I think I found a secret

[Sheep]

If you go to your steam folder and then to /steamapps/common/The Beginners Guide/beginnersguide/resource you'll see a bunch of files. The one you want to click is the "basemodui_english." It might not seem interesting at first (it's just a bunch of numbered messages). These are all the parts of dialogues and messages displayed in the game. The interesting part though is the section with all the messages displayed in Chapter 8, a chapter that was supposedly made in 2009 according to the chapter select.

You see, this is where all the notes displayed in Chapter 8 come from. They are all vital, removing one results in the game crashing as soon as you try to read that message in the game.On top of that changing those messages will make them change in the game, so if you want one of them to say something else just edit it and run the game. With that said it is safe to assume that you can find all of those notes in the game. Well. No, you can't.

This is the strange part. The note022 says "Amazing chest ahead" and it seems to be a reference... a reference to a game that didn't exist in 2009.

If you don't believe me and you own the game just go to this file and check it on your own.

This really bothers me. Maybe it's just a simple easter egg, but why would there be a need for one in this game.

I couldn't find enough information about the origins of "Amazing chest ahead", but I'm assuming it originated in Dark Souls which according to Wikipedia came out in 2011...

What's even weirder is that you can't physically access this message in the game, but you can access all the other ones. It's just not on the path that you can follow, so I'm assuming it has to be hidden. Why would it be hidden?

What do you guys think? Is it just an easter egg and I'm way too paranoid or is it something else?

[Varrok]

You might be on the right track, but keep in mind (if the story Davey told us is truth) the games were remade, you know to become one The Beginner's Guide. He couldn't just merge multiple exe files spanning multiple Source engine releases. Maybe he changed them a little bit. I mean besides adding bridges etc.

[Slurpy Chuckles]

Amazing chest ahead is just a funny reference. I mean the games weren't actually made at those times. But yeah 'Amazing Chest Ahead' is a reference to a popular message left in dark souls. One of the NPCs had a nice rack so people left that message down, so did I (darksouls has an online a message system like the one proposed in this game). It's just a funny reference.

[Felicity]

I'm unconvinced that any of these 'games' existed in any form before 2011. I think the entire timeline is a fabrication made for the sake of the story.

Interesting catch, though, I didn't think about it when I first read it. If he started working on this game in 2011, or even 2012, then he probably had played DkS around that time and had it on his mind.

[Sheep]

I agree it's a funny reference. A funny reference in a game about loneliness and (probably) depression. It just doesn't add up.