🤔｜theories

[silk pilot]

Was Dale actually the murderer this whole time? The one who ended Laura's life? I mean, we've seen it in Chapter 2, but should we really be 100% sure about it?

[rancid slate]

No

[azure bay]

no

[bright rose]

Yeah because he will never and ever know the case of Laura
He will just be in his own mind
He will never know how she died
Until he escapes his own paradox

[silk pilot]

Thank god. Phew

[bright rose]

Well if he will know I will not know

Also is that literally from the game or you edited or you used dale-e?

[rancid slate]

I meant like Laura is literally there with him as we see both of them connected in The Cave

[rancid slate]

Its real

[azure bay]

welp, that would be one hell of a twist. Just picture it, Paradox but outside the dream! Dead Dale from the future comes to kill Laura so she comes from another future to unkill herself so he comes from another future to kill her so she...

[bright rose]

WHGAT LOL

[rancid slate]

The rock is at X12 Y0 D50

[silk pilot]

A whole damn deja vu that has no end whatsoever

[bright rose]

The corrupted soul:mystor crol, du yu hvae gams in yo fowne?

[rancid slate]

Funny how Mr. Deer is in any X coord as long as the Y is the same as the Hotel (3)

[azure bay]

in The Cave we see a memory of her doing the deed and I trust it more than Seasons and orher depictions that are rather minor

[bright rose]

Also if the lake keeps the corrupted souls of the hotel
Then there's other corrupted souls that are "free"?

[silk pilot]

It's interesting how the corrupted soul has a way of talking. They sound like they're talking in reverse but they're not

[bright rose]

Yeah

[azure bay]

it doesn't

[rancid slate]

Preta 🗣

[azure bay]

Mr. Deer came out no problem

[bright rose]

It's like:ʎo soʎ ןnıƃı ɯɐɯɐɯıɐ

[silk pilot]

Are some of the corrupted souls people from Paradise?

[rancid slate]

All of them

[silk pilot]

Oh...

That's... Sad

[bright rose]

Yeah because the hotel is the paradise

[azure bay]

he means 6 of those seen onscreen

[bright rose]

Well in the past was the paradise

But now it's the hotel

As I remember

[rancid slate]

Corrupted Mr. Owl when

[silk pilot]

No wonder Paradise and Hotel are connected and not just some random timeline events

[bright rose]

When his time it's near to end

And after that Dale will take his place probably

[rancid slate]

That will be Mr. Fish 😔

[bright rose]

As we see in chapter 2 Mr owl dialogue

[bright rose]

Yeah

Poor guy

[azure bay]

never. Corrupted fish is all you are getting at best and even that is no guarantee

[rancid slate]

Nooooooooo

[bright rose]

He will turn into fish

[rancid slate]

I want him corrupted NOW!!!

[bright rose]

Ok

[azure bay]

make a fan art

[rancid slate]

Select Mr. Owl layer

RGB 0 0 0

White dots

Done

[azure bay]

dandelions

[rancid slate]

💥

[bright rose]

He is real
Total leak image from rusty lak-

[silk pilot]

He sure has lots in his mind

[rancid slate]

Thats the unknown Roots soul without the beak

[bright rose]

lmao well kind of tho

Now you said I'll make Mr owl as him-

[azure bay]

it was broken off to fit the deer skull

[silk pilot]

Now this might sound crazy. But are you sure this guy didn't get corrupted and end up like that?

[rancid slate]

https://tenor.com/view/roots-cs-roots-soul-corrupted-soul-unknown-soul-unknown-corrupted-soul-gif-4993176189708476754

[bright rose]

🥚

[silk pilot]

Literally

[bright rose]

His head it's too plain
IT'S NEED TO BE MORE LIKE AN 🥚

[rancid slate]

Yeah, but Mr. Owl was just a regular Asura and with Dale becoming Deva, I think he wouldnt just sit down in the Hotel chair and smoke just like Mr. Owl does

[bright rose]

Lmao

He would just like eat the guests

[rancid slate]

Dale needed to smoke to complete Paradox

[bright rose]

The meat idk

[rancid slate]

Maybe its actually the only thing they do..

[bright rose]

So smoke is the real solution?

[azure bay]

no, he's going straight to The White Door for a "checkup" ||life sentence of confinement in the basement||

[bright rose]

Then we just need to smoke in paradise

[bright rose]

That arg?

[azure bay]

no, just the basement

[bright rose]

Oh

[azure bay]

thankfully it was liberated by Sarah

[rancid slate]

https://tenor.com/view/ida-reiziger-ida-vanderboom-samuel-vanderboom-rusty-lake-roots-rusty-lake-gif-3907531863647862024

Always has been

[bright rose]

Clear huh

[rancid slate]

See how happy my boy Samuel gets happy when he smokes

[bright rose]

Yeah
Lucky guy dang

I wanted to smoke too but I can't afford cuz my money is half of an atomic cell

[rancid slate]

I want to see Laura smoking

On screen

Thats more important then the Golden Cube 👽

[azure bay]

I want to see Laura smoking... ||offscreen||

[rancid slate]

Top 10 characters Id like to see more of before the story ends

1. Mr. Crow's wife
2. Mr. Toad
3. Young Bird
4. Sarah
5. Frien
6. Mr. Boar
7. Mr. Rabbit
8. Mrs. Pigeon
9. Mr. Deer
10. Ms. Pheasant

Oh no

I forgot the Thief

The most important

[azure bay]

why's Mr. Rabbit so low?

he's the most interesting among the guests

[rancid slate]

No particular order

Sarah would be at 10

[azure bay]

she has potential

I'd like to see her ruin Mr. Owl's operations

[rancid slate]

Delete Sarah button 👉 🚨

[azure bay]

you mean erase her from our memories so our minds become useless?

[rancid slate]

What are you talking about

Who is Sarah

I badly know her

[rancid slate]

Maybe 9

Cant see Mr. Toad being interessant

I still dont know which TWD ending is canon

Mr. Owl's line in Theatre makes it look like the normal ending is canon

And the appearence of False Accusations in Paradox kinda says otherwise

Maybe as Paradox is a dream/simulation mixed with the Lake and multiple timelines, False Accusations ended up there

While the normal ending is part of the main timeline

Dreams:
1 Laura
2 Not Laura
3 Laura
4 Laura
5 Laura
6 Not Laura
7 Laura

It also kinda matches the 5 Cubes in Theatre

4 Black Cubes: 1, 3, 4 and 5

And 1 White Cube, the 7th Dream, that shows Laura's face

[rancid slate]

But the others dont match what appears in Theatre :p

Oh

I inverted the colors

They were 4 White Cubes and 1 Black Cube

[rancid slate]

It was the Black Cube and the line in TWD is black

[rancid slate]

"His memories belong to the Lake now. Extracting them caused a Corrupted Soul"

Sarah enters the room to erase them when Bob is already a CS

So does it really affect Mr. Owl's "plan"?

His memories about Laura are probably already inside the Cubes

Safe away from Sarah

But at the same time they are still inside Bob's mind too

So he did not totally forgot

He also dreams about it even after the possible extraction

Also

TWD has like the most random ending

It doesnt end with any type of conclusion

It just ends 😭

Bob discovers the doctors are doing experiments with him while he is sleeping
Bob hacks the computer and discovers more about it
He is sent to a solitary, "faces" his CS and the CS does nothing
He then comes back basically cured after doing nothing and changes place again with his CS
He dreams about the day he met his ex-gf
Game ends

💥💥

[bright rose]

Bro

If rusty lake had good endings

First:the sacrifices would never be created on rusty lake (that means that the lake would probably die)
Secondly:the vanderboom's family would have the disgraced curse
Thirdly:Laura wouldn't be alive tho and probably rose too
Fourthly:bob wouldn't get depression because Laura wouldn't exist tho
Dale wouldn't have the trauma when he was 9 years old
And more

[rancid slate]

Roots has a conclusion

William gets all 10 sacrifices and reborns as Laura

[bright rose]

Yeah but he don't do that

Because remember
The sacrifices doesn't existed so probably or he would be dead forever or he wouldn't use the elixir

[wheat ore]

who said it was gonna end ?

time doesn't exist

[bright rose]

Guys I have a theory

Mr owl isn't the owner of the lake

Damy is the owner of the lake

[azure bay]

who's Damy?

[bright rose]

The real owner of the lake

[azure bay]

figures

[bright rose]

He is the real owner of the lake

[grizzled bluff]

Please stick to the channel topic, Ded.

Be kind.

[carmine field]

I thought Sarah's level was an alternate ending

It is the polar opposite of the normal ending lol

[bright rose]

ok

[bright rose]

It's all in his head

He Will probably not escape because he will not remember his traumas

[bright rose]

Principally and obviously with Laura.

[rancid slate]

Not escape and not remember? In which ending tho?

He does remember it in the normal ending and probably leaves TWD too

While in Sarah's ending, he doesnt remember but still seems to have ended his treatment anyway

Also

With now Mr. Robin being possible

The letter could now a "foreshadow" of Laura and Bob meeting again

Robert
Robin
Robirnt 👽

[azure bay]

well, it is alternate but the book would place it in the timeline of Paradox

[rancid slate]

Jakob writing a book about his family

[azure bay]

problems with that?

[rancid slate]

No

But theres a problem with "11 year old boy only survivor"

[azure bay]

it was fixed pretty early on

[rancid slate]

In which year?

[azure bay]

I don't know but it was like that in 2019

[rancid slate]

I think I have played a version that didnt had the fix then

[azure bay]

https://tenor.com/bG2s6.gif

[rancid slate]

I bought it later 🥺

[rancid slate]

What if Bob writes the book in the normal ending too just to mess with the police

[azure bay]

https://tenor.com/bTry4.gif

[rancid slate]

I need your memory

[bright rose]

Then the Glass breaks and idk

Lmao

[rancid slate]

Something I only thought about now

Laura goes to the Lake at 1969

But only goes back in 1971

🐈

[azure bay]

Why can't she go back in 1969 and live at her place for 2 additional years?

[rancid slate]

Thats what I meant I think?

[rancid slate]

Goes back to her house

[rancid slate]

Oh, no

[rancid slate]

She could, but with her coming back only in 1971 makes some things make more sense

Seasons 1971 having a shrimp with the Lake, for example

But would also make Mr. Owl looks even more dumber 👽

[honest brook]

I think it makes sense that Laura would stay at Rusty Lake for two years, she did say she'd be going away for "a while"

[rancid slate]

Yeah, it would also explain why we dont see her (atleast for now) in the city during this period

[floral mauve]

I doubt that cuz if it’s more than a few months I think it’s no longer a trip

[wheat ore]

WHAT
WHAT
WHERE'S THAT FROM ???

[rancid slate]

Sorrow Cross

[wheat ore]

really ? god I really need to replay ub

thanks ! gonna become obssessed with rl once again yay ! 😭

[azure bay]

@honest brook @rancid slate honestly, I don't see how 2 years would make more sense than 2 months (nor less for that matter)

she could have having flashbacks for 2 whole years

she could start having them recently due to madness crawling over her

and "for a while" is a rather vague wording

[carmine field]

if we thought that way, Laura would be in Naraka at the end of her life, which I still consider quite risky to say

[azure bay]

she technically was there in some sense

[carmine field]

yeah, but at what point does someone stops being human and becomes a being of Naraka?

There is also the corruption factor that messes it all up

[azure bay]

not sure if it's weirder than madness-induces corruption

unless naraka creatures are trees

[carmine field]

I prefer to see these visions more as a glimpse or a sign of Laura's mental deterioration than something literal

[azure bay]

could be both

desoriented, losing grip on reality, seeing something from another plane of existence

[carmine field]

👁️

yeah, your explanation makes sense

[azure bay]

just a wild guess

however I have almost no doubt she saw the lake forest in one way or another

at least she drew the Rose tree?

or Rose with the forest in the background????

damn UB and its allegories

[carmine field]

If Naraka and Preta relate to the mental state of the individual, then can we say the same about the other realms?

enlightenment stuff

The idea that the wheel is an allegory for the ups and downs of life

[azure bay]

doesn't seem to work universally

deaths and rebirths are still a thing even though a human can become almost anything and then go back

even an animal

*David-fly noises*

I think I'll be calling that thing a werefly

[carmine field]

It's impossible not to think of the Rusty Lake wheel as something literal, but I see some instances where it also relates to the mental state

The hungry ghosts figuratively being the dark side of people, the whole story of Dale's overcoming in Birthday to be able to become Deva later...

[azure bay]

I think of the latter a bit differently

it's tied to a mental state but the elixir sill plays a key role

I basically see no reason in distinguishing elixirs

at least those in Roots-The Cave

William created it and Aldous became an asura

James rereated it and the dog just became somewhat immortal

Mr. Crow created the golden cube using William's elixir memories and Dale will become a deva

the same origin and 3 different effects

the pattern I see is the "state of consciousness"

Aldous has basic human consciousness so he gets the baseline result

the Dog has nothing even close and disappoints

Dale goes through his memories for the higher state of consciousness and overperforms

it feels somehow different from what you suggest @carmine field but I'm not sure how

maybe what I feel is that the mind is important but not enough for some feats

[carmine field]

I'm making dinner, I'll answer you soon

back

[carmine field]

But there is a difference between Dale's case and the others

Dale must become Deva, while the others become Asura

[azure bay]

please reread what I wrote about Aldous, the dog and Dale

[carmine field]

oh sure

The Elixir is the same

[carmine field]

I think that because he had to become a Deva, his journey was a requirement, unlike the others

[floral mauve]

My theory is still somewhat valid the green elixir has two functions, prolonged life and for humans to enlighten which means to asura

[azure bay]

so do I but I think the dog fits the pattern too and makes it purely about the state of consciousness

I mean

the effect of the elixir

[carmine field]

The dog always screwing us theorists

[azure bay]

is it?

[floral mauve]

We don’t know how long asuras live naturally but seems to have the same as humans according to guests professions I suppose but we don’t know

[carmine field]

just joking

[floral mauve]

In Buddhism humans to asura to deva each has exponential growth of lifespan

[carmine field]

I agree

But perhaps it is precisely because the dog is a dog that he did not achieve anything impressive other than having extended his life by drinking the Elixir.

In the mythology, there is a negative perception about the animal realm, which is why it is one of the three lower realms

Animals are beings who have given in to their instincts, fear and ignorance

It is similar to Naraka in this sense

[azure bay]

And I think ignorance was the key factor of the elixir's effect on the dog (or rather lack there off). Perhaps that's what set Harvey apart if his appearance in Paradise is really him being old and not time travel

[carmine field]

You read my mind

So in this sense, the wheel appears to be closely connected to the mental state

[azure bay]

but as I said, mental state isn't enough for some changes that matter

[carmine field]

yeah yeah

The Elixir and other shenanigans are what make change real

[carmine field]

Trying to rationalize the Asura in this whole scheme, I must remember that, although Deva is at the top of the wheel and Asura is theoretically inferior to it (with this hierarchy being reinforced through the colors of the timepieces), Asura and Deva are like two sides of the same coin, two slopes of what we can consider as "gods".

In mythology, Deva are benevolent and Asura are evil, warring for the top of the wheel. This is far from the case in the Rusty Lake universe, where the Asura are doing everything they can to create a new Deva and install him as the Ruler of the Lake.

Given this context, I imagine that the relationship between Deva and Asura in Rusty Lake is not one of rivalry, but of complementarity. Mr. Owl needs Dale because only he would be able to stop the corrupted souls.

On another note, perhaps the natural course of humans becoming Asura after drinking the Elixir is because they haven't overcome their traumas, abandoned their addictions or something along those lines? (Something Dale's journey would seek to accomplish)

@azure bay

Regarding the relationship of complementarity, I must emphasize how the Asura of Rusty Lake cause evil, even though there is a greater purpose. They killed and devoured each other, trapped people in the basement of The White Door, and also created some corrupted souls (which Dale, as a Deva, must stop)

Mr. Owl and company aren't afraid to get their hands dirty

[royal notch]

Neither did Maximilien Robespierre, for the greater good of the republic.

[azure bay]

Honestly, I expect Dale to completely replace Owl since "his time is limited". And I can't see so far how he could change the methods Owl used

[royal notch]

There's also the fact that while every stage is differently depicted, the new Mr Deer looks completely similar to the enlighteneds we already know.

This higher state is completely unknown.

[carmine field]

Even if the methods don't change, just the fact that it's said that Dale will be able to stop the corrupted souls is enough to say that Dale in charge can have a much more positive effect than Mr. Owl

[carmine field]

Deva Dale being an anthropomorphic deer is consistent with Deva and Asura being two sides of the same coin, as I said before

[azure bay]

The CS might be stopped without some active actions on Dale's behalf. Like coming to fight them, perform exorcism or purification.

UB confirmed that a new Day of The Lake is coming and in Paradise it was an opportunity for mass enlightenment. And in Samsara Room a CS becoming a human is considered enlightenment.

What could stop Dale from being sacrificed so the Eilanders are enlightened again? (besides the devs striving to show new things every time)

[carmine field]

It would be a bit strange for Dale's journey, considering all the effort Mr. Owl put into testing Dale and teaching him lessons, but not impossible

just weird

[azure bay]

I was talking more hypothetically. They could sacrifice Laura for them. Or they could sacrifice Laura for Dale like Caroline did for Jakob.

I'm just saying that there's a way to stop the guests without Dale knowing

and it still would involve him

[carmine field]

It's a possibility, but Laura is still a weird factor for me, she hasn't had a journey like Dale, however I also can't think that she'll be there just to be sacrificed

[azure bay]

For 1, she's already played at least 1 of her roles. The material donor for the GC

For 2, she still may have some kind of journey like Dale since she's in the same elevator.

[royal notch]

I honestly truly hope thats she stays dead, it's the only law of nature that's not been broken.

Not even the Lake fully resurrected Harvey.

[azure bay]

it was Owl

[royal notch]

Debatable.

[azure bay]

and we have Seasons and UB. She doesn't stay dead in the end even if she does in Dale's ending

[carmine field]

The new Day of the Lake connecting with Soul Street is what I expect

[azure bay]

it's not, he was literally T-posing over him

like he did over Dale

it's his style of magic

[royal notch]

How can you be sure it was his powers and not those of the Lake, summoned by him?

[azure bay]

It could be but I see no difference because The Lake being more powerful doesn't mean Owl is able to handle it or The Lake is willing to provide it

[royal notch]

However, death has not been defeated yet.

[azure bay]

literally Laura in Seasons-UB and recently Albert

[royal notch]

You got me with Albert. But with high technology and 60 years of research.

[azure bay]

in this universe death is a minor inconvenience. It's not the end of existence. You can be reborn. You can be reborn more powerful.

The Lake is able to create asuras, rebirthing Harvey as one wouldn't be a stretch

[azure bay]

Don't tell me Laura is delusional about not being dead anymore

[royal notch]

I genuinely don't understand this sentence.

What does "delusional" mean?

[azure bay]

believing in lies

or lying to herself

or living in illusions

[royal notch]

It depends. Probably, if those memories are hers. She could still find some trick though (similarly to Albert), but i highly hope it will be after Dale's enlightenment.

[azure bay]

I believe it will be but at the same time she's already alive in the elevator

if not for the blossom which many but not me believe, than for Paradox or Harvey gathering the cubes

[royal notch]

The hard stick for me would be the existance of an immediate way to cheat death. It would be too much even for the enlighteneds, and would arise many questions on their past actions.

[azure bay]

like what?

[royal notch]

Caroline, Harvey, William...

[azure bay]

whatever they did to Laura could have been discovered only recently

[royal notch]

Fair, but they could already "aliving" her before the process in the cave.

I just expressed a thought.

[azure bay]

the thing is, the process in the cave is likely the thing that did it

[royal notch]

That's a possibility too.

[azure bay]

Paradox has 2 "true" endings

both end the loop

in one Dale leaves it behind via the elevator

in the other he dies, never gets to Laura, never restarts the cycle, never gets corrupted and never kills her

"he can't save her unless he sacrifices herself"

these 2 endings seem mutually exclusive

if Dale dies he doesn't find the elevator, if he leaves he never dies

and I used to think that was "the move" Laura was telling Dale to make

to decide who among them will die and wo will be enlightened

enlightened by taking the elevator 1st

but somehow they both live

and both take the elevator

and "the move" will probably be made after they both get to the hotel

then what's the purpose of the green vial?

why is it there?

why did Owl place it there?

Considering new info, time does not exist in The Lake and cubes technically contain timelines

so I figured that somehow both Paradox endings are canon

(paradoxically)

Dale died and saved Laura

and Dale found the way out leaving Laura to herself

and somehow these 2 "timelines" conveniently merged

It's also possible that Harvey gathering the cubes across the stations is somehow connected to Paradox since 3 of these cubes are featured there

[honest brook]

Well personally, I interpret "naraka" as being a representation of mental illness as opposed to an actual physical location. At the very least, we see Laura seeing the red forest while depressed, so that's quite clear.

[rancid slate]

Nicholas was the Lord of the Lake, right?

Or this was never mentioned in the game?

I remember seeing someone saying he was

Anyway, lets say he was

No

Lets not

No more theory

💥

I was going to relate him to Dale

But nah

*Poorly made edit

What if the Mammoth becomes a super old asura and idk we see him somewhere in the Day of the Lake👽👽

[covert wyvern]

https://tenor.com/view/spongebob-patrick-star-notes-noted-gif-26232003

[rancid slate]

[wheat ore]

poorly made ? this a masterpiece !

[untold stump]

Beautiful

[carmine field]

Yes, but in the same way of the presence of a corrupted soul in the depictions of Laura's death or even in Emma's painting, which may signal corruption but both women were still alive and human, the presence of the red forest in Laura's nightmares does not necessarily mean that Laura had become a being from the hell realm

[rancid slate]

I believe the CS in Emma's case is William

He also appears in the newspapers

[carmine field]

They confirmed it was Emma's last year iirc

Their silhouettes are different

[rancid slate]

[carmine field]

The one in the painting has a black mass on its legs, like a skirt, signaling a higher state of corruption

[carmine field]

It was at gamescom if I'm not mistaken

@azure bay Confirm it for me

[azure bay]

Just speculation

[rancid slate]

Caroline has it too and she seems pretty fine to me

[carmine field]

wdym? the "skirt"?

[rancid slate]

Yeah

[rancid slate]

*I was supposed to reply to this one

[carmine field]

Laura also had it in The Mill

[azure bay]

I do confirm this.

I don't know their exact wording but it was based on the testimony of a friend being there in person.

I believed it had to be William too.

Besides, they said that the skirt means more "pure corruption" I believe?

[carmine field]

The corrupted souls of the guests too

[rancid slate]

Technically in Seasons it could be too as we dont see her legs

[azure bay]

I suppose several things.

For 1, we don't really see that CS clearly in full height

For 2, this rule could have been created later on in the series. Because there's no such excuse for Mr. Deer in Case 23 vs his redesign in Hotel

[rancid slate]

I thought of something else

Is just for visual reasons

[carmine field]

And yet they used the legged version in Roots landscape

[rancid slate]

In the Lake, the same cs appears both with and without legs

[azure bay]

I think it's more to be in line with Mr. Crow next to him

[azure bay]

For 1, don't confuse a soul and a corpse it resides in

For 2, there's no confirmation that the corpse soul was the one attacking Laura later on

[rancid slate]

UB CS Laura also is different from Mill

[carmine field]

Only after catching the butterbee

Before that it was a black mass

[rancid slate]

And also from Cave

[rancid slate]

The one in Sorrow Cross seems to have legs too

[carmine field]

The one on the mural?

[rancid slate]

Laura

In the Big White Cube

She has hair

[carmine field]

Maybe it's to match her body's silhouette, considering she switches between human and corrupted soul

It's similar to Dale becoming a corrupted soul in front of the mirror in Paradox

[rancid slate]

Tottaly

For me, CS appearences dont really have a rule but just are supposed to be visually appealing

If Mr. Rabbit was wearing a black cloth in Birthday, it wouldnt feel the same

Same for not having a Rabbit head at all

[carmine field]

The last paragraph prevents me from completely dismissing that idea

[rancid slate]

The Hotel guests have very calm and charming visuals

Being the same in their CS appearence wouldnt make they look corrupted/scary

[carmine field]

But Mr. Rabbit is shown as a classic corrupted soul in the window

[honest brook]

I think that's supposed to be because he's in the distance

[carmine field]

Both when he is far away, and when he breaks the window, you can see his "thorns"

Just zoom in

[honest brook]

I don't really see them when he's far away

[carmine field]

It's there, it's just kind of hard to see

[honest brook]

I zoomed in, I can’t really see it

[rancid slate]

Creepier

[rancid slate]

Its when he comes closer

[carmine field]

It's in the head, compare the border with the closer version

I think I have the closer version here with me

One moment

[honest brook]

I checked, but it doesn't really seem to be the same in the further one. It doesn't really matter anyway, I think they did that so it'd be more of a jumpscare

[carmine field]

Still looks like a classic corrupted soul and with common corrupted soul behavior (breaking the window)

[carmine field]

It looks like the same sprite to me tbh

[honest brook]

Maybe

[carmine field]

I gotta go

[carmine field]

The poor quality makes it difficult to see, but you can see some dots in the same places as the thorns

(you can notice them in many other parts too)

[carmine field]

shadow bonnie

[rancid slate]

Lmao

[rancid slate]

Looks like the devs forgot to enable a layer in Hotel..

If we count all his appearences, he has a total of 6-9 designs

Three in Hotel, Two in Bday, One in Paradox

He also reuses Albert's clothes in Paradox, that wouldnt count as a different design tho

His hand appears in Paradise and we could maybe count the rabbit mask as a design

Funny how he looks like to be a mix of both CS and normal Mr Rabbit

[rancid slate]

The mask is closer to Mr. Rabbit in Paradox, which I think was in production at the time

[rancid slate]

Sadly I dont think we see him anymore

(The old design)

We kinda see him in UB cuz its the same shadow from Cave I think

Also I just noticed theres no picture of him from Paradox in the wiki

Spiraaalll

Bro foreshadowed his death before the Spiral was confirmed to be the symbol of Future

[carmine field]

Check out David's page

[azure bay]

Only on certain sprites

[rancid slate]

Hell nah who is the person behind the organization 💀

[sour brook]

What's that giant aquatic creature in the Lake btw?? It appeared in the website logo/mini game thingy and swallowed the boatman

[rancid slate]

Its Eilander's pet

Can I pet that dawg

[azure bay]

Not sure these are the same creatures and we know nothing about any of them

[sour brook]

Boatman could be Mr. Owl tho. He came to paradise by a boat

[azure bay]

he never wore a hat

unlike Mr. Crow

who literally uses the boarman sprite in Case 23

[honest brook]

When all the windows are lit, Mr. Owl is presumably the one standing at the door

[azure bay]

welp...
for 1, it's him for sure. but for 2 Mr. Crow is there too in one of the windows.

I don't think this little game is a materials for theories

[rancid slate]

Probably the fisherman from Cave

[carmine field]

which boatman btw?

ah nevermind

[odd hornet]

currently writing an insanely long essay about the way rusty lake is a genius metaphor for mental health struggles

[azure bay]

I'd say, it went pretty far beyond "just metaphor". But the mental health theme is still strong and recurrent

[mossy horizon]

I’d argue we can call the entirety of Rusty Lake a big metaphor for mental health.

[rancid slate]

Rusty Lake is actually a metaphor for fishing and being happy

[bright rose]

He don't exists

That loading screen where he drowns

Was his death /j

[silk pilot]

So i was doing some research about something else and spotted this image about the "Adinkra alphabet" and saw that some letters happened to look similar to the symbols we see through out the games

I'm not sure if it might have a connection, but mostly a coincidence. But i just so happen to find this interesting

[late trail]

Just realised this is a foreshadowing of Jakob’s enlightenment

The wings behind him

[honest brook]

Yeah, I think that's a nice detail, if that was their intention

[silk pilot]

"And that's how i got divorced with your mother, son"

[late trail]

LMAOO

[stoic minnow]

Speaking of him. Don't you think that someone has mind controlled him in the scene with the letters?

[azure bay]

Tbh, this simply makes no sense. Just like the most of puzzles.

Basically we somehow trade fish for a fishing hook. Since there's no way an airlock mechanism would work via a complex system of passwords and there's no way anybody but the bird crew could know these passwords, it has to be at least more simple.

But how on Earth do we articulate our need for the hook? To the fisherman or to the lake for that matter... It's as if we don't.

And finally the thing we need the hook for. To break a ship model mast and reveal a hidden note with the location of the blue cube. Even if the bird crew could value such an info so much to hide it, I somehow doubt it would be up to date. I don't expect cubes to just stay in place

[stoic minnow]

So, is the whole submarine journey just a gameplay?

[azure bay]

Not the journey itself but likely the fillers

[rancid slate]

He just felt like doing it 👍

[rancid slate]

Could the Eye in Seasons be Rose's eye?

All places that it appears I remember are:

Seasons
Paradox (Mostly as Laura's)
Samsara Moon
TPW (Rose's)
UB drawing

UB drawing references Seasons

Idk why Laura would see her mom's eye bleed

But it also reminds me of a symbol that represents madness

[visual coral]

Vanderbooms did not exist when Seasons came out, so the devs definitely did not plan this eye to belong to Rose
I feel like it is a representation of her declining mental health, like some sort of nightmare she has along with the red forest

[rancid slate]

I know, but we know how the story as the games are launched

The same way the person in the telephone is now Mr. Crow

The eye could now be from Rose

[visual coral]

That would mean that Rose somehow got a hold of one of the Laura's cubes

How would she do that?

[honest brook]

Well, Laura might still have imagined it

[rancid slate]

Not like in TPW

[rancid slate]

Yeah

[honest brook]

It feels like it's supposed to be some sort of hallucination, with how it transforms back into a regular light

[visual coral]

How else would Rose's eye be there then?

[rancid slate]

Not actual Rose being there

[honest brook]

Well, it might’ve been Laura’s imagination, as I said. Laura’s obviously seen Rose’s eyes before

[rancid slate]

Just like Gardengap said

[visual coral]

I think so too but it also raises the question of can imagination be a part of memories
Like if I imagen a 50 meter tall bull in the middle of a street, would that bull be there in my cube

Just a food for thoughts

[honest brook]

Why would there be a bleeding eye on the ceiling in the first place, then?

[visual coral]

Then it could be anyone eye that she had seen before really

Could be Williams even

She did see the red forest, but didn't really see it irl

[visual coral]

If anything you imagine can be in your memories then why wouldn't Crow and Owl just imagine the f ing elixir

[honest brook]

It would still be imaginary, in the cube

[visual coral]

true

[odd hornet]

offhanded theory that's probably been discussed before but like what if there are different levels to ascension? like we see how a corrupted soul (like William) could become a human (Laura), how a human (Jakob) can become the animal thing (Mr owl. also the main ascension we've seen) and also how those animal beings can be killed (so it's not really immortality, is it?), weve seen a half animal go to a normal animal (harvey) and we've seen the dog become immortal. Also Aldous and Jakob both go back and forth between their human and half animal forms, and when they're weak they take the elixir again to go back to the half animal form. Like when you die you go back down a tier LMAO

[azure bay]

I think the eye in Seasons is supposed to be Laura's if anything. Samsara Room and TPW feature rather reuses

[azure bay]

considering that RL was inspired by samsara going step down on death doesn't seem that certain

Even though we've never seen anyone being naturally reborn as a demigod getting several human lives in a row doesn't seem that wild

or animal lives for that matter

[rancid slate]

In some point, Mr. Crow had to unbutton his coat

This has major effect in the lore and it is very important

Also the elevator is not centered

[rancid slate]

Could this outfit be a redesign of the og? It has the same clothing but recolored to fit his other clothes

[carmine field]

the original outfit was also worn by Mr. Owl in The Mill, so I don't think it's a redesign of the outfit itself

[carmine field]

oppenheinmer

[rancid slate]

https://tenor.com/view/oppenheimer-cillian-murphy-barbenheimer-barbie-oppenheimer-movie-gif-14455380668331281856

[rancid slate]

Atleast for Mr. Crow

[carmine field]

yeah, maybe it's a way to differentiate the designs even more

I think his design in The Cave is my favorite and I'm glad UB reused it after so long

[rancid slate]

Saame :)

[rare tide]

Rene magritte

[azure bay]

Nah, Crow's Case 23 look was inspired by him. This one isn't

[bright rose]

I can't unsee this anymore💀

[floral veldt]

someone told me a while ago but I still don't really know:
Are we sure the guests are/aren't definitively the Eilanders? Aside from the masks in Paradise, I don't have much to assume that they are/are not the family members

[honest brook]

There was Mr. Rabbit calling himself "D. Eilander" in Paradox. Even if Paradox was a simulation, I don't see why there'd be that line if it wasn't the case

[floral veldt]

here

[floral veldt]

i've played paradox a while ago, could you remember me where?

[honest brook]

In Chapter 2, in the “mind of the past” section

[floral veldt]

makes sense, mr. rabbit was in dale's past

[honest brook]

There’s also the subtle nods to the guests, like Gerard on the toilet and Nicholas drinking blood. While those don’t necessarily prove anything, they still hint that they’re the same people.

[vivid bridge]

Either they aren't the eilanders or they are and its a really dirty retcon

there's this whole theory about the Birthday rabbit (David) and the hotel rabbit being two different people

but if I remember correctly, the devs said they are? Don't quote me on that though

I think nowhere knows this stuff better than I do

[rancid slate]

They clearly are the same

In Hotel, Mr. Rabbit gets corrupted and we see his corrupted form in the ending

Alongside with the other guests

And they always reappear together in the dephts of the Lake with the Big White Cube

So they clearly are the guests

So if the Birthday Rabbit is David, and Birthday Rabbit is also Hotel Rabbit, so they are all the same person

But just in different realms of the wheel

[vivid bridge]

okay but the evidence

the clues

[rancid slate]

Paradise is basically about:
The Elixir, The Day of the Lake, Mr. Owl and the Guests's origin

The Eilander family asks for enlightenment in trade of a sacrifice, which is Jakob

In the ending, they do it and we are supposed to understand that these are the guests

[vivid bridge]

it ends with Jakob ascending

we don't see the family

[rancid slate]

It was not part of the ritual

[vivid bridge]

what part

[rancid slate]

Jakob was supposed to die

[vivid bridge]

the family being enlightened?

[rancid slate]

Caroline did the Elixir using her memories, thats why Jakob turns into Mr. Owl

[vivid bridge]

Jakob being enlightened is Caroline's big gotcha moment

yes

I don't see how it would also turn the rest of them into animal people

[rancid slate]

Its simple

That was their intention

Sacrifice Jakob and get enlightenment

[vivid bridge]

We don't even know if it works like that

last time they sacrificed someone, all hell broke loose

[rancid slate]

Caroline was the wrong person

They were supposed to sacrifice Jakob

Thats why

[vivid bridge]

anyways my point is

the whiskers

the whiskers are important

[rancid slate]

Paradox has the new style

[vivid bridge]

Hotel-Rabbit's soul has whiskers while Birthday-Rabbit doesn't. This is a consistent detail in ALL the games, INCLUDING Hotel

both of these are in hotel

[rancid slate]

Hotel has both

[vivid bridge]

yes

the one outside the window is not Hotel-Rabbit, because that guy is busy being alive in the very same scene

[rancid slate]

I made a gif too
https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/357141008875651072/1297668969112539189/20241020_171209.gif

[vivid bridge]

yes

how else do you explain him being outside the window

[rancid slate]

Whats the achievement name?

[vivid bridge]

oh idk that is recent stuff

i'm old, man

[rancid slate]

Watch closely!

[vivid bridge]

so what, he's just astral projecting outside the window

[rancid slate]

Same for the one in Paradise

Theres a theory that says the CSs have similar traits to the Lake being timeless

For me, it could be like watching your own death because you dont accept it

Also serving as a hint/teaser ro Birthday having Mr. Rabbit, where he wants to "escape this state"

[vivid bridge]

but then why did they do the whiskers like that

why didn't they just reuse the sprite in hotel

its a conscious decision

[rancid slate]

I think its just an error

[vivid bridge]

you don't just accidentally make a new sprite and add whiskers

and then keep it consistent in all future games

[rancid slate]

He also uses Albert's clothes in one of the sprites in Paradox

So yeah

Bob uses different clothes in TWD in the Case 23 scene

I dont think we can use minor asset details for serious theories

Like

Imagine having 2 rabbits and the only way to differenciate them is by havin whiskers or not 💀

[vivid bridge]

yes

its called "subtle forshadowing"

do you read one piece?

[rancid slate]

No

[vivid bridge]

okay so you don't mind spoilers?

[rancid slate]

Yeah

[vivid bridge]

basically, there's a scene where a character appears who usually has a scar but in this one instance, he didn't have it

now you could say its an art error

but it actually fits into this huge theory that he has a twin brother

[rancid slate]

💀

[vivid bridge]

and it seems to be true based on recent chapters

i'm just saying small stuff like that could be a hint

again, the whiskers are an intentional detail

otherwise they would have reused the window sprite for the soul in the jar

but they made the conscious decision to make a different sprite

[rancid slate]

Well, I think theres no reason to have 2 different rabbits, but Im not the one writing the story.. and writers know the best, so if thats the case, I have no problem accepting that

[vivid bridge]

well it would fix the problem that the eilanders do not really fit with the guests

they have completely different ages and character traits

besides boar, they're nothing alike

[rancid slate]

I can have different traits too

I will not be the same person my entire life

Even Jakob seems to act differently to Mr. Owl

And we know nothing about how Jakob was

Same for the family

What we know about Margareth? Shes old and makes food, thats not enough to determinate her entire personality

[vivid bridge]

again, it could just be a messy retcon

like how Owl refers to Boar as having a mutual friend

like bro thats your uncle

[rancid slate]

They are Bffs

[vivid bridge]

it sounds like they've never met pre-Hotel

what is Boar even the embassador of

[rancid slate]

Embassador of Rusty Lake's food industry

[rancid slate]

Considering all the guests have personalized rooms and they also appear in Roots before the events of Hotel, I think its safe to say they did

[vivid bridge]

I love retcons

[rancid slate]

Cant make a story without errors if you dont have the entire story

[vivid bridge]

yeah but it makes it hard to speculate

cause who knows what is still canon or not

fnaf has the same issue just a thousandfold

[rancid slate]

Fnaf is way more messed up

Rusty Lake is mostly fine

[vivid bridge]

yea

but in cases like this its hard to tell the intention

[rancid slate]

I think the intention of what happens next is what the game teases?

Hotel teased Dale goin up, so thats what happened next

Now about theories

I recently had a random one

The Child Lane soul is not Albert, but frien 👽

Thats my theory guys, thanks for watchin

Here are the clues:

https://tenor.com/view/roots-cs-roots-soul-corrupted-soul-unknown-soul-unknown-corrupted-soul-gif-4993176189708476754

Now

You could ask

What about frien being a "skirt" type of CS?

And my answer to that is

😭

[rancid slate]

The other "clues" would be:

•The CS refers to Rose as "The mother" and not as "My daughter" or something
•That would be the only moment we see Corrupted Albert wearing the deer mask, which he (As CS) doesnt do in TPW and Lab Station

.
Counter arguments:

•The dialogue and CS's appearence were made "begginer" friendly, so newcomers dont get confused by the CS callin Rose "daughter" and also Laura's CS looking exactly like the other CS, since newcomers wouldnt know Albert
•It is expected to know TPW when playin the Lab Station (?)

[vivid bridge]

I think he just says The mother because the games are made to be played by people who haven't played the other games or don't remember them

yes

exactly

that's what i'd say

to me Frien was always just some form of Aldous

cause he's the focus of Roots

[rancid slate]

I just hope they are an actual new character

(Frien, not Child Lane CS

But I also dont like the fact that we only see CAlbert with a deer mask in that moment

I guess it fits for that situation cuz it makes him creepier, while in TPW and Lab hes just goofy

[vivid bridge]

yeah

but its pretty obvious that its him

[rancid slate]

Rose said "No more masks" and locked them in that box

[vivid bridge]

Snow mask... as a treat

[rancid slate]

Devil Mask :(

Moon Mask 😭

Pumpkin Mask 💀

Rain Mask!!

Albert's real future plans are going to the Rusty Lake con and winning the cosplay contest

[vivid bridge]

this is whats gonna happen

[rancid slate]

The perfect cosplay for Albert

[azure bay]

don't you guys remember? Albert's scar WAS on the wrong side on one of the 1st TPW coffin screensots

[rancid slate]

No

Thats a mandela effect

His scar has always been on that side

He altered the reality

[azure bay]

Is my video altered?

[rancid slate]

Yeah

He altered the whole footage, buddy

[azure bay]

nope, and you know what it means?

my video is a reality anchor

we can make screenshots of it and sell as commercial reality stabilizers

[rancid slate]

No way

You know what to do

[rare tide]

REAL

When I remember one photo was like that, I think the actual it's too. Even there where people theorising that the photo was taken on a mirror

Dumb me, didn't realised that the new was on the right side

[bright rose]

Guys

I have a FREAKING GIANT THEORY!

Well rusty lake is inspired on Twin peaks and well in twin Peaks part 8 that I'll not put spoilers but it's referenced as an doppelganger... But there's a little catch
What we call "Simulacrum" is a big inspiration for that (a copy of something or someone) and what is a simulacrum too? Yes..
SIMULACRA!
So rusty lake is in the same multiverse of simulacr-

[raw swift]

You mean the game simulacra?

[bright rose]

Yeah

[raw swift]

It's a great game

[bright rose]

I think I got a little bit too far

[bright rose]

Yeah

[bright rose]

Ymmmm

*hmmmm

[azure bay]

Why would unrelated IP's be in the same universe?

[wheat ore]

the real question is why wouldn't they be ?

[rancid slate]

First thing that came in mind with the new teaser was the prompts of the Vanderboom family's bedrooms

With the two doors, I thought of the alchemist brothers

[azure bay]

Because Rusty Lake are crazy about copyright

[azure bay]

But beyond that, the burden of proof in on the stating party

[rancid slate]

I think they were just casually joking

[azure bay]

Damn we need a "crackpot theory warning" sign

I'm pathologically unable to take jokes like that after all these years

[carmine field]

https://bsky.app/profile/rustylake.com/post/3laymkv5xbk2l

It could be either the Vanderboom house or the Hotel

[rancid slate]

I want to believe it is the Vanderboom house

[azure bay]

I don't think it's an actual in-game screenshot.

I'd rather bet on something akin to advent calendar.

The actual teasers are behind the doors waiting to be revealed

[rancid slate]

Thought of that too

Like what they did with Untold promo

[carmine field]

I'm inclined to think it's the hotel because it reminds me of a hotel hallway and it was renewed at some point

[rancid slate]

Tho, it also matches it the next RLU campaign possibly being in the Vanderboom house

[rancid slate]

"Choose a door" But I think it would have already started if it was that

[carmine field]

all assets are new, though

[raw swift]

Since when we know about a vanderboom house game..?

[carmine field]

never

Only untold

[raw swift]

What do you mean?

[azure bay]

It's not a renovation, it's a degradation. The Hotel had electrical lighting.

Besides, the Vanderboom crest has no place there

[raw swift]

If that's the case, then it's absolutely hotel 2, i mean, the teaser is there on UB

[rancid slate]

Since it was announced I think, they were using Vanderboom images and stuff

William and Aldous heads made of stone and a Mr. Crow pick

And what seemed to be the attic

With William's frame I believe

[raw swift]

Damy just said #🩸｜general-chat message

So i think it's not untold related

Also, they specifically said new "game"

[carmine field]

Degradation?

[azure bay]

We know for sure that the next untold adventure will be VDB-related. So could be the other thing they'd be working on in the mean time.

There are 2 doors after all

[rancid slate]

Yeah, that was what I was trying to say

[raw swift]

That's fair

[rancid slate]

Like The Lab campaign and The Lab station

[raw swift]

Sorry, I misunderstood you

[raw swift]

Let's be real here, the little puzzle on the lab station in UB for the early access website was really cool

[carmine field]

true!

[rancid slate]

It will be either more stuff about William/Aldous or Albert/Rose.. or both! Or something brand new or all of these 💥💥💥

Gotta wait for the next teasers

[raw swift]

So i guess the supposed VDB untold adventure will have meaningful lore?

[rancid slate]

Oh, I was talking about the new game

[raw swift]

Yeah, but I'm asking either way

[rancid slate]

I think they would say that its a teaser for the next Untold campaign if it was that

And also being black and white

[raw swift]

Because like, lab didn't get any real lore (although it was amazing)

[azure bay]

Depends on your definition of meaningful.

I'd espect some worldbuiling but nothing grand plot-wise.

It's a side format after all, not the flagship everyone already follows

[rancid slate]

I hope it reveals atleast something like William's favorite color lol

[raw swift]

Yeah that's fair. Although I doubt it's 2 different games, because like, that is kind of hard to do with a small dev team

[raw swift]

Which makes me doubt if there will be 2 different plot lines in it

[azure bay]

It did though. We've got a proof that the worlds inside cubes don't have to be limited to a single room.

And that collective cubes are possible too

[raw swift]

Yeah, that's true. But like, lab itself didn't reveal anything new, so that's what I'm getting into

[raw swift]

Wait what? How did I miss that 😭

[raw swift]

Most important lore reveal in existence

[rancid slate]

"I like green" *game ends *

[azure bay]

It's right there, you just need to reflect on and realize it

[vivid bridge]

I don't know how canon The Lab is

[azure bay]

I see no big reasons for it not to be canon beyond mild suspicions because of the format and its spin-offish nature

[raw swift]

It's all canon until said otherwise*

[azure bay]

it takes place in an established location, features established characters and restates their established motives

[rancid slate]

Tried finding if the doors where used somewhere before

Seem to be new assets

[azure bay]

they definitely are

[vivid bridge]

to me, The Lab seems more like a fun thought experiment the devs had rather than an actual event in the rl universe

[azure bay]

I think that would be a nice question in case they are hosting a Q&A before the release

[rancid slate]

The closest was the Remember the Lake door but it is more rectangular, other color and different doorhandle

[azure bay]

we could all ask that so they notice

[rancid slate]

Or politely just one ask

[azure bay]

it's not about impoliteness. Many already ask the same questions independently

it just means these questions are confusing or important

[visual vapor]

The way you worded it made it sound like the intention was to bombard them

[covert wyvern]

We obviously couldn't avoid double questions

but yeah that seems like a good one to ask:)

[azure bay]

3-5 people that read this channel rn aren't exactly a mass bombardment

[covert wyvern]

That's also true!

[visual vapor]

Not a big one

But I agree with Sp that once could be enough

[covert wyvern]

I was really hoping my statement would end this discussion and we can return to the theories at hand

[azure bay]

Just my last statement:

I wouldn't be so sure, it could be simply lost. Unless it will be Damy filtering them and it's got his attention

[covert wyvern]

I have thought about how we could best tackle future Q&As (even on this server) fwiw. but no matter

there's doors to discuss;)

[vivid bridge]

they sure are doors

[rancid slate]

Couldnt resist

[covert wyvern]

What wood do you think they're made out of

[vivid bridge]

I wish

[raw swift]

Dale-e?

[rancid slate]

Dale-e 2

[azure bay]

Photoshop. If not something more straightforward

[raw swift]

Fair

[visual vapor]

oak

[azure bay]

They are colored just as the train and the elevator!!!!! It has to be copper!!!! /jk

[visual vapor]

I'm so tired that I almost thought you were for real

Got scared for a second

[azure bay]

If these are indeed future game assets, these would be someone's personal rooms, considering the signs... I guess?

[honest brook]

They might be William and Aldous's rooms

[azure bay]

I think it's too early to say something about them. All we've really got are their portraits which could be a not only towards new RLU

I would probably be pleasantly surprised to get a game about them

but we've been recently focusing on Albert and Rose

[raw swift]

Was there an instance where they made a game unrelated to the current story arc?

[vivid bridge]

TPW is only very tangentially related to the dale laura plot

[raw swift]

Oh yeah, I forgot albert/rose was a new direction 💀

I'm such a true fan guys!

[azure bay]

TWD was pretty tangent too

Samsara Room maybe? But it's more like a bridge between Roots and UB

[raw swift]

To dale/laura? I don't really think that way

[raw swift]

It's technically a remake, so it doesn't count

[azure bay]

TWD is the definition of a side story. It's a pov of a side character that delves more in his own psyche rather than developing main characters

[raw swift]

But it does touch on laura

[azure bay]

rather mildly. It's really a side branch launched by the same event

[azure bay]

Laura is there because she's Bob's ex rather than a genius alchemist reborn

[raw swift]

Fair

[raw swift]

Yeah it's a "behind the doors" teaser

We can only wait now

[bright rose]

Yeah

I love unrelated random indie games crossovers

[honest brook]

What if they’re teasing two separate games? The picture might not be an actual screenshot of a game itself, and it’s supposed to be like the two games are behind the two doors? Maybe the names of the games are supposed to bwritten on the doors.

[raw swift]

It's extremely hard for a small team to have 2 game projects at once

I really doubt that's the case

[honest brook]

I’m also basing this off of the fact that on Chinese social media, Rusty Lake said that they’ve been “working on two brand new projects”.

[raw swift]

Untold and the new game

[lunar axle]

Someone cut the tree from roots and made doors out of them

[raw swift]

Carbon, for sure carbon

[lunar axle]

Based on past observations, we are looking at a Q4 2025 release

[raw swift]

Or at the 10th anniversary

They'll definitely have something for us there

[daring wraith]

I also believe the 2 projects in question are the second iteration of Untold (which we know is going to be a premium experience after the showcase with Lab) and another point n click video game.

[rancid slate]

The file name here on Discord is teaser_house.png

Not Hotel confirmed maybe maybe

🗣

[raw swift]

Noooooo 😭 😭

[honest brook]

That’s what I was thinking

[raw swift]

As long as there is regional pricing, I'm all in lol

though I did pledge $50 for a kickstarter last month

[daring wraith]

I mean, if we are talking digital, TTRPGs are in the 10 - 15 USD range, give or take, however this differs wildly based on number of pages, artwork, flexibility (system) and so on. Physical copies, should the RL team decide for a retail/deluxe edition might get closer to 40 USD

[raw swift]

Retail is what I'm scared off

Digitally speaking, I can totally play $10 for it

($15 too)

[daring wraith]

Again, this are my speculations as a chronically addicted ttrpger. No official info here folks, just throwing a random ballpark estimate from other projects I bought.

[rancid slate]

While I was doing this edit, I realized that Past and Future Rose match the Crow Egg and the Elixir (Enlightenment) as Future Rose says that she is enlightenefd and Past Rose is stored inside a Black Cube which is also crafted in Roots using a Crow

Could be all a coincidence, but it still is pretty cool

[raw swift]

I don't think they would charge more than $20 at a digital release

[rancid slate]

Ignore frien

[carmine field]

🔥🔥🔥🔥

[raw swift]

AAA rusty lake game when? 🔥

[daring wraith]

Yeah, especially since they charge more than reasonably prices for their products across the board.

[raw swift]

It's so cheap here in Brazil 😭

Almost a steal

[daring wraith]

We indeed got spoiled by RL. Far better than paying 1.99 USD per room, plus some more for hints. Some other publishers/developers really be skinning poor gamers.

[rancid slate]

Theory about the plot of the game:

I think its safe to say this is the Vanderboom house. And while never confirmed that the 2nd Untold campaign is in fact Vanderboom related, it is still true that they have been working with Vanderboom content in the process. If I have to be more specific with the family members: The Alchemist Brothers

We also saw both of them in Rusty Lake station in UB, the station that teases the Day of the Lake: An event where we probably will see Dale bringing the Golden Cube and using it to do some kind of Elixir which he gets enlightened and Laura dies.
Cave shows us that the most important thing inside the Golden Cube is related to the Elixir (Atleast I think thats it) which the Brothers managed to achieve

How exactly the GCube is important? We dont know yet, but I think this new game could be just like Paradise was to Paradox: It showed Caroline's book, about the Elixir, the Wheel, the Chosen One, the Day of the Lake, etc. We know some stuff about the ritual, but not about the Elixir inside the Golden Cube, so yeah I think this new game could be about it in some point (Not the entirety of the game)

Imagine making a theory about the plot of the game with only 1 image 🐈

My 2nd guess would be a "Roots 2" showing more mysteries of the Vanderboom family

I can see it being some kind of magical door too

Maybe a timeless game with each door leading to a different time showing other things that happened to the family

Tho, TWD has already "Door" in its name

Maybe windows? Like someone looking through the windows 😭 Mr. Crow.. or FRIEN?? /j

Would make sense to play as Mr. Crow again, I have a headcanon that he observes his family sometimes

But lore-wise idk why and how it could work

[honest brook]

I think the golden cube has the Elixir because it's made from Laura's memories, which contain the elements of the Elixir

[rancid slate]

Yeah

[rancid slate]

We also see Mr. Crow in the TPW mirror

He appears behind a door in TWD 😱😱😱

[raw swift]

By saying it's not the entire game, you're basically telling us that the game will be big lol

It's not exactly something RL does, tho

[rancid slate]

Dont they?

[raw swift]

Their games are small

[rancid slate]

Aldous becoming Mr. Crow is shown at a hidden level

[honest brook]

But most of the games, despite being small, do contain a large amount of lore

[rancid slate]

They show a lot of importanr stuff in minor/hidden points of the game

[raw swift]

Yeah, but focusing on 2 big plot points can't be done in such a short time 😭

[rancid slate]

Including The Day of the Lake teaser

[raw swift]

Guys

FtM will have rusty lake info????

[rancid slate]

Star = Hidden Achievement I believe

[visual coral]

Probably just a reference

[rancid slate]

Like haha easter egg

[visual coral]

An easter egg

[raw swift]

I hope not

I hope it's something important

Imagine having important lore in a completely unrelated game lol

[rancid slate]

But its not even a Rusty Lake game 😭

[raw swift]

Totally not something nier does

[honest brook]

Follow the Meaning isn't even part of the Rusty Lake universe

[rancid slate]

Casually dropping the whole lore

[honest brook]

It's most likely just going to be a reference

[raw swift]

Drakenier made me drop that assumption

It can happen, even if it's not related 😭

[rancid slate]

Mr. Crow will appear and say "I gotta follow the meaning openning these doors in the next Rusty Lake adventure"

[raw swift]

To those who don't know, I'm talking about the drakengard/nier universe.

[raw swift]

LOL

[rancid slate]

Rose as protagonist checking her family's story 👽

[honest brook]

I wonder if this new game will reveal more on the layout of the Vanderboom House

[visual coral]

Definitely the basement

I'm hoping that this game will have us figure out how to make an elixir in a more detailed way, like we have to make experiments with different substances and cubes. It could give us so much lore mechanics

[rancid slate]

I hope, but maybe not

[visual coral]

Or maybe reveal what connection did Vanderbooms have with Mr Owl beforehand

[rancid slate]

Even the Lab has like 4 different layouts

TPW, UB, RLU and RLU promo

[rancid slate]

Another reason to think that the Golden Cube/Elixir/DayOTLake arent gonna be the main focus is because of the game having an own theme that people can understand without playing the other games

Unless they name it Rusty Lake Roots 2 👽

[raw swift]

But like, if it's like that, we'll never get any game with meaningful plot as the main focus?

[rancid slate]

Ofc we will

But it will be a well thought game I presume

And there can always be hidden major lore

Using UB as an example again with the BKM, Lab, RL Stations and the Collection elevator scene

Paradox with the secret endings kinda too

[visual coral]

Roots 2(not a remake)

And then we'll get Roots 3 with Aldous's view on events

[rancid slate]

I wonder what the other Vanderboom will sound like

We got voice actors for Albert and Rose

Now it could be time for the others

[honest brook]

It might not be like that for all the future games

[autumn bloom]

Hello, I just joined this discord. I've been playing the rusty lake games for a while now and I like to share my ideas on how the rusty lake universe functions here. Sorry if I'm a bit behind or wrong about stuff when I talk.

[rancid slate]

Its ok, feel free to share your ideas

[autumn bloom]

One of the things I don't understand is the elixir works. Jakob Eilander used it to merge with his mothers corrupted soul to become Mr. Owl. But when Aldous and William Vanderboom drank it, William became a corrupted soul and went on the reincarnate as Laura. But Aldous didn't merge with his brothers corrupted soul to become Mr. Crow.

[rancid slate]

Its a common misconception

Jakob didnt merged with Caroline

I presume she "died" for real

Since thats what yhe Elixir does

[autumn bloom]

That makes more sense. One thing I'm not good at is symbolism. I can never tell the difference.

I didn't know is that scene was symbolic or not

[rancid slate]

A mix of both, maybe

An explaination for that would be:

Caroline uses all the elements from her Cubes (as shown on screen) and combines them to create the Elixir

Jakob finds eternal life, but Caroline finds sudden death

[autumn bloom]

But is it eternal life? In Cube Escape: The Cave, Jakob says something about the full elixir (If I remember correctly) Could the elixir just make you semi-immortal? Jakob and Aldous still appear to age in the games.

[rancid slate]

Yeah, apparently they will get the full Elixir in a future game

But Jakob also says that his time is limited in Paradox

And Future Laura implies that only Dale and her will use the next Elixir

So I really dont know for now

I just used the term "eternal" because thats what they used in Roots

[autumn bloom]

Eternal seems like a better word to use

[rancid slate]

The new term apparently is just Enlightenment

"One of us will die, the other will be enlightened"

[rancid slate]

Just realized that the next game is another chance for the Mill lady to appear 🐈

[carmine field]

it's eternal life as long as you keep drinking the elixir, I would say

since Owl and Crow still need the Elixir

[rancid slate]

Harvey secretly has the full Elixir but noone asked him so he also never told anybody

[visual coral]

The devs said that Laura also used the elixir in Seasons and it just revived her but made "the Lake belong to her" whatever that may mean.
So not-full elixir just makes you progress in terms of stages of Samsara wheel, and that what they call enlightenment

[azure bay]

I hope it's not because I'm not particularly excited about FTM and I am sure most of the fans don't even know it's a thing.

I could only hope for a teaser for a new Second Maze Rusty Lake game they mentioned years ago

[azure bay]

The Lab is a proof that RL don't really care about layouts.

3 games featuring it, recurring rooms and objects. And each time the lab is different.

Less so but I could say the same about the house. The Past is definitely the ground floor with the iconic rose wallpaper and yet it's as detached from "reality" as any other depiction of the house's interior

[azure bay]

@autumn bloom

I'm dead sure the "full" elixir is just another misconception.

It was only mentioned in The Cave when they only had a literally shitty extract. Never again.

Therefore any concentrated elixir is "full".

What's more any elixir seems to grant eternal life but there's a catch. Your life is eternal as long as you don't take a dump.

Because elixir particles are clearly leaving one's body during defecation.

[rancid slate]

Maybe a full Elixir would be a permanent one

And it makes sense for it to not be mentioned again in other games

Why would they mention it?

"Yeah Dale, my time is limited and I also need the full Elixir"

Or..

Since it looks like Dale and Laura are the ones to use it

Its possible that the "full" elixir would make him become Deva

But I hope its not just that and has actually a little bit more of ritual stuff behind the process of becoming Deva

Even with all the preparation Dale did already

Quick and simple thing I just thought here:

The next game could also be inside the Golden Cube, as it mostly contains both Laura and William's memories inside it 👽

We know that Golden Cube can also contain realities in TPW, so it is an already estabilished thing that can happen again, but now with a different execution

While we dont necessarily need to be an "outsider" entering the GC, it's also possible that we would play as someone who is already inside the GC, just like Future Rose was

In this case, it could also be like both Past and Future Roses help each other by giving and receiving things from inside and outside. Example: Lets say we play as William and we know whats missing in the recipe of the Elixir, but it doesnt exist/found in the 1850s, so an "Outsider" helps us giving this thing that is now present in the 1970s

While it sounds like TPW again, I dont think it needs to be co-op again too

Oh yeah, if it happens like this, we would be receiving both past and present new info

But but it would be little weird to have a game "altering" the GC without being in the Day of the Lake or next to it

And if so, this would place the game after Theatre, but also after Dale arrives to the Hotel without us knowing it (?)

Coult still work tho, and then later in the game that is actually the Day of the Lake, I believe it would take place before/during/after this "GC altering" game

[honest brook]

I’m not sure that comparison makes sense. UB is more of a metaphor, and isn’t meant to be taken literally. TPW and RLU: The Lab take place in two different cubes, so they’re also just representations of the lab. We haven’t actually seen the lab in “real life”.

It’s not the same in Roots. While some sections of the game aren’t meant to be taken completely literally, the general positioning of the house’s rooms were consistent throughout.

Another reason why the lab looked different each time was for gameplay reasons. TPW’s lab was too small for UB, UB’s lab was too big for RLU. But the Vanderboom House’s layout already seemed to be established in Roots, and I feel like its layout would work in another game. I don’t see why they would change it if they don’t need to.

[autumn bloom]

So what are we talking about here? Sorry, I had to go to sleep.

[autumn bloom]

So the dog from the cave no longer has eternal life?

[rancid slate]

Theres no way this dog hasnt pooped after all these years

[autumn bloom]

That what im saying

[azure bay]

1. There's no reasons for cubes being just "representations".

Before, we could argue about memories being just "vague recordings in our mind" but exactly after what TPW did to them, it has a place no more

2. I agree that UB is mostly a metaphor but I believe that secret locations like the marble cube, the hotel and the inner rooms of The Lab (basically the parts away from the railroad) have a chance not to be distorted by metaphors, but...

3. ... but still distorted by the format of point & click room escapes. Like it always was.

The consistent and sensible level design was never a priority for Rusty Lake. They place only assets with an in-game purpose. There are no doors in 2 middle chapters of Case 23, nor in The Mill. There's no wat the giant building of the Hotel having only 6 rooms that can't be pinpointed by their windows from outside. Even Roots have only an approximate layout tied to wallpapers but the furniture and other elements are inserted only when they are a part of puzzles regardless of any consistency

[autumn bloom]

There's no way this dog didnt poop after all those years

[rancid slate]

I think Nowhere was trying to say that Elixir slowly leaves as you poop

[autumn bloom]

That kinda makes sense

[azure bay]

I imagine how tragic would be its death for fans and how insignificant for the games themselves

[autumn bloom]

But when did Harvey reach enlightenment?

[azure bay]

We have no idea

[autumn bloom]

I figured so

[azure bay]

Some time before Hotel

How long and what he was before - good questions

Since Paradise easter egg of him could be either just him living nearby or coming from the future

Apparently he time travels now

[honest brook]

But the thing is, gameplay isn't as dependent on the house's layout as it is on the objects around a room.

[autumn bloom]

But could he had reached enlightenment before Paradise?

[azure bay]

I have reasons to assume that these demigods have a society. At least big enough to keep Rabbit and Pheasant in business.

And such number of people would require some sort of replanishment beyond The Lake and the elixir

[autumn bloom]

We don't really know much about that though.

[honest brook]

Keeping the layout the same wouldn't have as much of an impact on the game design as keeping the furniture in the same place, for example

[autumn bloom]

I'm still trying to figure out how the rusty lake universe functions and its rules, like how the cycle works.

[azure bay]

I'd at least expect the wallpaper consistency as in Roots and with Roots.

Not sure about staircases and corridors. Hotel screwed them up. Probably the situation will improve at least for the RLU adventure.

No guarantee it will stay consistent if we are to go back there in a video game

[dire cobalt]

honestly atp i just accepted that its just magical lake doing magical things

[rancid slate]

I was just joking :p

[rancid slate]

Yknow what they say: Paradise requires sacrifice

[azure bay]

Let's sacrifice Maarten c:

[rancid slate]

Nooooo

[rancid slate]

Me on my most sane day

RLU actually has a new William sprite, forgot to check that

It seems to ignore the SR sprite tho

[autumn bloom]

POV: Trying to put together a timeline for Rusty Lake and all of the ARG elements.

[vague imp]

Where did u get that bottom right photo?

[rancid slate]

The photos are early prototypes of Rusty Lake Untold

[vague imp]

Ohh ok ty

[rancid slate]

They were posted in the beggining of the year

[autumn bloom]

Where can I get rl untold again?

[rancid slate]

https://www.rustylakeuntold.com/

[autumn bloom]

Oh

Thanks

[dire cobalt]

omg i cant wait for this

idk where i will find 3 people willing to play a game that i am unhealthily obsessed with but whem there is a will there is a way

[honest brook]

The first one, Rusty Lake Untold: The Lab, is already out, as well!

[visual vapor]

There is 🧎‍♀️