On September 15th 2015, a silly RPG filled with quirky monsters, unique battles and creative jokes made its way onto Steam. Nowadays, it is safe to say that few indie games have made as significant an impact as Undertale. Since today marks the 10th anniversary of this title’s release, we wanted to reflect on its influence on modern gaming and internet culture.
There was a video game developer who had an interesting idea: to create a RPG where nobody has to die. Toby Fox’s concept of diverging from already established rules of the genre has become one of the defining qualities of his greatest project yet – Undertale. This seemingly simple tale about a child who has fallen into the Underground quickly developed into choice-driven experience that challenged players to face the moral consequences of their action. In a genre defined by fighting and killing enemies, the ability to choose non-violent actions was not only revolutionary, but also intriguing storywise.
Talking about the story, it is crucial to acknowledge the way it inspires gamers to think outside the box. Not only does the narrative adapt to the individual play style, it also allows to explore themes such as empathy, friendship, loss and sacrifice. On top of that, the game’s clever dialogue and unexpected plot twists play a great part in encouraging multiple playthroughs.
Needless to say, Undertale quickly developed a cult following. By the end of 2015 it was one of the best-selling games on Steam, topping the charts with 530,000 copies sold. It instantly spawned a vibrant community of fans who created fan arts, music covers, and even various fangames. The game was living on through memes, theories and iconic popculture moments (mainly involving Sans the Skeleton). And while the fandom has had some serious issues (like forcing letsplayers to experience the game in a specific order), there’s no doubt that the strong sense of community has helped to sustain Undertale’s popularity.
Another thing that went viral was the game’s soundtrack, especially the signature piece of the Genocide route: Megalovania. Not only has it been mixed and remixed all over the internet, but it also managed to reach even the pope himself – in January 2022 a circus troupe performed in front of the Pope Francis during his weekly audience at the Vatican to the tune of this renowned song.
What’s even more bizarre is that this wasn’t even the first time the pope has been exposed to Undertale. In 2016, during a summit about the internet held at the Vatican, youtuber MatPat gifted a copy of the game to Pope Francis, thus drawing attention to the thoughtful and peaceful side of this medium.
“It wouldn’t surprise me if I never made a game as successful again. That’s fine with me though” – commented Toby Fox back in 2016. While it might turn out to be the truth, it certainly does not stop the developer from working on another RPG: Deltarune. Now that 4 chapters of this game are out, it seems that it will carry on the spirit of Undertale by finding new ways to subvert expectations and win the players hearts.
As for now, I think it’s worth to point out that the success of Undertale has been inspiring other indie developers to experiment with storytelling and gameplay mechanics. The legacy of Undertale continues to thrive years after its release, encouraging both authors and players to seek solutions outside of formulas. In this sense it is more than just a video game – it is a proof that with creativity and passion anyone can achieve something great. The most important is to stay determined.
