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HEADSPACE is one of the two primary locations in OMORI, the other being FARAWAY TOWN. It is an imaginary world comprising the areas SUNNY can visit when he sleeps. Some areas are only accessible via the OMORI ROUTE, consisting of SNOWGLOBE MOUNTAIN and THE ABYSS. All other areas can be accessed in all routes of the game.
BACKGROUND[]
At some point following MARI's death, SUNNY stopped going to school and became a hikikomori. He began visiting WHITE SPACE through a black-and-white doppelgänger called OMORI. He cut himself off from the outside world and lost contact with his friends, refusing to leave his house at all. With the help of OMORI, SUNNY repressed his memories of the night MARI died and instead lived in the colorful world of HEADSPACE.
HEADSPACE serves as a world full of pure imagination and colorful areas. This was also where SUNNY could escape from reality and instead relive the happier moments of his life, with younger versions of his friends still together and happy, as well as MARI still being alive. Despite his efforts to keep the truth locked away, it still haunted SUNNY in the form of SOMETHING and other ominous reminders. This endless cycle of escapism within SUNNY's dreamscape continued for about three or four years before the game's events took place.
LOCATIONS[]
MAIN AREAS[]
SUBAREAS[]
.png "Forest Playground (Screenshot).png (89 KB)")
.png "Train Station (Screenshot).png (152 KB)")
.png "Train (Screenshot).png (63 KB)")
.png "Baking Room (Unbread Twins).png (115 KB)")
.png "Club Sandwich (Screenshot).png (121 KB)")
.png "Mustard Sub (One Day Left).png (113 KB)")
.png "Lamp Room (Main).png (80 KB)")
INSPIRATION[]
Each of the HEADSPACE locations can be attributed to certain places or experiences by SUNNY. The locations and their possible inspirations are listed here.
| Logo | Location | Inspiration |
|---|---|---|
 |
NEIGHBOR'S ROOM | TREEHOUSE |
 |
VAST FOREST | HANGOUT SPOT |
 |
OTHERWORLD | A GUIDE TO OUR SOLAR SYSTEM book |
 |
JUNKYARD | TRASH around FARAWAY TOWN |
 |
PYREFLY FOREST | Bug hunting photos in the PHOTO ALBUM |
 |
SPROUT MOLE VILLAGE | SPROUT MOLE EATER minigame |
 |
SWEETHEART'S CASTLE | SWEETHEART movies |
 |
LAST RESORT | Blackjack minigame in SUNNY's desktop |
 |
GHOST PARTY | Birthday parties |
 |
UNDERWATER HIGHWAY | SUNNY's Desktop |
 |
HUMPHREY | HUNGRY HUMPHREY book |
 |
ORANGE OASIS | THE FOOD PYRAMID book |
 |
RAIN TOWN | RAINY DAY Memory |
 |
SNOWGLOBE MOUNTAIN | Vacation Souvenir |
 |
THE ABYSS | None |
GALLERY[]
CONCEPT ART[]
.gif "Omori Headspace (2014 Trailer).gif (409 KB)")
.png "Headspace Concept Art (Full).png (684 KB)")
.png "Headspace Concept (2017).png (564 KB)")
BETA SCREENSHOTS[]
_Beta_Screenshot.png "Omori (2014) Beta Screenshot.png (93 KB)")
EXTRA[]
TRIVIA[]
- OMOCAT mentioned that HEADSPACE is based on the concept of lucid dreaming. They also noted that it was created to be playful, whimsical, and colorful to contrast other areas of the game. The location itself is not exactly surreal, but rather a world viewed through the eyes of a child.[1]
- In early development, HEADSPACE was originally visualized drastically different from FARAWAY TOWN, using a surreal and nonsensical design. This was scrapped due to the following two reasons:
- OMOCAT notes that having a world drawn entirely with crayon visually separated the characters from the setting, thus making the world less immersive. Thus, the more experimental processes were used for BLACK SPACE instead.
- They also note that a world without structure isn't "truly random", as it still needs to be tested and implemented for the components to work together. Without proper care, a "structureless" world can feel unintentionally clumsy and contrived.
- HEADSPACE's purpose, as mentioned by OMOCAT, is to illustrate the protagonist's idealized relationships with his childhood friends.
- In early development, HEADSPACE was originally visualized drastically different from FARAWAY TOWN, using a surreal and nonsensical design. This was scrapped due to the following two reasons:
- HEADSPACE as a whole presumably serves as a direct nod to the first two Mother games' Magicant, a surreal dreamscape that originated and purely existed within a user's subconsciousness.
- In Earthbound Beginnings, Magicant's existence contains a dark secret regarding Queen Mary's past, similar to how HEADSPACE was created to lock away the horrific truth of MARI's death.
- In Earthbound, one of the plot points in Magicant involved Ness facing the essence of evil within himself, much like how SUNNY ends up facing OMORI, the embodiment of his self loathing and desire to repress the truth, within WHITE SPACE at the climax of the true route.
- There are some clues throughout the game which imply HEADSPACE might be more than just a imaginary world created by SUNNY. A few dialogue spoken by NPCs such as DADDY LONGLEGS, BRANCH CORAL, and MR. OUTBACK indicate this possibility.[2]
REFERENCES[]
- ↑ How OMORI was born: Draw your own HEADSPACE by OMOCAT & pixiv
- ↑ MR. OUTBACK: Well, this place has been around since the beginning of time, I reckon. It looks different to everyone… but this time around, it’s pretty colorful and cutesy for the most part… Not to mention pretty dang big! That’s a powerful imagination you’ve got there, kiddo.