Should "fun" be a requirement for videogames?

As I watch playthroughs of The Walking Dead and The Last of Us, the same thought keeps popping up in my head: why would I ever want to play this?

I thought about why I think this, and I believe it's because I don't see a shred of fun in either game. And this got me to thinking: should "fun" be a requirement for videogames?

Now, of course, there are videogames that have less-than-stellar game design that result in them no being very fun, but at least the developers intention was to have the game be fun. But, with the games: The Walking Dead and The Last of Us, they look, imo, to be made intentionally not to be fun. Now, this lack of fun is to drive home the horror experience and help deliver the heavy themes of the story home better; I understand this execution, and I also respect it, as both games deliver very impactful experiences. However, was it "wrong" for the developers to do so with a videogame? Well, according to every professional videogame critic on the internet: no, but here's my interpretation ...

Videogames are an artform, but they are a specific type of artform, just as movies, paintings, music, etc. are a specific type of artform. Each of them has specific factors that they must contain to be part of their artform; for example, paintings need a canvas, music needs sound, and movies need film (I know there are exceptions to this rule, like that silent orchestra thing, but bear with me). And videogames, at their core, are games that need to be played. Perhaps I am too narrow minded, but I feel that the concept of "play" directly coincides with "fun"; and thus, videogames should require some sort of fun factor. A factor I just don't see in The Walking Dead and The Last of Us. The reason being that both games directly go out of their way to make sure you understand how heavy the themes of the story are and that your actions should be taken seriously; whether it be seeing the consequences of your actions play out in often gruesome fashion in The Walking Dead, or Ellie's consistent disgusted reactions to Joel's killing of people; there is no "fun" element to be found.

Other videogames that go for the "visual experience" execution of gaming have similar ideas; such as how Yorda shrieks in fear when Ico gets hurt, or how Snake will throw up if he's killed a lot of soldiers in MGS4. But the difference between these games and The Walking Dead/The Last of Us, is that games like Ico, the MGS series, Odin Sphere, Journey, Shadow of the Colossus, and Killer7, is that, despite having an execution that drives home various heavy themes, they are still all very much videogames; as they have elements such as puzzles, combat mechanics, collecting, etc. Things that make them feel very much like videogames; things that give them a "fun factor". And while The Last of Us does have elements such as combat and collecting, they aren't present to neccessarily reward skill, but rather push the player to kill in a different manner; simply a means to an end to drive home the tone of the story.

So what does this all mean? Well, both The Walking Dead and The Last of Us have been not only universally praised, but hailed as new steps in gaming. And if I were to ask myself why these games were being praised as such, I'd think it was because of they'er lack in fun. Because, without that "fun factor" both games have achieved something else, something beyond simple gaming. I suppose I'd say they may have transcended the videogame artform and become something else. A fusion of videogame and film perhaps? A videogame that can actually criticize and judge on its own merits perhaps?

Whatever these two games accomplished, its impressive. However, was it worth it? Is it worth losing the factor of fun, the core essence of videogames, to become something greater?

This laid-back guy says "No!". I know I'm just a simple guy, so my opinion means close to nothing, but I'd just thought I'd put it out there. Videogames can be amazing experiences, but, at their core, there should always be some fun to be had. If not, then I feel that the videogame loses what makes videogames so unique.  An experience that brings us joy and entertainment through means that no other artform can provide: fun and immediate interaction.

My Top 10 Characters for Super Smash Bros. 4

So, nearly everyone on the internet has done this list; so I figured I'd put my hat in the ring.

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10) Dixie Kong

Diddy Kong brought an interesting acrobatic fighting style to Smash Bros.; so I'd like to see what a different type of acrobatic style could bring, mainly because while I liked the concept behind Diddy's style, I didn't like his moveset much.

9) Ashley (Wario Ware series)

There aren't enough magic users in the Smash series, and Ashley could fix all that. She's shown a lot of magical ability in the Wario Ware series, as well as a scary yet adorable look to her. Plus, the Wario Ware series could use more love.

8) Daisy (Mario series)

This is a bias choice, as Daisy is my favorite character of the Mario family, but I believe she could bring an interesting moveset to Smash, similar to how Peach did. Daisy could bring moves from all of the Mario Sports series, such as Strikers, Golf, Tennis, and Kart. Or, heck, she could have a completely unique moveset that reflects her tomboyish and energetic personality.

7) Palutena (Kid Icarus: Uprising)

Like Ashley, Palutena could bring some magic moves to the series, or perhaps a moveset that reflects her absolute power as a goddess; for example, she could have a move where she sneezes and meteors fall on the stage in front of her. I'd really love for her moveset to revolve around comedic moves such as sneezing, mocking her opponents, or a grab where she lectures her opponent; all of it to show her power as a goddess, because why would she really even have to try hard?

6) Geno (Super Mario RPG)

Here's the popular choice and I can see why ... Geno was pretty cool. He's got a great look, and can have a really interesting moveset. He practically makes himself, heh.

5) Skull Kid (Zelda: Majora's Mask)

Like Palutena or Daisy, Skull Kid could bring a rather unorthodox moveset to Smash, using actions like screams, tricks, and masks to defeat opponents.

4) Jill (Drill Dozer)

She was an assist trophy in Brawl, but she just feels like she could be so much more. Her appearance is really cute yet cool, because, well, she rides in a drill. Her moveset could revolve around using her drill in tons of different ways, and use the power-up system from the game she's from.

3) Paper Mario

I honestly can't make much of an argument for him; he just seems like one of the most perfect fits for the series, and his moveset practically males itself.

2) Kumatora (Mother 3)

The Mother series could use more representatives, and Kumatora felt like the perfect character to represent. She has a strong personality and had all the most powerful magic in her game. She just seems like a great fit for the series and has the potential for a superb moveset.

1) Takamaru (Nazo no Murasame Jō)


Who's Takamaru you ask? Well he was the star of a game that played like an action version of Zelda, and Nintendo had hoped that the series would be their hit, but instead it was Zelda. So, how about bringing Takamaru back into the spotlight? And what better way than putting him in Smash? It worked for Marth and Pit, so why not Takamaru? His moveset would be yet another sword user, but it would be quite different from Link or Marth, instead playing like a mix of the two. Plus, Hideki Kamiya has shown interest in doing a new game starring Takamaru, so lets make this happen Nintendo!
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Third-Party Choice - Megaman

You may have noticed a lack of third-party characters on my list, well that's because I'm on the side of people who want Smash Bros to stay as Nintendo focused as possible. It annoys me to see so many of lists like these filled with mostly third-party characters. If I had to choose one, it would be Megaman. Why? Because, in my opinion, to be a third-party character in Smash, you have to be truly iconic, and the only character I could think of other than Snake and Sonic was the Blue Bomber. His appearance wouldn't lok out of place in Smash, and I could see him having a copy ability similar to Kirby, where he changes into ______-Man after copying ______'s power, and would then use their power.

My Top 15 Games as of 2013

So, I've been writing about games for three years on this blog, and I just realized that I haven't made a list of my Top 10 games since my very first post. So, here's my current Top 15 games list; I'm doing 15 because there are just too many to list, so I wanted to expand the list a bit more. The numbering of the list is a bit hazy, though the games are all in the general area of where they should be.

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Honorable Mention: Final Fantasy VII; I really should have put FFVII on the list somewhere, but couldn't find a spot. Still, this gem really deserves mention.

15) SoulCalibur V
The latest SoulCalibur game has always become my favorite of the series, and SCV is no different. Sure, I wish the roster was bigger and the loss of Guard Impact was a poor decision, but the game brings so much more to the series than it loses, and the end result is a beautiful fighting game experience.

14) Dragon Quest VIII
DQVIII is a masterpiece experience of the old-school RPG, all fully realized in beautiful 3D graphics. The gameplay is customizable and solid, but its the story where DQVIII shines the most, as it is as heartfelt and sweet as it is bitter and depressing; it's a great adventure across a huge world, and its that sense of adventure and accomplishment that DQVIII creates with its world and story that I will never forget.

13) Metroid Prime
What can you say about Metroid Prime? It's one of the most perfect games ever made. The graphics, the music, the gameplay, the world design, everything just comes together so perfectly. The process of telling the story through scanning the world was also a great design choice. An amazing game, though the experience factor was a bit lacking, hence why it is only 13 on my list.

12) Final Fantasy XIII
We've all heard my rantings on FFXIII and why I feel its under-rated before, so I won't go into that. Quite simply, I find FFXIII to be an incredible experience that combines all the elements of an RPG with an action game pace, and the end result is an engrossing adventure with a great story and amazing characters. I also thought the battle system was a big step in the right direction for modern RPGs to take.

11) Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil
Klonoa 2 is one of the most under-appreciated games of all time. The graphics, gameplay, and music all still impress today. But what is perhaps Klonoa 2's strongest trait is its story and charming way of presenting it. I won't go into details, but Klonoa 2 has a superb story that is light-hearted on the surface but eventually goes into deep themes uncommon for children's tales. The end result is a game that is truly an experience to be had, not just for the story, but for the gameplay, graphics, music, and overall charm.

10) Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Perhaps the best aspect of Paper Mario 2 is just how much there is to enjoy about the game. There are many locations you go to, partners to meet, characters to interact with, and stories to experience. It's all very robust, and yet easily playable by anyone. It's just a truly charming adventure that is hard to deny.

9) Viewtiful Joe
VJ still remains a one-of-a-kind game. No other action game plays like it, and as a result, it holds up very well to this day. The graphics are great, the gameplay is original and amazing, and its all presented in a high-energy and charming fashion. A great and challenging action game experience from the legendary Hideki Kamiya.

8) Bayonetta
I may have a fair amount of problems with Bayonetta, but I only criticize Bayonetta because I care about it so much. It's a game that I find so much satisfaction in not just playing, but seeing and hearing it as well. There was a time when Bayonetta when Bayonetta was number one on my Top 10 Games list, and its not hard to see why. It's simply that Bayonetta is a game of layers, and as you peel away those layers you tend to find more flaws, especially if you've played the game for around 60 hours like I have, heh.

7) Grimgrimoire
Grimgrimoire is one of those games that you can tell had a limited budget (like most Nippon Ichi produced titles), but unlike most other games like it, Grimgrimoire provides quality in all of the right places. The game has beautifully designed characters, settings, and creatures; and all of it is wrapped around one of the best stories I've ever experienced in not just videogames but all artistic mediums. And while the gameplay of Grimgrimoire is good enough to stand with the best the RTS genre has to offer, its the story and characters that I will always remember.

6) Final Fantasy IX
Like I've said before, FFIX is the traditional RPG perfected. Everything about this game is superb, but what makes it a real treasure to me is its huge scale and sense of adventure. The story of FFIX takes you to so many places, has you meet so many people, and fight so many creatures. It's mesmerizing how much this game engrossed me into its story, world, and characters. I'll never forget it.

5) Odin Sphere
Being engrossed into a game experience has become a common thing going up from Grimgrimoire, and that's not going to change. Being one of the first games to show me how engrossing a videogame can be, Odin Sphere blew me away with its incredible 2D graphics, amazing soundtrack, original and interesting gameplay mechanics, and superb story. I still consider Odin Sphere's story to be the best videogames have to offer. As its a story that takes on many themes and plays it all very seriously, and the end result is a Shakespearean tale that feels as though it should be written into a play for all to read. An incredible experience that feels almost foreign to videogames when first played; I loved every second of it.

4) Chrono Trigger
Chrono Trigger has become a legend in gaming, and its not hard to see why when you play it. Right from the start, its engrossing, fun, and charming. The gameplay was revolutionary for its time, and holds up very well today; the music is among the best in gaming, and the story and characters are still as interesting and charming as they were nearly 20 years ago. Overall, what makes CT so great in my eyes is just how original it feels. Like many games populating this list, there just doesn't feel like there are any other games like it.

3) Metroid: Other M

You've all heard why I love this game before, so here's the short version: complexity out of simplicity provides the gameplay of MOM to be extremely satisfying and unique, and yet it never feels monotonous thanks to diverse enemy types and combat not being the focus of the experience, rather the experience comes from nearly every facet of game design; from the graphics to the sound to the story, everything about MOM feels as though it was designed as one cohesive whole, and as a result, MOM is an increidble gaming experience that is unrivaled in what it does.

2) Okami

You may have noticed a lack of Zelda games on this list, well that's because Okami shows me just how limited the Zelda series has become (after all, it says a lot when the most robust Zelda experience is A Link to the Past for SNES). But enough about Zelda, Okami is something more than Zelda, as it takes the foundation of Zelda and builds upon it in nearly every way while also being its own original beast. The graphics in Okami make it one of those games that will always be beautiful, no matter how advanced graphic engines get. The gameplay is a superb mix of action elements taken from Kamiya's previous games with the item-focused combat found in Zelda games like A Link to the Past. The music is charming and beautiful, and still stands as my second favorite videogame OST. And the story is a robust and satisfying story that expands well past a simple tale into a full-blown fantasy epic. Okami is a game that may stay close to gaming tradition in its design, but it performs exceptionally across the board, and thus becomes an undeniable masterpiece.

1) The World Ends With You

If there's one thing I can say about every game on this list prior to this one, it would be that there is a sense of familiarity to them. I've scrolled through menus to choose my attacks in RPGs before, I've pressed a button to do a light attack and another to do a heavy attack in action games before, I've searched corners for hidden items before, I've experienced stories in fantasy settings before, and I've taken down the evil warlord before. You know what I haven't done before? Screamed into a microphone to stun my opponents, listened to hip-hop music while taking down a boss, go to the clothing store to buy a short in the most trendy fashion line at the moment, refilled my health by going to the closest Udon shop, communicated with my partners through the use of cell phones, helping out a three girls patch up their friendship broken my misunderstandings. This is The World Ends With You, and it is easily the most original game I've ever played. The graphics, the music, the battle system, the way it makes use of the DS' two screens, and the superb story and setting that vividly creates a thriving Shibuya in your hand all come together to make what is quite simply the greatest videogame experience I've ever had.

My Thoughts on Bioshock Infinite (SPOILERS)

NOTE: I have played through 60% of Bioshock Infinite and have seen about 90% of the game, including the ending. So, keep that in mind while reading this.

So, Bioshock Infinite. It's become one of the highest-rated and most talked about games ever in just a smal amount of time. However, I find the game quite over-rated. Now, before you smack me, let me say that I find BI to be a great game, amazing in some respects, but still over-rated.

Let me say my praises for the game first. First off, the game looks amazing. Sure, NPC models are reused, and enemy models don't look that great, but the environments, Elizabeth, and Songbird all look incredible, and the way they all touch and interact with each other is great as well. Next, I'll say that the execution of the story is a huge step above the original, as now the story plays out right in front of you, and the player feels a lot more engaged because of it. The soundtrack and voice acting are also superb, especially the superb performance from Troy Baker as Booker.

Now, onto my criticisms. Basically, my main gripe (and main reason I chose to wrote this blog) is that BI gets praised for so many things that we've seen or experiences before. The first example being the gameplay: it's the same thing as the first game. Sure, the new zip-line mechanic is cool, but its hardly used; heck, combat as a whole is a pretty small part of the game, which is perhaps why it isn't very deep. Sure, there are the multiple vigors and guns, but each battle plays out in the same fashion: point and shoot. There is little to no variety in the BI's combat, despite the fact that the vigors give you many useful abilities. One could say the controlling of machines is a strong point of the combat, but it quickly becomes dull when controlling the turrets or machines is what you do every time you see one. Same can be said for how to deal with the people. Murder of Crows, Bucking Bronco, or whichever vigor you prefer to use to slow down your enemy so you can shoot them. Overall, combat is just too simple; well, at least too simple to be praised. BI's main focus is the story anyway, so it seems a bit harsh to criticize the gameplay so harshly.

And that brings me to the second point: the story. Two praises the story gets that I find irksome are the beginning and the multiple universes. I'll start with the beginning. The beginning of BI begins with a fair where you can participate in attractions, listen to a barbershop quartet, and even practice combat for later. I'd give this part of the game more praise if I hadn't already experienced it well over a decade ago in Chrono Trigger.  Don't get me wrong, it was a really nice way to start the game, but we have to give credit where credit is due, and BI's opening feels practically ripped right out of CT's Millenial Fair opening. And next comes the multiple universes that begin to overlap with each other due to the actions of one man and certain events of the past. Does this sound familiar? Because it's the main plot foundation for Chrono Cross. While BI's ending did eventually make its story more than a rip-off of CC's, I found it quite noticeable.

And third, we come to the setting: the city in the sky run by a tyrannical overlord with kind words but an evil agenda, where people are separated into classes that are forbidden to interbreed, where the people revere their ruler and his offspring as their guiding light, and it all comes crumbling down due to the hubris of the the city's leader and the rebellion of his offspring who once that he controlled through love. Sound familiar?

It's Zeal. It's Zeal to a freakin' T! Now, I'm not saying BI's setting still isn't great, as I especially liked the way it crafted a beautiful utopian version of America in the 1920s. But the similarities to Chrono Trigger most famous arc cannot be denied. Now, I know that there have been many stories in the past that feature cities in the sky, tyrannical overlords, seducing the people with words, etc. But the way they all came together in CT's Zeal arc was an amazing experience back in 1995. I know it probably didn't happen with everyone, but the comparisons hit me pretty early on, and, as a result, I felt the story lost a lit of impact. I'd seen this all before. It also didn't help that the story was pretty predictable, with the exception of the ending (though you could see a lot of elements of that coming too).

Which leads to my last point: the story and characters. The story of BI is perhaps what gets the most praise; particularly, the ending and the character of Elizabeth. The ending was quite good, though it is foreshadowed a lot throughout the game, and we've seen multiple universe stories before, mainly in sci-fi shows, novels, and movies. So, imo, it was entertaining, but nothing groundbreaking. Just because this type of story is put into a videogame doesn't mean its as if we hadn't experienced it before in other mediums. Now to the character of Elizabeth, who I feel was well done, but not nearly as impactful as many make her out to be. Sure, it's nice that she does interesting things like not follow you into the men's bathroom, wait on a bench while your scrounging, or provide lots of expressive facial expressions at key moments, but, besides all that, she never had much of an impact on me. I never felt attached to her. I suppose that's mainly due to the fact that she never feels like she needed Booker's help. She follows you perfectly, takes care of herself in battle, and saves Booker a bunch of times. Now, I like Elizabeth in that she is a strong character, but if the purpose of the game was to make me care about Elizabeth as someone to rescue, I don't think the game accomplished that. ICO executed this perfectly with Yorda; I find that to be the perfect example of a female companion the player bonds with through gameplay and story.

Overall, Bioshock Infinite is a great game, but not a very satisfying one. It executes a lot of its ideas, both gameplay and story, quite well, but it feels like a very limited experience. Combat can only get so deep, how much I care for Elizabeth can only go so far, and the impact of the setting can only tantalize me so much before I fall out of the experience and feel more like I'm watching a decent play rather than experiencing a videogame.

Why Dragon's Crown is the only game I'm currently excited for.

Now, E3 is in only a few days, so the statement made in the title may be changed within a few days, but as of this writing, I stand by my title.

So, why am I only excited for Dragon's Crown? Well, it actually doesn't have to do much with DC itself, but all the other games out there. Simply put, in my opinion, no developers other than Vanillaware (at the moment) are trying to do anything new with their game design and execution.

To make myself clear, I'll use some examples: Let's look at PlatinumGames' Anarchy Reigns: there is very little originality to this game. It's simply a 3D brawler with mediocre character and world design, standard 3D brawler gameplay, and just nothing beyond what one would expect from the genre. And that's where my problem lies: I'm not finding any developers who are trying to exceed expectations, rather, I find most are just making the games that the mass public would expect from the respective genre and just make that. Personality is also something I find many games are lacking, there's just a huge lack of creator's personal touches these days. Thank goodness for Kirby's Return to Dreamland and Skullgirls, as they've both showed me that creative visions in games are still existent.

Now, lets get to Dragon's Crown, and why I'm excited for it. First, I'll get the elephant in the room out of the way: yes, we know very little about the game. And, yet, with just the little we know about the game, I can't help  but be excited. First thing apparent is Vanillaware's beautiful art style, and it is perhaps more apparent in Dc than any of their previous games. The environments are incredibly detailed and beautiful, and I can't wait to see them moving. Then there are characters, each having a strong and distinctive look and presence, but most apparent is how they are more anatomically correct than previous Vanillaware character sprites, by which I mean they aren't "chibi" in their look. And finally, the promises of gameplay. The character descriptions on the website already promise unique and interesting playing styles for each character, and the genre being a 2D beat-em-up practically guarantees a high replay value. Furthermore, unlike other classic 2D beat-em-ups, DC will use a mission structure, thus allowing a more casual and enjoyable execution to the gameplay.

I think I'll stop there. What I'm trying to get at here is that Vanillaware is really advancing the 2D-beat-em-up genre while providing their own unique visual and gameplay style. The end result is a game that is both familiar and unique. When it comes to all the other future releases, they all simply feel like the same thing I've played before; even the more bigger titles. Look at Metal Gear Rising. Yes, it looks amazing, and it's almost guaranteed to have some great gameplay. But it just looks like another great 3D-action game from PlatinumGames, and that's it. This is why I need Kamiya to give us another Okami-esque game; something that's just so different in execution, but still plays to a developers strengths. This is perhaps why I like Vanillaware so much; each one of their games, excluding Grimgrimoire, is essentially an Action-RPG, but they're all very distinct from one another in their execution. And that's what I want more of: developers who aren't afraid to try new things and attempt to create new worlds, new stories, new visions. It's not as if they cannot create something new without playing to their strengths; just look at Okami, Metroid: Other M, Super Mario Galaxy, and Kid Icarus: Uprising.

Of course, I know every videogame is made with a lot of hard work, and that in the videogame business, it's very risky to try new things, but I still wish there were more developers like Vanillaware and Reverge Labs out there.

Top 10 Best Game Series

NOTE: These are my favorite gaming franchises, and thus are ranked not simply by critical breadth but what the series mean to me personally. Furthermore, the standards I will rank the series by are the length of the series, the quality of the games in comparison to the series' length, and how well the series evolved over the course of its duration.

10) Megaman - this series is one that has its popularity gripped tightly in the nostalgia that comes from its NES and SNES games; however, Megaman has done a superb job at creating a presence for himself in the game industry. The Megaman series has grown to have its own mythos and memorable characters, and even its gameplay has become a timeless beacon in the industry. However, Megaman has not aged well over the years, and, as I stated before, most of Megaman's popularity comes from the nostalgia factor and not his continuing presence in the game industry.

9) Super Mario - this series is one rich in quality, but only in its flagship titles (Bros. series, World, Yoshi's Island, and Galaxy series); outside of the flagship games, the Super Mario games are either spin-offs, sports games, or spiritual successors to past games (such as the "New" series). Furthermore, while the Super Mario games have superb gameplay and memorable music, they've done very little else in the way of unique graphics or story. Thus, Super Mario may be an icon, but he's more remembered at face value than for his games.

8) Sonic the Hedgehog - similar to the Super Mario series, Sonic is remembered nowadays more at face value rather than for his games, which is thanks to the massive amount of merchandizing and product that has come from the character, and similar to the Megaman series, Sonic is more fondly remembered in a nostalgic way due to the quality of his past games over the newer ones. However, despite all of the ups and downs Sonic has had over the years, his presence shines very brightly thanks to the world that Sonic Team have created with Sonic and his friends. Many memorable characters, storylines, and events are paced throughout the Sonic series, thus giving him an even stronger lasting impression than Super Mario or Megaman. There may not be a whole lot of memorable gameplay moments, but its enough to warrant this position.

7) The King of Fighters - here's a series that has been treated with so much passion and care that it has the strongest presence of any fighting game series. Street Fighter was the fighter to go to for the tried-and-true gameplay, but KOF was the series to go to for over-the-top style and beauty (and the gameplay wasn't bad either). KOF is a brilliant series because of how it created its presence not only with gameplay, but characters, art, graphics, and music that were all its own. You can tell a KOF character just by looking at them, and you know your listening to a KOF song just by listening to it; there will be no question. That is the power of this series. While it may not have the strength it once had with its newer games, the Orochi Saga of KOF will forever have a place in the history of fighting games.

6) Donkey Kong Country - while this series may have only 4 entries, very few series defined their generation like the DKC games on the SNES. The graphics, the music, the atmosphere, and gameplay all combined into something unheard of during the days of the SNES, and that massive presence can still be felt to this day. The DKC games have aged very well, and still provide a unique experience even against today's modern technology. There may not have been much of a story, but the strength of the game's atmosphere made up for it. The only reason this series isn't higher is because it isn't a particularly long series.

5) Castlevania - a truly under-appreciated series. Castlevania created something truly amazing with its first installment on the NES and from there the series only grew grander and grander in scope, from graphics to gameplay to story, the series continued to expand itself. It is this growth in the series that gives it this spot. Castlevania also has a strong presence in gaming thanks to its impeccable style; the stylized-horror theme is truly its own, and it resonated with every game in the series, all accented by superb graphics and music; truly legendary music.

4) Final Fantasy - this series stands out not simply due to its high quality and popularity (which has expanded into many mediums and products), but simply how each installment is so different from the last. While they are all RPGs and retain the same style of role-playing, the FF series makes it a crucial part of its execution for each installment to be different than the last. This is a risky business decision on Square's part, but it has payed off by providing the world with a series so rich in diversity from characters and story to gameplay and design that everyone can find at least one installment in the series that they find interesting.

3) The Legend of Zelda - the Zelda series is one that has a truly powerful presence in the game industry; not only for providing tried-and-true action-RPG gameplay mechanics, but because of how revolutionary many of its titles were. Furthermore, the series has built itself with some of the most memorable graphics, music, stories, and gameplay mechanics of all time. The Zelda series is one remembered on many levels, and thus it has titles that stand the test of time, and yet it continues to forge memories into even modern gamers. The Zelda series is a rare gem in that its older titles have not lost their luster and its newer titles continue to forge new memories for players now. It is hard for a series to retain its original qualities and yet still succeed in modern day, but the Zelda series has truly succeeded. The reason its not higher on the list is because the same formula has been used for Zelda since Ocarina of Time, and while this formula still holds up to this day, the lack of change can be daunting, especially to older gamers.

2) Kirby - if there is one game series that has been around since the NES and developed alongside the technology of advancing game systems while still retaining all of its charm and gameplay creativity, it is the Kirby series. Kirby games have spread across many genres and many systems, and yet each game has always been superb in terms of gameplay, graphics, music, and creative execution. This is due to Kirby being a series blessed with a talented developer that has never strayed from the development of its titles nor ever changed what Kirby is all about: fun. If there is one series that represents the fun and joy that comes from videogames, it is the Kirby series. Always creative, always trying new things, and always being superb experiences. Kirby stand the test of time.

1) Metroid - Quality. No other game series personifies quality better than the Metroid series. Every entry in the series, even the pinball game, is one of truly high quality. Like Kirby, the Metroid series is one that truly advances with the growing technology of videogame consoles, and the end results are games that are truly state-of-the-art. From graphical and musical direction to gameplay execution; the Metroid series is a thing of beauty, and as such, is a videogame series truly deserving of respect and admiration. If Kirby is the bright and radiant sun, then Metroid is a beautiful and solace moon. Never relying on over-the-top antics, bright colors, or gimmicky gameplay mechanics; Metroid is a class act through and through, and truly my favorite and most respected videogame series ever.

NOTE: To be honest, I would have Metroid and Kirby be a tie for the number one spot, as I believe they both represent two sides of the same coin when it comes to the best game series.

Tradition or Innovation: which is the right path for PlatinumGames?

I'll start this blog by stating what I view as tradition and innovation in the videogame medium: tradition is the process of taking an existing foundation (genre) and developing a game around that foundation's principles, and while new ideas can be integrated into the existing "formula", the end result is the same for every game that uses the existing foundation; for example, Viewtiful Joe had a ton of new ideas implemented into its gameplay, but after all is said and done, it was still a 2D beat-em-up. Innovation, on the other hand, is a process of taking a foundation and ideas, which can be a mix of new and old, and executing them in a way that the end result is something completely new, which often creates a new type of foundation (ie. the RPG genre) or a new "style" of an existing foundation (ie. the action-RPG genre).

To provide an example, the original Resident Evil is a game that took ideas both new and old, but executed them in a way that resulted in something completely different from past results; the end result was the birth of the survival-horror genre. That would be an example of innovation. Going forward in time, we come to Resident Evil 4, which single-handedly changed the way game developers execute third-person shooting; that said, I wouldn't consider RE4 innovative, because the end result of the gameplay remained that of its predecessors: a traditional survival-horror game. Sure, it was much easier to control, and brought us closer to the action, but the core aspects of the survival-horror formula remained intact. RE4 is a tough example, because I could easily see one argue that it was indeed innovative, but I'll just admit that it comes close to the line between tradition and innovation.

Now, few would say that RE4 wasn't a superb game, and I'm no exception. Despite being traditional, it brought about several great ideas in its gameplay. Platinum would continue this trend with their games; games that were traditional in their execution, but still continued to bring about superb gameplay ideas, often residing close to the line between tradition and innovation. So, in this sense, is there a need for Platinum to be more innovative, and strive to create entirely new experiences? Not really. After all, their games continue to be excellent in all respects, and often become the new standards of their respective genres ...

However, I find that there is one reason for Platinum to at least consider striving to create more innovative experiences, and that reason lies within PlatinumGames themselves. Over time, Platinum has created a standard for themselves. Their games continue to bring about fresh ideas to implement into their respective genres; however, I feel that in the future this could become a problem if they decide to remain in the path of traditional game execution.

The first example as to why being an overlap of ideas within their games. Games from Platinum tend to be quite over-the-top with their visuals, characters, and stories; the result being characters that feel similar to one another. Right now, this doesn't feel like a big deal, but if Platinum continues to keep making over-the-top characters 10 years from now, it's going to feel a bit stale. Another factor that tends to carry over into other games are the "fresh" gameplay ideas themselves. For example, Bayonetta had Witch Time and Vanquish had a slow-time mechanic as well, and while they may not all be used the exact same way, those who've played it know that this idea originated with the Slow mechanic in Viewtiful Joe. If future Platinum games continue to use slow-time mechanics, the idea may become a bit stale, especially for those who have and would continue to play every game from Platinum.

The next example comes from the fact that Platinum's games almost reside entirely in the action genre. If this trend continues years and years into Platinum's future, it will become easier and easier for Platinum to fall into a rut and rely heavily on the traditional foundation of the action genre, as well as become harder for them to create more original ideas to implement into their games. Of course, that scenario isn't definite, especially for a talented developer like PlatinumGames; however, this brings up my main point of this blog entry ...

I don't want to see Platinum's games to fall into a similar situation to that of the Final Fantasy and Legend of Zelda series; two game series that, over time, began to rely heavily on the tradition in their respective genres, and, as a result, grew stale over time. And, in the case of the FF series, when the time came to try and be innovative, they were met with harsh criticisms; the main criticism being that Square wasn't being traditional in their game design. This situation just brings about a situation where the developer cannot win; if they rely on traditional means, they are criticized for being unoriginal and lacking of any new ideas, and if they try to innovate, they are criticized for isolating the dedicated fans of the series and not keeping with tradition. The end result: Square just can't win with the Final Fantasy franchise, and The Legend of Zelda series has to rely on gimmicks to make themselves appear to be innovative and mask their traditional game development processes. These are but two types of situations I don't want Platinum to fall into in the future, for it could lead to strife for both the developer and the gaming public.

Thus, my proposition to Platinum is simply to consider taking some risks now and then in trying to create something innovative and fresh; not just with new gameplay mechanics and visual styles, but with an execution that results in something entirely different than previous games. Platinum is basically the best when it comes to action games, so why not try to create an entirely new type of action game. You had the right idea with Bayonetta, it just needed a more original execution; because, in actuality, Bayonetta is just the Devil May Cry 2 you guys never got to make. Vanquish felt like a step in the right direction as well; it really felt like it's aim was to bring Neo-Human Casshern to life, yet it felt like it held back to be more realistic. Please, never limit yourselves in what you do. You're games constantly tread that fine-line between tradition and innovation, just put forth that extra effort to not just set the standard, but create entirely new standards to be set.

NOTE: I don't bring up Anarchy Reigns or Metal Gear Rising in this post because I feel I haven't seen enough footage nor know enough details about the games; however, they could end up being true innovations, thus making this post worthless, heh.

My Thoughts on PlatinumGames

NOTE: This is from a casual gamer's perspective.

When I'm asked about who my favorite game developers are, my mind doesn't usually go to PlatinumGames/Clover Studios quickly despite the fact that several of my favorite games have come from the developer. I thought this way rather strange, so I asked myself why I thought this way, and I came to the conclusion that it was due to the shortness of the impact that the games from Platinum makes.

To make a comparison, games from Platinum (with one exception, but more on that later) provide a similar experience and satisfaction to that of the best games of the golden days of the arcade. Classics like Afterburner, Dungeons & Dragons, The King of Fighters, Metal Slug, House of the Dead, etc. are probably the closest comparisons I can make to the games of Platinum. Why? Because the experiences provided by these games are original, stylish, satisfying, and memorable, yet are over fairly quickly. Yet despite the short length of time we played games in the arcades, we still felt it was time and money well spent because the experiences we had with the games, however short, felt rich and satisfying. I think Platinum's games carry that same sort of weight.

Games like Bayonetta and Vanquish are incredible action games with superb gameplay, graphics, music, and execution there-of. With that said, both games can be completed in 6 hours or less. Does this make them bad games? No. However, I feel it does hurt their staying power in the minds of gamers, at least those who don't pour dozens upon dozens of hours to achieve insanely high scores or try to get every single achievement. The feelings of accomplishment and satisfaction are there, but because the experience was so short, there isn't much to remember or take away from the experience, especially when looking back on the game after a lot of time has past. The same effect occurs with fighting games; what's present is very enjoyable, but ultimately, a fighting game is a contained amount of content that doesn't really grow much other than the player understanding the systems more. Of course, this is satisfying for a while, but ultimately, the fact that the player is restricted by the contained amount of content given to them comes to light and satisfaction begins to take a dip. Viewtiful Joe, Bayonetta, Vanquish, Godhand; all amazing games, but all ultimately harmed by their contained amount of content. This is where I feel the games of Platinum/Clover share their similarities with arcade games.

So how did arcade games deal with the constraints that their limited memory caused them to have? They made sequels, and lots of them. These sequels allowed the games of the arcade to not only grow in terms of content, but learn from the mistakes of their ealier iterations and make even better games with their sequels. This process of making sequels not only gave the gaming audience more content to enjoy, but better content. And it is with this observation that I find my opinion on Platinum/Clover comes full circle: the games of Platinum/Clover are superb gaming experiences, yet when they are finished, that's it. Replaying a game from Platinum/Clover can only provide so much satisfaction, so when I've had my fill, the game simply becomes a nostalgic memory, rather than an experience that sticks with the player.

How can Platinum remedy this?

- One way is to make sequels. To me, SNK was the Platinum/Clover of the 90s; they had so many incredible games and made many sequels to these games, thus creating a legacy. It is this legacy that I remember most. I don't remember a specific KOF or Metal Slug game, rather, I remember the entire series as cohesive and satisfying wholes. I believe creating sequels for games like Bayonetta, Madworld, and Vanquish would help create such legacies and thereby make the games feel less like short-but-sweet game experiences and more like expansive experiences that covered many years of my life. Of course, I would say the same for games like Viewtiful Joe (which, granted, was on the right track thanks to recieveing two sequels; perhaps that is why I remember Viewtiful Joe the fondest of all Platinum/Clover's games) and Godhand, but, of course, the split from Capcom prevents that.

- The other way is to expand past creating "arcade" games, and create vast, expansive experiences. Platinum/Clover has already done this with Okami, a game I constantly forget was made by the same group that made Viewtiful Joe and Bayonetta, simply because of how expansive and epic it is in scope and gameplay. The epic scope of Okami provided an entirely different level of satisfaction than the arcade-style of games that Platinum/Clover had made previously, and has made since. Okami is the one game made by Platinum/Clover that I had no desire to see a sequel to because of just how whole it felt; in that sense, Okami created its own legacy. If Platinum could create another game with such scope as Okami, than the creation of sequels would not be neccessary, but as it stands, games such as Madworld, Bayonetta, and Vanquish cannot do such a thing because of their small amount of content and restraints there-of, no matter how satisfying they are.

In conclusion, my fondest memories of the arcade come from The King of Fighters and Metal Slug series. They had strong origins with KOF '94 and Metal Slug, both of which had amazing graphics, music, and gameplay. However, they didn't stop there, both games received sequel after sequel and expanded and enhanced their content to new levels with each new game. In doing so, SNK created an amazing legacy of games that feels like one cohesive whole rather than seperate pieces of a puzzle. It is this legacy I want Platinum to create with their games.

Now, I understand that PlatinumGames isn't the biggest developer, and the constant creation of sequels is a practice that isn't really looked at in the highest respect, especially in this generation of games. However, I feel that PlatinumGames has yet to create a true impact on the industry, which I find surprising considering that they are perhaps the most talented game developer at present. What's holding them back is this constant stream of "arcade"-style games. Each one of their games has been "revolutionary" in that they set the bar for certain aspect(s) of game design, whether it be graphics, gameplay, or execution there-of, but because their games are scattered about in different genres, styles, and directors (have you noticed how divisive the games from Platinum/Clover are based upon their directors), its difficult for their games to have a focused impact on the industry. A legacy cannot be built upon a small group of countries scattered about; it needs to grow from one central location and expand upon itself.

How PlatinumGames can create this legacy, I am not sure. I have suggestions above, but because I am ignorant on how the game industry functions, my suggestions could be completely asinine. Furthermore, my suggestions are basically asking PlatinumGames to limit themselves to certain genres, styles, characters, and gameplay systems. Limitation on a developer's talents is something I'd hate to even suggest, but I feel that if a developer could continue to be creative and innovative while making sequels or large-in-scope projects, its PlatinumGames.

This is all my opinion of course, but I really want PlatinumGames to create a legacy for themselves. I want there to be collections of artbooks and CDs that cover their entire legacy, and I want there to be legends of the developers that created their games, and not just their directors, but the artists, the musicians, the designers, and programmers. I want Platinum to make a name for themselves. Many will probably tell me that they already have, but I'd have to disagree with that. The games from Platinum are remembered for specifics rather than their cohesive wholes, and that is no way to leave your mark on the industry. People have to look at PlatinumGames and have a clear picture in their mind; a state I don't believe they've reached quite yet.

My Top 5 Biggest Influences

I don't really do much myself. I don't draw much, nor do I right much, but I do think a lot. I know that doesn't really count for much, especially in an artistic perspective, but through my thinking my outlook on the things I enjoy and what I have to expect from these enjoyments has been influenced by many people, places, and art. In this blog post, I'm going to list my top 5 biggest influences on my outlook, which in turn effects the way I view the forms of art I focus on and how I judge new forms of art.

NOTE: By "art" I mean things like movies, pieces of art, pieces of music, theatre, videogames, etc. Also, don't expect anything to sophisticated from my list; after all, I'm not a very learned person.

5) Cowboy Bebop - whenever I say something is cool, stylish, or original, I am comparing it to the benchmark that is Cowboy Bebop. The visuals, the characters, the stories, the music, and the animation of this anime was truly ahead of its time, and, imo, still is to this day. There has yet to be any anime (or other art medium for that matter) that can match Cowboy Bebop in it's execution of style across all the senses. Cowboy Bebop is also a great example of style, as it is also very sophisticated in its execution, and never resorts to vulgarities to other "hip" modern mannerisms to be cool; rather it became its own being, and stood on its own two feet. The result was a style that was not only cool but garnered respect from the viewer, and that it the best type of style.

4) One Piece - to this day, One Piece remains the only manga to make me cry, and I don't mean get misty-eyed, I mean cry. One Piece is a story of emotion, and it is expressed so masterfully by mangaka Eiichiro Oda's unique art style, which conveys every emotional scene whether it be comedic or tragic with such power that it is neevr unclear as to what the characters are feeling, and as a result, the reader knows exactly what to feel as well. It is this strength in the conveying and execution of emotion that makes One Piece such a powerful story, and it remains the benchmark of the art of expressing emotions through just hand-drawn art and words.

3) Yasunori Mitsuda - specifically, his musical work in videogames and in freelance pieces, such as Kirite and Sailing of the World. Mitsuda's music in Chrono Trigger was the first time I can say a musical piece really touched me and made me "feel" without any need for visual or story accompaniment. Then I played Chrono Cross, which has, imo, the best soundtrack in any videogame to date. The strength of his works lie not simply in the beauty his pieces have, but the way they stand alone as beautiful pieces of art. Mitsuda's music alone paints a picture in the listener's head, and the power of that experience is very impactful. There are many great composers in the world, but I feel that none have produced music that has touched me quite like the compositions of Yasunori Mitsuda, and thus Mitsuda's music has created the benchmark for just how powerful music without reliance on any other factors.

2) The Legend of Zelda (A Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, and The Wind Waker) - A Link to the Past was the first videogame I ever played that truly immersed me into it's world and character, and I will never forget my time playing it. It's truly the first time I felt the factor of immersion with an art medium (not just a videogame), and this feeling was only amplified further with Ocarina of Time, which is the first game that had me in awe as I played it, and the first time I really felt immersed in a fictional world. These four games showed me what immersion truly is and that such a feeling is not limited to just books and movies as many adults want kids to believe.

1) The Films of Hayao Miyazaki - aside from the simple life experiences we all go through in our lives, nothing has influenced my artistic and philosophical outlook on life as much as the films of Miyazaki have. Even to this day, these films continue to influence me and make me rethink my outlook on life not just as a fan of art, but as a person. These films fill me not only with wonder and excitement, but fear and understanding. From the charming fairy tale of Ponyo, to the dark and scary world of Princess Mononoke, and the adult world of Porco Rosso; Miyazaki's films have forged so many ideals of life within my psyche that it's no contest that they are the number one influence of my outlooks, on both art mediums and life. The sights, the sounds, the creativity, the stories, and the experiences we have along the way; I wouldn't trade them for anything.

Charm in Videogames

Odin Sphere, Grimgrimoire, Okami, Paper Mario 2, Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy IX and XIII, Klonoa 2 .... these are some of my favorite games of all time, and yet they have flaws, some even glaring; so why is it that I love these games so much? It's because they're charming.

The charm that these games have is what makes them so attractive. They don't try to look special with fancy tricks or try to seduce us with big promises; rather, they are games made with the single desire to be themselves, and that's what makes them so charming and attractive. There's nothing "fake" or deceiving about these games, and in that sense, they are pure. This purity is what makes them so attractive to me. They aren't made with the intent to please the player, rather they are made simply the way they are and aren't ashamed of it, as a result, these games may have flaws, but that's part of their charm. These games aren't afraid of who they are, and thus don't feel like tools or simple products.

I know I'm being redundant, but I've really come to realize how much a factor "charm" is when I view a game and judge how much I love said game. For example, Grimgrimoire is a short game without much content and shows its story in a rather simple way, and yet it is perhaps the most charming game I've ever played. The way the setting, the characters, the graphics, the music, and gameplay all come together; it just feels so cohesive and compact that it can only be described in one way: itself, Grimgrimoire. With other games, we see certain aspects of their design and designate it by those aspects, for example we describe Mario games in terms of levels, or Dark Souls by bosses and dungeons; however, if you want to describe Super Metroid, the process becomes harder, as the content of Super Metroid felt so much like a cohesive whole rather than a path of levels.

I believe its the process of creating where the development team works together and creates the game as one focused group that these charming games come into creation. Odin Sphere is a game created by only 12 people; perhaps that is why it is such a charming game.

I'll end this thought bubble on the biggest example of charming vs. uncharming I can think of: Super Mario Galaxy vs. Super Mario Galaxy 2. The first Galaxy was incredibly charming, with its bright yet mysterious world, mysterious princess guide, her depressing back-story, an ending that could be perceived in many ways, and unique gameplay elements that promoted freedom and play. The second Galaxy felt much more "industrialized", where it just felt like Nintendo was making it to simply add stages upon the first Galaxy, rather than developing off of the first Galaxy's foundation. Thusly, Galaxy 2 felt "cold" in comparison to the warm journey of Galaxy 1. That's not to say Galaxy 2 was a bad game, as it is a great gameplay experience, it's just that it lacked the charm of the first game.

Overtime, as gameplay systems are getting more complicated, technology is getting more social, and graphics are getting more detailed I've come to really appreciate charm and the "warmth" it provides a lot more. So much so that I may consider it a major factor in my criticisms of videogames from now on, just like satisfaction before it. After all, graphics can be as detailed as they want, music can use all of the 100-man choruses that they want, and we can have 100-man death matches all we want; it doesn't count for anything if it doesn't create a lasting impression of warmth on the player. It's that warmth, that charm, that sticks with us and never lets go; I think that counts for a lot more than how many game modes or polygons a game has.

Videogames to Me

Coming off of my outlook on 2011 into 2012, this post is about my thoughts on videogames as a whole. As is obvious, my outlook and opinions on videogames change with every single game I play. It doesn't matter if it was amazing, if it was bad, if I put in over 100 hours into it, or if I only played it for 30 minutes; every single videogame I play effects my opinion and outlook on videogames as a whole. This is because every videogame I play shows me what the industry and developers are thinking and doing in a given time period, and my mind sees this and judges this, and thus my outlook changes; it may not change very much, or it may completely change the way I think about everything. But, let's get on with my current thoughts on the entertainment medium that is videogames ...

Videogames are art. That is what I believe. Perhaps the more correct way to say it, however, is that videogames have the potential to be "art". When someone says "art", they usually think of beauty and of flawlessness; and that is simply not true in the gaming world. In the gaming world, there is a lot of mediocre and ugly to go along with the beauty. Now this is true of any medium, for throughout antiquity there have been mediocre sculptures and poor arias; it is simply that because those art mediums have had centuries to age, we in modern times simply do not think of the mediocre. This is not the case with videogames yet, for it is a very young art medium; one only a few decades in age. With this is mind, I can understand that throughout my history of playing videogames, I haven't truly enjoyed that many when looking at it in the scope of things. There have been hundreds if not thousands of games made since I've started playing games, and yet I would say I've only enjoyed around 60 of them. But, I digress, what are videogames to me?

Well, they aren't a true artform yet. They are art, but haven't reached the point where I'd say the world should recognize them as such. I think the main problem is how many view core aspects of videogames as "art", but they're looking at it all wrong. A game can have an incredible soundtrack, but that doesn't mean the videogame itself is art, it's the soundtrack that's art, not the game as a whole. And that's what people need to recognize, the art of the videogame as a whole. Videogames combine many separate aspects that can be considered art, but it's the interactivity aspect of the videogame that makes it capable of being a truly satisfying art form.

This factor of interactivity has indeed been used in games very well; in classics like Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy VII, and Okami, but none of it really reaches a level equal to that of grand symphonies, beautiful paintings, or powerful films. I think this is because the developers behind videogames aren't taking games seriously enough. Many game developers make "serious" games, but their focus is always to try and make the game serious, rather than let the serious tone simply come out of what they're creating. I think the reason for this is simply that making videogames is hard. The simply fact that a player has to interact with your work makes the creation process of videogames difficult; they aren't like movies where the viewer is simply watching or an aria where the listener is simply listening. The factor of interactivity is the x-factor of videogames, for it is both their greatest strength and their greatest weakness.

I recognize the fact that videogames are a young medium, and that the creators behind videogames will need much more time to perfect the art of creating videogames and then after create variations of that process. Many would argue that this process has already been mastered. To that I say: perhaps. After all, I have had many incredible gaming experiences, but I can't say I've had a game experience that really, really impacted me. There have been amazing experiences like Okami, Chrono Trigger, Metroid: Other M, Klonoa 2, and others, but nothing that impacted me the way a movie like Fantasia or Spirited Away have.

I think that the reason for this is because videogames, in their current state, feel almost like toys. They're something we buy because we want to play with them. And we do. We play with them, have fun with them, and enjoy their creativity; but can a toy truly be timeless? Perhaps, if we develop some type emotional connection to it, like the way I have an emotional connection to the game Sonic the Hedgehog 2 because it was the first game I've ever played. But still, I think of Sonic 2 not as a timeless entity, but rather, an unforgettable toy I had. I don't mean to demean videogames to that of small pieces of plastic (and besides that, toys can be very fun), but what I want to get at is: I want videogames to move past being something simply to be played. This is where that "experience" factor I write about so much comes into focus, and some games have this experience factor, but it's usually just for key moments in a game. I'd like for a game as a whole to be that experience factor. Similar to how a movie crafts the experience from beginning to end, I want a videogame to do this as well. Many would argue that many games have already done this, and I understand that thinking, but what people tend to think about is a game's story, visuals, and music, of ten forgetting completely about the gameplay. I do this with Chrono Trigger. The pacing, visuals, music, and story of Chrono Trigger had the elements of a superb movie, but his is a videogame, not a movie. I don't think that videogames have reached a point where I can only think about how a game was not only superb in visuals and music, but superb in an interactivity respect as well. I think that is the next step for games.

Many games have come close to my ideal, The World Ends With you perhaps being the closest, but it just doesn't hit that "sweet spot".

Heh, I think about videogames in such a way, and yet the reality of the situation is that videogames are a business built around consumers. And I perfectly understand arguments against my views. After all, videogames as toys isn't a bad thing; toys are fun, and people like having fun. Not everything has to be deep, story-driven, or rich in history. And to that, I understand. But simple, fun games can be great experiences as well, as the Megaman games have shown. But I don't think that people should lower their expectations of what videogames can achieve simply because they're based around a consumer market. After all, weren't sculptures, paintings, film, novels, and classical music built around consumers as well? Yet they managed to touch hearts and stir the soul. Why not videogames as well?

I think it's a matter of waiting. Waiting for developers to create rather than simply build. There have been many, many great videogames, but I still think they remain in the realm of products rather than experiences. To get out of this realm of products, I think videogame developers need to move past the trivialities of what goes into a game and forge an experience based upon creativity. Just as a great movie is a master of the sum of its parts as it brings together visuals, music, and acting, so to must videogames become a master of the sum of its parts, as it brings together visuals, music, and interactivity.

Currently, I find myself wondering if I will soon grow tired of videogames. And with the current state of the game industry, I just might. However, as I stated before, I believe that if I wait for the game industry to develop and "find" itself, I will find the game to completely satisfy me, and then, perhaps, many more equally satisfying games will follow.

My Thoughts on the Game Industry Going into 2012

So here we are going into a whole new year of gaming. 2011 damaged my excitement for videogames pretty bad; I realized that fighting games are becoming stale, that "big name" games are full of old ideas, critics will love just about any game that has a lot of money behind it, and Japanese developers don't release games nearly as much as they used to. I knew several of these things before 2011, but it just really became apparent last year.

So, let's just jump in here: what are my thoughts on the game industry as it is right now? The answer: it's like it was the past couple years, but to a higher extreme. By that I mean: the focus on big-budget western developed games, the focus on selling to the US market, the lack of creativity and risk-taking, the focus on creating the "summer blockbuster" equivalent to videogames, and Japanese developers trying to appeal to the Western market, which were all things seen in past years, have been taken to a higher degree.

I won't go into all of the little details that all gamers already know; rather I'll focus on what I believe is happening to games, and that is a shift; a shift to a "new phase" of sorts.

The shift is separated by two regions: the east and the west, by which I mean the game industry in Japan and the game industry in the US and Europe. Before a few years ago, games were just games; nobody really thought about who developed them or where they came from, but nowadays, it feels like games might as well have big labels that say either "Made in Japan", "Made in USA", or "Made in Europe" on them. More and more the consumers, critics, and even developers themselves are becoming focused on where videogames are being developed, and, in return, create these expectations about the games before they even play them. All of this is creating a rift between the different regions, and this rift became so much more apparent to me in 2011.

I'll skip talking about the US and EU industries and just focus on the one industry I care about: Japan. So, this shift in the game industry and the rift between the different areas created one realization to me: in Japan, the game industry is basically becoming the anime industry. Japanese games do not sell like they used to. At this point, Nintendo is the only game developer spending a lot of money on their products and turning out a profit; however, even Nintendo is having problems, as the sales of their more complex titles like the Zelda and Metroid series dwarf in comparison to the sales of their more simpler games like the Mario and Wii Sports titles. So what's the result? Nintendo threatening to end these series if they don't turn out a profit. This shows me that even Nintendo has become all about business. This is shown even more-so in their games, which have really lacked passion lately.

Speaking of Nintendo; they're reluctance to localize games like The Last Story, Xenoblade, and that one tower game (the name escapes me) show me that Nintendo just doesn't have confidence in the sales potential of Japanese-developed games anymore. And rightfully so, in my opinion. After all, Japanese games just don't sell like they used to; casual gamers in the West always lean toward shooters, that's it. There used to be a time when casuals tried all types of games, but not anymore. And with the rating of games not meaning anything anymore, kids lean towards shooters as well, and just skip over the Mario and Final Fantasy games. Nintendo's situation can be put in for many developers in Japan. They understand that there is an audience in the West for their games, but just not enough to warrant the money that goes into a localization. This is where the reflection of the anime industry comes from. In the past, tons of anime would get dubbed and come to the West, but nowadays, that really isn't happening, because the Japanese industry just doesn't feel its worth the time. This is the source of that "rift" between markets. The Japanese game market is becoming isolated from the other markets.

Japan herself is getting her game industry in check within her own borders. There, the game industry is becoming like the anime industry as well. Big-budget, high caliber games just aren't getting made much anymore, and the developers who are making them are starting to regret it. Case-in-point: Square -Enix; a giant of the game industry with a huge following, and yet their games are not selling nearly as well as they used to, with less-than-stellar sales within Japan for both Final Fantasy Type-0 and Final Fantasy XIII-2. Eventually, Square might not be able to make such high-budget games anymore. Japanese developers have caught into the declining interest in games in Japan, and thus have begun to either focus on creating lower-budget, niche titles, or appealing to the West in their game design. Examples of the former include Level-5, Marvelous Entertainment, and Arc System Works, while examples of the latter include Capcom, PlatinumGames, and Square-Enix. The focus on lower-budget, niche titles greatly reflects the anime industry and how it also focuses on creating short (12 to 26 episode) series with subjects that are not universally loved, but have their own niche fanbase, and the developers focus on that niche and give them what they want with the budget they have. Examples of this niche execution include games like Senran Kagura, Hatsune Miku, and Gundam Extreme Vs. Not everyone will love these games, but the developers sell enough to make a profit by focusing on a niche. The developers that appeal to the West often try to give their games a broader appeal, but this often backfires, especially for deveopers like PlatinumGames and Square who just can't take the Japanese out of their games no matter how much they try. To these developers I simple say: please stop thinking about the Western market and make the games you want to make. Capcom, however, has done well in selling their souls to the West and making games that look like they could have a "Made in USA" sticker on them. This has worked out for them so far, as they're the only Japanese developer to see such high profits. They may not be the same Capcom as they used to be, but that doesn't mean they aren't successful.

Overall, I don't know what to think. Japan is beginning to find its own groove in this modern game industry, but it feels as though the West isn't really going to be part of it. The fact that Square-Enix initially developed Final Fantasy Type-0 without any thought on a Western localization shows me that Japan may just start focusing on themselves and forgetting about the Western market. This is a huge disappointment to myself, but, in reality, the majority of the Western consumer market couldn't care less, and I think Japan is starting to recognize this. And thus, the game industry in Japan is slowly becoming the anime industry; a focus on strong niche titles with the Japanese fanbase solely in mind, and complete neglect of the Western market unless specifically called upon by them.

Of course, there is some love to the Western consumer who loves Japanese-developed games. PlatinumGames and Kojima Production's Metal Gear Rising is trying to be the start of bringing Japan back to the forefront of the game industry worldwide, though I don't really see it succeeding. Some niche titles still make it to the West courtesy of Atlus, XSEED, and Nippon Ichi; who still have a good business strategy of manufacturing over only a few thousand of each title so to still have profit. However, the amount of titles that these niche publishers bring over is nowhere near what they used to do. Hopefully, they don't go bankrupt.

So, yeah, 2011 was a disappointing year for videogames, and 2012 doesn't look to really change things. For me, as a fan of videogames, I think I just need to focus on the games that I can actually play, rather than the ones I want to play. I have to understand that there may be a point where a Vanillaware or Square-Enix game simply won't see a Western release. I also have to come to terms that change is not something the game industry strives for anymore; it's really about sales now. As far as creativity goes, that comes from niche Japanese developers whose games I probably just won't play.

I am excited for several games in 2012, but I don't think any of them will restore my love for the industry after 2011 killed it. I want to go back to the magical days before this console generation, a generation where developers still don't seem to know what they want to do.

Why I Love Final Fantasy IX

I've noticed that most of my posts are about criticizing games and simply talking about things I don't like in the game industry. Well, I'm gonna turn that around and just write about why I love certain games, specifically Final Fantasy IX.

I didn't play FFIX until January 2011, where during my winter break from college I sat down and played the game non-stop, and I loved every second of it. Before FFIX, the only FF game I actually finished was FFXIII. You see, I was never really big into RPGs. Chrono Trigger was the first RPG that I really got into, loved, and completed. After CT, I decided to try a bunch of RPGs; unfortunately, even as a young kid, my tastes were pretty picky. The only other RPGs I really loved were Chrono Cross and Dragon Quest VIII. I played a ton of others, including many Final Fantasy games, but I could never finish them. But, after beating FFXIII, I decided to give the series another shot, and I'm glad I did, because I got to complete three of the best RPGs I've ever played: FFIX, FFVII, and FFVI. But this post is about FFIX, so lets just jump into what I love so much about the game I consider the absolute best traditional RPG.

The introduction - FFIX has one of the most beautiful, satisfying, and complete introductions of any game I've ever played. We begin with a tutorial fight with main character Zidane, then move onto exploring the beautiful town of Alexandria with a young boy named Vivi who wants to see the play that everyone is clamoring about, but he loses his ticket, so he goes on an adventure to get it back, and then we get to see the play. I honestly don't understand why everyone gives so much praise to FFVI's opera scene, and yet completely forgets about FFIX's superb play. The play is complete with it's own multi-track soundtrack, great animations, and an awesome sword-fight mini-game; the play has its own set of characters and just feels like great entertainment for the player as well as giving some foreshadow for the game. The game then introduces more characters and eventually leads to an exciting escape from the city and the evil Queen Brahne's attack. This sequence also has some beautiful CG cut-scenes that just show how much of a quality project the game is going to be. Within the first two hours of FFIX, it was already one of my top favorite RPGs ever.

The art direction - the very first thing the player notices in the introduction cutscene of FFIX is just how beautiful the game is, not in terms of polygon count, but sheer artistic beauty. The city of Alexandria is just beautiful. It's filled with detail and powerful architecture that rivals Disney's best works; furthermore, the lighting of the city at sunset is just beautiful. As the game progresses, the art direction only gets more and more impressive, with expansive cities like Lindblum that are packed with steam technology that looks like its out of a Miyazaki film, and environments that are both beautiful and scary. Character design was hit-or-miss with many people, but I find the abstract character design helps the game by allowing us to see the emotions of the characters much more clearly. FFIX executed its graphics the way all games need to; not by showing off one's polygon count or production cost, but showing the player a work of art, a beautiful and endearing world that they want to just dive right into.

The soundtrack - FFIX's soundtrack is, in my opinion, easily Nobuo Uematsu's best work. Uematsu has done amazing work in past FF games, but his work on FFIX is just so expansive, original, deep, and atmospheric that it is hard for it not to have an impact on the player. The most impressive aspect of the soundtrack is just how many music tracks are in the game; I believe it's over 120. Every area, every character, every major battle, and every major scene has its own superb music track. The power of the soundtrack hit me hard during the entrance to the kingdom of Burmecia. The city had just been torn apart by Brahne's forces, and the music just made the atmosphere so sad and depressing; furthermore, it plays Freya's Theme in this area, and her theme is also sad in tone, which works well in the atmosphere of the area because it's Freya's people who were killed. It just feels like so much hear and soul went into this soundtrack; and it just really helps bring the whole experience of FFIX together.

Active Time Events - Hey! Square-Enix! Why the hell have you not used these in any of your other games?!? This was an absolute brilliant idea! It allowed us to get insight into what each character was feeling after major events, and was a great character development tool. The focus on the characters is one of FFIX's crowning achievements, and the ATE system was a huge part of it.

Ability System - FFIX uses a traditional ATB turn-based battle system that began back with FFIV. FFIX's big difference from the other FF games was an ability system where character learn abilities from weapons they equip. This system was amazing, because it actually encouraged the player to do battles. No battle was wasted, as the player was not only gaining experience to level up, but also learning abilities from the weapons and armor they equipped. Abilities that would turn out to be very useful throughout the game. Not only did characters learn offensive abilities for battles, but also passive abilities that could be equipped. Passive abilities such as "Increase MP by 20%" or "Auto-Regen". These passive abilities went a long way in allowing players to create their very own unique characters, despite each character being a in a set role. This system was brilliant as it promoted doing battles and looking through every nook and cranny of the game world for rare items that would give awesome abilites.

The pacing of the story - FFIX had a great story, but a big part of why it was so great was because of its amazing pacing. FFIX has absolutely no boring sections, nor any sections where the player doesn't know where to go. Events just flow from one to another, and yet it never feels forced or linear; it's just one amazing job at pacing that is only beaten by Chrono Trigger's superb pacing.

The characters - Yup, saved the best for last. FFIX has one of the best casts in gaming. And here they are:

Zidane - our leading character, though you wouldn't know it right away since the game focusing on the ensemble cast rather than just one character. Still, Zidane is a great character for how original he is. He's sorta a typical shonen hero, except he's still very "human". He has his worries, his problems, and ideals, specifically, his innate desire to help anyone in need. It may sound lame, but the reason I like Zidane so much is because of just how nice of a guy he is. He acts like a big brother to Vivi throughout the game, his complex friendship with Garnet is great, and his fellowship with the other characters is really what keeps the group together. I also love how everything he's been through with the cast comes to a strong conclusion at the end of the game where he begins to doubt his reason for living. Also, how awesome was it at the end of the end of the game when he stayed behind to help Kuja? Pretty awesome, and something very few other main characters would do.

Garnet - what leading lady she is. Before the last arc of the game, the player would probably think Garnet was the main character of the game, and she basically is. The entire game is about her struggles for peace and why she fights for it despite suffering through many loses throughout the game, including losing her mother, discovering her terrible past, and becoming a queen. She just goes through so much throughout the whole game, and it just makes for the strongest female lead in the series, even more-so than Terra, Lightning, Aerith, and Tifa.

Vivi - arguably the best character in the game, mainly due to him encompassing the main theme of the game perfectly. Vivi searches for who he is, why he lives, and even if he deserves to live. It's all so very deep, and its made even more impactful because of how young Vivi is. It seems wrong for such a young boy to have to go through so much, but that's just the deck Vivi has been dealt. Vivi's end is also quite tragic, yet happy all the same because he truly discovered what he wanted. We never get to see Vivi's face, but it works so well for his story, for the player forms their own vision of Vivi for themselves. Also, how freakin' adorable is it when Vivi trips, falls, picks himself up, and then adjusts his hat? Pretty damn adorable!

Freya - I love Freya's musical theme! It really shows the power of the soundtrack when her musical theme speaks more about her character than her own words. Freya doesn't speak too much in the game outside of her initial appearance, but her impact when we go to her homeland is very impactful and makes for a beautiful yet tragic character. Her tagline is "To be forgotten is worse than death". With Freya being a warrior, one would think it was about glory in a warriors death in battle, but instead its about the pain of being forgotten by the one you love most. Freya's story is a tragic one, but she still gets her happy ending by still living through the hard times.

Steiner - in any other game, Steiner would be that lovable oaf who is all brawn and no brains, but not here. Steiner is a man of duty who seeks to be strong in order to protect what is important to him. However, he questions if he loves what he devoted himself to because he loves it or simply because he has promised loyalty to it. It makes for a character that stands by his ideals in the beginning of the game, but slowly realizes that to protect what one truly loves, he must sometimes break the rules. It all makes for a great character who is not only a foil to Zidane's aloof attitude, but one who can stand on his own as an interesting story to tell. Also, like Zidane, Steiner is a really nice guy, and really likable.

Eiko - in any other game, Eiko would be the typical "Tee-hee! Look at me! Aren't I just adorable!" type of character, but not here. Sure, Eiko is definitely adorable, but she has perhaps the most tragic past, and her story is simply one of finding love in the family and friends she wasn't allowed to have. She is just a great character to expands as the game goes on. Her relationship with Garnet is very touching, and its great how close they become.

Amarant - the badass who questions being a badass. Amarant is a guy who's from the "other side of the tracks", but upon meeting Zidane, begins to question his life choices. In a game that surrounds the concept of what one lives for, Amarant is the story of redemption, and while he doesn't get a ton of screen-time, his story is indeed told, and comes to a nice ending.

Quina - yeah, deifnitely the character with the least development, but it's basically there to be a fun character who brings the simple ideals of a child to the table. After all, in the worst situations, one needs to think fast, and that's what Quina is there for, even if it's decision aren't always the best.

Beatrix - perhaps the best non-playable side character in an RPG. Beatrix is actually a strong element to the story-line and a great character who deals with her own ideals on life. Her conflicts are similar to Steiner's and that is perhaps why she isn't a playable character, but her relationship with Garnet is great, and makes for a lot of internal struggle when she has to choose between her duties and those she cares for. She even has her own musical theme. Beatrix is actually an enemy for the first third of the game, and makes for some of the most intense battles/moments in the entire game. She really comes across as a badass as well with some intense special moves.

Kuja - while he begins as a typical intelligent and manipulative bad guy, he soon gets a backstory of his own, and his character begins to gain more and more dimensions. The end result is a villain who one can empathize with, for even Kuja, like the main cast, has to come to terms with what his life is worth and what he will do with his life. This all comes down to a great conclusion for the character that goes beyond the typical ending for a villain. Because of all of this, Kuja is my favorite FF villain.

The romance - FFIX doesn't have a lot of romance in it, nor is it the best execution of romance I've seen in a game, but FFIX breaks the cliched trends one usually finds in romance stories in RPGs. Mainly by having the romance begin as a friendship and expanding very slowly throughout the game. I hate it when two characters meet, and then just fall in love in like three days time; that's bull crap! Zidane and Garnet's relationship expands over the course of months (maybe even years since the game doesn't give an exact indication of how much time passes in the game; though it is a long time). It just makes for a more naturally building relationship. Also, they're relationship is a nice twist on the whole theif-meets-princess formula, for it isn't the princess who falls for the their, rather its Zidane who begins to fawn over the beautiful and strong Garnet when he really gets to know her; Garnet, on the other hand, is more concerned with being the ruler of her country, which is much more important than some boy. I really give credit to this relationship because it isn't cliched at all, and really just spoke a lot for both Zidane and Garnet as characters. There are no cheesy kissing scenes or stupid bursts of "I love you"; rather its all a naturally occurring process where the player can see that the two characters are growing closer to one another. It also ends on a very touching note with Zidane's return at the end of the game.

The theme - What do you live for? Is life always worth living? Do we craft our own purpose for ourselves or are we victims of fate? These are some of the questions that FFIX asks the player throughout the story, and I find them to be very powerful. Each of the characters has their own problems concerning life, and we can see them struggling to find their own answers all the way to the end of the adventure. I also love how intense the theme of life comes about in the game's climax when the players face the very origin of life itself: the Crystal. The ending also shows that life has its struggles and its rewards. Its a powerful theme, and, like FFVII, FFIX pulled it off very well.

The sense of place - I really got sucked into the world of FFIX. The places became so familiar thanks to their unique visual design and music that played within them, as well as many locations connections to the characters. Each place just felt so unique. I'll never forget when the group visits the village of Dali, or the grand metropolis of Lindblum. It all resulted in me really knowing and caring for the places, which is what made the destruction of Lindblum mid-game so heart-wrenching. Square really went out of their way to make these places memorable, and the end product really shows.

The charm - it's a hard one to explain, but FFIX is one charming game. It just sucks you into the experience so much and the player really feels like part of this world. The characters became like friends to me, and I wanted to see them all have a happy ending. The world and characters just felt so human. The art design, the soundtrack, the story, and the characters all just came together so well. The end result was just a superb gaming experience I'll never forget.

There's even more to praise about FFIX, but they're mainly specific events like the Lindblum sequence and when Garnet loses her voice, but I'll stop here. For me, Final Fanatsy IX is one of Square's crowing achievements, rivaled only by gaming greats like Final Fantasy VII and Chrono Trigger. FFIX is the ultimate culmination of everything the previous eight games in the series attempted to accomplish, all executed with the highest level of quality Square could provide at that time. FFIX is a gem of gaming design, and a game that I find truly doesn't get the praise it deserves. I believe FFIX is the reason that Square stopped making traditional RPGs and tried to do new things, because FFIX is, quite simply, the perfect traditional RPG; there's really nowhere to go but down from Final Fantasy IX.

Why I Hate Final Fantasy X

I mention a lot about how I hate Final Fantasy X, but I've never really said why. Well, here's the post to solve that. To note, however, this will be a casual post; mainly because "hating" something in a form of entertainment is a rare occurrence with me. There are many things I don't like in media like movies, anime, manga, videogames, etc, especially since I like to try many different things, but I don't "hate" them, because I understand that there are people out there who enjoy certain things that I simply do not. I can respect something even if I don't like it. It's when I "hate" something that I don't have respect for it, and there are only two objects in media I hate: Final Fantasy X and the anime Panty and Stockings with Garterbelt. The reason for my hate of these two things comes from disappointment. I know, it seems childish, but when I see so much potential in something only to have it ruined by the very people who made it, it just causes this hate. My hate for FFX will be explained in this post. And if your curious, my hate for P&S comes from my disappointment that an anime with such a unique and awesome art style and visual direction was ruined by insane levels of smut, vulgarity, incoherence, and immaturity just made me hate it. Still, it introduced me to the awesome music of Teddyloid; so I guess it isn't all bad.

OK then, let's start on why I hate Final Fantasy X! But first, a bit of a disclaimer: I started playing FFX when it was first released on the PS2, but I didn't go back and finish it until last year. However, my hate for the game has nothing to do with comparisons to FFXIII or FFXII; it does, however, have to do with comparisons to FFVII and FFIX.

First off, as a lover of great gameplay, I was very disappointed by FFX's battle system. Sure, past FF games didn't do too much with the gameplay with the exception of FFVIII, but FFX justs craps all over the past implementations of variety and dynamics in FF battle systems by having the most simple and boring battle system in the series. You see, FFX introduces the element of switching party memebers mid-battle; this goes hand-in-hand with each character having specific abilities others don't. On paper this sounds pretty cool, but in battle (every freakin' non-boss battle) it all just comes down to this: "Oh look! A flying enemy. Better get Wakka in here. OK, that takes care of him. Oh look! An enemy with armor. Better get Auron in here. There we go. Oh! An enemy that glows red. I'll switch Lulu in here to use some ice magic. There we go. OK! I win!" That's it! For the entire freakin' game! There is no strategy at all because the game basically tells you which characters to use to win the battle. It makes combat feel completely pointless, like I might as well just have the computer do it for me since the processes of battle are so simple a child could figure it out. At least past FF games put enemies in front of me that didn't have specific weaknesses, or at least their weaknesses weren't immediately apparent. Sure, bosses require a little strategy, but it's nothing past the typical bread-n-butter of past FF games. One exception being the boss battle against Yunalesca; this is the game's one gameplay highlight for me, because it shows that FFX's battle system can actually have elements of strategy and challenge to it.

Outside of the battle system, there is one other factor I found very disappointing: dungeon puzzles. I'm not against having puzzles in an FF, especially since Square made the right choice of having no random battles during them; however, these puzzles are so annoying. Their structure consists entirely of pushing blocks and placing colored orbs in slots. The results are confusing, time-consuming, and just all-around annoying. It also doesn't help that the music that plays during these puzzle sequences gets very annoying very quickly. I'm sure many people will say I just suck at puzzles and that they were easy; well, sorry I'm so stupid. I've played tons of games with puzzles, and I still found FFX's puzzles just confusing. This is an element that should've just been removed or needed much better execution.

OK, that covers the gameplay since the game was basically just battles and puzzles anyway. Well, there's Blitzball, but that was more annoying that fun, especially with its slow pace. Now, it's onto the aesthetics of the game...

FFX's graphics were fine mainly because it was one of Square's first projects for the PS2; however, what is inexcusable, in my opinion, was FFX's weak art direction. FFX is just such a boring game visually, and coming out of the superb art directions of FFVII, FFVIII, and FFIX, FFX's poor art direction just feels inexcusable. What's even more disappointing is that Square has done the Mediterranean art direction before with Chrono Cross, and that game looked stellar. The artists just did a very poor job of creating a good sense of place; resulting in a very forgettable game, visually.

FFX's soundtrack, like it's art direction, is very forgettable. A few stand-out tracks "To Zanarkand" and "Otherworld" are great, but that's it. If FFX had a main theme, I sure don't remember it. Remember FFVII's incredible main theme? Of course you do, because it fit the mood of the game superbly, as did the main theme of FFIX. FFX just has nothing. Nothing to show for it. It's OST just really lacked personality, imo.

Now, onto the biggest section: story and characters. In my opinion, in an RPG, the story and characters are just as important as the gameplay and aesthetics. And, to be honest, if FFX succeeded in this department, I would have probably forgave it's short-comings in the areas above; too bad this is FFX's worst department.

I'll start with the story. FFX's story could not have been more straight-forward. The game is literally a straight-line from start to finish, both in terms of it's gameplay (I'm OK with linear gameplay though) and how its story is executed. The one twist being the kidnapping of Yuna, which is dealt with very quickly. I get that the game is a pilgrimage, but the game just needed a lot more conflict. Furthermore, for a story that was supposed to focus on Tidus, it did a poor job of it. He is supposed to be our narrator in this story, yet the game never really feels like its from this perspective; its more like the player is omnipotent. Overall, the execution of the story just feels really poor; like all the writers wanted to do was to get to the "tear-jerker" scenes, show those off, and then work on getting to the next one. Heaven forbid the writers try to create some build-up to those scenes. You know why Aerith's death is so sad? Because we got to know her so well, and she showed how great of a person she was. Yuna, on the other hand, just came across as whiny and weak, but more on characters later. Overall, the story just felt poorly constructed and weak. I say this a lot, but I feel the story would have been SO much better if it focused on Tidus' relationship with his father. If that was the main focus of the story, and there was no crappy romance with Yuna (which is terribly executed btw) or all this talk about religion and stuff, it would have made for a great and personal story about a boy tying up the loose ends in his life before he died. If it did that, I probably would've cried at the end of the game when Tidus was holding Jecht's dead body; oh well. I'll give the game one piece of credit for it's impressive implementation of religion in the story; I liked how they remained consistent with the prayer motion throughout the game.

Now, onto the characters:

Auron - the one good character in the game. His lines were well written and well delivered. He has a great character design. And his aura of mystery was well implemented into the plot. His relationship with both Tidus and Yuna felt natural and was well executed. No complaints on my part here.

Rikku - not an annoying character, but really didn't need to be there. IMO, she cared about Yuna more than Tidus did, and if her and Yuna developed a stronger relationship, I think it would've been better for both characters. Overall, she feels a bit wasted here, as she's mainly used to bring about the Al-behd story-line.

The blue guy - yeah, I do not remember his name; something native-american sounding, I think. Regardless, easily the most forgettable character in the FF series I've come across. Other than that, there really isn't much bad about it him; it's just that he's not really important. I did like the scene where he found those two other guys from his village. Khimari! That's it. Just remembered.

Wakka - OK. Here's another character who felt out of place. Wakka is basically the buy who is bound by a duty but has unfinished business. Sounds admirable, except that unifinished business is playing in a blitzball game. It all just feels weak and annoying. I mean, he's supposed to be protecting the person who is set to save the world, and yet he wants to play in a sports tournament. The parallel I find to Wakka is Cid from FFVII, except Cid's dream was to be the first man in space and look upon the cosmos. THAT is admirable and romantic. Wakka is just this guy who wants to play blitzball and uses a ball in battle and it always shouting "ya!". His personality just feels forced. It's really uneccessary too considering we already have a hyper-active loudmouth character in the form of Tidus.

Lulu - Awesome character design! But pretty bland in all other areas. She is supposed to be the "onee-san" character of the group, which she kinda comes across in the beginning, but then she just falls to the background like Wakka and Khimari. She feels as tacked onto the cast as Wakka, but, hey, every party needs a black mage, right? Her execution could have been great, especially since she has a dark past, but since the story isn't about her, she's just there for magic.

Tidus - Oh man, does Tidus disappoint. As I've said before, I feel that Tidus could have been better implemented into the story if he focused solely on his relationship with Jecht, but instead, he somehow gets in a relationship with Yuna; a process that must have occurred off-screen, because I saw no build-up at all to their kiss scene mid-game. At first, it feels like Tidus was going to have a unique story to go along with his father issues, but that all just goes out the window when Yuna shows up. By the end of the game, Tidus feels less like a character and more of a plot device for the big twist at the end.

Yuna - I've saved the worst for last. Holy moly is Yuna a terrible character. She is just so freakin' weak! Yeah, yeah, people will say: "But she was going to die! Put yourself in her place!". Please! Many of FF's females have been put into terrible situations, and yet they faced them head-on. Terra had to deal with her bloody past, Tifa lost everything important to her, Aerith knew full well she was going to die, Garnet and Eiko lost everything they loved, and you know what they all did: they picked themselves up, held their head high, and fought for what they believed in. But, no, instead Yuna breaks down crying and find solace by kissing a boy she met two freakin' days ago. Just an awful female character. Yuna never comes across as a leader or role-model in the whole game, nor any character really deserving respect. I suppose Yuna's appeal is that she's one of those moe characters that one just wants to protect, and since the player is Tidus, they kinda get to protect her. Tch, whatever. Yuna was easily the most disappointing character of FFX because of just how weak she was; this was especially noticeable coming after FFIX's female lead: Garnet, who was a superb female lead, and arguably the strongest female of the FF series.

So, what does this all come down to: I hate FFX because it dissapointed in every aspect of game design, especially those that are most important for an RPG. And what makes it even worse is how superbly those aspects were executed by the the three previous games in the series.

I understand that FFX is one of, if not the, most treasured game in the franchise by the fanbase; however, I will probably never understand why, especially with such gems like VI, VII, and IX. I'm sure they all simply love the aspects of the game that I despise. Oh well, that's opinions. And yet I cannot simply respect it as that. Heh, it's childish, I know, but I really just don't "get it". How can people truly love this game? The conclusion I've come to is that FFX was simply many people's very first FF game, and, as a result, it holds many nostalgic memories for many members of the FF fanbase.

OK. That's enough rambling. I apologize to those who read this and love FFX. I just did this mainly because I was bored and felt like writing something; so don't take it too seriously. Though I am serious about hating FFX. Oh, how I hate FFX.