I think I’ve just discovered a new level. It certainly doesn’t look like anything else in the M.E.G.’s database—or anything I’ve ever seen.
Looks like the first available slot is Level 32, so that’s what I’ll call this place. That would make this… the 32nd 33rd level. Keep forgetting about Level 0 screwing up the whole numbering system.
Anyway, it looks like a bunch of big cities. Kind of like Level 11, but it’s inhabited. Not by humans, though—by entities. There’s humans—actual humans—everywhere. There’s also Facelings, but they look harmless—even the kids. They behave like normal humans—some of them are even walking dogs (of course, from where I’m standing they could just as easily be Hounds).
The entire place is crowded, and, if you gave the residents of the cities faces, it would look just like any other place in the Frontrooms. Except, somehow, the more I go into the level, the more futuristic it seems. Almost as if Level 11 and Level 15 had a baby. I’ve been keeping my distance, trying to stay away from the cities, out of fear that there’s some sort of hidden danger, but I’ve seen enough to know that this place is safe.
The whole thing… it’s beautiful, more beautiful than anything I’ve ever seen. When night comes, it lights up with these shimmering lights… it’s truly wonderful. I’ve got a picture of it—found it on a bench. Strangely, the photo seems to show the city underwater. Strange. Got many more photos of the actual cities on my phone, but it’s dead.
It’s so peaceful and quiet here. Nothing to distract or hurt me—no hostile entities from what I can see. Maybe this truly is paradise, the diamond in the rough of the Backrooms. Maybe I should go down and check out the entire place, and actually go into the city. Perhaps this will be my new home.
Welcome to the future!
Welcome to the future…
Level 32 is the 33rd level of the Backrooms.
General Description
Level 32, better known as “What Happened Here?” or “The Future”, is a large area of land resembling a large plain with a lake in the center, with decaying infrastructure (buildings, roads, canals, etc.) scattered throughout it. Like most other levels in the Backrooms, Level 32 seems to be infinite in size, though, notably, it can easily be divided up into “zones” based on the absence or presence of certain infrastructure, which will be discussed shortly.
Most of Level 32 appears to be an extremely flat arid plain, rarely broken up by small patches of dead trees or overgrown farmland irrigated by small canals. Although the level is not very hot (the average temperature is around 80 degrees fahrenheit or 26 degrees celcius), there is a major lack of water in most of it. Though one might think that they could simply drink from the canals, most of them are dry and the water which is present in some of them is extremely tainted by fertilizer, sewage, and other pollutants and is unsafe to drink. The only safe source of drinking water in the level is a large lake in its “center”.[1] Food is rather hard to find here, and often comes in the form of canned goods one can scavenge from the buildings throughout the level.
The buildings and canals themselves are at the core of the great mystery surrounding Level 32. Although most levels with such structures are often chaotic and laid out in a way which makes little sense, the infrastructure on Level 32 is extremely orderly (aside from being in various states of decay), non-anomalous (unlike Level 11), and is mostly designed in a way that makes sense. As a result, many have theorized that Level 32 was once inhabited by either humans or some other being/race of beings, who built the infrastructure before abandoning the level or dying out. However, no trace of these “builders” has ever been found.
The level has a day/night cycle, complete with stars,[2] extremely similar to the one in the Frontrooms, along with a similar weather cycle. However, rain rarely falls in the level, with clouds simply passing over it no matter how dark they appear. The level is extremely dry, although rarely humid days can come.
The following is an in-depth report on the “zones” of the level, created as a result of years of research.
Zone 1: The Lake
The lake in the center of Level 32 resembles a normal lake one would find on Earth, being filled with regular freshwater and ringed with sandy beaches. However, it is extremely large for an ordinary lake, and has an area of about 20 square miles. It is roughly circular, with some of its shores (particularly those with cities on them) having concrete piers extending into it and seawalls, along with structures seemingly designed to weaken waves before they reach the shore. Interestingly, the waves on the lake themselves are far too weak to warrant the existence of such structures.
Interestingly, the farther one goes into the lake from any direction, the more the depth increases. Though this might seem like a normal characteristic of a lake, the increase in Level 32’s lake’s depth is exponential and seems to never end, giving the lake (if viewed somehow from the side) the appearance of a bottomless funnel, with the “tube” in the center. It is currently unknown if there is a bottom, or, if there is, just how far down it could be. It is unlikely that the “bottom”, if it exists, will ever be reached due to the limitations of M.E.G. technology. Such an expedition would likely require a type of submarine which has yet to be found in or enter the Backrooms, and transporting it to Level 32 would be extremely difficult.
Although material found in some of the cities suggests that there are fish (or at least a Backrooms version) in the lake, current expeditions suggest that there is no life in the lake whatsoever. It is dead and empty, with little to suggest otherwise. The sole exception is a series of skyscrapers constructed underwater near the lake’s center resembling modern office or apartment buildings. Any attempts to enter them have failed, and little is known about them, including what they are made of, how they were built and why (if they were built by humans or some other being at all), and even how tall they are (the bottom of the lake at this point is beyond the range of SCUBA gear).
The lakebed seems to be mostly made out of stone, clay, and sand, with what appear to be pieces of metal scattered throughout it. While many of them appear to be mostly pure “nuggets” (rare finds, certainly, making their common presence here interesting), there are also large sheets, I-beams, what appear to be boat hulls, and more scattered across the lakebed. Where these came from is unknown, though it is believed that they are not part of the natural state of the level due to how the lakebed seems to be disturbed around them.
Zone 2: The Cities
The area between the lake and an area about 5 miles away from it is essentially one large metropolis (though there are clear divisions between parts of it), all completely abandoned. Large, empty skyscrapers pierce the sky, most of them over 100 stories tall. Empty shops line the streets, though, notably, many of them appear as if they were open for business (complete with spoiled food on counters). The names of many shops, restaurants, and other businesses interestingly seem to be corrupted versions of or exact copies of Frontrooms businesses (for example, restaurants named “Subwai”, “Taco Bell”, and “Nald’s McDo” exist).
The skyscrapers resemble those currently existing in the Frontrooms (particularly those in North America), though they are not exact copies. Many are simply built in similar styles, whereas others are almost exactly the same as certain skyscrapers in the Frontrooms with the exception of a prominent detail. The layout of the cities, however, is strikingly similar to the layouts of North American cities such as Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Detroit, and San Francisco, though they are not exact copies.
While the cities might look mostly pristine from the outside, when one enters them it is clear how decayed they are. Buildings often have collapsed walls and ceilings, and large rubble piles are often found. Most of the windows are broken, and potholes are scattered across the roads. As a result, it is recommended not to enter buildings within cities due to the danger of the building or another one collapsing.
It is unknown if the cities ever had any inhabitants. Although they seem to have been abandoned for a long time (if not since their creation either by a being or by the Backrooms itself), documents and objects within the cities suggest that they were once home to a large population of humans, entities, or both. The first recorded mention of Level 32 suggests such a thing, saying that the cities were inhabited upon discovery by humans and Facelings. However, by the time another person got to the level, the cities were in their present state.
One final structure of interest in the cities are the canals which begin at the lake and wind their way through them. Like the rest of the cities, they appear to have been constructed, with sides and bottoms made of concrete (although the concrete is decaying). It is possible that the canals might just be channelized rivers, though this theory is not supported by how they are straight or nearly perfectly curved for most of their length.
Although the canals seem to be designed in ways which would allow them to carry large amounts of water, they are mostly empty or dry, many so because they are blocked off near their source by rubble or dams. The water remaining in them has a cloudy green color and is highly tainted by pollution, most notably fertilizer and sewage. Pieces of garbage or abandoned cars can often be found in them, most looking as if they haven’t been touched in years.
An interesting note is that the canals appear designed to flow out from the lake instead of into it, with some actually still doing so (though the water levels in them are not much higher than the others). While this might not seem noteworthy, it suggests that the lake is being “drained dry” by the canals, although the lack of a “bathtub ring” or other signs that the lake’s water levels were once higher suggest the opposite. Indeed, calculations done based off of the amount of canals connecting to the lake and the amount of water they should be able to carry (and which did not take into account the current in the canals or how long they are, as both are unknown—the former due to most of the canals being dry or nearly dry and the latter due to the size of the level and the spread of the canal network) suggest that the lake should be much lower than it actually is. More research is needed here.
Zone 3: The Outskirts
The last major zone of Level 32 is the area beyond the cities, resembling a rural area which might not look out of place in the Midwestern United States. Most of this area is composed of empty, dry plains and what appears to be overgrown farmland, occasionally broken up by groves of dead trees and decaying buildings. This is the only area with non-human life confirmed to be present, that life being tall grass-like plants which cover the plains and a plant resembling wheat in overgrown farmlands. These two plants are extremely similar, and it is relatively hard to distinguish between them.
The canals from the cities extend out into this area, though they lose their concrete sides and become more river-like in appearance. They remain mostly straight with some curves, though they are more “natural” in others. It has been theorized by some that this is due to nature taking over the canals now that the entity/entities or humans who built them are gone. It is here that what is believed to be the true purpose of the canals is revealed: irrigation. Many of them divide into multiple branches near the farms, and others are diverted into rusted irrigation sprinklers. However, none of the irrigation equipment works, and the canals themselves are of little use due to them being mostly dry.
The buildings in this area are abandoned and decaying, with broken windows, collapsed walls or ceilings, and with little sign of human habitation. Many of them appear to be old industrial buildings or other factories, such as processing plants. Silos also litter the landscape, though any grains which might have been stored in them have long since disappeared or decomposed. Small, empty towns can be found throughout the outskirts, all of them long since abandoned.
The outskirts, unlike the other two zones of the level, do not have an obvious ending point, and are believed to continue forever.
Entities
There are no entities present in the level. As previously mentioned, evidence from within the level suggests that it was once home to a large population of either humans or entities (likely Facelings), but the level is currently devoid of life with the exception of those who enter it and the plants found in the outskirts.
Colonies and Outposts
There is one settlement on the level, known to its residents as “Village #32”. Originally created as a base for M.E.G. expeditions in the level, it has since grown due to the arrival of more wanderers and now has a population of about 50 people. As its name might suggest, it is located in a city, the one in particular being on the shores of the lake. Though it might be hard to find, there are some maps of the level which can make navigation easier.
Entrances and Exits
Entering Level 32 seems to be mostly random, with doors in many levels (in particular Level 1, Level 130, and Level 11) leading to it. Notably, these entrances are stable, allowing one to enter the level from the same door another person used.
One can exit Level 32 by entering a particular building resembling an asylum in the Outskirts; this will take one to Level 16.
Another way of exiting is highly unrecommended. If one will enter a cluster of slightly abandoned dystopian buildings, they will end up in one of Level 41's cities. Exiting the way one came is possible, althrough works rarely.
There’s more.
There’s something underneath it all.
Under the lake, at its bottom.
There’s another level.
And, unless I’m wrong, it’s something we’ve always wanted to find.