Baronics/Chapter 1


 * This game is best experienced in what is a chronological order. Portions of the page are marked as spoilers, to be read after reading the rest of the page.

The first chapter of Baronics was originally released as a stand alone game, but with the advent of the second chapter of Baronics has been made into one chapter. Similarly to the Five Nights at Freddy's series, it takes place in a restaurant called Domesti-Bakery with animatronic entertainers which use state of the art technology to look as realistic and appealing as possible. The player, just like in Five Nights at Freddy’s, is the night guard having to stay at Domesti-Bakery from 12am to 6am while fending off the animatronics that look more monstrous in the night.

On April 6th, Baronics received a large content update addressing criticisms towards the game and adding new features. This included giving the animatronics voice lines, allowing the player to replay the repair missions, and most notably adding multiplayer to the game.

On April 19th, Baronics was made into a multi-chapter game with the release of the Chapter 2 demo. The current game has been rebranded as Chapter 1.

Story
Baronics Inc. is a company formed by the ambitious Marvin Weston, which specialises in creating animatronics that look life-like with advanced technology: small audio discs which emit a light yet unhearable frequency which insights the brain to visualise the animatronics differently. The company is hired by those behind Domesti-Bakery to create animatronics for their restaurant, which Marvin immediately does. Domesti-Bakery gains massive success due to its impressive animatronic technology, and the restaurant and Baronics is heralded as technological marvels by the press.

The player takes the role of a night guard, who is tasked with staying at the restaurant from 12am to 6am. They’re hired for the summer of 2005. For the five nights they’re due to stay, they’re fend off against the animatronics at night, who appear more monstrous thanks to the tension at night which affects the night guard’s interpretation of the animatronics, which is what the night guard sees due to how the audio chips work.

SPOILERS The nights have different objects on the desk which tell the story of what’s going on in the business, such as: promotion in the local newspaper hinting at the arrival of a new hamster animatronic, a letter from Hector Jones to Marvin Weston about why Sally the Squirrel wouldn’t be successful with teenagers, and lastly a news report about a child’s dog being paralysed by the sounds emitted by the animatronics in the restaurant.

On the fifth night, a cassette is on the desk which plays back a heated conversation between Marvin and what sounds like a group of people. Marvin ends the conversation by yelling “You know what? I’ll show you why we need those chips.” On this very night, Hollow appears for the first time, being the product of Marvin’s bitterness.

The fifth night ends with the shot of a newspaper, reading that the Domesti-Bakery is being temporarily shut down because of multiple complaints from distressed parents whose children have been traumatised by the existence of a mummy-like animatronic. Marvin is being prosecuted for child trauma and possible child endangerment, while the Domesti-Bakery is reconsidering what to do with their animatronics. On top of the newspaper is a paycheck to Richard Fitzgerald, the night guard, along with the note saying “Don’t come back tomorrow night.”

Gameplay
The game takes great inspiration from the original Five Nights at Freddy’s games, taking place over the span of five nights where the player must use the tools given to them within their Office to defend against the animatronics that roam the halls at night. The nights last from 12am to 6am. Baronics itself is made in Unreal Engine 4 as opposed to Clickteam Fusion, like Help Wanted but unlike the other entries in the Five Nights at Freddy’s series. This means Baronics has fully 3D visuals and also VR support.

The Office itself has a tablet situated on the desk which shows a map of the restaurant. Unlike Five Nights at Freddy’s, the player doesn’t have a camera system and instead has a radar that can track the audio discs of the animatronics. The tablet can send out a signal, which reacts with the audio discs of the animatronics and sends it back to the map to tell where the animatronics are. While useful, this aggravates the animatronics making it potentially dangerous if animatronics are nearby.

Fortunately, animatronics near the door can be seen in the windows at the doors. Animatronics can come in through the doors at the side of the room, so the player must hold the doors shut (a la Five Nights at Freddy’s 4) to keep them out. Most animatronics will leave when the door is held closed against them, shown by them no longer knocking on the door.

The main gimmick of this game is the Tension meter, a bar that measures the tension of the night guard. The Tension meter fills with sounds within the restaurant, when using the radar, when animatronics get closer and when the night guard closes the door on the animatronics (the tension raises the closer the animatronic gets to entering the room). The higher the Tension bar is, the more aggressive the animatronics act and the more monstrous they look when they approach. When the Tension bar is at a maximum, Daryl the Dog will smash through the front window and end their night with a jumpscare. The Tension meter slowly depletes after time, but depletes faster when the player stays still.

On Nights 2, 3 and 4, the player is offered to repair one of the animatronics before the night. If the player accepts, they will enter an animatronic repair event where they must carefully repair the animatronic and avoid getting jumpscared. If they succeed, they will get to skip ahead two hours for the night and start at 2am. In the update, the player is now allowed to replay the repair missions to try and get the extra two hours. Before the update though, the player was only offered this once.

Animatronics
SPOILERS

Shop
The update added a points system after beating nights; where beating a night will reward the player with an amount of points. The points are based on a variety of factors in the night, such as how often the Tension meter was high or low, or how close the animatronics were to getting in the office. Points can be used to buy things within the game’s shop, added in the update. The shop mostly consists of cosmetic items or contents for the Extras menu.

Multiplayer
A first for the Five Nights at Freddy’s games, a four-player multiplayer mode is introduced within the update. The multiplayer makes everyone play as a night guard in a modified map to feature four offices and four party rooms. The radar has been changed mechanically, acting more similarly to the audio from Five Nights at Freddy’s 3. It lures animatronics closer to where on the map on the radar the player presses, which allows the player to lure the night guards away from themselves while also luring them closer to other night guards.

The only animatronics active in this mode are Daryl, Miya, Cal and Hollow. Hollow is the only one not affected by the lure, meaning players must have to deal with him using the doors. Points are still rewarded for winning in multiplayer.

Night 1
The first night, Monday, is the easiest night as expected. The least amount of animatronics are active on this night, with Miya being the active threat and Daryl appearing less frequently. The night is here to merely introduce the player to the mechanics of the game. It’s all mostly explained by a note on the office desk, telling the player how these mechanics work. This includes the radar, and what the animatronics do in the night.

Night 2
Tuesday features the same animatronics as last night, with the addition of Harry the Hamster. The night is still rather easy, only being slightly harder than the last night. On this night, a newspaper is on the desk which is talking about the creative efforts of the Domesti-Bakery and Baronics Inc., going into detail about how Baronics makes their animatronic characters come to life. The newspaper vaguely hints at a new hamster animatronic coming to the establishment soon, foreshadowing Harry.

This is the first night to offer a repair mission, instructing the player to fix Cal the Cat. Cal is in need of repairs on the endoskeleton head, such as calibrating his jaw and refitting eyes for him. The task first begins with the player lifting the head of Cal’s suit off of his endoskeleton head, giving a rather eerie image of his mouth being open wide enough for his endoskeleton skull to poke out, with the top of his head limp behind him. The player must then screw the endoskeleton jaw enough for it to work. The player mustn't screw it too much, or else they risk getting jumpscared. Then the player must refit the eyeballs which again must be screwed on with a precise amount of times. Completing the repair mission nets the player two hours off Night 2. After beating Night 2’s repair mission, the player is able to listen to a tape left on the desk. The tape goes as follows:


 * “14th of June, 2005. My counselor said that recording myself and giving myself somewhere to vent would help me with my anger issues. But I can’t help but be angry nowadays, and I don’t understand why. My life is the highest it’s ever been, and yet here I am complaining about it. Sigh. I have this feeling that Jones is using me- he’s manipulating me and the sorts, like I’m his puppet. Why do I even feel this way…? This was our deal. We struck the deal that I would make his characters come to life, and he would pay me appropriately- and he has. Well… I guess I want something more. Maybe he’ll accept this other character I sent in… I hope he does.”

Night 3
Wednesday introduces the third to the main band of animatronics, Cal the Cat. Cal proves to be the most aggressive animatronic of the night, letting Miya and Daryl take a backseat. Harry is also still around, but is also overshadowed by Cal’s more aggressive nature. On the desk is a letter written by Hector Jones, intended to be forwarded to Marvin Weston who is credited as the owner of Baronics Inc.. The letter is about the animatronic Sally the Squirrel, and how Hector doubts Marvin’s insistence that the animatronic will appeal to teenagers.

The repair mission on this night has the player fix Miya the Mouse, who has gotten objects stuck inside of her hair. This includes a small toy of Daryl and a tomato. The player must carefully remove these objects from her hair, as being brash will cause Miya to become restless and attack the player, ending their mission. In the background, Miya’s shadow appears to take a strange form with several differences compared to her actual appearance. The shadow is much more noticeable when playing the game in VR. After beating Night 3’s repair mission, another tape is available for the player to listen to. It goes as follows:


 * “15th of June, 2005. He denied the fucking animatronic. He thinks I’m delusional. He thinks I’m wrong. God, does he even know his fucking audience? This man is so far up his ass that he doesn’t think anyone else can make characters as great as him. I’m sick of Jones at this point, he’s so proud of himself and he thinks he can do no wrong. Well he’s fucking wrong alright. Maybe if he actually bothered to train his night guards, people wouldn’t be having extreme nightmares over his characters. Yet he blames it on me. Fucking idiot. I’m done, I’m so fucking done. I can’t take this anymore.”

Night 4
Thursday introduces Sally the Squirrel into the frey, being the animatronic referenced last night. Sally doesn’t take up too much screen time like Cal did, however, and instead all the animatronics are at their most active. This leads to one of the harder nights of the game. On this night, the letter is still on the desk but already opened with red writing written atop it, simply reading “YOU’RE WRONG”. Additionally, a new newspaper is on the desk which reads of an incident that day; a boy brought his dog into the restaurant and, due to the sounds being emitted from the animatronics, caused the dog to go into paralysis.

The repair mission this night is by far the hardest, tasking the player with fixing Daryl the Dog’s audio chip. The task is at high risk as the audio chip is malfunctioning, causing Daryl’s imagery to become rather distorted as the mission goes on. This places the player on a soft time limit, meaning they have to act fast. Daryl’s chest must first be opened up, first by removing his red waistcoat and then by removing the torso piece of the suit. The player must then proceed to rewire the exposed audio chip, which has wires loose from it. Daryl however has become more agitated, meaning the player mustn’t try to rewire it while Daryl’s head is moving. If they do, they will suffer a jumpscare which ends the night. After beating Night 4’s repair mission, another tape is available for the player to listen to. It goes as follows:


 * “God. Damnit. As if things couldn’t get any worse, some stupid kid brought their dog into the establishment, and now everyone’s blaming me for it. It’s not my fault, there’s rules on the way in telling you how you can’t bring dogs in here, and yet I’m to blame? I mouthed off at everyone, even Jones. Jones. I didn’t know you lost your wife, I wasn’t aware- I wasn’t thinking. But god damnit, what does your wife have to do with this? This isn’t about you, it’s about me- you made it all about you, you made it seem like I’m the bad guy. Well… I’ll show you bad guy. Heck, I’ll show you why you need me around.”

Night 5
The fifth night is the last night of the main campaign, featuring one new animatronic. Where Night 4 had everyone at their most active, Night 5 actually makes animatronics less active to focus more on Hollow, the new animatronic. Hollow will immediately appear at the front window, bashing his head against it to reveal his presence for the night. There’s a cassette tape in the office which can be played at the start of the night. Hollow will immediately appear if the cassette is played in full, linking him to the events that played out within the tape. The audio mostly has people talking, but one person seems to be talking over all of them, arguing with the crowd.

''“Shut up. There’s explicit rules as to why you can’t bring dogs here.''

''What do you mean it’s my fault? You brought the dog in here.''

Why are you defending them, Jones?

Jones, back me up.

Jones, what are you on about?

This position means everything to me Jones, don’t you dare threaten me like that.

Jones, you can’t take this away from me.

Jones, you heartless monster.

I bet you don’t know how it feels to lose something important.

…

…

''Fine. You know what? I’ll show you why we need those chips.”''

A star is rewarded on the menu for beating this night.

Night 6
A bonus sixth night is unlocked after beating the fifth night. The canonicity of the night is debatable, and no extra story details are given on the desk. Every animatronic is of equal activity, being incredibly aggressive tonight. A star is rewarded on the menu for beating this night.

Custom Night
Custom Night returns as it does from the Five Nights at Freddy’s series. Custom Night lets the player manually choose the A.I. of the animatronics for the night, including a brand new animatronic: Freddy Fazbear, the mascot of Five Nights at Freddy’s sporting a brand new design in line with the other animatronics.

Extras
The Extras menu first introduced in Five Nights at Freddy’s 3 reappears in Baronics. Jumpscares has been merged under the animatronics tab, clicking on the jumpscare button displayed will cause the animatronics to jumpscare the player.

Cheats
These only appear if they've been bought in the shop.


 * Unprovoking Radar - When using the radar, the animatronics are not made more aggressive.
 * Steel Doors - The wooden doors are replaced with sliding metallic ones, just like in Five Nights at Freddy's. The doors have their own power source, which slowly runs out the more the doors are used. When there's no more power, the doors cannot be closed.
 * Tally the Toad - Activates Tally the Toad on all nights, where his aggressiveness scales correctly as the nights progress.
 * Piercing Frequency - Makes all animatronics more aggressive and makes them monstrous from the get-go. Does not include Hollow.
 * Camera System - The radar is replaced with a camera system, allowing the player to see many of the rooms they couldn't in normal gameplay.
 * Lights Out - The lights in the Domesti-Bakery are gone, and the player is only given a flashlight which follows their cursor or, in VR, where they're looking.
 * Freddy Fazbear - Activates Freddy Fazbear on all nights, where his aggressiveness scales correctly as the nights progress.

Trivia

 * The shadowy version of Miya that appears in the Night 3 repair mission can also appear on the wall of the Office. This shadow animatronic bears resemblance to RXQ from Five Nights at Freddy’s 2. The filename is called DBIER.
 * DBIER has notable differences compared to Miya: a full set of teeth, white tears streaked from their hollow eyes, and a longer dress.
 * The audio discs developed by Baronics are based on the same audio discs seen in The Twisted Ones, which give the Twisted Animatronics their unsettling appearance.
 * When increasing the animatronics’ A.I. in the Custom Night menu, their icon slowly changes towards their monstrous version.
 * Hollow takes inspiration from the Exo-Skin from My Life as a Teenage Robot.
 * Tally was based off of Caelywobbles, having guessed the lore before the update came out.