History VideoGame / Transistor

* CosmicHorrorStory: A group of {{Well Intentioned Extremist}}s DugTooDeep and unleashed something [[TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow beyond their understanding]] which they hoped to control, [[spoiler:but end up consigning everyone and everything to inevitable destruction]]. It ends with [[spoiler:Red technically winning, but Cloudbank is gone and she's the only one left alive, so she is DrivenToSuicide]].

* WellIntentionedExtremist: [[spoiler: The Camerata were fed up with how ephemeral Cloudbank had become, constantly changing according to the whims of its citizens (right down to the weather and even the color of the sky). Unfortunately, their plan to put a stop to that went out of control and triggered TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt.]]

* SeeYouInHell: "See you in the country" is a somewhat less insulting version of this, apparently. [[spoiler:It's the last thing that Asher says to Red in recording after he suicides, and she types it right back at him.]]

* CentralTheme: [[spoiler:Hubris, and the consequences of never looking back.]]

** "When everything changes, nothing changes." The Camerata creed, which is mentioned at least twice, comments on the nature of all-encompassing changes, many of which have occurred through out the game, such as how Cloudbank votes for the weather and the color of the sky, [[spoiler:the complete destruction and processing of the city, as well as the fact that every one went to the country in the end. Though should Red let Royce win, then instead, Royce gets to completely rebuild the city.]]

* CentralTheme: [[spoiler: Hubris, and the consequences of never looking back.]]

* ChekhovsSkill: Red's Flourish ability causes the Transistor to fly out of her hands, which is fun to mess around with. [[spoiler: She uses this ability at the very end of the game, operating the Transistor remotely in order to commit suicide.]]

* CoolBike: Red gets to ride one for a little while near the start of the game, [[spoiler: and again on the return trip.]]
* CosmicHorrorStory: A group of {{Well Intentioned Extremist}}s DugTooDeep and unleashed something [[TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow beyond their understanding]] which they hoped to control, [[spoiler:but end up consigning everyone and everything to inevitable destruction]]. It ends with [[spoiler:Red technically winning, but Cloudbank is gone and she's the only one left alive, so she is DrivenToSuicide.]]
* CyberpunkWithAChanceOfRain: Subverted, the Transistor wishes it would rain to help hide your tracks. However, Cloudbank's weather is controlled by public ballot and rain isn't even an option. [[spoiler:Later on you get admin access to the city and can make it rain or snow.]]
* {{Cyberspace}}: Cloudbank itself is implied to be some sort of virtual reality, with the power to [[GeniusLoci reshape itself through the will of the populace]]. As the Process spreads, [[spoiler: doorways start spitting out computer errors, Cartesian coordinates for their endpoints, and hexadecimal file locations]].
* DarkerAndEdgier: The game is noticeably darker than ''Videogame/{{Bastion}}''. While ''Bastion'' takes place AfterTheEnd, ''Transistor'' puts the player right in the middle of the ongoing apocalypse as they get to watch everything fall apart around them. [[spoiler: And unlike ''Bastion'', ''nobody'' survives to the end of the game (or at least nobody survives unprocessed.)]]

** Everything in Cloudbank -- from the weather to the color of the sky -- is decided by public poll. This has left the city constantly changing to suit whatever whim the citizens have, and frequently left the less-well off at the mercy of a tyranny of the majority.

* DuelBoss: The final boss is this. [[spoiler: Royce is even able to use Turn(), mirroring Red's abilities completely.]] Agency tests also feature this kind of battle.

* TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt: [[spoiler: Red isn't able to stop the Process before they seemingly process the entire city and everyone inside it.]]
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: [[spoiler: Evil is putting it a little strongly, but]] Grant and Asher seem to have been married, as they share the same last name and it doesn't at all seem to be due to blood relation. When Asher isn't using his messages to MotiveRant at Red, he's expressing concern for Grant. Some lines from Royce make it clear this was hardly one-sided devotion on Asher's part.

* {{Foreshadowing}}: [[spoiler: The song "We All Become" is basically the plot in musical form. Asher and Grant's fate also foreshadows how Red ends the story.]]

* ImpliedLoveInterest: The Man in the Transistor and Red...[[spoiler: well, until he flat out says it the end anyway.]]
* ImprobableUseOfAWeapon: Though the Transistor looks like a sword, Red never actually uses it as such. Even her most basic attack has her slamming it into the ground and firing a burst of energy from the eye on the side. The only time she uses it like a proper sword is when [[spoiler: she impales herself with it at the end of the game.]]

* InTheirOwnImage: The Camerata is trying to pull this. [[spoiler: Red actually gets an opportunity to do so after Cloudbank's reduced to a "blank canvas", with the Transistor as her "brush", but she instead decides to catch up with her friend... by killing herself and being integrated into the sword.]]
* IronicEcho: "Hello, world" when making your way into the city shortly after the beginning, enjoying the [[SceneryPorn breathtaking view of the scenery]]. [[spoiler: Shortly before the end, when returning to WhereItAllBegan it gets echoed... "Hello, world. You don't look so good...", as the scenery has been [[SceneryGorn grayed out and processed.]]]] Also doubles as a second, minor set of BookEnds.

* MaybeEverAfter: [[spoiler:Red and the Man in the Transistor]]. It's unknown what will happen from the end on.

* MirrorBoss: The final boss, [[spoiler:Royce, fights you with another Transistor. He can use Turn() like you can, can use all of your functions, and has four lives from a full set of functions.]] Agency tests employ the same mechanic.

* MythologyGag: Starting a "recursive" run plays the first sentence spoken in the game in a distorted manner (and voiced by a different character). This is very similar to the NewGamePlus from ''Bastion''. The CentralTheme from ''Bastion'' occurs here again, [[spoiler:only this time the player isn't even given the option to start over again, seeing that the protagonist is DrivenToSuicide.]]

* RedEyesTakeWarning: The Processes, but subverted with Red's friend inhabiting the Transistor, who's a pretty good guy. [[spoiler:When his eye starts ''glowing,'' it's certainly a warning... but the danger isn't the Transistor, its a gigantic Process called the Spine causes the Transistor to screw up somehow just by being in the area.]]

** [[spoiler: Asher and Grant]] share the same fate.
--->[[spoiler: '''Asher''']]: We always said that if we were to fail, we would do so together, as one. See you in the Country.

** Two members of the Camerata, [[spoiler: Grant and Asher, are never actually fought, having committed suicide just before Red could reach them. Especially surprising in regards to Grant, who was played up as the main antagonist in both the launch trailer and the game itself. He never gets a single line of dialogue]].

* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: [[spoiler: Sybil.]] She tries to pull a MurderTheHypotenuse by having the Camerata target Red without telling them that her friend would be there with her, expecting him to die protecting her. Her plan works, but she didn't count on the man hijacking the Transistor and using it to teleport Red to safety, kickstarting the game's plot.

** The first line spoken in the [[NewGamePlus recursion]] is the same line as when you first start up the game: "Hey Red... We're not getting away with this, are we?". However, there is one key difference that completely changes the premise of the game. [[spoiler: Instead of being spoken by Mr. Nobody, it's spoken by ''Royce''.]]
* WhereItAllBegan: [[spoiler: Tracking down Royce takes Red back to where she first got the Transistor.]]

* DarkReprise: The game includes a few "processed" versions of tracks, such as the version of "In Circles" that plays [[BossRemix during the fight with Sybil]].

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:After restoring part of Cloudbank, Red [[DrivenToSuicide elects to kill herself]] with the Transistor so she'll [[TogetherInDeath be with her lover inside the Transistor]].]]

* GameBreakingBug: Multiple copies of Get() as a passive tend not to react well in Turn(). The most common example of this is using a Tap() and Void() with both augmented by Get(). If you try to use both against tougher Processes, Turn() can lock up if you stack Tap() on top of Void() multiple times, forcing you to abort the sequence using 'R' and lose out on the damage you should have down from the additional uses of Tap().

--->[[spoiler: ''''Asher''']]: We always said that if we were to fail, we would do so together, as one. See you in the Country.

* DopplegangerSpin: Combining Jaunt() with Help() results in Red leaving behind decoy afterimages whenever she {{Flash Step}}s.

* MutuallyExclusivePowerups: Once you enter NewGamePlus and start getting duplicate functions, you cannot use both copies of a function as an upgrade for another active function. You can, however, use a copy of a function to upgrade itself.

* ObviousRulePatch: As a general rule, Crash() as an upgrade causes a function to temporarily stun enemies and reduce their defense. However, if Crash() is applied to Ping(), the function with the fastest fire rate, only the second effect applies.

* AreaOfEffect: The Spark() attack. Load() can also be used to create explosive mines, or modify abilities with explosive effects.

* AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever: [[spoiler:the Spine.]]
* AttackOfTheMonsterAppendage: [[spoiler:Also the Spine.]]

** Using Help() as a primary function has similar problems. The awesome: you can summon a Fetch, one of the most dangerous Processes, and upgrade it with oher functions to make it even more powerful. The impractical: once you exceed a very short distance from the pet, it unsummons. Yes, if you exceed this distance during a turn, despite ending the turn right next to the pet, it will still unsummon. The super super impractical: if you exceed the distance during your Turn(), your Turn() ENDS, AND you lose the pet. This pretty much makes Help() one of the most disruptive support enemies you could face in the game.

* SelfImposedChallenge: Similar to the idols from ''VideoGame/{{Bastion}}'', you can apply Limiters to the game. These give you an experience boost, but make the game more difficult in various ways.

* LoweredMonsterDifficulty: Averted. Processes level up throughout the game, gaining more HP and new abilities. Even very weak processes like Creeps become incredibly annoying or dangerous once they're powered up.

* TheUnreveal: [[spoiler:It's possible to catch the tail end of Royce explaining his theory of the true nature of the Transistor, just as you emerge from one of the backdoor areas. Despite the Transistor's request, he declines to repeat himself.]]

Gameplay is a mixture of real-time action comparable to ''Bastion'' and tactical RPG-like elements; "Planning Mode", A.K.A. "Turn()", can be used to plan a chain of attacks and move around at high speed when executing the plan. There are a number of Functions ([[CallARabbitASmeerp a.k.a. spells]]) to unlock, each capable of being used as a skill themselves, an upgrade to another Function, or as a passive ability, with a huge variety of available combinations.

* AmbiguousEnding: In a way. What the player sees on the screen is clear enough, but the implications aren’t clear.

* AwesomeButImpractical: Using Help() as a passive command gives you a 25% chance of becoming a Superuser whenever you use Turn(), giving you access to the unique Kill() command that has the highest base damage in the game, but it can't be enhanced with support commands and using it once takes up your entire Turn(), meaning you can't perform any combos with it either. Borders on AnnoyingVideoGameHelper (or [[JustForPun Annoying Video Game Help()er?]]) if you were lining up for a piercing attack like Breach(); you're out of luck since you can only use Kill() this turn and it explodes on first impact.
** Help() is dinged a 2nd time, when it comes to the pet you can summon. The awesome: the pet is upgradable and can stay out a theoretically infinite amount of time. The impractical: once you exceed a very short distance from the pet, it unsummons. Yes, if you exceed this distance during a turn, despite ending the turn right next to the pet, it will still unsummon. The super super impractical: if you exceed the distance during your turn, your turn ENDS, AND you lose the pet. This pretty much makes Help() one of the most disruptive support enemies you could face in the game.

* DarkerAndEdgier: The game is noticeably darker than ''Videogame/{{Bastion}}''. While ''Bastion'' takes place AfterTheEnd, Transistor puts the player right in the middle of the ongoing apocalypse as they get to watch everything fall apart around them. [[spoiler: And unlike ''Bastion'', ''nobody'' survives to the end of the game (or at least nobody survives unprocessed.)]]

** Royce Brackett [[spoiler:found the Process was responsible for Cloudbank's ever-shifting nature, and drew it forth in its raw form]]. Then he realized that it was not under his control any more.

* GrapplingHookGun: Get() in base form.

* InTheirOwnImage: The Camerata is trying to pull this. [[spoiler: Red actually gets an opportunity to after Cloudbank's reduced to a "blank canvas", with the Transistor as her "brush", but she instead decides to catch up with her friend... by killing herself and being integrated into the sword.]]

* MacguffinTitle: Also a OneWordTitle. Named for the Transistor.
* MagicFromTechnology: All of the Transistor's Functions have names and parentheses like programming code functions. Among other things, the Transistor is meant to control the Process, which in gameplay takes the form of combat against the Process. You are figuratively typing out commands to terminate processes when you queue up moves during Turn(). But it all ''looks'' like you casting magic spells.

* NoCureForEvil: Averted. Weeds can repair any damaged Processes that come within range.

* OneWordTitle: As MacguffinTitle, named after the Transistor.

* OverDrive: The core feature of the game. Using the Transistor's Turn() function, Red has the power to slow time to a standstill, plan out the next few seconds, and perform attacks/dodge at lightning-speed for those few seconds. The drawback is that doing this will cause all of Red's attacks and Turn() itself to go on cooldown; the time it takes to recharge depends on how much Red did during Turn(). Jaunt() bypasses this restriction, either as a primary function or as an upgrade for other functions.

* SequentialBoss: Sybil and Royce need to be defeated several times before they finally die.

* SpannerInTheWorks: Red's friend, the Man in the Transistor and the Breach() function, had completely destroyed the antagonists' plans by getting killed and processed by the weapon instead. After Red goes off with the weapon, absorbing the other people that have been turned into data, things just start to go downhill fast...

* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: [[spoiler: Sybil.]] Arranging for Red's friend to be killed thanks to trying to pull a MurderTheHypotenuse, she didn't count on Red keeping the sword. Red making off with the Transistor is what kickstarts the game's plot.

-->'''Royce:''' [[spoiler:So, who gets to go first? How about... ''me.'' (''Boots up his own Turn()'')]]

* YouWillNotEvadeMe: The main purpose of Get() in all upgrade forms. If installed as passive, it will make you draw in dropped Cells faster and from further away. Higher-level Creeps and Jerks have similar attacks.

* CombinatorialExplosion: Every new function you find has one of three uses: Active, Upgrade, or Passive. Active uses the function as a weapon. Upgrade uses the function to enhance another weapon, and Passive enhances Red herself. There are a total of 16 functions to choose from, so there's a lot of ways to mix and match. [[spoiler:In NewGamePlus, you unlock additional copies of the functions which allow you to stack them for even more combinations.]] The game even keeps track of which combinations you've actually used in battle, and each function needs to be used in each type of slot at least once to unlock the available backstory for that function.

** The Bracket Towers Maintenance Section has the code 0451, which is famously used as the initial door code in ''VideoGame/DeusEx'', and many games referencing this since. (Which is itself a reference to ''Literature/{{Fahrenheit451}}''.)

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:After restoring part of Cloudbank, Red [[DrivenToSuicide elects to kill herself]] with the Transistor so she'll [[TogetherInDeath be with her lover inside the Transistor]]. The entirety of Cloudbank is dead and doesn't seem salvageable, so it is abandoned and remain [[CessationofExistence processed]]. [[ItsAllAboutMe So at least Red and 'Nobody' have an esoteric happy ending!]] ]]

''Transistor'' is the SpiritualSuccessor to Supergiant Games' previous hit ''VideoGame/{{Bastion}}'', featuring the returning voice talent of Logan Cunningham as the titular weapon. In the city of Cloudbank, a young singer known as Red is attacked by a mysterious organization known as the Camerata. Somehow, she survives (although she loses her voice) but finds the dead body of a man she knows. Impaled in his stomach is a mysterious sword called the Transistor, and contained within the sword is the soul of the man himself. Red takes the sword, and together they set out to discover the intentions of the Camerata and stop the dangerous force known as the Process from overtaking the city.