Amanda the Adventurer centers around Riley and her aunt Kate, who passed away (approximately eight months prior to the events of the first game), leaving a house full of mysteries and cursed tapes of a forgotten TV show as Riley’s inheritance. Curious, Riley started watching old recordings of the show left in Kate’s attic, only to find there’s something nefarious going on with its leading stars.
Able to communicate with their transfixed watchers, Amanda and Wooly hypnotize their young audience, who disappear following prolonged exposure to the show. The tapes were teaching children adult themes that parents would be wary and suspicious of. The show stripped away parental authority, manipulated the viewer, and divided families.
With Amanda the Adventurer 3 confirmed, you probably need a refresher on the strange and complex lore this series delivers. So here is everything you should know about Amanda the Adventurer before the third and final game releases in 2025.
Amanda the Adventurer Story As We Know It
A thorough investigation in Kate Park’s attic shows she was researching Hameln and the cursed show, having contacted Amanda, where she developed a fondness for her. Jordan Cook was one of many missing kids that was obsessed with the show. His sister, Joanne, worked with Kate to investigate the tapes in hopes that she could find and free her brother. There were behavioral complaints at Jordan’s school before he disappeared, showcasing the negative effect the show had on him and other children.
There isn’t anything significant in the tapes Riley watched in the first game, aside from Amanda “killing” Wooly towards the end of the game. However, we get a hint that Amanda (or someone she knows) is rotting, “but it’s far away.” The main takeaway from the first game is that there’s a monster connected to the tapes with similar features to Amanda. Are they one and the same?
Another missing child was Lauren, last seen watching an Amanda episode on her birthday before suddenly vanishing when her mom turned the camera away. The television has a unique grasp on our reality and is able to manipulate it, as seen with puzzle-related objects appearing and disappearing around Riley. The show can bridge the gap between both realms for the child to cross over to the show by transforming any door into a gateway.
The secret tapes in the first game reveal Rebecca communicated with something only she could hear (telepathic control?), following a repeated sequence: Bye Yell, Pie Man, and Baa Lamb. Amanda the Adventurer appears to be fragments of Amanda’s memories, perhaps based on her real life with her father. A glimpse into the fractured memories, flashes of rotten flesh, operating lights, and figures occasionally pop up before the show’s title screen.
The first game concludes with Riley breaking the tape and a Masked Figure appearing behind her. This is Joanne Cook. She wants to destroy the remaining tapes and takes Riley to Kensdale Public Library (the setting of Amanda the Adventurer 2). Riley continues investigating the tapes, where we see more of Amanda’s monster. Wooly returns and he’s perfectly fine, as if Amanda has tried to get rid of him before, but keeps failing.
Unlike the first game, however, Amanda’s patience for Wooly has worn thin, but she’s not as aggressive as she was before. She seems defeated, like a part of her was destroyed with the tape in Kate’s attic. Hints of Amanda remembering her past and real identity appear, but are quickly silenced by Wooly, who acts like a villain this time around. As Amanda doesn’t remember properly, should we take everything she says as gospel, or has she been conditioned to believe these as facts? The only true thing we know is that Amanda liked Kate.
Amanda the Adventurer 2 wraps up with Joanne being killed by a monster (Amanda in the default ending, Wooly in the secret ending) after destroying a tape, where a light releases from the film. This references one of the most important quotes in the game, said by the Meatman: “Close your eyes. Count down from ten. You may feel this pinch. We at Hameln believe every child has a light within.” If Joanne is killed by Wooly, you can faintly hear Amanda screaming for him to stop, right before the credits roll. Amanda’s monster killed Joanne swiftly while Wooly tortured her, giving Joanne an excruciating death.
Kate’s house is then burned down and Riley is told to run as Joanne takes the fall after blaming herself for Kate’s death. She gives her one last tape and Riley retreats into the hatch behind Kate’s office. The third game will investigate the underground facility, likely being the holding place for Rebecca, Sam, and perhaps other missing kids like Jordan. The problem with this is that everything Riley has gone through has felt like she, too, is being lured like every other kid who watched the show. Does Riley have any autonomy in this situation, or are we too falling for a trap, led by Amanda, and orchestrated by Hameln?
There’s also the mystery of how an underground facility was built under the library without Kate’s knowledge. We know she was investigating Hameln and the occult, so did she somehow not know an entire facility was built underneath her workplace? Something is off here. Kate’s final words, recorded on a cassette player, reveal that everyone who investigated Hameln died trying to destroy the tapes.
Amanda the Adventurer Origin Story
Amanda the Adventurer was a children’s television programme created by Sam Colton in 2001, starring his adopted daughter, Rebecca, as the lead star. Although the pair had just moved to a new neighborhood, Sam’s show quickly became a hit and spread throughout the town like wildfire. Picked up by Kensdale Public Library (the same place Kate worked), Amanda the Adventurer quickly became a sought-after product. Reading stories to kids at the library, Sam and Kate would plug the television show, and later be approached by a Hameln representative.
Sam and Rebecca suspiciously disappeared in 2002. Secret tapes showed Rebecca at (estimated) five years old, signing a contract without an adult or guardian present. We have confirmation that Rebecca was transported into the show, who became Amanda’s voice and body. It appears that only her soul was transported, however, as Rebecca was shown in one of the secret tapes—unconscious inside a facility with hazardous containers nearby and electrical equipment.
Seemingly in an induced coma, kept alive by dialysis, Rebecca’s consciousness was placed inside the show. But what for? Other children disappeared off the face of the Earth, yet Rebecca’s body remains severed from her “light” (soul).
We know Amanda is petrified of the Meatman, who we’re sure is the lead Hameln surgeon that performed surgery to put Rebecca’s mind in the show. Any mention of the butchers scares Amanda, where the face of the Meatman is distorted and wrong, demonstrating her fuzzy memories and how this experience traumatized her. In her young mind, this man cutting children up for the “incisions” manifested as the Meatman (or butcher).
14 years had passed since the Colton’s disappearance, where Riley’s story began. This would now make Rebecca between 18-20 years old. The question arises whether the monster we see is of a malnourished and warped version of Rebecca, or if they are something undead brought to life with Rebecca’s soul. Ritualistic imagery of Wooly and Amanda being an amalgamation of an all-knowing and all-powerful being implies both characters are connected and a part of something bigger.
What We Know About Hameln: Past and Symbolism
Hameln is the evil production company and overarching antagonist of the story. The perfect façade, Hameln picked up Amanda the Adventurer to brainwash children into ignoring their parents. The company is said to be a group that was active in the Middle Ages. The logo and name of the company link directly to the Pied Piper, set in Hamelin, Germany. In the tale, the Pied Piper promised to rid the town of rats, but he lured children instead when the residents refused to pay him for his troubles. The show follows a similar format, punishing parents by stealing away their children. But we don’t have confirmation on what exactly happened to the missing children.
We theorize they have some part to play in the show, but when it’s centered around Amanda and Wooly, the missing children’s roles are minuscule. These are likely the googly eyes you see across the set; a breathing barn, pulsating bacon, and rolling bread—all sporting wide, terrified eyes. One of the endings in Amanda the Adventurer shows Riley turning into meat in the butcher’s, confirming that anything with googly eyes is alive. It looks like the child has to promise to help Amanda or accept an invitation to be pulled into the cartoonish world.
The googly eyes theory would also link to the Masked Figure’s appearance, revealed to be Joanne, who covers her eyes. Clearly, the tapes have powers beyond comprehension that can go into the material realm to take things (children or eyes). After all, eyes are the window to the soul.
We theorize Joanne purposely covered her eyes so she couldn’t be hypnotized. Maybe your attention is all Hameln needs to tuck you away inside some dark corner of the show. In more secret tapes, Kate, Caroline (whose family spent years investigating an ancient cult), and Peter turned the television screen to face the wall after something bad happened to their last group member, David. Clearly, they were paranoid, but could they be onto something?
There is also symbolism of the animals in Amanda the Adventurer, but we’re not sure how relevant they are to the story. The lamb is obedient, submissive, and innocent, which perfectly describes Wooly’s surface-level character. Also described as a scapegoat, Wooly could be a pawn we’re led to believe is far worse than he actually is. Meanwhile, the opossum represents wisdom and surprise, which strengthens his link to Jordan. Sadly, Joanne will never know if the opossum is her brother, as she was recognized only by her voice coming through the walkie-talkie.
Where Are the Coltons?
It is confirmed that Rebecca is Amanda, but who she was is long forgotten as a decade has passed since she was first confined. Brainwashed, coerced, and controlled, it’s clear Rebecca now believes the fabricated world she lives in is reality. With Wooly keeping her in check, we have to wonder if he’s protecting Rebecca, Riley, or himself. Sam, on the other hand, is implied to be dead, but the games haven’t confirmed this yet.
There are links to Sam and Wooly with the secret tape of Wooly’s Herd of Mouth show that never aired, and Sam’s Read-a-Thons he held at Kinsdale Library. Sam was kept prisoner by Hameln, where he had to record messages to send to Rebecca, as he wasn’t allowed to see her. We presume Sam attempted his escape but got caught.
What Are the Monsters?
We are no closer to figuring out exactly what the monsters are, but Amanda the Adventurer 3 will have answers, as this is the final game in the series. What we have learned, however, is that Wooly is also a monster and Amanda is scared of him. This is very different from the Wooly and Amanda we see in the show. Both creatures are multi-eyed humanoid monsters that can only communicate in animalistic wails. They are very aggressive and seem to be controlled by their television counterpart.
There have been many links to ancient evil deities with Bael, Paimon, Baalam, Belial, Mara, and Iblis; the last three being mentioned by Kate’s group in their secret recordings. The scariest part of these recordings is knowing everyone involved died, likely at the hands of Hameln. The group noticed sigils grew more frequent in later episodes, which Kate noted would be required for “energy transfers” (moving energy from one place to another).
These demons are linked to delusions, control, luring the “wicked” and “worthless” into a web, far from what we know to be reality. This world would best describe the television show—that steals souls and replaces them with demonic entities. But why would Hameln want this? The idea of Hameln taking a deal with the devil would imply the show took off, giving them fortune and popularity, but this never truly happened.
Amanda the Adventurer Theories
As we don’t have confirmation, the strongest theory that’ll likely be confirmed in the final game is that the opossum is Jordan. I also think Jordan was the young boy in the tape where Sam is approached by a Hameln rep. The best evidence for Jordan being the opossum is him recognizing Joanne’s voice and trying to call out her name in the Do You Feel Safe? tape.
The opossum was mischievous and confused a lot of the time, causing havoc on Amanda’s adventures. I think this is because he doesn’t know where he is and is trying to get help, asking the only other person who can walk and talk in the show—Amanda. Jordan isn’t meant to be in the show, which is obvious because of Amanda and Wooly’s confusion whenever the opossum appears. So, how did Jordan get a body when other kids are trapped as googly-eyed inanimate objects?
We have confirmation that Kate died in a car crash, but how did the tape get inside her office without being planted by someone else? Surely this means someone murdered Kate and staged the scene so they could take her body? There is a chance (albeit small) that Kate is still alive. We don’t know if Kate’s body was ever uncovered, but Riley knew at the start of the first game that her aunt had died because she sent her a letter to play the tapes.
But what of Sam? I believe he escaped from his confinement after hearing Hameln authorization code and tried to leave the facility, and searched for Rebecca along the way. Amanda mentioned a “trap,” where imagery with a dead fox and an imprisoned cat was often shown in the first game, alongside buried clothes in the second. A popular theory is that Wooly is an antagonist, being a wolf in sheep’s clothing, which is appropriate for his monstrous appearance at the end of Amanda the Adventurer 2. But I still believe Wooly is Sam.
The trap mentioned in the first game may have been about Sam being tricked into believing he could escape, where his body was disposed of in the woods, but his mind was extracted and placed in the show. Wooly appears beside Amanda at all times, but she doesn’t want him there. She used to trust Wooly and Sam, clearly feeling betrayed by both. If Sam is Wooly, he didn’t get the same treatment as Rebecca. This would make his mind fractured, but he’d be aware enough to know and take care of Amanda, creating an overly protective character with murderous tendencies. Rebecca also wouldn’t recognize her dad if he’s her co-star.
I believe Riley is being lured by Amanda, who is fulfilling her role as the Pied Piper; much like Sam and Kate unknowingly did when they brought children to the library and told them to watch the show. I think the third game will reveal Hameln wants Riley to become the third and final sacrifice to complete whatever ritual the company had planned years ago. Amanda and Wooly are trapped inside the tapes, yet their monster counterparts aren’t free either. They are seemingly attached to the show by an invisible cord, caught in the web. Maybe Riley is the final sacrificial pawn for the demons to roam free.
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