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Psychonauts is a 2005 platformer and story game wherein circus runaway and psychic secret agent-wannabe Rasputin Aquato attends a summer camp for the psychically gifted, and traverses mental landscapes to save the world. Psychonauts was produced by Double Fine; Double Fine games live unto this day at the very forefront of videogame writing, and creative lead Tim Schafer deserves status as a god.

Psychonauts was released with incredible praise but never major mainstream commercial success, instead being relished as a cult title with only a small but keen fanbase. I only receive a copy of psychonauts by incident, and have been a member of this cult ever since. It took me until 2014 return to the game to get past the cobweb duster, but consider finishing the story one of my greatest experiences in videogaming. I have since been speedrunning the game, and its sequel on occasion.

Published alongside the game was a small promotional webpage modelled after myspace wherein the summercamp attendees all interact with eachother. This site included a great deal of supplemental informational, worldbuilding and lore added to each of the campsters. It is this site, or the archive.org copy, on which my personal homepage is modelled.

Psychonauts Campers Music Taste Ranked:

(As per my taste and opinion)

Dogen Boole

Favorite Music: "hee hee"

The youngest attendee of whispering rock psychic summer camp is Dogen Boole, who has not appeared to filled out his campster profile correctly. View Dogen's photos. They are quite entertaining.


Maloof Canola

Favorite Music: "Lullabies"

Maloof’s interests also include the godfather films and the sopranos, amongst telletubbies and spongebob. This alludes to both ends of his character arc, and if he had included some music from the latter end of this journey into his campster profile, he could rank considerably high.


Elton Fir

Favorite Music: "I can play the accordion. My mom used to make me promise all the time, in a closet."

The Accordion is a cool instrument and ranks higher than Maloof's lullabies, but this origin story is just sad.


James Theodore Hoofburger

Favorite Music: "Hank Williams Sr."

I support J.T. in his one-dimensional cowboy hyperinterest, and certainly the J.T./Chops/Elka/Nils story was one of the fun and most noticeable background story around camp. I am sure Hank Williams Sr. is considered a legend in country music, but J.T.s offerings are far less than his buddy Chops.


Bobby Loboto Zilch

Favorite Music: "AC/DC. Metallica. Sabbath. Dio. Y&T. Megadeath. Krokus. Judas Priest. Scorpions. Quiet Riot. KISS. Montrose. Ozzy. Van Halen. Iron Maiden. Saxxon. Motorhead!

Bobby is out here putting the rock into whispering rock psychic summer camp! There are some really good artists in here with some good tracks though overall is not my favourite selection of hard rock/classic rock. Bobby feels like the archetypical hardrock enthusiast who makes it harder for us to enjoy the genre. Good on him though for having the literacy to have filled out his campster page and music tastes so succinctly.


Benny "The Nose" Fideleo

Favorite Music: Showtunes! (Original Cast Recordings ONLY, of course!)

Benny is the first character in this list whom I discovered an extra dimension to their personality through this website. Benny's character sucks up to the nefarious Bobby Zilch to beard himself away from the bullying he is perhaps more used to, what with his musical passions and big nose. Maybe you knew some Benny's when you were in school or summer camp. Maybe you were Benny. Benny references West Side Story and Chicago as some of his favorite musicals, which do have some good tracks. Being pedantic about only listening to original cast recordings is not for me,


Lili Zanotto

Favorite Music: "Dark Ambient, your mamma"

Dark Ambient is alright, I can appreciate the avant-garde element. however, she has made some sort of insinuation about my mother, and while I like the attitude I cannot rate her higher.


Nils Lutefisk

Favorite Music: "Al Green; Barry White"

Say what you want about Nils, and in fact I will; this profile makes him an even grosser and sleazier 9 year-old than the game already gives you. But these two artists are some really great soul/R&B Musicians and I can't ignore it. Hate the fanbase and not the artist.


Phoebe Love and Quentin Hedgemouse

Favorite Music: "The Firestarters"

Both Firestarters founding members list the in-universe rock band as their favorite music. Perhaps it is my love of psychonauts itself to give this such a high rating, however the interactions between these two campers are amongst my favorites of the whispering rock psychic summer camp story. Their rehearsals in the lodge are one of the best places to go AFK in-game. Their other music tastes are both hinted at within their profiles, which also give them deserving high ranks in this list; Phoebe wants to meet John Bonham of Led Zeppelin and Quentin Bjork. I had a crush on Quentin when I played the game as a kid.


Clem Foote

Favorite Music: "Hanson! "

MMMBop is in fact, a bop, and you can't ignore that. listen to it and pretend its 1997 again.


Crystal Flowers Snagrash

Favorite Music: "Flashdance soundtrack! What a feeling!"

The second act of whispering rock's motivational cheerleading suicide cult duo, this song is also an absolute banger. Also, Crystal canonnicaly swears.


Melvin "Chops" Sweetwind

Favorite Music: "Django Reinhardt; Antonio Jobim; Wes Montgomery; Jack Wilkins; Kenny Burrel"

Included in Chops' favorites Antonio Jobim, the father of bossa nova, some of the greatest jazz guitarists in the world. Chops' playlist is the perfect evening relaxation suite. Put down that lo-fi hip hop youtube and pick up one of these albums.


Chloe Barge

Favorite Music: "N.W.A.; Pharoahe Monche; Geto Boys; 2Pac; Too Short ; Kool Keith; "Space Oddity" "

Ok, Chloe's might be the best friendster entry of them all. I found her presence quite minimal in game, often isolating herself and not engaging with the other campers deeply. I like the welcoming of the other campers to her, who do not disregard her obsessions with outer-space. Perhaps she is legitimately an alien? Perhaps she is hearing voices? This does not matter.
Then there is chloe's music tastes, a total curveball from everything ordinarily inordinary about her; thanks to this website we discover she also has an obsession with hardcore gangster rap. And these artists are bangers, too. Like the astral traveller she is she flies pretty high on the music taste tier list. Make sure to give the original Space Oddity a listen, it captures the lyrics and mood far better than the 21st century remaster.


Franke Athens

Favorite Music: "t.A.t.u. "

Yeah t.A.t.u. were a bit of an industry manipulation but they were still lesbian icons nonetheless. Franke also wants to meet Anne Lennox of Eurythmics and all-round androgynous LGBT activist fame, enjoys watching Ellen and Laverne & Shirley... Oh god. Franke is gay. Oh no, is Franke and Kitty's friendship actually a one-sided romance? I worry for her, trapped in the iconic queer experience of a not-fully reciprocated coming-of-age girlfriends/gurlfriends with Kitty. t.A.t.u's 20,000 miles per hour in the wrong lane is one of the best albums I know, and the album sounds even better in the original russian version. Go check that one out


And the winner is:....

Kitty Bubai

Favorite Music: "Cibo Matto; Shonen Knife"

I would never have discovered Shibuya style alt pop icons Cibo Matto without this exercise, who's discography are now among my most listened to albums. Shonen Knife are most famous for their banger J-pop covers of surf and punk-rock classics, having opened for Nirvana on their EU tour. I caught Shonen Knife on an album tour in 2024, and they still rock incredibly hard today. Check these artists out now!!!


(the other campers did not have any music listed>

Honorable Mentions: (psychonauts 2)

Queepie Loboto and Moriss Martinez

The Hi-Fives: "welcome to my mind"

K.L.O.B, the pirate radio station of Morris Martinez has only one record (somehow with only one track) and its C.E.O Morris and first DJ Queepie play this track on repeat whenever it is interacted with in game. the song is actually a banger.


Coach Oleander

The All Pauls

I have not been able to play 'in the rhombus of ruin', wherein this in-universe band is constructed and built into the lore, so I am told. but I greatly enjoyed this track in psychonauts 2 where it plays in the bowling alley.


And the GOAT is

Helmut Fullbear

The PSI King himself, voiced by beloved musican and actor and allround cool guy Jack Black, added this incredible track to the pyschonauts soundtrack.


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