**Disclaimer, this is just a theory. I am in no way saying this is what he should do or alluding to the idea that I know what he's planning. This is just a thought I had while trying to sleep, then woke up in a cold sweat. This rant is just me overanalyzing EVERYTHING.I just thought I'd share it with y'all because I never care enough about some media to theorize about it, let alone a fan made fnaf parody channel lmao. Anyway, bear with me here, as this is very far fetched and based on a possibly, and very likely forgotten detail. Do NOT bother Eth about this.*

**Also, to clarify, this rant is about EthGoesBOOM’s channel au specifically, not cannon fnaf. Please do not get the two mixed up, they are very different. If you don't know who that is, be sure to check him out on YouTube!*

So I was rewatching old EGB videos just for funzies and noticed something about Springtrap (well, many things, but that's a different rant lol). During the video, FOXY PLAYS: Jolly 2 (Night 2), we see a very touching scene between Springtrap and JJ, where he essentially tells her his life story. The key factor I’d like to pinpoint, is he mentions this so-called “bad thing” inside him, making him do bad things when JJ asks him outright why he isn’t attacking her. 

This version of Springtrap is very interesting to me, not just for nostalgia or him being my favorite fnaf character, but because of the personality he has. Yeah, he's crazy. Yeah, he’s a killer. Yeah, he’s hilarious. What I mean is he has these odd moments of clarity periodically throughout the channel’s run where he (at least says) he regrets what he did. Obviously, this means next to nothing, but it’s still interesting for him to actually say aloud. In one video, SPRINGTRAP PLAYS: Dark Deception, he’s given a task by the main witch lady npc in-game, where the reward for success (and I imagine beating the game) is a wish. He stops and thinks about what his wish would be, eventually saying that he’d want to undo all the horrible things he’s done. This is interesting to me, because of all the things he could have said that’d still be in character; wanting to be free, wanting his family back, infinite power idk, etc, he says that very specific thing. 

Now, one would say (cough cough Goldie), would say he’s lying, trying to gain sympathy, manipulate the viewer,or even manipulate the other animatronics. However, looking at other instances that I’ll be getting into shortly, I don’t think that’s the case. Not at this time, at least. I feel like if he were, he wouldn’t have said so in a “private” let's play. I feel like a manipulator would make a bigger show of it, maybe having a moment with the others in one of those scenes that the channel is known for. Sure, the animatronics watch each other's videos, and surely Springtrap knows this. From a storytelling standpoint, however, this would be an odd choice to convey that. 

What's especially interesting to me is that Springtrap has had a moment like this before his reformation arch even started. Years ago, a fever-dream-esqe video was released, SPRINGTRAP PLAYS: The Littlest Penguin (I can’t believe I remember when this came out). Now, this video had played in my head a couple times, and I honestly thought I dreamt it up in my 14-year-old-girl fnaf phase, but low and behold, there it was. I revisited this video mostly because I felt like watching this little nutcase absolutely DESTROY some digital penguins, and frankly, I recalled it being rather comical. But, Springtrap even says in this video that he should “just stop,” when referring to his bloodlust and urges to kill the others. He chooses this game specifically so it’ll “set him straight” and “he knows it,” so this man was chasing redemption even before he even met JJ. Also, Eth himself mentioned this video in a recent live stream on his separate, Aussie King channel, calling it “weird” (wonder what that's about 👀) which also reminded me of that opening scene.

He could also just be delusional. In fact, one could argue this by bringing up his beloved axe, Tracy. He treated this axe like she was alive, long before she actually was, referring to her by name and with female pronouns, getting VERY aggravated if something were to happen to her, see SPRINGTRAP PLAYS: Bendy and The Ink Machine – Chapter 2 for a good example. He was distraught for a bit, and mind you, this was a digital axe in a separate video game that was most definitely not Tracy, and (assuming Springtrap recorded that in the office), she was in his safe room, totally fine, without a care in the world. Assuming he was IN the saferoom, she was likely lying right next to him. Yet, the mere idea of something happening to her made him that upset. Again, he did this long before she was given life. This could point to him simply being delusional.

However, to argue directly against that point, all the Tracy shenanigans happened after a very key point in Springtrap’s identity; the Saferoom. He was locked in the Saferoom for 30 years, alone, in solitary confinement. Now, it’s a very commonly known fact that solitary confinement is not kind to the human brain, nor really any living thing. An article by PBS summarizes a study where a group of people were (voluntarily) placed in solitary confinement, and were meant to be observed over the course of 6 weeks. However, the article states that none of the participants lasted longer than 7 days. Source; https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/what-does-solitary-confinement-do-to-your-mind/

With this in mind, one can only imagine what 30 years would do to someone’s psyche, especially if they were already a bit crooked. While pre-life-given Tracy was most definitely due to delusions, what about everything before it?

The reason I bring all this up is that these switches between being a crazed serial killer, to him just being crazy, then to him falling into a depressive, remorseful state when recalling everything he’s done-- it gives us (the viewer) a clearer sight on who this character is. Now, it’s possible he’s just a bipolar sociopath, in fact he probably is even in this universe. I just keep thinking about that “bad thing” Springtrap referred to in the Jolly 2 video, and I believe he did again later on, but I can’t recall exactly where. 

So how about I get to my theory already, huh? In the latest arch (unrelated to Springtrap’s character), the EGB Security Breach playthrough, we’re introduced to a new-ish antagonist; that being Glitchtrap (I’d like to state a reminder to the reader that this plot is not canon, and is not even pretending to be so). In this arch, Glitchtrap “hacks” Freddy Fazbear, doing god knows what, before using him as a vessel to get into the SB game itself. My theory, in a nutshell, is… what if that “bad thing” inside Springtrap, was Glitchtrap this whole time? Or, at least a much less powerful version of him? Wouldn’t that be a twist. 

Far fetched, I know. Probably bullshit, too. But, we don’t know EGB’s Springtrap’s motives yet. For anything. All his personal arc has been about revenge, then about redemption. What would be the odds? We don’t even hear his backstory when he explains to JJ, but judging by her reaction, it’s tragic. There are a few reasons we don’t hear exactly what he said to her; 1) it’s gonna be a big reveal later, 2) it’s really close to what we as a fandom knew as cannon back then, and therefore from a storytelling standpoint, there was no reason to recite it, or 3) Eth didn’t feel like monologing in Springtrap’s voice (or perhaps some combination of those). 

For the sake of a counter argument, Glitchtrap didn’t exist when Afton was alive. Or did he? We don’t actually know what Glitchtrap is yet, or where he came from. It’s safe to say, judging by how this arch has gone thus far (Nov 2024), he  has no direct ties to William Afton, and in turn, no correlation to Springtrap. Glitchtrap is just referred to as “The Anomaly.” Of course, we don’t know he’s not tied to him. Golden Freddy even assumes Springtrap had something to do with it, making him play a segment of the game (Security Breach), to "fix it."

It could be a time travel situation, where some event happens and Springtrap is no longer on good terms with the other animatronics, so created Glitchtrap somehow and sent him back to do something, but what would he have to gain from that? It’d completely screw up the timeline, and it’s time travel rule #1. My theory is, Glitchtrap is just a manifestation of some other evil thing, though I couldn’t even begin to guess what. Maybe he IS a manifestation of Afton, somehow, involving Remnant. We. Don’t. Know. 

Maybe modern tech has allowed him to have more of a body, so to speak. Maybe that’s what he wanted from Afton. He’d be the perfect target. It’s safe to say, Mr. Afton was never right in the head, in any fan-made adaptation. Whatever countless disorders this man has, mixed with the grief of losing his daughter, or his marriage, or whatever else he had when he was alive being ripped away from him, would make him easy pickings for something more malicious. Under a promise of bringing his family back, and on top of that, making them immortal, it'd be all Afton would want in the heat of the moment, especially with the wounds still fresh and spilled blood still warm. Even if not directly approached by the Anomaly like Freddy was, maybe it influenced his mind some other way. Maybe it’s his involvement with Remnant, couldn’t help but notice that Springtrap mentioned it in his video of Security Breach, during one of the Princes Quest games. Maybe that's what Glithctrap is in this AU, again, we don’t know anything yet. Regardless, Glitchtrap would need a vessel, Afton would’ve been both that, and grant him eventual access to advanced tech to get whatever it is he wants. 

But then, Afton got springlocked. He died. Then he rotted for 30 years, either the Anomaly leaving him dead because now his vessel was useless, or it stayed with him, influencing his mind and how he thinks, eventually leading to Springtrap escaping the pizzeria, and moving forward with what's now known as the Fazbear Massacre (EGB FNaF 3 playthrough). But Springtrap was bested, each night growing more and more irritated, until on the final night as a last resort, setting the building ablaze with both him, and Golden Freddy still inside. They both lived. More importantly, Golden Freddy lived. That was it, Springtrap failed. By now, maybe, the Anomaly was fed up with him. He got whatever he wanted, anything more would be overkill at best, and a waste of valuable time at worst. This explains the sudden lack of bloodlust after the initial bitter taste of defeat subsided, and leading to the feeling of that “bad thing” being just… gone. Then it just stayed gone for years. I’m no criminologist, but that’s not really how serial killers work. This is when the previously mentioned Jolly 2 playthrough took place. This is when the arch I’ve been calling “That One Christmas” occurred. There was no trace of the bloodlust, the urge to kill, and he sure had his opportunities. He was cooking with Toy Freddy, in a kitchen, full of knives and other sharp/pointy things that could be used to dismantle an animatronic. He sat alone with JJ for presumably hours, and not once did he feel like attacking her. She even brought this up in the video.

We know about the shock collar he’s made to wear while out of the Saferoom, would that be a strong enough deterrent? It didn’t seem like that collar was the only thing stopping him, he had no hint of malice in his voice, and was actually very meek about it. This is very out of character for him, to be soft-spoken and polite. The question is, where did that Killer in him go? How could it have just disappeared? For 7 YEARS? 

We first see very very little glimpses of Springtrap still, in fact, being a killer. In his video published on Sept. 16, 2019, SPRINGTRAP PLAYS: The Fazbear Massacre Demo, a fangame made about the channel’s previously mentioned FNAF 3 playthrough. Less than a month’s time later, on Oct 7, Glitchtrap makes his first appearance in the video THE ANIMATRONICS PLAY: FNaF Help Wanted pt. 40. It just so happened that Springtrap started to show signs of relapse right before Glitchtrap's introduction.

Now suddenly, what's odd is, Springtrap seems to be getting restless. After 7 long years, he's gotten himself all riled up. Has the Anomaly given him a taste for blood, a real addiction to the kill and he’s simply going through withdrawal? In the video, “Springtrap Gets Ready for the Entity’s Relm in Dead by Daylight” he calls this restlessness exactly as such; withdrawal. Makes perfect sense, honestly. 7 years is a long time, for a killer. Has his mind been programmed to crave the kill, like it were a drug? Is it really withdrawal? 

Or, even worse, now that Springtrap is on better terms with the others, they’ve all got their guard down thinking Glitchtrap is gone, or just being generally distracted---  after being defeated himself, what if now the Anomaly is trying to recapture Afton’s mind? In the same way it did before; subtly. Afton's too proud to follow orders, he'd have to think it was his own will. He'd never obey Glitchtrap like Freddy did. Or would he?

**This isn't saying Afton is innocent, far from it, he's never been right in the head. He's always been a sadistic POS, putting his own needs before others. He's either a sociopath or a psychopath, can't tell exactly which. This is why he would be so susceptible to influence. A part of him might already have been considering his options, it's possible he was fooling around with remnant before the killings even crossed his mind. This wouldn't  be the first time someone's had the idea of Glitchtrap being responsible for the murders, I'm not claiming to be original or anything lol.*

**This isn't supposed to be me trying to defend him, just a thought I had. Now, it’s a stretch for sure, and I’m probably reading into it too much (almost definitely I am, it’s very late rn), but this is all just a fun idea I had and then couldn’t shake. I felt like I HAD to put this out there and tell SOMEONE or else I’d be the one going BOOM. So, thoughts?*

**To reiterate, this is just a theory. It holds no grounds over the channel or Eth’s plots, this is all just a monologue on this funny little thing I noticed and then couldn’t get rid of, this is for entertainment purposes only, Eth almost certainly knows where he's going with all this already, do NOT bother him about this. And feel free to add to it or point out if I've missed anything!*

TL;DR: Springtrap might not be the mastermind behind everything that's happened. In fact, it's almost more likely that he isn't. Someone a bit more influential might be responsible for it all, someone Golden Freddy and the other more powerful animatronics didn't even know existed until recently.