Killswitch: Haunted Lost Media Or Hoax? 

It always annoys me when obvious creepypastas are treated as lost media mysteries, because it distracts from what they really are- fascinating works of fiction. I don't care that Killswitch and the rest of invisible games aren't "real", because they're well written pieces of short horror. I'd love to see a full playable recreation of Killswitch honestly

I’m always somewhat amused by the “mysterious lost games” which were apparently the most technologically advanced creations of their time, going so far as to add physical capabilities to the hardware they were installed on. It’s like someone saying “found this lost 1990 Game Boy cartridge” and it’s just full-color Ridge Racer.

You’re the only person I trust to talk about horror content without scaring me

10:47 "Yamamoto is crying." If I spent nearly three-quarters of a million dollars on a long lost game from the late 80s, only to learn that it could only be played once and never again after that, I'd be crying too.

I find it really amusing the way the narrator of “What Happened to Agent Small?” explains in quite a bit of detail the plot and revolutionary aspects of the game only to immediately follow it up with “but it was a bad game and you shouldn’t really care about it at all.”

Holy fuck. The whiplash I felt when you revealed that Catherynne Valente had created the kill switch story was jarring. She’s one of my favorite authors and I was not expecting her name to pop up at all, let alone find out she was the man behind the curtain of this whole mystery.

It's interesting that the story of the woman's descent into madness as told through arcade machines uses finnish in the titles. "Eksynyt Morsian" translates to "Lost Bride", "Mielipaha" is a bit more vague as it doesn't quite translate to english but means something roughly like "Bad Mood" or "Displeasure" or "Resentment", and "Keskenään kotona Ankea" seems to be a janky translation literally translating to "awkward at home with each other". I'm guessing they meant something like "Together in Our Gloomy Home"? Also, the woman's name, Sisko, is quite literally the finnish word for sister and it is a rather old name. I appreciate the effort that went into all this, even if it is janky at times.

Holy shit. Valente has been my favourite author for about 5 years now, I had no idea she created this It honestly makes a lot of sense though, I can see her writing style shine through lol

I love these videos on horror media, I often end up going down rabbitholes because of them

I remember reading this back in like 2010, it never really seemed fake at the time because "obscure foreign game with a mysterious creator and history" could describe plenty of very real games like Yume Nikki.

Every video Izzy makes is masterpiece. One of the best content creator on RU-vid.

Fun fact: Karviná after which Karvina Corporation is named is city in moravian-silesian region on the north side of Czech Republic known for its coal mining (heck I can see at least three disused coal mine headframes from my living room window). And is also like next town from where I live (Ostrava).

Gotta love how nice Izzy is to watch! It's really relaxing to listen to her describe/read games, fandoms, books, anything it is, she does an amazing job.

As someone who played a lot of adventure games back in the day, I knew it had to be fake when it took the players a long time to figure out they had to eat the coal coke. That's like one of the first things a player would have tried!

I've actually never heard of this one before, but seeing that gameplay I pretty much immediately realized the game could not have existed in 1989, lol.

I love that Izzy is like the somewhat more SFW and niche subject reviewer compared to other creators like Whang lol

Thank you, I finally know who wrote the only video game creepypasta that I ever liked. That it trafficked in mood & general unease instead of "whoa, Mario's real & he's crying blood" like most of that subgenre made it stand out in my mind for years now.

Man, that concept of a game where you select a character and play cards to form and direct a narrative where you become your opponent's character is as cool as it is Nomic-flavored. I imagine in practice it would destroy friendships faster than Risk.

I get why the creator doesn't want to put Invisible Games to print, but I would *die* for a fleshed-out novel about it. Their writing is amazing. Fantastic video as always, Iz! 💕

How does Izzy make content so quickly, their turnover is UNREAL

A game that "removes itself with no trace" and "Cannot be copied". I'm sure the government would be interested in this technology... But no really, is dumb what we used to believe.

Killswitch is actually something that is really inspiring to me. Knowing that someone making an elaborate horror project/story can get their project seen by so many people is nice, considering I’ve always wanted to write a short horror story or creepypasta. Fantastic work by that writer, and amazing vid as always Izzy!

Izzy, I am genuinely so glad you’re doing a video on Killswitch! I forgot about it for a while, but my god I remember being really into this when it was more of a thing! Like I remember when there was a RU-vid channel that had apparently “found” the game and everything! Edit because I finally finished the video: I never even knew just how deep the history behind Killswitch is. It’s genuinely so interesting, and I never knew about the InvisibleGames aspect of it! I’m glad you discussed this because I feel like InvisibleGames and its creator deserve proper credit!

for so long now i've had "story about a bizarre early PC game that deletes itself" hovering in the back of my mind trying to remember what the story was and then Izzzy comes out with a whole retrospective on it

I’ve had such a stressful shitty day and seeing this notification made me physically relax. Thank you for good timing

I don't usually comment, but dang Izzy. you've been serving absolute bangers for so long. Bravo on the dedication and passion that I can see you put into not only your amazing, creative, and unique makeup and sets, but truly in-depth documentaries about nostalgic media from so many of our pasts. Thank you for showing up and showing out each and every time. 👏

10:50 Yamamoto's crying in the video because he realized he blew a fortune he could have retired on on a crappy game that will delete itself

Just wanted to give some translations starting from 16:07 Eksynyt Morsian = The Lost Bride Mielipaha depends of the context, but can mean resentmenr, regret, spite annoyance or all of them Keskenään kotoa Ankea can mean a lot of things, Keskenään kotoa could be translated as ”with each other at home” while Sisko and Ankea have meanings, most likely due to capital letters they were meant as names, Sisko meaning sister and Ankea meaning dreary Sorry, my Finnish brain just rambling but wanted to explain this

Ahhh! This was one of my favorite weird rabbit holes to passively research when I was in highschool -- I'm so excited for you to cover it! (Edit: I think I even remember designing fake arcade cabinets for Killswitch bc that was also around the time I was working on my comic *and* was suuuper into the Polybius legend)

The one thing that always stops me from really getting immersed in works like these is, despite how intricate and imaginative they are, they don't hold up well to light scrutiny and seem to rely too heavily on an audience's naivete. I do, however, LOVE Izzzyzzz's videos and the way they spotlight fascinating communities and topics I would have never come across on my own 🥰

I find it really wholesome that this basically concluded as an appreciation video for an underrated author

VIDEO SPOILERS I wasn't expecting to hear my immediate cousin's name in such a pivotal role in an Izzzyzzz video it literally gave me a spit take when you said Cat's full name LOLLL this is so weird what the fuck. I didn't know this at all, but once you mentioned it, the mixture of haunting/elegant elements all started to fit perfectly into her authorial voice. (Due to our age difference and living on opposite sides of the country we don't chatter very often, but I see her every year or so for weddings or holidays! We're both writers so it's always fun to hear what she's got in the works.) Great video as always I love all ur stuff so much!!!!!

The true internet historian, archiver of a generation

your videos have completely eliminated any self-consciousness i had about my interests. it was extremely reassuring to hear that it's okay to like what makes you happy, and that people shouldn't judge you for it. everything you talk about holds extreme nostalgia for me because i partook in a majority of it as a kid as well. i go through depressive episodes where i can't stop thinking about how much i wish i could go back to when i didn't have any responsibility, and be a child again. i'm 23 years old now but i have so many regrets from when i was growing up that i desperately wish i could go back and fix; re-experience. there are so many things i miss, like school and being around my family all the time. i was neglecting myself for a really long time, both physically and mentally. i spent most of my time in bed and on youtube. i found your channel and the more i watched, the better i started feeling- and eventually i decided that i was going to try and get back into some of the stuff that i used to love so much as a kid. my little pony, steven universe, undertale, homestuck, and a lot of other things. it's done WONDERS for my mental health. i feel so much more productive and motivated to take care of myself and my responsibilities as an adult, while also feeling like a free spirit again. ironically, reality feels a lot more clear now. i'll always be grateful for the love and effort that you put into your content, because it's one of the biggest reasons that i'm able to start making my life better. thank you so much from the bottom of my heart♥

I really respect the Author giving up Killswitch “to the Internet” but she should totally have the right to grow/monetize it if the mood strikes her.

on the note of internet folklore and authorship, I always find it funny as someone who was really into creepypastas in my teens to stumble across the author of a work I was really into. Recently I learned a guy whose podcast I listen to was the writer of smile.dog, a favourite of mine from when I was young, and it really caught me off guard, but it was so funny to me.

I remember seeing something about this ages ago, but the only thing I really remembered about it was that it supposedly deleted itself and the part about Ghast being invisible and nobody being able to complete the game in that mode. Neat to finally see the rest of the story.

I love when izzzy talks about obscure-ish horror games or legends it feeds a curiousity that i didnt think i had

I remember being linked to the Invisible Machines site by a writer-friend in 2007, when only a few stories had been posted. When I tried to look it up in a search engine a few years later, I couldn't find it, and had to sort through my bookmarks to share with another friend. Turns out, the site - when it existed - had completely opted out from search terms. You could only find it if you knew what you were looking for, with a direct link from a friend-of-a-friend. It added to the metafiction extremely well! I was convinced I'd just imagined the site existed, inspired by other unfiction like Candle Cove, until I found that bookmark.

At 16:12 The names are in Finnish! :D Eksynyt Morsian = Lost Bride Sisko = Sister Mielipaha = Recentment (according to dictionary) Keskenään kotona = Alone at home/Home alone Ankea = Dreary

Damn this is the second time Izzy covers a obscure horror topic from the 2010s I haven't seen anyone discuss (with the first being The Path) and I absolutely love it, Killswitch was one of my favorite creepypastas just because it felt so... Real? No weird demons in your room no hyper realistic blood, just a somewhat fucked up and extremely obscure Russian indie game that deleted itself (and in the pre internet days that would be the equivalent of a book that burned itself after reading it)

Killswitch is my favorite video game creepypasta, because it doesn't go overboard with the spookiness. I never knew about Invisible games and it was very interesting to hear about it.

Valente is one of my favorite writers of all time so finding out that she was behind such a fascinating story was genuinely amazing. She really has a knack for emulating the mannerisms of whatever genre she's writing, from fairy tales to apparently creepy pastas and unfiction. I would highly recommend anyone who was at all intrigued by this video go check out her work. You wont be disappointed.

you made my day by covering this. Kill Switch and Pale Luna hold a weirdy nostalgic place in my head. keep up the good work izzy

I'm currently reading through the blog posts on the Invisible Games website now and suddenly something clicked. I have to wonder if Catherynne M. Valente was inspired by Italo Calvino's "Invisible Cities" (1972). This excerpt from the site Ekostories sums up the the overall concept behind the book much better than I could as... "Invisible Cities is a travelogue to places that do not exist. It is a work that brushes aside conventions of form and narrative to ruminate on ideas of memory and place, touching on everything from trajectory of civilizations to the limits of communication" It's a philosophical mindfuck between the fictionalized Marco Polo and Kublai Khan that (from what I've seen so far with Valente's work) is going about asking questions in a similar way as Invisible Games. Plus, I mean, come on, the name similarity is notable. There may be no correlation but that one semester in college I had to read this book came back to me while looking through Valente's writings.

I’ve been watching too much Drawfee. Saw the name of the game company and just instantly had the thought of ‘Karina? What’s Karina got to do with it??’ Took me too long to realise it most likely wasn’t meant to be read as Karina

Oh man, I used to LOVE Insible Games. I had totally forgotten it. I discovered it in the early days before this kind of thing was popular and honestly couldn't tell if it were real or not. My favorite is the Lenentine cards, always wanted to make a set.

I first read killswitch in a printed book of short horror stories about video games called "Game over". I didn't know of its online rumor status! Very cool to see you cover it!

I was startled to hear Catherynne Valente come up because she wrote my favorite middle grade/ young adult series and dare I say my favorite book ever: The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making. I deeply recommend it to you as it exhibits more of Valente's incredible way of writing and a way of constructing whimsy without making it fluff.

i started watching and was surprised when you said "czech folk music" and thought it was just a coincidence but nope! it's another legendary game from the czech game development community of the 80's, i'm czech and i'm impressed

Hey, this is one of those creepypastas I've read before it was a viral creepypasta! I don't get to say that often! I remember wayyy back in high school I stumbled across Invisible Games and was obsessed with the articles there. What's funny is Killswitch was one of them I overlooked a bit at the time because the other stories were just so interesting and creative. I remember Brightshaupt Devices and for some reason, I had remembered it as the first Simon Says game. I also vividly remember The Loneliness Engine. For Guest at the Table of Heaven, I believe that has always been an Access Denied page. I remember back then having the same page show up because I remember obsessing how to get access to it. Looking back, I like to think that was part of the mystery the author has made, like the only way you can be granted access is if you are dead or something along those lines. I was surprised when Killswitch became a viral creepypasta a bit later and no one talked about Invisible Games because of how cool the other articles were! I thought for sure others would stumble across the site and start making wild theories about the other articles, but as far as I know, that didn't happen. I'm glad to know who the author is now so I can check out her other works. When I saw your video pop up, I was hopeful you would go into Invisible Games since your videos are always so detailed, but you went above and beyond. Not only with the images of What Happened to Agent Small? which was really fun to see what the game could've looked like if it were real, but you also went over Viagra-gate. I remember when the site got filled with spam of viagra which was annoying at the time. Sorry for such a long post, but I'm so excited to see someone mention Invisible Games and praising the other stories on there. I highly encourage those who are interested in the Killswitch story to look at the other stories on the Invisible Games website, because they are so haunting yet creative. Thank you so much for going over this, Izzy!

IZZY I AM BEGGING YOU!! i would absolutely LOVE if you could do a video on the deep dive into littlest pet shop online. i used to play the game religiously as a child before hasbro shut it down forever in 2011. i'm SO nostalgic when it comes to that game but i can never find enough history on the topic ANYWHERE on the internet and if anyone can properly unearth it all and give me my childhood back it's you. i know that sounds dramatic but i would do literally anything to go back!!!

when you revealed about catheryne m valente... i was so excited. she's the author of my favourite book series of al time, and her writing is utterly ENCHANTING. if you like whimsical, dark, fairytale content, please read "the girl who circumnavigated fairyland in a ship of her own making" and its sequels, they are amazing and full of imagination and whimsy, they definitely do not get talked about enough!!

im not big on horror but everytime u post a horror ish video its so interesting and entertaining ! it makes me weirdly nostalgic for a community i was never apart of

Woah, Gomo did incredibly on those graphics!! They were very convincing

As a computer engineer, I knew the game was fake as soon as it was claimed that the game would erase itself, couldn't be copied, and would leave no trace of its existence behind. The first two are possible (although difficult given the technology of 1989), the third one isn't. Regardless, the lore surrounding this "game" is very rich and well-done so I don't blame anyone for believing it.

When Izzy uploads my happiness goes from -10 to +1000 in seconds 💜

For spooky videos, Izzy brings their 2016 clown look 🤡👻

14:49 The writing in this one random snippet alone is so good and real-feeling that it gave me goosebumps.

You are the prettiest youtuber, and i often forget this because i usually just treat your videos as an interesting backround audio. love the subject matter, always something obscure to me.

Izzzyzzz, you never fail to entertain me when i'm drawing, your videos are perfect for whenever i'm drawing/animating

I love when Izzy makes a video on something I've never heard of and yet is a slice of everything I love.

The way you handle horror related gaming stuff is very nostalgic and feels good to me, this is the kinda stuff I will spend hours trying to find on RU-vid only to end up disappointed most of the time, and very rarely I come across a rare gem. You make this stuff so well, that it’s always a pleasure to see your videos. Especially the old creepy/obscure games! Definitely one of my favourite RU-vidrs.

I’ve been having a terrible chronic pain flare up today and was so relieved when this came out! Your videos really suck me into the topics they’re about and I find them really soothing (which make them great distractions from severe pain). I really appreciate your work and of course I’m really excited for your next video! In the mean time I’ll just binge your old content again lol

You’re a true historian of the 2000s- I heard about this ages ago, but I didn’t really feel like falling into such a deep rabbit hole, and simply forgot about it. Maybe next you should make a video on the teen werewolves and teen vampires of the 2000s. All the stuff they got up to is mental, and it would definitely be something more lighthearted in contrast to this video :)

This was so good and so cool to find out more of the creators work. Killswitch was one of my favorites back in the day, and her work is simply amazing! I hope you'll also do a video on the Gilbert Garfield ARG. 8D

I’ve just recently found your channel in the past month or so, and I’ve binged nearly every one of your videos. I really enjoy your content🖤

gomo's art fit right in, i was surprised to hear it wasnt originally apart of the website! great job to the both of you, loved the video.

I remember the Instagram spooky story accounts. I was OBSESSED with them as a kid

Love how much was explained before confirming that the game wasn't real. The suspension of disbelief really added to the video. Also I normally hate horror stuff but you explain it all so well and in a way which I find really nice and friendly to listen to so thank you for that :)

i love how you can get me interested in things i've never even heard about! each video is an absolute treat to listen to also super cool to see gomotion involved in this

Hey Izzy! I stumbled upon your videos a few weeks ago with the sims 2 one, and ever since then they became my new hyperfixation (i have adhd so its fairly common). I just wanted to tell you how much i love your attention to detail, the structures of your videos, the topics you make them about, and also, your makeup is so mesmerizing in each and every one, that i cant listen to it without visuals. I love your personal style, keep making videos, you are so good at this!❤️❤️❤️

wooo new izzy video lets go! always a bright spot in my day when a new video comes out :D

omg Izzy you have 700k subs??! thats awesome. I started watching when you were a smaller creator and im really happy for you! Your videos and makeup are always fantastic

Love it when you cover obscure horror games! Also the look you crafted for this video? *Chef's kiss*

Izzy you've helped fill the void of some of my favourite youtubers that have left the platform. Thankyou and as always fantastic video.

Maybe you could cover the history of "Thrill Kill"? It was an unfinished, unreleased PlayStation game from early 2000's and it's pretty wild.

finally someone made a video about killswitch, i love this topic and it’s sad how underappreciated it is

Izzy ur genuinely my favourite RU-vidr ever, I’m so glad u do what u do! Ur so calming to watch and listen to and seem so genuinely friendly. Thank you for making these videos u help out a lot of people in ways u can’t imagine

I just discovered your channel recently, and I’ve been binging your videos for the last few days. Thanks for making so much great content!

Thank you for making such great content!! I’ve started putting them on for sleep because they are so calming even if they have spooky content 🌝

The story of Killswitch reminds me of the disappearing $2000 book! A super interesting concept. Once again an awesome video

Thank you for being our guide and Great Stuff, as always!

I have to say, the creativity you have with your makeup in all your videos always impresses me

Always a great day when you upload, your content is great!

A question I always had is how the "it deletes the game after you play once" thing could have been done in the 80's 90's because that seem to be the ages where the development would have taken place. Like nowdays it's easier due to most games being downloadable it's just putting a code that deletes the game files and bam you have it

I love you so much, every time I don't know what to listen to in the background, I go to your channel and get so happy when I see a new video lmao. You make my days better

MY GIRL GOT ON TRENDIIIIIIIING 😭❤️ your uploads always make my day. I listen to old ones to go to sleep. I’ve been having a really hard time lately, and this is exactly what I needed. Thank you izzzyzzz!

The biggest tell that Killswitch is a story is that no one, NO ONE, bothered to burn the ROM to a computer or something and play around with it. Come on, this was when the Internet was enthusiast-only, SOMEONE had to have thought of it when they heard of the game deleting itself!

I always love content made by Izzy :) Can't help but wonder what the ending for completing Ghast's route would have been, tho.

Izzys puts so much dang work into her vids I'm so proud that I've gotten to watch her for so long

No idea how I missed this but the incredible research and writing in these is truly amazing. Love this channel. Simply one of the best!

You need to make more creepy ones! Those are my favorites! (Love you btw 😛)

Just listening to Izzy read the stuff on Invisible Games is fucking fascinating man. Thanks for letting me know about it

I recently found your channel and I am blown away. From your deep researched analyses of the topics and beautiful way you articulate those ideas, to the most sick looking makeup I have ever seen-amazing! I’d love for you to do a deep dive into iScribble. I spent a lot of time there in my teen years and I’m sure there was so much drama and weird things happening that I didn’t even know about. I made a lot of friends in there and let’s just say it holds a special place in my heart lol

your squarespace page used in the example is a blessing thank you

I love this channel, and the work you do Izzzy. Your coverage of these things from a time a bit younger than me, helps me understand a lot about the internet Now. That said, as a 36 year old interested in actual gaming history... seeing these "lost" games? Lol. I imagine it's what biologists must feel, when Ripley's Believe It or Not wheels out a taxidermy "mermaid" and the crowd eats it up. Its infuriating and hilarious all at once. 😅 Keep up the good work! (And do you know Sarah Z? Seems like you two might be a crossover event of the decade if you ever collaborated!)

I remember reading the story as a teen and generally thinking 'okay, this one isn't real, that game couldn't exist with that technology back then' etc, but thinking it was still pretty cool and enjoying the story... thanks for going into the backstory of it though, it's wonderful to hear about the author behind it all after all these years.

I loved all of Izzy's videos but this is definitely been one of my favorites. Also interesting to hear you have the same patreon backers as some of my other favorite small youtubers. Makes me think about how many of us run in similar circles.

Yoo I was looking for this thing forever, great video!