History VideoGame / AmericanArcadia

* PrecisionFStrike: The game is fairly light on cursing ("shit" is the most common expletive), and Trevor in particular curses very rarely. This makes it all the more impactful when Trevor [[spoiler:delivers the game's only F-bomb, in the last line before the credits roll: "LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE!"]].

* AnAesop:
** From the final act of the story: don't overvalue your consumption of media, seek what really matters in the people around you. [[spoiler:During the dream sequence, there's a point made of the eyeball-stalk creatures (stand-ins for the InUniverse American Arcadia audience) only caring about Trevor for his existence as entertainment. At the end of the story, Walton Media's popularity continues to skyrocket thanks to an apathetic viewerbase who don't really care about the actual people who have to deal with American Arcadia. By contrast, Trevor half-jokes that [[DrivenToVillainy he could have become exactly like Vivian Walton]] if he escaped without the help of someone who genuinely cared for him like Angela.]]
** If you're not an ambitious person, that's perfectly fine; do your own best to find fulfillment, because it's ''your'' life to live how you see fit. You don't owe the rest of society anything.

** When confronted with [[spoiler:the LaserGridHallway in The Hexagon,]] Number Six tells Angela to [[spoiler:mesmorize the beams before going through the hallway. Before Number Six could say the second part of that, Angela finishes their sentence by assuming they were going to tell Angela to reenact the laser scene]] from ''Film/OceansTwelve''.

** Cutting back to Marcus Javert's interview, [[spoiler: his actor Terry Robinson cites that he can change his direction to match the [[Film/TheTerminator2 T-1000]], or Creator/TommyLeeJones' Samuel Gerard in ''Film/TheFugitive''.]]

** Cutting back to Marcus Javert's interview, [[spoiler: his actor Terry Robinson cites that he can change his direction to match the [[Film/TheTerminator T1000]], or Creator/TommyLeeJones' Samuel Gerard in ''Film/TheFugitive''.]]

* BadBoss: Kendra Tomlin, Angela's boss, is one to a tee and she barely realizes it. Whenver Angela and Kendra are talking to each other or are in the same room, it's very apparent how much the former loathes the latter and it mostly has to do with all the corporate bullshit that gets thrown Angela's way. Even one of Angela's coworkers imitated shooting himself in the head before he had to deal with Kendra's issues. [[spoiler:When Angela [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech tells her off for being a shit boss and human being]] all while threatening to quit and sue the company, [[InUniverseCatharsis she laughs at how great it felt to do that]].]]
* BecameTheirOwnAntithesis: [[spoiler:Vivian went from being one of Breakout's six members to becoming the CEO of Walton Media, out of the belief that the real world was far worse than Arcadia.]]

* BerserkButton: Because of Angela's use of it during the two week lead-up to him going on the run, Trevor hates the song "Don't Be A Fool" and grows increasingly furious whenever he hears it as the game progresses. [[spoiler:Vivian accidentally presses the button when she advises him to just play along and "Don't be a fool", triggering his AtomicFBomb and making him refuse the deal on reflex]].
* BetterLivingThroughEvil: Walton Media is obviously corrupt and amoral, but it makes a lot of money, pays its staff well, and gives the Arcadians an idyllic life so long as they keep their ratings high. [[spoiler:The original Breakout members all eventually accepted money from Walton to build new lives, with one of them taking the guise of Vivian Walton and returning to Arcadia. She in turn offers Trevor money and a new job in "Escape from Arcadia" if he plays along with Walton]].

* BondVillainStupidity: Vivian warns Trevor that, unless he accepts the Realignment, the only way to escape Arcadia would be to climb to the top of the heavily-guarded Arcadia Spire, enter her restricted quarters, and press the failsafe button to bring down the Dome. Trevor decides to do just that in the final act to free everyone in Arcadia. [[spoiler:The button is actually the finish line for fugitives on the "Escape from Arcadia" spinoff which Vivian is [[BriarPatching nudging him towards]]]].
* BreakoutCharacter: [[spoiler: Trevor's escape becomes the most-viewed event in all of AA history, making him more popular than anybody else ever on the show. Unfortunately for Vivian and Walton Media, he walks out at the end, forcing them to recast the now-unpopular Steve Just [[SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute as a Trevor-esque lead]] for the "Escape from Arcadia" spinoff.]]

* ButHeSoundsHandsome: [[spoiler:Number Six describes Vivian as "shrewd and cunning like no other" to Angela during her infiltration into the Hexagon. Then we learn later that Number Six ''is'' Vivian.]]
* CaptainErsatz: For an InUniverse example, one American Arcadia viewer may compare Trevor to [[Franchise/TheSimpsons Ned Flanders]]. The visual similarities are clear enough, for both of them are [[DorkInASweater mild-mannered, bespectacled, sweater-wearing dorks]] from the late 20th century that [[BewareTheNiceOnes can cause a ton of damage when sufficiently pissed off]].
* CatchPhrase: Alongside the previously mentioned "Soar Higher Than Ever Before", Arpad Kovacs and his show "Architects of Tomorrow" has "Science Always Finds a Way".

* CharactersMostHatedSong: The in-universe song "Don't Be A Fool" ends up becoming Trevor's BerserkButton. While he liked the song at first, Angela's repeated use of it in the days leading up to him going on the run have slowly caused him to hate the song and he grows increasingly furious whenever he hears the song throughout the game. [[spoiler:When Vivian advises him to play along with the script and admit he was never in danger, she says "Don't be a fool" to him, causing him to drop an AtomicFBomb and refuse the deal.]]

* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Donald Walton is a far cry from his optimistic brother Elijah, forcing natural-born citizens of a tourist attraction city to remain inside for the entertainment of the outside world, including [[spoiler:brainwashing them to physically shut down in the presence of a specific tone and getting an act of Congress signed to legalize corporations owning people as well as those same incarceration methods.]]

* DorkInASweater: Trevor wears a blue checkered sweater vest, which further adds to how much of an Everyman he is. Though, a {{Flashback}} at the beginning of the game and the demo depicts him without it. [[spoiler:He loses it after his first car crash, but he gets it back after being captured by Arcadia's security.]]

* TheEveryman: Trevor enjoys his unchanging life of being an office worker, and it's the main reason why he's involved in the plot. Because there isn't any excitement in his life, the audience doesn't see him as interesting, making Trevor the least popular character in the show and the next person in line to be killed off. [[spoiler: As revealed by Vivian Dalton, this was designed by choice for her latest show idea: picking out low-viewed boring people in American Arcadia and putting them in a fake perilous escape show to boost the company's ratings.]]
* ExactWords: [[spoiler: Vivian Walton reminds Trevor that she told him, "The only way to ''Escape from Arcadia'' is by pressing the failsafe button". When Vivian said this in her earlier monologue, she was actually giving Trevor instructions on how to win her game show spin-off: ''Escape from Arcadia''.]]

* GenderConcealingVoice: Angela initially uses a voice modulator when talking to Trevor. It's only after her first gameplay segment where she forgoes using it when a comment from Trevor causes her to realize that she forgot to turn the modulator back on. [[spoiler:Vivian also uses this to conceal her identity when speaking to Angela and Trevor as Number 6.]]

* GoshDangItToHeck: Trevor prefers terms such as "horrible person," in contrast to Angela's [[SirSwearsalot potty mouth]]... [[spoiler:making his PrecisionFStrike at the end of the game all the more significant.]]
* GratuitousSpanish: Angela tends to lapse into this occasionally. You’re going to mostly see her do this [[ForeignLanguageTirade whenever she's frustrated]].
* GreaterScopeVillain: Donald Walton is the one responsible for turning Arcadia into a massively commercialised ImmoralRealityShow and had a direct hand in its more unethical aspects, but he has no direct influence in Trevor's escape attempt.

* HiddenDepths: For someone who doesn't get a lot of exercise, most of the acrobatic feats Trevor pulls off over the course of the game can be pretty hard to pull off in real life without proper training. He's also a surprisingly talented piano player.
* HideTheEvidence: Kendra arrives at Angela's apartment looking for evidence that she's working with Trevor. Angela has to quickly hide the embarrassingly large amount of incriminating evidence lying around the place before Kendra gets inside.

* ImmoralRealityShow: The inhabitants of "American Arcadia" are filmed without their knowledge and the unpopular characters are ReleasedToElsewhere.

* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler:Ultimately Vivian and the company settle with Trevor and Angela out of court and are free to continue running "American Arcadia" and its new spinoff. Even their use of the Jingle is declared legal by the Supreme Court. The fact that the whole ReleasedToElsewhere thing is a lie helped a lot with that.]]

* MadeOfIron: Trevor takes a ''lot'' of punishment over the course of his escape from Arcadia without needing any proper treatment for his injuries. [[spoiler:Said escape being scripted]] only goes so far as an explanation.

* MeaningfulName: Marcus Javert's last name is likely inspired by InspectorJavert from ''Literature/LesMiserables'', a character who doggedly pursues lawbreakers. [[spoiler: Considering he turns out to be an NPC, this name may have been chosen on purpose InUniverse.]]

* MrAltDisney: Elijah Walton created multiple cultural touchstone movies and had big plans for a big utopia-esque retrofuture city he called Arcadia, as parallels to Walt Disney's own highly-successful career in animation and his inception of EPCOT. The main difference between the two is that Elijah Walton lived long enough to oversee Arcadia's construction, but died before it could be completed.

* NegatedMomentOfAwesome:
** [[spoiler:When realizing he's the top viewed feed in Arcadia, Trevor starts giving a rousing speech to the audience about how the people of Arcadia don't just exist for their amusement. The climax of his speech is interrupted by an ad break, leaving Trevor fuming.]]
** [[spoiler:Trevor successfully reaches the top of Arcadia Spire and presses the failsafe button to destroy the Arcadia Dome. Instead he gets a pitiful spray of confetti and a stilted "Congratulations" from Vivian for winning the gameshow]].

* NiceCharacterMeanActor: Vivian Walton is very pleasant in announcing the winners of the Edge Travel Grant or general announcements on camera. Behind the scenes, she doesn't hesitate to insult Trevor when preparing to announce him as a winner and Angela can bring up how being an ass is typical behavior of her. [[spoiler:Downplayed with her reveal of the "Escape from Arcadia" spinoff project and her motive for doing so (see GildedCage above), she's a manipulative sellout but not a murderer.]]
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Trevor's attempts to escape Arcadia directly lead to [[spoiler:Arcadia's ratings getting a much need boost after showing their first ever slump. Without his success and unexpected popularity, Walton Media might never have gotten the win they wanted with "Escape from Arcadia"]].

* NonPlayerCharacter: American Arcadia employs Non-Protagonist Characters, who are people who live inside Arcadia but know they're part of a show, to go along with its stories and make sure things happen. The only examples the player gets to know about in the story are the people in the sports teams that play in Arcadia, Trevor's neighbor, Vivian Walton and [[spoiler:Marcus Javert]].

* OhCrap: Angela probably has this reaction the most of any character in the story because of how many things don't go to plan. To list some major examples, she does this when:
** The travel agents begin chasing Trevor on the rooftops.
** Trevor is first affected by the Jingle. She has an even bigger one moments later when Marcus shows up while Trevor is immobile.
** She sees five Interceptor cars drive straight to the Arcadia Dome.
** [[spoiler:Trevor is forced off the road and crashes.]]
** She realizes that [[spoiler:Number 6 is Vivian Walton.]]

* OverrideCommand: If Angela takes too long to let Kendra into her apartment, Kendra uses an override to open the door herself. The building is owned by Walton Media and Angela's contract allows Kendra to enter the apartment any time she wants.
* PaperThinDisguise: Trevor's disguise in the Blue Fountain Mall consists of a brown jacket and red cap over his attire, making him look like Creator/StevenSpielberg. When spotted by two travel agents, they ignore him since he doesn't look like who they're looking for, and they remark that Trevor looks like Steven Spielberg.
* PaperTiger: Marcus behaves like a ScaryBlackMan but drops the act when [[spoiler:Angela shoots him with a taser gun. This, combined with the game cutting to him auditioning for the role, is actually one of the first clues that something is off]].

* PosthumousCharacter: Elijah Walton was the architect of Arcadia, but he died of heart failure before it could be completed. His brother, Donald, took over to finish Elijah's work.

* RedOniBlueOni: Angela has a red streak in her hair and is a passionate activist who likes breaking the rules. Trevor wears a blue argyle sweater-vest and is an average NiceGuy who follows the rules and keeps his head down, and thus feels in over his head once he's swept up in the action.

* ResignInProtest: The original Kovacs was disgusted when Donald Walton and the board of directors decided to create [[spoiler:the Jingle]]. He quit the company and left in disgust, though that didn't stop them using his technology.

** Most of the time when the player dies or fails a task as Trevor, the feed glitches out even when Trevor is supposedly in places where's he not being watched. [[spoiler: This is a subtle clue about the scripted nature of his escape, unbeknownst to him, and how it cuts away when he goes off it in unsalvagable ways.]]
* {{Roofhopping}}: Trevor is reluctant to do this when escaping the INAC building, as he asks Angela what to do once he's confronted with a gap between buildings. He's forced to make up his mind when travel agents start chasing him.
* ScaryBlackMan: Marcus Javert is Arcadia's chief of security, and he lives up to it. He's [[TheStoic stoic]], has a [[AuthoritySoundsDeep deep]] [[EvilSoundsDeep voice]], keeps Angela on edge when he personally visits her and may as well be TheAce when it comes to fighting and pursuing people. [[spoiler:Terry Robinson, the guy who's playing Marcus, is anything but.]]

* SmallRoleBigImpact: Gus only showed up at the beginning of the game for a single scene, after that he won the Edge Travel Grant and was never seen again. But his disappearance was the very thing that allowed Angela to get Trevor's attention and get him to safety. [[spoiler: Near the end of the game, it is possible for Angela to uncover that Gus was an NPC specifically assigned as the "hook" for Trevor's escape, making this an InvokedTrope.]]

* SoulCrushingDeskJob: Double subverted. Trevor is actually quite content in his job at INAC, and what little we see of it just involves him typing whatever at a computer and sending files through pneumatic tubes to a supercomputer. Then we find out that it is/was soul-crushing for the audience, who tuned out of Trevor's life from boredom and put him on the chopping block to be removed from the show. When he gets "backstage", we see that the tubes he's been sending haven't even gone anywhere, just collecting in a big pile to eventually be disposed of, so what work Trevor was doing is meaningless both in-universe ''and'' out of it.
* SpannerInTheWorks: Angela constantly acts as one to Arcadia's operations. [[spoiler:Even though Vivian reins in control of her meddling early by contacting her as "Number 6", she still manages to do things that catch them off-guard, such as replacing the "Escape from Arcadia" trailer with one containing incriminating footage.]]

* TrashTalk: By the final chase sequence at [[spoiler:Arcadia Spire]], Trevor has gained enough courage to start taunting the Interceptors who are pursuing him.
-->'''Trevor:''' Time to go jogging, idiots!

* UncomfortableElevatorMoment: Near the beginning of the game, Trevor shares an elevator ride with a tourist couple from outside Arcadia and has to awkwardly pretend he's a tourist himself. The same couple returns in an elevator ride near the end of the game, where the couple feels uncomfortable when Trevor explains he plans to [[spoiler:destroy Arcadia]].

* VoiceWithAnInternetConnection: Being one of American Arcadia's stage technicians, Angela serves as this to Trevor in order to help him escape as not only is she verbally giving Trevor directions on what to do, but she's also able to control the show's "set". Angela is also contacted by Number 6 of Breakout, who informs Angela of what she needs to do.

* YouAreNumberSix:
** The Interceptors and Marcus refer to Trevor as subject Ten-Three-Ninety-Two, which is his citizen ID.
** Each member of Breakout is referred to by number. The one who regularly communicates with Angela and gives her directions is Number 6.
* YouJustRuinedTheShot: When Angela [[spoiler:tases Javert]], he complains she isn't actually supposed to do that because it's not part of his NPC script.
* YouWouldntShootMe: Trevor grabs Marcus's taser gun and threatens to shoot him, only for Marcus to say Trevor doesn't have it in him to pull the trigger. Sure enough, Trevor instead throws the gun at Marcus and runs away. [[spoiler:Subverted when Marcus gives the same speech to Angela... and she tases him mid-word]].
* YoungerThanTheyLook: Trevor is 28, but his choice of clothing and large mustache makes him look way older than he really is. Even Angela gets thrown off when she compliments Trevor for handling the physical stress "despite his age".

** [[spoiler:It turns out that the company isn't actually killing off unpopular characters, this is a lie to trick them into participating in their new "Escape from Arcadia" spinoff, that way the company can deal with unpopular characters ethically and still make money by making them popular.]]

* FailedASpotCheck: For as thoroughly as Walton Media has arranged activies around the citizens of Arcadia and their own employees, they bizarrely didn't account for [[spoiler:Angela subscribing to Trevor's stream feed on AA Live!, which later shocks her when she receives an app update notifying her that he has reached one million subscribers. This marks the point where she really starts putting the puzzle pieces together.]]

A demo of the game was released on October 10, 2023, with the full game releasing on November 15, 2023 on PC through UsefulNotes/{{Steam}}.

* TrumanShowPlot: Everything that happens in Arcadia is part of the in-universe American Arcadia, which is a reality show. It focuses on several people within the metropolis who are constantly watched by an audience with the least popular characters getting {{killed off|ForReal}} from the show. [[spoiler:Then we learn that actually the network is only tricking the unpopular characters into believing that as part of the new "Escape from Arcadia" spinoff, making it a [[RecursiveReality Truman show plot within a Truman show plot.]]]]

* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler:Ultimately Vivian and the company settle with Trevor and Angela out of court and are free to continue running "American Arcadia" and its new spinoff. The fact that the whole ReleasedToElsewhere thing is a lie helped a lot with that.]]

* SmallRoleBigImpact: Gus only showed up at the beginning of the game for a single scene, after that he won the Edge Travel Grant and was never seen again. But his disappearance was the very thing that allowed Angela to get Trevor's attention and get him to safety. [[spoiler:And if later in the story is to be believed, he's actually still alive and was never killed to begin with.]]

* TitleDrop: Barring "American Arcadia", most chapters are usually introduced through a character speaking. For example, the chapter when Trevor is forced to go on the run:
-->'''Trevor:''' Those were probably the worst two weeks in my entire life. Or at least, the weirdest. Although it was nothing compared to what I was going to experience later that day. Do you know they even had a... name for it?\\

* MortonsFork: When Vivian offers to [[spoiler:remove the Jingle from Trevor]], none of the protagonists trust her and try to do it themselves. [[spoiler:Since "Number Six" is actually Vivian and is the one who makes the plan to install an "anti-jingle", they would have made the exact same realignment changes to Trevor had he agreed; his subsequent rampage to activate the failsafe button is all scripted as a pilot for "Escape from Arcadia".]]

* UterineReplicator: A news article in the credits implies that Aracadia's population is produced with this technology. Walton Media of course denies it.

** When Angela [[spoiler:discovers that Trevor gained a sudden influx of viewers when he goes to the Arcadia Spire]] in the final stretch of the game, [[spoiler:she decides to track down Number Six's location for answers. When she gets Number Six's exact location, [[OhCrap it quickly dawns on her]] on who exactly she's been talking to the whole time.]]
--->'''Angela:''' [[spoiler:Number Six is INSIDE ARCADIA?!?]]

* SpannerInTheWorks: Angela constantly acts as one to Arcadia's operations. [[spoiler:Even though Vivian reigns in control of her meddling early by contacting her as "Number 6", she still manages to do things that catch them off-guard, such as replacing the "Escape from Arcadia" trailer with one containing incriminating footage.]]