Deltarune

Deltarune is an episodic role-playing game created by Toby Fox, the developer of Undertale. Fox revealed its first chapter on October 31, 2018, releasing it as a free download for Windows and macOS after announcing the project through Undertale’s official newsletter. Although Deltarune shares names, visual ideas, and musical motifs with Undertale, Fox described it as a separate story rather than a direct sequel. The title itself is an anagram of “Undertale.” The game follows Kris, a quiet human teenager attending school in a town populated largely by monsters. After Kris and classmate Susie fall into a supply closet, they discover the Dark World, a strange realm connected to the ordinary world. There they meet Ralsei, a gentle prince who claims that Kris and Susie are the heroes of a prophecy. The trio must close Dark Fountains, magical sources of darkness whose uncontrolled growth could bring disaster. Deltarune’s first chapter introduces the Kingdom of Darkness, ruled by the imposing King. The adventure combines turn-based battles with dialogue choices, puzzle rooms, bullet-pattern attacks, and the option to spare enemies instead of defeating them. Susie initially behaves as an aggressive bully, but her relationship with Kris and Ralsei changes as the chapter progresses. The chapter ends after the party confronts King and Kris returns home, where an unsettling final scene involves Kris removing their SOUL, the game’s red heart-shaped representation of the player’s control. Chapter 2, released free on September 17, 2021, expands the story into a Dark World based on a computer lab. Its principal antagonist is Queen, a ruler whose comedic confidence conceals a plan to create another Dark Fountain. The chapter introduces Noelle Holiday, Berdly, and Spamton, a salesman-like character who became especially notable for his cryptic dialogue and unsettling “NEO” transformation. Players can pursue a violent route commonly called the Snowgrave route, demonstrating that Deltarune’s choices can produce major narrative differences without simply repeating Undertale’s morality system. Fox has stated that Deltarune is planned as a complete, chapter-based game with a predetermined ending, unlike Undertale’s branching conclusions. Its soundtrack, also composed primarily by Fox, includes recurring themes such as “Rude Buster,” “Field of Hopes and Dreams,” and “A CYBER’S WORLD?” The project is notable for combining familiar Undertale echoes with new characters, locations, and mysteries, especially questions about Kris, the player’s role, and the origin of the Dark Fountains.