SOMETHING SINISTER SPAWNS...
WARNING: Spoilers for story mode.
Story Mode
- The opening cutscene, where a zebra foal named Ribbon encounters a pack of shadow wolves late at night. The wolves chase her down, and Ribbon only survives thanks to the sun rising and casting the wolves out.
- The image of the wolves having their bodies ripped apart by the sun is pretty shocking, even if the wolves are shadows. The leader lingers for a little longer, threatening their return, and that they'll be hungry.
- Texas recounting the rise of the predator conflict. In so many words, not only did lots of animals lose their lives before the magic users banished the predators with the Prophet's Key, but it also destroyed the relationships with every animal race in Fœnum, leading to the highly segregated landscape in the present day.Texas: "Now, funny looking feet ain't usually cause for worry, but somethin' else was... their TEETH! And as time passed, these teeth grew longer and sharper than the thorns on a buffaloberry branch. And with chompers like that, well... I guess eatin' grass just wasn't gonna cut it."
- The hidden dungeon in Reine. Arizona goes down into the catacombs to handle a noise complaint from the deer, only to find every room crawling with predators. At the end, she stumbles upon the Altar of Appetence, a massive statue featuring six predators. The moment she gets too close, it activates and summons a whole pack of predators, including a bear. The Altar also being under Reine, a city packed with defenseless deer, makes it even more terrifying.
- Fhtng mostly downplays this in that he has a "nebbish" voice when communing with Oleander, makes stereotypical evil statements without the bite to back them up (he's shackled to the Unicornomicon that Oleander carries, you see), and generally comes across as a bit of a dork most of the time. However, you have to keep in mind that he was locked inside the book for very good reasons, as he is a writhing mass of pure dark magic whose powers distort space, unleash near-literal hellfire on the arena, and permanently blacken Oleander's fur, among other things. You do not want to anger him without a contingency or several levels of badassery under your belt. Should she completely subdue Oleander in the Temple, Arizona gets to learn this the hard way.Fred: Get up, Oleander! ...Ollie? ... (turns to Arizona) YOU...! (blacks out the entire area)
Arizona: ...What's... goin' on...?
Fred: YOU MISERABLE, WRETCHED PILE OF BEEF...! YOU ARE RUINING MY PLANS. I'VE WORKED FOR DECADES. LONGER THAN YOU HAVE BEEN ALIVE HUNDREDS OF TIMES OVER. YOU WILL NOT STAND IN MY WAY. NOT WHEN I'M SO CLOSE TO ACHIEVING MY GOALS. YOU KNOW NOTHING. YOU ARE NOTHING. NOW. DIE. (appears behind Arizona and zaps her unconscious)
Gameplay
- Oleander's Level 3 Super is terrifying. She unleashes a blast of dark magic and if the opponent gets hit, she sinks into the ground with the opponent trapped in an orb of dark power. Fred then appears in his full glory in the background (which changes to a dark purple dimension), with Oleander herself on his abdomen sporting Blank White Eyes and yells in pain, with Fred finally crushing the trapped opponent in a mighty clap of his hands. If it doesn't K.O. the opponent, he disappears as Oleander lands safely on the ground while her opponent reappears with the dimension returning to the normal stage background. If it's a finishing K.O. attack, however, Oleander stays suspended in the air with her eyes still blank within Fred's dark dimension. Even her Character Portrait has the same eyes. Evil Is Not a Toy indeed, and Ollie has most likely paid the price for it.
Salt Mines
- Before the Salt Mines 2.0 patch, the final stage of Arcade Mode is a boss rush against all the basic predator enemies inside a pitch black cave with numerous fangs from unseen predators glistening in the shadows. It really sets in a Vile Villain, Saccharine Show vibe.
- Eventually everyone gets victory animations... but the Predators don't. They just stand there staring at the defeated player if you lose. While perhaps unintentional, the effect is rather unnerving when everyone else has gotten full animations.
- The Salt Mines 2.0 patch turned the already intimidating Salt Mines significantly more terrifying. The mines are now timed, and the longer it takes place, the darker the atmosphere gets. The music intensifies and the AI of all of the predators - both on the overworld and in battle - becomes far less forgiving.
- Fluffers (the wolf) now has a unique ability where it summons shadow versions of the main six fighters to chase down the players. The shadow fighters are all Red and Black and Evil All Over, and are always a higher difficulty than the other predators.
- The final phase of the Salt Mines: once the 15 minutes are up, whichever surviving player has the most salt becomes Huggles (the bear), and the game becomes an Asymmetric Multiplayer Survival Horror.
- Every player's Life Meter will gradually bleed out, and players will have to mine salt for the small chance of regaining health. The bear gets health from beating other players.
- The bear can see the caves perfectly, but the rest of the players will be in complete darkness, with only a ring of light around them and the exits visible. The only warning the players will get of the bear being near them is the sound of its stomping.
