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Shadowguy

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Shadowguy

Shadowguy (JP: シャドウガイ) is a Darkner enemy in Chapter 3 of Deltarune. They are based on extras from the silent era of television, day laborers who could play any role — from gangsters, office workers, or any extra role the scene called for.

Profile

Appearance

Shadowguy is an entirely black silhouette of a broad-shouldered human mobster in a fedora and trenchcoat, with a white outline and mouth but no visible eyes. As seen while spinning out during the cowboy minigame, they are two-dimensional. During certain ACTs, Shadowguys wear either socks or hats that are white with small red stripes. In the Monster Movie minigame, some wear red bandanas, while those driving bulldozers wear yellow hard hats.

Shadowguy overworld doff hat.png
A Shadowguy doffing their hat

While the Shadowguys that are forced to play the office minigame in TV World have regular hair underneath their hats, the Shadowguys encountered in battle instead have either rabbit-shaped or cat-shaped ears. The standard-battle Shadowguy can be seen to have rabbit ears when "knocking their hats off" in battle, and cat-eared Shadowguys dance in Castle Town's Cafe. Both types of Shadowguys make an appearance during Rouxls Kaard's TV World battle.

The standard-battle Shadowguys use a saxophone to attack with music-shaped bullets or a Tommy gun to shoot bullet-shaped bullets. In Rouxls Kaard's TV World battle, rabbit-eared Shadowguys use their Tommy guns to shoot helicopter and airplane bullets with "Rouxls Rules" banners, which drop bomb or parachuter bullets, and cat-eared ones juggle and throw yarn-ball-shaped bullets that can transform Ralsei into a giant fluffy ball. While the cat-eared ones do not use guns in battle, they are seen wielding them when chasing after Rouxls if they were recruited by Lancer.

Shadowguy overworld action figures.png
Shadowguys as seen in the Light World during the day and night

In the Light World, Shadowguys are represented by action figurines[3] at the windowsills of the Dreemurr residence.

Personality

Shadowguys are fun-loving Darkners that usually work together in crowds. They are seemingly all unable to speak, and interacting with the NPC versions of them elicits a jazz riff sound or, on rare occasions, a vocalized scream. Shadowguys seem to enjoy music, especially jazz music, as seen through their attacks.

Shadowguys seem to have a penchant for cat-like behavior, as some of the Shadowguys in the Rouxls Kaard's TV World battle attack by playing with yarn, as well as Cat Mike's chosen disguise (who is also seen playing with yarn in the Autumn 2025 Undertale/Deltarune Newsletter).

Main story

Chapter 3

In the pre-show area, there are two Shadowguy NPCs. One of them asks Kris for an autograph and faints in shock if they accept.

In The Legend of Tenna, Shadowguys appear as tiny sprites which chase the party and start a battle if they make contact. Despite the Shadowguy sprite representing all enemy encounters, only the first two battles on the Desert Board include Shadowguys, and none include them on the Island Board. Some Shadowguys on the game boards also feature as inaccessible snipers in the trees, firing yellow bullets that do damage when touched instead of interacting directly with the party. On the Island Board, Kris can obtain POINTs by taking photos of Shadowguy enemies and snipers, stunning them and causing them to disappear until the room is exited and reentered.

Monster Movie screenshot.png
Shadowguys in the Monster Movie minigame

Shadowguys portray the "haters of true entertainment" in the Monster Movie minigame, attacking the Tenna statue by shooting green "Tennas balls" spheres at him from their miniguns, spinning into him, and driving bulldozers at him. Below the game set, one Shadowguy keeps score and three others hold Tenna's dialogue box and health bar. If the party successfully reaches the end of the minigame, the Shadowguys swarm the statue in the exact overwhelming number necessary to reach 800 POINTs, despite Tenna threatening to cut their pay. If the player manages to protect the statue from this final swarm, Tenna promises a massive bonus but is interrupted when the Annoying Dog destroys the statue anyway.

Between the first and second The Legend of Tenna boards, Kris can open a changing room curtain in the S-rank changing room and find a Shadowguy in the midst of pulling on a battle sock. The Shadowguy immediately screams and closes the curtain. If Kris returns after the second board, they find the Shadowguy is pulling on a second sock, resulting in the same interaction. If they return when the Green Room is empty, the curtain is open and only a single sock is left on the floor.

In Tenna's fiery version of the bonus round, the game's enemy-encounter Shadowguys run away from encountering Tenna but cannot escape him. Shadowguys may feature in the round's battle scenes. If the party uses the Sharpshoot action to shoot at Tenna, he fires the Shadowguys for letting them use that ACT, and they no longer appear in the round's battles.

Shadowguy screenshot ropes.png
Five Shadowguys dangling from ropes in the Monster Movie set

If the party is not on a violent route, Shadowguys are seen throughout TV World as NPCs, and they also appear as battle encounters. In the starting section, Tenna can be seen firing, re-hiring, and berating several Shadowguys, Pippins, and Zappers. In a peaceful route, one of the Shadowguys antagonizes Tenna by dancing to indicate that they do not want to fight the party, while in a violent route, they do not want to fight due to fear. One Shadowguy is found playing a saxophone in a Goulden Sam jail, and more fire at the party from the boxcar windows the cowboy minigame.

A large number of dejected Shadowguys are found in front of a long screen displaying an office minigame in which more Shadowguys are being forced to sign contracts and manage paperwork. A nearby Pippins explains that they signed up with Tenna to play jazz, but did not read the fine print and now have to do everything he says. If Kris activates a lawnmower to destroy their papers, they all delightedly shake Kris's hand and leave, becoming recruits. A single Shadowguy does not have their papers destroyed, but looks around to notice that everyone else is gone before shaking Kris's hand in turn and running away at an extremely high speed. The nearby Pippins is not sure whether destroying the contracts has any legal effect, but says the Shadowguys would not have signed anyway if they understood legal stuff.

TV World location Concert.png
The Darkners Live concert

If the Shadowguys have been saved from contract work and have not been LOST, several of them play saxophones at a "Darkners Live" performance in the Concert room, filling the party with the power of everyone playing a solo at once. This save point can display four different messages, depending on these statuses:

  • If the player is on a violent route but saved the Shadowguys from their contracts, then the save point will have the normal text.
  • If the player is on a recruitment route and saved the Shadowguys, then the save point will have the normal text.
  • If the player is on a violent route and did not save the Shadowguys, then no one will show up to the concert, causing the save point to question whether a concert can be a concert if no one is there.
  • If the player is on a recruitment route but did not save the Shadowguys from their contracts, then the save point will mentions how you gain power 'vicariously' through 'all work and no play'.
  • If the Shadowguys are LOST but the player is otherwise on a non-violent route, then a crowd will show up and the Shadowguys will not, with the save point mentioning that the crowd is cheering for no one.

Two Shadowguys sneak along with the party during a stealth segment, accompanied by two Pippins and a Zapper. In the following Cooking Show room, a mixture of Shadowguys and Pippins dance together, totaling at 60 (30 if not all enemies have been recruited yet).[4] They pause in shock when Rouxls Kaard appears and engages the party in battle. He hires four Shadowguys to attack them in groups of two, tempting them with a higher salary courtesy of Tenna's stolen debit card. The first group shoots airplane and helicopter bullets, but the group is eventually recruited to the party's side by Lancer. The second group targets Ralsei with yarn ball attacks. If Ralsei is hit twice, the second group gets fired by Rouxls for exclusively using yarn; otherwise, this group gets recruited by Lancer, similarly to the first group. During the battle's conclusion, the Lancer-recruited Shadowguys take out their guns and chase after Rouxls.

In TV World's boardwalks, the Shadowguys, along with Tenna's other employees, dejectedly leave him despite his protests, forcing him to take their place later in the cowboy minigame and Monster Movie sections of his final battle.

Chapter 4

If all Shadowguys were recruited, their Light World counterparts are absent from the windowsills of the Dreemurr residence. If all Shadowguys and Pippins were recruited and no recruits were LOST in Chapter 3, checking the Dreemurrs' TV prompts Susie to recall the Shadowguys and Pippins telling her how to fix Tenna when she found him nearly dead, giving the party a chance to find him a new home later. If these requirements are not met, she says nobody wanted to help find or fix him, and he is left irrevocably broken.

If all Shadowguys were recruited, one can be seen at the training area in Castle Town, participating in Rudinn's fan club by using a leaf as a fan. The little ball near the Great Door may be seen wearing a Shadowguy's fedora, showing that Shadowguy hats can exist independently. Several cat-eared Shadowguys can be seen at the Cafe, with one playing saxophone on stage and others dancing in the audience. In Queen's room at Ralsei's castle, two Shadowguys, one with bunny ears, are riding a car back and forth as a "touring band" which only does the "touring" part.

Another Shadowguy is later revealed to be one of the Mike impersonators, specifically Cat Mike, who ultimately oversees the Pluey or Main Performance minigames.

Chapter 5

The same Shadowguy impersonating Mike reappears with the same role, having now changed his name to "Pluey".

Two Shadowguys can be seen in front of Ralsei's castle, cheering either a Winglade or a Poppup in a "race of familiars".

A Shadowguy is one of the Darkners that a Netskie can imitate during its Faker act: while disguised as a Shadowguy, the Netskie only uses the Tommy Gun attack, and the fake bullets have Netskie's face and ears on them.

A Shadowguy appears after the credits of Chapter 5, helping Susie decorate Castle Town for Noelle's arrival.

Creation and development

Shadowguy was first shown without a name in an update on Chapters 3-5's development.

During the Spamton Sweepstakes, the center-right door in the deltarune.com/ramb/ version of the Green Room leads to deltarune.com/changingroom, containing the changing-room curtain. Clicking the curtain reveals either the screaming Shadowguy pulling on their sock or a 10% chance of Lancer appearing instead. Clicking on the Shadowguy before the curtain closes leads to deltarune.com/shadowmen/, teasing battle footage featuring two Shadowguys labelled "shadowmen", which they are sometimes called internally.

In ISSUE 6 - Summer 2024 of the Newsletter, Toby Fox published a page with the quests required to release Chapter 3 and 4, where the localization quest revealed localized strings with Shadowguy's Check text.

A battle sequence with two Shadowguys is also teased in the DELTARUNE Nintendo Switch 2 Announce Trailer on April 2, 2025, where the Sharpshoot ACT is used by the party.

A video teaser was shared on the official UNDERTALE/DELTARUNE Bluesky[5] and Twitter[6] accounts on May 21, 2025 to coincide with teasing Chapter 3 and 4's release. It lists Shadowguy's top 5 quotes, which are actually four short saxophone sounds and a single scream. In between each "quote" are title cards that play low-quality variants of Undertale and Deltarune songs. In order, the songs are Deltarune's Welcome to the Green Room, Undertale's Hopes and Dreams, Stronger Monsters, Deltarune's Vapor Buster, Vs. Susie, Undertale's Power of "NEO", and Deltarune's Field of Hopes and Dreams.

The official Deltarune website later released a Gameplay Reminder Cheat Sheet guide on June 1, 2025 for reviewing the base game mechanics and tips covering the battle system, Config menu, skipping text, and Completion Data. Various screenshots revealed the names for the ACTs required to spare a Shadowguy.

In battle

Appears with

  • Another Shadowguy
  • Two other Shadowguys
  • Tenna (third TV Time round encounter)
  • Shuttah
  • Two Pippins
  • Rouxls Kaard

Attacks

Shadowguys have 3 attacks with a few variants across them.

  • Saxophone: Shadowguy pulls out a saxophone and plays a wave of quickly moving notes at the SOUL. They also fire a varying number of musical staves aimed closely to the SOUL, preceded by a trail to show where their path will be.
    • When accompanied by Pippins, Shadowguy fires only one stave of note bullets.
    • When accompanied by other Shadowguys, a few Saxophone variants can occur.
      • If the only 1 Shadowguy uses Saxophone, they fire 1 stave.
      • If at least 2 use Saxophone, they fire 2 staves each, with either 4 or 6 staves total; 6 staves slow down the attack speed noticeably.
    • When alone, Shadowguy shoots a single stave of bullets at the SOUL quickly.
    • When accompanied by Tenna during the bonus round, this attack is never used.
  • Tommy Gun: Shadowguy pulls out a Tommy gun and fires streams of long bullets, pausing occasionally to reload.
    • When accompanied by 2 other Shadowguys, fires 4 bullets in a loose cone shape before reloading.
      • 1 to 3 Shadowguys can use this variant of Tommy gun at one time.
    • When accompanied by Shuttah, 1-2 Pippins, or 1 other Shadowguy, they fire 6 bullets in a loose cone shape before reloading.
      • 1 or 2 Shadowguys can use this variant of Tommy gun at one time, if 2 Shadowguys are present.
    • When the only enemy in combat, fires 12 bullets erratically in a cone shape before reloading.
  • Censored Bullet Pattern: A bumper appears, displaying: "This bullet pattern has been censored by the MPA." The turn ends shortly after.
    • This attack can only be seen after four attacks, and has a 1% chance to be chosen, even when with Tenna.[7] It does not deal damage.

In the Rouxls Kaard battle, the Shadowguys have several unique attacks.

  • Shadowguy shoots biplanes that have banners reading "rouxlsrules" at the SOUL. The biplanes drop bombs which shoot flames upward when they reach the bottom of the bullet board.
  • Shadowguy shoots a helicopter across the top of the bullet board that drops down parachuting rabbits.
  • Shadowguy juggles and tosses balls of yarn which fall into the bullet board, revealing Rouxls's face as a background pattern and turning Ralsei into a fluffy ball. They are of the Puppet/Cat element.

Available ACTs

ACT performed with SusieACT performed with RalseiSharpshoot

Light 'em up

A time-limited ACT, where party members shoot up to 30 (3 per button press) heart-shaped bullets at the targeted enemies. MERCY is increased by 30% per full volley of 3 bullets landed, or 10% per singular bullet, and up to 100% on one Shadowguy.

Shots can "splash" onto other enemies, with MERCY halved for non-Shadowguys. If an enemy already has 100% MERCY before this ACT is used, they are automatically spared if hit by enough bullets.

Performing the Sharpshoot ACT.

Boogie

Dance, don't get hit!

Increases MERCY by 5% and causes a gradual MERCY increase up to 100% through Shadowguy's turn until the SOUL is hit.

Performing the Boogie ACT.

S-Action

Increases MERCY by 30% and inflicts TIRED.

R-Action

Increases MERCY by 30% and inflicts TIRED.

Strategy

Turn routing
  • Both S/R-Action set up a Pacify for an easy spare. It is possible to spare 1 Shadowguy per turn (even on the first) with the combo of DEFEND with Kris, S-Action with Susie, and Pacify with Ralsei for a strategy that does not rely on one's aim or dodging abilities. DEFEND + S-Action + Pacify stands out for its flexibility and ease of use.
    • This strategy can be expanded on from the second turn onwards by Boogieing with Kris, and instead using stashed TP from grazing to fuel Pacify.
      • Due to the TP cost involved in many of the individual ACT combos, it may be better to use Sharpshoot or Boogie and several DEFENDS on the boards due to TP providing a higher battle score.
  • Boogie brings a Shadowguy to 100% MERCY fairly quickly if one can dodge about halfway into the turn, with the notable downside that it prevents chaining a spare into it on the same turn, as the MERCY is accrued in battle.
  • Sharpshoot provides the potential to get 2 Shadowguys to 100% MERCY on turn 1, and with perfect play, can even get 3 to 100% MERCY, as 30 bullets for 10% each equals 300% MERCY. This can be achieved by firing 3 volleys directly at 1 Shadowguy, repeating to get all Shadowguys to 90% MERCY, then bringing the crosshair to the center of the screen for the last volley, pulled away from the Shadowguys. This causes the heart bullets to "shotgun" out, allowing to hit 3 targets with 1 bullet each. This strategy is extremely precise, but nets the only possible 2 turn spare on 3 Shadowguys, and even just focusing on 2 enemies allows 3 turn SPARE routes.
    • Sharpshoot becomes the most valuable in situations with 2 enemies, where there are enough bullets to easily accrue high MERCY on all foes, but not few enough foes to warrant comboing individual ACTs. Sharpshoot strategies are notable in that they can get similar turn counts to chaining individual ACTs, without needing to worry about dodging or TP gain. Sharpshoot provides a lot of value due to it providing a raw amount of high potential MERCY that can be spread out across targets freely.
  • Using Sharpshoot primarily on other enemy types is not strongly advised due to the reduced MERCY it provides, but could be occasionally useful on other enemies with high MERCY.
  • A Shadowguy can be easily dispatched with violence using all 3 of the party member's attacks, generally providing a turn solve equal to the number of enemies.
    • A Shadowguy can be Tired when under 50% HP, allowing for use of Pacify. However, the reliability of other methods makes this relatively inefficient.
  • The TIRED effect from Pippins's Cheat applies to Shadowguys as well, but there are more efficient ways to TIRE them as is.
  • ToughPhoto/EasyPhoto from Shuttah provides up to 80% to both Shuttah and a Shadowguy, with PowerPhoto giving up to 100%. A successful ToughPhoto with an S/R-Action on one enemy, comboed into a SPARE leaves one enemy with 80% MERCY remaining. Using the 1 turn spare on 1 Shadowguy into a successful chain of ToughPhoto, S/R-Action, then SPARE on Shuttah on turn 2 is also viable.
Dodging
  • Both of Shadowguys ordinary attacks take up much of the bullet board, but can be dodged with just some small adjusting motions. When against the Saxophone pattern, the staves are generally aimed close to the SOUL, and notes move exactly as choreographed across them. A slight sidestep up or down does not only dodge the stave's trail, but generates a lot of TP via grazing from the passing note bullets. When up against multiple Saxophone staves, sizable gaps between 2 or more staves are often the closest safe spot and generate a ton of TP.
  • Tommy gun is far more erratic, but gives some more time to adjust. A method of dodging Tommy gun patterns is staying a bit back from the middle of the bullet board, and looking at the approaching fire. The pattern occasionally misses the SOUL entirely, but also sometimes fires a set of weaving bullets that require preemptive movement. It is best to look for a large gap and advance into it to avoid dealing with any of the remaining fire from that volley, or slowly back up until the bullets disperse if there is not space presented while in the middle.
  • The Rouxls-exclusive rabbit-eared Shadowguy attacks can be dodged by noting the direction of the planes and moving to have them barely pass the SOUL by. The helicopters pose a constant threat at the top of the bullet board, so to avoid the banner hitboxes a safe place is better found elsewhere, and adjusted as the bullets drop from the helicopters. The cat-eared Shadowguys's yarn balls are affected by the Cat/Puppet Elemental damage reduction applied by the Dealmaker, Mannequin, or FrayedBowtie.

Quotes

Desert Board
  • [Encounter, if not fought Elnina and Lanino before]
    • [Tenna] That's right!!! It's a battle scene, folks!!!
    • [Tenna] And our boys backstage have been begging to beat you down!
    • [Tenna] But this ain't your normal Saturday night slam fest!!
    • [Tenna] Perform well, and you'll get extra points!!!
    • [Tenna] For best "results", take no damage, win fast, and get gobs of TP!!!
    • [Tenna] It's a battle scene! Win hard and fast for extra points!
  • [Tenna] Don't let mother see THIS! ANOTHER smackdown! Only on TV Time! [Encounter]
  • [Tenna] Mike, hit that funky music! It's fightin' time! [Encounter]
  • [Tenna] And we ARE BACK in the ring! Who will TV-TRIUMPH!? [Encounter]
  • [Tenna] Don't adjust your set! Kris is BLUE, and FIGHTING AGAIN! [Encounter]
  • [Tenna] This is gonna be a heck of a slugfest, folks! [Neutral]
  • [Tenna] Get your VHS players, this is gonna be one to tape! [Neutral]
  • [Tenna] Don't adjust your set!! This battle is real, folks!! [Neutral]
  • [Tenna] This is gonna be all out, folks! Get ready!!! [Neutral]
  • [Tenna] What will our heroes do next!? [Neutral]
  • [Tenna] You can only get this on cable TV, folks!!! [Neutral]
  • [Tenna] Refreshments are available in the green room! [Neutral]
  • [Tenna] Miss something!? The battle will be available on laserdisc! [Neutral]
  • [Tenna] My nose is tingling from the excitement, folks!!! [Neutral]
  • [Tenna] Hey you! Stop selling tickets made of toilet paper! [Neutral]
  • [Tenna] Wow!! Our heroes are grazing like goats!!! [Neutral, if grazing is performed]
  • [Tenna] No damage!? What amazing skill!! Can we even show this!? [Neutral, if grazing is performed]
  • [Tenna] Incredible dodging!! And best of all, it's on TV!!! [Neutral, if grazing is performed]
  • [Tenna] Kris!! Oh no!! Toriel, don't look!! [Take damage]
  • [Tenna] That's gotta hurt, folks! [Take damage]
  • [Tenna] Slam for the bad guys!! [Take damage]
  • [Tenna] Call the IQ police, that's gotta smart!! [Take damage]
  • [Tenna] Just watching it hurts, folks!! [Take damage]
  • [Tenna] Ouch! Cover your nose, kids!!! [Take damage]
  • [Tenna] Watch out for the splash zone!! [Take damage]
  • [Tenna] It's carnage out there, folks!! [Take damage]
  • [Tenna] Alert!! The curtains are on fire!! [Take damage]
  • [Tenna] Oh no!! Mike, don't look!! [Take damage]
  • [Tenna] Boo boo for bozos! [Take damage]
  • [Tenna] Ever heard of dodging!? [Take damage multiple times in a single turn]
  • [Tenna] Dan called! He wants his maku back!! [Take damage multiple times in a single turn]
  • [Tenna] A brutal smackdown! Can our heroes survive!? [Neutral, if any party member was defeated]
  • [Tenna] That was rough!! Can our heroes mount a comeback!? [Neutral, if any party member was defeated]
  • [Tenna] Don't give up, heroes!! Think of the ratings!!! [Neutral, if any party member was defeated]
  • [Tenna] Downed!? Down't worry!!! We'll edit that out in post!!! [Neutral, if any party member was defeated]
  • [Tenna] Monster girl down!!! No way!!! [Neutral; unused]
  • [Tenna] Fluffy boy down!!! Oh no!!! [Neutral; unused]
  • [Tenna] Ouch for the enemies!! Too bad they don't get healthcare, folks!! [Neutral, if the enemy was defeated]
  • [Tenna] Beat so easily!? The enemies are looking at a pay cut! [Neutral, if the enemy was defeated]
  • [Tenna] A brutal smack-down from our heroes!!! [Neutral, if the enemy was defeated]
  • [Tenna] KO!! The heel is coming out from our heroes, folks!! [Neutral, if the enemy was defeated]
  • [Tenna] Wow!! A spare!! Love blooms in the battlefield, folks!! [Neutral, if the enemy was spared]
  • [Tenna] Our heroes score a pacifist knockdown!! [Neutral, if the enemy was spared]
  • [Tenna] A brutal pacifist sparing from our heroes!!! [Neutral, if the enemy was spared]
  • [Tenna] Our heroes score a spare!! But where's the strike!? [Neutral, if the enemy was spared]
Bonus round
  • [Sharpshoot, if shoot towards Tenna]
    • [Tenna] H-Hey!!!
    • [Tenna] How could you let them use that act!?
    • [Tenna] You're!!! Fired!!!
    • [Tenna] Alright, no more of THAT guy!

Flavor text

Normal
  • Battling's just a side gig. Playing on stage is the dream! [Check]
  • Shadowguys play on in. [Encounter with another Shadowguy]
  • Shadowguy and Shuttah shimmy in! [Encounter with Shuttah]
  • Shadowguy and Pippins dropped in! [Encounter with Pippins]
  • Shadowguy plays the blues, blues, blues. [Neutral]
  • Shadowguy snaps their fingers rhythmically. [Neutral]
  • Shadowguy rolls up their socks... secretly. [Neutral]
  • Shadowguy's got the moves and the groove [Neutral]
  • Smells like old saxophone reeds. [Neutral; 3.96% chance][8][note 1]
  • Kris boogies past bullets! SHADOWGUY gains mercy until you get hit! [Boogie]
  • [Sharpshoot, if Shadowguy is wearing socks]
    • Everyone gets ready to knock the enemies' socks off!
    • Press directions to aim and [(MENU)] to shoot!
  • [Sharpshoot, if Shadowguy is wearing a hat]
    • Everyone gets ready to knock the enemies' hats off!
    • Press directions to aim and [(MENU)] to shoot!
  • Susie danced! [S-Action]
  • Ralsei danced! [R-Action]
  • クリスは おどった! [Unused]
  • Its body was filled with a kind feeling. [Unused]
  • Shadowguy's blues look bluer and bluer. [Low HP]
  • Shadowguy is on the midnight train to Dreamsville. [Tired]
  • Shadowguy look[sic] seriously jazzed. [Spare conditions met]
Bonus round
  • The "Sharpshoot" act can shoot many things! [Check]

Trivia

  • Sparing a Shadowguy by removing their socks is likely a reference to "knock someone's socks off", a term meaning to amaze or greatly impress someone.
  • The dancing Shadowguy with cat ears animation resembles the dancing cat animation used in the Battat game of the Mike minigames in Chapter 4 and /rarecats/ from the Spamton Sweepstakes Silence links.
  • The role of Shadowguys in TV World emulates stagehands and other backstage crew in theaters and entertainment venues, handling everything behind the scenes and being as unnoticeable as possible unless called upon to fill minor performance positions. Their description refers to how extras were generally treated in the entertainment industry: many worked for low pay, hoping to one day break through to a major role. Such breakthroughs rarely happened, though there are exceptions, such as Clark Gable, Gary Cooper, and John Wayne.
  • Their shadowy forms are likely a reference to Kuroko ("black-clad") stagehands in traditional Japanese theater, who dress in black from head to toe to imply invisibility on stage as they manipulate props, costumes, and scenery. The cat and rabbit ears are likely a reference to the popularity of these two animals in the artform of shadowgraphy. Much like the mannerisms, slang, and aesthetics used by the Shadowguys, shadowgraphy is fairly dated as an artform, further tying the two together.
  • Tenna's line, "Hey you! Stop selling tickets made of toilet paper!" is a reference to a line in Undertale, which appears during Shyren's battle: "Sans is selling tickets made of toilet paper."
  • In some unused battles, Shadowguy can appear with Zapper,[9] Zapper and Shuttah,[10] Zapper and another Shadowguy,[11] and Ribbick.[12]
  • One of Shadowguy's saxophone attacks, internally shadowman_sax_long_1, is a near exact quote from The Legend.
  • The Tommy gun Shadowguy uses appears to specifically be the M1/M1A1 version of the Thompson submachine gun, as evidenced by the horizontal handguard and the lack of a charging handle on top.

Version history

Game edition Version tag Changes
Deltarune Chapter 3 v1.01C Downed party members are now always able to shoot during Sharpshoot and during Tenna's final attack.

Notes

  1. The code generates a random number from 0 to 100, giving 101 possible outcomes.

References

  1. Shadowguy snaps their fingers rhythmically.Narration, Chapter 3
  2. Look... I know this guy can't talk.
    But he seems to really really like his job.
    So... let's just let him do it.
    Plugboy, Chapter 4
  3. Internally referred to as figures in Chapter 4.
  4. gml_Object_obj_dw_teevie_party_controller_Create_0 script, lines 45–48, Chapter 3
  5. Delta Rune chapter 3 shadow guy top-5 quotes@undertale.com on Bluesky, May 21, 2025.
  6. Delta Rune chapter 3 shadow guy top-5 quotes May 22, 2025.
  7. gml_Object_obj_shadowman_enemy_Step_0 script, line 38, Chapter 3
  8. gml_Object_obj_shadowman_enemy_Step_0 script, line 156, Chapter 3
  9. Deltarune Chapters 3 & 4 - Unused Encounters on YouTube
  10. Deltarune Chapters 3 & 4 - Unused Encounters on YouTube
  11. Deltarune Chapters 3 & 4 - Unused Encounters on YouTube
  12. Deltarune Chapters 3 & 4 - Unused Encounters on YouTube