History Fridge / UntilDawn

Hey, don't scroll any further down unless you've beaten the game. This turned into a big conversation about a spoiler topic.

* Since famine has all but disappeared in Canada and the United States, the benefits and temptation to indulge in cannibalism have likewise all but vanished. The Wendigos probably go for years if not decades without any viable hosts to infest. But what do predators do when prey is scarce? ''They expand their territory'', preferably into regions with abundant prey. The Wendigo's in the game seem content to remain on that one mountain, but as that region will likely be abandoned after the events of the game, they may be compelled to migrate somewhere else. Like say, a densely populated city...
** It is a major plot point that the mountain was abandoned already. The Stranger was the only human on it that we know of for the intervening year between the prologue and the first chapter of the game. The Wendigo could readily survive off of the abundant local game (note, for example, that the elk on the mountain have zero fear of humans), and if they were ever going to leave, they've had sixty years to do it. There's a series of clues you can find as Mike that has him mention to Sam that he found a photo of one of the miners who survived the original collapse, and he's seen a Wendigo that has the same scar that the miner did. There's no reason to think the Wendigo are heading south.
*** True, but until just recently, the stranger had done a superb job at keeping the damn things locked up, meaning that the vast majority ''couldn't'' have left; their isolation may have been enforced, not chosen. And while the Alpha Wendigo may have been content to haunt blackwood, they are clearly shown to lack a pack mentality, (i.e. fighting with one another over food) so the others would be under no obligation to follow suit. For all we know, a few of the spirits may have been chomping at the bit to get off the mountain. And in regards to food, while meat is in plentiful supply, it doesn't much matter if they have no bodies with which to eat; they need hosts more than they need prey.
**** It's also worth noting that Wendigos are featured in the folklore of tribes spread across the entire northern continent; they were not an isolated local legend, but served as NightmareFuel for entire cultures. That means one of two things; either the Wendigos were all somehow concentrated and contained at Blackwood, or [[FridgeHorror there are many, many more places infested with the damn things.]]
** For that matter, the majority of the Wendigos in the game were only trapped in that region due to the stranger's antics. With him dead and so many Wendigos released, they could already be spreading closer to civilization even before the sun rises.
** Something that most people may not be aware of is that [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aboriginal_food_security_in_Canada hunger and starvation is still a very serious problem]] in many remote Canadian First Nations (aboriginal) communities. Due to a variety of reasons which include geographical remoteness and governmental mismanagement of relief aid, food prices in many First Nations communities [[http://www.foodincanada.com/food-business/first-nations-inuit-protest-high-food-prices-66665/ are incredibly high]], where something as simple as a head of cabbage or a gallon of milk can cost $20.

* There's plenty that happens or is said during Dr. Hill's scenes that doesn't follow or seems disconnected or superficial if you assume he's talking to the player. [[spoiler: You realize just about everything works when you know he's talking to Josh. For example, in the second session, he starts by saying he'd like to "understand the root of your anxiety" even if you say anything implying it exists in the first session, since he already knows it does for Josh; in the same session, your Clown/Scarecrow/Zombie choice changes the Psycho's mask because you're determining what Josh thinks would make for the scariest costume.]]

**** It's also worth noting that legends containing Wendigo were spread across almost the entire northern continent; they were not an isolated local legend, but served as NightmareFul for entire cultures. That means one of two things; either the Wendigos were all concentrated and somehow contained at Blackwood for some reason, or [[FridgeHorror: there are far more places infested with the damn things than just Blackwood alone]]...

*** True, but until just recently, the stranger had done a superb job at keeping the damn things locked up, meaning that the vast majority ''couldn't'' have left if they had chosen to do so. The events of the game not only freed the Wendigos from their physical imprisonment, but also from their bodies, and fleshless spirits aren't inconvenienced by physical limitations or mundane obstacles. They now enjoy a far greater degree of freedom and mobility, and with so few hosts left to possess in blackwood, a few may be compelled to head towards greener pastures now that they have the opportunity to do so.
**** Also, just because one or two Wendigos chose to remain on the mountain doesn't mean the rest are obligated to follow suit. They are clearly shown to lack a pack mentality, and are individualistically motivated (i.e. fighting with one another over food). Even if the greater whole decide to remain on the mountain, there is nothing preventing one or two of the spirits from seeking hosts elseware.
**** It's also worth noting that the Wendigo folklore was spread across almost the entire northern continent; there were not a local legend, but a ligitimat threat the an entire culture. That means one of two things; either the Wendigos were concentrated at Blackwood for some reason, or [[FridgeHorror: there are far more places infested with the damn things than just Blackwood alone]]...

**** Also, just because one or two Wendigos chose to remain on the mountain doesn't mean the rest are obligated to follow suit. The Alpha Wendigo's spirit may have been content to haunt Blackwood, but the Wendigo's themselves are shown to lack a pack mentality (i.e. fighting with one another over food). Even if the greater whole decide to remain on the mountain, there is nothing preventing one or two of the spirits from seeking hosts elseware.

* The Hand Machine in the Sanatorium makes much more sense during a second playthrough. [[spoiler: Not the handiwork of a deranged killer, just wendigo bait that a human happened to blunder in to.]]

I'm just going to tag this for a whole bunch of spoiler talk.

[[spoiler:* As if the game wasn't scary enough, no one ever gives an exact count of how many Wendigo spirits there actually are. Each soul ''could'' have found a body to inhabit during the events of the game... or maybe there are hundreds if not ''thousands'' of sapient, malevolent spirits following you around, just waiting for a chance to creep inside your skull, biding their time and watching your every movement...

** Something that most people may not be aware of is that [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aboriginal_food_security_in_Canada hunger and starvation is still a very serious problem]] in many remote Canadian First Nations (aboriginal) communities. Due to a variety of reasons which include geographical remoteness and governmental mismanagement of relief aid, food prices in many First Nations communities [[http://www.foodincanada.com/food-business/first-nations-inuit-protest-high-food-prices-66665/ are incredibly high]], where something as simple as a head of cabbage or a gallon of milk can cost $20.]]

* As if the game wasn't scary enough, no one ever gives an exact count of how many Wendigo spirits there actually are. Each soul ''could'' have found a body to inhabit during the events of the game... or maybe there are hundreds if not ''thousands'' of sapient, malevolent spirits following you around, just waiting for a chance to creep inside your skull, biding their time and watching your every movement...

** Something that most people may not be aware of is that [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aboriginal_food_security_in_Canada hunger and starvation is still a very serious problem]] in many remote Canadian First Nations (aboriginal) communities. Due to a variety of reasons which include geographical remoteness and governmental mismanagement of relief aid, food prices in many First Nations communities [[http://www.foodincanada.com/food-business/first-nations-inuit-protest-high-food-prices-66665/ are incredibly high]], where something as simple as a head of cabbage or a gallon of milk can cost $20.

** Something that most people may not be aware of is that [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aboriginal_food_security_in_Canada hunger and starvation is still a very serious problem]] in many remote Canadian First Nations (aboriginal) communities. Due to a variety of reasons which include geographical remoteness and governmental mismanagement of relief aid, food prices in many First Nations communities [[http://www.foodincanada.com/food-business/first-nations-inuit-protest-high-food-prices-66665/ are incredibly high]].

** For that matter, the majority of the Wendigos in the game were only trapped in that region due to the stranger's antics. With him dead and so many Wendigos released, they could already be spreading closer to civilization even before the sun rises.

* As if the game wasn't scary enough, no one ever gives an exact count of how many Wendigo spirits there actually are. Each soul ''could'' have found a body to inhabit during the events of the game... or maybe there are hundreds if not ''thousands'' of sapient, malevolent spirits following you around, just waiting for a chance to creep inside your skull, biding their time and watching you ever movement...

* The Hand Machine in the Sanatorium makes much more sense during a second playthrough. [[spoiler: Not the handiwork of a deranged killer, just wendigo bait that a human happened to blunder in to.]]

* The Hand Machine in the Sanatorium makes much more sense during a second playthrough. [[spoiler: Not the handiwork of a deranged killer, just wendigo bait that a human happened to blunder in to.]]

* The psychoanalysis with Dr Hill makes a lot of sense, in a way. [[spoiler: Since Josh was obviously affected by his sisters' disappearance, his parents must've sent him to a psychologist or psychiatrist. Obviously that didn't work which is why he's a DrJerk who plays mind games with you - because that's how Josh remembers him!]]

* When Josh sends Mike and Jessica over to the smaller, private cabin, [[spoiler: they arrive to find the fuses have blown. There's also a hardcover copy of the Kama Sutra left out and a framed picture of Hannah, neither of which seem like things that would have been casually left lying around; in fact, the picture of Hannah is the only picture in the cabin. Did Josh intend to hit them with a scare later on? Did Josh's homebrew surveillance network overload the wiring, and that's why the fuses are blown?]]

* When Chris chases Sam and Josh in the basement, Josh thinks it's funny. [[spoiler: The reason why is because he was planning to do the same thing, but on a larger, more elaborate scale.]]

* The game lacks an AsYouKnow conversation that spells it out for the player, but a little exploration of the lodge makes it clear that Josh's dad is a famous Hollywood producer who specializes in horror films. [[spoiler: Which explains a lot about Josh's skill with special effects.]]

* The stalker in the mask has set up a whole bunch of stuff - a complex saw blade on a track with a switch, cameras, a canister of knock out gas and so on. It would take a bit of mechanical know-how and equipment to prepare. [[spoiler:How did he manage to get all this stuff set up in secret and in time to ambush the group? Because he is Josh, the one person in the group who knows the area intimately, has access all year round and has the resources for it from his rich family.]]

* It's weird how much infrastructure has survived considering the mine and the sanatorium have both been closed for fifty years, and that they're both still on a power grid. Some of that's probably down to the Mystery Man, but one wonders if there was more going on up there than we saw.