Senpai is a rival character in Friday Night Funkin', the open-source rhythm game first released in 2020, where he appears as a charming dating-sim student who becomes increasingly unhinged as his week progresses. His pained reactions became a favourite among players because they mark the turning point when his polished persona cracks. Short audio rips from the game spread across soundboards, YouTube edits and TikTok, where the suffering moment is reused as shorthand for losing badly or being overwhelmed.