Like with Super Mario World I kinda wanted to give this an updated review just to go a little bit more detail on my thoughts on the game after getting the Collecter's Edition of it for Xbox One/Series (which took forever to come out lmao).
To be straightforward, Undertale is what I would consider to be my favorite game of all time and to be a bit sappy is one that means quite a lot to me - not just in terms of having an influence on my worldview and art/writing style but it was ultimately a game that came at the 'right' time in my life that it could have such an impact on me. Admittedly it does create a layer of bias on my part, but even playing it now, I really can't deny it still hits hard with me for a number of reasons.
I think most can agree that the story and characters are definitely the game's strongest suit. In a nutshell (in case you haven't already played it) the game has an overarching meta-narrative with themes about morality based off of how one interacts with the environment around them and does so in a way that has a pretty clear influence on many of the game's design elements. This is of course where the game is structured between it's three major routes - those being labeled as Pacifist, Neutral, and Genocide (with Neutral encompassing a bunch of different endings in which the character dialogue changes depending on what bosses or enemies you kill) which is the game's main gimmick/selling point. The 'core' of the story itself is pretty simple on a surface level - basically just seeming like a game about a kid who fell into an unknown place and is trying to get in an area - but in addition to the course of events that unfold based off of your actions, the game has a lot going for it in terms of worldbuilding, lore and characters, with a huge aura of mystery surrounding all of that as well. And the way the game is structured into it's main 'routes' give multiple angles of this overall plot in a way that actually does manage to get me to think about what I am doing in the game and get a response from me when seeing how the characters are reacting to the whole situation.
The characters are definitely what stand out to me the most here - with all the 'major' ones having their own character arcs that unfold in different ways, again, based off of your own actions. All of them are interesting and unique in their own way, and even in the case of many of the minor characters there's definitely some 'connection' I feel with the player and the characters themselves. Admittedly Undertale is far from the first game to have themes around morality but I really feel like both with how the game's designed, how it plays and how the characters are written... honestly make it a bit more of a 'genuine' experience in my opinion. Also Alphys is the best character, screw the haters you can't change my mind.
The gameplay is the element that tends to draw some criticism, and while I do understand that it's certainly not for everyone (and will even concede that Deltarune is stronger in this department)... personally, I feel like what the gameplay does a good job of just setting out what it needs to do at the very least. Obviously if you are expecting a more traditional RPG with deep mechanics or something, yeah Undertale isn't going to be for you, but stuff like the puzzle aspects with the 'Spare' system are just fun to play with, sometimes making you think especially if you are just playing for the first time (I straight up didn't even know I was supposed to 'flee' from Undyne in the Pacifist Run until a friend told me lol), and the Bullet Hell combat does have a lot of variety based off of the enemies and bosses. The Mettaton EX boss especially still just really stands out to me particularly with how it's structured as an episode of a TV show and how that's influenced in the attacks and just minor things like how there's a 'break' period and a moment where you're given to chance to write about Mettaton (which, I won't lie, I basically just use to write out copypastas lmao). This isn't even to mention that there's still a ton of replay value, not only in the different routes/endings and character dialogue, but also with the secrets that are sprinkled into the game. Even after playing this game enough times to rack over 100 hours between the PC, Switch and Xbox I still feel like I occasionally run into things that I hadn't seen before just by exploring around parts of the world I hadn't really thought about before.
At the very least, I do get the impression that most if not all of the game design choices are structured around the game's whole concept of morality in both obvious and subtle ways (for example, the Genocide Run is pretty... unfun to play outside of the two bosses but obviously that's kinda the point).
Ultimately while I do get why this game wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea, especially from a gameplay perspective, it still just does a really good job for me. The story, characters, and the whole concept of morality that the game is structured around really make it a unique experience in my opinion and one I still really enjoy going back to (and ngl still one that manages to elicit emotions out of me). If you haven't played it yet... well, what are you doing it's literally $3 in the Steam Autumn Sale going on as I'm posting this.
To be straightforward, Undertale is what I would consider to be my favorite game of all time and to be a bit sappy is one that means quite a lot to me - not just in terms of having an influence on my worldview and art/writing style but it was ultimately a game that came at the 'right' time in my life that it could have such an impact on me. Admittedly it does create a layer of bias on my part, but even playing it now, I really can't deny it still hits hard with me for a number of reasons.
I think most can agree that the story and characters are definitely the game's strongest suit. In a nutshell (in case you haven't already played it) the game has an overarching meta-narrative with themes about morality based off of how one interacts with the environment around them and does so in a way that has a pretty clear influence on many of the game's design elements. This is of course where the game is structured between it's three major routes - those being labeled as Pacifist, Neutral, and Genocide (with Neutral encompassing a bunch of different endings in which the character dialogue changes depending on what bosses or enemies you kill) which is the game's main gimmick/selling point. The 'core' of the story itself is pretty simple on a surface level - basically just seeming like a game about a kid who fell into an unknown place and is trying to get in an area - but in addition to the course of events that unfold based off of your actions, the game has a lot going for it in terms of worldbuilding, lore and characters, with a huge aura of mystery surrounding all of that as well. And the way the game is structured into it's main 'routes' give multiple angles of this overall plot in a way that actually does manage to get me to think about what I am doing in the game and get a response from me when seeing how the characters are reacting to the whole situation.
The characters are definitely what stand out to me the most here - with all the 'major' ones having their own character arcs that unfold in different ways, again, based off of your own actions. All of them are interesting and unique in their own way, and even in the case of many of the minor characters there's definitely some 'connection' I feel with the player and the characters themselves. Admittedly Undertale is far from the first game to have themes around morality but I really feel like both with how the game's designed, how it plays and how the characters are written... honestly make it a bit more of a 'genuine' experience in my opinion. Also Alphys is the best character, screw the haters you can't change my mind.
The gameplay is the element that tends to draw some criticism, and while I do understand that it's certainly not for everyone (and will even concede that Deltarune is stronger in this department)... personally, I feel like what the gameplay does a good job of just setting out what it needs to do at the very least. Obviously if you are expecting a more traditional RPG with deep mechanics or something, yeah Undertale isn't going to be for you, but stuff like the puzzle aspects with the 'Spare' system are just fun to play with, sometimes making you think especially if you are just playing for the first time (I straight up didn't even know I was supposed to 'flee' from Undyne in the Pacifist Run until a friend told me lol), and the Bullet Hell combat does have a lot of variety based off of the enemies and bosses. The Mettaton EX boss especially still just really stands out to me particularly with how it's structured as an episode of a TV show and how that's influenced in the attacks and just minor things like how there's a 'break' period and a moment where you're given to chance to write about Mettaton (which, I won't lie, I basically just use to write out copypastas lmao). This isn't even to mention that there's still a ton of replay value, not only in the different routes/endings and character dialogue, but also with the secrets that are sprinkled into the game. Even after playing this game enough times to rack over 100 hours between the PC, Switch and Xbox I still feel like I occasionally run into things that I hadn't seen before just by exploring around parts of the world I hadn't really thought about before.
At the very least, I do get the impression that most if not all of the game design choices are structured around the game's whole concept of morality in both obvious and subtle ways (for example, the Genocide Run is pretty... unfun to play outside of the two bosses but obviously that's kinda the point).
Ultimately while I do get why this game wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea, especially from a gameplay perspective, it still just does a really good job for me. The story, characters, and the whole concept of morality that the game is structured around really make it a unique experience in my opinion and one I still really enjoy going back to (and ngl still one that manages to elicit emotions out of me). If you haven't played it yet... well, what are you doing it's literally $3 in the Steam Autumn Sale going on as I'm posting this.