Undertale’s Megalovania played for Pope Francis during circus performance

Zackerie Fairfax

In 2016, GameTheory’s MatPat gifted Pope Francis a copy of the legendary indie title ‘Undertale.’ Now, almost six years later, a circus performing for the Pope has chosen Undertale’s Megalovania as their background music.

Undertale was released in 2015 by its sole developer, Toby Fox. Following the story of a child in a world of monsters, the anti-RPG stole the hearts of millions of adoring players.

Not only did it captivate fans through meaningful interactions with its dozens of wacky characters, but so too did the catchy tunes heard throughout the game. However, one of Undertale’s most notable tracks is only heard when slaughtering every character you meet.

This track is titled Megalovania, and it’s heard when fighting Sans at the end of a Genocide run. Coincidentally, it can also be heard when watching a circus performance held for Pope Francis.

Megalovania played for Pope Francis

pope francis enjoys megalovania circus performance
Pope Francis enjoys a circus performance accompanied by Undertale’s Megalovania.

On January 5th, a group of circus performers requested an audience with Pope Francis. During this time, no death-defying stunts were performed, but rather a series of juggling acts and dance routines. And the group brought along their own musicians to play music to accompany their acts.

A few minutes into their act, the music changed to the familiar yet terrifying tune of Undertale’s Megalovania. The music pounded as a woman juggled a foam tube and beach balls with her feet. Two men threw a number of small balls between their legs, and Pope Francis, as if made from marble, watched motionless in his chair.

The tricks performed on stage were reminiscent of the blitz-like attack patterns Sans himself performs in-game. More jugglers and performers joined in as the music rose to a crescendo. And at last, the performance ceased as Megalovania came to an end.

Has Pope Francis played Undertale?

This may seem like a random choice of music for some, but others remember a historic gaming moment that took place in 2016. GameTheory’s MatPat had the opportunity to meet  the Pope during the 6th Scholas World Congress. MatPat brought along a gift – a copy of Undertale – to give to Pope Francis.

Many people on Twitter theorize that, between 2016 and now, Pope Francis must have played Undertale and requested this song be a part of the performance. Or, the circus performers knew about the gift and chose Megalovania as an homage to the joke.

But that’s just a theory, a game theory. For more on the Pope, check out these hilarious memes featuring Pope Francis.

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About The Author

Zackerie is a former Senior Writer for Dexerto who covered a wide variety of games and entertainment. He has a degree in Creative Writing and was previously the editor of The LaRue County News. Zackerie switched to games media in 2020 writing for outlets such as Screen Rant, Fortnite INTEL, and Charlie INTEL.