Source plot synopsis — includes the ending
A Hat in Time follows Hat Kid, a little alien girl wearing a top hat trying to return to her home world via spaceship. While on her journey, she passes over a planet, and a member of the planet's Mafia comes to collect a toll for the Mafia Town government. When Hat Kid refuses to pay, the Mafia man busts the spaceship door open, causing Hat Kid and all of her "Time Pieces", magical hourglasses that power her ship, to fall to the planet below. Hat Kid lands in Mafia Town and meets Mustache Girl, a local troublemaker who hates "bad guys". Mustache Girl agrees to look for the missing Time Pieces in exchange for Hat Kid's help fighting the Mafia, and the two defeat the Mafia Boss. When Mustache Girl realizes the Time Pieces can rewind time, she wants to use them to become a crime-fighting time traveler, but Hat Kid refuses, as she is aware that messing with time is dangerous. Angered by this refusal, Mustache Girl declares the two enemies and sets off to find the Time Pieces on her own.
Hat Kid ventures across the planet looking for Time Pieces, encountering many foes and subsequently befriending them all. These include DJ Grooves and the Conductor, two rival bird directors competing for a movie award; the Nomads, a group of mountain villagers infected by a dangerous plague; and the Snatcher, a malevolent spirit who steals her soul to force her to do his bidding and defeat his former lover, the featureless witch Vanessa. The game's DLC adds new scenarios in which Hat Kid searches for Time Pieces: in "Seal the Deal", Hat Kid works for the Walrus Captain on the Arctic Cruise ocean liner, while in "Nyakuza Metro", she is pressed into service by the Nyakuza crime boss Empress, who later places a bounty on her head. One DLC reveals that the Snatcher and Vanessa were once a prince and princess, but when the princess thought the prince was cheating on her as a result of a misunderstanding, she imprisoned the prince. Over time, they turned into corrupted beings; the prince became the Snatcher and the princess became Vanessa. Mustache Girl exploits Hat Kid's absence to break into her ship and steals the collected Time Pieces, using them to turn the planet into a fiery inferno where her word is law. Hat Kid confronts her, but Mustache Girl uses the Time Pieces to open a time rift and make herself all-powerful.
The enemies Hat Kid has fought come to her aid in battle, some sacrificing themselves so that Hat Kid can use their dropped Heart Pon healing collectibles to power herself up. Hat Kid finally defeats Mustache Girl and uses the Time Pieces to reset the timeline, restoring the planet to normal and reviving all those who were lost. The player can then choose whether Hat Kid ultimately offers a Time Piece to Mustache Girl or not. Though her former foes are sad to see her leave, Hat Kid restores the Time Pieces to her vault and resumes her voyage home. In a post-credits scene, Hat Kid is shown sleeping in bed surrounded by toys resembling the other characters.
Hat Kid ventures across the planet looking for Time Pieces, encountering many foes and subsequently befriending them all. These include DJ Grooves and the Conductor, two rival bird directors competing for a movie award; the Nomads, a group of mountain villagers infected by a dangerous plague; and the Snatcher, a malevolent spirit who steals her soul to force her to do his bidding and defeat his former lover, the featureless witch Vanessa. The game's DLC adds new scenarios in which Hat Kid searches for Time Pieces: in "Seal the Deal", Hat Kid works for the Walrus Captain on the Arctic Cruise ocean liner, while in "Nyakuza Metro", she is pressed into service by the Nyakuza crime boss Empress, who later places a bounty on her head. One DLC reveals that the Snatcher and Vanessa were once a prince and princess, but when the princess thought the prince was cheating on her as a result of a misunderstanding, she imprisoned the prince. Over time, they turned into corrupted beings; the prince became the Snatcher and the princess became Vanessa. Mustache Girl exploits Hat Kid's absence to break into her ship and steals the collected Time Pieces, using them to turn the planet into a fiery inferno where her word is law. Hat Kid confronts her, but Mustache Girl uses the Time Pieces to open a time rift and make herself all-powerful.
The enemies Hat Kid has fought come to her aid in battle, some sacrificing themselves so that Hat Kid can use their dropped Heart Pon healing collectibles to power herself up. Hat Kid finally defeats Mustache Girl and uses the Time Pieces to reset the timeline, restoring the planet to normal and reviving all those who were lost. The player can then choose whether Hat Kid ultimately offers a Time Piece to Mustache Girl or not. Though her former foes are sad to see her leave, Hat Kid restores the Time Pieces to her vault and resumes her voyage home. In a post-credits scene, Hat Kid is shown sleeping in bed surrounded by toys resembling the other characters.
Sources and content license
Source and revision history ↗ · Adapted from Wikipedia contributors, A Hat in Time. Section headings and formatting adjusted. · Content license