Mr. Hopp's Playhouse 2

Mr. Hopp's Playhouse 2 is the prequel to the original Mr. Hopp's Playhouse and the third installment in the series.

Summary
A young girl needs to find her friends, unravel a dark mystery and escape the clutches of her cursed toys.

''At Blacklands Manor Orphanage, three toys arrive in a donation box for Esther and her two friends Molly and Isaac. They call the tiger toy Mr. Stripes, the panda toy Miss Bo and the rabbit toy Mr. Hopp. A mystery begins to unravel around the three toys as Molly and Isaac go missing.''

"Prologue"
Esther starts off in a dream exploring an abandoned orphanage. When she reaches the bottom floor, she will reach a dead end and is forced to go back, but in her way is a shadowy shape of a toy rabbit, which then grows into a giant monster. What previously was a dead end, is now a seemingly endless hallway where Esther runs as far as she can as a giant hand comes for her. Escape from the hand is impossible. When caught, Esther sees the image of a girl being burned, screaming out for help. Esther awakens from her nightmare, and it seems she has woken up the other children in the orphanage as well. Come morning, Esther talks with her friends, Molly and Isaac. She says she has the same dream over and over again. While Isaac suggests that it means something, Molly tells Esther that she is just going crazy. The head matron, Miss Beverley, gives the children a box of donated toys; stating that they are "more things to make a mess with". Three specific toys stick out; a tiger, a panda, and a rabbit. When Esther reaches for the rabbit, she gets the glimpse of the burning girl, 6 symbols, and the rabbit. Esther says she feels she seen the rabbit before, Isaac finds them unsettling, but Molly thinks they're adorable. Molly takes the panda toy and calls it Miss Bo, Isaac calls the tiger toy Mr. Stripes, and Esther calls the rabbit Mr. Hopp.

"Follow Molly and Isaac."
Esther goes to follow Molly and Isaac downstairs in the dining area. Isaac asks Esther if she wants to play hide and seek, and Molly snarks about Esther's appearance; and Esther is chosen to count and the lift, which seems to be out of order, is where she starts counting. Before going to find the other children, she places Mr. Hopp on the table next to the lift.

"Play Hide and Seek."
In the library, Esther will see Mr. Stripes and Miss Bo on the table. Isaac will be on the left of the upper floor, hiding behind the pedestal with the bust. At first, it would seem Molly is nowhere to be found, but after you find Isaac, Molly will be on the right of the lower floor. When the game ends, Molly is called out for cheating, they start arguing at each other; Miss Beverley comes up behind and orders them to keep the noise down. Esther says they can play somewhere else, and she goes to retrieve Mr. Hopp.

"Get Mr. Hopp."
When Esther finds Mr. Hopp where she left him, he appears to have fallen over and Esther assumes she simply put him too close to the edge.

"Chapter II: The Hunt"
During the night, Mr. Hopp's left eye peers at Esther, and when she begins to wake up, she notices Mr. Hopp has disappeared. Esther hears the sound of eerie music and goes to find him.

"Find Mr. Hopp."
Many toys have been scattered across the floor, making it difficult for Esther to leave quietly without alerting anyone. When Esther successfully leaves, Mr. Stripes will speed past behind her, appearing in the door to the children's room. Esther continues on, seemingly not seeing Mr. Stripes. Matrons are patrolling the hallways, if they see Esther, she will be sent back to her last checkpoint; She can avoid them by hiding in cabinets. Mr. Hopp is in the kitchen. When entering, Miss Bo will peek behind the doorway. When Esther picks up Mr. Hopp, she will question how he got all the way down here, looking slightly unsettled.

"Get back to the children's bedroom."
As Esther makes her way back to the children's room with Mr. Hopp, she is caught by Miss Beverley. Miss Beverley threatens to send Esther to the cellar if she is found out of bed again. She is then sent off to bed and has another dream.

"Chapter III: The Six"
During the dream, Esther wakes up in a room with a chandelier and an open area. Approaching the chandelier will cause it to fall, breaking as it hits the floor. Entering the door at the end of the room will lead Esther to a three-floor area, where she has to collect six symbols. Toys and black spikes are scattered around the floors. If Esther touches the spikes, she will take damage. When the first symbol is collected, Mr. Hopp's music box will start playing. The area will have more obstacles, such as pendulums, fists, and spikes; the obstacles will increase in difficulty as more symbols are found. Standing in an open area is dangerous if Mr. Hopp is nearby, as he will catch Esther if he reaches her before she can get away from the open area. Upon collecting the last symbol, Mr. Hopp will disappear, and the sound of fire crackling can be heard. Going down to floor one reveals a new floor, which has been set on fire. Upon approaching the fire, Esther says she needs to put it out before it spreads. When the fire is put out, a black substance will appear ahead. Upon approach, the substance will transform into a monstrous, black, figure which attacks Esther, leading to her seeing the image of Mr. Hopp, all the six symbols, and then she will wake up from her nightmare.

"Chapter IV: Molly"
Upon waking from her nightmare, Esther questions the symbols and why she keeps seeing them. keeping the experience to herself this time.

"Look for Molly and Isaac."
Esther will find Molly and Isaac standing near the door to the children's room with Mr. Stripes and Miss Bo on the floor. Esther accuses Molly of moving Mr. Hopp down to the kitchen and getting her in trouble, to which Molly denies. Isaac asks Esther if she wasn't just sleepwalking. Esther berates Molly for acting like a princess and tells her they all might actually like her if she didn't. Molly storms off in a huff and takes Miss Bo with her. Isaac tells Esther that she should apologize to Molly which she goes off to do.

"Apologise to Molly."
While walking towards the library, Esther questions where Molly went. Upon entering the library, Esther meets another resident of the orphanage named Billy. She asks him if he has seen Molly anywhere, to which Billy replies he'll tell her if she retrieves his ball, that Miss Beverley confiscated, back from the storage room. Esther argues at first, stating that he is aware that they're not allowed in that part of the house, though Billy convinces her by making it clear he won't tell her where Molly is if she doesn't get his ball.

"Get Billy's ball back."
Near the chair Molly hid behind is a door that leads to what seems to be one of the orphanage's living rooms. A matron can be seen walking back and forth between an open cardboard box and a bookshelf. Esther has to hide behind the closed cardboard boxes to not get noticed by the matron, if she fails it will send her back to the conversation with Billy. After making it past the living room, Esther has to get the key to the storage room by hiding from Miss Beverley. At the far end of the storage room, Billy's ball can be seen on a cardboard box. Mr. Hopp can also be seen behind one of the other cardboard boxes. Upon collecting the ball, a giggle from an unknown girl can be heard. Going past the wardrobe in the middle of the room will result in Mr. Hopp grabbing her, and she must struggle to get free. Failing to do so will send Esther back to her last checkpoint. If she successfully gets free, Mr. Hopp will let go, and Esther will deny that it could've been real and that she just needs sleep. When Esther brings the ball back to Billy, he reveals that he isn't actually certain where Molly is but suggests that Esther looks in the second floor bedroom, located in the east wing.

"Find Molly."
When Esther enters the bedroom, she sees that Miss Bo is sitting on the dresser at the far end of the room, with Molly nowhere to be found. Esther picks her up, questioning why she's sitting there all by herself. Exiting the bedroom and arriving on the second floor hallway, Esther sees Dee standing near the entrance to the main hall. Before Esther can ask if she's seen Molly, Dee asks her if she can hear the whispers, the evil that roams the halls, and exclaims that there is something among them which leaves Esther startled. When Esther returns to where Isaac was, she finds that he is no longer there and Mr. Stripes' claws can be seen at the curb of the open area. Upon approaching the claws, Mr. Stripes will go back into the darkness. Esther reports the absence of Molly and Isaac to matron Ruth, who says that they're hiding somewhere, that they'll be dealt with accordingly, and that Esther should stop worrying and go back to bed. Mr. Stripes, Miss Bo, and Mr. Hopp are all seen watching Esther from the shadows as she makes her way to her bed.

"Chapter V: The Loop"
After Esther goes to sleep, she finds herself in another dream. But this time, she faces more than the demonic version of Mr. Hopp. She now must face him along with his friends; Miss Bo and Mr. Stripes. Esther must walk and reach the end of a long hallway without being caught, the only way to stay safe is to not move when any of the Three Curses appear. Running is an option when the Three Curses are not present but Esther cannot do so for too long as it creates too much noise. Esther will need to collect a series of vases with different symbols in this hallway and place them on their respective pedestals, the ones with the matching symbols. As Esther does this, spike and fist traps will appear in the hallway. Once Esther has completed the task with the vases, a door at the end of the hallway will unlock. Esther moves on to the next room and when she reaches the exit, she will arrive in the same room. Esther will do this repeatedly while also briefly entering other rooms in this room. Meanwhile, every time Esther arrives in the room, it gradually becomes more distorted. Among other things, the room will fill up with traps, words will appear on the walls, and Esther can observe strange paintings. At one point, an unknown woman will emerge from a door in the room, begging Esther to help her before being lifted up into the air and exploding. Eventually, Esther will reach the end of the room and find a shadowy figure. When Esther approaches the figure, she will awaken from her nightmare to hear Molly and Issac whispering, crying out for help.

"Follow the whispering"
Esther will then leave the children room, being careful as to not create too much noise, and will attempt to find the source of the noise; being careful of the matrons. Esther will proceed to find a bedroom guarded by a matron. Esther will find a vinyl record and play it on the gramophone to distract the matron and enter the room. When Esther passes the dark hallway on the right of the room, Miss Bo will run past; When going near the closet, Esther will hear Molly and Issac saying that Miss Beverley locked them in there and that the key is in her room.

"Get the key"
On the way to the library, Esther will hear a deep voice commanding her to "give [herself] to [them]". Upon entering the library, Esther will see a shadowy figure that will quickly vanish. When she goes up the stairs, Esther will see Mr. Stripes slam the door. She then heads into Miss Beverley's room and here, she will find the key and circle back. When Esther is about to exit the library, a shadowy, legless Mr. Hopp will emerge from the floor and proceed to chase her. She escapes and claims that Molly might be right and she is going crazy. Esther will then go back upstairs and to the room that she heard Molly and Isaac in; thankfully the matron did not keep guarding the room. Esther will unlock the door and Molly and Issac will thank her for freeing them. However, both of their faces will then become distorted, grinning and oozing black liquid. Miss Beverley will then arrive and shut the door, not appearing to have noticed. Miss Beverley then punishes Esther for once again sneaking by taking her down to the cellar.

"Chapter VII: The Cellar"
After being caught by Miss Beverley, Esther is brought down to the cellar and locked in a cage. Miss Beverley scolds Esther but is then suddenly snatched away by a giant Mr. Hopp hand, leaving the key to the cage on the floor. Esther uses a pipe she finds to reach the key and escape her confinement. Esther attempts to leave the cellar but is confused to find out the door they came through is locked. Esther explores the cellar where she witnesses Mr. Hopp and is shocked by this. Soon after, Mr. Stripes and Miss Bo briefly appear, holding Isaac and Molly who speak in distorted voices to Esther. Esther eventually makes it to the end of the cellar where she finds the lift, her way out, though it requires power and a code to work. Esther also finds a locked drawer and Mr. Hopp in toy form. Mr. Hopp then falls off the crate he was sitting on and quickly transforms, chasing after Esther who escapes through a nearby door and enters a room where she finds a crowbar and the code for the lift. When Esther exits the room, Mr. Hopp is gone and she uses the crowbar to open the drawer, finding a key inside. Esther uses the key to turn on the power for the lift and enters the code. However, the lift stops midway due to being out of order, forcing Esther to climb the shaft to escape.

"Chapter VIII: Three Curses"
After escaping the lift, Esther decides she wants to go back to bed but as she walks a empty hallway, she hears music and sees the Three Curses who all jumpscare her. Refusing to believe any of it is real, Esther returns children's bedroom and to her surprise, nobody is there. As Esther starts to walk, giant hands burst out of the floor and Esther has to keep jumping to escape them. The hands eventually stop and Esther leaves the room and upon exiting, she hears Dee saying "Esther meet me in the library I can put a stop to all this". Esther does so and finds Dee who explains that evil roams the halls of the orphanage. She claims that she can make the evil go away and get everyone back through the use of a ritual that requires several items; nine candles, salt, sage, and a trinket from the second floor bedroom. Esther goes to collects all these items and while doing so, she must avoid traps and the Three Curses who each patrol a floor of the orphanage. After Esther successfully collects all the items, she brings them to Dee and they set up the ritual. However, Dee then reveals her true nature to Esther and that this was just a trap for her. Esther recognizes Dee as the shadowy figure who then attacks her, demanding that she "Give [herself] to [them]" but Esther resists and the scene cuts to black.

Esther will awaken in the bedroom of a strange location and exits to explore the place. Esther will need to collect three keys that go to a door in this place while also avoiding Mr. Hopp. Esther will eventually collect all three keys and arrive in a kitchen where she will find a calendar, discovering that the date reads April 18th, 2019 which leaves her stunned. As Esther exits the kitchen, the shadowy figure will reappear, asking Esther to follow. Esther will chase the shadowy figure all over the place while listening to her whispers. Esther follows the figure into another room where she will confront her. Esther is grabbed by a giant Mr. Hopp and lifted up while the shadowy figure levitates into the air, once again telling Esther to "play with [them]". However, Esther refuses to comply and demands that the shadowy figure tell her where her friends and the others are. The shadowy figure does not appear to listen and instead states that Esther is just like her, that she feels her pain, and asks that she "give [herself] to [them]". Esther denies all of this and orders the shadowy figure to leave her alone, then the scene cuts to black again. Esther awakens and walks down a path of fire, once more listening to strange whispering which try to coerce her as the Three Curses appear along this path. Upon reaching the end of the path, Esther will arrive back in the children's bedroom of the orphanage.

"Chapter IX: Underworld"
This chapter is only available if Esther successfully collects the Six, a set of medallions scattered throughout the orphanage.

Shortly after Esther arrives back in the orphanage, the Six will appear and cause the floor beneath her to break and she falls into the hole below. Esther awakens in another place and wonders where she is. As she presses on, Esther must traverse through six different areas. All the while, hears whispers that do not appear to be pleased that she is here. Esther must also combat shadow creatures that randomly materialize and attack her. Fortunately, the Six provide Esther with the power to unleash a pulse that destroys the shadow creatures. Esther soon successfully makes through all six areas and find both her friends and everyone else from the orphanage (except for Miss Beverly). Esther is relieved to have found everyone but must then fight a gigantic monster comprised of the Three Curses. Esther defeats this beast and confronts the Entity and the shadowy figure, both of whom appear left in a weakened state. The shadowy figure claims that "[Esther] cannot escape this!" but Esther remains unfazed as she uses the Six on the both of them.

With the Entity, the shadowy figure, and the Three Curses all defeated, Esther and everyone who was kidnapped is returned to the orphanage, safe and sound. A confused Molly asks what happened but Esther, apparently being the only one who remembers what happened, states that it does not matter and asks if she and Isaac want to play hide and seek. Isaac excitedly accepts and so too does Molly who states that she will count this time and then takes notice of Esther's necklace, asking where she got it.

Years later, an elderly Esther who is still in possession of the Six is seen sitting contently in her house, enjoying her birthday, until she hears the music of Mr. Hopp who appears from behind her in the darkness as a worried expression appears on her face. As the credits roll, an image of Esther giving Mr. Hopp to Ruby is shown, with the Entity lurking behind her.

Trivia

 * The game at first was supposed to release on Halloween 2020, then Easter 2021, but was pushed to June 14th. A demo of the game was released on May 29th.
 * This game had a major boost in graphics quality, going for a less realistic style. This is proven when comparing the art to the original game. Even the title character had a major design revamp.