Games You Should Only Play Once

im never making a video this long again

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:35 Games and Experiential Space
3:02 Forever Games and Life Support
7:56 Helldivers 2 and Replay Rot
10:30 Fortnite is kinda cool
11:34 Immersion and Unimmersion
14:33 Knowledge-based Games
16:42 Single-Use Games
19:29 Experiential Games
21:47 Firewatch and Burning Realities
27:46 Manifold Garden
39:35 Outro
41:21 Patreon

It seems you have reached the bottom of the description. Welcome! Enjoy your stay as long as you like.

[TheCursedJudge]

This video is a sequel and sort of glue connecting many of the topics I've covered in the past year, as well as a reflection on them. I hope you enjoy. Also, I am deliriously tired as I type this, this week was a lot of work. Turns out, when a video is double the length, you do twice the work. Who could have known. Anyways, hope you all enjoy.

Also, I've now updated the description with every game shown in the video with timestamps. Thank you to a dog I know for doing 90% of it while I was asleep as a challenge.

[TheHipClip]

Outer Wilds is the video game that should truly be played once. It's no wonder, people comment with don't spoil anything or tell others to not use a guide with the game. It lives off the mystery of its story, and exploration is the path to the story. You see everything, you know everything, and there's only one first playthrough.

[iAREmizzou]

What Remains of Edith Finch has been described as a game that takes about 2 hours to beat, and a lifetime to process. It is the most beautiful game I have ever played and recommend it to anyone who enjoyed Firewatch.

[damonkinell-cmuu]

Firewatch was a game I only ever played once.. but the ending and story still move me to this day..

[DPortain]

Someone said that being a Youtuber is like strip-mining all your life for meaningful content. It seems like you've discovered the devastation this mining process causes. My condolences.

[Future_Doggo]

Holy crap, that Helldivers 2 post made my IQ plummet. Meta-chasing is one of the worst thing to have happened to multiplayer games. God forbid if you want to expirement with an unorthodox build, or "have fun" a little.

[nostyleja]

This video was suggested to me by YouTube. I'm 20 minutes in, and as much as I'm completely intellectually immersed, I snap out of it every few minutes, baffled at just how much hard work this represents... and with such an articulate dissection of concepts on top of it all. Thank you for making this, I'm thoroughly enjoying every word.

[abbedurgut]

I thought this was gonna be another one of those video essays about games like The Outer Wilds and related games and how they can only be played once etc etc. But you have made an experience and journey not unlike the games you've talked about. A video that should only be watched once, but remembered for years to come. As both a person who loves creating and analyzing things that i love, the last sentiments of this video put into words a feeling that i couldnt describe on my own. That feeling of killing something by exploring why it is great.

[LLoKKa]

You had a line in this video that really made me rethink so much. About esports and competitive games, where you said that eventually the game space starts to shrink, where the only valid plays are restricted to just a few aspects of the game, where the difference between winning and losing is about small details and leverages on game mechanics rather than dramatic strategic plays and turntables.

I've played competitive games for my whole life. I've reached semi-pro level super rapidly in pretty much every game I've picked up that way. And yet, when that moment you described is reached for the general player base, every competitive game loses its appeal for me instantly. I'm the player who takes every shot at a dramatic turn of the state of the game. That's WHY I play these games, that's why I love these experiences. The fact that every game nowadays has the meta being broken down so fast in the internet, means that I get to experience these for much shorter periods of time... before the life of the game is just sucked out of it for me, before everyone knows what's best and being clever and imaginative and taking chances is just asking to lose to anyone capable at the game. That's eye opening and really sad. The games just become really small because people shortcut their experiences by learning from guides and then the meta becomes stale and boring, with minimal space for exploration.

[EricBohner]

The ending of this video was intense. The idea that the work that one does to make a video game commentary always drains the last life from it. Making even small drops of replayability evaporate. The sacrifice you make for the essay. It was a great ending and something profound to think about. I also love the irony that by expanding the essay from one game to a genere allowed you to find one last drop. I wounder if you were to expand it again from the genre to the concept of gaming as a whole if you would be able to get even more. Then, in a way, this becomes a VIDEO game. Good work.

[reddatura]

this is probably my favorite body of work you've done yet, excellent job dude

[lgpen]

Wow. The Manifold Garden video introduced me to both the game, and your channel. The impact it had on me would be impossible to put into words in a YouTube comment section. It's tragic to hear about the mental destruction of games you onced loved, but also I hope it brings you some satisfaction hearing the impact that single video has had on me. I'm only one of the 25 thousand, but I thank you for what you do.

[believeinmatter]

What Remains of Edith Finch was that game for me, I don’t think I would ever get the same experience I did the first time I played it. I cried really hard throughout that game

[thestraydog]

My playthrough of Journey still sticks with me to this day. And thinking about the last few sequences still make my eyes misty. I cant remember another video game that made me overcome with emotion the Journey did... My now ex-wife came in right as it was ending and was a little startled to see me smiling but crying at the same time. I then handed the controller over to her and said "You should play this, really. But I dont wanna watch" I came in as I heard the last music playing and she was bawling, it hit her just as hard. I asked her what she thought and she said it was beautiful. And I couldnt agree more. Ive considered playing through it again, almost 10 years later but I sorta dont want to ruin that memory of such an amazing an impactful little game. It might not hit everyone the way it did me or my ex, but I still highly suggest it.

[sky_rig]

What i love about your videos is that your videos always seem to be a typical video game essay but then turn into beautiful works of philosophical art

[NunSuperior]

Just watched this on Nebula, came here to comment (congrats on being on Nebula btw). I worked on Manifold Garden, I'm in the credits and on one of those chat screens and everything. The endings didn't get as much design time as the main game so I'm not surprised they are a little rough. I mean the main game took like 8 years? If you ever wanted to interview William I'm sure he'd be down for it. Enjoying the channel, hope you get a good rest from this one. -Garret Polk

[just-shaquille]

single-use games are often short, but they always slap so much harder than replayable games

[Gokuvegeta]

That outro is exactly why I love this channel, so much passion and understanding being poured into these videos. Cursed judge every one of your videos are ungodly good, definitely my favorite video essay youtuber and as of right now my favorite youtuber. Don't start here but 39:35 forward is so beautiful, all of your videos are so beautiful judge.

[Hazardius]

Firewatch was so cool to me that I decided to play it one more time to "knock off the few achievements I've missed". And though I discovered some new things, it definitely felt different, less.. Thank you for this fine video!

[wade]

A very speechless yet hearty thank you!
This video gave me a few good, and much needed, cries. As a gamer for nearly 3 decades I constantly try to go back to old games and try and enjoy it but, like you mentioned about Portal, we are not trying to figure out but rather recall the memories of how we completed it in the past. That was one among MANY things throughout this video that really impacted me.
Your use of words in relation to your knowledge of gaming and impact on us, or rather you, is unparalleled - may just be me but holy... REALLY played my heartstrings and not pulled but YANKED my emotions and sheesh did the waterworks start and really give me a new appreciation and perspective on gaming.