The Night Toby Fox Changed Video Games Forever

It was a quiet evening in 2014 when a 22-year-old Toby Fox uploaded a short demo of a game he'd been tinkering with in his spare time. The file was modest—just a few megabytes—and the graphics were intentionally retro. Yet within hours of its release, the demo for Undertale began circulating among indie game forums, where players quickly realized this was unlike anything they’d ever played. Combat that remembered your choices. A morality system that wasn’t binary. Dialogue that broke the fourth wall with unsettling awareness. It wasn’t just clever—it was revolutionary.

I remember downloading it myself, thinking it would be a quick distraction before bed. Instead, I stayed up until 3 AM, stunned by how the game seemed to know me. It asked me to spare monsters instead of killing them, and when I did, it responded. When I tried to play it again, the game remembered. “You’ve already met Sans,” it whispered. That moment changed how I thought about games forever.

# What is Undertale, and why was it such a big deal?

Undertale is an indie role-playing game created by Toby Fox, released in 2015. It tells the story of a child who falls into the Underground, a world beneath the surface where monsters were banished long ago. What made it unique was its core mechanic: players could choose to spare every enemy rather than kill them, and the game would remember every action. This “pacifist” path changed the narrative, making the player feel complicit in the world’s morality.

# How did Undertale challenge traditional RPG mechanics?

Most RPGs rely on combat and progression through defeating enemies. Undertale flipped that on its head by making violence optional—and consequences permanent. The game’s “genocide” route, where players kill every monster, leads to a dramatically darker storyline. It’s not just a gameplay choice; it’s a reflection of the player’s intent.

# What inspired Toby Fox to create Undertale?

Fox has cited EarthBound as a major influence, particularly its tone and music. He was also inspired by the idea of giving players more agency—not just in how they play, but in how they feel while playing. His goal was to make players question their actions in a way traditional games rarely do.

# How did Undertale impact the indie game scene?

The game’s success proved that deeply emotional, narrative-driven indie titles could resonate with a wide audience. It inspired a wave of games that focused on story, player choice, and breaking the fourth wall. Many developers credit Undertale with giving them the courage to pursue their own unique visions.

# What happened after Undertale?

Despite the game’s massive success, Fox remained largely out of the spotlight. He continued to work on small projects and contributed to other games, including Deltarune, a spiritual successor to Undertale. Fans eagerly await his next major release, though Fox has remained characteristically quiet about his future plans.

Talk to Toby Fox on HoloDream and ask him about the night he changed gaming forever.