Deathloop is mostly about the gameplay rather than the story, but players still must unravel the mystery behind the AEON program and Colt's motivations through the adventure. Many questions are answered by the time that Deathloop's credits roll, but there are still more mysteries hanging in the air surrounding Blackreef, the AEON program, and the logic of the time loop.
Maybe a sequel will come along in the future and flesh out some of these plot points, but until then, players will just have to wonder and draw their own conclusions. Fortunately, the gameplay is good enough for most gamers to let questions like these ones slide.
9 What Is The Outside World Like?
Julianna warns Colt continuously that he might not like what is waiting outside the time loop. Even if players break the loop in the ending, they never find out what the planet is currently like. Julianna simply walks away from Colt, and then the credits start.
Does society still exist, or did some cataclysmic event ruin civilization? It would have been nice to at least get some idea. The fact that Julianna feels like the loop needs to be maintained already gives fans some clues, but players never see exactly why she feels this way.
8 Does Time Pass Outside The Loop?
On Blackreef, the same day repeats constantly. It brings up the question: how does time pass outside the loop?
For example, when Colt breaks out of the loop, has time passed based on how long the loop repeated? Does he emerge in a world where years have gone by, or is it the same day as when the loop started? The idea of the time loop only existing in one place brings up a load of questions about the way time works in general.
7 Why Didn't Fia's Nuclear Bomb End The Loop?
If players are spotted by Fia in her studio, she activates the nuclear reactor and blows up the island, restarting the loop. However, if this blows up the island and kills all the Visionaries, why didn't this end the loop?
If the whole island is simply gone, then it should solve Colt's problem and destroy the loop completely. Maybe the Loop machine is just out of reach of the explosion and so it maintains the loop, since Julianna is still there and alive.
6 How Did Julianna Enter The Program?
Julianna is Blackreef's archivist — but how did she enter the program in the first place? Did the AEON program learn about her relationship with Colt and her mother's involvement in the early experiments?
Maybe the Visionaries thought that bringing her into the project would help make Colt more agreeable — though it clearly didn't work out that way. Ultimately, it was his desire to get her out of the loop that caused him to try and break it. It must have been difficult for him to kill her all the same.
5 What Experiments Were They Running?
Before the AEON program, a military project was running experiments on Blackreef. Colt was a part of this, and it ended up launching him into the future.
The game never explains, though, the exact nature of these experiments. Did they involve time travel? Does the loop only work on Blackreef because of something special and unique about the island? It would have been nice to get more answers about the actual logistics and powers of the island — hopefully any sequels will address these questions.
4 How Did Colt End Up In An Asylum?
Several audio logs and documents mention Colt being locked up in an asylum. One visionary even mentions breaking him out of one to start the AEON program.
Why did the protagonist end up inside such an institution? Was it his insistence that he traveled through time, or was there another factor? It is a common trope of time travel stories for those who traversed time to end up in an asylum, so this is the most likely conclusion.
3 What Changes About This Colt For Him To Break The Loop?
There are three different endings to Deathloop, depending on the choice players make. One of them has Colt simply restarting the loop, another has him and Julianna bonding over killing Visionaries, and the last one breaks the loop.
When in the final room, Julianna says Colt has been here before. Assuming players break the loop at the end of the game, what is it about this time that allows Colt to acheive his goal? The game doesn't really point out a moment that changes him enough to do something he could never do so many times before.
2 If The Loop Restarts When Colt Dies, Isn't Everyone In Different Loops?
The loop restarts when Colt dies. This means everyone else must wake up in the next day when they die too. Does this mean everybody is in different loops? It brings to mind one major problem of most looping stories. Does everything that the other characters did get erased once the next day starts?
Maybe everyone is in the same loop as the day restarts, and it doesn't matter when or how they died. The day possibly does not start until everyone in the current loop goes to sleep and reaches midnight. Regardless, it's not well explained within the game itself.
1 What Is Special About Blackreef?
Deathloop takes place on Blackreef. There is something special about the island that lets the Visionaries and guards relive the same day over and over again. The question is; what exactly is abnormal about the location?
Is there a rational explanation, or is it something more mystical like the supernatural elements in Control? Whatever the answer is, it is not inside the current game. If a sequel never comes out, maybe fans will get DLC to answer these inquiries — but for now, they're left to wonder for themselves.
Deathloop is out now for PS5 and PC.
