Splintered Fate: Turtles Overview

[springsodas]

The titular Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, as pictured with Splinter, April, and Casey

Background and Appearance

Like every other iteration in the franchise, the turtles are stated to be brothers with them following the traditional age order of Leonardo as the oldest, Raphael as the second oldest, Donatello as the third oldest, and Michelangelo as the youngest. The exact circumstances in which they came to be are uncertain, although the Broken Ooze Canister artifact that can be obtained indicates it’s the typical origin story where they were once ordinary turtles who came into contact with a radioactive ooze that granted them greater intelligence and humanoid forms. Splinter, a mutant rat who was once the human Hamato Yoshi, then took them in and raised them as his own children. Knowing how dangerous the world above their home in the sewers is, he trained them in Japanese martial arts from an early age so that they could protect themselves when faced with danger. Although most humans are afraid of or even outright hostile towards them, they’ve managed to foster close relationships with April O’Neil, Casey Jones, and Angel. They also have a friend in Slash, a mutant snapping turtle, as well as Metalhead, a robotic turtle that Donatello built from scrap and is treated as a younger brother of theirs. During the game, they are championed by a seemingly benevolent entity simply known as The Voice, who desires to balance the scales of the “game” being played by the malevolent entity supporting the Shredder and who is responsible for the events of story.

At the time the game’s story begins, the turtles are already well-established in New York. Their exact ages are unknown, but interviews with the developers state they are already experienced crime fighters and are meant to be more “adult” and thus older than other versions, who usually start out their stories at around 15. Similar to older iterations such as the Mirage comics and 1987 turtles, the Splintered Fate turtles are identical quadruplets with heavily muscled, stocky builds. The only thing that properly differentiates them from each other is their gear and weapons, with their bright masks and belts being the easiest way to spot them—Leonardo wears his trademark blue, Raphael is in red, Donatello wears purple, and Michelangelo is in orange.

While the turtles have met a number of allies, they have also made many enemies. Their greatest feud is that with Oroku Saki, leader of the Foot Clan who is best known by his moniker, the Shredder—this also makes them enemies with Oroku Karai, his granddaughter. They have an intense rivalry with the Punk Frogs, who stole Casey’s car during the Junkyard Jam DLC, and are at odds with Baxter Stockman, the current mayor of New York City and former owner of StockGen where April is implied to have once worked at. Interestingly, a story dialogue from Donatello implies that their relationship with Leatherhead, who attacks them during the game, is actually the most neutral of their enemies, as he had previously only attacked them whenever he was provoked.

Members

Hamato Leonardo



“The oldest brother and the soul of the family. His focus is on high damage and mobility, with low ability cooldowns.”

Hamato Raphael



“The second oldest brother and the strength of the family. He is highly aggressive with a focus on critical damage.”

Hamato Donatello



“The third oldest brother and the brains of the family. He has high health with a focus on utility.”

Hamato Michelangelo



“The youngest brother and the heart of the family. He deals area damage and makes the most of high hit-count damage effects.”

Notes and Trivia

• The exact circumstances and nature of the turtles’ mutation are unknown. Some versions of the turtles have the ooze as the sole source of their mutation, while some versions have the mutagen function by mutating them into something based on the last creature they touched, which is always Hamato Yoshi, a human. As Splintered Fate follows the “Hamato Yoshi mutated into a rat” backstory for Splinter rather than the “Hamato Yoshi’s pet rat turned into a mutant" version, the second scenario where they mutated due to having touched Hamato Yoshi when he was still human is most likely.
  • Some versions, such as the 1987 animated series and the IDW comics, have the turtles directly mutate into teenagers, whereas others have them mutate into babies/toddlers instead. Among Splinter’s belongings obtained after defeating the Shredder a certain number of times is an old family photo where the turtles are just barely visible in the in-game graphic, suggesting it is the latter situation.
• Although heavily inspired by their IDW incarnations, no allusions are made to the reincarnation plotline featured in that continuity.
• Based on their in-game models, the turtles appear to be about the same height as April.
• Like all versions of the turtles, Splintered Fate’s versions are shown to have a fondness for pizza with their favorite place to order being a place known as Rupert's.