#so in my opinion Frisk is the bad guy for Genocide/Neutral runs

[forever-eternal]

Just got out of my tonsillectomy:

Have some more art for my Guiding Light (name being workshopped) AU.

We all know what happens after this...

An extra series of just Cadenza (oc):

[bublp0pr]

In a classical music mood at the moment. So, this isn’t a comprehensive list but here’s some classical UT.

If i had to recommend a classical song for Undyne, it would HAVE to be 1812 Overture. For people who don’t understand... the guy literally included FULL ARTILLERY CANNONS TO BE BLOWN IN THE FINALE HE WANTED IT TO BE THAT PASSIONATELY LOUD AND AGGRESSIVE (Most versions have these annoying bells playing over the finale aswell but meh)

Papyrus is all i think of listening to a good upbeat version of Swan Lake’s Danse de cygnes Allegro moderato It’s even got the Nyeh heh heh quality about it (wow typing out the long title makes me sound like such a music nerd which i’m not lol)

Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy is pretty good at creating that tense feeling even though the thing sounds light and innocent. Which I think works well for Flowey. At the same time i like thinking about it as the background music of the forest area in Snowdin because of the wintery feel it gives off.

Waltz of the Flowers is a pleasant fit for Toriel’s character when you first meet and just the Ruins entirely. You can hear the regality in it, but it’s subtle. The whole thing’s just so pleasant to experience, just like at the start of the game. You’re curious. The ruins is this fun and interesting place and there aren’t really any stakes just yet.

Chopin’s Fantasie Impromptu Op. 66 sums up some pretty immense emotional conflict, which interestingly enough I think goes well with how Frisk must feel with those first times facing Toriel. Like, imagine the moments where it suddenly calms down in the middle being when they’ve had to reload after dying/killing Toriel and just waking up in this contrastingly loving environment. Then they thrust straight back into it again going down those stairs.

In the Hall of the Mountain King I like to think as all the running away from Undyne you do in Waterfall. Like, you have to try and sneak away from her and once she catches sight of you it’s dammit dammit dammit RUNNNNN. ...The amount of bass going on there combined with the high stakes of the finale bit also gives off some Megalovania vibes but it’s a bit of a stretch in my opinion.

So this one’s not perfect (I might be projecting a lot) but the whole play with Alphys and Mettaton I’d associate with Can Can from Orpheus in the Underworld. Let me explain... see, the upbeat-ness and trill i think of not as enthusiasm but anxiety from Alphys. And the loud trumpets and everything become Mettaton’s flamboyancy out-shining her inputs with his shows. I mean, reflecting on the experience, the whole game Alphys put you through just to be part of your story was a pandemonium of nonsense.

So I can picture how Flowey’s trick at the end of a true pacifist, capturing everyone at their most vulnerable and becoming the Absolute God Of Hyperdeath then Frisk overcoming him by reaching out into the depths of his soul and trying to SAVE your friends tying in really well with the Swan Lake Finale. The only problem with it is that i don’t think it includes what I’d want for Asriel’s speech at the end with Frisk after he’s been saved himself. Those softer references to Asriel I’d link with the start of Swan theme instead. 

For the Frisk uncovering the amalgamates, Aquarium (from Carnival of the Animals) is just the right levels of creepy. Or... if you’re feeling in the mood for it... Gaster references would be pretty cool with it aswell.

Chopin’s Ballade Op. 23 No. 1 (the sad one you might know Shigatsu Wa Kimi no Uso aka Your Lie in April ) I simply have to add on this list because it’s still pretty high up there as one of my fav piano pieces of all time. So this is the one I’m going to use for Sans coming to terms with the fact that Papyrus is dead in genocide runs. But in all honesty, I think that Ballade Op. 38 No. 2 is actually a better fit for the whole thing. So I’ll suggest this one as how Sans would deal with it in a neutral run, where he’s just left to reflect on how everything played out with bitter hindsight, now being unable to do anything about it. (I really think that the feels for Sans losing his bro in neutral runs must be so much different than genocide for him. Watching the human bother to act kindly with other people... so why not him??? Still keeping an eye out, still remaining passive. Just mourning his brother left feeling empty without any explanation of why)

Night on Bald Mountain gave me serious nightmares as a kid (it’s the music in the freaky demon scene from Disney Fantasia). This one has to be given to truly the scariest character in the game. You. Here’s an ode to all those players that partnered up with Chara and gave those monsters a bad time.

And mannn I wish i could go on. But I’m falling asleep right now as i type. So I’ll stop. Maybe i’ll make some part 2 some day. Also, i wanted to add music reference links but the problem with classical music is that each version’s different which makes picking one really annoying

[waddlesdpig]

DELTARUNE RUN THROUGH ( Or how quiet silence can speak volumes)

*The following is a opinionated writeup about Delta Rune, spoilers and bad jokes ahead.*

SO, October 31st, Toby Fox stealth dropped a follow up to the smash success that is Undertale. The reaction to this of course was hype of unparalleled levels, Goat Mom’s, Skelebro’s, Socially anxious lizard people, whatever this guy is, everyone was and still are going nuts about DeltaRune. ( Even Jerry! EVEN JERRY!) And what’s not to like? Ya got a brand new story, brand new cast of characters with a unique spin on the returning favorites, new and improved battle system and animation, of course that sweet sweet music, and they even added a run button! ( Video games? Saveeeed!) 

However as i played Delta Rune more and more, i found myself notably less charmed as a whole when compared to my time with Undertale. Don’t get me wrong here, i fully understand that in terms of production and story subject, these are two very different games. Undertale was a complete experience when it was released, while my judgements on Delta Rune so far are based on what is essentially a demo with the promise of a full game later on. 

However i would argue that both Undertale and Delta Rune share a common element which in one elevated the experience, and in the other detracted from the overall enjoyment.

This element being the Player Character ( which will be refereed to as “ PC” from now on cause i’m hella lazy). Given both game’s protagonists are silent, it might be laughable to suggest that UT/DR’s PC effectiveness could vary so much that one would serve as a hinderance in one title or as a boon in the other. However in terms of levels of engagement i feel though that this is just the case.

This is evident firstly in the character design of each game’s respective PC. On a purely surface level Frisk is a blank slate, pure and simple. Though Frisk sports the simpler and albeit rougher design of the two PC’s, his neutral expression goes a long way in allowing the player to imprint their desired personality onto Frisk without having too many mental hoops to jump through. 

Kris on the other hand, despite having the more interesting design and much cleaner sprite work, is harder for the player to grasp onto. His face being mostly covered by shadow, conveys a sense of aloofness and detachment, which plays into the early Delta Rune’s depiction of him as the odd man out in his class. But ( so far) fails to capitalize on turning him into a successfully likable character that can work on his own. In the same way Suzie’s change in appearance signaled a satisfying development in her character, i feel DR could have done something where Kris’s design evolved with his character. Instead it only serves to act a twist at the end of the game, letting us know that Kris is actually the embodiment of all that is evil. 

If the contrast between these two PC’s went only this far, i’d say more than likely i would have enjoyed my time DR at least marginally more than i already did. However the differences goes beyond that, permeating the depth of Delta Rune.  

Going back to Frisk, despite being a silent protagonist, throughout the game of Undertale we can see facets of him having a personality of his own. Frisk is curious about the world, has a sense of humor, ( in non-genocide runs) shows a determination to fight without harming others, and genuinely cares about those he comes across. He makes choices and those choices affect the world around him. Granted aside from Frisk’s merciful nature, ( which is a integral part of UT’s gameplay) most of what i just listed is all implied. Implied through his actions to be fair, but implied nonetheless. But there exists enough of these breadcrumbs of emotion that the player’s mind could fill in the blanks and create a version of Frisk that most appeals to them. 

Kris-py Kreme lacks these facets completely, in fact of all the things he lacks, the most distinct thing he lacks is choice. ( Yes i know surprise surprise, don’t need me to tell you that.) While i say this, that last statement isn’t technically true. In DR you have a variety of choices, you can choose to explore the environments, when engaging with NPC’s you can choose how to respond in conversations, you can choose to ignore NPC’s all together, and famously you can choose to fight or mercy your way through enemy encounters throughout the game.

So what i really mean is in most aspects, the choices Kris makes are never truly his own. This is mainly due to having an active party accompanying the PC. In UT Frisk was on his own for a majority of the journey, ( Shoutouts to Monster Kid) and as a result near every major turning point is affected by Frisk’s choices alone. Meanwhile Kris faces every decision is with a green Jiminy Cricket on his side encouraging him to be a gud boi and get dem brownie points.

I’d be amiss to suggest that Ralsei wasn’t likable in his own right, but his role in the group dynamic completely negates any presence Kris may have had. Serving neither as the aggressor nor the voice of reason, Kris’s silence unfortunately causes him to slip through the cracks when it comes to interactions with Suzie and or Lancer. 

Furthermore Ralsei’s cuddling extends to the choices the players themselves make. Booting up the game the first time i was fully prepared to play passively, it’s freakin Undertale 2 ( The pre-sequel-progressive-alternative-child-timeline-universe-and-knuckles-do-you-know-the-way-to-end-my-suffering) for crying out loud. Yet it’s not till Ralsei quite literally tells you that you don’t have to kill anyone, that you are presented with a non-scripted battle. Which immediately dampened my enjoyment to that point. To play a pacifist route was no longer a self determined course of action, it was a direction the player was pushed towards multiple times throughout the game. 

In UT solving fights by talking and sparing your enemies was encouraged in the beginning. Now i’m sure most approached combat in UT as a standard RPG, spam attack, get exp, level up, rinse and repeat. It was only later in the starting area that many understood that ACTing and mercy was a viable way to play the game. To act in this way was a CHOICE made all your own, a choice that was unfortunately robbed in DR as sparing is something heavily encouraged throughout the game.

As an example to illustrate my point, think back to the Pacifist Undyne fight. After a frantic escape and running sequence, you cross past the bridge into hotland and Undyne passes out due to the heat and conveniently next to you is a office water cooler. Now it wouldn’t be a stretch to imagine many players would simply move on, unaware that saving Undyne was even a possibility. While on the flipside i’m sure it dawned on many what they could do and did so. Whatever the action, this something we had to decide on our own.

Conversely i’m confident that if this sequence had occurred in DR, Undyne would have fainted, with Ralsei immediately exclaiming that Kris needs to do something pls halp. Though the choice is still technically there, it is no longer your own. In fact i would go so far to say that if one were to take Kris out of DR completely, the story and character interactions play out without skipping a beat. Which is the last thing you want in a story-driven RPG.

In this way i feel that not all silent protagonists are born equal. UT was built knowing Frisk wouldn’t utter a word and as such was able to give him a sense of presence both in the story and the character interactions. While Kris ( for now) as failed to be nothing more than a blank slate with a sweet cape that takes up a character spot. 

EPILOUGE

As much as it might seem that i’m beating up on Delta Rune cause “ It’s not mah undertale!” I sincerely had a good time with it, and i’m excited for more. ( Pls no lynch) I do feel a bit guilty judging a character who hasn’t had a chance to finish his story yet. Also recognizing the high possibility that Kris is exactly how Toby Fox wanted him to be, i would not be surprise if this usage of the PC was his way of hammering in the theme of choices being a fallacy. More than anything the purpose of this writeup was to explain my feelings why in my opinion Frisk is the more well utilized character.

Thanks for reading.

TL:DR Frisk > Kris