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AG Community Playthrough #34: The Cat Lady
So, to everyone who finished chapter 2, what choices did you made?
Did you agree with the Queen of Maggots?
What did you chose as Susan’s parent background history? I will probably post the screens for every possible scenario in the following days. Some of them are gruesome, but always beautiful.
Did you remember everything Liz told you the day before?
Did you killed the good Dr X, or you simply chose to leave through the exit?
And if you killed him, what weapon did you use the mace or the spear?
1. Nope
2. Father died in car accident, mother abandoned me
3. I didn’t trust Liz so didn’t tell her anything or listen to her stories
4. Had no choice due to my answer to 3., however would have preferred not to due to answer to 1.!
5. Mace
You’re absolutely right!;) She only tells you about it if you describe what you experienced in the first chapter (which a lot of people might choose not to, since we’ve just been warned that the Parasites might pretend to be friendly, so it’s perhaps safer to keep some facts to ourselves).
Yeah, this is exactly how I felt. Bit disappointed that I didn’t get the option to not kill Dr. X because of this, seem counter-intuitive to me.
1. Nope
3. I didn’t trust Liz so didn’t tell her anything or listen to her stories
4. Had no choice due to my answer to 3., however would have preferred not to due to answer to 1.!
Yeah, this is exactly how I felt. Bit disappointed that I didn’t get the option to not kill Dr. X because of this, seem counter-intuitive to me.
Wait a minute.
You didn’t trust the Queen of Maggots, yet you took heed of her advice that the parasites were coming in any way which led you not to trust Liz?
Shouldn’t you have done the exact opposite instead?
Doesn’t make sense… 
Wait a minute.
You didn’t trust the Queen of Maggots, yet you took heed of her advice that the parasites were coming in any way which led you not to trust Liz?
Shouldn’t you have done the exact opposite instead?Doesn’t make sense…
I didn’t trust the Queen of Maggots in terms of Susan being responsible for killing the parasites. Hoped there might be another way.
I also initially thought that Liz maybe looked a bit like the Queen, so was cautious.
The character of Liz was actually inspired by a story I heard from a friend.
He rents this top floor apartment in London. He also knows this japanese girl who’s one of those people who can see ghosts, or maybe are just sensitive to this sort of thing. Anyway, she acted really weird the first time she came to visit him. And just before she left she apologized and explained to him what was wrong. “There’s a man in a hood standing behind you” - she said. “And he says he’s got a message for you.” And the message was pretty much what Liz says to Susan on the rooftop: “The way down the balcony is so much quicker than the lift.”
I love ghost stories and thought this was a good one;) (though I don’t understand how he could stay in that place knowing that he shared it with a ghost… But I guess most people are rather sceptical of this sort of thing).
The character of Liz was actually inspired by a story I heard from a friend.
She was alive during our first conversations, though, right? Just killed off the night she appeared to us and lead us to the roof, which I believe is a dream sequence where Susan can’t tell the difference between the dream and the real world (it makes no sense for that ward not to have any nurses or security guards at night - on the other hand, the line between reality and dreams/visions gets blurred often in this game, like with the spider heart for instance, so it could still be real).
The truth can’t hurt you, it’s just like the dark: it scares you witless but in time you see things clear and stark. - Elvis Costello
Maybe this time I can be strong, but since I know who I am, I’m probably wrong. Maybe this time I can go far, but thinking about where I’ve been ain’t helping me start. - Michael Kiwanuka
The character of Liz was actually inspired by a story I heard from a friend.
She was alive during our first conversations, though, right? Just killed off the night she appeared to us and lead us to the roof, which I believe is a dream sequence where Susan can’t tell the difference between the dream and the real world (it makes no sense for that ward not to have any nurses or security guards at night - on the other hand, the line between reality and dreams/visions gets blurred often in this game, like with the spider heart for instance, so it could still be real).
You never see other characters talk to her (though she talks to a doctor and never gets a reply). She’s dead from the start… Another victim of Doctor X. The jump was just a fantasy of an easy way out that she might have just dreamed up when tortured in the basement… At least, that’s how I imagined it. Since we never fully discover what happened, it can be interpreted in different ways.
The character of Liz was actually inspired by a story I heard from a friend.
She was alive during our first conversations, though, right? Just killed off the night she appeared to us and lead us to the roof, which I believe is a dream sequence where Susan can’t tell the difference between the dream and the real world (it makes no sense for that ward not to have any nurses or security guards at night - on the other hand, the line between reality and dreams/visions gets blurred often in this game, like with the spider heart for instance, so it could still be real).
I believe the answer to that is no. If you examine Liz’s body in Dr’X s dungeon, Susan sais that it’s been much longer since her body was down there. That means that Liz was trying as a “guardian” or a “spiritul savior” or simplier a ghost, to warn Susan.
Or could have been simply a trick from the Queen of Maggots? 
I prefer the last question left unanswered until the very end of this playthrough….
You never see other characters talk to her (though she talks to a doctor and never gets a reply). She’s dead from the start… Another victim of Doctor X. The jump was just a fantasy of an easy way out that she might have just dreamed up when tortured in the basement… At least, that’s how I imagined it. Since we never fully discover what happened, it can be interpreted in different ways.
My own interpretation is a bit different: [spoiler]We know that she had been offered free sessions with Dr. X, which she most likely accepted. So I figured that he had been messing with her brain, and tried to manipulate her into committing suicide. I know that is not how she actually died, though it would have been cool (perhaps cool isn’t the best word) if she was actually replaying her own death, and that was actually also how I initially thought of her jump. I suspected that she was dead the whole time as soon as she started to help us get away from the ward, so she could have died by jumping from the hospital roof.[/spoiler]
[spoiler]Regardless of how she actually did die, I still believe that manipulating someone in this way would be something that Dr. X took great pleasure in, and the other way he killed her could have been plan B. Or perhaps more likely, only killing women that are suicidal could be his modus operandi, so he needed to make her suicidal before he could kill her.[/spoiler]
... on the other hand, the line between reality and dreams/visions gets blurred often in this game, like with the spider heart for instance, so it could still be real).[/spoiler]
Indeed, personally I don’t think that the heart should be taken literally, it is the way that Susan sees it in her drug haze, but not necessarily how she got the drugs in the real world. But I believe there will be plenty of opportunity to discuss the line between dreams/visions and reality later in this game.
You have to play the game, to find out why you are playing the game! - eXistenZ
I’ve replayed the first two chapters and made a lot more strategic savegames this time around.
I specifically wanted to check the alternate childhood backgrounds, but also see some other effects of my choices.
The story I’m continuing with is still the same as before, with the small caveat that I ignored Liz again after the nightmare, so didn’t have the first answer, and didn’t get the option of the key. Not that I needed it anyway…
Replaying also drove home the point of how utterly brilliant the artwork and the music are, imo.
And I noticed in some credits that the creepy voice of Crow is done by none other than Rem Michalski himself! 
I eagerly await the green light for chapters 3 and 4. 
The truth can’t hurt you, it’s just like the dark: it scares you witless but in time you see things clear and stark. - Elvis Costello
Maybe this time I can be strong, but since I know who I am, I’m probably wrong. Maybe this time I can go far, but thinking about where I’ve been ain’t helping me start. - Michael Kiwanuka
Hey friends,
As planned, I came back from my vacation at the lake. I probably won’t be able to complete the first two chapters for tomorrow, but I’ll catch up during the week regardless.
I’m glad to see the game designer has decided to join the fun! 
I had a problem to start with on this game as I’d played it (or sections of) so many times before I realised I’d ran out of save slots to play in this CPT with no opportunity (as far as I could see) to overwrite previous one so will have to delete some to continue sincerely!
The 1st part I interpreted as a near death experience with the combination of Susan’s calmness/relief represented by the sunny sky /wheat fields & the very symbolic images such as crow, body bag, dead animal, hanging, ambulance, machinery, amputation etc all referring to feelings of failure, loss, not mattering any more etc becoming more significant as she comes to life for me also represented by the sound of a ticking clock & a heart beating in the shed?
No. I didn’t agree with the Queen of Maggots & chose for Susan to do things her way. But don’t know how much difference that makes? You see Susan on a crucifixion cross that possibly means resurrection & yes, Susan is granted immortality by the ‘witch’
No, you can’t avoid blowing out the candles but I interpreted that as just seeing an event rather than prompting it?
I was & still am over-awed by the artistry of the game + the voice-acting so far! Impressions of the next Chapter to follow shortly…...
Oh, and a bonus point for the little art discussion with Doctor X in the beginning of Chapter 2 taking on an entirely new meaning after the end of that chapter.
Replaying has its advantages.
No, you can’t avoid blowing out the candles but I interpreted that as just seeing an event rather than prompting it?
I interpreted that as actually prompting it, but most of the responsibility isn’t yours, because both cases we’ve seen so far were probably going to happen whether we blew out that candle or not.
Which could mean that somewhere out there, there are a whole lot more candles, and someone is blowing those out too. Nightmare fuel?
The truth can’t hurt you, it’s just like the dark: it scares you witless but in time you see things clear and stark. - Elvis Costello
Maybe this time I can be strong, but since I know who I am, I’m probably wrong. Maybe this time I can go far, but thinking about where I’ve been ain’t helping me start. - Michael Kiwanuka
In Chapter 2 it was no surprise to me that the wackiest person in a suicide watch unit was self-admitted! As much as I couldn’t get my head around Susan in a surreal state getting the other patient’s drugs in order to get her armband I conceded to the fact that it worked within the game somehow! [/spoiler]
For me the most fascinating person in this chapter, along with DR X, is also Liz [spoiler] If you got to the end of the chapter you know that she was already dead before all of the events that followed & although she tries to help you if she hadn’t intervened there is the indication that Dr X would have let you go & not killed you I On the other hand you would not have been made aware to the ‘leanings’ of Dr X & if it wasn’t for her you wouldn’t have come across Dr X’s real appreciation of art - you would have been next as he liked your green eyes & sleek cheekbones, also you wouldn’t have stopped him!
I did on this occasion answer all of Liz’s questions, got the key but chose to kill Dr X with the mace! – well, if I had to I’ve always liked medieval stuff!
EDIT, Sorry Sefir, I forgot to mention that on the subject of Dr X’s questions I answered that I was brought up without a father, he committed suicide & my mother was horrible! 
Here we are again, alive and well!!
Last time we made a suicide attempt, spent some time between dreams, nightmares and hospitals, sabotaged a toilet and learned a couple of things about art.
Time to move into chapters 3&4!!
Chapter 3 is named “River”. It is a small one, but it will put you in a unique for the game element (meaning you’ll only find it in this chapter) from the very beginning. It really adds to the atmosphere. It also needs lots of saves if you want to achieve the best result. It takes place in Susan’s appartment.
Chapter 4 is named “Bullet for Susan”. I prefer to call it “The maniac mansion chapter” where we will meet interesting and controversial characters while the story makes important steps forward. Much bigger chapter than the 3rd one.
You have until the 21st of July to finish them!!
Finally, here are some random pics from our journey until now….
The gates of Hell? It surely looked like it…
The Queen herself!! Cynical, all knowing and willing to help. I must say, I loved her. 
The parasites are coming….whether you like it or not.
The test of the soul. Choose a candle.
“A few drops of blood” she said!! “Just a scratch” she said!!
Great way to introduce the credits anyway…
I really loved the way of storytelling in the doctor’s office. Ingenious.
I liked his voice acting too. Seemed very professional-like and sympathetic about you with his advice and general attitude. It is nice for Susan to realize that there are indeed people out there ready to help her and her problems….
Shots from different childhoods….
The riddle of the Crow.
Death.
Really nice change of artistic depiction.
The choice.
Or should I better call it “the obvious choice”?
Sure, leave the poor girl to be tortured to a gruesome death!!
No, you can’t avoid blowing out the candles but I interpreted that as just seeing an event rather than prompting it?
I interpreted that as actually prompting it, but most of the responsibility isn’t yours, because both cases we’ve seen so far were probably going to happen whether we blew out that candle or not.
I also interpreted it as we are directly causing their dead, and that this is the price that Susan has to pay for her own immortality. Every time she dies someone else has to die, so that she can return to life.
The whole blow out the candle is kind of similar to when one of the Moirai cut your “thread of life” in Greek-Roman mythology, and come to think of it, the Queen of Maggots does remind me quite a bit of the Moirai or Norns in Nordic mythology. So the Queen of Maggots is more of a Fate thing than Death?
While we are on the subject, I also did notice that the guy that dies when we blow out the candle in chapter 2, died at 10:08 according to the clock behind him, and the clock in Susan’s hospital room was stuck at 10:08!
The clock in Ann’s room was stuck at 11:40, so I guess that means the next “candle-victim” will die at 11:40, or is there perhaps another meaning to this?
Edit:
While I have no personal experience of psychologists (My father was a psychiatrist but that’s another thing entirely) ...
Actually Dr. X is a psychiatrist and not psychologists.
Technically psychologists aren’t doctors, they can’t prescribe medicine and you would have psychiatrists and not psychologists working at the mental ward at a hospital.
You have to play the game, to find out why you are playing the game! - eXistenZ
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