TW: This game contains descriptions and depictions of mental illness. 

Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk is the second installment of an indie visual novel physiological horror that is, surprisingly, even weirder than its ridiculous name. Released in 2021 on Nintendo Switch and PC, and developed by Nikita Kryukov, Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk brings you on a short yet eerie journey of uneasy sound, bleak colors, and an indecipherable story. 

Generally, you don’t need to play the first game (which is humorously named Milk inside a bag of milk inside a bag of milk) to understand the second game. The first installment only lasts around 20 minutes or less and entails some of the details that lead to the second game, but nothing that didn’t get summed up in the short cinematic at the beginning of Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk.

You, as the player, control a girl who is trying to help the main character (who remains nameless) deal with the consequences of going to the store and buying a bag of milk. Yet, the protagonist suffers from mental illnesses (mostly likely schizophrenia) which keeps her trapped in her room due to the nightmarish visions she endures. It’s an odd concept and Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk tells the tale in an odd mash-up of frightening scenes and witty conversations that feel like a fever dream in a grand total of a 54-minute runtime.

Even with its short runtime, Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk still manages to nail the physiological horror element. Jumpscares, oversaturated imagery, and an ominous score leaves players on edge and makes you conscious about every transitioning screen or turned corner. 

Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk incorporates pixel art to create simplistic yet creative graphics that can sometimes be its own downfall. At times, it’s hard to distinguish what’s even being shown on the screen with its crazy colors which can leave players confused about the game’s message. 

The main activity of Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk is conversing with the girl inside her messy room and learning about her life and trying to make her feel better after her hatched plan of going to the store. The conversations were genuinely a delight to engage in, as they were amusing and full of clever dialogue. 

In this dialogue, you’d also be able to pick between different dialogue options. But in a way, you also couldn’t pick. The majority of the dialogue ‘options’ consisted of one choice, and if there were two, there wouldn’t be much of a difference in its alternatives. To sum up, when you could pick a dialogue option (which is not often), you either bully the girl or you don’t, it doesn’t vary. Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk gives a player the illusion of choice when it comes to dialogue when in reality there is little to no freedom of control and is extremely linear.

While some choices feel like they don’t matter, some of them do. There are different endings to this game (five to be exact), and some endings can be better than others. So make your decisions wisely, even if there are close to none. 

Towards the beginning of the game, a lot of the dialogue and description felt similar to the title of the game: too long and a mouthful. Description is important, but not so much that it overwhelms players with its complexity and poeticness. Full paragraphs of extensive symbolic reading that is merely describing a single aspect of the protagonist’s room. It was slightly suffocating, but the dialogue started to fizzle out over the course of the game.

Yet, Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk really lives up to its bizarre name in a good way. It’s crazy and makes itself incomprehensible, but that’s what builds a good physiological horror game since Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk makes players question what they just played. The game’s psychedelic yet horrific nature is what kept players glued to their seats and its craziness let me twist the meaning of the game into what I personally believed. Even though Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk can feel somewhat dramatic and unclear at times, its chaotic story really gives the game its own voice.

Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk is a great psychological horror that utilizes its own madness but can use more work regarding dialogue options and writing. Even though the title sounds like word vomit and is as outrageous as the concept of bagged milk, Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk is perfect if you’re looking for a unique horror experience that will leave you on edge and questioning its bizarre yet poetic story. 

Verdict: 7.5/10