Harvester: The Most Unhinged Point-and-Click?

Video Description

You can't live without a spinal cord, son. Nothing unnatural about that. • PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/boulderpunch • ONE-TIME DONATIONS: https://ko-fi.com/boulderpunch • DISCORD: https://discord.gg/2AfRXbM2hg Degenerate. Disgusting. Offensive. Repugnant. Repulsive. No, I’m not talking about your typical Discord server. I’m talking about Harvester. These were the descriptors used in the game’s press release leading up to Harvester's launch. It was marketed as “the most brutal, horrific computer game ever created” — a violent experiment in terror. The developers expected, and actively hoped for, protests upon release. The plan was to capitalize on the media’s obsession with video game violence, something that dominated headlines in the early to mid-1990s. Unfortunately for them, when Harvester released in the fall of 1996, it missed that cultural moment. The game was lost in the shuffle during a landmark year for the industry, failed to meet sales expectations, and its studio would shut down roughly a year later. But Harvester didn’t disappear. Over time, it built a cult following. It’s a game I’ve been aware of for years, mostly through strange clips seen completely out of context. Going in, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. But my experience with Harvester far exceeded those expectations. Yes, Harvester has plenty of oddball design decisions. Combat and point-and-click adventures mix about as well as toothpaste and orange juice. The puzzles can drift into bizarre logic, complete with plenty of pixel hunting. That said, Harvester is one of the best examples of dark humor I’ve ever encountered in a game. Point-and-click adventures are the perfect space for comedy, and Harvester stands among the genre’s finest. Few games have made me laugh out loud the way this one did. It’s classic ’90s satire at its sharpest. The game isn’t afraid to push boundaries. There are themes and moments here that very few games even attempt. Yes, it was designed to provoke, but this isn’t a case of “all sizzle, no steak.” There’s real substance beneath the shock. Harvester is one of the most memorable games I’ve played, and if you haven’t experienced it, you should. In this video, I cover the major beats of Harvester. Even then, I’m leaving plenty out—some of it, I’m fairly certain, YouTube wouldn’t appreciate. 00:00 - Prelude 02:38 - Harvester Intro & Setup 28:47 - Day 1 34:44 - Day 2 36:59 - Day 3 42:44 - Day 4 44:39 - Day 5 48:28 - Day 6 52:39 - The Lodge 01:02:42 - Ending of Harvester 01:17:28 - On the Making of Harvester & Its Impact 01:28:51 - Post-video Q&A Additional Footage: • Consumer Electronics Show Las Vegas 1994 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itEGXiVsqbc • Deus Ex • Duke Nukem 3D • Fallout • Metroid Prime 4: Beyond - https://youtu.be/ZLvLUDKhTYQ • Night Trap • Phantasmagoria - https://youtu.be/yCR9IzW_07c • Phantasmagoria 2 - https://youtu.be/ghMzReKdGnQ • Quake • Resident Evil (1996) • Super Mario 64 • Tomb Raider #harvester #pointandclick #boulderpunch