Yume Nikki:Poniko

Poniko

Poniko is a character appearing in Madotsuki's dream. She is held in high regard with fans. Her house is found by diving into a pool located in an igloo at the Snow World.

Description

Poniko is a blonde girl with a ponytail, green shirt, a skirt and red shoes. She, like Madotsuki herself, lives alone in a very bare house. She seems to want to be alone, as Madotsuki is only able to reach her house by going through a Pastel Lake. Poniko changes in a random event triggered by turning off the light in her house.

File:Poniko.jpg

Poniko

Fan Speculation

Room - Poniko and her room could be interpreted as early designs of a protagonist and her room, due to familiar aspects seen in Madotsuki's room.

Actions - No matter what you do, she doesn't seem to pay any attention to you, which is the point of some fandom hilarity. The only exception to this is running at her with a knife and using the cat effect. Since it is unknown whether or not Poniko is actually Uboa, the light switch does not count.

Uboa

If you turn off the light, there is a 1 in 64 chance that you will see Uboa. It was originally thought you had to kill Poniko first and return for the secret, but has easily been proven false.

Description

Uboa

Uboa is a strange creature, usually considered male or genderless. He replaces Poniko soon as you turn off the light, and plays a continuous muted "aaaaaaah" sound, (if properly filtered,) surprising most people.

When the event happens, a bright flash fills the room, similar to a blowing light bulb, then the entire room changes and Uboa replaces Poniko. You cannot go out the door, and flipping the light switch only causes another flash of light. If you touch him, you will be sent to a dead-end room with white water, red sky and a strange monster in the background, and Uboa's face will change.

Uboa's name originated from a type of scream in Japan. Originally pronounced 'uhoa' (ooo-hwha), when said in a manner resembling a scream, the name certainly suits its appearance and situation.

The origin of Uboa's (undistorted) face design may have come from a 1997 Enix game called Mischief Makers, if it is not a highly odd coincidence. The denizens of the planet Clancer, as well as most objects on the planet, all have black, hollow looking eyes like Uboa that may be both curved inward or one curving outward and a usually gaping black mouth. The faces of most people are also white.

Reception

Uboa is likely a major factor for the success of the game, especially in the English version. Many non-Japanese players were introduced to Uboa through Youtube. Uboa itself may very well be the number one inspiration to download and explore Yume Nikki by most fans.

Fan Speculation

Hopelessness - Due to the aspect of being trapped, Uboa could be interpreted as a feeling of hopelessness.

Poniko's True Form - A common interpretation is that Uboa is Poniko's true form, mostly because he replaces her sprite.

Frustration - A theory based on the correlation between the further mentioned game and Uboa's face, Uboa may be based on Kikiyama's and/or Madotsuki's frustration with Mischief Makers, a game that focuses on precise timing that may be too advanced for those without good reflexes, which can thus cause trauma and a sense of hopeless defeat for someone who would not give up easily. Uboa is thematically similar to near-hopeless gameplay since it is very hard to trigger the event and even harder to accidentally discover. This may be Kikiyama's way of projecting game frustration.

Memetic Mutation

Cho Uboa - In which Uboa is a horrifying muscular creature. Poniko keeps him as her pet.

ah not tan neet... - In which Microsoft Sam sings the Toriningen Party Song, with a naked Masada with Uboa for a head dancing in the foreground. This is a remake of a Japanese video with a Japanese man singing, and the lyrics of the memetic version are mondegreens of that one. You will be reminded of Stupid Sexy Flanders.