The dark and mysterious RPG from Toby Fox may seem unique however there are plenty of games like Undertale to play in 2024.
Indie developer Toby Fox took inspiration from some retro titles while developing his award winning masterpiece and in turn, inspired several more games that appear below.
Undertale successfully subverted the RPG, binning several concepts that had become synonymous with the genre while introducing a morality system that offered genuine impact and consequences to how players progressed through the game.
The simplistic art style masks the complexity of Undertale’s characters, with a cast of monsters that possess individual personalities, emotions and motives.
Combat is another grand departure from the norm of turn-based RPGs or real time hack and slash with the exploration of a monster-filled underworld punctuated by frenetic bursts of bullet-hell gameplay.
Gamers who loved Toby Fox’s seminal debut RPG can enjoy the following games like Undertale to play in 2024.
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1. Deltarune Chapter 1 & 2 (2018)
An obvious pick for fans of Toby Fox’s indie hit, Deltarune Chapter 1 & 2 is the best game like Undertale to play in 2024.
Aesthetically similar to Undertale, Deltarune once again presents a top-down perspective of a young human on a quest in a world filled with monsters.
The combat in Deltarune retains the bullet hell mechanics of its predecessor albeit with a stronger resemblance to classic JRPGS such as Final Fantasy or Suikoden in its battle system.
Delatrune maintains the player autonomy with gamers able to choose whether to attack of spare enemies. The dark comedic touches of Undertale are also present and correct with the harrowing cliffhanger at the end of Chapter 1 being a fantastic example of how to subvert player expectations.
Developer Toby Fox plans to release Deltarune as a seven chapter RPG epic. There’s currently no release window for Chapter 3 but the first two installments will keep Undertale fans entertained while we wait.
2. Earthbound (1994)
HAL Laboratory teamed up with Ape Inc. to create this RPG classic as a sequel to the 1989 title Mother, a.k.a Earthbound Beginnings.
Earthbound manages to subvert the tropes of the traditional RPG. The game clearly inspired the development of Undertale with its zany humour and eccentric enemies. How many games can you think of where you battle hippies, UFOs and puddles of vomit? Earthbound has them all and many more besides.
It’s not all sunshine and rainbows though as lurking beneath Earthbound’s colourful graphics is a story featuring alien invasion, emotional turmoil, time travel and betrayal.
The modern day (well the nineties), setting makes a welcome change to other RPGs and provides a fresh experience to players looking for game like Undertale to play in 2024.
Nintendo fans that haven’t experienced the bizarre world of Earthbound may still recognise its leading man, Ness.
The cheery little scamp has feature in no fewer than five Super Smash Bros. games but despite his persistance and consistency, he’s yet to make an appearance on our list of the best Super Smash Bros. characters.
3. Cuphead (2017)
Cuphead might not be the first game you think of when looking for games like Undertale but the two share more in common than you might originally realise.
For starters, the combat in Undertale and Cuphead features grueling bullet-hell gameplay. Several of Cuphead’s many bosses aren’t shy about pulling their trigger finger, often filling the screen with projectiles for gamers to try and avoid.
Cuphead will test players reflexes to the limit, especially in one of the several levels that see Cuphead and his brother Mugman slide on their goggles and take to the skies in their aeroplanes.
It’s not just the bullet-hell gameplay where Undertale and Cuphead have a shared DNA though. The sinister undertones of Undertale are present in Studio MDHR’s 1930s animation inspired masterpiece.
Cuphead’s story is dark beneath its vibrant shell. The plot of the game sees the titular Cuphead vanquishing bosses to capture their souls so he can repay his outstanding debt to The Devil himself.
4. Oxenfree (2016)
Oxenfree is a graphic adventure game from Night School Studio and definitely not a sequel to side-scrolling skateboarding game Olli Olli…
Instead of a playground call to ceasefire, Oxenfree tells the story of teenager Alex as she visits a local island for a party with her friends.
What follows is a supernatural tale where Alex and co. will become tormented by the ghosts of lost sailors and experience the effects of looping through time thanks to pervasive radio waves.
The surreal plot of Oxenfree will appeal to fans of the outlandish storyline in Undertale and the journey with friends involves several emotionally charged scenes that explore the concepts and meanings of life and death.
Another element that ties Oxenfree to Undertale is the strength of the writing, especially in the dialogue between characters. Oxenfree’s step into the supernatural is not to be missed for fans of the unknown or analogue radio technology.
5. Hollow Knight (2017)
Often more comparable to a game like Dark Souls or Castlevania, Hollow Knight is a beautiful 2D metroidvania that’s ready to swat you down like an annoying fly at a dinner party at every opportunity.
Hollow Knight is an enthralling experience that sees your silent knight character delve into the depths of Hallownest to face an assortment of brutal insectoid nasties.
Similar to Cuphead further up our list, Hollow Knight features frequently terrifying bullet-hell scenarios that forces players to move around the screen with accuracy and purpose to avoid taking damage.
Hollow Knight’s somber tone will appeal to fans of Undertale. Several storylines have emotionally devasting resolutions and multiple characters will pull at your heartstrings and make you question the world you’re exploring.
There are even some instances where players can determine the fate of certain characters, making the game open for multiple replays to explore every outcome, in the same way as Undertale.
The long awaited sequel, Hollow Knight: Silksong will see players taking on the role of the Hornet in a new adventure that looks simply breathtaking.
6. Pony Island (2016)
Pony Island is the brainchild of Canadian developer Daniel Mullions and see players playing a game within a game. If you’ve seen the movie Inception, Pony Island is the second level of the dream, the one where Joseph Gordon-Levitt runs around in that swanky hotel.
Gameplay allows players to interact with and play an arcade cabinet for the titular game but will quickly discover that the unit has been possessed and corrupted by the devil, Lucifer.
Lucifer has taken control of Pony Island in an attempt to claim the soul of the player. It may sound a little out there but I’m hooked on replaying Star Wars: Masters of Teras Kasi and only demonic interreference can be responsible for that sort of behaviour.
What follows is a metafictional game that will test your will and reflexes in equal measure as players must overcome their own rational reasoning and a series of challenging shoot ’em up sections.
In a similar vein to Undertale, Pony Island will make you question how a videogame should work and what constitutes a ‘game’ in the first place.
7. Lisa: The Painful (2014)
Another darling of the indie game scene to appear on our list of games like Undertale, Lisa: The Painful sees players fill the boots of middle-aged martial arts instructor Brad Armstrong as he journeys through the post-apocalyptic Olathe on a quest to find his kidnapped daughter.
To provide a little more context, Olathe was an otherwise unremarkable town until a cataclysmic event wiped out every female in existence. That is except, Brad’s infant daughter.
Combat is handled in the traditional RPG turn-based way with Brad and his allies going to town on marauders and beasts using martial arts techniques and special moves.
Fans of Undertale will appreciate the dark tone of the story. As if child abduction isn’t grim enough, Brad is also inflicted by an addiction to the drug known as ‘Joy’.
Brad’s journey to recover his daughter will see him make several game-altering choices and decisions which will impact the overall story and even how the game can be played as events unfold.
8. Omori (2020)
Often compared to Earthbound (see the second entry on this list), Omori is the story of Sunny, a teenage boy living with severe societal withdrawal.
Sunny escapes into his dreams in the imaginary world of Headspace and adopts the persona of his alter-ego, Omori. While in Headspace, Omori will encounter nightmarish hallucinations with strengths and weaknesses based on his emotions.
The combat follows the traditional RPG route of turn-based battles however to succeed players must incorporate attacks and abilities to enforce status effects in a rock-paper-scissors style system.
Happiness beats anger, anger triumphs over sadness but sadness conquers happiness. Each of the emotions will have a positive and a detrimental impact on the players’ stats.
Of all of the titles that we’ve featured on this list, Omori is possibly the one with the bleakest and darkest tone.
Themes that run throughout the game include mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression recurring concepts centre around psychological horror and suicide. If Undertale’s darkest moments are what appealed to you most, then Omori will be worthy of your time.
9. Rakuen (2017)
Originally developed for PC using the RPG Maker XP engine, Rakuen stands out on our list as a game without combat encounters. This may tick some boxes with lovers of Undertale as the debut title from Toby Fox can notably be completed without killing a single enemy.
Writer, developer, composer and publisher Laura Shigihara’s game of a hospitalised boy granted the freedom to explore a magical land in his mother’s fairytale is a unique premise and full of heartfelt interactions.
Throughout your adventures, players will meet a cast of memorable characters, both inside the book and in the real world. Taking on quests to help your newfound friends will reward you enriched friendships in the face of rejection, loneliness and fear.
Undertale also features a lost soul exploring a fantastical world in which they can heal and have a positive impact on the native inhabitants.
Players looking to sample the delights of Rakuen can now do so away from their desktops and laptops as the game is also available on the Nintendo Switch.
10. Child Of Light (2014)
Ubisoft’s beautiful Child Of Light is a one of those games like Undertale that feature an undiscovered world full of mysterious monsters.
The game stars Aurora, a red-headed child who awakens in the fantastical land of Lemuria after succumbing to a fatal illness. So far, so dark and moody.
From the dank and dripping caves where she wakes, Aurora travels across the Kingdom of Lemuria, traversing incredible landscapes in the hope of returning to her terrestrial body. The premise is similar to Undertale where two worlds are connected tangentially and our protagonist is seeking passage to return home.
The narrative of Undertale and Child Of Light are so strikingly similar that it would be remiss of me to divulge further information for fear of spoiling this epic adventure.
If you decide to venture into the world of Child Of Light, you’ll not only experience a grand adventure but you’ll also discover an expertly crafted turn-based RPG, with battles that will feel familiar to those who know and love the Active Time Battle systems found in the Final Fantasy series.
