You’ll Need Determination To Try Out These Games!
Undertale is certainly a unique 2D RPG that’ll give you a memorable experience. The game is quirky, emotional, and filled with intriguing gameplay that’ll test your skills and morals.
If you’ve finished playing Undertale and are looking for alternatives – fret not! We’ve combed through the archives and saved you the hassle with our top 8 picks.
Of course, for all the games we’ve reviewed, we’ve also added a handy link so you can check out our full thoughts on that and see if it’s something you want to invest your time with.
So without further ado, we present 8 games to check out when you’ve finished playing Undertale.
Earthbound
Undertale owes a lot to the Earthbound franchise. Undertale’s creator has revealed that he was heavily inspired by Earthbound because of its gameplay, quirky humor, and mysterious lore.
However, unlike most JRPGs, Earthbound doesn’t feature random encounters or a medieval fantasy world like Undertale. The game takes place in a world like ours with a few twists relating to space-like creatures and supernatural powers.
Earthbound follows Ness, a young boy who ventures out into the world of Eagleland to collect eight melodies that’ll put an end to an alien named Giygas before he can set the reality of Eagleland into pure darkness. With his PSI/PK abilities and his incredible friends at his side, Ness aims to foil Giygas’s plans.
Earthbound, like Undertale, uses the number wheel to display its character’s health. The tongue-in-cheek humor displayed by Undertale’s characters took inspiration from the NPCs Ness and friends encounter on their journey.
Earthbound’s visuals still hold up today and can now be played on the Nintendo Switch via its online service. If you’re dying to discover the in-depth similarities between Earthbound and Undertale, feel free to check out the game through the service.
Deltarune
Toby Fox, the creator of Undertale, wanted to take on another project even though the game continues to sell well in many countries. Although Deltarune’s gameplay and style are vastly different from its predecessor, it manages to capture Undertale’s excellent humor and passion.
Deltarune follows Kris and his classmate Susie uncovering and falling into a hidden area inside their school’s closet called the Dark World. In this world, they encounter a goat boy named Ralsei, who claims that Susie, Kris, and himself are fated to save the world. However, they realize that the Dark World contains villains waiting to foil their plans.
With Deltarune, the player’s heart’s in a box, and they must dodge an enemy’s projectiles, similar to Undertale. Also, players can decide whether to spare any enemy’s life or eradicate the foe. The decision to let enemies go or defeat them also affects how the story will proceed. It is also a concept borrowed from Undertale.
Not only that, but some characters from Undertale reside in Deltarune’s world and take on similar occupations. It allows players to reunite with classic characters from the previous game while giving them a new purpose in Deltarune.
Lisa The Painful
While some enjoy clinging to heartwarming and cheerful content, others like to explore media that’ll give them the opposite effect. Lisa the Painful is a game that takes risks by tackling unsettling topics while featuring well-developed characters.
Lisa the Painful follows Brad Armstrong, a martial artist searching for his adoptive daughter while traversing the Olathe wastelands. However, his journey will not be easy. He must make life-threatening choices that could affect him, his daughter, and other party members he recruits.
Lisa the Painful’s best feat lies within its gruesome narrative. For example, Brad’s past life regarding the loss of his sister and father drives the character’s motivations. Even the world around him is apocalyptic like Undertale, as all women cease to exist, except for Brad’s daughter. Brad’s daughter not only adds a significant dilemma to Brad’s shoulders but it elevates his need to stay alert at all times.
As for the gameplay, Lisa the Painful adopts the turn-based battle system found in Earthbound and Undertale. Players are encouraged to recruit companions they encounter, but like Undertale, they can attack those they feel aren’t worthy of having around.
If you loved the gameplay of Undertale; but wanted a game with a darker, sinister story, Lisa the Painful promises to deliver in both regards.
Omori
While some games prefer to cheer you up, others may aim to make you cry the whole way through. However, Omori chooses to balance both emotions through its sketchbook visuals and handling of mature themes.
The story follows Sunny, a hikikomori boy, and his dream world alter-ego Omori as they traverse through the real and dream worlds. Their goals are to overcome their worries and secrets while fighting off strange creatures along the way. Near the end, the boys must make a choice that’ll decide their fate alongside many others.
Like Undertale and Earthbound, Omori’s gameplay follows the turn-based RPG formula and attacks based on the characters’ emotions. Like Pokemon in some respects, these emotions have strengths over some and weaknesses over others. Think rock-paper-scissors, but replace those items with human emotions.
Another element that’s comparable to Undertale is Omori’s multiple endings. However, in Omori’s case, players will know from the get-go where the story’s heading based on time spent on particular scenes in the game. While it’s handling of mature themes is what many fans praise it for, Omori offers fun and comedic humor for those wanting to relax from the depressing content.
Cave Story
Cave Story is arguably the grandfather of indie games and the title to kick off the indie game renaissance. With its imaginative storytelling, creative setting, and stellar fast-paced gameplay, Cave Story reigns as an indie darling in the eyes of many.
The story follows Quote, a robot with amnesia who must explore various deadly areas to find a way out and discover bits of his past life. Quote will encounter strange mythical beasts and sinister magic users along the way. Quote will also find himself amidst the struggle among kind-hearted islanders and authoritative scientists aiming for world dominance.
Despite revolving around a different genre, Cave Story and Undertale are alike in many ways. Both games happen in an imaginative underground setting and feature anthropomorphic creatures with human-related issues. Cave Story and Undertale also feature emotionally driven narratives filled with twists that’ll catch you off-guard.
However, Cave Story’s visuals will feel more refined compared to Undertale’s since it feels like its creator wanted to capture the look and feel of classic side-scrolling games like Metroid. The difficulty curve to attain Cave Story’s good ending is more challenging, unlike Undertale, and Cave Story’s save point placement isn’t the best.
Otherwise, Cave Story will grant Undertale fans a charming, genuine experience that’ll last with them forever.
Rakuen
While people tend to play games for intriguing gameplay, others find a game’s storyline as the deciding factor to purchase it or not. Rakuen’s not only a game with stunning visuals, but it’s also a title that delivers a rich story with well-rounded characters.
Rakuen follows the story of a boy who asks his mother to transport him to a fantasy world that houses the Guardian of the Forest. His goal is to receive a wish from this mythical being. However, to attain this, the boy must help out his neighbors’ alter-egos in this world. Despite thinking it’ll be a breeze, the boy realizes that the hospital where he resides holds dark secrets connected to his neighbors’ sorrows.
Like Undertale, Rakuen features a heartwarming story that’ll leave you in tears. The overall premise of restoring the boy’s neighbors’ happiness and goodwill relates to one of the goals of Undertale’s protagonist if players are participating in the pacifist route. Both games also delve into mature-themed topics regarding pain and death.
If you’re looking for another game that appears child-like but contains a rich story filled with heartwarming and dreadful topics, Rakuen’s worth playing.
The Stanley Parable
The Stanley Parable is a narrative walking simulator game where the player follows an unknown narrator’s orders in hopes of guiding its main protagonist Stanley in the right direction. Like Undertale, the player’s decisions throughout the game will affect Stanley’s livelihood, for better or worse.
The Stanley Parable follows Stanley, a button-pusher who finds himself alone in his office one day. Meanwhile, a mysterious narrator will guide you on your journey. However, some of the requests the narrator makes may be misleading. Ultimately, the main goal is to find a resolution for Stanley that you feel is best, but be warned, as this game will lead you down different endings.
Its gameplay mechanics aren’t as enjoyable as the mechanics utilized in Undertale since you’ll mostly be pushing buttons and opening doors. Nonetheless, the witty and cheeky comments from the narrator correlate with the quirky humor and sarcasm displayed by Undertale characters like Sans and Papyrus.
The game’s many outcomes also resemble Undertale’s alternate endings regarding Undertale’s genocide and pacifist routes. The Stanley Parable also tackles similar themes regarding guilt as the narrator will judge you based on your choices, like some characters in Undertale do.
If you’re looking for another game where you’re judged based on your decisions, The Stanley Parable is worth a playthrough.
OneShot
There are many games like Undertale, where the player’s given a character who must bring happiness to a world drowning in misery. OneShot is another title that delivers on this premise with its spectacular visuals, engaging storyline, and intriguing relationship between a god and his subject.
OneShot follows Niko, a cat-like child who awakens into a world unfamiliar to him. Then, he meets a light bulb whose worshipped as this world’s savior. The world’s residents tell Niko that he must take this bulb to a tall tower to restore light to this world. Unbeknownst to Niko, he won’t be traveling alone, as you will be the one to guide him, as you’re the true god of this mysterious world.
Like Undertale, this game has incredible graphics and soothing music. Furthermore, Niko’s connection to the player is unique in itself. Despite having control over Niko’s action, he’ll address you by your name in a fourth-wall-breaking manner. Undertale utilizes this tactic a few times to create a sense of realism between the player and the game’s world.
OneShot’s gameplay also consists of various puzzles that the player will need to help Niko solve. Most puzzles follow the standard formula of finding and combining objects to fit in a slot. Undertale presented similar obstacles via its distinct enemy battles. OneShot may not be as violent as Undertale, but it features many quirky characters, fourth-wall-breaking moments, and puzzles to keep players engaged.
So there we have it, our 8 video game picks to keep you busy after playing Undertale.
What do you think of our picks? Do you agree? Are there any notable omissions? Let us know in the comments below!