Plot discussion (*SPOILERS*)

[Axnor]

So, I'm really surprised I haven't found any plot discussion here :P. So discuss away, who was the other dude he was working with (Newton mby?), and why is the mirror world so much more "grim".

[wrackune]

Oh man, I'm so excited to see a plot discussion post finally. I'll just kick back with some popcorn :D

[Shadowspaz]

WOOO! I don't know why I didn't start a discussion myself. :D

Okay, backing up to the start of the game, we see paintings in each of the chapters' hallways. It starts out with Newton working with Escher (Look up pictures of him. I was trying to identify that other man, as well, and when I tried Escher, he matched the main character pretty well, in design, and in story). The pictures then devolve to an aging Escher, as he creates first the triangle, and then the tesseract. What they were working on isn't terribly relevant to the story, as it's what Escher's creation turned into after falling apart due to Newton's death.

Or so I originally thought. I think Newton was certainly an influence, but as this game takes place inside Escher's mind, I'm thinking there was something more. When you go to cross the bridge the second time, Escher mentions his desire to meet his partner after crossing "the bridge" (Which, I believe, is something of a bridge connecting life and afterlife/memories/something to that effect).

Now, the thing is, you originally cross the bridge, heading to the right. The second time, to the left, hoping to meet his partner. So my immediate thought was that his "partner" was, in fact, himself. And so he ends up meeting both Newton (A heavy influence, and perhaps an actual partner. Still unsure) and an aged version of himself. I'm thinking that image of him would fit between the pictures (Perhaps ch. 3 and 4, if I recall correctly). And, as this game takes place inside his own mind, he won't mentally portray himself as a broken, old man, but as his younger self.

Long story short, he was slowly driven insane by his ideas and creations. This "older Escher" could be representative of his true self (Which he refuses to acknowledge) and a coming-to-terms-with-reality kind of thing. So I felt pretty confident Escher's partner was Escher. But I thought Newton could also be said partner. The fact that both of them showed up on the bridge gives credence to neither of those, so I feel like this is still a loose theory.

And to the developers, I wouldn't mind you guys letting me know how close this is to your idea, or if I missed the mark entirely, but I'd rather you don't give any definitive statements. And I highly doubt you ever would, since that's the whole point of the story being how it is. :P

Anyway, lets see where this goes. Cheers!

Edit: Oh, and why are mirror worlds darker? I'm thinking the originals represent Escher before losing his partner, and the mirror worlds are more about him falling apart afterwards.

Edit edit: Oh! That might be it! Newton was his partner, but losing him, he lost himself as well. In a sense, they both died, so he encountered both on the Bridge. This feels better. I'm happy, now. :P

Also, in the level, 'The Morgue,' MDCCXXVII is written above the door: 1727. The year Isaac Newton died.

[A Gelatinous Cube-Z-]

To add to what you've said thus far, it could also be that he completed the tesseract after Newton's death, having descended into madness enough to do so, and it resulted in the chaos you see after crossing the second bridge. Following this, Escher has not been locked in a state of limbo.

He wakes up, thinking what came before must have been a dream, and goes home only to have to retrace his steps to figure out what happened. In the standard worlds, he thinks his struggle ended upon completing the tesseract, hence why it appears that he is back in "reality" (possibly indicated by the presence of color), but that's only where his true descent into madness begins, as it then forces him to see just how far down he went. After crossing the second bridge toward trying to find his partner (and, strangely, himself), he is brought back to "reality" where he must then witness the destruction surrounding his creation...into which he is once again pulled. He wakes up, thinking what came before must have been a dream...

[Shadowspaz]

Okay, so you're interpreting things as more real, than in his mind? At least, in reference to the tesseract. I do think the color vs. greyscale does represent real vs. in his mind (Most people don't dream in color), but I'm wondering if the tesseract destroying his home was more the final delusions of a madman; dreams merging with reality.

Another question: Escher and Newton lived 200 years from each other. Were they really partners, in some alternate-timeline kind of story, or have the times been kept accurate, and Escher simply idolized his 200-year predecessor?

[A Gelatinous Cube-Z-]

I think it's both, that the reality he is now in is the product of his mind, which he can no longer escape.

[Shadowspaz]

Ooh, yes. I like that. lol
I really want to find all the wisps, cause I feel like that'll reveal a good bit of story. It looks like every detail was deliberate to tell a piece of the plot.

[Axnor]

Wow, nice explanation, you two, didn't notice that year in the Morgue. Thanks for making things clearer, the desire to see how the game ends was the thing that motivated me the most to beat the Mirror world.

[louismax1]

Do you guys see any relevance to the image that complete set of wisps form? It's got Escher drawing in the middle, with some large object (lighthouse?) suspended above him, with two giant heads in the sky, both in slices: Newton on the left, Escher on the right.

[✪Old Man Jenkins'̏̏̏̏̏̏]

I LOVE THAT PICTURE! ^_^
Two geniuses, two sides of the same coin! Right in the middle, the younger Escher still toiling away <3

[BoswerLK]

anyone have a text dump of the game? would be easier to piece if we could see all the dialogue in one place, as some of them clearly reference others (e.g. "only everything")

[7I3N]

just finished the mirror world like 3 minutes ago and here are my thoughts.

In my mind the story and gameplay was him trying to formulate a theory of the physical world. (like the levels were him thinking through problems)

Newton was representative of physical reality, and his quest is trying to reconcile constructs in his mind with the observable newtonian reality.

therefore when he finds the bridge to newton he can wake up apply his twisting of gravity and perspective in the real world.

thats all i got. color me still confused but yeah

TL;DR- he was like, working through theoretical problems in his head the whole time, and at the end he figured it out and that did the cube thing in his house.

[7I3N]

also gg and i liked the first ending's better.

[Wirdjos]

I know it's over a year late, BoswerLK, but I created a guide with a text dump and the screenshots it came from.

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=623552770

[Doctohedron]

Първоначално публикувано от Wirdjos:

I know it's over a year late, BoswerLK, but I created a guide with a text dump and the screenshots it came from.

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=623552770

You missed one thing- in the start, when you first start the game, it starts off with:
Only everything.

My integrity of wit...

My fortitude to treat onward...

...and my home.

Kinda spooky, when you think of the game as a repeating record...

[allztarz]

I just had the opportunity to play this game. It would have been so much better with a plot or at least the sense of a context. I don’t really enjoy games that leave it up to the players to guess the storyline.

If you asked about the plot then it’s because you care as well. Unfortunately, I don’t believe there is anything as deep as what I read above.

My “guess” is that Escher was just dreaming away his life, puzzles being the obstacles he faced while inventing the tesseract. The second part is simply the nightmare version picturing how mad he became with his obsession for the tesseract and Newton’s death. His house at the end when he wakes up is an evidence of the resulting madness/destruction. The bridge is the conduit between reality and dreams. Color = reality, Grey = dream.

Bottomline, a good game should tell a good story. While the game is not bad, it really fails to tell a good story which is a bit of a let down for me.