Fandom Project

Undertale and Branching AUs

The year is 2015, and the new indie release known as Undertale was a smash hit. This lovable RPG featured a new fantasy universe full of friendly monsters and quirky characters beloved by the Internet. One in particular grabbed everyone's attention, and Sans the Skeleton went from one unique character to thousands of new characters.

In a way, you can describe these Sanses as OCs, but they are based on another original character. These Sanses, often created as part of an alternate universe of Undertale (AUs), represent the ideal Sans a person wants to see. Where the original Sans falls short of expectations, the new Sans takes up the torch to be whatever the Internet wants them to be. If that Sans is lucky enough to become a beloved icon on the Internet (like Underswap or Underfell), then new spin-offs can suddenly pop up. Underswap Sans turns into Swapfell Sans or Inverted Fate Sans or Fellswap Sans... It becomes an endless cycle of regenerating content.

It's certainly not a crime to make an alternate universe for Undertale or make your own version of Sans. I've done this plenty of times myself. My best friend and I created an AU called Underpals where Sans travels alongside the protagonist (in this case, Papyrus) through the Underground to free monsterkind. It's a fun, imaginative exercise that only gets out of hand when people argue over what an ideal character should be.

The problem with having a thousand different versions of the same character that all belong to different people is that suddenly, everyone owns the same content. Everyone has a different opinion of what that concept should be, and they bully people for having different opinions. Which Sans is correct? Which Sans is good? Which is bad? Should we advocate for the original and bash Fanon creations? Or should we encourage new creation? What does the original creator think??

Regrettably, I had to witness a talented author get bullied for having an idea.

It was 2017, and I was trying to read the best Undertale fan fictions on the Internet. I came across a story called "Overgrowth" and decided to read it. I poured through that cute little story and listened to the fan-made audiobook on YouTube. I left a like, left a comment, encouraged the writer, and left my computer feeling warm and fuzzy inside.

Unfortunately, the Internet caught up with that humble author, and the story blew up into a giant scandal. Fans stole the story and published it on other platforms as their work. People began to harass the author for not making their main characters a canonical ship. The fandom seemed to be taking over something that did not belong to them, and it resulted in the writer quitting writing altogether and removing all traces of Overgrowth from the Internet (except a voice-acted YouTube read-through). Several other authors faced similar problems and decided to drop their stories too, which marked a dark time in my social media history.

Another rotten case of peer pressure and bullying happened on the Archive of Our Own platform (AO3) to the author of a story known as "Sooner or Later You're Going to be Mine" (SoL). In their universe, they made a spin-off of Mafiafell Sans who is the leader of a mob organization and madly in love with the protagonist. After six months of writing, the author quit writing and erased all of her work. After a few years, they finally re-uploaded their story to AO3, but they have not updated their work or looked back on their project with any fondness. Only bitterness.

Those are only two examples! I've seen the same from Songfell, Reapertale, Ask Error, Underfell, Underswap... The toxic Undertale fandom made the writers for each of these universes either quit or erase their Undertale-related content. People were scared to post their content because it seemed inevitable that backlash would trample their creative ideas. The Undertale fandom became infamous for obsession and intolerance.

This experience stands out to me because I am also a writer. Sometimes I create my own works and sometimes I write fanfiction. This event taught me how scary fandoms can be when used by toxic individuals who want to control other people and their work. People can and will turn social media from a good thing into a bad thing. Such large groups can gang up on creators who may be writing for fun. I have to consider my audience whenever I publish something on the Internet and make sure I am not posting my work during any drama or sour conditions.

For everyone looking to enter a fandom, I encourage you to think about your audience before you post. Are you posting an idea at a bad time in the fandom? Are there issues you don't know about that could make someone upset? Are you accidentally ripping off someone else's ideas? I know that these are hard questions to stop and consider. It's easy to post an idea without considering the consequences.

For anyone looking to review someone else's ideas, first think about whether or not you're trying to take control of their character or story. Are you feeling defensive about their creative decisions? Do you dislike the turn they are taking in their work? Don't forget that this is someone else's idea. Don't take it away from them! You don't have to agree with everyone on the Internet, but they should be free to play with their ideas.