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Playcare entrance in Poppy Playtime: Chapter 3
Screenshot by Dot Esports

What is the Prototype in Poppy Playtime?

The mystery behind that mechanical hand.

The Prototype is a dark and mysterious entity whose identity has yet to be revealed in Poppy Playtime. Here’s everything you need to know about the main antagonist in the Poppy Playtime episodic adventure.

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Poppy Playtime: What is Experiment 1006? – The Prototype, explained

A close up of the CatNap shrine with an assortment of toys from Poppy Playtime attached to it to make a large entity
What will his final form be? Image via villains.fandom.com

Experiment 1006 (aka The Prototype) was the original Playtime Co. creation in Poppy Playtime. It’s unknown when Prototype was made, but it’s clear villains like Harley Sawyer (creator of the Bigger Bodies Initiative) want to uncover its “valuable secret.” Having an intellect far beyond other experiments, The Prototype orchestrated The Hour of Joy. This demonstrated his power over other experiments and his determination to escape, showcasing his maturity (being smarter and older than Playcare’s orphans). The Prototype would preserve the lives of lost toys, whose bodies fused with his mechanical skeleton.

Mommy Long Legs getting caught in Poppy Playtime Chapter 2
Toys are preserved by The Prototype. He won’t let them die. Screenshot by Dot Esports

The Prototype watches you throughout each chapter, but it isn’t until Deep Sleep that he starts taking matters into his own hands. A passive observer, everything Prototype does is for his own personal gain. 1006 took the voice of Ollie, an innocent voice that helped The Player get through Deep Sleep. The theory that Ollie and Experiment 1006 were one and the same was confirmed at the end of Safe Haven.

The Prototype takes what remains of defeated monsters in each chapter and is likely adding them to its appearance. In the final Poppy Playtime chapter, The Prototype will likely be an amalgamation of monsters you defeated (its appearance hinted at in CatNap’s shrine). Even Mommy Long Legs feared her fate at the end of Fly in a Web with “WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?! HE’LL MAKE ME PART OF HIM! YOU… CAN’T… DO THIS TO ME!”

With only a giant metal claw to work with, The Prototype’s full body has never been revealed. However, Safe Haven showed his spidery legs, giving us a taste of what’s to come in the next chapter.

Poppy Playtime: Who is the Prototype?

Poppy and Kissy Missing looking through a hole in the wall at a shadow of spider-like legs moving down the corridor
He has the freedom to move around Playtime’s deepest, darkest sectors. Screenshot by Dot Esports

While we have confirmation that The Prototype is Ollie, this is simply him showing off his mimicking skills. Ollie did exist at one point, likely before The Hour of Joy. He then copied his voice to get close to Poppy, becoming her friend and staying by her side for a decade. But is there more to The Prototype’s story?

The main theory surrounding Experiment 1006 is that The Prototype is Elliot Ludwig, the founder of Playtime Co. Both characters are fond of children. With the creation date of Experiment 1006 still unknown, Ludwig likely created this entity to research poppy gel and come up with a way to resurrect his daughter.

We’re all aware that Ludwig passed away sometime in the 1980s. This could point to The Prototype mimicking Ludwig (the same way he pretended to be Ollie and how he uses Sawyer’s words to manipulate experiments). 1006 was likely tortured by Ludwig, considering the experiments originated from him. He then mimicked Ludwig’s nature (to care for children) and possibly torturous behavior (nefarious acts on the experiments). 1006 then adopted Ludwig’s attitude; its intelligence grew the more it learned.

Watching the Untitled Tape with Poppy on the screen, talking about The Prototype
Conditioned to fear. Screenshot by Dot Esports

Safe Haven confirms a theory regarding Poppy. In the Untitled Tape, we learn Poppy is Ludwig’s daughter. Either he transferred her into Poppy Playtime to extend her life because she was dying from a terminal illness, or he actually figured out how to resurrect and grant immortality (these are theories with little evidence to back them however). What we know for certain is that Poppy is Ludwig’s daughter, but what about that young boy found eviscerated in his house at the time of Ludwig’s passing?

This theory points to Ludwig extending his life via The Prototype. His behavior turned more reclusive towards the end of his life as he spent most of his time at the factory. He was clearly involved with helping create the Bigger Bodies Initiative, but could Experiment 1006 truly be him?

Looking at Poppy and a scared Kissy Missy in the corner as The Prototype talks to Poppy on the phone
Why does Poppy want the flower? Screenshot by Dot Esports

If 1006 was truly Elliot Ludwig then why is Poppy so afraid of him? We know he put Poppy inside a glass container for 10 years, which would make anyone terrified. He threatened to put her back in, manipulating her to leave her friends, Kissy Missy and The Player (just like she did in The Hour of Joy). But why would her own father treat her like this and put her in the longest time-out mankind’s ever known? The Untitled Tape confirms Poppy knew and understood the experiments would be better off with The Prototype because the alternative would be letting them die. She ends the tape saying, “I wish you were here dad.” This means if 1006 is Ludwig, then Poppy has no idea.

The Prototype says to Poppy in Safe Haven‘s ending, “It’s always been about you and me, Poppy. What we ARE. It’s not a truth that can be burnt away. Not when it can mean so much more.” Does he mean family?

I still believe Ollie is the voice, The Prototype is the body, and Ludwig is the mind. There are too many similarities between the three characters, but is this his true identity, or does 1006 simply believe the lies he’s telling?

The many voices of Experiment 1006

Huggy Wuggy smiling on a tv in Poppy Playtime: Chapter 3
Can we trust anything we hear? Screenshot by Dot Esports

It’s difficult piecing together what we know about The Prototype. Looking into the voice production in Deep Sleep‘s credits, we see seven voice actors listed as The Prototype. These are recurring actors, too, who voice important characters we’ve already met. Here are the voice actors for 1006 and their other roles in Deep Sleep:

  • Elijah Deloney: Voice of DogDay and KickinChicken cut-outs.
  • Nola Klop: Voices Poppy Playtime and Stella.
  • Eric True: Voice on the Nightmare Tape.
  • Avalon Delaney: Voices Miss Delight.
  • Baldwin Williams Jr.: Voices DogDay and most importantly, Harley Sawyer (The Doctor).
  • Micah Preciado: Voice of Huggy Wuggy and Bubba Bubbaphant cut-outs.

I could be overreaching, but what always seemed weird to me was the cardboard cut-outs that you can interact with in every chapter. Could these be hinting at what happened to each character? CatNap breathing, the Smiling Critters screaming, and Mommy Long Legs’ static recording; it’s almost telling us these recordings are their current status or final recording. We know The Prototype is capable of recording audio (or mimicking) and playing it back, so is that what the cut-outs are? Huggy Wuggy’s cut-out still plays and we saw at the end of Safe Haven that he’s still alive after all this time, this strengthens the theory.

The sheer number of voices for 1006 tells us that not everything we’re hearing is real. We can’t fully rely on what we see either as we’re impacted by the red poppy smoke. But, every time we hear a voice or watch a tape, it begs the question, is the narrative we’re being fed orchestrated purely by The Prototype?


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