Alice Madness Returns: The Story Explained 

I haven't heard this title in years...Seriously, one of the best games I've ever played. The story is fantastic, and Alice is such a well-written character. She's mentally ill, has trauma, selfish, smug, and sarcastic, but she's also intelligent, empathetic, righteous, caring, and truly good underneath all the walls and hard edges she puts up. And I love how her mental illness and trauma were not romanticized. They were treated something she has to live and deal with, and she dealt with them like how a person with obligations and other daily responsibilities would deal with them. I really hope American McGee continues more with Alice, whether that's a prequel, sequel, inter-quel, whatever. I don't want her story to be over yet.

The adults who were supposed to help Alice had abandoned her, exploited her or told her to leave her wonderland but it was imagination and wonderland that saved her. She really did save herself

When the kid said “Don’t desert us…again” It hurt because Alice is the only one who has not been brainwashed by the doctor to forget…But whilst she is gone the doctor resumes his Horrible acts upon all the kids…

The Doctor is pure evil, also the fact he would wave Lizzis key in Alice ' s face (to put her under) /kept the key is so sick.

If I could elaborate on a few more things, specifically what certain characters symbolise -- this is what happen when I obsess over a game for 10 years! -Dr. Bumby killed the White Rabbit early on, as he was a direct link to Alice's memories and higher senses. -The Cheshire Cat is likely Alice's conscience or inner voice, telling her what to do and info she must hear. -The Jabberwock personified Alice's guilt. His bones appear because she overcame her guilt in the first game. -The Mad Hatter is Alice's self-preservation, taken apart by his former friends to allow the Infernal Train to be built. The Hatter blames Alice for ignoring/forgetting what she sensed about Bumby's actions ("Forgetting is forgetting, then they call it something else.") -The March Hare and Dormouse personify the parts of Alice's mind that wished to forget the past, but also the cruelty of the Industrial Revolution. -The Mock Turtle not only personifies Alice's grief and depression, but also may have been a key part of her mental defences, removed from his position as the conductor of Looking Glass Line, a necessary move to let Dr. Bumby insert the train into Alice's psyche. -The Carpenter is Alice's own ignorance, sending her on a wild goose chase to hide the truth from her. The Walrus likely personifies how Alice sees sexual predators and clientele for prostitutes. -The theatre's contributors (drunk octopus, bottle-shaped music fish, oyster girls) represent alcoholism and prostitution. -The Caterpillar is Alice's high senses, inner wisdom, logic, and reason. -The White King's insistence on sacrifice symbolises Alice's need to sacrifice her own focus on her own pain to save the children. -The Tweedles are based on two orderlies who abused Alice in the asylum. -The little girl who leads the Insane Children is the part of Alice's mind that knew the truth, but the Dollmaker later rips her eyes out to stop Alice from gaining "clear sight" of things.

All of the events in the game wouldn't happen if Alice got a normal therapist.

I like Alice's different outfits, they're beautiful. The developers must have worked really hard on them.

“You’ve used me and abused me, but you will not destroy me.”- Alice Liddel. such a powerful line there, I (whose also suffers from a mental illness) find this incredibly empowering because for me, just because I suffer mentally and ppl label me as useless and dare I say crazy, it doesn’t mean that I’m a threat to society or dangerous, I had gotten to the point where I just felt bad for not being like anybody else who was “normal” when I was younger

If this game has taught me anything, it would be: "Sorry, can't give you the answer. But ask that guy, he can help."

The Chesire Cat is the only Creature that is on Alice's Side and Is willing to help her

I love the overall message. People who struggle with mental health and trauma may not function “normally” (how they would act if they did not experience these things) again but can still heal and have control over their future. We are not defined by what we’ve experienced only what we make out of it. I love this game the symbolism and meaning behind everything is so thoughtful.

I never realized that Madness Returns was a sequel. It definitely makes sense but that game does such a good job of keeping you up to speed and telling the story that as long as you have basic knowledge of Alice in Wonderland you can make the connection easily.

"She hurt me feelings." Proceed to beat up an innocent unconscious and leave. Amazing.

Me: “I hate horror” SuperHorrorBro: “no you don’t” Me: ... damn

The original sequel to the original game took 11 years to release, so with that logic I hope we see Asylum finally comin out this year, I love this saga so much

This game and Coraline are what kickstarted my love for the horror genre in my childhood, and I love them for that.

At 19:48 I think it was hinted in the first game that Tweedle Dee and Tweedle dum were real nurses who treated Alice when she was in the asylum through some of their dialogues. I remember them mocking Alice a lot before she fought them.

seeing Bumby get killed by Alice causes me to feel a way that can only be described by a slasher smile. I enjoyed seeing that bastard die.

Something fascinating about the game is how the "infection" works its way like a violent industrialization of Wonderland. By erasing memories and making the children blank, its like he turned the organic part of their mind mechanical, just like the corruption is represented by an oil-like sludge that burns bright and is carried by a massive train, how the Hatter's workshop became an imposing factory and how the very last level, the "attic" of the dollhouse, looks like a sweatshop where Bumby turns children into "dolls". Also, the soundtrack of this game is SUBLIME! My first time playing it I actualy stopped at the menu because the song got me so enthralled I forgot what I was doing xD

very, very sad that Alice Asylum is officially never happening now. EA really dropped the ball on such an amazing game.

I believe the reason why Alice survived was, despite the suffering she endured in the asylum, was so that she could have a chance to avenge her family and overthrow Dr. Bumby for all the misery he had caused.

theres a text post on tumblr thats like "i dont know why anybody bothers with the edgy alice in wonderland trope, american mcgee's alice & alice madness returns did it first & completely nailed it first try"

I personally think that the most interesting thing about this game is how The Dollhouse appears now that The Dollmaker rules it. It gives the vibe that it may have once been a place full of happy doll children and bright colors, but now it is a place built out of fragments and ruin as the surviving inhabitants hide from their corrupted former friends.

You're the only person I've heard or seen talk about what the therapist did pretty bluntly. I'm surprised and impressed

Imagine if someone innocently looked up the original storybook and found this game

i know i say this because the bar is quite low, but one of the things i love and appreciate the most about this series is the fact that they refused to sexualize alice. they present her trauma very realistically and respectfully when i feel like most would have just taken the easy shock value path with her character.

The stages of the Doll Girl's death symbolizing what Bumby did to those poor orphans holds water to me.

It should be mentioned that currently, the creator of the Alice video games is trying to create a prequel game that would reflect Wonderland's increasing deterioration after the fire, while Alice explored the five stages of Grief. I hope that becomes a reality

This game is horrendously underrated. The level design and how the story is presented to the player is one of the best I've ever seen. I wish both games got remastered, they deserve it.

I always loved how in the end Dr. Bumby seems like he can see Alice in her Wonderland form too, which seems to surprise and scare him. (Which opens up a whole other can of interpretations for the game.)

Absolutely loved this game. The art, the simple yet eerie music, the visual storytelling in the level designs, the use of picking up memories and Dr. Bumby being a great villain. The final level is sickening once you realize all the subtextual meanings of the pedophilic symbolism. 🤢

I think the reason the vale of tears is initially beautiful is that it's her outermost layer of her mind. The small part of herself that's managed to heal somewhat and can put forward a lovely face to the outside world. It's even called the Veil of Tears because it represents the healthy grieving she's done and how it's allowed her to heal a little bit with the dead Jabberwock as one demon slain, but sadly there are many more to go.

Madness returns to me is like, the only story that takes the "Alice in wonderland but EDGY and Alice does drugs and has mental problems" concept and uses it well. It is a story about a young woman with psychosis escaping the abuse of those who should have been her caretakers but instead hurt her, and she also makes sure that the other children won't suffer anymore. It also subverts a lot of tropes is horror around mental illness I've always found to be harmful. Very good game with an amazing story I adore

I like how the dress changes its theme for each section. Also I'm pretty sure the Cheshire cat has blood on his teeth which is kinda worrying.

I really love the way the executioner looks up at Alice and drops his scythe as if to say "I'm screwed".

American McGee has announced a third game called Alice asylum. It’s still in development. It has a Kickstarter idk if it reached its goal or not but I hope it releases

I loved how they're were constantly changing her dress to suit her environment. The underwater one/ The walrus&the Carpenter is a major fave but the red fancy dress with black/ white accent is a classic look. 👌

to save herself, alice had to also embrace herself, which included her madness and wonderland. although she will never be traditionally 'normal', she is now whole. and i think thats beautiful (and a very poetic way of facing the reality of living with mental illness) (that being said i dont want to go around and claim freely that alice's depiction is faithful, i just think its well done)

I'm real happy that this game seems to be getting a bit of resurgence in popularity recently, absolutely deserved. I love this game so much I even got a full tattoo sleeve based around it. Such a shame this is under EA, I want to believe that with the creator battling for a third game and this little popularity boost will be enough to convince them but given their track record I don't want to be too optimistic.

Also, if any of you didn't notice; there are different astrological symbols on each of the pocket dresses she wore. Each of them shows the meaning of the themes with each own current stages like Misstitched dress with Mars (♂) Ruler of lust; represents the Dollmaker. The other symbol is Ceres which is the Roman goddess and ruler of the harvest (harvesting children for lustful purposes), during her time at the Dollhouse, near the end. If want to know, there's the wiki that shows each meaning for each dresses. The deeper meaning of significant details that had given were pretty much understated, so props to McGee. Like damn.

17:34 I always feared the Executioner, now I can't stop laughing after I deafeted him. Everytime he ungrips his scythe, I can't stop thinking him saying "I don't get paid enough for this sh-t."

19:54 "tweedle dum and tweedle dee, who now seem to be working at the asylum" you have it reversed. in the og game, the tweedles were based on these orderlies. included with the og game, there was a novella from the perspective of doctor wlson. he describes how a cat is always around the asylum (cheshire cat), she talks to her one-eyed rabbit doll (white rabbit), the orderlies bullied alice and she attacked them irl with a spoon (the tweedle boss battle), boojums are staff screaming in her ear, the duchess was a nurse, etc. another interesting thing about the case book is it includes detailed drawings from alice, which make her out as a very skilled artist depicting what she sees in wonderland. but in madness returns she's only able to draw childish scribbles ):

I still love the fact that the Devs wanted CG fmv cutscenes, but they were pressed for time so the cutscenes were "simplified". But I personally love the cutscene style.

My interpretation of the ending of the game is Alice breaking free from her past and pain finding the strength to move forward. As a result of this she no longer sees reality as painful instead seeing it as a safe place thus making the two worlds one.

The scene where the Queen of Hearts tells Alice that Lizzie wasn’t talking in her sleep is haunting. 1500 likes? Thanks everyone!

This game was the stories Zack Snyder was trying to tell in sucker punch

It's so weird that the dude who started off making levels in Doom ended up making a weird psychological version of Alice in wonderland

I think the Doll Maker confirmed that the Infernal Train is actually Alice's train of thought, but has been corrupted by his influence.

fun fact: "Vorpal" is a word coined the Lewis Carroll, the original author of Alice in Wonderland.

I love this game. It needs a remake or at least a remaster for all modern platforms. The game is also interesting because you can't really say it has a good ending. She takes down the guy who destroyed her life and mind but she's become incapable of distinguishing fantasy from reality and has gone fully insane. Very bold ending that I thought was fantastic.

I wish this whole story got illustrated into a large, storybook graphic novel because id love to read it over & over!

Since Lizzie was never touched by the fire, I would think that she was chloroformed by Bumby, before dying by inhaling the smoke of the fire.

Alice in the asylum would perhaps be about trying to gain some sanity and truth, but Alice secretly wanted to bury the truth because she didn't want to accept it. Defeating the Queen of Hearts was defeating the part of her that knew the truth. It was a temporary solution and she gained some momentary mental clarity, and was released from the asylum. Alice's false leads once out of the asylum perhaps represent her unwillingness to stare the truth in the face and accept it because she did such a good job at burying it whilst in the asylum (compounded with Dr Bumby encouraging her to forget). Eventually though, she confronts the Queen of Hearts and finally accepts the truth. Comes full circle and gets closure with her family's death. Thus becomes fully sane and is at peace with everything within her mind. While everything cannot go back to normal from before the fire, it appears Alice is mentally stable enough to finally move on and start a new chapter in her life Like what the cheshire cat said at the end. "Forgetting the pain is convenient, remembering it is agonizing". Alice forgot the pain because it was convenient in the short-term, but remembering and reaching closure was agonizing although better for her long-term sanity

The dollhouse area never fails to break my heart

I wish there was a sequel game after this one. Possibly one where Alice uses both her realities to track down and rescue all the children Bumby sold off.

There was actually a hint to the dollmaker at the very start of the game when you are outside the orphanage there is a courtyard with children the one that is the hint is a young girl that is facing the wall away from the other children and word for word quotes the line of poem that the dollmaker says about the train.

When I figured out what Dr.Bumby was doing I was like: “this is fuuuuucked”

I love that last line that points out Alice had too been neglecting the children in her grief. Your explanation videos are some of the best out there, because you really go into how the story affects everything in it.

Hey there Mike! Hope you don’t mind but I made Timestamps for those who want to use them *Timestamps* 0:00 Intro 0:50 Alice’s Story 2:49 The World of Wonderland 4:18 The Beginning of Madness Returns 5:50 Return to Wonderland 7:01 The Hatter’s Domain 10:14 The Walrus and the Carpenter 13:18 The Caterpillar 15:38 The Queen of Hearts 19:15 The Dollmaker 24:18 The Ending

Are we just gonna ignore that the Executioner was like "Oh……………………………………Sh*t." And he drops his Scythe

I loved the ending, felt like she projected her alter ego so strongly till the doctor can see it, but sad because it looks like she'll live her free life insane.

Well...also it symbolizes the part she played working with him. If she dissociated and he purged that as well is besides the point. She was the kids care taker. "Don't fail us again!" She also has to get over her guilt in whatever form known at the time or not to save them in the end.

I have no words for how beautifully crafted this game is, from the graphics to the storyline and everything in between.

A friend of mine recently bought the game and streamed it for our friends to watch. It was fun and interesting to go through the game and make jokes, but when we got to the Dollhouse, every single one of us just felt, extremely uncomfortable. Mainly because we already knew what the area is representing and why it's there. We had to take long breaks throughout the game because of how uncomfortable we got. Eventually, we got through it and finished the game. Although my friend playing was getting stuck and kept dying at the final boss, so I had to look up a walkthough and explain how they worked, and how to defeat each phase. The game is also very historically accurate. When I was watching someone (not my friend who was playing) play the game with their friend, the friend picked up a good amount of history points of the game. For an example, the sound of the Pepper Grinder firing, it was actually the sound of the very first Machine Gun created. Most definitely would suggest someone play the game, and then replay it to see the signs and hints at the very beginning of Bumby's actions.

This was one of the first videogames I really got into (my mother said that videogames rot your brain), and I fell in love with it for many reasons: the spellbinding imagery, the plucky but tragic protagonist, the interesting spin on a story that I love, the symbolism, and the rather mature themes. The one thing it needed? SuperHorrorBro explaining it ;)

The Dollhouse world has got to be one of the most disturbing things I have ever played through at the time. I was a 13 year old who has never played a game that tackled these subjects so upfront.

Holy shit I didn't realize the meaning of the way the big dolls fall apart in fights. Of course I got the overall theme of child abuse in the Doll House chapter, it was pretty obvious tbh, but that detail... damn, makes it all even more disturbing. I love the game, it's my favorite ever and I'm looking forward to Alice: Asylum. There's already some concept art out and it looks amazing!

Alice into madness was my first experience with psychological horror that I could actually relate to as a child and I loved how gothically pretty it was despite how much it scared the shit out of me lmao

that dollhouse level made me *UNCOMFORTABLE*

Fun fact : there’s an Easter egg in the queen of hearts’ castle, showing a skeleton of the game Psychonauts’ main character Razputin. The fact that this was shown it’s because it’s a special thank to Double Fine productions, video game developers known for their games such as Psychonauts, Grim Fandango and Brütal Legend

This game is literally the definition of “snap back to reality”

I'm glad Alice killed Dr. Bumby, that scene is so satisfying.

Idk why but the doctor was the scariest part of this game for me it creeps me out every time I remember the ending I get uncomfortable and scared 😟

Some thing to note is that the goopy enemies you fight that are covered in baby doll head also appear to be the same group dripping out of the doll maker himself, possibly a more subtle hint at his effect on Alice overall.

When wonderland and London merge at the end which is in sharp contrast to the rest of the game where she dips in and out it highlights how Alice has finally completely lost her mind through the trauma of releasing suppressed memories. Alice had a decision to live in denial and keep ahold of her sanity or delve deeper into wonderland to collect the truths buried in her subconscious by her therapist and her defence mechanisms to avenge her family. She won and got justice but at the expense of her sanity which she fought so hard for on the first game. The story telling of this game is an underrated masterpiece.

me, who's beaten these games at least six times over: t e l l m e m o r e

Fun fact: the Cheshire Cat's ending monologue in the final cutscene of Madness Returns is based on several of the random quotes he would make when the player used the "Advice" command in the original American McGee's Alice. Specifically, "Only a few find the way; some don't recognize it when they do, some don't ever want to" and "Only the savage regard the endurance of pain as the measure of worth" stood out to me, given how it's been 10+ years since I last played the original.

The smile I had on my face when Alice pushed Bumby into the train… you’d get me confused for the Cheshire Cat!

The ending always confused me. Did her mind physically manifest these things at the end or did her conscious and unconscious minds merge? Not to mention the "Alice: Otherlands" project where she travels into the minds of a couple historical figures of the time, which itself would make for an interesting game. Imagine her going into Other People's Wonderlands and helping them with their madness. A Warrior of both the Physical and Mental plains.

I love how this game is getting attention after all these years! Back in the day only pewdiepie did a play through on madness returns and he didn’t even finish it. I’ve been watching and re watching all of your playthroughs!

I always had one question towards the end. Why did the doctor seemed to shocked when she turned around? (Righr before she pushed him) In a way, I like to imagine that Alice truly did change physically before she pushed the doctor.

Alice madness returns was one of the games I instantly fell in love with and still remember it with details I'm happy it's starting to get the attention it deserves

These games are sooo amazing. I am so amazed by everyone involved in creating the games. The ability to take an already created idea and turn it into its own story, own super creative and deep and thought out story, is one hell of an accomplishment. But the overall design, the way the story is told, the symbolism, the voices. Just absolutely amazing.

This game is randomly popping up everywhere after 10 years. Love this game, and I'm happy it's finally getting the love it deserves.

i never knew hiw bittersweet the ending actually is. she had her revenge but succumb to her insanity anyway.

I have never heard of this version of Alice in Wonderland story before and it's a good thing I've come across this. Even though it's a 2011 game, the story and animation is actually really good if I were to be brutally honest and even the fights were quite great. Damn now I really wish it came out another sequel with 2018-2021 quality graphics, I can't imagine how amazing it would be and look like.

I love the quote; ‘who profits from your madness?’ Chilling

The ending and the truth will always disgust me, might be because I am deathly scared of dolls, but I can’t help but absolutely love this game. I discovered this game through SHB and I am happy I did, even if it grosses me out

Love that people are still talking about this game series more than 10 years after its last installment. Just goes to show that good, thought-provoking art endures. :)

I played this game in middle school and it was one hell of a fever dream and since English is not my main language it is even worse as I understand nothing but still a lot of fun, I enjoy the gameplay and crazy arts

Sad that her story will never get the continuation it deserved. Damn @EA.

I would love to see Superhorrorbro discuss about the images for “Alice: Asylum” and what has been given on about it

What I found very interesting is the fact that Dr. Bumby actually saw Alice transform into her Wonderland persona right before she killed him. Alice's otherworldly experiences may not be entirely in her own mind after all...

I randomly picked up this game a couple years ago, no idea about the first one and was just curious. The story and design of the entire game absolutely destroyed my mind (in a good way) and I had never been so invested in a game before. I remember being seriously emotionally invested in the characters and crying at the end. I wish it was more popular, because this will probably be one of my absolute favorite games for the rest of my life 😭👌

God I hope American McGee comes out with a prequel. He makes some of the most beautiful stuff I've ever seen

Fun fact: The vorpal knife is a reference to the vorpal blade from Lewis Carrol's poem "Jabberwocky". The blade was use to slay the jabberwocky, which is why Alice found the knife on the Jabberwocky's skeleton

Figuring out what the doctor was going to use Alice for was...jesus that was dark.

For a game of 2011 the graphics are stunning and amazing, also the story is great. This is definitely a should-play game.

what i love about mike's explanations is that we dont need to play the entire game to understand it, he breaks the down the story into the important parts and it gives it much clarity and detail, even if you dont play the game especially this one cuz i loved this game in my childhood

I knew this game delved into some heavy topics when I played it a few years ago, but I didn’t realize how much of wonderland is Alice’s personification and symbolism of her trauma. I guess the levels took so long to beat that I barely focused on the story and some of the dialogue just confused me, but man, this game is amazing!