The best video game documentary ever just got better

The greatest video game documentary of all time just got a 90-minute prologue and a special edition Blu-ray (including an 80-page booklet for which I wrote the intro). That’s great for dedicated fans, but for newcomers, I have equally excellent news: you can watch Double Fine PsychOdyssey, in its sprawling entirety, for free on YouTube right now.

There are two things you should know about Double Fine PsychOdyssey.

First, the documentary series (published on YouTube in early 2023) is one of the most frank, thorough, and lovingly crafted stories of the video game development process ever made. There are tears. There are laughs. There are extensive conversations about how to fund a piece of art that costs millions of dollars and may never be finished. Though it was made by Double Fine’s internal video production team, 2 Player Productions, this is neither PR nor marketing. This is a “warts and all” television-length, behind-the-scenes story of the long, and at times troubled, production of Psychonauts 2. Watching it feels akin to reading an entire creative team’s collective diaries. A year after its release, I still can’t believe executive leadership not just approved it, but funded the damn thing.

Second, this documentary is long. Very, very long. 32 parts, each episode ranging from 20 minutes to two hours. And with the latest episode, it’s added the equivalent of an additional feature-length film.

YouTube has become notorious for video essays that equate length with quality. Sometimes videos warrant their four-hour breakdown of a Star Wars-themed hotel. Other times, you find yourself ten hours into the history of a retro video game, wondering why the host has spent the last 30 minutes talking about the French Revolution. PsychOdyssey falls in the former camp, earning its run time and making it all digestible thanks to the episodic format — most episodes work as well on their own as part of the whole.

It’s perfect weekend viewing material. And if you become a mega fan, like I did, be sure to check out the special edition Blu-ray from Limited Run Games, which includes deleted scenes, additional interviews, and internal gameplay videos. You know, in case 20-some hours wasn’t enough.