The title screen
My Little Pony: Super Ethical Shipping Climax! is a parodic visual novel created by Caramel Truffle
, centered around the concept of “shipping” in the My Little Pony fandom. There are some mature references, but it is otherwise safe-for-work. The first demo was publicly released in 2014, but the final product was released in 2019.Set at some point before the latter half of Season 3 of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, a mysterious force has brought the player to the realm between their own and Equestria. With Colgate's assistance, you arrive in Ponyville in the form of one of the Mane Six, and set off to attain your goal...of kissing ponies.
The game has its own trailer, and can be downloaded via GameJolt, itch.io, or the developer's website.
Tropes:
- Art-Style Dissonance: The various backgrounds have a detailed, "filtered photograph" quality to them, while all of the pony characters have a simple "chibi vector" look.
- Big First Choice: The game begins with Colgate asking the player which of the Mane Six they would prefer to look like, which decides what the first half of any potential pairing will be.
- But Thou Must!: One of the presented options for the Big First Choice is to enter Equestria as a neon-colored Alicorn OC, but it can't actually be selected.
- Content Warnings: The game begins with a parodic one, stating that it contains mature humor, immature humor, Breaking the Fourth Wall, and ponies.
- Fetch Quest: Most of the "True Ends" require the player to visit one pony a few times, learn that they need something, get it from a different pony, and return.
- Gag Dub: The main language options are English and French, with gag versions labeled Engrish and TABARNAK (all caps).
- Love Potion: Fluttershy is a tad embarrassed if/when the player helps her realize that the new type of herb she's making tea with is actually a potent aphrodisiac.
- Multiple Endings: There are 87 different endings, each depending on the pony pairing made.
- Screw Yourself: While assuming the form of Twilight or her friends, it's still possible to meet the pony you're copying. Although some are understandably freaked out, others can end up falling for their doppelganger.
- Shout-Out: The game is named after the "Super-Ethical Reality Climax!" minigame from Saints Row: The Third. There are also various references to other My Little Pony fangames, as this is a parody of them.
- Story Branch Favoritism: Any of the Multiple Endings that's labeled a "True End" is notably longer than the norm, and (to quote the Equestria Gaming article on it) is just the ending that the author likes the most.
- Take Our Word for It: Assisting Rarity with the creation of a hat leads to one that's unimaginably good. So unimaginable, in fact, that the narrator says it's impossible to depict. It's certainly not because of the lack of a proper visual artist, it adds.
- Unreadably Fast Text: Used liberally in the trailer for comedic value.
