I've seen some deep sea researchers that describes something unknown to them like that too, pretty funny since we sometimes expect scientists to at least know something about the thing they're studying, but in the end of the day I'm reminded that we know more about the moon than the deepest part of the oceans
I love the seabun tangent. Not only did they come up with strange creatures that are “real” in the world of the documentary, but they came up with a myth started by normal human nature. That is some top notch world building.
That was probably my favorite part of the whole thing. I’m an anthropologist, so seeing people put care into cultural world building like that always makes my day
100% agree. Humans being human is often a mark of good writing and worldbuilding. Plus... the length of that tangent, and the tangent-within-the-tangent, were also inherently funny to me.
Yeah similar to how unicorns are a myth, yet giraffes are real. A white horse with a horn is more believable, than 15 foot camel that has a long neck with cheetah spots.
Based on the size of that jawbone, the shark that the loner whale killed must have been practically as big as he is. In other words, he's effectively a *Megalodon hunter.* The young whale couldn't have picked a deadlier role model.
In the first age, in the first battle, when the shadows first lengthened, one stood. Burned by the embers of Armageddon, his soul blistered by the fires of Hell and tainted beyond ascension, he chose the path of perpetual torment. In his ravenous hatred he found no peace; and with boiling blood he scoured the Umbral Plains seeking vengeance against the dark lords who had wronged him. He wore the crown of the Night Sentinels, and those that tasted the bite of his sword named him... the *Doom Slayer*
“This male has tunnel vision on the single purpose of mating. Babysitting is not on the agenda.” “We watch an attempt to woo a female fail pitifully” “She is clearly put off by his little sidekick-“ IM DEADDDD
Yeah, seeing human culture depicted in the future without the scenario being the main focus is always a pleasure. It's like the difference in immersiveness between reading a dry, mechanical book on anthropology; or eavesdropping on and learning from the actual locals in a market.
Not enough people are talking about how adorable the squid near the end was. Mans been around for 4 centuries and has likely became partners with various whales to the point where it just _knows_ when it's meeting a future partner.
I'm more curious as to why the ageless octopuses would be culled. Did the humans kill them to keep their population down? Or was it the mentioned forebearers the humans are taking the mantle for?
PUNCHING THE AIR WHEN THE LITTLE WHALE STARTED PLAYING WITH THE CAST OUT OLD WHALE, AND WHEN THE OLD WHALE STARTED TO SING BACK JUST MADE ME CRY IN JOY. like hell yeah little dude go and be a massive shark killing machine
started uncontrollably laughing at 50:47 - “You, the viewing audience, have countless residents inside your own body.” - “Yeah, like that *damn* skeleton.” the way he sounds so viscerally livid at his own skeleton SENDS ME.
I absolutely LOVE the characters in this world, like the dude asking "can I keep one, dad?" Only to get the response "only if you feed and walk it yourself." And the scientists questioning the ethics of saving the calf. Its great.
These questions do come up in real research too. On one hand - you are not supposed to interfere. On the other they've been watching this calf for months at the time and felt compassion for him. Then there's the next problem of how do you actually care for the calf and later reintroduce him into the wild, would that even be possible, this a mostly undocumented specie on an alien world. Then there's the root of all evil - funding and time, if this calf were to die they'd have to start over losing months of research, this problem also appears later when they were concerned that he was lagging in getting his symbiotes. Then luckily for everyone the stone mother took him under her wing saving both the calf and the project, and later the calf finding an adult he wanted to mimic that took him under his wing.
I love that rescue bit so much, it actually felt like a real rescue operation taking place while also discovering a new specie of animals. These whales are actually terrifying and I can only imagine what the two stranded deck hands and that rescuer felt encountering the beast. And its fascinating with the fact that they have enough intelligence to actually stay surfaced and save the deckhands, makes it all the better after the inital scare. That's what makes this documentary feel so accurate and immersive, and probably realistic with documenting alien wild life with these little world building tid bits.
Love the bit where they reference the Mother Brillo surviving an ingrown branch injury before, cause when you look at the cross-section of the mother you can actually see a scar near her forehead for where it was! Cool that they've included all these little details
I like the hypothesis by Manly about why our calf chose the killer whale's way "A shark slaughtered somebody right beside me and caused the death of my mother... Holy shit, is that a shark's skull you're wearing as decoration!? Dude, you're my idol, teach me your ways!"
And so the young whale will become a great shark killer though it doesn't mean that he'll become a violent exile. He only needs to be violent towards sharks.
Imagine if there was a variant of this game like Spore where you get to pick your symbiotes as a Brillo whale. This game has a lot of detailed lore and it really makes the experience more immersive.
If you've not heard of it I feel like you guys would like the game Maneater. Similar vibes but its more tongue in cheek and more Jaws inspired with the added mutation stuff. A game about BRILLO WHALES though would be amazing indeed, especially with spore elements
@@user-vs4qc7yj9s Honestly, it was okay. Wasn't a great game, wasn't a bad game either, but was fun enough. It's basically an upscale of those flash games way back when. One of my old coworkers, he is a cousin of the developer. He voiced the hot dog stand guys in Man-eater. Wild how small the world is sometimes.
Hunter: /annoyed/ Yes, THIS kid. I want to pass my knowledge and wisdom to the next generation as I won't be around forever so you'll need a new partner once I pass on. /thinks/ Besides, he's SO cute and cuddly.....
I thought it was interesting that the octopus is experienced in what should occur and how the whale works. So either there’s been OTHER whales that took on the role of hunter that he’s had to stab to ‘train’ under his, or how own whale was the one he had such experience doing this with.
Honestly, I just love the journey the young whale takes while looking for a template. He originally looks for a plant like his mother, has little luck due to few being present until he runs into one that has a gaggle of sharks following it around, then it remembers how much it hates sharks and starts looking for something different, taking all the time he can to the point that the scientists are getting antsy, until he finds it - the armored son of a bitch of a whale with an octopus sidekick.
I like how this, despite being horrific in parts, takes breaks to see the wonder in what’s going on. The scene with the mating dance is just… wholesome? It really feels like a proper documentary.
The death of the mother made me cry and how the other mother decided to come back for the baby despite the mother being the reason hers got killed (though it was an accident) but I was low key sad how we only saw the adoptive mother once later. I really wish we will see more of the whale and this world and hopefully a small glimpse of the adoptive mother
the adoptive mothers job was done, and the cycle will carry on. Hopefully with her new form of armor, she'll atleast have more to look out for her in the open waters.
That wasn't the young whale's fault and the stone whale (the one who lost her own calf) I think realized that plus she was lonely and wanted to raise a calf so she adopted the young whale which was heartwarming.
If any whale is to blame it's the mimic whale who left her spot swimming upside down, the plant whale only protected her young, she did nothing to cause the death of the other calf
If I had a nickel for every time I saw a surprise fish-themed trauma recovery narrative with baby death in its opening act, starring cartoon baby animals separated from their parents and trying to survive while softening the hard shells of older mentor figures through shared experiences, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice
I really apricate the Stone Mother. I know they aren't real, but this happens with animals in real life. "Hey, can we keep him, Dad?" "If you want a sea monster, then you'll have to feed and walk it yourself." This is amazingly accurate to how biologists talk.. 1:02:03 He found a shark killer. Or course he would be happy. 1:18:15 Oh, I am so excited for part 2!
The octopus is kind of scary base on it's description in their zoology index according to researchers but it was wholesomely terrifying how it wholesomely scared the peace out of me when it offered a material for our young whale
Honestly, tho that message at the end there, "culled"... means long-lived octopi have been intentionally wiped out they're highly intelligent, biologically immortal, and extremely dangerous species. It might not look it, but that's an apex predator with the potential to outclass humanity
It’s been a while that Manly “play”, or better word “read”, a visual novel like this. Especially something that is only a linear story. Never thought I would’ve miss this.
Oh man, I bet that these Immortal Octopi is actually the "Sea bunny", given that the real life "Sea Rabbit" is a mollusk (just as Octopi and Squids are mollusks) And I bet that those creatures that tend to gnaw on sea-based equipment were probably the Billo Whales trying to cultivate their gardens, thinking that human equipment was a good enough fit (Or a good enough threat). The Sea Bunny "shapeshifts", where an Octopus can simply maneuver its body, literally shifting its shape, to fit various situations and areas. Plus, there is the additional fact that Octopi are considered "sentient"... which means they are very clever when getting into everything.
Seeing as some of the billo whales were able to integrate dead matter or even non biologic matters onto their shell I wonder if they'd be able to integrate artificial things Metal plates, wires etc Not sure why they'd do it, maybe for a truly impenetrable outter shell, or purely for intimidation
@@KalashVodka175 Imagine being in the ocean, and an amalgamation of every sunken ship rises up to follow you. Literally Davy Jones' Locker is coming after you and it sounds like a Whale Joshing aside, it wouldn't be out of the question persay. Could be something that cultivator bugs (like that one mole) or certain mosses might do, by adding artificial materials to a garden in the same way that "Nature reclaims fallen wrecks" Quite a few of the billo whales add bones, like you said, so it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility.
@@KalashVodka175I’m imagining a Billo whale with crafty inhabitants who glued on a fragmented shipwreck, carefully maneuvering to appear like a ship to sneak close to human fishing vessels to steal their catches lol. Or another whale whose inhabitants use scavenged tank traps, barbwire, and exploded parts of seamines to create a metal fortress, and a repurposed human building or shipwreck attached to the belly to defend a calf.
@@user-vs4qc7yj9s Nah, no organic material we know thus far can overpower man-made materials. No matter how hard the bone or chitin, nothing beats composite metals in strength and flexibility. The only definite benefit organic has over man-made is they are more environmentally friendly to manufacture because it can't use high-energy processes and rare elements for it to be worth it to make by organisms who, unlike us, don't have access to such luxuries. Not saying nature isn't awesome though; the things plants and animals came up with is insane considering the very limited resource they have.
There was also the note of other long-lived molluscs being "culled." Perhaps they were mostly wiped out by early human settlers because of the threat they posed to our equipment and safety? If we're working for some more advanced beings, they may also see a threat in the octopi who can live so long without aging. Four centuries, "devious intelligence." There's something here and I love it so much i need more
speculative biology is such a great genre, it's such a fun and interesting thing and its really great to see this in a visual novel format! (also I'm kinda very excited for the bug thing if they ever do it as arthropods are already such a massively diverse group seeing what few niches they don't already fill would be super fascinating)
I’ve literally never been this invested in a documentary. I was legit so worried for him when the shark attacked. I really wanna see his future. Fiction and all - I’m so incredibly invested in this.
This feels like watching a movie with a pal, it's super chill. I also am adoring the world building here and really hope more people are inspired to make their own visual novels like this. I actually really want to try this out now...
It’s not even a game, but still a very interesting visual novel. Heck, it feels like ages when Manly read a linear visual novel like this instead of a visual novel game.
Oh my gosh this little whale’s story is crazy- From the dramatic backstory, the loss of his mother, the adoption, the isolation from others, and then finding an exiled whale !! Ahhh it’s so good.. oh my gosh I love the octopus 😭
I cried so hard when the calf kept swimming back to check on his mother and then she died god i've never cried this hard since hachiko. Also the scenes where the calf and mother look at each other are so heartwarming i kept tearing up. The calf is wayyy too adorable!! Amazing fictional documentary, can't wait for part 2 to be released!
@@girlgarde Technically if she wasn't already wounded, she would have been fine. The mother was never the target. And shark's gotta eat too. Nature is just like this
Scrimshaw is carvings on whale ivory, apparently. Very fitting. The story was really cute and I love how pretty the artwork is! The whale calf's little freckles that turn into spots are adorable. This kind of spec-evo biology is great.
I love how they included a retro encabulator in the drone schematic at 43:35. Even in the far future there's only one way to effectively prevent side fumbling.
Feels like our little whale will be an all offensive build type and will be accompanied by the all defensive build one in 1:13:49 , a literal spear and shield duo
fun fact: sea buns or sea bunnies do indeed exist, they are not actual aquatic rabbits but sea slugs with little antennae that look like bunny ears, very cute things.
the child brillo is most likely the new host of that octopus as stated with the "witnessed this cycle once before" and the fact that the octopus doesn't die but the whale is stated as elderly. In short: child brilla now has a badass octopus with 400 years of duty in its tentacles. Pretty nice catch in my opinion
@@steviemaster Though i'm worried that octopus may have been the reason the previous Brillo got himself outcasted in the first place. 400 year old octopus living off of other species seems like the manipulative type
@@astick5249 nope that wasn't the case either, the narrator said it was due to the brillo being a biiit rough in a mating competition. As an example... hmm... two guys get in a bar fight over a girl and one smashes a bottle over the others head. One ambulance ride and a trial later one is dead and the other is behind bars. Manly made the octopus seem manipulative with the "you gotta kill him". Yes the octopus wanted bloodshed but immediately goes out to help the little guy. He's smart, not manipulative. Maybe the octopus did indeed play a role but, again, he's smart. He will know not to be AS rough to other brillos anymore... or so i hope. MAN i can't wait for part two hahaha
@@steviemaster Oh i already saw a different video of this game without commentary and came to a similar idea. I was thinking that maybe the octopus was the one who directly caused it to escalate. Like what if during a fight the octopus went for the competitor's eyes or even just agitated the two of them to increase aggression. The octopus may have wanted his host whale in a certain location and so purposely got him exiled, as he has "seen this cycle before" and might even look to that exile spot as home base. Or maybe It was just the recklessness of the octopus not alining with the "no kill" law in Brillo society and saw no problem with encouraging his host to kill.
The depth and overall details are so...I haven't been this engrossed in a visual novel in years. The art is both horrific and adorable, the ecosystem is extremely interesting and makes me eager for the next entry. I can't imagine the time and effort put into this, it really shows and I am genuinely in love with the story so far.
Okay so y'know what sends me the most about this whole thing? Their section on 'sea bunnies' and how they don't exist, aren't a real animal? Jorunna parva, commonly known as the *sea bunny,* is a species of dorid nudibranch, a shell-less marine gastropod mollusc in the family Discodorididae. The species was first described by Kikutaro Baba. Its resemblance to a rabbit facilitated a surge in popularity on Twitter throughout Japan in 2015. I got gaslit by an alternate reality documentary into believing a real animal wasn't real. Some of the depictions of it being just a little lump with bunny ears are actually close to what the real thing looks like too. *That* really got me.
This is honestly amazing and I would’ve NEVER come across it if you didn’t play it. I love how they nail the documentary vibe as well as the actual way humans would react.
I love when Manly plays games that aren’t super popular. This one was so good. So much thought and research put into it. The art is spectacular I love it
I'd decided to call the whale Little Fin since he got Land Before Timed. I'm honestly glad Little Fin didn't choose a plant-based garden like his mother because while beautiful, it was what did her in towards the end, plus I like the idea of an actual killer whale.
Not exactly, what did her in was an old injury that didn’t completely heal in the end and was too severe to recover from when she needed to protect her calf. The suddenness and jerk start into urgent need of protection fucked up her internal wound to the point there wasn’t a chance or possibility she could survive in anyway at least not without human intervention and even then would be a miracle
@@SingleIsFreedom..ilyLuka LittleFoot’s mom died protecting him from the Sharptooth (T-Rex) the same way the Little Fin’s mom died protecting him from the shark. The only difference is that LittleFoot’s mom died from the injury sustained from the battle, but both mothers sacrificed themselves to save their babies.
@@SingleIsFreedom..ilyLuka Nah you're fine. The very first ever Land Before Time was an old movie (we're talking about VHS tape old 😂), came out almost a decade before I was even born. So I definitely do not expect everyone to know what the heck I'm talking about.
The way it absolutely sells being a genuine documentary while doing fictional worldbuilding is fantastic. It gives you enough information to be properly immersed in the world without giving *so* much that it starts to feel like an omniscient narrator telling you the lore for a DnD campaign.
Wow. I am very much fixated on speculative biology, and this novel is one of the best works about non-existent creatures I've ever seen. I love how small bits of information about humanity are added, it adds to the illusion we are watching a documentary. Like, if you watch a show it won't go on explaining the status of humanity at a current point in time, neither does this game. The biology stuff is also amazing, it really does feel like these creatures could potentially excist in real life. I also loved the art, wow it is good. The meme-ish sketches are adorable. I really hope this game gets more attention, it really deserves it, as do the creators
This is oddly fascinating. Not to mention this is Manly's chance to be Sir David Attenborough for a bit. OH and by the way, there ARE Sea Bunnies, but they're more like cute Sea Slugs.
@@hito1988sea bunny slugs are super cute and my favorite type of sea slug. But sea slugs are *almost* all very beautiful or cute. Another one to look up by name is the leaf sheep sea slug. Please do yourself a favor and look through as many different species as you can tho! They’re all so amazing looking!
"Two Researchers began a heated debated on the ethics of intervention." That moment struck me because I was full crying at that moment. Intervention would not have been a question for me.
What I'm really curious about going forward is the Brillo's level of potential sentience. I assumed a lot of the narration was doing the typical documentary thing where it anthropomorphicizes its subjects for the sake of entertainment, but the bit with the whales assisting the fishing crew, not only not frightened of but actually approaching the rescue team, got me wondering.
All chordate animals and a few who aren't are sentient. Your word is "sapient", and on that note, all whales are sapient! :) they are self-aware and probably capable of metacogitation (thinking about thinking). they have cultural memes and fads (ramming boats is "the thing" among a population of orcas right now) and what can be compared to languages. Based on their brain to body ratio there are theories that, whatever that might feel like to experience, whales might actually be smarter than we are, just evolved for a different niche. On that note, the only thing holding back octopuses (extremely intelligent, but with no spine in evidence) from having a society is the fact that females die brooding eggs, and they die brooding eggs because they can't share labour, and they can't share labour because they're essentially all sociopaths (treat others of their own species as threats, can't trust others not to screw them over, always trying to screw over other octopus). For some reason scientists fed a few of them ecstasy to mess with their brain structure, and then they started seeking each other out to hug and hang out. There are lots of animals who are perfectly capable of every task we consider a barrier to "ensoulment" (the squiggly quale people unconsciously really mean when they talk about animal sentience), who are just one convenient evolutionary adaptation from being able to do what we do in a way we understand. The more you know!
@@al-imranadore1182 basically! We've seen them use tools, get out of closed aquariums and even build "villages" (stable groups living in constructed homes). Like ours, their villages are an important environment-altering feature of the ecosystem. Unfortunately they're so anxious about (and so much not worried about) one another that for the most part we think it's pretty tense down there -- and no wonder, because octopus young hatch, and their mother is already either dead or dying. Their father probably never knows them, because in general octopus males don't care to. If they survive the paralarval stage, they learn culture (how and when to fight, what counts as attractive, how to build houses etc) from observing stranger males and virgin females, none of whom have any strong reason to like them, because the adults in an area may not even be related (due to the specific way they spawn). It's not like with primates at all -- not to anthropomorphize evolution, but it's like God tried to repeat what happened with primates on a fundamentally different, antisocial animal, and is seriously struggling to make it work.
@@al-imranadore1182 actually, yes, basically - except instead of being caused by a long line of historical accidents causing an additionally problematic deviation from the way that the species had "only" lived since agriculture was invented, the way that an octopus lives is still more or less how it evolved to live. It's kind of like that they have the problem we have since we also began building cities, which is that they themselves are choosing a life that produces specific psychological consequences, and they aren't equipped to assess the sociological costs or benefits beyond short term guaranteed food (they even reinvented landlords and feudalism). They have this worse than humans, without mitigating factors, since they don't have generations that care for each other, and never did. It may be that octopuses who live alone in the "wild" (as nomads) are somewhat better adjusted than sedentary urbanites, as far as that goes for them - there was a documentary about a diver who spent a year or so befriending a specific female, who was fairly peaceful and really did enjoy his company (whether because she was a female or he was not an octopus, we don't know -- maybe both, science doesn't particularly care yet about female octopi in their own right). Maybe there's a parallel there to different cultural values between human nomads and villagers, too, on top of the first world vs everyone else distinction, I don't know, nobody seems to know yet.
this is utterly goddamn fascinating. I would kill for all the blueprint sketches and notes of all the fictional species here. the voice acting is SPECTACULAR and the diversity among the ecosystem, alongside genuine terminology, makes this feel so real
This is the most captivating game I've seen in a while- as a kid who grew up watching Animal Planet documentaries, but also in love with fantasy and alien stories, this is a beautiful combination of both! Makes me feel nostalgic, while also having something very fresh to it! I crave to devote my entire life to studying the ecology of that universe 😩
This is, unequivocally, my favorite video on UA-cam. The stories within stories within stories, the immense, creative, and branched worldbuilding, an in-depth discussion on alien, pseudobiological relationships, and of course, our shark-themed anime protagonist.
It's been a _year_ since I last watched this??? Anyway I gave it a rewatch. Still amazing to behold it all. Can't wait to see what our Brillo whale becomes.
This was absolutely beautiful For a guy that loves anything that has to do with animals, includin speculative biology, that is then perfectly mixed in this "analog horror" style of narration, this is something else, i just fell in love with it all. The ending was also so heartwarming, perfect perfect perfect Please creators of this masterpiece, i require more content like this
i was moved to tears by this. the unabashed creativity and love of storytelling here is miraculous. one of the most beautiful things i've ever witnessed. this kind of art, so well thought out and deep and vibrant, restores my faith in humanity.
as someone with a deep love for the ocean and ocean creatures and biology this was so interesting and well written and beautifully illustrated.. the sakutarou umineko reference at 52 minutes made me so happy
Adoption is also not quite uncommon in nature. Penguin mothers who lose their chicks sometimes abduct and care for other chicks. Once they're over the loss, though, they just abandon it and make a new one XD
The males especially do this, basically if the chick survives the long winter with the father, then it's far less likely to die when the mother comes back from the waters so it seems the females are less likely to need to steal a child because there is less of a chance to.
Honestly I could totally imagine this being an animated series, the art style is amazingly colorful while also holding onto a sense of realism and i think the story is very compelling. And of course not to mention the world building which is just so well thought out. I can’t wait to see the second part of the documentary!
This artstyle feels like some intern at Studio Ghibli was asked to make art for the Ancient Eearth segment in Devilman and I'm loving every adorable, nightmare inducing frame.
This is so well-made. I’m blown away by the way the visuals, music, script, additional worldbuilding, and humor all plays together. It’s so stunning, I really am just in awe!!!
The art is so beautiful and the story is so tragic. I love the thought put into the biology and scientific side of the VN. And the banter between the workers in the rescue video sure made me chuckle.
This was phenomenal. Felt really invested in the whales survival and got teary eyed during the trench scene. I could watch a documentary like this all day. Also kind of wholesome that the grumpy killer whale got a killer apprentice?
Something about this is just so incredibly good and soothing to me, it feels impossible to put into words but sort of reminds me of listening to your all-time favorite song in the car, or coming home from a trip and your cat being obviously thrilled to see you or something like that. I hope more are made
I love that nearly all of the adult Brillo Whales the calf has met were friendly and welcoming, even offering to be mentors to teach the calf about their skills, knowledge and their way of living, even the outcast Brilllo Whale became friendly and welcomed the calf, even becoming the calf's mentor after the calf shown compassion the the lone whale. The only Brillo Whale that was rather unfriendly and didn't want to mentor the calf was that plant covered Brillo Whale, with a needle like bone in the front of it's face.
It's an exceptionally well-crafted story, especially the abyssal trench sequence with the shark was really well done. Though I feel like the meta-story of panspermia and fitness decline was a bit odd and I didn't know what to make of it
I think the panspermia is how the story explains "the how and why" of the speculative biology as an intentional replication of Earth DNA/biosphere instead of other stories which focus on creatures that are completely separate and unrecognizable to us. Like the Brillo whales cultivating their garden, humans are cultivating these planets and making sure it goes a certain way (such as culling the risky intelligent competition that develops). It adds to the mystery and I imagine it would be explored more in other parts.
How is it odd when it's complete obvious. The whales are small in numbers, their evolution has most likely severed their population due to severe trial and error. On top of that they only have a limited breeding habitat.
@@ashlirabid9614 ?? I'm talking about the reference to an inescapable decline in evolutionary fitness over generations of human beings, leading to their extinction being "inescapable". The game refers to this as being the impetus behind future humans panspermia efforts and research of the results of it. I find it odd because I'm not sure how this makes sense from a biological standpoint (especially in relation to an interstellar species), or the point the author was trying to make with it.
@@whattwowhat Great point about the Brillo whale's own garden cultivation as being directly analogous to human tending to the biospheres of other planets. I hadn't seen that connection actually
@@gauthamprak I don't think they were referring specifically to Humanity in that bit, there was some hints at there being another species in the picture from some of that wording.
This is THE BEST THING I've seen in years. The story, details, creativity, humor and emotions pull you in and keep your attention like nothing else. I'm addicted already.
This game was so cool! I love when creators can successfully blend believable science fiction with games. The writing in this game reminds me of the Mystery Flesh Pit. That was another creative world building exercise that was so convincingly written. Overall great job on this game, developer!!!
I absolutely loved this. I love biology. I love biopunk. I love animals. I love worldbuilding. This was a feast. (I want a pet one of those octopuses.)
I think that would be a fascinating and almost scary pet to have. Sure, humans have domesticated a lot of dangerous creatures, but this one's dangerous in an intellectual rather than physical sense. You could very well end up manipulated or betrayed by one of those creatures based on a mindset and agenda totally alien to you. We can usually be assured with most animals that they aren't capable of something that complex, but in this case it's a complete wild card. It could be an amazing and brilliant companion or a little fiend that makes you think it's your best friend only to end your life.
Superb writing in this - everything from the worldbuilding to the snippets of dialogue were deliciously believable while maintaining the alien aspect. The art and voice acting were likewise excellent quality. I'm looking forward to part 2 and hoping the dev(s) continue to make works.
If this doesn't cost 25$+ they need to raise the price as they deserve to be paid for this wonderful creation we get to wittness. Honestly I am glad MBH is showing this to us, otherwise I would have never seen this.
This was beautiful. It scratched a real "Sci-fi and Wonder" itch that I've been nursing for a long time. I really hope that you play the next part and I'll be sure to watch the next piece.
So happy to see Manyly playing this hidden gem. Got it not long after release and have been waiting on some big channels to cover it and give it the recognition it deserves!
the part with the penumbra shark was absolutely terrifying i could even feel the calfs fear for a second! this is an awesome game i hope it gets a full version thats complete.
This will be the only game that I can accept an episodic method of release. From the artwork, their adherence to the documentary theme, the scientific grounding mixed with fantasy and subtlety of world building, I've not felt so enthralled and brimming with anticipation about the following episode of a series since childhood. Please watch the video first, as I will spoil multiple aspects of what made this an exceptional experience: The keystone to this entire episode, the shining jewel to the story telling has to be the introduction of the first mother whale and the Seabunny. Like a boy first learning how to ride a bike, the crucial steps are applying what we do know to a novel function. We have a certain grasp of our own reality and how things work, so we must start with the training wheels to first set forth making the connections in our mind to the locomotion of the bike. The familiarity/comfort of a whale, the slight jump into the complex ecosystem it creates and the quaint human element of the Seabunny were the pushes needed to offset the shakiness of the audiences' initial skepticism laying the groundwork to build upon a new perspective crafted by the developer's imagination. Our inhibitions abated, our senses heightened and our minds tingling at the realization of new possibilities; we pedal forward on a path full of wonderment at this new world painted before us.
This is fascinating. What a fun idea for a visual novel, this comes across as a believable documentary. It's so well written and laid out, the world building is great. I can't wait for next chapter, this is good stuff.
this is such an amazing game. There were sad moments, funny moments, and heart warming moments. I've watched nature documentaries my whole life, and this feels so real. Not to mention the amazing details that is put into the world building.
I normally watch/listen to youtube videos on the second monitor while I work, but this hooked me almost immediately and I had to watch it with full attention like an actual documentary! What a fascinating world the creator has made here. The little touches of humor were spot on, too. I look forward to seeing Manly's commentary on future parts whenever they come out.
Honestly this is an absolutely amazing concept for a story, it’s so brilliantly done, looks great, has surprisingly in-depth lore behind it. Honestly can’t wait to see more in the future
This is absolutely fascinating from an animal lovers perspective. Yet also Absolutely terrifying from the perspective of a man who fears the ocean. Basically a "Wow! No thanks!"
Can’t wait for the Calf to be a worthy shark hunter. Also I’m speculating that the octopus would continue to help and bond with the Calf like they did with the whale they were on.
😆😆😂😂I loved the scene of the octopus simultaneously capturing a prawn and a squid whilst fighting off a shark, a seabird, and several other colourful characters, who were all also simultaneously trying to have each other for dinner.
As someone who basically grew up at the beach and addicted to Nat Geo as a kid, THIS IS THE SICKEST VISUAL NOVEL IVE EVER SEEN. LOOK AT THE CREATURES DESIGNS BRO THEYRE REMARKABLE
Amazing work! The art is blowing mind, so stylish, gorgeous, somewhat ghibli-like watercolor, but still uniqe and realistic. The work done with color blows my mind out. The sound design is great too, it feel like a real documentary. All intersections feel natural and interesting. I can't and don't look away even for a second.
I can't believe I watched this whole thing with rapt attention. I love the art and I love aliens and I love speculative biology. I can't wait for the next part, and I hope it doesn't actually take 20 years.
i haven't been this enraptured by a piece of media in a long time, and i really look forward to see where it goes next! i was so immersed and on the edge of my seat to see what would happen, and the dialogue/worldbuilding is done really well and left me so curious and eager to learn more about this world and it's history. thank you to the developers for such a wonderful game and thank you to manly for showcasing it in such an engaging way! :]
Welcome to the Whale of a Tale Club how Whale of a Tale are ya?
Very.
🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳🐳
Cheese
i’m very whale thank you
Very 🐳🐋🐳🐳
It's so funny how even the research team is like "Yeah we have no idea wtf is going on here. Pretty cool though"
1:02:40
“They did indeed flip.”
For something that seems serious, I do love these subtle humor.
As someone who watched some of The Nautilus youtube channel clips, sometimes scientists are just like that XD
I've seen some deep sea researchers that describes something unknown to them like that too, pretty funny since we sometimes expect scientists to at least know something about the thing they're studying, but in the end of the day I'm reminded that we know more about the moon than the deepest part of the oceans
@@kennethmanuel1094
Tfw when you realize that there are oceans waiting to be explored on entire different worlds too
That's like half of science tbh. Ya just kinda do it until it works, then back track and find out why exactly that worked.
Honestly it isn’t a documentary without a soothing British voice explaining the horrors presented to us.
When real science just isn’t interesting anymore, make that shiz up and slap the totally believable documentary voice over it. xD
@@chilomine839
Even Science Fiction can hit some realism, so it works pretty well
@@Zack_Zander Oh man does it
Actually manly seabunnys are real,well to an extent they are like a slug u should look it up they are so adorable :3
What is a guale doing here?
I love the seabun tangent. Not only did they come up with strange creatures that are “real” in the world of the documentary, but they came up with a myth started by normal human nature. That is some top notch world building.
That was probably my favorite part of the whole thing. I’m an anthropologist, so seeing people put care into cultural world building like that always makes my day
100% agree. Humans being human is often a mark of good writing and worldbuilding. Plus... the length of that tangent, and the tangent-within-the-tangent, were also inherently funny to me.
best part is sea bunny's or "seabuns" are actually a thing.
@@thefisherking2268 Same. *in training myself* . It makes sense that humans living on other planets would form cultural quirks unique to them.
Yeah similar to how unicorns are a myth, yet giraffes are real.
A white horse with a horn is more believable, than 15 foot camel that has a long neck with cheetah spots.
Based on the size of that jawbone, the shark that the loner whale killed must have been practically as big as he is. In other words, he's effectively a *Megalodon hunter.* The young whale couldn't have picked a deadlier role model.
Beautiful living forest mother lost, lethal loner badass uncle gained.
@@howdypartner8326badass uncle with tragic past and ptsd
@@Dapper_Frog Best kind. Now they can trauma bond and go on an epic quest to manifest destiny. The grand misadventures of Sharkill & Pipsqueak.
In the first age, in the first battle, when the shadows first lengthened, one stood. Burned by the embers of Armageddon, his soul blistered by the fires of Hell and tainted beyond ascension, he chose the path of perpetual torment. In his ravenous hatred he found no peace; and with boiling blood he scoured the Umbral Plains seeking vengeance against the dark lords who had wronged him. He wore the crown of the Night Sentinels, and those that tasted the bite of his sword named him... the *Doom Slayer*
edgelord protagonist whale lmao
“This male has tunnel vision on the single purpose of mating. Babysitting is not on the agenda.”
“We watch an attempt to woo a female fail pitifully”
“She is clearly put off by his little sidekick-“
IM DEADDDD
Being cock-blocked by a curious kid!
Bro was the average Redditor lel
@@northernalpine4350 the average Redditor does not fail at wooing women. They can't even try.
Men are often put off by women's little sidekicks from previously relationships as well... lol
I guess these female whales don’t like single dads.
I really like how it’s not “just” a documentary, but a glimpse into an alternate reality where you get to see the politics of space-faring humans
Yeah, seeing human culture depicted in the future without the scenario being the main focus is always a pleasure. It's like the difference in immersiveness between reading a dry, mechanical book on anthropology; or eavesdropping on and learning from the actual locals in a market.
A multilayered speculative evolution fic. Absolute beauty
@@mrcin1233 Nope Star Trek still kicks ass
@@mrcin1233how's that gay? Lol l
Also a sharkinator
"The Seabun is not a real animal"
My disappointment is immeasurable and my day is now ruined.
It's actually real in our reality, while fake in this one! Seabuns are a kind of sea slug with bunny ears!
@@PanthereaLeonis That's SeaHARES, no? The huge seaslugs?
@@felixmalcherek2919im pretty sure they are seabunnies
They remind me of slugcats
Me when learning John/Jane Doe isn't a common name, it isn't even a real name.
Hey thank you for sharing my visual novel! Also thank you to all the kind comments here too 🙏 means more to me right now than you can know.
The story is amazing I can’t wait to see the next part
@@dasawab940 Thank you!
The level of detail and verosimility is impressive. Keep on keeping on. Would be great to have the ilustrations
The art and story is amazing!
@@n_o_marshyou should make a game where you play as a brillow whale
Not enough people are talking about how adorable the squid near the end was. Mans been around for 4 centuries and has likely became partners with various whales to the point where it just _knows_ when it's meeting a future partner.
I'm more curious as to why the ageless octopuses would be culled. Did the humans kill them to keep their population down? Or was it the mentioned forebearers the humans are taking the mantle for?
Also how gleefully it went down and stabbed it through the head, it understood the routine to a point
Y'mean the octopus that latches over eyes and stabs into their skull with a serrated beak? Oh yah "adorable"!
@@flamedance58we domesticated predators and many of us desire to pet those impossible to be domesticated or safely handled, so yeah. Adorable!
@@flamedance58THATS ADORABLE
Fun fact: A Scrimshaw is a piece of art carved into bone or ivory, typically made by whalers from discarded parts.
0h Oh dear
That sounds ominous.
The verb also very literally means "to waste time" or "to avoid work".
That means that the noun is literally a time-waster.
HUH?
@@yurigagarin9765not really, it’s just a reference to the fact that the island is an important place for whales and whale research.
PUNCHING THE AIR WHEN THE LITTLE WHALE STARTED PLAYING WITH THE CAST OUT OLD WHALE, AND WHEN THE OLD WHALE STARTED TO SING BACK JUST MADE ME CRY IN JOY. like hell yeah little dude go and be a massive shark killing machine
fr he gonna be out swimming around the ocean hitting sharks with chokeslams and powerbombs like he's the Undertaker
absolutely my reaction on god i had tears going down my eyes when the calf was dancing around
@@kingdevon2548bro’s gonna be the punisher or ghost rider of the sea.
"They call him the fin slayer"
That would just cause a cycle and then a war
started uncontrollably laughing at 50:47
- “You, the viewing audience, have countless residents inside your own body.”
- “Yeah, like that *damn* skeleton.”
the way he sounds so viscerally livid at his own skeleton SENDS ME.
I cackled when he said it😂😂😂😂
Remove your skeleton now do it
@@noodle_of_doomwhat’s the next step?
Bastard's living in me rent free.
@@Chara_Dreemurr999 nothing, you can't move without it so you just lay there
I absolutely LOVE the characters in this world, like the dude asking "can I keep one, dad?" Only to get the response "only if you feed and walk it yourself."
And the scientists questioning the ethics of saving the calf.
Its great.
These questions do come up in real research too. On one hand - you are not supposed to interfere. On the other they've been watching this calf for months at the time and felt compassion for him. Then there's the next problem of how do you actually care for the calf and later reintroduce him into the wild, would that even be possible, this a mostly undocumented specie on an alien world. Then there's the root of all evil - funding and time, if this calf were to die they'd have to start over losing months of research, this problem also appears later when they were concerned that he was lagging in getting his symbiotes.
Then luckily for everyone the stone mother took him under her wing saving both the calf and the project, and later the calf finding an adult he wanted to mimic that took him under his wing.
“Can we keep one, dad?” Throw me off, laughing. I’m glad they added that.
I love that rescue bit so much, it actually felt like a real rescue operation taking place while also discovering a new specie of animals. These whales are actually terrifying and I can only imagine what the two stranded deck hands and that rescuer felt encountering the beast. And its fascinating with the fact that they have enough intelligence to actually stay surfaced and save the deckhands, makes it all the better after the inital scare. That's what makes this documentary feel so accurate and immersive, and probably realistic with documenting alien wild life with these little world building tid bits.
@@Ameute The exact sort of banter I'd expect from the Coast Guard.
@@poisonouslead85 Hell, that's the same kind of banter I use on the radio late at night at work.
Love the bit where they reference the Mother Brillo surviving an ingrown branch injury before, cause when you look at the cross-section of the mother you can actually see a scar near her forehead for where it was! Cool that they've included all these little details
The realistic writing of childhood trauma in a similarly intelligent species really got to me. I love this one (´；ω；`)
I like the hypothesis by Manly about why our calf chose the killer whale's way
"A shark slaughtered somebody right beside me and caused the death of my mother... Holy shit, is that a shark's skull you're wearing as decoration!?
Dude, you're my idol, teach me your ways!"
And so the young whale will become a great shark killer though it doesn't mean that he'll become a violent exile. He only needs to be violent towards sharks.
@@girlgarde And then Sharkin Luther King appears and says "i hope one day my pups can live in a world without discrimination"
The SPC (shark punching center) is gonna love this dude
TOTAL SHARK DEATH
I always tough that it was bacause the calf relates to the old whale because he is a lonner just like him
Imagine if there was a variant of this game like Spore where you get to pick your symbiotes as a Brillo whale.
This game has a lot of detailed lore and it really makes the experience more immersive.
Adding it on to the pile.
I'd toss money into that kickstarter in a heart beat
Bruhhhhh I need this
If you've not heard of it I feel like you guys would like the game Maneater. Similar vibes but its more tongue in cheek and more Jaws inspired with the added mutation stuff. A game about BRILLO WHALES though would be amazing indeed, especially with spore elements
@@user-vs4qc7yj9s Honestly, it was okay. Wasn't a great game, wasn't a bad game either, but was fun enough. It's basically an upscale of those flash games way back when. One of my old coworkers, he is a cousin of the developer. He voiced the hot dog stand guys in Man-eater. Wild how small the world is sometimes.
I loved how the octopus basically went: "Damn it Hunter.... this kid??"
Hunter: /annoyed/ Yes, THIS kid. I want to pass my knowledge and wisdom to the next generation as I won't be around forever so you'll need a new partner once I pass on. /thinks/ Besides, he's SO cute and cuddly.....
@@girlgardethis is rly cute but cant help but cringe too lol
I could easily imagine this as like a Disney movie or something
i also love how it basically went "alright kid this is gonna sting... hmm... no not there... oh yes!" *stab*
@@steviemaster "like ya cut g"
I thought it was interesting that the octopus is experienced in what should occur and how the whale works. So either there’s been OTHER whales that took on the role of hunter that he’s had to stab to ‘train’ under his, or how own whale was the one he had such experience doing this with.
Good idea! It’s implied that the octopus species is Scary Smart, so it could also be that he just mostly knows how brillo whales work.
My favorite line has to be "Quick feel for the soft spot... and the deed is done." It sounds like a murder but it's just implanting living armor
Honestly, I just love the journey the young whale takes while looking for a template. He originally looks for a plant like his mother, has little luck due to few being present until he runs into one that has a gaggle of sharks following it around, then it remembers how much it hates sharks and starts looking for something different, taking all the time he can to the point that the scientists are getting antsy, until he finds it - the armored son of a bitch of a whale with an octopus sidekick.
So true:)
When I remember correctly a group of sharks is called a shiver.
@@Kenkasanshiver me timbers
I like how this, despite being horrific in parts, takes breaks to see the wonder in what’s going on. The scene with the mating dance is just… wholesome? It really feels like a proper documentary.
Just like nature is equal part horrific and equal part beautiful
The death of the mother made me cry and how the other mother decided to come back for the baby despite the mother being the reason hers got killed (though it was an accident) but I was low key sad how we only saw the adoptive mother once later. I really wish we will see more of the whale and this world and hopefully a small glimpse of the adoptive mother
the adoptive mothers job was done, and the cycle will carry on. Hopefully with her new form of armor, she'll atleast have more to look out for her in the open waters.
That wasn't the young whale's fault and the stone whale (the one who lost her own calf) I think realized that plus she was lonely and wanted to raise a calf so she adopted the young whale which was heartwarming.
@@girlgarde it does happen in the wild, female lions who lost their cub sometimes will take in other animals
If any whale is to blame it's the mimic whale who left her spot swimming upside down, the plant whale only protected her young, she did nothing to cause the death of the other calf
@@devinosland359 oh yeah definitely I was so mad about that like-
If I had a nickel for every time I saw a surprise fish-themed trauma recovery narrative with baby death in its opening act, starring cartoon baby animals separated from their parents and trying to survive while softening the hard shells of older mentor figures through shared experiences, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice
What’s the other one
@@cherryberrykomainu8699 Finding Nemo
@@cherryberrykomainu8699nemo?
@@RubixPsyche oh
Peguei a referência
I really apricate the Stone Mother. I know they aren't real, but this happens with animals in real life.
"Hey, can we keep him, Dad?" "If you want a sea monster, then you'll have to feed and walk it yourself." This is amazingly accurate to how biologists talk.. 1:02:03
He found a shark killer. Or course he would be happy. 1:18:15
Oh, I am so excited for part 2!
From my experience in the army, I’d wager anyone would say such if give the chance for a giant sea Doggo
The octopus is kind of scary base on it's description in their zoology index according to researchers but it was wholesomely terrifying how it wholesomely scared the peace out of me when it offered a material for our young whale
What kind of English is this? 🤣
@ashlirabid9614 Oh sorry. Maybe english was my second or third learnt language🥲
I nearly laughed out loud when the seemingly peaceful octopus just straight up stabbed the whale
@@potentialnobody6652 "Hello new friend!"
"A-bonka."
"OW!"
Honestly, tho that message at the end there, "culled"... means long-lived octopi have been intentionally wiped out they're highly intelligent, biologically immortal, and extremely dangerous species. It might not look it, but that's an apex predator with the potential to outclass humanity
This visual novel is incredible I'm so glad Manly is spreading the word
Same, Speculative evolution is so underrated.
It’s been a while that Manly “play”, or better word “read”, a visual novel like this. Especially something that is only a linear story.
Never thought I would’ve miss this.
Oh man, I bet that these Immortal Octopi is actually the "Sea bunny", given that the real life "Sea Rabbit" is a mollusk (just as Octopi and Squids are mollusks) And I bet that those creatures that tend to gnaw on sea-based equipment were probably the Billo Whales trying to cultivate their gardens, thinking that human equipment was a good enough fit (Or a good enough threat).
The Sea Bunny "shapeshifts", where an Octopus can simply maneuver its body, literally shifting its shape, to fit various situations and areas. Plus, there is the additional fact that Octopi are considered "sentient"... which means they are very clever when getting into everything.
Seeing as some of the billo whales were able to integrate dead matter or even non biologic matters onto their shell I wonder if they'd be able to integrate artificial things
Metal plates, wires etc
Not sure why they'd do it, maybe for a truly impenetrable outter shell, or purely for intimidation
@@KalashVodka175 Imagine being in the ocean, and an amalgamation of every sunken ship rises up to follow you.
Literally Davy Jones' Locker is coming after you and it sounds like a Whale
Joshing aside, it wouldn't be out of the question persay. Could be something that cultivator bugs (like that one mole) or certain mosses might do, by adding artificial materials to a garden in the same way that "Nature reclaims fallen wrecks"
Quite a few of the billo whales add bones, like you said, so it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility.
@@KalashVodka175I’m imagining a Billo whale with crafty inhabitants who glued on a fragmented shipwreck, carefully maneuvering to appear like a ship to sneak close to human fishing vessels to steal their catches lol.
Or another whale whose inhabitants use scavenged tank traps, barbwire, and exploded parts of seamines to create a metal fortress, and a repurposed human building or shipwreck attached to the belly to defend a calf.
@@user-vs4qc7yj9s Nah, no organic material we know thus far can overpower man-made materials. No matter how hard the bone or chitin, nothing beats composite metals in strength and flexibility.
The only definite benefit organic has over man-made is they are more environmentally friendly to manufacture because it can't use high-energy processes and rare elements for it to be worth it to make by organisms who, unlike us, don't have access to such luxuries.
Not saying nature isn't awesome though; the things plants and animals came up with is insane considering the very limited resource they have.
There was also the note of other long-lived molluscs being "culled." Perhaps they were mostly wiped out by early human settlers because of the threat they posed to our equipment and safety?
If we're working for some more advanced beings, they may also see a threat in the octopi who can live so long without aging. Four centuries, "devious intelligence."
There's something here and I love it so much i need more
speculative biology is such a great genre, it's such a fun and interesting thing and its really great to see this in a visual novel format! (also I'm kinda very excited for the bug thing if they ever do it as arthropods are already such a massively diverse group seeing what few niches they don't already fill would be super fascinating)
“You have countless residents inside your own body”
“Yeah, like that damn skeleton”
That killed me
I’ve literally never been this invested in a documentary. I was legit so worried for him when the shark attacked.
I really wanna see his future.
Fiction and all - I’m so incredibly invested in this.
Same :D
as someone into marine biology this is FASCINATING
J-JOTARO!?
Ever heard of the speculative evolution project of Polinices? you should search it up, its pretty cool and focused around symbiotic aquatic organisms
As someone into biology in general, *LOVE IT*
As someone that is on biology college and is looking for specializing on cetaceans, it is indeed great
This feels like watching a movie with a pal, it's super chill. I also am adoring the world building here and really hope more people are inspired to make their own visual novels like this. I actually really want to try this out now...
It’s not even a game, but still a very interesting visual novel.
Heck, it feels like ages when Manly read a linear visual novel like this instead of a visual novel game.
so i wasnt the only one to feel like movie and chill with a friend!
It's free on Steam!!
@@aquarys4425 this is really well made and they deserve money.
It’s free on steam and only takes up 1gb. Get it!
9:27 Manly's sudden loud confusion at the "stonedog" was really unexpected
Oh my gosh this little whale’s story is crazy- From the dramatic backstory, the loss of his mother, the adoption, the isolation from others, and then finding an exiled whale !! Ahhh it’s so good.. oh my gosh I love the octopus 😭
I cried so hard when the calf kept swimming back to check on his mother and then she died god i've never cried this hard since hachiko. Also the scenes where the calf and mother look at each other are so heartwarming i kept tearing up. The calf is wayyy too adorable!!
Amazing fictional documentary, can't wait for part 2 to be released!
The mother's death made me hate the shark who caused the whole mess to begin with.
@@girlgarde nature is survival of the fittest we are unique as hmans to avoid alot of that although we havebt ruley escaped it either
@@girlgarde But he hungy
@@girlgarde Technically if she wasn't already wounded, she would have been fine. The mother was never the target. And shark's gotta eat too. Nature is just like this
@@girlgarde The shark was trying to survive too
Scrimshaw is carvings on whale ivory, apparently. Very fitting. The story was really cute and I love how pretty the artwork is! The whale calf's little freckles that turn into spots are adorable. This kind of spec-evo biology is great.
I came expecting horrors beyond human comprehension, I got teary eyes instead
Now you know why marine biologists exist.
This is basically super sci-fi alien (in the biology way) Shonen Whale anime
I love how they included a retro encabulator in the drone schematic at 43:35.
Even in the far future there's only one way to effectively prevent side fumbling.
If it works don't fix it kind of deal.
Feels like our little whale will be an all offensive build type and will be accompanied by the all defensive build one in 1:13:49 , a literal spear and shield duo
fun fact: sea buns or sea bunnies do indeed exist, they are not actual aquatic rabbits but sea slugs with little antennae that look like bunny ears, very cute things.
How badly I wanted to scream this out during the sea bunny scene, then remembering how this Earth is unlike ours, you would _NOT_ believe
They're also extremely tiny, like half an inch.
It’s been a while that we saw Manly “play” a pure visual novel. Specifically something that is a linear story.
The last whale was super badass, I hope the child brillo finds a similar deadly assassin companion to assist him in Part 2.
the child brillo is most likely the new host of that octopus as stated with the "witnessed this cycle once before" and the fact that the octopus doesn't die but the whale is stated as elderly. In short: child brilla now has a badass octopus with 400 years of duty in its tentacles. Pretty nice catch in my opinion
@@steviemaster Though i'm worried that octopus may have been the reason the previous Brillo got himself outcasted in the first place. 400 year old octopus living off of other species seems like the manipulative type
@@steviemaster Oh yeah yeah I didn't read into the lines and missed that. Thx I'm now certain that it will be a recurring character in the game.
@@astick5249 nope that wasn't the case either, the narrator said it was due to the brillo being a biiit rough in a mating competition. As an example... hmm... two guys get in a bar fight over a girl and one smashes a bottle over the others head. One ambulance ride and a trial later one is dead and the other is behind bars. Manly made the octopus seem manipulative with the "you gotta kill him". Yes the octopus wanted bloodshed but immediately goes out to help the little guy. He's smart, not manipulative. Maybe the octopus did indeed play a role but, again, he's smart. He will know not to be AS rough to other brillos anymore... or so i hope. MAN i can't wait for part two hahaha
@@steviemaster Oh i already saw a different video of this game without commentary and came to a similar idea.
I was thinking that maybe the octopus was the one who directly caused it to escalate. Like what if during a fight the octopus went for the competitor's eyes or even just agitated the two of them to increase aggression. The octopus may have wanted his host whale in a certain location and so purposely got him exiled, as he has "seen this cycle before" and might even look to that exile spot as home base. Or maybe It was just the recklessness of the octopus not alining with the "no kill" law in Brillo society and saw no problem with encouraging his host to kill.
The depth and overall details are so...I haven't been this engrossed in a visual novel in years. The art is both horrific and adorable, the ecosystem is extremely interesting and makes me eager for the next entry.
I can't imagine the time and effort put into this, it really shows and I am genuinely in love with the story so far.
Okay so y'know what sends me the most about this whole thing? Their section on 'sea bunnies' and how they don't exist, aren't a real animal?
Jorunna parva, commonly known as the *sea bunny,* is a species of dorid nudibranch, a shell-less marine gastropod mollusc in the family Discodorididae. The species was first described by Kikutaro Baba. Its resemblance to a rabbit facilitated a surge in popularity on Twitter throughout Japan in 2015.
I got gaslit by an alternate reality documentary into believing a real animal wasn't real. Some of the depictions of it being just a little lump with bunny ears are actually close to what the real thing looks like too. *That* really got me.
This is honestly amazing and I would’ve NEVER come across it if you didn’t play it.
I love how they nail the documentary vibe as well as the actual way humans would react.
I love when Manly plays games that aren’t super popular. This one was so good. So much thought and research put into it. The art is spectacular I love it
I like how smart MBH is when commentating. He knows a lot about biology
It's just basic biology. Any kid with basic cable is able to learn this.
Americans really are uneducated.
Agree!!!
Manlybadassxenobiologist
Not smart, he's educated
I wonder if he did study and graduate in biology.
I'd decided to call the whale Little Fin since he got Land Before Timed. I'm honestly glad Little Fin didn't choose a plant-based garden like his mother because while beautiful, it was what did her in towards the end, plus I like the idea of an actual killer whale.
Not exactly, what did her in was an old injury that didn’t completely heal in the end and was too severe to recover from when she needed to protect her calf. The suddenness and jerk start into urgent need of protection fucked up her internal wound to the point there wasn’t a chance or possibility she could survive in anyway at least not without human intervention and even then would be a miracle
@@SingleIsFreedom..ilyLuka LittleFoot’s mom died protecting him from the Sharptooth (T-Rex) the same way the Little Fin’s mom died protecting him from the shark. The only difference is that LittleFoot’s mom died from the injury sustained from the battle, but both mothers sacrificed themselves to save their babies.
@@jasmineweaver4401 despite my uncultured brandead ass not getting the unfamiliar reference I understand you’re point
@@SingleIsFreedom..ilyLuka Nah you're fine. The very first ever Land Before Time was an old movie (we're talking about VHS tape old 😂), came out almost a decade before I was even born. So I definitely do not expect everyone to know what the heck I'm talking about.
@@jasmineweaver4401 oh damn
The way it absolutely sells being a genuine documentary while doing fictional worldbuilding is fantastic. It gives you enough information to be properly immersed in the world without giving *so* much that it starts to feel like an omniscient narrator telling you the lore for a DnD campaign.
As tragic as this amazing tale was, 1:20:23 absolutely killed me.
Squid guy just make another killer whale lol
*stabs*
"Okay son, this won't hurt a bit!"
@@artasky6093 OCTOPUS! Can you not tell a difference between an octopus and a squid? Also they clearly said it's an octopus...
@@argentumsoundThey said it was a Vorpix Octopus
Wow. I am very much fixated on speculative biology, and this novel is one of the best works about non-existent creatures I've ever seen. I love how small bits of information about humanity are added, it adds to the illusion we are watching a documentary. Like, if you watch a show it won't go on explaining the status of humanity at a current point in time, neither does this game.
The biology stuff is also amazing, it really does feel like these creatures could potentially excist in real life.
I also loved the art, wow it is good. The meme-ish sketches are adorable.
I really hope this game gets more attention, it really deserves it, as do the creators
Wow I didn't think I'd get this invested in a documentary, would love to see more.
This is oddly fascinating.
Not to mention this is Manly's chance to be Sir David Attenborough for a bit.
OH and by the way, there ARE Sea Bunnies, but they're more like cute Sea Slugs.
Absolutely precious little slime balls.
Their very poisonous from what I’ve learned
wait,... sea slugs can be cute?
@@hito1988look them up on google, it’s quite interesting, I used them for reference for a couple ocs!
@@hito1988sea bunny slugs are super cute and my favorite type of sea slug.
But sea slugs are *almost* all very beautiful or cute. Another one to look up by name is the leaf sheep sea slug.
Please do yourself a favor and look through as many different species as you can tho! They’re all so amazing looking!
"Two Researchers began a heated debated on the ethics of intervention."
That moment struck me because I was full crying at that moment.
Intervention would not have been a question for me.
It is never a good idea to mess with nature.
@@adry3211humans are part of nature
@@adry3211 As cruel as it is, this is the correct answer.
@@adry3211True sometimes natural selection just does it's thing.
it's also an observational research project, you do not interfere with the observed specimen unless it contributes to the research's goals
What I'm really curious about going forward is the Brillo's level of potential sentience. I assumed a lot of the narration was doing the typical documentary thing where it anthropomorphicizes its subjects for the sake of entertainment, but the bit with the whales assisting the fishing crew, not only not frightened of but actually approaching the rescue team, got me wondering.
All chordate animals and a few who aren't are sentient. Your word is "sapient", and on that note, all whales are sapient! :) they are self-aware and probably capable of metacogitation (thinking about thinking). they have cultural memes and fads (ramming boats is "the thing" among a population of orcas right now) and what can be compared to languages.
Based on their brain to body ratio there are theories that, whatever that might feel like to experience, whales might actually be smarter than we are, just evolved for a different niche.
On that note, the only thing holding back octopuses (extremely intelligent, but with no spine in evidence) from having a society is the fact that females die brooding eggs, and they die brooding eggs because they can't share labour, and they can't share labour because they're essentially all sociopaths (treat others of their own species as threats, can't trust others not to screw them over, always trying to screw over other octopus). For some reason scientists fed a few of them ecstasy to mess with their brain structure, and then they started seeking each other out to hug and hang out.
There are lots of animals who are perfectly capable of every task we consider a barrier to "ensoulment" (the squiggly quale people unconsciously really mean when they talk about animal sentience), who are just one convenient evolutionary adaptation from being able to do what we do in a way we understand. The more you know!
@@moistspaghetto4043So octopi are too intelligent for their own good🤔??
@@al-imranadore1182 basically! We've seen them use tools, get out of closed aquariums and even build "villages" (stable groups living in constructed homes). Like ours, their villages are an important environment-altering feature of the ecosystem.
Unfortunately they're so anxious about (and so much not worried about) one another that for the most part we think it's pretty tense down there -- and no wonder, because octopus young hatch, and their mother is already either dead or dying. Their father probably never knows them, because in general octopus males don't care to. If they survive the paralarval stage, they learn culture (how and when to fight, what counts as attractive, how to build houses etc) from observing stranger males and virgin females, none of whom have any strong reason to like them, because the adults in an area may not even be related (due to the specific way they spawn).
It's not like with primates at all -- not to anthropomorphize evolution, but it's like God tried to repeat what happened with primates on a fundamentally different, antisocial animal, and is seriously struggling to make it work.
@@moistspaghetto4043 According to your word Octopi suffer first world country child upbringing problems.
@@al-imranadore1182 actually, yes, basically - except instead of being caused by a long line of historical accidents causing an additionally problematic deviation from the way that the species had "only" lived since agriculture was invented, the way that an octopus lives is still more or less how it evolved to live. It's kind of like that they have the problem we have since we also began building cities, which is that they themselves are choosing a life that produces specific psychological consequences, and they aren't equipped to assess the sociological costs or benefits beyond short term guaranteed food (they even reinvented landlords and feudalism). They have this worse than humans, without mitigating factors, since they don't have generations that care for each other, and never did.
It may be that octopuses who live alone in the "wild" (as nomads) are somewhat better adjusted than sedentary urbanites, as far as that goes for them - there was a documentary about a diver who spent a year or so befriending a specific female, who was fairly peaceful and really did enjoy his company (whether because she was a female or he was not an octopus, we don't know -- maybe both, science doesn't particularly care yet about female octopi in their own right). Maybe there's a parallel there to different cultural values between human nomads and villagers, too, on top of the first world vs everyone else distinction, I don't know, nobody seems to know yet.
this is utterly goddamn fascinating. I would kill for all the blueprint sketches and notes of all the fictional species here. the voice acting is SPECTACULAR and the diversity among the ecosystem, alongside genuine terminology, makes this feel so real
The dev has an art book released on steam:]
@@yourratking FANTASTIC. THANK YOU
This is the most captivating game I've seen in a while- as a kid who grew up watching Animal Planet documentaries, but also in love with fantasy and alien stories, this is a beautiful combination of both! Makes me feel nostalgic, while also having something very fresh to it! I crave to devote my entire life to studying the ecology of that universe 😩
This is, unequivocally, my favorite video on UA-cam. The stories within stories within stories, the immense, creative, and branched worldbuilding, an in-depth discussion on alien, pseudobiological relationships, and of course, our shark-themed anime protagonist.
It's been a _year_ since I last watched this???
Anyway I gave it a rewatch. Still amazing to behold it all. Can't wait to see what our Brillo whale becomes.
This was absolutely beautiful
For a guy that loves anything that has to do with animals, includin speculative biology, that is then perfectly mixed in this "analog horror" style of narration, this is something else, i just fell in love with it all. The ending was also so heartwarming, perfect perfect perfect
Please creators of this masterpiece, i require more content like this
Creator, not creators. This is one person! They’re in the comments!
i was moved to tears by this. the unabashed creativity and love of storytelling here is miraculous. one of the most beautiful things i've ever witnessed. this kind of art, so well thought out and deep and vibrant, restores my faith in humanity.
as someone with a deep love for the ocean and ocean creatures and biology this was so interesting and well written and beautifully illustrated.. the sakutarou umineko reference at 52 minutes made me so happy
Adoption is also not quite uncommon in nature. Penguin mothers who lose their chicks sometimes abduct and care for other chicks. Once they're over the loss, though, they just abandon it and make a new one XD
What's so funny?
Ouch-
Poor chick,
The males especially do this, basically if the chick survives the long winter with the father, then it's far less likely to die when the mother comes back from the waters so it seems the females are less likely to need to steal a child because there is less of a chance to.
Honestly I could totally imagine this being an animated series, the art style is amazingly colorful while also holding onto a sense of realism and i think the story is very compelling. And of course not to mention the world building which is just so well thought out. I can’t wait to see the second part of the documentary!
This artstyle feels like some intern at Studio Ghibli was asked to make art for the Ancient Eearth segment in Devilman and I'm loving every adorable, nightmare inducing frame.
This is so well-made. I’m blown away by the way the visuals, music, script, additional worldbuilding, and humor all plays together. It’s so stunning, I really am just in awe!!!
The art is so beautiful and the story is so tragic. I love the thought put into the biology and scientific side of the VN. And the banter between the workers in the rescue video sure made me chuckle.
This was phenomenal. Felt really invested in the whales survival and got teary eyed during the trench scene. I could watch a documentary like this all day.
Also kind of wholesome that the grumpy killer whale got a killer apprentice?
Something about this is just so incredibly good and soothing to me, it feels impossible to put into words but sort of reminds me of listening to your all-time favorite song in the car, or coming home from a trip and your cat being obviously thrilled to see you or something like that. I hope more are made
I love that nearly all of the adult Brillo Whales the calf has met were friendly and welcoming, even offering to be mentors to teach the calf about their skills, knowledge and their way of living, even the outcast Brilllo Whale became friendly and welcomed the calf, even becoming the calf's mentor after the calf shown compassion the the lone whale. The only Brillo Whale that was rather unfriendly and didn't want to mentor the calf was that plant covered Brillo Whale, with a needle like bone in the front of it's face.
The futuristic nature documentary you're thinking of at the end was "The Future is Wild". They really liked their cephalopods.
same, it reminded me of speculative evolution
I love how they turned sea bunnies into a cryptid.
It's an exceptionally well-crafted story, especially the abyssal trench sequence with the shark was really well done. Though I feel like the meta-story of panspermia and fitness decline was a bit odd and I didn't know what to make of it
I think the panspermia is how the story explains "the how and why" of the speculative biology as an intentional replication of Earth DNA/biosphere instead of other stories which focus on creatures that are completely separate and unrecognizable to us. Like the Brillo whales cultivating their garden, humans are cultivating these planets and making sure it goes a certain way (such as culling the risky intelligent competition that develops). It adds to the mystery and I imagine it would be explored more in other parts.
How is it odd when it's complete obvious.
The whales are small in numbers, their evolution has most likely severed their population due to severe trial and error. On top of that they only have a limited breeding habitat.
@@ashlirabid9614 ?? I'm talking about the reference to an inescapable decline in evolutionary fitness over generations of human beings, leading to their extinction being "inescapable". The game refers to this as being the impetus behind future humans panspermia efforts and research of the results of it. I find it odd because I'm not sure how this makes sense from a biological standpoint (especially in relation to an interstellar species), or the point the author was trying to make with it.
@@whattwowhat Great point about the Brillo whale's own garden cultivation as being directly analogous to human tending to the biospheres of other planets. I hadn't seen that connection actually
@@gauthamprak I don't think they were referring specifically to Humanity in that bit, there was some hints at there being another species in the picture from some of that wording.
This is THE BEST THING I've seen in years. The story, details, creativity, humor and emotions pull you in and keep your attention like nothing else. I'm addicted already.
This made me BAWL. the little touches of the humans interacting with what happens in the world was... so sweet.
This game was so cool! I love when creators can successfully blend believable science fiction with games. The writing in this game reminds me of the Mystery Flesh Pit. That was another creative world building exercise that was so convincingly written. Overall great job on this game, developer!!!
yes absolutely it reminded me of the mfp as well!!
I absolutely loved this. I love biology. I love biopunk. I love animals. I love worldbuilding. This was a feast. (I want a pet one of those octopuses.)
I think that would be a fascinating and almost scary pet to have. Sure, humans have domesticated a lot of dangerous creatures, but this one's dangerous in an intellectual rather than physical sense. You could very well end up manipulated or betrayed by one of those creatures based on a mindset and agenda totally alien to you. We can usually be assured with most animals that they aren't capable of something that complex, but in this case it's a complete wild card. It could be an amazing and brilliant companion or a little fiend that makes you think it's your best friend only to end your life.
This is ramping up a lot more tension and horror than i thought it would.
I really wanna learn more about this world.
The Penumbra shark bit was awesome. Probably my favorite part, really loved the horror theme. They way it suddenly disappeared was cool
Superb writing in this - everything from the worldbuilding to the snippets of dialogue were deliciously believable while maintaining the alien aspect. The art and voice acting were likewise excellent quality. I'm looking forward to part 2 and hoping the dev(s) continue to make works.
If this doesn't cost 25$+ they need to raise the price as they deserve to be paid for this wonderful creation we get to wittness. Honestly I am glad MBH is showing this to us, otherwise I would have never seen this.
I would love art merch
it's free on steam but the devs have a kofi account
This was beautiful. It scratched a real "Sci-fi and Wonder" itch that I've been nursing for a long time. I really hope that you play the next part and I'll be sure to watch the next piece.
So happy to see Manyly playing this hidden gem. Got it not long after release and have been waiting on some big channels to cover it and give it the recognition it deserves!
Love your pfp
@@airplanes_aren.t_realme too :)
the part with the penumbra shark was absolutely terrifying i could even feel the calfs fear for a second!
this is an awesome game i hope it gets a full version thats complete.
not only is this an amazing visual novel, the art book you can buy to support it is one of the best I've personally seen.
This will be the only game that I can accept an episodic method of release. From the artwork, their adherence to the documentary theme, the scientific grounding mixed with fantasy and subtlety of world building, I've not felt so enthralled and brimming with anticipation about the following episode of a series since childhood.
Please watch the video first, as I will spoil multiple aspects of what made this an exceptional experience:
The keystone to this entire episode, the shining jewel to the story telling has to be the introduction of the first mother whale and the Seabunny. Like a boy first learning how to ride a bike, the crucial steps are applying what we do know to a novel function. We have a certain grasp of our own reality and how things work, so we must start with the training wheels to first set forth making the connections in our mind to the locomotion of the bike. The familiarity/comfort of a whale, the slight jump into the complex ecosystem it creates and the quaint human element of the Seabunny were the pushes needed to offset the shakiness of the audiences' initial skepticism laying the groundwork to build upon a new perspective crafted by the developer's imagination.
Our inhibitions abated, our senses heightened and our minds tingling at the realization of new possibilities; we pedal forward on a path full of wonderment at this new world painted before us.
This is fascinating. What a fun idea for a visual novel, this comes across as a believable documentary. It's so well written and laid out, the world building is great. I can't wait for next chapter, this is good stuff.
this is such an amazing game. There were sad moments, funny moments, and heart warming moments. I've watched nature documentaries my whole life, and this feels so real. Not to mention the amazing details that is put into the world building.
i've never seen a documentary in the style (?) of a visual novel, this was such a novel experience and i unexpectedly loved every second of it
I normally watch/listen to youtube videos on the second monitor while I work, but this hooked me almost immediately and I had to watch it with full attention like an actual documentary! What a fascinating world the creator has made here. The little touches of humor were spot on, too. I look forward to seeing Manly's commentary on future parts whenever they come out.
Honestly this is an absolutely amazing concept for a story, it’s so brilliantly done, looks great, has surprisingly in-depth lore behind it. Honestly can’t wait to see more in the future
This is absolutely fascinating from an animal lovers perspective.
Yet also Absolutely terrifying from the perspective of a man who fears the ocean.
Basically a "Wow! No thanks!"
I loved this documentary! Cant wait for part 2 and finish seeing the Calf's story.
Can’t wait for the Calf to be a worthy shark hunter.
Also I’m speculating that the octopus would continue to help and bond with the Calf like they did with the whale they were on.
😆😆😂😂I loved the scene of the octopus simultaneously capturing a prawn and a squid whilst fighting off a shark, a seabird, and several other colourful characters, who were all also simultaneously trying to have each other for dinner.
46:15
I cant get over how powerful the sound design is during this scene, this is a masterpiece
As someone who basically grew up at the beach and addicted to Nat Geo as a kid, THIS IS THE SICKEST VISUAL NOVEL IVE EVER SEEN. LOOK AT THE CREATURES DESIGNS BRO THEYRE REMARKABLE
Your actually kidding me. This is actually amazing, the story and background for the world is absolutely amazing! cant wait to see more!
Amazing work! The art is blowing mind, so stylish, gorgeous, somewhat ghibli-like watercolor, but still uniqe and realistic. The work done with color blows my mind out. The sound design is great too, it feel like a real documentary. All intersections feel natural and interesting. I can't and don't look away even for a second.
I can't believe I watched this whole thing with rapt attention. I love the art and I love aliens and I love speculative biology. I can't wait for the next part, and I hope it doesn't actually take 20 years.
i haven't been this enraptured by a piece of media in a long time, and i really look forward to see where it goes next! i was so immersed and on the edge of my seat to see what would happen, and the dialogue/worldbuilding is done really well and left me so curious and eager to learn more about this world and it's history. thank you to the developers for such a wonderful game and thank you to manly for showcasing it in such an engaging way! :]