AXbi
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visual novel fan that does not read visual novels.
visual novel fan that does not read visual novels.
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This was my first entry back into Fire Emblem after almost a decade of dropping the series. And it was so, so worth it. Just about every unit is lovable in their own unique (and usually simple) way. Building my team around my favorite characters and their supports was so satisfying.
I really can't help but emphasize my love for the characters in this game because, for the entry being as straightforwardly Fire Emblem as it is, little bits of flavor like personality, gameplay feel, and relationships are required to make an entry like this stand out. It succeeds at this wonderfully.
PS: Canas and Nino is my favorite support in the entire game and I love their silly little found family/tutor & pupil dynamic sm. I'd replay solely just to see them again. It's a requirement I use them for every playthrough here on out.
I really can't help but emphasize my love for the characters in this game because, for the entry being as straightforwardly Fire Emblem as it is, little bits of flavor like personality, gameplay feel, and relationships are required to make an entry like this stand out. It succeeds at this wonderfully.
PS: Canas and Nino is my favorite support in the entire game and I love their silly little found family/tutor & pupil dynamic sm. I'd replay solely just to see them again. It's a requirement I use them for every playthrough here on out.
I really quite enjoyed the game for its atmosphere, lore, and alluring adventure. However, it felt far too punishing for how little info was provided to the player.
This review contains spoilers
looking back on it 6 years after i first played it, i'm kind of surprised how I'm still part of the scant few that manage to "get" the ending but really just not resonate with the overall themes-- which is even more surprising considering the amount of VNs I've visited in that time with similar messages that I HAVE enjoyed.
I felt like the actual mystery could have served to intertwine itself with the overall narrative even more, and I'm just left unsatisfied with the direction the twists took. Not that I don't appreciate what it's going for. It's more so what the final trial was trying to prove didn't quite hit me right.
Not much of the story, looking back, really CHANGED for me upon discovering the truths of the mystery, which, to some extent, I understand is the point. However... Narratively? Idk. Just feels unfulfilling. As if they could've played more with the metafiction narrative. Where the previous entries force the main cast to contend with the differing realities between what they're experiencing and what they're being told is reality, V3 leaves so much to be desired.
For example, in DR1, pictures of the students' past lives would be left as bread crumbs. And it's chilling to look back on those moments in those specific chapters, understanding DR1's reality.
Another example: in DR2, the characters are told explicitly just as much as the DR1 cast knew: that their memories were ripped and that humanity outside of the killing game fell to "The Tragedy". It was information that left the cast confused, and served to propel the final themes the entry ended upon of creating one's own future.
Feel free to disagree with me but... V3 doesn't really have much of that imo. Very little of the game forces the main cast aside from the final survivors to contend with the true message and true reality of the game, that being the power of fiction and how it can impact reality. There definitely are thematic connections to this idea.
More often than not, however, these examples of the themes at play feel so loosely connected from the idea of storytelling, specifically, that it almost feels like V3 tries to justify its themes via word association by changing "lies" to "fiction" and "truth" to "reality" rather than nuanced, interwoven connections a la its predecessors, which did this pretty well, in spite of their simplicity.
It's crazy saying all this, though, because it implies I'd dislike the game but really, it just left me kinda unsatisfied. V3 houses some of the best characters in the whole series for me. Gonta is so lovable. Angie fulfills the itch in me that loves understanding cults and their psychology. Miu, despite having a grating gimmick, is a character I have no choice but to inherently feel a sense of kinship with, being an engineer. Oma's a really fun, layered wild card. Who can dislike Kaito's "Kamina"-esque role? And, for as straightforward as her arc is, I really do enjoy Maki as a "detective's assistant" type character.
Perhaps the only favorite of mine I have to pick a bone with is Shuichi. His arc really is spectacular and REALLY plays with V3's themes strongly but... Using a bait and switch by killing off Kaede to make the MC another shy boy uncertain of his identity whose arc is about attaining direction and confidence just kinda BLOWS, man. For as good at it is (and it REALLY is), I can't help but feel bitter at Kaede being shelved in purpose of serving Shuichi's character.
(on that note, i always did feel like cutting Rantaro off from the story felt like a creative misstep. I mean, I get his mysteries were supposed to die alongside him, but he introduced a level of calmness and style never sincerely brought into the series before. It's a shame Kodaka didn't end up using more of that energy to explore character dynamics.) But that's neither here nor there.
And perhaps this whole rambling piece is neither here nor there. Like I stated at the beginning: it's been 6 years, yet not much of how I feel about this one has changed when I first played it. Makes me sad, knowing how much Danganronpa meant to a younger version of myself. But, oh well. They can't all be bangers
I felt like the actual mystery could have served to intertwine itself with the overall narrative even more, and I'm just left unsatisfied with the direction the twists took. Not that I don't appreciate what it's going for. It's more so what the final trial was trying to prove didn't quite hit me right.
Not much of the story, looking back, really CHANGED for me upon discovering the truths of the mystery, which, to some extent, I understand is the point. However... Narratively? Idk. Just feels unfulfilling. As if they could've played more with the metafiction narrative. Where the previous entries force the main cast to contend with the differing realities between what they're experiencing and what they're being told is reality, V3 leaves so much to be desired.
For example, in DR1, pictures of the students' past lives would be left as bread crumbs. And it's chilling to look back on those moments in those specific chapters, understanding DR1's reality.
Another example: in DR2, the characters are told explicitly just as much as the DR1 cast knew: that their memories were ripped and that humanity outside of the killing game fell to "The Tragedy". It was information that left the cast confused, and served to propel the final themes the entry ended upon of creating one's own future.
Feel free to disagree with me but... V3 doesn't really have much of that imo. Very little of the game forces the main cast aside from the final survivors to contend with the true message and true reality of the game, that being the power of fiction and how it can impact reality. There definitely are thematic connections to this idea.
More often than not, however, these examples of the themes at play feel so loosely connected from the idea of storytelling, specifically, that it almost feels like V3 tries to justify its themes via word association by changing "lies" to "fiction" and "truth" to "reality" rather than nuanced, interwoven connections a la its predecessors, which did this pretty well, in spite of their simplicity.
It's crazy saying all this, though, because it implies I'd dislike the game but really, it just left me kinda unsatisfied. V3 houses some of the best characters in the whole series for me. Gonta is so lovable. Angie fulfills the itch in me that loves understanding cults and their psychology. Miu, despite having a grating gimmick, is a character I have no choice but to inherently feel a sense of kinship with, being an engineer. Oma's a really fun, layered wild card. Who can dislike Kaito's "Kamina"-esque role? And, for as straightforward as her arc is, I really do enjoy Maki as a "detective's assistant" type character.
Perhaps the only favorite of mine I have to pick a bone with is Shuichi. His arc really is spectacular and REALLY plays with V3's themes strongly but... Using a bait and switch by killing off Kaede to make the MC another shy boy uncertain of his identity whose arc is about attaining direction and confidence just kinda BLOWS, man. For as good at it is (and it REALLY is), I can't help but feel bitter at Kaede being shelved in purpose of serving Shuichi's character.
(on that note, i always did feel like cutting Rantaro off from the story felt like a creative misstep. I mean, I get his mysteries were supposed to die alongside him, but he introduced a level of calmness and style never sincerely brought into the series before. It's a shame Kodaka didn't end up using more of that energy to explore character dynamics.) But that's neither here nor there.
And perhaps this whole rambling piece is neither here nor there. Like I stated at the beginning: it's been 6 years, yet not much of how I feel about this one has changed when I first played it. Makes me sad, knowing how much Danganronpa meant to a younger version of myself. But, oh well. They can't all be bangers