One day, Jimmy looked inside.

And today, he looks again.

Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass was a 2018 hit RPG Maker game that I really loved. It really deserves as much love as LISA, OMORI, and the Fear and Hunger games when it comes to commercial RPG Maker games. Like, especially from OMORI fans, given the similar theming and from the fact that Jimmy’s gameplay is way stronger than OMORI’s.

Why am I talking about it again?

Well Housekeeping – now working under the Starseed Games moniker established for Hymn of the Earless God – has brought Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass back. Published by Electric Airship, Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass now has an updated definitive version on console! I got a code for it, and I was totally happy to revisit the game.

Now, I really recommend reading my old post about the game. This one will focus on my thoughts on new stuff and some re-evaluations on things from the old article. I don’t want to be restating things already said like a youtube video essayist.

Jimmy’s dream world brings a few new additions for its re-release, and one of those is a new hard mode! On hard mode, enemies adopt new moves and behaviors. For example, the Scriff Tribesman enemies will buff everyone’s attack at the start of a turn, making them a must to take down first. Though, the hard mode changes are more felt with the boss battles. Like, the Rotting Jack O Lantern is a dangerous magic user by itself… but hard mode gives it two new completely new buddies to help it out after lowering its health a bit.

Remember how Johnny Knives can be turned into the completely ineffectual Johnny No-Knives if you steal his knives? On hard mode, he only mopes for a few turns, then goes, “oh yeah, I have back-up knives.” He’ll go right back to swinging with new knives that you can’t steal and he firmly reminded me, oh yeah, this guy’s actually a threat when he has his knives, he’s Johnny Knives for a reason. I’m actually so mad that I forgot to take screenshots of it, because that was such a big surprise.

Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass was already a decent challenge, but the hard mode really goes for the throat. I played through the game switching back-and-forth between normal and hard, getting a taste of various changes. The Atlus RPG respecter in me approves of this.

Then I remembered I had a time limit for myself. The game still thankfully has that easy mode, enabling me to speedrun to my next point while still giving me needed EXP and cash… as well as I can. My quest reminded me that Jimmy and the Pulsatuing Mass is a long game. I got to the city of Shinryu at about the 17 hour mark, and I’d say that’s more than a third, maybe halfway through the main story. Granted, I did do a few optional dungeons before I started speedrunning, but I gotta say, if you’re one of those people that value long play time, this is a game for you.

But why did I speedrun to Shinryu?

Another addition to the console port is new dungeons, with whole new enemies and art! One dungeon I was told about that I speedran to is pretty tough. Even on easy mode, the dungeon wants to fucking kill you.

And honestly? I admire all this. We live in a game culture that wants to make games more accessible. Not accessible as in making the game more playable for the disabled, but accessible in the sense of making products more mass market. I’ve seen remakes get criticized for just dumbing down difficulty – even outside of easy mode – all for the sake of trying to capture new audiences that might not even play it anyway.

But Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass doesn’t do that with the new port. Instead of adding quality of life features, it’s quality of knife features. It wants to stab you like Johnny Knives’ new knives, and I love it. It’s a re-release for the hard RPG sickos, and I approve.

Back on the subject of the new dungeons, I’ve been told that it won’t affect the main story. They’re more like the nightmare dungeons, being side things telling their own stories. Though, these ones have more of a connection to the bit characters throughout the dream world, like a certain late game nightmare dungeon in the original game. For a little hint: that statue of Mr. Marvelous that got sent off in the early game had to end up somewhere…

Now let’s go back to Shinryu related stuff. When I originally played Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass, my big sore spot was the character Lars. I thought that it was weird for a game to have a sympathetic character be so fucking weird about Asia.

But blah, I was foolish to take that attitude! Back then, I was still on the baby mindset that sympathetic characters shouldn’t do or believe in bad things. Reading my old article, I realized that I was being a whiner. I was acting like one of those people on Goodreads and Letterboxed that rates a good thing low because “erm this character makes me feel bad, >:/ “

Not everyone has an ideal web of connections. Lars being a loser addicted to anime in a racist way? Let’s be honest, we probably know at least one person like that in our lives. Maybe you could have a shaky relationship, maybe they’re a problematic friend. But Lars? Lars is a real guy. He’s honestly more real than Andrew, who’s cartoonish in his puruits – at least within the context of Jimmy’s dreams.

I also kinda have a new read on Lars that I didn’t really think about when I originally played: is Lars trans? In Lars’ introductory arc, he’s dressed up as a princess to appease a dragon. And Lars… is actually treated well for it. He’s considered to be pretty by other characters, and there’s barely any confusion about a man in a dress. Lars is comfortable in the clothes, and Helga straight up has to remind her sibling to take the dress off. Lars having a relationship with a woman dragon? I know of some sapphic trans fems that would be all over that.

Lars needs to play Secret Little Haven and think about things, is all I’m saying. Lars should do that and also be less weird about Asian women.

Back on Shinryu, I thought that it was weird that it was so stereotypical. But in revisiting the game, it makes perfect sense given the other areas in the game. It’s all Jimmy’s dream world and some areas and things are based on his perceptions of various things. The Petty Thugs is a generic ineffectual villain organization from Saturday morning cartoons, with its leader being inexplicably cool – or trying to maintain the veneer of coolness, anyway. Mute Notes feels like a send-up to noir stories, with your local detective, a late-night joint to hang out in, and murder happening. Everchip is the most stereotypical old fantasy JRPG, from everything having blocky graphics to the villain taking the form of an evil chancellor. All of the nightmare dungeons can essentially be seen as by-products of Jimmy engaging with horror stories and dreaming about them; special mention goes to Turnbuckle’s dungeon, which straight up feels like Jimmy played something like Misao and plays like a standard RPG horror for most of it.

With that in mind, Shinryu feels like a love letter to its inspirations like some of the other areas of the game. It’s just a child’s fond dreams of things he likes. Sure, maybe it could be more concrete, but there’s ideally time to refine your taste and re-examine things, like I’m doing right now.

Speaking of the Petty Thugs, they were already a funny bunch, but in the 2020s, where goon took on a whole new definition? It’s comedy gold. I respect my gooners. I still love the Bear transformation, but I will proudly be a Low-Level Goon any day of the week.

Besides, I appreciated the heightened goofiness, because revisiting the game… really makes me sad. Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass has a lot of well-written foreshadowing that’s clear as day on a second playthrough and you’d definitely feel way different playing through the game. The calming vibes of the music at home certainly feels less welcoming on the second go-around.

Personally? Vg uheg zr jnl zber abj gung V crefbanyyl eryngr gb Wvzzl zber. V qba’g unir pnapre, ohg univat zhygvcyr fpyrebfvf ernyyl unf hcraqrq zl yvsr. Qvnybthr naq frrzvatyl-vaabprag synibe grkg cnvagvat Wvzzl nf fbzrbar serdhragyl srryvat frcnengrq sebz gur jbeyq naq srryvat gung ur’f n oheqra ba uvf snzvyl? Zna. Vg’f n fgno va gur urneg. Va snpg, jura vg pbzrf gb fnq vaqvr ECTf, Wvzzl naq gur Chyfngvat Znff npghnyyl bhgqbrf BZBEV sbe zr abj (frggvat nfvqr gur crefbany vffhrf gung yrq zr gb hachoyvfu zl guvat ba gung tnzr).

Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass was already one of my favorite indie RPGs, and with the additions to the re-release, I love it even more. I’ve been told that the Steam version of the game will be updated sometime in the future, but honestly? Get the console port, it deserves the love.