YMMV / Pathologic

• Badass Decay: In his own storyline, Dankovsky is a fearless and determined Badass Bookworm Science Hero; but in other storylines, he's just a selfish Insufferable Genius.
• Better as a Let's Play: The game is almost as infamous for its absurd difficulty curve as it is for its narrative complexity, meaning that a lot of players are scared off early on. According to Steam achievements, around fifteen percent of players make it past the first day, in a game that takes place over eleven days. For three characters. As a result, most fans of the game either experienced it through a Let's Play or one of the many video essays that help better explain the game's obtuse survival mechanics and difficult-to-follow story.
• Complete Monster: Var the Hunchback, the foster father of Willow Mellow, stands out among the citizens of the disease-stricken town as an obsessive maniac with no limits to his actions. A former member of the Ace of Diamonds Caravan who escaped the purges of the Powers That Be, Var lusts for his own adopted daughter—whom he kidnapped and raised to be an exotic dancer—and murdered her biological father when he tried to rescue her. Var responds to Willow's death by organizing a mob of arsonists to burn every single infected person in their path, eventually attempting to destroy the Termitary with all of the five thousand workers still inside.
• Critical Dissonance: A bit of a special example, due to Pathologic being a really bizarre game. Some reviews (even positive ones) don't even call it a game. Many critics disliked Pathologic and warned against playing it, saying that it wasn't fun in the slightest and was far too bleak. Most fans of the game completely agree with this, but love the game's plot and atmosphere nonetheless.
• Cult Classic: It's hard as hell, was notoriously difficult to find until the HD port came about on Steam, and isn't really fun at all in the usual sense of the word. But what it is is an incredibly engrossing experience that boasts incredible atmosphere and a fantastic story.
• Disappointing Last Level: The second half of the Changeling's scenario feels less developed than the rest of the story. In particular the sidequests are repetitive, as every day you are tasked with preventing the Bachelor and Haruspex from killing each other, and finding your Evil Twin based on a riddle. In the ending if you speak to the Executor and Tragedian as the avatars of the game's developers, they even bring this up and apologize for the rush job.
• Ensemble Dark Horse: It's said that Dankovsky was a head of the crew of the Thanatica Laboratory, whose goal was actually cheating Death, and the Laboratory was closed by the Authorities and Professor Tehlmann. Despite having so little information on it, Thanatica is a frequent object of fanart and WMG.
• Friendly Fandoms: With S.T.A.L.K.E.R., both being bleak, oppressive and difficult, as well as both being set in Eastern Europe.
• Funny Moments: As dark as the game's tone is otherwise, there are still a few of these slipped in, mostly when the characters are poking fun at the game itself. For instance, when Daniil has his first encounter with a Tragedian and an Executor, the latter has a line complaining about how they actually can't see a thing in their costume and have no idea what’s currently happening.
• Heartwarming Moments:
  • In the Bachelor's scenario, you can talk down a drunk and suicidal Peter Stamatin by running all over town, finding Maria, and bringing back her promise that she would fulfill his plan for the Polyhedron. Or you can just tell him that you care about him.
  • The Changeling's scenario has a lot of these, mainly since it's largely removed from the endless political scheming and Hobbes Was Right events in the other scenarios, making for a more optimistic and upbeat atmosphere. Most of it is simply about a frightened, confused girl who is nonetheless determined to help as many people as possible. The Heroic Sacrifice of her Adherents is particularly poignant.
• Ho Yay: The Bachelor and the Haruspex have a good deal of this. When the devs did an AMA on Reddit, multiple people asked whether or not the game was trying to imply that Daniil had feelings for Artemy during Haruspex's path. The fandom seems to have a large number of LGBTQ fans. (Naturally, the studio gave no direct answers.)
  • During the Haruspex's route, the Bachelor sends you a letter nearly every single day and insists on building a friendship with you from the very beginning to avoid becoming enemies. Several characters also note that his interest in you is not strictly professional, but that he's inquiring after your wellbeing personally. Even without the Shipping Goggles, that's pretty heartwarming for a game as lonely and conspiratorial as Pathologic.
  • While the relationship between the Bachelor and the Haruspex is far more neutral during the Bachelor's route, the 'first' meeting (as in, the first the game will lead you to) involves a dramatic jailbreak in which the Bachelor murders three men to get to the Haruspex. The Haruspex thanks him by completing his request by giving him a tissue sample in the form of a still-beating heart.
• It's Hard, So It Sucks!: The game is intentionally crushing and anxiety-inducing, which makes some feel that the game is way too difficult and unforgiving, making it likely for new players to abandon the game early on. Most fans would agree with this, but argue it serves the atmosphere and story further.
• Narm:
  • In the original English version, several lines of dialogue that should be serious end up becoming hilarious due to the infamously poor translation.
    "Simon is a sorcerer?"
    "GO ONION! I need to collect the tools."
  • If the sound of the baby crying or laughing when your reputation changes isn't scaring you, then it's most likely making you laugh.
  • The repetition of the limited amount of voiced lines characters have can become this if something plays that directly contradicts what's currently happening, leading to possible funny gaffs like Andrey worriedly asking about how his brother is doing... while Peter is standing right next to him.
• Obvious Beta: Definitely. The game's innovative and well-written story and atmosphere are often marred by the rather clunky and buggy engine. There are quite a few annoying bugs that can mess up the gameplay or disrupt its otherwise highly immersive atmosphere. And the wobbly and seemingly rushed English translation and dub needlessly add to the already existing issues. The HD remake released in 2015 has correct (well, more correct than before; "Simon is a sorcerer?" is still there) English translations and improved graphics.
• Paranoia Fuel: Due to the first-person perspective. There could be a disease cloud or a mugger right next to you and you won't know until it's upon you. And, of course, you can't see behind you either, so you'll be whipping around to check your back quite often...
• Scrappy Mechanic: You do a lot of walking around the city, and the lack a sprint is rather noticeable. This can be rather annoying when being chased by multiple characters.
• Too Bleak, Stopped Caring: The ruling families are using the crisis as an opportunity to grab power, the citizens are all self-serving Jerkasses whose only course of action is to go on a massive witch hunt, the three protagonists aren't very pleasant people themselves and they only get more desperate as time goes on, the situation steadily goes From Bad to Worse as the Sand Plague spreads despite all your efforts, there are never enough resources for you to stay healthy, you're always in danger of rendering your game unwinnable, and the atmosphere is unrelentingly bleak and oppressive from beginning to end. Needless to say, this can be a very emotionally fatiguing game to play. It even ends up being the case for the Bachelor's scenario, as he becomes so disillusioned about everything that he decides the only thing worth saving in the town is the Polyhedron.

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