Even sandbox games like Minecraft are generally built with rules in mind: certain recipes craft certain things, and there is a rough line of progression from the start to the end of any one playthrough. The lines, however tenuous, are there – but YouTuber Let's Game It Out, known to his subscribers only as Josh, specializes in not just crossing but shattering them. Whether it's building a theme park that shoots its visitors out of a colossal shotgun before forcing them to exit through Hell, building a cannon so big it crashes his computer the moment it's fired, or turning a game dev studio into a sweatshop generating literally infinite profits, Josh is an agent of simulated chaos that would make the Joker blush.
Having your indie game broken beyond all recognition has, somewhat unexpectedly, become a bit of a badge of honor among emerging developers – and a few have even sent Josh early access codes, presumably as a means of free bug testing. Even if you're not a game dev, though, watching these carefully crafted experiences get torn to pieces is an almost zen-like experience, not unlike bottle breaking ASMR.
Previously:
• Talking Adventure Games with Dave Gilbert
• In search of an awesome general interest gaming magazine
• Unboxing a Gorkamorka game from 1997
• The Beginner's Guide is a game that doesn't want to be written about
