The Surreal Beauty of The Evil Within
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- Опубліковано 21 жов 2024
- Don't mind me, I'm just gushing over the aesthetics of The Evil Within games...
In this video essay I take a look at film, art and games in order to to discuss why and how beautiful visuals can make horror even more disturbing.
Patreon: / eurothug4000
Twitter: / eurothug4000
Instagram: / eurothug4000
GAMES MENTIONED:
The Evil Within (and DLCs)
The Evil Within 2
Silent Hill
Alan Wake
Deadly Premonition
FILM/TV FOOTAGE USED:
Eraserhead, Twin Peaks, The Cell, The Shining, Midsommar, Hereditary, Alien, Suspiria, The VVitch, Under the Skin, Ringu, The Grudge, Psycho, Dawn of the Dead
MUSIC USED:
The Evil Within - Clair De Lune
Silent Hill 2 - The Forest Trail
The Evil Within 2 - The Artist's Domain
The Evil Within - One Eight Four On Scene
The Evil Within 2 - A Memory
Silent Hill 2 - Peace & Serenity
The Evil Within 2 - Roaming the Streets
Silent Hill 2 - Prisonic Fairytale
Resident Evil 7 - Safe Room
The Evil Within 2 - Making Your Way Home
You know, I think the creepiest things about female monsters like Shade is that regardless of how horrific it is, It's still probably someone's fetish.
💀
this video of yours really does the games justice. Despite the constant hate the first game gets and how ignored the second game is, it's nice to know some people appreciate the beauty of this series. Thank you
I loved the first one, and when i saw the second one being released i found motivation to live xd
It shocks me that people hate this series. To be honest it took me a while to get used to the first game, but i learned to love it. Always was exciting to get to a new area.
@@janissilins5346 at least from what I've observed (and felt myself), it's not hate as much as bafflement. It does so many things well, and I *really* want to love it, but every time I feel hooked by the game, it immediately finds the way to make me go, "what the hell were designers thinking with that decision" - be it cheap deaths after getting stuck in geometry, enemies ignoring my stealth, some dumb plot twist happening, or being thrown into a horde fight with no ammo at all. At times it just feels raw and undertested, and I bet people would love it much more if it reinforced its artistic ambition with some proper mechanical polish.
I wish we could get a 3rd game 💔
your quality of commentary is sublime.
thank you so much!!
I really hope they do a 3rd one. Was really upset 2 didnt get dlc:(
yeah I was really hoping for DLC :(
The evil within 2 is underrated. They should’ve added a mercenaries mode like in RE4 I think maybe I would pay to see that
"Yet with all these nightmarish qualities, Laura is still wearing her shoes." That made me laugh so much.
Rich girls, am I right?
Finally someone who understood the real beauty of theese 2 games. A lot of people gave them ratings like 6 or 7( if not even a 5 ). For me, they've always been awesome. I loved the first one, awesome graphics for 2014, great atmosphear and locations, exellent variety of enemies and monsters and very cool and interesting story. People usually prefer the first one, i'm not sure, but i think i liked the second one even more. I know, there's a lot less variety with the locations if compared to the first one, but they're much bigger and you can explore them entirely. It's the open world factor that made me love the second one so much. I mean, every single part of the map was extremely beautiful( especially at night )and exploring it is also very useful because of the secret weapons and all the encounters with "anima". The monsters were cool, i really, really liked all the bosses( especially Obscura and Stefano ). In my opinion The Evil Within 2 is scarier than the first one, there are less creepy moments but more intense( like the first person part in the sewers with that lament ).
Overall they are both more than grat horror games and of the best i spent money for.
The Evil Within 2 is such an underrated game and that's a shame.
I really hope more people decide to try it after watching this.
it's really, really great!!
I played the evil within only to play the evil within 2. I ended up loving first game and not ending second because I didn't enjoy it at all
@@pigmej562 they're very different experiences in many ways. And that seems to be a very common sentiment. That people enjoyed one, didn't like the other
@@pigmej562 how do you not enjoy the 2nd game I tried to enjoy the first but it just wasn’t that good
Seeing this video back to back with Jacob Geller's "Meaning of Ugly Games" is the best kind of trip
I’m a huge fan of The Evil Within, but I haven’t seen your channel before. I just want to say this is really well made content and i really appreciate more love for a series that flys under the radar a bit. Thanks alot, you’ve earned a new subscriber!
thank you! :)
That Clair De Lune audio shift into the title card gave me goosebumps -- what a wonderful video about a game many people seemingly overlooked. I also had no idea that Ikumi Nakamura was the lead concept artist for these games; the Keeper and Laura are incredible horror antagonists as well as Obscura and Anima! Now there's even more reason to get excited for GhostWire: Tokyo!
Side note: this video reminds me of what Takayoshi Sato said in the Silent Hill 2 featurette and how the game's visuals fed into two primary preoccupations of humankind, I highly recommend watching it if you haven't already!
Thank you! I’m really excited for GhostWire Tokyo, especially for that sweet monster design! I’ll have to check out that featurette for SH2 too, it sounds right up my alley - thank you so much! ☺️
1:40 Nice editing with the Debussy piece, that was a nice touch.
Your reference to the Midsommar flower dress being more memorable than any graphic violence is so true. See I reckon horror is particularly looked down upon and judged, so it's cool to see when other people are like "wait no, there's A LOT MORE to it."
That being said - As much as I love The Evil Within's aesthetic, I find it to be too reliant on combat and I find that clashes with its tone throughout. That's how I remember it anyway. Still really good though.
Anyway I really like the contrast you make between Japanese horror and American and how the game kind of blends the two from time to time. Also all the movies references/parralells are *chefs kiss*
From the moment Sebastian enters STEM in TEW2, until after he manages to escape Stefano for the first time I was left wide eyed and with that spine chill few forms of media can pull off. It perfectly captured the concept of living in a dream or watching a moving, surreal picture.
I longed every time for the next Stefano encounter, just to see what else the devs had curated, and I never finished them disappointed.
2020 is the year of the evil within appreciation and i'm all for that
p.s tango third chapter please.................
My feelings exactly! I constantly would pause to admire the scenery, and personally found Stefano’s twisted art quite beautiful. I was getting worried that I was a psychopath too! 😄
I will be honest. I dont play games. I consume more or less all kinda of media and i love them all. But i dont play games much. So when Super Eyepath Wolf recommended me your channel i didnt know what to expect but due to current circumstances i had a bit of extra time in my hands.
And i can say with certainty that I do not regret checking out your channel at all. Even for someone not interested in games as much, i absolutely loved the videos i checked out. Thank you for creating such fantastic videos and hope you gain a lot more subscribers and views because you deserve them.
Your videos are kind of mesmerizing and always have me forgetting everything and just focusing on what you're saying. Great content, I wish you much success
thank you so so much!!!
Great video as always. I found the first The Evil Within a little all over the place in terms of gameplay and story, but it was often very visually striking. I think I’ll have to move the sequel up the backlog list after watching this.
I remember playing the evil within when it came out on ps4, the game play is really janky but my god it's such an outstanding experience, I've never felt more intrigued by monster design in a game, what made it even better was reading into the wiki, all the symbolism that just feeds into the lore, I have to thank you as this video made me remember how much I liked the setting of the first game that I just started to play the second one on an ultrawide monitor, it's been the creepiest game I've played in a while, I'm just past chapter 5 and it's been such an experience that no other game can provide
thank you for watching!! I hope you enjoy the rest of the game too! :)
@@eurothug4000 Of course i am, Obscura was definitely something that will stick with me for a long time, i saddens me that this franchise failed in sales so bad, i would love to know what happens to Joseph
Your videos are like a video game art lecture series and I love them!
Love your comparison to Gregory Crewdson's work. His photos are so eerie and the feeling so applicable to EW2. Love this video, great stuff
Thank you!!
There are some gorgeous shots in this video. Nice selection, and I enjoyed the commentary too!
thank you! ☺️
Editing here is SO GOOD!
THANK YOU SO MUCH AHHHHH
Damn that wolf with a eyepatch he sent me down a rabbit hole of amazing videos
Another amazing video! Definitely gonna bump The Evil Within to the top of my list to play next!
Its a hard game but very good.
I found your channel through twitter, I must say that I am definitely glad that I did, this channel shows quality that a lot of other channels don't have and these videos are GREAT! From the commentary, to the editing, even toward the thumbnails, it is all fantastic, keep up the good work!
Thank you so much!!
You do a great job at selling the beauty of these games. The visuals and imagery in the EW games definitely stand out among the crowd.
thank you! glad you enjoyed it :)
I fairly recently finished the second game after it getting away from me a couple years back when it released with a bunch of other games at the time. I absolutely love the atmosphere and uniqueness of these games and really hope to see a third entry at some point down the line. Great that you're covering this series and another great video 👍.
I would die for The Evil Within 3!!!! Thank you so much :)
absolutely amazing video maria a underated youtuber talking about a underated horror games is very great everything you talked about was awesome this has already become my new fav vid of yours i look forward to showing this video to as many people as i can thank you as always :D
Thank you so much! :)
@@eurothug4000 you are quite welcome :D
Not only was this video excellent, it also told me the name of 'Uzumaki' so I can finally read it, saw it at a manga exhbition a few months back and it scared the crap out of me! Keep it up making this quality content!
Ha thank you so much!! Glad I could help 😁 Uzumaki is really good!
How am I just finding your channel??? I love videos like these, the breakdowns of genres and the explanations of feelings caused by this type of game is great. I'm definitely subscribing now so I don't miss any more.
Thank you!! :)
Excellent video, as always! I really like how you honed in on a specific aspect of TEW instead of trying to cover the series more broadly. Like, I like those kinds of videos too, but videos like this are really interesting and informative, and this one in particular makes me take a closer reading of the aesthetics of other games too. Great work!
Thank you!! Glad you enjoyed it :)
I just came across this video in my feed again I'm floored your Death Stranding videos were INCREDIBLE your explanations so insightful now you cover The Evil Within two great underappreciated gems love them both the way they get under your skin is brilliant! I could listen to your lovely voice all day whatever your next video may be I cant wait to see what's next for you x
thank you!! :)
@@eurothug4000 My pleasure so if I may ask you what do you have in mind for your next feature? Or future projects?
I got the platinum for both games on PS4 and I loved playing them! I'm glad to see more people appreciate them too
I call it 'gorgeous gloom'.
You literally made me give another chance to Evil within after this video. Thanks for the amazing content!
Thank you for watching!
It's sad how The Evil Within came out during a time when that particular kind of survival horror wasn't something a lot of folks seemed to want or cherish anymore. It's funny, too, how the recent surge of survival horror includes the remake of Resident Evil 4, which honestly takes a lot of inspiration, as far as I can tell, from The Evil Within's innovations in the genre, which does make sense since the latter did come from Shinji Mikami, the creative lead for the original Resident Evil 4. I personally think it's the perfect time to have a 3rd entry in this series, and I'd love to see one that combines the best things from both 1 and 2 while improving on what it can to best fit whatever new challenges are beset for the player/protagonist to take head on. Tho it might not happen since Shinji Mikami has left or is set to leave Tango Gameworks from what I've heard lately from gaming news outlets.
Superbly illustrated. Hell, you've even given me ideas for some photos.
Awesome video. I love surreal art like Beksinski paintings. I guess you could say the monsters ain't nothin but damaged goods.
I adore your videos! once I stumbled onto your silent hill one, there was no going back. They're all very creative and informal, I'm honestly a sucker for aesthetic game settings and it defiantly makes the game ten times better. The Evil Within did that beautifully!
Ah I've never personally played these games but on days where I wanted some good spooks I watched the evil within through let's players on youtube. I think I'm the only one in my social circle who has even ever heard of these games, but I still love it. I loved your commentary and you've earned a new subscriber (give credit to Raz for the shoutout!) I low how you captured and edited so many of the beautiful aspects of this game, that's it's made me grow in appreciation of it even more.
The references, the music, the analysis, the screenshots 😙👌. In my opinion this the best video that exists about TEW2 and I'll definitely see you in the next one
This is fantastic and quite eeriely nostalgic to a game which the first i played as a kid and nearly shat myself, shows what a great video it is.
Thank you!! :)
Came here from Jacob Geller, he shouted you out during a stream and I'm glad I stopped by! I'll definitely be watching more. Also the name eurothug is kinda funny for some reason!
Thanks for dropping by!! It’s definitely not a very serious username that’s for sure 🤣
this is such a wonderful dissection of TEW's visuals! this is only the second video i've watched from your channel (the first one was the splatoon/jet set radio one) but you're easily one of my fav video essayists now! keep up the great work
thank you!!! I’m glad you enjoyed them :)
I'm amazed by your videos! Top quality!
This channel is such an underrated Gem in the youtube gaming scene. Keep up the awesome work!
That Alien reference 🙌🏼 and again how awesome this video is high five to you ✋🏼❤️
Aaaaaa I love this analysis so much, thank you for another great video!
Also just wanted to say I love all your videos so much and they are HUGE inspirations for me when I need to write essays because english is not my mother tongue ☺️
Wow thank you!! I never thought my videos would be inspiring to anyone so thank you so much!! :)
Really good video! I'm very glad I just happend to stumble upon this channel!
I never finished The Evil Within 2, even though I liked it much, much more than the first. And one of the reasons was the asthetic. Like you said, the influences are obivous, but they really managed to use those influences to create something that really feels like their own. This video reminded me why I should definitely go back to Union and finish that story sometime soon!
Thank you! You should definitely finish the game when you get the time!
After this and the Death Stranding video, I think I’ve discovered my new favorite UA-cam channel.
I can't believe I missed that video. Absolutely love your analysis, your choice of footage and music pairing is spot on. Your narration is captivating. More!
I just found your videos and they are amazing! Your analysis from cinematography to themes of video games is very well thought out. I've been learning things I didn't consider before. Keep it up, you're awesome!!!
Great video I loved the evil within back then. And I still love it it’s a really underrated game
Would normally never ever think about playing a horror game but this video is so well made and captures the “beauty” of this franchise that I really want to give it a try now
I did another deep dive into weird side of UA-cam and it brought me here. Unlike most times, I was not not disappointed.
Wasn't crazy about the first game, but Evil Within 2 is my 2nd favorite horror game of the last few years (only behind RE2 remake) and honestly maybe the biggest improvement in a sequel I've ever seen. It's also pretty underrated, so videos like these are always nice to find.
This is super super good Maria! TEW is way too underrated
Watched it last night, watching again for the view, commenting for them analytics! Let's get this vid out there!
You're the best! Thank you :)
10:03 Mr. Burns: That's odd. Usually the blood gets off at the second floor.
Body horror is so interesting! Great video :)
Wow! All of your videos are so well thought out and fantastically put together. Absolutely loved this video and loving your channel!! Truly amazing work!!
I am loving your videos! Your commentary, voice, and way of presenting the information on-screen are all fantastic.
I'm excited that I've found your channel this early into its success. 28k subscribers is impressive. However, you will hit the high 100's of thousands...maybe millions if you keep producing. :)
love your videos! very relaxing to watch but also love the concepts especially because i really enjoy the aesthetics you talk about :p
Im super late but girl... This video gave me chills. Thank you for making this i'm emotional for some reason now
I absolutely love The Evil Within 1 & 2. Can't wait for a third entry
Thank you for highlighting just how brilliant these two games are. They're some of the most aesthetically accomplished horror games ever made in my opinion. Well that, and also having great characters, stories, and gameplay, too.
Creo este es el único comentario en español pero añadiré mi opinión acerca de tu video!.
Really sublime the way you express yourself. Felt in love with this game and i encorage you to keep doing this kindda content. u got a new subscriber for sure !
Great work as ever! Will echo some of the other comments too that it's nice to see some praise for The Evil Within 2, absolutely a worthy sequel. This makes me want to reinstall it now.
thank you!! :)
Honestly, these videos are so relaxing and well done! Keep it uup :)
I loved this game for the story, graphics, and gameplay.
But I despised forcing myself to play a horror game, I get scared easily.
Just discovered your channel with this vid, and damn this is good and well built ! I really like those two games, and you enlightened many themes and symbols, particularly about the representation of women by psychopaths which I haven't realized despite being interessed in the stories of real psychopaths and serial killers. Keep up the good work !
Great video. Gives good leads on further thoughts on the dialectical nature of surrealism
Nice to see someone actually appreciating this series for once :)
I even got some crazy ideas about making the stem happens in the real life, where we can create and control our dreams, where we can respawn every Rip person We miss and almost anything, far from the issues we are suffering in the life. Imaging creating a world that only you can enter and this world you go to it every night when you sleep, because the sleep is involuntary we cannot, but what if we know more about the mind, the brain, the soul ...
Love how you're using the SH2 soundtrack. I would like to hear your thoughts about SH2 as well.
I would be curious to see your take on Alan Wake.
4:46 that shot reminds me of Parasite Eve, when Eve turned a central park audience into one giant mass.
If they ever remake that game, I will flip out. It's a damn masterpiece.
the evil within 1 was a 10 out of 10 for me.. i haven't played the 2nd one yet
2 is also really great! But a different atmosphere completely :)
They said it sucks because of open world. They are all wrong. Its a great game. And the ending epic.
The first game is so awesome, its uncompromising gameplay and well told story made it more then memorable. Its like Mikami made a loveletter to survival horror. Evil within 2 is fine aswell, but the biggest issue I have with it - is like you discuss, the western approach. It undoes almost everything the first game setup - even going as far as to suggest Rubin Victoriano is dead. You get automatic dodges where the first game punished you from getting to close, the stamina bar is just an inconvenience where the first game beat it over your head not to run out of it, or you'll incapacitate Sebastians movement as he catches his breath. Its little gimmicks like this that made the first game such a treat, because you got pulled into the world with strict rules and forced to survive the craziness and horror.
I really love your presentation and structure! Thank you for sharing your thoughts. Keep up the good work! :)
Hi, didn’t expect to find you here
@@cappedminer369 Hi! Why not? :) I do like how she presents her content. I think I left a link to one of her videos if I remember everything right...
@@GrandGamingChannel same, I just got surprised to see you XD, also yeah I agree
"but there's evil within too" might be my favorite video game quote ever
I just wanted to say this is the second video I watched on your channel and I'm totally in love with you. Great commentary and taste. I didn't take to Evil Within at first, but I came to like it over the years. It seems that a lot of the game is seen as plagiarism instead of references and inspirations.
Great Video. I was surprised by Stefano as artists are never used as villains in games. Being an artist myself I did appreciate the works he laid out. It's a shame he was thrown aside for the real villain of the story.
Also:
"The second game however, looks like this:"
Castellanos: "What the fuck?"
Incredible video, makes me wish I had the nerve for more horror games.
I may not care much about the sequel, but the first one is absolutely good!! Any horror game that has true replay value (and no goofy side quests or pointless big maps) is always appreciated on my end. Especially those that are fun as hell to speedrun.
My favorite horror series, great video!
amazing franchise and amazing analysis ^^
thank you!
For anyone interested in the origins of modern Japanese horror, I highly recommend reading the ghost stories of Lafcadio Hearn: Kwaidan.
The film, by Masaki Kobayashi, is also superb. Staggeringly beautiful and haunting.
Warning: This’ll probs turn into a mini essay. This isn’t so much about The Evil Within, so much as it’ll be about my relationship with Horror overall.
While Jump Scares can be overused and end up inciting annoyance, as opposed to fear, the one instance of media that uses it properly, is one I coincidentally have not been able to stop thinking about, every single time I walk down a hallway. P.T. is a game I will never get to experience firsthand, but the thing that scares me is not about the endless hallway or the change of lights. Instead, the scariest part of the game is Lisa herself. The moment that scares me the most is over in about two seconds, but it has stuck with me, years after I allowed myself to see it. When you turn around, Lisa appears, in all of her disfigured glory, before smashing her face into the camera three times, only to end it with a sickening crunch of the neck, allowing you to slip from her grasp, to tumble to the floor. This is all truly horrifying on its own, but the worst part of the encounter, for me at least, is the wild and manic gleam in her eye, the sickening gleeful smile. There’s a theory that the three father’s announced on the radio are the three people that you switch between, unknowingly, while playing. Whether this is true, I can’t say. I don’t know if Lisa looks so obscenely happy as a result of catching the person who had done this to her, or if she is satisfied with having someone to vent through, but that wild gleam in her eyes has followed me down more dark hallways than her shaking walk ever has.
When I saw the Boundary Break episode, where they slipped the camera under the footpath at the end of the game, only to show Lisa waiting to kill you at the bottom of the skybox, I openly screamed. Being trapped in a house with a monstrous creature is nightmare-inducing enough. To find out that her power extends past the house, that she will forever be one step behind you, waiting for you to slip up, before pouncing, that is soul-wrenchingly chilling.
Side note: As of late, I’ve become fascinated with the horror presented in movies, compared to video games. Not knocking either medium at all, but I find that many horror movies don’t feel as scary, when a character walks down a hallway, something jumps out and goes ‘Boogiedeboo!’ and the character reacts accordingly. In games, you have to be brave enough to walk down that hallway and face whatever pops out, on your own. Even after watching multiple let’s play’s of Resi 7 and Little Nightmares, I felt disconnected from the horror, shielded behind the barrier of my screen. While playing those games? It doesn’t matter that I know where and when the scares are coming. In fact, it makes things even worse. On Resi 7 alone, my save file is perpetually waiting in the room above the stairs, knowing that Mia will burst through the doors, but I am so scared of actually seeing it play out, with me behind the controls, that the game just sits there. Waiting for me to pick it up. Might even happen one day. But even when playing with a room of other people, that panic and the weight of responsibility, to be brave enough to continue, is the most pure sense of horror I can come close to.
In much the same way that a gun will inevitably be fired when introduced into a story, dark and shadowy corridors and rooms will continue to horrify me, in games and real life. My mind will constantly cause the visage of Lisa’s maniacal grin to flicker in the corners of my vision, when I look into a mirror, or out of a dark window at night. I’m still debating whether or not I should try out the remade PT game in Dreams, for fear of how accurate the developer was when restoring the horror of the original. At this point, it’s been several years since I’ve properly revisited PT’s jump scare and I don’t know how keen I’d be to invite that visage back into my head.
I don’t really know if I have a point to all of this. What I will say is that horror will forever continue to fascinate and haunt me. I find it oddly beautiful and eerie at the same time. I still get chills at the screaming book from the first Harry Potter film, but in some weird way, I get a sort of cold thrill from seeing this sort of horror. Just like fire is as beautiful as it is destructive, I will forever be drawn to horror.
Thank you so much for your video and for leading me to play through Evil Within 1 and 2. While Lisa will continue to haunt me, somehow the character designs feel less and more scary in The Evil Within franchise, because they can be fought off, to a certain extent. This comment is already entirely too long, so all I can say in parting is this; Thank you.
Stefano has extreme similarities to Picasso as far as his relationships with women go, I'd highly recommend reading up on Francoise Gilot's life and workwork and the abuse he put all of his mistresses through. It's just as horrifying and objectifying to the women who lived through it. and it definitely had some level of effect of the Evil Within, whether conscious or subconscious.
Also, this is my favorite game overall, without contest. When I'm struggling, I watch completionist playthroughs since I don't have the skills to actually survive this game.
would love to see your comentary on the metro series :)
Beautiful video, very informative.
Would love you to do a Metal Gear series piece
Late comment but just wanted to say, awesome video! 👍👍
I have yet to watch but will. Just want to state that I hope the 3rd game is more like the 1st game personally, only thing I really liked in 2 was the exploration and stealth mechanics. Didnt like the 2nd game as much. Only way I can think of a third game is Ruvik using STEM Wireless on a global or nation wide scale. Having entire cities and millions of personalities in Stem for Ruviks control. Of course his only motive would be power as he made STEM to see Laura again. Cant think of any other way for a 3rd game
Evil Within is woefully underrated. It doesn't have Jill sandwiches or boulder punching but it has great art, atmosphere and a lot of heart. Still hoping against hope EW3 becomes a thing somehow.
I love how the first game looks like it was filmed with a vintage anamorphic lens and the sequel was shot with spherical lenses! Attention to detail I'm sure I'm the only person who notices/cares about!
This is such a beautiful review
i think your thumnbails look so goddamn cool
HotCyder does them for me!