March of the Happy Factory is the fourth act of the game.
Story[]
Scene 25: The Sadness[]
The depressed Bard wakes up in their Mother's house in their hometown, Chismest. The Rainbow Girl appears to them and tries to console them, saying that the Earthsong could work, but never has. She tells the Bard not to give up, and fades away. The Bard gets out of bed and goes outside.
Scene 26: Chismest[]
The Bard is greeted by someone in a Happy Kid costume, who tells them of the newest toy sensation in Chismest, made only at the local factory. The Bard meets up with Miriam on the outskirts of town, who informs them that the spot where they meet is the Nexus Point for Chismest, and the Overseer Song is his mother's lullaby, which the Bard sings. However, the song does not work, due to the pollution coming from the aforementioned factory. The Bard seeks the help of Elara, the local Astronomer, who tells the Bard to gather three others to shut down the factory.
The Bard meets Peter, a Balalaika player, who is depressed by his unrequited love. He asks the Bard to deliver a love letter to the girl standing in front of the factory every day... who turns out to be Miriam. Upon reading the letter, Miriam is disgusted, and angrily writes a reply, re-sealing the letter with a skull sticker. When Peter reads the reply, he claims that it's wonderful that she's agreed to meet him. Peter agrees to help overthrow the factory.
The Bard also meets Winston, a total loner who can't even make friends with a dog that he tries to pet at 9:30 PM. When the Bard brings a plate of food to the dog when Winston comes to pet her, he grabs the plate and feeds it to the dog, befriending it. Winston agrees to help overthrow the factory.
With one more person to find, the Bard speaks to Miriam, who is reluctant to help them. She claims that this was her adventure until the Bard came along and started to do everything for her, even though she's the one with witch magic. The Bard responds, telling her that they felt the same way finding out they weren't the hero. They convince Miriam that the two of them need to do this in order to prove that they aren't useless. She agrees to help.
Scene 27: Workers Unite![]
The Bard and his three cohorts use music to cause disorder within the factory, causing Elmer to send the Bard to the office of The Baron. The Bard and everyone working in the factory tell the Baron that Happy Kid and the factory are not bringing joy as intended. Hearing this, the Baron shuts down the factory immediately and tells everyone to leave. With the sky clear, the Bard proceeds into the spirit world.
Scene 28: Orderscape[]
The Bard makes their way to reach the castle of the Overseer. The Bard's Orderscape consists of many gears and mechanisms, including a device which can change the flow of time according to the notes sung to it.
Scene 29: Order Castle[]
The bard meets the Order Fairy, who schedules an appointment for the Bard to meet Queen Order. After a wait time of one minute and nine seconds, the Bard meets Queen Order, who is not sitting on her throne because the Dream King has occupied it. He says that he is in Order Castle because The Hero came to kill him, so he ran away. Interrupting a conversation between Queen Order and the Dream King, Audrey arrives and kills Queen Order instantly. Before Audrey is able to kill the Dream King, Miriam shows up and begins to battle her. The Bard takes this opportunity to try and convince the Dream King to teach them the Earthsong, but he refuses, as he wishes to survive as long as possible. The Dream King escapes, and Audrey leaves. The Bard retrieves the Earthsong from Queen Order's spirit.
Trivia[]
Miriam playing music with Peter.
- After recruiting Peter, he and Miriam can be found dueting after 8:30 PM.
- From start to finish, Act 4 changed the most during development.
- Initially, Act 4 was supposed to be holiday themed, and the Bard would be cheered up by the holiday spirit.
- Act 4 had inspiration from the time-based elements in Stardew Valley.