- FNAF Movie – What We Know So Far - September 21, 2022
- FNAF Security Breach Blob Guide - September 14, 2022
- Mystery Minis FNAF Guide - September 12, 2022
Moondrop FNAF Guide Five Nights at Freddy’s has never been shy of introducing players to a whole cast of creepers throughout every franchise installment.
We’ve seen an animatronic equivalent for most people’s biggest fears, such as clowns, puppets, and even ballerinas. So when Security Breach was released, it was safe to assume that developers would continue to make players face fears they didn’t even know they had.
Now, I am pretty weak when it comes to playing horror games. FNaF is not excluded from the list of games to make my hair stand on end. But, this doesn’t stop me from wanting to engage with the rich lore the franchise offers.
Finding yourself becoming rapidly obsessed with the characters supposed to terrify you is my number one piece of advice should you want to face your fear, which is precisely what I did! I have played almost every FNaF title to date, so I was genuinely excited to learn about Security Breach. The game seemed to have more than meets the eye from the get-go – even from just seeing the trailer.
Then, of course, we had the new Glamrock animatronics to love. Still, I was more excited to see which gritty characters from the back rooms would be introduced, hence why I became so obsessed with a particular daycare attendant and his multiple forms.
Moondrop in Security Breach
The ninth installment to the Five Nights at Freddy’s franchise, Security Breach, introduced a vast roster of new characters. While there are references to the originals, such as Glamrock Freddy and Glamrock Chica, there are also several new faces for fans to find frightening.
Additionally, due to the expansive map design for the game, there are some seriously huge areas guarded by animatronics, one of which includes a Daycare, which is where we meet the monster that is Moondrop. Security Breach is the only game Moondrop and his counterpart has appeared in. But with the expanding nature of the FNaF franchise and the character’s popularity, it’s hard to believe that it will be his last.
At the beginning of the title and the first encounter with the character, he is confined to residing in the Superstar Daycare center. He uses this area as his safe space and is completely isolated from the other animatronics.
You’ll encounter the character only a handful more times outside of this. One of which, he is seen dragging Glamrock Freddy away in parts and service. It’s a very short cutscene, but it is significant in exploring the character further.
The only additional time you’ll see Moondrop is post 6 AM, where every light in the pizzaplex is out, and every animatronic is on the hunt. The best signifier that Moondrop is near is the effect his presence has on the screen. There’s an audible recognition of the threat through Gregory – who states, “that horrible moon thing is after me again.”
When Moondrop is close, the screen turns a dark blue and becomes speckled with white spots – which I believe is supposed to resemble stars. When you’re in the middle of a high-strung chase, the last thing you need is on-screen distractions. Additionally, a haunting music box-esque tune is in the background, followed by jingling bells. A perfect tell-tale sign that you’re in the eyes of the moon.
It’s safe to say that Moondrop is filled with the same malice as every other Five Nights at Freddy’s animatronic. Despite working so closely with people, he is swift to turn against them. As I’ve already mentioned, Security Breach is the debut of his two-sided character. I would love to see him in future FNaF content, as I find the character utterly fascinating.
I hope the future of Five Nights at Freddy’s explores both sides of this character. With the franchise already being so incredibly rich in its lore, leaving any stone unturned would be a shame. I think that both the sun and moon have a backstory worthy of delving further into. Mainly because of how popular they are, I believe most of the FNaF fanbase would be delighted to experience it.
Moondrop’s Appearance
Moondrop is one of the most intriguing character designs in Five Nights at Freddy’s. Additionally, both versions of the daycare attendant are two of my favorite characters in the entire franchise. I love how haunting yet playful they are, which adds to the fear they instill in me.
To coincide with the playful nature of this character, Moondrop takes on a jester-like appearance. While most other animatronics in Five Nights at Freddy’s: Security Breach isn’t seen wearing clothes, Moondrop (and Sundrop) is an exception.
Although this is more than likely to make their appearance more approachable for children and soft – since they work very hands-on in the daycare, we all know what happened last time a child got too close to a two-ton hunk of metal.
I like to believe that this clothing hides some animatronics design aspects. It’s one of the most complex and underestimated characters in the franchise, and there is more than meets the eye. Starting at the very top of the animatronic, Moondrop wears a dark blue nightcap tipped with a golden bell. Golden stars adorn the entire cap, which matches the design on his incredibly baggy balloon pantaloons.
He’s a very slim animatronic, with the left half of his body being white and the left half the same dark blue as his clothing. Down his arms, which again mirror the slender form of his entire body, have a white into dark blue ombre.
Which leads to his hands, which are ominously humanoid for a robot. Within the game, Moondrop moves his hands in a way I can only describe as ‘before a tickle fight.’ This movement certainly has the same energy and threatening behavior as the moments before a tickle fight. That’s for sure.
One of the things I find most disturbing about these hands is how fluid the movements of the joints are. It’s unlike any animatronic activity I’ve experienced in the FNaF franchise. Additionally, the entire direction of the character is oddly fluid. Rather than walking like the rest of the robotic crew, Moondrop runs around after you, waving his arms and bouncing from one foot to the other.
I find Moondrop’s movements utterly unsettling due to how humanoid they are. Paired with his incredibly slender frame, no matter how hard I try to understand him, there is still something I don’t entirely trust. I know that the pizza plex has an 80s theme while being set in the future, but that still doesn’t explain how a mechanical object can move with such a humanoid personality!
Attached to both wrists are red ribbons and golden bells, much like the bell on the tip of the moon’s nightcap. Unfortunately, it’s never explored why these bells are part of the design, aside from the jester-like appearance. But I have a few ideas about why they were implemented into his design.
While you’re completing the daycare center task in Security Breach, these bells act as an effective tracking mechanism to make sure Moondrop isn’t hot on your tail. Unfortunately, there isn’t any information to state that this tracking mechanism isn’t applied to the animatronic by other characters such as security guards.
Two golden bells also adorn the tip of both shoes, which feature a crescent moon design towards the heel as well. So if you hear the bells getting louder and ringing faster, my only advice is to run. However, the main feature of Moondrop’s design is the mask that gives him the name. It’s almost theatrical in a sense since the features are so emphasized.
Even though the mask is circular, half of it is blacked-out, and the player can see nothing by the red glowing light of one of Moondrop’s eyes. You can see the other half of an incredibly toothy grin in certain lights. Even when this character is upset or angered, this grin never changes.
The left side features a crescent moon design to contradict the blacked-out half of the mask. However, the same red-eye is present, and the smile I mentioned already becomes more visible.
Towards the top of the moon side, a prominent curled eyebrow matches a curl towards the middle of the mask to define the nose. Additionally, there is a separate piece of the mask to mirror a cheek – which emphasizes the intensity of Moondrop’s smile.
Moondrop’s Role in Security Breach
While many fans may refer to Moondrop by his name, he is most commonly referred to as the Daycare Attendant. This references his core role in Five Nights at Freddy’s: Security Breach, operating the Superstar Daycare center. Although it doesn’t take up a lot of map space, the Superstar Daycare is a tiny but terrifying gameplay element. There are three main areas to the daycare center, the entrance hallway, the theatre, and the playpen.
When I first played through Security Breach, I had already anticipated what to expect from the daycare since this animatronic was one of the most popular.
But, nothing could’ve prepared me for the twisted turn of events that occurs as soon as you turn out the lights. When you first encounter the animatronic, he doesn’t take on the form of Moondrop. Instead, this character has a sunny counterpart, but I’ll save all the details for a bit later!
Despite the Daycare Centre attendant being given one job; to protect the children, as soon as you go against him, he’s quick to chase. I found encountering the sun version of this animatronic unsettling; he seemed far too excitable and chipper for a game so heavily based on capturing and harming people.
There’s a considerable lack of trust towards every FNaF animatronic, but I think every player feels that way. I didn’t even trust Glamrock Freddy when I met him – and he’s literally your road to safety!
But the real turn of events happens when you turn off the lights – hence the moon design. Usually, as soon as it’s dark for children, that means bedtime – right? However, with Moondrops design, it’s heavily implied that his role over the sun is to lay you to rest. In quite literally every sense of the term.
I know that turning off the lights is an integral part of the gameplay in Security Breach, but I would if there were a way to avoid it. I love Moondrop’s character, don’t get me wrong. But hearing the distant jingle of bells around his ankles slowly getting closer in a pitch-black daycare center is a timeline of events that will not leave my mind.
It hasn’t been discussed or confirmed as to whether the moon appears when the lights are out or if it’s when the area around him is dark. However, we see Moondrop outside of the Daycare later on in the game when he’s seen harnessed and hanging from the ceiling, swimming after Gregory, which leads me to believe that it’s just when the lights are low.
Moondrop’s Counterparts
As I keep mentioning, Moondrop has a counterpart of a much friendly and approachable animatronic. The ‘sun’ version, or form, is how the animatronic appears at the beginning of the encounter with him. This form is the front-facing personality and will primarily be who Gregory faces every time the lights are on.
Rather than having a blue outfit, Sundrop’s is more orange and yellow. In addition, the eyes change from red to a silvery light, symbolic of the fact that Sundrop’s first intent is not to hurt Gregory.
But once again, the primary design element of this version is the mask. While Moondrop hosts a nightcap and a crescent moon half-mask, Sundrop exchanges the hat for sharp, triangular frills surrounding the entire central mask.
He’s much more willing to speak to Gregory, and feels significantly less ominous. In addition, the Sun’s movement animation is based on a childish skip, while the Moon will scamper around and jump from foot to foot with his hands and arms by either side of his head.
But as well as taking on the form of the Sun, there is one more counterpart to Moondrop’s character, which is arguably the more terrifying side of him. Sure, the Moon packs a serious punch with the fear factor – but on the rare occasion the eclipse side of him shows, that’s when you need to be careful.
The eclipse form of the character is a tiny portion in Security Breach and can only be seen in the Balloon World minigame. So, it isn’t necessarily a form of Moondrop but is still part of his character. I keep saying there needs to be more information published about this character! He’s so underestimated and currently so unknown.
The eclipse variation takes the mask of the sun but darkens the color almost until only the moon side of the mask is visible. The triangular frills rotate and are also darker in color, but the most unsettling part of the design is the eyes and the mouth.
Rather than having a solid color for the eyes, like red for the moon and silver for the sun, they shine a bright yellow and have distinctive black pupils in the center. The grin is toothy, but you can only see an orange light pouring through the cracks in the front of the mask rather than seeing teeth. The silhouette loosely resembles a mouth but is mostly open to interpretation.
Due to his many forms, Moondrop and his counterparts go by a few aliases in Security Breach, so it’s essential to familiarise yourself with each of them – it does get confusing!
So here is every name that this character is referred to as or goes by corresponding to the form that is fronting;
- Moondrop
- Moon Man
- The moon
- Sunnydrop
- Sun Man
- The Sun
- Daycare assistant
- Eclipse
Moondrop’s Hidden Appearances
Since Security Breach was this character’s debut, there are several instances outside the daycare center that introduces Gregory to him before their first meeting. These range from promotional posters to merchandise being sold within the pizzaplex. All of which include both sides to the animatronic as though they are two beings rather than just one.
Firstly, both the sun and moon are used as a face for two candy brands – which may be where he receives the ‘drop’ element to his name. There are two products, one for each side of the animatronic. So you have “Sunnydrop energizing candy” for the sun, contradicting “Moondrop sleepy-time candy.”
In Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted, there is a candy called Moondrop – which may have been a premature hint towards the character’s release. Additionally, the entire animatronic was teased in a trailer for Security Breach, where a poster can be seen advertising the candy alongside the mascot.
While on the topic of these posters, they litter the entire Pizzaplex as an advertisement for the Superstar Daycare. Sure, they aren’t necessarily a secret appearance from the character, but they do introduce Gregory to it before he enters the daycare center for the first time.
Plus, they showcase both sides of the character as the children would’ve seen them while working – rather than the terrifying approach they take to Gregory. Seeing these posters reminded me that there is a world outside of the hellscape where Gregory finds himself, even though it doesn’t feel like it while you’re playing the game!
Finally, both sun and moon are featured in the Balloon World arcade game, alongside the cursed eclipse form. The game is a side-scrolling, 32-bit arcade game with what I like to call ‘Flappy Bird’ mechanics. Unless you’re trying to lose for a specific quest, it’s straightforward to play. In the background of this game, you can see either Sun or Moon in the sky, depending on the time of day.
When you begin to break the game (on purpose – of course), you’ll get to meet the eclipse version of the character. Unfortunately, there isn’t any evidence that this form exists as an animatronic, but I hope it does.
FAQs
Question: Is Moondrop the Same Animatronic as Sundrop?
Answer: Moondrop and Sundrop are assumed to be the same animatronic. Sundrop is the commonly seen version; however, after undergoing a painful transition – you’ll meet Moondrop. Though it’s never explained how exactly this transition takes place, many fans believe it’s some seriously intricate mechanical work.
Question: How Does Moondrop Fly?
Answer: Technically, Moondrop cannot fly. On the back of the animatronic, a hook allows him to be harnessed to the ceiling, which is how he ‘takes to the skies’ to hunt for Gregory.
All of the Glamrock animatronics, except Roxy, have a similar mechanism. How funny would the game be if you looked up and saw Chica swimming through the air towards you? It makes me wonder why they added this feature to their characters and why developers didn’t explore it further in the game.
Question: Why is Moondrop in the Daycare?
Answer: Moondrop was introduced into the Daycare Center to help put the children to sleep at naptime. However, he was swiftly removed after the children found him too scary (I can see why.) This may explain why he feels so adamant about protecting children like Gregory.
Moondrop Fnaf Guide: Summary
Despite Five Nights at Freddy’s being one of the most horrifying indie games, you can’t deny that it has some incredible character design. Moondrop is just one example of how prominent a character from this franchise can be. I have been somewhat obsessed with finding out about him since I first played Security Breach upon its release.
As I’ve mentioned a few times, I am incredibly desperate for more information on why this animatronic acts in such a two-sided way. I hope the developers create something to help me dive further into his lore or include him in the next mainline title.
Out of all of the newest characters introduced in Security Breach, he is the most interesting. I’d even go as far as saying the title wouldn’t be the same without him. It certainly wouldn’t be as terrifying!