Toby Fox’s Undertale is a game that took pretty much everyone by surprise when it released in 2015. The cute looking RPG turned out to be a game that challenged the moral values of players and made them question themselves about their choices. Filled with fun and lovable characters, Undertale gave players the option to develop relationships with these characters and become their friend. Undertale became a very popular game due to a number of reasons. For example, the game has great characters, as already mentioned. The story is great and combat is fun as well. But above all else, many people love Undertale because of the emotional impact that the game has on most players.
The experience provided by the game was truly unique, but not one of a kind. There’s some good news for all those that have ended Undertale and wish to try out games that are similar. This good news is that there are actually a few great games like Undertale out there that are as great or even better than it. We’ve mentioned 5 of these games and more information about them below, along with the things that make them so similar to Undertale in the first place.
Top 5 Games Like Undertale
1) Earthbound
Earthbound is the first name that we’ve mentioned on this list for a very good reason. This reason is the fact that Undertale has evidently taken a lot of inspiration from Earthbound. For example, Earthbound was popular for its weird humor which was present even in the most serious of moments. This is something that Undertale features as well, which is something that every person that has played the game knows about. On top of this, there are even some Undertale characters that draw inspiration from some of the characters in Earthbound. Like this, there are many similarities between the two games, particularly in the RPG aspect of gameplay.
When it comes to Earthbound itself, the game is an RPG that features a vast world filled with places to explore and great characters to interact with. Players will actually control multiple characters in a party rather than just a single main character. This applies in both exploration as combat, as all members of the party will walk together and even fight together depending upon the player’s commands. Speaking of which, Earthbound features somewhat tactical turn-based combat in which players will take on all sorts of enemies. Each party member has their own attacks and all of them have their own special traits that come in handy against specific enemies.
Overall, Earthbound is certainly a different game for Undertale but it is also very similar at the same time. It is a classic that still holds up even today and you’ll be to see exactly why Undertale draws inspiration from it when you play it. It might not be as emotional as Undertale, but it certainly features fun combat, great lovable characters, and a great story that you’ll be invested in till the very end. If you were a fan of Undertale, you should definitely check out what Earthbound has to offer for you.
2) Lisa the Painful
Lisa the Painful is a lot like Undertale in a lot of different aspects, but there’s also one huge difference between the two. While Undertale also had some dark secrets and twists, it was generally a wholesome and calming game depending on the way you played it. Even if you made the wrong choices, you had the option to make things right up until the very end. This is something that you don’t have the option of doing in Lisa the Painful. The game is much darker than Undertale but is definitely just as emotional. There are all sorts of fun characters in the game that you’ll become friends with and add to your party, and you’ll have to inevitably sacrifice some of them if you wish to progress.
While the world of Lisa the Painful looks cute and charming at first, the game takes a dark turn soon enough. You’ll learn much more about these dark secrets and twists as you play the game and progress through its intriguing story. While this is one big difference between the two games, there are still many other similarities. For example, Lisa the Painful will definitely be making you question your morals, something which Undertale is famed for. As mentioned, you’ll also be meeting a lot of lovable characters as well. You’ll have to do things to strengthen your relationship with said characters, which is another thing that was also featured in Undertale.
Above all else, Lisa the Painful is an emotional journey that is somewhat like Undertale. If you liked the fact that Undertale made you question all your choices in the game, you’ll definitely enjoy what Lisa the Painful has in store. The game plays a lot like Undertale in terms of exploration. The combat is turn-based as well, but you’ll be controlling and taking care of an entire party rather than just your main character. Overall, Lisa the Painful features great characters and a good story that anyone would enjoy.
3) Mother 3
Mother 3 is another great game from which Undertale clearly draws some inspiration. It is actually the sequel to Earthbound, which was the first name on this list. As the game is a sequel to Earthbound, it features quite a few similarities in terms of gameplay. The combat is turn-based, but the perspective is a lot more similar to the one in Undertale rather than the one in Earthbound. You’ll be looking at your enemy directly on the screen rather than your whole party and the enemy as well. You’ll also be dodging their attacks and countering them at times. The combat also focuses on the background music, as the attack patterns of enemies follow the tone of the soundtrack most of the time. Almost all these things are featured in Undertale as well.
Other than the combat, exploration, and characters in Mother 3 are also quite similar to Undertale. While the game might not focus on comedy as much as Earthbound and Undertale, it is still light-hearted most of the time. Most characters in the game are also fun to hang around with and all of them have their own unique personalities and traits that make them so lovable. You don’t even have to play the previous games in the Mother franchise in order to understand Mother 3, as there is almost no connection between it and the previous games. Regardless of this, it is still recommended that you still try Earthbound along with Mother 3.
4) OneShot
As mentioned multiple times before, the main thing that everyone loves about Undertale is its great characters and touching story. This is a department in which OneShot excels at. The game puts players in control of a character known as Niko, who is a child that has found their way inside of a world without a ‘’sun’’. This world is slowly dying out, along with all the people inside of it. Players will have to make all sorts of choices and make great characters along the way while trying their best to help Niko save the dying world by restoring the sun.
OneShot also excels at fourth-wall-breaking and providing an immersive experience, another thing that Undertale is famed for. While users will take control of Niko, they’ll also be another entire character of their own with whom Niko will communicate with again and again. The game constantly tells players to change entire properties of itself through the game files and other things of the sort in order to progress. This is something that catches most player’s off-guard and certainly makes the game fun and unique. Overall, OneShot is a great game with lots of fun characters that you’ll start to love overtime. The story and journey of the game are certainly emotional and will require you to make a lot of tough choices which will make you question your morals.
5) Deltarune
The last and probably the most obvious addition to this list is Deltarune. This is because Deltarune is another game by Undertale creator Toby Fox and features a lot of similarities with it. In fact, even entire characters from Undertale are featured in the game. Regardless of this, the game isn’t a sequel to Undertale and doesn’t even take place in the same world. There is currently only one part for Deltarune which is free to try out, but there are more coming as well.
In terms of gameplay, Deltarune features a lot of the same mechanics as Undertale. Players will have the option to ‘’Act’’ in order to talk their way out of combat, or simply fight and kill enemies. There is even a party system that wasn’t present in Undertale. There are obviously lots of similarities between both Undertale and Deltarune, and it is definitely recommended that you try the latter out if you were a fan of the former.