Poppy Playtime Chapter 5 starts off with an old commercial for one of the new toys you’ll encounter, just like previous chapters. This time, it’s the Wrongside Outimals. Once it’s over, you’re thrown right back to where Chapter 4 left off, which means Huggy Wuggy is breaking down a door to reach you, and you have to hurry and find a way out.
This chapter is packed with content, but a lot of that content is easy to miss if you aren’t seeking out files and tapes. It’s an intense ride of a chapter, and I felt like there was a difficulty increase with at least the puzzles this time, although there are some new elements brought to the chase sequences that don’t necessarily make them more difficult, so much as make you take in your surroundings and react quickly.
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As somebody who’s watched and played Poppy Playtime from the beginning, I’ve been waiting to see how it would follow up on the events of Chapter 4, where we saw a brilliant enemy in the form of the Doctor and touched on the lengths that Playtime Co. is willing to go to for the sake of innovation. Instead of plowing forward, Chapter 5 takes a step back and slows down the pace, and this decision works to both give you the time to take in the implications of the areas you explore, and make the chase sequences feel more sudden and shocking when you reach them.
A Quick Recap of Where We Are in the Story
I had forgotten a bit of Chapter 4 by the time I played Chapter 5: Broken Things, which is reasonable when you have a game using the episodic release format. You play other games in the meantime, then come back for the next section and might not remember it all in detail if you haven’t just replayed the game in preparation.
Leading up to the beginning of Chapter 5, you have just defeated the Doctor, Harley Sawyer, who was once the head of the procedures that made people into toys. Because he couldn’t be entirely controlled, Playtime Co. performed the same procedure on him, leaving the Doctor confined to watching others on screens and guiding them to complete the work he should be doing himself. He became the ultimate surveillance tool, but he was unable to utilize that ability for his goals and would eventually be powered down until you arrive and restore his power.
After learning the gruesome details of the procedures that Playtime Co. used on living people, including children, you head through the lab to a secure door, where you learn that there are precautions to prevent anybody from going deeper into the factory. That precaution is Huggy Wuggy, and the chapter ends with him slamming into the door you’re behind.
Chapter 5 Comes with a Strong and Fast Opening
It’s somewhat predictable that Poppy Playtime Chapter 5 starts with a chase sequence, considering you know that Huggy is trying to get to you at the end of the previous chapter. I won’t lie, I panicked, but I realized that this decision to kick off the chapter with Huggy chasing you is quite clever. Not only are you immediately thrown into the game’s atmosphere as you run for your life, you’re given a refresher tutorial as you run, because the obstacles you face are designed to make you go over the main controls. By the end, I was comfortable with the control scheme again, so it’s a fun and terrifying way to remind you how to play.
Once you escape, you get to slow down a bit. You also get to meet my new favorite character shortly after the chase: Glowby. I would buy a real Glowby so quickly. Sure, it’s not technically a toy, but the in-game description says it’s a companion, so that counts. Basically, it’s your flashlight, black light, audio tape player, and a bit of a compass, as it’ll alert you when you’re close to items you want to pick up. You’ll need to use the black light function a lot during this chapter, as it’s going to give you answers for a number of puzzles.
After the chase and picking up Glowby, you get your first slower section, which is actually closer to the pace you’ll have for the majority of the chapter. This gives you time to start observing the newest section of Playtime Co., which takes its usually disturbing details to a new level.
The New Characters and Puzzles of Chapter 5
Considering the start of Poppy Playtime, I didn’t expect it to have five chapters, much less go beyond that, as I assumed that there wouldn’t be enough content to sustain the game through that many chapters. In the roughly four hours that Chapter 5 lasts, you meet a number of new characters ranging from allies, such as Giblet and Chum, to enemies, like Lily Lovebraids and Ms. Gracie, although you only see her through screens. You even get a real look at the Prototype’s full body. Each of these characters has a distinct personality which adds immersion to the world, along with extra horror about what has been done to them as you remember that they were once people.
I liked the new characters overall. Lily is insane, and I love her whole section, and Glowby is such a cute companion with its little expressions. However, there are moments where Giblet in particular annoys me. The biggest time this happens is during a puzzle with both him and Chum watching, and Giblet keeps switching between encouraging you and asking if you’ve hit your head. To be fair, your character has hit their head several times by this point, so yes. The puzzle at this point, without spoiling it, requires a decent amount of movement and managing multiple elements, which results in Giblet’s comments making it extra frustrating.
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The puzzles in general feel more complex in Chapter 5, if not more difficult as well. I like Chapter 5’s shift towards more complex puzzles that don’t have overly obvious solutions. It forces you to observe the areas, and that means you’re going to notice details that you otherwise might have missed. That being said, I definitely got frustrated with some puzzles, since it feels like you’re running in circles, then you realize that you just missed what you needed and have probably passed it multiple times.
The puzzles in general feel more complex in Chapter 5, if not more difficult as well.
However, that’s somewhat expected when it comes to puzzles in games. You have to do a lot of swapping between the types of hands you have as well, which can be annoying, but mostly because it’s so easy to open the wheel and end up equipping the wrong one, forcing you to do it again.
The Story Stays Strong, and Unsettling
You get some extra perspectives in this chapter, which is the first time that you get to see events through a different character’s point of view. I like the idea, but the execution includes screen effects that aren’t great if you’re prone to motion sickness, which I am. The same is true for one of the later chase sequences, where there’s screen shaking. If you tend to be motion sick, be mindful that there are some moments in Poppy Playtime Chapter 5 that could trigger it.
I don’t want to get into too many spoilers, but this is the first chapter that made me actually stop and think. I play a lot of horror content, so I usually am not that bothered by it, but there are details in Chapter 5 that are just unsettling at best and sickening at worst. I would have to stop and just process the information, sometimes staring at Glowby for emotional support. Considering the vibes of Poppy Playtime and its horror, I’d say this means the story and atmosphere are well-done if they can get that reaction from me.
I don’t want to get into too many spoilers, but this is the first chapter that made me actually stop and think.
Ms. Gracie and her role was unexpected. I initially thought that she might have been collateral damage and hired without being told what she was part of, but it doesn’t take long for that assumption to shift. I also have a theory about her fate, but going into that here would include too many spoilers. However, if you’ve seen Miss Rachel — the wholesome children’s show host — then you might get the feeling that Ms. Gracie is inspired by her, but twisted into an evil twin version of her.
I enjoyed Poppy Playtime Chapter 5. It’s a strong episode, but it’s also a slower-paced chapter that has a heavy focus on exploration and information. While I love that part of horror games, players who want more action might not like that. However, there are still a few intense chase sequences that are packed with action, so the balance doesn’t feel entirely tipped in one direction.
- Released
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January 30, 2025
- ESRB
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Teen / Blood, Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
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Mob Entertainment
- Publisher(s)
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Mob Entertainment
- Intense chase sequences
- Challenging puzzles
- Disturbing story additions
- Fun characters appearing for the first time
- Slow pace isn?t for everybody
- Could be too disturbing for some audiences
- Sections that trigger motion sickness
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