{ "id": "ep6emtxpar", "slug": "petscop", "title": "Petscop", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series", "label": "Series and fictional screen worlds", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_unscripted", "label": "Unscripted, reality, and web-native series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_unscripted" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native", "label": "Web-native and streaming-original series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native.horror_thriller_scifi_webseries", "label": "Genre web series: horror, thriller, science fiction, and mystery", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native.horror_thriller_scifi_webseries" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native", "label": "United States · 2001 to 2020: Web-native and streaming-original series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native", "path": [ { "id": "geo.us", "label": "United States", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001", "label": "United States · 2001 to 2020", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series", "label": "Series and fictional screen worlds", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_unscripted", "label": "Unscripted, reality, and web-native series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_unscripted" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native", "label": "Web-native and streaming-original series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Petscop is a 2017-2019 YouTube horror web series by Tony Domenico, presented as let's play recordings of a fictional unfinished 1997 PlayStation game by Garalina, following player Paul through a hidden underworld tied to the real Candace Newmaker case.", "snippet": "Petscop is a 2017-2019 YouTube horror web series by Tony Domenico, presented as let's play recordings of a fictional unfinished 1997 PlayStation game by Garalina, following player Paul through a hidden underworld tied to the real Candace Newmaker case.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_web_native.horror_thriller_scifi_webseries", "markdown": "# Petscop\n\n**Petscop** is a horror web series published on YouTube between March 2017 and September 2019, presented as the recorded playthrough of a fictional, unfinished [PlayStation](https://www.edgepedia.org/playstation) game from 1997 that never actually existed. Created by Tony Domenico, the series runs 24 numbered episodes plus an epilogue and follows a player named Paul as he explores a cheerful pet-catching game that conceals a darker hidden world.[1](https://atlasmarginal.com/expediente/petscop/) • [2](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/rabbit-holes/petscop-the-creepy-youtube-series-that-confounded-gamers-on-reddit)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Format | A \"let's play\" YouTube series in which an unseen narrator, Paul, plays and comments on a strange game he found[3](https://www.slashfilm.com/2198998/best-analog-horror-series-ranked/) |\n| Run | March 2017 to September 2019; 24 numbered episodes plus an epilogue[1](https://atlasmarginal.com/expediente/petscop/) |\n| Creator | Tony Domenico, who programmed the game, composed the music, and voiced the recordings himself[4](https://egmnow.com/theres-something-hiding-in-petscop/) |\n| Fictional framing | The game is attributed to a studio called Garalina; no such game or company ever existed[2](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/rabbit-holes/petscop-the-creepy-youtube-series-that-confounded-gamers-on-reddit) |\n| Signature location | The Newmaker Plane, a desolate in-game area tied to the story's references to a real 2000 case[1](https://atlasmarginal.com/expediente/petscop/) |\n| Genre standing | Ranked among the leading analog horror and internet horror series; one 2026 ranking places it second of all time[3](https://www.slashfilm.com/2198998/best-analog-horror-series-ranked/) |\n| Fan recreation | Giftscop, a fan-made PlayStation homebrew rendition of the fictional game, receives periodic public builds[5](https://giftscop.com/etc/faq) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Premise and format\n\nThe first video appeared in March 2017 with the description \"The game I found,\" formatted as a let's play, a YouTube genre in which a gamer plays and narrates over a video game.[2](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/rabbit-holes/petscop-the-creepy-youtube-series-that-confounded-gamers-on-reddit) The narrator, identified only as Paul, explains that he is recording to prove to an unnamed acquaintance that the game he found is real. On the surface, Petscop is a brightly colored, low-polygon game about catching creatures called \"pets\" by solving puzzles, in the manner of a simple pet-collection platformer.[2](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/rabbit-holes/petscop-the-creepy-youtube-series-that-confounded-gamers-on-reddit) • [4](https://egmnow.com/theres-something-hiding-in-petscop/)\n\nThe turn comes early. A note that came with the game instructs Paul to input a code, after which he enters a shadowy underworld that dwarfs the surface game. There he finds a child's grave, a crying child in a cellar, and a red cello-shaped device called \"tool\" that answers typed questions, at first unhelpfully and later with sinister messages such as \"TURN OFF PLAYSTATION.\"[2](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/rabbit-holes/petscop-the-creepy-youtube-series-that-confounded-gamers-on-reddit) As the series progresses, hidden messages and codes open further areas, including a mirrored bedroom where Paul acts as someone else's reflection, and the story becomes directly entangled with Paul's own family past.[4](https://egmnow.com/theres-something-hiding-in-petscop/) • [6](https://www.theseus.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/799608/Kreula_Ere.pdf?sequence=2)\n\nThe series commits fully to the aesthetics of a late-1990s PlayStation release, opening with the original console boot sequence and adhering to period constraints of low-quality polygons and rudimentary movement.[7](https://lifeoftheminds.com/2021/09/16/the-best-horror-series-of-the-last-decade-is-about-a-game-that-doesnt-exist/) Domenico has said the fake-game format let him do things impossible in a real game, such as puzzles that depend on the game running idle or on events outside a single player's control.[4](https://egmnow.com/theres-something-hiding-in-petscop/)\n\n## Production and creator\n\nEverything in the series, including the game's programming, graphics, music, voiceovers, and recordings, was produced by Tony Domenico, working from an actual playable file on his computer rather than hand-drawn animation.[4](https://egmnow.com/theres-something-hiding-in-petscop/) He began the project after watching a talk on computer-based art and a dream about a game-engine puppet show, and initially conceived it as an undaunting way to return to making things.[4](https://egmnow.com/theres-something-hiding-in-petscop/)\n\nDomenico has cited the creepypasta *Ben Drowned*, the YouTube series *Marble Hornets*, and [David Lynch](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-lynch)'s films as influences, naming *Inland Empire* as the largest single influence. He also drew on psychological material, including the \"Strange Situation\" procedure used to observe child-caregiver attachment.[4](https://egmnow.com/theres-something-hiding-in-petscop/) He kept his authorship anonymous for most of the run and revealed himself only a few months after the final upload.[7](https://lifeoftheminds.com/2021/09/16/the-best-horror-series-of-the-last-decade-is-about-a-game-that-doesnt-exist/) Although the fandom treated the series as an alternate reality game, Domenico stated that he did not intend Petscop to be an ARG and that the audience had no direct impact on the series.[8](https://petscop.fandom.com/wiki/Petscop)\n\n## Release and fandom\n\nDomenico promoted the first four videos himself, a day after the fourth upload, through a post on the small subreddit /r/creepygaming under the account paleskowitz, titled \"Videos of a mysterious unfinished PSX game from 1997, called 'Petscop'. There's something hiding in it.\" The replies were uniformly positive, and it was the only promotion the series ever needed.[4](https://egmnow.com/theres-something-hiding-in-petscop/)\n\nThe fandom grew into what *The New Yorker* described as an ad-hoc detective agency, with a dedicated subreddit, a wiki, a Discord server, and a 129-page shared document of findings; analysis channels such as Game Theory, Nightmare Masterclass, and Pyrocynical produced videos on it.[2](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/rabbit-holes/petscop-the-creepy-youtube-series-that-confounded-gamers-on-reddit) • [4](https://egmnow.com/theres-something-hiding-in-petscop/) The release schedule was erratic: after Petscop 10 on May 31, 2017, no new video appeared for months, producing anxiety, speculation, and internal conflict in the community before the series resumed.[2](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/rabbit-holes/petscop-the-creepy-youtube-series-that-confounded-gamers-on-reddit) The final three numbered episodes were uploaded on September 2, 2019, followed by an official soundtrack on Bandcamp that November.[1](https://atlasmarginal.com/expediente/petscop/) • [9](https://wiki.gamedetectives.net/index.php?title=Petscop)\n\n## Themes and real-world reference\n\nBeneath the pet-catching surface, the series deals with kidnapping, child abuse and neglect, death, and obsession.[4](https://egmnow.com/theres-something-hiding-in-petscop/) Its most discussed real-world connection is the 2000 death of a girl during a rebirthing therapy session: the desolate Newmaker Plane area carries the surname from that case, and fans have identified further parallels, such as a character's name echoing the child's original name.[1](https://atlasmarginal.com/expediente/petscop/) • [10](https://prezi.com/p/qu8se7odosti/research-project-petscop/) Commentators note that the series handles these heavy themes without graphic or exploitative imagery, building unease through silence, darkness, and ellipsis rather than jump scares.[7](https://lifeoftheminds.com/2021/09/16/the-best-horror-series-of-the-last-decade-is-about-a-game-that-doesnt-exist/)\n\n## Legacy\n\nPetscop is frequently grouped with analog horror even though it uses a video game rather than VHS-style footage; one retrospective argues it was \"grandfathered\" into the genre by a community that embraced it before the genre had a name.[11](https://www.trillmag.com/entertainment/tv-film/top-10-analog-horror-series-to-watch-before-halloween/) It is widely treated as a foundational work of internet horror: a 2026 ranking of analog horror series places it second, calling it the most thematically sophisticated and narratively ambitious entry in haunted-video-game horror.[3](https://www.slashfilm.com/2198998/best-analog-horror-series-ranked/) Because the game itself was never released, the closest way to experience it interactively is Giftscop, a fan-made PlayStation homebrew project that recreates the fictional game and receives periodic public builds.[5](https://giftscop.com/etc/faq) Its influence also shows in later works, such as the point-and-click horror game [Endacopia](https://www.edgepedia.org/endacopia), which press coverage describes as carrying on Petscop's legacy of unnerving, confusing adventures.[12](https://www.pcgamer.com/games/horror/point-and-click-horror-game-endacopia-is-carrying-on-petscops-legacy-of-serving-up-unnerving-and-confusing-adventures/)\n\n## References\n\n1. [Petscop — Atlas Marginal](https://atlasmarginal.com/expediente/petscop/)\n2. [Alex Barron, \"'Petscop,' the Creepy YouTube Series That Confounded Gamers on Reddit,\" The New Yorker, August 31, 2017](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/rabbit-holes/petscop-the-creepy-youtube-series-that-confounded-gamers-on-reddit)\n3. [\"10 Best Analog Horror Series Of All Time, Ranked,\" SlashFilm](https://www.slashfilm.com/2198998/best-analog-horror-series-ranked/)\n4. [Phillip Moyer, \"There's Something Hiding in Petscop,\" EGM](https://egmnow.com/theres-something-hiding-in-petscop/)\n5. [Giftscop FAQ](https://giftscop.com/etc/faq)\n6. [Ere Kreula, thesis on online unease affordances, Theseus](https://www.theseus.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/799608/Kreula_Ere.pdf?sequence=2)\n7. [Devan Suber, \"The Best Horror Series of the Last Decade Is About A Game That Doesn't Exist,\" Life of the Mind, September 16, 2021](https://lifeoftheminds.com/2021/09/16/the-best-horror-series-of-the-last-decade-is-about-a-game-that-doesnt-exist/)\n8. [Petscop Wiki, Fandom](https://petscop.fandom.com/wiki/Petscop)\n9. [Petscop — Game Detectives Wiki](https://wiki.gamedetectives.net/index.php?title=Petscop)\n10. [Nameer Rahman, \"Research Project - Petscop,\" Prezi](https://prezi.com/p/qu8se7odosti/research-project-petscop/)\n11. [\"Top 10 Analog Horror Series to Watch Before Halloween,\" Trill Magazine](https://www.trillmag.com/entertainment/tv-film/top-10-analog-horror-series-to-watch-before-halloween/)\n12. [\"Point and click horror game Endacopia is carrying on Petscop's legacy,\" PC Gamer](https://www.pcgamer.com/games/horror/point-and-click-horror-game-endacopia-is-carrying-on-petscops-legacy-of-serving-up-unnerving-and-confusing-adventures/)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Unscripted, reality, and web-native series › Web-native and streaming-original series › Genre web series: horror, thriller, science fiction, and mystery*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/petscop", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/petscop.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Petscop\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/petscop. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Petscop](https://www.edgepedia.org/petscop)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/petscop](https://www.edgepedia.org/petscop). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Petscop\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/petscop. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Petscop is a 2017-2019 YouTube horror web series by Tony Domenico, presented as let's play recordings of a fictional unfinished 1997 PlayStation game by Garalina, following player Paul through a hidden underworld tied to the real Candace Newmaker case." }