This is a little long.. but I just have so much appreciation and love for this game to express.. and I doubt a huge amount of people will even see this and read all of it, so I might as well just write my heart out :)
also, this review has no spoilers! besides a few character names

Have you ever watched a play or musical? Have you ever wondered what it's like to be that character in a play? Imagine watching the stage lights dim, and hearing the minor actors and the stagehands move furniture to switch the scene. Having a spotlight beam onto the ground, indicating where you are supposed to stand on the stage. What if you mess up a line and the scene is ruined? What does the audience know that you don’t?

That’s what it feels to play Pathologic 2

This is, in my opinion, one of the best games ever made. God it's just... ridiculously good. this is like... 8-dimensional storytelling, different parts of the story are told on different layers, metaphorically, literally, on a theatrical level and on a meta level, and yet all of these parts come together to create a beautiful narrative


This is the type of story where every line, every design choice is meaningful and adds to the narrative in a unique way. This is so well done in this game because, in my experience, it’s very rewarding. There are many smaller elements of the story that are only told through little references or metaphors, and it makes paying attention and analyzing specific dialogue or certain design choices very worthwhile. When writers take you seriously, put meaning into each word, and want their audience to be able to discover new things about the story by just looking closely, to me that is one of the most important aspects of art.

However, not every hidden meaning or any implication is confirmed, many questions ARE answered by the end of Pathologic, but there are also still many things left up to interpretation, there are also many things with multiple answers, and it's up to the player and their understanding of the story to decipher what is true to them. It’s also quite exciting to talk to other fans and hear how their interpretations differ.


While most of the storytelling is told through text, the meaning within the visuals is also incredible. Of course there are lots of obvious story-telling methods that most artists use, like character design and color theory. Like Katerina's black and white dress reflecting her ideals and who she looks up to, or the fact that all of the outsiders of the town from the Capital are dressed distinctly differently from the other characters, just to name a few examples.
But something very unique about this game is its meaning in lighting. Pathologic uses lighting in a way that's a lot more similar to filmmaking or theater. From the shifts of hues in different areas to describe the vibe of the place or how clean it is, to the lighting on peoples' faces that help convey their character, the attention to the smallest of details is really fascinating. Also, the huge spotlights that help guide the player is both helpful, and is one of the best ways this game reminds you of its theatrical nature.

I will say, this game is not for everyone.
This game has bugs, and the NPC AI sucks, i'm sure there are other mechanical problems but those are the only two that stuck out to me.


I personally really don't like the tutorials at the beginning of the game. When you're first playing them for yourself they are quite confusing, and you never know when the game actually starts, and it's just a very rough start to an already hard to get into story.
In addition to mechanical difficulty and issues, the story is hard to get into, as brilliant as it is, it can only be an incredible experience for people who are willing to put in the time to understand it, it's not really a story that you can fully understand just passively.
If a complete story is a puzzle, most writers give you corner pieces to start out with, to build the border of the story and then move inward in a way that's meant to guide the viewer through the story. This game does not do that. Although that’s not to say that it just throws puzzle pieces at you randomly, the pieces it gives you are purposeful… but ultimately it's up to you to put them together.

This review has only been about its storytelling methods so far and not about the story itself, this is because I really wanna let this be spoiler-free. But god this story really is great..
The inspiration from Russian history, and the history of theater is really interesting and makes this something special!

An area this story really shines in is strong character motives. You can see how every character's background, relationships, position in society, and beliefs, all come into play with the way that they think and the actions they take.


A great theme that this game presents both narratively and through mechanics, is figuring out when to put your own needs before others. You have to make so many decisions, and before each you have to consider your needs and others' needs, it's up to you to consider your ability to survive versus another's ability. A good example of the mechanical side of this is that every medicine item is equally useful to you and those you care about, you constantly have to make the quick decision of how much you will sacrifice to give your loved ones a better chance at surviving the next day. You have to have an understanding of your own skill at the game, so that you can assess just how few resources you can survive off of.


The other themes of this game are just interesting.
This game is about how humanity is an ever evolving society, moving farther and farther away from the natural world and Earth, the influence that industrialization has on us. It is about colonization and the effect it has, both on a big, long-term scale, and on a smaller scale of individual identity and relationships.
This game is about the limits of science and human invention.
It’s about the resilience of individuals, society, and culture when faced with hardships.

So yeah.. this game has a lot of things going on.. but it never feels too complicated or like it's trying to accomplish too much. The story flows together so nicely and satisfyingly, the pace and balancing of story vs. gameplay is very well done. And this certainly isn’t the type of story that starts to fall off near the end, the story gets better and better as it goes on, I still vividly remember the palpable stress (and excitement!) in those last few days, and the endings are fantastic! i definitely got a little emotional at the end and cried

So, this was my Pathologic 2 review.
There is still so much I could say about this game, though, especially because I kept this spoiler-free and didn’t go into specifics, just in case anyone happens to read this who might be interested in the game. There's many more topics that I would love to talk about, like the significance of language and names and how they relate to their respective cultures, or the very unique way this game presents found family and parenthood (and especially motherhood and femininity) and god i didn’t even MENTION the unique significance of architecture and way buildings are treated like characters of their own who impact the story. I will for sure write more about this game just for my own enjoyment, but this might be the only thing I ever post publicly or show someone.


Anyway, if you for some reason DID read this crazy ramble, thank you a lot. This game is really a work of art, one that inspires me so much, and I had a lot of fun writing out my feelings :)

This is a little long.. but I just have so much appreciation and love for this game to express.. and I doubt a huge amount of people will even see this and read all of it, so I might as well just write my heart out :) also, this review has no spoilers! besides a few character names Have you ever watched a play or musical? Have you ever wondered what it's like to be that character in a play? Imagine watching the stage lights dim, and hearing the minor actors and the stagehands move furniture to switch the scene. Having a spotlight beam onto the ground, indicating where you are supposed to stand on the stage. What if you mess up a line and the scene is ruined? What does the audience know that you don’t? That’s what it feels to play Pathologic 2 This is, in my opinion, one of the best games ever made. God it's just... ridiculously good. this is like... 8-dimensional storytelling, different parts of the story are told on different layers, metaphorically, literally, on a theatrical level and on a meta level, and yet all of these parts come together to create a beautiful narrative This is the type of story where every line, every design choice is meaningful and adds to the narrative in a unique way. This is so well done in this game because, in my experience, it’s very rewarding. There are many smaller elements of the story that are only told through little references or metaphors, and it makes paying attention and analyzing specific dialogue or certain design choices very worthwhile. When writers take you seriously, put meaning into each word, and want their audience to be able to discover new things about the story by just looking closely, to me that is one of the most important aspects of art. However, not every hidden meaning or any implication is confirmed, many questions ARE answered by the end of Pathologic, but there are also still many things left up to interpretation, there are also many things with multiple answers, and it's up to the player and their understanding of the story to decipher what is true to them. It’s also quite exciting to talk to other fans and hear how their interpretations differ. While most of the storytelling is told through text, the meaning within the visuals is also incredible. Of course there are lots of obvious story-telling methods that most artists use, like character design and color theory. Like Katerina's black and white dress reflecting her ideals and who she looks up to, or the fact that all of the outsiders of the town from the Capital are dressed distinctly differently from the other characters, just to name a few examples. But something very unique about this game is its meaning in lighting. Pathologic uses lighting in a way that's a lot more similar to filmmaking or theater. From the shifts of hues in different areas to describe the vibe of the place or how clean it is, to the lighting on peoples' faces that help convey their character, the attention to the smallest of details is really fascinating. Also, the huge spotlights that help guide the player is both helpful, and is one of the best ways this game reminds you of its theatrical nature. I will say, this game is not for everyone. This game has bugs, and the NPC AI sucks, i'm sure there are other mechanical problems but those are the only two that stuck out to me. I personally really don't like the tutorials at the beginning of the game. When you're first playing them for yourself they are quite confusing, and you never know when the game actually starts, and it's just a very rough start to an already hard to get into story. In addition to mechanical difficulty and issues, the story is hard to get into, as brilliant as it is, it can only be an incredible experience for people who are willing to put in the time to understand it, it's not really a story that you can fully understand just passively. If a complete story is a puzzle, most writers give you corner pieces to start out with, to build the border of the story and then move inward in a way that's meant to guide the viewer through the story. This game does not do that. Although that’s not to say that it just throws puzzle pieces at you randomly, the pieces it gives you are purposeful… but ultimately it's up to you to put them together. This review has only been about its storytelling methods so far and not about the story itself, this is because I really wanna let this be spoiler-free. But god this story really is great.. The inspiration from Russian history, and the history of theater is really interesting and makes this something special! An area this story really shines in is strong character motives. You can see how every character's background, relationships, position in society, and beliefs, all come into play with the way that they think and the actions they take. A great theme that this game presents both narratively and through mechanics, is figuring out when to put your own needs before others. You have to make so many decisions, and before each you have to consider your needs and others' needs, it's up to you to consider your ability to survive versus another's ability. A good example of the mechanical side of this is that every medicine item is equally useful to you and those you care about, you constantly have to make the quick decision of how much you will sacrifice to give your loved ones a better chance at surviving the next day. You have to have an understanding of your own skill at the game, so that you can assess just how few resources you can survive off of. The other themes of this game are just interesting. This game is about how humanity is an ever evolving society, moving farther and farther away from the natural world and Earth, the influence that industrialization has on us. It is about colonization and the effect it has, both on a big, long-term scale, and on a smaller scale of individual identity and relationships. This game is about the limits of science and human invention. It’s about the resilience of individuals, society, and culture when faced with hardships. So yeah.. this game has a lot of things going on.. but it never feels too complicated or like it's trying to accomplish too much. The story flows together so nicely and satisfyingly, the pace and balancing of story vs. gameplay is very well done. And this certainly isn’t the type of story that starts to fall off near the end, the story gets better and better as it goes on, I still vividly remember the palpable stress (and excitement!) in those last few days, and the endings are fantastic! i definitely got a little emotional at the end and cried So, this was my Pathologic 2 review. There is still so much I could say about this game, though, especially because I kept this spoiler-free and didn’t go into specifics, just in case anyone happens to read this who might be interested in the game. There's many more topics that I would love to talk about, like the significance of language and names and how they relate to their respective cultures, or the very unique way this game presents found family and parenthood (and especially motherhood and femininity) and god i didn’t even MENTION the unique significance of architecture and way buildings are treated like characters of their own who impact the story. I will for sure write more about this game just for my own enjoyment, but this might be the only thing I ever post publicly or show someone. Anyway, if you for some reason DID read this crazy ramble, thank you a lot. This game is really a work of art, one that inspires me so much, and I had a lot of fun writing out my feelings :)