Game Theory: You Are Being LIED To! (Bendy and The Dark Revival)

MatPat introduces Game Theory and previews an investigation into Bendy and The Dark Revival, claiming the game contains a complete lie he plans to expose.

• Original game: Bendy and the Ink Machine released years ago • Mobile game and prequel Boris and the Dark Survival released in intervening years • Multiple spin-off books released but failed to capture attention • Franchise appeared dormant until Dark Revival trailer announcement

Dark Revival is described as long, solid, and most importantly stable compared to other recent game releases, putting it in contention for Game of the Year.

MatPat emphasizes the game contains significant lore and claims to have found evidence hidden throughout The Cycle proving Joey's version of events is a lie.

• Bendy and the Ink Machine featured animator Henry Stein as protagonist • Henry was former partner to businessman Joey Drew • Joey used human souls to fuel the ink machine to create living ink creatures • Animation studio eventually went bankrupt

Joey Drew retired in disgrace as a bitter old man and was forced to sell his company rights to Nathan Arch, owner of Arch Gate Films.

Player character is Audrey, a young animator for Arch Gate, brought into the ink world by the antagonistic janitor Wilson. The game follows Audrey trying to find her way home while avoiding Wilson's army and the Ink-demon.

In Chapter Three, an inky embodiment of Joey Drew's memories appears and provides a slideshow explaining the game's lore, claiming Henry from the first game was an ink recreation made by Joey.

Joey claims the Henry players controlled in the first game was not the real Henry, but an inky recreation made by Joey to torture him like a voodoo doll after feeling betrayed by his departure.

Joey created The Cycle as a prison to punish anyone who ever crossed him, as a way of dealing with his anger and jealousy toward those who betrayed him.

Alison Pendle, the second voice actress of Alice Angel, enters Joey's life and convinces him he can be a good person, prompting him to create Alice Angel in The Cycle to help Henry survive.

Joey creates Audrey out of ink as his perfect daughter, fulfilling his dream of creating the perfect life with just a pencil and a dream.

• Took credit for Bendy despite Henry creating him • Lied to employees when company was going out of business • Friend Nathan Arch noted Joey is so good at storytelling he makes people forget when he says something isn't real • Created an endless torture chamber out of jealousy and bitterness

The lore is delivered by a living embodiment of Joey Drew's memories, which cannot be trusted since Joey has a history of presenting false narratives that make him look like the good guy.

Evidence hidden throughout The Cycle proves Joey's version of events is a lie, throwing into question everything known about the main character Audrey.

The true story of Bendy and The Dark Revival is one that Joey doesn't want revealed, suggesting a darker reality behind his presented narrative.

Joey claims Alison Pendle walked into his life and changed everything, prompting him to help Henry within The Cycle.

• Alison joined Joey Drew Studios in the 1930s • Henry begins his cycle in 1963, per letter inviting him back 30 years after leaving in 1930 • Calendar in Joey's apartment shows August 31st, 1963 • The Cycle would have to be created before Alison's arrival

The dates don't line up. If The Cycle was created before Alison joined in the 1930s, she couldn't have been the inspiration for helping Henry in the 1960s.

Alison Angel was likely created using Alison Pendle's soul as punishment, allowing Joey to torture her for eternity like he did with Henry, rather than being inspired by her out of kindness.

Ten special memories scattered throughout the game: a baseball, hat, duck, hotdog, crayons, and others with generic descriptions. Audrey never comments on them, suggesting hidden significance.

• Men's fashionable hat memory indicates it belonged to someone Audrey spent time with • Boater hats were popular in late 19th and early 20th century, with a revival in late 1930s • The hat wouldn't have been fashionable in the 1960s when Audrey was created • Indicates the soul used came from someone living in the 1930s era

A cracked mug repurposed into a toy appears as a memory. The same cracked mug is featured in Wilson's storybook The Mug and the Maiden, suggesting a personal connection to Wilson.

Crayons memory with quote about sparking a world. Color appears exclusively from Wilson in the game: his drawing of Shipahoy Dudley, colored ink during boss fight, and rainbow sparkles on subduing towers.

Audrey is made with human souls like every other ink character, not purely from ink as Joey claims. The memories provide clues to identify whose soul was used.

• The milk memory mentions both young and old, suggesting the soul came from an adult parent • A parent would have shared memories with their child • They would wear a boater hat, give toys based on favorite books, and provide crayons

Wilson's mother, Tessa Archer, wife to Nathan and mother to Wilson. She would have seen Nathan wearing a boater hat in the 1930s and given Wilson the cracked mug and crayons.

An audio recording from Nathan reveals he brought a hotdog home for Tessa, which is the final memory Audrey collects. This shared memory confirms Tessa Archer as Audrey's soul donor.

When Joey Drew Studios faced financial collapse, Joey turned to Nathan Arch, his close friend, for help. However, Nathan refused and instead picked the company's bones dry through Arch Gate Films.

Betrayed once again by someone he thought was his friend, Joey responded as he always did: like he did with Henry and Alison before.

Joey threw Tessa Arch into the ink machine and turned her into ink to create Audrey, deliberately tearing the Arch family apart to create a family of his own.

Joey created a false narrative framing himself as the good guy, hiding his misdeeds behind the story of a benevolent father figure who created the perfect daughter from love and dreams.

Audrey is not Joey's perfect creation born from love, but the transformed soul of Tessa Archer, Nathan's wife. When Wilson fights Audrey, he's unknowingly trying to kill his own mother.

Once a shyster, always a shyster, whether made of ink or flesh. Joey Drew used the same manipulation tactics throughout his life, victimizing those who trusted him.

This is why you can't have friends in the entertainment business, as demonstrated by Joey's repeated betrayals of Henry, Alison, and Nathan.

MatPat concludes with the signature Game Theory catchphrase and reminds viewers to order holiday merch before it fades away, maintaining the show's typical closing format.