The title screen of the second game.
Flutter Island is a series of games with an anonymous creator. They star Fluttershy traversing a dark and foggy maze, while an evil-looking Apple Bloom chases her down.
There are 3 games in the series: Flutter Island 1 and 2, and a prequel, Apples Everywhere, which has Apple Bloom as the main character. The latter game has been remade.
Flutter Island 1 and 2 provide examples of:
- An Arm and a Leg: Fluttershy slowly gets injured after finding her portrait, which also changes along with her. She loses a leg, and her wings are torn.
- Ambiguous Situation: After Fluttershy goes to the gala and meets Apple Bloom, all the other ponies seemingly become evil. It isn't clear if the ponies were possessed, or if they were fakes the whole time.
- Black Eyes of Evil: All the ponies get these after Apple Bloom turns around at the gala. Dark Fluttershy also has them. Fluttershy gets them as well, though they seem to be a result of injury rather than evil.
- Blood from the Mouth: Part of Fluttershy's injuries in the end.
- Creepy Child: Apple Bloom, the main antagonist. Subverted in that it is actually a dark Fluttershy in disguise.
- Darker and Edgier: Darker than the source material.
- Faceless Eye: The last scene of the first game has Apple Bloom's giant eye stare at a crying Fluttershy.
- The Fourth Wall Will Not Protect You: After the second game closes, it opens up again, with Dark Fluttershy telling the player that she knows they've been helping her, you aren't safe, and something big is coming that will cause you to know true terror.
- Jumpscare: There are a few, all of Apple Bloom's face in the shadows. One in particular has the image all in red.
- Mood Whiplash:
- The first game begins with Fluttershy collecting coins in the night sky, set to cheerful music (To note, ). After collecting the last coin, a Jumpscare appears of Apple Bloom, setting the creepy tone for the rest of the game.
- In the second game, after walking past Apple Bloom at the gala, the cheerful music (To note, ) stops, and she turns around and disappears. Walking backwards after this reveals the other ponies have seemingly become evil as well.
- Non-Standard Game Over: The only way to get a Game Over in the first game is to let Apple Bloom catch Fluttershy when she starts chasing her, leading to a jumpscare of Apple Bloom's face in red, afterwards closing the game. There is no Game Over possible in the second game.
- Ominous Music Box Tune: The first game utilizes this in the first couple of areas.
- Recycled Soundtrack: Both games use songs from the SEGA Saturn classic NiGHTS into Dreams… soundtrack during their pre-Mood Whiplash moments.
- Shout-Out:
- When Fluttershy collects coins, they make the sound of collecting rings from Sonic The Hedgehog. Her jumping sounds in the first game are also from this series.
- Along with using its music, the way the first game starts is how the last level of NiGHTS into Dreams… plays up: no other option other than jumping from the platform into the night sky, only for the protagonist to start flying.
- Unwinnable by Design: There is no way to prevent Fluttershy from a bad ending.
Apples Everywhere provides examples of:
- Black Eyes of Evil: In the remake, Applejack's corpse has these, as does Big Mac. Dark Fluttershy has them as well.
- Collect-a-Thon Platformer: The entirety of the gameplay consists of collecting apples.
- Killed Offscreen: This happens to Applejack if Apple Bloom collects the rotten apple in the remake.
- Gainax Ending: After Apple Bloom finishes collecting all the apples, she meets up with Fluttershy. A few seconds later, a wagon falls on top of her (a giant apple in the remake), transporting her to a dark and foggy place, much like the maze in Flutter Island. She meets Dark Fluttershy, and the game ends saying "And so it began...".
- Jumpscare: Played for Laughs with creepy Apple Bloom wearing a birthday hat after finding the invitation in the graveyard. Played Straight in the remake when Big Mac catches Apple Bloom after collecting the rotten apple.
- Mood Whiplash: Every ending to the game.
- In the main ending, after Apple Bloom has collected all the apples, she comes across Fluttershy. Then Applejack warns of a wagon falling (or a giant apple in the remake), hitting Fluttershy and bringing her to the familiar dark mazes.
- In the remake, if she successfully gets through the maze, Fluttershy will wake up on an island with a gravestone for someone she apparently knew.
- The secret ending as well, in which while traveling too far from the acres, Apple Bloom comes across a graveyard, and after traveling through it, finds an invitation to a birthday party. And then a jumpscare of the creepy Apple Bloom appears, wearing a birthday hat. Even more so in the remake: before the jumpscare happens, the player takes control of Luna, right out of nowhere.
- The remake's other secret ending. If Apple Bloom collects the rotten apple, she heads back to find Applejack ripped in pieces and with black eyes. Then Big Mac comes from behind and chases Apple Bloom, leading to another jumpscare.
- In the main ending, after Apple Bloom has collected all the apples, she comes across Fluttershy. Then Applejack warns of a wagon falling (or a giant apple in the remake), hitting Fluttershy and bringing her to the familiar dark mazes.
- Multiple Endings: Apples Everywhere has 2, one being a secret. The remake adds 2 more endings.
- Recycled Soundtrack: Like the previous installments, it also has a song borrowed from NiGHTS into Dreams… during its innocent beginning: Spring Valley ~Paternal Horn~
(the music for Claris' first level). - Shout-Out:
- The secret graveyard is playing the theme of Lavender Town, as well as having its color scheme.
- In the remake, the scene after the graveyard, with Princess Luna travelling on a grassy plain at night, is a clear shout out to Luna Game.
