#by the way don't mention how chara actually speaks in game..

[fl00mie]

OH YEAH I DID THIS i don't like it that much but heh

it's a bit obvious what's referencing

[blackgoldaster]

I don't like pure evil Gasters

I don’t like pure evil Gasters.

Or rather, I don’t like Gasters who get treated like they’re (pure) evil.

If Gaster is anything like any other character in both Undertale and Deltarune, he won’t be pure evil. His ‘evil’ will most likely come from pain, if all the pain mentions have anything to say about it.

Basically, If Spamton and Jevil can be forgiven (and become fan favorites) because their evil was from a source of pain…

Then why would Gaster be any different.

Why should we assume and treat Gaster like he’s pure evil, and thus, claim he deserves the pain…

When we treat nobody else like that.

Sure, there is the spade king, but the worst thing that happened to him was that he was thrown in a cell.

A far cry from being thrown into (metaphorical) hell, as so many people headcanon happened to Gaster.

Nobody in Undertale or Deltarune deserves their pain, it’s one of the core traits of these games. So why should Gaster be the sole exception.

If the vilification of Chara can result in an entire defence squad protesting, then why does nobody care that Gaster gets treated like a scapegoat as well?

I think it’s because we see so little of Gaster, plus his portrayal as devilish and creepy, makes people just. Not sympathise with him.

And I find that so unrelatable, as someone who felt really bad for Gaster ever since I discovered Goner Kid.

Which heightened the more fanfiction I read.

Other people hate Gaster because of their personal headcanons, which would be fine, except for the fact that AUs like Handplates and Underverse became so popular, that Hateable Gasters became so common, that it’s both very difficult to avoid…

And that there’s barely any variation.

The only Gaster headcanons that are popular are Dadster, which is usually good, sometimes neutral, rarely evil, and Badster, which always gets treated like evil no matter how nuanced he gets made (and people think the only way he can redeem himself is to be a dadster)...

And ships, more specifically Grillster (which is pure fanon), Kingdings (which makes more sense than Grillster at least) and Sanster, which gets called incest by dadster fans who can’t stand people have different headcanons than themselves.

And guess what? That's not much. If you just so happen to have completely different Gaster headcanons than any of these, including ones that are actually based on canon rather than preference…

Well, then you’re screwed in the content department, so that your only option is to look for niche content, blocking an endless stream of popular content just to get to it…

Or to write your own stories (assuming you can).

Now, I clearly don’t speak for most people here. In fact, I'm speaking about my own experiences here.

Remember the theory that Sans and Papyrus are pieces of Gaster? Or the theory that Papyrus is Gaster? Or even that Sans is Gaster?

Those theories never got popular.

People say it's because they think it's unlikely, but i suspect it's really because not many people just. Liked the idea that Sans and Papyrus could be one person we know nothing about that might be potentially evil.

In a similar fashion, I don’t think dadster and badster got popular because they are ‘likely to be true’ (which I heavily disagree with), but because most fans prefer some mundane dad whose entire character is determined with how he treats Sans, and to a lesser extend, Papyrus, over the Yume Nikki inspired eldritch man that Gaster most likely is in canon.

Which I personally think is really boring!

And if canon has anything to say about it, if Gaster turns out to be the father, he will be anything but mundane and he’ll actually have a characterization that isn’t centered around the fan favourite.

[everythingblreview]

Do you mind elaborating on your last post about Towa's chara? I could only play the English version so I don't know how his character is really supposed to be ;_; He definitely comes off kind of uncaring and crass in the English version, even though I know he's not a terrible character, I always wondered if it was a translation issue or more of a sub-textual thing to discern his character. Do you mind elaborating on what his character is portrayed as in Japanese?

It's a definitely a translation issue. Since in the original the narration is done in 3rd person you don't hear his thoughts if the narration doesn’t specifically mention’s "Towa thought ...." He does feel a little uncaring because of this reason. But no to a point of being straight up rude, Towa mentioned how he never feels strong emotion, that’s why he never swears, because why should he? Seeing them include him constant swearing was so weird, it didn't feel like him at all. There is a scene in the game where he does swear and it completely lost it's meaning in the english version, because it supposed to show how strong his emotions are to a point where usual quiet Towa begins to say things like "shit". So every time you read a sentence like "Why the fuck should I got to a flower shop?" Is actually "A flower shop is a place Towa usually wouldn't visit." Towa is a really smart character, and you can tell it by the way his speaks, which was changed to some dudebro talk in the English version. They just wanted him to match their imagination of a main character. Original Towa and Jast Towa are like different personalities.

[non-binaryandbisexual]

I've been thinking about this scene, and I think I finally understand charas role in the metanarrative of undertale

It's no surprise that chara and the player are connected. This is evident by a lot of things, but I think one of the biggest is actually before you play the game.

That being this screen, the game gives to you to name the fallen human

The game gives you the decision to name them and as we all know, by the end of the pacifist route, Frisk is not the fallen human the game is referring to here and is instead the human we control in the story of this game

What the game is referring to as the fallen human is, of course, chara, and this isn't just important because of charas role in the story and how frisk needed to be acknowledged as not the same person at the end of the game,

but also how the game uses them to talk to the player

The way they do this is by having the fallen human/chara be YOUR character that the story refers to and flowey speaks to at the end of neutral/pacifist route, and who helps frisk throughout the game. That's how strong that connection I mentioned is.

Now, this isn't to say that chara and the player are the same person because they aren't or that frisk is the same as chara or the player either.

Just that chara is alongside frisk and even speaks to them with genocide through narration and that routes ending.

The choices the players are given in the game are also frisks because that's who the player is controlling in the story.

Speaking of that ending

Now, unlike what I thought of before, I don't think this is chara LITERALLY speaking to the player, more so the game using them to speak to us in a metanarrative sense and they're just speaking to frisk.

I don't think there's a single moment in this game where the characters know the player exists and directly talk to them.

But you know who DOES know we exist outside of the world of undertale, the game itself.

I already talked about this with the fallen human themselves, but what's important to note is that the only time the connection I mentioned is not there is the genocide route

This is because of what sans says in the judgment hall

The more you kill, the more you distance yourself, the more you killed, the easier it was for chara to become strong and independent to the point where when we killed the final monster, flowey, the game decides to literally separate us from chara and have them stare and talk to us through frisk, unlike the other endings where it was flowey speaking to us through chara

Chara, in that scene, describes themselves as a demon and with your/frisks guidance, that because of the choices you made, that frisk also makes in the game itself, you both have "helped" them see the purpose of their reincarnation, to destroy absolutely everything leading them to erase everything no matter what choice you make

And when you want to go back to the game/world you destroyed, chara wants you to sell frisks' soul, which causes them to be soulless by the end of the pacifist route, essentially making that entire journey feel hollow because it ends in frisk killing their entire freinds which is the games way of also giving YOU consequence for making frisk do that route

The true ending, however, is flowey telling us everyone is living their lives, and the character the game has represented us has the chance to move and not have to worry anymore.

This is the games way of telling us that we don't have to play this game anymore and move on to something else

Unless, of course, you decide not to and reset all of your/charas' hard work all because you want to see what happens next

Anyway

This was just my interpretation of how undertale handles chara and their involvement in both the story and metanarrative and how the game uses that character to judge how you approach its mechanics and choices it gives you

If you did read this, thank you, and I hope you enjoyed

[todayisafridaynight]

I have gotten two of my friends interested in Tsuma just by spamming GIFs so can confirm the Cutest Old Man In Media strategy has a high success rate... ON THAT NOTE. Very strong list of cuties... I Must Agree... Ikegami may be At Least A Little heinous but can't argue with that reasoning...

AND OK LISTEN. Some things I tell you are meant to be locked away in the vault never to be spoken of again... Tsutsumi's retirement is one of those... [just kidding it's fine LMAO he can do whatever makes him happy But I Will Cry I'm Sorry WE GET LIKE ONE MAINLINE GAME EVERY FOUR YEARS WHAT IF JO NEVER COMES BACK AAAA] BUT YES. YEAH. Very curious how he might do as a director...

DJKLGHJKLSDHLKS NO THAT'S THE FUNNIEST THING because I will generally just mention something in passing without actually recommending it but you'll go for it anyway😭😭😭NOT COMPLAINING. NOT COMPLAINING IN THE SLIGHTEST you have my deepest gratitude after A Lifetime of having my recommendations fall through and not being able to talk about stuff I'm into I cannot say this enough 😭😭😭😭😭but of course, definitely checking out the movie when I can :] I wish I could've watched before responding but busy day... oh well...

Speaking of! Kagerou Touge here and Tonbi here. They're both a bit less than three hours and split into two parts sooooo up to you <3 I don't remember enough about Tonbi to summarize it any better than what's on the page and It Is Best I Leave Kagerou A Surprise From Start To Finish. Bali Big Brother has been a bitch for years though unfortunately😩no subs may or may not be better than the machine-translated subs I had to work with

AGREED ON EVERYTHING ABOUT ATR NO NOTES NO ADDITIONS... YOU GET ME... KUROMI/MY MELODY-CORE SO REAL I felt like stopping and pointing whenever you could see their charms😭😭😭big fan... huge even... also the visual direction was Overall really good it is such a pretty anime and goes So Hard with the rain motif... SPEAKING OF THE FINALE WHICH I LOVED FOR THOSE SAME REASONS AS WELL Akira imagining breaking into a run to kiss Kondo on the cheek in the "date" ep but when she actually does it in real life it's a hug... as friends... broooooooo 😭😭😭😭😭

can't believe you're just hoarding keisuke gifs from me 😭 yes ive seen all of the show but STILL BUT REGARDLESS I'M GLAD YOU GOT OTHERS ON BOARD truly love this show a lot for keisuke... even beyond him tho not only is the cast really lovely but again i really love where the story went and how it all culminated in its last episodes..

and LISTEN Yes Ikegami Is A Lil Rank. Comes With Being A Yakuza but i do not have many options out of the charas ive seen tsutsumi play 😔 we been through this ttm is either very heinous or very serious in his films.... have to be careful..... plus i still think him smiling so much during the filming of the movie was cute, he's just a little silly to me 😔

but if tsutsumi isn't due to come back cause of his career, i gotta be the one to rip the bandaid off an assume jo prob won't return after this game. which either means 1.) joins the graveyard of tsutsumi charas 2.) He Somehow Gets Out Just Fine ???? And Just Does His Own Thing ???? Alone ???? either way... very intrigued to see what LaD8 has in store with that in mind...

there's some evil parasite in my brain that makes me immensely interested in things- like i accidentally went down a rabbit hole on The Superman Curse after someone made an aside comment about the latest flash movie DO NOT mention things to me because i will investigate it thoroughly... AND IM GLAD I DO CAUSE I FIND GEMS LIKE THESE !!!!!!!!! with that said i hope you enjoy the movie if you get to it !! (❁´◡`❁)

AND SPEAKING OF EPIC THANK YOU SO MUCH !!! i wouldn't mind with auto-generated subs tbh.... i've worked with less honestly BUT for now i'll see to watchin these two tonight ||ヽ(*￣▽￣*)ノミ|Ю

I REALLY LOVED THE RAIN THEME OF AtR. like Yeah That's On The Label BUT STILL it really fit the title so well... AND YAYA THE PARALLEL IN THE DATE EP FANTASY VS THE FINAL EP REALITY.... cinema.. LITERAL cinema i LOVE so so much the direction the anime went with their relationship... i said it enough but it's just so refreshing and great to see...

[aikoiya]

Hello there with an short optional question which you don't have to answer if you do not know about it

Did you know about Earthbound ( an RPG that inspired many other RPGs including Undertale ( that is after Toby Fox made a ROM hack of a Halloween Earthbound) ) and if you liked it, what is the part that you liked about EarthBound.

Actually, I do know about EarthBound! Very good game!

Though, I'm not entirely sure which part is my favorite. But, I know I liked a particular element of it: I liked that you got homesick & that calling home helped with it.

That was great & I actually think that more games where the protag is a kid who has to leave home for a long period of time for one reason or another, should have this sort of feature rather than them just leaving & never seeming to be affected by it.

It makes sense. Like, there are some games that will basically have the protag as this blank slate in more ways than one. Whether by doing the "they" thing regardless of the sex or pronouns you chose at the start or by not allowing them to speak other than through your choices or by very much making the protag intentionally... not even really androgynous, just milk toast & with very little driving characteristic or anything beyond "this is you, we made it as impersonal as possible so that anyone can feel included." But it actually causes this huge disconnect for me. Because why would I identify with someone who's been stripped of all personhood?

Like, you want players to connect with the protag, then give them things to connect with!!

Things like getting homesick because they miss their family!!

I liked Undertale, for the most part. But one of the things I didn't like was how Frisk was handled. Heck, how the humans, in-general, were handled!

Have you ever noticed that there are only 2 humans & both of them are referred to as they. That both are basically the same model with different coloration. That you never get the human's side of the story. How no one asks Frisk their name until the literal end of the True Pacifist ending? How none of the other humans are ever really mentioned beyond the fact that we know they existed based on their accessories & their souls?

It very much felt like everything was geared towards making Frisk & Chara & every human feel... Less like people & more like plot points or narrative devices.

But, sorry. Went off on a tangent there!

But, yeah! I like EarthBound!

[irrealisms]

as i mentioned in another post about this bracket:

first off, this has been insane, as an eclipse federation fan. lifesteal is NOT a large fandom--it's not as small as many, but just to get this far in a cross-SMP tournament has been insane.

so, if you're intrigued by how well we've been doing and are interested in checking lifesteal out, i have some resources for that!

eclipse federation is from s4 of lifesteal. each season is basically completely independent of each other, aside from occasional references, and each takes place on a different world (so, more like empires/hermitcraft/traffic life seasons than dsmp ‘seasons’). if you're interested in lifesteal generally speaking, aroaceacacia as a playlist with Literally Every Lifesteal S4 video, which is how I personally got into the fandom for it; that said, while this is the most Complete way to get into lifesteal s4, it’s quite long (50ish hours), and most lifesteal videos will typically explain the premise of the server, relevant characters or events, etc., in every video, so you can also jump around or start halfway through or generally speaking do whatever you want and you’ll do fine. There’s also the “choose a POV and watch start to finish from that POV” strategy, which also works! eclipse federation consists of PrinceZam (lifesteal s4 playlist), ItzSubz (lifesteal s4 playlist), and Vitalasy (lifesteal s4 playlist).

HOWEVER, not only this, but I’ve actually created a couple propaganda playlists for this tournament specifically, to help people who want to get into Eclipse Federation specifically!

Here’s the short version of the playlist for Eclipse Federation, which includes only their official edited videos, starting with Zam’s betrayal of Team Awesome and continuing through the finale. It’s also got a few videos not by them that serve as backstory, context, or which affect some of the eclipse federation members but not all of them. It’s 6 hours total, and with a fairly short average video length (15 minutes).

Here’s the longer version of the playlist for Eclipse Federation, which includes a mix of their edited videos, my favorite VODs, and fan-edited clips of VODs. Because it includes VODs, it’s got the most content and context, but it’s also significantly longer (35 hours total) and has the longest average video length (about an hour, but there’s a huge variation, since it’s a mix of 15-minute videos and 3-hour VODs). There are cinematics in this one (wings of freedom + pits of hell)! Check them out!!

(You may notice that this is labeled the 'medium’ playlist. The 'long’ one is one for my personal use; it has 150+ hours of exclusively VODs and assumes you have pretty extensive context on lifesteal, so I’m not linking it here.)

I will also add, as a content warning for both playlists: the story of eclipse federation draws very heavily on themes of in-game suicidality, suicide, and grief; c!Subz and c!Vitalasy both kill themselves in very plot-relevant ways, c!Vitalasy’s suicide is made fun of by other server members and seen as him “just doing it for attention”, and c!Zam is frequently suicidal, consistently takes actions with a reckless disregard for his own life, and attempts (but does not complete) suicide. Vitalasy also has moments of being OOC upset over how things are going IC, which personally got to me at times.

I also wrote a fic for Round 3, made a collage for Round 4, and I'm currently working on another fic for Round 5. What will I do for Round 6, if we get there, or if we win? Who knows! If you vote for us, maybe you'll find out!

On the other hand: if you're following me for dsmp, or even for tma or the silmarillion, and are tired of me creating stuff for these guys you don't know or care about, send me proof that you voted for eclipse federation and I'll make you a moodboard of your request. Vote for us more than once (with proof) and I'll make you a web weave, doodle, or minific. from the notes, @void-chara is also offering doodle requests for anyone who submits proof of voting eclipse federation!

in conclusion. please vote eclipse federation. they tried so, so hard to make it work, because they cared about each other, so, so, so much. and it didn't work. they fell apart, they destroyed themselves and each other, over and over again. but they never stopped trying, and they never stopped loving each other.

SEMI-FINALS

PROPAGANDA:

Familoier:

I CANT SPEND THE NEXT HOUR TYPING

THE TRIO OF ALL TIME TRULY- ALL 3 OF THEM LOVE AND CARE ABOUT EACH OTHER SO MUCH- LIKE ROIER AND CELLBIT ARE MARREID YEAH BUT THEY STILL CONSIDER JAIDEN PART OF THEIR FAMILY SHE IS IMPORTANT TO THEM AND THEY ARE IMPORTANT TO HER- ROIER AND JAIDEN WILL ALWAYS BE PARTNERS NO MATTER WHAT

theee relationship of all time: roier is husbands with cellbit and jaiden is his qpp, they are all so caring for each other and they have had their tension and their bad moments but there's a genuine want to communicate and grow better all the time :( <3

Cellbit and Roier are romantic married, Roier and Jaiden were platonic partners raising a child together, and all 3 are chaos together! But get along so so well! They support each other so much and care about each other so deeply and they are all Sillies

this is jaiden, and this is jaiden's partner/ the father of her child roier, and this is roier's cannibal husband cellbit

Eclipse Federation:

i dont like them. they ruined my life. Subz and Vitalasy had already partnered in previous seasons but this one, Vitalasy ended up leaving for a few months, leaving Subz alone, and Zam ended up getting close to him after immense trauma at the hands of his former teammates. Zam has done SO many wrongs, including to Subz himself and Subz STILL took him in and made him join Eclipse Federation after Zam died 14 times in a row and got banned then revived by the same player who's been killing him all this time. And it could've been perfect but no, Zam had betrayed his previous team due to them using dupes via exploits, and now Eclipse Federation ALSO has exploits! And he decided that yeah his morals were more important than being loved! And so he murders Vitalasy when he's at his most vulnerable point, lets everyone gaslight him into thinking Vitalasy is an irredeemable evil monster who will never change, even as Vitalasy SAID he was ready to change before the betrayal even happened, Eclipse threw out their whole revenge plans because of Zam's positive influence and he just broke everything. Subz couldn't be with Zam but also couldn't see himself at Vitalasy's side, leaving him alone. Vitalasy hated Zam and yet never killed him or hunted him down, despite Zam acting like he did. And when Vitalasy left, banning himself off from the server, Zam had some time alone to think and realized he fucked up SOOOO bad. And Subz revived Vitalasy and told him to kill him. And ban him. His last wish. His Deliverance. And to make up with Zam. And Vitalasy tried, and they kind of did make up over Subz's death, but then Zam was like "actually im going to kill everyone and destroy the server now. because i want subz back and also because i always do extremely drastic things when i don't need to because i have unchecked mental illnesses i refuse to get help for". And surprisingly when Subz came back he didn't like that! And they ended in tragedy! Eclipse is fucked up. It's a trio that's always about the absence of one person, it's a team that could only happen in one timeline and it was doomed from the very start. But the love was there. It made everything worse, truthfully. But it was there. And that matters. Also as a fun fact Zam himself on twitter has referred to eclipse as a throuple, which is not canon but that's pretty funny. he also stated on stream he didn't want to get therapy because it'd ruin his lifesteal character. and there was a saga where they would "marry" (challenge lost kinda shenanigans) and zam was the only one happy about it. he's not normal. there's something wrong with him. love that for him though sorry for the block of text. I really dislike them. They're my beloveds :3

[seventeendeer]

Alright, so I don't know if anyone else has pointed this out yet, but you know how Onionsan mentions in chapter 2 that they've been hearing a strange song at night coming from deep under water that they remember from somewhere, but can't quite place?

And you know how there are those mysterious strings hidden in the code of chapter 1 and 2 where it's implied that someone is trapped somewhere "dark" all alone? And how some people have pointed out that the way this person speaks sounds a lot like Asriel, on top of having some parallels to Flowey waking up without his soul in Undertale?

Here's a theory: the world of Deltarune is a construct, there is nothing outside of Hometown, and the song Onionsan is hearing is actually coming from the void outside of the game world. The song is "Memory", the melody the music box plays in Waterfall in Undertale. The music box which, in merchandise, has been confirmed to actually be the same object as Asriel and Chara's friendship lockets. Onionsan is remembering the song because in their other life in Undertale, they lived in Waterfall, and probably heard it from a few screens away.

(It's also worth noting that in chapter 1, if you name Onionsan "Asriel II", they will specifically note that the name sounds like a "memory" ...)

Asriel isn't really at college. He's being stored in the game's code until it's time for him to come visit his family in Hometown later in the game. In chapter 1 and 2, he's in the void beyond the game world by himself, playing the song in the locket to comfort himself.

The voice he mentions hearing in the strings in chapter 2 is either coming from Gaster, who also seems to be trapped in the void - or maybe Spamton and Kris, as this may be Asriel speaking through Spamton in this bit of dialogue:

Also note that the phone in the back is ringing, as if someone is trying to contact the characters while they're talking. We know for almost certain that Spamton used to communicate with Gaster by phone, so there may still be some sort of connection between him and the void where Asriel is now trapped until further notice, allowing for contact even though phones in the Dark World normally only pick up the "garbage noise" also associated with Gaster.

What implications this has for the wider scope of Deltarune, its world, Gaster's storyline and possible connections to Undertale is a mystery, but 1 thing is for sure: poor Azzy's never getting that damn degree

[undertale-data]

[Image Description: An Undertale chat box that has “WHY FANS LOVE UNDERTALE” at its center. Next to it are a line chart and an Egg from the Dating Hub on its left, and a CRIME measurer (also from the Dating Hub) on its right. End I.D.]

[Image Description: a pie chart titled, “LEVEL OF LOVE FOR UNDERTALE.” The textbox on the top right reads, “On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the least and 10 being the highest, how much do fans enjoy Undertale?” From the top going clockwise, 12 or 0% chose 5 and below; 23 or 1% chose 6; 98, or 4%, chose 7; 325, or 12%, chose 8; 529, or 20%, chose 9; and 1664, or 63%, chose 10. End I.D.]

It’s clear from all of the data analyzed so far that fans who took the time to answer our survey love Undertale. It is unlikely that they would have taken the time to answer so many questions if they had not, and even less likely that they would have come across our survey in the first place. Naturally, it comes as no surprise that 63% of our responders gave their love for Undertale a score of ten out of ten. 95% gave their love for Undertale a score of eight or higher, and only 12 responders responded with five or below, a number so small that their responses had to be lumped together to be visible on the pie chart. Of those, only 3 responders gave their love for Undertale a score of 1, and based on those responders’ other answers, it is likely that they were only intending to troll. We are very fortunate that the vast majority of responders took the survey seriously, enough so that responses like this are barely a blip in the data.

Now, for our final analysis post of the event, we will delve into the reasons that fans love Undertale so dearly.

(Essay and highlights under the cut.)

There have been countless essays on the impact that Undertale has had on people’s lives. I can hardly add more on the subject than what has already been said, but I hope this summary can provide a brief overview of what stood out among the over two thousand answers given in response to this survey. That said, due to the sheer volume of answers, I could not read every single one in depth—however, I did skim all of them, and some that stood out or were representative of several responses have been highlighted below. If you would like to see what every fan who consented to share their response had to say, you may view the full list of responses here. Note that these responses have not been edited in any way. This document may take a long time to load, as it is over 100 pages long.

(Warnings for mentions of suicidal thoughts in the following essay.)

Several responders loved the theme of choices mattering in Undertale. Whether people played the pacifist, merciless, or neutral routes, they enjoyed how the game reacted to their actions. For some, it even made them consider their own morality. One touching response explained the impact that the theme of mercy made on them. “I realized that Mercy isn't something that's given to those who deserve it. Flowey didn't deserve it. I don't deserve it myself. Shoot, we ALL need Mercy in our lives.” Many fans left similar comments about how the themes of Undertale made them better people.

Undertale changed how its fans treat others, and it also changed how fans treat themselves. The theme of staying determined and the messages of hope in the game were a light to a very large portion of fans. I cannot list all of the fans who said that Undertale helped them out of a dark place, or that they would not be alive if not for Undertale. “DETERMINATION became a metaphor for not killing myself at a really rough time in my life and I’ll always cherish that. Undertale isn’t afraid to go to really dark places but at the same time holds on so tight to its hope.”

Undertale brought fans together in unexpected ways. Some said they met friends or significant others through the fandom. “I wouldn't have met my now husband without Undertale,” one fan said. A different fan who is non-native English speaking mentioned that the game and the fan community helped them to learn English.

It would be impossible to discuss Undertale without mentioning the fan community. Whether for good or bad, many responders mentioned the fandom in their responses. Overall the feelings towards the fandom seem positive, though many made references to “toxic” parts of the fandom without specifying which parts they consider toxic. Others rejected the idea of toxicity in fandom. One response said: “[SLAMS FIST ON DESK] I KNOW MOST PEOPLE SAY THE FANDOM IS TOXIC AND CRINGE OR WHATEVER BUT OH MY GOD. The Undertale fandom, both the UTMV and the actual UT fandom, has been so much fun to be a part of. I've met countless friends because of our shared interest in something related to the game! The art people create can be breathtaking and so inspirational, and the fanfics are so so good!! I've seen people write incredible things for this fandom and it's what made me continue writing!”

One thing that makes the Undertale fandom unique is the way it embraces various AUs. Some fans are tired of AU content, but the majority of responses show a love for the creativity behind AUs. “Roll your eyes at the 50th AU Sans all you want, it's encouraging people to step outside the boundaries of fanart and pushing people to make their own ideas! I mean, hell, it was how I gained the confidence to start making my own original content.” The lack of a judgemental atmosphere seems present in the AU community, according to the responses we saw. There is an interesting balance between AU and canon (sometimes referred to as “classic”) content that another responder pointed out: “The fandom helped keep the game alive all these years, with all of its AUs. Although personally, I always enjoyed AUs that kept characters as close to the classic material as possible (dancetale, outertale) I do appreciate the creativity of the fandom. They almost created entirely new stories with new characters of their own! If it weren't for those people, the Undertale fandom would have probably not been as active as it is now. I do feel like we're getting a resurgence of classic content now too! (In 2021)”

Regardless of the many AUs the fandom has created over the years, the original game of Undertale still feels like home for many fans. They wished they could reclaim the feeling of playing the game again for the first time, but even though we can’t reset time in real life, there is still a special feeling for fans each time they play Undertale. One fan said, “Even the best fics I've read can't capture that feeling of nostalgia/almost-"coming home" that comes with hearing the music and talking to the characters.” This feeling is one that can be cherished time and time again. In the words of another responder: “It always feels welcoming like home or like comfort food that I never grow tired of no matter how many times I go to it.” Others pointed out the strength of the found family trope in Undertale, which likely contributes to this feeling of “home” as well.

As mentioned briefly earlier, the music is part of what makes Undertale feel like home for fans. Even when responses focused on other aspects of the game, many would throw in a comment about the soundtrack at the end. One comment focused on the music said “IT'S SO GOOD like I will literally go through the entire thing over and over and not be bored with it. It makes my monkey brain so happy you have no idea.” Like with the game itself, the music has incredible replay value, an amazing feat considering most of the tracks use the same few motifs. “I think what I like the most about Undertale is how the music attaches you to the story,” another responder said. “They're simple melodies that stick with you throughout the whole game, and they can remind you of both good and bad times.”

If the music sticks with fans in their hearts, then the game’s lore sticks with fans in their minds. Even six years after the release of Undertale, fans are still creating new theories and digging up new secrets. The way the game breaks the fourth wall in particular intrigued many fans and has stuck out through all these years. The awareness that the game shows for the RPG genre makes it memorable. The game plays with the player’s expectations and turns them on their heads, all while reminding the player that they’re in a game. There are few other games that do this on such a large scale, so it’s no surprise that fans cite this as one of their favorite things about Undertale.

Lastly, the LGBT+ representation in Undertale has been a huge draw for fans. Especially in 2015, the sheer volume of non-cishet characters was unprecedented, as one fan pointed out: “It's practically unheard of to see so MANY from just one source, especially during its heyday in 2015-16. Hell, you can't even GET the true pacifist ending without helping two gay couples hook up. It's really nice to see all of them being accepted for who they are and not judged for their sexuality or gender, at least in-canon.” The LGBT+ cast including Frisk, Chara, Napstablook, Monster Kid, Mettaton, Alphys, and Undyne each connected with fans in unique ways. It’s clear how important this is from responses such as: “There are canon nonbinary characters 🥺. i have never seen representation of myself before.” “It made me gay and trans so thanks for that.”

Once again I am overwhelmed with just how much there is to say about Undertale. One responder really understood when they compared Undertale to an iceberg, explaining that there are so many layers to the game that there is something for everyone: “everyone can find something to enjoy in the lore/game regardless of what kind of fan they are! Being able to appeal to various types of fans—from simple happy shipper people to deep dive lorediggers—is the mark of the coolest games!” I would have to agree with them.

It’s been six years, and despite everything, it’s still you. Thank you for reading, participating in this survey, and above all, staying determined.

Highlights:

DETERMINATION became a metaphor for not killing myself at a really rough time in my life and I’ll always cherish that. Undertale isn’t afraid to go to really dark places but at the same time holds on so tight to its hope.

I think the coolest thing was having the opportunity to watch the AU community grow from its bare roots. It's nearly insane how big and complex it's gotten, unlike anything I'd ever seen before. Roll your eyes at the 50th AU Sans all you want, it's encouraging people to step outside the boundaries of fanart and pushing people to make their own ideas! I mean, hell, it was how I gained the confidence to start making my own original content.

i love how the lgbt rep is so naturalized... there are just gay people! and its nobodys business!

The music is my go to answer, but what I really really REALLY love is how the minor characters have so much personality to them when you talk to them. They aren't incredibly important to the overall story, but they're all so likeable and diverse that you just can't help but like them immediately!

I think it was the first videogame I have played that broke the fourth wall that much. Of course there has been other videogames that broke it but just for one or two tongue-in-cheek jokes. The guilt of killing mama goat was also something intense as well that I appreciated as an experience and that I didn't think a videogame could cause on someone.

I love how no character can be seen as completely bad! Everyone builds up Asgore as some horrible villain, but he turns out to be a 'fuzzy pushover' who's broken and just wants his family back by the time you meet him. Then you think Flowey's an irredeemable killer who engineered the suffering of the monsters across many timelines, and he is... but he also used to be the kind and beloved Prince Asriel Dreemurr, traumatized by his death and subsequent rebirth, projecting his best friend onto you.

The fact that choices matter in the game. Your first playthrough and getting the golden ending for the first time. I can never replicate those feelings again, wish I could erase my memories and replay the game from the start.

I wouldn't have met my now husband without Undertale.

(Toxic parts of the fandom aside) The community is possibly one of the kindest I've ever met. Cringe culture is completely dead, and I feel like I can be myself. I felt a very close connection to many of the characters, and I loved consuming content about them when I was in a rough patch in my life.

just everything, the whole game has just impacted my life so much. i know it sounds really lame, but when the game first came out, i would purposely put my hands in my pockets and sway slightly, like sans' idle animation. of course i dont do that anymore haha, but undertale still really impacts me to this day, and i wouldnt have it any other way :)

it made me gay and trans so thanks for that

I realized that Mercy isn't something that's given to those who deserve it. Flowey didn't deserve it. I don't deserve it myself. Shoot, we ALL need Mercy in our lives.

The thing I love most about Undertale is no matter how many times I play or watch a playthrough it always makes me genuinely happy. It always feels welcoming like home or like comfort food that I never grow tired of no matter how many times I go to it. Toriel still makes me feel all warm and cozy in her home, the Skelebros always make me laugh, and I still cry on the inside watching Frisk comforting Asriel. And on the flip side the No Mercy run still invokes the negative emotions in me as well. In short Undertale just feels like a second home to me and I always wish I could stay.

The reader inserts are my favorite way to decompress after a hard day

I think Undertale helped me discover my love for 8-bit games, and made me realize how IMPORTANT music is in video games.

the worldbuilding and character design are my favorite parts of the main game apart from the music! I’m also a huge fan of the random AU music- not for like underswap or underfell i like the stuff where someone makes a megalovania for a random au where gru from despicable me replaces sans as the character. i think its funny

Just... the vibe, honestly? Even the best fics I've read can't capture that feeling of nostalgia/almost-"coming home" that comes with hearing the music and talking to the characters.

there are canon nonbinary characters 🥺. i have never seen representation of myself before.

[SLAMS FIST ON DESK] I KNOW MOST PEOPLE SAY THE FANDOM IS TOXIC AND CRINGE OR WHATEVER BUT OH MY GOD. The Undertale fandom, both the UTMV and the actual UT fandom, has been so much fun to be a part of. I've met countless friends because of our shared interest in something related to the game! The art people create can be breathtaking and so inspirational, and the fanfics are so so good!! I've seen people write incredible things for this fandom and it's what made me continue writing!

There's a scene where Frisk (the player) is going towards what is presumably going to be their death. They will fight Asgore and he will use their human soul to break the barrier and free his people. The music, despite the player's impending doom, is... triumphant. You are not the triumphant one here, and yet, the score invites you to experience the monsters' joy and happiness as they tell you the tale of their subjugation. The monsters are going to be free. This is their victory, but they don't hate you or want you to die. They're just... happy. That scene has always struck me very deeply. I feel it represents the best parts of Undertale.

I loved how well thought out the Geno route was. It really made me feel like I was doing something horrible, and the characters were very obviously reacting to dire circumstances.

I dunno? I like Undertale for it's characters, story, music, secrets and many more. I am not good with Headcanons but I also like the neutral endings and how different they can depending on who you spare and kill

I was very bad at english before, i thought i couldn't progress because i was very shy and not confident. But my sibling and i wanted to have the best experience with this game so we wanted to play it in english. It's this game and the fandom which helped me to make huge progress in english !

THE SOUNDTRACK. IT'S SO GOOD like I will literally go through the entire thing over and over and not be bored with it. It makes my monkey brain so happy you have no idea.

to avoid writing an essay i will say one word. Mettaton

It is like Toby specifically made the games to fit the iceberg meme and it's awesome, everyone can find something to enjoy in the lore/game regardless of what kind of fan they are! Being able to appeal to various types of fans - from simple happy shipper people to deep dive lorediggers is the mark of the coolest games!

I love almost everything about Undertale as a game on its own. The music, the art and especially the characters and how they interact. They made me feel at home. Undertale means a huge amount to me. (I even got a tattoo of the castle when you and MK walk together!) The fandom helped keep the game alive all these years, with all of its AUs. Although personally, I always enjoyed AUs that kept characters as close to the classic material as possible (dancetale, outertale) I do appreciate the creativity of the fandom. They almost created entirely new stories with new characters of their own! If it weren't for those people, the Undertake fandom would have probably not been as active as it is now. I do feel like we're getting a resurgence of classic content now too! (In 2021)

the mystery. toby fox refused to give answers to anything and i think thats very sexy of him.

I just feel guilty for liking it so much when I'm in my 30's. But I recently got diagnosed with ASD, so I guess it explains things a bit. Many ppl consider Papyrus to be neurodivergent, and some adult fans are too, so seeing that makes me feel a bit better.

i think about "Despite everything, it's still you" everyday of my life.

I like how it's just as funny as it can be serious. All routes are this way. I laughed as much as I cried when I played the Pacifist route and then once I opened the game again and Flowey was telling me to let them be happy, I immediately turned off the game. I somehow felt bad.

The Found Family Trope

The True Pacifist Ending is just...man. And the fanworks about saving everyone even when the game doesn't let you? MANNNNNN

I think what I like the most about Undertale is how the music attaches you to the story. They're simple melodies that stick with you throughout the whole game, and they can remind you of both good and bad times.

there's honestly a LOT to love about this game, but i think one of my favorite things about it is just how many lgbt+ characters there are??? i can think of alphys, undyne, frisk, chara, mettaton, napstablook, monster kid, asgore, mad mew mew, the dress lion, the royal guards, and arguably even papyrus off of the top of my head, but im sure i'm forgetting a few from just undertale alone (there's even MORE in deltarune)!! it's practically unheard of to see so MANY from just one source, especially during its heyday in 2015-16. hell, you can't even GET the true pacifist ending without helping two gay couples hook up. it's really nice to see all of them being accepted for who they are and not judged for their sexuality or gender, at least in-canon.

[Image description: A wordcloud in the shape of the capitalized word UNDERTALE. The text is white on a black background, and uses the font found in the game. Some of the most visible words are: Game, Love, Music, Life, AU, Store, Friend, and Feel, which represent the most common words in the essays people wrote about their love for the game. End of ID]

[starlightshore]

barring the no mercy route being an influence in this case, how would you describe chara's personality? I cannot describe them well at all despite them being my favorite character. they're too complex lol. all of the meta i can find at this time as them described at both extremes of innocent & evil but i don't think that's accurate

TW: discussions of canon dark topics such as abuse , death and suicide

i love talking about chara, i've talked about them at length before lmao. thank u for giving me a chance to talk about my beloved child.

you can actually read a character exploration i'm doing in a mini-arc for Askfallenroyalty. actually, if you want one condensed post, this comic sums up chara's motives

My interpretation:

chara is an abused kid and suicidal kid*(1) who ran to mount ebott to die.*(2) upon learning that monsters are made of love and humans aren't*(3), chara began to hate humanity. the deltarune prophecy*(4) makes them to be The Angel despite being a human. Feeling undeserving of this title and obligated to fulfill it, Chara wanted to be a good kid more than anything.

But then the buttercup pie incident happened. They've accidentally*(5) poisoned asgore and came up with a plan to ensure the prophecy could be fulfilled and take a hit against humanity. Two birds with one stone -who cares if it's also a personal win too? then obviously the plan goes up in flames and they and asriel are murdered. then asgore wants to kill of all humanity.

your influence*(6) gets Chara onto a path of redemption or a path of destruction, mirroring the deltarune prophecy's two main interpretations.*(7)

in summery: chara is a scared kid trying to fit into a world that demands violence by the past actions of the previous generations. The war massacred monsters and locked them up with a kill-solution -ensuring that further violence would be needed to be free, thus continuing the cycle of violence.

chara is just a kid. they knit, they make macaroni art, they loved their family and had a best friend forever.* (8) but they're also vengeful, they cared so deeply for monsterkind they were ready to die and had no idea they'd be awake as a soul, they were prepared for death. they're complicated, you can't have one side without the other. while i’ve never wanted to murder anyone, i can still relate deeply to chara and see myself in them a lot. the tragedy of them -the fact they never really got a “happy ending” like everyone else just haunts me and it’s why I spend so much time making AFR. I just... love this character so much, i want this kid to be happy. (not that it could ever be easy to get there, happy endings aren’t free.)

And frankly, seeing this hurt kid get demonized just rubs me the wrong way, and it feels completely against the morals Undertale tries to tell with it’s story. I see it as a cautionary tale against violence and dehumanizing others for the sake of hate and violence. how kids can be influenced by the violence -or kindness around them. you don’t need to forgive the ones who hurt you, but killing them is not always the solution -though sometimes necessary as framed in the Undyne the Undying fight.

People get both Undertale’s themes and chara wrong the most, and for the game that’s meant the world to me it bothers me more than it should lol. It’s a Good Story, and I don’t mean to frame my interpretation of the character or themes as 100% canon and I know Mr.Fox’s brain to confirm it kinda deal, but with all the time I’ve spent analyzing and thinking it over I do think it’s not off in the general direction of it lol. And besides the author’s intent isn’t really the end-all-to-be-all. It’s what you get out of the story and the themes that matter and stick with you. No one can take that away from you.

Sources and evidence:

"* If you're cuter, monsters won't hit you as hard." -faded ribbion flavor text * "The ends of the tools have been filed down to make them safer." -gardening tools in New Home (and iirc Toriel's home as well, too lazy to double check rn) * Where are the knives. -no mercy chara (this and paired with the previous imply there are no sharp objects in reach of chara's home because chara can't be trusted with sharp objects out of self harm. This doesn't necessarily mean abuse but paired with them hating humanity so deeply, being suicidal and a child it paints a picture of abuse.

"* I know why (chara) climbed the mountain.* It wasn't for a very happy reason." -asriel post pacifist epilogue dialogue

"* Love, hope, compassion... * This is what people say monster SOULs are made of. * But the absolute nature of "SOUL" is unknown. * After all, humans have proven their SOULs don't need these things to exist." -Library book on monster souls)

* Legend has it, an 'angel' who has seen the surface will descend from above and bring us freedom. - gerson

"* It takes at least a human soul... * And a monster soul. * ...* If you want to go home... * You'll have to take his soul. * You'll have to kill ASGORE." -Alphys. Because boss monster souls are the exception and can persist after death for a short period of time, Chara could of killed any of the family members to escape the underground. this implies escaping wasn't the goal -it was to die (considering they already attempted suicide to fall underground the first time, this is explicitly suicide.) the plaque doesn't mention or speak like monster/human fusion's consumed soul would be aware. chara had no way of knowing they'd be awake. also the whole thing with the pie is a prank. cups of butter. -> buttercups. putting flowers in a pie is a joke to do, we see Chara is similar to Toriel (they mimic her speech in the no mercy monologue, they say “greetings” as she does like how Asriel says “howdy” like Flowey does. Chara makes puns and jokes in the flavor text all the time.

https://imgur.com/a/zP18P -dog food bag at different LV. "When the protagonist first encounters Mad Dummy, they are given the option to beat it up. Choosing to beat it up prompts one of three responses depending on the protagonist's LOVE." (source: undertale wiki)

If the protagonist’s LV is 1, the response becomes "(You tap the dummy with your fist.) (You feel bad.)"

If the protagonist's LV is between 2 and 4, the response becomes "(You hit the dummy lightly.) (You don't feel like you learned anything.)"

If the protagonist’s LV is between 5 and 7, the response becomes "(You sock the dummy.) (Who cares?)"

If the protagonist’s LV is 8 or higher, the response becomes "(You punch the dummy at full force.) (Feels good.)"" This implies Chara (who is the narrator) will feel different about the dog food -which references the classic phrase of "glass half empty/full" showing your out look in life. Then hitting the dummy show's Frisk's out look on violence depending on LV. Note that by the end of it, it's no longer "you feel..." but "feels good" This is Chara.

      7. “* Lately, the people have been  taking a bleaker outlook...* Callin' that winged circle the  'Angel of Death.' “ -gerson “* Only the fearless may proceed. * Brave ones, foolish ones. * Both walk not the middle road. “ -the first plaque in the first puzzle room with Toriel. The idea is to walk on both the left and right sides -you can’t go half way in the middle. this mirrors the “true” endings are only accomplished if you stick to no mercy or pacifist only.

     8. literally their home in New Home is a treasure trove of pre-game chara characterization.