Hypnospace Outlaw (2024)

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Hypnospace Outlaw is a 2019 Simulation Game developed by Jay Tholen, Mike Lasch, Xalavier Nelson Jr., and ThatWhichIs Media (Tendershoot) and published by No More Robots.

Plot[]

November 5[]

The game begins on November 5, 1999, with the player being introduced to their new volunteer job as an enforcer for Hypnospace, an internet service provided by Merchantsoft where users can browse the internet in their sleep with the use of a headband. The player completes a short tutorial where they learn about their job. As an enforcer, the player acts as a moderator on Hypnospace, tracking for content that infringes the CHIME laws: Copyright, Harassment, Illegal Activity, Malicious Software, and Extralegal Commerce. The HSPD will send cases for the player, where they must find and track down suspected violations.

The player's first cases include tracking down copyright infringement of an old cartoon character known as Gumshoe Gooper, tracking harassment from a user known as ZANE_ROCKS_14, stopping the usage of extralegal commerce system CapaCash, and finding and removing disturbing images displayed on Hypnospace pages from a hacker known as T1MAGEDDON. After completing some HSPD work, the player is given a beta demo of the game Outlaw, created by Dylan Merchant, the lead programmer of Hypnospace. Outlaw is extremely buggy, and eventually malfunctions, crashes, and bricks the user's headband.

November 26[]

After having their headband fixed, the player returns to Hypnospace a few weeks later on November 26 to find it has quite changed. Members of Goodtime Valley are retaliating against the banning of their Gumshoe Gooper images, creating a free speech movement called "I Stand with Gooper." The player also gains access to Starport Castle Dreamstation where they learn that users are angry at the merging of multiple zones into one, and are choosing to create a zone of their own: the Freelands as the SAI (Sovereign Alliance of Imagination). After doing some cleanup on Hypnospace, and tracking down illegal speed-boosting software in the Freelands, the character is assigned a copyright infringement case. This leads them to the FLIST (a file-sharing service) page of Dylan Merchant. Reporting the violations angers Dylan, who is unaware of the case, and removes the player from HSPD duty until New Year's Eve.

December 31[]

On New Year's Eve, Merchantsoft employee Samantha Clausson reinstates the player to HSPD duty to help stop a Y2K Mindcrash attack on Teentopia released by T1MAGEDDON. Additionally, Merchantsoft has released a new Year 2000 update for Hypnospace, which is extremely buggy. After stopping the attack, a version of Outlaw is suddenly installed on all headbands across Hypnospace. As a result, Hypnospace, collectively across the country, crashes, causing the real Mindcrash. The damage from the headbands causes at least 4 casualties (depending on the player's actions, up to two users can be saved). T1MAGEDDON is blamed for the crash and becomes the first juvenile to be sentenced to jail with manslaughter by way of computer hacking.

The present-day[]

Years later, in the present day (Possibly 2019 in-universe, the year the game got released), the player returns to Hypnospace as a member of the Hypnospace Archival Project. While the player browses Hypnospace to collect lost artifacts, the player is contacted by former HSPD agent and Merchantsoft employee Samantha, who is now a member of the archival project acting under the pseudonym Chelsea. Samantha believes that the Y2K incident was not Tim's fault, but a result of Merchansoft's poor planning and refusal to disclose that Hypnospace's technology was actively harming its users. Soon after, Dylan Merchant joins the archival team.

The user finds old ChitChat chatlogs, which reveal that the team had information that Hypnospace was harmful to its users, and reveals the existence of a medical report detailing this. All of this information was released by re3koning, a member of an elite hacker group on Hypnospace called M1NX. The player eventually finds the medical research paper and sends it to Chelsea. Dylan admits his role in causing the Y2K incident and framing Tim to the HAP. He sends a final, finished version of Outlaw, admitting his guilt and serving as an apology to the dead citizens.

"Main" Characters[]

History and Development[]

Development[]

Main article: Development of Hypnospace Outlaw

In 2014, Jay Tholen released Hypnospace Enforcer, in which later would become Outlaw. After one year, Jay would start creating a sequel of Enforcer, adding more stuff related to the operating system, and in August 2015, Jay would create the first prototype of the game, in which the Hypnospace Highway segments were the main part of the game, and after that, the game would start adding more features, like the Hypnospace Explorer or the HSPD, and in September 7, 2016, Jay would create a Kickstarter, in which it got funded on October of the same year. After the Kickstarter, Jay would continue giving updates for the development, and stuff like a bigger screen, a day/date counter, and a shift from the Hypnospace Highway to just the OS part of the game would happen.

Release[]

A release date was announced on February 14, 2019^[1] and Hypnospace was officially released on May 12, 2019.

A Steam announcement from March 15, 2019, confirmed a Steam Workshop Update was in the works^[2] (which likely became the modding update) as well as mentioning updating the game with various bits of new content over the next month. An itch.io post from Jay Tholen discussed plans and ideas for future updates. Patches for bugs would be uploaded after GDC (which ended March 22 in 2019), new Counsellor Ronnie content would be added in April of that year (it was instead included as a part of the larger Hypnospace PLUS content update), and an update would be released in the summer that would allow users to share their work (this eventually became the modding update). Tholen was also considering a content update featuring an in-universe "group of amateur game developers" that would include small games and a side-plot (tentatively planned for sometime in 2020, but not added as of September 2020), as well as occasionally adding new content forever "at a relaxed pace" for the foreseeable future.^[3]

The game received a patch on March 31 and April 11, 2019 (entitled version H01-00001A) with fixes for various bugs and content. ^[4] Steam trading cards were added on April 16, 2019,^[5] and the game was updated with a new patch (v2.05) with various fixes on June 28. ^[6] On July 16, 2019, developers announced Hypnospace merchandise available on Fangamer.^[7]

On November 12, 2019, a major modding update was announced, to be released on November 19.^[8] Players could mod various aspects of the game including making new pages, zones, viruses, apps, etc. The update integrates mod.io, and allows players to download mods from within the game.^[9] The release of the update included multiple guides by Mike Lasch and a "Seepage Xperience" mod which would eventually be included as a part of the Hypnospace PLUS update.^[10] An update on December 24, 2019 (v2.23) added 14 Steam Achievements and various fixes for the main game and modding.^[11]

On August 18, 2020, a console release of Hypnospace Outlaw was announced for August 27, 2020, for the Nintendo Switch, PS4, and Xbox Game Pass. Coinciding with the console release was a new content update for the game, called Hypnospace PLUS.^[12] The update includes over 60 new pages adding in additional characters and side-content, over 2 hours of previously unreleased music as a part of the OST's Vol. 3, new themes, sfx, cursors, etc.

Future[]

Tholen noted in an interview that the new content in PLUS was mostly "stuff we wanted to finish for the original launch that we had to cut." Tholen also mentions a "final goodbye update," which would "be a little more story-focused" and include new music with a tentative release in early-2021.^[13]

In 2022, Jay would announce two games, a sequel to Hypnospace named Dreamsettler and a spin-off game based around Zane's comic "Slayers X" named Slayers X: Terminal Aftermath: Vengance of the Slayer.

Reception[]

work in progress. here are some review articles on Hypnospace. these do not include YouTube reviewshttps://www.pcgamer.com/hypnospace-outlaw-review/https://techraptor.net/content/hypnospace-outlaw-reviewhttps://www.theguardian.com/games/2019/mar/14/hypnospace-outlaw-review-a-surreal-tribute-to-the-90s-internethttps://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2019/03/12/hypnospace-outlaw-review/https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2019-03-20-hypnospace-outlaw-review-resurrecting-a-forgotten-internet-warts-and-allhttps://www.polygon.com/reviews/2019/3/13/18264205/hypnospace-outlaw-review-pc-steamhttps://unwinnable.com/2019/03/26/hypnospace-outlaw-finds-the-horror-in-viruses/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2019-02-05-hypnospace-outlaw-weaving-a-tangled-webhttps://variety.com/2019/gaming/columns/how-hypnospace-outlaws-fake-internet-reveals-the-flaws-in-our-own-1203176036/

this review is a negative one. originally a 1/10 if I remember correctlyhttps://vgalmanac.com/reviews/hypnospace-outlaw/

Metacritic pagehttps://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/hypnospace-outlaw

Rock Paper Shotgun has multiple articles on Hypnospace. here's their tag for it.https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/game/hypnospace-outlaw/

Soundtrack[]

Hypnospace Outlaw OST Volumes[]

Hypnospace's Soundtrack was largely produced and written by Jay Tholen, with a certain amount of it produced on the Hypnospace Tune Sequencer. At the release of the game, it was separated into two volumes and is available for streaming, purchasing, and listening on Amazon, Apple Music, Spotify, and Bandcamp. Both albums were released on March 12, 2019, Hypnospace's release date.

Volume 1[]

• Hypnospace Outlaw Original Soundtrack, Vol. 1 by Jay Tholen
  1. Boot Sequence [00:45]
  2. New Era [00:46]
  3. Sleeptime Computing [01:30]
  4. Soundscape I: Temple [01:25]
  5. Chill it Right (Fre3zer) [02:54]
  6. Icy Girl (Fre3zer) [02:55]
  7. Colder Than the Rest (Fre3zer) [07:25]
  8. Formations (Basidia) [03:14]
  9. Ghost of the Grotto (Basidia) [05:42]
  10. Soundscape II: Secret Forest [02:31]
  11. Hypnospace 2.0 [02:00]
  12. Millennium Anthem (2000 New Years Eve) [04:45]
  13. Soundscape III: Mystery, Soundscape IV: Virtual Shaman [02:51]
  14. Eulogy [03:07]
  15. Frontier [00:59]

Volume 2[]

• Hypnospace Outlaw Original Soundtrack, Vol. 2 by Jay Tholen
  1. HypnOS 1.04 [00:07]
  2. Earth Our Home [01:12]
  3. Global Groove [00:58]
  4. Global Newsroom [00:48]
  5. Wild Sleep [01:41]
  6. Tuba Buffet's Brass Shade [00:56]
  7. DM Hazebeat 001 [01:11]
  8. Ice Cream and Booze [01:34]
  9. The Gizmo Factory [01:14]
  10. Dimensional Voyager [01:30]
  11. Slap It Up [01:00]
  12. Age of Creation [01:18]
  13. Relaxation [01:11]
  14. Cave Drip [01:10]
  15. Leather Jacket Man [00:58]
  16. Front Porch [01:11]
  17. Always Delicious [00:48]
  18. Our Heavenly Home [01:01]
  19. Forest Feast [00:55]
  20. Goodtime Rock [01:11]
  21. The Banjo Boy [00:41]
  22. A Child's Melody [00:40]
  23. Awesome Rap Beat [00:50]
  24. Waking Up [01:17]
  25. Teentopia Hypnospace Anthem [01:17]
  26. Pizza Dance [00:58]
  27. SquisherZ [AUD2HSM CONVERTER TRIAL] [00:52]
  28. Tuba Buffet's Night Out [00:34]
  29. X-MAZ MEDLEY (Coolpunk) [01:05]
  30. Gotta Gotta [01:46]
  31. Moonlit Sewer Garden [00:53]
  32. Fungal Jive [00:47]
  33. Drink Drink Drink It Right [01:08]
  34. Calculated Memories [01:08]
  35. Work Through Sunrise [01:14]
  36. In My Icy Palace [01:12]
  37. You're Promoted! [01:12]
  38. Twilight Meditation [01:22]
  39. The Suspense [00:50]
  40. Tension [00:41]
  41. We Fell into a Dream [00:59]
  42. Something Lurking [01:11]
  43. The Teknoshamanatrix [01:11]
  44. Leeches & The Festering Orifice [01:11]
  45. Impending Spook [01:16]
  46. Katie's Kuddly Kat Korner [00:38]
  47. Hypnospace is Great [01:06]
  48. Merchants of the Next Wave [00:57]
  49. Millennium Anthem (.hsm version) [02:10]
  50. Earmint [01:00]
  51. Battle Hymn of the Republic (W.E. Briggs We Salute you) [00:43]
  52. The Birthstones [00:25]

Volume 3[]

On August 27, 2020, a third volume of Hypnospace's OST was released on Jay Tholen's Bandcamp, coinciding with the release of the Hypnospace PLUS content update. The album is largely comprised of original songs created by guest artists for Hypnospace and includes previously unreleased tracks from the original game as well as new songs from the Hypnospace PLUS update.

• Hypnospace Outlaw Original Soundtrack, Vol. 3 by Jay Tholen and Various Artists
  1. Millennium Anthem, 2020 Variation [01:52]
  2. Dan Warren - Satellite Orchestra (Barnaby's Chair) [04:22]
  3. Dan Warren - Summoned Heart (Barnaby's Chair) [02:49]
  4. Dan Warren - Corduroy (Barnaby) [03:23]
  5. Dan Warren - Come Closer (Barnaby) [02:56]
  6. Dan Warren - You're Not That Cool (Barnaby) [03:40]
  7. Dan Warren - Too Weird For You (Barnaby) [01:58]
  8. Dan Warren - Satellite Electrica (Barnaby) [03:52]
  9. queenjazz - Nothing Left for Me (Seepage) [01:53]
  10. queenjazz - Against the Wall (Seepage) [02:31]
  11. Half-handed Cloud - Bolo Tie Clock (Future Recycler) [00:30]
  12. Half-handed Cloud - FutureWarmth Gamble (Future Recycler) [00:33]
  13. Half-handed Cloud - The Swatter Song (Future Recycler) [00:43]
  14. Dylan Barry - Snowflake Tattoo (Real Salve) [02:50]
  15. Dylan Barry - Slipping Sands (Real Salve) [05:19]
  16. Dylan Barry - Xarp (Real Salve) [02:18]
  17. h0l - 2 cute 4 u (Slushmouth) [01:38]
  18. h0l - Castles in Limbo (Slushmouth) [01:39]
  19. h0l - Confuzed (Slushmouth) [05:03]
  20. Brian Carnrike - Celestial Reflection (Zaréd) [01:32]
  21. Brian Carnrike - Agent of Peace (Zaréd) [02:36]
  22. Brian Carnrike - It's a Globe Thing (Zaréd) [03:19]
  23. Brian Carnrike - Earth Funk (Zaréd) [02:04]
  24. Brian Carnrike - Next Understanding (Zaréd) [03:44]
  25. Brian Carnrike - True Life Awakens (Zaréd) [04:56]
  26. El Huervo - Sparklehazer (Holoangel) [02:58]
  27. rj lake - Junk Film (Protospore) [03:18]
  28. Guttaural - Perpetual Drip (Guttaural) [03:54]
  29. GreenLizard307 - You Matter (Jeff) [02:32]
  30. ratvader - You Can Do It (The Motivator) [02:50]
  31. Asher Graieg-Morrison - Midnight (Asher) [01:54]
  32. Asher Graieg-Morrison - Dunes (Asher) [02:41]
  33. Asher Graieg-Morrison - Looping Distance (Asher) [02:03]
  34. Asher Graieg-Morrison - New Piece #5 (Asher) [05:18]
  35. Asher Graieg-Morrison - Still (Asher) [02:36]
  36. Fragment of Place (Marc Elo) [03:50]
  37. rj lake - Alakazasterpiece (Unicorn Company) [02:21]
  38. rj lake - Bewilderbeast (Unicorn Company) [02:03]
  39. rj lake - Zlut (Unicorn Company) [02:11]
  40. RedStryke - PUSH (RedStryke) [03:19]
  41. RedStryke - Remember Me (RedStryke) [02:43]
  42. Ghastly (Tamara) [01:07]
  43. Red Moon (Tamara) [00:54]
  44. River (Tamara) [00:51]
  45. Zones (Tamara) [00:42]
  46. Jack King-Spooner - The Wizard Eagle (The Visual) [00:47]
  47. rj lake - On That (Difficulty Boy) [01:08]
  48. rj lake - Yeah, I'm Bliiiiiiiiding (Difficulty Boy) [01:31]
  49. rj lake - Family Friend (Syringe Culture) [02:50]
  50. Eoghan Roche - November's Belly (Ice-C) [01:23]
  51. Eoghan Roche - I Dressed in Fallen Leaves .hsm (Big Gus Funk) [02:15]
  52. Eoghan Roche - I Dressed in Fallen Leaves .aud (Big Gus Funk) [02:14]
  53. Smush - ice 2 meet U (Icicle Kid) [01:48]
  54. Smush - The Mushroom Hop (Dripp Boy) [02:04]
  55. SquisherZ Rap (MC Oozeman) [01:39]
  56. Xalavier Nelson Jr. - Buffet Heist (Kevv-J ) [00:37]
  57. Xalavier Nelson Jr. - We-ah Dance (Kevv-J) [00:55]
  58. Snub the Nub (Counselor Ronnie) [01:50]

Chowder Man[]

Among the various other guest artists that Hypnospace features, Hot Dad portrays Chowder Man, who writes many jingles and songs for Hypnospace Partner Brands. Most of Hot Dad's Chowder Man songs can be found on his album, Chowder Man. It was released on March 12, 2019, and would later include Christmas Pain in Christmas Town, which was originally released on December 21, 2019, as a single.

• The Chowder Man by Hot Dad
  1. Hypnospace is Cool [01:34]
  2. Gray's Peak [00:44]
  3. Granny Cream's Hot Butter Ice Cream [00:22]
  4. The Chowder Man's Hotel Room [03:30]
  5. I Am the Chowder Man [03:36]
  6. Kruncher [00:43]
  7. Squisherz [00:20]
  8. Desperate in Dallas, Montana [01:11]
  9. Ready to Shave (feat. Dave Pino) [06:40]
  10. Chowder Man, Please Come Back Home [02:29]
  11. Hypnospace is Cool (Xtra Hypno Mix) [01:42]
  12. Christmas Pain in Christmas Town [05:49]

Glamocaster[]

Hypnospace also features Glamoplasm, an album by musician Shayne Soderstrom's band Glamocaster. Originally released on March 19, 2018, the album and the band are featured as themselves in Hypnospace as a successful in-universe Dirthaze act.

• Glamoplasm by Glamocaster
  1. Receiver [03:17]
  2. He Looked Up [03:17]
  3. Fuzzbucket [03:23]
  4. Glamoplaster [02:30]
  5. I'll Do My Best [03:03]
  6. Platinum Retriever [02:50]
  7. I'm Afraid! [03:35]
  8. Absolute Flood/Glamoplaster #2 [03:04]
  9. The Mind You Make [02:31]
  10. You know, You know [01:57]
  11. Partly Loudly [03:01]
  12. In Pictures [03:00]

Kavernous[]

Among the variety of music on Hypnospace is Kavernous' Fungus Scene music, created by the band Dragon Warrior. Kavernous' music was published in the EP Secrets of the Slime on March 31, 2019, on Dragon Warrior's Bandcamp under the pseudonym Kavernous to match with its Hypnospace counterpart.

• Secrets of the Slime by Kavernous
  1. Grotto of Weeping Stone [01:10]
  2. A Lightless World [01:48]
  3. Secrets of the Slime [03:17]
  4. Crystals Forming Thru Innumerable Eons in the Heart of the Earth [01:50]

Klyfta[]

Hypnospace also includes original music by the in-universe cosmic jazz-rock band Klyfta whose music was largely produced and composed by Chris Schlarb. An official release of the music was published on Chris Schlarb's Bandcamp under the Klyfta pseudonym. The album is titled Cosmic Pilgramige: The Klyfta Tapes 1972 - 1975 and was released on September 4, 2020, after the Hypnospace PLUS update. The Bandcamp page features an in-universe blurb about the songs featured in the collection written by Hypnospace character Bill Aldrin. "Night Cry (Part 1)" and "Sport Anthem" are included as bonus tracks, and are included in the album's digital listing on Bandcamp. The album received a limited edition 12" vinyl release with 500 copies.

• Cosmic Pilgrimage: The Klyfta Tapes 1972 - 1975
  • Side A:
    1. Cosmos Eternal [10:33]
    2. Deep Cavern of Peril [10:57]
  • Side B:
    3. Pillars of Creation [11:28]
    4. Journey In Saturn And A Star [05:28]
    5. Goodbye Planet Earth [04:29]
  • Bonus Tracks
    6. Night Cry (Part 1) [03:37]
    7. Sport Anthem [04:14]

Soundtrack DLC[]

Hypnospace's soundtrack albums can also be bought alongside its Steam and itch.io releases. As of September 4, 2020 (the latest Hypnospace-related music release), no new songs or albums have been added yet, but the inclusion of Hypnospace PLUS's Volume 3 has been confirmed to be underway, along with streaming releases in a Twitter reply from Jay Tholen.^[14] The Steam and itch.io soundtrack releases include two albums and three EPs. They include Hypnospace Outlaw OST Vol. 1 and 2, Hot Dad's Chowder Man collection (excluding "Christmas Pain in Christmas Town"), an album of Klyfta's songs entitled Klyfta - Collection (featuring 4 songs: "Cosmos Eternal," "Deep Cavern of Peril," "Night Cry pt. 1," and "Sport Anthem") and all 6 songs in Zaréd's Celestial Reflection (which are also included within Hypnospace Outlaw OST Vol. 3).

References[]

Games
Main Games	Hypnospace Outlaw • Dreamsettler
Spin-offs	Hypnospace Enforcer • Slayers X: Terminal Aftermath: Vengance of the Slayer
Related Games	Frog Days