Hello! Just finished the game and I'm wondering, is there more context/lore to the headless man in the game, on his past, how he lost his head, if he's connected to the forest's supernatural properties/caused them/was affected by them etc. Any hidden notes or newspapers that I've missed?
Viewing post in The Other Side of the Tracks comments
Hi! When I was first started the game, I didn't give it much thought and made it up as I went. It was after I released it (go figure) that I started coming up with ideas if I ever wanted to remaster it and give it a story. While there are a lot of plot holes to work out, the story would be something along the lines of a farmer in debt who has to sell half of his land to the government, which would end up laying down train tracks and split the land between the remaining farm land and the newly bought land that the farmer was forced to sell. The trains would keep him up and night and remind him of his situation (which is why in the game he becomes super-powered when a train passes). The government-owned land becomes overgrown with trees and the farmer only roams within that land. In the game the trees start to spread to the other side (the farm side) and the farmer is eventually able to wander where ever the forest spreads. The shrine prevents the trees from spreading and keeps the farm "pure". I was going to name the farmer "Ernie" and as far as him losing his head goes (literally), I haven't thought of anything yet. If I were to remaster it into a story, I would probably make the head loss either a suicide by train or murder by his brother. There are no hidden notes that I remember and I made everything up on the spot, but thank you for taking an interest! It was fun to think about!
Despite a few plot holes, the story sounds pretty intriguing, including the explanation behind the farmer's powers and the forest's curse, I feel like the game will only become better with the added backstory to the headless guy and the forest. I would suggest delivering it by leaving the farmer's own diary entries, some government land-related documentation, newspaper articles on the whole situation and, perharps, his brother's diary (if you decide to incorporate him into the story). But these are just suggestions.