# stuck in new age vaporwave hell lite serenity walking simulator by devil nyka > my marvellous extraordinary irrepressible unpredictable mother has a vast array of talents. without question ir greatest talent is ir ability to foresee the future. they has successfully predicted every major event in my life through ir uncanny mastery of the ancient art of astrology. the truth is the only thing that matters to ir and to tell the truth is the only thing they knows how to do > ~ sylvester stallone consider walking simulator "serenity" by devil nyka a flatly terrifying new age 'hell lite' drawing its esoteric energy from three sources it psychically channels vaporwave muzak from the near future now developer jesse barksdale's fantastic 'first person existentializor' the static speaks my name and davy wreden's creepy / manipulative the beginner's guide // video here while ideologically parallel to developer tale of tale's project "cathedral in the clouds" in its humble mawkishly bile-inducing treatment / manifestation of unchecked pseudo-spirital religiosity it's a great (cheaper) alternative billing itself as 'a short atmospheric exploration garme created in unity' the unwitting are invited to visit a small island in the middle of an endless sea. they are explicitly informed there are 'no goals or urgent things to worry about' and (deliberately) instructed - "please try to relax and enjoy your time" unfortunately this seems (virtually) impossible for as soon as you arrive the true mind-ripping dimensions of your kitsch-flavoured existential terror are immediately revealed as you instantly imagine yourself permanently stuck in this blandly cloying violently-hued 14 year old's abandoned tumblr blog indeed this seems mirrored in the fact devil nyka belongs to "black forest complex" - an (admittedly cool sounding) artist collective / bunch of friends 'who love digital art and arcane rituals' note: in recent times the word arcane no longer really automatically signifies 'mysterious' but more commonly and precisely denotes trivial knowledge - arcana - 'fun facts' minor oddities and useless information. what seems arcane about arcana is how the reasons some find it so fascinating themselves seem impenetrable abstruse and obscurantist there seems therefore a perfectly explainable (entirely non-magical) pseudo disjunction between the disarmingly cheerful look and feel of this blinding neon dystopian paradise and (ironically unimportant all too easily dismissed) suggestions by the developer that this airless non place is somehow alive with deep / hidden meaning and mysterious intention. (perhaps but probably not - and even if it is so what) rather it feels more a gaudy fever dream / supermarket paperback in which the bland destinies of two cloying soulmates stroll along a haunted shoreline (haunted that is by the player) redemptively intertwined in some all-too predictable and arbitrary manner) perhaps making such garmes is itself an arcane ritual - nominally interesting for the duration of a 5 minute afternoon stroll in too bright directionless sunlight - but you certainly wouldn't want to live here and could not // images here ol' jackie stallone would love it // republic of bob