The Meaning of Life

HEY, HOLD UP! There's SPOILERS down there, if you want to avoid them scroll until the next orange box.
Even a hint master shouldn't know the future.

-Postliminary Terry

The Meaning of Life is a recurring joke in the Lisa series, featuring an extremely tall tower that the player can climb with nothing at the top except for a sculpture of a middle finger.

Lisa: The First

In the lobby of The First, there's a rope leading upwards. After an approximately 30-second climb, the player will reach a platform with nothing but a middle finger on it that cannot be interacted with.

Lisa: The Painful

At the top of the Area 2 Crossroads, there will be a rope leading upwards offscreen as well as a sign that reads

"VERY IMPORTANT ABOVE!"

―Sign

Climbing this rope will lead to a screen with an extremely tall tower that takes approximately one and a half minutes to climb. At the top resides a sculpture of a middle finger and two tufts of grass, both of which cannot be interacted with.

The ledges at the top of the tower will also prevent the player from jumping down, stopping them with the message

"Nah, you don't want to do that. Just climb back down."

―Text

It's recommended to save at a crow before beginning the climb in order to restart the game and avoid having to climb all the way back down.

Lisa: The Joyful

The Meaning of Life makes another appearance in this game, but has a bridge at the top leading to a long and further uneventful mountain climb. At the end of it is a small living area with two bottles (the player is actually rewarded for this climb) as well as a letter from the developer reading,

"Dear Reader,

I swear, no tricks this time.

Thank you for all of your dedication. You really mean a lot to me for giving me the chance to give something to you. Even if it's not perfect, I still always try my best to make you feel something. Anything.

There is no better feeling than to have something you are passionate about creating come to life for others to enjoy.

Thank you so much for everything,"

―D.L.

Past the letter is a bridge leading towards a screen with another middle finger sculpture that cannot be interacted with. Upon attempting to leap off the edge, the player will be stopped with the message

"Don't be silly."

―Text

The spoilers are all done now, so you can now resume reading the rest of the article as normal.
I Hope you didn't ruin anything for yourself.

-Terr Unaware

Trivia

• The tower climb screen in The Painful features one of the few areas in the game where clouds are seen moving.
• The top of the tower also features one of the few ledges in the game that cannot be jumped off of.
• The music that plays during the climb in The Painful, Goodbye Baby, comes to an abrupt halt upon reaching the top.