SPOILER WARNING: This whole post is a spoiler, so don't read further if you plan to play.

A Place for Wellness

System: Cthulhu Dark

Duration: 4 hours (takes less time with less Players)

GM: Morgan Hua

6 Players (best with 6; works with 5; 4 is playable, though not that great).

Pre-gens provided.

Description:

You will play various characters from movies such as Terminator, Halloween, Hellraiser, IT, Psycho, and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. All are new patients in an insane asylum. Patients suffer from various persecution complexes, delusions, paranoia, and some have violent tendencies.

When not playing a Patient, you will play as Doctors in charge of evaluating patients, recommending therapies, and administering outdated therapies to the patients.

The asylum is modern and similar in tone to One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

This is a PvP game where the Patients are pitted against the Doctors and the system. This is a game about perceptions, observation, deception, and human cruelty.

Remember: The Institute for Wellness is here for your safety and well-being. Patience is a virtue and a patient is only released when they're ready to face the world.

Background

The seeds for the idea behind A Place for Wellness started with a game I played in at a convention. A GM started us as kids for Act 1. Then Act 2 started with us a grownups and based on whether our kid got arrested or not, he had criminal or upstanding citizen adults for us to play. The brilliance of the game was that he had character portraits for all the characters. He found actors who started as kid actors and had varied roles, so he had normal and hardened criminal character portraits. Today, with AI tech, I guess this would be easier to pull off, but at that time, I had never seen anything like that before.

Years later, I built Welcome to the Clown Motel where the PCs were action heroes past their prime, think of the movie RED. The PCs were James Bond, Emma Peel, Shaft, Elvis, and Indiana Jones. It was easy to find photos of them in their iconic roles and photos of the actors past their prime. I used a character portrait standee that was clear and put the young hero on one side and the old hero on the other. I told the Players that, "This is what you think you are, this is what other people see." I show them both sides.

And I put the standee where the young hero portrait faced the Player and the outward facing side towards the other Players.

So, the next evolution was to have a standee where the Player only saw their self-image and other Players only saw something else.

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

So, I asked the question, what type of game could I build using this mechanism? It had to be a game about perception.

I decided it had to be a game about an Insane Asylum. The PCs were patients. But what about the doctors? Ah, the doctors need to have two faces also. The doctors must see themselves as normal well-meaning doctors, but see their patients as disturbed. The patients must see themselves as normal, but the doctors as monsters.

Years ago, I ran a homebrew game based on Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. The PCs belonged to Section 0.9, the nightwatch of Section 9, the B Team. At one point, a PC was put on trial for excessive force (she was being sued by an NPC who was mistakenly tortured). The issue was that the other PCs were not on trail and had nothing to do, so my solution was to hand out roles in the courtroom (witnesses, lawyers, judges) to the other Players and handout hidden agenda cards to them. This worked out great. So, I applied the same idea to this game. If you were not playing a Patient, you played a Doctor.

In most convention games, the main table is round, so all the Players can face either other, but this messes up my setup. The doctors must all see each other as normal. So, I decided it had to be a long table with all the doctors on one side and the patients on the other. This to me looked like a panel of doctors evaluating a patient. Aha, bingo! Some convention rooms did have a long rectangular conference table, so I needed to request this for my game.

Once I decided that that was what the game was going to be, I wanted to have tools for evaluation. I looked up inkblot tests, word association tests, and possible treatments for patients.

I then created a list of possible patients based on various movies. Of the 17 I came up with, I picked a variety of 6. I didn't want them all to be thematically the same, so I picked some Final Girls and some Villains.

The Patients

Sarah Conner (Linda Hamilton) from Terminator 1 (1984) & 2 (1991) & Dark Fate (2019).

Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) from Halloween series (1978, 1981, 1998, 2018, 2021, 2022).

Kirsty Cotton (Ashley Laurence) from Hellraiser 1 (1987) & 2 (1988).

Ben Hascome (Jeremy Ray Taylor & Bill Skarsgård) from IT (1990 & 2017).

Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) from Psycho (1960).

RP McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) from One Who Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) and Batman (1989/2008).

What the Doctors see as Patients

What the Patient sees as themselves

I wanted some variation. Some patients look normal but act odd. Some look odd but act normal.

I also had to explain why RP McMurphy and Kirsty Cotton were allowed to look so strange inside the hospital. So, before they showed up, I told the Doctors that McMurphy acted out and was hard to control when he didn't get to put on some makeup. Cotton had a history of self-harm and even though her nails were cut to the quick, she somehow still harmed herself.

The patients that didn't make it were: Natalie Portman from Black Swan, Wynoda Ryder from Beetleguice, Edward Norton/Brad Pitt from Fight Club, Nicole Kidman from The Others, Bruce Willis from 12 Monkeys, Jessica Lange from Frances (her story was way too icky for a RPG), Dan Stevens / Rachel Keller from Legion, Johnny Depp from Don Juan DeMarco, Leonardo DeCaprio from Shutter Island.

Doctors and Staff

What the Patient sees as Hospital Staff

What the Doctors see as Hospital Staff

The doctors are: Louis Cyphere from Angel Heart (1987), Frank N Furter from The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), Dr Loomis from Halloween (1979) and You Only Live Twice (1967), Annie Wilkes from Misery (1990), Mildred Ratched from One Who Flew Over the Cockoo's Nest (1975), and Jeffery T Spaulding from House of 1000 Corpses (2003) & The Devil's Rejects (2005).

You'll notice that the evil version of Nurse Ratched looks like Nurse Ratched because there's no good version of her. She's just plain evil. 😊

I also hand a Rubik's Cube to Dr Cyphere. I have a small standee with the following:

Patients see (left), Doctors see (right)

Some Patients and Doctors actually try to solve the Puzzle box. The issue is if they solve it too soon, the end game (Act 3) is triggered. To slow that down, I'd say that deliberately trying to solve the box causes the Patient to make a Madness save roll. Only when they reach Madness level 6 does the box open. Deeper into Act 2 or if in Act 3, then just automatically increase the Madness level each round they try to solve it. See Rules section below for an explanation of the mechanics. For the Doctors, it's just a Rubik's Cube. Or is it?

Using Cthulhu Dark, I found it was too easy for the Patients to overwhelm the Doctors, so I had to give the Doctors some help. I decided to give the Doctors a bonus if their Intern/Orderly helped with controlling a Patient.

What doctors see as intern/Orderlies

What patients see as intern/Orderlies

Since the Orderlies weren't as important as the Doctors, I used mini-standees for their portraits. If possible, I gave Orderlies to their theme appropriate Doctor.

I gave Harley Quinn with the baseball bat to Annie Wilkes because of the hobbling-thing. The Silent Hill Nurse to Louis Cyphere since he's the Devil. Riff Raff to Frank N Furter. Jaws to Dr Loomis. Otis to Spaulding. Elle to Ratched (sort of a leftover default).

Rules

I wanted the game to be rules light and more role playing than dice rolling. Since it's horror themed, I wanted to pick a horror game system. One that came to mind was Cthulhu Dark.

In Cthulhu Dark, you roll 1d6 to 3d6 and look at the maximum. e.g. you roll 2, 5, 4 = max is 5. If you decide to use your Madness die, if it is a higher number than the other dice, you must make a Madness save roll. Roll 1d6 and if it is higher than your current Madness level, increase your Madness level by one. All Patients start at Madness level 1. The Madness die is a different color than the other dice.

I wanted the Patients to be the star of this game and the Doctors to play 2nd fiddle. So, if I gave the Patients the regular 2d6 + the (optional) Madness die, then they would have 3d6. If I gave the Doctors the same dice, I'd get ties all the time, and that'll be boring. So, if I gave the Doctors less dice, they would lose to the Patients most of the time. So, I decided to give the Doctors 1d6, but if they had an Orderly help, they'd get 1d6+1. If they wanted to risk getting their Orderly hurt, then they'll get 1d6+2, but if they lost the die roll to the Patient, then the Orderly would be lost (sent to the hospital or morgue depending on how the Patient overcomes the Orderly. In either case, the Orderly for that doctor is out of the game).

During play if something disturbing happens, the Patient must make an Madness save roll and if the Patient fails, their Madness level goes up one. Also I reserve the right to just increase the Madness level of a Patient without need for a save roll. I do this nearer to the endgame to reduce the number of die rolls.

In Cthulhu Dark, when a PC's Madness level reaches 6, they're an NPC. In this game, I declare to the Players that "something special happens" instead.

What I've decided is that when a PC's Madness level reaches 6, their innermost fear is actually true and it manifests. Their object of fear appears and will kill them. At that point, this triggers the endgame and their fear manifested will stalk the remaining PCs (Patients & Doctors).

Endgame Horrors

These creatures are Supernatural and are immune to attacks by the PCs. If more than one PC manifests, then Supernatural creatures can fight Supernatural creatures. I just let them Roshambo to see who wins. But if a Supernatural creature goes against a Patient, Doctor, or Orderly, the P/D/O will be removed. Doctors can sacrifice an Orderly (push them in the way) to save their lives.

Most of the Supernatural creatures are self-explanatory as to their powers. The only detail I add is that the Nolan Joker from The Dark Knight has wired the Hospital with explosives and can set it off at anytime. Norman Bates is a little bit special too, he turns into an unstoppable Mother.

Table Setup

On one side of the table, for each Doctor, I put a clipboard and handouts* (protected in clear protective sheet covers for reuse), 2d6 (white) 1d6 (green, madness die), and a water soluble pen. I have some paper napkins that can be moistened and used to clean off the sheet covers. If you're not running this more than once, you can just use pen/pencils and paper printouts.

One side of the long table are 6 chairs. The other side, 1 chair.

I found it was easier if the Doctors just got up and walked around the table to play a Patient. Before they do that, I put a paper bag over that Doctor's standee to hide the Doctor's portrait. I actually find this funny. I also show their Patient standee to all the Doctors, some Doctors at the end of the table can't see it properly due to their viewing angle.

When they return to their seat, I hide their Patient standee and I take the paper bag off the Doctor.

Before the game starts, none of the standees are out. All the other props (Rubik's cube, crayons, ink blots, puzzles, standees) are also hidden.

To save time, I do put out the Patient Treatment Form* (top sheet), Patient Case Histories*, and the Word Association Test* on the clipboard, but the issue is some Players take a sneak peak and there are minor spoilers on there. I guess I should put a cover sheet that says, "Do NOT look until Administrator (GM) tells you."

Just for fun, I wear a white lab coat as the Hospital Administrator.

Introduction

Game safety tools. The issue is that I have no control over the Players when they're playing the Doctors (or Patients), so I have no idea what they're going to do or say. So, I have a giant red X-card. I explain that a Player can at anytime pull up the X-card and wave it to stop play.
I explain the Cthulhu Dark system. And my modifications.
Let the Players pick PCs.

I have 3x5 cards folded in half, so it is tented. In front is typed the names of movies. Inside is typed the name and occupation of the Patients from that movie; for Doctors, inside is only their name. The cards are separated into two groups: Patients and Doctors.
Show the list of Patient movies. Some Players are not familiar with all the movies. Let those Players choose first. Tell them to open the tented card to see which Patient they're playing. If you are short a Player, I'd leave out Norman Bates, but his interactions with Frank N Furter is actually pretty funny. The 3 must have PCs are Ben Hascome, Kirsty Cotton, and RP McMurphy.
Show the list of Doctor movies. Use the same process as for Patients except that some Doctors are in the same movie as the Patients. Those Players who had already picked a Patient from a movie should NOT pick a Doctor from the same movie. This is so that there is some roleplay interaction between the Doctors and Patients who know each other. None of the Doctors are must have, but Players love to play Frank N Furter. If Cyphere isn't played, just give the Rubik's Cube to different Doctor.
Put the Doctor standees in front of their respective Player. The nice professional picture should face the Players. The evil side should be hidden from sight. I give Cyphere the Rubik's Cube and put the Rubik standee in front of him. This is a trigger for Kirsty Cotton especially when someone plays with the cube.
Some Players have said that they sometimes get confused as to how to play their PC. This generally happens when they suddenly realize what their hidden portrait is. So, I tell the Players before the game starts, "In earlier games, I've been asked by some Players that get confused as to how to play their PC (whether Patient or Doctor). Players are free to interpret their PCs. The point of the game is to have fun. It is up to you to pick what you are comfortable with and what is fun for you and other Players."

Act 1 - The Interviews

Remember: The Institute for Wellness is here for your safety and well-being. Patience is a virtue and a patient is only released when they're ready to face the world.
Of course, this is ironic.
"Today there will be 6 new patients at the Hospital today. We will be evaluating them and figuring out who is the Primary Physician responsible for assigning treatments to them."
Explain various tests: baseline interviews, word association test, ink blot tests.

Doctor Evaluations. Q &A with patients. This gives a baseline for the Doctors. Either hand out the Patient Case Histories or tell them to look at the pages on the clipboard. "Players should not feel they are tied to the case histories as the case histories may contain inaccuracies, but it gives the Doctors (Players) who are unfamiliar with various Patients some info."

Will Patients lie in effort to seem normal and get released? Can Doctors see through the deceptions? Will Patients tell the truth about their bizarre experiences? These are all choices the Patients must make.
Word Association tests. Either hand them out or point to the page on the clipboard. Some of the words are from real word association tests, some are actually deliberate trigger words to get a reaction out of various Patients. How the test works is that the reaction time is recorded. Quick responses are more truthful than slow responses. But in-game, we won't bother writing down the time, nor use a stop watch. Players generally forget these and I prompt a Player that seems a bit quiet and ask them if they want to try a few word association tests.

Will Patients try to lie and skew the test? etc....
Ink blots. I found a number of ink blots online (some are real). You're supposed to show the ink blot for a few seconds, then hide it and ask the Patient what they had seen. In-game, the Doctor will leave the ink blot up and show it to the other Doctors too. Not really a problem. The ink blots have deliberate triggers too. I usually hold back the ink blots and if I see a Player who's a bit quiet or withdrawn, I hand the stack of ink blots to them (about 25) and point out a few triggering ink blots to show.

Will Patients try to lie? etc...
When a trigger gets a reaction from a Patient (or if it should elicit a reaction and they are able to hold it back), I ask the Patient for a Madness save roll. If they fail, I raise their Madness level and I tell them what its current level is. I have a sheet of paper with the Patient's names and their current Madness level. All Patients start at Madness level 1.

Norman Bates is a little bit special. The Patient starts off externally looking like Norman Bates, but internally, he's Mother. If the Player has enough time playing as Mother internally, then when the Madness level increases you can either let the Player pick which side to show and that would be the internal and external picture for everyone or you can flip the picture to the other side and tell everyone that's the internal and external picture for everyone.

I ask the Doctors, "Which Patient do they want to see first?" Generally, there's a pause and confusion. I then say, "Actually, out-of-game who wants to volunteer to be the first Patient?" Generally, someone will jump up and volunteer. I put the paper bag over that Player's Doctor's standee hiding it. Then invite the Player to come over to the other side of the table and have a seat. Then I put the Patient's standee out. If it's RP McMurphy or Kirsty Cotton I explain that before the Patient is brought in, the Hospital Administrator (GM) says the following:

For McMurphy: This Patient acts out and was hard to control when he didn't get to put on some makeup. So, we let him wear some.

For Cotton: She has a history of self-harm and even though her nails were cut to the quick, she somehow still harms herself.

You may also hand out the Patient Treatment Form at this time (or point out that they're on the clipboard) because this would give the Doctors an idea as to the type of treatments available. Also the Doctors may want to argue about diagnosis and treatments during the interview.

Ben Hascome is triggered by RP McMurphy and Spaulding. When he sees them he needs to make a Madness die roll. Furter might trigger him, depending on how strongly the Player reacts.

During the interview, Patients may want to do some actions such as steal a paper clip (Sarah Conner) or escape the interview room (Ben Hascome). This is resolved using the Cthulhu Dark die rolls. If the Doctors want to spot this or stop a Patient from escaping, interested Doctors can roll against the Patient. All interested parties, Patient and Doctors, roll simultaneously, but the Doctors must first declare if they want to "Risk" their Orderly for a +2. Otherwise if their Orderly is there, they get a +1. The Patient must also declare if they're using their Madness die.
For example: Sarah Conner vs Dr Cyphere and Dr Loomis.
Declarations:
Sarah Conner declares she is using her Madness die for 3d6.
Doctor Cyphere risks his Orderly for +2.
Doctor Loomis does not, but still has his Orderly and gets a +1.
All roll dice simultaneously.
Sarah highest die is a 5 [die rolls = 2 & 5 white dice, 4 green die].
Cyphere rolls a 1 +2 = 3. His die roll loses to Sarah's.
Loomis rolls 5 +1 = 6. His die roll beats Sarah's.
The result?
Sarah is caught by Dr Loomis with the help of his Orderly, but Sarah has hurt Cyphere's Orderly (ask Sarah's Player what she did to take out Cyphere's Orderly - "When the Orderly tried to take the paperclip from me, I broke his arm in 3 places."), so remove Cyphere's Orderly from the game.

As an aside, RP McMurphy can try to seduce Harley Quinn. If he beats 1d6+2, she will continue to pretend to be Wilke's Orderly, but will instead be the Joker's. You can keep this a secret or just put the Orderly standee next to McMurphy, he can then use her help +1, risk +2, or be sacrificed.
After the first interview, I tell the Doctors, "They must pick a Primary Physician who determines what treatments to use on their Patient. The Doctors can confer on possible treatments, but the Primary Doctor gets the final say." I had to do this because without a designated Primary Physician, the arguments about what treatments to apply never ended. One or two doctors would remain steadfast on what they treatments they wanted to apply. If a certain Doctor spent more time on a Patient during Q&A that usually was a sign that that Doctor wanted to be the Primary Physician for that Patient.

The Patient Treatment Form has a line for the Patient's name and Doctor's name, have the Primary Physician fill this out; this is just so we can remember which Doctor is paired with which Patient.
Ask "Which Patient do you want to evaluate next?" Ask for the next Patient volunteer. Repeat this until all the Patients are evaluated. If this gets too repetitive or boring, you can start doing treatments or group activities for Patients already admitted. See Act 2 for Treatments and Activities.

Act 2 - Treatments and Activities

Activities

It'll be fun to have some Patients meet other Patients. You can have Group Time with coloring books and puzzles or you can have Group Therapy. When Patients meet other Patients, you can have them face each other on a round table so they all see each other's exterior portraits. My only caveat is that you can't have too many Patients meet because you'll run out of Doctors and this is a prime time when the Patients might want to escape. I made this mistake once. During Activity Time, there were only 2 Doctors and the Patients decided to break out. The number of dice the Patients had totally overwhelmed the single dice the 2 Doctors had. I recommend no more than 3 Patients can be together at the same time.

If you wanted to be cruel, you can hand out only one crayon at a time for coloring. I did that to Sarah Conner because she was known to be dangerous. "Which color do you want?" I was holding a full 64 color crayon set. "Red."

Treatments

Doctors need to discuss who to be treated first, who is in the most need? Basically, have Players decide who to go first. When treatments are to be administered, ask the patient if they want to voluntarily take the treatment or fight it. If fight it, how?

Most therapy forces at least one madness die roll.
Pills: roll to hide pills vs taking, taking pills subtracts one white die. All patients are on at least one drug. Each drug reduces one die. Not taking a pill the next day recovers the lost die. If opposed to taking the pill, ask if the Patient tries to stuff it in their cheeks, under tongue, discard, use slight of hand. Doctors can oppose this observing for slight of hand or asking the patient to lift their tongue and inspect their mouths. On failure of opposing die roll, the doctor forces the patient to take the pill.
Restrict Diet: nothing happens, unless it's a starvation diet, then remove one white die
Increase Drug Dosage: remove another white die
Additional Medication: remove another white die
Solitary confinement: roll madness die
Straight Jacket / Restraints: remove one white die until freed
Electroconvulsive Shock Therapy: roll madness die (also scene is played out for more)
Hydrotherapy: roll madness die (play out)
Insulin Shock Therapy: roll madness die (play out)
Pyrotherapy: roll madness die (playout)
Lobotomy: Permanently remove a white die (play out)
Experimental Therapy: roll madness die (play out)
Patient Cured, Release Patient: If a patient is to be released, they are interviewed by the chief of staff and told they will be released the next day once the paperwork is completed. They are then released into the general patient population for a scene where they can tell the others that they will be released. In the middle of the night, the patient will be taken out of their cell. Do they make a fuss? Scream? What do they do? Then they are gone the next day. If the staff is asked, they will say the patient has gone home. They were released. Stoke up the paranoia.

When it says (play out), play out the scene and see what the Patient does to escape the treatment. Ask what the Doctor does. Some therapies require that the Patient be strapped in. When things get scary, ask the Patient to roll a madness die to see if their Madness increases by 1.

After every Patient has been treated, Doctors can re-evaluate their treatments and make new recommendations. Repeat this until Patients escape.

Escape

At some point, usually during treatment, a Patient will escape. Where can they go? They will want to get out of the hospital, but during Act 2, this will end the game for the Patient. In one game, Laurie Strode (who was Released) actually returned to the Hospital (and recommitted herself voluntarily) which was a surprise.

When the Patients escape a treatment room or group area, they head for the front doors. I make the front doors high security and require them to be buzzed to be unlocked from a secure room. There is a stairwell that has stairs going up or down. Down takes them to the basement and sub-basement with liminal corridors, laundry, heating ducts, etc. Up takes the them to an abandoned, disused floor or attic full of old machinery and maybe items from a Patient's backstory, and then the roof. Running loose on these other levels allows Doctors to try to capture any escaped Patients.

Act 3 - Endgame

The endgame starts when at least one Patient has reached level 6 Madness. I pull out their Endgame Horror and tell them this shows up (or you turn into this). I tell them, you now get to play the Supernatural being. Some supernatural beings replace the Patient, such as Mother (Norman Bates) or Nolan's Joker (RP McMurphy). But some kill the Patient. I let the Patient narrate how they get killed. It's usually very gruesome. I also remind them Supernatural beings cannot be defeated by normal people. And then I ask the Supernatural being who do they want to kill next (Patients, Doctors, Orderlies)?

Each round, the Supernatural being would stalk and kill someone. I tell the Player to describe how they show up and how they kill their victim.

If the Doctors and Patients had talked to each other or listened to each other's stories, they might have a clue based on the movies as to how they can eliminate the Supernatural being. I would let them try, but each round one of them will be killed.

Doctors can trick, push in the way, or order their Orderlies to sacrifice themselves to the Supernatural being. This will save them for one round.

Some Supernatural beings like to play with their victims instead of killing them outright which is ok. Some may work with a Patient. Pinhead gave McMurphy weapons to kill staff. Kirsty Cotton made a deal with Pinhead who killed everyone in the Hospital, thus leaving her the Final Girl, yet again.

During the stalking and murdering, Patients will continue to roll their Madness die. If another Patient reaches level 6 Madness, their Endgame Horror shows up too.

If two Supernatural beings decide to fight each other, use Roshambo (rock-paper-scissors) to see who wins. In one game, Pinhead and IT murdered all the Doctors and Patients and then shook hands as equals and departed.

This is also when Patients can easily escape. As Doctors are killed, there are no more people to oppose their die rolls. It's easier to run through a damaged door or slide down a drain pipe off the roof when there aren't Doctors and Orderlies to stop them.

Unattached Orderlies are dropped out of the game. This can happen if the Doctor is killed and they still have an Orderly. Or leave them around to be killed by the Supernatural being, so it buys the PCs some time to figure out how to defeat the Supernatural being.

If no Patient has reached level 6 Madness, but the Patients are loose and running around, you should just push the Patient with the highest Madness level to level 6. Just trigger the endgame because if you don't, the Patients will all escape without going to Act 3. You can only thwart their escapes so many times before it becomes a bit contrived.

Basically make the endgame as exciting and graphic as possible. Patients and Doctors might be able to thwart the Endgame Horror, or not (most of the time NOT). A number of Patients escape and usually the Endgame Horror kills the Doctors first.

Conclusion

This game was designed for convention play. I think it's almost impossible to run online. Also a full table maximizes the fun for this scenario as various character interactions are interesting.

I do find the story arc ironic. Patients claim supernatural horrors are stalking them. Doctors don't believe and perpetrate horrors on the Patients. The supernatural horrors are real and kill the Doctors.

At some point, the Doctors realize what might be on the other side of their standee. Do they dive in and go evil? Do they stay the course? Who are they really? This is when some Players are confused as to how they should play their Doctor.

Most people play the game as campy fun. You can approach it as someone trying to survive by lying to the Doctors and trying to get a clean bill of health. Of the Patients, Laurie Strode has been released. Sarah Conner had a chance, but at some point, she blew it and erupted in violence. Wait until you ask her about robots and time travel.

The game was designed for surprise shock value. When the first Patient sees what the Doctors look like that always gets a big reaction. When they see the Word Association Test and the Ink Blots, there's always a gleeful reaction when they see the Ink Blots. When the Endgame Horror shows up, that's a big reveal too. More fun that a jump scare when a cat leaps at you from nowhere.