Hareraiser (The Worst Game Ever) - Stuart Ashen - Norwich Gaming Festival 2017

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  • Опубликовано: 29 сен 2024
  • Organised by our Educational Partner, Norwich University of the Arts, Stuart Ashen joined us at the Gaming Festival in 2017 to talk about Hareraiser and explore just why it could well be the worst game ever.

Комментарии • 1,4 тыс.

  • @dylanmaldet6643
    @dylanmaldet6643 2 года назад +680

    Thankfully, this story had a happy ending! After the failure of Masquerade, Kit Williams decided to try again and did everything possible to ensure no one could possibly pull a Dugald Thompson. He released a book with no title where the puzzle was to discover the title of the book. The prize(A gold Queen Bee statue and a copy of the book that actually had the title)would go to whoever could figure it out and come up with the most creative(non-verbal)way of sending the title to Williams himself. In the end, Steve Pearce sent in a small decorated handmade cabinet that revealed the title when the handle was turned and walked away with his rightfully won Queen Bee statue and uniquely titled copy of "The Bee On The Comb".

    • @WeirdWonderful
      @WeirdWonderful 2 года назад +26

      I kinda wonder how that would have worked, since there are laws and regulations in place, both for copyright as well as other technicalities and rules XD

    • @Vangror
      @Vangror 11 месяцев назад +33

      I guess he also learnt not to bury anything from the previous puzzle because treasure hunters were often trespassing on private property and at times, digging in people's gardens which caused a lot of complaints from angry property owners

    • @notacaulkhead
      @notacaulkhead 6 месяцев назад

      @@WeirdWonderfulI reckon you wonder about a lot of things 🙄

    • @originaluddite
      @originaluddite 6 месяцев назад +1

      I also feel that the art itself is better in the bee book (as many still call it).

  • @jesusfrancisco4694
    @jesusfrancisco4694 7 лет назад +91

    19:37
    "Now there's a feature on a laptop called mute..."
    Initial (speedy) thoughts: Oh wow! Was the title music purpously annoying in order to have solvers mute their TV? Then through some form of detection, would act as yet another herring, or actually act as an obscure clue (as the book was famous for)?
    "...It is a good feature."
    God damn it I love your commentary Stuart.

    • @majorfallacy5926
      @majorfallacy5926 4 года назад +2

      There is a pretty decent adventure game where you have to mute the game music to solve a puzzle. I accidentally skipped it because i was annoyed by the music and turned it off right at the start. That was very confusing

  • @childishbeat
    @childishbeat 7 лет назад +72

    I was at Ashen's Hareraiser talk at Norwich Gaming Festival 2017.

    • @streakhey9035
      @streakhey9035 7 лет назад +6

      Niall Ward wow

    • @VibingAndCrying
      @VibingAndCrying 7 лет назад +2

      Niall Ward So was i

    • @UnitSe7en
      @UnitSe7en 7 лет назад +6

      Did anyone get a t-shirt, cap or novelty button?

    • @MicrowavedChicken454
      @MicrowavedChicken454 7 лет назад +3

      UnitSe7en I got an Ashens coin and a pin

    • @Uncle_Sheo217
      @Uncle_Sheo217 7 лет назад +6

      I've wanted an Ashens Groat for a while but i don't know where to get one :(

  • @coppliable
    @coppliable 7 лет назад +8

    Very glad this is here, still kicking my self that i missed your talk. 10/10 i think you should become a university lecturer ashens.

  • @ChrisBeard
    @ChrisBeard 6 лет назад +4

    Wow really interesting story. Poor physics dudes. Herd of this when I got a copy of Merlin Mistery book in the late 90s I don't think that got solved either.

  • @GodofBoris
    @GodofBoris 4 года назад +4

    Is this guy Ashens he sounds so much like him lol

  • @EfroimRosenberg
    @EfroimRosenberg 6 лет назад +7

    Nerdwriter1.

  • @jentzi23
    @jentzi23 7 лет назад +1591

    It makes me sad that they cheated the physics people.
    The pendant is really beautiful.

    • @mistahsusan2650
      @mistahsusan2650 7 лет назад +76

      they didn't cheat them, the couple never submitted their answer to the creator, so ...

    • @caolan1083
      @caolan1083 6 лет назад +84

      It made me sad that they conned Kit too.

    • @MJFallout
      @MJFallout 6 лет назад +81

      Well, arguably the physics people weren't cheated as they had bungled their dig and the submitting of the answer before Mr a.k.a. Thomas even had a chance of getting involved.
      Kit was cheated though, sorry to hear, too.

    • @KasumiRINA
      @KasumiRINA 5 лет назад +55

      It's an interesting result though!.. Not only it proven that someone with insider information would be the winner eventually, we also have the case of people who actually solved the puzzle but decided to keep it to themselves instead of submitting the answer. Tells much more about human nature than a straight win would've.

    • @mitchmitchell928
      @mitchmitchell928 5 лет назад +35

      I don't think you were required to submit the answer to the writer. But the quest was designed that way so that people around the world could "participate" in the quest. Otherwise the quest would've been too expensive for most people to participate.@@KasumiRINA

  • @FhtagnCthulhu
    @FhtagnCthulhu 7 лет назад +3158

    I did not expect that to be as fascinating as it ended up being.

    • @justin-ht9gy
      @justin-ht9gy 6 лет назад +73

      My thoughts exactly. Fell bad for poor Kit Williams, had a wonderful idea full of passion and some low-life cheat robbed him of a moment.

    • @GlenGlingo9
      @GlenGlingo9 6 лет назад +18

      I'd like to know what happened to Thompson and Guard, their actions must've led to criminal proceedings.

    • @satan3959
      @satan3959 5 лет назад +2

      I did, it'd Ashens...he can even make an Al Gore speech look tolerable

    • @creopictures
      @creopictures 5 лет назад +9

      Felt the same. Hell, this could make for the plot of a pretty decent movie.

    • @millenniumf1138
      @millenniumf1138 5 лет назад +1

      I was as surprised by that as I was that a video about a game which is called "the worst game ever" didn't have a single curse in it.

  • @Daracdor
    @Daracdor 5 лет назад +171

    Kit Williams did an un named book quest in the 80`s which with puzzles & pictures you
    had to find the title .
    It had a story based around the seasons and the result one season ousting out
    the next .
    The idea of the competition was to find the name of the book & convey it without
    using words .
    My entry got into the finals with many amazing others , I had to go to London to retrieve it .
    The name of the book was " The bee on the comb " so I made a bee hive , a large one which I had to carry on the tube with lots of dubious looks from fellow travellers .

    • @Artoveli
      @Artoveli 5 лет назад +16

      Green Man I love Bee on the Comb! It's so cool that you were one of the people who sent in an entry. By the time I encountered that book the contest was long over. Still a really fun puzzle to work through though!

    • @nswhorse
      @nswhorse 4 года назад +7

      That is a genuinely cool story. Dirty looks or no, I'm sure it must have been a blast.

    • @originaluddite
      @originaluddite 6 месяцев назад +2

      Just today watched a clip here on RUclips of the finale on Wogan. Entertaining stuff and very creative responses from you and the other best entrants.

  • @Jackalblade9
    @Jackalblade9 7 лет назад +2655

    This was an amazing story.

    • @jabelsjabels
      @jabelsjabels 7 лет назад +30

      really enthralling!

    • @TobyCowles
      @TobyCowles 7 лет назад +144

      'An excellent story'

    • @Jackalblade9
      @Jackalblade9 7 лет назад +54

      I sit corrected, sir, an excellent story indeed!

    • @rushguy1
      @rushguy1 6 лет назад +4

      An excellent realization

    • @twinostrich8045
      @twinostrich8045 6 лет назад +7

      'An excellent back-and-forth'

  • @massivepileup
    @massivepileup 7 лет назад +925

    Some plonker released a game on Steam that was supposedly a really hard puzzle with 16 levels. Nobody ever solved the first level because it's so haaaaaard. Disassembly showed that the game was just one level copy-pasted 16 times and there was no level change logic (or indeed game logic) implemented at all.

    • @LeeONardo
      @LeeONardo 7 лет назад +112

      Is that the certain game that Jim Sterling featured? Sounds extremely similar.

    • @massivepileup
      @massivepileup 7 лет назад +64

      Yeah, he has a video on it. I cannot remember the name though.

    • @davidjames579
      @davidjames579 6 лет назад +24

      They could be sued over this I'm assuming.

    • @NickolasHunter
      @NickolasHunter 6 лет назад +6

      I'm still trying to find this game you talk about...

    • @weyen1602
      @weyen1602 6 лет назад +52

      Sounds like "Journey of the Light"

  • @draconomorphus413
    @draconomorphus413 7 лет назад +3504

    The game was so bad, he essentially gave a TED talk about it.
    That's how bad it was.

    • @dragonmartijn
      @dragonmartijn 6 лет назад +62

      It was better than a TED talk.

    • @ccaagg
      @ccaagg 6 лет назад +145

      That moment when people don't know what a lecture is anymore and just call them TED talks.

    • @petersage5157
      @petersage5157 6 лет назад +43

      That moment when people don't know what a colloquium is.

    • @charlesajones77
      @charlesajones77 6 лет назад +59

      People like TED talks. They do NOT like lectures. Even if the content is exactly the same.

    • @hitmanwolf
      @hitmanwolf 6 лет назад +21

      people like TED Talks cause they are on the INTERNETz, and not in School...z.

  • @Torthrodhel
    @Torthrodhel 7 лет назад +1565

    Hareraiser: £8.95
    Hareraiser Season Pass: £8.95

    • @JasperJanssen
      @JasperJanssen 5 лет назад +12

      Uhhh... what, you think you would just get the second game in the series for free!?

    • @amanbytheway
      @amanbytheway 5 лет назад +76

      Haresoft walked so EA could run

    • @GenerationLex
      @GenerationLex 5 лет назад +8

      @The Jester - Fool Of Hearts nah, the correct price for the DLC would be $59.99

    • @DelphieNEhuntah
      @DelphieNEhuntah 5 лет назад +4

      by EA

    • @SonplaysMinEcraft
      @SonplaysMinEcraft 5 лет назад +10

      first documented pay to win game

  • @markiangooley
    @markiangooley 7 лет назад +1377

    Glad I viewed this. Stuart is a fine storyteller and I hadn't known the whole story of Masquerade or even heard of Hareraiser before.

    • @hentosama
      @hentosama 7 лет назад +3

      The next Michael Rosenberg D: (you tube video story telling fame)

    • @Karmy.
      @Karmy. 7 лет назад +1

      Oscar Velazquez and YTP fame

    • @ZenPunk
      @ZenPunk 6 лет назад +21

      who would have known the man who throws old food on his couch and plays with bad chinese toys was such a gifted essayist

    • @tiagodarkpeasant
      @tiagodarkpeasant 6 лет назад +8

      the only thing that caught my attention, was the word hareraiser, because i tough it was related to hell raiser

    • @MediaMunkee
      @MediaMunkee 5 лет назад +2

      I had an art/storybook very much like Masquerade, right down to the picture borders with letters, but self-contained and of a complexity that a child could reasonably solve. I don't have it anymore nor any clue what it was called, but it's interesting to know it was probably inspired by this whole mess.

  • @Johanniscool
    @Johanniscool 5 лет назад +191

    Plot twist, the spelling of “puzle” is the first clue

    • @radarsock
      @radarsock 4 года назад

      Explain more

    • @alphonsetudor8870
      @alphonsetudor8870 4 года назад +22

      @@radarsock The first clue to provide thee a glance that the initiator of this Hareraiser programme was an illiterate, dumb-ass, and irresponsible clown.

  • @meetoo594
    @meetoo594 7 лет назад +159

    Heh, I remember how annoyed landowners and councils got due to people trespassing and digging up random bits of land thinking the hare was buried there. Williams got a lot of flak for that iirc.

    • @softdorothy
      @softdorothy 5 лет назад +37

      Yes, Kit had to publicly declare that the treasure was not buried on private property. (Least of all his own property as plenty of treasure hunters descended on his garden.)

    • @ninototo1
      @ninototo1 5 лет назад +10

      Sounds like the whole pokemon go debacle

    • @KnakuanaRka
      @KnakuanaRka 2 года назад +2

      @@ninototo1 My thoughts too. ;3

  • @dylanmaldet6643
    @dylanmaldet6643 Год назад +17

    The reason the physics teachers missed the box was because Kit Williams' calculations were slightly off(he admitted as much later). He didn't realize this at the time because he and Bamber Gascoigne buried the casket at night.

  • @jman3267
    @jman3267 7 лет назад +2110

    If you're intimidated by the 38 minute video I still recommend you watch it. There's very little fluff. This dumb game just has that much of an interesting history behind it. And it's not just the usual "Oh no we tried to make a game but we didn't know it would take up so much time/money so we had to put it out unfinished"

    • @natgrant1364
      @natgrant1364 7 лет назад +112

      Stuart Ashen can do damned near anything for 38 minutes and make it interesting.

    • @KOTYAR0
      @KOTYAR0 7 лет назад +52

      jman3267 It was 38 minutes? Holy damn, I haven't even noticed

    • @OdaSwifteye
      @OdaSwifteye 7 лет назад +21

      PFT. I've watched the five hour livestream he did! This is child's play!

    • @jordanferries910
      @jordanferries910 7 лет назад +18

      It's ashens I'd watch 38 mins of him saying Italian music

    • @yesticles
      @yesticles 7 лет назад +27

      I watched it at half speed because the longer Stuart talks, the better.

  • @Obstreperous_Octopus
    @Obstreperous_Octopus 6 лет назад +551

    Me, 36 minutes ago: "Worst Game Ever" are strong words. I mean, that's a very low bar to slide under.
    Me, just now: I am sorry I doubted you.

    • @sidarthur8706
      @sidarthur8706 5 лет назад +16

      imagining the thought processes of the creators puts me in a dark frame of mind

    • @BknMoonStudios
      @BknMoonStudios 5 лет назад +6

      @@sidarthur8706 At the very least it's not as evil as the guys who sold radioactive water, claiming it had healing properties, and gave cancer to many innocent people.

    • @sigma6656
      @sigma6656 5 лет назад

      @@BknMoonStudios
      Sure, but who the hell buys radioactive water expecting good things?

    • @BknMoonStudios
      @BknMoonStudios 5 лет назад +8

      @@sigma6656 People who didn't have access to public education and lived in the middle of last century?

    • @sigma6656
      @sigma6656 5 лет назад +4

      @@BknMoonStudios
      Ahh right,
      "Eben Byers, a wealthy American socialite, athlete, industrialist and Yale College graduate, died from Radithor radium poisoning in 1932.[5] Byers was buried in a lead-lined coffin; when exhumed in 1965 for study, his remains were still highly radioactive."
      No access to public education certainly was the problem.

  • @MuchWhittering
    @MuchWhittering 7 лет назад +911

    That truly was a terrible old game I'd never heard of.

    • @agfagaevart
      @agfagaevart 6 лет назад +1

      not a game.

    • @CodeDashie
      @CodeDashie 6 лет назад +5

      It was just a very expensive interface

    • @mssj152
      @mssj152 5 лет назад

      666 likes

    • @mssj152
      @mssj152 5 лет назад

      Should I like to destroy it?

  • @johnclavis
    @johnclavis 7 лет назад +428

    I'm old. I had the book as a child, and later I was able to buy Bamber Gascoigne's book and learned the whole sordid story of Ken Thomas. What a disappointing end to a beautiful story. I'm glad Kit Williams and the pendant are still around!

    • @kos2919
      @kos2919 6 лет назад +6

      Party Bot If he want to he can make a new book and jewellery and challenges the new generation in another treasure hunt.

    • @caolan1083
      @caolan1083 6 лет назад +20

      I was actually really sad to hear about Kit getting conned, I hope it all worked out for him.

    • @Problembeing
      @Problembeing 5 лет назад

      Party Bot I had it too, and another book that was a companion guide, which I still have.

    • @softdorothy
      @softdorothy 5 лет назад +4

      @@caolan1083 Yeah, but honestly, he was successfully beyond his imagination. No one saw the success of his book coming when he first conceived of and created it. Millions of people stated and started at his artwork. Call it a win for Kit. A let down for all the puzzle-hunters.

    • @sploofmcsterra4786
      @sploofmcsterra4786 5 лет назад +1

      @@caolan1083 sad for the physics teachers too

  • @johnhodgetts6617
    @johnhodgetts6617 5 лет назад +53

    I wonder if that "Ken Thomas" guy got the computer game idea from "Pimania", released in 1982 (the year he got his hands on the golden hare.) Pimania was eventually solved and in 1985 its very genuine prize of the "Golden Sundial of Pi" was won, but not before many had accused Pimania of being an unsolvable scam. So did he think "so all you need to do is make a scam game and people will believe it"?

    • @jeremyadkins9665
      @jeremyadkins9665 Год назад

      Interesting, that could be plausible, given the popularity of those kind of games, at the time.

  • @eartianwerewolf
    @eartianwerewolf 7 лет назад +490

    I read 'Hareraiser' and thought it was a parody of the Hellraiser series with rabbits. Ah well.

    • @GameHammerCG
      @GameHammerCG 5 лет назад +48

      That would have been a better game.

    • @HaydenX
      @HaydenX 5 лет назад +18

      Lagobites?

    • @sigmacademy
      @sigmacademy 5 лет назад +3

      Do you really want the SPCA to have a NERVOUS BREAKDOWN/PSYCHOTIC BREAK? :P

    • @GmodPlusWoW
      @GmodPlusWoW 5 лет назад +10

      Yeah, my first thought was that it was some sort of sidescrolling beat-em-up where you played a rabbit and simply could not control it, coupled with one-hit deaths and things you couldn't possibly react to. A bit like Oriental Hero if you remember the Terrible Old Games video series.

    • @jessecatrainham6957
      @jessecatrainham6957 5 лет назад +4

      No, that would be Watership Down for the Atari 2600 XD

  • @ateszkoma94
    @ateszkoma94 5 лет назад +63

    "Told you it was awful." Best ending of a presentation!

  • @Agamemnon2
    @Agamemnon2 7 лет назад +198

    The story of Masquerade was truly fascinating, and what a sad thing that somebody actually got the answer absolutely correct and didn't know it.

  • @jackkraken3888
    @jackkraken3888 7 лет назад +54

    I wonder if the Voynich manuscript was some shady person saying," Hey buy this book and if you solve it you win big! Like the secrets to the Universe Big."

    • @lhaviland8602
      @lhaviland8602 5 лет назад +11

      I honestly think this is one of the best explanations so far.

    • @paulbrozyna3006
      @paulbrozyna3006 4 года назад +6

      It’s an RPG sourcebook.

  • @kalaherty
    @kalaherty 7 лет назад +235

    I'm happy the crowd guessed Jimmy Savile because when the question was asked, I immediately thought "Oh god... I really hope it wasn't Jimmy Savile".

    • @nicholasrowley947
      @nicholasrowley947 6 лет назад +1

      Same.

    • @StickySauce101
      @StickySauce101 5 лет назад +7

      @@lawrencecalablaster568 he's basically Britain's Satan figure due to what he did

    • @dingo137
      @dingo137 5 лет назад +11

      Lawrence Calablaster "Beloved" is overstating it - I don't know anyone who really liked him even before all the sex abuse stuff came out.

    • @KarlHamilton
      @KarlHamilton 5 лет назад

      I thought the same lol

    • @newperve
      @newperve 5 лет назад +1

      Same, was so relieved it wasn't.

  • @daveweeks4748
    @daveweeks4748 2 года назад +29

    Great talk, thanks for uploading. Interestingly, at 9:18 he explains the words 'frog' and 'stone' didn't mean anything, but there is a picture in the book (#3) showing the hare sitting on a flat rock with frog’s eyes. In Ampthill Park, near St. Catherine's cross, there is a stone nicknamed the 'frogstone' for its rounded, lumpy shape (although apparently Kit Williams was unaware of this rock).

    • @LAGGANGGAMING
      @LAGGANGGAMING 6 месяцев назад +2

      Worst talk. The host is so unfunny and boring. My gosh

    • @imallergictobullets
      @imallergictobullets 5 месяцев назад +1

      We’re damn at good at seeing patterns. There’s probably other things you can find that pointed to that area that Williams didn’t intend.

    • @tommsey_ttv
      @tommsey_ttv 5 месяцев назад +2

      @@LAGGANGGAMING Yeah all that laughter from the audience, ​famously the sound of boredom.

    • @Petereteo
      @Petereteo 3 месяца назад

      ​@@tommsey_ttvhuh?, how is laughter the sound of boredom im pretty sure its quite the contrary

    • @tommsey_ttv
      @tommsey_ttv 3 месяца назад

      @@Petereteo yes that was my point, it's called sarcasm, pet.

  • @gilgammesh1
    @gilgammesh1 7 лет назад +259

    An excellent story. No really, this was fascinating.

    • @JohnnnyGash
      @JohnnnyGash 7 лет назад +21

      Chef Excellence
      Stay fresh, cheese bags!

    • @Brandonv1103
      @Brandonv1103 5 лет назад +6

      An excellent presentation

  • @HolyKhaaaaan
    @HolyKhaaaaan 3 года назад +82

    Not merely the most technically incompetent. Not merely the most overhyped. Definitely the most evil, with the most evil backstory, and the most evil reason for existing as far as we know.
    Brilliant story of, in the deepest sense, the worst game.

  • @someguy7582
    @someguy7582 7 лет назад +186

    So Hareraiser is the British home computer version of SwordQuest?

    • @5roundsrapid263
      @5roundsrapid263 7 лет назад +20

      Some Guy I was thinking that too. There were also several videotape treasure hunts in the '80s, too.

    • @magnatcleo2043
      @magnatcleo2043 7 лет назад +80

      Though at least Swordquest actually had an actual puzzle to solve, it just died out before the last games could come out.

    • @Sh0tgunJust1ce
      @Sh0tgunJust1ce 6 лет назад +47

      Swordquest wasn't a scam though.

    • @lordevyl8317
      @lordevyl8317 6 лет назад +24

      Swordfest was a horrible game, not a scam. I would say the British home computer version of SwordQuest is probably the ZX Spectrum game Squij (originally a C64 game, but the Spectrum version was FAR worse) BTW, I'm not defending the C64 version either, because that was horrible, but when compared to the Speccy version (No, I'm not dissing the speccy as a whole, in fact I quite like the ZX Spectrum) It's fucking Donkey Kong.

    • @satan3959
      @satan3959 5 лет назад +3

      Sword Quest sucked, but I still say that Firefly is hands down the WORST game on the 2600/VCS

  • @butcherboy2008
    @butcherboy2008 7 лет назад +129

    If it were indeed Jimmy Savile, then perhaps a child of 10 could have had as much success as an Oxford don.

  • @sandwich2473
    @sandwich2473 7 лет назад +310

    Oh gosh darn. Those poor teachers.
    Gee wiz.

    • @BebopBun
      @BebopBun 5 лет назад +15

      Words of wisdom from a sandwich

    • @ACanOfBakedBeans
      @ACanOfBakedBeans 5 лет назад +2

      My wife made one of those for me yesterday.... Just like a woman should

    • @sploofmcsterra4786
      @sploofmcsterra4786 5 лет назад +8

      @@ACanOfBakedBeans so edgy

    • @DrGandW
      @DrGandW 5 лет назад +7

      @@ACanOfBakedBeans That was so unfunny I had to comment on it.

    • @satan3959
      @satan3959 5 лет назад +1

      The Gay Frog Society
      Oh great, an edgelord

  • @richardtickler8555
    @richardtickler8555 7 лет назад +902

    haresoft is now called EA

    • @lordevyl8317
      @lordevyl8317 6 лет назад +39

      Nah, they are called Konami
      EA was actually a pretty good company in the 80s, the just started to go downhill when they became a huge corporation the in late 90s

    • @davidturbo8566
      @davidturbo8566 6 лет назад

      Hilarious

    • @AquaFan1998
      @AquaFan1998 6 лет назад +1

      Richard Tickler promicing shit but never delivering

    • @junglezone7323
      @junglezone7323 6 лет назад +8

      I Identify As A Commodore 64 Since I'm An Old Fart bro konami didnt start going downhill till mid to late 2000s, so EA is worse

    • @culwin
      @culwin 6 лет назад +12

      Konami was also a good company once.

  • @MuchWhittering
    @MuchWhittering 7 лет назад +119

    "I love humans. Always seeing patterns in things that aren't there." - The 8th Doctor

    • @0LoneTech
      @0LoneTech 7 лет назад +12

      Sometimes it's the patterns that aren't there, rather than the things.

    • @SimmyBassline
      @SimmyBassline 7 лет назад +6

      Most of the time it is a load of old bollocks

    • @AshlandLives
      @AshlandLives 7 лет назад

      Same quote rang in my head.

    • @StilvurBee
      @StilvurBee 5 лет назад +2

      @@0LoneTech um
      i think that's what they meant

  • @GlenGlingo9
    @GlenGlingo9 6 лет назад +27

    The cover of Masquerade wouldn't look out of place on a progressive-rock album.

    • @fuzzybuzzy3159
      @fuzzybuzzy3159 5 лет назад

      I mean, late 70s.

    • @lordevyl8317
      @lordevyl8317 3 года назад

      It also wouldn't look out of place on an EARLY Queen album

  • @ChakatSandwalker
    @ChakatSandwalker 7 лет назад +91

    Many years ago (when I was a child, I think), while I was going through a box of books that I think someone was throwing out, I found a softcover version of 'Masquerade'. I still have it on my shelf. I had no clue that there was a 'sequel' of sorts in the form of a computer game until now. A fascinating presentation as always.

    • @kos2919
      @kos2919 6 лет назад +5

      ChakatSandwalker well it's not really a sequel just a cash in attempt by different person who owned the jewellery

    • @billhalt8811
      @billhalt8811 5 лет назад +1

      You didn't know if you were a child. I.q. check.

    • @LordChesalot
      @LordChesalot Год назад +1

      there was a book sequel that was untitled with the goal to guess the titile which was the bee on the comb

  • @VulpesHilarianus
    @VulpesHilarianus 7 лет назад +21

    So when he played the game I just did a stream of thought experiment. "The grass is like a carpet" means some place with open space, like the English countryside. Or perhaps a large garden. "The sun shines up" is some place that has a reflection, like water. "The count has begun" either means some place that has competitions, like a marathon, or some place with a visible clock tower, like a town square. "Help is here" refers to a military saying, like a cavalry charge. "Search from coast to coast" means it's inland, nowhere near the sea, meaning "The sun shines up" refers to a river or lake. So I came up with on or around the grounds of Castle Ashby, because it's centermost in the country, has all those things listed, and is pretentious enough to work for a guy who just won a golden pendant making a video puzzle.

    • @DarkKingBowser
      @DarkKingBowser 7 лет назад +7

      Very interesting evaluation!

    • @alonecoder600
      @alonecoder600 5 лет назад

      Bravo! I suppose you will be the one who solves "I, pet goat II" :)

  • @thedarkergerkin
    @thedarkergerkin 7 лет назад +161

    That was so much more entertaining than I thought it would be.

  • @Re-vant
    @Re-vant 7 лет назад +172

    In order to make through this I had to close my eyes and picture hands over a brown sofa.

  • @dennett316
    @dennett316 7 лет назад +58

    Oh, the shady conning gits! Took a really great idea and completely shat on it. That was great, hugely interesting story.
    Incidentally, the image of the swimming lady looks to me a fair bit like Carol Vorderman...or possibly Louise Redknapp.

    • @bubbadoo10
      @bubbadoo10 7 лет назад +1

      I feel bad for those teachers being the only ones to solve the puzzle, and being just so close to solving it. Also the artist that did this finding out that the people cheated his puzzle he spent who knows how long working on and using it to make a cheap digital rip-off lacking any soul of the original piece. If I was the artist, I would have sued for the blatant profiting off of the original work.

  • @voldlifilm
    @voldlifilm 5 лет назад +18

    I kinda want my epitaph to be "told you it was awful".

  • @WellWoopdidoo
    @WellWoopdidoo 7 лет назад +36

    I wouldn't have clicked on this if I hadn't seen that he was holding a copy of Masquerade. I was born in the 90s but I spent hours and hours on that book.

  • @xander2698
    @xander2698 2 года назад +4

    woof, tough crowd! i liked your jokes and quips, if anything

  • @spunkyspaz
    @spunkyspaz 5 лет назад +20

    This reminds me of the SwordQuest games for the Atari 2600 in that there was real treasure to be had.
    That did not end well either though, except for 2 people who won 2 of the 5 treasures.

    • @BReal-10EC
      @BReal-10EC 4 года назад +1

      I thought they never released the final Airworld game?

  • @Matreskarp-z5g
    @Matreskarp-z5g 3 года назад +28

    Hareraiser is completely solvable.
    The first part of the game is a map of the Harrods department store, a hint about this was given in one of the game magazines, when the TV presenter went there from the program about this kind of games and treasure hunt.
    But the second part could be "passed" only for the BBC micro platform - it was there that there were "rooms" with the name of the owner of Haresoft (before that he was anonymous) and the digital code that was needed to receive the prize.
    the hare was in Harrods Bank, used as collateral for opening Haresoft.
    if someone knows how to look at game resources, he will also find this code in all versions of the game. but the ad and articles were hinted at "for the whole family" and it was emphasized that "can be used on the school computer" and "we did two parts so that people of any age could win".
    there are clouds - lamps, trees - stairs, spiders descending on a cobweb - elevators, descriptions below, for example, an indication of bright stars - a description of the ceiling, etc.
    This is best seen in a room with an escalator.
    I spent 3 days on the solution. sorry for mistakes, i don't know english.

    • @jeremyadkins9665
      @jeremyadkins9665 Год назад +2

      That's kinda interesting, if true; it explains the obscure "clue" mentioned and the splitting of the game into two.

    • @GBAura
      @GBAura Год назад +3

      So basically the solution was to find where the company Haresoft is located and the name of the founder, who is the one who conned Kit Williams?
      Wow, that just makes the entire thing even more stupid. That aside, thanks for putting this all together. It does explain a few oddities in the game.

  • @Ryusuta
    @Ryusuta 7 лет назад +504

    What amazes me about Ashens is that some people are good at either commentary, acting, or presentation. Ashens does ALL of them easily and naturally. It's seriously a rare gift to do all of those three VERY different things well.

    • @byebye7277
      @byebye7277 7 лет назад +16

      "Naturally", it's not like he has been doing this for 10+ years

    • @emarskineel
      @emarskineel 7 лет назад +40

      ByeBye to be fair, his very first video is delivered with the same level of skill as this.

    • @winnetouch
      @winnetouch 7 лет назад +17

      commentary, acting and presentation aren't really that different things. You have to be articulate and composed for all of those things. If you are a great actor you are also probably at least a good presenter.

    • @Ryusuta
      @Ryusuta 7 лет назад +21

      There are some skills that overlap and some people with the ability to do both, but saying acting is like... say... news casting is like saying a good football player can be a good basketball player because they both require you to run. Yes, it's possible for a person to be good at both and some of the skills in one activity can be used in the other, but there's a lot more to each individual activity.

    • @AbandonedVoid
      @AbandonedVoid 7 лет назад +14

      He actually wasn't that great of a presenter. He was kind of stiff and hidden behind the podium, and didn't look the audience in the eye that much, and constantly forgot he had put things into his presentation. His story didn't have enough emotion behind it, although I'll admit it was certainly oddly gripping. There's certainly room for improvement.

  • @rho-starmkl4483
    @rho-starmkl4483 6 лет назад +17

    "You Are My Sunshine"
    No, you are NOT.

  • @exidy-yt
    @exidy-yt 7 лет назад +29

    Wow, I had no intention of sitting through 40 mins of talking about an 8-bit puzzle game but this was an absolutely fascinating story i'd never heard about before, admittedly I'd grown old enough to get into computer gaming a couple of years after this debacle, but either way amazing story and now I am off to Ebay to find a copy of the Masqurade book. ;-)

  • @SaintCharlos
    @SaintCharlos 6 лет назад +9

    _The British version of SwordQuest, ladies and gentleman._

  • @MicrowavedChicken454
    @MicrowavedChicken454 7 лет назад +241

    I was there! I got my book and DVD signed by him, easily one of the best parts of the year for me

    • @vnutri710
      @vnutri710 6 лет назад +17

      Sam 454 I'm not the jealous type. I've never been jealous of someone for anything, if it makes them happy, even if I want it, that's more valuable then what I want. But that you got a signed book and dvd and got to sit and watch his glorious face live? I will kidnap you, take that DVD and book, and create a machine that allows me to implant memories of other people into me. Watch. Your. Back.

    • @kanedamikami7771
      @kanedamikami7771 6 лет назад +5

      Vnutri you could get yourself brainwashed and they could implant false memories but the only thing we need is a trigger

    • @michaelslevin2764
      @michaelslevin2764 6 лет назад +2

      'Hello!'

    • @leftpastsaturn67
      @leftpastsaturn67 5 лет назад +1

      @Richard Kelbe Ironic much? :D

  • @digipack
    @digipack 7 лет назад +46

    When I was a kid in the late 90s I had a CD-ROM game called Treasure Quest which had a $1m prize behind it. It seems to be a much better game than Hareraiser, but it was apparently plagued with errors, and the end prize is also steeped in much mystery.

  • @danielpreciado3112
    @danielpreciado3112 7 лет назад +114

    If anyone out there feels cheated and conned for having been talked into buying games like No Man's Sky, find peace in knowing, at least you didn't buy Hareraiser.

    • @roundishwhale
      @roundishwhale 6 лет назад +20

      and hell, No Mans Skys developer even try there best now to make up for their wrongdoing be adding the game they promised part after part :D
      Really shows the difference in personality behind these two...questionable events.

    • @richardpike8748
      @richardpike8748 6 лет назад +8

      Also at least the No Man's Sky dev has improved the game post-release as well.

    • @thecamelchannel1467
      @thecamelchannel1467 5 лет назад +6

      @@richardpike8748 Yeah No Man's Sky is now good lol

    • @blatherskite3009
      @blatherskite3009 5 лет назад +4

      Yep, the devs have continued to work on No Man's Sky for years since release, all updates free, and it's now everything that was expected at launch and then some. All you can really say against it now is that back in 2016 people were effectively sold an Early Access game as if it was a finished game. All's well that ends well!

    • @voidling2632
      @voidling2632 4 года назад +3

      NMS team aren't scammer at least, they are just bad at time management and organisation

  • @zurih-r7583
    @zurih-r7583 5 лет назад +12

    OKAY RUclips. I WATCHED IT, OKAY?! And tbh I wasn't disappointed. It's a great story!

    • @sneakysnake7695
      @sneakysnake7695 5 лет назад +1

      This comment needs more recognition, it sums up my reaction to RUclips's recommendations

  • @CallyGem
    @CallyGem 7 лет назад +61

    That was fantastic. I'm so happy you posted this, Dr Ashen is one of the best RUclipsrs around and the story/ies of the golden hare fascinate me.

  • @TheGlitched64Reads2
    @TheGlitched64Reads2 6 лет назад +20

    I've watched this 5 times now. Still just as entertaining.

  • @Axilur
    @Axilur 7 лет назад +817

    Stuart is the epitome of all that is great with the world of today.

    • @CassiusDX
      @CassiusDX 7 лет назад +64

      I could listen to him talk all day

    • @redskunk9825
      @redskunk9825 7 лет назад +23

      How the winter nights must fly by at your house.

    • @spark7620
      @spark7620 6 лет назад +5

      petrichor an "an excellent" pair

    • @fatherfintanstack8810
      @fatherfintanstack8810 6 лет назад +5

      Stuart is one of God's colors.

    • @kelakakku
      @kelakakku 6 лет назад +2

      no

  • @wardrich
    @wardrich 2 года назад +3

    Legit thought I was hearing that guy's name wrong this whole time, but nope... It actually is "Bamber Gascoigne".
    He died earlier this year :( RIP

  • @cumbrap
    @cumbrap 6 лет назад +3

    Egypt huh?
    I think we all know the man who bought it. That person is evil incarnate, and his name is _DIO!_

  • @HurricaneSA
    @HurricaneSA 4 года назад +12

    RUclips kept recommending this so I finally gave in and started watching it. I was expecting to just watch a minute or two to see what it was about and ended up watching the whole thing. Quite the plot twist there at the end!

  • @General-RADIX
    @General-RADIX 3 года назад +15

    Rewatching this for like the hundredth time, something occurred to me: did anyone try giving these charlatans the answer of "the Hare is still with the head of the company who didn't bury it anywhere"?

  • @heatchills4093
    @heatchills4093 4 года назад +4

    This guy is a really talented public speaker. I mean let's face it, the subject matter shouldn't really be that interesting - a crappy old Com64-era game... but he manages to turn it into a really captivating seminar. That takes serious talent.

  • @rowan5891
    @rowan5891 7 месяцев назад +3

    At this point this video is like a comfort watch for me, I end up thinking about this whole Masquerade Hareraiser situation a lot

  • @coyoteartist
    @coyoteartist 7 лет назад +14

    I'd seen a picture of the Golden Hare somewhere online, perhaps to do with it being on display, but I knew nothing more. It is a shame two things so beautiful as the Hare and the book should have been dragged down by that age old enemy, stupid humans.

  • @whiteninjapickleboyz
    @whiteninjapickleboyz 7 лет назад +73

    Ashens can litteraly talk about shit on the ground and I'd be absolutely mesmerized

    • @billhalt8811
      @billhalt8811 5 лет назад

      Will talk about shit on the ground.

  • @otaking3582
    @otaking3582 4 года назад +9

    The game is called "Hareraiser" and it's about solving an elaborate puzzle?
    *Easter Bunny:* "We have such sights to show you"

  • @TheTurquoiseAlien
    @TheTurquoiseAlien 7 лет назад +304

    Cannot believe how dead the audience were. Stuart made several funny comments but the audience would just sit there not laughing.

    • @user-74652
      @user-74652 7 лет назад +259

      I heard some laughs at some points. I think the main thing is that Stuart is the one with the microphone, while the audience is not.

    • @Balty_Burnip
      @Balty_Burnip 7 лет назад +151

      The Turquoise Alien When he had a quick convo with the woman who had the book you could barely hear her, despite her obviously being enthusiastic. I bet they were just hard to be picked up on the mic.

    • @MrPresidentFox
      @MrPresidentFox 7 лет назад +112

      Or they're just being polite and letting Stuart speak since this is a presentation and not standup, besides as said earlier his funny comments are just the kind that make you smirk and chuckle to yourself.

    • @dalekprime31
      @dalekprime31 7 лет назад +3

      The Turquoise Alien I don't think the microphone was picking them up

    • @abbybraun7019
      @abbybraun7019 7 лет назад +71

      Also, I'm pretty sure that UK audiences as a whole tend to be a lot more subdued. Granted, I don't know if the original commenter is from the US or not. I'm just building off of my own culture shock from long ago. I used to find the UK version of Whose Line extremely uncomfortable until it was explained to me that audiences in other countries aren't generally expected to be overly energetic like us in the states are. So while a few tiny chuckles seems eerily quiet in comparison to what I'm used to, to the performer it was on par with what he was expecting.
      Or maybe I'm an ignorant American who has watched too much British stand-up and drew her own conclusions. It hasn't been the first time.

  • @ikmnification5737
    @ikmnification5737 7 лет назад +43

    Some University should pick Stewart up to be a lecturer for history of games.

  • @dcflake5645
    @dcflake5645 7 лет назад +34

    This story was brilliant. I still don't believe that this was a game or a puzzle just a scam. I don't know if that counts as the worst game ever.

    • @TheTurnipKing
      @TheTurnipKing 7 лет назад +5

      it is, at least a better story than something like Alien Kill, which is just rubbish.

    • @djoakeydoakey1076
      @djoakeydoakey1076 6 лет назад

      ET might be worse, it has it's own landfill......seriously.

  • @macofalltrades6396
    @macofalltrades6396 2 года назад +3

    RIP Bamber Gascoigne 1935-2022.

  • @jcdenton9764
    @jcdenton9764 7 лет назад +381

    Hey look!
    It's Simon Pegg!

  • @elmono6299
    @elmono6299 3 года назад +14

    Video game historians: "E.T for the Atari 2600 and Superman 64 are the worst!"
    Hareraiser: "Allow us introduce ourselves!"

  • @FerreTrip
    @FerreTrip 5 лет назад +2

    I daresay this wasn't even a game to begin with.

  • @elwoodjacobs4353
    @elwoodjacobs4353 2 года назад +2

    I wonder if Kit Williams moonlighted as the Riddler in his spare time with how complex the puzzle is.

  • @jetfire851
    @jetfire851 7 лет назад +43

    To be fair to the audience, I also would've guessed Jimmy Saville as the celebrity.

    • @aoifebakunin1966
      @aoifebakunin1966 7 лет назад

      Doug Glassman same here

    • @bombtwenty3867
      @bombtwenty3867 6 лет назад +2

      If that was the case, Uncle Jimmy would've dug it up himself, for Charidee of course

    • @zootsanchez
      @zootsanchez 6 лет назад +8

      Uncle Jimmy would have been more interested in digging in the churchyard next door

  • @MrDmitriRavenoff
    @MrDmitriRavenoff 5 лет назад +4

    Bamber Gascoigne sounds like an amazing name for a Gnome. Thanks for the info. This was a fun thing to know about a puzzle somewhat older than me (if just barely).

  • @fireballninja01
    @fireballninja01 5 лет назад +5

    I wanted to cry when you delved into the bad luck of the physics teachers, they, Kit, and Bamber deserved more

  • @liam6345
    @liam6345 6 лет назад +8

    I actually thought this was going to be just a simple rant and/or small discussion with the audience about bad graphics, sloppy collision, an attempt at implementing curves etc... But damn Stuart did his research! Very informative, detailed and constructed very, very well. Great video, even my friends are impressed and they're a bunch of pompous arse holes... 10/10 from me!

  • @BReal-10EC
    @BReal-10EC 4 года назад +4

    Swordquest was a scam too.. and was never finished.. I paid way more than 17 pounds for just Fireworld. They were not games. I find it way more offensive because higher price (especially if you bought all FOUR games) and from major game company.

    • @IvanovIvanAKrutoi
      @IvanovIvanAKrutoi 4 года назад

      At least those were actual games compared to Hareraiser.

  • @david-spliso1928
    @david-spliso1928 5 лет назад +5

    14:39 "People are good at forming patterns and good at self deception." - This is the basis of schizophrenia type delusions within mental illness.

  • @BentheBassPhish
    @BentheBassPhish 7 лет назад +13

    I was so disappointed I missed this! For some reason, I couldn't find out when the talk was happening! Thanks for uploading!

  • @DeyvsonMoutinhoCaliman
    @DeyvsonMoutinhoCaliman 5 лет назад +5

    When I saw the video I thought it was about Ride To Hell: Retribution, that in mind was called "Hellraiser" after so many years (at the time it was said so many times it was the worst game ever made that this phrase got me to associate this). That was a very bad game also, but Hareraiser wins this one. And they say DLCs didn't exist back then.

  • @nobetternickname
    @nobetternickname 7 лет назад +21

    I remember my parents had 'Masquerade' when I was really, really young. As a 3 or 4 year old I spent quite a lot of time looking for the hare that was hidden in each of the pictures in the book. The 'Where's Wally?' of its day :)

    • @SenshiSunPower
      @SenshiSunPower 7 лет назад +1

      nobetternickname Me too! My copy came with a companion booklet that explained the answer.

  • @kabobawsome
    @kabobawsome 6 лет назад +27

    The difficulty of the puzzle really speaks to Kit's intelligence. Too bad the person who solved it basically cheated then scammed several people using his winnings.

  • @aatheus
    @aatheus 7 лет назад +20

    Wonderful narrative on what was not so much a game, but more of a mass of beeping confusion. What an amazing bit of scamming on the part of Haresoft,

  • @PiercingSight
    @PiercingSight 5 лет назад +5

    Man, I can't even think of a series of events so poorly motivated as to possibly ever beat this as the worst game ever.
    Heck, even the worst game jam games ever created are better than this. Even the ones that don't even run!

  • @bhawanibanerjee1214
    @bhawanibanerjee1214 6 месяцев назад +3

    I want Wes Anderson to direct a movie based on this so bad

  • @davidjames579
    @davidjames579 6 лет назад +2

    Kit Williams looks like he should have been in Pink Floyd

  • @danforbes3573
    @danforbes3573 7 лет назад +14

    Ashens talks on gaming is as interesting as Tim's talks on toys. Wonderful stuff!

    • @alexeverett308
      @alexeverett308 7 лет назад

      Dan Whitmore heh.

    • @danforbes3573
      @danforbes3573 7 лет назад +1

      Alex Everett-last: Nice to see another member of Tim's fan club!

    • @Asquid1987
      @Asquid1987 7 лет назад

      Dan Whitmore heh

  • @DarkKingBowser
    @DarkKingBowser 7 лет назад +2

    Wait just a god damn second... Hareraiser, sounds an awful lot like hellraiser. And in hellraiser the portal to hell is opened up by a GOLDEN PUZZLE BOX!
    JESUS FUCK THAT RABBIT OPENS THE GATE TO HELL!!!

  • @thecinematicmind
    @thecinematicmind 2 года назад +3

    Rest in Peace
    Bamber Gascoigne
    1935-2022
    💎📺📚

  • @JamesLawner
    @JamesLawner 6 лет назад +6

    Fascinating, makes me wonder why this game was never referenced in Ready Player One.

  • @ceon4499
    @ceon4499 7 лет назад +7

    He's so good at talking and keeping your attention! His humor is refreshing as well.

  • @TheArcWielder
    @TheArcWielder 7 месяцев назад +2

    This video inspired me to use the story of the book's treasure hunt for one of my college presentations a few years ago
    Got a 100/100
    Bless up to ashens

  • @Llethander
    @Llethander 5 лет назад +4

    Oh holy crap, I didn't even realize when I clicked the link. I only realized when he started talking that this is Ashens. The same Ashens that I've been watching tell me about random tat for years. xD
    Awesome.

  • @fc43
    @fc43 5 лет назад +11

    We should get the Angry Video Game Nerd review this game

  • @zackaronie.b.2709
    @zackaronie.b.2709 7 лет назад +5

    I swear if Ashens was one of my University professors i wouldnt mind lectures so much

  • @leons.kennedy2747
    @leons.kennedy2747 7 лет назад +43

    Hareraiser is supposed to be solved by the hints at the bottom of the screen giving directions. "The Grass is Like a Carpet" means "Down/South", (Carpet is on the floor) "The Sun Shines Up" means "Up/North", (obviously) "The Count Has Begun" means "Up/North" (Hands on a clock start at 12, pointing up) etc, etc.
    Gimme my £30,000.

    • @linkrulezall
      @linkrulezall 6 лет назад +16

      Except there's no actual end goal to any of the screens, all you end up on is different tree pictures with different clues. And how do you explain the blatant platitudes like "The Hare Is Golden" and "Shall You Find It" or the absolute word salad of Finale such as "From Then President Hill Must Cure"?

    • @leons.kennedy2747
      @leons.kennedy2747 6 лет назад +13

      "From Then President Hill Must Cure"? predicted Donald Trump, duh. This game was ahead of its time.

    • @thatguywhoreadsshit1507
      @thatguywhoreadsshit1507 6 лет назад

      The Hare is Golden could mean the sun so up/north and shall you find it could refer to the fact that it was originally buried so down/south

    • @thatguywhoreadsshit1507
      @thatguywhoreadsshit1507 6 лет назад +1

      President Hill could mean Mount Rushmore/Black hills which are in south Dakota so south/down

    • @promontorium
      @promontorium 6 лет назад +2

      Bruno Platter And what the fuck does a series of up/down , north/south clues lead to? You've solved nothing. You think you're going to mail in ⬆⬆⬇⬆⬇⬇⬆ and they'd send you back the amulet?

  • @ikeyasector
    @ikeyasector 4 года назад +13

    Ashen has a talent for speaking in public like this and holding people's interest. I enjoyed this very much.