Menagerie II: Presentable Liberty is a 2014[‡ 1][a] indie psychological horror video game made by Robert "Wertpol" Brock as a part of the Menagerie series. In the game, the player is trapped in a jail cell which (for the majority of the game) they cannot leave. Instead, the player's interaction is mainly limited to reading letters sent to them and playing games to entertain themself.
| Menagerie II: Presentable Liberty | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Robert "Wertpol" Brock |
| Series | Menagerie |
| Engine | GameMaker: Studio |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows |
| Release | December 26, 2014[‡ 1] |
| Genre(s) | Psychological horror |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Presentable Liberty received positive reviews for its story and minimalistic approach to gameplay,[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] and achieved moderate mainstream attention due to let's plays by popular YouTubers Markiplier[9][4][10] and Jacksepticeye.[11] The game's plot, involving a deadly virus outbreak, combined with the motif of isolation, was compared by some reviewers to the COVID-19 pandemic,[11][4] although the game was released many years prior to it.
A remake of Presentable Liberty and the first entry in the Menagerie series, Exoptable Money, was planned, however, three separate Kickstarter campaigns failed to gather sufficient funding, and the remakes ceased development following Brock's death in 2018.[12]
Gameplay and plot
editPresentable Liberty is minimalistic in gameplay and scope, taking place almost entirely in a small jail cell. The player is able to move around their cell and read letters sent through their cell door, which arrive at set times in each in-game day, with no way for the player to make them arrive more quickly, and no way to respond. The letters each come from one of four people: Salvador, an explorer and friend of the protagonist; Doctor Money, a rich organ-harvester and the man imprisoning the protagonist; Mr. Smiley, a man hired by Doctor Money to keep the protagonist happy and non-suicidal; and Charlotte, a woman who owns a nearby bakery, and who is presumably the only other person left alive in the city.
Salvador's letters detail his expedition north, where he watches a river's flow change direction, picks up an interest in wood carving, and eventually returns back to the city. Doctor Money's letters explain that the city is suffering from an epidemic caused by an unnamed virus which has infected 98% of the population, and that the remaining 2% are mainly prison inmates, including the protagonist. Mr. Smiley, the protagonist's assigned "Happy Buddy", tries to keep the protagonist happy with overwhelmingly cheerful dialogue and small gifts, including party poppers, a poster, and several video games played on a Game Boy-esque device. Charlotte, fearful of the outside, refuses to leave her shop, her letters lamenting her loneliness and the horrors of the city, having fallen to the virus. Charlotte reveals to the protagonist that although Doctor Money has created an antidote to the virus, it causes vital organ failure. As such, functional organs are highly valuable, although the organs being sold are, themselves, also phony cures.
As the game progresses, each of the letter-writers, aside from Doctor Money, find themselves in increasingly distressing situations. Mr. Smiley, as the player finds out through an erroneously-sent letter, is being blackmailed by Doctor Money by holding his daughters as hostages. When Mr. Smiley's happy façade briefly cracks, Doctor Money sends a letter offering to replace him. Eventually, Mr. Smiley discovers that his daughters are already dead, and he decides to sell all of his organs to be able to buy the protagonist one final video game. When Salvador eventually returns to the city, he finds it abandoned, and attempts to visit the protagonist and break them out of jail. Charlotte offers to come visit the protagonist, or for the protagonist to visit her, but becomes doubtful that this will ever happen, and loses all hope, her letters ceasing with the final one being covered in blood. Doctor Money, meanwhile, reveals that he is the creator of the virus.
The finale of the game is marked with the first meaningful decision that the player can make; as Salvador enters the protagonist's prison, he finds that the building seems to have been retrofitted into a prison, and that the building lacks any stairs and the elevator is non-functional, making it impossible for him to get to the protagonist's cell. He decides to try to remotely unlock the player's cell door by sabotaging the building's generator. He is successful in this, though as Doctor Money informs the protagonist, Salvador was fatally electrocuted in the process. As the door is unlocked, Doctor Money urges the protagonist to stay inside their cell.
If the player disobeys Doctor Money, they will find a discarded panel in a hallway of what appears to be a normal apartment complex surrounding their jail cell. The panel plugs into the wall of the cell, having an up and down arrow, revealing the cell to be the building's elevator. Pressing the down button, the player rapidly descends, eventually reaching ground level. As the player walks outside, they find Charlotte's bakery, where all that remains are bloodstains and a suicide note. After reading it, the game ends.
If the player instead chooses to obey Doctor Money and stay within the cell, the building's generator will restart shortly after, and Doctor Money will be the only person remaining to send the protagonist notes. He explains that the protagonist is, themself, the cure to the virus, and he intends to sell their organs at an absurdly high price. After twelve days, the protagonist is greeted by a mysterious figure, presumably Doctor Money himself, and dies, before the game ends.
Planned remakes
editFollowing the positive reception to Presentable Liberty, the game's developer, Robert “Wertpol” Brock, attempted to raise funds for remakes of Presentable Liberty and the first entry in the Menagerie series, Exoptable Money, on Kickstarter.[‡ 2] Although successful in getting the remakes accepted on Steam Greenlight,[‡ 3] the Kickstarter failed to meet its funding goal. Two subsequent Kickstarters were made, which were both also unsuccessful.[‡ 4][‡ 5] Shortly before the third Kickstarter, a spinoff game titled Menagerie: Archive was released.[‡ 5][‡ 6] Ultimately, the remakes ceased development, following Brock's suicide in 2018.[12]
Notes
edit- ^ Some sources erroneously report the game as a 2017 release.
References
edit- ^ Dutta, Rohan (2019-10-31). "'Presentable Liberty' derives power from powerlessness". The Miscellany News. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ^ Miller, Tommy (2015-04-09). "Game Review: 'Presentable Liberty' — a game that makes you think". Santa Fe New Mexican. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ^ "Presentable Liberty je hra, která vám změní pohled na svět". iDNES.cz (in Czech). 2015-01-23. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ^ a b c Sale, Joseph (2020-06-22). "Presentable Liberty - isolation & meaning". The Mindflayer. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ^ Densmore, Jack. "Video Game Review: Presentable Liberty". The Roar. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ^ Sale, Joseph (2018-03-14). "4 Indie Games That Are Changing Videogame Storytelling". GameSpew. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
- ^ White, DeForest (2021-10-31). "Bonus Round - Retroween Special!". Eastern Progress. Retrieved 2022-02-11.
- ^ Sale, Joseph (2018-03-14). "4 Indie Games That Are Changing Videogame Storytelling". GameSpew. Retrieved 2022-02-12.
- ^ Markiplier (2015-01-11). "This Game Will CHANGE YOUR LIFE | Presentable Liberty". YouTube. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ^ Guebert, Ian (2015-01-12). "Presentable Liberty: A third person review". GreatBitBlog. Retrieved 2022-02-12.
- ^ a b Stewart, Ly (2020-08-03). "The Newfound Relevance of Presentable Liberty". The Indiependent. Retrieved 2022-02-11.
- ^ a b "Seelenfunke-Gedenkseiten". Seelenfunke. Archived from the original on 2020-02-23. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
Primary sources
In the text these references are preceded by a double dagger (‡):
- ^ a b Wertpol (2014-12-26). "Menagerie II: Presentable Liberty by Wertpol - Game Jolt". Game Jolt. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ^ Wertpol (2016-09-15). "Kickstarter!". steamcommunity.com. Archived from the original on 2022-02-05. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ^ Wertpol (2015-02-03). "Steam Greenlight::Presentable Liberty & Exoptable Money Remakes Bundle". steamcommunity.com. Archived from the original on 2022-02-06. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ^ Wertpol (2017-01-17). "Kickstarter Again!". steamcommunity.com. Archived from the original on 2022-02-05. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ^ a b Wertpol (2017-05-06). "Kickstarter one last time! Also new spinoff game!". steamcommunity.com. Archived from the original on 2022-02-05. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
- ^ Wertpol (2017-04-29). "Menagerie: Archive by Wertpol - Game Jolt". Game Jolt. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
