10 Twisted Metal Theories That Might Actually Be True

Script written by Ty Richardson

Welcome to MojoPlays, and today, we’re taking a look at 10 “Twisted Metal” Theories That Might Actually Be True! Though it seems more straightforward in premise, “Twisted Metal” has quite a bit of confusing lore and background story that has left fans somewhat perplexed. However, some of these theories have been solid attempts at making sense of the whole thing. Do you have a “Twisted Metal” theory of your own? Share with us down in the comments!

Y2K Aftermath

The biggest mystery of “Twisted Metal” is how the tournament is even possible in the first place. Seriously, how has there not been a worldwide effort to bring down Calypso and stop the tournament from even happening? Well, Reddit user “flamnel” makes an interesting theory involving the time the series launched. As the new millennium drew closer and closer, more and more folks were growing paranoid over the possibility of Y2K happening. Flamnel theorizes that in “Twisted Metal”, Y2K actually happened, causing society to collapse and thus allowing Calypso to freely run the tournament. Plus, the prize being one wish would attract the most unhinged members of society.

The Jolly Roger Flag

GameFAQs user “DradTM” may have found an interesting connection between “Twisted Metal: Small Brawl” and the often forgotten naval combat game, “Critical Depth”. “Small Brawl’s” cutscenes feature a neighborhood that is eerily similar to one featured in “Critical Depth”. Not only that, but “Small Brawl’s” tree house, built by Slam, features a Jolly Roger flag that looks just like the one found on Captain Cutlass’s ship in “Critical Depth”. Considering how out of place the Jolly Roger flag is with all the construction equipment, we wouldn’t be surprised if Captain Cutlass really is Slam’s father. Besides, it’s kind of cool to think of “Critical Depth” as this hidden corner of the “Twisted Metal” universe!

A Winnerverse

One of the weirdest parts of “Twisted Metal” is how very little continuation there is between titles. A specific detail that Reddit user “EstusWick” points out is how certain characters, like Sweet Tooth, are treated as winners of previous tournaments. EstusWick theorizes that Calypso, with his supernatural demon powers, pulls winners from different universes for new tournaments across space and time. This would certainly explain why vehicles like Shadow, Hammerhead, and Mr. Grimm have different drivers in every game…as well as why none of the games seem to have anything to do with each other. Emphasis on seem to, but we’ll get to that later.

The Kane Family Tree

For some bizarre reason, the Kanes have sort of been throwing some people off. The games try to make it as clear as possible; Charlie is the father of Marcus who has adopted the persona of Needles, Sweet Tooth’s driver. However, the kid in “Twisted Metal: Black” is where some folks get turned around. Some believe this might be Marcus, but Marcus is typically depicted with split personalities, switching between Marcus and Needles. However, the ending for Yellow Jacket implies the kid grew up to become the next Sweet Tooth. (Perhaps the one we saw in the first game?) Even more confusing is that some of the dialogue between Needles and Calypso in later games almost comes off as if the two might be related to each other in some way. Who can say - the story is all over the place.

How We Got TM1 Sweet Tooth

Whether you believe the youngest Kane became TM1’s Sweet Tooth or not, there is another possible explanation for the drastically different design. GameFAQs user “StarGGundam2” believes that the Needles Kane we saw in TM1 was in a different phase of his mental being before we got the flaming clown head killer we know. StarG states that Needles might have regressed to his childhood where he formed an imaginary friend which he would project onto the paper bag from his deleted ending. This all resulted from an abusive father, that being Charlie Kane, the driver of Yellow Jacket.

Calypso’s Past Life

The 2012 rendition of Calypso is an interesting one as it goes against almost every other version we’ve seen of the mad man. One aspect of him is in a cutscene where one shot shows various items on display. Most of these are artifacts taken from other characters from across the “Twisted Metal” franchise, which further supports the Winnerverse theory. But one artifact that has us curious about Calypso is the Blades of Chaos. Kratos has never appeared in “Twisted Metal”, though. So, was Calypso there during the events of “God of War”, millenia before “Twisted Metal” was even a thought? This sort of leads into our next entry…

Calypso is Satan

Prior to “Twisted Metal: Black”, we all knew Calypso was a servant of Satan, and before that, he was a husband and a father. But in “Black” and TM12, Calypso took on a whole new identity while still retaining the menacing mystical powers that are capable of granting drivers their wish. Clearly, this is not the same William Sparks from the first few games. This is a being much more unholy, one who is looking to hoard souls and bring an end to mankind. And given that only one old bible-thumper is calling him out, there’s only one creature that could be Calypso’s true identity.

Pit Viper’s Disappearance

Pit Viper has a really weird reputation as being the only vehicle in the franchise to never reappear after one game (not counting the TM12 vehicles). The buggy only ever showed in the first “Twisted Metal”. What happened after that? Well, we got Grasshopper in “Twisted Metal 2”, and it just filled the dune buggy role in future titles. Perhaps Pit Viper was replaced because of Grasshopper’s more vibrant appearance. Series co-creator David Jaffe did confirm Pit Viper was planned to return as DLC for TM12, but was ultimately scrapped. To this day, it is unknown why Pit Viper has never been included in any other game.

Everything to Do With TMBlack

“Twisted Metal: Black” is, by far, the most mysterious game in the franchise, and we aren’t just saying that for the famed number code. However, that code does put a lot of things in question. If “Black’s” world is not real and if it all takes place within Sweet Tooth’s head, then what exactly is happening in the real world? Is Calypso just a figment of his imagination? Did all of this take place moments before Sweet Tooth’s execution? Where exactly does “Black” fit within “Twisted Metal’s” disjointed and ever-changing timeline? These questions have led many fans to form their own theories on the game’s meaning. But one did strike us…

TM12’s Connection to TMBlack

Over on the Game Theorists subreddit, user “D2Vincent” came up with a rather convincing argument that possibly connects TM’12 with “TM: Black”. So, as we mentioned earlier, the number code says that “Twisted Metal: Black” takes place within Sweet Tooth’s head. What if these events were all based on memories of the people he killed before he died in the coffin in TM12? As D2Vincent states, various articles from doctors, nurses, and family members have described the process of dying involving very lucid dreams, specifically about people in their lives who have died prior. Perhaps the events of “Black” happened while Sweet Tooth was banging away on the coffin, slowly suffocating, forcing to remember the faces of all those people whose lives he took.