older days that my dad is still thoroughly fed up with smoked fish. He does not want to eat it.
Oh wow, this feels like a game that has a better way of showing schizophrenia, than anxiety-inducing Hellblade2. I couldn't stomach HB2 with non-stop whispers, but should check out Indika - since it has a less depressing demeanor.
I appreciate a new Davis video featuring brief cameos from the voices in his head that he's named Jesse and Alex.
🦆
A few months ago, when I was taking a walk in a national park, near where I live, I suddenly came to an area filled with blueberry bushes. Since we had a good summer for fruiting plants here in Sweden, the bushes were lush with fruit. Not being in a hurry, I stayed to sample the berries.
After a while, a sudden feeling of immense appreciation over lifes ability to surprise you with a random treat, came over me.
That feeling stayed for a few days and then gradually dissipated.
Even as I'm sat here trying to put words to it, I can't really explain what happened.
But I do know that it isn't completely unlike suddenly finding a brand new SGS video in my feed.
The best review ❤
Maybe the blueberries were spiked with something? Some sort of spray the park rangers put on it.
the Scary Game Boys grew those berries just for you ❤
@@PopcornMax179 We don't have park rangers, berries are free for anyone. Also swedish blueberries is actually called huckleberries in part of the US, it is a different species that is dark purple inside.
Another fantastic thing about INDIKA is that the publisher, 11 bit studios, also donated $50K of the revenue from this game to support children affected by the war in Ukraine
And the devs left Russia
@@kendokaaa that too aye :) to Kazakhstan if I'm remembering correctly?
@@AlpakaWhacker Didnt Owlcat do the same?
I find it really interesting that when Indika denies knowing Mirko, she does it three times just like how Peter denied knowing Jesus after he was arrested
When Alex said 'can you guys just play the game and not talk about it' I got so upset that that's an idea some people might have.
Genuinely my favorite part of watching you guys play these games is you figuring it out and discussing ideas and themes as you go! That's why I love the squad!
It's more that I hate when they're not paying attention to the game anymore cause they're so worried about talking about the game and figuring out what's happening.. like through all of Signalis they were so wrapped up in their theories they didn't even see what was EXPLICITLY said to them that contradicted it all. I like them talking about the game and discussing things but there's a time and place and that's not when the characters are talking, there's scenes playing, etc.
no no, i love when they talk about the games. i only want Alex to shut up.
Just watched the whole thing in one sitting. I appreciate the squad just dumping this in one whole chunk instead of cutting it into parts. You guys weren't kidding when you said you guys just record all of this in one whole session.
The setting is definitely the standout of this game. So bleak yet so wonderful with barely any use of color (aside from the pixel flashbacks and the icons which is most likely on purpose).
I too love this and hope it's a new trend. Let ME decide how to break it up. Especially annoying when you know in many of these series they likely played the whole thing in 1 big session and are just slowly doling the pieces out.
It's A LOT easier to record group things in just long sessions. Like I'm sure it's hard enough getting the group together so getting together and just being like "look we play for 8 hours" is far better than like an hour or two here and there.
@@LordGek Agreed. As long as it doesn't affect anything like value on UA-cam's side (as in how much Jesse would make for a video like this) just dump a long video. I'd rather have long videos and I'll just quit watching for a bit when I'm bored. Though I don't think every game lends itself well to that approach. It's just much easier and better on these shorter games.
four hours😮 what a treat!!! thank you boys!!❤
Trulyyyyy 🫶🏻
This game is just so uniquely Russian, it's stunning. That early namedrop one of you guys did of Dostoevsky hits the nail on the head. The feel, the atmosphere, the wit of the philosophical dialogue, it all feels like right out of Crime and Punishment, the Brothers Karamazov or Notes from the Underground. There are also traces of other russian authors, but the Dostoevsky influence seems pretty clear. As for the "Russian" feel, it's notably bleak, questioning morality but also just rolling with the punches and just moving on as if nothing crazy actually happened, even though it clearly did. It's probably the game that comes closest to that era of classical literature, so far.
"Do you think old Russian porn is, like, solid?"
We're asking the real questions now
On a serious note, this game does a good job of showing how much the combination of intrusive thoughts and religious upbringing can really mess with you. That part where the woman is being attacked and Indika's first reaction is to save her but is stopped by the thought of "but are you doing the right thing for Right Reasons, or do you just want to save her for a Wrong Reason" is particularly prime. The woman wouldn't have cared if Indika saved her to fuel her ego and be a hero, in that moment she just needed immediate help. (Not that it's guaranteed that Indika attempting to help wouldn't have ended with Indika herself getting hurt, as the voice points out and ALSO guilts her about). Indika is so convinced that her intrusive thoughts (judging the woman, having raunchy thoughts about Ilya, ect) inherently make her a bad person even if she doesn't act on them that she has to scrounge around, desperately searching for pieces of God in dark corners and abandoned houses to redeem herself from the sin of being human.
Damn.
As someone who grew up in a doggedly religious household, you hit the nail on the head.
My only real question is how much therapy does it take to undo deeply ingrained Christian guilt?
That's one of the big things I never got about *a lot* of religions but especially Christianity. It's all about guilting you into things. Practically the entire religion is about sin and guilt and how being human is inherently a sin somehow. Then there's also another side where you got the people who think they can sin and do whatever they want as long as they go to church and repent and confess. It's weird to me that people would believe in this stuff.. like why believe some almighty being created you just to make you not experience life and instead live your entire life in a convent repenting for the sin of existing? I get some ideas of religions though like especially ancient Greek where it was mostly you prayed to gods of individual things as sort of a "I hope our crops aren't bad this year" type of thing rather than a "SORRY I EXIST!!"
The thing I'd have liked to see more of in this game though is how she really ended up in the convent.. she mentions it wasn't her choice and then you see the flashbacks and how the guy died but that doesn't really mean anything about how she got there. Though she said it wasn't her choice exactly.. it seems like it was?
@@Eventide215
For the first part, why do people even believe in this sort of thing, I can only answer for myself but I'd still like to try and explain. I'm sorry this is going to be long-winded.
Belief, from the start, is not a logical thing. Most people who believe in a religion would acknowledge that. But we're often told in life to follow your heart, trust your gut instinct, that you'll just "know" when something is right or wrong. I was never an exemplary Christian to begin with, I didn't believe in the Bible because I felt anything written by a man could be easily twisted, but I had two kernels of deep belief- that I believed there could be a higher power, and that I believed that I wasn't a good person. For me, the guilt actually came first, and I believe it does for a lot of people. It's actually not uncommon in children or young people to feel guilty about things out of your control, your brain isn't developed enough yet to fully grasp the complexities of life and so it tends to boil it down to things that happen that are your fault and that aren't your fault. You might see this in children of troubled marriages, they believe that their parents fighting must be because of them, that it's their job to somehow fix it by being an impeccable child. It's also not that uncommon for someone to look at the way heroes and Good People are often portrayed in media and feel that it's a pinnacle they could never reach. "How could I ever be a good person when I sometimes have these mean thoughts. And sometimes I do good things for my own ego rather than a wholesome reason. And sometimes I get scared and don't do anything. A Good Person always does the right thing even when they're scared, etc"
These types of thoughts and feelings are not unique to religious types and religious people are NOT the only ones who will take advantage of these types of insecurities in others, but religion can channel and cement these types of thoughts. Sometimes a person grows out of these types of fears and insecurities as they grow older, but sometimes a person doubles down. They want to believe there's a Meaning to it, that it's a test of character or that it's some sort of internal True Morality. People tie it to their religion to justify why they feel the way they do, they enforce those feelings on other people, they grow resentful of people who don't seem to be afraid, who don't have a little voice in their head always telling them that they're somehow failing, they make themselves believe that even if they can't save themselves they can save others by guiding them on the "right path". Sometimes these people grow up to become religious authorities, sometimes they grow up to be parents who forcefully project their insecurities onto their children. On the flip side, there are other people who will be drawn to religion, not because they believe anything or feel bad about themselves, but because they see a bunch of people they can easily exploit and rally to a cause of their choosing.
My TLDR: Why do so many religions, even besides Christianity, incorporate and weaponize feelings of guilt? Because humans ARE religion, we create it, and because guilt and fear and self-loathing are powerful human emotions. The greed to twist a narrative to our own personal beliefs is also very human.
As for the second part, why does Indika say she doesn't *really* have a choice? In the environment Indika grew up in, she is basically considered property of her father, and family reputation and honor is everything. In these types of small communities you aren't going to survive a winter without the goodwill and cooperation of your neighbors. Indika's father has just killed a boy, that boy was a member of an already persecuted minority and it was in defense of his store, but it still isn't going to look good for him. There's likely going to be conflict from that. On top of that, Indika is no longer a virgin and she's set in what was likely an arranged marriage. Even if the marriage goes through as planned, her groom is soon going to find out, and then what happens to her? Best case scenario is that she's publicly disgraced, everyone will find out, this will not help her fathers reputation and the pride of her bridegroom will be seriously wounded and his family could demand compensation from her father. Worst case, any sort of abuse you can imagine from a man who now has total control of her life. Or, she could 'choose' to go to a convent, something her father likely had to pay for since they clearly didn't want her, and spend the rest of her days praying for her father's soul. She becomes a pious and filial daughter, her basic needs will be met, she's safe from the judgement and anger of the local townsfolk.
She could run away by herself of course, as long as she's not afraid of being eaten by wild animals, getting ill and dying of exposure, starving to death, being grabbed by a soldier or any other man as free property, being sold into slavery, etc. So, like she said, how much of a choice is this? It's the choice between the tsar and the butcher all over again, but she doesn't even get the gold.
@Eventide215 While I am sure there are many households like that, to paint the entire religion as 'guilt" is just wrong. Christianity is not about feeling guilty, it is about finding genuine forgiveness for your wrongs, and striving to improve yourself.
Not guilt.
"They all look kind of angled..."
"Like a roof."
Got me good.
Apparently a “yellow ticket” was an informal name of personal identification of a prostitute in the Russian Empire between 1843 and 1909. The document combined an ID card, a resident permit, a license to practice prostitution, and the prostitute’s medical check-up card. Very cool to learn because of this game/ an SGS video! Also crazy to see how well-regulated and normalized the profession was throughout history.
1:55:50
New SGS just dropped, I can finally eat dinner!
poor creature, hasn't eaten since the last SGS episode
For four hours?
@@LilySchmidt Big meal
@@OGWBIMB good for you 💜
My favorite subgenre of SGS videos is the ones where Jesse finds a super interesting title to show to Alex & Davis and then just sits back and enjoys them figuring the game out
2:13:42 "he could have just made me in a way he would've liked me."
this.
I have been starved for SGS.
And now we piggies can feast for 4 hours.
"Despite everything, it's still you"
I was looking into the meaning of this game, although pretty straight forward I believe, and a reddit post summed it up best: "Once she opens the artifact and finds it empty, she loses faith; no matter how many coins you gather, there is no reward at the end. Suffering for faith is worthless. She doesn't have to pretend anymore. There is no Devil or God; it's just her, alone with her thoughts."
I think there’s also something to the ending skill tree portion of the game where, if you’re playing it as a Gamer™️ would, you’re likely picking multipliers that should theoretically mean more piety points, which more points = better person. but the names of the skills that you commit yourself to in each cycle of the level up; shame, regret, grief, are emblematic of all the things indika is running from and trying to reconcile with her crisis of faith
that messed with me so bad when i was playing 😂
my gamer instincts were going against my "but this ones good!!" instincts
Thank you very much for the video SGS!
Thank YOU for watching and supporting our antics
god this game rules. clearly such a labour of love. and it’s so strange and silly in ways while also being really meaningful and critical in its theming. just so good!
the song that the crazy old lady whistled when she's staring at you is Prokofiev - Dance of the Knights
That was a fantastic experience. This game is like a good arthouse film: a bit jank, but hits all the notes its makers went for.
i was literally thinking "man, i'm really interested in indika but i don't know if i have time to play it myself" a couple days ago, thank you for reaching into my brain and posting this video
its a three hour game.
I don't get that idea.. You don't have the time to play it yourself, but you have the time to watch a video on it? Isn't that the same thing essentially? You don't have to play it all in one sitting either.
@@Eventide215A person can play a video while doing other work. Much like listening to a podcast or an audiobook, it's in the background, whereas playing a video game requires active interaction.
@@Airosteh5th Why would you specifically watch a game playthrough just to only listen to it as if it's a podcast? Podcasts exist for that..
@@Eventide215The point wasn't that people listen to it "audio only", the point was that it's in the background. Like watching TV, I guess. I watch on my phone while working on my laptop, for example, so yeah I can "watch" the video, but I'm working on a different screen.
I love how the initial discussion the boys had about the idea that the games should be inherently fun is precisely the theme explored in another psychodelic Russian game, "Pathologic".
"A lot of people weren't in a lot of things after son of mask" is a hilarious roast.
Another interesting dynamic between Indika and Ilya that feels so poignant is their competing backstories and motivations. Indika is a nun, on the surface seeming extremely devout, but is at odds with the “devil” inside her. And Ilya is an escaped convict, who should be branded forever by his crimes but has had God “tell” him he is basically a walking miracle. They’re traveling together because they both see something they lack in the other based on these surface level things. Ilya needs Indika for her Christ-like life, so she can lead him to his salvation. Indika needs Ilya because if he, a felon on the lam, can be saved, so should she.
That ending feels so powerful because like Alex said, they’re coming from opposite ends of the spectrum - both spiritually and from their past - but come to the same conclusion: it doesnt fucking matter.
the Chris machine call back was incredible
Imagine Faith with this game engine... Truly terrifying.
Eh, I dunno. Part of what makes Faith so horrifying IS the art style
@CaroGo true. The robotic voices and the rotoscope animation makes it all very creepy. But I do picture what it may look like if it had realistic graphics.
I have only seen the first 30 minutes and this is already the coolest thing I have seen all year
Holy hell what a brilliant and surreal mess, fantastic start
This ended up being less weird than I thought, but also more thoughtful and poignant.
The fact that so many people conflate simply existing in a religion with abject nightmarish horror should cause more self reflection than it does.
Yeah Christianity needs to go.
A 4 hour SGS video drops while I'm trying to finish my med school applications... I'm just going to choose to forget I've seen this for a while........ (or not)
Good luck with admission!
Good luck and protip: start studying for the USMLE early. It's so hard dude
Good luck!
Did you pass?
The 2 devils on Davis' shoulders
Devil: Just leave, points don't matter
Horny Devil: Shake it! We gotta get to 10 thousand!
Jesse, I just have to say that your Goldar impression at the end was incredible.
I so greatly appreciate the longer lets plays Jesse. Thank you!
come for the scary game squad, stay for the philosophical and theology talk squad
Spectacular game.
I grew up in an intensely religious family, became agnostic as I made my way through college with time to think for myself.
I wish when "the devil" says "evil!? There's not a drop of evil in despondency, avarice, or bawdry"
I wish they'd upped her black belt level enough to explore ideas better.
"silver tongue. You pick bad words and hopelessness to speak on. But convenient to say nothing on Unnecessary infliction of suffering. Of rapist pedophiles and mass murderers."
Would have loved to hear his rebuttal.
Usually I'm unsatisfied with the level these ideas are engaged on. It's usually non religious/ barely religious people who are capable of low level idea exploration like "wait, wouldn't hell be the party place?"
Just unequipped. Uneducated of the opponent they intend to do black belt philosopical ju jitsu with.
Indika did great though. The bit about free will and the Tsar. Very fun.
And every time the "devil" would lawyer up on her. Loved it.
I even think their best line was criminally un emphasized. "Good and evil are lines on a thermometer. God and Satan, that's just you."
Because personally I think good and evil exist objectively. I think God and Satan at their best REPRESENT these things. And at their worst you're stuck in a monastery fetching pails of holy water to collect pointless points.
That's just me tho
You guys need to get Brett in on the scary game squad. His commentary and reactions would be golden.
Who brett
@@jinglejamgle he does the super beard bros with alex. Very expressive and entertaining individual.
Brett's great. Love the way he laughs
18:46 "I kinda trust Satan"
A wild thing to say 😈
Then free him from the USB 🤭
Speedy Nunzales dude.
did I seriously find a video essay about this game, get curious, look for a video of someone playing the game, AND FIND A VIDEO FROM 6HOURS AGO?
algorithm working right
@@0ldar It's creepy sometimes. I watched a video of a lumberjack sawing challenge and the next day got ads for Husqvarna and Stihl. I've never needed or wanted a chainsaw.
@@claytonreeves150 eh its not that deep, they just connected the subject of the video with ads, hoping for a shot in the dark. i turn off all custom tracking where possible personally tho, cuz it is creepy ultimately yea lol
oh so mac tonight was the appetizer and now we get to FEAST!! four hours is unreal, i can't wait to dive in, thank you squad
"Smaragda's a name from somewhere."
"Europe."
...And this was considered enough information.
Yes! I've been waiting for this ever since Jesse played the demo!
The gamification of church is actually better and wanted. Good thing 3 holy men brought these gifts.
Sometimes I forget that Alex is really, really smart/educated. The art history nerd in me was so happy when he talked about icons :)
Not sure if anyone else already posted, but at 3:11:33 the reverend mother? is whistling the dance of the knights from Romeo and juliet, by Sergei prokofiev (1935)
oh hell yes!! i have been binging the more recent SGS episodes and was hoping for a new one soon! 4 hours! wowee! thanks guys!!
With Davis piloting Speedy Nunzales this video was way to short. Really cool game I never would have known about if it wasn't for you guys.
a four hour SGS, what a treat! I'm really looking forward to this weird and wonderful game journey with my favorite boys.
also, petition to make "whatever! I'm a fresh-faced babe" the next t-shirt.
A friend of mine kept recommending this game to me and finally caved. This game was so weird and different. I loved it. Been hoping Jesse played it somehow. Looking forward to seeing their interpretations.
1:51:04 the idea of Johnny Bravo hitting on nun is hilarious but also extremely in character
i'm surprised they didn't recognize the tune the old lady nun was whistling. it's the dance of the knights
Today I am blessed as well, Jesse... by all of the Scary Game Squad!
So from what i've seen it seems there's Americans, British and othere western forces fighting in the "White Army", an international coalition of forces and Russians opposing the Russian revolution in 1917. After the revolution broke out, Russia had been at war with Germany and Austria and suffured great losses. International forces wanted to stop the spread of Communusim and protect the remaining monachies of Europe. There's an awesome game called "Last Train Home" about the true story of a Czech White Army Company making a crazy train ride across Russia to escape the Bolsheviks.
this might be one of the few SGS i miss cause i really want to play the game for myself but hope you had fun!
What a treat guys!!! thank you sop much!!
to be fair, Davis as a nun would honestly boost the church's standing.
Just searched up SGS for the first time on years and found this. The wave of nostalgia. Glad to be back.
That was SO good! Thank you for playing. ❤
Truly idgaf if this game ends up not even being scary because these characters and setting are so fucking intriguing!
The tricycle racing mini-game gave me some serious NES R.C. Pro-Am vibes, which is awesome because I spent HOURS and HOURS trying to master that game as a kid. BRB, firing up an emulator.
Ooooo this is fascinating.. only midway through, its so interesting so far. What a treat of a game?? As always its a delight to watch you guys play
Got tell my boss I gotta go on break for a few hours cause of this. Don't worry they'll understand.
This was a real treat. Thank you for uploading it in one piece!
The voice and the conversations between it and Indika remind me of Disco Elysium.
So happy to see you guys come at this game with the squad
insane steampunk bike: yeah looks legit
a hopper dumping out its contents in an industrial setting: that doesn't seem like real tech to me/it's like too...advanced/it's like dinotopia
I only say these things out of love
Ok I don't know who else watched the movie Twister on vhs back in the day but there was a little clip with Taz and Bugs Bunny right before the feature film and there was a wind blowing sound in that short that I keep hearing in this game and it's tripping me out lol
Just came back to watching sgs after life just kinda aged me out of UA-cam for a couple years. I went back to the beginning of the playlist and PT came out 10 YEARS AGO. I watched Jesse, totalbiscuit(R.I.P. and long live your memory John), and dodger since before that game ever came out and I just can’t believe that Mr Jesse cox here has provided entertainment for me for over half of my life. Thank you so much for providing me with smiles during my hardest times for the last 13 years Jesse!
We all appreciate you endlessly
With the devil voice and the Cryptmaster from Cryptmaster, I'm glad we're more creepy dude narrators
Indika: The adventures of Speedy Nunzales
apparently when hay is compressed when wet it can spontaneously combust, which is why it's so important for the hay to dry for a few days without rain after cutting it before baling it up. a reason why so many hay barns catch fire is the hay getting wet. Source- my uncle is an alfalfa farmer. Also, he might've been pulling my leg, so... do with that what you will XD but if it's true, than it makes sense why they'd try to keep the snow off their hay piles. and if not, than it'd probably mold and go bad
i cant say for sure on the fire thing, physics be wild sometimes. but 100% hay goes rotten *fast* when wet.
4 hours of Scary Game Squad? Jesse is spoiling us.
I literally had to replay 22:55 like three times to make sure that actually happened
I put on a SHS video without paying attention to how long it is. So it wasn't until 35 mins in, when I had to pause for a phone call, that I realized it's 4 hours long. That much in and I'm sucked in to this interesting and different spooky game.
Also I wish I was as lucky as Davis to have these voices, known as Jesse and Alex, in their head.
Scary Game Squad encountered a slavic-style storytelling; it's a rare thing sadly as a lot of games in this style aren't famous AAA titles (Witcher 3 probably comes the closest, but it's a lot more western).
Fascinating - worth a rewatch. Love these depressive "Eastern" games. Pathologic 2 (or 1) could be a good SGS play, maybe.
this weird game has such a charm to it... Like i feel like i am back 20 years when a game was just a game that i would play through and enjoy without any bs attached.
1:15:15 "Indika could easily tell a 5mm wrench from a 40mm one just by looking at them"
I enjoy that little joke. She must be so knowledgeable to know that the 8 times larger wrench is, in fact, the larger one.
Not to brag, but I know a lot about animals. I could tell a cat from a lion just by looking at them.
Speedynunzales from the Nunderverse goes hard
this game starts amazing, but at the end kinda defaults to a regular walking simulator, it had still crazy scenes, but it's like it forgot about them the more it went on
Damn, youtube really destroyed these dark scenes. The coal pit is borderline unwatchable. Its a Black and grey blocky mess. or is it my pc srewing this up? does anyone else have this problem?
Edit: Ok its UA-cam compressing the video because of the static black areas on screen.
"Are you afraid of heights?!"
Walks of the cliff immediately...
There’s so much SGS to catch up on and this one’s taking some time!
One of the best ones, imo.
You guys turned my day around, thanks for posting this
New SGS means an easier closing shift for me 💛 thank you gor keeping me company lads 💛
What a fantastic game and play-through. It's good to have the SGS back making long form content. As always very funny and entertaining. Hope to see more :)
God bless you jesse for always dropping a scary game squad right when i really need it. I love you man.
This game has stuck with me so much since I played it a few months ago so seeing this pop up in my feed was delightful, can't wait to see our take on it because I really loved it :)
Finally he plays it! I have been waiting! 😮
Was hoping you guys would tackle this one. Amazing.
Man, I've been so stressed at work lately, this is perfect to unwind to
3:11:34 she's whistling march of the knights from Romeo and Juliet
I do encourage Alex to come to Finland if he wants smoked fish.
My family fishes and smoke fish ourselves.
So much so in the slightly older days that my dad is still thoroughly fed up with smoked fish. He does not want to eat it.
:o Scary squad hype! Much love from London!
3:04:30 I was like wtf is that man sideways? took the lads a while to notice xD
Oh wow, this feels like a game that has a better way of showing schizophrenia, than anxiety-inducing Hellblade2. I couldn't stomach HB2 with non-stop whispers, but should check out Indika - since it has a less depressing demeanor.
FOUR HOUR SGS YEEEAAAHHHH! Been goin through it, needed something like this! Thanks, boys!
this game is an artpiece honestly, love it ty for playing! ^~^