I know I talked about a similar topic before, but I wanted to expand on it. Lengthy post!
Every so often I see people say stuff like "there's too many Underswap takes that don't swap personalities", "they're just doing the TS!Underswap idea again", "straying too far from canonswap", etc. etc. and I think this idea is wrong.
Firstly, TS didn't even invent the idea of swapping roles without personality changes. Traditional roleswapping in media outside of UTDR isn't even as extensive as Underswap. It's usually just two or few characters swapping and nothing else. The way Underswap works is exclusively an Undertale fandom thing. It stopped being about the designs and superpower swaps or whatever, and more about reimagining the world of Undertale, but with Papyrus being lazy and Sans being enthusiastic.
Fine for a while, but... People wanted more and soon realized that canonswap doesn't work too well in game form because, like most AUs of the past, Underswap was more or less a "theme AU", aka just Undertale again. It didn't go past designs, fan tracks, and some Tumblr ask scenarios.
TS once started out as another attempt at a canonswap fangame. It didn't last that way. I sure wonder why... And if it stayed as a canonswap take to this day, no doubt it would've gotten the same treatment as PS!Outertale still gets. Btw, anyone remember Overtime?
I'm happy TS!Underswap exists and that so many swap takes past it take inspiration from it. TS showed that not only can you experiment with the roles, but also the characters themselves, the story, event order, locations, etc. Muffet would've just been a boring Grillby reskin if TS was just another canonswap, but instead she's a miniboss with her own story and struggles. Asgore would've just been Toriel again, but instead he watches over his ever blooming city! New characters!
The only problem I see is Underswap takes labeling themselves as specifically Underswap takes instead of a more unique name cause most Underswap takes nowadays are so far removed from canonswap that they may as well be their own AUs, and honestly they should. I encourage people to be MORE experimental with their projects, instead of living under the shadows and conditions that come with being "Name!Underswap" or similar! Call yourself a roleswap/ shift/ spin/ whatever that's inspired by Underswap and get rid of that ugly "!" naming scheme. Name your project something you can proudly call your own!
When you call yourself a "take" on something, or a remaster, remake, reboot, reimagining, etc., you are put under certain expectations. When people think of a remaster, they think of the same game, but with core parts of the game changed, removed, or added so that it's better than the original. A remaster is not completely changing the game into something unrecognizable. A remake is usually the same game, but remade from the ground up and with some enhancements to fit with modern times and major platform releases. A remake is not the same game, but with a ton more bloom effects and badly emulated. A take would be, well, someone's take on the same project, but with a few personal tweaks and additions while keeping the core identity of the project the same. A take is not a new thing that's vaguely similar to the original only by name. I'm not gonna be a name police, but it is something to consider. Call your projects whatever suits you. I'm in a team on an Underfell take that barely resembles Underfell. It's fine lol
It may be a daunting shift to branch your AU take into an AU of its own, but I think it'd will be better for you in the long run. And of course, this doesn't just apply to Underswap takes either. It could be about any take of any AU. If you're working on a "TS!Underswap rip off", don't be afraid to show them here! I'll support you fr! 🙏🫶
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