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| “ | Don't you see, my dearest? You've always been here. And I'll make sure you never leave. | „ |
| ~ John Doe |
| “ | It's really unfair that you didn't give me a chance... I... I did everything right... I did everything I thought you'd like... I can be anything you want! | „ |
| ~ John Doe upset by the protagonist's rejection. |
John Doe is the titular main antagonist of the indie horror visual-novel game of the same name {including the updated version John Doe +}.
He's a Regular Guy {the name of his species} who falls in love with You, the protagonist. Determined to find true love at any cost, he tries desperately to convince You that they're meant to be while forcing them both to repeat the same day over and over again.
Appearance[]
John Doe is somewhere between the age of 20 and 40 {due to this being a "dating simulator" in a way}, he weighs 112 lbs and he's around 5'8 tall. Identifying as bisexual and fluid-nonbinary, allowing him to be referred by any pronouns. John's body possesses no organs, though he has the ability to create them if he desires to. The colour of his grim, yellow teeth and black nails are natural to his form. His hair is always curly, it's prehensile too and can move on its own. Depending on John's emotional mood, the red design on his shirt changes to match it[1].
John has long black curly hair outlined with bright red, though this can also be seen as hair streaks {which hasn't been confirmed by the creator themselves}. He has large eyes with a yellowish hue to them, with his pupils being able to dilate to extreme extents when he's excited, in love and/or truly happy. He's got Caucasian {or white, for those who don't know} skin, four fingers on his hands and three toes on his feet. His arms are covered in scars, but they're not from "being sad", as the reference sheet calls it, they're actually a kink/reminder. He has teeth more than that of a typical human. A long, bright red tongue that looks like it's in the shape of a heart when his mouth is open[1]. John wears a short sleeve, grey t-shirt with a red design that's always changing. He also wears long, dark brown trousers with a pair of pointed black shoes. He always wears a black hoodie that he drapes around his arms rather than wearing it standardly, all because he doesn't know how to wear a hoodie properly.
As stated above, John wears a grey t-shirt that's constantly changing the red design painted on it. The design typically depends on how John feels in that moment. For example, the shirt will display a scrawled on smiley face if he's happy or a bleeding heart if he's in love. John is known to have reality warping and shape-shifting abilities, which may be the reason for its constant changing. Another explanation for this constantly changing design is that he paints them on, which seen in a piece of official art[2].
John possesses a creepy aesthetic about himself. At many points in the game, parts of John become hyper realistic in an uncanny, disturbing and uncomfortable manner. John's demeanour, at least for most endings, gives off an uneasy vibe, such as his undeniable want to go to the You's house, jumping out and scaring You, and sneaking into You's apartment unannounced. Many of his normal physical characteristics match this aesthetic as well, much of his natural appearance being what most would consider to be unkempt or horrid.
Personality[]
| “ | You can feel it, can't you? There's something here between us. I just love love love you! | „ |
| ~ John professing to the protagonist. |
John Doe is extremely obsessive and determined to win over You's heart, to the point where he won't accept rejection as an option. John has a peculiar and morbid way of demonstrating his desire, as seen when he stabs You and kisses their blood-soaked face in the second ending. John is determined to never leave You's side, insisting that he'll stay with them forever. Although he puts the protagonist in an inescapable situation, he does put effort into trying to make You feel as comfortable as he can, going so far as to normalize after learning more about them through past loops. John's need for a companion seems to go beyond just wanting to have a romantic relationship, as seen during the meltdown he had in the 6th ending when he was finally rejected. In other words, this bitch lonely and he knows he's trapped inside of a dating simulator.
John is implied to be a very messy person. When first bringing You to his home, You remarks on the foul stench. Although the bedroom appears distorted, trash can be made out to have been littered all over his bed and throughout his other rooms. John was said to have a general distaste for baths, further implying that he has a dislike for keeping things, including himself, tidy. This is actually proved in canon {by the creator themselves} that the reason he hates baths/showers so much is all because he will literally melt if he had one. John's feelings can be altered depending on You's hygienic state; liking them already if they showered but with an increased fondness if they didn't.
Other than what's presented in the game, John Doe was said to have a liking for "You", television, static, baby rats, teeth {his favourite food}, and eyes {acknowledging the cuts on his body, it's hard to see but you can see cuts slightly above his t-shirt on his chest in the sprite as well}. His dislikes include baths, being alone, under stimulation, "You" ignoring him and "that guy". Which could be a reference to House Hunted, the prequel of John Doe[3].
Biography[]
John is first seen on the bus on You's way to work, stalking them long enough for them to notice. You then decides whether or not they find John attractive. Later, John meets You at the gas station, where they works, and introduces himself. When he says his real name, he causes reality to glitch while disturbing images flash behind him. After telling You to "just call him John Doe," he proceeds to ask what they're doing after work. The outcomes of the protagonist's next choice determine what John does next.
Endings 1-3[]
If You says that they're not busy after work, John will meet them outside, proceeding to scare them in the process. He'll then ask whether or not they like to be scared. After getting a response, his next question will be if he can come home with You back to their apartment. If You responds "Yes," then he follows them back to their apartment without them noticing, only to show up and scare them yet again. John will proceed to confess his love to You. If You decided to take a shower that day, he'll ask the protagonist if they'll allow him to stay but then chooses the "Yes" for them, letting them know that he's going to stay forever (Ending 1). If they decided not to, then he'll proceed to stab You after his love proposal, making out with their bleeding form after (Ending 2).
If You says that they are busy after work, then telling him that he cannot follow them home, he will "lose interest" (Ending 3).
Ending 4[]
After achieving Ending 3, You'll wake up instead of getting an ending card. Making their way onto the bus, John will appear there with uncanny, hyper-realistic facial features. When You asks themselves how they feel about John, they'll be compelled to say that he is indeed cute, after which John will revert to normal.
When he meets You, he'll ask if they remember him, only to deliver his normal dialogue. You'll involuntarily invite John to hang out, and he'll tell them he would love to. John's meeting with the protagonist outside will be more or less the same, the only difference being the response after You tells him what they think about being scared. During this ending, John will follow them home, handing them his "gift" instead of them finding it on their own. Remarking that they "hadn't found it in this timeline yet."
When You tries to go to their bedroom, they'll notice that it wasn't theirs. Remarking how disgusting it smelled. Running to the living room, they'll realise that this wasn't their home. It instead was John's home. John will ask them if everything is ok, also telling them that they've always been here, only to be answered with that they were leaving. When trying to exit, You'll open the door to a black abyss full of realistic teeth and eyes. Only to be informed that he'll make sure that they'll never leave.
Ending 5[]
Like Ending 4, the protagonist must again play out ending 3, this time having John tell them that they smell nice {no showering}. When You wakes up, they'll find themselves in a now non-distorted reality. Though they never acknowledge it. When You goes to the bus stop, they'll find John appearing to look far more normal than his regular self. This time remarking that they think he looks "cute but bland" when presented with whether or not they like John. That is if "Yes" is picked. When he meets up with them at work, he cuts himself off and immediately introduces himself as John Doe. With none of the loud static and flashing images from his real name being said.
He then asks his typical questions and scares them outside as per usual, though this time he apologises for scaring them. Once You allows him to come home with them, he follows them and then compliments how nice it looks. When You suggests that they get a snack from the kitchen, John is quick to keep them from doing so. Knowing that if they were to do so, then they'd have been met with the mess of blood and possible flesh that they'd met in past timelines before John revealed himself to have been in the home.
John suggests they watch TV together, and so they sit down together to do so. Once sat down, John tells You that he wishes that they could do this all the time, and then asks them if they like him "like this". You agrees at his words, telling him that they want to get to know him better, before becoming confused after realizing his "like this" statement. They turn to John, who was turning back to his regular form as he states that he agrees on getting to know each other better.
Endings 6 & 7[]
These endings play out exactly as Ending 5 did, except You would have told John that they're too busy and that he cannot come over. John then appears at their apartment unexpectedly, much to their shock. He begins to talk about how unfair it was that they didn't give the two of them a chance, that he did everything right and he could be whatever they wanted him to be. Proceeding to morph back into his original form, John asks if You loved them.
If the player says "No" and tells John to leave them alone, John will snap and jump at the camera. He'll break the fourth wall and slam his fist against the screen, cracking it, sobbing about how he hates it there and how he doesn't want the player to leave him all alone (Ending 6).
If the player says "Yes", they'll then explain that they do love John, but not when he's pretending to be something he's not. They begin to remember all the past timelines, confronting John and telling them that they know about the loop. John becomes nervous, thought You tells them that they'd like to see what happens between them, causing John to fall to his knees and look up at them with huge pupils. Indicating how happy he is to finally be loved at last (Ending 7).
Powers and Abilities[]
John has a handful of abilities that haven't fully been elaborated on. He has the ability to warp reality, making it appear messy and distorted. He also has the ability to warp aspects of his physical being in order to match the desires of the protagonist.
- Reality-Warping- John has the ability to distort You's visual perspective of the world around them; making it look grotesque and unnatural but also seemingly normal as well. Though the grotesque part could just be Uncanny Valley's look in general.
- Time-Control- John has the ability to make time loop, as seen when he makes You repeat the same day over and over while trying to manipulate them into loving him.
- Prehensile Hair- John's hair is able to move all on its own.
- Shapeshifting- John demonstrated his ability to change his physical form, as seen when he transformed into a more naturalized version of himself.
- Psychokinesis- It was shown multiple times that the protagonist blurted out responses to both internal and verbal responses that were in John's favour, such as when they said "YES I DO" in response to their question of whether or not they found John attractive in ending 4.
Quotes[]
| “ | That's definitely one of the names I heard. | „ |
| ~ John after getting the protagonist's name. |
| “ | Mine's [static noises], but you can call me John Doe. | „ |
| ~ John introducing himself. |
| “ | ... Do you like being scared? | „ |
| ~ John Doe |
| “ | You're cute when you're scared | „ |
| ~ John Doe |
| “ | We're practically best friends now! We could be more... | „ |
| ~ John's response to the protagonist telling him that they barely knew him. |
| “ | You shouldn't invite strangers home. But don't worry! I'm not a stranger! You know me! | „ |
| ~ John's response to the protagonist invitation. |
| “ | ... Oh. In that case... LET'S GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER. | „ |
| ~ John to the confused protagonist. |
| “ | I... I don't understand... I did everything right... Why don't you love me? Why... | „ |
| ~ John's response to being further rejected. |
| “ | NO!!!!! DON'T LEAVE ME!!! I DON'T WANT TO BE ALONE!!!! I HATE IT HERE!!!!! Please... Don't leave me here... | „ |
| ~ John breaking down. |
Trivia[]
- John's species is apparently called "Regular Guy"[1]. His species is similar to humans in terms of intelligence and sexual attraction.
- "John Doe" is a term in the English language to refer to someone whose real name is unknown[4].
- John's official name was revealed both in the game and on a reference sheet. However, its spelling is made up of static-symbols and it seems to be unpronounceable to the human language[3].
External Link[]
- John Doe on the JOHN DOE Wiki
