Deltarune

Fox put Deltarune on the sidelines to work on Undertale because he wanted to see what he could do with the characters and ideas he originally had. After he finished Undertale, Fox continued his progress on Deltarune, managing to finish the first chapter of the game.

So far, two out of seven chapters have been released; however, Fox is currently working on chapters three, four, and five. Each chapter will take place in a different location of the town where the main character lives. For example, the first chapter takes place in the school, and the second in the library located in the town. The first two chapters of the game are free because “the world has been really tough for everybody recently,”said Fox on the game's website. Fox plans on releasing the following three chapters at the same time, but they will have to be paid for compared to the first two chapters.

Deltarune includes characters from Undertale and creates an entire narrative universe between both games. Each game and chapter takes place in the same town with familiar characters and a friendly setting. You, the player, play as a non-binary teen named Kris, who also happens to be the only human in town. They live with their adopted mother, Toriel, a goat-like monster. Kris’ parents are divorced, but Kris still goes to visit their adopted father, Asgore. At the beginning of the chapter, Kris goes to school and is tasked by their teacher, Alphys, a lizard-like monster, to pick a partner for a project they will be working on. Then the school bully, Susie (a dinosaur-like monster), walks in. The teacher tells Kris and Susie to work together, and that they need to go and get chalk. The two unlikely partners end up looking through a closet and the door locks behind them, making Susie freak out and try to escape.

The floor then disappears beneath the two and they fall into the “Dark world.” It exists in its own dimension. There, Susie and Kris meet the prince of the dark world, Ralsei, another goat-like being. He explains a prophecy of how three heroes will meet and save the day. From there, shenanigans ensue.

Chapter Two takes place in the same school and involves a few more characters, including a reindeer-like monster named Noelle, and a bird-like monster named Berdly. The ending of this chapter will change depending on the choices you make throughout the game.

Both chapters have a secret boss, with specific conditions you must meet in order for you to encounter them. They both say things during the encounters that make the player think that there is more to the story besides sparing or fighting enemies. They imply that Kris isn’t the person really in control but does have an opportunity to free themselves.

The gameplay mainly consists of fighting, sparing, acting, talking to NPC’s, and storytelling. Talking to certain NPC’s could possibly help the player with finding new healing items or weapons. Fighting allows you to gain EXP and more money, but it makes the player lose the NPC’s trust or makes them run away. Sparing does the opposite - the more characters the player spares, the more the NPC’s will trust them and help them out in the long run. Sparing involves doing a friendly act towards an enemy, making sure that said enemy is happy with what the character did or said, and then spare them afterwards.

Acting is a way to perform certain actions, along with making the party perform those actions. The storytelling helps explain things that were left vague by characters, providing a purpose for what and why the characters are doing what they are doing. For example, some characters, minor or major, might say something that foreshadows later events. An example of this is in chapter two when an area of the game actually shows parts of the final boss around the area.

Choices made throughout the game don’t just affect the gameplay experience; they will also affect the end of each chapter. For example, a unique boss will appear at a point in chapter two if the player decides to attack everything.

The music also helps set the atmosphere for the game, such as dark music for basement and dungeon areas, or bright, colorful areas playing happy sounding music. In a secret area of the chapter, the player enters a basement with music that matches the dark, dreary mood of the place. Also, after performing a certain action, the music stops completely, adding to the mood even more.

Deltarune is a must play for those who enjoy RPGs, storytelling, good music, and a fun colorful cast of characters. I personally enjoyed the humor and the personalities of the three main characters. I loved how events could play out differently if a mistake was made, or if another specific action was taken. The music during fights also set the mood too, especially for major bosses. Overall, I’d give this game a 9/10.

By: Jaden Lopez