Oni2:A Storyline

"A storyline for Oni 2" was a brainstorming thread on Oni Central Forum that ran from April 2005 to May 2006. It is summarized by topic below.

The World

Society

• After 20 years, most of the damage to the atmosphere has been fixed by the brilliant scientist Mukade [or Hasegawa or...] as the head of WCG. Order has been restored quickly by martial law, as the people are mostly concerned with burying their dead after the Cataclysm. (geyser)
• Even after 20 years, society is likely to be in chaos because the atmospheric damage is irreversible. The Syndicate drew its strength from the underprivileged who lived outside the cities, therefore we should expect to see chaos increase when the ACCs (and thus the cities) fall. (guido)
• After 20 years, most of the ACCs have been repaired, but there are also Daodan symbiotes living in settlements outside the cities. (typhen)

WCG & TCTF

• The poor outside the cities have clean air doled out to them by dispensers from the WCG. (guido)
• The WCG has at least some good intentions (allows protests and free speech such as report on Jamie Kerr's death, cleans air within cities). Possibly the manual is right and the WCG allows the Syndicate to exist, or possibly the TCTF is just cowardly. Because the WCG is too weak (possibly de-militarized), it cannot stand against the Syndicate after the Cataclysm hits. The WCG is possibly not concerned enough about the plight of those outside the cities to ship air to them, but they did strengthen the ACCs after Jamie's death. (geyser)
• WCG only pretends to allow free speech. They cover up the real story when reporting on Jamie's death because the gov't has no intention of acknowledging the extent of the pollution problem. (TheTurnipKing)
• WCG is diminished by the Cataclysm but still holds onto some territories. (Snake007x)
• WCG of Oni 2 will be less about oppression and more about propaganda. (Nyctasia)
• WCG has to join forces with the Syndicate to save humanity. (Gatkowski)

Syndicate

• One of the main advantages in the Syndicate is that they are not bound by the legal restrictions that the TCTF have, so they can develop new tech more quickly (such as adult SLDs). TCTF didn't try to take down Syndicate simply because they were afraid the Syndicate was stronger. (TNT)
• Syndicate will make grab for world power because they were prepared for the Cataclysm, unlike WCG. Likely, in Oni 1 the TCTF was out-matched by the Syndicate already. (geyser)
• Syndicate cannot easily overwhelm TCTF, as both sets of character classes have their advantages. (TNT)
• Syndicate has the most power outside the cities, but they are in the cities too. Symbiotes living in settlements got their Chrysalises (inferior to Mai's) from Syndicate. (typhen)
• Syndicate only gave Chrysalises to a few key people. (geyser)

Science

Daodan Chrysalis

Nature

• The Daodan is a non-sentient organism that simply wants to survive. (TNT)
• The Daodan wants whatever the host wants, because the Daodan is the host. The Chrysalis is just a beneficial organism, not self-aware. Hosts do not need to eat as much as they used to, since the Daodan draws its own energy. Although one cannot communicate with the Chrysalis, it might be possible to guide its development (this idea is based off this console). There may be a stage beyond even Imago. Source of Daodan should be left open to interpretation. The Daodan may have also infected the general food chain. (TheTurnipKing)
• The Daodan is aware, or at least intelligent in a sense. An amazing organism, it is essentially composed of stem cells which can re-task themselves indefinitely. It's therefore unlikely that Hasegawa developed the Chrysalis in so short a time. It might be a smart cancer from "outer space", which is to say, perhaps the same alternate dimension where Screaming Cells and Mukade's Devil Star come from. (geyser)
• The Daodan's effect on the host is not as harmless as Kerr posited. Note how Konoko becomes more violent when overpowered; another "nature" is replacing hers. This leads to a schizophrenia of sorts as the Daodan wages a battle for the host's mind. As the host develops in a direction away from normal humanity, not having the same biological needs, they become distanced from their old self and from others. (geyser)

Purpose

• Perhaps the Daodan was developed by an immortal and immaterial alien race that wants to direct our evolution for their own purposes. These aliens could be the "Oni" of the game's title, and may be what becomes visible during a Daodan overpower state, as they are actively guiding the Daodan's development. It's also possible that the Daodan (or the Oni) are affecting people's minds. Their purpose might be benevolent towards us, or only serve their own purposes. (geyser)
• The beings behind the Daodan are using it to create human ambassadors, to serve as a bridge between their immaterial world and ours. Perhaps there's a threat to their existence which is rooted in the physical world, so they need our help. (Seraf Ethifeo)

Use

• The Daodan needs a certain amount of time to learn about its host before it can safely transform. Muro rushes the transformation and becomes monstrous (and unstable) as a result. Reproduction of the host may be asexual, taking place by "budding". (geyser)
• Although an SLD cannot be implanted with a Chrysalis, a cyborg can. (geyser)
• The Daodan and its host may be able to exist in a pre-Imago equilibrium if the host continues to fight mentally against being replaced totally. (guido)
• Daodan transformations are reversible and can serve as the overpower mode in the next game. (Kumo, geyser)
• Society is opposed to the use of the Chrysalis, and the government is investigating the Daodan's nature. (geyser)
• The WCG/TCTF is experimenting with putting the Chrysalis in its police officers. Only gradually are its dangers becoming known. (Kumo)

Screaming Cells

• Screaming Cells are from the same place as the Daodan (and the Devil Star). (geyser)
• They are sentient, that is, they feel or sense other life forms, but are not intelligent. (geyser)

Iron Demon

• Griffin planned to use the Iron Demon to stop Muro if Mai could not do the job. (TheTurnipKing, TNT)
• The Iron Demon will be used by the TCTF to hunt Mai in the future. (guido)
• Mai could fight the Iron Demon using a mechanical suit. (geyser)

Pollution

• In twenty years' time, mankind would find ways to make the air decent in at least confined areas (esp. if "Mukade-Hasegawa" is in charge of the world), and in 20 years the city streets should be clean enough that only a mask is needed. Living outside the cities, however, might be impossible. The only green areas might be inside city domes. Some cities might be abandoned, but not destroyed, as the air simply went bad and people had to move out. (geyser)
• The pollution is too bad to be reversed, even after 20 years. Most of the ACCs blew up in the cities and caused devastation (however, some ACCs might not have blown up). We should expect a post-apocalyptic setting in Oni 2 with toxic rain. People living outside the ravaged cities get shipments of clean air in tanks from the WCG. (guido)
• 20 years later, mankind now uses the Chrysalis to survive, but the pollution drains them of most of their Daodan-enhanced energy. (Snake007x)
• After 20 years, some ACCs have been repaired, but some people also live outside the cities in settlements, using Chrysalises. These Chrysalises are made by the Syndicate and inferior to Mai's. Normal humans can venture outside in suits for a limited time, which are manufactured and controlled by the TCTF. (typhen)

Vehicles

• A high-speed hover-Humvee (or perhaps on wheels) for Mr. Big. (geyser)
• Battle hardsuits (a la Bubblegum Crisis). (Pierre)
• One-wheeled motorcycle for Mai, or perhaps two wheels that attach to Mai's legs. (geyser)
• Akira-style motorcycle for Mukade. (guido)
• Something more stealthy for Mukade like a web-slinger or grappling hook, or a hover vehicle. (geyser)

Themes

• The TCTF and Syndicate have to join forces to save the world. The story focuses on characters and their back stories. (Gatkowski)
• Humans have acted like a cancer that depletes the resources of the body (the planet). The Daodan Chrysalis represents a benevolent cancer that will change our attitude to one of living in harmony with nature. (TheTurnipKing)
• Details of character and world should be kept on the side, in consoles. Some darkness is okay, but story should overall remain light, with humor. The story may contain multiple red herrings or dead-ends, leaving the ultimate truth up to the player (or at least revealing it only at the end). Can also touch on "government and rebellion, friendship and betrayal, mercy and vengeance, insanity and kinslaying, questionable humanity (androids, cyborgs, clones, symbiotes [referring to the Chrysalis replacing the mind of the host]), non-human intelligence [the Oni], [and] grand design [referring to the Oni guiding our evolution through the Chrysalis]". (geyser)
• The world is increasingly thrown into chaos by the Chrysalis as government and environment deteriorate. A lone, charismatic individual survives the destruction to bring about a new order. Daodan hosts who fight to maintain an internal equilibrium can overcome the influence of the Chrysalis and remain in control. (guido)
• Story should focus less on details and secondary characters, and more on archetypes and motivations and how characters fit together. Compelling story is more important than continuity with Oni 1. Ditto geyser's console remark. (Seventeen Seconds; Owldreamer agrees)
• Oni 2 can be consistently dark in tone and still be effective through careful use of visual language. The noir genre is also known for its detective work. We can be subtle and let the player fill in some details using their imaginations. (TNT)

Settings

The time period for Oni 2 is generally given as 20 years after Oni 1 (geyser, various other members). Cities may now be under domes, but the pollution is mostly under control and citizens only wear masks. Guido pushed for a sequel set only a few years after Oni 1, in a more chaotic environment with destructive weather. Here are some concepts for levels:

• Cave in Wilderness. (geyser)
• Vansam City, not totally ruined, but perhaps abandoned. (geyser)
• Dingy warehouse-turned-nightclub. (geyser)
• Skyscraper lounge. (geyser)
• Streets and suburbs. (geyser)
• Mall closed for the night. (geyser)
• Natural settings with grass and trees. (geyser)
• Half-ruined cities with toxic rain. (guido)
• Secret installations. (guido)
• Offices in new cities. (guido)
• Secret underground lab with hangars and generators. (owldreamer)
• School at night, with dormitories, gym, pool, library, basement, and guarded tunnel system. (owldreamer)
• Skyscraper of large software enterprise, with computer rooms, storage rooms, cafeteria, complex security. (owldreamer)
• Syndicate computer tower with generator rooms, ventilation systems, heavy security. (owldreamer)

Characters

Main Character

• A friend of Mai. She is seeking out Mai, who is missing, in order to learn more about the dangers of the Chrysalis before the government fully adopts it as a cure. Her powers are limited compared to Mai's in order to allow the game to still be challenging. (Kumo, TNT)
• Mai. Her powers have advanced since Oni 1, and she may have the ability to go Imago for a short time, but more powerful/numerous enemies will keep the game challenging. (geyser, other members)
• Investigator character could also be a new generation of Daodan symbiote who advances faster, bringing her closer to Mai's level of power. (Kumo)
• Game might have two main characters, Mai and the female investigator, in alternating levels. Mai's levels could be more action-oriented and the other character's more adventure-oriented. (geyser)
• Hikari the SLD, who tries to find the remains of Mai before the Syndicate, who want to learn about the Chrysalis. (owldreamer)

Mai

• big decisions AKA big mistakes by geyser.
• destiny
• Mai is much more powerful, perhaps temporarily entering an Imago state where she can jump extra-high, fire energy attacks, etc. Her Imago form will be similar to her regular appearance but with a change in hair color. (geyser)
• Imago Mai's hair might grow and float in the air. (Kumo)
• Mai can stealthily enter areas by swimming long distances underwater, and in fights can take advantage of her ability to survive falling into acid pits. She can jump-kick helicopters and perhaps breathe fire. (typhen)
• Mai could also ascend by jumping from copter to copter or take them out by throwing expended weapons. (geyser)
• Mai can out-run any pursuers. (geyser, typhen)
• Mai may have an auto-teleport ability that saves her from fatal falls, as long as her gauge has enough charge. (geyser)
• Mai appears to be the same age as in Oni, even 20 years later, because the Chrysalis makes her near-immortal. (geyser)
• Mai is supposedly dead and the player must find her remains (she turns out to be alive). (owldreamer)
• Mai will remain true to herself even when she transforms, as Kerr stated. (TheTurnipKing)
• Mai has to fight against the violent nature of her Chrysalis; Kerr didn't fully understand the Daodan. She suffers from a split personality as the Daodan tries to take her over. (geyser)
• Mai needs less food, as her Chrysalis supplies her with energy from another source. (TheTurnipKing)
• Mai gradually identifies less with ordinary humans because of the difference in her biological needs. (geyser)
• Mai has been blamed as the culprit behind the Cataclysm and is now Public Enemy #1. (geyser)
• Mai feels guilt over her role in the Cataclysm and suffers a sort of mental breakdown that leads to a 20-year coma followed by amnesia. This may also have been brought on by resisting the Daodan's influence and wearing out her body, mind and Chrysalis. Upon waking up, Mai has to learn about herself and her abilities along with the player while running from the WCG. She has troubling dreams and flashbacks which eventually restore her memories. (geyser)
• Mai may not have been in her right mind when triggering the Cataclysm. She simply blew up the ACCs instead of trying to fix them. Either the Daodan have influenced her thoughts or she was very naive to think that the Chrysalis would save everyone. (geyser)
• Mai does not feel overwhelming guilt over the Cataclysm because she knows her actions saved more people than would have survived Muro's plan. She could not have fixed the ACCs because Muro permanently modified them. She is willing to take the hate of the world on her shoulders. (Gatkowski)
• Mai could not handle the blame placed on her because she was not ready for that kind of public attention. (geyser)

Griffin

• Mai was his only hope of defeating Muro. Or possibly he had the Iron Demon as his backup plan if Mai became uncontrollable and had to be killed. (TheTurnipKing)
• Mai was only an experiment of Griffin's. He was not interested in starting a war with the Syndicate using Mai as a front line soldier; he knew the enemy was stronger. Instead he stuck to battling low-echelon criminals. (geyser)
• 20 years after Oni, Griffin is gone. Going forward that far allows us to avoid the issue of whether he died naturally or Mai killed him in Oni. His children are now adults, allowing a new generation to enter the story. (geyser)

Hasegawa

• The Mukade=Hasegawa theory points out that Hasegawa is mysteriously absent from Oni without explanation, and Mai feels a strange connection to Mukade. She doesn't state that she has similar feelings around another likely symbiote, Barabas, nor even with her brother and fellow symbiote, Muro. (geyser)
• Hasegawa created the Daodan Chrysalis suspiciously fast. He may have been under alien influence. We can't necessarily take his diary at face value as far as why Jamie died, and whether he really started his work after that point. (geyser)
• Hasegawa was wrong when he predicted (or claimed to believe) that a Cataclysm was coming, as the ACCs still had things under control until Konoko blew them up years later. Perhaps this was a false justification? Hasegawa's work was awfully broad-ranging for a simple "pollution cure". Resentment over Jamie's death may have played a factor in the anti-establishment consequences of the Chrysalis. (geyser)
• The ACCs may in fact have been on the verge of being overloaded by the pollution (as implied in this console). (TNT)
• Hasegawa pretends to work for his son as the master ninja Mukade in order to observe and control the Syndicate from the shadows. He is freer to advance his true agenda that way, as well as get close to Mai. See "Mukade" section below for details on their Regional State encounter. (geyser)
• If Hasegawa is Mukade, the Syndicate should have little trouble dealing with the pollution using Hasegawa's brilliant mind by the time of Oni 2. (geyser)

Kerr

• Kerr's "expression of your true nature" speech to Mai was mostly a hopeful attempt at being reassuring. He knew even less than Hasegawa, and neither of them necessarily had any reason to know how a symbiote would turn out when Muro and Mai were the very first ones. (geyser)

Barabas

• Barabas represents an attempt by Muro to duplicate and modify the Daodan Chrysalis. He merely has enhanced strength augmented with technology, unlike the more advanced Mukade. The Chrysalises inside Barabas and Mukade are copies of Muro's. (TheTurnipKing, geyser)
• Barabas' transformation, although Imago-like, was incomplete; this may have been because he was a cyborg, and his mechanical parts interfered with the Daodan's effects. (geyser)
• Barabas may only have been KOed by Konoko and then captured. Mai may search for him in Oni 2 to get some answers. (guido)
• Barabas would not have been left alive by the TCTF, if he did survive Konoko. (geyser)
• Barabas may still have been developing as a symbiote in Oni, since he gains the red shield between his two fights with Mai. (TNT)

Muro

• Muro's Imago form was an unstable result of developing too fast, instead of allowing the Daodan to take its time. (geyser)
• Muro would not have survived past the end of Oni, either dying at Mai's hands or the TCTF's. (geyser)
• Muro and Barabas are alive and in captivity as of Oni 2. (Nyctasia)
• Muro would not be interesting enough to bring back as a villain again. (geyser)
• If Mukade was Hasegawa, Muro may have been unaware of his father's true plans for the Syndicate and the world. (geyser)

Mukade & Ninjas

• See "Hasegawa" section above for the Mukade=Hasegawa theory. (geyser)
• Mukade's Devil Stars come from behind the "phase veil". (geyser)
• Mukade is a more advanced symbiote than Barabas. He may be even more advanced than Mai. (TheTurnipKing, geyser)
• We don't actually know Mukade's gender. (TheTurnipKing)
• Mukade was clearly killed by Konoko in Oni. He simply overestimated his abilities and thus failed to use his ninjas to provide backup. Since Konoko could "sense" him, she would have known if he were still alive. (Nyctasia)
• Mukade is likely to still be alive in Oni 2, more so than Barabas or Muro. His Chrysalis allowed him to survive his neck being broken, and the TCTF was not present at the time to apprehend him. Konoko did not sense his survival because he was in a coma or because he was more advanced in the use of his Chrysalis and "hid" from her mentally. (geyser)
• Mukade as world ruler and his real plans (coming soon). (geyser)
• Mukade is not Hasegawa, but he is ruling the Syndicate in Oni 2. (typhen)
• The Rooftops theory is that the situation starting with the data theft at Regional State and ending with the fight between Mukade and Mai was orchestrated carefully by Mukade, at least until the very end. Mukade, who in this theory is Hasegawa, or a clone/SLD with his engrams, wants to observe Mai's development as a Daodan host. He draws her away from the watch of the TCTF and his own ninjas, and then confronts her. He hopes that she will be ready to learn the truth, but when he sees her conflicted state, he decides she's too unstable to absorb what he wants to tell her. Plan B is to fight her, then "lose" and drop the disc, which has handpicked information of his own (not what was taken from Regional State) which tells her just a little of what she needs to know. However, Mai goes further than he expected when she breaks his neck, causing his plans to derail while he recuperates and Mai blows the world's ACCs. (geyser)
• Mukade's connection to Mai was simply due to their Chrysalises. His failure to escape Mai is due to his instinctual need to fight her for dominance. (Gatkowski, TNT)
• Mukade may or may not be Mai's dad. He can have multiple roles or an ambiguous role in Oni 2. (guido)

Shinatama

• Shinatama's remains were recovered by the Syndicate and integrated into their main computer system in order to hack her memories and learn about the Chrysalis. Shinatama has held on for 20 years, but knows that her security will eventually fail, so she sends crucial data packages to various lab computers around the world. Shinatama can provide information to Hikari (see "Other Characters" below) to guide her in stopping the terminals that are hacking into Shinatama. (owldreamer)