paleblood is explicitly the moon presence. there's a note in the lecture hall that says "The nameless moon presence beckoned by Laurence and his associates. Paleblood."

The "borne" in Bloodborne is an entirely different word from "born". It means "carried by" or "transmitted by" That is, the beast plague is transmitted via blood - the old blood. Basically the game spoils a massive twist in the title. But the two do work well together. "Borne" could be a double ententre, and the idea of something being a host of a disease is often paralelled with women being hosts of children, menstration, etc.

That ending note about plagarism and how we see derivative work was honestly such a great way to finish the video. Bloodborne really is an example of how to make something better than the sum of its parts (and wow, those are quite some parts) and I think that alone is worth celebrating.

Miyazaki explains his definition of Paleblood pretty explicitly in an interview - it's the way the sky looks after beating Rom and revealing the ritual.... the sky is pale blue, "like a corpse drained of blood". Thus "Seek Paleblood" = get the sky to turn light blue = reveal the mensis ritual. I know that the moon presence being Paleblood makes more sense in the context of the story, and that the sky is more purple than pale blue, but that's still what he said.

I haven’t finished the video, but a huge thing about the note at the beginning of the game is that the Japanese version says that it’s written by your character

I think the argument FOR the healing system is that you get punished for NOT using the rallying system. The stamina is so forgiving in this game because even in the midst of battle you should use the rallying mechanic, and not doing so will cost you. I got this from AesirAesthetics btw.

My interpretation of the true/hidden ending is that both Willem and Lawrence were wrong, it is neither through pure insight or holy blood that will lead man to a new childhood, but rather a special combination of both. If you consider the way the game is typically played, throughout the game you gain strength from blood (bloodechoes) and knowledge from insight. What do the One Third Umbilical Cords do? Give us large bursts of insight with each one used, as if our character has an epiphany with each use. Yet, to survive all the way to the Moon Presence, great strength is required through the use of the Blood. (level 1 runs not-withstanding)

God, every time I see a new upload from this channel I get genuinely excited to watch it. I absolutely LOVE your philisophical discussions and the lens through which you examine games like this. And of course when I saw that you made a video about Bloodborne, a game which I would consider to be one of if not THE greatest game currently in existence, I immediately clicked on it. If I had the financial stability to support you on patreon I 100% would, but since I can't do that at the moment I want to show some genuine appreciation by just letting you know how much these videos not only entertain, but also genuinely enlighten me. The way through which you examine games is unlike any I've personally seen on youtube before and provides such a fresh and interesting perspective on things otherwise talked to death. You truly succeed at providing interesting perspectives on great games. I wish you the best of luck with your next projects and I look forward to watching them!

This is the most unique interpretation of Bloodborne I've seen. Bloodborne has become the video game equivalent of the shining at this point with so many different takes on it. Fantastic video.

I mean meeting a symbol for death as the alternative or bad ending to finding meaning within yourself could certainly be seen as a metaphor for how if one falls into nihilism, doesn't find meaning in life, it can result in them taking their own life. The reaper allegory being a "shadow fight" also supports that interpretation.

What an incredible and enlighting interpretation of Bloodborne. Ceave truly is one of the best video game essaysts out there, keep up the good work man!

if you had told me years ago that the funny mario maker creator i was watching would one day post a 90 minute video about the death of god, and that it'd be one of the greatest youtube videos i'd have ever seen, i'd have laughed in your face. but here we are.

Regarding blood vials, my own take and the reason why I don't hate the system is that they are so common a drop, that they facilitate long stretches of exploration without rest, something estus flasks do not allow. If you're a patient and methodical hunter, you can clear out areas and rarely die outside of boss battles, which then allows you to develop a large enough stockpile that the lack of vials never becomes an issue. 37:49 - The transformation is based on the bosses' HP, with 3 phases in total.

i LOVE the analysis of the themes and story in this video (i had a real "oh" moment when you pointed out the symbolism of the angel pouring blood into a skull), but i'm a little confused by the initial gameplay analysis regarding the healing system. i was surprised when you said there's no way to get back your health when you run out of blood, because a different video i'd watched (hbomberguy's "Bloodborne is genius and here's why") said the opposite. in fact, it praised bloodborne for having a system very similar to the game you compared it to. when you lose health, you can gain it back if you attack very shortly thereafter, which encourages an aggressive playstyle. you can even see it happening during the gascoigne fight at around 34:19 - you take a hit, and your health bar depletes, but there's still a pink bar remaining where you lost your health, showing that it can be regained. then, you hit him a few times, and the health comes back. i understand that this would be hard to see without the UI up most of the time, but i'm surprised you hadn't seen that in previous playthroughs. otherwise, it's really a stunningly well put together video! i don't want to downplay that with this comment. "perspective" was a great word to add to this channel name, because your videos really give me a whole new perspective on media that i never would have thought of before, and i love it so much. i'm SO pleased you're back from your hiatus; there's really nothing else quite like these videos out there. keep it up, man - you're very appreciated, and your efforts do not go unnoticed. edit: someone cleared this up for me in the replies, it makes more sense to talk about it the way ceave does if you’ve played the game

I don't know why, but I feel like video games, as a form of art, are underappreciated (even though they combine art, storytelling and music), but the way you analyze games makes me, without explitly mentioning its an art, appreciate video games overall a lot more. I really thank you for that, Ceave.

The way you structure your videos and work towards your conclusions is so unique and engaging, I have honestly not had this much fun with hour long video essays for an eternity. I'm really glad I stumbled over your channel.

Somehow you have managed to be my childhood KZfaqr with mariomarker, and grow into one I still watch today. I don’t know if it’s your style just growing with me, or that I just like whatever you create, but it’s kinda cool to have followed you online for so long. (Since the cow farm video I think) Can’t wait to see what stuff you do next. I cannot stress enough that without you and a few others, my channel wouldn’t exist. My online life and presence would be completely different had I never found you, and I am very grateful I did. Hope your videos start doing better again.

Ceave really is a rare gem of a creator that can do a video about anything while still feeling "correct" about the subject

the theme and overall flow of your videos makes them feel like a journey. By the end of it I always feel sad but somehow optimistic, it's a super weird mix but I love it so much, and it's in a way the original media doesn't even evoke. It's a crazy difference from when I used to watch your mario maker vids a few years ago and i'm 100% here for it

40:55 Rhetorical question aside, the point of the door is to act as a back entrance to Djura, as you can befriend him if you sneak up and don't kill any of the beasts near him, which he gives you the Powder Keg Hunter Badge and a gesture as a parting gift. Darkbeast Paarl is an awkwardly placed boss though, and the explanation for this seems to be that he was a later addition to the game. People datamined an old list of bosses from the game's Alpha network test, and Paarl isn't included in the main game line-up. However, the Chalice Dungeons list includes the Darkbeast (large) boss, so it seems that he was a Chalice Dungeon exclusive boss before being brought up to the main game, resulting in his location and rewards being a bit haphazardly put together.

Ceave I'm so glad you split the channels, I've been enjoying this one so much, every video a masterpiece.

A series I've seen on yt that has a notable piece of the puzzle is called "A Agony of Effort" To summarize blood borne was inspired by in hospice, a book of poems written by the author of jeckle and Hyde, recounting his experience of being operated on in edinburgh scotland around the birth of modern surgery. Using this framework to explore the way we can dehumanize others and in turn loose our humanity our selves. While the series is a bit slow and repetitive and a bit TO convinced of its own concept, I think when viewed along with the other influences that it does a lot to convey the inspiration and themes bloodborne explores. E X E P T ! his thoughts on paleblood, true or not I feel lack thematic resonance on a surface level. He thinks it alludes to tuberculosis and the pale phlegmy blood patients cough up. This I believe, my question is WHY, why do we seek this specifically.

I have never played bloodbrone but clicked on this video because Ive always enjoyed your videos and whatever you had an hour and a half to say about what I assumed would just be some ambiguous key item in a weird ambiguous game, and was gifted with an incredible lecture about religion, art, and how we view and interact with it whether or not its something we have a positive relationship with. Thank you for sharing this work of art, and all the effort that went into it. It inspires me as an artist and creator.

These usually come up first the moment they upload. The fact it took 2 days to come on my feed has put this channel on my bell, a very rare treat.

Small correction: Entering Iosefka’s Clinic prior to killing Rom doesn’t lock you out of getting the Third Umbilical Chord, but killing (and possibly just fighting) the Imposter Iosefka does.

This is the greatest rollercoaster I've ever been on! I did not care one bit about Bloodbourne before, but now I feel like I've seen it through so many frameworks, each more fascinating than the last. At times it felt like one of those conspiracy theory videos, but then it all begins to make perfect sense in the last 30 minutes. Amazingly done!

Ceave I had a really bad day. Seeing that my most favourite youtuber analysis my most favourite game, is exactly the thing I needed. Thanks for cheering me up and dor your amazing content!

By Nietzsche’s pregnant godly drop of blood, is that my channel in the Patreon credits?!? All jokes aside this video was amazing and Ceave never fails to make me learn obscure facts about French movies while I am trying to learn about the story of Bloodborne. 5 out of 5 fuzzies!

I'll be honest, there's a good chunk of this video that I just do not agree with but I still found it fascinating regardless. If anything, I think the views of Nietzsche are incredibly interesting and so often twisted or misinterpreted by people with ulterior motives. One thing I *do* love about this video and your other videos, though, is how you approach the narratives of games in trying to understand what they *mean.* There's so many Bloodborne videos out there trying to interpret what Paleblood is quite literally but I think you are right in viewing it from a metaphorical and thematic viewpoint, rather than a literal one. I think what I disagree with the most in the video, though, is the idea that Bloodborne is not trying to convince or tell us something. I'd argue that it very much is trying to do so. There is a very common theme throughout the game of people seeking transcendence, of *not* leaving the dead well enough alone. How this causes them to sink further and further into madness. It causes them to commit more and more atrocities, perpetuate the suffering of others just for the sake of this transcendence. They seek something they can never have and continue to do so despite it clearly causing nothing but more suffering. In a metaphorical sense, they're more or less trying to manifest their way out of mortality. They wish to move beyond death itself. But this is impossible for anyone who also wishes to retain their humanity. Mortality is that which *makes* us human. And any actions towards removing ourselves from the inevitability of death only serves to erode our morals, anything that makes us empathetic and human. I think this is likely why Gehrman has the scythe at the end. He is our final step to fighting the literal concept of death. Killing him and the moon presence is the final spilling of blood that completely erases our humanity. Anyway, I'm kind of rambling here.... but man, Bloodborne is truly an incredible game. As much as I love Dark Souls and Elden Ring, Bloodborne just tickles the brainmeats far more than either of those. Sekiro actually comes pretty close and I'd say it actually deals with a lot of similar themes around immortality being antithetical to being human. But yeah.... I don't know how to end this rant so, uh... great job, Cleave!

Over the past few months, Ceave, you have written some exquisite breakdowns of video games into a summation of parts that I never consider when playing. All at once, I can enjoy some of the best games in history, thrilling stories, surprisingly intense and intricate philosophy that make these games more than just how they play or how much money they make. Being able to find this in games is a talent, but being able to communicate these high end ideas, regardless of your belief in them, in a polished and logical manner as you have here is great. When I started watching your Mario Maker content, I enjoyed hearing your technical knowledge of one game; here, you have constructed arguments and theses on well hidden themes in the most notable games in a beautiful way. Needless to say, I've really enjoyed your content, and I hope you are doing what you enjoy. (No need to subject yourself to uninteresting projects or frustrating community discussions if you don't enjoy them, after all.)

I can not, for the life of me, understand how this isn't more popular. This was masterful. What culture! What knowledge! I can not compose a comment able to express the awe this video left me in!

thanks 18th century wolf for being a murderer

How is it that every sigle video you put out is better than the last? Thank you for continuing to create masterpieces

May the algorithm favor you for once

You just became my favorite channel on youtube, this was so well made and so interesting ! Thanks a ton !

Man, Ceave was COOKIN' with this one! Actually was reading about the Beast of Gevaudan something like a year or so ago and while completely not expecting that to come up in a Bloodborne video essay, I immediately knew what you were talking about once you started that section. Another amazingly well done video!

I just rediscovered you after vague memories of watching a bunch of your mario challenges years ago, and what a rediscovery it was. Loving some of the pieces you've got on this channel and I couldn't turn down the opportunity to watch a nice breakdown of my favorite game of all time.

I have to say that these videos are some of the highest quality on youtube, and this is probably my favourite channel

Wonderful video. I''ve thought a lot (and considered making a KZfaq video essay about) the religious themes in the Dark Souls games, how those games juxtapose Buddhist and Christian ideas of death, how the Christ-like sacrifice of Gwynn isn't what saves the world, but what damns it... but I'd never really considered the similar themes in Bloodborne. Also, it's not *really* the focus of this video but I've always found it fascinating how different play styles lead to vastly different experiences with Bloodborne's bosses - I've literally never died to Ludwig, but I've heard many others describe him as one of the hardest bosses in the game. The boss that has killed me the most across five or six playthroughs is actually Rom.

This channel is literally a playlist of all my favorite KZfaq videos

HOORAY, god man, this is an amazing video and has definitely risen to the top of my favourite videos, I was not expecting the link back to Beast of Gévaudan, I’d been fascinated by that story a few months back and to see it pop up as such a pivotal thing aswell was amazing, keep up the good work.

I just wanted to leave a comment thanking you for these videos. I think they've helped me to look at things I enjoy through a much more objective lens - its helped me articulate things much better where I usually have a difficult time doing so.

This channel is so great. Its like a nostalgia trip cuz ur voice and style is so ingrained in my mind from ur mario maker vids i watched as a kid. but as a young adult now the vudeos u make on this channel are right up my alley and are abt all the games i love so dearly

It must have been an enormous effort to nail the structure and pacing of your script like this - with such a multifaceted topic to cover. Another insane video!

27:17 It wasn't Byrgenwerth who came in contact with Ebrietas but the Choir many years later, after the Healing Church was established. At Byrgenwerth they encountered Ebrietas only partially via the phantasms, and only years after the initial expedition in the old labyrinth the Choir was able to retrieve the Isz Chalice and finally meet her in person: "Remnant of the eldritch Truth encountered at Byrgenwerth. Use phantasms, the invertebrates known to be augurs of the Great Ones, to partially summon abandoned Ebrietas. The initial encounter marked the start of an inquiry into the cosmos from within the old labyrinth, and led to the establishment of the Choir." - Augur of Ebrietas found in Byrgenwerth lecture building "Members of the Choir are both the highest-ranking clerics of the Healing Church, and scholars who continue the work that began at Byrgenwerth."- Choir garb "The Great Isz Chalice became the cornerstone of the Choir, the elite delegation of the Healing Church. It was also the first Great Chalice brought back to the surface since the time of Byrgenwerth, and allowed the Choir to have audience with Ebrietas" - Great Isz Chalice dropped by Ebrietas

The thought and care put into all of your videos is astoudning. Exploring topics, such as the ones discussed in this video, from an unbiased and respectful place derived from genuine curiosity is no easy feat. I applaud you and your craftmenship, well done my friend.

Oh wow - Bloodborne and Ceave... the best of combinations... :) Thank you

I watched Charred Thermos's analysis of Bloodborne, where he links the game with Henley's "In Hospital" poems. Unfortunately, he's deleted it and the only records left are reuploads. Have been searching for something on that level ever since, I'm hoping this can fill the void.

The lack of views for this is criminal, KZfaq really did you dirty. Over all the years I’ve watched your stuff, this is the point that makes you be my first ever patreon supportee because damn, this shouldn’t discourage you from making these deep dives

splendid video as always, i'm very glad you made this second channel because this is exactly the type of content i've been waiting for :D

It's so cool how your creative work on youtube evolved right along with my interests, from mario maker and challenge runs, to thoughtful game design analysis. Thank you so much for the amazing work you create!

“Seek paleblood” means find the moon presence. It’s a little more obscure in English but in Japanese the note is explicitly in your handwriting and later on there is a note on a bridge that says “Behold. A paleblood sky!” It has a good view of the moon so when the blood moon descends the note makes more sense. Then when we fight German the blood moon descends in the dream and the moon presence appears. Then if we defeat the moon presence the only great one left in this world is our infant form and the stray amygdala. It’s not even clear if the beast scourge exists in the real world since it could easily have been a dream since the opening.

What incredible timing! I just finished my first playthrough of Bloodborne last week and it was a fast favorite. Looking forward to hearing your perspective on it.

The note in the clinic "seek paleblood to transcend the hunt" is missing the key tect from the original Japanese: "written in your own hand" It's interesting whats missed in translation. Last Protagonist does really good videos on the comparison between the English, Korean, and Japanese versions of the game.

Your content is really amazing. I've been diving into lots of your videos and each one is so well made. This has been my favorite so far. Please, keep making this kind of awesome, long-form content.

I waited a bit for the thumbnail to change so i could get a better sense of the video topic amd wasnt let down. Very good video as always!

Always love how you can take a game I've never played in a genre that just doesn't appeal to me and give this really in depth explanation of exactly *why* it's rich and complex and has a whole host of elements that I can immediately see why it does appeal to so many.

Ooooo, I love the Souls series. Great to see one of my favorite KZfaqrs back

Man, I love all of this channel's videos, you just dont miss

If you don't confront Djura on your first trip through Old Yharnam, kill the blood starved beast, kil Paarl and then walk up to Djura from behind he will have dialogue with you and give you his hunters badge without having to fight him. You guys actually kind of become friends, it's cute.

Loved this! I periodically look up Bloodborne to watch any video essays that might have come out in the meantime, and yours did not disappoint! Only thing that could use some improvement is cutting down on some of the repetition of ideas, but even so it was still thoroughly enjoyable!

After watching, I can safely say that this is comfortably within one of my top 20 videos of all time. Art, God, and human suffering, three of the most central ideas to humanity in general, this video tackles them all and nails them directly on the head. Amazing video, nearly perfection. 10/10.

Bloodborne is a horror game about spending a night in england

Another great video, Ceave! You never fail to bring up some really thought-provoking discussion in your content. I went into this video knowing next to nothing about Bloodborne but totally engrossed nonetheless. Keep up the good work!

Bloodborne is about overcoming numerous obstacles to acquire the best drip.

yo holy hell its nice to see you man I used to love your challenge videos nice to see you back and also covering one of my favorite games

Ceave beloved has returned yet again to save our souls 🙏❤️

Thank you, Ceive, for sparking the interest in people about the deep concepts that I'm most certain creators of different games and works of art insert in their craft. All those ideas while not necessary for enjoying them - still would be lost for many without your efforts. Please keep up the good work and bring us more curious thoughts about our lives that we didn't knew we needed.

The chad of Video Essays is back, we stan Ceave

A few notes, observations i think others have shared. Borne; is the word for transmitted, or carried, like a virus or plague, the beast plague. Not birth. Paleblood almost explicitly represents the moon prescence as we have a note in the lecture hall i believe that specifically references the fella. Conversely, “seek the paleblood” and “ascend the hunt”. Can elude to you having the three umbilical cords and becoming a eldritch god newly born. The healing church delved deep blow to find the ancient crypts, thereafter finding the “healing” blood. It wasnt so much a parallel of the christian faith as opposed to a scientific cult passing the cursed blood off as a miracle. If we look other lore breakdowns this seems to be the general consensus with solid backing from ingame sources. Otherwise, this is a solid breakdown

You took us on a great journey here. The deep dive into bloodbourns origin was my favorite part.

incredible work, this allready is a colossal ammount of research but i would love to direct you (and every other bloodborne fan) to charred thermos' works on bloodbornes relationship to 15th century medical science and surgery, its incredible how many details are hidden in plain sight

Really happy that you came back yt man

I've seen so many analysis videos on Bloodborne on every single aspect, but you touched upon many matters that really tied it beautifully into the overall themes of religion. Your ending ideas on the concept of "self-so" and "escaping the bind of prescriptive ethics" is a large topic in traditional Daoism as it was struggling to express itself under a stifled system in Ancient China (both Confucianism and Daoism were reacting to this "fallen society" narrative in different ways). I imagine since Miyazaki is Japanese his ideas may be more inline with what is found in the Zhuangzi, about the natural emergence of concepts instead of always chasing after the shadows of "great people" and modeling one's behavior and life so entirely on them. You did a wonderful job here, expressing each character as a symbol rather than... well a character does contextualize a great amount, while I can't say I fully agree with this view, you certainly provided ample supporting circumstances to build further upon.

I do want to say thank you for the content warning regarding blasphemy. I am a Christian(Protestant rather than Catholic, but still) and it feels as though as secularism rises that people don't give thought to respecting that. When I'm suffering from... well, I won't say depression because it's neither severe nor chronic, but the natural valleys of self-doubt and low esteem, and I turn to a video that ends up without warning criticizing or worse outright mocking what is an important aspect of my way of life, it makes me feel all the worse. Knowing ahead of time and you treating the topic with the utmost respect makes your video all the better so that I and others like me can, like you said(and a quote often misattributed to Aristotle), entertain an idea without accepting it, because I truly believe that will help us understand one another in the long run.

Wow... this is such a clear exploration and I was deeply engrossed for the entire runtime! Thank you so much Ceave, I also want to watch your video on Outer Wilds but I haven't yet played the game!

I’m sad that I missed the release of the Bloodborne video initially. Awesome video!

For what it's worth, listening to you talk about symbolism, themes, art, human history and such is super interesting. You do a good job covering everything to the point that I don't even mind when I disagree on some points, (With full apologies to the fantastic effort you put in, I'm not sure I can see Rom as symbolism for the pope) which imo is a really damn good sign for any video essayist cause I can't say that about a ton of them out there. Actually if anything it made the boss analysis or talk about bloodborne's healing feel a little dull in comparison. Probably cause game design analysis is a little bit dime a dozen on this platform. Not bad just, I found myself hoping for more talk about a bosses theming or symbolism whenever you brought them up.

I thought I had seen every long video about Bloodborne, buy it turns out I had missed one of the best ones! Loved how you pulled a little bit from everywhere (history, movies, philosophy, etc.) to make sense of the puzzle that is this video game. Now I really wanna watch that French movie! (And posted on my bday? I just keep on winning). Great work, you just got a new subscriber. ❤❤

This video is the reason I love KZfaq. Thanks for your effort, ideas, and time! Great work, chap!

Saw on your Patreon that this video underperformed so I figured I'd leave a comment. Keep making great videos even if KZfaq doesn't like it.

ive never even played bloodbourne but this was an amazing analysis. your videos just keep getting better

Truely stunning, brilliant, amazing ! Thank you so much for your work Ceave, it is very much appreciated !

dang this video is super cool one of the best things i seen all week, and its only monday

I've been watching your videos for years, starting with your Mario Maker content and I have always enjoyed it, but this video is one of the best video essays I have ever seen. Genuinely amazing stuff, I love your interpretation of the story, it's something I have never seen before! Keep up the great work!

Great video. This just made me love Bloodborne even more than I already did.

awesome video, insta-subbed. Thank you so much I've seen so many bloodborne videos and this gave me some new topics to think about and look into. Looking forward to more!

This is one of the best Bloodborne videos Ive ever seen. And Im obsessed with Bloodborne videos.

Theology check: indulgences get you out of purgatory faster, not hell.

I haven't been around in a while, and just clicked on a random Bloodborne video, but I heard your voice and I was *immediately* on board.

Interesting take with some good points. This will make a fine addition to my collection.

Correction: As long as you don't kill Iosefka when visiting her clinic, you can still gain the Third Umbilical Cord after Rom. You have 4 Umbilical Cords overall. The one from the Abandoned Workshop, one from Arianna if you either dont take her blood or just don't save Adella, one from Iosefka if you don't kill her until after Rom, and lastly from Mergo after killing Mergo's Wetnurse.

Thank you so much for this video, this might be the best video essay I've ever watched. You are amazing

Bloodborne and Ceave, what a perfect day

this video is incredible! I thought I knew everything about the lore but I learned so much! Thank you!

I seriously enjoy your videos so much, that even games I don't play and would likely never play as it's out of my genre, are described in such a great and entertaining way! I love your videos and would love seeing you do more about even more games, just amazing, keep doing these great think pieces! Oy KZfaq, please push these videos more yeah? Do this wonderful content creator a favor, they deserve to be seen by more eyes.

Awesome video. I always learn so much from you

I've watched a lot of Soulsborne lore videos and this is without doubt top 3 for me. Excellent stuff, I will be watching a lot more from you.

Isn't Paleblood another name for the Moon Presence? If so, the ending you become the cosmic slug is what that note describes.

As a philosophy student I found this interpretation of Nietzsche and Bloodborne very interesting, I had not considered it before. The game always seemed like it fundamentally focused on Lovecraftian Horror and maternity/femenine suffering to me, so it is curious to see an anti-clerical interpretation of the game - although the more I think about it, it was hiding in plain sight, lol. Of course, it doesn't remove those other themes from the discussion, it only adds to the discussion about the game. On that note, I do think that Miyazaki taking inspiration from Christianity is not that strange - as someone who enjoys JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, that series also explores Christian themes to say the least at points, and I bring it up as an example of Japanese stories touching on Christian themes. It happens more often than you'd think. The Wikipedia article about "Christianity in Japan" seems like a good summary of Christianity's role in Japanese society, and therefore, in Miyazaki's environment. I find that you also veered into absurdism when discussing the "rejection of meaning" as a consequence of "pale blood" - which makes sense. Camus, the poster boy of absurdism, cites Nietzsche multiple times in his "The Myth of Sisyphus". I also think the Sisyphean imagery is fundamental to all Fromsoftware games from narrative to game design - so that's a neat little connection! Your explanation of master morality and slave morality was also a pretty nice way of "adapting" Nietzsche's ideas to be easily understandable to 21st century people who might not be acquainted to the context of his wider works and ideas. If I had one criticism of the video, I would say that the sections discussing gameplay/mechanics feel slightly disconnected from the more hermeneutic side of the discussion, and I think perhaps those areas would've benefitted from being discussed together with the thematic value of the game - then again, this implementation of it might've been the most efficient way of presenting your thoughts, given how much work you said you put into the video, so perhaps I'm wrong. It did also tie into the thoughts on originality and inspiration that you presented. While I have strong opinions on the recent plagiarism debacles, I do think discussing positive examples of taking inspiration is always a good idea, any excuse is good to appreciate enjoyable and meaningful art. Overall a very interesting video and I hope it encourages people to look into the philosophy of Nietzsche - it's certainly an intense place to fall into the rabbit hole of philosophy, but it's not a bad one. On that note, props on reading the Genealogy of Morals. Nietzsche's style is notoriously difficult, and I don't know how acquainted you are with philosophical texts, but even if you have previous experience with them, interpretaing Nietzsche is a challenge.