⚠️ Chapters end abruptly. You’ll hit cliffhangers, and the “real” ending is years away. If you hate waiting for episodic games, hold off.
: Toby Fox’s score is arguably the game’s greatest strength, featuring hundreds of tracks that use leitmotifs to tie the sprawling story together. Chapter 4's music is often cited as a particular high point, pushing into complex time signatures and emotional live piano.
When Toby Fox released the first chapter of Deltarune in 2018, it arrived as a shadow drop—a surprise "survey program" that fans initially greeted as a quaint side story to the monumental Undertale . However, as subsequent chapters have been released, it has become clear that Deltarune is not merely a companion piece, but a deconstructive sequel. While Undertale revolutionized the role-playing game (RPG) genre by asking the player to consider the moral weight of their violence, Deltarune shifts the philosophical lens entirely. It moves from a question of moral choice to a question of existential determinism. Through its meta-narrative structure and the distinct mechanics of the "Soul," Deltarune explores the terrifying gap between player agency and character autonomy, ultimately asking what it means to be good when one cannot choose their own path.
Toby Fox Genre: RPG / Adventure Platforms: PC, Mac, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S Price: Free (Chapters 1 & 2) Current status: Incomplete (full game expected to have 7 chapters, released episodically) deltarune
The central thesis of Deltarune is established in its opening moments, starkly contrasting its predecessor. Undertale was defined by the mantra that "your choices matter." In Deltarune , the player is immediately told, "Your choices don't matter." This is not merely a cynical tagline; it is the foundational rule of the game’s world. Unlike the sprawling, branching timelines of Undertale , the world of Deltarune operates on a rigid narrative track. In Chapter 2, this is exemplified during the Snowgrave route, a hidden, darker path. Even when the player forces the character Noelle to commit horrific acts, the narrative outcome remains eerily similar to the "good" route in terms of progression, yet the emotional texture is irrevocably scarred. The game suggests that while we cannot change the destination, we are responsible for the cruelty or kindness we inflict along the way.
✅ You get 6–10 hours of content for $0. No microtransactions.
, the spiritual successor to the indie phenomenon Undertale , is an episodic role-playing game created by Toby Fox. While it shares a similar aesthetic and many characters with its predecessor, it is set in a parallel universe where humans and monsters coexist in the quiet town of Hometown . The Legend and the Dark World ⚠️ Chapters end abruptly
: The signature "mercy" system returns. You can defeat enemies through kindness by using the "ACT" command to learn their needs and then "Sparing" them.
⚠️ Normal enemies are too easy once you figure out “act” solutions. Only bosses and secret fights demand full attention.
: The writing is incredibly sharp, shifting effortlessly between "joint-custody-of-a-single-braincell" humor and heavy, existential dread. : Toby Fox’s score is arguably the game’s
Last updated: April 2026
Furthermore, the game complicates the concept of "power" through the character of Susie. Initially presented as a violent bully, Susie is the deconstruction of the RPG "tank" character. In traditional games, characters like Susie are one-dimensional damage dealers. However, Deltarune forces the player to engage with her humanity. Because the player cannot simply "choose" to remove Susie from the party or fundamentally alter her personality instantly, they must learn to coexist with her. The game argues that true connection is not about controlling others, but about guiding them. Susie’s gradual evolution from a tormentor to a protector happens not because the player willed it through a menu, but through the organic (and often forced) interactions of the journey.
is an ongoing, episodic RPG from Toby Fox, the creator of Undertale . Currently spanning four of its seven planned chapters as of April 2026, it is a masterclass in modern indie game design that manages to be both a "spiritual successor" to Undertale and a completely distinct, more ambitious evolution of its ideas. The Story & Characters