It was clear from Puppet Combo's conception that they were keen on someday creating an experience that would allow the player to control a killer. This was evident from some of their earlier playable experiences like Texas Butcher which I have reviewed previously. Killing NPCs is an inherent experience in most video games, but it isn't something that is actively planned in the minds of most.The game is incredibly taboo and feels really jarring and unsettling to play.
Feed Me Billy has you assume the role of the eponymous killer Billy, a man driven by an unsettling desire to appease the cravings of a ravenous, flesh-consuming void residing in his closet. The game consists of three distinct scenarios, in each one, Billy is awoken, equips his clown mask and revolver and sets out to hunt for appropriate victims.
In scenario one, Billy lurks near a gas station late at night, spotting a woman using a pay phone. He strategically parks his car in the nearby woods, swiftly murders her, and transports her lifeless body to his vehicle.
The second scenario finds Billy again parking in the woods, stumbling upon a vibrant campsite where three unsuspecting individuals are enjoying themselves. Without hesitation, he brutally eliminates them, collecting their remains to feed the insatiable void in his closet.
In the final scenario, Billy encounters a cluster of small houses by the roadside. He enters one with an unlocked door, ruthlessly slaughters the inhabitants, and adds their bodies to his car. As the grotesque void devours the corpses, an eerie goat-like creature materializes, accompanied by the enigmatic message, "All Done." The game abruptly ends, leaving players haunted by the lingering mystery.
I interpreted this experience as the void being an internal representation of the craving to satisfy the itch for taking human life. Billy is addicted to pornography, a common affliction for serial killers, and the game follows him struggling with resisting these unholy urges he has within. This game is on the verge of the crossing the conceptual line of what is an acceptable premise for a video game. Feed Me Billy would undoubtedly be showered in controversy if it was widely known, and is the kind of game that would be shunned by most.
The atmosphere is unsettling, but not for us. It's disturbing to approach people from a distance, with your objective established, unaware of their fate. It is extremely fucked up. This uncomfortability is escalated when you're noticed and further exemplified when you pull the trigger and the audio does a great job of solidifying these themes of unease and guilt.
As mentioned earlier, there are plenty of games that allow you to play as a killer. Dead By Daylight, Friday The 13th, but none feel more unsettling or intentional in their desire to replicate the kinds of emotions it would invoke to take a life like Feed Me Billy does. Most wouldn't even touch the game after reading what you're capable of doing. Many more wouldn't finish it. But I challenged myself to experience the entire library of this studio, even the games I feel uncomfortable experiencing. I wouldn't recommend this game to people, and I feel like it is one of those rare pieces of media that if discovered at a young age could vastly twist the mental development of impressionable youths. There aren't many adult-only games, but I feel like a new ESRB rating should be established for titles like these where you must pass a mental soundness test prior to playing so that you are resistant to the impressionable feelings of excitement that one may get replicating this lifestyle. Puppet Combo I love you guys, but you are wild for this one.
Feed Me Billy has you assume the role of the eponymous killer Billy, a man driven by an unsettling desire to appease the cravings of a ravenous, flesh-consuming void residing in his closet. The game consists of three distinct scenarios, in each one, Billy is awoken, equips his clown mask and revolver and sets out to hunt for appropriate victims.
In scenario one, Billy lurks near a gas station late at night, spotting a woman using a pay phone. He strategically parks his car in the nearby woods, swiftly murders her, and transports her lifeless body to his vehicle.
The second scenario finds Billy again parking in the woods, stumbling upon a vibrant campsite where three unsuspecting individuals are enjoying themselves. Without hesitation, he brutally eliminates them, collecting their remains to feed the insatiable void in his closet.
In the final scenario, Billy encounters a cluster of small houses by the roadside. He enters one with an unlocked door, ruthlessly slaughters the inhabitants, and adds their bodies to his car. As the grotesque void devours the corpses, an eerie goat-like creature materializes, accompanied by the enigmatic message, "All Done." The game abruptly ends, leaving players haunted by the lingering mystery.
I interpreted this experience as the void being an internal representation of the craving to satisfy the itch for taking human life. Billy is addicted to pornography, a common affliction for serial killers, and the game follows him struggling with resisting these unholy urges he has within. This game is on the verge of the crossing the conceptual line of what is an acceptable premise for a video game. Feed Me Billy would undoubtedly be showered in controversy if it was widely known, and is the kind of game that would be shunned by most.
The atmosphere is unsettling, but not for us. It's disturbing to approach people from a distance, with your objective established, unaware of their fate. It is extremely fucked up. This uncomfortability is escalated when you're noticed and further exemplified when you pull the trigger and the audio does a great job of solidifying these themes of unease and guilt.
As mentioned earlier, there are plenty of games that allow you to play as a killer. Dead By Daylight, Friday The 13th, but none feel more unsettling or intentional in their desire to replicate the kinds of emotions it would invoke to take a life like Feed Me Billy does. Most wouldn't even touch the game after reading what you're capable of doing. Many more wouldn't finish it. But I challenged myself to experience the entire library of this studio, even the games I feel uncomfortable experiencing. I wouldn't recommend this game to people, and I feel like it is one of those rare pieces of media that if discovered at a young age could vastly twist the mental development of impressionable youths. There aren't many adult-only games, but I feel like a new ESRB rating should be established for titles like these where you must pass a mental soundness test prior to playing so that you are resistant to the impressionable feelings of excitement that one may get replicating this lifestyle. Puppet Combo I love you guys, but you are wild for this one.