It's been so long, Popgoes the Weasel. If only you paid attention sooner... maybe you could have stopped me. Maybe I could have even been a part of your crew. But this is what I get for being the outcast with weird, cruel ideas, I guess... By "this", I mean incredible technology, endless power... stuff like that. ...I'm sorry, did you think I would regret any of this? No... So now we fight.
„
~ Morse at the start of his boss fight
Morse the Mole, also known as The Machinist, is the main antagonist of POPGOES Arcade, serving as the unseen overarching antagonist of POPGOES: The Dead Forest and the titular main antagonist of its sequel chapter POPGOES and The Machinist.
He is the creator of the robots that have been terrorizing the animals of the forest after he was ostracized by them for his strange ideas and behavior, as well as the one who built Dead King Freddy's machines that allowed him to pursue his plan in the first place.
In Popgoes and the Dead Forest, Morse aids in Dead King Freddy's attempts to corrupt the forest and create an army of the undead by providing him the lasers that cause the animals to become corrupt.
After the king's defeat, Morse instead turns his attention toward attacking the forest animals directly. He kidnaps Manora the Mouse, and creates robotic replicas of the Popgoes Pizzaria cast as well as Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy, the latter three of which hold the keycards needed to access his lair. As The Machinist observes Popgoes defeating each keycard holder to save Manora, he upgraded his robots to be more adept for combat in turn.
After the player defeats all 3 keycard bosses and goes to confront Morse head-on, the mole reveals himself and engages in the game's final fight. After his defeat, he admits that he always knew he would lose the fight, and just wanted to see Popgoes' power for himself. He then berates Popgoes for taking his powers from others (i.e the bosses from the first game) while stating that he worked for and earned all of his own strength. Morse then wonders if Popgoes is impressed by his creations, and laments the idea that they could've been friends if things had turned out differently, before (possibly) dying.
Appearance[]
Morse is a stout, pale brown star-nosed mole with beige claws, feet, and snout. He wears a safety vest, a jetpack, a pair of goggles and a miner's helmet that all have an orange and red colour scheme. He has small, beady black eyes, short legs, and long, broad arms with three large claws on each.
Gameplay[]
Morse the Mole has a total of 1,200 health. Like the player, Morse has three main abilities: Jump, Hook, and Dig, with the move he's about to use displayed on a small screen beside him. Hook deals a large amount of damage to the player (even when blocking) unless the attack is jumped over or a shield is in use. Jump has Morse hover in the air using his jet pack, causing him to avoid all attacks during the next turn. Dig has the mole dig up one third of a laser machine. Once all three pieces are dug up, the laser will activate, protecting Morse from all damage and quickly draining Popgoes' health until it is destroyed. (However, Morse himself cannot attack while a laser is active.)
Once he reaches low health, The Machinist will summon an unfinished prototype of Manora the Mouse's robot replica with 650 HP to fight for him while he heals. The prototype can do either a basic attack, charge for one turn to use a stronger attack the next, or use a shield that will make it impervious to attack for three turns (unless a shield piercer is used). Once the robot is defeated and Morse has fully healed, he will resume the same attack pattern from the first phase until defeat.
Quotes[]
“
Ah, right on cue. The weasel has arrived. Time to have some fun.
„
~ When investgating the hole in the Garden Inn for the first time
“
Welcome back, Popgoes. It's about time we get things started. You can call me The Machinist. When the King needed his crazy death lasers built, he knew I was the only one who could make them a reality. And we had a bit of a deal. I agreed to build the lasers, if he let me do whatever I want with the underground. And here we are. The King is dead, and you're now witnessing what I did with that power.
„
~ The Machinist introducing himself and explaining his deal with the King.
“
Nice work. You're one step closer to saving... your girlfriend? Or whoever this is. I hope my machines weren't too much trouble for you. ...That's a lie, by the way. I'm actually amping up the trouble as we speak.
„
~ After defeating Rusty Chica
“
Back so soon, weasel? Do me a favor and slow down a bit. My cameras are tracking your movements and attack patterns to improve my robots. They were initially based on Manora, but she's not exactly a fighter, is she? You just carry on with whatever you were doing. Don't mind me.
„
~ Explaining his cameras being used to study Popgoes' fighting style
“
Those abilities of yours are fascinating. The ones you took from Freddy's friends. Would you be up for sharing them, perhaps? We can take turns?
„
~ After defeating Robot Foxy
“
Freddy's plan to keep all of us alive was a unique one... I'll give him that. But he missed a key step to immortality: metal. It's one thing to kill everyone and let their souls live on in purgatory, or whatever... but I personally think robotic replacements are the prefect solution. They'll be... so efficient.
„
~ The Machinist's plans to replace animals with robots
“
Are you ready? Come and find me then.
„
~ After defeating Pristine Bonnie
Boss Fight[]
“
Your persistence is admirable, weasel. I'm sure the mouse appreciates having a hero coming to her rescue. I'd say something dark and mysterious again, but if I'm completely honest... I'm really looking forward to this! You've GOTTA see what I've been working on. I mean, REALLY! The robots are efficient, and I won't regret replacing you with one... but they just can't appreciate genius when they see it. It'll be nice to see your reaction to my latest invention...
„
~ While going to face The Machinist
“
Alright, this is it. So exciting... I wonder if you'll even recognize me. I've spent so much of my life down here that I won't be surprised if you don't. But it'd be SO much better if you do.
„
~ The Machinist facing Popgoes directly
“
Okay, I need to take a breather... Not to worry though, I have something that can take over while I rest up. It's a prototype, so be careful. I want it in one piece. You know, after I win. I still plan on finishing it.
„
~ Reaching low health and summoning Prototype Manora
“
I hope that's not how you treat your REAL friends, Popgoes.
„
~ After defeating Prototype Manora
“
Hahaha... we ALL knew how this was going to end... I honestly just wanted to see what you would do... to witness it first-hand... You took your powers from other people... whether it was deserved or not doesn't matter... What matters is that I created mine... I EARNED them... Everything you see here... was made from scratch... So... did it impress you...? If things turned out differently... could I have been... one of the gang...?
„
~ Morse's last words
Gallery[]
Concept art for Morse.
Morse's unused animatronic from the original 2016 fangame.
Morse in promo art for POPGOES and The Machinist (middle row, 2nd column).
Trivia[]
Morse the Mole was originally going to be an animatronic in the 2016 version of POPGOES, before being replaced by Stone the Crow and Blake the Badger in the final version. Multiple attributes in his Arcade incarnation reference this: him being an outcast among the forest animals paralleling being cut from the original game, his talent with technology being a call back to his mechanic of burrowing under the pizzeria and messing with the player's WeaselWare phone, and his mostly orange colour palette being a reference to his power colour being orange.
Concept art shows he was originally going to have a scarf, rather than a safety vest.
His battle theme is a remix of Smashing Windshields from Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria Simulator.
Movie Animatronics Freddy Fazbear |
Bonnie the Bunny |
Chica the Chicken (Mr. Cupcake) |
Foxy the Pirate |
Golden Freddy
Humans William Afton |
Aunt Jane |
Max, Jeff, Hank and Carl
Villains
