Pathologic 2: Marble Nest

Marble Nest is a standalone chapter of the series, so to speak. It was actually created way back in 2016 during the development of Pathologic 2, and it shows: while the gameplay and graphics are the same as the sequel, the characters and dialogue are more reminescent of the original Pathologic. Overall, it functions as a sort of bridge between the two games. Due to the much more forgiving survival elements (they are in fact almost absent) and lack of combat, the chapter doesn't let you do much more than walk around, talk to people, and complete some quests. Still, the dialogue is fascinating as always, and there are a few different choices and endings to see. The short length also makes it easy to replay. It's a shame that it can only be bought as DLC. You'll get more enjoyment out of it if you have at least some knowledge of the story in the main game, but as a standalone chapter it might work pretty well even for a new player.

I've never written a review before, but I felt with this game I just had to get my feelings out on it. This game is a genuine masterpiece, and I say that about very, very few games. This is easily one of my top ten games EVER. The atmosphere, the choices, the way things are structured, and OH GOD THE WRITING. It is just fantastic. Genuinely fantastic. A lot has been said about how hard the game is, and absolutely it is. But I will say, I don't normally enjoy games that are super hard and frustrating for the sake of it, (it took me a very long time to take to the Dark Souls series for instance) because I don't enjoy having to constantly restart and repeat myself every time I fail. But this game I took to immediately. You genuinely learn something every time you fail, and because the game is so expertly designed around this experience, and heavily embedded into the themes and the writing, even every failure is unbelievably compelling. You feel like you're struggling against something, but even while it's punishing you, the intentions of the game are with you as you do it. And it means that all the little victories you have feel really important and well earned. Everything might be falling apart, BUT YOU HAVE SAVED LIVES IN THE FACE OF EVERYTHING TELLING YOU YOU CAN'T. Seriously, can't recommend the game enough. Really hope that it gets the recognition it deserves, really hope it's successful enough for them to release the other two stories. BUY THIS GAME AND THEN PLAY THIS GAME AND THEN TELL EVERYONE YOU KNOW TO DO THE SAME SO THEN THE DEVS GET MONEY AND THEN MAKE MORE PLEASE AND THANK YOU. P.S. DO NOT TAKE THE FELLOW TRAVELLER'S DEAL. EVER.

A very short (2,5h if you do absolutely everything) story where you play as the Bachelor. I recommend playing it only after finishing the main game. It has some interesting story tidbits, but nothing major and it's not as good as the main Haruspex storyline. You can safely skip it or pick it up on sale.

This is not a complete DLC, this is a teaser for the Bachelor's game, even though it is essentially a short prelude (about 2-3 hours), it has a great storyline and is worth all the time spent.