lakeofstars
98 reviews liked by lakeofstars
This review contains spoilers
I loved this game when i was younger, but replaying it years later.. this game seriously tries to make you sympathize with the rapist pedo serial killer teacher just because he got bullied twice as a kid.
Misao was completely justified and did nothing wrong.
Misao was completely justified and did nothing wrong.
This review contains spoilers
This game isn't good. By most definitions of the word good. It's not scary, most of the myriad deaths seem purposefully slapstick and stupid (my personal favorite being one in which you walk past a phone and it starts to ring which scares you SO BADLY that you hit the wall so hard you die), the handling of issues such as bullying and CSA, while done with empathy for the victims, is poor at best and exploitative at worst, it tries to make you sympathize with a pedophilic rapist serial murdering teacher.
So why do I like it?
I think Misao is an excellent B movie horror video game. If you go in not taking it seriously and expecting it to be at least slightly problematic and tactless, you will have a good time. Especially if you play as the female character, who for some reason is an unrepentant murderous maniac. Hunting for the deaths is fun, as they get supremely ridiculous and are everywhere. The puzzles, while simple, are fun enough to solve. And watching the trainwreck of a plotline crash into your psyche forever is both entertaining and cringeworthy.
I'm willing to admit some of this may be nostalgia of my tween and early teen years (which despite the gore and some plotpoints is almost definitely the best age range to fully enjoy this game) when I was obsessed with anything mildly dark. But I do think anyone who loves campy Japanese horror and has a good sense of humor or high tolerance for bullshit will be able to have some fun with it.
So why do I like it?
I think Misao is an excellent B movie horror video game. If you go in not taking it seriously and expecting it to be at least slightly problematic and tactless, you will have a good time. Especially if you play as the female character, who for some reason is an unrepentant murderous maniac. Hunting for the deaths is fun, as they get supremely ridiculous and are everywhere. The puzzles, while simple, are fun enough to solve. And watching the trainwreck of a plotline crash into your psyche forever is both entertaining and cringeworthy.
I'm willing to admit some of this may be nostalgia of my tween and early teen years (which despite the gore and some plotpoints is almost definitely the best age range to fully enjoy this game) when I was obsessed with anything mildly dark. But I do think anyone who loves campy Japanese horror and has a good sense of humor or high tolerance for bullshit will be able to have some fun with it.
Mad Father
2020
This review contains spoilers
Accidentally went a bit too fast and missed my opportunity to get the good ending, oops.
I can't say I like the remake as much as the original, in a game like this I don't think I should be given ample opportunity to fix whatever mistake I make, if I walk into that spooky door that opened by itself, I should die for it. Don't give me a QTE to suddenly keep myself alive.
It hurts especially for the last portion of the game, where what used to be a super intense chase sequence where one misstep meant death, is now shockingly easier, even freezing the chaser upon completing the one input QTE.
End of the day, it's still Mad Father, and I hold a shit ton of nostalgia for this game. 8/10, the game that started my fascination for RPG Maker Horror all the way back in like 2012.
I can't say I like the remake as much as the original, in a game like this I don't think I should be given ample opportunity to fix whatever mistake I make, if I walk into that spooky door that opened by itself, I should die for it. Don't give me a QTE to suddenly keep myself alive.
It hurts especially for the last portion of the game, where what used to be a super intense chase sequence where one misstep meant death, is now shockingly easier, even freezing the chaser upon completing the one input QTE.
End of the day, it's still Mad Father, and I hold a shit ton of nostalgia for this game. 8/10, the game that started my fascination for RPG Maker Horror all the way back in like 2012.
Mad Father
2020
I love this game! Playing an updated version was so much fun and reminded me of how much I loved this game when it was first released.
It was wonderful to revisit the Drevis Family and playthrough their story again. RPG maker horror has such a special place in my heart and part of that is thanks to this game
It was wonderful to revisit the Drevis Family and playthrough their story again. RPG maker horror has such a special place in my heart and part of that is thanks to this game
Mad Father
2020
if this game was an AITA reddit post the verdict would immediately be "everyone sucks here"
Mad Father
2020
This review will be centered around both this remake, and the original release of Mad Father, as both are perfectly accessible on the system I played it on. This playthrough was done through the remake.
I genuinely adore this game. Evident by the rather exorbitant amount of time I have totaled for this quick, 2 hour long RPG Maker horror (or Wolf RPG, really) Mad Father is a game I have been able to thoroughly enjoy for an actual decade at this point. It's the perfect mix of horror and atmosphere that has somehow always managed to enamor me every time, even despite all my yearly replays.
There is such a haunting history built within the Drevis mansion. A reluctantly loving family, doomed by a madman in power. A child who only loves this mad father due to a lack of information, only learning her mistakes after devoting herself to saving him for so long. It's devastating watching this story unfold, the hardest moments only ever amplified by a just as haunting soundtrack. (yeah what's a good wheatie review without everybody's favorite part)
This is a soundtrack I can best describe as pretty. The ambience in each area is perfect, there are some beautiful uses of pianos and violins to be found, and to go just a little further into it, even just the sound design is pretty nicely done. The game will very often cause a subtle shift in the environment, accompanied by an alerting noise in the midst of the usual quietness. Mad Father knows damn near perfectly how to be unsettling. Maybe I'm a bitch.
I've mentioned in earlier reviews of this game that the 2020 remake made a few changes that I wasn't the biggest fan of. Yes, silly mistakes have been remarkably softened by the easy QTE that the game gives you, I still stand by that a fair amount. But I'm also willing to look past that. I think despite everything, the good more than outweighs the bad, and it's still amazing seeing the absolute glow-up this game got after 8 whole years, not to mention the revamped puzzles and new content with Blood Mode.
It could very well be the nostalgia talking. The average person would look at Mad Father and notice that it generally follows the pretty basic formula that most RPG Maker horrors follow, solving puzzles by mixing items and using them at the right areas, with perhaps a bit more added onto it thanks to the use of the chainsaw. I'm willing to admit that. I've always been willing to admit when nostalgia can sort of take a hold on me. Unfortunately, I've also always been willing to admit that I don't care. I love this genre, and I love this game. This is easily one of my favorite horror games ever. Always has been, always will be.
I genuinely adore this game. Evident by the rather exorbitant amount of time I have totaled for this quick, 2 hour long RPG Maker horror (or Wolf RPG, really) Mad Father is a game I have been able to thoroughly enjoy for an actual decade at this point. It's the perfect mix of horror and atmosphere that has somehow always managed to enamor me every time, even despite all my yearly replays.
There is such a haunting history built within the Drevis mansion. A reluctantly loving family, doomed by a madman in power. A child who only loves this mad father due to a lack of information, only learning her mistakes after devoting herself to saving him for so long. It's devastating watching this story unfold, the hardest moments only ever amplified by a just as haunting soundtrack. (yeah what's a good wheatie review without everybody's favorite part)
This is a soundtrack I can best describe as pretty. The ambience in each area is perfect, there are some beautiful uses of pianos and violins to be found, and to go just a little further into it, even just the sound design is pretty nicely done. The game will very often cause a subtle shift in the environment, accompanied by an alerting noise in the midst of the usual quietness. Mad Father knows damn near perfectly how to be unsettling. Maybe I'm a bitch.
I've mentioned in earlier reviews of this game that the 2020 remake made a few changes that I wasn't the biggest fan of. Yes, silly mistakes have been remarkably softened by the easy QTE that the game gives you, I still stand by that a fair amount. But I'm also willing to look past that. I think despite everything, the good more than outweighs the bad, and it's still amazing seeing the absolute glow-up this game got after 8 whole years, not to mention the revamped puzzles and new content with Blood Mode.
It could very well be the nostalgia talking. The average person would look at Mad Father and notice that it generally follows the pretty basic formula that most RPG Maker horrors follow, solving puzzles by mixing items and using them at the right areas, with perhaps a bit more added onto it thanks to the use of the chainsaw. I'm willing to admit that. I've always been willing to admit when nostalgia can sort of take a hold on me. Unfortunately, I've also always been willing to admit that I don't care. I love this genre, and I love this game. This is easily one of my favorite horror games ever. Always has been, always will be.
Mad Father
2020
LOVE THIS GAME! one of my favorite rpg maker horror games
Mad Father
2020
This review contains spoilers
Mad Father is a surprising, decent written RPG-Maker-Horror game. It tells the story of Aya, an 11 year old girl, and her plight to save her father from her mother's vengeful spirit.
To make a long story short, her father's actually a badly written weirdo who likes to manipulate, murder, and then splice people into dolls. Fortunately, Aya's a well written character whom we see develop over the course of the game from an implied, future murderer like her father to an empathetic hero. At least if you get the TRUE "True End".
Let's talk about the endings. There's like 4 vanilla endings to the game; 2 "Bad Ends" and 2 "True Ends". The bad endings frankly aren't worth talking about and the two true endings are what you want to aim for. Unfortunately, the better of the two true endings is not articulated as different from the other, which is an interesting choice- being that its slight difference of a sentence and a half re-contextualizes everything to an almost alarming extreme. The "True End" that you get without collecting all 20 gems will imply that Aya has taken up the mantle and resumed the doll murder thing, the "True End" you get when actually collecting all 20 properly finishes Aya's arc and shows her respecting the wishes of her father's victims. It would not be so bad if the mechanic worked... correctly? Not to say the game is buggy or anything (It's not). But it seems the intention was for the gems to act as a representation for Aya's empathy, which would be great if that was what it did, but in execution over half of the gems are, like, a reward for resisting a jumpscare, breaking a barrel or just exploring. If the 8 or so instances where you are helping spirits, people, etc. were what actually determined the good "True End", it would be a lot more rewarding and make a lot more sense. Instead, in order to get a complete story, you have to tediously press the action button on every corner of the game to make sure you found the inconsequential gem that was inside a mandrake you have to cut open. It seems like a silly oversight.
Otherwise this game is very, very charming. I love its characters and artstyle, and I think its story is actually pretty good for what it is. If sen is implying a second mad father with the after after credits scene, I'll certainly be there to play it.
To make a long story short, her father's actually a badly written weirdo who likes to manipulate, murder, and then splice people into dolls. Fortunately, Aya's a well written character whom we see develop over the course of the game from an implied, future murderer like her father to an empathetic hero. At least if you get the TRUE "True End".
Let's talk about the endings. There's like 4 vanilla endings to the game; 2 "Bad Ends" and 2 "True Ends". The bad endings frankly aren't worth talking about and the two true endings are what you want to aim for. Unfortunately, the better of the two true endings is not articulated as different from the other, which is an interesting choice- being that its slight difference of a sentence and a half re-contextualizes everything to an almost alarming extreme. The "True End" that you get without collecting all 20 gems will imply that Aya has taken up the mantle and resumed the doll murder thing, the "True End" you get when actually collecting all 20 properly finishes Aya's arc and shows her respecting the wishes of her father's victims. It would not be so bad if the mechanic worked... correctly? Not to say the game is buggy or anything (It's not). But it seems the intention was for the gems to act as a representation for Aya's empathy, which would be great if that was what it did, but in execution over half of the gems are, like, a reward for resisting a jumpscare, breaking a barrel or just exploring. If the 8 or so instances where you are helping spirits, people, etc. were what actually determined the good "True End", it would be a lot more rewarding and make a lot more sense. Instead, in order to get a complete story, you have to tediously press the action button on every corner of the game to make sure you found the inconsequential gem that was inside a mandrake you have to cut open. It seems like a silly oversight.
Otherwise this game is very, very charming. I love its characters and artstyle, and I think its story is actually pretty good for what it is. If sen is implying a second mad father with the after after credits scene, I'll certainly be there to play it.
Mad Father
2020
The first RPG Maker game I've seen to use QTEs as a mechanic. The scares are good, but like most things from this developer, the storytelling is pretty poor. The extra mode and gallery that came with this remake are really interesting though. Rough around the edges but good enough to be a certified Video Essay Classic™.
Mad Father
2020
Mad Father remains my favourite remake of the modern era.
- Original game a small cult classic ✅
- Hindered by lack of resources and/or lack of experience ✅
- Remade by the same author years later ✅
- Enhances and magnifies original intent without reinventing the core game ✅
- Just all around very dope results that elevate the experience ✅
At the end of the day, it's still a short WOLF RPG Editor horror game, and it's nothing you haven't already seen in the horror realm of things nor in the RPG Maker adjacent spectrum. It's pretty standard indie oldschool horror. But damn, it looks fantastic, does its thing and it doesn't overstay its welcome. Short, sweet and to the point. Very recommended.
- Original game a small cult classic ✅
- Hindered by lack of resources and/or lack of experience ✅
- Remade by the same author years later ✅
- Enhances and magnifies original intent without reinventing the core game ✅
- Just all around very dope results that elevate the experience ✅
At the end of the day, it's still a short WOLF RPG Editor horror game, and it's nothing you haven't already seen in the horror realm of things nor in the RPG Maker adjacent spectrum. It's pretty standard indie oldschool horror. But damn, it looks fantastic, does its thing and it doesn't overstay its welcome. Short, sweet and to the point. Very recommended.
