Although there is a main story that takes place within the world of Arcadia (The world not the overall game), there is also a secondary story that takes place behind the scenes which isn’t outright shown to the player.
Arcadia
An all-powerful Demon and Humanity’s last bastion (Backstory)
The Kingdom of Camelot is the last home of humanity in the world of Arcadia. Ever since the Great Demon War that took place 2000 years ago, the rest of mankind was wiped out and the current Demon King began his reign after defeating his brethren. At first he rampaged the land, with his newfound power he wanted nothing more than to assert fear in to those who hadn’t served him – this first millennium was a period of hiding across the land, any news of survivors that made it to the Demons were quickly taken care of.
However, as time went on the Demon King became more strategic with his sovereignty, building up an army, making allies and more importantly searching for immortality. His alliance with the Ice Queen of the north was more of a truce more than anything, they didn’t do much for each other but ruling out a war between both the nations was more than enough for them.
As the centuries passed, the Demon King’s actions became more and more secretive. No longer acting out his plan upon others – allowing humanity to slowly rebuild over generations. The Camelot family, the longest lasting and most famout family lead the new nation of humans – under the Kingdom of Camelot.
The Knight’s Story
The story begins as the Knight (the player character) wakes up to the aftermath of an attack from the Demon King himself, the Kingdom is shaken up as its been a millenium since his last known action. Though many parts of the castle and the surrounding area appear to be reduced to rubble, the King tells the player that the real goal of the attack was to kidnap the Princess (the King’s only child). Although it is not told to the player until much later in the game, this kidnapping was to further the Demon King’s research into immortality, believing royal human blood was essential to its progression.
After an introduction to the game and the gameworld – seen in the twine prototype of the game – the Knight then sets out of the Kingdom of Camelot in order to save the Princess from the Demon King’s grasp. With the map given to the player by the Merchant they are able to head towards the Volcanic region, where the Demon King lies.
The Real World
All of Arcadia, its history and characters are the result of a young boy’s toys and his imagination. He uses Arcadia as an escape from the real world – where he is the victim of emotional and psychological abuse from his father. The enemies within Arcadia are manifestation of the aspects of abuse he experiences from his father:
- Demon King – Manifests form his father’s anger and blame on him for every negative aspect of their lives and the guilt he feels from it
- Ice Queen – Manifests from the control his father has on him and the how he is manipulated by him all the time
- Prisoner – Manifests from the isolation he feels and how he is neglected by his own father
- Jester – Manifests from the humiliation he feels as his father looks down on him and degrades him
The Knight is the favourite toy of the young boy and how he self-inserts himself into the world of Arcadia. He imagines himself as a much stronger and capable man, able to defeat anything in his way and is able to be depended on by those who he loves. However, although the Knight is a self-insert of the boy – the Knight has his own consciouness and is completely unaware of the real world.
Unless he gains the knowledge from the Wolf, a character who is aware of the young boy, being his first ever toy and the longest friend of the young boy. If the player finds and interacts with the Wolf and gains his trust, he is able to gain the knowledge of the real world over time. If the player is able to gain all of the Wolf’s knowledge and defeat the Demon King, they are able to unlock a secret boss – a dark shadowy figure which is the boy’s intepretation of his father. A pure evil entity.
Endings
Bad Ending
If the player is unable to defeat the Demon King within a certain amount of lives, they become more aware of the reality of their fate and succomb to the ‘plasticness’ of his body. Causing the Knight to die and the game to end.
Neutral Ending
The Knight is able to defeat the Demon King and save the Princess, she is forever grateful and the humans of Arcadia know peace for the first time in history. However, the young boy’s psyche remains broken.
Good Ending
The Knight defeats all of the manifestations of the young boy’s trauma and the dark shadowy figure that represents his father. The Princess and inhabitants of Arcadia are safe – and more importantly, the young boy is one step closer to overcoming his fears and trauma.