MDA Analysis & The Unique Aesthetic of Undertale

One game that I feel achieves a truly unique aesthetic is Undertale. It does a fantastic job of making players genuinely care and feel empathy for all of the characters in the game, even the enemies and final boss. Charming dialogue and player choice both come together in such a way that truly makes you question your actions and want to do everything in your power to save each character you come across. All of this creates an experience that inspires players to treat others with love and compassion.

Fight / Mercy

Mechanics: The “Fight” and “Mercy” mechanics in battles are part of what makes this game stand out. This game is advertised as “the friendly RPG where no one has to die”, and allows players to befriend and spare any enemy/character they battle throughout the game. If they instead choose to kill every character in the game, the game becomes more empty and unsettling, and the music becomes more eerie. There are multiple ending based on these two options, and any playthrough from that point on will reference whether or not the player has completed a genocide run.
Dynamics: Often times, this leads players to play the game multiple times, just to see what happens. But players tend to play pacifist runs far more often than genocide runs.
Aesthetics: Oftentimes, the hoops you have to jump through to spare characters feels far more engaging than simply hitting the “Fight” button. Players enjoy solving the small puzzles that come with that type of play, and look forward to figuring out how each new character acts and reacts. Additionally, the repercussions for killing and the effects it has on the game leaves players with an unsettling feeling, causing them to feel uneasy about playing the game that way.

Story

Mechanics: However, the story and writing are mechanics that that are just as relevant to making Undertale stand out. Though many characters want to kill or capture you at first, the game slowly tells you why they have become that way, and that they aren’t truly happy with the state of things. They have all had their share of hardships, and only want freedom and people that care about them.
Dynamics: This leads to players trying to solve whatever problems the characters have, whether that be in the overworld or during battles.
Aesthetics: “You are filled with determination.” This is a common phrase that the player will come across in the game, and it perfectly describes how the player starts to feel. They become determined to give these characters their freedom, and do everything they can to alleviate whatever pain they’ve been through. It stops being something they do for the game, and becomes something they want to do because they actually care about the wellbeing of the characters.