Due to the game's short length, no spoilers are marked. You have been warned.
You are awakened by a voice. An unfamiliar face.
Trapped with Jester is a Ren'Py-based romance/horror visual novel made by Anta and published by Neoclassic Games. It was first released on 30th July 2022 for the O2A2 2022 - Visual Novel Jam
on itch.io before releasing on Steam on 10th October 2022.
You, a noble, wake up with a headache and incredibly foggy memory to the voice of a stranger and the sound of a trotting horse. An odd jester sits across from you inside a wooden carriage, and he can't seem to shut up. How you interact with this festive-appearing stranger may decide your fate.
The game can be found on itch.io here and Steam here.
Trapped with Jester provides examples of:
- Amnesiac Hero: The protagonist can't recall a thing, not even their own name or that they apparently summoned Jester like he claims. Jester explains that he may have slurped up some of their memories by accident while he was feeding on their contempt.
- Back from the Dead: The POV character wakes up to a foreign voice asking whether they're alive or still dead. Jester may grant back the protagonist's memories which reveal that they have died at their family's hands.
- Character in the Logo: A silhouette of Jester's head facing left can be seen behind the game's title in the logo.
- Dead to Begin With: It isn't until Jester grants the protagonist's memories back that they remember being betrayed and killed by their family, now a body being sent away in a carriage. It is Jester's presence that brings them back to life.
- A Dog Named "Dog": Played with for Jester, which is very indicative for his festive appearance, but he's actually a demon.
- Duality Motif: Jester's clothes and features are majorly red and blue, split asymmetrically down the middle. His niceness is genuine and he likes cute things, but he's also a demon who feeds on dark desires.
- Emotion Eater: Jester enjoys the smell of contempt and says he might have slurped too much from the protagonist and took their memories along with it.
- Fashionable Asymmetry: As can be seen here, the right side of Jester's hat, sleeve and pant leg is red, while the opposite half of each is blue. His right sleeve end is black and lacks a cuff, while his left sleeve has a white cuff. The left half of his vest is red and longer than that of the blue right half, and they're adorned with black and white diamonds, but only in the upper-right and bottom-left quarters of his vest. The red and blue pieces that dangle from his shoulders are longer on the right side than the left.
- Hello, [Insert Name Here]: If you refuse to allow Jester to call you "Master," he'll ask what he should refer to you as, prompting the player to input the name your protagonist will go by.
- Hit Me, Dammit!: You can slap Jester out of anger, and he realises that he likes it, and practically begs that you hit him harder.
- Monster Clown. Downplayed. Jester is a demon with a jester's appearance who isn't above murder, as he may tear apart the drivers of the carriage and invite the protagonist on a path of vengeance or to raze the world together. He's otherwise very amiable (though he may take you as a pet with or without your consent), which leaves his morality up in the air.
- Morton's Fork: The "Obedient Pet" ending gives a choice to either take his hand or remain silent at the proposition of being taken as a pet. Regardless of which you pick, the protagonist realises that there's nowhere else to go and follows Jester to somewhere hopefully better than the carriage.
- Multiple Endings: 4 main endings and 2 alternate ones, making 6 endings in total.
- Ending 1: "Our Vow - Until Death Do Us Part". Jester considers the protagonist's kiss bold, officially introduces himself as a demon at their service, and grants back their memories to ravish on their soul's contempt. He tells them to close their eyes as he slays the carriage drivers, and takes them to raze the world together, considering it a marriage vow, breakable only by death.
- Ending 1B: "My Master". Jester realises that asking to take the protagonist home with him is rude since he hasn't introduced himself yet. He does so, and says it's a pleasure to meet his dear master. He asks them to close their eyes and kills the carriage drivers, before inviting his master to come with him.
- Ending 2: "A Blasphemous Partnership". Jester gives back the protagonist's memories of their betraying family, filling them with a thirst for revenge. He stretches out his hand and there is only the option to accept it, and the sacrilegious demon and his monarch engage in a violent path.
- Ending 3: "An Obedient Pet". Jester decides to forego the contract and take the protagonist as a pet instead. Regardless of whether you take his hand or stay silent, they follow him as there's no where else to go, and simply figure that anywhere is better than here.
- Ending 3B: "An Unwilling Pet". Jester decides to take the protagonist as a pet against their will, whisking them away and saying that he'll take good care of them.
- Ending 4: "You're Boring :(". Dissatisfy Jester and he says that "answering the summons of a prissy noble [was a] waste". He leaves, causing the protagonist to fall back to eternal sleep.
- Murder in the Family: The protagonist recalls that their family betrayed and killed them, which instills a thirst for revenge.
- Necromancer: It is strongly implied that the jester's presence is what gives the POV character life, as they are Dead to Begin With. If he gets bored and leaves, the protagonist's life slips away.
- Our Demons Are Different: Jester is the Demon of Betrayal and Nightmares. Besides the red eyes and sharp teeth, he appears as a conventional jester, but has powers to bring people back to life and restore their memories. He also speaks of forging contracts to enact ties, such as a marriage vow or a blasphemous partnership in vengeful crime.
- Outlaw Couple:
- "Our Vow - Til Death Do Us Part" ends with Jester killing the carriage drivers and proposing that he and the protagonist raze the world together as a marriage vow "until death do us part". The alternate outcome called "My Master" has the same result, but without the marriage vow.
- Downplayed in the "Blasphemous Partnership" ending, which doesn't have a marriage contract, but results in both the protagonist and Jester going on a killing streak in the name of revenge.Together, they leave destruction and suffering in their wake.
Ah, but what a beautiful symphony of vengeance they create!
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: The only apparent orbs in Jester's eyes are red ones, which tend to show up with a sinister smile. When they do appear, expect the screen to darken a bit. That is, unless he says you bore him, and he leaves you to die.
- Red Is Violent: If the protagonist recalls how they were betrayed, the screen gains a slight red tint, with the word "REVENGE" appearing in big red messy letters, and so does a later action box (which is the only available option) that says "TAKE HIS HAND" when Jester offers them a path to damn others alongside him.
- Revenge: Should the protagonist remember that their family caused their death, they'll want to seek revenge. Revenge in big, all-cap red letters. Jester takes advantage of this and invites them to go on a spree of violence for the sake of revenge.
- Sexy Jester: The titular Jester isn't sensual in appearance but rather in personality, as he blushes easily, refers to your contempt-filled soul as a delicacy that he wishes to ravish, and enjoys getting slapped.
- Shout-Out: Two of the achievement names are references to other media.
- "Hello Cage, My Old Friend" alludes to Simon & Garfunkel's song "The Sound of Silence".
- "Can't Wait to be Monarch...?" reminds of the song "I Just Can't Wait To Be King!" from The Lion King (1994).
- Smells Sexy: Implied. Jester compares himself to a "hungry fly" in regards to him being attracted to the protagonist's smell, then proceeds to blush as he calls their "pure soul corrupted by betrayal [...] a rare delicacy", as he feeds on contempt.
- Sound-Only Death: When Jester tells the protagonist to close their eyes, only the dialogue box, the voices and violent noises from outside indicate that Jester is killing the carriage drivers. The eyes reopen to reveal an open door and blood staining the floor.
- Too Kinky to Torture: If you slap him out of anger, he says that it hurts... before realising that he likes it and begs to be slapped again. If he doesn't get slapped hard enough, he'll consider you boring and leave.
