Let’s try examining alignments and see where we go from there with just a few (not all) of the main groups that exist in Rockland.

The Misfits

Alignment: Evil

Just based on the Misfits: First Blood demo and everything else we’ve seen and heard, I think it’s safe to say that the Misfits should generally be considered one of the more sinister elements of Rockland.  Now we haven’t seen all the characters yet, so characters here may indeed range between how evil one character is versus another.  Even the Misfits you meet in the demo game mention they do normal stuff from time to time.  They just have a propensity for murder.  Murder is a “no no” though, so I’m still classifying them as bad guys.  We’ve yet to see how big the group is, so how much of a hold they have over the town/city they live in is an unknown factor.  This group could either an occasional problem for society, or a much more serious danger.

The Professionals

Alignment: Evil

We have some names and faces now, but we definitely lack far more information on the Professionals than we do the Misfits.  Still, considering these characters have some confirmed blood ties with the Misfits, and even dialogue in the demo confirming that murder basically runs in the family, it’s probably safe to assume this group is just as dangerous as the Misfits.  In fact, they are possibly even more dangerous.  I went through some ideas in a previous post on the dangers the group could hold in society and how these familial connections mean you better watch out who you make an enemy of in Rockland.  I also touch on how this group may end up being the reason why so many of the human characters get away with murder.  Especially if it’s through the generations.  Same with the Misfits though, not sure how many characters make up the Professionals.  Numbers and positions in society would determine the overall threat they pose.

Fallen Angels

Alignment: Neutral?

After we get some games out on the Misfits, we’re probably going to head back into the focus on Zeitgeist (Cain’s remake game).  It sounds like we’ll get a lot of lore in said game and better learn about the Fallen Angels themselves.  Now, I’m not 100% sure on the alignment here, but I’m taking a stab to consider that the Fallen Angels are part of the natural order.  They have specific jobs to do relating to the mortal world, so that’s their main focus.  I wouldn’t be surprised if the reason they’re likely not going to swoop in and save people from characters they’d likely punish in the afterlife (like the Misfits or Professionals) is because they simply aren’t allowed to, or aren’t that invested in every single small infraction made by mortals.  I mean, if you live for thousands of years, you may not be that interested in solving every single little problem that occurs.  

Now...specific angels may fall into different alignment categories.  Sam Volkov my current guess is that he’d be something like Lawful Neutral.  I think he’s still a reaper in this universe, and when it comes to death everyone is pretty much equal (good, bad, young, old, you get the idea).  He can be a friendly character though from what we’ve seen in the Zeitgeist demo.  Another fallen angel I’m aware of that we haven’t seen yet (he WAS referred to though in the Zeitgeist demo) is Michael Volkov.  Now I have no confirmation on what his current role is, but in the past he was basically the fallen angel of war and chaos.  He wasn’t necessarily a character you wanted to run into either.  Now if he still has that role...he can TECHNICALLY still be neutral.  If it’s based on the natural order, sometimes you need entropy and conflict in the universe.  If it’s his job and he happens to enjoy it, *shrugs* we may just consider him chaotic neutral in this case.  Cain Zeitgeist is....well we have so many spoilers but this fellow makes me keep changing my mind as to what he’s about.  For now my guess is he’ll either be true neutral or chaotic neutral.  He still keeps me on my toes, but he may not be as bad as his previous incarnation.  

Then we have someone like Damien Morningstar.  In previous lore, he was both against Cain and honestly his father’s work in general.  Cain may be changing but I think....Damien in the Rockland universe is not only still going to be a priest, but also still hates his dad Luke (aka Lucifer).  So he may not stand for the same beliefs as all the other angels.  If he resembles some of his older incarnation, he could be one of the few angels who actively works in the mortal world to assist humans as much as he can.  Still not a lot of information yet, so I can’t be sure if he’s still neutral or if he jumps up into a good alignment.

Mark of Belial Main Cast

Alignment: Good

Much longer down the road, the creators want to work on a set of detective games known as the Mark of Belial (or at least that’s what the first game would be called).  In those games, you actually will be working to find a killer.  So naturally, you’re working with a specific police precinct to catch the perpetrator.  I think that blatantly tells us we’ll be working with the good guys for once.  Only way I could see the main cast here as a bad alignment is if we get the rug pulled out from under us and find out ALL the characters and division are corrupt, haha.  Not an impossibility, but I don’t think that’s the plan.  The original concept I believe was an all human cast, so I’m going to keep up with that assumption here.  So unlike the Fallen Angels who (mostly) probably keep their nose out of most mortal affairs unless it’s job related, this would be a group of human characters actively working towards the safety of the citizens.  So yay, finally some hope in all this!  This tells me not all the characters in Rockland will place their tail between their legs and bow to characters like the Misfits or the Professionals.  There may be SOME cowardly or corrupt members of the police/detective division you work with, but I believe the games WILL be geared towards trying to catch the culprit.  You do stand a fighting chance.

The Hand of God

Alignment: Good?

Another group without a lot of information, but the name gets thrown around here and there.  Now if the characters of the Mark of Belial Cast are all human, they will most likely end up dealing with (and being more competent with) human affairs.  The Hand of God we’ve gotten hints that they are more aware of some of the more supernatural elements of Rockland, including the Fallen Angels.  That means they KNOW stuff, which is a big help to keeping citizens safe.  The creators have said they are aware of the dangers some of these supernatural entities or characters pose.  I’m making the assumption for now that this group is actually made up of good guys trying to quietly keep the peace from behind the scenes.  While normal citizens are busy fearing disappearances or murders that are committed by human characters like the Misfits and the Professionals, the Hand of God is likely being kept busy by “bigger fish to fry.”  Not to say that humans can’t be extremely dangerous (either via a violent nature or a dangerous intellect), but between a human serial killer and a supernatural one, I’m placing my bets that the supernatural killer is much more of a threat.  Also, the reveal of certain supernatural elements to the public might cause a mass panic.  So I think the Hand of God group will be working for the greater good, but it’s very possible that they’ll have only so much time and resources to spend on dealing with the more dangerous elements or Rockland.  The police and detectives will just have to be left in charge of taking care of the more sinister human characters in Rockland.

I have to say...I feel a little better.  Yes, the more evil characters and elements of Rockland are likely still going to be EXTREMELY problematic.  They probably have ways not only to survive and avoid judgement, but to continue their heinous deeds as they please.  I wouldn’t have it any other way because it’s more fun and interesting when you have villains capable enough of committing evil deeds and getting away with it.  They won’t be a joke.  BUT, it does seem like not every character we meet in the Rockland games is going to be against us.  Sure, we may not know right away which characters we can trust or not, but it looks like there will be some who mean you no harm or even want to keep you safe.  It’s just a matter of which opponents the good guys are up against, and if they are in the right place at the right time to save the day.

You know what’ll be fun to see though?  I’m sure several of these groups are going to end up intermingling with each other at one point or another.  What each party is aware of about the other when they meet is also interesting.  For example, if you’re doing police/detective work in the Mark of Belial games, you might have to go check a dead body or two for clues.  Said dead bodies may be currently kept in a funeral home they’ve recently arrived at.  That means we literally have some strong potential of getting at least cameos of the Willow family (which consists of Misfits and Professionals characters) in the MOB games.  Now wouldn’t that be fun?  You have to talk obliviously to literal murderers while you’re hunting for a murderer.  I wonder how characters like Quill and Alchemy would view the case.  I always imagined with the MOB games though that they’ll make a brand new character to be the main killer for those.  Who knows though?  Maybe you find out the killer IS a pre-existing character.  Maybe even one who’s usually “immune” when they commit crime.  Could end up being quite a pickle.

Also I have a weird feeling Quill will just go out of way to be super creepy to the detectives when they visit.  Just a feeling, haha.

For technical and visual game style, all games planned I’m guessing will keep the visual light novel style for storytelling.  There hasn’t really been anything to indicate otherwise yet.  Most of the progression will be based around dialogue and actions, either towards another character (more often) or when the MC is alone (ex. turning left, staying silent, yelling, etc.).  The big part of game progression is following a particular character’s route to see how you end up.  

Now there is a chance for “point and click” options in these games, though how often this is utilized may depend on the game.  This feature may also be started outright as a regular function of the gameplay, or not stated outright to instead hide Easter eggs or secret ways to progress.  So it might not be a bad idea to keep one’s eyes out and scroll around the screen every now and then.

Now when it comes to the genres of these games, all of them are intended to have a darker tone for sure.  How dark exactly may differ though.

- The Misfits: First Blood

Type: Survival Horror

What to Expect: This is hinted to be just the first in a line-up of Misfits games.  The main thing to know about the Misfits is that they are all pretty much killers.  Or at the very least, unscrupulous characters.  Since it’s only the first game, it’s best to think of it as a setup.  It’s the introduction to some of the main characters, so we’re going to get a good look at their base personalities, or rather I should say the darker elements of their base personalities.  We also get some tidbits about their relationships with others and how they live their lives.  That alone can be a lot of information.  

If these characters are going to make a return later, chances are the focus isn’t going to be trying to romance or even befriend them necessarily.  The setup seems to be that you unfortunately get caught by one of these dangerous individuals, so your main goal here is just to try to survive.  You may still want to make efforts to try to “appeal” to certain characters though for some endings.  Depending on the character, appealing to them may either be your ticket to freedom, or the only thing preventing you from dying right that very second.  Careful though, there may be some characters that trying to get on their good side might acting IRK them.  There’s a possibility that some characters could be easier to escape from, and some characters there is no way to survive them whatsoever.  It’ll be interesting to see which ones are flexible with the MC and which ones are impossible to avoid a terrible fate with.  

Who knows, since this is the first game, there may be no way to survive whatsoever.  If survival is offered, but not possible by nailing a positive interaction with the character, there are other ways this could happen: the MC breaks out on their own (depends on the environment) or another party successfully intervenes for example.  

It also sounds like there will be some time taken to establish the Rockland setting and certain lore.  Whether the elements shown will all be strictly human or if the supernatural elements at least get hinted at, has yet to be seen. 

Point and click likely won’t be a main feature in this game, but Easter eggs and secrets aren’t necessarily off the table.

- Future Misfits games

Type: Survival Horror?

What to expect:  Honestly, it’s too early for me to say without even having the first game out.  We might be able to some ideas on how the initial characters may be utilized in the future after First Blood.  Whether future games of this installment are also survival horror is just a pure guess of mine.

- Zeitgeist

Type: ???

What to expect:  If you’ve seen some of my other posts, you know there’s been a lot of fluctuation with the Zeitgeist game since it’s getting a complete overhaul from its predecessor.  Unlike with the Misfits, this will be more supernatural focused for sure.  The creators have heavily implied that a lot of lore is going to be established here as well.  Character interaction is also huge, and this might be a better game with trying to establish some form of a relationship (negative or positive) with characters.  As opposed to just trying to escape them.   

Because of all the retooling though, I go back and forth as to whether the horror element will be as strong in Zeitgeist as it in with Misfits, if it exists at all.  I have to be careful if there are elements and characters that get refitted again.  Perhaps the game will be a mix of horror survival, befriending simulator or even dating simulator.  It depends on where these characters stand if the MC has the opportunity to establish themselves as “something” in any of the character’s lives, or if the MC is more of a vessel used to progress through the story simply to explore the lore.

Again, point and click more likely to be used for secrets if it’s present at all.

- Mark of Belial

Type: Detective Game/Murder Mystery

What to expect:  This one, should it ever be revisited, should be a lot of fun.  Of the games, I would guess it ends up being the most dynamic.  This is where the point and click likely becomes a main feature to investigate crime scenes.  It’s also possible you’ll have to interact with characters outside the main cast to find clues and piece together who the killer is.  The original concept was that the MC was a new cop or detective of some sort freshly assigned to a case of an unknown serial killer.  Another good change of pace is that means that most of the characters you’ll be working with an interacting for once will be “good guys” here.  

Friendship and romance may be allowed because you’re working so close with them.  It may even be beneficial to the gameplay to get in good graces with some characters that are otherwise difficult to deal with.  Careful though, it was never revealed if the killer in this game is a character you don’t find until the very end (which would make this game a bit more of a “hunt”), or if you have to figure out who the murderer hiding in plain sight is.  I wonder if you’ll have to worry too about who you discuss vital information with (in case the killer uses said information to evade your efforts).  No, there was never any hints for that kind of a concept.  Just a thought.  I would really hope this comes back someday but we’ll see.

- Welcome Home series

Type: Survival Horror?

What to expect:  This series has very little information out on it.  There was originally two ideas: Farmhouse and Mansion I believe.  If I recall, there was definitely an indication that there would be killers.  A random guess has me thinking the killers are more human in Farmhouse and supernatural in Mansion.  I do remember one of the creators mentioning that in addition to your MC, you will have a cast of friends from the start.  How and if you’re able to work alongside your friends to get out of certain situations would give this game a different kind of flavor and play style from the Misfits’ survival horror style.  The Misfits games you likely will be working by yourself and much more isolated.  The cooperation aspect with the Welcome Home series might also be a little similar to Mark of Belial, though perhaps not as in depth since these characters likely won’t be professionals trained to combat criminals.  

Of course, lots of horror games also have multiple endings where sometimes your friends die or are saved depending on your actions.  Friendship and romance I’d say could be a possibility in this game because you start with a group of friends to begin with who you might grow closer to.  Or perhaps, the reverse could also be true.  In a high tension situation, the MC could have a falling out with certain friends over disputes.  That would be interesting as well.

- Other (ex:  The Artist, The Mortician, The Puppetmaster, The Professionals, The Hand of God)

Type: ???

Now before I start, I should probably address some likely very confused viewers.  I DON’T believe that “the Carnival” has ever been mentioned in a discussion or tagged through anything on Outlaw’s main tumblr.  Thus, if you have no idea what I’m even talking about as a regular viewer, don’t worry.  Even in regards to places like Patreon, mentions of the Carnival are few and far between.  If this post goes up and inexplicably disappears afterward, it’s likely because my sleeve got tugged and I was told, “Psst, not yet.”

Back to the topic, what is the Carnival?  Well to be perfectly blunt, from what I can tell it IS legitimately a carnival in it’s very definition.  According to google, that would be:

“A period of public revelry at a regular time each year, typically during the week before Lent in Roman Catholic countries, involving processions, music, dancing, and the use of masquerade.”

Now what does this have to do with a game universe where there are a bunch of murderers running around?

Well the Carnival itself has never been talked about SO directly, only mentioned briefly in some bios for characters like, Quill, Loki and Chase.

Now for some of them it comes off as a simple trivia note like, “this character’s favorite ride at the Carnival is ---.”  Not too important other than acknowledgement of a carnival.  Some of them though appear to have a slightly more significant connection to the carnival during their childhood.  Either it being part of a significant event of theirs, or part of their daily life.  I won’t specify further with which characters.

There also was a mention that some of these characters want to “get the Carnival back up and running again.”  So that tells us possibly that the Carnival is currently not around at the moment for whatever reason.  Why this is the case, I don’t have a clue.

Now we will see a time skip further down the line with these games.  It’s already been stated that “The Misfits- First Blood” is going to show the early years of the Misfits.  We’ll likely get to see how they turn out a few years later.  We know that Quill, Chase and possibly Loki (unless this character has been shifted again) are legitimate Misfits.  Another update recently that was Patreon exclusive was a layout of when certain games may be released.  The Carnival was listed as being a second phase game (likely meaning after the time skip) along with another big game.  It’s hinted that THIS is where you might be able to find some, if not all, of the Misfits again.

I talked about in a previous post how the Misfits were kind of these younger crowd of sinister characters in contrast to the older, more experienced Professionals.  There are some blood connections between the Misfits and the Professionals, so one possible progression of a Misfit is to follow the footprints of their parent or mentor.  For example, Quill’s family owns a funeral home, so it’s almost natural to assume an older Quill will have established a career as a mortician and/or funeral director.

What if a Misfit either doesn’t have a mentor though, or simply doesn’t WANT to follow in the footsteps of their predecessor?  They’re going to try to find their own thing that makes them feel complete.  If the Misfits retain their tight bonds, it won’t be surprising if they band together for their own personal business.  That’s where the Carnival comes in.

First of all, that just sounds like a very natural sounding progression to have a misfit grow up to run a carnival, to me.  I guess that’s because sometimes with carnivals you think of side-shows and performers, so working at a carnival might be more appealing to characters that know they need to make a proper adult of themselves, but still want to have their fun.

What do I think such a carnival would be like?  Well on the surface, just a regular carnival geared towards getting people to have a good time.  Lots of rides and shows and all around merriment.  Especially in daylight and very public areas.  If we assumed that our merry band of murderous youths got all their violent urges out of their system when they were younger and just want to make an honest living now, then the Carnival wouldn’t be anymore than what I mentioned.  The greatest challenge for the Misfits wouldn’t be hiding bodies, but handling expenses.

Let’s be honest though.  Do I really think the Misfits will be so quick to give up their murdering ways?  No.  I won’t be surprised if there are certain dark areas tucked away at the carnival where people seem to...disappear.  Or everything’s all fun and games during the daytime, but if you stay too late into the night, curious night owls may find they’ve placed themselves in a perilous situation.  When some poor unfortunate soul gets caught, I’m sure the kills will be a lot more entertaining than they would have been in the past.  I mean...I swear if they pass up on the opportunity to hook a victim up to a board you throw daggers at, I’m just gonna be disappointed, haha.  Lots of different types of performances used as harmless entertainment during the day turned into a horror show for someone else.

One thing I don’t know is whether the more murderous pastimes of the Misfits will be kept as personal pleasure for themselves at the Carnival, or become a secret business.

With the former, I can see the Misfits wanting to just keep their victims all to themselves.  No time constraint on how long they want to play with them, no outside parties interrupting their activities and just keeping it that tight nit group altogether.

With the latter, what if they they decided to somehow accumulate an audience of special patrons that SPECIFICALLY pay to come see their special murder show?  Imagine during “regular business hours” the Carnival is no different from any other.  But the “VIP” shows are only for patrons who keep a tight-lip because of their sick desire to see blood spill in the most spectacular way possible.  With this, the Misfits become professional entertainers who’ve established their own niche within Rockland.  Different from what the Professionals may do for business, or someone who works for the Black Market or in the Mafia.

Another question that just popped into my head; “Is the Carnival from the Misfits’ past going to be the same as the one they recreate in the future?”  That’s another interesting thought.  If the Carnival has always had some dark roots to it, it could explain the influence it may have had on some characters.  What happened to the Carnival too that let it die off in the first place?  If it was just a regular old carnival though, then that makes for a very twisted revival I’m sure no one in Rockland will suspect before it’s too late.