You know, there's a reason Handeemen puppets are so lifelike and true. When you wear them, they really wear you!
Hello Puppets! is a VR horror game developed by Otherworld Interactive and published by tinyBuild.
In the '80s, an obscure children's edutainment puppet show following in the footsteps of Jim Henson aired called Mortimer's Handeemen, known for the title character's unnaturally realistic movements. After a fire broke out in the warehouse where the show was filmed which killed several cast and crew members, the show was canceled and quickly forgotten.
Years later, reports of homeless people going missing around the old warehouse emerge. A local college newspaper needed a story to fill the pages, so they send a reporter to the warehouse to investigate. There, they find the puppet of Mortimer himself, who gives them a hand puppet of their own before casting a spell that will turn them into the puppet's slave. However, something goes wrong with the spell, and the reporter maintains their free will and consciousness, much to the dismay of Scout, the puppet attached to their hand.
From there, Scout and the player must make an uneasy alliance to brave the horrors awaiting in the facility, and just maybe make it outside in one piece.
A prequel called Hello Puppets: Midnight Show, which focuses on Handeemen creator Owen Gubberson, was announced for late 2021 for Steam on June 16th of 2021 and was released on October 19, 2022.
This work provides examples of:
- Affably Evil: Scout claims to be this, being "slightly less evil" than the rest of the puppets. Subverted in that while she has a foul mouth and is originally fine with puppeteering a human who had been mind-wiped, Scout is actually a fairly decent person who treats her host with a reasonable amount of respect for having been forcibly merged into a single being—it's later revealed that she'd also been lied to that humans want to be made into hosts because the human world is terrible.
- A new example is Daisy Danger, who's actually pretty sweet and nice when she's not in 'Danger' mode. She very rarely threatens, shouts, or insults, to the point where it can be surprising when she catches you and slaughters you like all the rest. She even takes up the job of cleaning up after her more sadistic cohorts and does her best to get along with them even when they're in an awful mood.
- Alliterative Name: Riley Ruckus, Daisy Danger, and Nick Nack.
- Amazing Technicolor Population: Fittingly, given the game's inspiration, several puppets have bright colors for their skin tones. Scout herself can be blue, green, or yellow, depending on which one you pick.
- Berserk Button: Don't ignore Daisy Danger... or you will regret it.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Daisy Danger. Don't insult her, raise your tone with her, or stress her out period, unless you want her to enter 'Danger' mode. Even the other puppets fear her when she loses her cool. She's unaware of these savage freakouts and has no memory of them until Riley helps her gain control over it. From that point on, she can activate her berserk mode with no downsides.
- Big Bad: Mortimer himself, the mastermind of the puppets who plots to dominate the world and make all humans into hosts.
- Big Friendly Dog: Riley's pet dog Rosco was one of these on the puppet show. Not so much anymore...
- Bittersweet Ending: While they manage to get away from Rosco, Scout loses her arm unjamming the final door and dies soon after, leaving her host to escape alone with Scout's body still attached to them.
- Ditto for Midnight Show. Owen finally succumbs to Mortimer’s influence, though not before perfecting his spell and setting Scout up as a weak link to bring the Handeemen down.
- Bizarre Alien Biology: The puppets are revealed to have internal organs... which are made of felt, like the rest of them. These organs are apparently functional, given that Scout mentions she needs to breathe and at one point thinks she might throw up. And losing an arm causes Scout to quickly "bleed out" like a human would, albeit with fluff instead of blood.
- Came Back Wrong: The puppets might have never been alive when the show was still airing, but the means by which they were brought to life warped them from their goofy, harmless original personalities to a bunch of amoral murderous parodies of themselves.
- Comically Missing the Point: Scout does this after hearing Riley get so angry that she swears."I have never heard Riley not rhyme. She must be really losing it!"
- Creepy Doll: The puppets are, to a one, unnerving and unpleasant. It's telling that Scout, the foul-mouthed, short-tempered hand puppet sewn to the player character's arm, is both the friendliest and sanest of the lot and the least creepy (in spite of the "sewn onto your arm" thing).
- Death by Irony: Owen Gubberson only wanted to bring his creations to life, convinced that they already had souls of their own. Mortimer murders him by "turning him into a puppet" a la sawing him in half and killing him, effectively rendering Owen himself into an inanimate puppet.
- Death Is a Slap on the Wrist: Dying only causes the screen to tint red before sending you back in time to a checkpoint.
- Disposable Vagrant: Most of the hosts are homeless people that have been kidnapped and taken to the warehouse.
- Distinguishing Mark: Anthony Pierson tattooed his blog's logo on his hand so he could be identifiable if he was caught by the puppets. Because of that, you can tell Mortimer's current host used to be Anthony.
- Empty Shell: The process that animates the puppets is supposed to permanently seal away the victim's free will, rendering them a mindless husk totally under the control of the puppet. The player and Scout are the exception.
- Evil Redhead: Riley Ruckus
- Fantastic Light Source: By tapping on her head, Scout can use her eyes as flashlights. Keeping it on can attract the attention of the monsters, though.
- Faux Affably Evil: Mortimer himself, who puts on a facade of politeness and generosity when addressing the player at the start, and then during the tea party shortly before the climax, all in spite of his horrible plans for humanity. But once he's angry, he demonstrates he's just as cruel as Riley.
- Fission Mailed: Riley's final "test" machine is rigged so that you and Scout can't win at it no matter what. Riley did this just before the player enters the chamber, and did it since she just wants an excuse to sic Rosco on Scout.
- Flesh Golem: Rosco the "dog" is the result of Riley stitching multiple people and animal parts together in a vaguely canine shape. During the final "tea party" with Mortimer, it's shown Riley stitched her own host into Rosco.
- Foregone Conclusion: Midnight Show is a prequel to the original game, so it's to be expected that Owen is killed, the puppets aren't destroyed, and people continue to be converted into new hosts.
- Gone Horribly Right: Owen used Black Magic on his puppets in an attempt to give them souls and lives of their own. It worked, but turned them all into violent, sociopathic caricatures of their "former selves". As Mortimer was the first to be given sentience, he can also channel the same magic and create more puppets.
- "Groundhog Day" Loop: Owen has apparently been going through the events of Midnight Show over and over again. His puppets wipe his memory each time and make him rerun the gauntlet in hopes that in the end, he'll choose them over Scout.
- Happiness Is Mandatory: Puppets are forbidden by Mortimer and the other cast members from swearing and are required to speak only in rhyme. It's likely Scout's refusal to play along with the rules is why Riley despises her so much.
- Heroic Mime: Due to having their mouth closed with stitches, the player has to communicate with Scout through nodding and shaking their head.
- Hero of Another Story: Anthony Pierson, a paranormal investigator and blogger who explored the warehouse and took photos of the puppets, but was unable to get the definitive proof he needed due to the newspapers and authorities thinking he was playing a prank or drunk. He decided on attempting to capture Mortimer to prove he wasn't crazy. Ultimately he failed and became Mortimer's current host.
- Horror Comedy: Most of the comedy comes from Scout and her reactions to both the studio's contents and the player. Other than that, the horrors are played completely straight.
- Humanity Is Infectious: Prior to the story's start, Scout found a working TV with cable in the old warehouse and spent a long time watching a wide range of human shows: reality television, documentaries, etc. By the time Riley found her and broke the TV, Scout had seen enough of the world outside that she became fascinated with humanity at large, and could no longer act like a "proper" Handeeman.
- Jump Scare: Several, which usually cause Scout to respond appropriately. Riley uses an early one as a "Reflex Test", annoying Scout.
- Loyal Animal Companion: Riley cares about her dog more than anything else in the world, though she's still entirely willing to experiment on him until he becomes a grotesque abomination. Subverted in that while he's very much loyal, he's loyal to MORTIMER, not Riley. He only lets her take care of him.
- Mad Artist: Nick Nack, not that we get to see any of it in the first game due to real-life budget constraints for Otherworld Interactive.
- Mad Scientist: Riley Ruckus, who's turned from a children's show scientist character to a deranged maniac apparently on par with Mengele, according to Anthony Pierson's recordings. She spends her time by experimenting on captive humans and other puppets, the latter apparently being a hobby.
- Masquerade: Mortimer's plan is to integrate back into human society, get Mortimer's Handeemen popular again, and then take over the world. Seeing as the puppets are controlling human bodies, Mortimer and Riley need their subordinates to convincingly act like a human puppeteer and maintain this masquerade while reviving the show. The player character is forced to be Scout's latest host, with the added wrinkle that she's failed her last two tests; if she fails this one, she doesn't get another chance.
- Meat Puppet: The integral part of the Handeemen's nature is that they can take over human bodies, assuming complete control over the host's body and completely shut down the victim's mind and soul thanks to their magic. The player character somehow breaks free of this control, and is forced to work with their would-be controller Scout so that they both survive.
- Messy Hair: Both Riley and Owen share this trait.
- Moment of Weakness: Once Scout and the Player escape "Orientation", Riley becomes so angry that she forgets happiness is mandatory."Rip out their eyes, eat their guts, burn their skin, throw them in the trash OR I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU ALL!"
- Mood Whiplash: Right after Scout's death, the credits play the cheery theme song of Mortimer's Handeemen in a theater of other puppets.
- Mouth Stitched Shut: All hosts, the player included, have their mouths sewn shut.
- Oh, Crap!: Scout, usually whenever something that can kill you is nearby.
- Perverse Puppet: The Handeemen themselves, as well as Riley's creations. Scout herself is a subversion, as although she was supposed to be controlling the player's body, once she opens up to them, Scout turns out to be the friendliest out of all of them.
- Planning for the Future Before the End: After getting her arm torn off and slowly dying from it, Scout tries to suggest a couple of things she and her host can do when they escape, letting you pick between a restaurant or a talk show.
- Precision F-Strike: Riley Ruckus swears exactly once in the entire game. Everyone else swears either liberally or not at all.
- Psychic Link: The spell cast on the hosts gives the puppets psychic control over them. Later on, utilizing their unique situation to their advantage, the player can reverse this and control Scout.
- Rhymes on a Dime: Mortimer and Riley do this constantly. It seems to be an enforced rule, as Riley has to keep reminding Scout to do so during her tests. Scout, in turn, indicates that it's also an instinctive trait for the Handeemen, and she lost the knack after watching too much human TV.
- Scary Jack-in-the-Box: There is a jack-in-a-box styled after Mortimer. Turning its crank plays a music box tune until... the top panel opens slightly. Scout says that you must have done it wrong - but then Mortimer's head pops out, scaring (and annoying) Scout. On the head's hat is part of the security pin that is needed to proceed.
- Schmuck Bait: In Midnight Show's audio logs, Riley and the other puppets mutiny against Mortimer's cruel treatment. To their surprise, he gives up, telling Riley all she needs to do is press the button on his desk to get the master key. It releases Roscoe instead, under Mortimer's control. This quells any chance of rebellion, though Mortimer doesn't punish them for it... immediately, anyway.
- Sir Swears-a-Lot: Scout, which is part of what makes her such an outcast among the other puppets.
- Slasher Smile: Mortimer and Riley sport one each, and permanently due to being puppets with limited facial expressions. Riley's is painted onto a surgical mask she always wears.
- Snarky Non-Human Sidekick: Scout, who's stuck to what remains of the protagonist's arm.
- Stealth Pun: The "Human Resources" department of the studio has been repurposed to store hosts until they're needed. Ergo: humans that are resources.
- Take Over the World: Mortimer's ultimate goal is to conquer the world with an army of evil puppets... after getting his show uncancelled, of course.
- Take Your Time: The game is full of these, generally hidden by appearing in tense gameplay moments or in short sections of the game:
- Mortimer remains inanimate until you approach him in the beginning of the game, giving you time to explore the sound stage...
- ...he then patiently waits as you examine each puppet in turn and the surrounding area to cast his spell.
- Riley waits until you pass through the door to start the testing. She and Scout don't say anything if you explore the office you wake up in first.
- After escaping into Human Resources, you can watch Rosco approach the door and begin ramming it with his head. He'll never break through the door though, so you can watch him as long as you like before proceeding.
- Once you arrive at the tea party, the game won't progress until you take your spot, allowing you to explore the area and look at the characters.
- After that, the puppets patiently wait for you to push the button.
- In the final scene, the game doesn't end until after Scout dies. The player can delay this by never answering Scout's questions. The end of the tunnel can never be reached, either.
- Uncertain Doom: Nick Nack appears in the prequel, but is absent for the original game. It's
stated by the creators that they were cut due to time/budget constraints, so it's left ambiguous whether they're still around or if Mortimer destroyed them for helping Riley rise up against him. - The Unfought: Nick Nack is only ever seen through the boards blocking off part of his section.
- Used to Be a Sweet Kid: Posters around the studio show how kind the cast used to be before being brought to life twisted them. Riley helping fix a child's bike, Daisy giving a young girl a piece of pie, and Mortimer gifting a girl
her very own puppet. - Who Forgot The Lights?: Due to being set in a dilapidated warehouse presumably at night, the vast majority of the game is spent in pitch darkness, with occasional lit sections and/or lights going out for scares. Scout's flashlight eyes don't have much power, barely able to light your way two feet in front of you, if that. She can see in the dark perfectly fine and can call out things she's noticed, but that doesn't stop the player from walking into walls.
