This is less of a game and more of an interactive nature documentary set on an alien world. The lack of real gameplay means it won’t appeal to everyone, but I absolutely love it. The alien ecosystem they’ve created is fascinating and you really get invested in the fate of the weird alien whales. The game is split into 4 chapters and if you only watch one then I’d highly recommend the third one from 24:32 onwards (it gets incredibly intense). You might also want to check out 11:40 first though to learn about the whale’s biology.
Hey thank you so much for covering my visual novel! Getting exposure for a weird art project like this has always been challenging. I’m sitting in a restaurant dish pit right now having a moment reading all the kind comments 😄
You're very welcome, but I should really be thanking you. That's one of the most wonderful experiences I've had all year. The artwork, worldbuilding and storytelling were all phenomenal. You had me on the edge of my seat while I worried about the fate of that weird little alien whale. Awesome work. Can't wait for part 2! :)
You really killed it with the story, i am not a fan of visual novels, but this had me quite engaged, that universe you created looks really intriguing!
You did a great job with your choice of diction and writing, I felt like this could have been a real nature documentary. The art and sound design was great as well, you had so many layers of storytelling and world building that one could forget it's all fiction.
@unbridledstorm3 i mean, "accurate" as a term doesn't really work for alien life speculation lol the whole point is we have literally no way of knowing what alien life would look like. it could be literally anything hence the term "alien"
The fact that the whale couldn't make what would likely be the best choice due to what essentially amounts to PTSD but eventually finds it's place with a fellow misfit is just incredible to see, great thanks to the developers!
@@TacticalAnthonyIdk if this even counts as a spoiler, but since one of the official summaries mentioned "Revenge" specifically and the whale that mentors him is combat focused, I'm willing to bet our Brillo is going toe to toe with a Penumbra Shark at some point.
The art direction in this is top notch. Its mostly realistic style combined with the few anthropomorphizations of the animals and the sudden bursts of expressionism in key moments made it a super immersive watch for me.
I think the anthropomorphism fits since this is a whale so it's smart. Add the setting of the future it can be viewed that the whale just think like this
When the octopus knew "what must done," I fully expected this to be the end of our little whale. In fact, it looked like that at first. Octopus: *finds the soft spot* Stabby stabby!
No, they didn’t. Edit: I contacted the creator directly and he commented that he used the following as his main sources of inspiration and research: “ The Codex Seraphinianus, Evangelion, Fanastic Planet, Asimov Foundations, everything Studio Ghibli are what first jump to mind. Higurashi and Planetarian are why I believe visual novels are a great source. I feel like I could name so much fiction and illustrators really.”
@AuranCrash What evidence do you have asides from the video? Did you read interviews? Or explore the dev logs? The animation is a work of imagination. None of this is real: it’s completely science fiction- Even though its science fiction, it has some VERY BASIC biology that anyone who went through highschool should remember. That doesnt mean doing your homework; thus my argument: No They Did Not From the creator: “ The Codex Seraphinianus, Evangelion, Fanastic Planet, Asimov Foundations, everything Studio Ghibli are what first jump to mind. Higurashi and Planetarian are why I believe visual novels are a great source. I feel like I could name so much fiction and illustrators really.””
@AuranCrash also, by the way, in case you were not aware: the audio was developed via AI tools. What makes you so confident it wasnt WRITTEN with the aid of chatGPT. If youre game enough to get a fake voice actor, why stop there? Again, its imagination and has very scant evidence of serious homework on biology. You should refrain your comment and change it to ‘speculative biology’
I have a feeling this is going to turn into an internet argument solely because the instigator made a comment which seemed rude with a less noble cause rather than trying to explain their cause for this point in the first place. Only using complex vocabulary and a more intellectual response just as a means to justify yourself after you've been called out doesn't seem good either, and further action of what may be perceived as derogation to both the original commenter and the person who replied to the instigator only worsens this effect. Do better next time, but I'll be curious to see your replies in the future. Nice videos tho, Sonny.
Did anyone feel it was appropriate that the calf took the armor/chitin plan from the old bull that had the sharks jaw fixed to its armor? Feels like its foreshadowing.
I've got a feeling too that the young whale will one day become a hunter and killer of sharks as he associates all sharks with the death of his mother and the brutal killing of another young whale. It doesn't mean that he'll be a violent exile like the old bull though.
@girlgarde sounds about right, maybe he'll stalk the ocean where his mother died and protect other migrating brillos from penumbra sharks and other baddies
It's a testament to how amazingly realistic this work was created that my brain immediately saw this and replied, " yeah, but it's a nature documentary, there's no guarantee- oh right, it's a story".
This is genuinely jawdropping. The detail, the genuine display of an understanding of biology. The tension of the story, despite just being a documentary of alien whales.
I love all the little details! 'It's one of the only long lived cephalopods that has not been culled.' 'Cephalopods who survive so long possess a devious intelligence.' It's such a well fleshed-out world that even those little lines thrown in give me chills!
I think I saw somewhere before that the only thing limiting an Octopus’ intelligence is their lifespan, which is really short. So it’s very feasible for a long lived octopus to be really intelligent
Also octopuses can hold a grudge, and I wonder if this super old, super intelligent octopus that possibly witnessed the mass extermination of other octopus species will come back in the possible sequel as the calf's companion and cause trouble to the researchers.
@@panthera9151I don’t think humans ‘culled’ all the long living octopus species. I think it’s referring to how most ‘immortal’ organisms don’t actually live forever because they die in other ways, long living octopus *individuals* probably usually get hunted or die in other ways before they reach 4 centuries old, that’s what they mean by culling
@@youtubealt243 interesting take because there have been several lines in this that point to some sort of possibly alien intelligence masterminding things behind the scenes -- the whole 'sister earth planet life was directly planted from earth's superior genetic code' (58:30 ish) and the entire existence of this science project being humans "conscripted" to find ways to improve the extinction vortex for a small group of something vaguely referred to as "our forebearers" (1:01:45 ish) both definitely point to an actual intentional higher power cultivating things. so honestly, i do think the octupuses were culled by the same thing that did the above stuff. (also because, culled is an incredibly *intentional* verb; it indicates killed *with purpose*, not just extinction)
Is the research team perhaps responsible for the calf's mother's death? The documentary states that they have a drone accompanying the pod, a drone whose purpose is to provide lighting. Did it attract the penumbra shark? Did it provide the penumbra shark a better view of the pod than it normally would have had?
No,if you watch 18:55 the mother is wounded and thus late to start the journey, otherwise she would have traveled with biger group which would lower the risk of shark attack (even if you have brain of a goldfish,you won't take what essentialy a pod of tool using sperm whale lightly) The shark attack is a constant variabel,what changed from the norm is the departure time of "grass" mother,that's why she stall the journey until other late mother whale show up,in hope of having others help guarding the young one P.s : irl average shark hearing range is 20 to 300 Hz while irl whale call usually went from 10 to 40 Hz,so every call the Brillo whale made would alert the shark regardless of drone
Honestly I think it was a blessing in disguise for the group as a whole because the shark probably kept away smaller predators that would have easily infiltrated such a small defense formation
@@Friendofthescavsthe problem there is that the shark is probably on of the few things that could kill a calf if given the chance we never really saw anything else but hey maybe the shark scared off pests
@@victory8928 I mean individually yeah, but a small swarm of animals that alone would be a annoyance at best could quickly become dangerous in larger groups. Especially to baby animals. Like cookie cutter sharks. Edit: basically, mosquitoes kill (not even including the diseases they may give when saying that)
I'd love for them to make a game of evolution, the full cycle of a Brillo whale. Not a documentary (although I loved it) but a game where you play as one, from start to finish, having to travel, decide what garden you will have, and such. I'd also like for then to visit the animals on the continents, i imagine it would be pretty fun. But the rhing I want the most, is the game that I mentioned fr
I imagine it as sort of a mix between Dredge and Maneater but much more chilled out than either. Of course with the need to survive and deal with predators of course and little bits of tension like that. But still overall calming like tending a garden. I imagine it like if man-eater was chill and had an actual choice driven rpg story. Also mixed with a bit of cloud gardens! Bonus if you can document the creatures and plants you find and it’s kept in a stylized notebook like those kept by a marine biologist like in the game In Other Waters!
@@nosebleed1826 It would be cool to have a multiplayer game about Brillo whales and start as a juvenile and have to choose what plants and animals you would want to co habitat with you but it's a much safer process to receive from adult donors but you can still take thing from the surrounding environment but there would be more chances of giving you complications. I would love it if the game would make it that what type of plant or animals you co habit with will affect you're survival, health, speed, social, deffence, the amount of nutrients you need, what type of food the garden will allow you to eat, and then the combination of you're brillos unique ecosystem will decide if it's beneficial for both parties or is parasitic, and you will need to tend to you're garden or ecosystem to maximize bennifit or to reduce the chances of giving you complication or illness, and the game has to be an open world game.
A visual novel sounds like the perfect fit for this You get the artwork and narration, but you make decisions at certain moments in the whale's life that set it's path forward
This is very accurate well done I agree. Great looking game and I think using speculative biology is a great precursor for this style of game and hope to see more from them.
Yes, the amount of research which must have gone into making this work of speculative biology feel authentic is remarkable. Love all the comparisons to real Earth counterparts and the depth in which they explain everything about the ecosystem. Can't wait for part 2.
I'm currently in a zoology college course and this feels like the most interesting and magical lesson on whales I've ever seen. Terrified at what the exam would look like though.
A white whale, a blank canvas for which experiences and choices shape and color an end result... Art, beautiful and raw, horrifying and glorious, sorrowful and wonderous. This is a fantastic piece of work, the writing and story building is brilliant. I love it.
That was one HELL of a speculative biology story and the creativity put into the Brillo Whales was awe-inspiring. It also does what few speculative biology stories do, which is to posit that if there IS alien life in the universe it would have developed a similar biology to Earth's, since certain things in chemistry and physics are universal. But that still leaves room for vast differences. The Brillo Whales are actually just an extreme version of what happens to whales on Earth, with a twist. A lot of baleen whales are host to a variety of large organisms, some symbiotic and some parasitic. But sperm whales, upon which the Brillo most closely resembles? They are much less tolerant of barnacles and other macroorganisms living on them, possibly because unlike baleen whales they are hunters, and excess drag would be a major issue for a predator. But under a different set of evolutionary pressures? They ended up a far more extreme version of even the most encrusted baleen whale. Instead of chasing down prey, Brillos are ambush predators, and rather than hunting deep in abyssal waters, Brillos hunt very close to the surface. The author of South Scrimshaw should seriously take a bow, they *really* did their homework, and this is from someone that has a PhD in biochemistry.
If you watch it in its entirety, it is said that the alien whales are cousins of Earth whales. The panspermia that occurred from Earth to 3 other Earth-like planets seems to be the biggest scientific mystery in this speculative near future lol
@@Infiny92 I did watch the whole thing. The panspermia is one of the only things that broke immersion because that requires things we have no evidence of at all. It was one of the only handwaves in the entire thing.
@@RANDALCOMING Yes. This sort of extreme symbiosis isn't actually unknown on Earth, and part of Southern Scrimshaw, I think, is to keep the speculative biology grounded in Earth biology. The panspermia aspect is handwaving why Earth-like biology might appear on habitable exoplanets. The Brillo Whales take a lot of existing biology, take it a few steps further, add some imagination grounded in biological theory and fact, and this was the result. It's brilliant from a storytelling perspective, too; their symbiosis has a ton of variation, allowing for the formation of tribes, subspecies, and makes for VERY easy identification of individuals to the viewer.
@@ArchTeryx00 The idea of society having to deal with intentional (presumably sapient-driven) panspermia adds to the desperate existentialism of the human side of the setting, at least IMO.
"Two researchers start a heated discussion on the ethics of intervention." Ah, humanity. You never fail to make me feel hope. BOTH of the researchers make me feel hope. Of course it's an impossible situation, but the humanity is shown in the debate happening at all.
That part made me feel better because I was SO devastated at not one but two deaths, and the humans are just there watching. I do think that humans should intervene when it comes to orphaned babies, as long as it doesn't kick off some sort of ecological disaster.
@@emilyharvey4930 you will kill me for this, but, in nature, very rarely is intervention the right thing to do. If we save every animal that fails to survive, then their children will also fail, and so on, and so on, until the gene pool is absolutely fucked. Death of the individual is a necessary evil for the life of the species as a whole
At first i was wondering about the lack of gameplay but the moment they started describing the symbiotic relationship that the brillo whales have with their forest i got hooked on this!
I just realized, while the reason the calf immediately felt comfortable with the old lone killer might be because he's his father, it could also be because its armored-skin enhancement is akin to his stepmom.
It is more obvious that the calf previously rejected joining shark pack because he hated&scared of sharks now. Of course he’s gonna grow comfortable with a decorated shark slayer.
@@SleepingInGrass In the past couple years a genre of pseudo-incest porn has been made popular. In these instead of actual incest the characters will be with their step-family instead, even in cases where that is clearly not what the term means, such as having two step-parents who are married to each other. So when I saw him confuse the term step-mom for something which it is not, I drew the conclusion that he watched that kind of porn (which in itself is something of an inside joke in certain circles of the internet). It's where the phrase, "What are you doing step-bro?" comes from. Hopefully that fully answers your question 👍
"one of the only long lived cephalopods that has not been culled." What does this mean? Who is culling them? The humans? Are some cephalopods becoming too intelligent? Do the humans consider them a potential threat? A potential competing civilization? I need more information on this!
Yes I love the little worldbuilding details like that, like the documentary doesn’t even bother explaining it because they assume the audience already understands. I love that type of stuff in stories. I think that yes the humans were culling them perhaps because they viewed them as threats, maybe the cephalopods already had a civilization or society and that’s why the humans culled them before they might become a threat. Maybe even there were octopuses that were thousands of years old since they don’t age as the narrator says
That's not the scary part. The animals on Aria are seeded from Earth and that one octopus is said to be centuries old. It's currently only "more than a century" from 1962. In conclusion, it's not human who seeded the planet with animals from Earth. Seems like humans are being ruled over by an advanced and dying species of "forebearers".
Most cephalopods irl are super intelligent but live extremely short lives, cause of this some people think that cephalopods intelligence is hampered by their age and that should they get older that means they also get far more intelligent. I think the game implies that on this planet long lived cephalopods exist(ed) and because of their intelligence were a nuisance/danger to humans and killed off.
the cut to the weaverlobe made me cackle because how its just there like staring edit: chowper is a mood. also, i dont know if this is intentional or there was a change in writing between making the subtitles and having the narrator read them, but having the lines not match the subtitles in the later parts scares me more than anything else could
there's a dark undertone to this that fascinated me, and that was where it really amped up for me. the subtitles are much more "public consumption" while you hear about more shady or profit oriented motives. and the part about how most long-lived cephalopods (which means very, very intelligent creatures that may be people at this point) are almost all "culled"...
Spec evo documentaries need to make a comeback. Mockumentaries like "The Future is Wild" and "Alien Planet"(based on Barlowe's "Expedition") were great, but imagine if they were made with modern effects
Honestly, this is wonderfully immersive, complex, tragic, but informative. This game is a welcome addition to the world of speculative evolution, if I so do so myself.
If I was a brillo I’d probably choose the barnacle claw garden. They do the foraging for me and in return I keep moving them around to better feeding grounds. That way they still get food after I’ve had my fill and vice versa. It’s a win win in my book. If you were a brillo what organisms would you want tagging along?
Being the stealth octopus one seemed really cool, and pretty chill and easy as long as you can find spots with good food. This whole thing also makes me wonder how far things could go if the overseers of these planets just left long-lived octopuses alone and let them become "people". Sapient octopuses being able to partner with brillos, learning how they work and then further manipulating and directing their symbiosis, along with even being able to learn to address the whale's issues and both improve already good strategies while stabilizing and mitigating the risks of others would be crazy.
@@captain_buggles Imagine if the brillo cafe ran into a juvenile member of the same species of octopus the exiled brillo was with as a traveling companion? I can imagine initially the octopus only sticking for protection. Something like- Where not friends just to let you know. I’m only tagging along with you for protection because your bigger then me. But over time as the brillo cafe gets older and becomes a more experienced hunter the octopus gains a mutual respect for them and acts as a scouting parter much like the one who gave the brillo cafe the armor fragment.
@@soup-flavored-soup6613 This actually gives me an idea. Coral armor + fast, nimble, aggressive fish that nest in the coral Bonus if the fish evolve to be smart enough to learn a few different commands. Like if they can at least understand "attack", "retreat", "hide", "group up", "spread out", and "search", I'd be satisfied with that. Something too fast for me? Something trying to harrass me? GOONS, SIC EM.
I cried three times for this movie, nearly jumpedout of my chair twice and jumped out of my chair once, this is the best movie i have ever seen! I honestly cannot wait for phase two! ❤❤❤
I really enjoy how much the brillo whale resembles the decorator crabs that dress themselves with sponges, anemones, and other stuff they find and like to camouflage themselves
this was so good that instead of leaving it as background noise like usual i dropped everything to give it my full attention. so happy to hear theres gonna be a part two! thanks for covering it
Bro I didn't read the alien part I mean I thought that was just a metaphor.. I thought this was a real documentary about whale evolution or something 💀
As someone who grew up proactively watching nature documentaries, this is a beautiful mimicry of both the style and presentation of the best ones. From the passionate language towards the animal kingdom, to the subtle hints that the research is struggling with funding, it feels immeasurably realistic. I sincerely hope the author continues this series.
Very beautifully done. I hope we get to see more soon. I found it particularly sad when the mother whale died from her reopened wounds saving her calf from the shark, but thought it was very sweet how the calf befriended the lonely, outcast old bull and discovered his rightful armor.
Honestly, my favourite world building aspect of this Interactive Speculative Biology Story is that of the Corporation For Earth Media and the socio-cultural implications for humanity given that the whole piece looks less like National Geographic and more like a PBS documentary or something from the National Film Board Of Canada. The simple, unassuming fonts and graphics, coupled with the music brings me back to the kind of educational programs that I used to watch as a child. It also gives me the sense that the humanity of this time period is substantially calmer, more rational, and less prone to the kind of needlessly destructive behaviour that we see today. There's a phlegmatic comfort to this; a humble and gentle approach to the simple realities of nature and the many millions of stories, with their ups and downs and ups again, that soothes the soul.
Fantastic stuff - I especially like the hints at broader story elements. Suppression of information/theories, interplanetary species seeding, eradication of species hyper intelligent/long-lived species etc.
Yeah the "culling" part is ominous. Out of all the animals in the kingdom the animals I never want to make my enemy are corvids and octopus! They're fucking smart and can hold grudges.
Please more of this. I could literally have so much more of this. It's so facinating. The way it's delivered, animated, the level of actual biological based detail and intricate intriguing attributes. I'm beyond captivated.
This was amazing! the idea of a species completely relying on symbiosis was executed nicely and believable. The art is gorgeous and the many different whales were very unique, and the story itself was surprisingly entertaining with the biology being very intriguing. Looking forward to part 2.
Watched it from start to "fishness". get it, ABG? what a bizarre emotional rollercoaster. I did not expect to enjoy a visual novel documentary this much about alien space whales. I actually really want to see part 2 asap. The female narrator minus the accent sounds so familiar.
i think this is the second time Ive said this in a comment on ABG this year, but this is the best thing I've seen on ABG so far, which is an incredible bar to clear. This is a masterpiece. Nathan O. Marsh has a grasp of speculative xenobiology that the majority of professional writers could only wish for. My father is a science fiction novelist and I'm going to email this to him today.
@@Infiny92 many things, first of all he could use bioluminescence as a lure to attract large quantities of smaller prey. he could also use it as a weapon depending on how bright he could become all of a sudden, this would be especialy effective against light sensitive species. and probably many more possibilities that I haven't even tought of
I love the idea of the whale having a little crew 1:08:00 And thus our little whale goes on to exact vengeance on all sharks, like a little whale batman
“Maybe having a little apprentice killer won’t be so bad” is just a beautiful line and resolution to this part of the story. It really ties together and gives relief to all the anxiety presented throughout the story, the entire second half builds up the worry of the calf not getting a symbiotic relationship and mentor, the calf falling into unknown waters, the presentation of the exile and the silence makes you hold your breath until suddenly in one fell swoop it’s all resolves. The calf gets his mentor, he won’t go crazy and gets to become a badass shark killer to face his fears. And the old whale gets companionship it hasn’t had in who knows how long. Beautiful
I spent this whole time feeling like I'm actually living in this universe, experiencing sympathies and realizations as if I were watching a vidoc about dolphins or sharks. This world building is truly some of the greatest I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing.
the game in other waters sounds pretty similar to what you're describing- you play as a biologist on an alien planet attempting to catalogue the life you find (and search for someone who led you to the planet). the speculative biology is beautifully thought out and there are plenty of species to discover.
I’m so invested in this it’s speculative evolution at its finest and mixed with a documentary and (technically makes me think about of the ocean tree speculative evolution idea (Basically a whale that has a whole mini ecosystem on it and either it’s like this or the whale is upside down while life is on it.))
36:22 what makes this worse is that unlike the brillo calf, wich saw the whole thing play out in super slow motion, the Stone Mother would have seen her child disappear within the blink of an eye.
Not a fan of nature documentarys but this had me hooked up. The incredible art and interesting commentary is what makes up for the lack of gameplay. Overall i'll give this a 9.9/10
why not? learning or understanding animals, nature and the world around us is very fascinating & engaging! (atleast for me) maybe because i had fond memories of reading non-fictional books like encyclopedias from a school library when i was young. i'm also glad i grew up watching science/educational channels like animal planet, natgeo & discovery channel which furthered my interests in natural history
@@FritzLeAngelthat’s like me but in the way I like war technology, but I enjoy history and ancient warfare as well. Although as a kid I watched a lot of animal documentaries too
2:57 It was at this point that i wondered who originally recorded the background "wind in large structure" noise. I've heard it in so many games and now I'm curious.
I'm not sure why our Brillo whale are so depressed, other than the shark attacks and the fact that a giant metal tube thing comes and records it every day.
@@sonnyobrienyeh like you are child with friend some killer with knife he kill your friend left you saw dead of your friend you terrified and trauma tized
If megaman star force as taught me anything, it's that losing a parent makes you uselessly depressed for many years until a space alien comes along and forces you to get your life together. Er, I don't think that last part is going to be relevant here.
I’m losing my mind over how beautiful this universe is and the story made me cry. The art is absolutely stunning and the attention to detail is insane. What an incredibly immersive experience, I’m impatiently waiting for part 2
“Impatient humans” is right, I NEED a sequel to this incredible story! I was so afraid the octopus would stab and kill our whale, so I’m glad he was able to find some sort of company despite his PTSD and depression…
I was so invested is the mom and her calf journey that i was legitimately anxious at the shark attack, even cried like a lil bitch at the resolution of it too, this pseudo documentary is enthralling, from beginning to end.
The way it feels so lifelike is astounding. You get so immersed into the story, I'm commenting only halfway through and am already sold. The biology sounds so realistic yet distinct enough to be viewed as alien. The whales are varied and carry a personality purely based of their appearance and behaviour. The little ones are adorable 🥰
I wonder if our calf will become a gaurd of sorts, remaining in the breeding grounds until the straglers leave, following them and killing the shit out of anything that looks at them funny
After few minutes into this documentary, you will stop treating it as a fictional one somehow. It just goes to show how much effort the devs had put into this to make everything feel as realistic, touching, logical, emotional, and believable as possible. I always there's a climax part in every story, and despite knowing that fact, the climax part of this documentary still got me. Rip to the little Brillo whale's mommy who gave her life to shield her baby from its predator. Also, I absolutely loved that every once in a while, you get to click on a certain line of a sentence to get more info out of a certain matter/topic. They didn't have to this but they went ahead and expanded this masterpiece in every direction. Props to everyone who took part in this creative treasure.
That ending was so friken adorable. You can tell our Brillo is suffering from a form of PTSD and depression and is trying his hardest to make his way with other youth and when he meets the shark Brillo he’s so happy and safe because he knows this adult Brillo hates sharks too. A familiarity that he found in another whale.
Wow. This was such a breath of fresh air creatively. The beauty in it's simplicity and style is stunning. The story is wonderfully told-- I thoroughly enjoyed this. Congratulations!!! Beautiful!!! Bravo!
This is absolutely insanely incredible. I’ve never witnessed something quite like this before and I desperately hope I can see something like it again. Wonderful!
The scifi and world building is cool in of itself, but the subtle comments about Parent / Child relationships were really well weaved in there. I really enjoyed this, and big thanks to ABG to spreading the word on this
I haven't been so invested in sci-fi for a long time! The art and the writing is absolutely amazing. And the voice-acting and the pacing are also S+ tier!
i have to keep taking breaks because this is so intensely emotional. 900 comments in and i'm sure everyone has said my thoughts more eloquently, but i applaud this piece of art. this unrestrained creativity and courageous passion for biology and storytelling.
I came here expecting to watch some minutes, but now I see myself having finished everything from start to finish. What happened? Well that this was just captivating! So many questions unanswered! Looking forward to part 2!
I'm completely enraptured by this! I focused on whale falls in the fossil record for my dissertation, and this sort of speculative evolution is right up my alley!
Somebody paid close attention to well done documentaries and good science film strips AND bad boring ones as this one avoided those pit falls brilliantly. I hope you do more of these interactive novels, I'm hooked, no pun intended. Much thanks to ABG for showcasing this one.
The stuff alluded to about the cephalopod at the end kind of blew my mind. I can't wait for next one. The whole thing has a Cloverfield vibe. Such a rich and living world around the creatures in focus.
As someone who was fascinated by marine biology at a young age, this visual novel about speculative biology of a fictional whale species caught my interest
The two narrators did an awesome job expressing both fact and emotion! I was so fascinated by the Brillo calf's journey. The shark attack and the recall to it via the friendly sharks made my heart sink! Kinda cool how we got to see the stone mother's transformation after she lost her calf but continued surviving!
This is truly spectacular storytelling- I haven't been so immersed and intensely enthralled in a graphic story in ages. The world shown deserves it's own series of installments, I'd personally be all-for perhaps an animated series- like a similarly documentary-style series with episodes focusing on different species on the sister planets would be so cool. But even in the graphic novel style shown it shines regardless. It may as well have been animated with how well the illustrations depicted everything. Absolutely amazing, I don't know how long I'll be able to wait for a part 2 lol.
That octopus at the end definitely has seen a lot of things in its lifetime that it knew what is up when the host whale acknowledges the young one. That octopus be like: "a potential student, perhaps? Haven't had one in a long time. Let me help with that." *picks up "living armor" piece then casually stabs it on the young brillo's forehead* And I think that's a nice, hilarious way of breaking the silence. You know, a bit of comedic relief from the otherwise emotional ride
It’s interesting that they have a sociology very similar to earth whales, dolphins, and elephants. With other members of the greater pod chipping in and adopting should a calf be orphaned quite like orcas and elephants. Especially since a lot of them are actually blood relatives and are the aunts, cousins, and grandmothers of the calves.
This is less of a game and more of an interactive nature documentary set on an alien world. The lack of real gameplay means it won’t appeal to everyone, but I absolutely love it.
The alien ecosystem they’ve created is fascinating and you really get invested in the fate of the weird alien whales. The game is split into 4 chapters and if you only watch one then I’d highly recommend the third one from 24:32 onwards (it gets incredibly intense). You might also want to check out 11:40 first though to learn about the whale’s biology.
This was delightful, I love seeing speculative alien wildlife documentaries like this. Will you be doing a video on part 2 once it comes out?
Hi! Yeah will absolutely cover part 2 when it comes out. Can't wait to dive back into that fascinating world. :)
The thing I've been interested the most in is Biology and stories so this is right up my alley.
No part of this is a game. But it's cool
How dare you make me watch this without the second part already being done. Now I have to wait god knows how long for the second part.
Hey thank you so much for covering my visual novel! Getting exposure for a weird art project like this has always been challenging. I’m sitting in a restaurant dish pit right now having a moment reading all the kind comments 😄
You're very welcome, but I should really be thanking you. That's one of the most wonderful experiences I've had all year. The artwork, worldbuilding and storytelling were all phenomenal. You had me on the edge of my seat while I worried about the fate of that weird little alien whale. Awesome work. Can't wait for part 2! :)
This was a great experience, can't wait for more of this story and its world!
This has been one of the most beautiful things i have ever seen and heard, thank you
You really killed it with the story, i am not a fan of visual novels, but this had me quite engaged, that universe you created looks really intriguing!
You did a great job with your choice of diction and writing, I felt like this could have been a real nature documentary. The art and sound design was great as well, you had so many layers of storytelling and world building that one could forget it's all fiction.
This "game" it's officially a sell for me. Seriously, I love spec biology and alien life, and this means so much for me. Love how imaginative this is
Not the most accurate depiction of alien life, but in the context that it's a seed world, yeah, it's awesome!
Based ralsei pfp
@unbridledstorm3 i mean, "accurate" as a term doesn't really work for alien life speculation lol the whole point is we have literally no way of knowing what alien life would look like. it could be literally anything hence the term "alien"
@@scientificallyaccuratespino Thanks, schmuck!
It would be interesting to study the shark species on Aria.
The fact that the whale couldn't make what would likely be the best choice due to what essentially amounts to PTSD but eventually finds it's place with a fellow misfit is just incredible to see, great thanks to the developers!
Ngl, i'd like to see our little calf friend here start throwing hands at sharks, kinda like the batman of the sea
well he just realy hatessharks, and i think he is just enticed by revenge
The redemption arc of the misfit 🤟
@@TacticalAnthonyIdk if this even counts as a spoiler, but since one of the official summaries mentioned "Revenge" specifically and the whale that mentors him is combat focused, I'm willing to bet our Brillo is going toe to toe with a Penumbra Shark at some point.
@@theshamurai32 yea in like 2 decades
The art direction in this is top notch. Its mostly realistic style combined with the few anthropomorphizations of the animals and the sudden bursts of expressionism in key moments made it a super immersive watch for me.
Thanks for backing
I think the anthropomorphism fits since this is a whale so it's smart. Add the setting of the future it can be viewed that the whale just think like this
No it's Antrhopomorphization.
@@puffleoftyposCetaceomorphism 😁
I fucking LOST IT with the octopus at the end. lmao Officially my favourite character here.
For an hour.... I forgot I was watching gameplay about a fictional whale species....
So well done.
You mean so whale done?
Sorry I’ll stop now
ITS GAMEPLAY????
@@chortles8630 ok sea you later
@@chortles8630 There were alot of fishy situations.
When the octopus knew "what must done," I fully expected this to be the end of our little whale. In fact, it looked like that at first.
Octopus: *finds the soft spot* Stabby stabby!
Octopus is smart: It's got a good symbiosis going with his whale, but the whale won't live forever. Now there is a replacement whale!
I got scared too lmao, but thankfully the cycle shall continue.
Octopus be like: "This won't hurt a bit, son."
Octopus be preparing for the future right there. Gotta make a new host before the old one dies
@@vylbird8014 and with the cycle thing it probably already did this before
The developers must have seriously done their homework on biology for this game
No, they didn’t.
Edit: I contacted the creator directly and he commented that he used the following as his main sources of inspiration and research:
“ The Codex Seraphinianus, Evangelion, Fanastic Planet, Asimov Foundations, everything Studio Ghibli are what first jump to mind. Higurashi and Planetarian are why I believe visual novels are a great source. I feel like I could name so much fiction and illustrators really.”
@AuranCrash What evidence do you have asides from the video? Did you read interviews? Or explore the dev logs?
The animation is a work of imagination. None of this is real: it’s completely science fiction-
Even though its science fiction, it has some VERY BASIC biology that anyone who went through highschool should remember. That doesnt mean doing your homework; thus my argument: No They Did Not
From the creator:
“ The Codex Seraphinianus, Evangelion, Fanastic Planet, Asimov Foundations, everything Studio Ghibli are what first jump to mind. Higurashi and Planetarian are why I believe visual novels are a great source. I feel like I could name so much fiction and illustrators really.””
@AuranCrash also, by the way, in case you were not aware: the audio was developed via AI tools. What makes you so confident it wasnt WRITTEN with the aid of chatGPT. If youre game enough to get a fake voice actor, why stop there?
Again, its imagination and has very scant evidence of serious homework on biology. You should refrain your comment and change it to ‘speculative biology’
@Auran Williams thanks for backing me up
I have a feeling this is going to turn into an internet argument solely because the instigator made a comment which seemed rude with a less noble cause rather than trying to explain their cause for this point in the first place. Only using complex vocabulary and a more intellectual response just as a means to justify yourself after you've been called out doesn't seem good either, and further action of what may be perceived as derogation to both the original commenter and the person who replied to the instigator only worsens this effect. Do better next time, but I'll be curious to see your replies in the future. Nice videos tho, Sonny.
Did anyone feel it was appropriate that the calf took the armor/chitin plan from the old bull that had the sharks jaw fixed to its armor?
Feels like its foreshadowing.
Thus the Sharkslayer is born
"Far too large and rough to be called a jaw, more a heap of cartilage"
I've got a feeling too that the young whale will one day become a hunter and killer of sharks as he associates all sharks with the death of his mother and the brutal killing of another young whale.
It doesn't mean that he'll be a violent exile like the old bull though.
@girlgarde sounds about right, maybe he'll stalk the ocean where his mother died and protect other migrating brillos from penumbra sharks and other baddies
It's a testament to how amazingly realistic this work was created that my brain immediately saw this and replied, " yeah, but it's a nature documentary, there's no guarantee- oh right, it's a story".
This is genuinely jawdropping. The detail, the genuine display of an understanding of biology. The tension of the story, despite just being a documentary of alien whales.
I love how expressive the speculative wild life is. I can practically HEAR the little Whale calf saying 'OW!' at 1:10:14 !
Just love the expression on this lil guy 😂
And the octopus facepalming at 1:09:24 too!
@@davidbratland9754 I think it's more to putting it's tentacle over it's none existing eyebrows, like a gestures of see thing afar
@@augusthare Both are valid interpretations!
God, that part scared the hell out of me, I thought he just killed our little whale buddy. It was quite relieving that it was just an “implant”
I love all the little details!
'It's one of the only long lived cephalopods that has not been culled.' 'Cephalopods who survive so long possess a devious intelligence.'
It's such a well fleshed-out world that even those little lines thrown in give me chills!
I think I saw somewhere before that the only thing limiting an Octopus’ intelligence is their lifespan, which is really short. So it’s very feasible for a long lived octopus to be really intelligent
Also octopuses can hold a grudge, and I wonder if this super old, super intelligent octopus that possibly witnessed the mass extermination of other octopus species will come back in the possible sequel as the calf's companion and cause trouble to the researchers.
@@panthera9151 Exactly! I think they're alluding to some really cool, mysterious stuff in just a couple of lines. That's good storytelling.
@@panthera9151I don’t think humans ‘culled’ all the long living octopus species. I think it’s referring to how most ‘immortal’ organisms don’t actually live forever because they die in other ways, long living octopus *individuals* probably usually get hunted or die in other ways before they reach 4 centuries old, that’s what they mean by culling
@@youtubealt243 interesting take because there have been several lines in this that point to some sort of possibly alien intelligence masterminding things behind the scenes -- the whole 'sister earth planet life was directly planted from earth's superior genetic code' (58:30 ish) and the entire existence of this science project being humans "conscripted" to find ways to improve the extinction vortex for a small group of something vaguely referred to as "our forebearers" (1:01:45 ish) both definitely point to an actual intentional higher power cultivating things. so honestly, i do think the octupuses were culled by the same thing that did the above stuff. (also because, culled is an incredibly *intentional* verb; it indicates killed *with purpose*, not just extinction)
Is the research team perhaps responsible for the calf's mother's death? The documentary states that they have a drone accompanying the pod, a drone whose purpose is to provide lighting. Did it attract the penumbra shark? Did it provide the penumbra shark a better view of the pod than it normally would have had?
One of the mother whale selfishly left the pod to their own fate
No,if you watch 18:55 the mother is wounded and thus late to start the journey, otherwise she would have traveled with biger group which would lower the risk of shark attack (even if you have brain of a goldfish,you won't take what essentialy a pod of tool using sperm whale lightly)
The shark attack is a constant variabel,what changed from the norm is the departure time of "grass" mother,that's why she stall the journey until other late mother whale show up,in hope of having others help guarding the young one
P.s : irl average shark hearing range is 20 to 300 Hz while irl whale call usually went from 10 to 40 Hz,so every call the Brillo whale made would alert the shark regardless of drone
Honestly I think it was a blessing in disguise for the group as a whole because the shark probably kept away smaller predators that would have easily infiltrated such a small defense formation
@@Friendofthescavsthe problem there is that the shark is probably on of the few things that could kill a calf if given the chance we never really saw anything else but hey maybe the shark scared off pests
@@victory8928 I mean individually yeah, but a small swarm of animals that alone would be a annoyance at best could quickly become dangerous in larger groups. Especially to baby animals. Like cookie cutter sharks.
Edit: basically, mosquitoes kill (not even including the diseases they may give when saying that)
I'd love for them to make a game of evolution, the full cycle of a Brillo whale. Not a documentary (although I loved it) but a game where you play as one, from start to finish, having to travel, decide what garden you will have, and such. I'd also like for then to visit the animals on the continents, i imagine it would be pretty fun. But the rhing I want the most, is the game that I mentioned fr
I imagine it as sort of a mix between Dredge and Maneater but much more chilled out than either. Of course with the need to survive and deal with predators of course and little bits of tension like that. But still overall calming like tending a garden. I imagine it like if man-eater was chill and had an actual choice driven rpg story. Also mixed with a bit of cloud gardens! Bonus if you can document the creatures and plants you find and it’s kept in a stylized notebook like those kept by a marine biologist like in the game In Other Waters!
@@nosebleed1826 It would be cool to have a multiplayer game about Brillo whales and start as a juvenile and have to choose what plants and animals you would want to co habitat with you but it's a much safer process to receive from adult donors but you can still take thing from the surrounding environment but there would be more chances of giving you complications. I would love it if the game would make it that what type of plant or animals you co habit with will affect you're survival, health, speed, social, deffence, the amount of nutrients you need, what type of food the garden will allow you to eat, and then the combination of you're brillos unique ecosystem will decide if it's beneficial for both parties or is parasitic, and you will need to tend to you're garden or ecosystem to maximize bennifit or to reduce the chances of giving you complication or illness, and the game has to be an open world game.
Like The Wandering Village but animals only?
I would ABSOLUTELY buy that game!!
A visual novel sounds like the perfect fit for this
You get the artwork and narration, but you make decisions at certain moments in the whale's life that set it's path forward
This is really cool. Speculative biology is such a neat thing.
I'll be eagerly waiting for part 2.
This is very accurate well done I agree. Great looking game and I think using speculative biology is a great precursor for this style of game and hope to see more from them.
Yes, the amount of research which must have gone into making this work of speculative biology feel authentic is remarkable. Love all the comparisons to real Earth counterparts and the depth in which they explain everything about the ecosystem. Can't wait for part 2.
@@MoogMonster554lmao growup
@@sonnyobrien did you just switch personality?
@@sonnyobrien Are you alright? You seem to have a problem in the chrome dome
I'm currently in a zoology college course and this feels like the most interesting and magical lesson on whales I've ever seen. Terrified at what the exam would look like though.
Methinks the better profs would have you write a paper on a hypothetical Brillo biome and the developmental triggers and pros/cons of such.
did you pass?
A white whale, a blank canvas for which experiences and choices shape and color an end result... Art, beautiful and raw, horrifying and glorious, sorrowful and wonderous. This is a fantastic piece of work, the writing and story building is brilliant. I love it.
That was one HELL of a speculative biology story and the creativity put into the Brillo Whales was awe-inspiring. It also does what few speculative biology stories do, which is to posit that if there IS alien life in the universe it would have developed a similar biology to Earth's, since certain things in chemistry and physics are universal. But that still leaves room for vast differences.
The Brillo Whales are actually just an extreme version of what happens to whales on Earth, with a twist. A lot of baleen whales are host to a variety of large organisms, some symbiotic and some parasitic. But sperm whales, upon which the Brillo most closely resembles? They are much less tolerant of barnacles and other macroorganisms living on them, possibly because unlike baleen whales they are hunters, and excess drag would be a major issue for a predator.
But under a different set of evolutionary pressures? They ended up a far more extreme version of even the most encrusted baleen whale. Instead of chasing down prey, Brillos are ambush predators, and rather than hunting deep in abyssal waters, Brillos hunt very close to the surface.
The author of South Scrimshaw should seriously take a bow, they *really* did their homework, and this is from someone that has a PhD in biochemistry.
If you watch it in its entirety, it is said that the alien whales are cousins of Earth whales.
The panspermia that occurred from Earth to 3 other Earth-like planets seems to be the biggest scientific mystery in this speculative near future lol
@@Infiny92 I did watch the whole thing. The panspermia is one of the only things that broke immersion because that requires things we have no evidence of at all. It was one of the only handwaves in the entire thing.
That's really fascinating, so something like the brillo whale could plausibly exist in the universe?
@@RANDALCOMING Yes. This sort of extreme symbiosis isn't actually unknown on Earth, and part of Southern Scrimshaw, I think, is to keep the speculative biology grounded in Earth biology. The panspermia aspect is handwaving why Earth-like biology might appear on habitable exoplanets.
The Brillo Whales take a lot of existing biology, take it a few steps further, add some imagination grounded in biological theory and fact, and this was the result. It's brilliant from a storytelling perspective, too; their symbiosis has a ton of variation, allowing for the formation of tribes, subspecies, and makes for VERY easy identification of individuals to the viewer.
@@ArchTeryx00 The idea of society having to deal with intentional (presumably sapient-driven) panspermia adds to the desperate existentialism of the human side of the setting, at least IMO.
The calf playing with the old whale is just adorable.
LOLAND?
its actually amazing how the foilage sticking to him seems just like a detail at first but its actually foreshadowing for how the species works
"Two researchers start a heated discussion on the ethics of intervention."
Ah, humanity. You never fail to make me feel hope. BOTH of the researchers make me feel hope. Of course it's an impossible situation, but the humanity is shown in the debate happening at all.
That part made me feel better because I was SO devastated at not one but two deaths, and the humans are just there watching. I do think that humans should intervene when it comes to orphaned babies, as long as it doesn't kick off some sort of ecological disaster.
@@emilyharvey4930 you will kill me for this, but, in nature, very rarely is intervention the right thing to do. If we save every animal that fails to survive, then their children will also fail, and so on, and so on, until the gene pool is absolutely fucked. Death of the individual is a necessary evil for the life of the species as a whole
At first i was wondering about the lack of gameplay but the moment they started describing the symbiotic relationship that the brillo whales have with their forest i got hooked on this!
I laughed, I cried, I got angry at corporate bureaucracy. Not a game, but a really neat experience. Well done to its creators!
THE WAY I STARTED LAUGHING UNCONTROLLABLY AT 53:36
We need an entire series like this.
There are 4 part series
@@runajain5773 they're not out yet
Support the studio financially then.
I love how the whale unironically screamed "REEEEEEEE"
got to it before me lol
FUCKING GARDENS
GET ON MY FUCKING HEAD *NOW*
*REEEEEEEEEEEEE*
“REEEEEEE”
-Nugget
fr
Did i just watched an entire documentary about alien whales? Amazing
I just realized, while the reason the calf immediately felt comfortable with the old lone killer might be because he's his father, it could also be because its armored-skin enhancement is akin to his stepmom.
Or it could be the fact his mother got killed by a shark and wants to be involved in a shark-slaying build
Bro's been watching too much porn if he thinks an adoptive mother is a stepmom
It is more obvious that the calf previously rejected joining shark pack because he hated&scared of sharks now. Of course he’s gonna grow comfortable with a decorated shark slayer.
@@spiderking8011 what the hell does porn have to do with stepmom and adoptive mother
@@SleepingInGrass In the past couple years a genre of pseudo-incest porn has been made popular. In these instead of actual incest the characters will be with their step-family instead, even in cases where that is clearly not what the term means, such as having two step-parents who are married to each other. So when I saw him confuse the term step-mom for something which it is not, I drew the conclusion that he watched that kind of porn (which in itself is something of an inside joke in certain circles of the internet). It's where the phrase, "What are you doing step-bro?" comes from. Hopefully that fully answers your question 👍
"one of the only long lived cephalopods that has not been culled." What does this mean? Who is culling them? The humans? Are some cephalopods becoming too intelligent? Do the humans consider them a potential threat? A potential competing civilization? I need more information on this!
Yes I love the little worldbuilding details like that, like the documentary doesn’t even bother explaining it because they assume the audience already understands. I love that type of stuff in stories. I think that yes the humans were culling them perhaps because they viewed them as threats, maybe the cephalopods already had a civilization or society and that’s why the humans culled them before they might become a threat. Maybe even there were octopuses that were thousands of years old since they don’t age as the narrator says
That's not the scary part. The animals on Aria are seeded from Earth and that one octopus is said to be centuries old. It's currently only "more than a century" from 1962. In conclusion, it's not human who seeded the planet with animals from Earth. Seems like humans are being ruled over by an advanced and dying species of "forebearers".
The greater question is who the hell seeded Earth species on these planets millions of years ago😭 Ancient cephalopod civilization?
Most cephalopods irl are super intelligent but live extremely short lives, cause of this some people think that cephalopods intelligence is hampered by their age and that should they get older that means they also get far more intelligent.
I think the game implies that on this planet long lived cephalopods exist(ed) and because of their intelligence were a nuisance/danger to humans and killed off.
@@Dell-ol6hb ye
This was way more intense then what I thought it would be, and the implications of human activity caught me completly offguard, very chilling.
the cut to the weaverlobe made me cackle because how its just there like staring
edit: chowper is a mood. also, i dont know if this is intentional or there was a change in writing between making the subtitles and having the narrator read them, but having the lines not match the subtitles in the later parts scares me more than anything else could
there's a dark undertone to this that fascinated me, and that was where it really amped up for me. the subtitles are much more "public consumption" while you hear about more shady or profit oriented motives.
and the part about how most long-lived cephalopods (which means very, very intelligent creatures that may be people at this point) are almost all "culled"...
The weaverlobe is just a lil dude! A friend!
the weaverlobe shot is so funny, lil guy's just sittin there like "sup? Like my crib?"
1:10:14 i dont know why but the art of the octopus stabbing its armor on the calf's head and the calf screaming is so freaking funny
Wow. That was... just wow. Someone needs to make an actual documentary TV show like this. Like that David Attenborough one about dinosaurs.
Spec evo documentaries need to make a comeback. Mockumentaries like "The Future is Wild" and "Alien Planet"(based on Barlowe's "Expedition") were great, but imagine if they were made with modern effects
I bet David Attenborough would be very impressed if he saw this.
@@altforauditions9279 I loved the mermaids spec evo documentary when i was a kid and i think it was on Planet earth i believe
Honestly, this is wonderfully immersive, complex, tragic, but informative.
This game is a welcome addition to the world of speculative evolution, if I so do so myself.
If I was a brillo I’d probably choose the barnacle claw garden. They do the foraging for me and in return I keep moving them around to better feeding grounds. That way they still get food after I’ve had my fill and vice versa. It’s a win win in my book.
If you were a brillo what organisms would you want tagging along?
Being the stealth octopus one seemed really cool, and pretty chill and easy as long as you can find spots with good food.
This whole thing also makes me wonder how far things could go if the overseers of these planets just left long-lived octopuses alone and let them become "people".
Sapient octopuses being able to partner with brillos, learning how they work and then further manipulating and directing their symbiosis, along with even being able to learn to address the whale's issues and both improve already good strategies while stabilizing and mitigating the risks of others would be crazy.
@@captain_buggles Imagine if the brillo cafe ran into a juvenile member of the same species of octopus the exiled brillo was with as a traveling companion? I can imagine initially the octopus only sticking for protection. Something like- Where not friends just to let you know. I’m only tagging along with you for protection because your bigger then me.
But over time as the brillo cafe gets older and becomes a more experienced hunter the octopus gains a mutual respect for them and acts as a scouting parter much like the one who gave the brillo cafe the armor fragment.
I wonder if any of them have symbiosis with coral
I really likes the green freaky one the calf first denied. Maybe we should make our own "BrilloSonas" lol
@@soup-flavored-soup6613 This actually gives me an idea.
Coral armor + fast, nimble, aggressive fish that nest in the coral
Bonus if the fish evolve to be smart enough to learn a few different commands.
Like if they can at least understand "attack", "retreat", "hide", "group up", "spread out", and "search", I'd be satisfied with that.
Something too fast for me? Something trying to harrass me?
GOONS, SIC EM.
I cried three times for this movie, nearly jumpedout of my chair twice and jumped out of my chair once, this is the best movie i have ever seen! I honestly cannot wait for phase two! ❤❤❤
i love how the animals are portrayed with more human-like reactions/expressions (mainly the eyes), considering its animated/drawings.
same
u hate lgtv community?
@@melanieelayaperuma3110 wh- how did you gather this? what made you come to that conclusion? we were just talking about how we like the artstyle
I really enjoy how much the brillo whale resembles the decorator crabs that dress themselves with sponges, anemones, and other stuff they find and like to camouflage themselves
this was so good that instead of leaving it as background noise like usual i dropped everything to give it my full attention. so happy to hear theres gonna be a part two! thanks for covering it
This felt so authentic and engaging. It felt like I was watching a documentary from the SCP Foundation.
I know right?! It genuinely feels like it!!
Boring school day in the Ad Astra Per Aspera timeline be like:
Bro I didn't read the alien part I mean I thought that was just a metaphor.. I thought this was a real documentary about whale evolution or something 💀
@@kobatohanato876LOL
SCP kids try not to equate and reference everything to SCP challenge (IMPOSSIBLE) 😢😢
As someone who grew up proactively watching nature documentaries, this is a beautiful mimicry of both the style and presentation of the best ones. From the passionate language towards the animal kingdom, to the subtle hints that the research is struggling with funding, it feels immeasurably realistic. I sincerely hope the author continues this series.
i hope we see what a plant-based brillo can do and looks like when its fully healthy, the mother of the calf was such a badass even while sick/injured
Very beautifully done. I hope we get to see more soon. I found it particularly sad when the mother whale died from her reopened wounds saving her calf from the shark, but thought it was very sweet how the calf befriended the lonely, outcast old bull and discovered his rightful armor.
Honestly, my favourite world building aspect of this Interactive Speculative Biology Story is that of the Corporation For Earth Media and the socio-cultural implications for humanity given that the whole piece looks less like National Geographic and more like a PBS documentary or something from the National Film Board Of Canada. The simple, unassuming fonts and graphics, coupled with the music brings me back to the kind of educational programs that I used to watch as a child. It also gives me the sense that the humanity of this time period is substantially calmer, more rational, and less prone to the kind of needlessly destructive behaviour that we see today. There's a phlegmatic comfort to this; a humble and gentle approach to the simple realities of nature and the many millions of stories, with their ups and downs and ups again, that soothes the soul.
I hope we get a part 2 of this documentary this was amazing to watch
Fantastic stuff - I especially like the hints at broader story elements. Suppression of information/theories, interplanetary species seeding, eradication of species hyper intelligent/long-lived species etc.
Yeah the "culling" part is ominous. Out of all the animals in the kingdom the animals I never want to make my enemy are corvids and octopus! They're fucking smart and can hold grudges.
Please more of this. I could literally have so much more of this. It's so facinating. The way it's delivered, animated, the level of actual biological based detail and intricate intriguing attributes. I'm beyond captivated.
This was amazing! the idea of a species completely relying on symbiosis was executed nicely and believable. The art is gorgeous and the many different whales were very unique, and the story itself was surprisingly entertaining with the biology being very intriguing. Looking forward to part 2.
Watched it from start to "fishness". get it, ABG?
what a bizarre emotional rollercoaster. I did not expect to enjoy a visual novel documentary this much about alien space whales.
I actually really want to see part 2 asap.
The female narrator minus the accent sounds so familiar.
The female narrator reminds me of the announcer voice from Unreal Tournament
all voices were done with AI btw
@@sludgechan well. that's incredibly awkward.
i think this is the second time Ive said this in a comment on ABG this year, but this is the best thing I've seen on ABG so far, which is an incredible bar to clear. This is a masterpiece. Nathan O. Marsh has a grasp of speculative xenobiology that the majority of professional writers could only wish for. My father is a science fiction novelist and I'm going to email this to him today.
Something tells me Lil Brillo is going to be hunting Penumbra Sharks for fun.
And Chowpers.
Any shark at this point
I think chowpers may be an exception due to how friendly they are
I can’t be the only one who thought he would take on eggs of the bioluminescent fish, making him a glowing whale.
What good would that do lol
@@Infiny92 many things, first of all he could use bioluminescence as a lure to attract large quantities of smaller prey.
he could also use it as a weapon depending on how bright he could become all of a sudden, this would be especialy effective against light sensitive species.
and probably many more possibilities that I haven't even tought of
I love the idea of the whale having a little crew 1:08:00
And thus our little whale goes on to exact vengeance on all sharks, like a little whale batman
“Maybe having a little apprentice killer won’t be so bad” is just a beautiful line and resolution to this part of the story. It really ties together and gives relief to all the anxiety presented throughout the story, the entire second half builds up the worry of the calf not getting a symbiotic relationship and mentor, the calf falling into unknown waters, the presentation of the exile and the silence makes you hold your breath until suddenly in one fell swoop it’s all resolves. The calf gets his mentor, he won’t go crazy and gets to become a badass shark killer to face his fears. And the old whale gets companionship it hasn’t had in who knows how long. Beautiful
I spent this whole time feeling like I'm actually living in this universe, experiencing sympathies and realizations as if I were watching a vidoc about dolphins or sharks. This world building is truly some of the greatest I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing.
Scrimshaw: to adorn or carve whale bone, ivory or other bony materials with decorative designs.
Yeah, sounds about right.
This might just single-handedly be the most enthralling video I’ve ever watched on this platform
I think a game like this without threat of death and with a focus on scanning an such would be really interesting concept.
the game in other waters sounds pretty similar to what you're describing- you play as a biologist on an alien planet attempting to catalogue the life you find (and search for someone who led you to the planet). the speculative biology is beautifully thought out and there are plenty of species to discover.
I’m so invested in this it’s speculative evolution at its finest and mixed with a documentary and (technically makes me think about of the ocean tree speculative evolution idea (Basically a whale that has a whole mini ecosystem on it and either it’s like this or the whale is upside down while life is on it.))
36:22 what makes this worse is that unlike the brillo calf, wich saw the whole thing play out in super slow motion, the Stone Mother would have seen her child disappear within the blink of an eye.
20 years? Ill wait i guess. Just dont let me forget. I really find this story great and compelling. I'd love to see more of the world explored
I really love how realistic this is, all the angles and how not everything is perfectly in frame, beautiful.
Not a fan of nature documentarys but this had me hooked up.
The incredible art and interesting commentary is what makes up for the lack of gameplay.
Overall i'll give this a 9.9/10
why not? learning or understanding animals, nature and the world around us is very fascinating & engaging! (atleast for me)
maybe because i had fond memories of reading non-fictional books like encyclopedias from a school library when i was young. i'm also glad i grew up watching science/educational channels like animal planet, natgeo & discovery channel which furthered my interests in natural history
@@tutubism probably because when I was young i didn't like nature documents because i only cared about stuff related to war
@@FritzLeAngelthat’s like me but in the way I like war technology, but I enjoy history and ancient warfare as well. Although as a kid I watched a lot of animal documentaries too
"He checks to see if the coast is clear"
"It isn't" *VINE BOOM*
“Hello there”
those two frames need to be made into a meme
*Hells kitchen violin*
@@BlueRGuyt's actually a waterphone
ua-cam.com/video/dinyOvO2EEo/v-deo.html
2:57 It was at this point that i wondered who originally recorded the background "wind in large structure" noise. I've heard it in so many games and now I'm curious.
And I recognise the music near the end as 'theme from a hundred youtube scam adverts about the genius inventor who will end poverty.'
I'm not sure why our Brillo whale are so depressed, other than the shark attacks and the fact that a giant metal tube thing comes and records it every day.
Is this a really bad joke or something??
@@sonnyobrien yes, thank you for the comment.
@@supleted okay but yeah I agree anyways so well done
@@sonnyobrienyeh like you are child with friend some killer with knife he kill your friend left you saw dead of your friend you terrified and trauma tized
If megaman star force as taught me anything, it's that losing a parent makes you uselessly depressed for many years until a space alien comes along and forces you to get your life together. Er, I don't think that last part is going to be relevant here.
Oh, I loved this. The artstyle, the world/species-building, the voice-over..it was a beautiful thing to watch.
I’m losing my mind over how beautiful this universe is and the story made me cry. The art is absolutely stunning and the attention to detail is insane. What an incredibly immersive experience, I’m impatiently waiting for part 2
“Impatient humans” is right, I NEED a sequel to this incredible story! I was so afraid the octopus would stab and kill our whale, so I’m glad he was able to find some sort of company despite his PTSD and depression…
Our whale just unlocked the Batman route. Little dude is going to grow up to become a shark fighter.
I have become genuinely invested in a fake whale calf's story. I need more of this... please
After ten years of existence I have been your first subscriber, your welcome
I was so invested is the mom and her calf journey that i was legitimately anxious at the shark attack, even cried like a lil bitch at the resolution of it too, this pseudo documentary is enthralling, from beginning to end.
The way it feels so lifelike is astounding. You get so immersed into the story, I'm commenting only halfway through and am already sold. The biology sounds so realistic yet distinct enough to be viewed as alien. The whales are varied and carry a personality purely based of their appearance and behaviour. The little ones are adorable 🥰
I wonder if our calf will become a gaurd of sorts, remaining in the breeding grounds until the straglers leave, following them and killing the shit out of anything that looks at them funny
After few minutes into this documentary, you will stop treating it as a fictional one somehow. It just goes to show how much effort the devs had put into this to make everything feel as realistic, touching, logical, emotional, and believable as possible. I always there's a climax part in every story, and despite knowing that fact, the climax part of this documentary still got me.
Rip to the little Brillo whale's mommy who gave her life to shield her baby from its predator.
Also, I absolutely loved that every once in a while, you get to click on a certain line of a sentence to get more info out of a certain matter/topic. They didn't have to this but they went ahead and expanded this masterpiece in every direction. Props to everyone who took part in this creative treasure.
I didn't expect this to be one of the greatest pieces of lore ever crafted but here we are. Bravo!!!
8:43 "A quick check if the coast is clear... *giant eyeball appears* ... it isn't"
I love how they covered the effect of an alien microbiome colonizing the human body. It’s rarely seen in science fiction and I really appreciated it!!
That ending was so friken adorable. You can tell our Brillo is suffering from a form of PTSD and depression and is trying his hardest to make his way with other youth and when he meets the shark Brillo he’s so happy and safe because he knows this adult Brillo hates sharks too. A familiarity that he found in another whale.
Wow. This was such a breath of fresh air creatively. The beauty in it's simplicity and style is stunning. The story is wonderfully told-- I thoroughly enjoyed this. Congratulations!!! Beautiful!!! Bravo!
This is absolutely insanely incredible. I’ve never witnessed something quite like this before and I desperately hope I can see something like it again. Wonderful!
The scifi and world building is cool in of itself, but the subtle comments about Parent / Child relationships were really well weaved in there. I really enjoyed this, and big thanks to ABG to spreading the word on this
I haven't been so invested in sci-fi for a long time! The art and the writing is absolutely amazing. And the voice-acting and the pacing are also S+ tier!
i have to keep taking breaks because this is so intensely emotional. 900 comments in and i'm sure everyone has said my thoughts more eloquently, but i applaud this piece of art. this unrestrained creativity and courageous passion for biology and storytelling.
The worlds and concepts that one can create with this interactive media. It's beautiful.
Absolutely amazing. The writing, art, narration and editing make up a compelling story.
I came here expecting to watch some minutes, but now I see myself having finished everything from start to finish. What happened? Well that this was just captivating! So many questions unanswered! Looking forward to part 2!
Wow that intro though. Harkens back to my childhood years, watching PBS as a kid and seeing the sponsors lineup before and after a program played.
I'm completely enraptured by this! I focused on whale falls in the fossil record for my dissertation, and this sort of speculative evolution is right up my alley!
Somebody paid close attention to well done documentaries and good science film strips AND bad boring ones as this one avoided those pit falls brilliantly. I hope you do more of these interactive novels, I'm hooked, no pun intended. Much thanks to ABG for showcasing this one.
The stuff alluded to about the cephalopod at the end kind of blew my mind. I can't wait for next one. The whole thing has a Cloverfield vibe. Such a rich and living world around the creatures in focus.
i was so scared, i thought the octopus was gonna kill the calf whale, but thankfully, he just gave him a symbiotic friend
The octopus outright stabbing lil buddy in the head to start the garden process was hilarious. Hopefully he didn't take the betrayal too hard
As someone who was fascinated by marine biology at a young age, this visual novel about speculative biology of a fictional whale species caught my interest
The two narrators did an awesome job expressing both fact and emotion! I was so fascinated by the Brillo calf's journey. The shark attack and the recall to it via the friendly sharks made my heart sink! Kinda cool how we got to see the stone mother's transformation after she lost her calf but continued surviving!
This is truly spectacular storytelling- I haven't been so immersed and intensely enthralled in a graphic story in ages. The world shown deserves it's own series of installments, I'd personally be all-for perhaps an animated series- like a similarly documentary-style series with episodes focusing on different species on the sister planets would be so cool. But even in the graphic novel style shown it shines regardless. It may as well have been animated with how well the illustrations depicted everything. Absolutely amazing, I don't know how long I'll be able to wait for a part 2 lol.
That octopus at the end definitely has seen a lot of things in its lifetime that it knew what is up when the host whale acknowledges the young one. That octopus be like: "a potential student, perhaps? Haven't had one in a long time. Let me help with that." *picks up "living armor" piece then casually stabs it on the young brillo's forehead*
And I think that's a nice, hilarious way of breaking the silence. You know, a bit of comedic relief from the otherwise emotional ride
It’s interesting that they have a sociology very similar to earth whales, dolphins, and elephants. With other members of the greater pod chipping in and adopting should a calf be orphaned quite like orcas and elephants. Especially since a lot of them are actually blood relatives and are the aunts, cousins, and grandmothers of the calves.
This was not a game, but an art form.
One of the few spec evolution projects that can also be defined as a truly beautiful work of art
This legit feels like a real nature documentary about an animal that could feasibly exist. Major kudos to the creator
0:51:11 Achievement Unlocked: How did we get here?
Nice one!