SURVEY_PROGRAM: A podcast about DELTARUNE

Kate and Nillin make a pitch: Deltarune needs sports spinoffs.They talk the recent Winter Olympics, 2026 being the Year of Lancer, Raygun hitting ‘em with the dinosaur, Mario Sports RPGs from the developer of Golden Sun, the dire state of AAA sports games, the collapse of the nerd-jock paradigm, the Glup Shitto Super Bowl, Mode 7, Return of the Obra Dinn, Mario Hoops 3 on 3, Kate comes out as a golfer, potential indie crossovers, and more.Check out referenced episodes:The UT/DR Baseball DraftSans AUsFinal FantasyCheck out Shadow of Roserade’s upcoming game UNDERTALE: Cooking with Kindness.Check out Toriel and Reimu at the Olympic Winter Games.Support SURVEY_PROGRAM’s Green Room for bonus episodes!Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.SURVEY_PROGRAM theme music by hywell, now on Bandcamp!Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Griever introduces Kate to the influences the Final Fantasy series has had on Deltarune, and the characters across the series that parallel the main cast. We discuss a variety of — Wait, there’s a DR. GAST???Topics: Swoon, contrasting Dragon Quest’s influence, how each game remixing the setting but keeping some common elements mirrors the Undertale-to-Deltarune transition, a love triangle, loss of player control, and more. Kate takes a brief detour into yelling about Knight identity contrarianism.Check out the slides that accompanied this episode, including BONUS SLIDES just for listeners!Final Fantasy Deltarune CollabSupport SURVEY_PROGRAM’s Green Room for bonus episodes!Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.SURVEY_PROGRAM theme music by hywell, now on Bandcamp!Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Kate has one friend that’s played Undertale but not Deltarune, and another friend that’s played Deltarune but not Undertale. Let’s experiment on them for content.First, Kate and BQ talk about playing Undertale, including sidetracks into the subtle difference between being a fujo and a faghag, gay and furry bars in Seattle, the pronunciation of Papyrus, the relative difficulty of both games, early Reddit sasquatch holes, Alphys as a great female character. Then, I ask them what they think happens in Deltarune.Then, Kate and Triumph talk Deltarune without Undertale. We talk a cavalcade of Sanses, community college pride, what makes a game funny, our reaction to the hiatuses, a shockingly complete reconstruction of Undertale’s narrative from cultural osmosis alone, and I admit I haven’t seen The Godfather.Check out BQ’s OC on Toyhouse and Big Daddy Marc.Check out baseball and Effectively Wild.Other episodes referenced:Episode 4 on AUsEpisode 18 on baseballSupport SURVEY_PROGRAM’s Green Room for bonus episodes!Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.SURVEY_PROGRAM theme music by hywell, now on Bandcamp!Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

NowIOnlyWantATriumph joins Kate and Valerie for the first ever UNDERTALE/DELTARUNE BASEBALL DRAFT! Each of us put together a team of 19 Undertale and Deltarune characters to take the field, and it’s up to YOU to decide who wins!Vote now on your phones! Or whatever!Sources referenced:Effectively Wild podcastBaseball Tenna fanart by tappleturks on InstagramSupport SURVEY_PROGRAM’s Green Room for bonus episodes!Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.SURVEY_PROGRAM theme music by hywell, now on Bandcamp!Cover art by NowIOnlyWantATriumph.Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Is Mettaton the key to everything? No, but Kate and Valerie talk about him anyway. We talk parallels with Spamton and Tenna, the difference tonally between adults in Undertale and Deltarune, and Valerie blows my mind by suggesting Mettaton and Catty are the same age.We take questions from our listeners on Discord about our expectations for the future and various goofy subjects, including Jersey Shore. Would you smooch a ghost?Sources cited:Prokopetz on the tonal difference between Undertale and DeltaruneEpisodes 6 (Kris and gender), 3 (the parents), and 16 (December)Support SURVEY_PROGRAM’s Green Room for bonus episodes!Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.Music is “MEDIUM” by hywell. SURVEY_PROGRAM theme music by hywell, now on Bandcamp!Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Kate and Valerie do some emergency podding about December Holiday, just in time for Christmas. It’s just the start of our talk about the most important absence in the game… We also cover the new newsletter, ARG, and Christmas in the game in general.Merry Krismas!Episodes referenced:Episode 3 on Carol and TorielEpisode 6 on Kris and genderEpisode 10 on musicEpisode 11 on the weird routeEpisode 12 on the Halloween HackSources cited:ACDS sheet of verified email responses by luizzeroxisDeltarune and Twin Peaks by LoreFactsTVSupport SURVEY_PROGRAM’s Green Room for bonus episodes!Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.Music is “FALLEN” by hywell. SURVEY_PROGRAM theme music by hywell, now on Bandcamp!Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Kate and Shadow of Roserade talk about the ways the fandom has gone crazy in the hiatuses between chapters. We also chat Alvin, the false dichotomy between theory and fanfic, the Deltarune equivalent of the Zootopia abortion comic, and Azzypants.Sources cited:Episode 4 on AUsEpisode 2 on FriendUNDERTALE: Cooking with KindnessLynxGriffinCourierNew“Umriss” and its dramatic reading“ELEKTIONTRÜCKING”Azzypants: The GameUmrizzypantsSupport SURVEY_PROGRAM’s Green Room for bonus episodes!Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.SURVEY_PROGRAM theme music by hywell, now on Bandcamp!Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

That ain’t Falco. Jackie returns to talk Berdly with Kate. We continue the podcast’s grappling with What Gaming Means and the breakdown of the nerd-jock dichotomy.Topics: Our experiences in the fighting game community. The courage to lose again and again. Ice Climbers discrimination. Krerdly talk. Kate makes a rare statement. We take listener questions.Support SURVEY_PROGRAM’s Green Room for bonus episodes!Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.SURVEY_PROGRAM theme music by hywell, now on Bandcamp!In this episode: “SMART RACE (Cristata Vs Hywell Mix)”Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Kate and Paravellex talk about the 2023 RPG In Stars and Time and what playing it made us think about nostalgia, the prophecy, time and time loops in Undertale and Deltarune.Topics: The recent elections. Differing temporal experiences. 11 hours or 11 years… A theory about Ralsei. Color in ISAT and Deltarune. The prologue. Some Disco Elysium talk. A trans-normative setting??? Assonance. Speedrunning relationships. For king and country. Deltarune’s king. Battleship Potemkin and Sin City. Sans. Loop (the character). The rest of the story happens in your mind!Music from the In Stars and Time soundtrack by Studio Thumpy Puppy.Check out In Stars and Time on Steam and wishlist Truth Scrapper!Support SURVEY_PROGRAM’s Green Room for bonus episodes!Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.SURVEY_PROGRAM theme music by hywell, now on Bandcamp!Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Kate and Sophia talk about the 2008 “Radiation’s Halloween Hack” and our own embarrassing teenage works. We find a game of surprising quality and discuss the way it presages several core themes of Undertale and Deltarune.Topics: A correction from last week. Cereal of the dead. Painstaking hand-editing. Brandish. Forum culture. Predictions about Gaster. Yes, I know about Metal Gear. Hot chicks are awesome. “Angry gay guys using super psychic attacks is cool to think about.” Perspectives on queer representation. A return to the concept of the gamer ideology.Sources:“SCP-072 - The Foot of the Bed” by Kate“the halloween hack: a mini-documentary” by miekkonWe reference Episodes 6 (“MANCOUNTRY”), 2 (Gaster), and 3 (Carol and Toriel)Check out Sophia’s Star Wars podcast “We Have to Talk About Dash Rendar”Support SURVEY_PROGRAM’s Green Room for bonus episodes!Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.SURVEY_PROGRAM theme music by hywell, now on Bandcamp!This episode’s music, “JUDGEMENT,” also by hywell.Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Kate and Jackie talk about the Weird Route, how we can understand Noelle’s motivations and what it all means. What is the nature of the soul? Does an agentic self exist distinct from an essential self? What do Charlie’s Angels even do?Topics: The anniversary stream. Petscop. Ben Drowned. Comparison to Undertale’s No Mercy route. Noelle the gamer. Dess haunting the narrative. Burghley? That Addison is dead. Spamton’s so creepy! Kate gets Touhou’d again. The ominous stuff the Sword Route tells us about where this is going. KRISMAS!!!! Internalized transphobia, fear, and yes, we talk about comphet.We reference earlier episodes: Episode 3, on Carol and Toriel, Episode 5, on moon and Episode 6, on Kris and gender.Support SURVEY_PROGRAM’s Green Room for bonus episodes!Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.Music by hywell, now on Bandcamp!Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Ash Taylor joins Kate to talk about how Deltarune uses music and sound as part of its story and gameplay, beyond just leitmotif. In part two (41:00), we talk about her upcoming game, CHORDIOID.Topics: We react to last episode’s TOME. Kate feels old. Undertale mashups and remixes. Wagner OWNED. Omega Flowey. Donkey Konga. The courage to cut. Kris’s piano playing and self-expression. Deconreconstruction. Unique RPG battle systems. Gamedev is hard. Birdbrain!Find the CHORDIOID demo on Steam or itch.io.Intro music: “RAISE UP YOUR BAT” by Ash TaylorMid-roll music: “Sam’s Theme” from CHORDIOID: Volume 0 by Ash TaylorFollow Ash on Bluesky, Twitter or Youtube.Sources discussed:”10 Hotels, 50 Hotels, 100 Hotels” from Undertale Mashup Collab”Waters of Megalovania” by BotanicSage”BIRDBRAIN (w/ OK Glass)” by Jamie Paige feat. Kasane TetoJoin the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.Outro music by hywell, now on Bandcamp!Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

A VIDEO VERSION OF THIS EPISODE IS AVAILABLE ON YOUTUBE.Lucretia gathers Kate and Valerie to reveal the most important character in Deltarune. The one who is connected to every mystery. The one with the deepest lore. The one we all want to learn more about. The one who speaks in hands.That’s right…No. It can’t be. It can’t be him. Is it too late to delete the episodeRead The Tome or see it on Google DriveSee Lucretia on the webJoin the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.Music by hywell (new album out now!)Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Kate and Neptune recap and break down the Undertale 10th anniversary stream in Part 1 and the hit indie RPG OFF in Part 2. New lore and character insights from Undertale after ten years! We then become the first ever podcast to talk about OFF in the context of contemporary French ultraleftist terrorism.Part 1 topics: Old forum friends. Sans/Alphys hetslop (it’s good). HR violations. Gerson’s life-changing lines. Clairevoire drew dog food. My sweet little chocolat. The lesbian tutorial.Part 2 topics: Russell T. Davies. The origin of the family, private property and the state. The Invisible Committee. The diegetic player and its influence on Deltarune. Is is right to end a broken world? Changes in the remaster, including the new soundtrack.Sources cited:Undertale 10th Anniversary Stream Day 1 and Day 2OFF 2025 Remaster on Steam or original release (free)”The Coming Insurrection” by the Invisible CommitteeSnowbound Blood: A Vast Error StoryFollow Neptune on Twitter, Bluesky, or Mastodon.Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.Music by hywell (new album out now!) and Alias Conrad Coldwood from OFF.Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

“I’m gonna trap you here in my yaoi realm.”This was supposed to be an episode about Undertale’s 10th anniversary announcements. Since that’s this weekend instead, Kate and Xtine do a reverse chronological walk through Deltarune memories, and get extremely sidetracked.The spider girl. Chris’s Movie. Clocked as gender-ish. A rhyming antonym for “itty.” We didn’t like Paprika. Gaster’s gooners. Touhou talk. Armpit talk. Noelle has the sauce. Deltarune’s premier yaoi. Getting owned in a strip club. Has Susie lost her edge? Hockey fans. Trant Heidelstam. Papyrus. Final Fantasy XV.Sources cited:“AN UNDER’S TALE” by XTRATUNA“Crickets.wav” by ItsTheGoodstuff on Freesound“Ran Ran Ru” by Wagnarock (Digitalis)“Overdrive”Follow Xtine on Twitter or Tumblr.Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.Music by hywell (new album out now!)Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Is it important that the protagonist of Deltarune is transgender? Kate and Valerie say yes.IGN’s Non-Binary Protagonist of the Year. Living in a society versus falling in a hole. Teenventures in Teenland. These clothes hold no power over you any more. THERE’S NO SHAME IN AN EGG. The girl next door. Real weird route hours. The closet scene. Reflecting on the fan responses to Kris. A manhole. Getting stronger. An attempt to talk seriously about Berdly is shut down. What does Ralsei represent?Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.Music by hywell (new album out now!)Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Kate and Elsie talk about inspirations for Undertale and Deltarune, including 1997’s groundbreaking moon: Remix RPG Adventure.Topics: The gamer ideology. Love and experience. Why do we love video games, even though they almost all suck? Chapter 3’s game within a game. The (sorry) Halloween Hack. One ending. Goodbye, Dragon Inn and Car Seat Headrest. Too much content. Lightner merch. How to synthesize narrative and gameplay? Is Smash Bros more narratively compelling than Twine games? Death Stranding, Disco Elysium and how to carve out space for narrative in commercial environments. CHAPTER 7 ENDING REVEALED. The prophecy as game code.Music by The Thelonious Monkees from moon: Remix RPG Adventure.Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.Check out Hywell's new album coming Friday!Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Ruby introduces a formerly-oblivious Kate to the wild world of Undertale AUs.Topics: Millenial Valhalla. It’s nice to see you again, Sans. Starbucks unionization. Helen of Troy. Enoch NEO. Janeites. Oz. Competing strains of fandom. N-Sync RPF. A straight line from Star Trek to Hetalia. Defining the “Tumblr sexyman.” Hit ‘em with the dinosaur, Raygun. Basketball shorts swooshing around in the gale. Cape comics. Komaeda’s special day. Driving in my car… We close with some Spamtenna talk.The greater Sansiverse: Kate gets a whirlwind tour that includes Underfell, Underswap, Handplates, Swapfell, Outertale, Outerswap, Ink!Sans, Error!Sans, Dancetale, Horrortale, Undertale Red, Undertale Yellow, Undertoad, Dreamtale, HELP_tale, Glitchtale, Xtale/Underverse and more. There’s so many of these…Donate to the Tapir Specialist GroupJoin the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.Music by hywell (new album coming Friday!)Subscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

Mama miba! Mom AMOEBA! Kate and Sophia talk Carol and Toriel, the two main moms of Deltarune, and how their stories intersect with the game’s view of family.Topics: OFF. Baggage from Undertale. Madonna-whore complex. You might be worried because your room doesn't have stuff in it, but your family loves you in this game. Alarm clocks and alcohol. Fantasy villains versus real bad parenting. Parallels between Dark World bosses and the adults of Hometown. Kate says “frumpkin” and “multiphoner” within two minutes of each other. T-Rank and C-Rank. Why the heck does Toriel believe in sin??? What Asriel and Dess tell us. It’s like she’s having some kind of “knightmare.” [[HeartShapedObject]]. Carol’s role in the weird route. What are the relationships between the four Holiday and Dreemurr adults? A highly important final question is answered. We finish with some Star Wars talk.Sources cited:Andrew Cunningham on determinationStuffed Alpaca on gender in DeltaruneJoin the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.Music by hywellSubscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.

NOTE: Kate’s audio is a bit clippy in this episode. Sorry.Kate and Riley round up Deltarune’s outstanding secrets, and how Toby Fox uses mysteries in writing. They talk Fun Values, Gaster, what Ralsei knows, Kris’s role in the conflict, blood, DARKER YET DARKER, why Deltarune’s ARGs work where others fail, Dess, IMAGE_FRIEND, playing Deltarune on release vs. all at once, “one ending,” WHERE’S PAPYRUS????, the Knight, the shadow crystals, the prophecy, and surprise at the narrative pace.SURVEY_PROGRAM is an in-depth discussion of the themes, cultural impact, and history of Deltarune by Toby Fox, with a rotating panel of guests.Sources referenced:Wandydoodles’ FRIEND masterdoc.LoreFactsTV’s Deltarune and Twin Peaks essay.Andrew Cunningham on the Knight conspiracy.Join the SURVEY_PROGRAM Discord or follow on Bluesky.Music by hywellSubscribe on Spotify / Apple Podcasts / RSS.