History VideoGame / NoituLove

* BoundAndGagged: A variant without the gag. At the start of the fourth level in ''Devolution'', two of the Grinning Darn grunts are watching over a female captive who is tied up this way. Noitu jumps in and takes out the two grunts but doesn't bother with saving the damsel.

* EasyModeMockery: The first game ends prematurely on the easiest difficulty level. The sequel doesn't do this, but it does lock you out of the BonusBoss fight on the lowest difficulty.

[[caption-width-right:350:Clockwise from bottom middle:[[PlayerCharacter Xoda Rap]], [[HotScientist Dr. Tango]], [[MissionControl Mr. Almond]], and [[EvilKnockoff Rilo Doppelori]].]]

The first game is a mix of an {{action game}} and a {{platform|Game}}er, whereas the second one eschews the platform element to make a significantly faster paced action game. The plot of the games is relatively [[ExcusePlot simple]]. The first game, set in TheFuture, pits the protagonist, Noitu Love, and his MissionControl, Lori, against a MadScientist, [[BigBad Professor Darnacus Damnation]] and his army of MechaMooks, the Grinning Darns. The second game (subtitled ''Devolution'') takes place in the future and pits Noitu Love's DistaffCounterpart and ActionGirl, Xoda Rap, and her allies Mr. Almond and Dr. Tango, against the Grinning Darns who've mysteriously risen again. And this time, [[EvilKnockoff Rilo Doppelori]] is [[DragonAscendant leading them]].

** Sleeper Brakeman from ''Devolution'' requires two steps to damage him: Xoda first has to zap the bulb on the train's rear until it pops, and then she has to attack the conductor by chaining to him with one of the Darn Nitwits that spawns from the broken bulb. The bulb regenerates with eat hit.

* SequentialBoss: The FinalBoss in both games, Omega Darn/Darnacus and [[spoiler:Tango]] respectively, have three phases each. There’s also BonusBoss [[spoiler:Waltz]], who [[OneWingedAngel turns into]] [[spoiler:Shadowaltz]].

* {{Squick}}: In-universe, one of Darnacus's lines after Noitu Love defeats Rilo (where he outright admits he made Rilo [[DirtyOldMan to be a “sexy” robot and did “things” to her]]) has this effect on the others.

* ThemeNaming: Tango and [[spoiler:Waltz]], who are both [[spoiler:[=AIs=] at Darnacus's secret base]]. Pretty much every Grinning Darn is some variation of "Darn Enemy".
* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou: Doppelori states that only Darnacus and his true servants (meaning herself) are allowed to TakeOverTheWorld-- [[spoiler:this is her reason for stopping Tango from doing that]].
* TimeLimitBoss: When playing as [[spoiler:Rilo]] in the sequel, [[spoiler:Waltz/Shadowaltz must be beaten before the timer on the Darn Base's self-destruct expires]].

* TomTheDarkLord: The BigBad of the first game is called [[GoshDangItToHeck Darnacus Damnation]], which is a silly yet still somewhat threatening name. But in the sequel, [[spoiler:the [[GodhoodSeeker god-wannabe]] MasterComputer BigBad calls herself ''Tango'']].

* TrickBoss: In Level [[spoiler:3]] of the sequel, the boss of the level appears to be [[spoiler:Rilo]] ([[spoiler:or Xoda, if Rilo is the player character]]). About halfway through the battle, [[spoiler:[[ChekhovsGunman the Sea Serpent you beat up earlier]] blows both of the fighters into the river on a wheel, and said Sea Serpent is fought as the real boss of the level]].
* UnderwaterBossBattle: The lone underwater segment of ''Devolution'' ends with a fight against the Sea Serpent, though the water doesn't affect the battle greatly.

* FlashStep: Xoda can do this with a dashing kick, flying through the air if necessary.

* GoshDangItToHeck:
** PlayedForLaughs. "Grinning Darns" is the name of Darnacus's army. Ironically, most major Darns in the first game swear at least once.
** There's also the BigBad of the first game, Darnacus Damnation, and the zombie enemy Darn Piece Of Crap.
* TheGrimReaper: The Darn Army has a robotic version of one that appears in both games. Fittingly, it's called the ''Grin'' Reaper.

* HeroicMime: Noitu Love and Xoda Rap never talk, though the other two player characters in ''Devolution'' ([[spoiler:Rilo]] and Almond]]) do.

** Both the second and third phases of the first game's final battle are defeated this way. [[spoiler: The nameless turret is defeated by getting it to shoot parts of the wall that reflect its shots back at it, and Darnacus himself is finally beaten when you climb onto the arena's upper levels to activate his deadly laser while he's too distracted laughing at you to get out of the way.]]

* HumongousMecha: Omega Darn in the first game. He gets scaled down quite a bit in the second game, but is still one of the largest bosses.

* LethalJokeCharacter: Almond has no way to attack and a pitiful jump. Fortunately, he can shield himself at will just by holding down, and the player gets to attack enemies directly in his stead in the vein of a mouse-controlled light gun shooter, and can pick him up with the crosshairs and carry him around for limited periods of time.
* LoadBearingBoss: After beating Poundelita in Lever 3 of the sequel, her hammer breaks the bridge you've been fighting on, sending you into the next section of the level.

* MissionControl: Lori in the first game, and Almond in the second. [[spoiler:Tango briefly takes over in the second game after Almond is captured, but is revealed to be the BigBad soon after Almond’s rescue.]]

* MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: The BigBad of the first game, Professor Darnacus Damnation, [[spoiler:and the BigBad of the sequel, Doctor Tango]].

** Janitor in ''Devolution''. He lacks a weak-point, but will drop bombs that create electric fields. The trick is to [[spoiler:wait for them to activate, then flip gravity so they fly back at the Janitor]].

* OnlyICanKillHim: [[spoiler:Tango chose to restore 2288 instead of 2188, when Evomatics were common, because she believes only Noitu Love can defeat her, and he's gone by 2288. She's wrong.]]
* QuintessentialBritishGentleman: Grinsley Gumsburrow, one of the more major Darns. He wears a monocle and suit, which goes well with his segmented bionic arm.

* AIIsACrapshoot:

* AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever: Darnacus's ultimate Darn creation is [[FinalBoss Omega Darn]], a massive Darn that attacks the city in the finale of the first game.

* BackgroundBoss:
** Omega Darn in both games. In the first, he can only be hit by messing with machines on the plane to fire missiles. In the second, he's close enough to Xoda that she can wail on his eye without having to do anything fancy.
** O2-Joy starts like this in the second game, but heads into the main area after being smacked by hammers enough times.

* BerserkButton: O2-Joy hates it when you mash the keys on his piano in the first game. It's the key to getting him open to attack.

%%* BiggerOnTheInside: The sequel is only about 12MB in size yet packs in a lot of fast-paced action.

* BirdRun: Xoda Rap runs with her arms out.
* BonusBoss: [[spoiler:Shady Hans]] in the second game, who can only be fought on higher difficulties as Xoda, and only if a secret area is found.

* CampGay: Darn Fab, who dresses in bright pink, uses a pink hammer with a heart symbol on it, and blows kisses at Noitu. Less so in the second game, where he's reimagined as a guitar-playing cowboy.

* DarkActionGirl: Rilo Doppelori and [[spoiler:Tango]], two of the few clear female members of the Darn Army. Both are antagonists in the sequel, the latter [[DragonAscendant returning]] as the main villain and the former [[spoiler:being the ''real'' villain]].
* DeathByFallingOver: How Sleeper Brakeman's vehicle meets its end; it keeps running after the conductor dies, but then trips on Grinsley Gumsburrow's fist and slams into the ground.

* DiscOneFinalBoss: [[spoiler:Doppelori in ''Devolution''; Tango convinces Xoda and Almond that she is the new leader of the Darns, when it turns out to be [[TheMole Tango herself]] who leads them.]]
* DragonAscendant: Rilo Doppelori, the penultimate boss in the original game, returns in the sequel and appears to be now leading the Darns despite it being 100 years since the last game. [[spoiler:Except she’s [[DiscOneFinalBoss not]]- the ''real'' example is Tango, the professor’s MasterComputer who’s gained control of the army for herself.]]
* DropTheHammer:
** Darn Fab carries a huge one in the first game. It's about twice his size, yet doesn't hamper his movement speed at all.
** Poundelita in the sequel also carries one. Again, doesn't seem to slow her down.
* DualBoss: The Grinning 4 in ''Devolution'' are an odd case. Instead of fighting all four at once, you fight them in an arena that rotates to each one of them, letting them attack and also opening them up to damage. After killing one, an electric barrier appears in their section to serve as a hazard for when the rooms spins.
* DuelingPlayerCharacters: In ''Devolution'', [[spoiler:the initial boss of Stage 3 is Rilo (when playing as Xoda or Almond) or Xoda (when playing as Rilo)]]. Both bosses share two attacks and have one unique one ([[spoiler:Rilo can jump away and carpet-bomb the bridge, and Xoda can dash to Rilo's location and throw a punch]]).

* ExcusePlot: The first game boils down to "there are bad guys, go kill them". The sequel has a more complex plot underneath that, but most of it is restricted to the final levels, and there's a lot of unanswered questions by the end.

* FluffyTheTerrible: As seen on the writing on the side of it, Mordecai Fluke's ship is named "Daisy". Said ship is outfitted with crushing wheels and several cannons.

* DarkIsNotEvil[=/=]LightIsNotGood: [[spoiler:Doppelori has dark blue [[RobotGirl “skin”]] and black clothing, and is TheDragon in the first game, but in the sequel she’s somewhat of an AntiHero (or at worst a NominalHero).

The first game is a mix of an {{action game}} and a {{platform|Game}}er, whereas the second one eschews the platform element to make a significantly faster paced action game. The plot of the games is relatively [[ExcusePlot simple]]. The first game, set in TheFuture, pits the protagonist, Noitu Love, and his MissionControl, Lori, against [[MadScientist Darnacus]] [[BigBad Damnation]] and his army of MechaMooks, the Grinning Darns. The second game (subtitled ''Devolution'') takes place in the future and pits Noitu Love's DistaffCounterpart and ActionGirl, Xoda Rap, and her allies Mr. Almond and Dr. Tango, against the Grinning Darns who've mysteriously risen again. And this time, [[EvilKnockoff Rilo Doppelori]] is [[DragonAscendant leading them]].

* ActionGirl: Xoda Rap, a brawler capable of agile attacks and swift maneuvers.

** Rilo [[spoiler:is an aversion; her loyalty to Darnacus is a major reason why she hates Tango so much]].

* AndIMustScream: [[spoiler:Rilo]] states in the sequel that [[spoiler:Tango]] was left by herself for hundreds of years after the Grinning Darns were defeated by Noitu. [[spoiler:No wonder she's gone mad.]]

** In ''Devolution'', [[EvilKnockoff Rilo Doppelori]], TheDragon to Darnacus, has returned and [[DragonAscendant is in control of the returning Darns]]. [[spoiler:Except [[DiscOneFinalBoss she was framed]] by [[TheMole Dr. Tango]], who is actually the Darn MasterComputer bent on [[AGodAmI ascending to godhood]] and conquering the world herself]].

* {{Metaphorgotten}}: At the end of Xoda's Story Mode, when the BigBad reveals her EvilPlan, [[spoiler:Almond says it is playing God, but Tango retorts that [[AGodAmI she will become a god]], and then goes back to the heroes' statement, pronouncing proudly that "I'd just be playing with myself".]]

* TomTheDarkLord: The BigBad of the first game is called [[GoshDangItToHeck Darnacus Damnation]], which is a silly yet still somewhat threatening name. But in the sequel, [[spoiler:the [[AGodAmI god-wannabe]] MasterComputer BigBad calls herself ''Tango'']].

* AscendedExtra: In the first game, Rilo Doppelori was only in one level, and was just another boss with minor plot importance (admittedly, she was [[TheDragon the penultimate boss]]). Come ''Devolution'', and she's one of the main characters, and the only one other than some bosses to return from the original game.

* AGodAmI: [[spoiler:Tango]] attempts this in the finale of ''Devolution'' by [[spoiler:fusing with the last Evomatic.]]

** [[spoiler:Tango was originally the Darn Base's [[MasterComputer main computer]], until she started thinking independently and using the Darn Army to her advantage.]]

** After beating ''Devolution'' as Xoda, you can play the story again while playing as [[spoiler:Rilo Doppelori]]. The plot shows her beating all the bosses Xoda faced, including the Sea Serpent that clearly blasted her away in Xoda's story. It ends up tying into the main story by the end, though, where [[spoiler:the two characters meet at the Darn Base, and both go different ways, with Rilo going to activate the base's self-destruct and fight a new boss.]]

* BishonenLine: The BigBad FinalBoss of ''Noitu Love 2'': [[spoiler:Antepenultimate Tango is a body in the fetal position protected by an egg, Penultimate Tango is an emotional HumongousMecha with bat wings who can project diamonds from her forehead, and Ultimate Tango is a normal-sized superhuman with HardLight powers]]. This is a justified case, as [[spoiler:Tango is going through stages of human development: embryo, child, and adult]].

** The sequel [[HappyEndingOverride retroactively turns the ending of the first game into one]]. Sure, Professor Darnacus Damnation was stopped, but, unbeknownst to everyone, [[spoiler:he set up his base's AI, Tango herself, to spring up another Darn Army attack. Which she did, by taking TheSlowPath, waiting Noitu to be outlived, then [[ApocalypseHow/Class6 destroying the world]] [[TheBadGuyWins unimpeded]]. Would very much count as a DownerEnding... If it wasn't for the fact that doing this [[DidntThinkThisThrough resulted in no working Evomatics around]], [[DeusEstMachina necessary for her godhood ascension]]. So, long story short, [[OurTimeTravelIsDifferent area-localized time-travel towers]], bring the last Evomatic under the hero's faction's custody back after said hero is long gone, infiltrate their ranks while springing up more towers into randomized times to keep 'em distracted, etc.]], leading into ''Devolution''.

* DarkIsNotEvil[=/=]LightIsNotGood: [[spoiler:Doppelori has dark blue [[RobotGirl “skin”]] and black clothing, and is TheDragon in the first game, but in the sequel she’s somewhat of an AntiHero (or at worst a NominalHero). In contrast, BigBad Tango wears a white coat, and her second form is colored light blue.]]

* DegradedBoss: Two of the second game's minibosses are Grinsley Gumsburrow, the boss of stage 4 in the first game, and the Omega Darn, [[UpToEleven the first game’s]] ''FinalBoss''.

* TheDogWasTheMastermind: [[spoiler:The true BigBad of ''Devolution'', the MasterComputer who seeks to [[TakeOverTheWorld rule the world]] [[AGodAmI as a god]], is Doctor Tango, who was introduced as an ally and didn’t seem to have a major role in the plot, only appearing occasionally.]]

* TheDreaded: Noitu Love apparently becomes enough of this for the Darn Army in the sequel that [[spoiler:Tango opts to use the time towers to recreate 2288, where there's only one Evomatic in existence, instead of 2188, where Evomatics are more plentiful, but Noitu Love is still alive]].

* [[DistaffCounterpart Distaff]] LegacyCharacter: Xoda, The sequel’s protagonist, to Noitu, protagonist of the original.
** SpearCounterpart: [[MissionControl Almond to Lori]].

* EvilKnockoff: Rilo Doppelori is this to Lori, and was disguised as her before revealing herself in the first game.

* HumongousMecha:
** Omega Darn in the first game. He gets scaled down quite a bit in the second game, but is still one of the largest bosses.
** [[spoiler:Penultimate Tango]] may also count, though only because [[spoiler:Tango is later [[RoboticReveal revealed to be a robot]]; the form itself is humanoid aside from some gears on her sides]].

* MasterComputer: [[spoiler:The BigBad of ''Devolution'' is one of these for the robotic Darns. She disguises herself as Tango for most of the game.]]

* TheMole: [[spoiler:In ''Devolution'', Doctor Tango is the one behind the return of the Darns, having manipulated everything behind the scenes so that she could prepare an Evomatic for her godly ascension.]]

* NiceJobFixingItVillain: [[spoiler:Tango gives away the locations of the Darn base, sending Xoda there on what is essentially a suicide mission with the intent to be rid of her. Funny thing is, the heroes couldn't have found the base themselves, and the Darns would have eventually destroyed all human resistance.]]
** [[spoiler:Tango also sacrificed her own backup, her original body as Darnacus' Base's main computer, because she couldn't wait another minute more than the millennia she’d gone through to finally use an Evomatic. In fact, an ''artificial intelligence'' have lost to the heroes because, while developing a personality made her guise credible enough, she also grew impatient and an inflated ego. Mental routines that most AIs would consider a waste of time, energy, and conflicting priorities.]]

* NonActionGuy: Almond, to the point where, when you play as him, he does nothing except dodge. The mouse cursor can shoot enemies and cause Almond to fly, but neither action appears to be performed by ''him'' on-screen.

** Every boss except Darn Reckless in ''Devolution''[='=]s [[UnexpectedShmupLevel Level 4]] (as Xoda). They all involve using the Combolt Battery's chaining to get past shields.

* {{Squick}}: In-universe, one of Darnacus's lines after Noitu Love defeats Rilo (where he outright admits he made Rilo [[DirtyOldMan to be a “sexy” robot]]) has this effect on the others.

* WalkingSpoiler: [[spoiler:Tango initially seems to just be a minor helper, but she’s the true BigBad, FinalBoss, and [[RoboticReveal the Darns’]] MasterComputer.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:Clockwise from bottom middle:[[PlayerCharacter Xoda Rap]], Tango, [[MissionControl Almond]], and [[EvilKnockoff Rilo Doppelori]].]]

The first game is a mix of an {{action game}} and a {{platform|Game}}er, whereas the second one eschews the platform element to make a significantly faster paced action game. The plot of the games is relatively [[ExcusePlot simple]]. The first game, set in TheFuture, pits the protagonist, Noitu Love, and his MissionControl, Lori, against [[MadScientist Darnacus]] [[BigBad Damnation]] and his army of MechaMooks, the Grinning Darns. The second game (subtitled ''Devolution'') takes place in the future and pits Noitu Love's DistaffCounterpart and ActionGirl Xoda Rap against the Grinning Darns who've mysteriously risen again. And this time, [[EvilKnockoff Rilo Doppelori]] [[DragonAscendant appears to be leading them]].

* BigBad: In the first game, [[MadScientist Professor Darnacus Damnation]] leads an army of robot called the Grinning Darns to TakeOverTheWorld (and turn everyone into monkeys). In ''Devolution'', the Darns rise again, and this time it seems that [[EvilKnockoff Rilo Doppelori]] has returned and [[DragonAscendant is in control of them]], [[spoiler:but [[DiscOneFinalBoss she was framed]] by [[TheMole Doctor Tango]], who is actually the Darn MasterComputer bent on [[AGodAmI ascending to godhood]] and conquering the world herself]].

** The second part of Stage 3's boss involves the player running atop a water wheel that's spinning down a river and the stage ends this way. If you're playing as Xoda, the intro to her fourth stage shows [[NoOffscreenInertia the wheel suddenly crashing into the desert as she jumps off it]].

* BrickJoke: In the first level of ''Devolution'', you have to duck behind trees as they get gunned down and fall in the water. After that segment, a Darn Dimwit attacks in a boat from the background. One of those waterborne trees takes him out so that you can progress.

* DeathByFallingOver: How Sleeper Brakeman's vehicle meets its end; it keeps running after the conductor dies, but then trips on a rock and slams into the ground.
* DegradedBoss: Two of the second game’s minibosses are Grinsley Gumsburrow, the boss of stage 4 in the first game, and the Omega Darn, [[UpToEleven the first game’s]] ''FinalBoss''.

* [[spoiler:DiscOneFinalBoss: Doppelori in ''Devolution''; Tango convinces Xoda and Almond that she is the new leader of the Darns, when it turns out to be [[TheMole Tango herself]] who leads them.]]