DELTARUNE: Spoiler-Light Complete Guide (Chapters 1–5)

A spoiler-light companion for every released chapter of DELTARUNE: how battles really work, how saves carry between chapters, what is missable, and how to find each chapter's hidden boss without having the story ruined.

Researched September 2026 — current as of Chapter 5 version 0.0.253 (patched July 31, 2026). Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Where the Game Is Now

Chapter	Title	Released	Dark World
1	The Beginning	October 31, 2018	Card Kingdom
2	A Cyber's World	September 17, 2021	Cyber World
3	Late Night	June 4, 2025	TV World
4	Prophecy	June 4, 2025	Dark Sanctuaries
5	(see in game; withheld here to stay spoiler-light)	June 24, 2026	(withheld)

Price model: Chapters 1 and 2 are playable for free. Chapter 3 onward requires buying the game; later chapters arrive as free updates to that purchase. Chapter 5 was one of those free updates.
What's next: The Steam FAQ says the story is not finished and Chapter 6 is being aimed at 2027. Chapter 7 has no date.
Current patch: Chapter 5 v0.0.253 (July 31, 2026) added an optional difficulty tweak for the Chapter 5 Shadow Crystal boss after a loss, plus fixes for softlocks in Chapters 2–4. You can see each chapter's version number at the bottom right of the file select screen.

Quick Start

Play the chapters in order. Each chapter reads your completion file from the previous one; choices, inventory, equipment and Dark Dollars carry over.
Always make a completion save. At the end of every chapter the game offers to save to a slot. Say yes; the next chapter imports it.
Sparing is a real strategy, not just a moral choice. Use ACT, fill the enemy's MERCY meter, then SPARE. Some rewards only come from peaceful play, and some only from the other way.
Graze bullets on purpose. Your SOUL brushing past bullets without being hit fills the Tension Points (TP) bar, which pays for party magic and special ACTs.
DEFEND is not a wasted turn. It reduces damage and gives TP. When a big attack is coming, have weaker members defend.
Talk to everyone in the Light World. Many town conversations change based on what you did, and they are a big part of the game.
Hidden bosses are optional and hard. Every chapter has a secret Shadow Crystal boss. They are not required to finish the story.
Save often, in different slots. Save points are frequent. Keep a backup before big decisions.

How Battles Work

DELTARUNE uses turn-based menus with real-time dodging.

Command	What it does
FIGHT	Timing-based attack; press confirm as bars reach the target line. Perfect hits deal extra damage.
ACT	Kris's special interactions with an enemy. Some ACTs use other party members and cost TP.
MAGIC	Non-Kris party members replace ACT with spells, paid for with TP.
ITEM	Use healing or support items on any party member.
SPARE	End the fight peacefully once an enemy's MERCY reaches 100% (or they are TIRED and pacified).
DEFEND	Take less damage this turn and gain TP.

Tension Points (TP)

TP is shared by the whole party and shown on the left of the battle screen. You gain it by grazing (letting bullets pass close to your SOUL), by defending, and by some actions. Spend it on healing spells, damage spells and multi-person ACTs. A good habit: graze aggressively when your HP is healthy, then spend the TP on heals when things go wrong.

MERCY, TIRED and Recruits

Most enemies have a MERCY percentage. ACTing correctly raises it; at 100% you can spare them.
Enemies can also become TIRED; a party member's pacifying spell can put tired enemies to sleep and end their part in the fight.
Recruits (introduced in Chapter 2): spare the same enemy type enough times and they join your town as a recruit. Defeating an enemy type instead marks it as Lost. Recruits show up later and sometimes matter in future chapters.

The SOUL

Your red heart dodges bullets in the box. Some chapters change how the SOUL works during certain fights. Read the in-battle hints each time a new mode appears.

Chapter-by-Chapter Outline (Spoiler-Light)

Chapter 1: The Beginning

Setting: A small monster town, then the Card Kingdom Dark World.
What to learn: ACT/SPARE basics, grazing, and your first party magic.
Tip: Buy healing items at the first shop and keep a few in reserve; you cannot overbuy with how cheap early items are.
Hidden boss: Jevil, found behind a locked door that needs a key you assemble during the chapter. Talk to everyone and explore every dead end to find the pieces.

Chapter 2: A Cyber's World

Setting: The Cyber World, a louder, faster Dark World.
New systems: Recruits, more party ACTs, and Castle Town as a hub that grows with your recruits.
Tip: Sparing most enemies here gets you recruits who reappear in later chapters.
Hidden boss: Spamton NEO. Getting there involves a side-quest thread that starts with a strange shop in a back alley of the Cyber World; follow it to the end.
Warning: Chapter 2 contains an optional, much darker alternate route. It is triggered deliberately, locks out other content for that file, and changes later dialogue. Do not attempt it on your main file unless you know you want it.

Chapter 3: Late Night

Setting: The TV World, framed as a game show hosted by a TV named Tenna.
Structure: You alternate between board-game style rounds (Desert Board, Island Board, and more) and a backstage Green Room.
Rankings: Each board round gives a rank. High ranks unlock extra content backstage, including an optional side path. Take your time on boards; your rank is worth replaying for.
Tip: Look for prize machines and extras between rounds. At least one item from a Chapter 3 prize machine carries over and changes something in Chapter 5.
Hidden boss: A very difficult Shadow Crystal boss. It is tied to the optional path unlocked by high ranks.

Chapter 4: Prophecy

Setting: The Dark Sanctuaries, a set of Dark Worlds reached through a church, with more Light World time than earlier chapters (including Light World save points for the first time).
Structure: Multiple Dark Fountain objectives across several sanctuaries.
Missable lore: There is prophecy text you can lose if you do not read it before a story beat. Stop and read murals and tapestries as you find them.
Hidden boss: The Hammer of Justice, the Shadow Crystal boss. Defeating it matters for Chapter 5 (for example, the July 2026 patches tie extra rewards and even a party member's magic to having beaten it).

Chapter 5

Setting: A new Dark World (details withheld to stay spoiler-light). Areas mentioned in the official patch notes include the Cliffs and a festival.
New systems: Pink Coins, a currency spent in a specific room, plus festival activities and platforming encounters.
Carry-over matters a lot: Owning the Golden Tenna Statue from Chapter 3's Ball Machine makes it appear in Castle Town; you only get the item from the hole in the Castle Town cliff if you got Chapter 4's Shadow Crystal on that file; beating Chapter 4's Shadow Crystal boss gives Susie extra magic points (all per the July 2026 patch notes).
Hidden boss: The chapter has a Shadow Crystal boss. As of v0.0.253, losing to it spawns a Pink Bomb outside the arena that lets you choose "Nicer" (small bomb attacks show where they will explode and take 1/6 of a second longer) or "Meaner" (all its attacks deal 25% more damage and a couple get slightly faster).
Mercy for bad days: The chapter's final story boss becomes gradually easier if you lose to it many times in one session (added in v0.0.241).

Shadow Crystals

Each chapter has one Shadow Crystal, won by beating that chapter's secret boss. They are key items tied to your save slot. Bring them to Seam's shop in Castle Town for commentary; use them in Dark World locations to glimpse visions. Later chapters check which crystals your file carried over (see the Chapter 5 carry-over notes above). If you are building a "perfect" chain of saves, beat each chapter's hidden boss before making the completion save.

Chapter	Shadow Crystal boss
1	Jevil
2	Spamton NEO
3	A late-game superboss (name withheld to avoid spoilers)
4	Hammer of Justice
5	A hidden boss (name withheld to avoid spoilers)

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Starting a new chapter without importing. You lose items, Dark Dollars and choices; start from your completion file instead.
Overwriting your only save before a big choice. Use multiple slots.
Ignoring TP. Players who never graze or defend are always short on healing.
Fighting every enemy. Violence marks enemy types as Lost and closes off recruit content.
Rushing boards in Chapter 3. Low ranks lock you out of the optional content.
Skipping Light World conversations. They carry a lot of story and change based on your choices.
Playing on a beta branch after an update. The Chapter 5 announcement notes that beta branches were removed; if a chapter will not download, make sure you are not on one.

Advanced Tips

Graze-farm early in fights. Build TP during easy turns, then spend it on big heals or damage spells.
Perfect FIGHT timing adds up. Hitting the bar exactly, especially with the whole party, shortens hard fights significantly.
Armor with extra invincibility frames helps against hidden bosses; the July 2026 patch fixed one such armor not working against the Chapter 5 boss, so it is worth equipping now.
Learn patterns on loss. Hidden bosses are pattern checks. Losing a few times to learn attacks is expected.
Report bugs. The official route is email to deltarune@fangamer.com; the official site's FAQ lists known issues at the top.

FAQ

Is DELTARUNE finished? No. Chapters 1–5 are out; Chapter 6 is being aimed at 2027 and more chapters are planned.

Do I need to pay for Chapter 5? If you already bought the game (Chapters 3+), Chapter 5 was a free update. Chapters 1–2 remain free to play.

Do my saves carry over? Yes. Choices, inventory, equipment, Dark Dollars and recruits carry forward through completion files.

Do I need to play Undertale first? It is not required, but it adds a lot of context and familiar faces.

Can I play a later chapter without the earlier ones? The chapter select lets you start any chapter, but you will be playing without your previous choices. Start from Chapter 1 for the intended experience.

Are the hidden bosses required? No, but beating them earns Shadow Crystals and unlocks carry-over rewards in later chapters.

How do I check my version? Look at the bottom right of the file select screen for the chapter version number.