Rainworld is a genuine computer engineering and artistic masterpiece and it sad that so many people (including possibly me) will never play it due to how hard this game is
Trust me its not hard it doesnt matter how skilled you are you die to bullshit either way the waynyou get better isnt learning the 92 pages. You learn by learning the world learn everything around you not yourself
15:16 Oh this here's a doozy. The Fandom wiki is constantly vandalized by Rain World fans and for good reason. After being sick of Fandom's shitty practices the Rain World Wiki mods decided to move the wiki to Miraheze. Fandom, the company, fucking hated this and immediately booted all of the mods and replaced them with Fandom staff who knew jackshit about the game. This lead to the wiki getting trampled instantly, and there are still whisperings of the elusive NPC "Obama" to this day. All in all, Fandom sucks. Fuck Fandom.
About the map. There's actually someone on the reddit and discord trying to recreate the entirety of rain world in minecraft. They probably have to change a lot of rooms but the connections would atleast work there
The reason why the map is in 3 layers is because rooms overlap, thats why all the 2D maps you find on wikis have nonsensical pipe transitions since they stretch rooms apart so there is spacw to display them. My favorite example is that hub in sky islands where you can see the same room and pilars from 2 different angles and also see the interior of the buildings matching the size of their outside, the map does it very well in that regard. I wish the map at least showed you the controls tho, even to this day after 3k hours i still confuse which button is back and which one is forth. Thats also why regions seem to overlap, unlike worlds with 2D maps, here there are all cardinal directions, Shaded citadel and Garbage Wastes would overlap on the map, but Shaded and pebbles superstructure are both further to the north.
That’s actually really sick. I knew the rooms overlapped, but I thought that was just a cosmetic map choice. I never thought about there actually being 3D cardinal direction in the game’s layout! That’s insanely cool.
@@SweetsIsOnline there is an entiere 3D render of the world partially made, and some insane ppl are building the entiere world on minecraft and its absolutely huge, even added shaders to make palettes work like in rain world, unfortunely minecraft is "optimized" the way it is so if you wanna see the good views you gotta stand still and let it render . Poeple are going like room by room translating them to 3D minecraft maps one by one, its scary. The underhang its an absolute vibe and i love to see its concept in 3D with a dark horizon of black spheres and lights
I agree it is a really neat concept for a 2D game. I think I always knew that's why the map was like that but I fully realized it in Sky Islands when I noticed that SI_B11 (echo room) has a view of SI_D05 from the South (I assume) in the background
16:54 I think this is the way this game is intended to be enjoyed, both gameplay-wise and thematically. In world, you have to fight tooth and nail for any sort of break from the struggle, and when you do, there’s relief but also dread, knowing that you’ll have to return to the struggle. The only way you and the slugcat can find the peace you seek is to escape the cycle of struggle entirely. The fact that this is communicated to players so effectively through its gameplay is one of Rain World’s greatest triumphs imo
Exactly! When my karma is low, that's when I take it slow. I forget progression for a minute and just explore and hibernate, and after that short break I'm refreshed enough to take on the challenge that killed me before. It's very satisfying
The intention of the karma gates is to restrict you from entering harder areas until you’re able to compete in the areas you’re in currently. Going back to an easier area is a lower requirement. How well it works is of course debatable. More experienced players usually don’t even notice the karma requirements, but as a new player I remember getting stuck for literal hours in farm arrays mainly because I didn’t realise you could eat the baby centipedes :p I suppose they’re really there to force you to learn where otherwise you could blindly stumble your way to the end of the game with very little competency, unlike a game like hollow knight where the skill checks are in the form of bosses instead. Btw, the reason the map is on many layers is because the map isn’t really 2d, it’s supposed to represent a 3d environment. It is defined by room connections rather than tetrising the rooms together on a plane. It has been condensed into 2d formats as you can find online, it just was not designed in that way, which again is questionable, I’m just providing the reasoning for it. DLC does add so much to this game though, I really love how you can experience the timeline from before LTTM’s collapse to after FP’s. And FP gets a bit of character development which is always satisfying.
Another thing about karma gates is that they kinda need to be there for karma to matter for most of the game and especially for newer players who don't know about echos and such
This doesn't apply to artificer, in that case you just play roulette with the scavs hoping you get one with good enough karma that doesn't spawn on the other side of the map
The game was initially designed as a survival game, but the level designer got a little carried away and made the world 10 times bigger than it was supposed to be. The karma gates system is an awkward attempt to try and reintroduce a reason to prioritize survival over exploration, but with how infrequent they often are, it more often tends to be an occasional annoyance rather than a part of the fundamental gameplay loop. Rain World's initial popularity came from its devlog being rated one of the best devlogs ever, and since it catalogues just about every decision the devs made as well as showing the process leading up to that decision, it's a great read for truly understanding how Rain World came to be so unique.
The Karma gates are a good way to force the player to "Get good" tho. Without them you can save and that's it, you keep going, the gates makes it so you survive and play like a real animal, not a player. Also if a place it's really hard, you go back and find a easier gate. Basically only noobs got a problem with it. 🤓
@@Otaya_2024 Nah you missed my point, I was saying karma gates _don't do enough_ to force players to care about survival. They're too infrequent and often there's a ton of food and shelter right next to them which makes farming karma really easy.
this is the best and funniest rain world review ive seen, 10/10 i do have a thought regarding the karma gates though: since this game is basically a samsara simulator, where the ultimate goal is to escape the endless cycle of death and rebirth, the karma gates might be designed to be frustrating on purpose. because like you said, when you first start playing, the fact that you have infinite lives feels like a blessing. you have this huge world to explore, and death has no consequence! you can do whatever you want forever! awesome! but that's not how the ancients saw it. to them, it was a prison that they wanted to escape. so it's kind of fitting that the structures they built would serve to make you feel some of that tedium. maybe i'm just overthinking it, but I feel like the karma gates are meant to keep you trapped in a region just long enough to make you start thinking ''I don't want to be here anymore, please let me out", and to then hit you with the despair of realizing that your karma isn't high enough to leave. that you have to go back and do it all again. and again. and again...
I'm under the impression that the karma gates exist to force you to actually survive i.e. scavenge for food and such in the given enviroment. Without a karma requirement you could just run past everything.
one comment i have about the map is that it's not like hollow knight where the 2d map could be stitched together nearly seamlessly. it's a series of slices of a 3d world. you aren't moving through the world as was intended, you're a small creature traversing a ruin. you might have to find a gap in a wall high up from what should be the door, or traverse literal chimneys which has what appear to be maintenance ladders but i can't imagine were on whatever the ancient equivalent to google maps was. that's part of why the in game map has three layers; when you try and flatten the whole map into a single 2d image, you end up with preposterously long tubes that look like they cross each other, but they don't. they might be incredibly far away from each other, and they're only that long bc the rooms need to be spaced so they don't overlap on the 2d map. you're right that it takes more mental energy to navigate, and i don't think that three layers is a perfect solution, but i think it's more interesting and realistic than hollow knight taking a near perfect 2d world when their characters clearly inhabit a 3d one narratively
I hear ya but a fully 2D and more coherent fan-made interactive map exists that is *way* more helpful than the in-game map. Maybe it does give you a slightly different subconscious idea of what the world looks like, but I mean, it being a "3D map" is kind of an illusion anyway. It's a few (literally 3-4 max) 2D layers stacked on eachother with very limited traversal between them. It's not technically wrong to call this 3D, but it's not 3D in the way most people conceptualize what 3D is. It is analogous to being able to explore the parallax layers we normally see in 2D games, but more limited. I don't think having a better conceptual idea of how the world is supposed to physically fit together outweighs having a good resource that helps you to navigate it much better. That said, like I mentioned in my own comment, I do respect the attempt to convey this.
@@tyo191 yeah like i said, the map isn't 3d, it's just layered and representing 3d space. and i do love the interactive map, it's very good. what i meant is that the world is 3d, not that the map is itself actually 3d. also, parallax layers isn't quite accurate, as sometimes the "parallel" layers turn perpendicular (ie pipeyard is canonically to the north, but all travel is visually east/west, so logically some screens have to be oriented differently than others)
every criticism you have brought up is 100% valid however after 400 hours and all achievements the game has Stockholm syndrome gaslit me into liking all the bullshit anyway
15:05 one thing that the wiki probably doesn't say, even when it isn't being vandalized, is that the ancients are considerably bigger than slugcats (about big enough to fit through a karma gate and not bonk their head, people think), so they do not use the same pipes we do to move around. It is likely they used now defunct modes of public transport like the subway. The "Jungle Gyms" are simple leftover rebar and pieces of cobble still left standing from the giant production facilities they once were. Once the Ancients grew too tired of their existence, they entrusted the iterators with the task of running these facilities, but without much Ancient intervention they soon proved unable to due to resourceful and physical restraints. What I personally think a lot of people overlook, is that the ancients' story is much like the "mouse utopia" experiment, they live, they peak, they give up hope and stop having children.
There's a pearl explaining why only the industry remains. It was added in the DLC. I'll post it here in case you're curious. Outskirts • Light Pink (SU_filt) _"It's an asset management log containing the historic structural health of various pieces of framework over the span of many hundreds of cycles. I suppose neither of us would benefit from me reading all of these numbers aloud."_ _"What is notable is that none of the structures over the course of this logged history are marked as needing explicit repairs. This comes as no surprise, it was very much the intention!"_ _"Most of the machinery, storage areas, and other structural housings need to remain water tight. This is due to the fluctuating ground water and regular bombardment of heavy water vapor from our breathing. No matter how well constructed the architecture may be, deterioration is an inevitability."_ _"To counter this, there is a second line of defense. Microbes are infused into the building materials, that lie dormant for an indefinite period of time. They are awakened in response to splintering and separations, initiating a healing cycle that gradually fills in the damage and restores waterproofing to the structure. The duration of this process depends on the extent of the damage, of course."_ _"Voyages down to the surface were quite dangerous, attempted only by the most unfortunate of souls. They were always intended to be brief trips, only for periodic inspection and logging. Designing the surface world to be largely self-sufficient was a very deliberate decision, allowing my creators to live carefree lives up in their cities in the clouds."_
I thought of using the karma gates as reference too but then I realized there would be no way for the ancients to get inside of Karma gates without being able to fit through pipes and stuff. It’s likely that karma gates are more so a way of creating control gates for purposed organisms and were potentially all set to karma values after the mass ascension, possibly to guide lesser creatures. Evidence of this can be found in downpour dlc with a couple story relevant gates like metropolis having non-karma requirements.
It’s also implied they forced people into the void fluid in saint’s campaign. Literally my favorite part of the game and it implies some people were forced into the acid
As someone with 900 hours in this game, I find it kind of funny how the bullshittery becomes something you're fond of! Even when you've "mastered" the game the environment still manages to remind you that you aren't untouchable. Sometimes a lizard's bite is fatal, or a vulture swoops in at just the right angle to grab you as soon as it appears, or a scavenger off screen throws a bomb at something and catches you in the crossfire. No matter your skills or experience, the world will always have aspects that are entirely out of your control.
I like how rainworld is not a powerfantasy unlike many other games. It might feel somewhat like the daily struggle of our early ancestors: Searching for food and avoid getting eaten. Exloring this world and learning about the creatures i find very rewarding. There is very little to accumulate besides knowledge.
Rain World right after Hollow Knight is insane because they are literally my favorite two games of all time. I appreciate the crits as well, I think they're all very fair. The only thing I wanna respond to is the map critique. I believe I recall some source that conveyed that they were going for a presentation which simulates a mental map. As your slugcat explores, they take in what they've seen and remembers it, but recalling where exactly some location is requires either some context(going from room to room while scrolling through the map), very good memory skills, or familiarity. In this, I think they actually do approach something akin to memorizing where a place in. It definitely doesn't do the job perfectly as that is a very tall order, and also your crits are still valid; whatever their goals were in designing it, it *is* one of the game's weakest mechanics. This isn't so much a rebuttal, but rather a teensy bit of apologetics. I admire the attempt but do agree it's not fun or incredibly helpful.
I honestly like how the map adds a layer of tension, the game does not stop while you are trying to figure out "Were you are going? Because I do not think you are going were you think you are going". meanwhile, those predator are right next to you, getting ever so close.
Rainworld is a game I love playing when I need a good metaphysical ass-kicking. Anyway, I consider the Karma gates as part of the worldbuilding, as weird as it sounds. The Ancients strike me as the kind of people to tell good old "4 Pot Brownies, 1 Used Needle" that his karma is too low to hang out in the cool, totally holy 5-Karma Zone. But of course, if "10 Fingers, One Hand" loses karma, he gets tossed through the shitty Sex Karma gate, and can only come back once he has a full 5 again. The Ancients seem ultra judgemental and the Karma Gates being Like That is how I came to this conclusion. You're totally right about the map tho, that shit hurt my brain.
This is why I usually just Forget the in game map exists unless I'm checking if that's a real pole or a Pole Plant, the game is honestly better off without it
I've found the best way to use the map is to find your destination (for me, a karma gate or the nearest den,) and work my way back to where I'm at instead. The map is still finicky, but I've found that works better than nothing.
"12 Empty Glasses, Prolonged Headaches, you do not have the required karma to pass this gate. Please leave." "B-but, my wife and children are on the other side." "And that's why you don't have the proper Karma. Leave."
Fun fact, and someone else has probably said this already, I do believe you _can_ actually know when you've died for real. If it's only one death sound (or gong) when the lizard grabs you, then you can wait and hope some other predator comes along to fight them off you. It's only once that death sound is played again a second time that you're actually really dead.
Another tip, if the "game over" text displays IMMEDIATELY after being grabbed, youre DEAD dead, but if it takes a second, youre still alive! its a bit tricky to notice at first, but once you play the game enough, you'll get used to it :]
I honestly like the difficulty, it feels good to be able to react quickly to danger and eliminate/dodge threats. After 260+ hours I can say, the more you play the more fun and rewarding it gets.
This game has the single greatest blind experience in gaming. Finding the beautiful moment with moon, then finding the extremely intimidating and scary exterior, discovering you're inside an incomprehensibly large supercomputer. And the moment random gods started playing and I heard the moondown motif, I got full body chills. After that it's reveal after reveal, leading up to the moment of realization that there are potentially thousands of these computers, and they are the cause of the rain.
@cynic7581 My dude, the video contains spoilers. After reading the first two sentences, which don't spoil anything, I would imagine someone would understand that I'm explicitly explaining the blind experience.
I would like you to know that while scrolling I caught a glimpse of "you're inside a super computer" and I have refunded the game because of this huge spoiler you have exposed me to, thoughts?
Why don’t spoilers ruin games or movies for me I can know the lore and story inside and out and still get excited to experience it myself I’ve known about rain world for 3 years the lore the story etc and yet still I just started playing it a couple days ago it’s still amazing af
I think that the world looks strange because it isn’t meant to be a place that people live, it’s the facility grounds of moon and pebbles. The only places I can think of that people would regularly go is outer expanse and subterranean. Looking at outer expanse, you can see how it might have been inhabited before it became ruins, and the train system in subterranean would bypass the need to use the pipes at all. The pipes in the other regions are specifically for the creatures. Same with the shelters
14:59 my take on the reason for the areas looking like the ancients couldnt move in them and looking like a ”jungle gym” is that none of the areas are really places where ancients where supposed to be. Every area (but shaded citadel is just a farm, a factory, five pebbles chimneys, pipes, drill sites and so on. everything in the world according to lore is automated by purposed organisms and the whole iterator structure is a man made mountain housing everything to keep the iterators operating
Map is in layers becouse game wants you to feel like it expands on Z,X,Y axis or simply, to give it a 3D area feeling For example Pipeyard is behind the industrial complex and some other areas etc Which explains why the General map of all regions have weird long karma gate tunnels
the world doesnt feel like a civilization used to travel through it because it is merely an automated industrial facility. the whole playable in game map of rain world is the so called facility grounds of five pebbles, of which the point was, to not have to travel through there. lore texts in the game state that having to venture down from the city to the surface was a death sentence to any maintenance crews (thats why the shelters/bunkers have been put into place). so it is more like "im crawling through the insides of a factory not meant for personal and im gonna burn myself os teaming hot pipes because why the fuck would anyone go here anyway and no im not permitted to trespass" instead of "aaahhh so the old buddhist monks used to go on walks here 3000 thousand years ago ?"
If I may defend Karma Gates for a moment, I see them as "difficulty checks". A gate that has a high karma requirement to go through is basically warning you that the next area is VERY hard and you need to be X good at surviving in general before it'll even let you THINK about passing, which I think is a pretty smart way to communicate to the player if they figure it out, or at least a way to lock them out of an area they're certainly not ready for, yet. If I were to say this game had a genuine flaw, I would point to the fucking camera. In rooms that are only as big as the screen, I get it. But in bigger rooms, the camera DOES NOT FOLLOW you, so in those long or tall rooms you actually have to approach the edge of the screen before it transitions over to the next screen. And with an ecosystem like Rain World it often leads to shit like a lizard just on the other side of the screen snapping you up. That, to me, is more bullshit than the lizard being there in the first place, that you were arbitrarily prevented from seeing it by a camera that should NOT have been working like that. Thankfully there is a camera scroll mod available on the steam workshop and I highly recommend it as a must-have mod for all players.
The Offscreen Indicators mod is also good for this if you still want to experience the game mostly as the developers intended without changing the gameplay too much. It works with camera scroll too, which makes it extra good.
yeah that's always how I thought it was supposed to be. Like when I'm in underhang and I'm literally crying from the difficulty, and then I see that it's 5 karma to get into 5p from underhang, that's info to me that maybe I should try going somewhere else.
The Karma farming was also the exact part that killed this game for me, but now that I know the monk doesn't have to reopen doors.... I might have to give it another shot.
Tbh karma farming is a bit tedious for certain areas but the karma system is there to guide you overall. I mean you wouldn't want to go to one of the most frustrating areas as your second region right? Das why certain gates have higher karma, Higher karma means harder areas. Learned that the hard way as I accidentally spent 3 hours in one of the most UNFAIR I HATE THAT AREA AHHHHHH
@@plantplayer303 Shaded Citadel might not be the hardest area if you're prepared for it, but Coalescapedes can screw right off. They're not the most dangerous creatures, but boy they're some of the most viscerally terrifying.
I love this game, wish I could play it for the first time again. The fact it was created by one programmer and one producer from a little tech demo is pretty remarkable. Even after pouring 400+ hours into the game and getting into modding it myself the AI still surprises me and feels alive.
i've always really liked the speculative biology aspect of it like you can kind of infer what each creature was used for before the ancients mass ascended and left them to evolve on their own
@@catbatrat1760 The majority of the life in the current world according to the base game's lore are descendants of purposed organisms bioengineered for a plethora of different functions and uses. A large amount have also outgrown their purpose and look more natural superficially through generations of evolution. Primal wildlife already was extremely rare by the time of the construction of the oldest iterator we interact with, there is likely very few or none at all remaining
At about 100 hours of playing I acquired prey vision, I can now pick out white lizards camouflaged on the background and dropwigs with an ambush set up
i absolutely LOVE rainworld, i like it for its beauty and how well it displays the melancholy of a dying world. some moments could make me gasp out loud or almost cry. (saints ending psst) the gameplay is so fun to me, and i love how every little thing ties into the theme of the overall story, yet how that story is never truly revealed in a first playthrough (why would a slugcat know about the troubles of an ancient civilisation, long extinct?) but when you do get those little pieces it opens up so much, and makes me even more immersed in the world. ive completed all of the campaigns, yet i still want to go back and explore further
The Karma gate system is brilliant, unfortunately players tend to do the least interesting and most frustrating thing (grinding), rather than interacting with the system as the developers intended. The map is massive, and there is nothing (except grinding and sometimes really tricky platforming) to prevent you from going in a bad direction and getting completely lost. The Karma gates were meant to funnel players in the smoothest direction. In other words, the route to the first major destination, which includes traversing 4 major areas of the world, has the lowest karma requirement at each gate (karma 1/2). If you ever try to divert yourself from this route, then you will have to grind, because the karma gates are obtusely hard to get through as a way of saying "hey idiot if you go through this gate you better be ready for this". Unfortunately this type of friction doesn't seem to stop players from doing it, and then assuming that this is just how ALL the karma gates are.
i dont know, i would let the player take their own risks. it makes sense to have some 'gatekeeper' mechanic to reduce frustration, but directing the player into one direction in a game with open sandbox environment seems kinda redundant. you cant demand from players to take this or that method of playing, most people will inevitably pick the fastest way which, in this case, is boring grinding.
@@seushimarejikaze1337 the game does let players take their own risks? They don’t stop you from going anywhere. They just nudge you in the direction of least frustration and grinding and help you find your way in a world that’s easy to get lost in. This is like arguing that the ability to grind for souls is bad design in dark souls when you don’t need to grind for souls. Of course you can choose to play however you want but taking the intended route won’t lead to as much frustration. Also if the gates are a part of the game that frustrates people there is a setting to disable the requirements or heck just play the game with monk.
@@seushimarejikaze1337 not trying to be defensive just trying to defend my perspective, same as you. Apologies if it came across as anything other than just debating my side.
@@seushimarejikaze1337 Also, rereading my original comment from the start of the thread, I don't actually agree with some of what I said because I don't even think max karma gates require grinding. You only need to sleep, at worst, 4 times, and with most slugcats, getting enough food to sleep takes 2-3 minutes max. So you're looking at about 10 minutes to be able to enter a gate. I said grinding, but when I think of grinding, I think of like MMOs where you have to spend hours doing the same actions over and over. You can't eat the same food repeatedly in rain world so you have to explore and do different things after each rest, so it really doesn't even count as grinding. Also I know plenty of people who have played the game, and ignored the directions, and taken the hardest paths and had a great time, so I don't really see too many flaws even if you go the "wrong" way. But I still respect that the game is tough, and not for everyone. I just disagree with the idea that the game requires grinding.
incredible to see to this day somebody can still find the beauty of the game's original design and is able to appreciate both the DLC and the main game as different things
Great video! Funny how you mention Getting Over It at 1:46, because Bennett Foddy actually recommends Rain World in the credits at the end of Getting Over It, I didn't realize this until I revisited it after playing Rain World myself
I fully understand why you don't like the karma system because sometimes grinding to raise it can be really frustrating (especially in some of the DLC campaigns), but something I really like about it is how it basically forces you to become part of the ecosystem in a certain area. You learn where all the edible plants grow, where the territories of specific predators are, where batflies tend to gather, good hiding spots, etc, and after a few cycles it really made me feel like I had developed a deeper connection/understanding to the other creatures in this world. Fits very well with the themes of gaining enlightenment and ultimately surpassing the earthly world.
Rain World shouldn't have a perfect map system. Why would a slugcat have a magic 1:1 easy to read map of everywhere they've ever been on speed dial whenever they want it? You're a creature too, recalling where you've been by closing your eyes and jumbling through the maze of tunnels you've pushed your way through. It's annoying, sure, but think about trying to map out every place you've been before. The slugcat is talented at this, it's their biological job to know the inner workings of pipes and networks, but they're not mini GPS systems.
The karma system punishes dying and rewards living, you can also get a passage to regain all karma or teleport away. You could also meet an echo to increase your max karma
my only critic about rain world is the order in which you unlock the slugcats, which is completely out of chronological order, this may make the lore very confusing for people playing without help, the lore starts in spearmaster and ends in saint, but the spearmaster is one of the last slugcats you unlock, i believe they made it like this so you would unlock the campaings in the order of difficulty but honestly i rather have a lot of difficulty than a confusing out of order lore, and the game doesnt even point ou what could be the correct order, you can only find that out by actually playing the campaing and comparing how destroyed the world is to the rest or, like me, looking it up to play in the correct order which may be very incovenient for other new players
Even unlocking slugcats based on the order of difficulty is weird becauses ometimes the difficulty is just off? Look me in the eyes and tell me artificer is easier than rivulet
I just assumed you unlock it in the order of importance to the overarching lore of the world? Gourmand and Artificer do provide some world-building but nothing significant happens during the time of their stories that affects the world. Rivulet and Spearmaster are witness to bigger things happening , that are points in time just before a new era begins. Rivulet also has a hand in bringing about the era. And you only need to complete either Gourmand or Artificer to unlock the next two slugcats. But you need to complete both Rivulet and Spearmaster to access Saint, which also adds to the feeling of their stories being more significant.
I loved the video, excellent editing, content and good references. Congratulations!! I think you forgot to talk about the very complex movement system that the character has, there is a Google document with more than 80 pages talking about the mechanics, which for me personally was one of the best things about the game, learning the movement of your character (which is basically the only "upgrade" you can literally get in the game, besides knowledge of the environment),
Hey! I'm a simple guy, I love Rain World and thus I love your analysis. I agree that karma farming is a bit tedious, but I still wouldn't want it out of my game because I think it offers a bit of a change of pace. In somewhat of a forceful manner. But still- A small note on 11:45, the heavy rain from the first iterators allowed the Ancients to build the next ones *further* apart, not closer together; Moon and Pebbles' constructions predate the point where water was available everywhere. In fact, Moon is one of the oldest iterators, who was built nearby a massive body of water, that the Ancients later decided to risk finding out if it was in fact big enough to support two iterators at once (the second one being Pebbles), something that had been considered bad practice until then (one body of water, one iterator). This would no longer be a problem after Pebbles because you could just stick an iterator wherever and expect there to be thanks to the now ubiquitous rain. I can't appreciate enough that you would travel to the beach on that one "My House" Doom map to record some of these video cuts :)
Also! There's not much about the corridor tubes connecting the areas, but somewhere it's stated that the slugcats are descendants of a "purposed creature" that was designed to crawl into the iterators vents and do some maintenance (this is why we can fit into those tight vents). Since the proto-slugcats aren't the only mentioned purposed creatures (most notably, lizards being descendants of a different one, with he goal of doing population control of the other purposed creatures iirc), I think these "tubes" were explicitly built to allow purposed creatures to travel to and from, after the Ancients had already moved out, and not for Ancient use. And I think the jungle gyms are just the remnants of the foundations of long-lost buildings; at least to me they look like that, like the rebars used as a building's skeleton before adding the cement.
I played Rainworld in the summer of 2017. Back then I had to borrow my ex's PC to play (so it took me all summer), but my fascination was such that my personal crusade was to recommend Rainworld to every living being. I'm glad my mission is no longer necessary, so I can rest.
3:05 it is actually pretty enteresting this part, when ur ACTUALLY DEAD is when ur out screen or when the eyes of ur slugcat are an X X When the are > < ur incapacitaded, and still have a chance. It is so enteresting.
One thing I'd like to add is that some may call it a rage game, I say that's unfair because it's so much more than that. It's so many emotions brought together to create an organic experience. You may experience relief at finding food or a shelter after a long and arduous journey without either. You may experience laughter as you watch a lizard trip over itself and fall to its death. You may experience sadness as you learn the story between 5P and LTTM. It feels like you are experiencing the factors of life itself as you push through the cruelty of the world. It is so much more than a game that makes you frustrated.
the best way I ever read to describe rainworld was: "closest you will ever get to stone age human experiance without ditching clothes and running into woods" 3:52 I like how you casualy inserted almost biggest wow moment for everone who player downpour 7:30 yeah the map is bad 9:00 karma gates are basicaly area skill check, if you cannot progress, you should learn more (I still hate many of them, and I had to play Hunter three times because of them) 15:25 Fandom was abonded few years ago, (and is regulary griefed), mirahaze is the real wiki 17:00 my most valued moment with the game is end of the Spearmaster (when the camera slowly moves upward)
5:34 "If you`re frustrated with the game for unfair, that`s not the game`s fault, that`s your`s for misunderstanding what it is." My dude needs to play some Noita.. Seriously, you probably should, it's a living world too, but 50% of the deaths will probably be caused by enemies fighting each other, and you just happened to be there at the wrong time and place. I think you`d like it.
14:50 The real reason why the entire map is connected only by pipes is revealed in the Rainfall DLC, if I'm not mistaken. Slugcats were created specifically to clean drainage pipes by the ancients, after which they multiplied during the great extinction and became another part of the ecosystem. I believe that all other passages were simply blocked somehow.
"Overcome it's hardships" with a Rain Deer on screen is such a damn mood, the only AI that isnt out to kill you and is suppose to help AND IT'S A PAIN!! I love Rain World so much, please make a video about the DLC's [esp the next one coming] ♥♥
My favorite part of rainworld was going to the top of the wall when I played artificer, jumping above the structure. I just sat, watched the sun set over the sea of clouds, and the stars cover the sky, while in the distance, the iterators structure had storms surrounding them, coloring the clouds with green lightning. I even fell asleep, waking up to that beautiful sight. It was truly worth it.
the map is something you can learn to use eventually, the main problem is not knowing where to go 70% of the time, leading to a 7h exploration only for you to cross a gate and save at a terminal shelter because the next area is only accesible to another character, then since the part is extremely high in difficulty you end up stuck for 20h or just quit because the zone is also designed to be one directional, making the return dumbly hard. i love this game, but yeah that problem fucked up my experience with it.
The reason I love Rain World is because it teaches you patience. I'm a person that always feels like they're in a rush, fighting against time, and hurries to finish everything they have planned for the day. This game is...therapeutic in a way for me. It has taught me to be more patient for myself and to not rush things. It's one of those games where I've accepted that I'll finish it when the game is ready for me to, and to enjoy the journey that it provides, not the destination.
The “jungle gym” part of rain world has sense to it. With all the ancients dead, no one could repair or fix the regions, letting them become broken. The heavy rain also probably has caused some of the damage. If you look at industrial, some of the poles you climb up resemble ladders. Chimney canopy is a broken bridge. Subterranean has broken and split up trains. Each region had a purpose for the ancients.
This is human simulator, you don't have big teeth, giant power, but you have intellect, with it you can kill every enemy, learn, explore, and, LOOK, this is what rain world want you to do, you can die 100 times, but if you die 100 times spying on lizards, swimming near jellyfishes, you won't die 100 times anymore, all you need to do in this game is learn
Too bad this game, for how great it’s positives are, get overshadowed by its difficulty. I really wish this game was more popular, especially since downpour is actually one of the best dlcs I’ve seen in gaming
Everything itterator related is just fantastic, I remember my first time reaching the top of Five pebbles and seeing above the clouds for the first time... Its just incredible, and when I first realised that shaded citadel is dark because its below five pebbles, WOW, that was such an awesome realisation.
I wouldn’t compare it to rain world very much, but this game’s background art is somewhere in between Machinarium and Portal 2. It’s the bleakness and coldness of portal 2 mixed with the bizarre mechanical and cloudy yet also warm and beautiful structures and environments
OMGGG IT HAPPENED And of course you were told to play RainWorld, so many people (even though it's wrong) compare it with Hollow Knight. It was bound to happen, my dude. But still Well done P.S. The Movement Guide is 151 PAGES long. Not 92. Just sayin' ;) P.P.S. CHALLENGE 70 IS NOT CANON!!! P.P.P.S. Now, a video idea would be either looking at the DLC or Mods.
Many of Rain World's design flaws are "inexcusable" when the same mechanics could be expressed in ways more fair to the player without detracting from the game's themes
The karma gates are built so that you have to succeed in the previous area to move on to the next area, You basically have to prove your skill and ability survival to move on to another harder area. If you want to get out of that hard area after going in, It's typically takes less Karma to get out than it does to get in.
My favorite game of all time and it’s hard to recommend because of the difficulty. I love it because of it too but most people can’t take frustration or things that aren’t spoon fed…
This should be right up my alley, but every time a lizard snatches me up when travelling through a pipe, I just feel drained. There's nothing I can do to prevent this, as I'm locked in. And I just died 3 times in a row like this in different pipes, stuck on lowest karma in industrial complex. Traversal is fun, but it just doesn't click with me.
Rainworld is a genuine computer engineering and artistic masterpiece and it sad that so many people (including possibly me) will never play it due to how hard this game is
Trust me its not hard it doesnt matter how skilled you are you die to bullshit either way the waynyou get better isnt learning the 92 pages. You learn by learning the world learn everything around you not yourself
@@BlueAxolotl67That’s A fucking lie. I played hunter, artificer, gourmand, and survivor. It’s not bad but it forces you to learn yourself.
It's not thaaat hard
Just keep on persevering and you'll make it
@@AfrosCanBeCool yes learn by yourself which is the point of the game and what I was saying?
Skill issue
15:16 Oh this here's a doozy. The Fandom wiki is constantly vandalized by Rain World fans and for good reason. After being sick of Fandom's shitty practices the Rain World Wiki mods decided to move the wiki to Miraheze. Fandom, the company, fucking hated this and immediately booted all of the mods and replaced them with Fandom staff who knew jackshit about the game. This lead to the wiki getting trampled instantly, and there are still whisperings of the elusive NPC "Obama" to this day. All in all, Fandom sucks. Fuck Fandom.
Don't open the fandom Wiki 💀
agreed
Man, Obama was my favorite iterator.
@@TheCubifyer :(
@@TheRealNSH Don't worry NSH, maybe in the upsuck dlc you'll become my favorite!
About the map. There's actually someone on the reddit and discord trying to recreate the entirety of rain world in minecraft. They probably have to change a lot of rooms but the connections would atleast work there
I follow their progress its crazy
holy shit, i gotta check that out. 3d rain world would be absolutely amazing (in a perfect world)
Yoo thanks for saying, just check it out and HOOOOLYYYYYYYYY THATS GOOOD
yea its super cool! i don't think they've changed much actually, just put in new rooms or areas we've seen in the background!
@@comyuse9103, I think 2D is necessary here
The reason why the map is in 3 layers is because rooms overlap, thats why all the 2D maps you find on wikis have nonsensical pipe transitions since they stretch rooms apart so there is spacw to display them.
My favorite example is that hub in sky islands where you can see the same room and pilars from 2 different angles and also see the interior of the buildings matching the size of their outside, the map does it very well in that regard.
I wish the map at least showed you the controls tho, even to this day after 3k hours i still confuse which button is back and which one is forth.
Thats also why regions seem to overlap, unlike worlds with 2D maps, here there are all cardinal directions, Shaded citadel and Garbage Wastes would overlap on the map, but Shaded and pebbles superstructure are both further to the north.
That’s actually really sick. I knew the rooms overlapped, but I thought that was just a cosmetic map choice. I never thought about there actually being 3D cardinal direction in the game’s layout! That’s insanely cool.
@@SweetsIsOnline there is an entiere 3D render of the world partially made, and some insane ppl are building the entiere world on minecraft and its absolutely huge, even added shaders to make palettes work like in rain world, unfortunely minecraft is "optimized" the way it is so if you wanna see the good views you gotta stand still and let it render .
Poeple are going like room by room translating them to 3D minecraft maps one by one, its scary. The underhang its an absolute vibe and i love to see its concept in 3D with a dark horizon of black spheres and lights
@@jevmenyt3422 Omg can you give a link please? Or just the title of any CZcams video showing it since YT does not like link
@@TrueXiarno i dont know where to find it aside from the discord
I agree it is a really neat concept for a 2D game. I think I always knew that's why the map was like that but I fully realized it in Sky Islands when I noticed that SI_B11 (echo room) has a view of SI_D05 from the South (I assume) in the background
16:54 I think this is the way this game is intended to be enjoyed, both gameplay-wise and thematically. In world, you have to fight tooth and nail for any sort of break from the struggle, and when you do, there’s relief but also dread, knowing that you’ll have to return to the struggle. The only way you and the slugcat can find the peace you seek is to escape the cycle of struggle entirely. The fact that this is communicated to players so effectively through its gameplay is one of Rain World’s greatest triumphs imo
Exactly! When my karma is low, that's when I take it slow. I forget progression for a minute and just explore and hibernate, and after that short break I'm refreshed enough to take on the challenge that killed me before. It's very satisfying
It also is a master of the Tetris effect. I once saw a shadow go over my head and thought “shit vulture”
The intention of the karma gates is to restrict you from entering harder areas until you’re able to compete in the areas you’re in currently. Going back to an easier area is a lower requirement. How well it works is of course debatable. More experienced players usually don’t even notice the karma requirements, but as a new player I remember getting stuck for literal hours in farm arrays mainly because I didn’t realise you could eat the baby centipedes :p
I suppose they’re really there to force you to learn where otherwise you could blindly stumble your way to the end of the game with very little competency, unlike a game like hollow knight where the skill checks are in the form of bosses instead. Btw, the reason the map is on many layers is because the map isn’t really 2d, it’s supposed to represent a 3d environment. It is defined by room connections rather than tetrising the rooms together on a plane. It has been condensed into 2d formats as you can find online, it just was not designed in that way, which again is questionable, I’m just providing the reasoning for it.
DLC does add so much to this game though, I really love how you can experience the timeline from before LTTM’s collapse to after FP’s. And FP gets a bit of character development which is always satisfying.
Character in the video spotted
Another thing about karma gates is that they kinda need to be there for karma to matter for most of the game and especially for newer players who don't know about echos and such
This doesn't apply to artificer, in that case you just play roulette with the scavs hoping you get one with good enough karma that doesn't spawn on the other side of the map
@@darioferretti3758 yeah fricc artificer karma
@@darioferretti3758 the requirements are still harder for harder areas regardless, but yeah that one is indeed more rng based.
The game was initially designed as a survival game, but the level designer got a little carried away and made the world 10 times bigger than it was supposed to be. The karma gates system is an awkward attempt to try and reintroduce a reason to prioritize survival over exploration, but with how infrequent they often are, it more often tends to be an occasional annoyance rather than a part of the fundamental gameplay loop.
Rain World's initial popularity came from its devlog being rated one of the best devlogs ever, and since it catalogues just about every decision the devs made as well as showing the process leading up to that decision, it's a great read for truly understanding how Rain World came to be so unique.
man, following the process of how a little experiment in soft body platforming became one of my favourite games of all time was such a trip
The Karma gates are a good way to force the player to "Get good" tho. Without them you can save and that's it, you keep going, the gates makes it so you survive and play like a real animal, not a player. Also if a place it's really hard, you go back and find a easier gate.
Basically only noobs got a problem with it. 🤓
@@Otaya_2024 Nah you missed my point, I was saying karma gates _don't do enough_ to force players to care about survival. They're too infrequent and often there's a ton of food and shelter right next to them which makes farming karma really easy.
Karma gates are also the game's way to load in the region you're entering without the need for a loading screen
where's the devlog ? i can't find it :pp
this is the best and funniest rain world review ive seen, 10/10
i do have a thought regarding the karma gates though:
since this game is basically a samsara simulator, where the ultimate goal is to escape the endless cycle of death and rebirth, the karma gates might be designed to be frustrating on purpose. because like you said, when you first start playing, the fact that you have infinite lives feels like a blessing. you have this huge world to explore, and death has no consequence! you can do whatever you want forever! awesome!
but that's not how the ancients saw it. to them, it was a prison that they wanted to escape. so it's kind of fitting that the structures they built would serve to make you feel some of that tedium. maybe i'm just overthinking it, but I feel like the karma gates are meant to keep you trapped in a region just long enough to make you start thinking ''I don't want to be here anymore, please let me out", and to then hit you with the despair of realizing that your karma isn't high enough to leave. that you have to go back and do it all again. and again. and again...
Only Rain World can make you love the game by frustrating you this much
I'm under the impression that the karma gates exist to force you to actually survive i.e. scavenge for food and such in the given enviroment. Without a karma requirement you could just run past everything.
There's actully an echo who questions this! my favorite echo of all time, Rhinestones beneath Shattered Glass.
@@eldritchcupcakes3195 I think undergrowth echo is everyone's favourite echo tbh
one comment i have about the map is that it's not like hollow knight where the 2d map could be stitched together nearly seamlessly. it's a series of slices of a 3d world. you aren't moving through the world as was intended, you're a small creature traversing a ruin. you might have to find a gap in a wall high up from what should be the door, or traverse literal chimneys which has what appear to be maintenance ladders but i can't imagine were on whatever the ancient equivalent to google maps was. that's part of why the in game map has three layers; when you try and flatten the whole map into a single 2d image, you end up with preposterously long tubes that look like they cross each other, but they don't. they might be incredibly far away from each other, and they're only that long bc the rooms need to be spaced so they don't overlap on the 2d map. you're right that it takes more mental energy to navigate, and i don't think that three layers is a perfect solution, but i think it's more interesting and realistic than hollow knight taking a near perfect 2d world when their characters clearly inhabit a 3d one narratively
Yes I agree exactly actually.
I hear ya but a fully 2D and more coherent fan-made interactive map exists that is *way* more helpful than the in-game map. Maybe it does give you a slightly different subconscious idea of what the world looks like, but I mean, it being a "3D map" is kind of an illusion anyway. It's a few (literally 3-4 max) 2D layers stacked on eachother with very limited traversal between them. It's not technically wrong to call this 3D, but it's not 3D in the way most people conceptualize what 3D is. It is analogous to being able to explore the parallax layers we normally see in 2D games, but more limited.
I don't think having a better conceptual idea of how the world is supposed to physically fit together outweighs having a good resource that helps you to navigate it much better. That said, like I mentioned in my own comment, I do respect the attempt to convey this.
@@tyo191 yeah like i said, the map isn't 3d, it's just layered and representing 3d space. and i do love the interactive map, it's very good. what i meant is that the world is 3d, not that the map is itself actually 3d. also, parallax layers isn't quite accurate, as sometimes the "parallel" layers turn perpendicular (ie pipeyard is canonically to the north, but all travel is visually east/west, so logically some screens have to be oriented differently than others)
I agree but I think HK's map is a whole other kind of mess lol, although an arguably more understandable one
@@umbra4540 yeah fair enough. It's a challenging endeavor, attempting to bridge this gap.
every criticism you have brought up is 100% valid however after 400 hours and all achievements the game has Stockholm syndrome gaslit me into liking all the bullshit anyway
15:05 one thing that the wiki probably doesn't say, even when it isn't being vandalized, is that the ancients are considerably bigger than slugcats (about big enough to fit through a karma gate and not bonk their head, people think), so they do not use the same pipes we do to move around. It is likely they used now defunct modes of public transport like the subway. The "Jungle Gyms" are simple leftover rebar and pieces of cobble still left standing from the giant production facilities they once were. Once the Ancients grew too tired of their existence, they entrusted the iterators with the task of running these facilities, but without much Ancient intervention they soon proved unable to due to resourceful and physical restraints. What I personally think a lot of people overlook, is that the ancients' story is much like the "mouse utopia" experiment, they live, they peak, they give up hope and stop having children.
Don't forget the big trains in metropolis and subterranean, that probably gives a good estimate on how big they are.
There's a pearl explaining why only the industry remains. It was added in the DLC. I'll post it here in case you're curious.
Outskirts • Light Pink (SU_filt)
_"It's an asset management log containing the historic structural health of various pieces of framework over the span of many hundreds of cycles. I suppose neither of us would benefit from me reading all of these numbers aloud."_
_"What is notable is that none of the structures over the course of this logged history are marked as needing explicit repairs. This comes as no surprise, it was very much the intention!"_
_"Most of the machinery, storage areas, and other structural housings need to remain water tight. This is due to the fluctuating ground water and regular bombardment of heavy water vapor from our breathing. No matter how well constructed the architecture may be, deterioration is an inevitability."_
_"To counter this, there is a second line of defense. Microbes are infused into the building materials, that lie dormant for an indefinite period of time. They are awakened in response to splintering and separations, initiating a healing cycle that gradually fills in the damage and restores waterproofing to the structure. The duration of this process depends on the extent of the damage, of course."_
_"Voyages down to the surface were quite dangerous, attempted only by the most unfortunate of souls. They were always intended to be brief trips, only for periodic inspection and logging. Designing the surface world to be largely self-sufficient was a very deliberate decision, allowing my creators to live carefree lives up in their cities in the clouds."_
I thought of using the karma gates as reference too but then I realized there would be no way for the ancients to get inside of Karma gates without being able to fit through pipes and stuff. It’s likely that karma gates are more so a way of creating control gates for purposed organisms and were potentially all set to karma values after the mass ascension, possibly to guide lesser creatures. Evidence of this can be found in downpour dlc with a couple story relevant gates like metropolis having non-karma requirements.
I mean there is a shelter that’s probably a subway care
It’s also implied they forced people into the void fluid in saint’s campaign. Literally my favorite part of the game and it implies some people were forced into the acid
As someone with 900 hours in this game, I find it kind of funny how the bullshittery becomes something you're fond of! Even when you've "mastered" the game the environment still manages to remind you that you aren't untouchable.
Sometimes a lizard's bite is fatal, or a vulture swoops in at just the right angle to grab you as soon as it appears, or a scavenger off screen throws a bomb at something and catches you in the crossfire.
No matter your skills or experience, the world will always have aspects that are entirely out of your control.
900hours ? dude you are a masochist at this point
I like how rainworld is not a powerfantasy unlike many other games. It might feel somewhat like the daily struggle of our early ancestors: Searching for food and avoid getting eaten. Exloring this world and learning about the creatures i find very rewarding. There is very little to accumulate besides knowledge.
Rain World right after Hollow Knight is insane because they are literally my favorite two games of all time. I appreciate the crits as well, I think they're all very fair. The only thing I wanna respond to is the map critique. I believe I recall some source that conveyed that they were going for a presentation which simulates a mental map. As your slugcat explores, they take in what they've seen and remembers it, but recalling where exactly some location is requires either some context(going from room to room while scrolling through the map), very good memory skills, or familiarity. In this, I think they actually do approach something akin to memorizing where a place in. It definitely doesn't do the job perfectly as that is a very tall order, and also your crits are still valid; whatever their goals were in designing it, it *is* one of the game's weakest mechanics. This isn't so much a rebuttal, but rather a teensy bit of apologetics. I admire the attempt but do agree it's not fun or incredibly helpful.
You can see the slugcats eyes close and the map slowly reveals itself, pretty certain it's meant to be their memories
@@Sepi-chu_loves_moths Easy to forget about the little details in such a massive game, you're 100% correct
It is worth noting that the map was created relatively late in the development process, after the bulk of each region was done.
I honestly like how the map adds a layer of tension, the game does not stop while you are trying to figure out "Were you are going? Because I do not think you are going were you think you are going".
meanwhile, those predator are right next to you, getting ever so close.
@@littlewolf5136 yeah, that's pretty fair
Rainworld is a game I love playing when I need a good metaphysical ass-kicking.
Anyway, I consider the Karma gates as part of the worldbuilding, as weird as it sounds.
The Ancients strike me as the kind of people to tell good old "4 Pot Brownies, 1 Used Needle" that his karma is too low to hang out in the cool, totally holy 5-Karma Zone.
But of course, if "10 Fingers, One Hand" loses karma, he gets tossed through the shitty Sex Karma gate, and can only come back once he has a full 5 again.
The Ancients seem ultra judgemental and the Karma Gates being Like That is how I came to this conclusion.
You're totally right about the map tho, that shit hurt my brain.
Well said. Imagine being thrown out the sex gate...
This is why I usually just
Forget the in game map exists unless I'm checking if that's a real pole or a Pole Plant, the game is honestly better off without it
I've found the best way to use the map is to find your destination (for me, a karma gate or the nearest den,) and work my way back to where I'm at instead. The map is still finicky, but I've found that works better than nothing.
"12 Empty Glasses, Prolonged Headaches, you do not have the required karma to pass this gate. Please leave."
"B-but, my wife and children are on the other side."
"And that's why you don't have the proper Karma. Leave."
@@petalwhispersI just throw a rock at it. Usually works
Fun fact, and someone else has probably said this already, I do believe you _can_ actually know when you've died for real. If it's only one death sound (or gong) when the lizard grabs you, then you can wait and hope some other predator comes along to fight them off you. It's only once that death sound is played again a second time that you're actually really dead.
or you can look at slugcat's eyes
when slugcat face is x_x , you're dead for good.
Another tip, if the "game over" text displays IMMEDIATELY after being grabbed, youre DEAD dead, but if it takes a second, youre still alive! its a bit tricky to notice at first, but once you play the game enough, you'll get used to it :]
In the bottom right it will display the Slugcat in red when they have died.
Funny story, the first time this happened to me I thought the lizard saved me from the other one.
This lizard then proceeded to kill me.
I honestly like the difficulty, it feels good to be able to react quickly to danger and eliminate/dodge threats. After 260+ hours I can say, the more you play the more fun and rewarding it gets.
one piece fan mentality "it gets good around episode 400"
@@h.f6364one piece gets good around ep 1 lmfao
@@h.f6364I haven’t watched it in a while but yeah that’s accurate
This game has the single greatest blind experience in gaming. Finding the beautiful moment with moon, then finding the extremely intimidating and scary exterior, discovering you're inside an incomprehensibly large supercomputer. And the moment random gods started playing and I heard the moondown motif, I got full body chills. After that it's reveal after reveal, leading up to the moment of realization that there are potentially thousands of these computers, and they are the cause of the rain.
bro didnt even put in a spoiler warning
@cynic7581 My dude, the video contains spoilers. After reading the first two sentences, which don't spoil anything, I would imagine someone would understand that I'm explicitly explaining the blind experience.
I would like you to know that while scrolling I caught a glimpse of "you're inside a super computer" and I have refunded the game because of this huge spoiler you have exposed me to, thoughts?
@@alexduck8165 Knowing that you're in the skeleton of a supercomputer is a pretty small spoiler to base a refund off of
Why don’t spoilers ruin games or movies for me I can know the lore and story inside and out and still get excited to experience it myself I’ve known about rain world for 3 years the lore the story etc and yet still I just started playing it a couple days ago it’s still amazing af
I think that the world looks strange because it isn’t meant to be a place that people live, it’s the facility grounds of moon and pebbles. The only places I can think of that people would regularly go is outer expanse and subterranean. Looking at outer expanse, you can see how it might have been inhabited before it became ruins, and the train system in subterranean would bypass the need to use the pipes at all. The pipes in the other regions are specifically for the creatures. Same with the shelters
14:59 my take on the reason for the areas looking like the ancients couldnt move in them and looking like a ”jungle gym” is that none of the areas are really places where ancients where supposed to be. Every area (but shaded citadel is just a farm, a factory, five pebbles chimneys, pipes, drill sites and so on. everything in the world according to lore is automated by purposed organisms and the whole iterator structure is a man made mountain housing everything to keep the iterators operating
Map is in layers becouse game wants you to feel like it expands on Z,X,Y axis or simply, to give it a 3D area feeling
For example Pipeyard is behind the industrial complex and some other areas etc
Which explains why the General map of all regions have weird long karma gate tunnels
Now play downpour
Then (when it comes out) play the watcher
@@Oak_Eggar I NEEEEEEED ITT!!
@@Oak_EggarI already wanna play the watcher
the world doesnt feel like a civilization used to travel through it because it is merely an automated industrial facility. the whole playable in game map of rain world is the so called facility grounds of five pebbles, of which the point was, to not have to travel through there. lore texts in the game state that having to venture down from the city to the surface was a death sentence to any maintenance crews (thats why the shelters/bunkers have been put into place). so it is more like "im crawling through the insides of a factory not meant for personal and im gonna burn myself os teaming hot pipes because why the fuck would anyone go here anyway and no im not permitted to trespass" instead of "aaahhh so the old buddhist monks used to go on walks here 3000 thousand years ago ?"
If I may defend Karma Gates for a moment, I see them as "difficulty checks". A gate that has a high karma requirement to go through is basically warning you that the next area is VERY hard and you need to be X good at surviving in general before it'll even let you THINK about passing, which I think is a pretty smart way to communicate to the player if they figure it out, or at least a way to lock them out of an area they're certainly not ready for, yet.
If I were to say this game had a genuine flaw, I would point to the fucking camera.
In rooms that are only as big as the screen, I get it. But in bigger rooms, the camera DOES NOT FOLLOW you, so in those long or tall rooms you actually have to approach the edge of the screen before it transitions over to the next screen. And with an ecosystem like Rain World it often leads to shit like a lizard just on the other side of the screen snapping you up. That, to me, is more bullshit than the lizard being there in the first place, that you were arbitrarily prevented from seeing it by a camera that should NOT have been working like that.
Thankfully there is a camera scroll mod available on the steam workshop and I highly recommend it as a must-have mod for all players.
The Offscreen Indicators mod is also good for this if you still want to experience the game mostly as the developers intended without changing the gameplay too much.
It works with camera scroll too, which makes it extra good.
yeah that's always how I thought it was supposed to be. Like when I'm in underhang and I'm literally crying from the difficulty, and then I see that it's 5 karma to get into 5p from underhang, that's info to me that maybe I should try going somewhere else.
The Karma farming was also the exact part that killed this game for me, but now that I know the monk doesn't have to reopen doors.... I might have to give it another shot.
There’s a settings that disables karma requirements turn it on
Tbh karma farming is a bit tedious for certain areas but the karma system is there to guide you overall. I mean you wouldn't want to go to one of the most frustrating areas as your second region right? Das why certain gates have higher karma, Higher karma means harder areas. Learned that the hard way as I accidentally spent 3 hours in one of the most UNFAIR I HATE THAT AREA AHHHHHH
@@fora1924shaded citadel?
@@plantplayer303 Unfortunate development
@@plantplayer303 Shaded Citadel might not be the hardest area if you're prepared for it, but Coalescapedes can screw right off. They're not the most dangerous creatures, but boy they're some of the most viscerally terrifying.
I love this game, wish I could play it for the first time again. The fact it was created by one programmer and one producer from a little tech demo is pretty remarkable. Even after pouring 400+ hours into the game and getting into modding it myself the AI still surprises me and feels alive.
oh look, its that one modding guy
i've always really liked the speculative biology aspect of it
like you can kind of infer what each creature was used for before the ancients mass ascended and left them to evolve on their own
Wait, did the Ancients make the creatures (or at least whatever the creatures evolved from)? Interesting! (haven't played the game btw)
@@catbatrat1760 The majority of the life in the current world according to the base game's lore are descendants of purposed organisms bioengineered for a plethora of different functions and uses. A large amount have also outgrown their purpose and look more natural superficially through generations of evolution. Primal wildlife already was extremely rare by the time of the construction of the oldest iterator we interact with, there is likely very few or none at all remaining
SLIVER OF STRAW GOING UP THE CLOUD STAIRS KILLED ME HELLO THATS SO FUNNY FOR NI REASON
this dude is genuinely funny, he deserves so much more subscribers
*many more
At about 100 hours of playing I acquired prey vision, I can now pick out white lizards camouflaged on the background and dropwigs with an ambush set up
I like the karma system because it gives you a reason to live. You wouldn't care when you die if all you lost was some distance traveled.
I’m still fascinated with the lighting system. My favorite part of this game is genuinely the lighting
i absolutely LOVE rainworld, i like it for its beauty and how well it displays the melancholy of a dying world. some moments could make me gasp out loud or almost cry. (saints ending psst) the gameplay is so fun to me, and i love how every little thing ties into the theme of the overall story, yet how that story is never truly revealed in a first playthrough (why would a slugcat know about the troubles of an ancient civilisation, long extinct?) but when you do get those little pieces it opens up so much, and makes me even more immersed in the world. ive completed all of the campaigns, yet i still want to go back and explore further
technically rivulet also gets snowy environment (after giving moon the rarefraction cell) with Bitter Aerie.
The Karma gate system is brilliant, unfortunately players tend to do the least interesting and most frustrating thing (grinding), rather than interacting with the system as the developers intended.
The map is massive, and there is nothing (except grinding and sometimes really tricky platforming) to prevent you from going in a bad direction and getting completely lost. The Karma gates were meant to funnel players in the smoothest direction. In other words, the route to the first major destination, which includes traversing 4 major areas of the world, has the lowest karma requirement at each gate (karma 1/2). If you ever try to divert yourself from this route, then you will have to grind, because the karma gates are obtusely hard to get through as a way of saying "hey idiot if you go through this gate you better be ready for this". Unfortunately this type of friction doesn't seem to stop players from doing it, and then assuming that this is just how ALL the karma gates are.
i dont know, i would let the player take their own risks. it makes sense to have some 'gatekeeper' mechanic to reduce frustration, but directing the player into one direction in a game with open sandbox environment seems kinda redundant. you cant demand from players to take this or that method of playing, most people will inevitably pick the fastest way which, in this case, is boring grinding.
@@seushimarejikaze1337 the game does let players take their own risks? They don’t stop you from going anywhere. They just nudge you in the direction of least frustration and grinding and help you find your way in a world that’s easy to get lost in. This is like arguing that the ability to grind for souls is bad design in dark souls when you don’t need to grind for souls. Of course you can choose to play however you want but taking the intended route won’t lead to as much frustration. Also if the gates are a part of the game that frustrates people there is a setting to disable the requirements or heck just play the game with monk.
@@theta4951 no reason to get defensive suddenly.
@@seushimarejikaze1337 not trying to be defensive just trying to defend my perspective, same as you. Apologies if it came across as anything other than just debating my side.
@@seushimarejikaze1337 Also, rereading my original comment from the start of the thread, I don't actually agree with some of what I said because I don't even think max karma gates require grinding. You only need to sleep, at worst, 4 times, and with most slugcats, getting enough food to sleep takes 2-3 minutes max. So you're looking at about 10 minutes to be able to enter a gate. I said grinding, but when I think of grinding, I think of like MMOs where you have to spend hours doing the same actions over and over. You can't eat the same food repeatedly in rain world so you have to explore and do different things after each rest, so it really doesn't even count as grinding.
Also I know plenty of people who have played the game, and ignored the directions, and taken the hardest paths and had a great time, so I don't really see too many flaws even if you go the "wrong" way.
But I still respect that the game is tough, and not for everyone. I just disagree with the idea that the game requires grinding.
incredible to see to this day somebody can still find the beauty of the game's original design and is able to appreciate both the DLC and the main game as different things
2:37 Speaking of AI, I wish there was something like a parody of National Geographic but with the Creatures of Rainworld
Great video! Funny how you mention Getting Over It at 1:46, because Bennett Foddy actually recommends Rain World in the credits at the end of Getting Over It, I didn't realize this until I revisited it after playing Rain World myself
The intro Easter egg is wild 0:12
Your pre-game worldbuilding summary had me howling
I fully understand why you don't like the karma system because sometimes grinding to raise it can be really frustrating (especially in some of the DLC campaigns), but something I really like about it is how it basically forces you to become part of the ecosystem in a certain area. You learn where all the edible plants grow, where the territories of specific predators are, where batflies tend to gather, good hiding spots, etc, and after a few cycles it really made me feel like I had developed a deeper connection/understanding to the other creatures in this world. Fits very well with the themes of gaining enlightenment and ultimately surpassing the earthly world.
Tbh you deserve like 75k subs AT LEAST (you made two of my all time favorite videos in a row now)!
Rain World shouldn't have a perfect map system. Why would a slugcat have a magic 1:1 easy to read map of everywhere they've ever been on speed dial whenever they want it? You're a creature too, recalling where you've been by closing your eyes and jumbling through the maze of tunnels you've pushed your way through. It's annoying, sure, but think about trying to map out every place you've been before. The slugcat is talented at this, it's their biological job to know the inner workings of pipes and networks, but they're not mini GPS systems.
well put. you can even see the slugcat close its eyes, trying to remember where it's been
Makes sense, I like the game, and I have learnt to sort of deal with it but as a game designer, this is not new player friendly.
The karma system punishes dying and rewards living, you can also get a passage to regain all karma or teleport away. You could also meet an echo to increase your max karma
my only critic about rain world is the order in which you unlock the slugcats, which is completely out of chronological order, this may make the lore very confusing for people playing without help, the lore starts in spearmaster and ends in saint, but the spearmaster is one of the last slugcats you unlock, i believe they made it like this so you would unlock the campaings in the order of difficulty but honestly i rather have a lot of difficulty than a confusing out of order lore, and the game doesnt even point ou what could be the correct order, you can only find that out by actually playing the campaing and comparing how destroyed the world is to the rest or, like me, looking it up to play in the correct order which may be very incovenient for other new players
Even unlocking slugcats based on the order of difficulty is weird becauses ometimes the difficulty is just off? Look me in the eyes and tell me artificer is easier than rivulet
I just assumed you unlock it in the order of importance to the overarching lore of the world? Gourmand and Artificer do provide some world-building but nothing significant happens during the time of their stories that affects the world. Rivulet and Spearmaster are witness to bigger things happening , that are points in time just before a new era begins. Rivulet also has a hand in bringing about the era.
And you only need to complete either Gourmand or Artificer to unlock the next two slugcats. But you need to complete both Rivulet and Spearmaster to access Saint, which also adds to the feeling of their stories being more significant.
I loved the video, excellent editing, content and good references. Congratulations!!
I think you forgot to talk about the very complex movement system that the character has, there is a Google document with more than 80 pages talking about the mechanics, which for me personally was one of the best things about the game, learning the movement of your character (which is basically the only "upgrade" you can literally get in the game, besides knowledge of the environment),
Hey! I'm a simple guy, I love Rain World and thus I love your analysis. I agree that karma farming is a bit tedious, but I still wouldn't want it out of my game because I think it offers a bit of a change of pace. In somewhat of a forceful manner. But still-
A small note on 11:45, the heavy rain from the first iterators allowed the Ancients to build the next ones *further* apart, not closer together; Moon and Pebbles' constructions predate the point where water was available everywhere. In fact, Moon is one of the oldest iterators, who was built nearby a massive body of water, that the Ancients later decided to risk finding out if it was in fact big enough to support two iterators at once (the second one being Pebbles), something that had been considered bad practice until then (one body of water, one iterator). This would no longer be a problem after Pebbles because you could just stick an iterator wherever and expect there to be thanks to the now ubiquitous rain.
I can't appreciate enough that you would travel to the beach on that one "My House" Doom map to record some of these video cuts :)
Also! There's not much about the corridor tubes connecting the areas, but somewhere it's stated that the slugcats are descendants of a "purposed creature" that was designed to crawl into the iterators vents and do some maintenance (this is why we can fit into those tight vents). Since the proto-slugcats aren't the only mentioned purposed creatures (most notably, lizards being descendants of a different one, with he goal of doing population control of the other purposed creatures iirc), I think these "tubes" were explicitly built to allow purposed creatures to travel to and from, after the Ancients had already moved out, and not for Ancient use. And I think the jungle gyms are just the remnants of the foundations of long-lost buildings; at least to me they look like that, like the rebars used as a building's skeleton before adding the cement.
I played Rainworld in the summer of 2017. Back then I had to borrow my ex's PC to play (so it took me all summer), but my fascination was such that my personal crusade was to recommend Rainworld to every living being.
I'm glad my mission is no longer necessary, so I can rest.
If this guy covers Celeste and CrossCode he'll already have my 4 favorite games of all time in video format
3:05 it is actually pretty enteresting this part, when ur ACTUALLY DEAD is when ur out screen or when the eyes of ur slugcat are an X X
When the are > < ur incapacitaded, and still have a chance. It is so enteresting.
One thing I'd like to add is that some may call it a rage game, I say that's unfair because it's so much more than that. It's so many emotions brought together to create an organic experience. You may experience relief at finding food or a shelter after a long and arduous journey without either. You may experience laughter as you watch a lizard trip over itself and fall to its death. You may experience sadness as you learn the story between 5P and LTTM. It feels like you are experiencing the factors of life itself as you push through the cruelty of the world. It is so much more than a game that makes you frustrated.
I have to ask why I'd want to experience the cruelty of the world if we already experience it every day
@@daveraschke then don't.
@@daveraschke some people don't have lives.
the best way I ever read to describe rainworld was: "closest you will ever get to stone age human experiance without ditching clothes and running into woods"
3:52 I like how you casualy inserted almost biggest wow moment for everone who player downpour
7:30 yeah the map is bad
9:00 karma gates are basicaly area skill check, if you cannot progress, you should learn more (I still hate many of them, and I had to play Hunter three times because of them)
15:25 Fandom was abonded few years ago, (and is regulary griefed), mirahaze is the real wiki
17:00 my most valued moment with the game is end of the Spearmaster (when the camera slowly moves upward)
I love rain world so much that I literally have like over 90 hours on rain world
Only 90? I got like 400
Try 600
900 hours here to help continue the thread lmao
270 only, I couldn't get into the game further after completing everything except hunter and arti
What is wrong with you people lmao
Skill issue
unfortunately true
creative. really,
YESSSS FIANLLYWBN
Yeeeee
Creeeeee
ASHFJSOSDISBSKAPEEEEEE
7:12 my honest reaction to being stuck in silent construct for like 2 and a half hours because I could not find the exit to go to undergrowth
8:19 is, I'm sorry, the BIGGEST SKILL ISSUE I have EVER seen
1:46 this is the most accurate description for rain world that I’ve ever heard
I can't take you seriously with that haircut
amazing how i'd seen a documentary about peter before, that made it even better.
0:08 btw
5:34 "If you`re frustrated with the game for unfair, that`s not the game`s fault, that`s your`s for misunderstanding what it is." My dude needs to play some Noita.. Seriously, you probably should, it's a living world too, but 50% of the deaths will probably be caused by enemies fighting each other, and you just happened to be there at the wrong time and place. I think you`d like it.
14:50 The real reason why the entire map is connected only by pipes is revealed in the Rainfall DLC, if I'm not mistaken. Slugcats were created specifically to clean drainage pipes by the ancients, after which they multiplied during the great extinction and became another part of the ecosystem. I believe that all other passages were simply blocked somehow.
bro this video is wild, great work as always
"Overcome it's hardships" with a Rain Deer on screen is such a damn mood, the only AI that isnt out to kill you and is suppose to help AND IT'S A PAIN!!
I love Rain World so much, please make a video about the DLC's [esp the next one coming] ♥♥
Great video man! amazing edits and loving the greenscreens:) keep it up!
My favorite part of rainworld was going to the top of the wall when I played artificer, jumping above the structure.
I just sat, watched the sun set over the sea of clouds, and the stars cover the sky, while in the distance, the iterators structure had storms surrounding them, coloring the clouds with green lightning.
I even fell asleep, waking up to that beautiful sight. It was truly worth it.
7:45 this did NOT age well😂😅
Looking for that comment.
the map is something you can learn to use eventually, the main problem is not knowing where to go 70% of the time, leading to a 7h exploration only for you to cross a gate and save at a terminal shelter because the next area is only accesible to another character, then since the part is extremely high in difficulty you end up stuck for 20h or just quit because the zone is also designed to be one directional, making the return dumbly hard.
i love this game, but yeah that problem fucked up my experience with it.
Can you make a video on Garfield kart
full uncut playthrough where?
please I want to see his first reactions to the game so bad
The reason I love Rain World is because it teaches you patience. I'm a person that always feels like they're in a rush, fighting against time, and hurries to finish everything they have planned for the day. This game is...therapeutic in a way for me. It has taught me to be more patient for myself and to not rush things. It's one of those games where I've accepted that I'll finish it when the game is ready for me to, and to enjoy the journey that it provides, not the destination.
that beach view you use as background devious (i truly do hope you're doing it on purpose as a joke)
4:30
A MF DOOM reference is peak
Bro this isn’t a mf room reference
@@oddoneslydid you watch for 10 seconds?
"Yes they're all named like middle school furries" *erratic pulse is listening*
4:35 i always assumed its pavlov's dog so like mask = run
The “jungle gym” part of rain world has sense to it. With all the ancients dead, no one could repair or fix the regions, letting them become broken. The heavy rain also probably has caused some of the damage. If you look at industrial, some of the poles you climb up resemble ladders. Chimney canopy is a broken bridge. Subterranean has broken and split up trains. Each region had a purpose for the ancients.
underrated thats all im gonna say
now make a full video about funger 1 and 2
This is human simulator, you don't have big teeth, giant power, but you have intellect, with it you can kill every enemy, learn, explore, and, LOOK, this is what rain world want you to do, you can die 100 times, but if you die 100 times spying on lizards, swimming near jellyfishes, you won't die 100 times anymore, all you need to do in this game is learn
I wonder if he has played Outer Wilds. If he hasn’t, I’d be surprised.
Rainworld scratches like… every niche in gaming that I love and it will always be one of my favorites lol
10/10 vid of 2024 ❤🔥❤🔥❤🔥
I know you didn't just sneak in the MyHouse doom mod background at 2:54 and expect us not to notice, you're actually awesome man
Too bad this game, for how great it’s positives are, get overshadowed by its difficulty. I really wish this game was more popular, especially since downpour is actually one of the best dlcs I’ve seen in gaming
Everything itterator related is just fantastic, I remember my first time reaching the top of Five pebbles and seeing above the clouds for the first time...
Its just incredible,
and when I first realised that shaded citadel is dark because its below five pebbles, WOW, that was such an awesome realisation.
Try Starsector.
STARSECTOR MENTIONED 💯🔥🔥🔥🗣🗣🗣
The “you can fucking L cancel is this melee” sent me to the shadow realm and back 💀
Rain World is one of the best yet funniest games I've ever seen
0:03 absolutely love the peta logo fading in the background.
8:18 - 8:55 skill issue, the only time its applicable to complain about karma is when playing inv/enot, otherwise you just aren't good Lel
I wouldn’t compare it to rain world very much, but this game’s background art is somewhere in between Machinarium and Portal 2. It’s the bleakness and coldness of portal 2 mixed with the bizarre mechanical and cloudy yet also warm and beautiful structures and environments
You look a little short
OMGGG
IT HAPPENED
And of course you were told to play RainWorld, so many people (even though it's wrong) compare it with Hollow Knight. It was bound to happen, my dude.
But still
Well done
P.S. The Movement Guide is 151 PAGES long. Not 92. Just sayin' ;)
P.P.S. CHALLENGE 70 IS NOT CANON!!!
P.P.P.S. Now, a video idea would be either looking at the DLC or Mods.
Hes so fine no one can convince me otherwise
the lizard tube strat is absolutely amazing, a life saver
That was a very upsetting and unnecessary intro, and I wish you would have just not done that. It gave an awful first impression of you, too.
13:40 nah dood statistically impossibilities are completely normal. The CDC said so
Many of Rain World's design flaws are "inexcusable" when the same mechanics could be expressed in ways more fair to the player without detracting from the game's themes
examples please
The karma gates are built so that you have to succeed in the previous area to move on to the next area, You basically have to prove your skill and ability survival to move on to another harder area. If you want to get out of that hard area after going in, It's typically takes less Karma to get out than it does to get in.
My favorite game of all time and it’s hard to recommend because of the difficulty. I love it because of it too but most people can’t take frustration or things that aren’t spoon fed…
This should be right up my alley, but every time a lizard snatches me up when travelling through a pipe, I just feel drained. There's nothing I can do to prevent this, as I'm locked in. And I just died 3 times in a row like this in different pipes, stuck on lowest karma in industrial complex. Traversal is fun, but it just doesn't click with me.
Thrash a rock? At the lizards