The original 6 games in the BIT.TRIP series all collectively tell a story of life.This story is told through a combination of the cutscenes, the backgrounds in the levels, and the gameplay itself.
BEAT starts our story with a concept flying about the ethereal, this concept begins to form into a man called CommanderVideo. We see him flying freely through an unfamilar vastness from a blue planet towards a lava planet as he begins to make his Transition from an ethereal form to a corporeal one. We also witness other beings similar in appearance to CommanderVideo returning to the ethereal.
Once he reaches the lava planet, CommanderVideo makes his Descent into it, and is caught by the flow. He is carried onwards to the centre of the planet, passing the point of no return as his actual conception begins.
After reaching the core of this planet, his Growth begins. We witness his physical form developing, truly becoming alive.
After the credits, we witness CommanderVideo's birth, and hear his first words
I.AM.ONLY.A.MAN
BEAT is the story of conception, a sperm travelling to an egg, and growing into a baby before being born.
CORE continues our story, with CommanderVideo being dwarfed by 3 towering figures whom he doesn't recognise. At the same time, he begins his Discovery of his new physical form. He is no longer as free as he was before, and is restricted to only a handful of movements.
He comes to learn who two of these figures are: his parents. in his Exploration of this unfamilar world, he still hasn't quite gotten the hang of things, but his mother and father are there to help him.
After a while, he begins to take Control of himself, able to stand on his own two feet, without the assistance of his parents. We witness him begin to harness the power of his own mind and his own creativity.
After the credits, we see him in total control, but he has to pay attention to his surroundings. as he bumps into another figure, a realisation hits him
I.AM.NOT.ALONE
CORE is the story of childhood, born into a new unfamiliar body, an unfamiliar world, and beginning to make sense of it all.
VOID is the most abstract part of the story. There are no backgrounds to the levels, and instead the gameplay is the focus of the story. We first witness his Id develop, the primal self that wants to take and take and take, as he completely overpowers everyone around him.
Eventually, he realises that those he pushes around will sometimes push back, which begins the development of his Ego. Taking and taking all the time is damaging, and he begins to learn how to control his impulses.
After his humbling experience, CV learns that reaching out to other people instead of rampaging everywhere will get him further in life. This is the point where his Superego begins to develop, the part of the mind that seeks to connect with others. He learns to take only enough to get by, without being too greedy
After the credits, he's got complete control over his body and mind, as well as how to make friends. He's now able to take on the world as we see him run off into the distance
I.AM.READY
VOID is the story of adolescence, being able to make and keep friends whilst still knowing what your own needs are.
RUNNER, by contrast, is the most literal game in the series, where players take direct control over CommanderVideo for the first time. He is filled with an Impetus to explore the world and experience everything it has to offer. During his travels, he comes across Mingrawn Timbletot, who doesn't see CV as a friend, but as an enemy, but CV persists through.
As he continues, CV begins to take note of the world being a more industrial and ugly place than he once thought, but he has the Tenacity to continue throughout it all.
Over the course of his journey, CV has been able to make a few friends, but still faces adversity in the form of the Timbletot, but with some assistance from his friends, he manages to Triumph. We also see him fall in love with CommandGirlVideo.
After the credits, we see the Timbletot confront CV. The ever innocent CommanderVideo only wants to make friends, but Mingrawn won't have it. He flies off, leaving these parting words:
You are not a man
RUNNER is the story of adulthood, making your way through the world, encountering adversities and pushing through them.
FATE is the darkest entry in the series. We see CommanderVideo and his friends pursue the Timbletot, who still hates him. CommanderVideo sets off after the Timbletot, with his fate now set in stone as he travels along his fate line. CV comes across enemies of all sorts, and shoots them all down. He has Determination to find the Timbletot, and the Patience to still make friends with him after all he's done.
As he continues, the almost endless waves of enemies CV comes across instill a sense of Desperation, and his innocent, friendly side begins to falter, with Frustration taking its place.
CommanderVideo continues onwards, and eventually reaches the end of the line, where he faces off with the Timbletot once more. His kind nature has gone completely, only Anger in its place, and he takes down Mingrawn Timbletot once and for all, and in the process, commits a suicidal attack, as they both Fall. CommandGirlVideo looks for CV, but to no avail, as she finds he has died.
After the credits, we see CommanderVideo transition from a corporeal being to an ethereal one, as he rises up, away from this world without a word.
FATE is the story of confict, and how anger can be destructive not only to who you're angry with, but also yourself if you let it consume you.
FLUX is the last moments of CommanderVideo's life. He fades away from the memory of his friends, and departs for the afterlife. During this journey, he reaches an Epiphany about the world and everything in it, its cyclical nature.
He arrives in the afterlife, and comes across a set of 5 objects which he vaguely recognises, but doesn't quite understand yet. Dying has given him a new Perception of the world, and how simple it all is in the end.
Eventually, he comes to understand what these objects are, and achieves Catharsis. These objects are his memories, each one relating to a stage of his life, from conception, birth, friendship, adversity, and death. With all of these memories, he reaches completion.
But there's still one final journey that CommanderVideo must undertake: the journey Home. We see him fly back to the blue planet he came from in the ethereal, as everything begins to fade to white. Throughout it all, we are left a series of messages hidden in the backgrounds of the levels:
"A lesson is learned. Life is simply. There is no death. There is no before. There is no after. All is in flux. Simply."
"I AM HOME"
After the credits, we see CommanderVideo fade out of existance, becoming a concept once more.
FLUX is the story of death, of our loved ones expressing sorrow, and of letting go.
Everything comes from something.
We were before we became.
From life comes rhythm, and from rhythm comes life.
We are beings of information.
Everything is a conduit for learning.
We communicate in bits and bytes.
And we will return to something once we become nothing.
After our BIT.TRIP is complete.
