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{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2016}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2016}}
{{Infobox person
{{Infobox person
| name = Toby Fox<!--Please do not add the "foam image" to the infobox without getting consensus first on the talk page.-->
| name = Toby Fox<!--Please do not add the "foam image" to the infobox without getting consensus on the talk page-->
| image = File:Toby Fox dog.jpg
| image = File:Toby Fox dog.jpg
| caption = An image of the Annoying Dog from ''[[Undertale]]'', which Fox commonly uses for his public image
| caption = An image of the Annoying Dog from ''[[Undertale]]'', which Fox commonly uses for his public image
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| alma_mater = [[Northeastern University]]
| alma_mater = [[Northeastern University]]
| works = ''[[Undertale]]'', ''[[Deltarune]]''
| works = ''[[Undertale]]'', ''[[Deltarune]]''
| website = {{URL|https://web.archive.org/web/20151119075030/http://tobyfox.net/|tobyfox.net}} (archived)
| website = {{URL|https://toby.fangamer.com}}<br />{{URL|https://web.archive.org/web/20151119075030/http://tobyfox.net/|tobyfox.net}} (archived)
}}
}}


'''Robert F.''' "'''Toby'''" '''Fox''' (born October 11, 1991) is an American [[video game developer]] and composer. He is best known for developing the [[role-playing video game]] ''[[Undertale]]'', which garnered acclaim and has received nominations for a [[British Academy Games Awards|British Academy Game Award]], three [[The Game Awards|Game Awards]] and [[D.I.C.E. Awards]]. He is also the creator and head of the ongoing development of ''[[Deltarune]]'', which contains many characters and features from ''Undertale'', and has also garnered significant praise.
'''Robert F.''' "'''Toby'''" '''Fox''' (born October 11, 1991) is an American [[video game developer]] and [[composer]]. He is best known for developing the [[role-playing video game]] ''[[Undertale]]'', which garnered acclaim and has received nominations for a [[British Academy Games Awards|British Academy Game Award]], three [[The Game Awards|Game Awards]] and [[D.I.C.E. Awards]]. He is also the creator and head of the ongoing development of ''[[Deltarune]]'', which contains many characters and features from ''Undertale'', and has garnered significant praise.


Fox's early work consisted primarily of [[Musical composition|composing music]], notably for the [[webcomic]] ''[[Homestuck]]'', and, following the success of ''Undertale'', he went on to compose music for a number of other [[Indie game|independent video game]]s. Other notable works include contributing to the soundtracks of ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'' and the ''[[Pokémon (video game series)|Pokémon]]'' video games.
Fox's early work consisted primarily of [[Musical composition|composing music]], notably for the [[webcomic]] ''[[Homestuck]]''. Following the success of ''Undertale'', he went on to compose music for a number of other [[indie game]]s. Other notable works include contributing to the soundtracks of ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'' and the ''[[Pokémon (video game series)|Pokémon]]'' video games.

== Early life ==
Robert F. Fox<ref name="Union Leader">{{cite web |last=Hayward |first=Mark |date=December 6, 2020 |title=City Matters: Secretive NH game designer created Undertale video game |url=https://www.unionleader.com/voices/city_matters/city-matters-secretive-nh-game-designer-created-undertale-video-game/article_ef527592-4b1a-5402-8393-944173180028.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210622105128/https://www.unionleader.com/voices/city_matters/city-matters-secretive-nh-game-designer-created-undertale-video-game/article_ef527592-4b1a-5402-8393-944173180028.html |archive-date=June 22, 2021 |access-date=June 22, 2021 |website=New Hampshire Union Leader}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=WebVoyage Titles |url=https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?v1=2&ti=1,2&Search%5FArg=undertale&Search%5FCode=TALL&CNT=25&PID=2GBPDlE9V8lZU7vODNZ89kFfz&SEQ=20220108095355&SID=1 |access-date=2022-01-08 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220108145429/https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?v1=2&ti=1%2C2&Search_Arg=undertale&Search_Code=TALL&CNT=25&PID=2GBPDlE9V8lZU7vODNZ89kFfz&SEQ=20220108095355&SID=1 | archive-date=2022-01-08 |website=cocatalog.loc.gov}}</ref> was born on October 11, 1991,<ref>{{cite tweet |last=Fox |first=Toby |user=tobyfox |number=918137771595829250 |date=October 11, 2017 |title=It's my 26th birthday. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180831161836/https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/918137771595829250 |archive-date=2018-08-31 |url-status=live}}</ref> in [[Manchester, New Hampshire]].<ref name="Union Leader" /> Along with his three brothers, he is the son of Robert Fox, a financial planner, and Barbara Fox, a retired paraprofessional. Fox was raised an [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopalian]]. He studied [[environmental science]] at [[Northeastern University]] and graduated in 2014.<ref name="Union Leader" />


== Career ==
== Career ==


=== Early work and composing ===
=== Inspiration ===
Fox has stated that as a child, he was mesmerised by the music and atmosphere of ''[[Final Fantasy VI]]''. Other [[JRPGs|Japanese role-playing games]], such as ''[[EarthBound]]'', ''[[Secret of Mana]]'' and ''[[Super Mario RPG]]'' served as major inspirations; Fox looked up to [[Yoko Shimomura|Yoko Shimomura's]] works in particular. Her song "Megalomania" for the game ''[[Live A Live]]'' was particularly inspiring for Fox, and he originally intended to use an EarthBound-themed cover of the song in a game, but he got tired of transcribing it and eventually made a new song called "[[Megalovania]]".<ref>{{Cite web |title=LIVE A LIVE: a conversation between Yoko Shimomura and Toby Fox - part 1 {{!}} Square Enix Blog |url=https://www.square-enix-games.com/es_XL/news/live-a-live-yoko-shimomura-toby-fox-pt-1 |access-date=2024-10-04 |website=square-enix-games.com |language=es}}</ref>
Toby Fox's earliest well-known work is his "EarthBound Halloween Hack",<ref name="hh">{{Cite web|title=EarthBound Halloween Hack! « EarthBound Central|url=https://earthboundcentral.com/2009/10/earthbound-halloween-hack/|access-date=2021-12-14|website=earthboundcentral.com|archive-date=December 14, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211214011040/https://earthboundcentral.com/2009/10/earthbound-halloween-hack/|url-status=dead}}</ref> a Halloween-themed [[ROM hacking|ROM hack]] of the 1994 [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System|SNES]] game ''[[EarthBound]]'', which released in 2008. He then moved on to compose a variety of music for [[Andrew Hussie]]'s 2009 webcomic ''[[Homestuck]]'' during his senior year of [[high school]]. Though he did not initially respond when Hussie started a "[[Music of Homestuck|Music Contribution Team]]" in April 2009 and put up a news post asking composers to participate, Hussie took note of his work when Fox started uploading piano covers of the webcomic's music on the ''[[MS Paint Adventures]]'' forums.<ref name="Polygon">{{cite web |url=http://www.polygon.com/2013/1/24/3780850/land-of-memes-and-trolls-the-epic-and-ridiculous-self-aware-world-of |website=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]] |publisher=[[Vox Media]] |title=Land of Memes and Trolls: The Epic and Ridiculous Self-Aware World of Homestuck |last=Funk |first=John |date=October 15, 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160520212927/http://www.polygon.com/2013/1/24/3780850/land-of-memes-and-trolls-the-epic-and-ridiculous-self-aware-world-of |archive-date=May 20, 2016 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> Fox has composed music for the 2017 ''Homestuck'' video game ''[[Hiveswap]]'',<ref name="Sword&Shield Polygon" /> ''Undertale'' artist Temmie Chang's short narrative game ''[[Escaped Chasm]]'',<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2019/04/02/escaped-chasm-is-a-free-short-from-undertales-temie-chang/ |work=Rock Paper Shotgun |title=Escaped Chasm is a short, sad, free story by Undertale's artist |last=Tarason |first=Dominic |date=2019-04-02 |access-date=2019-05-02 |df=mdy-all |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190405232954/https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2019/04/02/escaped-chasm-is-a-free-short-from-undertales-temie-chang/ |archive-date=April 5, 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Game Freak]]'s 2019 RPG ''[[Little Town Hero]]'', the last of which was arranged by ''[[Pokémon]]'' composer Hitomi Sato.<ref name="Sword&Shield Polygon" /> He also composed a track for [[Pokémon Sword and Shield|''Pokémon Sword'' and ''Shield'']],<ref name="Sword&Shield Polygon">{{cite web |last=Goslin |first=Austen |url=https://www.polygon.com/2019/11/1/20943435 |title=Undertale developer is composing a song for Pokémon Sword and Shield |work=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]] |date=November 1, 2019 |access-date=October 10, 2020 |language=en |archive-date=March 28, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210328084339/https://www.polygon.com/2019/11/1/20943435/undertale-developer-music-toby-fox-pokemon-sword-and-shield |url-status=live}}</ref> a vocal song for Itoki Hana's ''PRAY'' album,<ref name="PRAY">{{cite tweet |last=Fox |first=Toby |user=tobyfox |number=1026500164217962498 |date=August 6, 2018 |title=I composed a vocal song for my friend @1t0lc1 (Itoki Hana's) new album, PRAY.}}</ref> and multiple tracks for [[Pokémon Scarlet and Violet|''Pokémon Scarlet'' and ''Violet'']].<ref>{{cite tweet|number=1532038920183205888|user=tobyfox|title=I had the honor of composing the field music for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet! After creating a concept sketch, Game Freak arranged it into many versions that you'll hear throughout the game. You can hear a bit of it in this trailer...|date=June 1, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite tweet|number=1532039019634229248|user=tobyfox|title=A few more Toby Fox tracks will appear in the game, too, so please look forward to those! This time, my music is not optional!!!|date=June 1, 2022}}</ref>


In middle school, he discovered the ''[[Touhou Project]]'' series when he downloaded the demos for the sixth and seventh games in the series. He played a piano rendition of the Touhou Project track "Necrofantasia" at his church's summer camp. He was inspired by Touhou's philosophy of not giving up on a game simply to hear the music.<ref>{{Cite web |last=実存 |date=2018-10-19 |title=『UNDERTALE』トビー・フォックス×『東方』ZUN×Onion Games木村祥朗鼎談──自分が幸せでいられる道を進んだらこうなった──同人の魂、インディーの自由を大いに語る |url=https://news.denfaminicogamer.jp/interview/181019 |access-date=2024-10-04 |website=電ファミニコゲーマー – ゲームの面白い記事読んでみない? |language=ja}}</ref> Fox later conducted an improvised ''Touhou'' music session on [[Tumblr]], in which he created "improvised Touhou music that doesn't actually exist" including a boss track named An Apple Disaster''.''<ref>{{Cite web |last=fwugradiation |title=toby |url=https://fwugradiation.tumblr.com/post/13528293577/improvised-touhou-music-with-annoying-commentary |access-date=2024-10-04 |website=Tumblr}}</ref>
=== Acclaim and breakthrough ===


==== ''Undertale'' ====
=== Early work ===
Toby Fox's earliest well-known work is the EarthBound Halloween Hack'',''<ref name="hh">{{Cite web|title=EarthBound Halloween Hack! « EarthBound Central|url=https://earthboundcentral.com/2009/10/earthbound-halloween-hack/|access-date=2021-12-14|website=earthboundcentral.com|archive-date=December 14, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211214011040/https://earthboundcentral.com/2009/10/earthbound-halloween-hack/|url-status=dead}}</ref> a Halloween-themed [[ROM hacking|ROM hack]] of EarthBound, which released in 2008. He then moved on to compose a variety of music for [[Andrew Hussie]]'s 2009 webcomic ''[[Homestuck]]'' during his senior year of [[high school]]. Though he did not initially respond when Hussie started a [[Music of Homestuck|Music Contribution Team]] in April 2009 and put up a news post asking composers to participate, Hussie took note of his work when Fox started uploading piano covers of the webcomic's music on the ''[[MS Paint Adventures]]'' forums.<ref name="Polygon">{{cite web |url=http://www.polygon.com/2013/1/24/3780850/land-of-memes-and-trolls-the-epic-and-ridiculous-self-aware-world-of |website=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]] |publisher=[[Vox Media]] |title=Land of Memes and Trolls: The Epic and Ridiculous Self-Aware World of Homestuck |last=Funk |first=John |date=October 15, 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160520212927/http://www.polygon.com/2013/1/24/3780850/land-of-memes-and-trolls-the-epic-and-ridiculous-self-aware-world-of |archive-date=May 20, 2016 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

Fox created many of ''Homestuck's'' iconic tracks until its conclusion in 2016, including pivotal themes such as: a version of Megalovania, Descend and Oppa Toby Style, as well as comedic songs such as The [[Nicolas Cage|Nick Cage]] Song. He has stated in a tribute post to musician George Buzinkai that tracks such as the unused Homestuck theme called "Patient" inspired Undertale themes such as Another Medium. In particular, his remix of Buzinkai's song Doctor'','' titled Savior of the Waking World, was a "turning point" in his musical journey; it was used as the background music for a major moment in the fifth act of Homestuck.<ref>{{Cite web |last=fwugradiation |title=toby |url=https://fwugradiation.tumblr.com/post/179805371181/fwugradiation-patient-not-gonna-use-this-for |access-date=2024-10-04 |website=Tumblr}}</ref>

=== ''Undertale'' ===
{{main|Undertale}}
{{main|Undertale}}
Fox's most well-known work is the 2015 [[role-playing video game]] ''[[Undertale]]'', which he also composed the soundtrack for.<ref name="Union Leader" /> The game sold more than 1 million copies,<ref name="GamesBeat">{{cite web |url=https://venturebeat.com/2016/04/13/stardew-valley-is-one-of-the-best-selling-pc-games-of-the-year-as-it-surpasses-1m-copies-sold/ |title=Stardew Valley is one of the best-selling PC games of the year as it surpasses 1M copies sold |last=Grubb |first=Jeff |website=[[GamesBeat]] |publisher=[[VentureBeat]] |date=April 13, 2016 |access-date=April 22, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160420121945/http://venturebeat.com/2016/04/13/stardew-valley-is-one-of-the-best-selling-pc-games-of-the-year-as-it-surpasses-1m-copies-sold/ |archive-date=April 20, 2016 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all}}</ref> becoming a "breakout hit" and "[[Popular culture|pop-culture]] phenomenon".<ref>Multiple sources:
Fox's most well-known work is the 2015 [[role-playing video game]] ''[[Undertale]]'', which he also composed the soundtrack for.<ref name="Union Leader" /> The game sold more than 1 million copies,<ref name="GamesBeat">{{cite web |url=https://venturebeat.com/2016/04/13/stardew-valley-is-one-of-the-best-selling-pc-games-of-the-year-as-it-surpasses-1m-copies-sold/ |title=Stardew Valley is one of the best-selling PC games of the year as it surpasses 1M copies sold |last=Grubb |first=Jeff |website=[[GamesBeat]] |publisher=[[VentureBeat]] |date=April 13, 2016 |access-date=April 22, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160420121945/http://venturebeat.com/2016/04/13/stardew-valley-is-one-of-the-best-selling-pc-games-of-the-year-as-it-surpasses-1m-copies-sold/ |archive-date=April 20, 2016 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all}}</ref> becoming a "breakout hit" and "[[Popular culture|pop-culture]] phenomenon".<ref>Multiple sources:
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* {{cite news |url=https://www.dualshockers.com/toby-foxs-cult-classic-undertale-coming-nintendo-switch/ |title=Toby Fox's Cult Classic Undertale Coming to Nintendo Switch |date=2018-03-08 |work=DualShockers |access-date=2018-11-06 |language=en-US |archive-date=March 28, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190328120448/https://www.dualshockers.com/toby-foxs-cult-classic-undertale-coming-nintendo-switch/ |url-status=live}}
* {{cite news |url=https://www.dualshockers.com/toby-foxs-cult-classic-undertale-coming-nintendo-switch/ |title=Toby Fox's Cult Classic Undertale Coming to Nintendo Switch |date=2018-03-08 |work=DualShockers |access-date=2018-11-06 |language=en-US |archive-date=March 28, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190328120448/https://www.dualshockers.com/toby-foxs-cult-classic-undertale-coming-nintendo-switch/ |url-status=live}}
* {{cite news |url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/31/18047410/undertale-spinoff-sequel-deltarune-toby-fox |title=Cult RPG Undertale gets a surprise spinoff for Halloween |work=The Verge |access-date=2018-11-06 |archive-date=October 31, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181031151031/https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/31/18047410/undertale-spinoff-sequel-deltarune-toby-fox |url-status=live}}
* {{cite news |url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/31/18047410/undertale-spinoff-sequel-deltarune-toby-fox |title=Cult RPG Undertale gets a surprise spinoff for Halloween |work=The Verge |access-date=2018-11-06 |archive-date=October 31, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181031151031/https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/31/18047410/undertale-spinoff-sequel-deltarune-toby-fox |url-status=live}}
* {{cite news |url=http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/281395/Undertale_dev_reflects_on_what_its_like_to_have_your_game_become_a_phenomenon.php |work=[[Gamasutra]] |title=Undertale dev reflects on what it's like to have your game become a phenomenon |last=Wawro |first=Alex |access-date=2017-08-02 |language=en |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170803052141/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/281395/Undertale_dev_reflects_on_what_its_like_to_have_your_game_become_a_phenomenon.php |archive-date=August 3, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> Fox worked on the entire game independently, besides the art assets—which he asked Temmie (Tuyoki) Chang to help with—to avoid relying on others.<ref name="Game Informer">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.gameinformer.com/b/podcasts/archive/2015/10/15/gi-show-_1320_-yoshis-woolly-world_2c00_-star-wars_3a00_-battlefront_2c00_-undertale-toby-fox.aspx |title=GI Show – Yoshi's Woolly World, Star Wars: Battlefront, Undertale's Toby Fox |last=Turi |first=Tim |magazine=[[Game Informer]] |publisher=[[GameStop]] |date=October 15, 2015 |access-date=January 20, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160130192250/http://www.gameinformer.com/b/podcasts/archive/2015/10/15/gi-show-_1320_-yoshis-woolly-world_2c00_-star-wars_3a00_-battlefront_2c00_-undertale-toby-fox.aspx |archive-date=January 30, 2016 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref> He had some experience in game development before ''Undertale'', using [[RPG Maker 2000]] with his three brothers to make role-playing games and ''[[EarthBound]]'' [[ROM hack]]s in high school,<ref name="seagaia">{{cite interview |url=https://meloshantani.wordpress.com/2013/05/25/toby-foxs-undertale-dev-2-dev-interview-1/ |title=Toby Fox's Undertale – DEV 2 DEV INTERVIEW #1 |last=Han-Tani |first=Melos |website=ambient-melodic |date=May 25, 2013 |access-date=January 20, 2016 |archive-date=August 8, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200808085010/https://meloshantani.wordpress.com/2013/05/25/toby-foxs-undertale-dev-2-dev-interview-1/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/the-making-of-undertale/ |title=The making of Undertale |date=May 5, 2018 |access-date=October 12, 2020 |magazine=[[PC Gamer]] |last=Schilling |first=Chris |archive-date=March 27, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327090348/https://www.pcgamer.com/the-making-of-undertale/ |url-status=live}}</ref> the most notable of which was ''Earthbound: The Halloween Hack''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/earthbound-the-halloween-hack/ |title=Earthbound (The Halloween Hack) – Hardcore Gaming 101 |website=www.hardcoregaming101.net |language=en-US |access-date=2018-11-04 |archive-date=November 5, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181105061806/http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/earthbound-the-halloween-hack/ |url-status=live}}</ref> He thought of the character designs and ideas for ''Undertale'' while in college, where he drew them in his notebook.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://kotaku.com/undertale-creator-shares-notebook-full-of-early-concept-1790978697 |title=Undertale Creator Shares Notebook Full Of Early Concepts And Art |last=Alexandra |first=Heather |work=Kotaku |access-date=2017-08-02 |language=en-US |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170803085421/http://kotaku.com/undertale-creator-shares-notebook-full-of-early-concept-1790978697 |archive-date=August 3, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>
* {{cite news |url=http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/281395/Undertale_dev_reflects_on_what_its_like_to_have_your_game_become_a_phenomenon.php |work=[[Gamasutra]] |title=Undertale dev reflects on what it's like to have your game become a phenomenon |last=Wawro |first=Alex |access-date=2017-08-02 |language=en |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170803052141/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/281395/Undertale_dev_reflects_on_what_its_like_to_have_your_game_become_a_phenomenon.php |archive-date=August 3, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> Fox worked on the entire game independently, besides the art assets—which he asked Temmie (Tuyoki) Chang to help with—to avoid relying on others.<ref name="Game Informer">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.gameinformer.com/b/podcasts/archive/2015/10/15/gi-show-_1320_-yoshis-woolly-world_2c00_-star-wars_3a00_-battlefront_2c00_-undertale-toby-fox.aspx |title=GI Show – Yoshi's Woolly World, Star Wars: Battlefront, Undertale's Toby Fox |last=Turi |first=Tim |magazine=[[Game Informer]] |publisher=[[GameStop]] |date=October 15, 2015 |access-date=January 20, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160130192250/http://www.gameinformer.com/b/podcasts/archive/2015/10/15/gi-show-_1320_-yoshis-woolly-world_2c00_-star-wars_3a00_-battlefront_2c00_-undertale-toby-fox.aspx |archive-date=January 30, 2016 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref> He had some experience in game development before ''Undertale'', using [[RPG Maker 2000]] with his three brothers to make role-playing games and ''[[EarthBound]]'' [[ROM hacking|ROM hacks]] in high school,<ref name="seagaia">{{cite interview |url=https://meloshantani.wordpress.com/2013/05/25/toby-foxs-undertale-dev-2-dev-interview-1/ |title=Toby Fox's Undertale – DEV 2 DEV INTERVIEW #1 |last=Han-Tani |first=Melos |website=ambient-melodic |date=May 25, 2013 |access-date=January 20, 2016 |archive-date=August 8, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200808085010/https://meloshantani.wordpress.com/2013/05/25/toby-foxs-undertale-dev-2-dev-interview-1/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/the-making-of-undertale/ |title=The making of Undertale |date=May 5, 2018 |access-date=October 12, 2020 |magazine=[[PC Gamer]] |last=Schilling |first=Chris |archive-date=March 27, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327090348/https://www.pcgamer.com/the-making-of-undertale/ |url-status=live}}</ref> the most notable of which was ''Earthbound: The Halloween Hack''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/earthbound-the-halloween-hack/ |title=Earthbound (The Halloween Hack) – Hardcore Gaming 101 |website=www.hardcoregaming101.net |language=en-US |access-date=2018-11-04 |archive-date=November 5, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181105061806/http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/earthbound-the-halloween-hack/ |url-status=live}}</ref> He thought of the character designs and ideas for ''Undertale'' while in college, where he drew them in his notebook.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://kotaku.com/undertale-creator-shares-notebook-full-of-early-concept-1790978697 |title=Undertale Creator Shares Notebook Full Of Early Concepts And Art |last=Alexandra |first=Heather |work=Kotaku |access-date=2017-08-02 |language=en-US |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170803085421/http://kotaku.com/undertale-creator-shares-notebook-full-of-early-concept-1790978697 |archive-date=August 3, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>


Following its release, ''Undertale'' garnered an extensive fanbase.<ref name="RockPaperShotgun" /><ref name=":0">{{cite news |url=http://steamed.kotaku.com/undertale-creator-its-ok-if-people-dislike-the-game-1751013241 |title=Undertale Creator: It's OK If People Dislike The Game |last=Grayson |first=Nathan |work=Steamed |access-date=2017-08-02 |language=en-US |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170803085710/http://steamed.kotaku.com/undertale-creator-its-ok-if-people-dislike-the-game-1751013241 |archive-date=August 3, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> Fox commented that he did not mind if people stated that they did not like the game, saying that it was "not for everyone".<ref name=":0" /> Despite ''Undertale''{{'}}s awards and widespread acclaim, Fox wrote that his personal opinion was that the game was still "niche" and deserved an "8/10" review score.<ref name="RockPaperShotgun">{{cite web |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2016/09/15/undertale-launched-a-year-ago-today/ |title=8/10: Undertale Dev Reflects On Unexpected Popularity |last=O'Connor |first=Alice |date=2016-09-15 |website=Rock, Paper, Shotgun |language=en-US |access-date=2017-08-02 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170803045451/https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2016/09/15/undertale-launched-a-year-ago-today/ |archive-date=August 3, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Fox |first=Toby |date=2016 |title=Retrospective on UNDERTALE’s Popularity |url=https://undertale.tumblr.com/post/150397346860/retrospective-on-undertales-popularity |access-date=2024-03-20 |website=Tumblr |language=en-US |quote=It’s about an 8/10, niche RPG game.}}</ref>
Following its release, ''Undertale'' garnered an extensive fanbase.<ref name="RockPaperShotgun" /><ref name=":0">{{cite news |url=http://steamed.kotaku.com/undertale-creator-its-ok-if-people-dislike-the-game-1751013241 |title=Undertale Creator: It's OK If People Dislike The Game |last=Grayson |first=Nathan |work=Steamed |access-date=2017-08-02 |language=en-US |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170803085710/http://steamed.kotaku.com/undertale-creator-its-ok-if-people-dislike-the-game-1751013241 |archive-date=August 3, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> Fox commented that he did not mind if people stated that they did not like the game, saying that it was "not for everyone".<ref name=":0" /> Despite ''Undertale''{{'}}s awards and widespread acclaim, Fox wrote that his personal opinion was that the game was still "niche" and deserved an "8/10" review score.<ref name="RockPaperShotgun">{{cite web |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2016/09/15/undertale-launched-a-year-ago-today/ |title=8/10: Undertale Dev Reflects On Unexpected Popularity |last=O'Connor |first=Alice |date=2016-09-15 |website=Rock, Paper, Shotgun |language=en-US |access-date=2017-08-02 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170803045451/https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2016/09/15/undertale-launched-a-year-ago-today/ |archive-date=August 3, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Fox |first=Toby |date=2016 |title=Retrospective on UNDERTALE's Popularity |url=https://undertale.tumblr.com/post/150397346860/retrospective-on-undertales-popularity |access-date=2024-03-20 |website=Tumblr |language=en-US |quote=It’s about an 8/10, niche RPG game.}}</ref>


In 2016, Fox released a number of unused musical tracks from ''Undertale''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2016/09/16/undertale-creator-releases-unused-music-to-celebrate-1-year-anniversary |title=Undertale Creator Releases Unused Music to Celebrate 1-Year Anniversary |last=O'Brien |first=Lucy |date=2016-09-15 |website=IGN |language=en-US |access-date=2017-08-02 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170803051641/http://www.ign.com/articles/2016/09/16/undertale-creator-releases-unused-music-to-celebrate-1-year-anniversary |archive-date=August 3, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> He also became a contributor to the ''[[A Profound Waste of Time]]'' magazine.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.destructoid.com/ashly-burch-toby-fox-and-mike-z-join-the-profound-waste-of-time-team-404852.phtml |title=Ashly Burch, Toby Fox and Mike Z join the Profound Waste of Time team |website=Destructoid |date=December 15, 2016 |language=en |access-date=2017-08-02 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170527074841/https://www.destructoid.com/ashly-burch-toby-fox-and-mike-z-join-the-profound-waste-of-time-team-404852.phtml |archive-date=May 27, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> Fox was then chosen to be part of the 2018 Games [[Forbes 30 Under 30|''Forbes'' 30 Under 30]] list for his role in creating ''Undertale,'' by then the game had sold over 2 million copies.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.forbes.com/profile/toby-fox/ |title=Toby Fox |website=[[Forbes]] |language=en |access-date=2017-12-03 |df=mdy-all |archive-date=December 3, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171203153955/https://www.forbes.com/profile/toby-fox/ |url-status=live}}</ref>
In 2016, Fox released a number of unused musical tracks from ''Undertale''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2016/09/16/undertale-creator-releases-unused-music-to-celebrate-1-year-anniversary |title=Undertale Creator Releases Unused Music to Celebrate 1-Year Anniversary |last=O'Brien |first=Lucy |date=2016-09-15 |website=IGN |language=en-US |access-date=2017-08-02 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170803051641/http://www.ign.com/articles/2016/09/16/undertale-creator-releases-unused-music-to-celebrate-1-year-anniversary |archive-date=August 3, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> He also became a contributor to the ''[[A Profound Waste of Time]]'' magazine.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.destructoid.com/ashly-burch-toby-fox-and-mike-z-join-the-profound-waste-of-time-team-404852.phtml |title=Ashly Burch, Toby Fox and Mike Z join the Profound Waste of Time team |website=Destructoid |date=December 15, 2016 |language=en |access-date=2017-08-02 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170527074841/https://www.destructoid.com/ashly-burch-toby-fox-and-mike-z-join-the-profound-waste-of-time-team-404852.phtml |archive-date=May 27, 2017 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> Fox was then chosen to be part of the 2018 Games [[Forbes 30 Under 30|''Forbes'' 30 Under 30]] list for his role in creating ''Undertale''; by then the game had sold over 2 million copies.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.forbes.com/profile/toby-fox/ |title=Toby Fox |website=[[Forbes]] |language=en |access-date=2017-12-03 |df=mdy-all |archive-date=December 3, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171203153955/https://www.forbes.com/profile/toby-fox/ |url-status=live}}</ref>


The success of ''Undertale'', especially in Japan, afforded Fox the opportunity to visit ''[[Super Smash Bros.]]'' creator [[Masahiro Sakurai]] at his home, where they discussed the series and played ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'' against each other, and the two reportedly had a very similar skill level, trading wins and losses equally. [[Sans (Undertale)|Sans]], a character from ''Undertale'', was later included in ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' as a Mii costume available through [[downloadable content]], along with an instrumental composition "[[Megalovania]]", for which Fox provided a new arrangement.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPh3HM6ofWU&t=21m16s |title=Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – Mr. Sakurai Presents "Banjo & Kazooie" |work=YouTube |access-date=2019-09-14 |language=en |archive-date=September 1, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200901173651/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPh3HM6ofWU&t=21m16s |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="ssbu">{{cite web |url=https://kotaku.com/undertales-sans-joins-smash-bros-as-a-mii-fighter-cost-1837885342 |title=Undertale's Sans Joins Smash Bros. As A Mii Fighter Costume |last=Walker |first=Ian |date=September 4, 2019 |access-date=2019-09-04 |archive-date=September 5, 2019 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20190905050610/https://kotaku.com/undertales-sans-joins-smash-bros-as-a-mii-fighter-cost-1837885342 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1169387070529429504 |title=tobyfox on Twitter |work=Twitter |access-date=2019-09-14 |language=en |archive-date=September 18, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190918084327/https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1169387070529429504 |url-status=live}}</ref>
The success of ''Undertale'', especially in Japan, afforded Fox the opportunity to visit ''[[Super Smash Bros.]]'' creator [[Masahiro Sakurai]] at his home, where they discussed the series and played ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'' against each other, and the two reportedly had a very similar skill level, trading wins and losses equally. [[Sans (Undertale)|Sans]], a character from ''Undertale'', was later included in ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' as a Mii costume available through [[downloadable content]], along with an instrumental composition "[[Megalovania]]", for which Fox provided a new arrangement.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPh3HM6ofWU&t=21m16s |title=Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – Mr. Sakurai Presents "Banjo & Kazooie" |work=YouTube |access-date=2019-09-14 |language=en |archive-date=September 1, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200901173651/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPh3HM6ofWU&t=21m16s |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="ssbu">{{cite web |url=https://kotaku.com/undertales-sans-joins-smash-bros-as-a-mii-fighter-cost-1837885342 |title=Undertale's Sans Joins Smash Bros. As A Mii Fighter Costume |last=Walker |first=Ian |date=September 4, 2019 |access-date=2019-09-04 |archive-date=September 5, 2019 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20190905050610/https://kotaku.com/undertales-sans-joins-smash-bros-as-a-mii-fighter-cost-1837885342 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite tweet |number=1169387070529429504 |user=tobyfox |title=Yes. It's true. You'll be able to buy a Mii Gunner costume of Sans in Smash Brothers Ultimate later today! It'll come with a special arrangement of Megalovania composed by me. It's a huge honor to have something I created in Smash. Thank you so much Mr. Sakurai!!! |first=Toby |last=Fox |date=2019-09-04 |access-date=2024-12-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190918084327/https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1169387070529429504 |archive-date=2019-09-18 |url-status=live}}</ref>


==== ''Deltarune'' ====
=== ''Deltarune'' ===
{{main|Deltarune}}
{{main|Deltarune}}
On October 30, 2018, Fox tweeted a request for fans of ''Undertale'' to check the game's official [[Twitter]] account in 24 hours. The following day, Fox released the first chapter of the followup to ''Undertale,'' named ''Deltarune'', (an [[anagram]] of undertale) for free under the guise of a "survey"''.''<ref name="dr">{{cite news |url=https://www.polygon.com/2018/10/31/18044640/deltarune-free-download-undertale-game |title=Undertale creator's new game is Deltarune, a mysterious surprise |work=Polygon |access-date=2018-11-01 |archive-date=November 1, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181101015346/https://www.polygon.com/2018/10/31/18044640/deltarune-free-download-undertale-game |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2018/11/01/deltarune-chapter-1-undertale-sequel/ |title=Deltarune Chapter 1 is the free and surprising start of a new Undertale saga |work=Rock Paper Shotgun |access-date=2018-11-01 |language=en-US |archive-date=May 2, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190502154830/https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2018/11/01/deltarune-chapter-1-undertale-sequel/ |url-status=live}}</ref> On November 1, Fox shared more details regarding the game, including that the rest of the chapters were expected to release simultaneously, but work had not yet started, and there was no estimated timeframe for completion.<ref name=":1">{{cite news |url=https://apptrigger.com/2018/11/01/deltarune-toby-fox-full-release-plans/ |title=Deltarune creator Toby Fox talks full release plans, upscaling |date=2018-11-01 |work=App Trigger |access-date=2018-11-13 |language=en-US |archive-date=November 13, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181113165754/https://apptrigger.com/2018/11/01/deltarune-toby-fox-full-release-plans/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Fox also stated that he had been working on the project since 2012, and that the idea for ''Undertale'' developed from ''Deltarune'' during production.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{cite news |url=https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1058382742260498433 |title=tobyfox on Twitter |work=Twitter |access-date=2018-11-13 |language=en |archive-date=December 27, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181227034243/https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1058382742260498433 |url-status=live}}</ref> On June 12, 2019, as only the first chapter of ''Deltarune'' had been playable for several months, Fox expressed on his Twitter account he had hope he would complete the rest of ''Deltarune'', saying: "Slowly I'm writing and drawing it all out."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1138835212425682945 |title=Deltarune update from creator's Twitter counter |work=Twitter |access-date=2019-06-12 |archive-date=December 14, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191214183924/https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1138835212425682945 |url-status=live}}</ref> He stated that he had written "about 50 songs past Chapter 1".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1138825844728709123 |title=Deltarune update from creator's Twitter counter |work=Twitter |access-date=2019-06-12 |archive-date=June 15, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190615031127/https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1138825844728709123 |url-status=live}}</ref>
On October 30, 2018, Fox tweeted a request for fans of ''Undertale'' to check the game's official [[Twitter]] account in 24 hours. The following day, Fox released the first chapter of the followup to ''Undertale,'' named ''Deltarune'', (an [[anagram]] of undertale) for free under the guise of a "survey"''.''<ref name="dr">{{cite web|last=Allegra|first=Frank|url=https://www.polygon.com/2018/10/31/18044640/deltarune-free-download-undertale-game |title=Undertale creator's new game is Deltarune, a mysterious surprise |website=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]] |access-date=2018-11-01 |archive-date=November 1, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181101015346/https://www.polygon.com/2018/10/31/18044640/deltarune-free-download-undertale-game |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2018/11/01/deltarune-chapter-1-undertale-sequel/ |title=Deltarune Chapter 1 is the free and surprising start of a new Undertale saga |work=Rock Paper Shotgun |access-date=2018-11-01 |language=en-US |archive-date=May 2, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190502154830/https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2018/11/01/deltarune-chapter-1-undertale-sequel/ |url-status=live}}</ref> On November 1, Fox shared more details regarding the game, including that the rest of the chapters were expected to release simultaneously, but work had not yet started, and there was no estimated timeframe for completion.<ref name=":1">{{cite news |url=https://apptrigger.com/2018/11/01/deltarune-toby-fox-full-release-plans/ |title=Deltarune creator Toby Fox talks full release plans, upscaling |date=2018-11-01 |work=App Trigger |access-date=2018-11-13 |language=en-US |archive-date=November 13, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181113165754/https://apptrigger.com/2018/11/01/deltarune-toby-fox-full-release-plans/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Fox also stated that he had been working on the project since 2012, and that the idea for ''Undertale'' developed from ''Deltarune'' during production.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite tweet |number=1058382742260498433 |user=tobyfox |title=The idea of "I want to make an RPG" turned into UNDERTALE and the original idea I had transformed into DELTARUNE as I was making UNDERTALE. |first=Toby |last=Fox |date=2018-11-02 |access-date=2024-12-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181227034243/https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1058382742260498433 |archive-date=2018-12-27 |url-status=live}}</ref> On June 12, 2019, as only the first chapter of ''Deltarune'' had been playable for several months, Fox expressed on his Twitter account he had hope he would complete the rest of ''Deltarune'', saying: "Slowly I'm writing and drawing it all out."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1138835212425682945 |title=Deltarune update from creator's Twitter counter |work=Twitter |access-date=2019-06-12 |archive-date=December 14, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191214183924/https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1138835212425682945 |url-status=live}}</ref> He stated that he had written "about 50 songs past Chapter 1".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1138825844728709123 |title=Deltarune update from creator's Twitter counter |work=Twitter |access-date=2019-06-12 |archive-date=June 15, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190615031127/https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/1138825844728709123 |url-status=live}}</ref>


On September 17, 2021, Fox released the second chapter of ''Deltarune'' for free since "the world has been really tough for everybody recently", referring to the struggles of the [[COVID-19 pandemic]]. He plans to release the next two chapters simultaneously, with a price greater than ''Undertale'', but without any projected release date.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lyles |first=Taylor |date=2023-10-31 |title=Deltarune Will Be Released Once Chapter 4 Is Done, Toby Fox Confirms |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/deltarune-will-be-released-once-chapter-4-is-done-toby-fox-confirms |access-date=2023-11-20 |website=IGN |language=en}}</ref>
On September 17, 2021, Fox released the second chapter of ''Deltarune'' for free since "the world has been really tough for everybody recently", referring to the struggles of the [[COVID-19 pandemic]]. He plans to release the next two chapters simultaneously, with a price greater than ''Undertale'', in 2025.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lyles |first=Taylor |date=2023-10-31 |title=Deltarune Will Be Released Once Chapter 4 Is Done, Toby Fox Confirms |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/deltarune-will-be-released-once-chapter-4-is-done-toby-fox-confirms |access-date=2023-11-20 |website=IGN |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Romano |first1=Sal |title=DELTARUNE Chapters 3 and 4 to launch in 2025 |url=https://www.gematsu.com/2024/10/deltarune-chapters-3-and-4-to-launch-in-2025 |website=Gematsu |access-date=14 November 2024 |date=31 October 2024}}</ref>


== Personal life ==
=== Composing ===
Fox has composed music for the 2017 ''Homestuck'' video game ''[[Hiveswap]]'',<ref name="Sword&Shield Polygon" /> ''Undertale'' artist Temmie Chang's short narrative game ''[[Escaped Chasm]]'',<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2019/04/02/escaped-chasm-is-a-free-short-from-undertales-temie-chang/ |work=Rock Paper Shotgun |title=Escaped Chasm is a short, sad, free story by Undertale's artist |last=Tarason |first=Dominic |date=2019-04-02 |access-date=2019-05-02 |df=mdy-all |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190405232954/https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2019/04/02/escaped-chasm-is-a-free-short-from-undertales-temie-chang/ |archive-date=April 5, 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Game Freak]]'s 2019 RPG ''[[Little Town Hero]]'', the last of which was arranged by ''[[Pokémon]]'' composer Hitomi Sato.<ref name="Sword&Shield Polygon" /> He also composed a track for [[Pokémon Sword and Shield|''Pokémon Sword'' and ''Shield'']],<ref name="Sword&Shield Polygon">{{cite web |last=Goslin |first=Austen |url=https://www.polygon.com/2019/11/1/20943435 |title=Undertale developer is composing a song for Pokémon Sword and Shield |work=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]] |date=November 1, 2019 |access-date=October 10, 2020 |language=en |archive-date=March 28, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210328084339/https://www.polygon.com/2019/11/1/20943435/undertale-developer-music-toby-fox-pokemon-sword-and-shield |url-status=live}}</ref> a vocal song for Itoki Hana's ''PRAY'' album,<ref name="PRAY">{{cite tweet |last=Fox |first=Toby |user=tobyfox |number=1026500164217962498 |date=August 6, 2018 |title=I composed a vocal song for my friend @1t0lc1 (Itoki Hana's) new album, PRAY.}}</ref> and multiple tracks for [[Pokémon Scarlet and Violet|''Pokémon Scarlet'' and ''Violet'']].<ref>{{cite tweet|number=1532038920183205888|user=tobyfox|title=I had the honor of composing the field music for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet! After creating a concept sketch, Game Freak arranged it into many versions that you'll hear throughout the game. You can hear a bit of it in this trailer...|date=June 1, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite tweet|number=1532039019634229248|user=tobyfox|title=A few more Toby Fox tracks will appear in the game, too, so please look forward to those! This time, my music is not optional!!!|date=June 1, 2022}}</ref>
Robert F. Fox<ref name="Union Leader">{{cite web |last=Hayward |first=Mark |date=December 6, 2020 |title=City Matters: Secretive NH game designer created Undertale video game |url=https://www.unionleader.com/voices/city_matters/city-matters-secretive-nh-game-designer-created-undertale-video-game/article_ef527592-4b1a-5402-8393-944173180028.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210622105128/https://www.unionleader.com/voices/city_matters/city-matters-secretive-nh-game-designer-created-undertale-video-game/article_ef527592-4b1a-5402-8393-944173180028.html |archive-date=June 22, 2021 |access-date=June 22, 2021 |website=New Hampshire Union Leader}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=WebVoyage Titles |url=https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?v1=2&ti=1,2&Search%5FArg=undertale&Search%5FCode=TALL&CNT=25&PID=2GBPDlE9V8lZU7vODNZ89kFfz&SEQ=20220108095355&SID=1 |access-date=2022-01-08 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220108145429/https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?v1=2&ti=1%2C2&Search_Arg=undertale&Search_Code=TALL&CNT=25&PID=2GBPDlE9V8lZU7vODNZ89kFfz&SEQ=20220108095355&SID=1 | archive-date=2022-01-08 |website=cocatalog.loc.gov}}</ref> was born on October 11, 1991,<ref>{{cite tweet |last=Fox |first=Toby |user=tobyfox |number=918137771595829250 |date=October 11, 2017 |title=It's my 26th birthday. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180831161836/https://twitter.com/tobyfox/status/918137771595829250 |archive-date=2018-08-31 |url-status=live}}</ref> in [[Manchester, New Hampshire]].<ref name="Union Leader" /> Along with his three brothers, he is the son of Robert Fox, a financial planner, and Barbara Fox, a retired paraprofessional. Fox was raised an [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopalian]]. He studied [[environmental science]] at [[Northeastern University]] and graduated in 2014.<ref name="Union Leader" />


In 2024, he partnered with Japanese game developer [[ZUN (video game developer)|ZUN]] for the game ''Touhou Danmaku Kagura Phantasia Lost'', which included a track that combined the Touhou song "U.N - Owen Was Her?" with the [[Undyne]] battle song "Battle Against a True Hero" from ''Undertale'' as "U.N. - Owen Was Hero?".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Touhou Danmaku Kagura: Phantasia Lost - Toby Fox & ZUN "U.N. Owen Was Hero?" |url=https://kotaku.com/games/touhou-danmaku-kagura-phantasia-lost-toby-fox-and-zun-u-dot-n-owen-was-hero |access-date=2024-10-04 |website=Kotaku |language=en}}</ref> In September of the same year, he announced a new partnership for the same game on YouTube. The video contains a very brief preview of the song, which appears to be based on "Megalovania".<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-09-05 |title=New 'Touhou' Rhythm Game Mixes Bullet Hell, Falling-Notes And Toby Fox Tunes |url=https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2024/09/new-touhou-rhythm-game-mixes-bullet-hell-falling-notes-and-toby-fox-tunes |access-date=2024-10-04 |website=Nintendo Life |language=en-GB}}</ref>

== Personal life ==
Fox is secretive and does not typically do interviews.<ref name="Union Leader" /><ref name="Existential Gamer">{{cite web |url=http://existentialgamer.com/interview-toby-fox-of-undertale |title=INTERVIEW: TOBY FOX OF UNDERTALE |last=Feeld |first=Julian |website=Existential Gamer |publisher=Feeld |date=October 9, 2015 |access-date=January 20, 2016 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20151117161517/http://existentialgamer.com/interview-toby-fox-of-undertale |archive-date=November 17, 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> He has [[Chronic pain|chronic wrist and hand pain]] that regularly disables him from programming and composing. In September 2020, Fox cited a flareup of this pain as a factor in the delayed development of ''[[Deltarune]]''{{'s}} second chapter.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://undertale.com/deltarune-update-092020/ |title=DELTARUNE Status Update – September 2020 |date=September 15, 2020 |access-date=January 20, 2021 |archive-date=January 20, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210120033544/https://undertale.com/deltarune-update-092020/ |url-status=live}}</ref>
Fox is secretive and does not typically do interviews.<ref name="Union Leader" /><ref name="Existential Gamer">{{cite web |url=http://existentialgamer.com/interview-toby-fox-of-undertale |title=INTERVIEW: TOBY FOX OF UNDERTALE |last=Feeld |first=Julian |website=Existential Gamer |publisher=Feeld |date=October 9, 2015 |access-date=January 20, 2016 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20151117161517/http://existentialgamer.com/interview-toby-fox-of-undertale |archive-date=November 17, 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> He has [[Chronic pain|chronic wrist and hand pain]] that regularly disables him from programming and composing. In September 2020, Fox cited a flareup of this pain as a factor in the delayed development of ''[[Deltarune]]''{{'s}} second chapter.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://undertale.com/deltarune-update-092020/ |title=DELTARUNE Status Update – September 2020 |date=September 15, 2020 |access-date=January 20, 2021 |archive-date=January 20, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210120033544/https://undertale.com/deltarune-update-092020/ |url-status=live}}</ref>


== Works ==
== Works ==
=== Gameography ===
=== Ludography===
{| class="wikitable"
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|-
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|-
|-
|2008
|2008
|''[[EarthBound|EarthBound]]: Halloween Hack'' ([[romhack]])
|''[[EarthBound]]: Halloween Hack'' ([[romhack]])
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
| {{yes}}
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| {{no}}
| {{no}}
|[[Microsoft Windows|Windows]]
|[[Microsoft Windows|Windows]]
| <ref>{{cite web |last1=Lada |first1=Jenni |title=Undertale Artist Temmie Chang Releases Dweller’s Empty Path |url=https://www.siliconera.com/undertale-artist-temmie-chang-releases-dwellers-empty-path/ |website=Siliconera |access-date=30 January 2024 |date=11 July 2020}}</ref>
| <ref>{{cite web |last1=Lada |first1=Jenni |title=Undertale Artist Temmie Chang Releases Dweller's Empty Path |url=https://www.siliconera.com/undertale-artist-temmie-chang-releases-dwellers-empty-path/ |website=Siliconera |access-date=30 January 2024 |date=11 July 2020}}</ref>
|-
|-
|''Hiveswap: Act 2''
|''Hiveswap: Act 2''
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==== Guest composer only ====
==== Guest composer only ====

* ''Hiveswap Friendsim'' (2018)<ref>{{cite web |title=Hiveswap Friendsim, by James Roach |url=https://homestuck.bandcamp.com/album/hiveswap-friendsim |website=Bandcamp |access-date=30 January 2024 |language=en}}</ref>
* ''Hiveswap Friendsim'' (2018)<ref>{{cite web |title=Hiveswap Friendsim, by James Roach |url=https://homestuck.bandcamp.com/album/hiveswap-friendsim |website=Bandcamp |access-date=30 January 2024 |language=en}}</ref>
* ''[[YIIK: A Postmodern RPG]]'' (2019)<ref>{{cite web |last1=Boudreau |first1=Ian |title=New games: YIIK is a weird JRPG set in the postmodern ‘90s, built on loss |url=https://www.pcgamesn.com/yiik/new-games-yiik-release-date |website=PCGamesN |access-date=30 January 2024 |date=13 January 2019}}</ref>
* ''[[YIIK: A Postmodern RPG]]'' (2019)<ref>{{cite web |last1=Boudreau |first1=Ian |title=New games: YIIK is a weird JRPG set in the postmodern '90s, built on loss |url=https://www.pcgamesn.com/yiik/new-games-yiik-release-date |website=PCGamesN |access-date=30 January 2024 |date=13 January 2019}}</ref>
* ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'' (2019) - DLC only<ref name="ssbu"/>
* ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]'' (2019) - DLC only<ref name="ssbu"/>
* ''Pesterquest'' (2019)<ref>{{cite web |url=https://jamesroachmusic.tumblr.com/post/189479481402/yeah-it-is-the-title-is-meant-to-answer-the |website=[[tumblr]] |quote=the title is meant to answer the question you ask while listening 'is this... megalovania?' then you go and check the track in the credits and it gives you your answer. |title='yeah, it is' |last=Roach |first=James |access-date=2023-08-20 |date=2019-12-04 |archive-date=2023-08-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230820165253/https://jamesroachmusic.tumblr.com/post/189479481402/yeah-it-is-the-title-is-meant-to-answer-the |url-status=live }}</ref>
* ''Pesterquest'' (2019)<ref>{{cite web |url=https://jamesroachmusic.tumblr.com/post/189479481402/yeah-it-is-the-title-is-meant-to-answer-the |website=[[tumblr]] |quote=the title is meant to answer the question you ask while listening 'is this... megalovania?' then you go and check the track in the credits and it gives you your answer. |title='yeah, it is' |last=Roach |first=James |access-date=2023-08-20 |date=2019-12-04 |archive-date=2023-08-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230820165253/https://jamesroachmusic.tumblr.com/post/189479481402/yeah-it-is-the-title-is-meant-to-answer-the |url-status=live }}</ref>
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* ''[[Mr. Saitou]]'' (2023)<ref>{{cite web |last1=Macgregor |first1=Jody |title=This single-serving Ghibli-esque adventure about work and worms will warm your heart |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/this-single-serving-ghibli-esque-adventure-about-work-and-worms-will-warm-your-heart/ |website=PC Gamer |access-date=30 January 2024 |language=en |date=22 March 2023}}</ref>
* ''[[Mr. Saitou]]'' (2023)<ref>{{cite web |last1=Macgregor |first1=Jody |title=This single-serving Ghibli-esque adventure about work and worms will warm your heart |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/this-single-serving-ghibli-esque-adventure-about-work-and-worms-will-warm-your-heart/ |website=PC Gamer |access-date=30 January 2024 |language=en |date=22 March 2023}}</ref>
* ''Touhou Danmaku Kagura Phantasia Lost'' (2024)<ref>{{cite web |last1=Romano |first1=Sal |title=Touhou Danmaku Kagura: Phantasia Lost for PC launches February 8, 2024 |url=https://www.gematsu.com/2023/08/touhou-danmaku-kagura-phantasia-lost-for-pc-launches-february-8-2024 |website=Gematsu |access-date=30 January 2024 |date=7 August 2023}}</ref>
* ''Touhou Danmaku Kagura Phantasia Lost'' (2024)<ref>{{cite web |last1=Romano |first1=Sal |title=Touhou Danmaku Kagura: Phantasia Lost for PC launches February 8, 2024 |url=https://www.gematsu.com/2023/08/touhou-danmaku-kagura-phantasia-lost-for-pc-launches-february-8-2024 |website=Gematsu |access-date=30 January 2024 |date=7 August 2023}}</ref>
* ''[[Fields of Mistria]]'' (2024)<ref>{{cite news |title=Fields of Mistria - Official Trailer |url=https://www.ign.com/videos/fields-of-mistria-official-trailer-wholesome-direct-2023 |access-date=16 August 2024 |work=[[IGN]] |date=June 10, 2023}}</ref>


=== Other credits ===
=== Other credits ===
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|Writer, composer, vocalist
|Writer, composer, vocalist
|Album made for ''Homestuck''
|Album made for ''Homestuck''
|<ref name="b">{{cite web |last1=Lee |first1=Julia |title=Undertale creator Toby Fox’s Pokémon Sword and Shield song sounds like a Homestuck fan tune |url=https://www.polygon.com/pokemon/2019/11/13/20963640/undertale-toby-fox-song-pokemon-sword-shield-homestuck-the-baby-is-you |website=Polygon |access-date=30 January 2024 |date=13 November 2019}}</ref>
|<ref name="b">{{cite web |last1=Lee |first1=Julia |title=Undertale creator Toby Fox's Pokémon Sword and Shield song sounds like a Homestuck fan tune |url=https://www.polygon.com/pokemon/2019/11/13/20963640/undertale-toby-fox-song-pokemon-sword-shield-homestuck-the-baby-is-you |website=Polygon |access-date=30 January 2024 |date=13 November 2019}}</ref>
|-
|-
|2012
|2012
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|Website
|Website
|tane.us
|tane.us
|Guest Arrangement
|Guest arrangement
|[[Metronomy]] - [[Pip Paine (Pay the £5000 You Owe)|Black Eye Burnt Thumb]] (Toby "Radiation" Fox CHIP MIX)
|[[Metronomy]] - [[Pip Paine (Pay the £5000 You Owe)|Black Eye Burnt Thumb]] (Toby "Radiation" Fox CHIP MIX)
| <ref>{{cite web |author1=Brian Lee |title=ABOUT TANE |url=https://tane.us/abouttane.html |website=tane.us |access-date=19 September 2023 |language=en}}</ref>
| <ref>{{cite web |author1=Brian Lee |title=ABOUT TANE |url=https://tane.us/abouttane.html |website=tane.us |access-date=19 September 2023 |language=en}}</ref>
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|
|
| <ref>{{cite video game | title = Black Bird | developer = Onion Games | date = April 20, 2018 | scene = Credits | language = ja}}</ref>
| <ref>{{cite video game | title = Black Bird | developer = Onion Games | date = April 20, 2018 | scene = Credits | language = ja}}</ref>
|-
|-
|-
| rowspan="2" | 2020
| rowspan="2" | 2020
Line 221: Line 231:
|Music video
|Music video
|[[Hirokazu Tanaka|Chip Tanaka]]/Hammerhead Shark Song
|[[Hirokazu Tanaka|Chip Tanaka]]/Hammerhead Shark Song
|Director/Animator (music video)
|Director/animator (music video)
|
|
| <ref>{{cite web |title=Chip Tanaka / Hammerhead Shark Song from 2nd album "Domingo" (Release: July 15th, 2020) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWyFwDxgj04 |website=YouTube |access-date=30 January 2024 |language=en}}</ref>
| <ref>{{cite web |title=Chip Tanaka / Hammerhead Shark Song from 2nd album "Domingo" (Release: July 15th, 2020) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWyFwDxgj04 |website=YouTube |access-date=30 January 2024 |language=en}}</ref>
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|Video game
|Video game
|''[[Get in the Car, Loser!]]''
|''[[Get in the Car, Loser!]]''
|Credited for providing Guest Items and Stories
|Credited for providing guest items and stories
|
|
| <ref>{{cite video game | title = Get in the Car, Loser! | developer = Love Conquers All Games | date = September 21, 2021 | scene = Credits | language = en}}</ref>
| <ref>{{cite video game | title = Get in the Car, Loser! | developer = Love Conquers All Games | date = September 21, 2021 | scene = Credits | language = en}}</ref>
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|Composer, writer
|Composer, writer
|In collaboration with Itoki Hana
|In collaboration with Itoki Hana
| <ref>{{cite web |last1=Liu |first1=Stephanie |title=Toby Fox Collaborated With Omocat on the Song ‘Skies Forever Blue’ |url=https://www.siliconera.com/toby-fox-collaborated-with-omocat-on-skies-forever-blue-song/ |website=Siliconera |access-date=30 January 2024 |date=2 November 2022}}</ref>
| <ref>{{cite web |last1=Liu |first1=Stephanie |title=Toby Fox Collaborated With Omocat on the Song 'Skies Forever Blue' |url=https://www.siliconera.com/toby-fox-collaborated-with-omocat-on-skies-forever-blue-song/ |website=Siliconera |access-date=30 January 2024 |date=2 November 2022}}</ref>
|-
|-
| rowspan="4" |2023
| rowspan="4" |2023
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|Animated television series
|Animated television series
|[[Pokémon Horizons: The Series|''Pokémon Horizons'']]
|[[Pokémon Horizons: The Series|''Pokémon Horizons'']]
|Original Composer
|Original composer
|
|
| {{cn|date=January 2024}}<!-- this is likely to have a source when the show comes out in the US, so leave here for now -->
| {{citation needed|date=January 2024}}<!-- this is likely to have a source when the show comes out in the US, so leave here for now -->
|-
|-
| rowspan="2" |2024
| rowspan="2" |2024
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|"Fallen Wing"
|"Fallen Wing"
|Composer
|Composer
|As a guest composer for [[VTuber]] [[Amane Kanata]]'s "Unknown DIVA" album
|As a guest composer for [[Hololive Production|Hololive]] [[VTuber]] [[Amane Kanata]]'s ''Unknown DIVA'' album
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=猫塚きてぃ |last2=武藤先輩 |date=2024-03-15 |title=【ホロライブ】天音かなた1stアルバム『Unknown DIVA』インタビュー。『片羽』はトビー・フォックスからの逆オファー! 自身が作詞した曲への想いや裏話を語る {{!}} ゲーム・エンタメ最新情報のファミ通.com |trans-title=【hololive】Kanata Amane's 1st album "Unknown DIVA" interview. "Kataha" is a counteroffer from Toby Fox! He talks about his thoughts on the songs he wrote and the story behind them. |url=https://www.famitsu.com/news/202403/15337235.html |access-date=2024-03-15 |website=famitsu.com |language=ja}}</ref>
|<ref>{{Cite web |last1=猫塚きてぃ |last2=武藤先輩 |date=2024-03-15 |title= |script-title=ja:【ホロライブ】天音かなた1stアルバム『Unknown DIVA』インタビュー。『片羽』はトビー・フォックスからの逆オファー! 自身が作詞した曲への想いや裏話を語る {{!}} ゲーム・エンタメ最新情報のファミ通.com |trans-title=【hololive】Kanata Amane's 1st album "Unknown DIVA" interview. "Kataha" is a counteroffer from Toby Fox! He talks about his thoughts on the songs he wrote and the story behind them. |url=https://www.famitsu.com/news/202403/15337235.html |access-date=2024-03-15 |website=famitsu.com |language=ja}}</ref>
|-
|-
|Song
|Song
|"Dead Ma’am’s Chest"
|"Dead Ma’am’s Chest"
|Composer
|Composer
|In collaboration with [[Hololive]]'s [[Houshou Marine]]
|In collaboration with Hololive VTuber [[Houshou Marine]]
|<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lada |first=Jenni |date=2024-07-30 |title=New Hololive Vtuber Houshou Marine Song Written by Toby Fox |url=https://www.siliconera.com/new-hololive-vtuber-houshou-marine-song-written-by-toby-fox/ |access-date=2024-08-01 |website=Siliconera |language=en-US}}</ref>
|{{cn|date=July 2024}}
|-
|}
|}


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{{Commons category-inline}}
{{Commons category-inline}}


* {{Twitter|id=tobyfox}}
{{UNDERTALE}}

{{TobyFox}}
{{Undertale}}
{{MSPA}}
{{MSPA}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}
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[[Category:Northeastern University alumni]]
[[Category:Northeastern University alumni]]
[[Category:People from Manchester, New Hampshire]]
[[Category:People from Manchester, New Hampshire]]
[[Category:Undertale]]
[[Category:Video game writers]]
[[Category:Video game writers]]
[[Category:21st-century American male musicians]]

Latest revision as of 19:47, 9 December 2024

Toby Fox
An image of the Annoying Dog from Undertale, which Fox commonly uses for his public image
Born
Robert F. Fox

(1991-10-11) October 11, 1991 (age 33)
Other names
  • Radiation
  • FwugRadiation
Alma materNortheastern University
Occupations
  • Video game developer
  • composer
Years active2008–present
WorksUndertale, Deltarune
Websitetoby.fangamer.com
tobyfox.net (archived)

Robert F. "Toby" Fox (born October 11, 1991) is an American video game developer and composer. He is best known for developing the role-playing video game Undertale, which garnered acclaim and has received nominations for a British Academy Game Award, three Game Awards and D.I.C.E. Awards. He is also the creator and head of the ongoing development of Deltarune, which contains many characters and features from Undertale, and has garnered significant praise.

Fox's early work consisted primarily of composing music, notably for the webcomic Homestuck. Following the success of Undertale, he went on to compose music for a number of other indie games. Other notable works include contributing to the soundtracks of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and the Pokémon video games.

Early life

Robert F. Fox[1][2] was born on October 11, 1991,[3] in Manchester, New Hampshire.[1] Along with his three brothers, he is the son of Robert Fox, a financial planner, and Barbara Fox, a retired paraprofessional. Fox was raised an Episcopalian. He studied environmental science at Northeastern University and graduated in 2014.[1]

Career

Inspiration

Fox has stated that as a child, he was mesmerised by the music and atmosphere of Final Fantasy VI. Other Japanese role-playing games, such as EarthBound, Secret of Mana and Super Mario RPG served as major inspirations; Fox looked up to Yoko Shimomura's works in particular. Her song "Megalomania" for the game Live A Live was particularly inspiring for Fox, and he originally intended to use an EarthBound-themed cover of the song in a game, but he got tired of transcribing it and eventually made a new song called "Megalovania".[4]

In middle school, he discovered the Touhou Project series when he downloaded the demos for the sixth and seventh games in the series. He played a piano rendition of the Touhou Project track "Necrofantasia" at his church's summer camp. He was inspired by Touhou's philosophy of not giving up on a game simply to hear the music.[5] Fox later conducted an improvised Touhou music session on Tumblr, in which he created "improvised Touhou music that doesn't actually exist" including a boss track named An Apple Disaster.[6]

Early work

Toby Fox's earliest well-known work is the EarthBound Halloween Hack,[7] a Halloween-themed ROM hack of EarthBound, which released in 2008. He then moved on to compose a variety of music for Andrew Hussie's 2009 webcomic Homestuck during his senior year of high school. Though he did not initially respond when Hussie started a Music Contribution Team in April 2009 and put up a news post asking composers to participate, Hussie took note of his work when Fox started uploading piano covers of the webcomic's music on the MS Paint Adventures forums.[8]

Fox created many of Homestuck's iconic tracks until its conclusion in 2016, including pivotal themes such as: a version of Megalovania, Descend and Oppa Toby Style, as well as comedic songs such as The Nick Cage Song. He has stated in a tribute post to musician George Buzinkai that tracks such as the unused Homestuck theme called "Patient" inspired Undertale themes such as Another Medium. In particular, his remix of Buzinkai's song Doctor, titled Savior of the Waking World, was a "turning point" in his musical journey; it was used as the background music for a major moment in the fifth act of Homestuck.[9]

Undertale

Fox's most well-known work is the 2015 role-playing video game Undertale, which he also composed the soundtrack for.[1] The game sold more than 1 million copies,[10] becoming a "breakout hit" and "pop-culture phenomenon".[11] Fox worked on the entire game independently, besides the art assets—which he asked Temmie (Tuyoki) Chang to help with—to avoid relying on others.[12] He had some experience in game development before Undertale, using RPG Maker 2000 with his three brothers to make role-playing games and EarthBound ROM hacks in high school,[13][14] the most notable of which was Earthbound: The Halloween Hack.[15] He thought of the character designs and ideas for Undertale while in college, where he drew them in his notebook.[16]

Following its release, Undertale garnered an extensive fanbase.[17][18] Fox commented that he did not mind if people stated that they did not like the game, saying that it was "not for everyone".[18] Despite Undertale's awards and widespread acclaim, Fox wrote that his personal opinion was that the game was still "niche" and deserved an "8/10" review score.[17][19]

In 2016, Fox released a number of unused musical tracks from Undertale.[20] He also became a contributor to the A Profound Waste of Time magazine.[21] Fox was then chosen to be part of the 2018 Games Forbes 30 Under 30 list for his role in creating Undertale; by then the game had sold over 2 million copies.[22]

The success of Undertale, especially in Japan, afforded Fox the opportunity to visit Super Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai at his home, where they discussed the series and played Super Smash Bros. Ultimate against each other, and the two reportedly had a very similar skill level, trading wins and losses equally. Sans, a character from Undertale, was later included in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as a Mii costume available through downloadable content, along with an instrumental composition "Megalovania", for which Fox provided a new arrangement.[23][24][25]

Deltarune

On October 30, 2018, Fox tweeted a request for fans of Undertale to check the game's official Twitter account in 24 hours. The following day, Fox released the first chapter of the followup to Undertale, named Deltarune, (an anagram of undertale) for free under the guise of a "survey".[26][27] On November 1, Fox shared more details regarding the game, including that the rest of the chapters were expected to release simultaneously, but work had not yet started, and there was no estimated timeframe for completion.[28] Fox also stated that he had been working on the project since 2012, and that the idea for Undertale developed from Deltarune during production.[28][29] On June 12, 2019, as only the first chapter of Deltarune had been playable for several months, Fox expressed on his Twitter account he had hope he would complete the rest of Deltarune, saying: "Slowly I'm writing and drawing it all out."[30] He stated that he had written "about 50 songs past Chapter 1".[31]

On September 17, 2021, Fox released the second chapter of Deltarune for free since "the world has been really tough for everybody recently", referring to the struggles of the COVID-19 pandemic. He plans to release the next two chapters simultaneously, with a price greater than Undertale, in 2025.[32][33]

Composing

Fox has composed music for the 2017 Homestuck video game Hiveswap,[34] Undertale artist Temmie Chang's short narrative game Escaped Chasm,[35] and Game Freak's 2019 RPG Little Town Hero, the last of which was arranged by Pokémon composer Hitomi Sato.[34] He also composed a track for Pokémon Sword and Shield,[34] a vocal song for Itoki Hana's PRAY album,[36] and multiple tracks for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.[37][38]

In 2024, he partnered with Japanese game developer ZUN for the game Touhou Danmaku Kagura Phantasia Lost, which included a track that combined the Touhou song "U.N - Owen Was Her?" with the Undyne battle song "Battle Against a True Hero" from Undertale as "U.N. - Owen Was Hero?".[39] In September of the same year, he announced a new partnership for the same game on YouTube. The video contains a very brief preview of the song, which appears to be based on "Megalovania".[40]

Personal life

Fox is secretive and does not typically do interviews.[1][41] He has chronic wrist and hand pain that regularly disables him from programming and composing. In September 2020, Fox cited a flareup of this pain as a factor in the delayed development of Deltarune's second chapter.[42]

Works

Ludography

Year Title Director Composer Writer Platforms Ref
2008 EarthBound: Halloween Hack (romhack) Yes Yes Yes Super Nintendo [7]
2015 Undertale Yes Yes Yes Windows, macOS, Linux, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One [1]
2016 Rose of Winter No Yes No Windows [43]
2017 Hiveswap: Act 1 No Yes No Windows, macOS, Linux [34]
2018 Deltarune Yes Yes Yes Windows, macOS, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch [26]
2019 Escaped Chasm No Yes No Windows [44]
Little Town Hero No Yes No Windows, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One [34]
2020 Dweller's Empty Path No Yes No Windows [45]
Hiveswap: Act 2 No Yes No Windows, macOS, Linux [34]
2022 Pokémon Scarlet and Violet No Yes No Nintendo Switch [46]

Guest composer only

Other credits

Year Media type Media title Role Notes Ref
2009–2016 Webcomic Homestuck Composer [55]
2010 Album The Baby is You Writer, composer, vocalist Album made for Homestuck [55]
2012 Album I Miss You - EarthBound 2012 Composer [56]
2012 Website tane.us Guest arrangement Metronomy - Black Eye Burnt Thumb (Toby "Radiation" Fox CHIP MIX) [57]
2018 Album PRAY Guest composer, lyricist and vocalist [36]
Video game Black Bird Game testing [58]
2020 Comic Hobonichi Mother Project "Pollyanna" comic Contributor [59]
Music video Chip Tanaka/Hammerhead Shark Song Director/animator (music video) [60]
2021 Video game Get in the Car, Loser! Credited for providing guest items and stories [61]
Song "Myths You Forgot" Featured artist [62]
2022 Album "Skies Forever Blue" Composer, writer In collaboration with Itoki Hana [63]
2023 Song "The Greatest Living Show" Composer, writer [64][65]
Song "Prelude" Composer In collaboration with bo en [66]
Animated television series We Baby Bears Voice actor (2 episodes) [67]
Animated television series Pokémon Horizons Original composer [citation needed]
2024 Song "Fallen Wing" Composer As a guest composer for Hololive VTuber Amane Kanata's Unknown DIVA album [68]
Song "Dead Ma’am’s Chest" Composer In collaboration with Hololive VTuber Houshou Marine [69]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Hayward, Mark (December 6, 2020). "City Matters: Secretive NH game designer created Undertale video game". New Hampshire Union Leader. Archived from the original on June 22, 2021. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
  2. ^ "WebVoyage Titles". cocatalog.loc.gov. Archived from the original on January 8, 2022. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  3. ^ Fox, Toby [@tobyfox] (October 11, 2017). "It's my 26th birthday" (Tweet). Archived from the original on August 31, 2018 – via Twitter.
  4. ^ "LIVE A LIVE: a conversation between Yoko Shimomura and Toby Fox - part 1 | Square Enix Blog". square-enix-games.com (in Spanish). Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  5. ^ 実存 (October 19, 2018). "『UNDERTALE』トビー・フォックス×『東方』ZUN×Onion Games木村祥朗鼎談──自分が幸せでいられる道を進んだらこうなった──同人の魂、インディーの自由を大いに語る". 電ファミニコゲーマー – ゲームの面白い記事読んでみない? (in Japanese). Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  6. ^ fwugradiation. "toby". Tumblr. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  7. ^ a b "EarthBound Halloween Hack! « EarthBound Central". earthboundcentral.com. Archived from the original on December 14, 2021. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  8. ^ Funk, John (October 15, 2012). "Land of Memes and Trolls: The Epic and Ridiculous Self-Aware World of Homestuck". Polygon. Vox Media. Archived from the original on May 20, 2016.
  9. ^ fwugradiation. "toby". Tumblr. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  10. ^ Grubb, Jeff (April 13, 2016). "Stardew Valley is one of the best-selling PC games of the year as it surpasses 1M copies sold". GamesBeat. VentureBeat. Archived from the original on April 20, 2016. Retrieved April 22, 2016.
  11. ^ Multiple sources:
  12. ^ Turi, Tim (October 15, 2015). "GI Show – Yoshi's Woolly World, Star Wars: Battlefront, Undertale's Toby Fox". Game Informer. GameStop. Archived from the original on January 30, 2016. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  13. ^ Han-Tani, Melos (May 25, 2013). "Toby Fox's Undertale – DEV 2 DEV INTERVIEW #1". ambient-melodic (Interview). Archived from the original on August 8, 2020. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  14. ^ Schilling, Chris (May 5, 2018). "The making of Undertale". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on March 27, 2019. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
  15. ^ "Earthbound (The Halloween Hack) – Hardcore Gaming 101". www.hardcoregaming101.net. Archived from the original on November 5, 2018. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
  16. ^ Alexandra, Heather. "Undertale Creator Shares Notebook Full Of Early Concepts And Art". Kotaku. Archived from the original on August 3, 2017. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
  17. ^ a b O'Connor, Alice (September 15, 2016). "8/10: Undertale Dev Reflects On Unexpected Popularity". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Archived from the original on August 3, 2017. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
  18. ^ a b Grayson, Nathan. "Undertale Creator: It's OK If People Dislike The Game". Steamed. Archived from the original on August 3, 2017. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
  19. ^ Fox, Toby (2016). "Retrospective on UNDERTALE's Popularity". Tumblr. Retrieved March 20, 2024. It's about an 8/10, niche RPG game.
  20. ^ O'Brien, Lucy (September 15, 2016). "Undertale Creator Releases Unused Music to Celebrate 1-Year Anniversary". IGN. Archived from the original on August 3, 2017. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
  21. ^ "Ashly Burch, Toby Fox and Mike Z join the Profound Waste of Time team". Destructoid. December 15, 2016. Archived from the original on May 27, 2017. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
  22. ^ "Toby Fox". Forbes. Archived from the original on December 3, 2017. Retrieved December 3, 2017.
  23. ^ "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – Mr. Sakurai Presents "Banjo & Kazooie"". YouTube. Archived from the original on September 1, 2020. Retrieved September 14, 2019.
  24. ^ a b Walker, Ian (September 4, 2019). "Undertale's Sans Joins Smash Bros. As A Mii Fighter Costume". Archived from the original on September 5, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
  25. ^ Fox, Toby [@tobyfox] (September 4, 2019). "Yes. It's true. You'll be able to buy a Mii Gunner costume of Sans in Smash Brothers Ultimate later today! It'll come with a special arrangement of Megalovania composed by me. It's a huge honor to have something I created in Smash. Thank you so much Mr. Sakurai!!!" (Tweet). Archived from the original on September 18, 2019. Retrieved December 1, 2024 – via Twitter.
  26. ^ a b Allegra, Frank. "Undertale creator's new game is Deltarune, a mysterious surprise". Polygon. Archived from the original on November 1, 2018. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  27. ^ "Deltarune Chapter 1 is the free and surprising start of a new Undertale saga". Rock Paper Shotgun. Archived from the original on May 2, 2019. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  28. ^ a b "Deltarune creator Toby Fox talks full release plans, upscaling". App Trigger. November 1, 2018. Archived from the original on November 13, 2018. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  29. ^ Fox, Toby [@tobyfox] (November 2, 2018). "The idea of "I want to make an RPG" turned into UNDERTALE and the original idea I had transformed into DELTARUNE as I was making UNDERTALE" (Tweet). Archived from the original on December 27, 2018. Retrieved December 1, 2024 – via Twitter.
  30. ^ "Deltarune update from creator's Twitter counter". Twitter. Archived from the original on December 14, 2019. Retrieved June 12, 2019.
  31. ^ "Deltarune update from creator's Twitter counter". Twitter. Archived from the original on June 15, 2019. Retrieved June 12, 2019.
  32. ^ Lyles, Taylor (October 31, 2023). "Deltarune Will Be Released Once Chapter 4 Is Done, Toby Fox Confirms". IGN. Retrieved November 20, 2023.
  33. ^ Romano, Sal (October 31, 2024). "DELTARUNE Chapters 3 and 4 to launch in 2025". Gematsu. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
  34. ^ a b c d e f g Goslin, Austen (November 1, 2019). "Undertale developer is composing a song for Pokémon Sword and Shield". Polygon. Archived from the original on March 28, 2021. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  35. ^ Tarason, Dominic (April 2, 2019). "Escaped Chasm is a short, sad, free story by Undertale's artist". Rock Paper Shotgun. Archived from the original on April 5, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
  36. ^ a b Fox, Toby [@tobyfox] (August 6, 2018). "I composed a vocal song for my friend @1t0lc1 (Itoki Hana's) new album, PRAY" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  37. ^ @tobyfox (June 1, 2022). "I had the honor of composing the field music for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet! After creating a concept sketch, Game Freak arranged it into many versions that you'll hear throughout the game. You can hear a bit of it in this trailer..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  38. ^ @tobyfox (June 1, 2022). "A few more Toby Fox tracks will appear in the game, too, so please look forward to those! This time, my music is not optional!!!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  39. ^ "Touhou Danmaku Kagura: Phantasia Lost - Toby Fox & ZUN "U.N. Owen Was Hero?"". Kotaku. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  40. ^ "New 'Touhou' Rhythm Game Mixes Bullet Hell, Falling-Notes And Toby Fox Tunes". Nintendo Life. September 5, 2024. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  41. ^ Feeld, Julian (October 9, 2015). "INTERVIEW: TOBY FOX OF UNDERTALE". Existential Gamer. Feeld. Archived from the original on November 17, 2015. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  42. ^ "DELTARUNE Status Update – September 2020". September 15, 2020. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  43. ^ "Rose of Winter on Steam". Steam. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  44. ^ Brown, Fraser (April 3, 2019). "Escaped Chasm is a free game about loneliness from Undertale's artist". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  45. ^ Lada, Jenni (July 11, 2020). "Undertale Artist Temmie Chang Releases Dweller's Empty Path". Siliconera. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  46. ^ Carpenter, Nicole (June 1, 2022). "Undertale's Toby Fox composed music for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet". Polygon. Archived from the original on July 6, 2022. Retrieved June 1, 2022.
  47. ^ "Hiveswap Friendsim, by James Roach". Bandcamp. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  48. ^ Boudreau, Ian (January 13, 2019). "New games: YIIK is a weird JRPG set in the postmodern '90s, built on loss". PCGamesN. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  49. ^ Roach, James (December 4, 2019). "'yeah, it is'". tumblr. Archived from the original on August 20, 2023. Retrieved August 20, 2023. the title is meant to answer the question you ask while listening 'is this... megalovania?' then you go and check the track in the credits and it gives you your answer.
  50. ^ OMORI GINO'S JUKEBOX (Liner notes). OMOCAT.
  51. ^ "Beatmania IIDX 30 Resident Will Come With a New Toby Fox Song". Siliconera. August 5, 2022. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  52. ^ Macgregor, Jody (March 22, 2023). "This single-serving Ghibli-esque adventure about work and worms will warm your heart". PC Gamer. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  53. ^ Romano, Sal (August 7, 2023). "Touhou Danmaku Kagura: Phantasia Lost for PC launches February 8, 2024". Gematsu. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  54. ^ "Fields of Mistria - Official Trailer". IGN. June 10, 2023. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
  55. ^ a b Lee, Julia (November 13, 2019). "Undertale creator Toby Fox's Pokémon Sword and Shield song sounds like a Homestuck fan tune". Polygon. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  56. ^ "I Miss You - EarthBound 2012, by Various Artists". Bandcamp. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  57. ^ Brian Lee. "ABOUT TANE". tane.us. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  58. ^ Onion Games (April 20, 2018). Black Bird (in Japanese). Scene: Credits.
  59. ^ "Pollyanna - Hobonichi MOTHER Project - Hobo Nikkan Itoi Shinbun". Hobonichi MOTHER Project. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  60. ^ "Chip Tanaka / Hammerhead Shark Song from 2nd album "Domingo" (Release: July 15th, 2020)". YouTube. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  61. ^ Love Conquers All Games (September 21, 2021). Get in the Car, Loser!. Scene: Credits.
  62. ^ かめりあ(Camellia). "Myths You Forgot (feat. Toby Fox), by かめりあ(Camellia)". Bandcamp. Retrieved September 8, 2023.
  63. ^ Liu, Stephanie (November 2, 2022). "Toby Fox Collaborated With Omocat on the Song 'Skies Forever Blue'". Siliconera. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  64. ^ Nguyen, Jasmine (March 31, 2023). "The Greatest Living Show, A Music Collaboration ft. Itoki Hana & Toby Fox". KeenGamer. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
  65. ^ "The Greatest Living Show". Toby Fox. March 31, 2023. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
  66. ^ "prelude, by bo en". Bandcamp. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  67. ^ Perine, Aaron. "We Baby Bears Returns to Cartoon Network with Special Guests Anderson Paak and Willow Smith". Comicbook. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  68. ^ 猫塚きてぃ; 武藤先輩 (March 15, 2024). 【ホロライブ】天音かなた1stアルバム『Unknown DIVA』インタビュー。『片羽』はトビー・フォックスからの逆オファー! 自身が作詞した曲への想いや裏話を語る | ゲーム・エンタメ最新情報のファミ通.com [【hololive】Kanata Amane's 1st album "Unknown DIVA" interview. "Kataha" is a counteroffer from Toby Fox! He talks about his thoughts on the songs he wrote and the story behind them.]. famitsu.com (in Japanese). Retrieved March 15, 2024.
  69. ^ Lada, Jenni (July 30, 2024). "New Hololive Vtuber Houshou Marine Song Written by Toby Fox". Siliconera. Retrieved August 1, 2024.

Media related to Toby Fox at Wikimedia Commons