Dungeon Chill

Queen's Domain Preview

Unplanned and unexpected, I decided to check out the demo for Queen's Domain from indie dev Freshly Baked Games. And, well, I liked it so much that I ended up making a short video about it.

I haven't done an indie preview in a long while. Mostly because it was too stressful trying to keep up with new releases, and I also just wanted to focus on deep dives and longer videos. But every now and then something grabs me, so here we are. I'm going to be setting this public very soon, but of ...

Yuuyami Doori Tankentai (PS1)

Apologies for the wait. My dissertation on Yuuyami Doori Tankentai is finished. Come to lecture hall 203 for the reading. Be sure to take notes. This will be on the final exam.

In all seriousness though, I wasn't planning to make a video this long. It just kind of happened. Yuuyami Doori affected me deeply, and I felt this was the only way to do it justice. The video is long, but I feel like it's pretty dense and well-paced. I cut some stuff out of the first draft of the script for paci...

NEXT VIDEO UPDATE #2

It's coming out next week.

(Length will increase. I haven't recorded the outro yet...)

UPDATE: Next Video

Hey everyone, hope you're having a good October. It's been a while, so I figured I'd give you an update on the next video, Yuuyami Doori Tankentai (PS1).

For those with little time, the quick and dirty is I just finished the script. Look at that screenshot. It's the longest thing I've written for the channel by far. The video is not going to be ready in time for Halloween. Thank you for your support and patience. I love you. See you in November!

For everyone else who wants a bit ...

Sweet Home (NES)

Sweet Home was supposed to be my Halloween video for this year, but something came up, I moved stuff around, and now you have it like a month early.

Before I get to that something that came up, I'll just say working on this video introduced me to the world of Japanese film director Kiyoshi Kurosawa. I watched a bunch of his movies and bought the Criterion Collection version of his 1997 film Cure, because I loved it so much. I also had fun playing Sweet Home. I've played it a few times o...

Otogirisou (SNES)

Covering a "sound novel" was either the best idea I've ever had for a video or the worst. You'll have to let me know. Personally, I think it's pretty great. My favorite things are talking about story and atmosphere, and that's pretty much all Otogirisou is. This is definitely one for those of you who enjoy listening and falling asleep to my videos.

AS FOR THE NEXT VIDEO:
I'm currently juggling three different ideas, all at relatively early stages. I don't typically like to overlap pr...

Vampir: Kyuuketsuki Densetsu (PS1)

The Vampir video is finished! I've been entrenched in lots of vampire fiction over the last few weeks while making this one: Dracula, Interview with the Vampire, Vampire Hunter D--both the books and the movies for all of those titles. I did another playthrough of Vampire: The Masquerade-Bloodlines. No, I don't know when I'll get around to making a video on that. And no, I didn't read the Twilight books or watch those movies. I'm not a masochist. Well... maybe I am, but not that much.

AS...

Quick Update: Vampir Video

Hey, everyone. Just wanted to let you know how things are going. As you've probably seen if you've read the recent posts, the next video is Vampir: Kyuuketsuki Densetsu for PS1. I've just finished a first draft of the script, but it still needs some revisions. I plan on recording the voiceover and getting started on the edit by the end of this week though, so you'll probably see the finished video around the middle of the month.

I've also started working on another bonus video, which wi...

The Last Express (PC)

I didn't realize it until I was working on this video, but the last few have had a lot of history lessons in them (some more accurate than others...). I didn't plan that, but yeah, I guess I really enjoy history.

Anyway, The Last Express is amazing. I played it four times for the video, and I know there are still scenes and conversations that I didn't experience. I could easily play it again, too. It's so good.

Also, captions should be up in a few hours for those that watch with t...

Time Twist (FDS)

It's been a while since a main video has been under an hour. I don't count the indie horror games list I did last fall, so I think the last one was Echo Night 2, last summer. I'm sure there will be a ton of meme comments once it goes public about how I'm washed because the video is short. I don't care though. My philosophy has always been the videos should be as long as it takes me to say everything I want to say about whatever I'm covering. And I think the pacing of this video is really tigh...

BONUS VIDEO: Blue Ice (PC)

Here's a video for your eyes only, Dungeon Dwellers. Another one to add to the Archive. Have any of you ever heard of this? I'm curious. It's another one that I found way back when I did the Cosmology of Kyoto video and was digging around The Collection Chamber. A link to download the game is in the video description.

If you're new or just haven't checked out the other bonus videos, there's a link at the bottom of this post to the collection. You can also find it on my creator page by c...

Kowloon's Gate (PS1)

Kowloon's Gate is finally finished! This was probably the most difficult video to make. Even the Lain video came together easier than this one. First of all, the story in Kowloon's Gate is utter insanity and involves a bunch of esoteric themes and concepts. I'd say the Japanese reading level in the game is advanced as well. It wasn't easy. I have a bit of an existential crisis about halfway through the video. I hope it's entertaining.

In all seriousness though, the game itself is awesom...

Quick update: Kowloon's Gate video

Hey all, hope you're doing ok. I've been sick for a few days and haven't been able to record some bits I need to finish up the video. My voice is horrendous right now. I'm working on the overall edit, so once my voice recovers I'll record the rest and put the finishing touches on it. Next week for sure. Sorry for the delay.

Stay healthy. Dungeon Chill. Out. 

UPDATE: Next video

First off, thanks for all the support on the Lain video. The reception has been overwhelmingly positive, which is great because that video took so long to make, so it feels good that all the hard work paid off and people enjoyed it. Now, about that photo up there…

Originally I was planning to do something much simpler and quicker for the next video, but that went right out the window after playing a couple hours of Kowloon’s Gate.

So, yeah, the next video is on Kowloon’s Gat...

Serial Experiments Lain

The Serial Experiments Lain video is finished! I felt like weeping (tears of joy) when the processing completed on YouTube and there were no restrictions on it. I was worried about copyright and meticulously edited the anime portion of the video, cropping footage, looping short clips, and driving myself crazy with how long that was taking. I was also worried about the content, since the Lain game is pretty dark, and I had to edit a couple of cutscenes because I saw videos of them on their own...

Quick Update on the Lain Video

Happy new year! Hope everyone's 2025 is going all right so far. Just wanted to give an update on the Lain video. The script has been written, edited, revised, and is ready for voiceover recording. This is the longest script I've ever written at 114 pages and over 30k words (Racing Lagoon, the current longest video, had a 100-page script), and I'm guessing Lain will end up being the longest video as well, so A LOT of work still left to do.

I'm planning to have it finished "before mid-Feb...

BONUS VIDEO: Q&A 2024

Thanks to everyone who asked questions. Even though I only answered a quarter as many as the previous Q&A video, this one still ended up being almost an hour and a half. Hope you enjoy it!

I talk about what's I'm working on next near the end of the video, so if you want to know, you'll have to watch the whole thing. Or... you know... just skip to the end.

Either way, happy holidays, and I'll catch you all in 2025.

Dungeon Chill. Out.

Echo Night Beyond (PS2)

I finally finished covering the Echo Night trilogy. Only took me a year and a half. I find it difficult to complete the same types of games back to back, but I knew I'd get there eventually.

This is the last regular video for 2024, but all of you paid supporters will be getting the Q&A video soon. I'll discuss a lot more channel news and upcoming projects there.

For now, I hope you enjoy Echo Night Beyond.

Dungeon Chill. Out.

Aquanaut's Holiday series (and, like, 11 other games)

This video is several hours late, because it got copyright claimed. Some BGM bullsh-- YouTube things. You know how it goes...

Originally, this video was going to be about Kaze no Notam, the PS1 hot air balloon game. I'd played it before and figured I could use it as a framing device to talk about the developer, Artdink, and their wider library of bizarre games.

But when I was capturing footage for it, I realized I had much less to say than I thought. Panic set in. I cried a little...

Ask Me Questions!

Hey all, I'm planning on doing another Q&A video this year. This time though, I'm only going to open up questions to supporters and make the video a Dungeon Dweller-only affair. It's like our own private holiday party.

I've decided to only answer 25 questions this time. Last year, I answered over 100 and that ended up being way more work than I was anticipating, so to keep things more manageable I'll choose 25 this time. So ask away!

IN OTHER NEWS:
I've got 2 more videos pl...

Rule of Rose (PS2)

I wanted to get this video out before Halloween, but I can't believe I managed to finish it in 2 weeks. It was a crazy amount of work, and the script was definitely one of the most difficult to write. Took me a week alone to get through that.

This was my first time playing Rule of Rose, and I also went into it almost completely blind. I've never watched any videos or read any articles about it. And that was intentional, because I've always wanted to play it. The only thing I knew about ...

Maken X (DC)

This is my first foray into the Shin Megami Tensei series on the channel. Although, Maken X is more of a tiny tributary branching off from the larger body of SMT works, so really just dipping my toe into it with this one.

SMT is a series I've appreciated from afar, but never really enjoyed playing. Well, that's not entirely true. I like Nocturne and SMT IV, as well as the Raidou Kuzunoha games. Several people have also recommended Digital Devil Saga to me, but I haven't played those yet...

BONUS VIDEO: Mansion of Hidden Souls (SegaCD) / THE Mansion of Hidden Souls (SAT)

Mansion of Hidden Souls and The Mansion of Hidden Souls were developed by the same people who would go on to make Lunacy (and Deep Fear, funnily enough). So I'm going back to my roots with this one.

The Archive is expanding, so I made a collection to help keep track of things and easily find your way back to these videos should you ever want to rewatch them.

UPDATE ON NEXT MAIN VIDEO:

I'm revising the script for Maken X right now, so I should have the video finished toward t...

Grim Fandango (PC)

Grim Fandango may not be as obscure as some of the other games that I cover, but damn--it's so good. Honestly, obscurity has never been a criteria for me when I pick games to cover. It just kind of happens that way most of the time. But it was fun to cover something a bit more well known. Maybe that means more people will watch it, because the Indie Horror Demos video didn't do so great.

But I don't want to dwell on video performances too much. I know I kind of need to worry about it, b...

Indie Horror Demos

Short one this time. It's been over a year since I covered any indie games on the channel. The last one was the Twin Peaks fan game. But I usually check out new indie games, so I wanted to highlight some of the horror ones I've played recently. I also included a bonus that's not quite horror but was still fun and has some darker vibes.

I didn't read supporter names out loud at the end of this one. I just felt like this is meant to highlight the indie games and the devs' hard work, so I ...

POLL Results

Grim Fandango took the win on both this poll and the YouTube Members poll. Maken X was 2nd, and in fact, a very close 2nd on the YT poll. So I'll do a Grim Fandango video and a Maken X video.

Those who voted for Soul Reaver or Otogi, don't worry. I plan on doing videos on every game I put in a poll. I might even get to them before the next poll comes up.

So here's how things look for the next few videos:

• Indie Horror Demos - later this week

• Grim Fandan...

  2024-09-09 00:02:59 +0000 UTC View Post

POLL! Vote for upcoming videos

For the next video, I'm covering some indie horror demos. It should be done sometime next week, but after that I can't decide what to do. It's not for lack of ideas. I just can't pick something. So I'll let all of you choose.

YouTube Members will also be voting, and their numbers are growing, so if there are any huge discrepancies in what ends up winning I'll choose the top picks from both polls to cover in 2 videos. Otherwise, I'll just combine the votes and see what comes out on top.<...

Twilight Syndrome / Moonlight Syndrome (PS1)

I'd been thinking about covering a Japanese-only game on the channel for a while, but always felt like it would be too challenging. Playing through a game in Japanese on my own is one thing but having to break it down and analyze it for a video is another. So what did I decide to do with this one?

Play 3 games in Japanese! And I picked 3 Goichi Suda games just to make it extra difficult.

Honestly, the Twilight Syndrome games were easy. They were only directed by Suda. Moonlight Sy...

Quick Update

Hey everybody. Just wanted to let you know that work continues on the next video. I just started the editing phase today. I’m covering 3 games: Twilight Syndrome: Search, Twilight Syndrome: Investigation, and Moonlight Syndrome. They are all early games from Suda51, and they are all only in Japanese. No fan translations for these ones.

This is the first time I’ve attempted to analyze Japanese-only games for a video, and I made the job incredibly hard on myself by doing 3 of them and...

BONUS VIDEO: Kowai Shashin (PS1)

This is the bonus video that I've been promising for a while now. It's the first in a series that I'm calling the Dungeon Dwellers Archive--reviews and showcases of games that don't quite have enough to talk about for the length of a normal video. And they are for paid supporters only.

I've included Zoe in the intro and outro of this one, but I'm still figuring out the format. I'm thinking of maybe doing a Tales From the Crypt-style thing with her as the host. I think that would be fun,...