History VideoGame / Underhero

* AdultFear: That underling that Mr. Stitches killed at the beginning of the game? Her father can be found in the castle, talking about how proud he is of her, while the Masked Kid becomes saddened. Before you visit World 3, he starts to worry that he hasn't heard from her in a while. [[spoiler:Thankfully, she turns out to be alive, and you can tell him this when you see him again after finding that out]].

* WhamEpisode: World 4. [[spoiler:The laboratory beneath the castle, which makes almost all major reveals of the game. Grey Kid reveals their real identity to be Princess Cereza in a quest for vengence. Tim, the strange moth that has been following you is King Timothy, Alexandria's missing husband whose personality was split accidentally by T. Bur trying to erase his memory when he found the laboratory. The Mooks all around the place are clones of the original Mooks, Stitches' friends that he was trying to protect. Stitches knew the Masked Kid had Elizabeth all along, it was an experiment he was running by letting his mook hold the weapon that can defeat him. T. Bur was creating a clone of the Hero or reviving him so they can re-start the Hero Cycle, which Stitches believes that if it ever stopped, the world will end]].

* WhatMeasureIsAMook: While all of the major bosses sans the final one survive their boss fights, the Masked Kid and Elizabeth kill several of the mooks without any hesitation, despite them being shown to have their own distinct personalities if spoken to.[[spoiler: They both have a HeelRealization in regards to this near the end of the game however, and you're actively encouraged not to kill any of the enemy Masked Kids in the last world]].

'''Underhero''' is a 2D side-scroller RolePlayingGame, made by [[https://papercastlegames.com Paper Castle Games]] and released in September 2018, with ports for other game consoles becoming available over time. In it, the player is a nameless {{Mook}} of the BigBad, who is convinced to subvert the plans of their master after the traditional hero has been defeated. The game is quite light-hearted in spirit, while its gameplay is a variant on TurnBasedCombat, where in-combat actions can be taken at any time, but they are limited by stamina.

!! Underhero contains examples of the following tropes:

* AllThereInTheManual: The official artbook has some information about parts of the game that aren’t completely obvious:

** If you’re not at full HP when you pass a checkpoint and then die after, you’ll be at full HP when you go back to it.

* AwesomeButImpractical: The hammer deals the most damage, and can even OneHitKill some enemies, and a later upgrade allows it to stun with each hit as well. However, it also uses up the most stamina, and it takes a bit of time to summon and attack with it, and if you’re not careful the enemy might interrupt you while you’re still preparing it; in fact, the Grey Kid will take advantage of the slow preparation and attack or run away.

* BadBoss: Mr. Stitches generally treats his minions pretty poorly, even strangling one that witnessed the hero’s defeat right in front of you. [[spoiler:Or so it seems; the witness turns out to simply be banished to become T. Bur's assistant on the underground facility, to hide her from possibly spewing the truth to others]].

* ConvectionShmonvection: Lampshaded when Elizabeth believes the signs and torches in the volcano aren’t actually made of wood and instead just look like they are, thinking they would catch on fire if they were. Additionally, there are pools of water that should realistically be boiling but aren't; in fact, going in them can actually heal the burn status.

* DevelopersForesight: In the demo, since the inside of the Moth Queen’s Tree is skipped over, you’re at a lower level than you are when you fight the first boss in the final game (and you also don't have access to the hammer or slingshot), [[BolivianArmyEnding and it fades to the credits about halfway through the battle]]. However, if you edit your save file to give yourself more coins and buy upgrades that increase your attack level, you can defeat her. Rather than cause the game to crash or freeze right away, the post-battle cutscene was actually included in the demo (but it does freeze after you take the portal back to the castle).
** In the game proper, if you miss going to the treasury before going to the tree’s upper levels, then when you return there later after the beer is gone and the elevator is fixed, there will be vines for you to climb that weren't there before [[PermanentlyMissableContent so you’re not completely locked out of it]].

-->'''Elizabeth IV:''' [[spoiler:Just because they’re clones doesn’t mean you could treat them like trash!]]

* FakeLongevity: Featured in the Moth Queen’s tree. First, you have to attempt to go up to the right, and then Elizabeth will tell you to reach the higher platforms with a wall jump, which your character can’t do (and never learns to). Then you go back down to the elevator, only to find that it isn’t working and you have to get a fuse from the basement to fix it, which of course is locked. So then you have to go to two different areas to fight the enemies that have the keys, and once you’ve unlocked the gates, there’s a long drop down where you have to slow down to avoid touching the many spikes there. After that, there’s an area where you have to activate some of the moving platforms to continue, and then you end up in a fetch quest [[spoiler:that you don’t get to complete because Tim and Timbolt end up flooding the tree with beer, so now you can just swim to the upper levels instead]]. It's even lampshaded:

** Subverted later on when it looks like you’re going to have to visit many different places [[spoiler:to find Tim and Timbolt, but as soon as you set off, he shows up. This is once again lampshaded when Elizabeth says she’s relieved because looking all over for them would have taken ages]].

** If you explore the other apartment floors, you’ll find a robot that says it was created in a place that is just written in binary, but if you translate it, you’ll find out that it says [[spoiler: “SECRET LAB”]]. [[spoiler:Guess where you end up later in the game, where you’ll encounter more of this type of enemy]].

* FreezeFrameBonus: [[spoiler:The second and third stages of the fight against Mr. Stitches have jump scares if you get caught by certain attacks, which show frightening images such as Stitches making terrifying faces, the Masked Kid getting impaled through the head by Elizabeth’s sword form, the kid’s mask breaking, revealing that they have actual horns underneath it as well as a jagged mouth, and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Mr. Stitches posing in a bikini]].]]
** [[spoiler:Additionally, one of the images of Mr. Stitches has two circles behind him that look a lot like Puzzleman’s eyes]].

** At one point in the Long Woods you have to take part in an ice skating competition, where you have to press the corresponding keys when they appear in a certain place. Before that, you’ll also have to [[StealthBasedMission sneak past ghosts]], which you’ll have to repeat later in the game.

* HelloInsertNameHere: You’re prompted to enter a name for the player character when starting the game.

* MineralMacguffin: The Triviality Stones, which are taken from the bosses by the chosen heroes and used to defeat the evil overlords. The Masked Kid takes them from the Hero after he’s killed, and Mr. Stitches asks them to give them back to the bosses. [[spoiler:They’re actually worthless; loads more of them are found when the Masked Kid and the Grey kid discover the entrance to the secret lab, and it’s implied they were just another part of the Hero Cycle]].
* MiniDungeon: The Pica Pica Jungle acts as one, where you’ll have to travel through the maze-like place to find an item for an NPC so that they’ll let you pass through to the volcano.

* MultiMookMelee: When you arrive at Pica Pica Island, you are immediately captured by the tribe and forced to fight against several other captured enemies, the last of which is one you haven’t fought before.

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: While not saying anything, Masked Kid’s expression definitely suggests this when realizing they just killed the Hero and two of their colleagues.
* NonIndicativeName: One of the enemy types is called “Metal Slug” even though they’re actually snails.
** At one point you have to find a “King Pepper”, which looks like a nose. The ones that look like crowns are just called Crown Peppers.

* OneTimeDungeon: The volcano in World 3 can’t be backtracked to after you leave it. You also can’t go back inside the Moth Queen’s tree in World 1 until later in the game.

** [[spoiler:Taken UpToEleven with T. Bur’s fight, as you don’t have a weapon at all and are forced to use the environment to defeat him]].

* SplitPersonality: Timothy the moth, who constantly talks to himself as either Timbolt, an eloquent gentleman, or Tim, a childish doofus, as if they were separate people. His theme and outfit even changes depending on who’s talking.

* TalkingWeapon: Elizabeth IV, the Hero’s weapon. Although she’s just a hilt, she’s capable of transforming into different weapons, including a sword, slingshot, and hammer.

* ThisIsGonnaSuck: Masked Kid at many times. They really don’t want to be involved in this adventure.

* BossArenaIdiocy: Partially justified with El Salserissimo's boss fight, as an NPC you meet earlier explains that [[spoiler:the bomb peppers (which you have to feed him) aren't supposed to be on the conveyor belt but sometimes end up there anyway. However, it doesn't really make sense for there to be ropes aside from giving you a way to climb up there to drop said peppers, and somehow ''a lot'' of those peppers have ended up there]]. [[FridgeBrilliance Maybe the enslaved villagers are helping you?]]

* ShooOutTheClowns: Tim and Timbolt don't follow you into the room in World 4 where [[spoiler:you learn the truth about the chosen heroes and the quests they complete]].

* SpeakingSimlish: The majority of dialogue in the game is audibly accompanied by gibberish that can sound like words in a few cases depending on what's being said, and is at different pitches for different characters, although Stitches, Alexandria, Greg, and El Salserissimo have [[VoiceGrunting different sound effects to represent their voices]] used instead.

* VoiceGrunting: The Masked Kid often makes noises when they jump, and also when they take damage. Some characters also have their own sound effects to represent their voices when they talk, most notably the Moth Queen and Mr. Stitches.

* AwesomeButImpractical: The hammer deals the most damage, and can even OneHitKill some enemies, and a later upgrade allows it to stun with each hit as well. However, it also uses up the most stamina, and it takes a bit of time to summon and attack with it, and if you’re not careful the enemy might interrupt you while you’re still preparing it.

* LavaIsBoilingKoolAid: Or extremely hot Salsa in this case. It isn't any less dangerous, though.

* PunchClockVillain: The underlings are shown as employees who are paid to patrol the places that the heroes travel through. The game's save files are even represented as punch clocks.

* SpeakingSimlish: The majority of dialogue in the game is audibly accompanied by gibberish that can sound like words in a few cases depending on what's being said, although some characters (such as Stitches and Alexandria) have [[VoiceGrunting sound effects to represent their voices]] used instead.

* SmashingSurvival: Some enemy attacks can leave the you stunned or stuck, and you have to repeatedly press a button to break free from it.

-->'''Elizabeth IV''': [[spoiler:Just because they’re clones doesn’t mean you could treat them like trash!]]
-->'''Mr. Stitches''': [[spoiler:And you treated them any better? You always saw them as obstacles, too. Sweet experience points, right?]]

-->'''Elizabeth''': No wall jump, no elevator... What a profound waste of time.

-->'''Elizabeth''': What!? How OLD is that guy?!\\
'''Baron van Gregory''': Older than me, that is certain...

** The Stitched Castle theme can be heard in the encounter music during World 4, [[spoiler:and the same motif makes up the music that plays during the boss battle with T. Bur]].

* IHaveYourWife: Part of the reason why Queen Alexandria follows Mr. Stitches is because he supposedly is healing her husband, but because she never sees him, his real status is unknown, and she follows him to make sure he's safe.

** If you accidentally miss going to the Moth Queen's treasury in World 1, you'll initially be locked out of going back inside the tree, but you will be able to go there later in the game and there will be vines for you to climb up there (since the Tree is no longer [[ItMakesSenseInContext flooded with beer]]).

** During the final stages of the game, you will have some opportunities to pick up more potions should you run out.

-->'''Mr. Stitches''': [[spoiler:And you treated them any better? You always saw them as obstacles, too. Sweet experience points, right?]]\

* DecoyProtagonist: Mostly PlayedForLaughs with the Scarf Boy, who's the character you control at the very beginning of the game, only for them to be anticlimactically killed by a chandelier falling on them, causing it to switch to the masked kid that killed them for the rest of the game.

* BossArenaIdiocy: Partially justified with El Salserissimo's boss fight, as an NPC you meet earlier explains that [[spoiler:the bomb peppers (which you have to feed him) aren't supposed to be on the conveyor belt but sometimes end up there anyway. However, it doesn't really make sense for there to be ropes aside from giving you a way to climb up there to drop said peppers, and somehow ''a lot'' of those peppers have ended up there. [[FridgeBrilliance Maybe the enslaved villagers are helping you?]]]]
** Also played with in T. Bur's boss fight; [[spoiler:the switches that drain the water are clearly electrified to stop you from pressing them or going too close to the walls, but he isn't immune to being shocked by them, and you have to wonder why the room has a button that activates the big laser when he can just activate it remotely. To be fair, said button doesn't become available for you to press until the water is drained, and the switches that drain the water start moving about halfway through the fight to make it more difficult]].

* EasilyForgiven: [[spoiler: When Elizabeth finds out that the Masked Kid killed the Hero, she doesn't hold it against them, likely because she was more upset about the other things she learned, such as the fact that she was created by T. Bur as part of the Hero Cycle]].

* GiantHandsOfDoom: [[spoiler:The form Puzzleman takes for his boss fight has these, which he will occasionally attack you with]].
* TheGlassesComeOff: T. Bur takes off his glasses right before the boss fight against him starts, looking more menacing without them.
* GratuitousSpanish: El Salserissimo occasionally throws Spanish words into his speech. Unlike many examples, [[BilingualBonus it's actually correct Spanish.]]

* HeroicBSOD: Elizabeth has one when she finds out that [[spoiler:the Masked Kid killed the Hero (who has been resurrected or cloned and doesn't remember her), Stitches already knows that they're acting as the hero now, and she was created by T. Bur as part of the Hero Cycle, which Stitches believes must continue or the world will end. It's enough for her to temporarily not want to fight, leaving the Masked Kid to face the next boss all by themselves.]]

-->'''Elizabeth IV''': What!? How OLD is that guy?!\\

* SequenceBreaking: It is possible to skip going through all the rooms in World 4 if you know the passwords, although you will miss out on coins, EXP, and upgrades, so it might be better to make use of this on speedruns.

* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Alexandria is the only female boss in the game. [[spoiler:Unless you count the Grey Kid]].

** When you have to escape from the volcano before it erupts, you have the option to just take the elevator which will get you out more quickly. However, there is an NPC who refuses to use it, and you can save him by taking him the long way round instead (even though it's more of a disadvantage to you). Again, you'll be rewarded for it if you do.

* ExpendableClone: [[spoiler:Mr. Stitches he explains that when he had to take up the role of the evil ruler, he didn't want to send them to be killed by the hero, so he had them cloned instead. When Elizabeth calls him out on it, he points out that she didn't have a problem with killing them at first]].

* IncomingHam: Most of Puzzleman's entrances have him cheerfully saying something before he appears, usually "Do you know what time it is?"

-->'''Elizabeth IV''': [[spoiler:Just because they’re clones doesn’t mean you could treat them like trash!]]\

'''Underhero''' is a 2D side-scroller RolePlayingGame, made by Paper Castle Games and released in September 2018. In it, the player is a nameless {{Mook}} of the BigBad, who is convinced to subvert the plans of their master after the traditional hero has been defeated. The game is quite light-hearted in spirit, while its gameplay is a variant on TurnBasedCombat, where in-combat actions can be taken at any time, but they are limited by stamina.

-->'''Elizabeth IV''': No wall jump, no elevator... What a profound waste of time.

* FollowTheMoney: Most of the coins you'll find in the game are in the direction you need to go in, but there can be coins found in other places as well.
** The coins inside El Salserissimo's body are a good indicator of which way you need to go to find his weak point.

* MalevolentMugshot: Mr. Stitches has sent creepy-looking portraits to each of the three main bosses, and he has statues of himself all over Heroes Road. At one point, he pretends to be one of the statues.

* BigBoosHaunt: Long Woods Manor in world 2 is full of ghosts, and outside there are zombie-like creatures that come out of the ground.

* CallARabitASmeerp: Most of the enemies are animals of some kind, but with different names. For example, the moths are called Mothys (although their ruler is referred to as a moth), and the monkeys are called Monkans.

* FetchQuest: Played for laughs in the first world. You need a fuse to fix the elevator and reach the top of the tree. First you need to get two keys, which lets you into the basement. Then the bartender asks you to get something out of their cellar... [[spoiler:then Tim yanks the bung out of a beer barrel and the entire tree floods with beer, letting you just ''swim'' to the top of the tree]].

'''Underhero''' is a September 2018 2D side-scroller RolePlayingGame, made by Paper Castle Games. In it, the player is a nameless {{Mook}} of the BigBad, who chooses to subvert the plans of their master after the traditional heroes have been defeated. The game is quite light-hearted in spirit, while its gameplay is a variant on TurnBasedCombat, where in-combat actions can be taken at any time, but they are limited by stamina.

* ArtificialHuman: [[spoiler:It turns out that the hero is this, having been created as part of a cycle that Mr. Stitches has been causing for centuries. It's implied that there have been other heroes who were artificially made or cloned, with Gregory being the first one]].

* BossArenaIdiocy: Partially justified with El Salserissimo's boss fight, as an NPC you meet earlier explains that [[spoiler:the bomb peppers (which you have to feed him) aren't supposed to be on the conveyor belt but sometimes end up there anyway. However, it doesn't really make sense for there to be ropes aside from giving you a way to climb up there to drop said peppers]].
** Also played with in T. Bur's boss fight; [[spoiler:the switches that drain the water are clearly electrified to stop you from pressing them, but he isn't immune to being shocked by them, and you have to wonder why the room has a button that activates the big laser when he can just activate it remotely. To be fair, said button doesn't become available for you to press until the water is drained, and the switches that drain the water start moving about halfway through the fight to make it more difficult]].
* BossArenaRecovery: Occasionally, the rooms in which you fight the bosses will have purple glowing orbs which heal you appear.

** At the beginning of the game, Mr. Stitches lets Princess Cereza go after he's informed that the hero has died. [[spoiler:She then becomes the Grey Kid]].

* TheDogWasTheMastermind: [[spoiler:Puzzleman is the true BigBad, believing his sole purpose is to keep the hero cycle going and having manipulated Mr. Stitches and his predecessor into maintaining it (or, in Stitches' case, his and T. Bur's charade of it) for ''centuries'' if not ''millennia''.]]

* EasilyForgiven: [[spoiler: When Elizabeth finds out that the Masked Kid killed the hero, she doesn't hold it against them, likely because she was more upset about the other things she learned, such as the fact that she was created by T. Bur as part of the Hero Cycle]].

* FallingChandelierOfDoom: Used to kill the hero in the intro.

* TalkingWeapon: Elizabeth IV, the hero’s weapon. Although she’s just a hilt, she’s capable of transforming into different weapons, including a sword, slingshot, and hammer.

* WhamEpisode: World 4. [[spoiler:The laboratory beneath the castle, which makes almost all major reveals of the game. Grey Kid reveals their real identity to be Princess Cereza in a quest for vengence. Tim, the strange moth that has been following you is King Timothy, Alexandria's missing husband whose personality was split accidentally by T. Bur trying to erase his memory when he found the laboratory. The Mooks all around the place are clones of the original Mooks, Stitches' friends that he was trying to protect. Stitches knew the Masked Kid had Elizabeth all along, it was an experiment he was running by letting his mook hold the weapon that can defeat him. T. Bur was creating a clone of the hero or reviving him so they can re-start the Hero Cycle, which Stitches believes that if it ever stopped, the world will end]].

* VictoryFakeout: After the second phase of the fight against Greg, the victory fanfare plays, but then a third phase of the fight begins.
* VideoGameCaringPotential: If you really don't want to kill any enemies, you can give them money instead. It doesn't work on everyone, however.
** There is an NPC who ended up trapped in their apartment after a ghost stole their key; you are not required to find the key to progress the game, but you'll likely find yourself wanting to help them anyway, and there's even a reward if you do.
** When you have to escape from the volcano before it erupts, you have the option to just take the elevator which will get you out more quickly. However, there is an NPC who refuses to use it, and you can save him by taking him the long way round instead (even though it's more of a disadvantage to you). Again, you'll be rewarded for it if you do.

* NPCRoadblock: In the Stitched Castle, there is an NPC blocking the door that leads to the last rooms of Heroes Road, who even proclaims how fun it is to block said door. There are a few other instances in the same area; several mooks in particular block the ways to Worlds 2 and 3 until it's time for you to visit them.

* SplitPersonality: Timothy the butterfly, who constantly talks to himself as either Timbolt, an eloquent gentleman, or Tim, a childish doofus, as if they were separate people. His theme and outfit even changes depending on who’s talking.

* SufferTheSlings: Used for ranged attacks against enemies like butterflies, who would otherwise be out of reach.

* UnderwaterBossBattle: The majority of the boss battle against T. Bur takes place underwater, since he is a shark, but there are various points where the water is drained.

** After travelling through a room that has [[spoiler:various enemies from the game in tubes, in addition to finding out that Frankie is alive and Tim and Timbolt are actually the Moth King]], the Masked Kid and Elizabeth go into the next room and find [[spoiler:another tube containing the Hero]].
** After T. Bur explains [[spoiler:the Hero Cycle and why it must be continued]], the Grey Kid [[spoiler:takes off their mask and reveals that they are actually the Princess]].

** When Mr. Stitches lets Princess Cereza go at the beginning, she was actually just pretending to cry to look more helpless than she was.

** [[spoiler:The main menu is actually the ending; the place, which isn't seen anywhere else in the game, is where the Masked Kid and Elizabeth ended up after going through the portal they found]].
* AllThereInTheScript: The first enemy you fight is called La Valiente, but you don't get to find that out (unless you exploit a glitch in the demo) because you don't gain the ability to talk to enemies until your second encounter. That same enemy is encountered as a ghost later on, which can easily be overlooked.

** [[spoiler:The Masked Kids in Heroes Road don't drop any coins or potions, so you're not missing out on a lot by not killing them should you choose that path]].

* AwesomeButImpractical: The hammer deals the most damage, and can even OneHitKill some enemies, and a later upgrade allows it to stun with each hit as well. However, it also uses up the most stamina, and it takes a bit of time to summon it and attack with it, and if you’re not careful the enemy might attack while you’re still preparing it.

** [[spoiler:It's implied that Queen Rena treated her minions poorly as well; Stitches says that she made them work too hard and that several of his friends died because of her, which is what prompted him to kill her]].

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: The Puzzleman is defeated and the cycle of the hero is broken, but the player and Elizabeth IV remain stuck in the void realm and the way out they find is implied to lead to another world. However, the other characters move on with their lives, and there is a potential sequel hook as the epilogue shows that Mr. Stitches and T. Bur are searching for a way to bring Masked Kid and Elizabeth back]].

** This is most prominent in T. Bur's boss battle, which uses a remix of the Stitched Castle theme. [[spoiler:Which makes sense, since he is responsible for most of the employment system that the majority of the underlings follow]].

** Throughout the game, you keep encountering a moth with a split-personality. [[spoiler:He turns out to be the Moth King]].

* DevelopersForesight: In the demo, since the inside of the Moth Queen’s Tree is skipped over, you’re at a lower level than you are when you fight the first boss in the final game, [[BolivianArmyEnding and it fades to the credits about halfway through the battle]]. However, if you edit your save file to give yourself more coins and buy upgrades that increase your attack level, you can defeat her. Rather than cause the game to crash or freeze right away, the post-battle cutscene was actually included in the demo (but it does freeze after you take the portal back to the castle).
** In the game proper, if you miss going to the treasury before going to the tree’s upper levels, then when you return there later after the beer is gone and the elevator is fixed, there will be vines for you to climb up there [[PermanentlyMissableContent so you’re not completely locked out of it]].

* NPCRoadblock: In the Stitched Castle, there is an NPC blocking the door that leads to the last rooms of Heroes Road, who even proclaims how fun it is to block said door.

** In the game proper, if you miss going to the treasury before going to the tree’s upper levels, then when you return there later after the beer is gone and the elevator is fixed, there will be vines for you to climb up there [[PermenantlyMissableContent so you’re not completely locked out of it]].

** This is most prominent in T. Bur's boss battle, which uses a remix of the Stitched Castle theme. [[spoiler:Which makes sense, since he is responsible for most of the underling's employment system]].
** Inverted with the Grey Kid; [[spoiler:a slower and more serious song using motifs from the battle music plays when she reveals herself to be the Princess, and the credits feature a variation in a major key]].

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: While not saying anything, Masked Kid’s expression definitely suggests this when realizing they just killed the hero and two of their colleagues.

* LavaIsBoilingKoolAid: Or Salsa in this case. It isn't any less dangerous, though.

** Potions will be converted into coins if you can't carry any more.

* CombatSadomasochist: Some enemies seem to actually enjoy getting attacked. Others want to be defeated so they can do something elsewhere.

* MookBouncer: The Ghosts in the Manor will take you outside or to a different room if you don't have a blue flame with you. Some areas will gradually reduce the flame even during encounters with the ghosts, who will send you away if it runs out before you defeat them.

* TheUnreveal: [[spoiler:In World 4, you find out that the majority of the underlings are actually clones, and you see the originals in PeopleJars, but you never see the original Masked Kid or find out who they were, or why they're apparently missing]].

* WakeUpCallBoss: The boss of World 2, Baron van Gregory, has not one but ''three'' phases, so you'll have to be more careful with your potions and dodging attacks if you want to make it through all of them.