DUDE I WAS WAITING FOR YOU TO TALK ABOUT PSYCHONAUTS AGAIN. I had just watched your previous video on the first game and was so eagerly waiting for you to do something related to the sequel. I am SO GLAD YOU DECIDED TO MAKE THIS Love this ❤️❤️❤️
Unlike Cassie and Bob, Otto had a more constructive and utilitarian outlet for his woes, but the most important factor was that he never fully isolated himself. Sure he spends most of his time in the lab, but because he has the need to show off his inventions he would always find himself close to people.
One of the most disturbing parts of the game was when Ford said “Those were peaceful protestors Lucy!” after Raz killed the lice with barbicide. Brilliant writing and acting.
I also maybe looking to far into it but remember the mental rich people that just HAD to have a baby when they finally get a baby they say "look at our little >Jack Pot
@Spiritotter "It sure will be nice to have an extra set of kidneys around the house!" Dr. Potts' sorta-villain arc is that his parents took his kidneys. Like a slightly less disturbing Loboto backstory. That's my new headcanon.
Otto: Okay, so... bad day! How do we move on from here? Ford: Forget the past at my present's expense. Cassie: Lose myself and readjust my personality dynamic. Bob: Get drunk. Compton: Isolate myself from everything. Helmut: Drugs, probably. Otto: Guys??!? Therapy?!??
For Helmut drugs is a possibility but music is one as well considering he is all about the senses and the sensations they cause the rest are spot on for them
@@Fawful0 that's true, I hadn't spotted that. But yeah, Raz always tries to get consent after that point before entering another's mind, and even though he is forgiven for his transgression due to him being young and inexperienced, everyone makes it clear to him they don't like that he did it and they would not forgive him repeating that mistake.
@@dm121984 It also makes a lot of sense that they were forgiving with him, since Hollis and Ford were both guilty of doing the same thing. Ford especially, since he did it to 2 people (3 counting himself).
A nice touch, yet at the same time quite awkward. Like, no one said no. It was always like „yes yes, I really don‘t want to change my mind at all and don’t want to touch my past trauma ever again, but sure visit my brain. Edit: The only exception I can think of is Bob. Yet, I still ask myself why a random plant helped him. Did the plant already exist before he fell into depression? We don‘t know for sure.
Reasons Raz isn't delirious because he hasn't slept in days: 1. Entering the Astral plane, could be a form of sleep or at the very least rest of the body 2. Mental Energy is restored through the Psi-candy/Dreamfluffs
The best part about Lucrecia Mux being part of the Psychic Six is that it was planned from the start. In the first game, you can go to a campfire with the monuments, and one of them had Lucrecia Mux's name and face on it. Out of seven. Schafer knew what he was doing.
If the Li Po document is accurate, he planned out extensive backstories for every character that we were never privy to that guided the team in planning how the characters would interact.
The most important takeaway from this video is that cilantro is such a top-tier herb that you have to literally dive into someone’s brain and artificially alter their thoughts to make it bad.
20:49 I think what this vault was trying to imply wasn't that Bob took up drinking after his mom's death, but that his mom (who was very likely also Psychic) was using the greenhouse she spent all of her time in to hide her alcoholism
That's what I thought as well tbh. He talks about how his mom spends a lot of time in the greenhouse just before we discover the alcohol bottles there.
A detail I enjoy in Bob’s bottles (that I don’t know if it was fully intentional) was during the part you reach the dance floor of the wedding reception section of the level and have to fight the bad mood there, the weak spot cage is on the table that the Lucy and Ford figment sit. I always thought that meant that he harbors some resentment for Lucy due to the whole “whoopsie-killed-your-hubby-thing” and thinking about the killer of your spouse and ex friend at your wedding resentment could start up a pretty bad mood. could be thinking into this too much though lol
@@KevinHelpUs Yeah thats what I thought, if it was intentional that’s a really smart way to use a game mechanic to give more symbolisim on the inner thought processes of Bob’s mind. Psychonauts 2 is too good of a game istg
That makes it extra touching when Bob was willing to forgive Lucy after seeing her again. Helmut returning before that point probably played a huge part in helping that happen.
Nope, sounds like you picked up on a great detail. I'm sure the game is littered with instances like that that are easy to miss but are incredible little bits of storytelling.
I have dissociative identity disorder, and the fact that Ford Cruller is portrayed in such a human way instead of a monster makes me love this series even more
It's actually explained that the reason Ford is everywhere at once, if Raz's recap at the beginning of the game is to be believed, that one of Ford's psychic abilities was the ability to teleport
Alternatively, he can literally fregment himself. Much like how his mind is fragmented. And he can manifest his fragments even when their in the form of thoughts. Like how he's able to attach his existence to Razs mind.
I was so heartbroken at Bob's level. I was pleading with Raz not to find those seeds throughout the whole thing. No one deserves to relive finding their dead mother. I also just love the symbolism of Bob being trapped on a desert island. Flooding his own mind with drink, he can no longer explore deeper memories, with no chance to grow new ones.
I thought it was kinda more inferred that his mother was using the Greenhouse to hide her drinking. Bob's voice at one point in the long kitchen, asks why the plants look so bad when she's spending so much time out there, so I think he picked up her vice to cope with her death.
I had watch two videos covering the Psychological meanings of this level and it's explained that Tia was drinking because of the (at the time) recent loss of her husband/ Bob's dad.
I really love how in Hollis’ mind, one of your powers is not just a fun addition to your move set but also a full on storytelling device. It kinda makes sense why you don’t use it that way later on - don’t want to have what happened happen again - but I really wish there were more things like that. That level was a huge highlight for me.
Whispering rock took started off in the morning, and ended the next so there is one day. ROR didn't really give a date of how long it took the team to arrive and settle the matter. The Casino section took the rest of that day, so we could be at maybe 2 or 3 days. The event afterwards worked itself into the night and wasn't fully settled till sun rise. So I would have to put my money on 4 days total. I'm sure Raz would have caught some Z's after ROR and the casino. Most likely by Mio's orders.
@@FireLover7004 just for the lols, I prefer the idea that Mila and the others kept TELLINF him or expecting him to get some sleep, but he kept getting distracted with the collectables or the interns missions so a bit after the end of the game he just full on collapses in exhaustion and the interns get in a SHIT TON of trouble for not letting the poor kid sleep.
The thing that gets me is that in Fullbear's mind, it's his mental versions of the other Psychic 6 telling him that they didn't actually leave him behind. Meaning that somewhere within his subconscious, Helmet knew they never abandoned him. But that truth can be hard to hold onto after a traumatic event. Like, ya know, almost drowning in a frozen lake and sneezing your brain out.
Psychonauts characters: super cute and full of life Psychonauts characters when you read their memory vault: I’ve once murdered an entire country with just my left thumb and I’ve been depressed every since
I still love the haunting moment from the first game where you find Milla’s Nursery… it’s especially thoughtful that while the room is out of the way, she didn’t lock away those memories from the rest of her mind (after all, the door’s open). Probably why she’s so well adjusted.
I interpreted that as people having the means and tools to defeat that nasty part of themselves! But when we're too deep in pain and sadness, we need other people's help to gather those tools and use them. Due to the nature of the game, Raz's approach is way more hands-on that it should be in real life, but hey, we wouldn't have an entertaining game otherwise!! And we do see the characters standing up for themselves afterwards.
In a narrative context this is probably one of the best *videogames* ever made, and I don't think I'm being hyperbolic. It makes use of the medium to tell stories in ways a book or a movie or a show probably never could, and it does that masterfully in every way.
Small point of clarification (I should really watch the whole video before making but) *SPOILERS* after reuniting Bob and Helmut, you can find them near the IRL Feel Mobile and Helmut will talk about his last moments. He clarifies he used his emergency stash of Super Sneezing Powder to eject his brain to the surface. Ford finds it (shown in the Gravedigger Ford's memory vault) while detaining Maligula in secret, but when using the Astrolave to make himself forget Lucy/Maligula, he forget about Helmut's brain, where Otto randomly finds it a while later while absent-mindedly eating a sandwich
SPOILERS: I wonder if the reason Tia Died was cause of alcohol poisoning, she probably either became a alcoholic after her husband died or already was a alcoholic but the death of her husband made it worse and she basically drank so much that she ended up dying from it, and the place she went to drink alcohol in could had been the greenhouse however cause one day she took longer then usual bob went to check on her however she was dead and the reason why the vines started to give bob alcohol was cause of the fact his mom had the vines bring her alcohol so it was basically a thing the vines were used to so it did the same for Bob
@@sevenmastergamer9261 yo! I never put that together, but it makes sense. Coming from the son of a recovering alcoholic who used to hide drinks in the top shelf of his closet, this checks out. Both are out of the way of their young children so they don't accidentally find/get into it and I believe young Bob mentions something along the lines of "You're always out there mom but your plants keep dying" or something.
I completely missed the fact someone else in the comments already pointed that out that Tia might had have a drinking problem, welp now i feel like an idiot for unintentionally putting something someone else already pointed out 10 hours ago
@@sevenmastergamer9261 that's honestly what i was took from the level, it felt that his mom staying in the greenhouse for hours into the night started to become a recurring thing because she would pass out there. they both look miserable at the dinner table in the memory vault, presumably after the death of bob's father. there's also the statue that depicts her slumped over a table which would frame her to look hung over. genetics can also effect people that have parents or relatives who struggle with substance abuse in their family. another reason bob's alcoholism would be so traumatic is that she became an alcoholic and likely died of alcohol poisoning. this would in turn lead to bob developing this same addiction as a coping mechanism to escape his traumatic memories of this, and how it ultimately isolated him from his loved ones.
I love the pause that Raz does when he says "I've haven't been here for...........days" because we waited 15 years for this game, but to Raz its basically 2 days after the First game
Kinda wish Otto had a story of his own. Maybe since he acts fine in real life, he’s in some masquerade party within his mind where he hides his sadness and grief of losing against Meligula and his inability to find Helmutt’s body behind a mask
He seems pretty open about what happened when he talks to Sasha about the incident, so perhaps Sasha already cleared his level, which is why he's so much better off compared to the rest of the Psychic 6?
What do you mean there's less to analyze in the final world? That bloody thing has enough symbolism hidden in it to rival Black Velvetopia, if not surpass it in some ways. Narratively it's easily one of the greatest levels in the series, and I have basically written a mini essay on how dang good the thing is. No spoilers is a fair enough reason, but the subtleties and callbacks in that one stage could carry a college thesis on environmental storytelling. Of course, the rest of the game is also brilliant, so it's not too much of a loss...
So it’s hard to answer without giving spoilers (the other reason I left it out), but while yes, there is some to analyze (maybe I overstated), the final worlds felt more like an exposition delivery vehicle than a character study.
@@KevinHelpUs That's the brilliance of the final level... It's both. The fact that it feels so much like an exposition dump is *oh so important* to understanding the mind you're in. Every detail of that level, including certain very meta aspects tied to a certain achievement and the level pacing, directly reflects the character aspects. Consider the use of music... and of silence. Also, did you notice that the paired levels - Helmut and Bob, Compton and Cassie - are basically foils of each other in gameplay and tone? Helmut's is infinitely colorful and vibrant and full of noise, while Bob's is barren and quiet. It tells us that they're a good couple because they balance each other out. Helmut needs a quiet source of comfort to avoid getting overwhelmed by the intensity of his experiences; Bob needs an exuberant extrovert to draw him out of his shell. The Panic Attack is quick and chaotic; the Bad Mood is slow and methodical. And yet both are ultimately about bringing things back together and making them whole again. Compton's is a frenetic test of your multitasking skills with chaotic WarioWare-esque gameplay, despite its singular area structure. Cassie's level structure is mechanically disjointed and heavily subdivided, but the tasks you do are laser focused - it's Cassie's Collection because you're literally collecting Cassie, after all. But they also prove to be what the other needs most; Compton needs help adapting to complicated, stressful situations, while Cassie needs help to maintain her focus and not lose her sense of self. But both levels are ultimately about the same themes: You're your own worst critic, and learning how to appreciate yourself enough while still being willing to ask for help is important. Their stage mechanics also seem to reflect the other character's nature in a way. (Also, Cassie's Psychic Six are literally projections, but also figuratively ideas she projects on people.) Ford's mind, on another note... I think it draws on the experiences of DID systems, and the challenges of integration therapy. The writers for this series have always made an effort to do the best they can in terms of researching how to deal with mental illness in an understanding way - even back in the early 2000s where the science was more limited and the culture less sensitive.
@@KevinHelpUs Also, another key note. Ever since Hollis' Hot Streak, Raz's attitude toward entering minds changes fundamentally. He always, *always* asks for permission when he can. He doesn't run around fundamentally trying to change who the person is, or smash open barriers with brute force... Because what the game is portraying is very, very closely related to the way real psychotherapists are trained to interact with people they help. This whole game is an extended metaphor for responsible ways to help others deal with trauma - in much the same way that, especially in hindsight, Psychonauts 1 levels reflect more on the idea of well-intentioned acquaintances, friends, and the like trying to help but making things worse by imposing instead of understanding.
So I'm watching a walkthrough of Hollis' Streak and I'm already amazed at how creepy the doctor's room is after Raz screws up her head - *the doctor and his nurse are treating patients like slot machines and betting on their survival.*
my favoriate thing about this game is how some of the memory vaults show the same event from a different perspective, it gives you insight into how that character saw that event, like how grolik or whatever doesn't even remember what was on the protest signs.
Plus the vaults show why he became the way he did anyway. He was attacked by some non peaceful protesters when he looked to be around Raz's age and was saved by Maligula. Which is why he has such a high amount of hero worship for her until after the end game at least and was ok with whatever she did as well including wash way any protesters and justify it as they were only non violent there. His mind is also starting to be very confused at end game as well if you go track him down in the physical and mental world.
Honestly I think that Otto is in denial. He doesn't acknowledge Lucy at all only talking about her once he's forced to do so. I'm not a psychologist(at least not yet), but that trait seems to me to be a sign of denial.
It’s funny how Otto is the only one who apparently didn’t suffer greatly due to Maligula. I love the levels in Psychonauts 2. Because the majority deal with the Psychic Seven you see all their reactions to a traumatic incident as well as how they view one another. Would’ve been fun to get into Otto’s brain, but really the mad inventions do a good enough job of seeing what it’s like. After all he sees his inventions as dreams made true.
@@KevinHelpUs i could see that if there is DLC. If there is DLC I hope it’s just about recovering Helmut’s body. His feelings about the shared trauma are never explored in the base game but returning to the scene of it all could lead to something. I do appreciate one detail throughout the game. No one blames Otto for all the things that resulted from his inventions. The Astralathe birthed Maligula but he was never blamed. Even Helmut didn’t envision the others being upset that his freeze contraption his his body from recovery.
Something to add about Tia, Bob's Mother, was that she was an alcoholic too. Her husband was dead and she went to the greenhouse to drink away from Bob. Her alcoholism caused her to neglect the plants and she likely drank herself to death.
Huh... Otto making goofy inventions has a whole new context when you factor in the other Psychic 6. 😳 He doesn't have a level like them because inventing is his way of processing his thoughts and emotions. He's the *only* one who doesn't bury the anger and sadness in his mind until it festers. Instead he uses them as fuel for a healthy hobby that he loves, and shares with others. Gotta love this game for churning my brain gears.
Yep! He's very active, never isolated, and has done "the healing". Also, great job turning his "hobby" into his actual job. He could have been just a normal Psychonaut, but nope! He's their Q.
This game was so well done. It was so worth the wait. Psychonauts was one of my top favorite games, something I would go back to over and over. This one surpassed all expectations of a sequel. The developers heard the fans and gave us everything we wanted.
Dude… seeing all these minds and how intricate they are yet how depressing they can get… gets you thinking. Been dealing with some self doubt and confidence for a long time, and seeing this really helps me figure things out. Thank you.
The plants in Bob's mother's greenhouse weren't telling him to drink, but rather showing what his mother was doing sneaking into the greenhouse late at night. It's further solidified his mother was drinking by the fact that when Raz visits a location that represented said greenhouse it was flooded with alcohol and bottles growing from the plants. After his mother's passing Bob fell into the same cycle that she did, drinking to cope with the passing of a family member as it's seen that Bob's father is implied to be deceased when in the 1st memory vault. Both Bob and Tia are eating dinner with a depressed look on their faces while a picture frame of Bob's father hangs on the wall between them in one of the slides of the memory vault.
Ahhhh yes! I am so glad you decided to analyze the levels of Psychonauts 2! I went from knowing nothing about the series to reading up on nearly everything about it in the course of a week and your video on the first game (and Psi King's Sensorium) helped a ton! A little detail I couldn't help but notice was how other Psychonauts appeared in the minds of the Psychic Six-from the Feast of the Senses to the Goat Judges to Bob's plants to Cassie's paper variants of the Six (plus Lucy) in a side room of her level-at least to me, it showed how interconnected they were as a group and how they felt they let their peers down in different ways. Otto's definitely the odd one out, mostly because he doesn't have a level, but I feel like throwing yourself into your work probably isn't healthy, even if you're making inventions that vent emotions for you like a crying machine. Who knows, maybe someday we'll see what's in his head! Either way, excellent video all around!
Thank you! And I wonder if Otto’s level was either cut, or held back for eventual DLC. It’d be easy to add him in later without disrupting the main story, I think?
@@KevinHelpUs Of course! Your hard work deserves to be commended! I recall Raz post-game saying "maybe another time" when referring to Otto's mind, so it could be one of those two. Honestly Psychonauts has inspired me so much when it comes to level designs and characters, I'd love to see more delving-into-people's-mind games!
@@prottyblue I think you're onto something. Otto literally externalizes his own trauma - it's kind of the Iron Man 3 plot angle where he seems to be trying to compensate for his failures by building bigger and better, and separating his feelings out into inventions. Also, that overlap between them? I think that might be a manifestation of the fact that they opened their minds up to each other in Green Needle Gulch, at least in part.
@@FelisImpurrator Ooooh, your interpretation on the overlap does make sense, they did mention "opening their minds in new directions" a lot. Also now that you mention it, I think Otto is the only one that externalizes his trauma through making machines to emote for him (either because he struggles with emoting or doesn't feel comfortable with it.) Helmut is well, stuck in a jar, Ford breaks his mind to not deal with it, and Bob, Cassie and Compton all isolate themselves and internalize their feelings to some extent. All in all, I think these psychics might need some follow-up therapy sessions, just in case.
The tomb of the sharkophogus, aka the level that told me this game was truly special, I was so absorbed by the story of this game, the writing, visuals, and voice acting was so well done, and the twist at this point was so well done, I loved every second of it
While I've not played the game, I've watched it and noticed some stuff I think you missed. When Raz used mental connection on Hollis, it created a storm of other connections that he never intended to create, it's why Hollis' mental world suddenly begins to break down with the formation of the new greed monster in her mind forming right as Raz is forced out of Hollis' mind the first time. I suspect when she changed the connections in Dr. Pott's mind, that created a storm of new connections that ultimately lead to a psychotic breakdown. She was like Raz; intending to change one thing to make the person above them do something they wanted, only for it to cause the person to crack. Only Raz fixed his mistake with Hollis before she could mentally break down like Dr. Potts. She does say she felt like she was losing her mind and going crazy. So it's likely she would have snapped like him and repairing that damage might be next to impossible.
I think Hollis' outright states that her mistake was much bigger than Raz's because she couldn't undo the damage. I also believe we see Hollis make numerous new connections when using her powers on Potts, unlike Raz's single new connection. So what she did to Dr. Potts was probably at least 2-3 times more severe than what Raz did.
My absolute favorite levels are the psi king and the cooking show. and the reason is simple... representation I have autism and anxiety so the psi king level is a great feeling for sensory overload and the panic attacks were perfect. (i've had a few mild ones, still strong but not enough to feel like dying.) so those creepy monsters fit perfectly For the anxiety the cook off really does relate, you often are your biggest judge, you constantly think a bunch of people are judging everything you do and put to much emphasis on what they think. also the goat truman's constant commentary fits too, often time it feels like your inner critic is CONSTANTLY commenting.... so yeah I praise these two levels more than anything for this very reason
Ugh, I really wanted to do more on the comments made by the Ford Goat in Compton’s Cookoff, but I wanted the video to be under 30 minutes. Sounds like we enjoyed both levels for the same reasons. :)
6:00 in hollis's defense here, at this point in here life she was a completely untrained psychic, and we can see how even a semi-trained psychic can cuase a destructive domino effect due to Raz. I also see at least 5-6 ideas not on screen based on the connections, and in fact from the looks of it bad and plagarism are already connected here, but apparently didn't notice that plagarism is still linked to woman here.
Slight story spoilers ahead. I absolutely love the levels in this game and the story they tell. They are absolutely amazing! I just feel like Otto was a real missed opportunity. Like I was really expecting him to turn out to be the mole in the end given how little we really got to see of him, but when he just kinda helped out at the end I was both surprised and disapointed. I feel like we should have had a level inside Otto's head at least. Given him a bit of grief and trouble over the situation as well. Cause it's weird that we got into every member of the Psychic 7's head except for his! I also think its really weird how the barber shop ford is just kind of open for you to go into without doing a level before hand, where as the mail room required you beat Psi King, and the Bowling Ally required you beat Compton Bool. Maybe they just cut Otto's level due to time? Idk, but I think it would have made the game a bit better if his was included.
You've done a great job breaking down each of the levels, and their backstories! I beat the game a week ago or so, but it was nice hearing it all laid out like a re-cap. you're a Hidden gem on youtube for sure!
Excellent review! I just finished it last night and the wait for the sequel was worth every minute. One detail I think I wish you mentioned was the second event with the lice/the first time you use the barbicide to clear them away. Ford cranes down and dismisses it as an accident. Ford rationalizing and justifying the murders the love of his life had committed is probably the most heart-breaking part of the game (imo.) You can hear it in his voice the third time the lice are cleared (in the town square) with his cries of "Lucy, what have you done!?"
Yeah, that was a great moment. There’s a bunch of instances I would have loved to mention, but I was trying to keep it under 30 minutes. So glad you enjoyed it!
My favorite quote from here is from Helmet. "Memories are just stories we tell ourselves, and sometimes, the first draft stinks. Thanks for helping me with the rewrites."
Lots of people keep saying that Raz suddenly being weak again is a plot hole, but it’s not. In the first game, Ford mentions that the whispering rock summer camp was built on top of the largest psitanium deposit in the world and if you remember, psitanium amplifies psychic abilities. But now, Raz is no longer in the camp, is he?
I wish they had called this out more on 2! Agree that it’s done for game mechanics, but Whispering Rock being a special place that helps augment psychic powers could have been a bigger plot reinforcement.
I think I’m the only one who notices this, but I like how Oleander said in the first game that the Psychonauts are there to fight the person’s inner demons, and in the second, Hollis says that they are actually here to _help_ the person fight their own demons rather than do all the fighting outright. I also love how Hollis also serves as bit of a foil to Oleander- unlike Oleander, who brags that he’s got “nothing to hide”, but is revealed to have inner demons via his second and third memory vaults, here, we see Hollis’s memory vaults before Hollis talks about her backstory, in which she confirms that the memories in the vaults are her true memories.
@@KevinHelpUs I could go even further! Oleander is very focused on dirty work and being in too much danger (partially due to a traumatic event involving a rabbit that he loved getting killed by his dad who is a butcher), and becomes more of a protector after Raz goes into his brain again. Meanwhile, Hollis is defensive, focused on safety, and getting her students out of any danger, as she doesn’t want something like her well-intentioned mistake with Mental Connections from her past happening again, but it does, and acknowledges how she shouldn’t stress herself out.
Would you consider showing the last two mental worlds maybe after the game has been out for at least a year?… Since I would like to hear your thoughts on it and what they’re supposed to represent. But if no, then I respect it, and hope you have a wonderful day! P.S: Your video is absolutely phenomenal!
Hi Eli, thanks so much! I think I am going to make a separate spoiler-heavy video for those who want it! Appreciate you watching, so glad you enjoyed it. :)
Something I'd like to talk about in bob's bottles, in the Helmut section at the giant wedding cake, it looks normal on the outside, but then bulb Bob goes near it and the outer layer breaks off, revealing a concrete and rebar filling of the body, and a skull on top, which I think is Bob interalizing the thought that he caused Helmut's apparent death
I just binged both games in the past few days and it left me itching for more content. Your video is super well made I loved hearing more about subtle stuff I missed. Love this!
A few thoughts of my own on some of these: With the memory vault from Hollis' Hot Streak, I don't think she intentionally screwed up his mind so much as she really *did* just connect "Plagiarism" with "Bad", but instead of just making him feel guilty and apologize or properly credit her like she expected, it caused him to have the same sort of mental connection chain reaction like she had when Raz linked "Risk" with "Money", but where she developed a gambling addiction he had a full on existential breakdown as this single idea overturned his entire moral foundation in a matter of seconds. Also with Bob's first Memory Vault, some of his flashback lines in that first bottle mention that even though his mother spends a lot of *time* in the greenhouse, her plants seem to always be sickly despite the care and attention they should be getting. I was under the impression that his mother was actually just using the greenhouse as a place to hide and drink, until one day she drank herself to death in there. If she was psychic too and Bob inherited his powers from her, the plants offering him alcohol in the memory vault may even have been carrying out psychic programming his mother instilled to stash and hide her booze for her and dispense it when they sensed her approach with the same sort of grief or emotions he was now feeling over her own death.
Ford's levels are refered to as "Ford's fractured mind" everywhere in the game, but the description for the achievement for repairing his mind refers to it as "Ford Fractured" which i think is a much better name for this set of levels
Personally I believe that Compton wasn’t overwhelmed but due to the bees judging him as they where linked to cassy’s hive. And what I do like is that some part of bob wishes to accept help as the plants open the door and plant the portal onto himself.
It's weird how he didn't mention how the same actor who does the archetype also does gir from Invader Zim and it's a neat secret because the voice actor who does Raz also did Zim it is mentioned in one of the basic braining videos in the double find channel in the abilities 101 video.
@@slurpwis it's just a fun fact it's just something to catch your eye and to get nostalgic. the creator has a decision to tell people about that fun fact or not tell them and he did show his reason why he didn't say that fun fact do to how much time in the video.
i’ve always liked doing cassie’s level first, partially because i love the idea of the books and library as a mindscape, and partially because going from bob’s bottles to the final levels is just sad on sad :)
Really loved this analysis! Psychonauts is a game that always gives me a lot to think about, from the strength of empathy, connections, and a the effects trauma has on someone, all implemented into a creative and fun game, it really doesn’t feel real.
Great video man! Not only did it put my half baked thoughts about the game into words, but also added a lot to it. Thank you! Keep making great content
Wow this is so much deeper than I've ever thought. I've been so impressed with Psychonauts, and now this! OMG you just made me realize how strong story telling in Psychonauts 2 was, by connecting the details! (Yeah I've read through them but not able to "connect" the points just like this). Amazing work, this helps me understand a lot about Psychonauts 2. It truly is a great game, with big meaningful life lesson! ❤ Thank you so much! 🎉
In retrospective i am fuming that this game didnt win an award, the cutscenes with ford talking to his personalities were just pure poetry. Also everytime i see that scene where bob asks to not go i feel the urge to hug him
Legit made me cry bro i loved the video and the message that all the levels bring. Loved playing and beating the game too. I would loved if you talked about Lucy aswell or if there was even anymore info for lucy
What you said about isolation hit home. During the pandemic I transferred universities, and I’ve had a rough time making new friends in isolation while seeing the old ones I had before covid seemingly move on and forget about me. It’s rough being all alone with yourself. Sometimes I need a reminder that my old friends don’t hate me, and they miss me, and that they negative image I made of them in my head is just a figment of imagination- it’s not how they really feel. Thank you for making me think about that 💚
Thank YOU for sharing that! Checking yourself when those feelings creep up is the hardest part, and I’m glad you’re working on that. We all need those reminders sometimes (me included).
I went through the same thing The pandemic broke out the March before I was leaving my first college Not getting to give proper goodbyes from having to leave early, and having to try and make new friends while everything was online for a year (and only kinda better the next year) while already having social issues made for a very lonely time and a not very great ending to my college years
Playing through Ford's and Bob's levels were such a rollercoaster of emotion. Ford's levels in particular made me think of the 1st game and the jobs he took on there. And that first meeting with Bob where he attacks Raz, but then reaches out to him with a vine all while his back is turned was a tear jerker. Also Psi King's Sensorium is amazing. It pretty felt like bringing a dead person back to life. Thinking of it I wonder if it can also be what people in comas experience in the paychonaut universe. How about the brain dead? Maybe a sequel game will touch on some of that.
in regards to that isolation comment at the end, i actually connected MORE in the quarantine then i have for most of my life because i finally had time TO connect with people
But they also avoided the wonder woman sequel's problem by by having them not kiss while Helmut is in someone else's body, "borrowed lips" and all that, so hey good on'em.
A very good analysis video. So what are your thoughts on Otto? Do you think he's got Psychotic tendencies, naturally cold distant, or does he just actually go to therapy? Course he could also be a crash course in Compartmentalization?
I believe that Otto had a better method of hiding his insecurities behind his gadgets and hence even though he seems stable it might be that if someone was to destroy everything he made then I think he would break down very quickly
I think the reason Otto managed to escape the same fate as the rest of the six is because he's shown to be a dry humoured stoic who when confronted with adversity simply tried to work through it; when he suffers an emotion he can't handle, he channels it into a machine as a form of healthy outlet. While this could have led to him becoming a workaholic stuck in his workshop to rarely see the light of day, the Psychonauts still needed his machines so they put in the effort to help him and make sure he didn't break under the grief like the others. It could also be that he associates himself with his machines (perhaps the cause of his stoicism) and that he doesn't feel the same guilt that the others do since technically, he didn't fail like the others did as his machine did stop Maligula. All in all, I think Otto is an example of what the Psychonauts should do to help people remain mentally healthy, avoid emotional pitfalls and seek healthy emotional outlets and it's kind of telling on the state of the Psychonauts that the only member of the Six they properly help is the one member who's still immediately useful to them,
I don't think that Bob started to drink after his mother's death, but rather that he discovered his mother had gone into the greenhouse to drink. The cycle of isolation and alcoholism repeated between Bob and his mother.
So I did a bit of research on those 12 archetypes and it seems we've all, including the Psychonauts devs, been somewhat tricked about what they're really about. An excerpt from Wikipedia: "In marketing, an archetype is a genre to a brand, based upon symbolism. The idea behind using brand archetypes in marketing is to anchor the brand against an icon already embedded within the conscience and subconscious of humanity. In the minds of both the brand owner and the public, aligning with a brand archetype makes the brand easier to identify. Twelve archetypes have been proposed for use with branding: Sage, Innocent, Explorer, Ruler, Creator, Caregiver, Magician, Hero, Outlaw, Lover, Jester, and Regular Person." ...so yeah those 12 archetypes are more a... super Capitalist thing instead of anything really connected to Jungian Psychology. However it is still funnily fitting that the self-help book writer has that kind of mind going on, since those are all usually kind of money-making schemes anyway, as shown by her memory vault.
Great story explain sorry this is coming out late but this isn’t to do anything bad it’s just a little tweak to inform you that Helmet basically sneezed his brains out with the sneezing powder just thought I should let you know.
Damn man, this is some top-tier editing and analysis of the game. Finally got around to playing the game myself recently (patient gamer probs, I know!), so I knew I had to come back and give this vid a watch. Felt guilty that I apparently forgot to give your video for Psychonauts 1 a like, had to fix that situation now, plus this video of course! Just like the first game, diving into the various minds and making your own kind of mental connections in terms of figuring out the characters and their various traumas was the highlight of the gameplay. Your video definitely pointed out a few of the more subtle ones that I missed or skipped over completely. In addition, the comments section here has some amazing insights and theories.... love seeing a community come together and talk about such an impactful game. Always looking forward to more videos, keep up the great work!
This game is so special and extraordinary. And this was a great summary and analyses of that wonderful magic, made me remember and revisit those special moments in my head. Thank you.
DUDE I WAS WAITING FOR YOU TO TALK ABOUT PSYCHONAUTS AGAIN. I had just watched your previous video on the first game and was so eagerly waiting for you to do something related to the sequel. I am SO GLAD YOU DECIDED TO MAKE THIS
Love this ❤️❤️❤️
I had to, this game is so good!!
My favorite theory about Otto is that he’s the only member of the Psychic Six who went to therapy.
Ha! I love that. :)
Unlike Cassie and Bob, Otto had a more constructive and utilitarian outlet for his woes, but the most important factor was that he never fully isolated himself. Sure he spends most of his time in the lab, but because he has the need to show off his inventions he would always find himself close to people.
@@J-manli Plus he helps the disembodied brains like Pam and Larry.
My favorite comic goes like this:
Otto: "there are some psychics who think themselves above seeking help, razputin.
I. Am not one of those."
@@graetestfanever1 I believe that’s the one I read, that had this “theory.” Was really a joke but hey
One of the most disturbing parts of the game was when Ford said “Those were peaceful protestors Lucy!” after Raz killed the lice with barbicide. Brilliant writing and acting.
It's so haunting, I finished the game a couple days ago and can't get it out of my head
Definitely a wham moment. Followed by the realization that the chemical used to kill the lice is branded "hydrocide" ie death by water.
and, the barbicide-canister-thing broke open like the dam, and same with the barbicide itself.
out of context it can be funny, but it will never be the same once you realise what Lighthouse Ford meant
Can I just point out an amazing pun I think everyone missed.
In hollis’s hot streak we learn Dr Potts‘s first name is jack.
Jack Potts.
Jackpots.
Ha! I didn’t catch that.
I also maybe looking to far into it but remember the mental rich people that just HAD to have a baby when they finally get a baby they say "look at our little >Jack Pot
The nurses are also named Barr, Bell, and Cherry, which all are symbols commonly seen on slot machines
@Spiritotter "It sure will be nice to have an extra set of kidneys around the house!"
Dr. Potts' sorta-villain arc is that his parents took his kidneys. Like a slightly less disturbing Loboto backstory. That's my new headcanon.
Otto: Okay, so... bad day! How do we move on from here?
Ford: Forget the past at my present's expense.
Cassie: Lose myself and readjust my personality dynamic.
Bob: Get drunk.
Compton: Isolate myself from everything.
Helmut: Drugs, probably.
Otto: Guys??!? Therapy?!??
I love this comment. 💕
For Helmut drugs is a possibility but music is one as well considering he is all about the senses and the sensations they cause the rest are spot on for them
Bob just saying "get drunk" is the most in-character thing I've ever seen of him
Helmut: 🧊🥶🧊
One great thing to mention is that after hollis's mind, raz always asks if he can enter the person's mind
And he never uses mental connections again! Not to link thoughts.
@@Fawful0 that's true, I hadn't spotted that.
But yeah, Raz always tries to get consent after that point before entering another's mind, and even though he is forgiven for his transgression due to him being young and inexperienced, everyone makes it clear to him they don't like that he did it and they would not forgive him repeating that mistake.
@@dm121984 It also makes a lot of sense that they were forgiving with him, since Hollis and Ford were both guilty of doing the same thing. Ford especially, since he did it to 2 people (3 counting himself).
A nice touch, yet at the same time quite awkward. Like, no one said no. It was always like „yes yes, I really don‘t want to change my mind at all and don’t want to touch my past trauma ever again, but sure visit my brain.
Edit: The only exception I can think of is Bob. Yet, I still ask myself why a random plant helped him. Did the plant already exist before he fell into depression? We don‘t know for sure.
@@Adeyum64 maybe it was his subconscious seeking help
Reasons Raz isn't delirious because he hasn't slept in days:
1. Entering the Astral plane, could be a form of sleep or at the very least rest of the body
2. Mental Energy is restored through the Psi-candy/Dreamfluffs
Even so, his brain isn’t getting down time
@@Alphapkmn well, that just means he's getting traumatized at maximum capacity.
The entire health system is just a representation of how well Raz is currently dealing with sleep deprivation
Probably got some sleep after the events of the first game, and a possible nap on the jet. Not a lot of sleep, but kids his age can go for a while.
Epic, no need to sleep.
The best part about Lucrecia Mux being part of the Psychic Six is that it was planned from the start. In the first game, you can go to a campfire with the monuments, and one of them had Lucrecia Mux's name and face on it. Out of seven. Schafer knew what he was doing.
If the Li Po document is accurate, he planned out extensive backstories for every character that we were never privy to that guided the team in planning how the characters would interact.
He kept that from us for over a decade
The most important takeaway from this video is that cilantro is such a top-tier herb that you have to literally dive into someone’s brain and artificially alter their thoughts to make it bad.
But it taste like soap to a few people
@@thaneros those people are genetic failures.
@@thaneros Those People Had Their Brains Altered At Birth
@@jamesbrincefield9879 as a kid it tasted like soap and I couldn’t stand it. As I got older I started to love it
That's a genetic thing. To some people it legit tastes like soap.
20:49 I think what this vault was trying to imply wasn't that Bob took up drinking after his mom's death, but that his mom (who was very likely also Psychic) was using the greenhouse she spent all of her time in to hide her alcoholism
Two things can be real
That's what I thought as well tbh. He talks about how his mom spends a lot of time in the greenhouse just before we discover the alcohol bottles there.
A detail I enjoy in Bob’s bottles (that I don’t know if it was fully intentional) was during the part you reach the dance floor of the wedding reception section of the level and have to fight the bad mood there, the weak spot cage is on the table that the Lucy and Ford figment sit. I always thought that meant that he harbors some resentment for Lucy due to the whole “whoopsie-killed-your-hubby-thing” and thinking about the killer of your spouse and ex friend at your wedding resentment could start up a pretty bad mood. could be thinking into this too much though lol
Oh, I hadn’t caught that! I don’t know, that seems too aligned narratively to have been an accident?
@@KevinHelpUs Yeah thats what I thought, if it was intentional that’s a really smart way to use a game mechanic to give more symbolisim on the inner thought processes of Bob’s mind. Psychonauts 2 is too good of a game istg
That makes it extra touching when Bob was willing to forgive Lucy after seeing her again. Helmut returning before that point probably played a huge part in helping that happen.
Fuck now i want psi-pops irl.
Nope, sounds like you picked up on a great detail. I'm sure the game is littered with instances like that that are easy to miss but are incredible little bits of storytelling.
I have dissociative identity disorder, and the fact that Ford Cruller is portrayed in such a human way instead of a monster makes me love this series even more
tell me your persenalitys' please?
@@JohnnyMalloy not sure I'd like to reveal that much on here, sorry ~
Lots of people get skeptical and I don't want some asshole hopping on to invalidate everything I say, y'know?
@@this_is_diamond_rot fully understandable, I hope you are getting help.
@@Lettucem3n its been a ride, but it's manageable with the right amount of system communication
It's actually explained that the reason Ford is everywhere at once, if Raz's recap at the beginning of the game is to be believed, that one of Ford's psychic abilities was the ability to teleport
Alternatively, he can literally fregment himself.
Much like how his mind is fragmented.
And he can manifest his fragments even when their in the form of thoughts.
Like how he's able to attach his existence to Razs mind.
Or he's force projecting
He can literally teleport Raz in the first game
I was so heartbroken at Bob's level. I was pleading with Raz not to find those seeds throughout the whole thing. No one deserves to relive finding their dead mother.
I also just love the symbolism of Bob being trapped on a desert island. Flooding his own mind with drink, he can no longer explore deeper memories, with no chance to grow new ones.
I wished I could of smacked the moth around personally.
I thought it was kinda more inferred that his mother was using the Greenhouse to hide her drinking. Bob's voice at one point in the long kitchen, asks why the plants look so bad when she's spending so much time out there, so I think he picked up her vice to cope with her death.
I think you’re right!
That explains why the greenhouse where you find Tia's seed had beer bottles coming out the plants, it was more to represent Tia's drinking problem
I had watch two videos covering the Psychological meanings of this level and it's explained that Tia was drinking because of the (at the time) recent loss of her husband/ Bob's dad.
@@nobleskysisters9244Drinking after the loss of a loved one? Huh, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree
I really love how in Hollis’ mind, one of your powers is not just a fun addition to your move set but also a full on storytelling device. It kinda makes sense why you don’t use it that way later on - don’t want to have what happened happen again - but I really wish there were more things like that. That level was a huge highlight for me.
I agree. I appreciate how there may have been fewer worlds overall in 2, but what they had was so much more DENSE than 1. This was a great level.
I’m astonished that the events of all three games take place over the course of a few days, a couple of weeks tops.
Right? I laughed out loud the first time Raz said he hadn’t been to Whispering Rock in days.
I believe it's 4 full days in total by the time the game finishes.
@@BitestheStuff 5 I think. Three days prior to Psychonauts two, one day for the casino, then the final day with going through most the game.
Whispering rock took started off in the morning, and ended the next so there is one day.
ROR didn't really give a date of how long it took the team to arrive and settle the matter.
The Casino section took the rest of that day, so we could be at maybe 2 or 3 days.
The event afterwards worked itself into the night and wasn't fully settled till sun rise.
So I would have to put my money on 4 days total. I'm sure Raz would have caught some Z's after ROR and the casino. Most likely by Mio's orders.
@@FireLover7004 just for the lols, I prefer the idea that Mila and the others kept TELLINF him or expecting him to get some sleep, but he kept getting distracted with the collectables or the interns missions so a bit after the end of the game he just full on collapses in exhaustion and the interns get in a SHIT TON of trouble for not letting the poor kid sleep.
The thing that gets me is that in Fullbear's mind, it's his mental versions of the other Psychic 6 telling him that they didn't actually leave him behind. Meaning that somewhere within his subconscious, Helmet knew they never abandoned him. But that truth can be hard to hold onto after a traumatic event. Like, ya know, almost drowning in a frozen lake and sneezing your brain out.
Psychonauts characters: super cute and full of life
Psychonauts characters when you read their memory vault: I’ve once murdered an entire country with just my left thumb and I’ve been depressed every since
I still love the haunting moment from the first game where you find Milla’s Nursery… it’s especially thoughtful that while the room is out of the way, she didn’t lock away those memories from the rest of her mind (after all, the door’s open). Probably why she’s so well adjusted.
On another note it seems to me that most of the bosses revolve around self-harm mostly because they supply the ammo you need to beat them.
Ha! I hadn’t considered that take. :)
Yeah
Many represent self-destructive tendencies, thus they're literally destroying themselves
I interpreted that as people having the means and tools to defeat that nasty part of themselves! But when we're too deep in pain and sadness, we need other people's help to gather those tools and use them.
Due to the nature of the game, Raz's approach is way more hands-on that it should be in real life, but hey, we wouldn't have an entertaining game otherwise!! And we do see the characters standing up for themselves afterwards.
@@ta-theoadonis465 that’s the beauty of a game that mostly takes place in peoples heads, a ton of it is open to interpretation.
@@jeremytung1632 Yes! I love it so much!
16 years for the perfect sequel to a perfect game
Seriously. It’s so rare that sequels are worth a wait this long. They did a great job.
In a narrative context this is probably one of the best *videogames* ever made, and I don't think I'm being hyperbolic. It makes use of the medium to tell stories in ways a book or a movie or a show probably never could, and it does that masterfully in every way.
I hope we get some great DLC
I just beat the game yesterday and couldn’t agree more.
Now don’t get me wrong, I really REALLY liked Psychonauts 2, but I have some complaints
Small point of clarification (I should really watch the whole video before making but) *SPOILERS* after reuniting Bob and Helmut, you can find them near the IRL Feel Mobile and Helmut will talk about his last moments. He clarifies he used his emergency stash of Super Sneezing Powder to eject his brain to the surface. Ford finds it (shown in the Gravedigger Ford's memory vault) while detaining Maligula in secret, but when using the Astrolave to make himself forget Lucy/Maligula, he forget about Helmut's brain, where Otto randomly finds it a while later while absent-mindedly eating a sandwich
SPOILERS:
I wonder if the reason Tia Died was cause of alcohol poisoning, she probably either became a alcoholic after her husband died or already was a alcoholic but the death of her husband made it worse and she basically drank so much that she ended up dying from it, and the place she went to drink alcohol in could had been the greenhouse however cause one day she took longer then usual bob went to check on her however she was dead and the reason why the vines started to give bob alcohol was cause of the fact his mom had the vines bring her alcohol so it was basically a thing the vines were used to so it did the same for Bob
@@sevenmastergamer9261 yo! I never put that together, but it makes sense. Coming from the son of a recovering alcoholic who used to hide drinks in the top shelf of his closet, this checks out. Both are out of the way of their young children so they don't accidentally find/get into it and I believe young Bob mentions something along the lines of "You're always out there mom but your plants keep dying" or something.
I completely missed the fact someone else in the comments already pointed that out that Tia might had have a drinking problem, welp now i feel like an idiot for unintentionally putting something someone else already pointed out 10 hours ago
@@sevenmastergamer9261 hey now, I wasn't about to go comment scrolling so at least you informed me about it 💚
@@sevenmastergamer9261 that's honestly what i was took from the level, it felt that his mom staying in the greenhouse for hours into the night started to become a recurring thing because she would pass out there. they both look miserable at the dinner table in the memory vault, presumably after the death of bob's father. there's also the statue that depicts her slumped over a table which would frame her to look hung over. genetics can also effect people that have parents or relatives who struggle with substance abuse in their family. another reason bob's alcoholism would be so traumatic is that she became an alcoholic and likely died of alcohol poisoning. this would in turn lead to bob developing this same addiction as a coping mechanism to escape his traumatic memories of this, and how it ultimately isolated him from his loved ones.
I love the pause that Raz does when he says "I've haven't been here for...........days" because we waited 15 years for this game, but to Raz its basically 2 days after the First game
Kinda wish Otto had a story of his own. Maybe since he acts fine in real life, he’s in some masquerade party within his mind where he hides his sadness and grief of losing against Meligula and his inability to find Helmutt’s body behind a mask
He seems pretty open about what happened when he talks to Sasha about the incident, so perhaps Sasha already cleared his level, which is why he's so much better off compared to the rest of the Psychic 6?
What do you mean there's less to analyze in the final world? That bloody thing has enough symbolism hidden in it to rival Black Velvetopia, if not surpass it in some ways. Narratively it's easily one of the greatest levels in the series, and I have basically written a mini essay on how dang good the thing is.
No spoilers is a fair enough reason, but the subtleties and callbacks in that one stage could carry a college thesis on environmental storytelling.
Of course, the rest of the game is also brilliant, so it's not too much of a loss...
So it’s hard to answer without giving spoilers (the other reason I left it out), but while yes, there is some to analyze (maybe I overstated), the final worlds felt more like an exposition delivery vehicle than a character study.
@@KevinHelpUs That's the brilliance of the final level...
It's both. The fact that it feels so much like an exposition dump is *oh so important* to understanding the mind you're in. Every detail of that level, including certain very meta aspects tied to a certain achievement and the level pacing, directly reflects the character aspects. Consider the use of music... and of silence.
Also, did you notice that the paired levels - Helmut and Bob, Compton and Cassie - are basically foils of each other in gameplay and tone?
Helmut's is infinitely colorful and vibrant and full of noise, while Bob's is barren and quiet. It tells us that they're a good couple because they balance each other out. Helmut needs a quiet source of comfort to avoid getting overwhelmed by the intensity of his experiences; Bob needs an exuberant extrovert to draw him out of his shell. The Panic Attack is quick and chaotic; the Bad Mood is slow and methodical. And yet both are ultimately about bringing things back together and making them whole again.
Compton's is a frenetic test of your multitasking skills with chaotic WarioWare-esque gameplay, despite its singular area structure. Cassie's level structure is mechanically disjointed and heavily subdivided, but the tasks you do are laser focused - it's Cassie's Collection because you're literally collecting Cassie, after all. But they also prove to be what the other needs most; Compton needs help adapting to complicated, stressful situations, while Cassie needs help to maintain her focus and not lose her sense of self. But both levels are ultimately about the same themes: You're your own worst critic, and learning how to appreciate yourself enough while still being willing to ask for help is important. Their stage mechanics also seem to reflect the other character's nature in a way. (Also, Cassie's Psychic Six are literally projections, but also figuratively ideas she projects on people.)
Ford's mind, on another note... I think it draws on the experiences of DID systems, and the challenges of integration therapy. The writers for this series have always made an effort to do the best they can in terms of researching how to deal with mental illness in an understanding way - even back in the early 2000s where the science was more limited and the culture less sensitive.
@@FelisImpurrator I hadn’t noticed that, but that makes perfect sense. Really interesting take!
@@KevinHelpUs Also, another key note. Ever since Hollis' Hot Streak, Raz's attitude toward entering minds changes fundamentally. He always, *always* asks for permission when he can. He doesn't run around fundamentally trying to change who the person is, or smash open barriers with brute force...
Because what the game is portraying is very, very closely related to the way real psychotherapists are trained to interact with people they help. This whole game is an extended metaphor for responsible ways to help others deal with trauma - in much the same way that, especially in hindsight, Psychonauts 1 levels reflect more on the idea of well-intentioned acquaintances, friends, and the like trying to help but making things worse by imposing instead of understanding.
@@FelisImpurrator That one I did catch. I was trying my hardest to keep the video under 30 minutes, so something had to get cut for time.
So I'm watching a walkthrough of Hollis' Streak and I'm already amazed at how creepy the doctor's room is after Raz screws up her head - *the doctor and his nurse are treating patients like slot machines and betting on their survival.*
Pretty much mocking the Westerns health care system
my favoriate thing about this game is how some of the memory vaults show the same event from a different perspective, it gives you insight into how that character saw that event, like how grolik or whatever doesn't even remember what was on the protest signs.
Plus the vaults show why he became the way he did anyway. He was attacked by some non peaceful protesters when he looked to be around Raz's age and was saved by Maligula. Which is why he has such a high amount of hero worship for her until after the end game at least and was ok with whatever she did as well including wash way any protesters and justify it as they were only non violent there. His mind is also starting to be very confused at end game as well if you go track him down in the physical and mental world.
Honestly I think that Otto is in denial. He doesn't acknowledge Lucy at all only talking about her once he's forced to do so. I'm not a psychologist(at least not yet), but that trait seems to me to be a sign of denial.
To be fair though, that's how all of the Psychic 6 act towards talking about Lucy initially except for Helmut.
It’s funny how Otto is the only one who apparently didn’t suffer greatly due to Maligula.
I love the levels in Psychonauts 2. Because the majority deal with the Psychic Seven you see all their reactions to a traumatic incident as well as how they view one another.
Would’ve been fun to get into Otto’s brain, but really the mad inventions do a good enough job of seeing what it’s like. After all he sees his inventions as dreams made true.
I have no proof of this, but I wonder if Otto’s level will show up as DLC.
@@KevinHelpUs i could see that if there is DLC. If there is DLC I hope it’s just about recovering Helmut’s body. His feelings about the shared trauma are never explored in the base game but returning to the scene of it all could lead to something.
I do appreciate one detail throughout the game. No one blames Otto for all the things that resulted from his inventions. The Astralathe birthed Maligula but he was never blamed. Even Helmut didn’t envision the others being upset that his freeze contraption his his body from recovery.
I think it's immensely funny if nothing is up in Otto's mind, he's just Like That
@@cias55s that seems to be the case. He’s got no loyalty, no baggage, just fine so long as he can make his dreams reality ( and maybe make a profit)
I think Otto choose to learn from what happened while the other choose to run from it.
Something to add about Tia, Bob's Mother, was that she was an alcoholic too. Her husband was dead and she went to the greenhouse to drink away from Bob. Her alcoholism caused her to neglect the plants and she likely drank herself to death.
Huh... Otto making goofy inventions has a whole new context when you factor in the other Psychic 6. 😳
He doesn't have a level like them because inventing is his way of processing his thoughts and emotions.
He's the *only* one who doesn't bury the anger and sadness in his mind until it festers. Instead he uses them as fuel for a healthy hobby that he loves, and shares with others.
Gotta love this game for churning my brain gears.
Yep! He's very active, never isolated, and has done "the healing". Also, great job turning his "hobby" into his actual job. He could have been just a normal Psychonaut, but nope! He's their Q.
The fact that raz asks permission from everyone who’s mind he enters after Hollis’ mind is a cool little detail
This game was so well done. It was so worth the wait. Psychonauts was one of my top favorite games, something I would go back to over and over. This one surpassed all expectations of a sequel. The developers heard the fans and gave us everything we wanted.
Totally agree!
"-all our favorite characters are back!"
Franke, (+)Kitty, Chloe and Dogen: Are we a joke to you?
Yes
To note, I'm pretty sure Ford knows the high level psychic skill of teleportation which is why it looks like he's everywhere.
Dude… seeing all these minds and how intricate they are yet how depressing they can get… gets you thinking. Been dealing with some self doubt and confidence for a long time, and seeing this really helps me figure things out. Thank you.
Glad to help, wishing for good things for you!
The plants in Bob's mother's greenhouse weren't telling him to drink, but rather showing what his mother was doing sneaking into the greenhouse late at night. It's further solidified his mother was drinking by the fact that when Raz visits a location that represented said greenhouse it was flooded with alcohol and bottles growing from the plants. After his mother's passing Bob fell into the same cycle that she did, drinking to cope with the passing of a family member as it's seen that Bob's father is implied to be deceased when in the 1st memory vault. Both Bob and Tia are eating dinner with a depressed look on their faces while a picture frame of Bob's father hangs on the wall between them in one of the slides of the memory vault.
Ahhhh yes! I am so glad you decided to analyze the levels of Psychonauts 2! I went from knowing nothing about the series to reading up on nearly everything about it in the course of a week and your video on the first game (and Psi King's Sensorium) helped a ton!
A little detail I couldn't help but notice was how other Psychonauts appeared in the minds of the Psychic Six-from the Feast of the Senses to the Goat Judges to Bob's plants to Cassie's paper variants of the Six (plus Lucy) in a side room of her level-at least to me, it showed how interconnected they were as a group and how they felt they let their peers down in different ways.
Otto's definitely the odd one out, mostly because he doesn't have a level, but I feel like throwing yourself into your work probably isn't healthy, even if you're making inventions that vent emotions for you like a crying machine.
Who knows, maybe someday we'll see what's in his head!
Either way, excellent video all around!
Thank you! And I wonder if Otto’s level was either cut, or held back for eventual DLC. It’d be easy to add him in later without disrupting the main story, I think?
@@KevinHelpUs Of course! Your hard work deserves to be commended!
I recall Raz post-game saying "maybe another time" when referring to Otto's mind, so it could be one of those two.
Honestly Psychonauts has inspired me so much when it comes to level designs and characters, I'd love to see more delving-into-people's-mind games!
@@KevinHelpUs It could be a sequel hook. Psychonauts 3 really should happen, although I would be down for DLC.
@@prottyblue I think you're onto something. Otto literally externalizes his own trauma - it's kind of the Iron Man 3 plot angle where he seems to be trying to compensate for his failures by building bigger and better, and separating his feelings out into inventions.
Also, that overlap between them? I think that might be a manifestation of the fact that they opened their minds up to each other in Green Needle Gulch, at least in part.
@@FelisImpurrator Ooooh, your interpretation on the overlap does make sense, they did mention "opening their minds in new directions" a lot.
Also now that you mention it, I think Otto is the only one that externalizes his trauma through making machines to emote for him (either because he struggles with emoting or doesn't feel comfortable with it.) Helmut is well, stuck in a jar, Ford breaks his mind to not deal with it, and Bob, Cassie and Compton all isolate themselves and internalize their feelings to some extent.
All in all, I think these psychics might need some follow-up therapy sessions, just in case.
The tomb of the sharkophogus, aka the level that told me this game was truly special, I was so absorbed by the story of this game, the writing, visuals, and voice acting was so well done, and the twist at this point was so well done, I loved every second of it
While I've not played the game, I've watched it and noticed some stuff I think you missed.
When Raz used mental connection on Hollis, it created a storm of other connections that he never intended to create, it's why Hollis' mental world suddenly begins to break down with the formation of the new greed monster in her mind forming right as Raz is forced out of Hollis' mind the first time. I suspect when she changed the connections in Dr. Pott's mind, that created a storm of new connections that ultimately lead to a psychotic breakdown. She was like Raz; intending to change one thing to make the person above them do something they wanted, only for it to cause the person to crack. Only Raz fixed his mistake with Hollis before she could mentally break down like Dr. Potts. She does say she felt like she was losing her mind and going crazy. So it's likely she would have snapped like him and repairing that damage might be next to impossible.
I think Hollis' outright states that her mistake was much bigger than Raz's because she couldn't undo the damage. I also believe we see Hollis make numerous new connections when using her powers on Potts, unlike Raz's single new connection. So what she did to Dr. Potts was probably at least 2-3 times more severe than what Raz did.
@@Birthday888 its probable that Hollis made like 2 or 4 connections at maximun, and when the waterfalls broke it was more severe for thag
My absolute favorite levels are the psi king and the cooking show. and the reason is simple... representation
I have autism and anxiety so the psi king level is a great feeling for sensory overload and the panic attacks were perfect. (i've had a few mild ones, still strong but not enough to feel like dying.) so those creepy monsters fit perfectly
For the anxiety the cook off really does relate, you often are your biggest judge, you constantly think a bunch of people are judging everything you do and put to much emphasis on what they think. also the goat truman's constant commentary fits too, often time it feels like your inner critic is CONSTANTLY commenting....
so yeah I praise these two levels more than anything for this very reason
Ugh, I really wanted to do more on the comments made by the Ford Goat in Compton’s Cookoff, but I wanted the video to be under 30 minutes. Sounds like we enjoyed both levels for the same reasons. :)
@@KevinHelpUs I really loved how it reveals that Compton's hands were under the puppets all along.
6:00 in hollis's defense here, at this point in here life she was a completely untrained psychic, and we can see how even a semi-trained psychic can cuase a destructive domino effect due to Raz. I also see at least 5-6 ideas not on screen based on the connections, and in fact from the looks of it bad and plagarism are already connected here, but apparently didn't notice that plagarism is still linked to woman here.
Slight story spoilers ahead.
I absolutely love the levels in this game and the story they tell. They are absolutely amazing! I just feel like Otto was a real missed opportunity. Like I was really expecting him to turn out to be the mole in the end given how little we really got to see of him, but when he just kinda helped out at the end I was both surprised and disapointed. I feel like we should have had a level inside Otto's head at least. Given him a bit of grief and trouble over the situation as well. Cause it's weird that we got into every member of the Psychic 7's head except for his! I also think its really weird how the barber shop ford is just kind of open for you to go into without doing a level before hand, where as the mail room required you beat Psi King, and the Bowling Ally required you beat Compton Bool. Maybe they just cut Otto's level due to time? Idk, but I think it would have made the game a bit better if his was included.
Agree. I wonder if Otto’s campaign was held back for DLC, or otherwise cut for time/budget.
You've done a great job breaking down each of the levels, and their backstories!
I beat the game a week ago or so, but it was nice hearing it all laid out like a re-cap.
you're a Hidden gem on youtube for sure!
Honestly Bob's Bottles is my favorite level in Psychonauts 2 it's so interesting story wise.
Excellent review! I just finished it last night and the wait for the sequel was worth every minute. One detail I think I wish you mentioned was the second event with the lice/the first time you use the barbicide to clear them away. Ford cranes down and dismisses it as an accident. Ford rationalizing and justifying the murders the love of his life had committed is probably the most heart-breaking part of the game (imo.) You can hear it in his voice the third time the lice are cleared (in the town square) with his cries of "Lucy, what have you done!?"
Yeah, that was a great moment. There’s a bunch of instances I would have loved to mention, but I was trying to keep it under 30 minutes. So glad you enjoyed it!
My favorite quote from here is from Helmet.
"Memories are just stories we tell ourselves, and sometimes, the first draft stinks. Thanks for helping me with the rewrites."
Lots of people keep saying that Raz suddenly being weak again is a plot hole, but it’s not. In the first game, Ford mentions that the whispering rock summer camp was built on top of the largest psitanium deposit in the world and if you remember, psitanium amplifies psychic abilities. But now, Raz is no longer in the camp, is he?
I wish they had called this out more on 2! Agree that it’s done for game mechanics, but Whispering Rock being a special place that helps augment psychic powers could have been a bigger plot reinforcement.
I think I’m the only one who notices this, but I like how Oleander said in the first game that the Psychonauts are there to fight the person’s inner demons, and in the second, Hollis says that they are actually here to _help_ the person fight their own demons rather than do all the fighting outright.
I also love how Hollis also serves as bit of a foil to Oleander- unlike Oleander, who brags that he’s got “nothing to hide”, but is revealed to have inner demons via his second and third memory vaults, here, we see Hollis’s memory vaults before Hollis talks about her backstory, in which she confirms that the memories in the vaults are her true memories.
You might be the only one who noticed that, no one’s mentioned it yet!
@@KevinHelpUs I could go even further!
Oleander is very focused on dirty work and being in too much danger (partially due to a traumatic event involving a rabbit that he loved getting killed by his dad who is a butcher), and becomes more of a protector after Raz goes into his brain again.
Meanwhile, Hollis is defensive, focused on safety, and getting her students out of any danger, as she doesn’t want something like her well-intentioned mistake with Mental Connections from her past happening again, but it does, and acknowledges how she shouldn’t stress herself out.
Would you consider showing the last two mental worlds maybe after the game has been out for at least a year?…
Since I would like to hear your thoughts on it and what they’re supposed to represent.
But if no, then I respect it, and hope you have a wonderful day!
P.S: Your video is absolutely phenomenal!
Hi Eli, thanks so much! I think I am going to make a separate spoiler-heavy video for those who want it! Appreciate you watching, so glad you enjoyed it. :)
Something I'd like to talk about in bob's bottles, in the Helmut section at the giant wedding cake, it looks normal on the outside, but then bulb Bob goes near it and the outer layer breaks off, revealing a concrete and rebar filling of the body, and a skull on top, which I think is Bob interalizing the thought that he caused Helmut's apparent death
I loved Pyschonaut's 2, it's only flaw is I've completed it and I don't have a psych astrolatte to clear my memory so I can play it fresh again.
I just binged both games in the past few days and it left me itching for more content. Your video is super well made I loved hearing more about subtle stuff I missed. Love this!
Thanks so much for saying so - glad you enjoyed it!
A few thoughts of my own on some of these:
With the memory vault from Hollis' Hot Streak, I don't think she intentionally screwed up his mind so much as she really *did* just connect "Plagiarism" with "Bad", but instead of just making him feel guilty and apologize or properly credit her like she expected, it caused him to have the same sort of mental connection chain reaction like she had when Raz linked "Risk" with "Money", but where she developed a gambling addiction he had a full on existential breakdown as this single idea overturned his entire moral foundation in a matter of seconds.
Also with Bob's first Memory Vault, some of his flashback lines in that first bottle mention that even though his mother spends a lot of *time* in the greenhouse, her plants seem to always be sickly despite the care and attention they should be getting. I was under the impression that his mother was actually just using the greenhouse as a place to hide and drink, until one day she drank herself to death in there.
If she was psychic too and Bob inherited his powers from her, the plants offering him alcohol in the memory vault may even have been carrying out psychic programming his mother instilled to stash and hide her booze for her and dispense it when they sensed her approach with the same sort of grief or emotions he was now feeling over her own death.
Ford's levels are refered to as "Ford's fractured mind" everywhere in the game, but the description for the achievement for repairing his mind refers to it as "Ford Fractured" which i think is a much better name for this set of levels
Personally I believe that Compton wasn’t overwhelmed but due to the bees judging him as they where linked to cassy’s hive.
And what I do like is that some part of bob wishes to accept help as the plants open the door and plant the portal onto himself.
It's weird how he didn't mention how the same actor who does the archetype also does gir from Invader Zim and it's a neat secret because the voice actor who does Raz also did Zim it is mentioned in one of the basic braining videos in the double find channel in the abilities 101 video.
Fair point. I was trying to keep the video under 30 minutes, so I did cut some material I would have included otherwise.
Because it’s irrelevant information to the video. It’s specifically about the level designs and how they tie into the main story.
@@slurpwis it's just a fun fact it's just something to catch your eye and to get nostalgic. the creator has a decision to tell people about that fun fact or not tell them and he did show his reason why he didn't say that fun fact do to how much time in the video.
i’ve always liked doing cassie’s level first, partially because i love the idea of the books and library as a mindscape, and partially because going from bob’s bottles to the final levels is just sad on sad :)
I really love how much empathy and understanding is shown to the "villians"
Really loved this analysis! Psychonauts is a game that always gives me a lot to think about, from the strength of empathy, connections, and a the effects trauma has on someone, all implemented into a creative and fun game, it really doesn’t feel real.
Thanks so much for saying so!
Great video man! Not only did it put my half baked thoughts about the game into words, but also added a lot to it. Thank you! Keep making great content
Thanks so much for saying so!
Wow this is so much deeper than I've ever thought. I've been so impressed with Psychonauts, and now this! OMG you just made me realize how strong story telling in Psychonauts 2 was, by connecting the details! (Yeah I've read through them but not able to "connect" the points just like this). Amazing work, this helps me understand a lot about Psychonauts 2. It truly is a great game, with big meaningful life lesson! ❤ Thank you so much! 🎉
Thank YOU for saying so! Glad you enjoyed it!
I like that subtle hint of things to come at the end you left there.
Sssh. :)
In retrospective i am fuming that this game didnt win an award, the cutscenes with ford talking to his personalities were just pure poetry.
Also everytime i see that scene where bob asks to not go i feel the urge to hug him
Bob’s Bottles just wrecks me. Plants and alcoholism sums up everyone’s 2020.
compton did what we call pulling a boole
I guess you could say we got...
Bam-Boole-Zled
Also during bobs bottles a version of the shanty "what do we do with a drunken sailor" plays when you sail on the door
Legit made me cry bro i loved the video and the message that all the levels bring. Loved playing and beating the game too. I would loved if you talked about Lucy aswell or if there was even anymore info for lucy
What you said about isolation hit home. During the pandemic I transferred universities, and I’ve had a rough time making new friends in isolation while seeing the old ones I had before covid seemingly move on and forget about me. It’s rough being all alone with yourself. Sometimes I need a reminder that my old friends don’t hate me, and they miss me, and that they negative image I made of them in my head is just a figment of imagination- it’s not how they really feel. Thank you for making me think about that 💚
Thank YOU for sharing that! Checking yourself when those feelings creep up is the hardest part, and I’m glad you’re working on that. We all need those reminders sometimes (me included).
I went through the same thing
The pandemic broke out the March before I was leaving my first college
Not getting to give proper goodbyes from having to leave early, and having to try and make new friends while everything was online for a year (and only kinda better the next year) while already having social issues made for a very lonely time and a not very great ending to my college years
This might be the best analysis of psyconaughts 2 I’ve seen. Fantastic job dude!
Thanks so much, so glad you enjoyed it!
Playing through Ford's and Bob's levels were such a rollercoaster of emotion. Ford's levels in particular made me think of the 1st game and the jobs he took on there. And that first meeting with Bob where he attacks Raz, but then reaches out to him with a vine all while his back is turned was a tear jerker.
Also Psi King's Sensorium is amazing. It pretty felt like bringing a dead person back to life. Thinking of it I wonder if it can also be what people in comas experience in the paychonaut universe. How about the brain dead? Maybe a sequel game will touch on some of that.
This game was just as much of a journey for me as the first game was
in regards to that isolation comment at the end, i actually connected MORE in the quarantine then i have for most of my life because i finally had time TO connect with people
Love the way Helmut and Bob are treated as a couple. Just like any other couple. Very modern psychonauts.
But they also avoided the wonder woman sequel's problem by by having them not kiss while Helmut is in someone else's body, "borrowed lips" and all that, so hey good on'em.
A very good analysis video.
So what are your thoughts on Otto? Do you think he's got Psychotic tendencies, naturally cold distant, or does he just actually go to therapy? Course he could also be a crash course in Compartmentalization?
"Three... GAZILLION dollars! *Prrrrt* "
That noise at the end always cracks me up.
This is probably my favorite game to come out since Mario Galaxy, and this is the best story of any game I've played
I agree!
No body does a game review like you man great stuff this game is pretty deep and tackles a lot of topics especially at the end keep up the good work
Thanks so much, dude. This was a HUGE undertaking. Glad to see people enjoying it.
@@KevinHelpUs you did this game justice especially the part you couldn't show
I love your physonauts videos whenever I see them it brightens my day
Aww, thanks so much for saying so!
UGH that last got me tearing =;) Thank you for this video!!!
I believe that Otto had a better method of hiding his insecurities behind his gadgets and hence even though he seems stable it might be that if someone was to destroy everything he made then I think he would break down very quickly
That ending speech was nice. Great job. Thank You. :).
Thank YOU!
You are welcome. Thank You for making such an awesome video! 👍😁👌‼️
I think the reason Otto managed to escape the same fate as the rest of the six is because he's shown to be a dry humoured stoic who when confronted with adversity simply tried to work through it; when he suffers an emotion he can't handle, he channels it into a machine as a form of healthy outlet. While this could have led to him becoming a workaholic stuck in his workshop to rarely see the light of day, the Psychonauts still needed his machines so they put in the effort to help him and make sure he didn't break under the grief like the others. It could also be that he associates himself with his machines (perhaps the cause of his stoicism) and that he doesn't feel the same guilt that the others do since technically, he didn't fail like the others did as his machine did stop Maligula.
All in all, I think Otto is an example of what the Psychonauts should do to help people remain mentally healthy, avoid emotional pitfalls and seek healthy emotional outlets and it's kind of telling on the state of the Psychonauts that the only member of the Six they properly help is the one member who's still immediately useful to them,
I don't think that Bob started to drink after his mother's death, but rather that he discovered his mother had gone into the greenhouse to drink. The cycle of isolation and alcoholism repeated between Bob and his mother.
What a beautiful weaving of gameplay and story.
Thanks so much, so glad you enjoyed it!
my favorite childhood game ever
Thanks so much for saying so!
Waiting for this video to absolutely blow up, very good editting!
So am I! (And thank you!)
Wow, wonderful video. Such a poignant message at the end too. Kudos man, you just got a new subscriber.
Aww, thanks so much for saying so! And welcome!
So I did a bit of research on those 12 archetypes and it seems we've all, including the Psychonauts devs, been somewhat tricked about what they're really about. An excerpt from Wikipedia:
"In marketing, an archetype is a genre to a brand, based upon symbolism. The idea behind using brand archetypes in marketing is to anchor the brand against an icon already embedded within the conscience and subconscious of humanity. In the minds of both the brand owner and the public, aligning with a brand archetype makes the brand easier to identify. Twelve archetypes have been proposed for use with branding: Sage, Innocent, Explorer, Ruler, Creator, Caregiver, Magician, Hero, Outlaw, Lover, Jester, and Regular Person."
...so yeah those 12 archetypes are more a... super Capitalist thing instead of anything really connected to Jungian Psychology.
However it is still funnily fitting that the self-help book writer has that kind of mind going on, since those are all usually kind of money-making schemes anyway, as shown by her memory vault.
I love this game
Me too! I’m so glad it turned out well. :)
Great story explain sorry this is coming out late but this isn’t to do anything bad it’s just a little tweak to inform you that Helmet basically sneezed his brains out with the sneezing powder just thought I should let you know.
This video is a 10 man, I had to subscribe! looking forward to more content!
Thanks so much for saying so, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
dude the game looks so cool graphic wise, they've gotten better with animations and facial shit through out the years
Butterfly: Isn't a seed just a bomb in slow motion?
Me: Wait, wait. The butterflys got a point.
Compton played so mutch chess with a mouse that he got sleep deprived
We’ve all been there.
Damn man, this is some top-tier editing and analysis of the game. Finally got around to playing the game myself recently (patient gamer probs, I know!), so I knew I had to come back and give this vid a watch. Felt guilty that I apparently forgot to give your video for Psychonauts 1 a like, had to fix that situation now, plus this video of course!
Just like the first game, diving into the various minds and making your own kind of mental connections in terms of figuring out the characters and their various traumas was the highlight of the gameplay. Your video definitely pointed out a few of the more subtle ones that I missed or skipped over completely. In addition, the comments section here has some amazing insights and theories.... love seeing a community come together and talk about such an impactful game. Always looking forward to more videos, keep up the great work!
Thanks so much for saying so, and I’m glad you finally played the second game!
Well the game was definitely worth it! So nice to see a sequel that isn't half-assed.
@@bunnylizard2717 Agreed! This one made the wait worth it.
Man, I need Raz to go into MY mind and figure out what the heck is wrong with ME. That'd be real helpful.
I think the reason the ford part was so hard was because I did the hair salon first, then mail, then bowling last
Ohhhhh, yeah, I don't think you can really go "out of order", but I think you're encouraged to complete those in a different cadence.
This game is so special and extraordinary. And this was a great summary and analyses of that wonderful magic, made me remember and revisit those special moments in my head. Thank you.
Thank YOU for sharing!
Also to note, Bob’s Bottles is obviously about the mental effects of alcoholism, if it ain’t obvious by it’s name.
Why couldn’t that detector from the mail room be used on Nick/Truman? Wouldn’t it have also saw his soul?
Probably could have been, but no one suspected him enough to use it?