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  Heavy stuff in this thread. Read the OP   The Cat Lady is an adventure game developed by Remigiusz Michalski surrounding the life of Susan Ashworth. But that's not even the half of it. To start, let's get one thing straight: this is a dark game. It deals with death, suicide, crippling depression, disease, insanity, and other mental disorders of all kinds in a way that is tasteful but brutal. Let me repeat that, this game is very, very dark. It will make you uncomfortable. It will make you want to skip parts of it. It will bring you down. There is no shame in taking a break from it. It is a highly emotional game that deals with highly emotional topics. Being upset by it is natural, it means that you're human. And more to the point, it means that it is working. Therefore, I am putting a trigger warning on this thread. This isn't some kind of Tumblrette bullshit, I am serious. If you have issues regarding suicide or depression, then I recommend that you either stay away or take it slow. This can be a very cathartic game. But it can also dredge up some nasty feelings that you might not want to deal with, believe me. So take this warning to heart. Of course, things get a bit more silly as we go along. It turns out that there isn't quite as much reverence to be had when doing it in this format. This will be a subtitled VLP, and sometimes a quiet one at that. This is a game that runs on atmosphere, so my chattering overtop of it is not always helpful. We will be showing off all the endings, The movement and everything might seem a bit shaky, that is because the engine that the game runs on is pretty simplistic in the motions that it allows. The best parts of the game comes from the tone, writing, music, and art surrounding the work. And man, what a work it is. Rules 1. No spoilers for plot points that haven't happened yet. There's quite a few good twists that I don't want spoiled. Also, if you discuss a major point that just happened in a recent video then please spoiler-tag it. 2. I expect that this will make some people hot under the collar at times. That's fine, but if things start getting stupid then I will not hesitate to close the thread until cooler heads prevail. If you want to have a fight then do it in PMs. I will try to update every weekend with one or two videos, but no guarantee. Episode 1: A Field of Barley Episode 2: Tell Us About Yourself, Liz Episode 3: Tell Us About Your Family Episode 4: Sheila Episode 5: What's up, Doc? Episode 6: Cats and Coffee Episode 7: Miss Mitzi Episode 8: Miss Mitzi's Misfortunate Motivations Episode 9: Lab Safety Failure Episode 10: How Did She Make It To 40? Episode 11: The Terrorists Did It Episode 12: Stairs! Episode 13: Legend Of The Cat Lady Episode 14: Choice Links for anyone that wants to support the indie dev that made the game! http://www.thecatlady.co.uk/ (direct) http://store.steampowered.com/app/253110/ CuddleCryptid fucked around with this message at 03:46 on Oct 30, 2014 |
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May 25, 2014 19:00
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Characters Susan Ashworth  The main protagonist of the story, Susan lives alone apart from the stray cats that she takes care of. And she’s okay with that, because she doesn’t enjoy the company of others much. Clinically depressed, she commits suicide at the start of the story and wakes up in a field of barley in a surreal afterlife. Afterwards, she gets a strange request from an old woman. Is given the task of killing five "parasites" in exchange for her life back. To facilitate this she is also given immortality... for a price. Old Woman/Queen Of Maggots  And old woman that Susan finds in the Afterlife. Some form of Old God that controls part of the Afterlife. Is able to bring Susan back from the dead and give her actual immortality, so her powers are real. Trades a life for a life to accomplish this. Speaks in a German accent. Mitzi Hunt  Upbeat, dark-color sporting girl that comes to stay with Susan. Broke into Susan's apartment to save her life at the start. Has cancer, wants to do one thing before she dies: find a certain person in Susan's building. The best character. CuddleCryptid fucked around with this message at 05:45 on Jun 15, 2014 |
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May 25, 2014 19:01
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People make fun of them, but if you do have anything that triggers you emotionally, you really want to be on guard for this game. I know I'm just repeating what's in the opening post, but it really needs repeating. I love this game for what it is, and I hope everyone else enjoys following Susan's er, wacky adventures.
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May 25, 2014 19:58
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SystemLogoff posted:People make fun of them, but if you do have anything that triggers you emotionally, you really want to be on guard for this game. I know I'm just repeating what's in the opening post, but it really needs repeating. If someone is likely to become suicidal or have PTSD from something they read or view on the internet they really should not be viewing the internet, or at least not The Something Awful Comedy Forums™. We're all big boys here.
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May 25, 2014 20:14
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Clayren posted:If someone is likely to become suicidal or have PTSD from something they read or view on the internet they really should not be viewing the internet, or at least not The Something Awful Comedy Forums™. We're all big boys here. There is some bad stuff on the internet, but the Cat Lady deals with some pretty hosed Up poo poo. Most of the stuff on the Forum is pretty lighthearted, hence all the warnings. Just don't want people to be surprised. E. It won't make people literally suicidal of course, that is hyperbole. But it can pluck some pretty nasty strings in some people.
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May 25, 2014 20:23
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Oh boy oh boy. This game. It's essentially a wonderful old World of Darkness Wraith game, and I love it for that alone, but for such a small production background it really pulls off some astounding tricks with music and visuals. I'm glad the LP is a subbed video, to better show off what The Cat Lady has to offer.
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May 25, 2014 21:57
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StrangeAeon posted:It's essentially a wonderful old World of Darkness Wraith game
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May 25, 2014 22:07
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Pierzak posted:I wanted to watch this LP. Now I won't. I'm gonna go buy the game and finish it first instead. Avalible on Desura and Steam! 
CuddleCryptid fucked around with this message at 22:28 on May 25, 2014 |
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May 25, 2014 22:14
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I can't remember if I watched or played this game. Either way it was fantastic.
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May 25, 2014 22:34
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Clayren posted:If someone is likely to become suicidal or have PTSD from something they read or view on the internet they really should not be viewing the internet, or at least not The Something Awful Comedy Forums™. We're all big boys here. The game is probably... not on quite the same level as anything else on the LP subforum. The closest thing I know of to compare it to is Corpse Party, and even then it's quite different still. The warning is justified, it's an interesting game but I wouldn't quite call it entertainment. It's something that might well push folks out of their comfort zones so if you are just looking for fun, it's not the best game in the world for that.
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May 25, 2014 23:44
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OwlFancier posted:The game is probably... not on quite the same level as anything else on the LP subforum. The closest thing I know of to compare it to is Corpse Party, and even then it's quite different still. I would compare it to Cart Life, or some of those despair simulators that are popular in Russia. Pathologic by Ice Pick Lodge is a good comparison in that sense, it really isn't a fun game or a happy one. It is cathartic though. It is kind of hard to describe. It has a few moments of genuine humor. But a large amount of it is just bad and not fun to play. Not in a mechanic sense, it is just something you don't want to watch. E. And yet I am LPing it and making you all watch 
CuddleCryptid fucked around with this message at 01:16 on May 26, 2014 |
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May 26, 2014 00:44
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Yeah. It's not fun, it's a very strong emotional experience. That's probably the best way to put it.
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May 26, 2014 01:12
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I mentioned this in the other Cat Lady thread, but it bears repeating: my enjoyment of this game hinges on whether it brings up Toxoplasmosis or not. When I see Cat Lady and people say it's got some demented stuff in it all I can think of is they better talk about the crazy cat lady parasite.
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May 26, 2014 02:40
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I keep meaning to buy this game, or at least get the amazing soundtrack, but I'm still broke so I'll just be happy to watch the LP.
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May 26, 2014 02:47
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Two posts for the start. Episode 2: Tell Us About Yourself, Liz Filling in some more about the dev Essentially he's based the character of Susan off the real-life struggles that his friends have had to overcome their own depression. While this helps make the dialogue so convincing, I will point out a few moments later in the video that are basically copy-pasted from the lives of these people, including one part that is a poem written by one of them during a low point.
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May 26, 2014 05:31
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PROTIP TO WOULD BE BUYERS! This game has a bug with the save system. It will not allow you to save after about 50 saves. If you're a compulsive saver, you'll have to manually go into the folder C:\Users\[Name]\Saved Games\The Cat Lady and delete some old ones. And no, you can't overwrite saves. Oh and I hope everyone didn't have a good day. Because this game is going to depress the absolute hell out of you.
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May 26, 2014 08:47
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DreamShipWrecked posted:I would compare it to Cart Life, or some of those despair simulators that are popular in Russia. Pathologic by Ice Pick Lodge is a good comparison in that sense, it really isn't a fun game or a happy one. It is cathartic though. I decided long ago to LP Pathologic, but to ease my suffering I decided to write the bloody thing entirely, at my own pace, and then post it little by little. I've been stuck on chapter 5 for the better part of a year.  Which is to say I'm following the poo poo out of this one.
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May 26, 2014 12:35
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This game is a nifty little horror adventure game. I really love the soundtrack. Probably one of my favorite video game soundtracks. I was actually thinking of LPing it sometime in the future and would only do commentary over the puzzles since the acting is surprisingly well done and it has a wonderfully realized atmosphere. Susan is a really great character.
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May 26, 2014 13:59
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Fat Samurai posted:I decided long ago to LP Pathologic, but to ease my suffering I decided to write the bloody thing entirely, at my own pace, and then post it little by little. You poor mad bastard. It's a great game but god drat is it both wordy and unpleasant, and next to impossible to complete unless you use a guide.
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May 26, 2014 15:50
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Thanks for this. I appreciate this kind of treatment way more than, say, a different kind.
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May 26, 2014 22:53
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I dig the atmosphere of this a lot. I find it most fascinating a horror story where the horror element comes from the concept of an Afterlife. I mean, the Queen of Maggots is basically just threatening with you an endless continuation of your existence, which is precisely what Susan doesn't want. It's basically reveling in the notion that the "eternal life" so many may crave in an afterlife could just be that--an eternity of the same thing over and over, your mundane life repeated ad nauseum forever.
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May 27, 2014 00:29
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I do like that Susan has enough chutzpah to tell off an 'elder' god. I really like the Queen of Maggots as a character as well, it's nice to have an eternal being not be all ~sunshine i'm not a dick~.
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May 27, 2014 02:01
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I should expand on the conditions for the Special Ending. There's a list of eight conditions that you have to fulfill. One is kind of impossible to do without save scumming or using a walkthrough because it relies on you not doing what you always do in every adventure game: Look at everything you walk past. This prevents you from getting the non-canon choice on the first playthough, so I think that is at least partially intentional, although it has thematic elements that will be explained later. The other seven are all based around Susan preserving life, standing up for herself and showing self worth as a result, listening to others, being self-sacrificing in a positive way, and in other ways being a decent human being. The first condition is that you have to stand up to the Queen Of Maggots when she offers you the choice. It's obvious that you have to do what she says, but Susan demands that she is a free, living person and refuses to accept that it is the only real way. The game railroads you into it in the end anyways, the game must go on, but that act of rebellion even in the face of eternal despair shows that she really believes in herself despite her previous actions. This is hammered home by the other options, where she tiredly resigns herself to following the QoM's instructions in a beaten-down tone. Essentially she has to exhibit signs of recovery: self-worth, positive self-sacrifice, making the effort to interact with the world instead of shutting yourself out, and so on. Depression makes you want to shut out the world, she has to show that she is actively trying to interact with it in a positive way.
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May 27, 2014 02:12
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I finished this game the other day, basically marathoned everything after the hospital. It's a shame, I think the first few chapters really are the low point of the game and you just have to slog through them to get to the really interesting stuff (which could be the whole point, iunno). That said this game has my favorite moment in any game ever, right at the very end. So I look forward to some people reacting to that.
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May 27, 2014 03:40
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I don't know if this was the creator's intent, but both the deer and the hanging tree with what look like human faces may be symbols from Dante's Inferno. In the circle of Hell dedicated to those who committed violence, people who hurt animals were turned into deer and forced to run forever from the snapping jaws of the Hellhounds. They ran through a forest made of trees that were the souls of suicides. In life the suicides destroyed their own bodies, so in death they are trapped forever, immobile, to be tormented and disfigured by the wild running animals that snap off their branches and tear their bark.
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May 27, 2014 04:19
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Getsuya posted:I don't know if this was the creator's intent, but both the deer and the hanging tree with what look like human faces may be symbols from Dante's Inferno. In the circle of Hell dedicated to those who committed violence, people who hurt animals were turned into deer and forced to run forever from the snapping jaws of the Hellhounds. They ran through a forest made of trees that were the souls of suicides. In life the suicides destroyed their own bodies, so in death they are trapped forever, immobile, to be tormented and disfigured by the wild running animals that snap off their branches and tear their bark. That is actually really cool, and it seems like too much of a match to be coincidence. Nice catch!
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May 27, 2014 04:40
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That credits sequence. You could see the scare coming a mile away, but still. 
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May 27, 2014 08:23
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Despite its...technical limitations and some fairly hackneyed story elements, the game looks well-written enough so far. This should be interesting. I do also think the approach taken with the videos is fairly good.Rhygezenguro posted:That said this game has my favorite moment in any game ever, right at the very end. So I look forward to some people reacting to that. You are potentially putting this hypothetical moment above the Eternal Darkness bathtub, the final fight of Vanquish, any of Midna's boss commentary, the entirety of Spec Ops: The Line, going Super Sonic, the reveal of who Strelok is, and having to roll up the entire world in a Katamari ball, so, uh, consider me intrigued.
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May 27, 2014 14:21
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Getsuya posted:I don't know if this was the creator's intent, but both the deer and the hanging tree with what look like human faces may be symbols from Dante's Inferno. In the circle of Hell dedicated to those who committed violence, people who hurt animals were turned into deer and forced to run forever from the snapping jaws of the Hellhounds. They ran through a forest made of trees that were the souls of suicides. In life the suicides destroyed their own bodies, so in death they are trapped forever, immobile, to be tormented and disfigured by the wild running animals that snap off their branches and tear their bark. Kinda - the ones pursued by the hounds kept their human form, and their sin was violence against their possessions. There's not much of a modern analogue, but in Dante's day, among some of the wealthy it was a fad to extravagantly waste money and property to such a degree as to be obscene: it was a sort of material suicide, a death through the destruction of one's means. The two sinners of this type that Dante presents in Canto XIII are Lano da Siena, who laid waste to his fortune and later chose to be killed by his enemies rather than fight and potentially survive to deal with his creditors, and Jacamo da 'sant Andrea, who was apparently fond of arson as a means of destroying not only his own goods but those of his neighbors.
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May 28, 2014 01:17
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Eagerly following this. The credit sequence was shocking, even though I could see it coming. And then you had to control her during, as well. 
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May 28, 2014 12:46
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Third episode is up! Episode 3: Tell Us Aboout Your Family This one is a lot of sitting around and talking, we are still in the intro stages of the game where it slowly establishes Susan's character. We still have a couple of videos until we get to the bloodshed and murder. Will have the other half of this up today or tomorrow.
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May 31, 2014 17:45
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The video is private 
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May 31, 2014 17:49
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Five posted:The video is private Son of a bitch. Alright, NOW it's up. VVVV Should be fixed. CuddleCryptid fucked around with this message at 19:33 on May 31, 2014 |
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May 31, 2014 18:45
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Five posted:The video is private Patient/Doctor Confidentiality, I guess.  (Yeah, the video is private for me as well.)^^ Yep, it was fixed. Thank you! SystemLogoff fucked around with this message at 20:16 on May 31, 2014 |
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May 31, 2014 18:45
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I got the bit where you have the dad in Susan's life and say that the mom committed suicide. He tells her "Come see what your mother did. Come look at your loving mother!" It's pretty
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May 31, 2014 19:59
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I hadn't explored all of the options yet. That's pretty  Which set of choices are canon, do you know? Or perhaps, which set is being used for the rest of the LP?
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May 31, 2014 20:38
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Yeah, as for stabbing the heart I still have no idea, the best guess I have is Susan stabing herself, and her 'gift of immortality' sealing the wound. Even that has issues though... Great episode as always. Well, not a happy episode, but...
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May 31, 2014 20:49
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StrangeAeon posted:I hadn't explored all of the options yet. That's pretty Technically we are using the Happy Family option because that makes me feel better inside. But ultimately I don't believe it makes any difference other than during that one conversation. And there's plenty more possible choices, I do like how the flow together (like how the dad and mom both committing suicide makes one flow right into the other with the same story.) Well, not "like", but still, it's a nice detail. VVVV Blurg, I didn't even notice. I think it's because we loaded into a talky section without any movement controls, so it didn't go keyboard-exclusive like normal. Sorry, all. CuddleCryptid fucked around with this message at 22:59 on May 31, 2014 |
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May 31, 2014 21:33
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Although I could've done without the cursor sitting in the middle of the screen for half the video, I'm really digging this LP. This is an interesting game, and I'm not sure I could play through it on my own.
Gharbad the Weak fucked around with this message at 22:26 on May 31, 2014 |
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May 31, 2014 22:06
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This game is trippy and sort of depressing, but this LP makes it look interesting enough that I might have to buy it and check it out.
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Jun 1, 2014 01:31
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