Undertale: Soundtrack Review

Every so often there’s an indie game that paves the way for big success and strange fandoms. Undertale is a great example of how independent game development can really pay off. Undertale is a role playing game which provides choices that alter how the story unfolds. You play as a human named Frisk, following a storyline about the “monster world” and how you seem to fit into that world. Will aggression get the better of you? Or will you stand on the passive side? Only one way to tell.

Undertale was released on September 15th of 2015. The creator, Toby Fox, used GameMaker studio software to create Undertale and FL software to create the sound tracks. The game took almost 3 years to make. Something interesting about the game is that Toby Fox had already created and composed the soundtrack for the game prior to actually creating the video game. He did this because he believed the music would decide how the scene would go - almost like the music was the backbone of the whole storyline. To create the soundtrack he played different segments of the music separately then connected them on a track. Fox wasn’t new to the world of design and composition when Undertale was released. His earliest well-known work is his "EarthBound Halloween Hack". This Halloween themed ROM hack (a modified digital copy) of the original game Earthbound was released in 2008. Though I believe that Undertale is his most iconic release. 

Focusing on the music now, Toby Fox created the entire game from scratch - including the soundtrack. The music pays homage to the older Nintendo video game ‘sounds’, though not without losing any of its iconic emotional weight. The wide variety of tones and instrumentation in this soundtrack is impressive considering that Fox was a self-taught musician. Each area traveled in the game will have your ears and emotions on the edge of their console.

The overall soundtrack is around a 2 hour run through, although some of these tracks repeat in gameplay. Toby Fox will have you ready for action (“MEGALOVANIA”), sadness (“Respite”), tranquility (“His Theme”) and goofiness (“Temmie Village”).  Something to note while you listen through is that some melodies are reused in different songs, with the tone of the melody altered. For instance, “Spear of Justice” is just a different form of “NGAHHH!!” with other melodies and instrumentation tied in.

His imagination ran wild when he was creating storylines for the characters. Perhaps the character with the saddest storyline would be Asgore Dreemurr - the secondary “villain” in the plot. His backstory is that he became the ruler of the underworld when the humans sealed all the monsters there after the war - he ruled the underground for a millennia. I will spare you the spoiler of why he started to drift to evil and despair, but the explanation is saddening. The vibe of the soundtrack in the game when you see Asgore starts off melancholy, and soon turns to be very tense and fast paced. Following along with the soundtrack, this is the transition from “Small Shock” to the villain’s main theme “ASGORE”. 

The sequel known as DeltaRune was released back in 2018, although the plot is not related to that of Undertale; despite this the name itself happens to be an anagram of Undertale. The soundtrack also has many similarities to Fox’s musical style. The game currently has chapters 1 & 2 released and fans are awaiting the release of chapter 3. I am excited to see what new music will be dropped for this chapter - mostly because there is a single track that contains lyrics, “Don’t Forget” which is different from the strictly instrumental sound of the game. 

Undertale is a legendary game, paying homage to arcade style games through its graphics, designs, overall setup, and especially its amazing soundtrack. My personal favorite is the song titled “DUMMY!” a banger that gives me a nostalgic feeling, it’s almost like a funky electric-jazz. Toby Fox was an impactful person that left a legacy through Undertale. I urge you to experiment and give Undertale a turn, give the game a shot or at the very least give the soundtrack a listen, you never know where you might find your next groovy tune. 

Sources Used

Feeld, J. (2015, October 12). Interview: Toby Fox of Undertale. The Existential Gamer. https://web.archive.org/web/20160122152103/http://existentialgamer.com/interview-toby-fox-of-undertale 

Fox, T. (2017, March 14). Undertale full OST/Soundtrack. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgP5jeBccfI 

Fox, T. (n.d.). Undertale. https://undertale.com/