Armchair Brain
The Armchair Brain is a YouTube channel dedicated to writing, researching, & producing long-form video essays on subjects including (but not limited to) history, philosophy, politics, religion, and science, and the intersection of such subjects in art & entertainment media (books/literature, film, music, sports, & video games). Feel free to leave a comment and subscribe (ring the bell as well!), or just drop a line if there's a detail that's wrong. Any support helps.
Armchair Brain
🚨 NEW VIDEO ESSAY ALERT🚨
Dropping today at 3:00 PM EST/12:00 PM PST
What Is The Right Way To Beat Gwyn, Lord Of Cinder In Dark Souls ? | A Dark Souls Video Essay
#DarkSouls #Soulsborne #Soulslike #videogames #videoessay #gaming #gamer #FromSoftware #YouTubeGaming #ArmchairBrain
1 day ago | [YT] | 1
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Armchair Brain
Coming to the Armchair Brain YouTube Channel this weekend (maybe even this Friday)...
#DarkSouls #Soulsborne #Soulslike #videogames #videoessay #gaming #gamer #FromSoftware #YouTubeGaming
1 day ago | [YT] | 2
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Armchair Brain
Happy February 2026, everyone.
#DiscoElysium
5 days ago | [YT] | 1
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Armchair Brain
"This feels wrong. Should you be doing this?" - Inland Empire
#DiscoElysium #DarkSouls #gaming #videogames #games #gamer #Steam #SteamDeck #PC #PCGaming #indiegaming #indiegame #indiegames #FromSoftware #ArmchairBrain #videoessay
1 month ago | [YT] | 13
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Armchair Brain
Hey everybody! So I was hoping on completing one more (and shorter) video essay on before 2025 concluded, but it will be have to be set back because 1.) The video's script is about 95% completed and 5/6's of the voiceover is done, but I am unsure how to finish the last chapter and 2.) Quite frankly I have been having too much fun playing and recording footage of this game (not sure if that's a bad thing or not). I think I'll probably finish writing the chapter and recording voiceover this week, assuming the holidays aren't that much of an interruption. You should expect the video to arrive this January at the latest if I can't complete it before New Years (and you can figure out from my shorts what the video's subject is about 😉).
Also, I had announced my plan for the first two BIG video essays for early 2026 almost a month ago, which I wrote over on my Patreon (the post is free to read) -
www.patreon.com/posts/game-plan-for-s-144409596
Anyway, just wanted to fill y'all in. Stay tuned for more updates !
#videogames #gaming #videoessay #gamer #indiegaming #indiegames #RPG #ArmchairBrain
1 month ago | [YT] | 12
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Armchair Brain
Working on a thumbnail for the next skill analysis video essay and I don't know what to make of this rough draft, but what do y'all think?
Stay tuned for more updates.
#DiscoElysium #DiscoElysiumTheFinalCut #videogames #gaming #gamer #indiegame #indiegaming #indiegames #RPG #DetectiveGame #DetectiveRPG #DavidLynch #Identity #Epistemology #Philosophy #Inland Empire #HarryDuBois #videoessay #KimKitsuragi #ArmchairBrain
2 months ago | [YT] | 20
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Armchair Brain
This week marked the 1 year anniversary of my video essay WHY FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY'S HOLD UP, which is also the start of my mini-series FOREVER FREDDY. Despite the low views compared to my more recent essays, I truly believe this video essay is one of my better ones as not only do I touch on what makes the first FNAF game a classic, but it allowed me to touch on the importance of indie gaming. Consider giving it a watch or two if you haven't watched it already before the 2nd episode on FNAF 2 eventually drops (I swear to Golden Freddy the 2nd one is coming! I know I said it'd come this year, but it's definitely coming next year).
Thanks and stay tuned as always !
#FiveNightsAtFreddys #FNAF1 #FNAF2 #FiveNightsAtFreddys2 #ArmchairBrain #videogames #gaming #games #gamer #indiegame #indiegames #indiegaming #horror #horrorgame #horrorgaming #PCGaming #NintendoSwitch #videoessay #videogaming
2 months ago | [YT] | 2
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Armchair Brain
Many, many thanks to those of you who have watched my latest video essay and second episode in my DISCO ELYSIUM skill analysis series so far. I know that there were some checks I did not mention or dive into. Two of them occur during the Tribunal scene, but there is also the Reaction Speed check at the bookstore before you pick up the Dick Mullen book. Well, the reason I left it out is because the next episode in this series will cover the mysterious, paranormal, and sometimes untrustworthy Inland Empire, and covering this Psyche skill will allow me to dive into the game's theme of identity (hence, the book plays one small part in this theme).
As I said at the tail end of the last video, I want to squeeze in one more (and smaller) video essay before the year ends and I have a few other projects to catch up on. All I can say is that the video essays covering HOLLOW KNIGHT and FNAF 2 will be done when they're done. Thank you so much for taking the time to watch this 2nd episode and stay tuned for video updates!
#DiscoElysium #videogames #gaming #gamer #indiegame #indiegaming #indiegames #RPG #detectivegame #DiscoElysiumTheFinalCut #ArmchairBrain
2 months ago | [YT] | 3
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Armchair Brain
🚨 NEW VIDEO ESSAY PREMIERING TODAY🚨
Why Reaction Speed Might Be The Most Disappointing Disco Elysium Skill | A Disco Elysium Video Essay
Premiering at 3:00 PM EST/12:00 PM PST
#DiscoElysium #ArmchairBrain #videogames #gaming #gamer #videogaming #indiegame #indiegaming #indiegames #RPG #ReactionSpeed #DetectiveGame #videoessay
2 months ago | [YT] | 6
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Armchair Brain
So we are less than a day away from Team Cherry's HOLLOW KNIGHT: SILKSONG and I wanted to discuss a topic that's been on my mind regarding a sentiment I keep hearing across social media on Twitter and elsewhere. That is, that SILKSONG will mean having to say goodbye to the original game; hence, several HK YouTubers are doing "goodbye Hollow Knight" and "Last Hollow Knight Stream" videos and livestreams playing or speedrunning the first game, knowing that the next few days, weeks, months, and years will be spent playing SILKSONG and its potential DLCs.
But of course this is nonsense. If anything, just as HOLLOW KNIGHT veterans got hyped for SILKSONG's release for a few years and will probably love playing the sequel, SILKSONG will bring *more* interest for newbie gamers to try HOLLOW KNIGHT for the first time, in the same way ELDEN RING introduced gamers to the "Soulslike" genre (or more appropriately in this case, FromSoftware's "Soulsborne" games) by trying out DARK/DEMON SOULS or BLOODBORNE after ELDEN RING. Not just as an introduction into the lore of HK, but as an introduction to Metroidvania gaming as a whole. Lord knows, my boomer a** enjoys revisiting games despite new releases in a gaming series like ZELDA or STAR FOX. There's a reason why I keep saying HOLLOW KNIGHT is the greatest Metroidvania of all time and it's because of its massive replayability and its mechanics, even just putting aside HK's incredible lore. Whether or not SILKSONG is better or worse than the original is irrelevant, as HK has made its cultural influence known across gaming, and especially how Team Cherry has been extremely dedicated to developing the best games possible even while having "too much fun" in their words. To quote one memorable line from a pretty awful film, "It's not goodbye. It's see you later."
#HollowKnight #HollowKnightSilksong #Silksong #Metroidvania #Soulslike #videogames #games #gamer #gaming #videogaming #indiegame #indiegaming #indiegaming #ArmchairBrain
5 months ago | [YT] | 1
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