#Martha Is Dead

[altar-ov-plagues]

Martha is Dead.

[devinaparvis]

[fandomsideworks]

[highlifeboat]

Giulia or Martha or both

[bunnyscentd]

The holy trinity of insane girlies in gaming 🤭

[imustbesogay]

Martha is dead

[inmh01]

It really is impressive how people will just... Tell on themselves when they’re trying to criticize something. You hear their critiques and you just instantly know they’re either lying or misrepresenting something.

I played Martha is Dead for the first time. And one of the criticisms I was consistently hearing was “oh so she’s ~magically healed~ by the end of the game after a few days in an asylum, how ableist! That’s not how mental illness works!”

And now having finished the game myself, I am impressed at how many people got it objectively wrong and I’m torn between whether this is a malicious misrepresentation of a game they didn’t like, or people just not paying attention.

One: Because if you actually pay attention to Giulia’s narration at the end of the game- or the CONSTANT references to the current date(s) during the game- you would have noticed that it’s been AT LEAST a year since Giulia was committed to the asylum. The game takes place in July 1944, and she says in the end narration that the war has long-since ended (WWII in Europe officially ended in early May of 1945). Realistically, it’s probably been closer to a year and a half minimum if the war ended “some time ago”.

Two: Giulia does not say that she is healed.

She says that she is doing better.

The implication of what she’s saying is that she has come to terms with the deaths of everyone who died during the game. She is coping with her emotions and mental health better than she was before. She is feeling optimistic for the first time that there is a life for her out in the world, whereas before she thought there was nothing but darkness. She feels lucky to have survived now, which is obviously a big turn around from the last scene before this one.

That does not mean she won’t have problems in the future. It doesn’t mean she isn’t going to have bad days or spells, it doesn’t mean she won’t ever have to go to the asylum again. Especially considering the state of mental health treatment in the 1940s, more likely than not she’ll be struggling for the rest of her life.

Absolutely at no point does Giulia say, or even imply, that she is cured and suffers no more problems. Only that she is doing better.

When I say that fandom is a place where critical thought goes to die, this is  the kind of shit I’m talking about. If you bothered to pay attention and think critically for five seconds you would realize that Giulia’s condition has improved after spending a significant amount of time in the asylum and that she is now prepared to face life again.

Neither she nor the game ever implies that her mental health is now perfect after a weekend in an asylum. If that is what you’re telling other people about this game, that is a misrepresentation because Giulia never says that, and the game does not imply it either.

You are seeing a character’s mental health taking a turn for the better and drawing the conclusion “oh so now she’s magically cured”. That’s on you, not the game.

[bidonica]

Martha is Dead

[konekoryuugamine]

This past year has been strong for horror games; we've seen successful remakes, inventive ideas, and reimaginings of series that have long been abandoned by studios. While it would be cool to take a massive look at every piece of the medium, sometimes it's best to look at the smaller successes and build them up.

Read along as we discuss 15 indie horror titles that will scare you senseless and show you don't need a big name to break new ground.

[asepticvoid]

Check out my music on Spotify:

👁️  https://open.spotify.com/artist/4iakuZQuJ6IrGCm8u3JvZ7?si=ICEb72HpTvewJ00fva3odg

More tracks are coming.

[frostedlemonwriter]

Martha Is Dead is one of the most well-written and utterly disturbing video games I've ever played. I prefer my horror to be creepy and atmospheric without relying on cheap ass jumpscares.

[fandomsideworks]

[highlifeboat]

oh you like martha is dead!!! whats your take on the drama surrounding it, what with it being labeled "exploitive" and reviewbombed for its subject matter?

I actually just played it for the first time today, all at once, and also just found out about all the stuff surrounding it today, all at once, so I'm not overly well versed in it.

From what I understand there is a huge thing around Martha is Dead exploiting DID and/or schizophrenia for "shock factor", because Giulia kills her mother and the whole thing is set up as her just... being crazy, I guess. However, I am not a person who is well versed enough in DID or Schizophrenia to feel like I have a say in that.

Personally, I thought the game was really good. I didn't find the gore excessive, I think the fact that you can skip over scenes like that is great, the fact it isn't a jumpscare fest is nice. I think that it's decent psychological horror, presented through the memories of an unreliable narrator.

It definitely could have been better story wise, I feel like there are some things I still don't fully get. Which I don't think was an intentional thing. (That last chapter kinda felt like everything was happening at once, and I still don't really understand the pregnancy thing). I guess a good chunk of stuff is supposed to be metaphors I just didn't get in the moment.

In terms of review bombing... I dunno. I don't think review bombing anything is really fair. Honestly a lot of the reviews I see are just "Story is boring"/"Game keeps glitching/crashing" which I didn't experience anything of. Besides the bike. Holy shit that bike handles like trying to cut cheese with the back end of a spoon. (Also I got stuck in the lake once by accident)

I'm not gonna say that anybody is wrong for claiming the game is exploitative.

I will say, if nothing else, the game at least doesn't glorify and/or romanticize any of the topics. And it doesn't make anything seem fun or easy (which is another thing I see people saying, that I don't get). It's just... a lot of really fucked up situations.

[rl800]

SOMEONE TELL ME WHO THE GRIM REAPER VOICE ACTOR IS?!?!

[imperotenebre]

Martha is Dead PS5 gameplay 4K - prime impressioni

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