Sigmund Minisode 1 is the first of the Sigmund Minisodes, which are spin-off adventure games developed by Freebird Games based on the characters of To the Moon. It was launched on December 31st, 2013 on Steam and GOG, for Windows, macOS and Linux, as a free downloadable content (DLC) to the base game.
The minisode occurs some time after the conclusion of To the Moon. It focuses on the Sigmund Corporation, the company running the wish-fulfillment service in the series. It adds more characterization to the series' two playable characters, Eva Rosalene and Neil Watts, while showcasing the public's negative opinion regarding the practices of the company's business.
Plot[]
- Dr. Rosalene: "All those people out there. . . They are all standing for what they think is right."
- Dr. Watts: "There are a lot of them, but don't forget that there are a lotta people with us too."
- ―Eva and Neil, watching the protesters.
Protesters surrounding the Sigmund Corporation office building.
The holiday season sees the Sigmund Corporation office building surrounded by protesters standing up against the company’s practices. Most of the employees are oblivious to the commotion, as inside the building, they are throwing a party of their own. Two of them, however—Robert Lin and his technician, Roxanne Winters—are confronted by tomatoes thrown at them when they exit the building.
On the offices floor, Neil Watts is about to show his partner, Eva Rosalene, something he has been working on. As Eva waits for it to be finished, she goes down to the party. On her way, Neil calls her on the phone, but hangs up mid-call. Eva then encounters Roxanne, who tells her about the riots. They agree not to tell the others to prevent tension.
- If the player chooses to go back upstairs before Neil tells Eva to come, she (and Roxanne, if done before entering the lounge) will find Neil’s office locked, and his phone line busy. However, he will then emerge from his office telling her everything is fine, before returning, leaving the door unlocked.
Neil's game, To the Moon.
After talking to Winters and Lin at the party about the protesters, Eva gets a call from Neil telling her to come to his office. There, he lets her play around with his creation: a retro video game that chronicles the events of To the Moon. Several employees, presumably passing by the office, covertly huddle behind them to watch. Neil shoos them, and then goes outside, thereby leaving Eva alone. At a certain point in the game, Eva too leaves Neil's office.
Neil sets out to find Eva upon finding his office empty and the game unfinished. He finds her in the meeting room, looking out the window. At first he assumes she was mad at him about the game, until she shows him the crowd outside the window. Eva then reveals her conflicting emotions about her job at Sigmund. Neil tries to cheer her up, reminding her that there are people like their clients who support them.
In the end, Neil receives a call, which he first dismisses as a telemarketer. But then he tells Eva he was joking, and they have a new job to do, before rushing out the door. Eva calls out to him, asking if he was serious, to no answer. She starts to follow him, but takes a last look out the window.
Trivia[]
- Repeatedly interacting with Eddie Doyle in the lounge as Eva will make him say various hair jokes.
- The game Neil made has pixel art making up each stage. Each depicts some location or object seen in Johnny's memories in To the Moon. The memento that must be transferred between Johnny and River are determined by its respective stage. For instance, the second lighthouse stage has tables and cars in the background, referring to their wedding. The memento in that stage is a dead white rabbit.
- While controlling Neil on his way to search for Eva, the player may choose to read her diary in her office, if she didn’t lock it away previously. It reads as follows:
- "Dear Diary,
- Today, I was watering my plant, and thought, 'hey, it's actually been a very pleasant week.'
- 15 minutes later, Neil pranked me and splashed water all over my head with a bucket on his door.
- I'm going to get him back. Maybe not tomorrow. But someday. And it's going to be the vengeance and fury of a thousand suns.
- -EvaR"