Bruh you missed the best part of the lore. Ellen was suffering a painful disease that left her bedridden. But just before she swapped with viola she ensured her own death by cutting off her legs stabbing out her eyes and burning her vocal cords so that viola in Ellen’s body would not be able to replicate the spell that swapped them and would die a painful horrendous death screaming silently in a bleeding eyeless corpse
From what I heard, Ellen mutilated her own body before switching as a way for Viola to die in despair; a witch's true death is feeling utter despair. Plus, the spell requires both parties to have consent. And since Ellen didn't want to go back...well...
Ellen only did the throat thing after they switched. The novel and manga show them switch, Ellen is happy to be free of her pain and Viola meanwhile is consumed by it. Ellen then makes the medicine, which causes the throat burning - because she didn't want to hear her own screams through Viola Edit: the spell also only worked because Viola trusted Ellen. Ellen didn't trust Viola however, and the Viola's trust was broken after they swapped
one of the parts of this game that hurt me the most was in the ending when the dad yells "STAND BACK, VIOLA!" the real viola backs up too before being shot at
Exactly. It's such a good attention to detail that not many people even notice "not knowing the truth." I was looking to see if anyone at all brought this up.
Dumb fun fact, every death you have in game is technically canon, the terms of Ellen’s contract literally prevents her from dying (key word HER) until she’s free of her illness so just gets brought back to life over and over again until she escapes the house, since technically the deal hasn’t been fulfilled until she’s free.
If that were true, wouldn't the cat acknowledge Ellen dying at some point? Or if the player were to die a lot on a playthrough Ellen could say something among the lines of "I've been through a lot of shit today..."
@@Lh0000 Yeah but if it was true, then wouldn't at least one of them make a nod to it at some point? Although admittedly the thought of Ellen getting mad at the player for dying a lot is actually pretty funny
@@beans3977 to my knowledge it’s noted in the manga, but either way Ellen is an absurdly utilitarian psychopath, and the cat is a literal demon, further Ellen also knows the house won’t ever be unsolvable and has spent atleast a decade, what’s a few more hours of trial and error? Neither has a reason to actually mention it in game. (Further it would ruin the twist at the end of the game so even less reason to directly mention it)
@@Lh0000 You know what? That's a good point actually. I still wanna make a mod where Ellen throws a fit after dying too many times. That's an idea I really like actually
This game has such a good story. And it's such a slap in the face. Like you spend the whole game thinking you're trying to save Viola only to not be able to. There is no good ending once you've experienced the true ending. Ignorance is the Best ending and no one can really bring themselves to stop at that ending not only because of the question mark at the end of that ending and that there is an unexplorable cabnet that asks for you to return to it. It's so mean and yet kinda brilliant story wise. It does however hold the old adventure game logic of everything logical and illogical will kill you. I don't blame you for needing a break despite this being a short game.
@twistedmyth5860 fr. I do wish the mv version got an update where you can at least have Viola somewhat posses Ellen's body. Sure prisoner in your own body sucks, but it's better than dead by your own dad. Ik it goes against all the themes but I just played the game today, found out I had to kill a dog, slept for ages cuz of the flu and found out viola dies. I do not care about themes rn
I especially love how throughout the new versions and hard mode challenges, instead of getting a "better" ending like many horror games do, you instead get more and more proof that the witch has always had evil intentions and even before she met Viola she already had her plan ready to gain her trust and betray her. So your "reward" is having even the last shred of positivity - that Viola and the witch were actually friends at one point - completely shattered.
Most of the time it just sounds like he's bitching because the game requires the player to think for more than five seconds and punishes you for messing up, but that's just me.
@@ripleyandweeds1288"Damn, that clock... yup its just a clock... the time might even give a hint" A rational thought to have with 5 or more seconds, that still leads to your death.
@@ripleyandweeds1288 Yeah that was one of the only things I couldn't get behind while he was describing the game. There are, indeed, a few parts that are clearly meant to jumpscare you and might be a bit unfair on your first runthrough, but there are _so many more_ that are actually really well telegraphed that I cannot describe as unfair. The game cultivates a very specific balance of exploration and caution in its gameplay; you _know_ that the house itself is trying to kill you, so you can't just carelessly touch something and think you won't be punished for it.
Its funny to see you say the worst part of the game is the big reason alot of people play the game for, the deaths. I honestly miss these death packed rpgmaker games.
I found the wristwatch death freaky since it's the only death in the entire game that changes the main character image in the in-game menu. I personally think the deaths are part of The Witch's House's charm.
You could randomly catch a mouse and get fatalitied. The some wacky and some really disturbing bizzare deaths was one of the key points that I love about this game.
I think people want to attribute quality to the ability of death. To many, if you can avoid death all game (which is rare, but possible), it's fair. But sometimes death can be a mechanic, even if very janky.
She does! If you do a run with no deaths + no saves, at a hallway u previosly couldnt get to the cat remarks that she's doing quite well w/out his help, and it is her house after all. There's also a book about the body switch spell, you also unlock a cutscene with the cat before you enter ellen's room, in which he explains that as a demon, he'll stop possessing the cat's body and look for a more powerful one, explaining why the cat is dead before ellen's room on a normal run
My favorite part is that since the original girl is sorta just dying inside the witch's body, if you just stay outside for a long enough time then she just dies and the bushes disappear. This essentially means that Viola in Ellen's body is just wondering where the hell Ellen is and spends her final moments neither worrying about her father, or being "betrayed" by him, she just kinda dies with the regret that she should have never body swapped in the first place, and arguably that is the best ending since Viola doesn't have to watch her father choose someone else over her and doesn't have to witness her father pointing a gun to her head, in this ending she never really gets any closure on anything and therefore gets to go to the afterlife with just worry and no horrific realization, very much allowing her to move on even if just a bit in the afterlife.
The cat demon: "Hello, I've come for your soul" ...yeah, unfortunately there's even no peaceful afterlife for her. I can't blame people for wanting to create a fanfiction with a happier ending cause it's really brutal.
Still has one of my favorite easter-eggs for how to escape. You can just stand by the roses for like an hour, and they die because of the spoiler expiring
Great video ! The Witch’s House is one of my favorite rpgmaker games, if you’re wondering what the reward is for going the whole game without saving is, it’s mostly just more lore on Ellen and the cat, the cat mocks you for not speaking to him and Ellen’s sprite in the chase sequence is somewhat different
Mocks you? I remember the cat congratulating us(or something along those lines, but definetly not mocking us) for getting to Ellen's room without dying, and then it became ashes. It wouldn't make sense to mock us for completing almost all of the game without dying once
@@Sloth-tr7bd The cat does congratulation Viola (aka Ellen by calling her that) but before that the cat says something like how rude it was for her to not say a word to him and ask for his help throughout the whole game, my memory is a bit fuzzy since I haven’t done that run in a while
The infinite deaths I think it's a whole genre of games on it's own, so I can't really fault this one for that. Thousands of other games do the same for different purposes and in this one, I guess the idea is that "of course that Ellen would know how to navigate her own house" so by helping her continue on you are helping the antagonist to get what she wants. You became the owner by always knowing what to do. The point of learning the mechanics of each death and how to avoid it is for you to be tricked, just like Viola, into the doing the will of the witch without knowing. After all, as the last ending shows, you could have done nothing at all and you would still be fine, you could still get an ending. I think in that sense it's very thematically coherent, even though it's still frustrating for the player. Also I have to defend the jpg skulls. I think they give an otherwordly sensation because you know, you can see that they aren't like anything else around them, and that is the point. They are not real skulls, it's the house treating you like a unwanted guest until you prove yourself.
this game is insane. Unfortunate that there’s no “good ending” but that just adds onto the tragedy aspect of this game. Points off for being an unfair game though 😅
Well, I wouldn't necessarily call that a fault. Would you fault the Henry Stickmin games for its unfair failures and illogical successes? The deaths are part of the charm.
@@ariannadravis3934Thankfully I believe that’s how Easy Mode works in the remake, which I actually really like. It makes the game more approachable and if you WANTED to do it with classic level difficulty you could. ^-^
I mean, there's a rumor about a dangerous witch in the woods... and your precious daughter is running from a heavily mutilated body that is somehow still moving and bent on getting her
This game brought me so much fear with that cursed teddy bear- I have to admit Witch’s House isn’t my favorite in terms of ending, but that’s because I’m a sucker for happy endings. I still appreciate the tragedy of it however. I do wish the there were less unfair deaths, but ah well. Thank you for this nice vid! Looking forward to more!
I read in a wiki that what the Ellan meant by the house not X her is that the house was helping her get through while Viola tried to stop her. Remember all those signs with instructions?
There's also the black cat reviving her every time she dies During the "Enter the door with one eye open" puzzle, when you enter the right door, there's a spike just beside the entrance (as if something moved it out of the way). If you step on that spike and try the puzzle again, there's now blood on the spikes
I’d love to point out 2 extra things, first in the OG witch’s house, there was a specific trick, where if you don’t read the note about the room where you avoid all distractions, there is a file you can remove from the game and it will allow the player to explore the hallway and read a special witches entry. (Side note for the first point, for every diary you read, a new entry is added to the library downstairs, with a total of 6-7) Second there is a hidden secret to the game, IF you can get to the witches room without talking to the cat once, to save, the cat won’t be dead when you arrive at the room, he explains a bit more before the demon that possesses him (and whom gave the witch her powers in the first place,) vanishes, also changing the text in the witches room to say that the items are yours.
Surprised you mentioned those two games and not Mad Father (or the other game made by the same creator: Miaso). Mad Father is ny top favorite with only the witch's house being second. Add that to the list. Fun fact, you can learn the game's true story via reading the manga or playing the MV version on Extra mode (which is hard mode) and reading the Witch's diary. Additionally, if you get through the entire WITHOUT TALKING TO THE CAT, you get a different outlook with the cat alive, revealing he's a demon, and examining stuff in the room will have her comment that its *her* stuff [also, the diary you read at the end revealed how Ellen wanted to make Viola suffer in her body, so she cut off her own legs, gorge out her eyes, and when she went to comfort Viola in her old body, she gave her a throat burning medicine (also, Ellen still suffers from her illness, which cause her lots of pain, but she's used to it)]. Also Fun Fact: Extra mode extend certain chases, add more death traps, and alters the puzzle solution to either require extra steps, or changes the solution all together. You'll love MV's version, trust me
It seems that The Witch's House and Ib are being mentioned together quite a bit recently... Without mention of Mad Father. Which is always surprising to me, since I thought the three of them together were inseparable staples of an era or something. The big three RPG Maker Horror titles. Though that might just be me.
@@sajibprobably230Extra fun part... Misao and Mad father are cannonically connected. because the same bald man that talks to you in Misao its in Mad father.
I have to explain one thing. The "extra mode" in the remake refers to extra difficulty of this mode and some puzzle changes to make them harder. The "no talking to cat" or "no save ending" can be achieved on easy, normal, extra modes in both the remake and the original. And this ending is no different except the cat is not dead so we can talk with him for a bit and what happens after we leave the house is exactly the same. You may think finishing the game with no saves is impossible but once you learn what will kill you there is nothing that would surprise you anymore.
Oddly enough, I think the deaths are apart of the charm of the game, especially the creativity in said deaths. You also seem to have completely missed that the remake has a new game+, with a bunch of twists in the game added. It also has like 3 extra lines of dialogue to explain Ellen’s fucking giggle at the end.
I personally think this one of the better games that use trial and error mechanics, the cat acts as a constant reminder to save, and learning how to navigate around each death trap in the house feels rewarding, though I did play this game by switching back and forth with my sister so I didn't really get as tired as some
This is mostly just a fun fact from somebody who explored the game top to bottom, but the wristwatch in the dark halls (where you need the bottle with petals) is actually the only way to die in there. All the screeching and dragging of what are probably the statue busts following you are purely just audio to build tension. I once sat around after the bottle breaks for a good five minutes in complete darkness and nothing happened beyond the constant dragging noise. For a game where death is practically around every corner, I was a little surprised to see an instance where... well, you don't die.
Hey, Ben I love your videos! I would love to recommend a game for you that pretty much noone has heard of (at least until recently). It's called "Fear and Hunger". It's a survival horror RPG with turn based combat that takes place inside a dungeon. The thing with it is that the game is very unforgiving. You can die on the first enemy you encounter. It's very harsh game but it's more than beatable. It's very difficult managing your items and bars and killing enemies doesn't make you level up and get stronger. It's filled with an interesting dark story and tons of secrets. It's a very underrated game but it's also a game that's not for everyone because of the dark theme and the shock value from everything. I would love if you check it out even if you don't end up making a video about it. (Sorry if I sounded like a commercial but the game is so good but so underrated and I really want more people to know about it)
@@_stillborn it seem to have blown up recently thanks to a few youtubers making video analysis about it, it's still underrated of course, but it's no longer that hidden from the media
I gotta say man, you really impressing me with this upload schedule. I look forward to your vids every week. Ill always find RPGmaker games like this impressive
To my knowledge on the 5th floor of the Witch's House (The flower level), theres a subtle hint of a corridor death that was shown in the video: Viola interacts with the clock in the yellow flower room, and is killed instantly. Its a hint that in the corresponding room, the pocketwatch you could potentially get is *also* an item thatll kill you quick if you interact with it. At least thats what I always interpreted it as
You are even given a cryptic warning about it: If you speak to the tree, it tells you to not disturb the "keeper of time". And indeed, both clocks you can interact with (the grandfather clock and the wristwatch) kill you.
about the line where viola (ellen) says that the house won't be killing her anytime soon - i think what was supposed to be meant by that is that since she lived there for her entire life and therefore is intimately familiar with magic and the house's layout, attempting to exact revenge on her via *her* house and *her* magic is useless. incidentally, i don't know if this is just some headcanon i read somewhere or something i convinced myself or something that was in the manga, but i remember something along the lines of every single death trap inside the house is the vengeful soul of someone ellen killed, hence why the house seemingly goes along with ellen (viola)'s plan for revenge and so viciously too
Another awesome video! Thanks Ben! I never played The Witch's House myself because I'm a huge chicken when it comes to spooky games, but I enjoyed watching someone else play it back in the day. So, I still end up with sense of nostalgia from this video. Corpse Party is another one that I remember fondly!
The bit about potentially needing to sacrifice the frog reminded me of a game that is an absolutely fantastic time and I need to recommend to you and that’s Elevator Hitch. I played this game on VC with some of my friends and we were on the edge of our seats. It’s amazing, I cannot recommend it enough and it’s a whole wildcard of an experience. EDIT: you might also enjoy having a rewarding death mechanic for once!
This is honestly my favorite RPG Maker horror game. The puzzles aren't super obtuse, the deaths, while often able to catch you off-guard, are creative and (assuming you save often) aren't generally that big of a setback, and the plot twist of the true ending is just brutal. I don't even mind the fact that the chase sequences just kind of end without much effort, though that may be because I HATE chase sequences. XD
Absolutely wonderful video, I was delighted to see that you were covering one of my favorite RPGMaker horror games! I was even more delighted to hear that you read the manga; I read the light novel back in the day and became completely enthralled with the story, since it works spectacularly well in making the game's already-sad ending hit even harder. I'll also add a slight correction: the "extra" ending can also be achieved in the original, free version of the game if you do a no-save run, but as others have already mentioned, it's mostly just extra lore and a slightly different version of the final chase. It was really interesting seeing your take on this game-- while I'll admit I stuck up my nose in mock wounded pride a few times (this game is genuinely one of my all-time favorites, and I've consistently replayed it at least once or twice a year since 2013), it made me realize I needed to cool it with the nostalgia blinders since... well, it's a very different experience for a first-time player! Thank you for the honest, interesting review and the fresh perspective on an old favorite.
I recall reading that the hard mode doesn't even have a save-less ending because of how it is. It was hard enough to get through, I can't imagine trying to get through it without dying, especially after playing normal.
@@ragingfirefrog That's unfortunately correct-- there unfortunately aren't many story/lore things as I'd like in hard mode (but the gameplay itself is even more insane), and doing a no-save run on hard mode gets you nothing.
omg i actually love all the different deaths in this game! it was kinda neat hearing someone say they didn't like them, i would actively go out of my way to find them TToTT
I remember when this game first came out. After I played it, I rushed to school the next day to tell my girlfriend about it since games with death traps were right up her alley. After she played through it we watched Markiplier's playthrough together. Good times. I even managed to get my hands on the manga which I have to this day. I love games with gut punch endings and I think Witch's House is still the one that sticks with me the most, Mad Father's being a close second. MV is also very much worth it as it has a New Game + mode as well which Ben missed in this video.
Can't express how excited I get to see your videos pop up in my notifications! You have a really fun/entertaining commentary style -(and have a great voice
I played the remake a long time ago but I’m pretty sure the bear follows you out of the room there, I remember having to maneuver around it in a different room
This game nearly traumatized me as a kid I was in love with it but equally as terrified of everything in it as well 😭😭😭 like to a "im watching this with my phone as far away from me as possible" type of terrified
Oh I’m so glad you’re covering this, such a classic rpg maker horror game. Would love to see you eventually tackle corpse party, that’s easily one of my favorite horror games
Oh shit, you covered one of the Big Three already! I've never actually gotten around to playing the original version of the game, so it was neat to see it. I think they actually sanded some of the bullshit off in the MV version.
Just found your channel from your Ao Oni video, and I gotta say, im hooked! You have such a great voice for these and seeing these videos of the old rpg maker horror games brings back memories of highschool and playing these in class on my laptop. Ao Oni, Witches House, and Mad Father were my favs. Seeing you cover two of them is so sweet! I look forward to seeing what you do from here! Consider me subscribed!
personally the book of death chase scared the shit out of me when i was like 12-13 and its still probably one of my most dreaded areas cause of how much it stuck to me 🥴(the bust statue maze is number 1) also iirc the MV version also has smaller changes made to it aside from hard/easy mode and a new ending (in the sense of changes so you don't cheese it by virtue of having played the original and knowing all the puzzles etc)
I love your commentary, seriously man, and I love so much that you're talking about so many classics, makes my heart nostalgic and happy, you're awesome for covering this despite the years and previous coverage, leaves me hopeful that more people will discover this gems and very intrigued about the rest of your "to-play" list
Hey! The deaths surrounding the wristwatch and the clock aren't actually random. I remember you can get a hint about how touching objects that keep the time will kill you (I looked it up: the tree outside will tell you "don't disturb the keeper of time"). I tried to take the advice, but then accidentally picked up the wristwatch. When I tried to remove it from my inventory, my entire menu was messed up and I was forced to walk towards my inevitable death :'). It was like in this video: th-cam.com/video/sfRO1J2-v2s/w-d-xo.html&ab_channel=PissKidney.
At 16:30 I'm surprised you didn't point out that "Ellen" (Viola) giggles to herself as she walks away with Viola's father. I know this video was ages ago. But there's so many little bits of detail in this game that make it stand out so well.
I love that you cover these games that I'd be way too scared to play myself. The stories are really good, especially combined with your storytelling and commentary!
Great video as usual! I have faint memories of this game, and this video brought all of them back full force. I’d love to see you cover Ib one day as well!!
the my house wont be killing me is a hint. if you play through the whole game without talking to the cat meaning not saving and beating the game deathless you get an extra bit of dialogue with him at the spot where is supposed to be laying dead near the end. he will be alive and well and give you some additional info mainly about him being a demon and ellen's familiar along with other stuff
This is one of those nostalgia games where it hasn't aged well. The remake also has an alternative house with new puzzles. Its a good romp. The deaths are far more gruesome too. Moreover it adds even more to the story.
With the way the witch says her house, "wouldn't be killing her anytime soon", I always read that as even if it turned against her, she knows it inside and out. The only reason she dies is because the player doesn't know it at first, and I think that ties into the remake's "Hard mode, no saves" requirement for the new ending.
Oh my goodness, thank you for saying what I always thought about The Witch’s House: Really clever subversion during the True Ending, but a huge slog and an incredibly frustrating experience because of the actual game design. I never really got behind all the hype for the game because of it, especially not the crowd that actually liked the game because of the countless deaths. It’s funny once or twice, but when, 1. The entire game’s puzzles revolve around trial and error deaths and 2. The requirements for achieving a new ending are to AVOID said trial and error deaths… Yeah, no, that’s just bad game design to me and I could never stomach it for that. I will say that I still do really like the flower puzzle both for the creative problem solving and the macabre element of killing a nice flower to appease a group of judgmental, sadistic ones. It really sets the tone for the story imo
Secret lore is hidden in the original version of the game as well, having the same requirements as the "secret hard mode end" in the remakes. If you avoid talking to the cat and saving, when you get to the corridors saying "Don't get distracted," you'll be able to step off the path without getting killed for it and into the areas to the side with bookshelves. There you can learn more lore about the cat and the witch. Continuing on this route allows you to meet the black cat alive at the end before the final chase, with a bit of final lore. Also fun fact, you can repeatedly step on the cat's body to smoosh it into oblivion, and there are lots of dead cat bodies stuffed in bags around the house. :) Love this game a lot, even with the constant deaths sitting all around.
I remember watching this when i was younger, and the bear and skull chases got me so bad. (Ps, you should really check out blank dream if you havent, its a really good rpg horror maker)
I know going through all of these old RPGMaker games you probably have a whole ton to get through but I'm personally excited to see you play Mad Father and Ao Oni if you ever do those. Been loving the channel, was already subscribed but im giving you the bell now.
I remember being absolutely obsessed with this one as well as Mad Father and Ib, probably right when they came out. Though we didn't download them until we'd already watched a playthrough, so we knew what we were doing and that helped avoid *some* of the random deaths.
I just watched your video on Ao Oni and thought to myself “Man, how cool would it be if he made a video on The Witch’s House (my favorite rpgmaker horror game)” I can’t believe my luck
Its the old classics like these that got me into making rpg maker horror games in the first place (though shying away from the whole menagerie of deaths trope they usually lean hard into). Loving the content, and looking forward to seeing more.
3:27 tbf, maybe I'm giving the game too much credit, but chase scenes are very hit or miss with rpg maker, (old or new) With how the house is designed I feel like if they left and chased you around the house the whole time it'd be annoying to try to hide in other spots If you ever play a game like Ao Oni, another rpg maker horror oldie, you'll see how different it is in terms of the enemies chasing you given the structure of the house Awesome vid!!
I don't remember whether it was from the game or someone else's comment, but I think this is something rather important to note: The only way for a witch to truly die, is to experience utter despair. It wasn't the gun that killed Viola, but that her father couldn't recognize her anymore. That he thought of her as a monster.
the huge amount of seemingly random deaths in this game was a pretty common trope in old RPG maker horror games at the time. Ib has a few, Corpse Party and the PSP remake, etc. It's arguably one of the reasons why people played these games back in the day; seeing what most of the gruesome ways to die were (even if there were some that were silly). I feel like you might enjoy Pocket Mirror and the games by Sen (Mad Father and Misao), and while Blank Dream has some frustrating moments it also very, VERY good! I had my friend play Hard Mode on my channel and it had A LOT of bullshit deaths, but I think my favorite one was a book in the library asking if you wanted to hear a funny joke before killing you and laughing at you.
After i first played and got the true ending, i just restarted the game and let her get killed each time bc i was so betrayed and angry lmaoooo This was back when the game was still new and pretty janky back in the early 2000s where i had no one to scream about it with. So happy people are talking about this game again
I just realized Ben explained the game but not the plot so here's the backstory: TL;DR Viola (purple hair) was a neglected mortally ill girl, who was manipulated into tricking Viola (blonde girl, bloody witch in ending) into swapping bodies so she could have a normal life. In the medieval era, a girl named Ellen was struck by a family curse, her body being weak and needing bandages as it would slowly start deteriorating. Her parents never loved her, and her father ignored her; everyone else avoiding her because of how ugly she looked (because of her skin being "melted"). She eventually got sick and tired, and killed both of her parents, her father still ignoring her until the end. She fled, meeting a dying cat in an alley, who she saves. The black cat turn out to be a demon, who tricks her into making a deal that would turn her into a witch, gifting her the forest mansion and forcing her to make soul sacrifices to the demon until he decides to give her a cure for her disease. Fast forward, because of how many sacrifices and betrayals she's done, she's turned into a cruel and uncaring person. She rationalizes some of this, saying that "friends are people who do favors for you" (offering their lives). She uses her power of ESP and control of the forest/house to lure in Viola, a contrastingly kind girl to convince her to swap bodies with Ellen for a day. She heard of how kind her father is, and likely targeted Viola specifically because Viola's father was loving. Before swapping, Ellen *gouges out her eyeballs and cuts her legs off* to prevent Viola from exacting revenge. After the swap, Ellen tricks Viola AGAIN by giving her a throat burning liquid, telling her that it's a medicine to numb the pain. Viola uses Ellen's body/powers to try and trap Ellen to give her (Viola's) body back, but fails in all endings. Either by waiting a full hour until Viola eventually gives up and dies by exhaustion (ending ____), or dies of despair, Viola wins and bids farewell to the Demon, whose mortal cat body is also deteriorating.
Oh my god I LOVED this horror game, I played the original so many times trying to get all the endings with friends Also, you missed one ending on this version! Like you said with the remake, this game also has an ending where you don't talk to the cat, I can't exactly remember what happens, but the cat does talk to you before getting to Ellens room [Where the cat was originally seen dead]
If you want a game similar to this, but less random death and that actually has a good ending that you can earn, try Headless Prisoner. It feels like Witch's House until you unlock Red Witch, then you get to basically Coolaid Man through the dungeon and monsters, earning a much more pleasant outcome.
I don't know how the remake does it, but the original has a no-save secret as well, and it's quite interesting. I remember getting it myself, as the game really does just become "memorize the instakills" for speedruns, but it was less difficult than you'd expect. If you haven't already, I recommend at least trying to get it, you may enjoy it more than you expect.
to this day, i cannot get over the ending sequence! such a great game, unfair deaths aside lol might i suggest an upcoming pixel horror game called decarnation? the demo is up and its absolutely fantastic! heavy ib, silent hill, and yume nikki energy.
personally i hate that there's no ending that gives that witch what she deserved or a body switch back ending. it's just a "fuck you" ending even in the remake it seems.
I played this originally back in 2012, when I had a high tolerance for games like it cause I played a lot of troll platformers and other tests of patience, and thinking back on it now having spent time with games like Pathologic, I kind of like the obnoxious deaths. They're not fun, they're unfair, they're a frustrating test of patience and memory, asking you to constantly retread the same ground when something impossible to respond to happens. But the ending recontextualizes that frustration. "My house won't be killing me anytime soon", oh but it does, constantly, Viola is doing a great job of using your powers to prevent you from making progress. But we, the player, reset time every time it happens, so to Ellen, every trap was a near miss, her house never did succeed at killing her. What was an exercise in misery for us out of curiosity to see where the game would go was us helping a monster succeed in her plan, and it makes you feel a lot when you think about things in that context. The deaths should have been unfair, what Ellen did to Viola was unfair, there's justice in the symmetry. Viola's story isn't solved by us just, quitting the game when Ellen gets crushed in the first room, what's done is already done, but it's arguably a better ending, cause at least Ellen isn't set free and Viola isn't betrayed at the end. The "good" ending is only good because we, the player, don't know what's actually going on. We're a character in this, in that small lil way, and the game sits as an example of frustration as a tool for emotional response in art. The act of having to reload a save after dying, something that only exists in this medium, being used to add to the emotional impact of a story. That's all kinda pretentious, and it doesn't change the fact it impacts the game in a bad way, kills replayability, and makes it hard to recommend others actually play, but I like it in retrospect more than I did when I first played it. It's not the best example of this kind of thing, but the fact so many people found it compelling makes it stand out as an example worth talking about and remembering. I don't think the twist would stick as hard as it did if the lead up weren't such an exercise, and if we weren't the one undertaking it via the game. It probably wasn't intentional design by the creator, other comments have pointed out that there's lore about every death being canon due to Ellen's contract with the demon, and that a large part of the appeal of games like this at the time was seeing all the shocking and interesting ways to die, that's the genre we're in with this one. But it still feels like a good interpretation, at least to me.
By the way, it's actually a good thing you skimmed out on playing the MV version for the "new" ending, because it isn't actually new at all. It's literally just the True Ending, but obtained using a different method.
Bruh you missed the best part of the lore. Ellen was suffering a painful disease that left her bedridden. But just before she swapped with viola she ensured her own death by cutting off her legs stabbing out her eyes and burning her vocal cords so that viola in Ellen’s body would not be able to replicate the spell that swapped them and would die a painful horrendous death screaming silently in a bleeding eyeless corpse
Damn
From what I heard, Ellen mutilated her own body before switching as a way for Viola to die in despair; a witch's true death is feeling utter despair. Plus, the spell requires both parties to have consent. And since Ellen didn't want to go back...well...
Ellen only did the throat thing after they switched. The novel and manga show them switch, Ellen is happy to be free of her pain and Viola meanwhile is consumed by it. Ellen then makes the medicine, which causes the throat burning - because she didn't want to hear her own screams through Viola
Edit: the spell also only worked because Viola trusted Ellen. Ellen didn't trust Viola however, and the Viola's trust was broken after they swapped
@@z2yn Ah. That's right.
As someone who’s never read the manga, holy shit, one of the first things you do is cut off the bear’s legs, too.
one of the parts of this game that hurt me the most was in the ending when the dad yells "STAND BACK, VIOLA!" the real viola backs up too before being shot at
Exactly. It's such a good attention to detail that not many people even notice "not knowing the truth." I was looking to see if anyone at all brought this up.
@cylexia I'm surprised he didn't try help her tbh. Sure bloody crazy mess. But you'd think he'd recognise a kid
Dumb fun fact, every death you have in game is technically canon, the terms of Ellen’s contract literally prevents her from dying (key word HER) until she’s free of her illness so just gets brought back to life over and over again until she escapes the house, since technically the deal hasn’t been fulfilled until she’s free.
If that were true, wouldn't the cat acknowledge Ellen dying at some point? Or if the player were to die a lot on a playthrough Ellen could say something among the lines of "I've been through a lot of shit today..."
@@beans3977 why would it bother? Both the cat and Ellen know about it, people don’t typically discuss things they already both know.
@@Lh0000 Yeah but if it was true, then wouldn't at least one of them make a nod to it at some point?
Although admittedly the thought of Ellen getting mad at the player for dying a lot is actually pretty funny
@@beans3977 to my knowledge it’s noted in the manga, but either way Ellen is an absurdly utilitarian psychopath, and the cat is a literal demon, further Ellen also knows the house won’t ever be unsolvable and has spent atleast a decade, what’s a few more hours of trial and error? Neither has a reason to actually mention it in game. (Further it would ruin the twist at the end of the game so even less reason to directly mention it)
@@Lh0000 You know what? That's a good point actually.
I still wanna make a mod where Ellen throws a fit after dying too many times. That's an idea I really like actually
This game has such a good story. And it's such a slap in the face. Like you spend the whole game thinking you're trying to save Viola only to not be able to. There is no good ending once you've experienced the true ending. Ignorance is the Best ending and no one can really bring themselves to stop at that ending not only because of the question mark at the end of that ending and that there is an unexplorable cabnet that asks for you to return to it. It's so mean and yet kinda brilliant story wise. It does however hold the old adventure game logic of everything logical and illogical will kill you. I don't blame you for needing a break despite this being a short game.
God I'm so glad I stopped playing halfway lol.
I refused to kill the frog so I left Ellen to suffer
@@AnonTDegenerate The REAL good ending.
@twistedmyth5860 fr.
I do wish the mv version got an update where you can at least have Viola somewhat posses Ellen's body. Sure prisoner in your own body sucks, but it's better than dead by your own dad.
Ik it goes against all the themes but I just played the game today, found out I had to kill a dog, slept for ages cuz of the flu and found out viola dies.
I do not care about themes rn
I especially love how throughout the new versions and hard mode challenges, instead of getting a "better" ending like many horror games do, you instead get more and more proof that the witch has always had evil intentions and even before she met Viola she already had her plan ready to gain her trust and betray her. So your "reward" is having even the last shred of positivity - that Viola and the witch were actually friends at one point - completely shattered.
I saw a comment YEARS back that's always stuck with me when I think back to this game-
"The 'good ending' is every single death up until the ending"
“She’s very well spoken, giving us lines including ‘gah’’ugh’ and ‘ghj’”
You never fail to crack me up with some of these descriptions 😭✨
Man I love how you cover stuff like this. You don’t cut the bull, you say the good and the bad and don’t try to be a apologists to the flaws
Most of the time it just sounds like he's bitching because the game requires the player to think for more than five seconds and punishes you for messing up, but that's just me.
@@ripleyandweeds1288"Damn, that clock... yup its just a clock... the time might even give a hint"
A rational thought to have with 5 or more seconds, that still leads to your death.
@@ripleyandweeds1288Yeah I won't lie, especially since a blood stain on the floor is like don't step there 101
@@ripleyandweeds1288 Yeah that was one of the only things I couldn't get behind while he was describing the game.
There are, indeed, a few parts that are clearly meant to jumpscare you and might be a bit unfair on your first runthrough, but there are _so many more_ that are actually really well telegraphed that I cannot describe as unfair.
The game cultivates a very specific balance of exploration and caution in its gameplay; you _know_ that the house itself is trying to kill you, so you can't just carelessly touch something and think you won't be punished for it.
I’m the 900th like! Big milestone achieved!
Its funny to see you say the worst part of the game is the big reason alot of people play the game for, the deaths. I honestly miss these death packed rpgmaker games.
Literally some are soo funny and others entertainingly shocking
Fr! It’s so funny you just touch something and just K.O
I found the wristwatch death freaky since it's the only death in the entire game that changes the main character image in the in-game menu. I personally think the deaths are part of The Witch's House's charm.
You could randomly catch a mouse and get fatalitied. The some wacky and some really disturbing bizzare deaths was one of the key points that I love about this game.
I think people want to attribute quality to the ability of death. To many, if you can avoid death all game (which is rare, but possible), it's fair. But sometimes death can be a mechanic, even if very janky.
Given the true ending, perhaps the witch does indeed know the house well enough to not be killed by it, like a speedrunner.
She does! If you do a run with no deaths + no saves, at a hallway u previosly couldnt get to the cat remarks that she's doing quite well w/out his help, and it is her house after all. There's also a book about the body switch spell, you also unlock a cutscene with the cat before you enter ellen's room, in which he explains that as a demon, he'll stop possessing the cat's body and look for a more powerful one, explaining why the cat is dead before ellen's room on a normal run
My favorite part is that since the original girl is sorta just dying inside the witch's body, if you just stay outside for a long enough time then she just dies and the bushes disappear.
This essentially means that Viola in Ellen's body is just wondering where the hell Ellen is and spends her final moments neither worrying about her father, or being "betrayed" by him, she just kinda dies with the regret that she should have never body swapped in the first place, and arguably that is the best ending since Viola doesn't have to watch her father choose someone else over her and doesn't have to witness her father pointing a gun to her head, in this ending she never really gets any closure on anything and therefore gets to go to the afterlife with just worry and no horrific realization, very much allowing her to move on even if just a bit in the afterlife.
The cat demon: "Hello, I've come for your soul"
...yeah, unfortunately there's even no peaceful afterlife for her. I can't blame people for wanting to create a fanfiction with a happier ending cause it's really brutal.
@@snailthelostcow63 when you think about it it can be a flaw of the game everyone is bad or suffers bad fates and the 2 villains get off scott free
Still has one of my favorite easter-eggs for how to escape. You can just stand by the roses for like an hour, and they die because of the spoiler expiring
This game MESSED ME UP as a kid. Love it, glad you covered it!!
Great video ! The Witch’s House is one of my favorite rpgmaker games, if you’re wondering what the reward is for going the whole game without saving is, it’s mostly just more lore on Ellen and the cat, the cat mocks you for not speaking to him and Ellen’s sprite in the chase sequence is somewhat different
Dragon Quest VIII pfp detected, opinion respected
Mocks you? I remember the cat congratulating us(or something along those lines, but definetly not mocking us) for getting to Ellen's room without dying, and then it became ashes. It wouldn't make sense to mock us for completing almost all of the game without dying once
@@Sloth-tr7bd The cat does congratulation Viola (aka Ellen by calling her that) but before that the cat says something like how rude it was for her to not say a word to him and ask for his help throughout the whole game, my memory is a bit fuzzy since I haven’t done that run in a while
This is very not worth it
What's the difference in Ellen's sprite?
Games that kill you when you sneeze with a wide variety of creative deaths are my absolute favorite
I would recommend fear and hunger games for you then.
The infinite deaths I think it's a whole genre of games on it's own, so I can't really fault this one for that. Thousands of other games do the same for different purposes and in this one, I guess the idea is that "of course that Ellen would know how to navigate her own house" so by helping her continue on you are helping the antagonist to get what she wants. You became the owner by always knowing what to do. The point of learning the mechanics of each death and how to avoid it is for you to be tricked, just like Viola, into the doing the will of the witch without knowing. After all, as the last ending shows, you could have done nothing at all and you would still be fine, you could still get an ending. I think in that sense it's very thematically coherent, even though it's still frustrating for the player.
Also I have to defend the jpg skulls. I think they give an otherwordly sensation because you know, you can see that they aren't like anything else around them, and that is the point. They are not real skulls, it's the house treating you like a unwanted guest until you prove yourself.
Yeah the skulls are so uncanny!
Kinda impressive when you considered (from what I heard) the creator Fummy was in middle school when they made the game
6:15 - I respect the nonchalant bravery in this moment, nobody else I've watched play this went back into the frog-die room
this game is insane. Unfortunate that there’s no “good ending” but that just adds onto the tragedy aspect of this game. Points off for being an unfair game though 😅
Well, I wouldn't necessarily call that a fault. Would you fault the Henry Stickmin games for its unfair failures and illogical successes? The deaths are part of the charm.
@@heysiri3327 Yeah but there's, iirc, a quicksave on every choice that just lets you watch the goofy shit and then go right back to where you were
@@ariannadravis3934Thankfully I believe that’s how Easy Mode works in the remake, which I actually really like. It makes the game more approachable and if you WANTED to do it with classic level difficulty you could. ^-^
@@Little1Cave I thought that was how it worked at base?
I mean, let's face it. Every death in this game is a good ending... unless you decide to wait in the intro.
I still find it haunting that waiting can also free you just because of wel- yknow
can I ask what happens? I never tried waiting.
@@Leoji0325basically the game beats itself if u do absolutely nothing for 1 hour, since “the witch” just kinda die within her rotting body
For me the part that irked me was how ready Viola father was to shoot the mutilated body of a girl. Two shots felt so damn cruel
Well, there are many good reasons though, so…
I mean, there's a rumor about a dangerous witch in the woods... and your precious daughter is running from a heavily mutilated body that is somehow still moving and bent on getting her
This game brought me so much fear with that cursed teddy bear-
I have to admit Witch’s House isn’t my favorite in terms of ending, but that’s because I’m a sucker for happy endings. I still appreciate the tragedy of it however.
I do wish the there were less unfair deaths, but ah well. Thank you for this nice vid! Looking forward to more!
I read in a wiki that what the Ellan meant by the house not X her is that the house was helping her get through while Viola tried to stop her.
Remember all those signs with instructions?
(°o°:)ᴼʰ
There's also the black cat reviving her every time she dies
During the "Enter the door with one eye open" puzzle, when you enter the right door, there's a spike just beside the entrance (as if something moved it out of the way). If you step on that spike and try the puzzle again, there's now blood on the spikes
I’d love to point out 2 extra things, first in the OG witch’s house, there was a specific trick, where if you don’t read the note about the room where you avoid all distractions, there is a file you can remove from the game and it will allow the player to explore the hallway and read a special witches entry. (Side note for the first point, for every diary you read, a new entry is added to the library downstairs, with a total of 6-7) Second there is a hidden secret to the game, IF you can get to the witches room without talking to the cat once, to save, the cat won’t be dead when you arrive at the room, he explains a bit more before the demon that possesses him (and whom gave the witch her powers in the first place,) vanishes, also changing the text in the witches room to say that the items are yours.
Surprised you mentioned those two games and not Mad Father (or the other game made by the same creator: Miaso). Mad Father is ny top favorite with only the witch's house being second. Add that to the list.
Fun fact, you can learn the game's true story via reading the manga or playing the MV version on Extra mode (which is hard mode) and reading the Witch's diary. Additionally, if you get through the entire WITHOUT TALKING TO THE CAT, you get a different outlook with the cat alive, revealing he's a demon, and examining stuff in the room will have her comment that its *her* stuff [also, the diary you read at the end revealed how Ellen wanted to make Viola suffer in her body, so she cut off her own legs, gorge out her eyes, and when she went to comfort Viola in her old body, she gave her a throat burning medicine (also, Ellen still suffers from her illness, which cause her lots of pain, but she's used to it)]. Also Fun Fact: Extra mode extend certain chases, add more death traps, and alters the puzzle solution to either require extra steps, or changes the solution all together. You'll love MV's version, trust me
It seems that The Witch's House and Ib are being mentioned together quite a bit recently... Without mention of Mad Father. Which is always surprising to me, since I thought the three of them together were inseparable staples of an era or something. The big three RPG Maker Horror titles.
Though that might just be me.
@@sajibprobably230 Exactly! They were always mentioned together back in the day
@@sajibprobably230Extra fun part... Misao and Mad father are cannonically connected. because the same bald man that talks to you in Misao its in Mad father.
I have to explain one thing. The "extra mode" in the remake refers to extra difficulty of this mode and some puzzle changes to make them harder. The "no talking to cat" or "no save ending" can be achieved on easy, normal, extra modes in both the remake and the original. And this ending is no different except the cat is not dead so we can talk with him for a bit and what happens after we leave the house is exactly the same. You may think finishing the game with no saves is impossible but once you learn what will kill you there is nothing that would surprise you anymore.
Just rewatched your strange man videos last night and am absolutely thrilled to see this pop up now!! Love old rpgmaker horror so much
This game definitely was a gateway to how RPGmaker Horror Storytelling is *wild* to me back in the day
Oddly enough, I think the deaths are apart of the charm of the game, especially the creativity in said deaths.
You also seem to have completely missed that the remake has a new game+, with a bunch of twists in the game added.
It also has like 3 extra lines of dialogue to explain Ellen’s fucking giggle at the end.
I personally think this one of the better games that use trial and error mechanics, the cat acts as a constant reminder to save, and learning how to navigate around each death trap in the house feels rewarding, though I did play this game by switching back and forth with my sister so I didn't really get as tired as some
as a kid, i got sooo scared of the real ending... the remake manages to make it so freaky now too
Indeed it is. It's impressive how it manages to make even the supposed "good/happy" ending a dread inducing nightmare.
This is mostly just a fun fact from somebody who explored the game top to bottom, but the wristwatch in the dark halls (where you need the bottle with petals) is actually the only way to die in there. All the screeching and dragging of what are probably the statue busts following you are purely just audio to build tension. I once sat around after the bottle breaks for a good five minutes in complete darkness and nothing happened beyond the constant dragging noise.
For a game where death is practically around every corner, I was a little surprised to see an instance where... well, you don't die.
The book of death ending has stuck with me all these years more than the other deaths. Idk why
Book of death ending?
@@Subway-enthusiast it’s the death you get by reading one of the books called book of death. You rub your eyes raw and bloody while reading it.
@@spookyruinsfest4936 (°o°:)ᴼʰ
I think the game Misao actually used the "things you'd expect to do/work actually kills you" thing well with it's story.
I forgot how depressingly sad and terrifying this game was. Damn.
Hey, Ben I love your videos! I would love to recommend a game for you that pretty much noone has heard of (at least until recently). It's called "Fear and Hunger". It's a survival horror RPG with turn based combat that takes place inside a dungeon.
The thing with it is that the game is very unforgiving. You can die on the first enemy you encounter. It's very harsh game but it's more than beatable. It's very difficult managing your items and bars and killing enemies doesn't make you level up and get stronger. It's filled with an interesting dark story and tons of secrets.
It's a very underrated game but it's also a game that's not for everyone because of the dark theme and the shock value from everything. I would love if you check it out even if you don't end up making a video about it.
(Sorry if I sounded like a commercial but the game is so good but so underrated and I really want more people to know about it)
Noone heard of Fear and Hunger?? Dude lol. It's known by a decent amount of people, tho i agree still underrated.
@@_stillborn it seem to have blown up recently thanks to a few youtubers making video analysis about it, it's still underrated of course, but it's no longer that hidden from the media
If you want to hear about an actual hidden horror game, try searching about the Chzo Mytos saga
i was about to recommend he talk about either fear and hunger game, lol
I feel like fear and hunger is on a whole nother level from the stuff here lol
I gotta say man, you really impressing me with this upload schedule. I look forward to your vids every week. Ill always find RPGmaker games like this impressive
All of the RPG games from 2012 are my shittttt. I loved Ib, The Witch's House, Mad Father. I'm so glad you're talking about this.
I miss the rpg maker game of '12
Despite having already played majority of these RPG maker horror games I still heavily enjoy these videos you’ve been putting out. Keep it up man !
To my knowledge on the 5th floor of the Witch's House (The flower level), theres a subtle hint of a corridor death that was shown in the video: Viola interacts with the clock in the yellow flower room, and is killed instantly. Its a hint that in the corresponding room, the pocketwatch you could potentially get is *also* an item thatll kill you quick if you interact with it. At least thats what I always interpreted it as
You are even given a cryptic warning about it: If you speak to the tree, it tells you to not disturb the "keeper of time". And indeed, both clocks you can interact with (the grandfather clock and the wristwatch) kill you.
about the line where viola (ellen) says that the house won't be killing her anytime soon -
i think what was supposed to be meant by that is that since she lived there for her entire life and therefore is intimately familiar with magic and the house's layout, attempting to exact revenge on her via *her* house and *her* magic is useless. incidentally, i don't know if this is just some headcanon i read somewhere or something i convinced myself or something that was in the manga, but i remember something along the lines of every single death trap inside the house is the vengeful soul of someone ellen killed, hence why the house seemingly goes along with ellen (viola)'s plan for revenge and so viciously too
Words can't express how much the true ending broke me as a kid.
all endings were the true endings
So glad to see this game being covered! It was my gateway into rpg maker horror games, and it still holds a special place in my heart
Another awesome video! Thanks Ben! I never played The Witch's House myself because I'm a huge chicken when it comes to spooky games, but I enjoyed watching someone else play it back in the day. So, I still end up with sense of nostalgia from this video. Corpse Party is another one that I remember fondly!
The bit about potentially needing to sacrifice the frog reminded me of a game that is an absolutely fantastic time and I need to recommend to you and that’s Elevator Hitch. I played this game on VC with some of my friends and we were on the edge of our seats. It’s amazing, I cannot recommend it enough and it’s a whole wildcard of an experience.
EDIT: you might also enjoy having a rewarding death mechanic for once!
I use to be obsessed with this game when I was 13 years old. Definitely the rpg maker horror ever.
This is honestly my favorite RPG Maker horror game. The puzzles aren't super obtuse, the deaths, while often able to catch you off-guard, are creative and (assuming you save often) aren't generally that big of a setback, and the plot twist of the true ending is just brutal. I don't even mind the fact that the chase sequences just kind of end without much effort, though that may be because I HATE chase sequences. XD
Yay🎉 ever since I found your channel I've been waiting for a new video, your content is exactly what I like, and you do such a wonderful job with it!
Absolutely wonderful video, I was delighted to see that you were covering one of my favorite RPGMaker horror games! I was even more delighted to hear that you read the manga; I read the light novel back in the day and became completely enthralled with the story, since it works spectacularly well in making the game's already-sad ending hit even harder.
I'll also add a slight correction: the "extra" ending can also be achieved in the original, free version of the game if you do a no-save run, but as others have already mentioned, it's mostly just extra lore and a slightly different version of the final chase.
It was really interesting seeing your take on this game-- while I'll admit I stuck up my nose in mock wounded pride a few times (this game is genuinely one of my all-time favorites, and I've consistently replayed it at least once or twice a year since 2013), it made me realize I needed to cool it with the nostalgia blinders since... well, it's a very different experience for a first-time player! Thank you for the honest, interesting review and the fresh perspective on an old favorite.
I recall reading that the hard mode doesn't even have a save-less ending because of how it is. It was hard enough to get through, I can't imagine trying to get through it without dying, especially after playing normal.
@@ragingfirefrog That's unfortunately correct-- there unfortunately aren't many story/lore things as I'd like in hard mode (but the gameplay itself is even more insane), and doing a no-save run on hard mode gets you nothing.
omg i actually love all the different deaths in this game! it was kinda neat hearing someone say they didn't like them, i would actively go out of my way to find them TToTT
I remember when this game first came out. After I played it, I rushed to school the next day to tell my girlfriend about it since games with death traps were right up her alley. After she played through it we watched Markiplier's playthrough together. Good times. I even managed to get my hands on the manga which I have to this day. I love games with gut punch endings and I think Witch's House is still the one that sticks with me the most, Mad Father's being a close second. MV is also very much worth it as it has a New Game + mode as well which Ben missed in this video.
Please never stop covering rpg horror games, they’re always so good and it’s such a niche genre that needs more love 😭❤️
Can't express how excited I get to see your videos pop up in my notifications! You have a really fun/entertaining commentary style -(and have a great voice
I played the remake a long time ago but I’m pretty sure the bear follows you out of the room there, I remember having to maneuver around it in a different room
This game nearly traumatized me as a kid
I was in love with it but equally as terrified of everything in it as well 😭😭😭 like to a "im watching this with my phone as far away from me as possible" type of terrified
Oh I’m so glad you’re covering this, such a classic rpg maker horror game. Would love to see you eventually tackle corpse party, that’s easily one of my favorite horror games
You caused me to read the first manga in my life. Thank you for showing off this game.
Oh shit, you covered one of the Big Three already! I've never actually gotten around to playing the original version of the game, so it was neat to see it.
I think they actually sanded some of the bullshit off in the MV version.
Just found your channel from your Ao Oni video, and I gotta say, im hooked! You have such a great voice for these and seeing these videos of the old rpg maker horror games brings back memories of highschool and playing these in class on my laptop.
Ao Oni, Witches House, and Mad Father were my favs. Seeing you cover two of them is so sweet! I look forward to seeing what you do from here! Consider me subscribed!
personally the book of death chase scared the shit out of me when i was like 12-13 and its still probably one of my most dreaded areas cause of how much it stuck to me 🥴(the bust statue maze is number 1) also iirc the MV version also has smaller changes made to it aside from hard/easy mode and a new ending (in the sense of changes so you don't cheese it by virtue of having played the original and knowing all the puzzles etc)
I love your commentary, seriously man, and I love so much that you're talking about so many classics, makes my heart nostalgic and happy, you're awesome for covering this despite the years and previous coverage, leaves me hopeful that more people will discover this gems and very intrigued about the rest of your "to-play" list
we're not going to mention that the dad's first thought when seeing an eyeless, mutilated, 7 year old girl is to shoot her? *Twice?*
when his daughter or assumed to be so is being chased by it, knows the witch lives there, and in defense mode
This game took the phrase “The only winning move is not to play.” And slaps you with it for thinking otherwise.
But overall, it's quite good.
Hey! The deaths surrounding the wristwatch and the clock aren't actually random. I remember you can get a hint about how touching objects that keep the time will kill you (I looked it up: the tree outside will tell you "don't disturb the keeper of time"). I tried to take the advice, but then accidentally picked up the wristwatch. When I tried to remove it from my inventory, my entire menu was messed up and I was forced to walk towards my inevitable death :'). It was like in this video: th-cam.com/video/sfRO1J2-v2s/w-d-xo.html&ab_channel=PissKidney.
At 16:30 I'm surprised you didn't point out that "Ellen" (Viola) giggles to herself as she walks away with Viola's father. I know this video was ages ago. But there's so many little bits of detail in this game that make it stand out so well.
I love that you cover these games that I'd be way too scared to play myself. The stories are really good, especially combined with your storytelling and commentary!
The witch's house is my all time favourite witch stories. Fell in love with the story in 2012 and STILL in love with it now
5:40
My favorite part of this one is that, if you don’t read the note, you can just wander the room freely!
Great video as usual! I have faint memories of this game, and this video brought all of them back full force. I’d love to see you cover Ib one day as well!!
WOOOO BEN AGAIN UPLOAD!
the my house wont be killing me is a hint. if you play through the whole game without talking to the cat meaning not saving and beating the game deathless you get an extra bit of dialogue with him at the spot where is supposed to be laying dead near the end. he will be alive and well and give you some additional info mainly about him being a demon and ellen's familiar along with other stuff
This is one of those nostalgia games where it hasn't aged well. The remake also has an alternative house with new puzzles. Its a good romp. The deaths are far more gruesome too. Moreover it adds even more to the story.
With the way the witch says her house, "wouldn't be killing her anytime soon", I always read that as even if it turned against her, she knows it inside and out. The only reason she dies is because the player doesn't know it at first, and I think that ties into the remake's "Hard mode, no saves" requirement for the new ending.
Oh my goodness, thank you for saying what I always thought about The Witch’s House: Really clever subversion during the True Ending, but a huge slog and an incredibly frustrating experience because of the actual game design.
I never really got behind all the hype for the game because of it, especially not the crowd that actually liked the game because of the countless deaths. It’s funny once or twice, but when,
1. The entire game’s puzzles revolve around trial and error deaths
and 2. The requirements for achieving a new ending are to AVOID said trial and error deaths…
Yeah, no, that’s just bad game design to me and I could never stomach it for that. I will say that I still do really like the flower puzzle both for the creative problem solving and the macabre element of killing a nice flower to appease a group of judgmental, sadistic ones. It really sets the tone for the story imo
Secret lore is hidden in the original version of the game as well, having the same requirements as the "secret hard mode end" in the remakes. If you avoid talking to the cat and saving, when you get to the corridors saying "Don't get distracted," you'll be able to step off the path without getting killed for it and into the areas to the side with bookshelves. There you can learn more lore about the cat and the witch.
Continuing on this route allows you to meet the black cat alive at the end before the final chase, with a bit of final lore. Also fun fact, you can repeatedly step on the cat's body to smoosh it into oblivion, and there are lots of dead cat bodies stuffed in bags around the house. :) Love this game a lot, even with the constant deaths sitting all around.
THIS AND IB ARE LITERALLY MY CHILDHOOD I HAVE PLAYED THE REMAKES SO MANY TIMES
I remember watching this when i was younger, and the bear and skull chases got me so bad.
(Ps, you should really check out blank dream if you havent, its a really good rpg horror maker)
I know going through all of these old RPGMaker games you probably have a whole ton to get through but I'm personally excited to see you play Mad Father and Ao Oni if you ever do those. Been loving the channel, was already subscribed but im giving you the bell now.
I remember being absolutely obsessed with this one as well as Mad Father and Ib, probably right when they came out. Though we didn't download them until we'd already watched a playthrough, so we knew what we were doing and that helped avoid *some* of the random deaths.
I just watched your video on Ao Oni and thought to myself “Man, how cool would it be if he made a video on The Witch’s House (my favorite rpgmaker horror game)” I can’t believe my luck
never seen a playthrough of most of the games covered on this channel, so it’s nice to see a bunch of content I’ve never seen before!
Its the old classics like these that got me into making rpg maker horror games in the first place (though shying away from the whole menagerie of deaths trope they usually lean hard into). Loving the content, and looking forward to seeing more.
I love your vids so much dude! Are you ever planning on covering mad father or ib?
They’re both on my list of games to play!
As a dino nuggie, I must say that you make some amazing content.
3:27 tbf, maybe I'm giving the game too much credit, but chase scenes are very hit or miss with rpg maker, (old or new)
With how the house is designed I feel like if they left and chased you around the house the whole time it'd be annoying to try to hide in other spots
If you ever play a game like Ao Oni, another rpg maker horror oldie, you'll see how different it is in terms of the enemies chasing you given the structure of the house
Awesome vid!!
I don't remember whether it was from the game or someone else's comment, but I think this is something rather important to note:
The only way for a witch to truly die, is to experience utter despair. It wasn't the gun that killed Viola, but that her father couldn't recognize her anymore. That he thought of her as a monster.
YOOO WITCH'S HOUSE I love that game so much! Stoked to watch this new vid within the hour omg. Love your work!
The third ending makes me think of MGS 3. You can wait a week for a boss to die of old age
i love the witch’s house! i hadn’t seen anything about it in years so i was glad when i saw the title and thumbnail
great video!!
the huge amount of seemingly random deaths in this game was a pretty common trope in old RPG maker horror games at the time. Ib has a few, Corpse Party and the PSP remake, etc. It's arguably one of the reasons why people played these games back in the day; seeing what most of the gruesome ways to die were (even if there were some that were silly). I feel like you might enjoy Pocket Mirror and the games by Sen (Mad Father and Misao), and while Blank Dream has some frustrating moments it also very, VERY good!
I had my friend play Hard Mode on my channel and it had A LOT of bullshit deaths, but I think my favorite one was a book in the library asking if you wanted to hear a funny joke before killing you and laughing at you.
After i first played and got the true ending, i just restarted the game and let her get killed each time bc i was so betrayed and angry lmaoooo
This was back when the game was still new and pretty janky back in the early 2000s where i had no one to scream about it with. So happy people are talking about this game again
I am SO glad to see that your channel is growing! You're just so pleasant to listen to. Keep it up!
I just realized Ben explained the game but not the plot so here's the backstory:
TL;DR Viola (purple hair) was a neglected mortally ill girl, who was manipulated into tricking Viola (blonde girl, bloody witch in ending) into swapping bodies so she could have a normal life.
In the medieval era, a girl named Ellen was struck by a family curse, her body being weak and needing bandages as it would slowly start deteriorating. Her parents never loved her, and her father ignored her; everyone else avoiding her because of how ugly she looked (because of her skin being "melted"). She eventually got sick and tired, and killed both of her parents, her father still ignoring her until the end. She fled, meeting a dying cat in an alley, who she saves. The black cat turn out to be a demon, who tricks her into making a deal that would turn her into a witch, gifting her the forest mansion and forcing her to make soul sacrifices to the demon until he decides to give her a cure for her disease.
Fast forward, because of how many sacrifices and betrayals she's done, she's turned into a cruel and uncaring person. She rationalizes some of this, saying that "friends are people who do favors for you" (offering their lives). She uses her power of ESP and control of the forest/house to lure in Viola, a contrastingly kind girl to convince her to swap bodies with Ellen for a day. She heard of how kind her father is, and likely targeted Viola specifically because Viola's father was loving. Before swapping, Ellen *gouges out her eyeballs and cuts her legs off* to prevent Viola from exacting revenge. After the swap, Ellen tricks Viola AGAIN by giving her a throat burning liquid, telling her that it's a medicine to numb the pain. Viola uses Ellen's body/powers to try and trap Ellen to give her (Viola's) body back, but fails in all endings.
Either by waiting a full hour until Viola eventually gives up and dies by exhaustion (ending ____), or dies of despair, Viola wins and bids farewell to the Demon, whose mortal cat body is also deteriorating.
the witch's house was so fun, same for ib (ib is better)
Oh my god I LOVED this horror game, I played the original so many times trying to get all the endings with friends
Also, you missed one ending on this version! Like you said with the remake, this game also has an ending where you don't talk to the cat, I can't exactly remember what happens, but the cat does talk to you before getting to Ellens room [Where the cat was originally seen dead]
If you want a game similar to this, but less random death and that actually has a good ending that you can earn, try Headless Prisoner. It feels like Witch's House until you unlock Red Witch, then you get to basically Coolaid Man through the dungeon and monsters, earning a much more pleasant outcome.
I don't know how the remake does it, but the original has a no-save secret as well, and it's quite interesting. I remember getting it myself, as the game really does just become "memorize the instakills" for speedruns, but it was less difficult than you'd expect. If you haven't already, I recommend at least trying to get it, you may enjoy it more than you expect.
to this day, i cannot get over the ending sequence! such a great game, unfair deaths aside lol
might i suggest an upcoming pixel horror game called decarnation? the demo is up and its absolutely fantastic! heavy ib, silent hill, and yume nikki energy.
personally i hate that there's no ending that gives that witch what she deserved or a body switch back ending. it's just a "fuck you" ending even in the remake it seems.
I played this originally back in 2012, when I had a high tolerance for games like it cause I played a lot of troll platformers and other tests of patience, and thinking back on it now having spent time with games like Pathologic, I kind of like the obnoxious deaths. They're not fun, they're unfair, they're a frustrating test of patience and memory, asking you to constantly retread the same ground when something impossible to respond to happens. But the ending recontextualizes that frustration. "My house won't be killing me anytime soon", oh but it does, constantly, Viola is doing a great job of using your powers to prevent you from making progress. But we, the player, reset time every time it happens, so to Ellen, every trap was a near miss, her house never did succeed at killing her. What was an exercise in misery for us out of curiosity to see where the game would go was us helping a monster succeed in her plan, and it makes you feel a lot when you think about things in that context. The deaths should have been unfair, what Ellen did to Viola was unfair, there's justice in the symmetry. Viola's story isn't solved by us just, quitting the game when Ellen gets crushed in the first room, what's done is already done, but it's arguably a better ending, cause at least Ellen isn't set free and Viola isn't betrayed at the end. The "good" ending is only good because we, the player, don't know what's actually going on. We're a character in this, in that small lil way, and the game sits as an example of frustration as a tool for emotional response in art. The act of having to reload a save after dying, something that only exists in this medium, being used to add to the emotional impact of a story.
That's all kinda pretentious, and it doesn't change the fact it impacts the game in a bad way, kills replayability, and makes it hard to recommend others actually play, but I like it in retrospect more than I did when I first played it. It's not the best example of this kind of thing, but the fact so many people found it compelling makes it stand out as an example worth talking about and remembering. I don't think the twist would stick as hard as it did if the lead up weren't such an exercise, and if we weren't the one undertaking it via the game. It probably wasn't intentional design by the creator, other comments have pointed out that there's lore about every death being canon due to Ellen's contract with the demon, and that a large part of the appeal of games like this at the time was seeing all the shocking and interesting ways to die, that's the genre we're in with this one. But it still feels like a good interpretation, at least to me.
I KNEW you’d make a video on this and i’m an so excited to watch it. Keep up the good work dude your channel is growing like crazy!
By the way, it's actually a good thing you skimmed out on playing the MV version for the "new" ending, because it isn't actually new at all. It's literally just the True Ending, but obtained using a different method.