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beevean · 1 year

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Re-translating Symphony of the Night

After re-translating Curse of Darkness and finding many pearls, and trying to re-translate Harmony of Dissonance but discovering that the two scripts are pretty much identical, I tried with the far more famous Symphony of the Night :D

This time, I decided to pull not just the entire script, but also the re-translation that came with Dracula X Chronicles. Every cutscene has at least one difference worth pointing out.

The translation of the iconic intro is here, and I can’t make it more justice. Here’s the DXC version for completion’s sake.

Richter: Dracula. Die now, and leave this world! You'll never belong here! Dracula: Oh, but this world invited me. Your own kind called me forth with praise and tribute. Richter: Tribute? You're a thief. You steal men's souls, their freedom... Dracula: Freedom is always sacrificed to faith, good hunter. Or are you truly here by choice? Richter: All I'm here for is you. To hell with your heresy! You're nothing but a blight on mankind. Dracula: Ha! Mankind. A cesspit of hatred and lies. Fight for them, then, and die for their sins!

Encounter with Death

ENG (PSX):

Death: Ah, Alucard. What is your business here? Alucard: I've come to put an end to this. Death: Still befriending mortals... I'll not ask you to return to our side. But I demand you cease your attack. Alucard: I will not. Death: You shall regret those words... We will meet again.

ENG (DXC):

Death: Ah, Alucard. What is your business here? Alucard: I've come to put an end to this. Death: Ever the insolent boy... but there'll be no games here. If you will not behave, begone. Alucard: I will do neither. Step aside, old man. Death: Ha! Such arrogance. Very well... but I shall see you very soon.

JP:

Death: Master Alucard. For what reason did you come here? Alucard: You know the reason. I ask you to step aside. Death: Are you still on the side of humans? I will not ask you to come back to us, but at least I would like you to withdraw. Alucard: That is not up to discussion. Death: It cannot be helped... I will leave this place for now. Once again, please think about it carefully.

Death speaks in keigo towards Alucard, which is hard to convey in English. For some reason, his name is spelled in English in the dialogue box, instead of being called Shinigami like usual.

The last line is very different. I don’t think Death is actually as conflicted as he sounds (he still laughs evilly upon stealing Alucard’s gear), but at least he’s being more courteous about it.

(I like the little “shimatta!” Alucard says when he loses his equipment lol)

First encounter with Maria

ENG (PSX):

Maria: You seem human and yet... What do you here? Alucard: .......... I've come to destroy this castle. Maria: Then we have the same purpose. I'll trust you for now. I'm Maria. Who are you? Alucard: .......... Alucard. Maria: Not the talkative type I can see. Well, perhaps we'll meet again if you live that long. Farewell.

ENG (DXC):

Maria: Wait. Are you human? What are you doing here? Alucard: I've come to destroy this castle. Maria: Likewise. I'm Maria...And you are? Alucard: ...Alucard. Maria: Well, if you're a better swordsman than a speaker, perhaps I'll see you again. Farewell.

JP:

Maria: You have dark powers, don’t you? In appearance, you look human, but... For what purpose did you come to this castle? Alucard: ... I've come to destroy this castle. Maria: Same as me. I'll believe in those words. I'm Maria! And you are? Alucard: ... Alucard. Maria: My, aren’t you curt. That's fine. If you're still alive, let's meet again. Now, excuse me.

Maria uses watashi for herself and calls Alucard anata, and her speech pattern is as feminine as you’d expect.

The most obvious difference is that Maria pinpoints immediately that Alucard is a creature of darkness.

Encounter with Master Librarian

ENG (PSX):

Alucard: It's been a long time, old one.... Master Librarian: Oh it's you, Master Alucard. What do you need? Alucard: I need your help. Master Librarian: Young master, I cannot aid one who opposes the Master. Alucard: You won't go unrewarded... Master Librarian: Really? In that case just tell me what you need.

ENG (DXC):

Alucard: It's been a long time, old one... Master Librarian: Eh? Why, it's Master Alucard! ...Come to visit, have we? Alucard: I need your help. Master Librarian: Oh, but Young Master, I could never betray the good Count... Alucard: You won't go unrewarded... Master Librarian: Really? In that case, Just tell me what you need!

JP:

Alucard: Long time no see, old man... Master Librarian: My goodness, Master Alucard! What could you possibly need? Alucard: I'm sorry, but I need your help. Master Librarian: With all due respect, but to help a person who has bared his fangs against Lord Dracula... Alucard: I understand. I will give you a reward... Master Librarian: Is that so? In that case, I’m at your service!

The Master Librarian speaks politely, but not in keigo like Death. Alucard also sounds slightly more polite, or at the very least less blunt. I like the expression “bare his fangs” lol, it’s appropriate in this case.

Second Encounter with Maria

ENG (PSX):

Maria: So we meet again, Alucard. Alucard: It seems so. Maria: As friendly as ever, I see. It's strange. This castle is different than I remember it. Alucard: ......... This castle is a creature of Chaos. It may take many incarnations. Maria: So I can't trust my memories, huh? Oh well, I'll do my best. Good luck.

ENG (DXC):

Maria: Alucard, wasn't it? We meet again. Alucard: So it seems. Maria: As friendly as ever, I see. It's strange. This castle's different than I remember it. Alucard: ........ This castle is a creature of Chaos. With each rebirth, it takes a new form. Maria: And here I thought my mind was playing tricks. Well, there's nothing for it. Till we meet again.

JP:

Maria: We meet again, Alucard. Alucard: Maria, wasn’t it? Maria: As curt as ever, I see. Nevertheless, don’t you think it’s strange? The structure of this building is different from before. Alucard: ... Dracula’s castle is a product of chaos. It doesn’t have one singular form. Maria: So my previous experience won’t help me. Well, no point in thinking about it. Thank you.

I prefer the explanation of the castle’s nature in English, but I felt for poor Maria lol.

Third Encounter with Maria

ENG (PSX):

Maria: Impressive. You're very strong. Alucard: .......... What is it you want? You didn't come here to tell me that. Maria: You're right. Do you know the name Richter Belmont? Alucard: Of the Belmont Clan? Of course, but... Maria: He disappeared about a year ago and I'm sure he's here. If you see him, please let me know. Alucard: As you wish, my lady. Maria: Thank you. So you do know how to be a gentleman.

ENG (DXC):

Maria: You look like you're doing well for yourself. Alucard: ...And? You didn't come here to flatter me. Maria: True. Do you know the name Richter Belmont? Alucard: Belmont? Of course. Why? Maria: He disappeared about a year ago. I'm sure he's here now. If you see him, please let me know. Alucard: As you wish, my lady. Maria: Hmm. A gentlman after all. Thank you.

JP:

Maria: Great skills. I don’t think you need my help. Alucard: ... What do you want? I doubt that you came here to tell me that. Maria: Well. Do you know Richter Belmont? Alucard: A member of the Belmont clan? Maria: He's been missing for a year now. I'm sure he's here. If you see him, please let me know. Alucard: Very well. Maria: Thank you, you’re strangely kind. See you later.

I don’t know how Maria can say that Alucard is kind because he sounds even less polite than usual lmao. A bit of a different nuance, Alucard doesn’t say “oh of course I know a Belmont”, he simply expresses surprise at hearing that name again, which makes more sense.

Encounter with Richter

ENG (PSX):

Alucard: Who are you!! Richter: Open Hell's gate! Come forth my servants! Alucard: The scent of your blood... You're a Belmont! Richter: Crush this flea who invades my castle!

Alucard: I'm certain that was a Belmont. So he says he's the lord of this castle...

ENG (DXC):

Alucard: Who are you?! Richter: Servants, come forth from the gates of Hell! Alucard: ...Your blood. The scent of your blood... You're a Belmont! Richter: Attack! Rid my castle of this pest!

Alucard: A Belmont for certain. So he says he's the lord of this castle...

JP:

Alucard: !! Who are you? Richter: Open the gates to the underworld! Come forth, my servants! Alucard: The scent of your blood... You... It cannot be! Richter: Kill the insolent pest that defiles my castle!

Alucard: There is no doubt… That person was a Belmont. Did he say that he's the lord of the castle?

Richter says wa ga, which is extremely strange and may be the first sign that it’s not really Richter talking, as he normally uses ore. To explain, ware and its possessive wa ga are very archaic pronouns associated with “gods and powerful immortal entities, as well archaic kings, self-proclaimed lords and rulers”.

Fourth encounter with Maria

ENG (PSX):

Maria: So did you find Richter? Alucard: I don't know if he's the one you're looking for, but I found a Belmont. Maria: Really? So he is here! Alucard: But the one I saw was the enemy. He was the lord of this castle... Maria: That can't be true! You're wrong! I... I must go now!

ENG (DXC):

Maria: Alucard. Have you seen Richter? Alucard: There is a Belmont here. You were right about that. Maria: I knew it! Where is he? Alucard: ...The one saw was with the enemy. He called himself the lord of this castle... Maria: What? That's... That's impossible! You're wrong! ...I have to go!

JP:

Maria: So? Did you find Richter? Alucard: I don't know if he's the man you're looking for, but if it's a Belmont, I've seen him... Maria: Really? So he really came here! Alucard: But he appeared as an enemy. Moreover, as the lord of this castle... Maria: I-it can be! But if that's true, there must be a reason! Sorry, I have to go!

Again, a bit more obvious that Richter did not decide on his own to become an enemy.

Fight with the Succubus

ENG (PSX):

Alucard: !! Mother!! Lisa: That voice! Alucard, it's you! Alucard: I'm coming Mother! I'll save you!! Lisa: No Alucard! Don't come here! Alucard: But Mother! Lisa: It's all right! If my death can save others, I gladly surrender my life. Alucard: Mother! No!... Please! No!... Lisa: Yes Alucard! Watch me die and remember always my last words to you... Alucard: Yes Mother... Lisa: You must despise humans. They are to be your prey. Alucard: What?!... Lisa: Better for them to die than to let them compound their sins. Begin by slaying that one over there. Alucard: No...it wasn't like this... Lisa: What's wrong? Alucard? Alucard: My mother never said such a thing... Lisa: What do you mean!? Kill them and bring them happiness! Alucard: No! You're not my mother! What kind of demon are you!? Succubus: You broke free of my spell. I like that. Alucard: Demon, death is too good for you! Succubus: Come here little boy and show me what you've got.

Succubus: Darkling! I smell you're blood. You're a vampire... Could it be... Alucard: .......... Succubus: That strength, that beauty... You're the son of Lord Dracula. Alucard: Death in the dream world will set your soul wandering for eternity, Demon.

ENG (DXC):

Alucard: Mother!!! Lisa: ...Alucard? Is that you? Alucard: I'm coming, Mother! I'll save you!! Lisa: No, Alucard! Stay away! Alucard: Mother... Lisa: It's all right! If my death can save others, I gladly surrender my life. Alucard: No! I won't let this happen! Lisa: It's too late. ...Just stay with me. Hear my last words to you... Alucard: Yes, Mother... Lisa: Humans... You cannot live with them. You can only hate them, do them harm. Alucard: What?! Lisa: Theirs is such a hard lot. Release them from their pain. Begin with the ones who killed me. Alucard: No... It wasn't like this... Lisa: Alucard? What's wrong? Alucard: My mother never said such a thing! Lisa: What do you mean? I an your mother! Do as I say! Release them! Kill them! Alucard: No! You are not my mother! What kind of demon are you?! Succubus: Strong enough to break my spell, eh? I like that. Alucard: You deserve worse than death for this, demon. Succubus: Then give it to me, little boy. Don't be shy...

Succubus: Darkling! I smell your blood, your hunger... Alucard: .......... Succubus: That strength, that beauty... you really are the son of Lord Dracula. Alucard: Death in the dream world will set your soul wandering for eternity, demon.

JP:

Alucard: !! Mother!! Lisa: That voice! Alucard, you’re here! Alucard: Mother! I'm coming to save you! Lisa: No, don't come here! There’s no point! Alucard: But, Mother! Lisa: It's alright! If my fate brings happiness to everyone, I will gladly die. Alucard: No! What are you saying... Lisa: I’m so sorry, Alucard. My heart only breaks for you... However, keep my last words in mind, and carry on... Alucard: Mother... Lisa: Hate mankind, and kill them. Alucard: !! Lisa: Better for them to die than to let them compound their sins. Go ahead, kill that person there! Alucard: This is wrong... Lisa: What's wrong? Alucard? Alucard: She would have never said that... Lisa: What do you mean? Kill them and make them happy! Alucard: You are absolutely not my mother! What are you?! Succubus: How did you break free of my spell? I like that. Alucard: I won’t forgive you! Even death is too merciful for you! Succubus: You will slowly become my prisoner. Come on, boy.

Succubus: The... the scent of your blood... Why does your blood smell like the clan of the night...? It can’t be...! Alucard: ... Succubus: That strength, that beauty... ahh, it really is you! You’re the Count’s... Alucard: If you die in the dream world, your soul will die as well... Wander forever as an empty shell.

Alucard calls Lisa 母上 (hahaue), an honorific and dated word for “mother”, while “Lisa” calls him anata, still showing him respect.

The dialogue is generally more detailed. The word the Succubus uses for “spell” is 呪縛 (“jubaku”), which literally means “binding spell”, as in one that restricts your movements - presumably because she wanted Alucard to be trapped in his nightmare for eternity. She also specifies that she’d “slowly” make Alucard her prisoner: perhaps the more Alucard stays in the nightmare, the harder it would be for him to break out? Similarly, Alucard spells out that the Succubus will be left as an empty shell. Harsh.

Obtaining the Holy Glasses

ENG (PSX):

Maria: Alucard? Alucard: That voice? Maria? Maria: I'm sorry. You were right. He has joined forces with the enemy... Alucard: So it was a Belmont after all... Maria: But someone must be controlling him... Whatever we do, we can't harm Richter. Alucard: But he must be stopped. Maria: I know. Well...here. Take these with you. Alucard: What are these? Maria: If you wear them, you can see beyond evil illusions. Alucard: Thank you. 'Tis best then if you pray for the soul of your friend.

ENG (DXC):

Maria: Alucard? Alucard: That voice... Maria? Maria: I'm sorry. You were right. He is with the enemy... Alucard: Richter Belmont, in league with Dracula... Maria: He must be under someone else's control. We can't hurt him, whatever we do. Alucard: But he must be stopped. Maria: Yes, but can you? Then for all our sakes, show me that you will!

Maria: You're stronger than I am. You can save Richter. Will you? Please... Alucard: I can't promise that. But I will stop him. Maria: If it must be that way... Here. I found these. Take them. Alucard: And these are? Maria: If you wear them, you can see beyond illusions. Alucard: Thank you. I go to find Richter. Stay, and pray for him.

JP:

Maria: Alucard? Alucard: That voice... Maria? Maria: I'm sorry. It’s as you said. Alucard: So it was a Belmont after all... Maria: I don't think he’s doing this of his own free will... but my power isn’t enough... We can’t stop Richter. Alucard: But he must be stopped. Maria: I know. Well... here. Take these. Alucard: What are these? Maria: If you wear them, you should be able to see through evil illusions. Alucard: I see. It’s best if you pray that our fight doesn’t end in his death.

Obviously the DXC version is different because it precedes the fight with Maria that doesn’t exist in the PSX version.

The biggest difference is that Maria acknowledges that Richter is much stronger than her, and perhaps Alucard as well. I prefer how in English Maria instead insists that Richter cannot be harmed, foreshadowing the way to properly win the fight.

Fight with Richter

ENG (PSX):

Richter: I've been waiting for you. Alucard: Answer me. Why is a Belmont planning the resurrection of Count Dracula? Richter: Count Dracula rises but once every century and my role is over. If I can resurrect him, then the battle will last for eternity!

ENG (DXC):

Richter: I've been waiting for you. Alucard: Answer me! Why is a Belmont planning to resurrect Count Dracula? Richter: Dracula rises once a century. One chance for each Belmont to shine, and then we're finished, forgotten. If I bring him back now, the battle can last for eternity! Alucard: ........ You have lost your way. So be it, vampire hunter. Let your battle begin with me!

JP:

Richter: I've been waiting for you. Alucard: Answer me! Why is a Belmont planning to resurrect Count Dracula? Richter: The Count revives only once every 100 years. And my role is done... but my blood wants to fight! As long as he comes back, the battle will continue forever! Alucard: ........ If that is what you truly think, then so be it.

Richter here switches again to ore. Either he was being dramatic in his first cutscene, or this is a clue that he’s voicing his true doubts and desires. I like how he says “my blood wants to fight”: it encapsulates his character and how he sees himself as a Belmont.

Alucard’s line, which he only says if he obtained the Holy Glasses, is also different, and apparently omitted from the original translation. He doesn’t seem to know if it’s the real Richter talking or an external force, leaving to us the ambiguity.

Bad Ending

ENG (PSX):

Alucard: It's over... Belmont. Richter: So the war between humans and vampires finally ends here... Alucard: ........ Richter: What need for the shepherd when the wolves have all gone... My time on this world has come to an end...

Alucard: Mankind continues to fight, but it is a desperate fight to stay alive. I suppose that he chose a life of warfare since that was the only way he knew. Like you Father, he chose a path of destruction... Farewell, land of my birth. Never again will these eyes gaze upon your beauty.

ENG (DXC):

Alucard: It's over... Belmont. Richter: So the war between humans and vampires finally ends here... Alucard: ........ Richter: "What need for the shepherd when the wolves have all gone," eh? My time... It's over now...

Alucard: Mankind knows little but war and desperation. What other way of life did Belmont know? He and Father chose the same path... Farewell, homeland. I shall never see your beauty again.

JP:

Alucard: It's over... Belmont. Richter: That's right... The history of the war between humans and vampires ends here and now... Alucard: ... Richter: Now that there is no one to be hunted, there is no need for hunters... Maybe I don't belong here anymore...

Alucard: Mankind keeps fighting, but they fight to live. Because he was destined to fight, he may have sought a way to live to fight. Father, you as well chose a path of destruction... Farewell to my defiled homeland. I will never see you again.

A bit more hard hitting. I especially like the contrast between mankind who fights to live, and Richter who apparently wanted to live to fight. Also, in English the homeland is beautiful, but in Japanese, it’s “defiled”...

The resurrection of the Inverted Castle

ENG (PSX):

Shaft: You've defeated me. But all is not yet lost. The resurrection of Count Dracula is at hand!

Richter: No... What have I done... Maria: Thank you Alucard, for saving Richter. Richter: Alucard!? The same Alucard who fought alongside my ancestor Trevor Belmont?... That was over 300 years ago! Alucard: No time for small talk. Is the person who controlled you in that castle over there? Richter: Yes, I think so... Alucard: Maria, take Richter and leave here. I'll finish this. Maria: All right... Good luck.

ENG (DXC):

Shaft: How inconvenient. But we've only just begun. The Master's ascension is at hand!

Richter: No... What have I done...? Maria: You saved him, Alucard. Thank you so much. Richter: Alucard?! The Alucard? You can't be. That was over 300 years ago! Alucard: Never mind that. Is the man who controlled you in that castle? Richter: Yes, I think so... Alucard: Maria, take Richter and leave here. I'll finish this. Maria: All right... Good luck.

JP:

Shaft: I failed... but it's not over yet. Lord Dracula’s resurrection is imminent!

Richter: What have I done? Damn, me of all people...! Maria: Thank you, Alucard. You saved Richter... Richter: Alucard?! It can’t be! You defeated Dracula along with my ancestor Trevor! Alucard: It doesn’t matter. Is the person who manipulated you in that castle? Richter: Yes, he should be... Alucard: Maria, take Richter and leave the castle. I'll finish this. Maria: All right.

Richter seems to feel more guilty in this version :(

(he also uses wa ga again to say “my ancestor”. I wonder if it’s to pay respects to Trevor and his whole bloodline)

Fight with Death

ENG (PSX):

Death: So you've made it this far... In the name of your Father, cease this foolishness. Alucard: Not while there is breath in my body. Death: Then for the Master, I'll feast on your soul this night!

ENG (DXC):

Death: So you've made it this far... In the name of your father, cease this foolishness. Alucard: Not while there is breath in my body. Death: Then, for the Master, I'll feast on your soul this night!

JP:

Death: So you've made it this far... I'll say it one more time. In the name of your father, retreat. Alucard: I never intended to. Death: I cannot stop you. Then, for the Master, I'll feast on your soul!

Nothing much to say, the English version is better.

Fight with Shaft

ENG (PSX):

Shaft: You have done well in making it this far. I would expect no less from the son of our Master. Alucard: So you are the one who was controlling Belmont. Shaft: Yes. I am the dark priest called Shaft. This world must be cleansed in the forge of chaos. Alucard: Why did you make Belmont lord of this castle? Shaft: For centuries, vampire hunters have defeated evil with holy power. But if two vampire hunters were to fight each other... Alucard: But Belmont's power is supreme among vampire hunters. None other could defeat him. Shaft: Exactly. That's why I removed him as a threat by making him into lord of this castle. Alucard: But your plan has failed. Shaft: Has it indeed? We'll see what happens after I destroy your weak human side.

Shaft: Ugh...No! Alucard: You claim to love the darkness. Go then and dwell there for all eternity! Shaft: But... but my goal is achieved... Count Dracula has come to purify this corrupt world with the searing flames of chaos!

ENG (DXC):

Shaft: All hail the son of our Master! Stronger than the mightiest hunter! Alucard: So you were the one controlling Belmont. Shaft: Yes. The dark priest called Shaft, come to cleanse the world in the forge of chaos. Alucard: You made Belmont lord of the castle. Why? Shaft: Because we tire of these hunters and their holy power. If they would but turn on one another... Alucard: ...Then the strongest one among them would eliminate the rest. Belmont. Shaft: Yes. So I converted him, brought him here to lure the rest, to force them all to fight and die. Alucard: But you never planned for me. And now you've failed. Shaft: Ha! Your human soul is frail as his was. You'll take his place-- I'll tear that soul apart!

Shaft: Ugh... No! Alucard: Your beloved darkness awaits you. Dwell there for all eternity! Shaft: Ha... I die victorious... Count Dracula rises even now! Let him purge the world in flames! Hahaha!

JP:

Shaft: Well done, you've made it this far. As expected from the son of my Master. Alucard: So you were the one controlling Belmont. Shaft: Indeed. I am the dark priest Shaft, the one who will bring destruction and chaos to this world. Alucard: Why did you make Belmont the lord of the castle? Shaft: Since ancient times, vampire hunters have destroyed evil with their holy power. But what if hunters fought each other...? Alucard: ... Belmont's power is far superior to anyone else’s. If it's a power of the same nature, you can't beat it in the first place. Shaft: Exactly. By manipulating him and setting him up as the lord of the castle, I eliminated those who would get in the way of the ceremony. Alucard: But this seems to be the end of it. Shaft: Is it indeed? As the final sacrifice, I offer thy mortal half!

Shaft: Im-impossible! Alucard: Those who have cast away their flesh have no place in this world. Dwell into your beloved darkness. Shaft: Ngh... b-but, my ambition has been fulfilled... My Master, Count Dracula! Bring destruction and chaos to this rotten world!

Shaft uses ware and generally speaks in a more archaic way. Funnily enough, when Alucard asks “why did you make Belmont the lord of this castle”, he uses the verb “祭り上げる”, which means both “to put on a pedestal” and “to kick up upstairs”.

Battle against Dracula

ENG (PSX):

Alucard: Father... Dracula: Well met. my son! It's been a long time. Alucard: I was hoping we would not see each other again. I can't allow you to leave here. Father. Dracula: You have ever been the ally of humans. Have you forgotten what they did to your Mother? Alucard: Think you I would forget such a thing? No. But neither do I seek revenge against them. Dracula: Still uttering the same nonsense. No matter. Now is the time to put aside your weak human side and join me in remaking this world! Alucard: Dracula. in the name of my mother. I will defeat you again.

ENG (DXC):

Alucard: Father... Dracula: Well met, my son! It's been a long time. Alucard: Not nearly long enough. I can't allow you to leave here, Father. Dracula: Do you still side with humanity? Have you forgotten what they did to your mother? Alucard: You think I would forget such a...! No, But neither do I seek revenge against them. Dracula: Enough of your nonsense! Away with your humanity! Stand with me as Prince of all the world! Alucard: You will never touch this world again. In Mother's name, I swear it!

JP:

Alucard: Father... Dracula: Oh, look who’s here... It’s been a long time, son of mine. Alucard: I hoped to never meet you again... Now that it has come to this, I can't let you go any further. Dracula: Are you still on the side of humans? Surely you haven’t forgotten what they did to your mother. Alucard: How could I forget? But my mother didn't want revenge on humans. Dracula: Are you still saying such nonsense? That's fine. This time, I will wipe away your vulgar blood and make you join my family. Alucard: Dracula! In the name of my mother, I will defeat you again!

Alucard already specifies that the reason he doesn’t hate humans is because of Lisa.

Dracula’s last line is “今度こそ下賤な血を消し去り、我が眷族に加えてやろうぞ”. “眷族” means both “family, household” and “followers”, and I don’t know which one fits better. I went with “family” to imply that Dracula has completely disowned Alucard and will only consider him his son if he gets rid of his human side. Also “vulgar blood”? Way to insult your darling wife.

Good Ending

ENG (PSX):

Alucard: Go back whence you came! Trouble the soul of my mother no more! Dracula: How? How is it that I've been so defeated? Alucard: You have been doomed ever since you lost the ability to love. Dracula: Ah...sarcasm. 'For what profit is it to [a] man if he gains the world, and loses his own soul'?. Matthew 16:26 I believe. Alucard: ......... Dracula: Tell me. What... what were Lisa's last words? Alucard: She said "Do not hate humans. If you cannot live with them, then at least do them no harm. For their's is already a hard lot." She also said to tell you that she would love you for all of eternity... Dracula: Lisa, forgive me. Farewell my son...

Alucard: So you made it. Maria: Alucard! I'm glad your all right! Richter: I'm sorry. 'Tis my fault that you had to fight your own father... Alucard: Fear not. I had my own reasons for destroying him. Richter: It must have been painful for you. Alucard: Indeed. But you must always remember that the only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing... Richter: I understand. Maria: Alucard, what will you do now? Alucard: The blood that flows in my veins us cursed. 'Twould be best for this world if I were to disappear forever. Maria: ......... I see... Alucard: Farewell then. We'll not meet again. Maria: ......... Alucard... Richter: Don't you want to go after him, Maria? Maria: ......... I'm sorry... I can't let him disappear from my life. Richter: It's all right. Go after him. Perhaps you can save his haunted soul. Maria: Thank you, Richter... Fare thee well. Richter: And yourself, dear lady.

ENG (DXC):

Alucard: Go back to the abyss! Trouble the soul of my mother no more! Dracula: H-How?! How could I have lost?! Alucard: You lost your heart. Your soul. You'll never win without them. Dracula: Ah, how poetic. So I tragically sacrificed all I held dear in a search for power, did I? Alucard: ...Did you not? Dracula: ...Hmph. Tell me. What... What were Lisa's last words? Alucard: She said, "Do not hate humans. If you cannot live with them, then at least do them no harm, for theirs is already a hard lot." ...She also said that she would love you. For eternity. Dracula: Lisa, forgive me... Farewell, my son...

Alucard: So you made it. Maria: Alucard! You're all right! Richter: So you had to fight your own father? It's my fault. If I hadn't been so weak, we wouldn't be here. Alucard: Not so. I had my own reason to face him. Richter: Still... It couldn't have been easy. Alucard: It wasn't... But remember "The only thing necessary for evil to triumph..." Richter: ...is for good men to do nothing. Maria: So, what now, Alucard? Alucard: The blood in my veins is cursed. It's best for the world if I disappear, now and forever. Maria: ........ ...I see... Alucard: Farewell, then. We'll not meet again. Maria: ............ Alucard... Richter: Well, are you going after him, or not? Maria: ........ .... I'm sorry. I have to follow him. I can't just... Richter: It's all right! Hurry up and catch him. If anyone can save him, you can. Maria: Thank you, Richter. For everything. Richter: Thank you... Maria.

JP:

Alucard: Go back to where you should be! Don't make my mother suffer any more... Dracula: H-how? How could have I been defeated...? Alucard: Power can transcend limits only when there is something to protect it. You were doomed the moment you lost someone you loved, and stopped loving. Dracula: I see... It's ironic... I lost because I sought power... Alucard: ... Dracula: Alucard. Tell me. What were Lisa's last words...? Alucard: Do not blame humans. She said that those unable to forgive mankind will walk the path of their own destruction. Those who do not belong to that world shouldn't do anything... And Father... she said that she will love you forever. Dracula: Lisa... I was wrong...

Alucard: So you made it. Maria: Alucard! I'm glad you’re all right! Richter: I'm sorry. Because of me, you had to fight your father by blood... Alucard: Do not worry. It was simply my destiny to defeat him. Richter: Your words save me. Alucard: But remember. He's not the one who can bring ruin to this world: it’s mankind. Richter: I understand. I will engrave those words in my heart. Maria: Alucard, what will you do now? Alucard: This world has no need for the cursed blood that flows through my body. It would be better to remain unseen. Maria: ... I see... Alucard: Farewell then. We'll not meet again. Maria: ... Alucard... Richter: It’s alright, Maria. You don’t need to go after him. Maria: ... I'm sorry... I can't leave him alone... Richter: I see. If that is the path you choose, never regret it. Maria: Thank you... Then, I wish you well. Richter: Ah... same to you, Maria.

Lisa’s last words are “もし、人間が許されない存在であるなら、自ら滅びの道を歩む”. I don’t quite know how to translate it, but I think this is it. And Dracula doesn’t even say goodbye to Alucard.

Yes, Richter says “father by blood”, or “real father” (“実の父”), perhaps to emphasize the theme of bloodlines of the game. Alucard doesn’t say that he had his own reasons, but that it was his destiny, which is the other theme of the gane. Richter’s response is “そう言ってくれると助かる”, which literally is “It would be helpful if you could tell me that”, in any case very different from the empathy he offers in English. And I like that Maria doesn’t want to leave Alucard alone in his grief :)

Overall, the DXC script seems to be more of a free rewriting of the original PSX translation, but it didn’t take much from the Japanese version, which offers more details.

#castlevania #symphony of the night #long post #very long #very few lines show drastic changes like in cod #but there are many more changes

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keltoi-1 · 1 year

Text

Don't usually air my thoughts, but that last mission and cutscene was a ride and half and I'm still reeling from it. Beyond... you know, Red and that whole shebang, there's that whole matter of the Traveler moving. It rose into the upper atmosphere and now it's hanging there. Beautifully, like those older Destiny artworks - as well as when it emerged sideways like that Unveiling cover art. But the real rollercoaster is that it moved. The last time it did something it repaired itself. The time before that, it woke up and broke free of Ghaul's cage.

But this time it literally moved. It has left the Last Safe City of Earth and now it's in Earth's upper orbit. Which I didn't think it would do, because in the back of my head there was all this feeling of security seeded again and again by everything from Ikora's philosophies to other ramblings, like that paragraph about a wanderer who just gets tired of it, settles down, makes some demigod babies and hopes they choose to be good while ringing their safe place in pikes. The Constellations (A.K.A. the Speaker lorebook) really should have knocked that out of me, what with the whole "Traveler will leave us" and "I WANT TO LEAVE" parts, but I was confident it wouldn't. That it cared and that it was too exhausted to pick up the cycle all over again.

Except now it's moved. And there's so many things to consider about it.

The Traveler didn't care about the Warsats and was simply rising to meet the Black Fleet at last - that stereotypical point in every movie about heroism, someone older and braver stepping out in front of the crowd to paint themselves as the primary target. It's not only here to stay, it is making a stand alongside us. Likely.

The Traveler did care about the Warsats and was sacrificing itself. If the Warsats fired and annihilated it, then maybe the City would survive - so long as there wasn't any significant debris left over to cause an extinction-level event. Which doesn't seem likely to me because that would draw Xivu Arath and her Horde through a portal anyways. Torobatl 2 electric boogaloo. Unlikely. (We already know the Traveler cares. It's not evil.)

Not one I really believe, but possible enemy movements have disturbed this "Veil" artifact and it could be answering a call for help, only to stall as it realizes all eyes are on it.

The Traveler gave into fear. Eramis was maybe right, maybe wrong, probably half-right. The Traveler as we know it is a sentient being. It has hopes and dreams and wants and desires. It has fears and ambitions. And the Black Fleet aiming so many weapons at it, stalking so close? Anyone would be afraid. And thus we arrive at the opposite case of Point 1: the Traveler was not stepping forward to make a stand with its resolve strengthened, but rather its nerve broke. It's tired and it's desperate but it's also alive and afraid and it might've just made a knee-jerk reaction. It's our icon, it's our standard, and right in front of everyone it lost its control at the last second and made to run - only to remember it can't, it shouldn't, maybe it doesn't need to. Too bad, the harm's already done; we saw it make to escape and even if it's still here, we saw its fear. We saw it give into despair. The Witness said it has nowhere left to run. The Witness has said that only in our last moments, devoid of hope, are we truly ourselves. We've seen the Traveler at that stage. Another likely option and nowhere near as inspiring as the first.

#destiny 2 #season of the seraph spoilers #traveler be traveling

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coffee-in-veins · 7 months

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As someone who (very casually) enjoys Eldin Ring, I am very curious what you think

thank you for the ask! ^^ that was quick xD

well, then, i hope you won't be upset about what i have to say about it. i genuinely love it from worldbuilding perspective and it looks cool and thrilling more often than not. other things, though...

for the context, i did my best to like it for like casual 80 hours or so, playing very slowly, very cautiously, and probably very inefficiently, because i would often just chill at the location, so those hours mean almost nothing. i managed to kill the grafted guy, the moon lady, got to meet Ranni (god i remember at least one name from it all without cheating!) and got to the point where i was supposed to get into the autumn plateau which name i won't remember even if you torture me.

and this is my first gripe with the game. this one is more of a personal struggle, so take it with a grain of salt. i struggle quite a lot with remembering names, both irl and in media. i remember visuals, i remember voices, i remember plots. but names? beats me. hell, i only remembered Dis and Rey after like half a year of a deep dive into DD, if it gives you any perspective.

with that explanation out of the way, comes the gripe itself: most of the time, i was completely, utterly and hopelessly lost who were those people, whom they wanted killed and where they wanted me to go. my quests would go something like this:

"Go fight General Radahn!" someone said. I think I saw their helmet, twice, and I remember they are a blacksmith. probably. i remember the voice tho. they are genuinely nice to me, so i'd probably do it.

however, not a single braincell rumbled in that head of Tarnished of mine as i sat in front the screen and looked at them blankly: "Who?"

but the NPC already continued: "They are in Caelid!"

not a drop of recognition. "Where?" okay, i sit and think frantically, i have a map, maybe it has parts named, maybe i won't have to wander for half an hour before giving up and going to the wiki again...? no? well, fuck, maybe some locations are named? right! locations. jackpot, some have 'caelid' in them. ah, the red poison swamp! dude, why didn't you say so? on my way!

me, meeting Radahn: aaahhh, that big dude on a tiny horse! sure! from the promo! wait, who asked to kill him again? and why?

and that was every time. there are dozens of names and places and they all are deeply connected and you somehow are expected to keep it all in your head or make notes on a piece of paper, idk. call me whiny, or call it an aesthetic (put a pin into that, we will return to it later), but wouldn't it be convenient to have something like bestiary that Witcher 3 had, with a tab for people you met or heard about? nothing too concrete, hell, this series is know for being frugal with explanations but... like, something, so i don't have to keep wiki constantly open and ready to alt tab to understand who am i talking to and who are they talking about.

and while we're talking about dialogues, BG3 made me understand how much i need a tab where i can re-read recent dialogues. if not to understand things better with all the ye old-english-y words some of us filthy non-eng speakers have no idea even exist, then to see how those names are spelled so we can search them in wikis later.

and have you noticed a thing which is going like a red string through all of my writing? wiki. hell, i'm writing all of the above using wiki because i still don't remember how those people are called. you get used to it just to know who's who. wanna laugh at me? because i was so stressed out by the first bosses, i completely blacked out at the first boss, only seeing vague shapes, and i genuinely thought that Godrick and Morgott were the same guy for the longest time because i was stressed out, didn't have enough time to look at them and was frantically thinking of moves and skills instead of actually watching the cutscene with proper attention. it didn't help that they both spoke with similar tones and in a ye old-english-y way, and were in the same location. so yeah, you can imagine my confusion during the game later on...

there's one thing, though. constantly checking names in wiki makes you feel like it's fine to check other things too. and, Io and behold, before you know it, you're just tired and grumpy and look up where the hell are things you need, quests you missed, resource nodes... and suddenly, the best part of the game (exploration) is gradually chipped away, without you even noticing.

i mean, i had to look up how the horse is called and I love Torrent to bits, even if he is as responsive to controls as a DD2 bangwagon that was put on two very greasy, very non-cooperative pigs on skis. which is another gripe of mine, but the poor guy is so abandoned in the second half of the game, that it's genuinely depressing.

which brings us to my second most gripe in the game: menus. remember that aesthetic pin? let's get it out. menus are a genuine pain in the ass to navigate, they don't respond to mouse (oh, we're gonna return to that. oh, we're gonna...), and for the first thirty or so HOURS i wasn't aware there were other tabs in the inventory. genuinely. i simply wasn't aware. i hovered the mouse on tabs, they weren't scrolling, and knowing that this is primary console game, i didn't pay much attention to the keys besides those, assuming (rightfully, as i thought) that those were for consoles to switch tabs. forgive me for my 'pc master race' mentality, but i'm not used to things in the menu not being responsive to the mouse. so some of the quest items you see in there somewhere? any tab after keys? nope, i didn't know they existed.

remember painting quests? i loved those. but also i had no fucking idea you carried a copy somewhere in the bowels of the inventory tab. thus, like the moron i was, i would come to them, make a photo of my screen on my phone, and try to go around, keeping the photo up on my phone as a reference. or go back to the actual in world painting to check. my frustration was immeasurable and my pain was immense. or maybe you wanna find the weapon you just looted and see if it is of any use? pff, good luck, hope you remembered its name or how it looked, or didn't have anything in your inventory, else get ready to go through a warehouse of other gear you carry. not to mention that sorting on those is extremely non-intuitive. why are lantern and looking glass and prattling pates in one section but wraith calling bell and mimic veil have separate ones? why is horse whistle with flasks and flasks 2.0? why are memory of grace with the flasks and horse whistle? am i missing something?? genuine question.

quick side note while we’re at the topic of prattling pates, should i even mention how notoriously convoluted the better ending for my sweet boy Boc is…?

not to mention that 'Switch display' option is very... unexplained, to say politely. it turns out you can see how many runes exactly is Golden Rune [7] - if you switch the view. because having explanation of 'use to gain many runes' on one screen totally gives you a hint that it would say 'use to gain 2500 runes' in another.

i mean i get it. the series has a reputation. it is dark souls 4, 5 and 6 with a new coat of pain (or maybe paint), it has to be hard, you gotta 'git good', you have to fight for every sliver of lore and then listen to 12 hours of youtube explanations anyway just to have a semblance of understanding what's going on. but - and this is an important but - there's a difference between working for the lore and being unable to understand what the hell you looted and not being aware you can actually know how rune [6] 'many' differs from rune [9] 'many' without trying to go and use it and make a table with those orrrr - say it with me! have the wiki opened.

also the fact that nowhere does it say that spirit ashes can be summoned only in specific areas AND you need a bell you need to get later on somehow bumbling into Ranni is simply false marketing. i took twin imps as my trinket and boy ho boy, lemme tell you someone was pissed for the first hour of the game...

which brings me to creme de la creme of my gripes. the controls. pc port is... well it exists, and i still haven't recovered from that. it makes you extremely aware from the word go that you're not the target demographic. that you're unwelcome here. that no one looked at it and thought: huh, we have battles where we expect Tarnished to get on and off Torrent mid-fight, so how shitty of us would it be if we make Torrent summon be "F + [arrow up]" for keyboards? you know, so the player would have to get their hand off the mouse. mid-battle. naaah, that would work just fine, ship that bad boi as is! oh, and make it non-mappable too. they have keyboard with 75% keys being unused? who cares! it mirrors gamepad, and that is what truly matters.

i said it once when a pal of mine let me use his acc and try Dark Souls. i think it was the third one...? well, my experience was - 'i'm not fighting the monsters, i'm fighting the game'. and it's pretty much the same for Elden Ring. did you know there's a power off hand attack? i didn't. did you know there's a way of switching your weapon to hold it in two hands? i didn't did you know you can make it on the fly? i sure as hell didn't. did you know your RH attack is bound to your LMC and it fucks your brain when you play because here it plays role and you can fuckup by using weapons in 'wrong' hands? yeah, that i experienced a plenty.

do you know how i know all those? i plugged in a gamepad and oh god all of the mapping makes so much goddamn sense! i had to reverse-map things because i only played FF9 with a controller, and was extremely uncomfortable with it in a non-turn-based game. which left a taste of bile in my mouth.

loading times are awesome thought. i dunno how they achieved that, but that's hella impressive for a game this big.

i ended up liking the world. vistas. lore that people dig into. but this game isn't for me. not because i'm not interested but because i have a setup they clearly don't care about. and it's okay, i guess. but i have too little free time to spend it fighting not the monsters the game sets in front of me as a challenge but the game itself

hope it wasn't too convoluted ^^'

and thanks again for the ask! :}

#my shoebox of letters #They don't even know how belts work || the saltmines

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selfdiagnosedeyemotif · 8 months

Text

Chapter One (Aestia):

Partitio-type thing with a few time jumps

First part:

23-year-old Aestia Trititaka is inducted as a priestess of the Sacred Flame

Ceremony is carried out by Pontifex Victoria Inaméa and the local Archbishop, Ronaldo Effiva

Present is Sir Eldroy Herres, Lord Commander of the Flamelit Order and captain of the pontifex’s personal guard

Standing beside her is Lylah Ilibria, her closest friend

After the ceremony ends, the two receive their assignments: Lylah to a larger church in the Hearthlands and Aestia to village in the Goldlands without a parish

The two promise to stay in touch in spite of the distance, say their goodbyes, and leave on their way

Cut to Aestia coming to the village of Ambersmouth

Guide and Entreat tutorials through gathering help to build a chapel on a hill overlooking the village

Introduce Mal Cheshire (soon to be bestie) via Guide

Emphasise her as a bit of a weirdo and an outsider

Ends with Letter #1

Second part:

Begins with Letter #2

26-year-old Aestia has become a staple member of the community, several people come to talk to her for help

First battle w/ a strange intruder breaking onto a farm late at night (they ultimately escape and are not identified), aided by Mal

Mal unexpectedly goes missing the morning after the fight

Third part:

Begins with Letter #3

29-year-old Aestia is still grappling with the loss of Mal, has become somewhat more self-destructive as a result

The villagers gather for a memorial on the third anniversary of Mal’s disappearance when a strange sickly green fire sweeps through one of the fields

One of the village children disappears that night, the same fire and disappearance repeats twice more

The morning after the third fire, Mal’s body is found hanging from the bell tower of the chapel, covered in cruel green scarring

Desperate to prevent another disappearance, Aestia gathers the townsfolk into the chapel and stands guard outside of the entrance

Whispers from the field burning just outside of the chapel cause her to barricade the chapel door, leave her post, and venture into…

The First Dungeon: Flame-Forsaken Field

Corn maze but it's on FIRE, BABY

Many paths: those that don’t lead to dead ends or chests all converge at a single point at the centre

Enemies: generic ratkin and foxes that will flee quickly from battle, Embers with high attack/low defence that will not

Reaching the centrepoint of the field will trigger the cutscene leading into…

The First Boss: Tormented Blaze

First turn: summons 2 Embers

Has stronger Fire and weaker Physical attacks

Special ability: Razing Flame (destroys all Embers, augments its Elemental Attack for 3 turns, enters Boost Mode with message “The fire has reached a fever pitch!”)

Boost Mode attack: The Ending (heavy Fire damage to entire party)

At half health: message “Something is pouring out from the Tormented Blaze” is displayed, three Villager Souls join your party (similar to their base sprites but made of green and blue flame), each with one random stat buff, prompts Latent Power, Tormented Blaze gains a permanent Elemental Attack/Physical Defence/Elemental Defence stat buff (you’ve got a full party now so the difficulty is gonna ramp up)

Finale:

Fire dies down as the Tormented Blaze dies

Three Villager Souls each thank you before all losing their fire and collapsing to the ground as corpses with the same markings as Mal

Aestia carries the bodies back to the chapel, removes the barricade, and performs a hasty funeral for the three deceased villagers

Following morning, after the villagers leave the chapel, Aestia closes the doors of the chapel and sets out alone the holy city of Flamecrest, where she will speak to the Pontifex on the matter at hand

Letter #1:

Dearest Lylah,

I hope this letter finds you well, and soon. I know not what your experience in the Hearthlands has been like, but I pray it has been pleasant. How is work in a larger church? You have always been a gifted speaker, and I can imagine that your presence there is most appreciated. Hopefully the head priest or archbishop or whoever you find yourself with has the wisdom to not relegate you too far from the pulpit. It would be a great waste.

On my end, I miss you dearly. Not a day goes by when I do not wish that you could be here with me. However, I do believe that I shall acclimate well to Ambersmouth. The townsfolk are extremely friendly, and everyone chipped in to help with the construction of the chapel. In particular, a local bard named Mal Cheshire was most helpful. He isn’t much for heavy lifting, but his help in directing the townsfolk was most needed. I believe that the two of us shall be good friends yet.

With blessings from the Flame,

Your Aestia

Letter #2:

Dearest Lylah,

I’m as happy as ever to receive your letters, don’t you worry. It isn’t the same as being able to talk face-to-face, but it is a good way of catching up. I see that you’ve begun to learn an instrument! The drums are a fantastic choice, if a slightly underappreciated one. I’m sure you’ll be wonderful on them. I’ve learned a bit of music theory while Mal has taught me the fiddle, and it really does show that a piece is not complete without a talented percussionist. You’ll be a perfect fit, I’m sure.

Things have finally begun to slow down before the autumn harvest on my end. It feels strange, talking to someone in the frigid north of the duties of a farmer, but it must nonetheless be said. We are finally out of the stage of constant work that comes before threshing. Perhaps sometime soon you’ll be able to have some genuine Goldlands wheat bread up north, as well! When you do, know that it comes to you with all my love.

With blessings from the Flame,

Your Aestia

Letter #3:

Dearest Lylah,

Apologies for not writing sooner. The preparations for Mal’s absentee funeral have taken a bit of a toll on me. The bustle and rush of it all is bad enough, but I fear that I am still not yet ready to admit that he is gone. It has been three years, yes, but the town is so much quieter without him, and I truly wish that he could somehow miraculously return. However, I am afraid that you are the only one I can confide this in. I must be strong for the village when the time comes. It shall be a challenge for all of us, not just me.

It is good to hear that matters are going well over on your end. Please give my warmest congratulations to the newlywed couple, and to you for completing your first marriage! It is always wonderful to hear of your accomplishments. As ever, I am astonished at just how busy your life is; work at a large church feels truly otherworldly compared to mine. Apologies for not having more to say, but I believe I have to get back to work soon. I will write whenever next I have the chance.

With blessings from the Flame,

Your Aestia

#iris goes to OC hell #project OCtopath #a gust in the fields #cw death #cw ghosts

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zakku972 · 11 months

Text

So, thoughts on the #FF16 demo? A thread:

I’ll break my thoughts down into a few categories, then a summary (with a mild spoiler). Also note, I do recognize that this is a demo build from probably a while ago, so some things might have changed compared to the gold release of the game.

First up, accessibility options:

For the core settings in the game, I did enjoy that there were subtitle size/subtitle background/speaker options. Turned all of those on as soon as I could, and it was very noticeable. I do wish that there was an option for increasing the standard screen text/icon size though – I was having trouble with telling if the icons were referring to L1 or R1. Another thing I thought was a very good move in particular was being able to change audio cues into visual ones. I didn’t use it myself, but it’s a great step in the right direction!

For gameplay accessibility options, I like that they included a “Story” option for those of us that don’t usually play action games, as well as including accessories to make the gameplay a little more forgiving. I didn’t end up using these, but I’m happy more people will be able to play this game now than not.

One last thing for this section, and I’m not sure if this counts as an accessibility option, is that you can bring up a glossary of places and characters if you pause during a cutscene. I may not use this (due to the aforementioned screen text size issue), but it’ll be great for people that have to take extended breaks when playing the game, since it looks like this story will have many locales and characters.

Now, onto presentation/graphics:

Most of the colors in the demo seemed a bit…washed out? All of the lights, magic, and even the title screen were bright and colorful – plus I’ve seen some video of deeper gameplay that doesn’t make me feel too worried – but I know my TV’s automatic darkening settings had a field day. The actual graphics and stability were really gorgeous though, even though the sometimes drab colors. I played in performance mode and didn’t notice any hiccups at all, though I have heard that the FPS even in performance mode aren’t a consistent 60, that they range from 50-60. I’m sure it’ll be a little more consistent in the full release.

Next, some gameplay:

Here’s where I have some mixed feelings. First, I do want to say that I thoroughly enjoyed the gameplay of the combat. As far as what we’re able to do, it comfortably feels like it’s leaning more into a Devil May Cry style than Kingdom Hearts. I did feel like there could have been a bit more “punch” or impact to the combat, but I know I’ve got Monster Hunter on the brain when it comes to sword hitting flesh, so I may not be the best to ask about that.

The Eikon fight did seem to suffer a bit more from that, as it seemed that there wasn’t too much visual or vibrational feedback in the fight. But again, this isn’t the final game and we weren’t even in the role of Ifrit yet, so hopefully it will feel a little better then. This “floatiness” also carries over into the regular movement, in my opinion. It just seemed like outside of combat, that Clive was running around in buttered boots with some inconsistencies, like the automatic jumping or climbing, during terrain traversal speeding him up just a hair too late if you approach them while walking. It was a little jarring to look at. The ladder climbing and crouching under debris looked and felt great though!

Finally, the story:

Hey look, it’s Game of Thrones! But actually, it’s not! Lots of people have made the comparison to the hit TV show/book series, and lots of other people have answered with the fact that the first Final Fantasy predates A Song of Ice and Fire, but here are the brass tacks: Both GoT and FF16 are trying to tell a more adult-oriented fantasy stories, and there will obviously be some overlap in how things are portrayed in certain circumstances. Hell, you can see people in the real world acting like this. There may have well been some influence from GoT on FF16 since various mediums do borrow from each other often, but the story and approach for FF16 feels like it’s doing enough unique things to differentiate itself from being a GoT clone.

On the note of that uniqueness, I do enjoy the purported theme of destroying the Mothercrystals’ hold on the world. Generally, crystals in FF games hold the world together. Though they may get corrupted or used to seal some kind of evil, usually only the villain of the story sets out to destroy or liberate the world from them – and I’m excited to potentially take on that role in the role of a character acting from a place of deep trauma.

I have one assorted musing for the lore though – there is a throwaway line near the beginning from a slavemaster: “I’m having my Bearer fill the well, my lord. Best to save what crystals we can, eh?” Are there only a finite number of crystals in the world? Do crystals get more “used up” depending on the magic affinity of who’s using it? I’ve been trying to keep out of the game’s world as much as possible, so it’ll be fun to find out.

Overall, I’d say I’m looking forward to it, as it could tell an amazing story that’s actually fun to play. I’ve never been the biggest fan of turn-based RPGs, and I do like that it’s gameplay is going in a little bit different direction than the Kingdom Hearts/FF15/FF7R style. Some of the color schemes are weird, but that and some of the other issues may have well been taken care of by the time of release. Most of all though, I want to make Anabella pay for everything she’s done and I really hope we get to mete out that justice ourselves. If you can make me hate a character for who they are (and not how they’re written), then you’ve at least got some decent writing.

#ffxvi #ff16 #ff16 demo #final fantasy #thoughts #accessibility

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osc-confessions · 2 years

Note

Mm, alright, this is. Probably going to be a long one. This could probably be a video essay if I heavily elaborated on everything, hah.

Well, y’know those asks talking about how season 2 is retconning a lot of season 1? Yeah, they’re right.

The thing about season 1 is that they didn’t actually write very much of the show ? The character dynamics and the characters themselves aren’t actually properly built up, and the deaths don’t have that much impact. It also really isn’t a mystery. It’s just murder. There’s no questioning who would be the murderer because there isn’t any possible motivation. Who could be controlling GPS isn’t a mystery that the audience gets to think about either, because there aren’t any given hints, you just have the question.

Let’s go back to the character dynamics, all of them are, vague in the first season to put it lightly. They’re made better in season 2, but I shouldn’t need to watch a prequel that did not exist to actually appreciate it.

The main cause for this is the fact that they separated the duos almost immediately. They don’t get to develop or show any of the relationships because none of them get to interact. It also is a really strange decision from a detective in general, though I do suppose that it was explained by the fact that Speaker is a bad detective.

However, the issue with that is in season 1, it doesn’t come off as “Speaker is incompetent”, and instead that “the show’s writing is flawed.” They don’t proper showcase Speaker’s flaws in season 1, so this reasoning doesn’t work, and honestly can be interpreted AS a retcon !!

Anyway, away from the tangent, the character dynamics don’t get developed because of this writing decision. The writers don’t even work with the idea of separating the characters into groups of people who don’t trust each other. Some of the characters note that they hope that the other person in their duo is doing okay, but nothing else besides that, which only gives the idea that they don’t actually care about each other that much.

GPS and Top Hat are canonically in a romantic relationship, but that’s never actually hinted towards in any way. It’s not like I need them to kiss or say “I love you,” but any signs of affection would’ve worked. Top Hat notices that something’s off with GPS, but only because of an inconsistency in GPS’ story. He doesn’t comment that GPS is acting differently, or that they are or aren’t doing something that he usually does. There aren’t subtle character moments like this, which makes their relationship feel more shallow. I don’t believe that Top Hat cares about GPS deeply because he says nothing about that.

Top Hat grieves for GPS, but he doesn’t grieve for anything specific, just GPS as a person. There could’ve been a moment where Top Hat expected an action but never got it. There could’ve been a moment where Top Hat stared at something that reminded him of GPS, but the writers never have anything like this. Besides! A moment like that could’ve easily characterized Top Hat with what he cared about specifically. Anyway, them as a duo doesn’t really work.

Spray Paint and Mousey have a fantastic dynamic shown in season 2, however, in season 1, they have practically nothing. That entire episode was well written, but I can’t appreciate as much as I want to because it’s very clearly a retcon. The writers seem to be making up for their past mistakes, it’s just that, yet again, I don’t want to be able to enjoy something only because of a prequel that didn’t exist when the episode released. If this was intended though, then all I can say is that is

They have a cutscene, but that cutscene doesn’t provide any evidence that they care about each other, only evidence that Spray Paint engaged in bad behaviors and that Mousey was bothered by it. It made their relationship only appear worse than provide anything good.

Speaker and Sketchpad. Aren’t really. Written at all ? They’re a duo that remind me of Sam & Max and that’s all I can say. I see the most closeness between them because Speaker still seems to like Sketchpad despite his antics. It’s just that that doesn’t say very much because the others don’t really have anything at all.

The s1 characters !! Ahhh yes.

Top Hat, I. Can’t. Name a character trait from him. That may be a me problem, but most of what I can see from him is that he’s grieving and that’s the main trait I can get from him. Maybe I just didn’t pay enough attention to him.

GPS, we don’t really know what he’s actually like because he doesn’t get much screen time before he’s controlled and the main perception of him we get is a grieving Top Hat. We don’t get a mystery that they’re being controlled because the show reveals it immediately. That cutscene also was, very unclear and didn’t say basically anything? We’re probably going to get an explanation, but it can’t function as a mystery because there aren’t any clues. The scenes where he is being controlled only shows that his controller is incompetent. Their death doesn’t have a strong impact because the audience didn’t get to know them as a character, but because he is the murderer it still has an impact I suppose. I can’t really care about his controller though because they haven’t written any hints on who it could be. Uhh here’s a confession to pair up with the rant, he’s uh. Gender.

Spray Paint, he’s really interesting, however, in season 1, the audience doesn’t get to understand his character conflict. It doesn’t make sense why he decides to be the hero and for all he knows, sacrifice himself. It makes sense in season 2, but you know what I’m going to say. His self sacrifice doesn’t have much impact because we don’t understand him as a character and also didn’t really get to know him. His episode also was really confusing the whole way through because of that, it doesn’t make sense why we’re learning this if Spray Paint is dead. The reveal made it much better. This part is much more debatable whether or not it’s a writing flaw but it is a thing.

Mousey, really good in season 2! Nonexistent as a character in season 1. I don’t have anything else to say, I like her but I wish she was better. Her death kinda just happened and the after math didn’t have anyone struggle except Spray Paint.

Speaker, he should’ve been written a lot more, his appearance in season 2 was nice but doesn’t make sense with what was written in season 1. I already explained him more in the tangent from earlier so I’ll go to his death. It did not have well written tension and it also pretty much just happened. Why did GPS just have two crowbars ?? Why didn’t Speaker question or react to GPS’ way of refusing to use the crowbar on the door ?? The scene doesn’t have much tension and the animation afterward was really good looking but. The set up and I guess build up didn’t deserve that pay off.

Sketchpad, I think he was fun, but I do think that they shouldn’t have been the main form of comedy in the season. Especially since that comedy was constant, and often messed with the mood of the series. He made a joke every time he was on screen, and considering she does have a lot of screen time compared to the short run time, Sketchpad. Didn’t really work well. He’s fantastic in season 2 because he CAN be serious and I think it made the guy a lot better!! I like him in season 2 a lot!!

Diamond Ring, I’m glad she’s gotten relevancy that also helps show that everyone is connected, but she doesn’t serve like. Any purpose. You could remove her entirely and I don’t think anything would change, and if anything it would make the show make more sense ! Her death had absolutely no tension written for it, and everyone being so casual about it was just really off putting in a bad way.

The thing is, season 1 doesn’t have tension despite the fact that people are dying. Each death is treated really casually, and none of the character’s pain is that clearly shown besides maybe Spray Paint and Top Hat in the credits. There isn’t any mystery in the show, which also doesn’t help with the tension. There’s nothing to be concerned about because things just happen and there isn’t any build up to a majority of the events. It’s a show where dying is permanent, so the writers should treat it like it has impact. I think The Nightly Manor’s season 1 could’ve been really good, but unfortunately, the season just feels like an unfinished outline. It feels unfinished in terms of writing, and I kinda wish the second episode of season 2 wasn’t mostly used for retcons. Because characters dealing with grief is a really interesting topic to write about, episode 1 was really well done because of that!

The Nightly Manor is, a thing, not my favorite thing, not my least favorite thing. I’m glad it’s getting better at least.

- Sun anon <- sorry about the really long one

idk what to say lol

#also your point on gps and tophat? infuriates me because it's right #sun anon #osc confession #long post #the nightly manor

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faroreswinds · 2 years

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Hello again. I spent a good deal of time trying to write down a translation of that account’s deleted blog post, but then I realized it would take to long to do properly (and because I was trying to properly show it in English). I hope you forgive me for showing instead a shortened version (and this is still quite long, so I apologize again):

Pros: graphics are greatly improved and the cutscenes look beautiful. The gameplay is very entertaining and the level of difficulty is challenging in a good way. There is a lot to do around the base camp, and its changing locations add to the excitement. It’s good to have characters like Rodrigue and Jeritza as playable cast members (especially Rodrigue, he enjoys high popularity in Japan). Byleth speaking out loud and having supports with Jeralt is pleasant and highly prized. It’s good to see the rest of the cast show up in cutscenes and cgs to show their own parts in the story.

Unfortunately this is where the pros end…

The reviewer has maintained a blog to criticize the mistakes and issues in the fodolan series since launch but did so out of love. The reviewer’s stance is that Musou storyline totally butchers the spirit and integrity of Houses

Self-described as a lore purist who at least enjoyed being able to ”fill in the blanks” for everything left unsaid in Houses. Musou introduces a lot of information that is contradictory to established canon such as House Bergliez with its crest of cichol, Kronya’s attitude being the first sign of something wrong instead of that being Monica’s true personality. Monica herself is controversial, she’s seen as good yuri fanservice and a loyal vassal but others dislike how she is now part of ”the Emperor’s loyal court” (Hubert, Dorothea, now Monica follow Edelgard to praise her constantly).

Arval as the antithesis to Sothis went nowhere, was ultimately not considered of much interest by the fans.

Sothis having her memories but no interactions with her children and Rhea angered many people. The reviewer notes they also made her sound crueler and haughtier in English

Shez is a fun and likeable character, though fans ultimately care more about the established cast.

Eyebrows were raised over why pertinent lore the game wants players to consider canon is now suddenly in a Musou spin off instead of the main game. Suspicions were raised over Kusakihara and Iwata as the main scenario planners (this is the term general used for those in charge of the story scripts): is this the story they originally meant to tell, but couldn’t because of the rush to finish the deadline [in 2019]?

Further suspicions over the Nintendo Life/Famitsu interviews confirming the canonicity of both, which is unheard of for any Musou spinoff. Musou is meant first and foremost as a purely fanservice vehicle, and it’s how people buy those games at all

“In fact, the game seems to struggle with wanting to take itself seriously, and also tell players to enjoy the fanservice, while winking at the camera”

More suspicions, now towards Westerners. The reviewer notes the large size of the English speaking fandom…as well as the strange changes made for the international releases of previous FE titles (censored cg art and dialogue in Awakening, censored dialogue in Fates plus the LGBT controversy). There are concerns that the development team took to heart too many complaints over previous games’ characters, writing, settings, scenarios.

Reviewer casts aspersions over English fandom as vulgar yet strangely puritanical, constantly given to fighting, not tagging properly, the frequent interactions between fans and seiyuu so casually on social media, and generally being an unpleasant space to be in

Reviewer embedded several tweets from a few prominent English speaker FE fans showing…bad behavior basically.

The reviewer then compared them to other events like an asian fanartist who drew a Disney’s Encanto fanart being run off twitter because of perceived issues in skin coloration. They also pointed to reddit and 4chan as further evidence of bad behavior and made an explicit comparison to calling it “otaku behavior” and hoping they’re wrong about their feedback suspicions

The reviewer is pessimistic however as they explain about complaints that Fates got a Golden Route while Houses did not, and that it seems prominent in foreign fandom as a desire

“We as players understood that taking the hand of Emperor, clad in red, and wearing horns, whose own tragedy was working with the shadows while lying to Byleth (Jpn writes them together as Beretoresu since they actually share a name overseas), and as shown in the Safflower route’s ending illustration as the dark route, was meant mostly as a pleasant delusion (the term used for headcanon) and a particular fanservice. There seems to be no such distinction for foreigners.”

The review is then divided into critiquing each lord in Musou:

Edelgard’s tragic side is stripped to make her into a full-blooded Red Emperor character. This comes across as unpleasant since the reviewer feels like the scenario team is trying to trick the players with fanservice (her outfit is very youthful and cute) when it does not mesh well with her blatant agenda of conquest. In Houses at least players understood her goals as contradicting her image when she was dressed more like an adult, and had Amyr, with its menacing looks and movements. There is a great deal of confusion over why she wants to keep Rhea alive this time, yet still greatly hates the church. Her ending was nonsensical and unsatisfying and there was no reason for the Hegemon form to make an appearance

Claude. Goodness. The reviewer is incensed. Claude’s curiosity, wanting more knowledge, to learn the truth behind things, they’re gone here. His attitude towards the Kingdom comes across as condescending. He is called a hypocrite more than once. Though showing him having doubts, and expressing fears over his vulnerabilities is good, that’s negated when his actions only invite more disaster, and his worries look more like self-pity when he’s unhappy one moment, and then coldly executing another assault against the Kingdom the next. The Sreng invasion is particularly used to lambast him. There is no reason why his mistrust suddenly allows him to swallow Edelgard lying to his face or why he is suddenly so against the Church

Shahid is wasted when Claude is then shoved back into Fodla’s war. The reviewer snidely recommended watching The Lion King for better family conflicts over a throne.

Rhea is considered a lord in that she represents another faction, the Church. Rhea is quite popular in Japan and her treatment in the game is seen as insulting. Her motherly concern for Cyril’s safety is touching, but does not negate the strangeness of sacrificing herself for Edelgard against Thales, or (worse) Claude killing her. The reviewer brings up the apparent fact of the English voice director’s dislike of Rhea and his instructions for her English seiyuu to sound more harsh, violent, not as serene or dignified as in Japanese (circling back to concerns over Western involvement)

Dimitri, written surprisingly well. His arc is of a noble young king coming into his own, his friends are just as brave and amazing next to him. Unfortunately his route starts to falter in the middle, since it does not know how to strike a balance between suddenly knowing about Those Whoe Slither in the Dark and the Empire invading when both are now separately working. The powerful pathos of fighting against the girl who was once his family (and betrayed him) is gone, so it just seems like Marth fighting Hardin again. His redemption in Houses was one of the most popular things about him, and that is also gone too in Hopes…so taking both previous things into account makes Edelgard as part of his final fight seem very forced. “This is a king who is resigned to being a king, who will sadly be glad to kill his phantom, and say that his happiest moment will be on his deathbead, instead of living for his people.” Him not reaching a hand out to a helpless Edelgard is seen as cold.

Here is Byleth’s section. It is the bleakest part of the review so far and honestly made me feel really bad:

”The box art shows Byleth quite prominently, which is laughable considering her (reviewer played as Beresu for two routes and Bereto in one) almost non-existence in the story itself. The so-called rivalry pushed in [commercials and promotional work] was nothing more than an audacious lie designed to part us from nearly ¥6000 (reviewer purchased the LE box).”

The reviewer goes on to note Byleth’s high popularity and how it contradicts the magazine interviews acknowledging this. ”Is this how a [fan-favorite] is treated in other spinoffs? I can’t imagine this happening to characters like [Persona Five’s] Joker without angering fans.”

Byleth is seen as uniquely a target of particular scorn from Iwata considering their position in the game: recruiting them can be difficult and easily missed, and so means seeing Jeralt die painfully again, and absurd yet heart-wrenching retaliatory deaths of other characters. Rodrigue’s death is seen as particularly punishing, especially with dialogue from Felix and Dimitri then calling Byleth a monster and their enemy. Their death is anticlimatic yet also painful, and this level of death also unheard of for what is supposed to be a fanservice genre of games, nevermind for the former main character! In supports Jeralt laughs at the idea of Byleth becoming a teacher and calls them unqualified and Leonie still hates them.

Even when recruited, they play no further level of involvement in the story, nor do they show up in the fight against Arval that their recruitment unlocks, nor does that change the unsatisfactory route endings in any way.

The reviewer cites more suspicions and points to how Byleth is popular in Japan, but their research across English social media shows a lot of hatred for Byleth. ”Perhaps an English speaking fan wrote this game.”

”For fans of a teacher who grew close with their students, and formed bonds of cherished warmth with them in Houses, comes across as a slap in the face to see them being strangers [among the rest of the cast]”

This also carries on to other routes. If recruited for Edelgard the emperor says she feels drawn to them but nothing comes of it, but if not recruited then it means Claude recruits them and says he wants them to work together even after the war ends, but this results in both dying in Ailel. If recruited for Claude he also says he feels drawn to them but nothing else comes from it.

The dimitri one is particularly bad. I would like to stress that Dimileth is the most popular ship of Houses and in a popularity poll, Dimiresu scored first place, Dimireto second, with both varieties far outstripping any other ship (no Edelgard ship showed up in the top ten). Dimileth fans are particularly heartbroken

Considering the previous point: it seems like Koei/Iwata want to punish the players for liking Houses and Byleth, and to declare Musou, the new canon. In Musou, though the war continues, no one really dies (except maybe Claude and Rhea and Byleth and one of the other three that Byleth can kill). Nothing really terrible happens like Jeralt dying, the monastery being invaded, Rodrigue dying, Those Who Slither In the Dark are defeated. In contrast, many tragic things happen in Houses permanently for each route.

Considering the previous two points, this is especially heartbreaking for fans of Azure Moon: playing Azure Gleam means Byleth never becomes a teacher, and Dimitri keeps his eye, the whole truth of the Tragedy of Dusca is uncovered, Those Who Slither in the Dark are defeated, Dedue is never separated from Dimitri, Rodrigue and Jeralt stay alive, and so does Claude, Edelgard, and Rhea

Many Dimileth fans say their enjoyment of the ship and Houses is destroyed because they can no longer consciously think of submitting Dimitri, Dedue, Faerghus and the rest of the continent (!) to the sad events of Azure Moon when Azure Gleam clearly shows better fates for them all

A large-scale figure of Byleth is planned for release in July and is quite expensive. The reviewer calls it a poor yet expensive consolation for what is seen as the development team spitting in the fans’ eye

The reviewer concluded their blog post by saying that their enjoyment in Houses is shattered. They don’t know who to blame, either Koei or Intelligent Systems, but they know they are working on the next mainline title together, so it likely means they will stop playing Fire Emblem (they apparently started since the first games) if it means not giving KT-Intsys their money

I am sorry that this is so long. And I am sorry that this is such a negative thing to plant in your inbox. I just wanted to show information and the perspective of Japanese fans to others, since many outside of Japan don’t know what opinions are shared in those circles.

Thanks anon, and thank you for sharing other links as well (which I will keep private for their privacy).

This must have taken a lot of time, and your hard work is appreciated.

I really like these insights into other language speaking fandoms. I'm posting this for others to read as well.

<3 You are wonderful, anon, no need to apologize.

I’m going to make a post to regard these points more thoroughly. I just don’t have the time at this moment. Please forgive me if my response is inadequate to the work you put in at this time.

#Three Hopes #anon asks

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gamebunny-advance · 2 years

Text

@Civilian AU!Anon

Here's Kayane of the Civilian AU!

Aw, she’s pretty cute! I like the Miku-style detached sleeves, they’re a cute reference, and the emphasis on the Sakura blossom motif is cute too. I really like the transparent layer on her skirt! I’m a little curious to see how the “black light” phase is going to work since she’s already starting with dark colors. Maybe she becomes a blinding light, lol.

I also like the variations on the teams’ symbols/colors, so they’re still parallels, but still unique for the swaps. Very nice!

More thoughts under the cut since they got too long for the tags and I have some visual aids this time.

I knew that she’d be a mermaid from the silhouettes you sent in, but it’d also be cool to see a non-mermaid Kayane.

Fun Fact: Some of Sayu’s original concepts had her as a bunny themed idol. You can see some of this concept art on the wall during Sayu’s defeat cutscene.

I think that mixing themes can work, but I’m having a hard time following the through line between “Sakura” and “mermaid.” The through line for Sakura seems to be the Japanese pop idol influences. As mentioned before, there are clearly Miku influences in the design and Sakura are associated with Japan first and foremost. And that’s all fine, I think that isolated, all those themes could make a very cute character design.

I guess what’s throwing me off is that *neither Kayane or Sayu are associated with Sakura, so the addition of it makes me want to see an even greater emphasis on it rather than it just be an “icon” on her outfit.

I think I’ve said this before, but when it comes to AUs, I like to see a focus on what makes the AU different from the original, so since the Sakura theme is unique, I would love to see it get pushed further.

I want to see “Kayane if she was a virtual idol like Sayu.” more than, “Kayane if she was Sayu.” I know those statements sound very similar, but there’s nuance that makes them different. The former is a deconstruction and reconstruction of the pieces of each character, and the latter is a fusion of both wholes. Neither is necessarily better than the other, and they both have their places and uses, but I have a preference for the former most of the time.

As a personal example, let’s look at my recent Kun3h0 x 1010 swaps.

I would say that the first pass is closer is a “fusion” because it takes White and puts him Kun3h0′s outfit, just in his theme colors. There are some elements that changed to fit him: the belt accessory now resembles NJ’s screen instead of a rabbit, the heart motif was swapped for a star (I associate White with stars, but that isn’t a canon element), and the design on the boots changed from the speakers to more resemble the original pattern on the 1010s legs. And besides the outfit, there were some elements that were added/changed to keep Kun3h0′s elements from being completely erased: the skin turned pink because Kun3h0 has a human skin tone (and pink is a normal skin tone in the NSR universe) and his irises had to change from white to purple because the sclera aren’t black anymore.

The second pass first asks these questions: What makes a Kun3h0 unit a Kun3h0, and a 1010 a 1010? I decided that the most important parts of Kun3h0 were the rabbit-ear headphones, the boots, and the gloves, so those were going to stay no matter what. Instead of keeping the strict construction of the outfit, I kept the silhouette mostly the same. So he still has the crop top, the shorts, and the sleeves still taper outwards, but the design of the top was changed to be more sailor themed because a key-part of 1010s characterization is the sailor motif. To add onto that, a sailor hat was added to really push the sailor elements since a lot of the other iconography was dropped. The outfit colors were also kept monochrome and black was used in more places to better replicate the 1010′s original uniform.

To me, the fusion reads more as, “White in Kun3h0′s outfit.” while the deconstruction-reconstruction reads more as, “White if he were in the same series of robots as Kun3h0.” I don’t think either is significantly better or worse than the other, but there were different thought processes for both which came to different conclusions for the prompt, “Kun3h0 x 1010 swap”.

I hope that this explains and illustrates what I’m trying to get at.

I know that it would be kinda difficult to really “deconstruct” Kayane because her entire role/design revolves around her relation to 1010, so in an AU where she has nothing to do with them, it makes it a little harder to visually emphasize the things that originally characterized her. However, that being the case means that there’s actually more room to focus on new visual motifs like the Sakura to really make the design your own. You did it with Daphne & Jan with their new underwater motif, so I think you can do it here too.

Again, I really like the direction these are going, but I just know that they can be pushed so much further.

But I don’t always give the best advice, XP. They say that you know you have a good design not when you can’t add anymore, but when you can’t take anything else away, so me asking you to “push” the designs further might not be the best advice and shouldn’t be taken as an absolute. I can only tell ya what I want to see, not necessarily what’s the best choice.

*Strictly speaking, there is a canon flower!Sayu that appears on a poster in the Akasuka district. I find the design itself kinda underwhelming for a themed alt, (it’s no all pink Sakura!Miku), but I know it wasn’t made to stand out on its own: its function is to be a cute themed variation of the character, not totally reinvent her. It’s literally a little poster on the side of a wall that not everyone is even going to take the time to investigate, so I understand not wanting to spend too much time designing a more grandiose flower themed Sayu.

#submission #civilian au #nsr #kayane #kayane nsr #i'm trying to avoid giving direct suggestions about changes #because while i can say what *I* want to see and what *I* prefer #this is ultimately *your* AU so it should go in the direction that you want it to #i also feel like character design is a 'puzzle' that you have to 'solve' and i don't want to give away answers #so that's why the example is of something i did #rather than how you could change kayane's design #i can give my opinion but it's up to you if/how you're going to use it #unless you specifically ask me what I would specifically do #i try to be nonspecific about changes

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linuxgamenews · 28 days

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Anima Flux at GDC 2024: Gaming Innovation and Dedication

Anima Flux at GDC 2024 for this upcoming co-op metroidvania game on Linux, Mac, and Windows PC. Hats off to the skilled Anima Flux team for their amazing effort and dedication. Due to make its way onto both Steam and GOG. Let me walk you through the incredible journey of Anima Flux at GDC 2024. This event was a big deal for anyone passionate about video games and development. Since there are 30,000 people gathered, sharing a common love for gaming innovation and creativity. This year, GDC outdid itself with over 1,000 speakers and 730 different sessions. But let's also focus on the real star here: Anima Flux. Anima Flux wasn't just another participant among the 50 teams at GDC. They stood out, making it to the top 10 in the GDC Pitch! This was huge. Think about it, they had just 5 minutes to capture everyone's attention and they nailed it. The team showcased not only their title but also their journey and vision. It's not every day you see such talent getting recognized by top industry judges. The showcase itself was a whirlwind of excitement. While the developers were all ears, taking in every bit of feedback from players. They even presented an updated demo version, now available on Steam. It’s clear these guys are serious about making their mark on Linux as well.

Anima Flux and GDC 2024

youtube

As a title that deserves attention. The setting? A single human city on a space ark facing a mutant invasion. The story? A gripping story of survival against a theocratic totalitarian regime. Players are due to take control of two elite soldiers, each with unique abilities and skills. What's unique here is how you can finesse your way through battles, while combining these skills to outsmart the toughest foes. What sets Anima Flux apart at GDC is its take on the Metroidvania genre. It's like they've reinvented the whole concept, turning it into a co-op adventure that can switch to single-player when needed. The title evolves as you progress, challenging you to strategize boss fights and navigate grim locations. It's also about teamwork, strategy, and a whole lot of action. The world is a dystopian masterpiece. The story unfolds through hand-drawn animated cutscenes and dialogues filled with irony. It's not just about the action; it's also about the story, the moral dilemmas, and the twists that keep you on the edge of your seat. Visually, it's a nod to 80-90s retro sci-fi, blending futuristic 2D visuals with a dark cosmic atmosphere. This style gives Anima Flux a unique vibe that you don't see every day. For those eager to dive into Anima Flux, the GDC demo's already up on Steam. And for everyone else waiting for the full release, the co-op metroidvania game's set to hit Linux, Mac, and Windows PC by Q4 of 2024 onto both Steam and GOG. If you're into gaming and like a good story with intense action, this is something to keep an eye on. Trust me, this isn’t just another title; it's a game-changer.

#anima flux #coop metroidvania #linux #gaming news #ubuntu #mac #windows #pc #unity #Youtube

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owlixx · 8 months

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Games I’ve Booted Up Lately (GBA/Wii)

I’ve been kind of between activities since the road trip last weekend so I haven’t really haven’t gotten back on my Twilight Princess play through properly. Since I got a new old original GBA in addition to my modded GBA SP, I’ve been booting up lots of GBA games but also some Wii zapper games because of my arcade visit.

1. Nerf N strike - I remember playing this as a kid and I did try the multiplayer a few months ago but I wanted to see the story mode. Seems like it’s just a series of multiplayer mini games against the AI or a against a target score strung together by low budget cutscenes. Still, I find this game charming for what it is.

2. Nerf N Strike Elite - I assumed this would basically be the first game, but it’s much more of a fleshed out rail shooter instead of a light gun minigame collection. I was honestly kind of impressed by the in depth gun customization. My main issue is that it requires a red lens decoder to solve some puzzles and I just have to guess those. This might be a decent time in coop, certainly more straightforward than the first game.

3. Golden 007 - I tried playing this with Wii zapper and honestly found it uncomfortable with how many buttons are involved in playing this game. The accessory really isn’t built for needing to hit any buttons on top of the controller. Playing with a knockoff pro classic controller wasn’t much better, but maybe it’s because my third party controller was cheap or the sensitivity was wrong. I’ve never seen another game tell me at the end of a level “sorry you didn’t do all the objectives so you can only continue on easy mode”. Seems like a bizarre game design choice, I wasn’t even aware of this other objective. Kind of funny that the original game was supposed to be a rail shooter.

4. Ghost Squad - saw this but didn’t play it at the arcade, but I had played just a short bit a few months ago. Definitely shines in coop. Died on the third (and final?) stage because my coop partner dropped out and I was trying to dual wield Wii zappers unsuccessfully. Excited to play arcade mode and level up to unlock new guns, and also to show my partner the very silly water gun and bikinis mode.

5. The Wii U menu played a special song for my birthday, and that honestly meant a lot

6. Okay I did play a bit of twilight princess - beat the temple of time and hoofed it back and forth between Hyrule castle and kakriko, which I am still in the midst of

7. Yoshi topsy turvy - I had this as a kid and was kind of ambivalent on it then. I think I still am now, but it was just neat to get to play it for the first time since then, even if reconfigured to use L/R instead of tilt controls (which removes some of the charm). Just the menus and music and UI really brings me back

8. Super Mario Advance 3: Yoshi’s Island - I had played the first level or two of this before, but playing it on a real GBA highlights just how impressive and expressive the graphics and animation are. This game looks and plays and sounds really well and I need to dive in further before too long.

9. CIMA: The Enemy - someone said this game had a good soundtrack, and I wanted to test my ability to hook up my GBA to speakers. The OST didn’t blow me away but I also saved and quit before I got to the first combat. Reviews for this game seem pretty mixed in the escort mission nature, so I likely won’t return too much.

10. Ultimate Card Games - again, OST came recommended and it delivered the goods. I’m terrible at solitaire, the game I decided to try, but this game’s UI honestly kind of impressed

11. Warioware - not unfamiliar to me, but all the more charming on a smaller, dimmer screen. Feels really tailored for the GBA and especially the original GBA, especially in contrast with the GameCube port.

12. Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance - again, not unfamiliar to me but the blue outlines on enemies and the player really pops on the dim screen. And that main overworld music is so good.

13. Konami GB Collection - just played this version of Gradius because of my new casual interest in shmups. Lots of slowdown but kind of cute.

14. Star Sigma Saga - this game was featured in my first ever Nintendo power issue, which I reread many times over the years, so it holds a special place in my heart for that. I never know it was way forward! I died on my first attempt at the tutorial so I was just happy to beat that part. Not super likely to return to this since I hear the whole game has pretty unforgiving checkpoints, but neat to finally play.

15. Donkey Kong ‘94 - funny, I was playing this just before Mario Vs donkey Kong got announced. Fun use of my GBA’s ability to display Super Game Boy borders/colors and just a fun game in general, especially as a long lost predecessor to my childhood fav MvDK.

16. F zero maximum velocity - played because of the OST recommendation, not because of the battle royale announcement actually. I like f zero alright but I need a second play to play more than a track or two at a time.

17. Kirby’s Dream Land - just been using this to test original GB games, feels right at home on my dimmer original GBA compared to my modded SP

18. Silent Scope - I just think it’s funny that they even made a GBA port of this. It’s surprisingly good honestly and I’d like to beat it someday but I’m honestly kind of bad at it once it starts to pick up. Definitely not a lot of discourse about this version of this game online so I like the idea of kind of adopting it as my own.

#gba #Wii #arcade #Wii u #gaming #retro gaming #fzero #donkey Kong #Kirby #yoshi #Castlevania #ghost squad

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astraldrake · 1 year

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12 and 14 for destiny ?👀

had to put this under a readmore it got way too long lmao

12. A ship I'd like to blow to smithereens with canon cannonballs aside from the easy picks (incest and shit) i don't truly care enough about shipping to have any pairings i personally resent or heavily dislike. sure there's a few that are common enough to be a little annoying, but also like. i get why those are popular (they're usually canonxoc pairings) and some iterations are actually kinda neat! imo most ships can be cool if the storyteller can give me a compelling enough reason to care. It's not so much the ship as it is the execution. that's dependent on skill though, something honed with time and practice, where derision is a poor substitute for critique.

14. The character/story arc I find the most compelling

character arcs i don't know about ( i could give a small unsourced rant on how d2's method of storytelling makes character arcs feel messy and inconsistent but for the sake of brevity i won't) as for story arcs i think i'll break it down a bit by type

Expansion - Forsaken, and Red War (ik ik controversial pick please let me explain before you get the pitchforks) Forsaken's the obvious choice, its events have far reaching repercussions, and the story itself is solid. A tale of vengeance for a fallen ally, the resulting manhunt leading into a cursed city full of secrets. Some of the scorned barons are a little forgettable as antagonists but there's also plenty that still stick. Uldren's corruption growing steadily more visible, and Riven!Mara being creepy as all hell is a fun thing to cut back to in between baron fights. I remember freaking the fuck out at the "O Brother Mine" line on my first playthrough. It's just really good. We have a solid reason to be there and to do what we do. Red War is.. well I'm sure it's partially nostalgia talking so take my feelings with a big heap of salt but! I liked Red War, and I think it worked well as an introductory point to the series (or at least it did for me). You start off by showing up to the tower right after it's come under attack by the red legion, then get kicked off a ship and lose your light, then have to flee the city (while one of the most heart-wrenching tracks in the series plays in the background). The traveler's dream sequence is cool, hawthorne is really neat (and im kinda sad she's lost relevance) the mission to destroy the almighty is maybe a liiitle star wars but well, i had a star wars phase, i loved that shit. Sure, sure, ghaul wasn't really the most complicated villain (or a very hard final boss) the speaker wasn't really elaborated on until late in the story ( i had no clue who he was or why he was important the first time i played, until like, right before he died.) But. Red War wasn't that bad from a story perspective. (hot take i know) now you might be wondering, "but what about witch queen? or beyond light? surely those were better??" and i mean?? they were good but i didn't really latch onto them in the same way. with regards to beyond light it was a mix of things. the reason we took on stasis just felt kinda iffy. like it should have been a choice, (or a stronger reason should have been given for us taking it on) but for gameplay reasons it couldn't be, and so the game and the narrative grated against eachother in a way that felt very obvious. Also, that one really cheesy cutscene right towards the end kinda ruined the tone of the whole climax. All the stuff with braytech (fucked up experimence) and the eliksni (hi eramis) was cool though. and like, the mother freakin DEEP STONE CRYPT as a raid is still a super sick concept. (i ran it once and was basically carried through so unfortunately i don't remember much of it. but it was cool) most of my sliding off of witch queen just has to do with me never really getting all that invested in the hive. I've tried, believe me. I've read their lore and stuff, my brain just doesn't latch on to them the way it did with some other factions. (the vex and scorn are kinda in the same boat, it's not that i dont see the appeal, it's just that they don't appeal to me as much as say, the eliksni.) witch queen was good, it just wasn't my personal fave. (there is after all, a difference between things that are good and things i like. i have trash taste sometimes and i'm willing to own it.)

i was gonna do a section on seasons as well but this is already a mile long and there's so many of them

bonus round - looser more nonspecific arc that's more like a theme or trend: As much as its execution has had holes, i've really been a fan of the trend of us turning previous enemy factions into allies. the three way alliance is really cool, and it's a lot of what i've been wanting from canon for a while, as well as something i sort of thought would never actually happen. like, the three factions each using their unique talents in concert with one another to fight back a greater threat is just kinda awesome. It's nice to see the theme of "we are stronger together" applied to more than just humanity. Also it feels right that since the traveler is big on forgiveness and letting things live, we have to take on some of that philosophy ourselves, or risk becoming no different from the servants of darkness.

#tysm for the ask arctic!#or uh. uldren?#also good lird this got long #rambles #destiny 2 #i apparently have more opinions than i thought #whoops

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actionadventureps · 2 years

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Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled

CTR Nitro-fueled sees Crash and the gang sporting a tasty visual upgrade mirroring the style of N.Sane Trilogy, cleverly capturing the trademark silliness the franchise is known for. Get your pedal to the metal across a series of tracks that feature iconic spots within the game series, each notably not similar to the following. You'll have to navigate manifold hazards and obstacles and cause mayhem amongst the contenders by utilizing a hearty toolbox of energy-boosting items. Pocketing ten yummy wumpa fruit as you speed round circuits can also boost your velocity and increase the effectiveness of your armory. With the many power-ups available and counter-options that make races feel constantly new and unpredictable, eliminating the monotony and making sure your more competitive streak remains very well intact throughout.

The racing experience is silky smooth and unquestionably fun. Effortlessly, a retro-style management scheme can be a good option for the extra authentic CTR feeling. keeping "X" for acceleration is quite the throwback by itself. Any type of infamous intrusion like falling off the track only to restart at a different section ahead, or jumping through the ground to skip entire segments disappear as you'd probably imagine. Apart from that, almost all tracks are flawless replicas of the originals with so much human life added to the background. Polar Pass includes the polar bear DJ, complete with dancing penguins, The Papu's Pyramid shows a boater attempting to climb a waterfall, and Mystery Caves displays pterodactyls floating in the magma. Things that the majority of people won't additionally see mainly because they zoom through have an incredible amount of depth. This essentially was not available together with the unique because of technological boundaries.

This is an excellent career from Beenox, given it seriously feels like enjoying the initial again. The driving experience is responsive and sharp, you still need to accelerate through every turn and maintain the speed along straights. The video game is equally punishing even if you make one error on the more difficult challenges. All aspects of the overall game are exactly as you recall it from the first, such as the top dogs. It is a challenge to strike an equilibrium between pleasing gamers who would like that the sport to function as a similar entertainment while also allowing certain areas to get toned straight back somewhat. Bosses like Pinstripe and Nitros Oxide and N. Tropy's notorious time trials are examples of this. Beenox has not yet made any changes to these They're still extremely difficult however when you've got enough experience and a pinch of luck, they're able to generally be beaten. I do hate Pinstripe however those bombs. I mentioned it above I mentioned it before, but the main downside for Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled is the new introduction of the Nitro Kart circuits, but a decrease in journey mode from the very same video game. The Crash Team Racing adventure is truly amazing; the new cutscenes and scenes in the world of graphics that has new character models are fantastic and the mainstay island that connects to the various places can be like going back to an ancient vacation placement.

CTR's acoustic always has been excellent generally, but it's not great. Although the Sonic and Mario franchises are indeed known for their timeless tunes, this has not been the scenario for Crash and which doesn't transform with Nitro-Fueled. The accuracy of the tunes is very much better than just before and the voice acting on the game's storyline is more advanced than also the brand-new Team Sonic Racing, but it's not as great to play as other Kart Racers. Weapon blasts are quite enjoyable in this game and have more impact than they were in the first launch - making it a far more satisfying playthrough using a decent pair of headphones as you'll be able to hear where your opponents are arriving from much better than just using your speakers. Best place to buy cheap games.

Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled is pretty good at what it's trying to do. The remade journey mode is very fun without the hassle required to have funds to open up things and the experience of playing has been refined. This makes for the most enjoyable Crash racing video game to date and is yet another top-of-the-line kart racing game. The category is as large as it has been in the last 20 years and includes Sonic, Mario, and Crash all competing in stores additionally, the ideal aspect for the players is the fact that you are unable to get it wrong with any of these. Crash provides a great game in general and is an experience I'd rank above Team Sonic Racing, but just a little ahead of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Here you can buy cheap games, from all categories whether we are talking about action adventure, racing, sports, strategy, or shooters.

#Mario Kart 8 Deluxe #Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled #Team Sonic Racing #CTR Nitro #kart racing

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ffxiv-resources · 2 years

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Settings (1 of 2)

(for character settings click here)

System Settings

It is important to remember that these will be account wide. Every current character you have, every new character you create will share the same system settings. Open the menu with either ctrl+K on the keyboard or start > settings > System Settings on game pad and you get this:

[Image ID: cropped screenshot of the FFXIV system menu with the red buttons on the left labeled with arrows. From top to bottom they read: Display settings, Sound, Graphics, Gamepad/controller, Theme, Other, and Accessibility /end ID]

This is your system menu. Unless you Know what you’re doing I wouldn’t suggest messing with Display or Graphics* settings, though they do make it fairly easy to not fuck it all up. If you change anything on any tab, in order to save the changes you must remember to hit apply. I recommend pressing it frequently if you’re changing multiple things bc if you get one thing right and another bad but don’t remember the original or new setting of either you’ll have to fiddle with the first over again if you didn’t save it before moving on. I’ve had to do this many times when messing with volume.

(* Graphios settings, however, does let you turn off glare and Water Refraction. If either of these cause you issue, the settings to turn them off are towards the bottom of the tab and clearly labeled. Please keep this in mind bc the water refraction used to trigger my motion sickness.)

Mouse: lets you change cursor size, sensitivity and drag

Sound: breaks down all the different sounds in the game and lets you control the volume of each of them.

Gamepad: lets you decide to keep it enabled when tabbed out, turn vibration on/off, stick sensitivity, and some button shortcut options. If you play with a controller I recommend looking at it

Themes: Dark, Light, and Classic. Classic is the retro FF menu with the rich blue with white text, dark is my screenshots and light is the same coloration as speech bubbles

Other: where screenshots download, time before AFK, & cutscene audio language

Accessibility (PC Only): Visual Alerts for volume/sound and three color filters (Protanopia, Deuteranopia, and Trianopia)

[Image ID: four of the same screenshot of an aethernet shard. the top left is normal, top right is Protanopis, bottom left Deuteranopia, and bottom right Trianopia /end ID]

Sound Settings

[Image ID: two screenshots of the sound settings. the first is cropped to only show the top half of the tag with an * by the ambient sounds toggle and + by listening position. The second shows the whole menu scrolled to the bottom with an * next to the ambient sounds slider and ** next to the Performance slider /end ID]

Feel free to tailor these to your heart’s content! Turn the volume all the way up, all the way down, or anywhere in between! These are, obviously, my settings. As i play on PC, and have a tendency to watch Netflix or such while playing via window-in-window, I have my volume set so I can hear everything well enough to differentiate what is what- however those settings are, of course, different for everyone!

Do note: that speaker button next to all of them is a mute button! So if you only want it off temporarily you don’t have to turn it to 0 and then remember where you had it later. Just hit mute!

*Ambient sounds, when turned on, adds general wordless chatter when you’re in heavily populated areas among other things (Limsa Aetheryte anyone?) and learning I could turn this off was one other the best things I could do for my mental health bc lord that wordless chatter can really be a psychosis or hallucination trigger in some people.

** Performance is specifically referring to people you see like at Aetherytes and Adventurer’s Guilds and such playing music. These can be fun to encounter but they can also be obnoxious or annoying (I’m all for you learning how to play but I don’t wanna hear it, type things.) Turning it down means it’s less likely to cut into anything else you’re watching/listening to and turning it off means you hear none of it regardless of anything. Performance can be fun bc people will just stand around and play songs or put on concerts, and some people even take requests if you’re polite! It can be fun to hang around and listen while in queue or otherwise AFK but if it’s not your cup of tea no one will be offended at you turning it off

+ Listening Position is where the in universe sounds are coming from. I personally put it at my camera bc it can be confusing to me to be hearing sound as my character hears it if my camera is like. Zoomed all the way out or such, as it often is in dungeons or raids. But putting it next to your character can ensure you hear things you might not otherwise if you’re more in tune with auditory cues than visual or, potentially, if you're hard of hearing. I’d suggest playing around with this one to find the position you’re most comfortable with. Or you can leave it be if it doesn't bother you.

#ffxiv settings #settings #system settings #ffxiv new players #ffxiv beginners #ffxiv resources #ffxiv help #ffxiv #sound settings

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raritarous · 2 years

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Deltarune’s narrator analysis and UT comparison Masterpost

Well here we are folks. This is going to be the big one. All seven parts of Deltarunes narrator in one place. This will be much more condensed and organized and hopefully easier to get through. Plus a few extra things that slipped past me while making the individual posts. I hope if you are interested in this kind of thing you will take this journey with me.

Topics covered

The Narrator’s Personality

A Shared History

Description vs Cutscene

You vs Kris

Dialogue Choices

User Interface

Conclusions

Bonus Round

The Narrator’s Personality

Home vs Hometown vs The Dark World

When I first started this analysis I originally believed that the narrator seems much more neutral than what we have come to expect from Undertale, having no quips for multiple checks and no added flavor or opinions while checking things around Kris’s house. However after playing through chapter 2 it seems to be a reoccurring thing that this more serious tone only applies to Kris’s house.

To me this feels very reminiscent to the narrator during a murder montage in Undertale.

Once we are out of the house however the narrator seems to come out of their shell.

This is difficult to spot in chapter 1 as we go almost immediately to the dark world where the narrator becomes much more animated and fun. The first battle with Lancer stands out as the first time we get a glimpse of the narrator’s personality. Declaring “Lancer bursts in!” in the battle info and giving what I believe is the first bit of dialogue that is not just a statement of fact when checking him.

This change was so sudden and extrema that I had thought at first that perhaps the narrator changed once we reached the dark world. However upon returning to Hometown in chapter 1 the narrator still shows more personality then the check at the house at the very beginning of the game did, and those checks remine the same at the end of the game as well. These facts along with the same shift in tone at Kris’s house in chapter 2 have led me to believe this is tied to Kris’s house. This observation is supported even farther by the narrators reaction to Kris’s room in the dark world.

A drastically different tone to be sure. There's a lot of reasons I could speculate about to explain this difference but I'm not going deeper than observation here.

Mom

Just want to point out how the narrator refers to Toriel.

As mom, not your mom. I feel like this could speak a lot about the narrators relationship with Kris and the Dreemurr family.

Reaction to Spamton

Okay.. so… I have a lot, A LOT of thoughts and feelings about this next part. Not all of them are about the narrator, so I will try and restrain myself to that particular vane for this post.

So Spamton…his speech pattern is so unique you can spot it anywhere. Especially when it is showing up places it shouldn’t, like in place of where the narrator should be giving battle commentary.

The above is not the only time it happens but it’s the only one I have a screen grab of. Now weather this is in fact Spamton speaking or the narrator mimicking him I can’t say. It shows up in the time and place the narrator would usually give a quip about our battle or enemies, and there is no “voice” to accompany the dialogue, which points at the narrator. But it’s clearly meant to be Spamton, no one else talks like that. And it seems to switch between styles or speakers throughout the first encounter with Spamton. Going from all caps to regular capitalization seemingly at random.

And then there’s this.

The fact that Spamton doesn’t have a portrait makes it really difficult to discern who is actually talking in these moments but given Kris’s reaction to the Spamton Neo fight it could be either of them. Regardless, there is something about Spamton that gets to Kris, and seemingly the narrator as well.

On a second check of the machine in the basement after inserting the load disk, this sequence plays out. This is only one check on our part, Kris escalates this one themselves. It’s not often (if it happened at all before this) that we see the narrator hesitant to speak, or lost for words. The narrator is clearly feeling for them, and doesn’t know what to say. Perhaps even disappointed themselves that the disk didn’t seem to work.

Any check after this just results in (…) Something we almost never see from the DR narrator.

We are maybe getting away from the narrator a little bit here but hear me out. Someone initiates the yellow heart transformation. It might be Kris, but it might not. There are plenty of examples of Chara taking the rains for a moment in Undertale. I feel it is worth pointing out for anyone who hasn’t done this fight that this sequence is a collaboration between the player and whoever is starting the yellow soul mode. The yellow mode is started by someone or something else and moves the soul up to the defensive position, after that it is up to the player to fire off the shots to destroy the incoming attack. Then the soul will then be moved to defend the next party member outside the players influence, and so on until the battle really starts.

(I can’t not point out that whoever is moving the soul chooses to defend Ralsei next)

Spamton says this right after the yellow heart sequence.

And right as the battle truly begins the narrator tells us.

This line is shared between the Jevil and the Spamton Neo fights.

Another thing I wanted to point out the narrator seems to be a bit confused and unsettled by Spamton.

Then there is the Snowgrave version of the Spamton Neo fight. Most of the fight is the same as the optional normal run version up until the end, when Spamton changes to defense mode.

We are presented only with the battle portraits of our party members, no actual “acts” are described. Like “call for help” or “call out for Susie”. Once the Snowgrave path is started the narrator seems to become more quiet, outside battle, the battle narrations seem to be unchanged as far as I can tell. The narrator doesn’t seem to offer up much extra input, no fun quips, it feels a lot more like a no fun run from Undertale in tone. And an odd thing I noticed is that all narration outside of battle is in brackets.

A Shared History

I'm not the first person to bring up this comparison, but I want to discuss it here as I feel like I wouldn’t be doing my due diligence if I left it out. The narrators makes quite a few callbacks to check info from Undertale. Here are some of the ones I see pointed out less often, but there are far too many to put in without hitting the image cap on this post.

Some, like the one above, do call back to Undertale but seem to have a different attitude toward the subject at hand. But for the most part these callbacks are directly referencing back to Undertale, letting us know that the narrator knows not only about the events of Undertale but what was told to us by Undertale’s narrator. I see this used a lot to support the theory that Chara is also Deltarune’s narrator. More on that later.

This last one isn’t really a callback but I did fine it interesting that the end of battle message was different between the two games. And because I can’t resist calling out everyone’s favorite fluffy boi

This just doesn't sit right with me.

While we are on the subject of direct comparisons

This is pretty different form the chapter 1 game over screen… There are two versions, seemingly one each from Susie and Ralsei. Even though Kris is on their own or with Noelle throughout most of chapter 2. I find this very interesting considering the encouragements from UT were memories of their family begging Chara to hold on while they were dying from buttercup poison…

I feel like this is really significant and I don’t see anyone talking about it. In chapter 1 we have whoever guided us through vessel creation asking if we will ‘persist’, but now suddenly we have Kris’s new friends pleading them to keep going. Even when they are not with them. And even when they are with Susie and Ralsei, all three party members have to be down to get a game over.

I have also heard recently that the opening to chapter 1 when we get cut off from the goner maker was originally someone who sounded like Susie telling Kris to wake up, rather than Torial. I feel like that just adds more significance to this comparison and makes me concerned for what we could be in for in later chapters.

We can’t talk about the the connections between DR and UT without bring up all the weird stuff you can say to the returning npcs. Most people bring up saying “great to see you again” to sans but it really goes beyond that. Being able to ask Undine about Alphys, everything with Onion, and the reference to Bonetrousle when we go looking for Papyrus all point to the narrator expecting us to know about these characters what Undertale told us, and that the narrator shares this knowledge with us.

Description vs Cutscene

Throughout Undertale our actions are described to us by the narrator. This same style of storytelling holds true in Deltarune as well, at least most of the time.

In Deltarune we start to get sections where we are shown what is happening rather than getting a description of what our character is doing.

Maybe it is just a progression of storytelling style but I feel it gives us a sense that Kris is more independent from us and our control than Frisk was. The other thing I wanted to point out about cutscenes is that during these times the narrator is silent, and honestly that makes sense because why would you need narration when you are seeing what is going on. But, that feeds back to point I’m trying to get to. Why tell us most things but show others? It is also worth mentioning that these instances are the only time we see Kris with any expression that isn’t ‘-_-’ even though we know there are times in both chapters where others respond to their reactions and expressions. But that is getting away from the topic at hand. I’m probably overthinking this, but it feels like the narrator is tied to our control of Kris. Like if we are not in control the narrator can’t speak to us. The best example of this I can think of is when we fallow Susie in chapter 1 when she has her encounter with Lancer in the prison. We do have a brief moment where we can tell Susie what direction to go. And even then it is as if she can barley hear us. She looks back and says “Kris”? as if she thought she heard them. And after that we are out of the picture except to try and dodge Lancers attacks (or intentionally try and get hit to stop Susie if you are like me) We don’t get any battle info at the bottom of the screen, no FIGHT, ACT, ITEMS, exc. We can’t even see Lancers HP or any info on him.

You vs Kris

The narrator occasionally makes a distinction between “you” and Kris.

The most notable instance of this is the one that happens during the Spamton neo final boss of the Snowgrave run.

During a Snowgrave run is where our power over Kris starts to become the most visible, not just to us but to the other characters around Kris. I’m thinking specifically about Noelle. Stating that she can still hear their voice when Kris is down in battle, and the scene in the hospital once she leaves Rudy’s room where she says that the voice she heard didn’t actually sound like Kris. This last one specifically people have interpreted as Noelle hearing the player, but I have another proposal that I feel makes a bit more sense in the context of how these games work. Noelle is hearing the narrator.

Now hear me out. Firstly the narrator doesn’t become incapacitated when Kris goes down in battle. Even outside of a Snowgrave run when Kris is down we can still give commands to the party. Someone or something has to be delegating to the party on our behalf when Kris is down. Secondly I think it is important to remember the circumstances under which Noelle has this experience. When she talks about hearing the voice that was not actually Kris’s she isn’t just talking about when Kris was downed in battle, as she makes this statement weather they were downed in the dark world or not. She is most likely referring to all the times the player tole her to “proceed”. This aggressive attitude is very different from Kris’s non confrontation demeaner that they display outside of our control. It is only once we start forcing violence onto them and the people around them that this other voice starts to become present. Just like in Undertale’s no mercy run. It doesn’t take long into that run for Chara, Undertale’s narrator, to start taking charge of Frisk. Forcing them to advance on enemies, and speaking in the first person in their narration. It is the player's violent actions that allows the narrator to take a more active role in the game.

However that doesn't mean that the narrator never forces their opinion outside of Snowgrave

Dialogue Choices

I have so much to say about this topic. I have spent way too much time researching it. Another difference between Undertales and Deltarunes narrator is when giving the player options. In Undertale the heart defaults to one of the options given while in Deltarune the heart sits in the middle of the options given. Though it doesn’t start out that way.

Before you go to the dark world the options selection is the same as in Undertale defaulting to one side and using white and white text. It isn’t until we go to the dark world and Ralsei askes us to listen to his tale that we are presented with the centered heart and white and yellow text. At least this is the first time we see it during gameplay. More on that later.

What is possibly the most interesting about this is that the white and yellow text stays after returning from the dark world.

There are only Two (I believe) cases of white and yellow text options in Undertale. One being when Chara asks if you want to destroy everything at the end of a murder montage, and the other when you name the fallen human at the beginning of the game.

As I stated earlier the first time we see this style of option in Deltarune’s gameplay is once we entered the dark world but, the actual first time we see the centered heart and white and yellow text is

But wait there’s more! There are a few parts in Undertale that seem to have a structure more similar to Deltarune.

The structure of the dialogue boxes in the dating segments is very different then the rest of UT. For one thing all other Undertale options have the question in the top of the box and the response options along the bottom.

There are a few other instances where the narrator doesn’t prompt us with the question at the top of the text box. One being the very end of pacifist where the options were most likely just too large to also fit the question. And the other is right before fighting Asgore, both extremely emotions moments for Chara our narrator. There is one other difference between these two instances and the usual UT options, there is no portrait of the person asking the question, though there is still space left for it on the left side of the text box.

As we can see in the prompt prefacing the fight with Asgore (top) even thought there is no question or portrait this options till holds true to the format for the rest of UTs options. And these outliers are typed out before we can make a choice, just like the rest of the options presented in UT.

Now lets look back at the dating segments.

Right away we can see there are some differences from Undertales’ usual structure and some similarities to Deltarunes’.

First off we have the horizontally centered text. Like I mentioned earlier all dialogue options outside of the dating segments are positioned at the bottom of the text box. There is also no room left at the left side for a portrait, which in DR is the norm. (after the change takes place) These segments also don’t have the options type out before you can make your choice. They just appear after a question is asked.

The heart doesn’t default to center and the text isn’t yellow but, the structure of the prompts in the dating segments looks an awful lot more like the Deltarune options than Undertales’ to me…

User Interface

Lets look at the UI real quick. I’m not sure if the narrator provides us with all the UI info but the more I see of it the more it seems that way. Bed Inspector and Moss Finder titles seem to be on par with the kind of hummer the narrator seems to have.

Not really narrator related but I wanted to point out that Kris goes from having one “Guts” to two between chapters 1 and 2. This brings them equal in “Guts” to Susie.

It’s not in the screen grabs above but the other “stats”, aside form attack, defense, and magic, for the other party members are all things that someone could discern from looking at the other party members, like “Purple” for Susie and “Fluffiness” for Ralsei, possibly suggesting the narrator can’t really tell much about the others aside from what they can see.

I can’t believe I never mentioned this in any of my other posts but the light world UI menu is the same as Undertales’ menu

Conclusions

I suppose it is time to address the big question. Who is Deltarunes’ narrator? The short answer is I’m still not sure... There is a lot of evidence to support the theory that it could be Chara, the same one from Undertale, returned to narrate our adventure again. But I feel like there is also a lot of contracting evidence that people like to ignore. It is too much to recount the Chara character analysis post that leads me to this conclusion but you can read it here.

Some contrasting examples:

UT Chara seemed to be very into plants and gardening while DRs narrator doesn't seem to be.

UT Chara liking anime while DR narrator doesn’t

I am not sure who the narrator is but I would love to find out it is Chara. I want to believe it but there are just too many things that stand out to me as counter to this conclusion.

So lets end this with what we do know about DRs narrator.

They are sympathetic.

They likes jokes and pranks

And can be a bit judgmental at times

But they have Kris’s best interests in mind.

Though there is something ominous lurking

If you have made it this far thank you so much for reading this monster. It really means so much to me. I really hope you enjoyed. I can’t believe I’m calling this undertaking finished before the new year, though just barley.

Bonus Round

Stuff I didn’t know where else to put.

The entirety of the anime review it just odd to me.

All the other yes or no options has the yes on the left, and now no is on the left. And the way this is worded like the narrator is summarizing the review for you not reading it to you.

and the way it switches part way through from using her to I

the entire thing is just odd to me.

For some reason all the text when looking at the gravestones is in all caps.

Just weird…

how I feel after putting all this together...

#deltarune #undertale #kris #susie #ralsei #deltarune theory #deltarune kris #deltarune ralsei #deltarune susie #If any of my posts are going to take off pleas let it be this one #I have worked so hard and so long doing all the research

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