Bug Fables OST - 73 - Lab Over Snakemouth

[@shady7919]

Everybody gangsta till lief refers to himself as "I"

[@codename618]

That moment caught me off-guard. Then again, so did his entire arc/quest.

[@rulliantheskunk2091]

After chapter 3 was when it went from a good game, to an amazing game. However this moment here, was when it went from amazing, to stellar. Seriously, this was probably my single most favorite moment in all of Bug Fables.

[@uiinpui]

@@rulliantheskunk2091 I made my friend play through this game but he stopped after chapter 2 because it was too boring for him (insert sad face here). I still find this frustrating because the first 2 chaptersare probably the most boring chapters in the game but I can't convince him to keep playing sadly. I don't want to convince him to keep playing a game he doesn't like though. But I agree with what you said here

[@darkmonger6244]

@@rulliantheskunk2091 Hell, it's one of my favorite moments in all of gaming.

[@larsthememelord3383]

@@uiinpuidoes your friend not understand basic plot progression, do they really expect the game to get into the main plot right away without easing them into the world with a few low stakes and low tension adventures

[@MaddyRaddy9]

Lo-fi beats to unveil horrific secrets and get traumatized to.

[@paint_turtle]

LMAO

[@Dragonian05]

Underrated comment.

[@mr.boombox5021]

The instant you understood why Lief kept referring to himself in plural. The queen of England wishes she had as good a reason.

[@epicgamerzfail4575]

I always found it odd how he never explained why he used plural when we first met him. Then we found out why.....oof, the feels

[@PerfectKirby]

@@epicgamerzfail4575 what's even more bizarre is that nobody, not him, not his friends, not even strangers, EVER bring up his use of the royal "we". Nobody ever asks why he talks that way, it's kind of odd

[@IAteABox]

I originally just let it slide because he was old and knew the queen. I don’t know too much about the royal We, so I assumed it was normal. This game was really smart about having no other characters bring that up before the big reveal.

[@J64-h8o]

@@PerfectKirby I always assume people thought he was referring to the team and not himself so they never brought it up

[@aeoli]

@@PerfectKirby well he was really old, was stuck in a cave for ages, and could speak roach so they probably thought he was kinda insane

[@rockinmusicquarterly12]

shoutout to secret labs in indie games producing grotesque horrors beyond imagining, gotta be one of my favorite genders

[@MartialArtsFights]

me, a genius: *turns all light switches on* *presses door switch* *nothing happens*

[@ermant7285]

Oh fuck I remember that puzzle. I did the same thing too until I realized it has something to do with the pipes

[@WaddleGreen]

LMAO same

[@ermant7285]

@mohammed makkawi do it the opposite way

[@Oshamoff]

I did the exact same thing and felt like a massive tool after I understood the actual solution.

[@XLatMaths]

@mohammed makkawi that is the correct method, you just have to make sure ONLY the pipes are lit. You have to turn the others off.

[@zememerr2329]

Me: (does this right after chapter 4) Far grasslands enemies with Bug Me Not on: *Adios*

[@pipinstine4462]

I’m guessing they expected you to do this way later in the game.

[@No_Sleepee]

@@pipinstine4462 Possibly after Chapter 6, before setting off for Giant's Lair

[@SharklordZerato]

@@pipinstine4462 Judging by the sheer power of Ice Rain: absolutely

[@moonjumper6197]

@@SharklordZerato ice rain is far eclipsed by frost relay

[@SharklordZerato]

@@moonjumper6197 Frost Relay takes Vi and Leif's turns. Ice rain just takes Leif's. In other words, you can pass your turn to Leif with vi and get two Ice Rains for the same number of moves as it would take to get one Frost Relay. Ice Rain's also just generally easier to pull off and with a small boost to Leif's power through medals or other power boosts, you can easily whack for a good 32 damage in a turn

[@twilighttoast01]

I love how the roach lab is behind the door that you opened in Ch 1, but due to certain circumstances you can only access it around Ch 4. You have to remember that this door even exists this late in the game. Exploring the lab is also a huge reward that unveils one of the game's biggest twists. I love this game

[@Multibe150]

Exceptly that there are two side-quests that make you go into that room again, so even if you forgot about the door at first, the game is designed in such way that players who do missions regulalry will stumble upon the entrance to the lab. This is a simple but genious game design trick

[@moonjumper6197]

No in chapter 1 you unlock the down big door and in chapter 4 you unlock the upper big door

[@Multibe150]

@@moonjumper6197 In chapter 1 you open both doors, one by taking the mushroom and falling down, the other by solving the puzzles, but you can only access the later one

[@samuraicupcake289]

Backtracking done right!

[@korhol2065]

I discovered it cause the first thing I thought was “can I dig under the gate by the ant guard”

[@jimjam2282]

I really like how they nudge you to this place by having you go back to snakemouth with the ladybug quest. I completely forgot about the massive door that I opened in the beginning of the game and was like "did I ever go in here?" And then I use that crystal gem key item and find this area. Good shit. Especially getting that JUICY lief backstory Although I found out neo does outright tell you about the lab later

[@koekerfloeker2454]

Yeah I think that it's supposed to be a chapter 6-7 area because of how powerfull the enemies are, and because of the fact that the boss of this area is labeled next to the FINAL BOSS in the bestiary?

[@guywithrevolver]

It seems that we had the same experience.

[@sonnitude]

Heh... I learned the hard way... this is not an area you do ASAP... but... I couldn’t help myself, my curiosity got the better of me, and I had to know what the heck was going on with Leif.

[@Bofrab]

I went here immediately after getting the gem. I honestly thought it was kinda easy. Because of this place giving me so much xp the next 3 areas only gave 1 xp. (I didn’t use the hard mode badge.)

[@superbfruitpigeon]

That’s how I found the room my first time playing the game too! I probably did this dungeon way too early but it was totally worth it.

[@isectoid9454]

All the writing surrounding Leif seems a cut above the rest of the writing in the game--not that I think the games writing is bad, just that Leif's story particularly stands out as unusually high quality, or just more engaging than the rest.

[@quinnsundquist-carr3634]

Possibly they intended to make Leif a bigger part of it all, but I think it's because they just gravitated towards the important factors. Leif is a sorcerer, of which only ten were known before. He is from the last era, so sees the world differently. All the things regarding Snakemouth. His words play a critical part in the story multiple times. Whereas Vi and Kabbu are your 'grounded' characters, Leif is always out of the moment. So by extension, his story is more gripping because it is unnatural. That's my take at least.

[@isectoid9454]

@@quinnsundquist-carr3634 I wonder how long the 'recorded history' is. Like, is it 10 sorcerers from the awakening, or 10 sorcerers from the founding of bugaria?

[@qazxsw13]

@@quinnsundquist-carr3634 I think there's still more to Leif that has yet to be told that might be saved for a sequel. The biggest revelation isn't even his true identity, but his connections to the "Guardians" as revealed by the secret room. He may even be one, if not, they're connected somehow for a purpose yet to be revealed.

[@quinnsundquist-carr3634]

@@qazxsw13 You learn his identity, or rather his current identity. Why he can cast magic, what happened to him, etc. I don't think there is more to divulge. Not sure what guardians you mean at the moment.

[@thegoldenstation9723]

even despite, all 3 characters have interesting lore Vi being rude to her colony and storming out to prove her dreams Kabuu's tragedy of travelling through harsh lands and losing his close friends And of course Leif which is the most interesting and jaw dropping of all

[@chasedownall6492]

"Zombee" is hands down the best pun I've ever heard. A unique one that I don't think will ever show up for a very long time.

[@nm5329]

It was used in an episode of a kids TV show/sitcom once.

[@andrix7777]

I think someone mentioned it somewhere in the comments of a review about a movie called Zombeavers edit: i completely forgot there's also Zombeef

[@LordVortAch2652]

Zombeetle

[@TimmyTam]

I always thought Leif refered to himself as "we" because they speak an older language and that's just how they translate it, but no, they just had to make their backstory one of the most interesting things I've ever seen in a game.

[@kmrose4741]

And all this time I thought Leif referred to himself in the plural bc he was just Quirky Like That™ or something having to do with his magic but no hes just the result of improper biohazard disposal

[@mystwilight]

Leif: "I...I have no siblings! As if I could be related to this beast!" Me: *scared because Leif said "I"*

[@skaterlightyaoi]

Top 10 scarriest things in videogames

[@uiinpui]

Earlier than that he also says "My" and it just confused me

[@JezElectro13]

I only now realized that

[@HypNoel]

Mystical. Ominous. Perfectly sets the tone for uncovering Leif's unsettling backstory.

[@ihaetschool3361]

vi is the first ever bee explorer. if so... what were bees doing HERE? this has very unsettling implications

[@SammysCreations]

They could’ve been kidnapped. Or they could have been taken in for research. Having no idea what was going to happen to them

[@guycappy]

This song is so.. unsettling. I went "there" without any healing items. Thank god the buds were a thing!

[@somecringeykirbyvideoskirb9552]

Dude omg hi cappy

[@chaosinc.382]

I went in half prepared and the beetles made me regret it.

[@SirGoonsquire]

I beat “it” pretty quickly so I didn’t really use any healing

[@uiinpui]

Thank God sharing stash is a thing

[@jirachi_the_nomai]

Me during my first time in the lab: "Oh! Bee and Beetle zombies!" "That means there's going to be a moth zombie at some point too, that's so cool!" Hahahahah hah hah... help

[@lushiroll]

94 health and 1 defense:

[@innocentpopsicle6797]

-unsettling music -crazy lore revelations -gray color scheme -research logs -cruel experiments -several creatures between life and death -amalgamates Huh.

[@shady7919]

I have a feeling the Bug Fables devs were huge Undertale fans, but I'm not mad the areas are similar. There both probably some of the best areas in those games.

[@innocentpopsicle6797]

@@shady7919 no, I like the similarities between them

[@oanadragomirescu2360]

And somehow, this lab felt even more fucked up than true lab...

[@MetaCrossing]

@@oanadragomirescu2360 Sure, because we knew Alphys’ reasoning. She was assigned by the king to do research on monster souls and attempt to artificially recreate the power of human souls using monsters already near death. It was even shown that the amalgamates were being taken care of, as Alphys calmly led them aside at the end of the sequence. The roaches were just taking bugs and performing experiments on them involving mind-controlling fungi to discover the secret to immortality and magic-wielding. They ignored the idea that maybe creating _literal zombies_ may have been bad, and continued searching for a power to “create something above the gods” (a very healthy and normal desire that has never gone wrong ever).

[@deirdretoth732]

This reminded me more of the soul Sanctum from hollow knight with the true lab parts touched into it.

[@Dawnleaf]

This song sent massive chills down my spine when I first heard it, while reminding me of Riddle Tower from Thousand Year Door. Good stuff!

[@NicoTheCinderace]

Oh hey, fancy seeing you here.

[@thumbtack4751]

Ah yes, the perfect team A beetle, a bee, and a frickin’ zombie moth (All jokes aside, Leif’s backstory was done real well. Gave me the real feels)

[@ConsarnitTokkori]

with how many bees vi's worth, it's a team of 8

[@whotookmypuddingcup4131]

@@ConsarnitTokkori Vi said she's worth 4 bees it'd be 6

[@ConsarnitTokkori]

you're forgetting chompy and leif

[@whotookmypuddingcup4131]

@@ConsarnitTokkori what kind of addition gymnastics are you doing? Chompy + Leif + Kabbu + Vi (4 bees) would've been 7 MEMBERS.

[@ConsarnitTokkori]

it's vi + vi + vi + vi + kabbu + leif + leif + chompy sounds like 8 to me

[@TheMaskedStarlte]

i love the normal snakemouth leitmotif at 0:57.

[@ventriloquistmagician4735]

*leiFmotif

[@XalitharDaskel]

Oh, it happens sooner too, as at 0:18, it has tones of Snakemouth Den in there as well.

[@superbfruitpigeon]

You are so right! Didn’t notice it until now.

[@wildbill7942]

Not to mention the low humming bass used in Venus's Sanctuary, since she was also created here.

[@andrix7777]

@@wildbill7942 That's a theory.

[@robertford6335]

i wouldn't stop joking about leif just being several bugs stacked in a trench coat i mean i wasn't really wrong

[@freedomtheplayer4235]

like the false monarch?

[@cooldoggo58]

We need False Monarch lore

[@pizzaggio]

@@cooldoggo58 he is a bunch of mothiflies under a coat and a mask, boom full lore

[@cooldoggo58]

@@pizzaggio Yeah, but then what are those other mothfly fakes doing? That's what I meant

[@pizzaggio]

@@cooldoggo58 they are very smart and they are trying to replicate a society...? I think?

[@bearboy.]

seeing the note “I can’t feel my legs” was easily the most disturbing part of the game for me

[@MegaDude10]

It's more terrifying when you know what Cordyseps mushrooms do. The mushroom slowly hijacks the mind and body, taking control of the host bug until it finally dies. Not only was whoever wrote the note slowly loosing control of his body, they were STILL FULLY CONSCIOUS AND AWARE OF WHAT'S GOING ON! They were aware of the mushroom controlling them and couldn't do anything to stop it.

[@theknightwithabadpictotall7639]

@@MegaDude10 Wrong, cordyceps mushrooms don't do that. They take control exclusively over the body, staying away from the brain.

[@1Thunderfire]

Bugdom really has it rough when you think about it.

[@GardenVarietea]

I forgot this area existed... not just Upper Snakemouth, *all* of Snakemouth. Since I hadn't waltzed in to the bandit hideout yet, I was just convinced that you can't re-enter Snakemouth. So when I got the request about the ladybug's brother in Snakemouth, I realized: it's not a complete wall, I can dig underneath it.

[@DementedDuskull]

I believe that's why that quest exists in the first place. This is what we intellectuals call good game design.

[@No_Sleepee]

@@DementedDuskull The Ladybug quest was supposed to hint towards that? lel, I remember wanting to go back and Spy on the enemies that I missed in Snakemouth and coming across the wall, and once I got the ability to Dig I tried putting 2 and 2 together

[@GarbbCan]

When you recognize letimotifs in the video sound track especially in locations like this it literally makes EVERYTHING hit way harder

[@screenwatcher949]

Leif-motifs

[@isaacj8240]

This is the best area in the entire game. And you don't even have to go here to beat the game. That's... kind of incredible.

[@skaterlightyaoi]

Wahts with the deadlanders area?

[@uiinpui]

@@skaterlightyaoi I hate that place, it's never safe and I hate that lol

[@skaterlightyaoi]

@@uiinpui uhm i like it😐

[@Gamerman-lu9bs]

“And here we are”

[@falcon5x]

Ah yes, finding a secret lab with horrible experiments in an otherwise unassuming game. My favorite trope!

[@No_Sleepee]

When This music started playing, I freaked out. When I saw the Zombified Beetles and Bees, I freaked out. When Leif referred to himself in the first person, I *freaked out.*

[@zezmogg934]

Not first person, just with singular pronouns

[@No_Sleepee]

@@zezmogg934 Not singular pronouns, but as a singular identity

[@Supermutant6112]

So were you supposed to not go through this dungeon until the the roadblock in Chapter 7? I remembered the pedestal and immediately returned to Snakemouth after Chapter 4. The next few story boss fights were kinda piss easy compared to Zommoth.

[@MoonGhostDoodles]

I’m currently at the very start of Chapter 5, with this dungeon already conpleted. And I think that with the fights I had right after Zommoth... yup, it feels like this was supposed to be a late game area lol

[@merxh00z]

Yea it feels like it was designed to be done much later, especially looking at how leif’s overworld ice skill he gets interacts with the swamplands with it being useable in some water and unusable in others. And on top of that 11tp for that icefall attacks feels way too high of a cost for what you should have at that point.

[@Galastan]

Personally I saw the gate again at the end of like chapter 3 and as soon as I got the dig ability... hoo boy dropped everything and went to go check out this lab. Hardmode Zommoth was a slog to get through at mid-chapter 4 but I managed it somehow. Getting Leif's ice drop ability actually came in handy because I was able to use it to walk on the water in the Wild Swamplands to avoid some of the moving lily pads, and I was able to cheese the Eternal Venom badge puzzle with it. I also didn't know that the roadblock in Chapter 7 was even a roadblock until I saw this comment chain-I just assumed Leif would have given some alternate dialogue and you would have been on your merry way after that.

[@epicgamerzfail4575]

Same here. Although I kinda figured I went into the lab waay too early, I just managed through it. The zommoth fight was beyond hard, and when I saw over 100 hp I knew I was underleveled, but I lucked out and defeated it with just a sliver of hp left. Good thing I almost always choose tp when I rank up (I had like 24 tp in that fight).

[@tubegerm6732]

Snakemouth lab is implied to be take place between getting the sub and going to rubber prison. And there actually is alternate diolouge for that scene; the entirety of snakemouth lab is completly optional.

[@nova338]

Heck yes. I stumbled upon this place by complete chance, and it was such a fun discovery! This place is wonderfully creepy and interesting! and the music does such a good job of capturing that feeling. I love the original Snakemouth song, so it's extra cool to see it remixed here.

[@buybugfables]

I didn’t know it was possible to feel disturbed by an absolute bop

[@yoshidude64595]

The secret room in this area hints at some unseen characters, particularly Mars and Pluto. They're shown alongside Venus and Lief.. Which implies that Lief himself is a God like them.

[@ConsarnitTokkori]

that he is thankfully not if he was a god or something, the one not called spuder would probably not have caught him

[@yoshidude64595]

@@ConsarnitTokkori actually, Lief was a living being when he was caught by the spider. After he died, the parasites took over his body. Those parasites are probably the Gods.

[@ConsarnitTokkori]

but as far as we know, they're just normal cordyceps with crystal juice on them only real reason leif and zommoth can use magic is because apparently moths just absorb it better

[@agibussniper7360]

Hi mr planar robit guy

[@yoshidude64595]

@@agibussniper7360 beep boop.

[@knightofarkronia8652]

Fun Fact Time: Did you know that the zombie ant fungus thing is real? It's called Cordyceps, and when it infects a host, it forces the victim to climb as high as possible, then clamp down on wherever it ends up stopping, before bursting through the host's head and/or body to germinate. The zombies in The Last of Us were created as a result of a mutated strain of Cordyceps infecting people.

[@superbfruitpigeon]

Holy crap. Looking it up now! The writers really did their research!

[@Codeheart]

@@superbfruitpigeon they did, i knew about that fungus before playing the game and when i saw the zombie ants i was amazed and happy, though i knew something was always off about those ants, like they either died before the great awakening, or they weren't any of the ants that were effected

[@jam4536]

I mean leif literally says Cordyceps in his spy of the zombiant

[@queenofglitch]

@@jam4536 Which is even stranger when you consider how calmly he reacts to the Zombiants but is thrown into a panic by all the rest.

[@Mothbean]

@@Codeheart Yeah, when I saw that they made the zombie enemies cordyceps infected ants I knew I was going to enjoy this game. I love how much bug research the devs clearly did for this game.

[@thegoldenstation9723]

gettin true lab vibes from this place

[@moseleych]

The Golden Station absolutely

[@knightofarkronia8652]

The Golden Station Except worse, since the scientists here were less like Alphys from Undertale, and more like Wilhelm 'Deathshead' Strasse from Wolfenstein.

[@Multibe150]

And the True Lab test subjects get a happy, silly ending. Here, every bug captured in Snake Mouth dies, and all of them but Leif get doomed to spend the rest of eternity roaming the lab and rotting

[@TangleSlime2]

It gives me Soul Sanctum vibes. Insects kidnapping and killing numerous other insects in search of immortality, and full of messed-up creatures as a result of that. All the scientists are either dead or might as well be. At the end of the area, you find a place full of the byproducts of the experiments (zombies in tubes for Upper Snakemouth, piles of corpses for the Soul Sanctum).

[@Duelkitten]

So even after i beat the game i just found the secret room. You need vi's fly ability and then use dig. In the room are three computers displaying flower beings "venus" "mars" and "pluton". Venus we already know is the guardian and godess of whole kingdom we play in...so does this mean the two others are the same?? Kabbu comes from outside of the kingdom and vi talks about a fairytale place where cherries are red and grow on trees, where bugs look like fruits. Also pluton is the youngest..being only in it's 30s, the other two are over 150. Did the roaches make them?? Or where they created when the day of awakening happned..or earlier?? Did the roaches just record them? Pluton seems to be recently made so..did the roaches grow it or did it come on its own? What of the other lands?? Kabbu's homeland? Does venus know of the others..are they connected..what purpose where they made for other then watching over the kingdom. Fuck man i want a sequel so many questions! I want to know what happend to the giants (humans) and what the hell the crystals are and why the day of awakening happened!

[@bappityyyy]

Also, to do with the room with Mars, Venus, and Pluto, if you stay there long enough apparently an image of Leif flashes too on another computer? (Top right I think) What does that meannnnnnnnnnnn

[@Duelkitten]

@@bappityyyy well leif was technically a success in what they where doing, trying get immortality through science and crystals...meaning someone is still watching over them if he is recored there, or they found him in the web yet didn't do anything except record him and watch.

[@seththemage6029]

Literally went searching for this room after seeing this comment. Like, this is nigh Toby Fox levels of easter egg. I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS. I need a sequel.

[@bappityyyy]

@@seththemage6029 I KNOW RIGHT I *NEED* THAT S P O I C E Y LORE

[@The_KingDoge]

Its great how this song sets the tone for the lab. Its a place of thats filled with re-animated corpses and failures due to the pride of the roaches

[@thegrammaticallycorrectyou6695]

You forgot the apostrophes in "it's" and "that's". Plus there's an "of" in there before the "that's" that isn't necessary.

[@The_KingDoge]

@@thegrammaticallycorrectyou6695 There in m'y ass (enjey the grammers')

[@andrix7777]

@@The_KingDoge read his name lmao

[@ermant7285]

Giant's Lair and this Gives me the spook

[@zezmogg934]

If I had a nickel for every time an indie rpg had an optional side route dedicated to an ice magic user that wasn't playable at the very start of the game and was endlessly horrific, had an insanely powerful ice move being learnt, an upgrade to a basic move, and ended with a pretty tough boss where said ice user wasn't there in the start, but came in clutch at just the right moment, I'd have two nickels. Not a lot, but weird that it happened twice.

[@brandonochs1902]

Bro what other game are you talking about me guy

[@zezmogg934]

@@brandonochs1902 deltarune snowgrave route

[@brandonochs1902]

@@zezmogg934 ok I kinda figured it was Undertale or deltarune

[@mariustan9275]

If I had a nickel for every time an indie RPG had an area where experiments were performed and resulted in creatures somewhere between life and death I'd have 2 nickels as well.

[@nintendofan1014]

Snakemouth Lab has a strong resemblance to Undertale's True Lab, where basically you also learn about some mutation related experiments with hideous results. Really liked it a lot, whether it was intentional or not

[@bencarrington3743]

Both were responsible for particular flowers as well.

[@nm5329]

@@bencarrington3743 I wouldn't say the scientists at Snakemouth were "responsible" by any means. More so they were studying/observing.

[@AdminDestroyer1]

​@@nm5329 same for alphys

[@ihaetschool3361]

i think this is like true lab but way more fucked up. UNDERTALE SPOILERS BELOW alphys was just doing her job: trying to find ways to break the barrier and free all of monsterkind. she had a good idea on paper: find a way to make monster souls last. so, she had fallen bodies sent in, with consent of their families, and she would return their dust for their funerals. her plan was to inject determination into the monster, with the intent of making their soul persist after death like human souls. however, all the monsters just woke up like nothing happened. the experiment was a failure with a happy ending, and she told all the families that everything's fine. everything wasn't fine. all the bodies started melting together, and alphys became incredibly depressed over it. all the families kept calling her, and sending her letters about when everyone'll return. people started getting incredibly angry about it, and she could barely handle it, to the point of becoming suicidal. it's actually implied she commits suicide in some neutral endings. in the evens of the pacifist route, she decides to overcome her fears and tell everyone the truth, costing her her job, but allowing her to overcome her depression. the amalgamates are shown to be faring pretty well with their families, too. it was ultimately a happy ending for everyone. upper snakemouth is different. the roaches had a much less noble goal in mind: immortality. they didn't need it, there were very few uses for it, and you'd likely go insane someday when you can't ever die, wishing for the sweet release of death but never being able to get it. someday, you'll just exhaust every possibility in existence, assuming that the universe is finite their methods were also not the best: experiment on bugs with cordyceps, a parasitic fungus that takes over its victim's minds. this would be more fine if they consented, but judging by the presence of bees, it likely wasn't. those innocent bugs were just test subjects to them, to be thrown away after failure. some roaches probably (and rightfully) thought "hey, maybe this is a terrible idea and we should stop", though they wrote those thoughts off as ridiculous. of course, as we all know, they fucked up. with the creation of zommoth, who was supposed to be a guardian (and probably a god, like venus), they realised that zommoth wasn't actually controllable, and they ended up wreaking havoc all across the lab. everything went horribly wrong for them. all the cordyceps-infected bugs attacked and killed the roaches, and judging by the fact that no roach bodies are seen in the lab, they were probably also eaten. there's no happy ending for anyone involved (except for 'leif') tl;dr: alphys wanted to do a good thing, using humane methods, but failed horrendously and everyone suffered as a result, though all was well in the end. the roaches wanted to a pointless, borderline bad thing using very cruel methods. almost nobody got a happy ending

[@Rankurusu777]

"We can't feel our legs" scribbled on a sign...

[@themoonkey2216]

This area gave me some serious true lab vibes. It’s like basically the same thing except if you do this quest it makes you super op

[@flaviusbelisarius7791]

I always wanted to find out why Leif referred to himself as "we." Now I'm sad that I know why. :(

[@epicgamerzfail4575]

Ikr? I wondered why it was never brought up before when you first meet him, but now that I know it's soo sad...

[@WizeDemon]

I like how at first you think he is just referring to him and Kabbu tanking Vi for saving them both only to slowly realise later down the line he meant himself. Though it is sweet the little thing still includes the actual Leif in his words.

[@ermant7285]

I think him saying 'we' is just a royal language or something

[@CharlotteML1]

@@ermant7285 I noticed that when you talk to Leif's family at the end of his quest, the male moth also seems to refer to himself as 'we' (IIRC, he says something like 'we have a brother!?') which made me think that perhaps moths are more likely to use the Royal We for some unmentioned reason. After all, no one else ever mentions it, which you think they would if Leif was the only moth they knew who spoke like that.

[@ermant7285]

@@CharlotteML1 oh, yeah

[@Terranigma23]

I hope we will have more information on Mars and Pluton.

[@SammysCreations]

Me too. There’s quite a bit of info in bug fables we don’t know about. I want to know more…

[@Terranigma23]

@@SammysCreations didn't expected interaction on my 4 years old comment ahah. PS: we still don't have zero idea on what the Bug Fables team work now 🙃

[@SammysCreations]

@@Terranigma23 sad that we don’t have a good idea on it. It’s a good game on its own, but I want to know more about some of the unsolved mysteries that are still around.

[@mariustan9275]

@@SammysCreations What other info do we not know about? Maybe we could get a sequel involving them later.

[@SammysCreations]

@@mariustan9275 Pluto. Mars. The other areas like the north. Are there other deadlanders that we haven't seen? There are so many questions I still have.

[@Rubberman202]

I feel as though I came here before I was supposed to... I went to Snakemouth Den immediately after chapter 4, and I was almost completely totaled by the enemies there. Not to mention, that one secret room where you find out that little extra detail about Venus? I wish there was some acknowledgement of accessing that room and learning that information, given that the odds of a player just stumbling upon it are incredibly unlikely.

[@bluerious5475]

I saw the crack in the wall and attempted to get through it, but I kept moving everywhere I could in the crack and it didn’t take me anywhere. I didn’t think it was anything until I saw a video somewhere online confirming that you could go to the right, but even then I’m confused why I couldn’t when I tried it

[@JohnP55]

I legitimately stumbled upon that room by accident while I was playing the Leif sidequest, and I still don't know what it was or what extra detail I was supposed to learn from that.

[@finnvaneekelen4966]

@@JohnP55 it was a monitor looking at three God flowers one of them Venus. This means that A the Roaches created Venus or B (more likely) where monitoring her and used her DNA to try and make the everlasting sapling

[@moseleych]

Is that some microtonal intervals at 0:19? Would explain why it’s so jarring to the ear. Absolutely fits the atmosphere.

[@superbfruitpigeon]

This song writing is genius! The dissonance and the clanging sounds as well as the percussion line gave this area a very unsettling air about it without making it so dissonant it hurt to listen to. Good work!

[@Squaredasher]

The true lab WISHES it had this much emotional backstory behind it

[@dabiatsuhiro3984]

Love this song. And I love how it's a creepier version of Snakemouth Den.

[@DvainsWeassel]

Music really made me feel like I shouldn't be there.

[@AzureMoebius22]

I don’t know what’s more impressive about their experiments. The fact they were able to work with the fungus without being at risk of infection themselves (there would be zombie roaches otherwise) or the fact that Leif still kept his mental capacity despite being zombified. Kind of a bummer you don’t get to utilize that aspect in combat. Maybe allow him to disperse a spore cloud that poisons enemies, or just make it a form a leech seed from Pokémon.

[@ConsarnitTokkori]

it's implied that his mental capacity _is_ the failure

[@ps4pro668]

So him actually having a conscious and not being like the Zombees,Zombeetles, and Zombie Ants was the failure?

[@explodatorium]

I only discovered this place cause I was trying to find that bug's brother... didn't know I'd come across such a creepy place but god did i love it! Seriously, this was so cool, the music matches with the creepy atmosphere it's going for cause you very much know something went wrong here.

[@nintendork57youtubeedition92]

same

[@JoboVT]

I remember when I first found this place I was just doing side quests them I got a flashback to the start of the game when that door in snakemouth opened and was like "oh yeah I never went in there" then I put the peculiar gem in and found the lab.

[@TreyGamr58]

Coming back after being too overpowered for the place after finding out you could use the icicle ability to hit that high up switch to open the main door...

[@mach186282]

Ugh, same. I was like, "Well, I got under the log but don't have the ability to hit that switch, guess this is the final dungeon or something" and ended up using Vi's flight to hit it instead, partway through Chapter 6.

[@andytekampe8748]

I did end up using the ability and going through after just chapter 4. Should I leave and come back to this place later? It’s my first play through and I want to make sure I do the game right in the proper order and stuff.

[@epicgamerzfail4575]

@@andytekampe8748 idk, up to you. I beat this dungeon right after ch. 4 like where you're at. Only warning is don't expect it to be easy by any means. I barely beat the boss in this area, although I always play with hard mode on, so your results may vary.

[@bing1136]

@@andytekampe8748 You should be fine, just stock up on items and regularly save while trying to reserve recourses with Venus.

[@bing1136]

@@andytekampe8748 Also, yeah... the boss is the first to have HP in the triple digits, assuming you're playing post Chapter 4.

[@DementedDuskull]

Man you can get so jacked right after chapter four ends. Not only can you go to the lab and get like four level ups from all the enemies that are there, but the icicle ability allows you to fight the Tidal Wyrm and the Seedling King, which also means access to Seedling Haven, which you can farm golden seedling at after chapter 6, or immediately if you have the MYSTERY? mode enabled (I did) and were lucky enough to get the seedling affinity medal (I was) and just get jacked as hell from the golden seedlings, which give a lot of berries, 1 tangy berry, and 25 XP per kill. _Damn_

[@Bluedino152]

One of the few areas I intentionally avoided fights in, if only to avoid over levelling. Almost felt like I came in too early but dang if I didn't wanna find out what was up with leif. EDIT: in retrospect after finishing the game yeah this dungeon opens a tad too early. Combined with spring mountain and other sidequests I was "bug me not"-ing through most of chapter 5. I feel like maybe this shouldn't have been accessible until chapter 6. Still, a fantastic location in of itself

[@superbfruitpigeon]

Same thing happened to me! I did the dungeon super early because I tend to explore and do as many quests as possible between chapters and I leveled up every 2 or 3 battles in that dungeon and all of chapter 5 was bug me not lol. Ah well totally worth it I really wanted to finish Leif’s quest asap

[@bencarrington3743]

Chapter 5's enemies are kinda annoying to deal with, especially the Tribe enemies.

[@sonicthehedge]

How do you do it on chapter 5? I swear there was a place where you had to use vi's flying in which was unlocked during chapter 6

[@Kingdeather]

Flying helps, but you only actually need it if you want to find the secret room. Though otherwise it's completely doable as soon as chapter 5.

[@dmann2116]

I'm currently in this place now. From the moment I stepped in, I felt uneasy, and that hasn't exactly faded away just yet. Edit: I have finished this area, and it was incredible. But because I'm either a wimp or over think things, I couldn't exactly fall asleep

[@tortoiselover7215]

I went here after chapter four because I thought, "oh hey, I could probably go back to Snakemouth with burrow" and I went through it all, but it was incredibly difficult

[@veryshycat]

I’m surprised about how many similarities there are between the seemingly different Upper Snakemouth and True Lab. They both have creepy music, are lore heavy, some of which is told through logs, horrible creatures, etc. It really shows how small details can make similar places seem vastly different.

[@DjPikaGaming]

Wait... is this... Is the name supposed to be a reference to "Shadow over Innsmouth"?

[@kyleeeee_c]

Fun fact: In the demo version, instead of taking you to the lab, the door leads you to an empty room with a Zombiant. Talking to them allows you to refight Spider.

[@sheepertheclassical6597]

God damnit, leif’s backstory is written so well. *Also why the fuck do i hear the necrodancer shopkeeper in the backgroun*

[@MegaDude10]

One of the notes implies whoever wrote them couldn't feel thier legs, and this area is all about Cordyseps. Considering the former and what we know about the real life version of the latter, it's safe to assume not only did the mishrooms infect and control them, but the victims were CONSCIOUS and AWARE they were loosing control of thier body! Imagine feeling something wriggle through your body, moving it's "tentacles" to forcefully move your body, only to then feel that same monster push through and burst out of your head! Yikes!

[@mybanks1014]

Leif’s backstory?

[@chaosinc.382]

Ah yes. The theme of zombie bugs curbstompibg me since I was unprepared. Also Leif's story... Mwah, mwah! Perfection.

[@nekotyrant1629]

This was about the time I realized this game was not going to be so cute throughout.

[@Trisbit]

In the very beginning of this song, you can hear Leif's leitmotif (The One Left Behind). You can also hear the Snakemouth Den theme further in.

[@thinkofaname6002]

Y'know, I think I'm going to describe why I enjoy every section of this song and what I think it represents... 0:00 - 0:18 The introduction feels alien and ominous, making it feel like we're stepping into something almost beyond our reach, and that we can't grasp (Depending on when you enter this area, that is partially true) And the percussions already give a sense of anticipation, signaling that this is gonna be quite the area. 0:19 - 0:57 The double notes already, I feel like they just represent Lief state of being as being confused and lost along with his tragedy considering how they start to take an almost tragic tone around 0:38 but they're also oddly unsettling, showing the horrors of this place. 0:58 - 1:16 This part seems to lean more into a "Casually unsettling" part, kinda reflecting how all of these atrocities were being performed away, hidden underground where no one could see, in the darkness, really shows the cave vibe. After this the intro seems to be more of a comprehension and realization of the horrors of this place, which I think is neat! Thanks for coming to my ted talk!

[@hatstick312]

probably my favorite track in the game

[@IAteABox]

Just Venus’es line “Leif… I hope you find your answer” (or something along those lines) … She knew… She couldn’t bring herself to tell him herself

[@NotSnak]

Kinda debatable. she obviously knows about the place with 2 possible explanations as to why, her roots go all over bugaria so she can kinda see everything so she'd know this place exists due to that and the more speculatory theory ***spoilers*** The secret room in snakemouth lab shows that at the very least shes being monitored but its possible the roaches created Venus (along with mars and pluto, 2 other plant god/goddesses also shown on terminals in the room) if they did create venus she would likely know about the place. however its unclear if venus even knows what happened or was happening here. she cant sense leif at all so its likely she cant sense any of the other zombified bugs down there

[@samuraicupcake289]

EASILY THE BEST PART OF THE GAME! :O I loved Leif. I loved him even more after this side-quest. Poor guy(s). That constant sarcasm was hilarious though.

[@dangerouscolors]

no way i just noticed that theres a bit of leifs theme in this! its at 0:04 in the midi chorus instrument, its a little segment from the one left behind

[@glaciant8162]

I was looking for someone else who noticed it!

[@aashariii]

Fun fact: This theme is actually a remix of Snakemouth Den

[@RamixNotRemix]

What's up with indie games having a secret lab where people have been experimenting on other people? And why is the music in said labs always great

[@SirGoonsquire]

Lief’s backstory brings so many feels

[@SVD978]

Idea: play the game up until you can open the entrance to Snakemouth lab. Instead of going to it then and there, wait until you've beaten chapter 6, and fought at least one enemy in chapter 7. It makes for an even better finale, trust me.

[@Iamverykarpy]

Y

[@pizzaggio]

Well rip for me since i've beat this area after chapter 4

[@purplenerdsplushie]

i'm kinda disappointed i didn't find out about this place through the ladybug quest that seems like a much cooler way than just going to snakemouth because there's a thing i haven't done there

[@Wobbmin]

Am I the only one who got Undertale True Lab vibes from this place?

[@moseleych]

Nope

[@seththemage6029]

Same. It was my first thought.

[@shady7919]

No, but in my opinion it's worse, the roaches in snakemouth lab are worse than alphys because she created the amalgamates on complete accident, and stopped when she realised she messed up. But the roaches are heartless, only interested in finding how to use immortality and magic for their benifit, and didn't stop creating these horrific creatures until one outright killed them.

[@buybugfables]

I literally said that out loud when I was here

[@risinghopper1213]

I remember seeing that big door in the beginning of chapter 1. So after I found a way to open the door I was expecting just some sorta lore dump about roaches and that’s about it. Dear Jesus was I wrong.

[@Langas_Konoe]

When I saw both the Beetle and Bee zombies as the first sub bosses of the area, I thought they were the former Leif's partners and didn't knew what to think, then I realized they weren't xd. But it would have been a good contrast with his new friends, being the same species.

[@kiliandevers4994]

This is genuinely the most unsettled/scared/disturbed a game has ever made me.

[@chronic-rose]

somehow I immediately knew to go back to this place when I got the item for it, I laughed when I found out that I was supposed to go to it later than I did (though I didn't finish it as soon as I found it- I had to level up a bit more first)

[@SammysCreations]

Why does this song hit hard. Over a lab full of dead bugs.

[@aadynfinchum9437]

I believe the title of this song is a reference to the story "Shadows Over Innsmouth" by HP Lovecraft. In the story, a man goes to a coastal fishing town called Innsmouth, and he finds out all the people there are fish monsters. However, in trying to expose them, the man finds out that he himself was a fish monster the whole time, and he didn't know. If this is intentional, this is a great parallel to this part of the game.

[@MrFish475]

This place is an Umbrella lab, but if Chris was a beetle.

[@eltilinxd2-b390]

Alphys lab vibes

[@bluemario610]

Anyone know what leifs dialogue is in chapter 7 if you don't go here?

[@joyeeverett6196]

I guess it’s the same? I remember making it there (I did his chapter postgame) and being like “wHOAA, spoilers!”

[@ng42.]

Most people say they found the lab with the ladybug side quest but I actually got stuck in ch. 5 because I didn't know where to go so I just explored snakemouth again out of boredom and clues. And then I found the lab.

[@Lush_Produce]

When I the second got dig power and immediately goes here.

[@HyLion]

I did this dungeon after beating the entire game because I thought the Everlasting Sapling symbol on the door meant I had to take the sapling there ;-;

[@bonegamerthecyndaquill7181]

anyone else think it's odd that though this whole game takes place in presumably a backyard (and the actual house for the final chapter) that there's an underground lab that realisticaly is about the size of a foot?

[@marvellousgoatboy]

Sorry to ruin the mood but I can't be the only one who thinks certain parts of this are similar to Kahoot music Particularly the bass, and the clock ticking at certain parts.

[@ohtontheknight3879]

I feel like i heard a song similar to this one but i can't really think of where i heard a similar song from i know it a gamecube game

[@guywithrevolver]

Hey. To anyone that's playing the game and is up to this part. Go back to the lab and look at the cordyceps tendrils coming out of the walls and ceiling (a good place to check is the last boss room) They move

[@legrandliseurtri7495]

I entered in this area today, right after finishing chapter 4. The ennemies here feel a little too strong for me and I'm super confused by all those doors, but at least I'm getting a lot of xp and the place looks pretty cool and has some intriguing lore.

[@freedomtheplayer4235]

that's because you were supposed to go there later

[@legrandliseurtri7495]

@@freedomtheplayer4235 ''suppose to'', I mean, not really.

[@איתיסדן-פ7מ]

This somehow reminds me of the true lab from undertale

[@KitStudioz]

I always found it both odd and disturbing how there are bees in snakemouth lab. Are they even related to Vi? Or were they from another hive, now destroyed because of the roaches?

[@thepapersnapdragon]

Hey look, a roach choir

[@Justing56]

True lab vibes

[@maxbuilder6801]

I found this area before it was intented... I feel so cool (:

[@Lukastar1]

This theme is like an evil remix of the Kahoot! theme LOL