civvie11
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IT CAME FROM THE STEAM LIBRARY: BEDLAM
🕑 Added 2025-08-12 15:25:52 +0000 UTCNo, it's not the Heretic/Hexen remaster yet THAT'S NEXT TIME. I was 75% done with this video when they gave me a key for that so this video is about weirdness.
A weird, janky artifact from a time before Dusk. Bedlam is a game. It is a game that I bought long ago when it was advertised to me as a retro throwback and then I played some of it and then gave up and then remembered it existed and now that I do a show about this kind of stuff I thought "yeah this is weird and interesting" and "examining a failure of retro FPS design is fun too."
I replayed this about a year ago after someone asked me about it. That part is true. It seemed like perfect show fodder because it was a strange and ambitious misfire.
One day I'll finish the book, Bedlam, which I did find a copy of, used, from a Candian library but after reading a decent chunk of it I realized that all I'd be doing is making connections to a novel that's hard to acquire in a game that's already impossible to get unless you bought it on steam a decade ago. Artificially bloating the video that didn't need to be 40-50 minutes. There are some direct quotes from the book as well as re-creations of events from the book despite it not being the same story. It's strange. Not bad, though.
But then there's also the new set stuff. I've been trying for about a year to design a new set that would scale properly and play nice with camera movement and animation. What ended up in this video is the fifth attempt. So here's some BTS:
So I wanted to make a panopticon:
Terrible idea. Absolute nightmare to keep everything aligned when trying to make something round. It ended up having a zillion different cells like the last set. The fucking forcefields annoyed me and I gave them up simply because lighting all of them properly made the performance chug.
An early attempt to redo the previous set with some better detail.
One thing I was trying to do (and have been for several iterations of the set) was to have a light behind a fan somewhere that would cast some fun shadows. This in-between cell was both way too big and kinda meh.
That was the cell in the "new set" for a while. I tried to do an updated version of the current layout with new areas and better effects/performance. A lot of these newer resources made it into the new set, like the elevator and small bits of greenery on the rocks. The lack of color, in general, was bothering me, as everything is very grey. All the sets have been extremely grey, dark, and any color was mostly tied to lighting.
There are little low-poly inmates in the background here. That model has been updated quite a bit for the newest set iteration, but here? They're one awkward model in a few different poses:
The cafeteria area looked like shit. Shittier than I'm willing to allow, which is saying something.
Also, the whole thing was way too dark.
So I decided to start from scratch, again, which is what I've traditionally done with new sets. I decided to go browner/orange for the cells. Instead of a panopticon, it ended up being like a carousel, with the much lower cell count (20 instead of "way too fucking many") that were all the same and easy to modify and move.
I didn't want to lose the sense of scale that the old set had, so I put everything in a giant pit, suspended over water, and started adding side areas until it felt like it all worked. Some offices visible on the side, screens with ads next to a train system....
...and a rail line diagram that will probably never end up in any shots of the show.
The waterfall is a little iffy. The 300th Sewer Count is memorialized in an area that will also likely never end up in a shot.
The cells all rotate and move up and down on the center pillar. Theoretically, they can all be dropped in the water. The most important thing I wanted in the new set was movement. So lights, objects, the camera, etc, all move now. I thought about doing the "camera stuff" in VR, a thing I tried once before (in the Witchaven video, IIRC) but people complained it made them motion sick. So, slightly stiffer scripted camera movement was the way to go. They're fun as hell to make.
At the top, there's even patreon-exclusive untextured armed guards.
And, finally, after god knows how many attempts, Katie gets a cell too!
Editors need plenty of energy drinks and prescription stimulants. And post-its that detail a downward mental spiral:
The Civvie cell needed to be less grey, less dark, and less ridiculously spacious. It's a prison cell after all. So there's a little space to move around. Just enough I think.
I'LL FIND WHATEVER SPECULAR LIGHT IS DOING THAT SHIT AT THE TOP I HATE IT
Teddy11 showed up in a shot a few videos ago, but he's part of the set proper now (with permission from the Selaco devs). A 3D model made to look like a voxel model? Insane. When will it explode?
Floor junk. More stuff people probably can't read from a regular shot on the show. Also, hexagon floors, which are a constant thing throughout all sets because they're cool and sci-fi.
And no force fields. There were yellow ones on the cells in the new set until I removed them and replaced them with big metal doors.
Hope you all like it.
gl;hf
-Civvie ____________________________
An even newer Patreon discord invite link!
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If you'd like to have a different name in the credits than what you pledged with, leave me a comment, or DM me on here or Twitter or discord or whatever. If your name is wrong, not included, or anything else, shoot me a message calling me an asshole and telling me to fix it.
Or if you want one of those fancy colored names that everyone gets now if they want. The credits in the video are usually a couple of days behind the actual patron list so if you don't see your name, it will be in the next upload.
Comments
Paul Voyles
Screw you for making me realize I played this like 10 years ago and got through the pacman bit. Started over and finished it before watching your video, didn't hate the game outside of the last level 6/10
Argon Productions
So this game is a cross between Daikatana and Yahtzee's satirical DNF review. Cool. Thank you Civvie!
codeblackcrash
the new set is giving Black Mesa Inbound vibes. I dig it
Civvie
They were much smaller pixels. MUCH smaller.
John Schmulowitz
“The blood are squares I dont remember a game being that pixelated” Quake 1 would like a word.
Alyxx the Rat
Man you put more work into your set than the devs put into the gunplay.
Bazztoner
May I suggest checking out Monument, a weird, small, short retro FPS made by a single kid? That could be a good 10 minute patreon exclusive video.
Silentphil9
....Civvie and the robot guards are caught in a endless space......
Zubaz
Played Bedlam years ago and remember it not being too bad. Also never considered the amount of work you put into making these sets.
JOE MOTHERFUCKING TREEFELNER
Fuck yes
TheKindlyOnes
Ok. Sound off. What freak fungal growth do you have in your steam library thats better left forgotten to time. Big one for me is Garys Incident: day 1. Theres more... but cant get onto computer thanks to busted leg...
Davinchiii
And by the way, am I the only one who things the main character sounds like Paddy Pimblett?
Davinchiii
You do realize Activision(thunder sound) will see those photos & will launch your own brand game. Right?
DOOMGUY
Cool
Nachts
God this is so good! You sound like you were having a blast making this video. Bring on the creativity.... and Brutal John 2 Civvie boss! To quote Mr. Motherfucking Treefelner...... Fuck. Yes.
Investigator Sozhran
Another hilarious episode, thank Civvie! P.S. Thief-like footsteps in the intro were a nice touch
Phoebe Q
new set looks great, adore the new style, and omg teddy-11 is adorable 🥺
Jojo Evans
Is civvie a mst3k fan? Several movies they watched in that opening. Love the redesign chat, interesting stuff.
Shawn Grant
Thanks Civvie! I can't wait to watch this. I'm going to wait for after my Apartment's fire code inspection today, so I can relax when I watch it. Hopefully they don't gig me for having a duck in the apartment.
RobBob
Keeping a Mei Connoisseur locked up is how you know the Department of Special Corrections are truly evil. love the BTS stuff, and I appreciate the details for making the new set. it looks great. though I won't shy away from admitting I'll miss the old set (we're basically all here because we like Old Thing™ so that makes sense I guess)
DoomJelly
so fun to see the process for the 3D set, the new cell looks amazing and crusty, love it
Pieter
I'm happy it isn't Hexen/Heretic. I prefer these unknown games 😍😁 Also, fun to read these insights. Teddy11 was a big help on beating Selaco on SMF difficulty 😁
Civvie
Unfortunately not on patreon. I uploaded close to 4k and it seems to want to compress them.
Nomp
Love the behind the scenes but what are the chances we can get higher rez screenshots?
arctic vampire
You quit exactly where I did, I tried 4 times to play this...Glad to see the rest of the game but not having to play it..
NoEsPaul
I remember having the feeling, but I don’t remember what it feels like…
Civvie
Hard to see in those screenshots but it’s there. It’s in the corner under the Elexis Sinclaire poster. I think it’s more visible at the beginning of the vid.
Mario_bland
but where's the toilet on the set. I paid for a toilet (it might be there but I'm blind lol)
Silentphil9
Fun concepts. Bad execution. It's killed so many games...
Orre Karre
I hope there's sewage treatment facility under the water.
a19fox
this game feels like a disney fake game with how dated it is
Adam Blunt
I am glad still wakes the deep had subtitles because I would not have had any idea what was going on.
Adam Blunt
It's a company that makes military hardware.
NerdyOgre254
How do I say "ten years might be an optimistic time frame" in weird scottish?
ChickenShred
Lockheed?
Steven Raith
For the avoidance of doubt, I can confirm 'arse candles' and 'ya wee fud' are absolutely scottish (mainly glaswegian) turns of phrase. Source: I'm Scottish.
fRiEnD
Glorious as always! Civvie: a god among men. But its missing something... it needs more Blood Civvie...
Mateusz Bartoszek
A new Civvie vid AND a new set AND a cell for Katie? Holy shit what a great day!
Civvie
Been using Unreal for the set the whole time. Originally Unreal 3 in 2017, then moved to 4, and this is currently on Unreal 5. And now I actually know how to do some stuff instead of just throwing crude models and lights together!
TurboShark
The new set updates rule. Also I picture you thinking the set is too dark and the spectre of doom 3 just laughing over your shoulder in Betruger's voice lol
Synthetic
Absolutely loving the set work. Even "as-is" would be fine for a lot of creators but you have passion for your world building and I am here for the long haul.
Max Camp
Guilty
Suckerpunch5000
The bts stuff is great! I think I saw somewhere you used unrealEd at some point ?? Is that right or am I delusional (well, more so)
TyLego
That's a lot of behind the scenes details for a prison set meant for use as part of a skit. But at least we can see Katie's cell now. Also, no more Phantom Fury and Trump jokes? Diabolical.
Civvie
I'm so old I remember when it meant "behind the scenes" or "basted with semen."
prozax
What's BTS? Is it that K-Pop band that reddit users enjoy?
Steven Wilson
Another game I've never heard of. Thanks Civvie!
Ghostybirb
Holy hell, I was NOT expecting this level of BTS stuff. Absolutely insane levels of effort in the set redesign. Kudos!
Powerhouse Willington
Currently stuck in jury duty. Can’t wait to watch this
