SouthWestCat
6 reviews liked by SouthWestCat
Sonic Frontiers
2022
“What you see is what you get: Just a guy that loves adventure!”
| | THE WORLD IS SONIC | |
Naruto-running past you in the park. The bend of a minigolf ball careening wildly between walls and slopes. A bike yanked by gravity down the neighborhood hill. Pinballs smattering between bright lights and crashing machinery. The imaginary running man sprinting beside your car on the sidewalk, leaping over the streets and pedestrians.
Universe Is Sonic.
Neon colors and sharp, fashionable vectors. A nostalgic minor fourth. A ‘docx’ file with elaborate descriptions of an unknown figure’s likes, dislikes, origins and realities. 444,600 results on the world’s most popular art website. 240p anime playlist from 2009. Playground rumors, cosplay, metal remixes, YM2612 emulation, physics, debate, AMV, theatrical film, CMYK, baseball caps, webcomics, lawsuits, and designer shoes.
As a game and character, Sonic’s freedom-loving spirit and energy transcends barriers, beloved by people of all gender, ethnic, racial and neurological spectrums.
Sonic Is Universe.
| | THE CRINGE IS SONIC | |
Sonic in the modern eye is an object of ridicule and an ethereal mascot of the cringe culture boogeyman. You can’t so much as acknowledge Sonic’s existence without drawing ire and daft comparisons to princess-kissing, vertical-glitching, gun-toting embarrassment.
The Genesis originals were born out of anti-Nintendo competition - a story not worth repeating, but it’s notable for being a conversational millstone around the franchise’s entire existence. At every point in time, Sonic as a video game has strived to be its own style, but the marketing factors around it prevent the larger gaming press from seeing it outside any contrast but ‘how does this compare to Mario?’. An exhausting scenario that not only neglects the franchise’s individuality, but glosses over the figurative and literal development hell that’s plagued Sonic Team at the hands of Yuji Naka and SEGA’s business personnel.
| | SUITS RUIN EVERYTHING | |
Sonic did not have a rough transition into 3D.
It DID, however, have a violent transition into post-console SEGA.
At every turning point of history, Sonic has been unable to outrun tight deadlines and under-financing, with Sonic 1 being pitched at a point in time where Sega was aghast to the idea of spending more than 3 months time on a single video game, and 2 and 3K both rushed to meet consumer demand among growing trends. The final straw was the financial failure of the Dreamcast. With Sonic jumping multi-platform and creative leads wanting to market the series to every possible age and console demographic, the games had to cover ten times as much ground with only a fraction of the budget. SA2 was produced with only a third the staff of SA1, Heroes was infamously rushed, Shadow was born out of SEGA’s interest in pulling the mature crowd, etc etc. Sonic 06 was the killing blow, with its budget cut in half so Naka could produce a Wii spin-off, also at a time where the entire industry was struggling to adapt to shoddy 7th gen hardware and hi-fi design trends. The creative endeavors of Sonic Team never wavered, yet the environmental factors and outright stupidity of The-Powers-That-Be doomed the series.
| | THE CHILD IS SONIC | |
I was spinning my arms really fast, fists in a circle in front of me. They were spinning like feet. Sonic’s feet. Woosh.
| | NOSTALGIA AND SELF-EMBARRASSMENT | |
Sonic’s combination of unique design and unfortunate circumstances invites a loud, volatile fanbase - though ‘fan’ is maybe too charitable to a culture that is encouraged and rewarded for hostility. Youtubers, journalists, and influencers with no qualification whatsoever in game design all flocked to Sonic like vultures darting at a lion’s carcass, quick to reinterpret the series’ financial struggle as a fearmonger against progress. “Sonic can’t be 3D! Sonic’s friends are invalid! Sonic can’t compete with Mario! The classics were better!” It’s a conversation that is 100% functionally impossible to avoid in any long-term discussion of the hedgehog. A conversation loud enough for SEGA to hear and take to heart.
Since 06, Sonic games have been extremely reluctant to embrace themselves as what they’re meant to be, trying to cater not just to more audiences across the consumer board, but to malicious posers who don’t have a goddamn clue what they’re talking about - and ultimately, no interest in the games for what they truly are. The writing’s on the wall, everywhere from Colors-onward works featuring Saturday Morning writers that equally see Sonic’s adventures as one big noodle incident, to constant callbacks in unnatural 2D sections and much-aligned Green Hill revivals. There’s been tons of great moments and projects born within the cracks, but there is a universal truth that must be acknowledged: Post-06 Sega is embarrassed of Modern Sonic.
| | CULTURE PANIC: VULNERABILITY, INSECURITY AND CONFRONTATIONALISM | |
Sonic Frontiers is announced with the most bafflingly poor marketing approach in the entire industry. The ‘Sonic is bad’ cycle starts up again and journalists continue to rake in the hate clicks.
Then demos and invites to events start getting thrown to press. And all of a sudden, coverage is, positive? Reactions are optimistic and excited? Not just from Sonic fans, but from the journalist sphere as a whole?
It has a full 4-year development cycle and actual funding???
The road to Sonic Frontiers’ release triggered an insane frontload of anxiety into the internet, and bad-faith content creators were quick to profit off of it. Pre-release reactions have been nothing short of chaotic, with moments ranging from attacks at Ian Flynn, doxxing, in-fighting about the most microscopic movement design details, and so on. I couldn’t help but be exhausted by how much effort nay-sayers were putting into starting discourse when they could just move on to a game series they do like.
And then it hit me.
Sonic critics love Sonic, but are really, really embarrassed to admit it.
Sonic takes an extreme vulnerability to love because it's a series about being emotionally vulnerable - like Kingdom Hearts. They’re loud, sincere stories that breed affection, love, self-identity, - bullet points that attract ire, the same way a 5-year-old dismisses a Disney princess flick for ‘being girly’. And people are really harsh to admit it, because it’s easier to pass it off as ‘bad writing’ or ‘cringe’, interfacing with canon exclusively through ironic layers - but why else would they stay invested in a series for so many decades if there wasn’t something deeply personal they were getting out of it?
The cause-and-effect of this was that Sonic fans - that being, people that love the series, stories and games, unfiltered from irony - became INCREDIBLY anxious about their interest in it. It's not hard for that to happen when 90% of your community is on the spectrum and already endures abject hate for the crime of Being Different.
Objectivism became weaponized against fandom, and is the reason why we have theorycrafters debating every little detail of every single game - millions of arbitrary, asinine ‘’’’design’’’’ tests that each game has to be rotoscoped underneath. And whenever people do like something in the series that fails to meet objectivism, they have to conform to the ‘haha, it’s cringe, but i like it :)’ moniker - the only acceptable way to phrase affection to 3D Sonic today. It’s a perpetual motion machine.
For me, Frontiers discourse became too overwhelming and I did the smarter thing of distancing myself from it until I could actually play it. It was all just so much to take in, that I couldn’t even put any energy into getting excited for Frontiers announcements - because what if it didn’t meet expectations? What kind of discourse would I have to be surrounded by for the next 4 years? How many young fans who did love the game would be ridiculed and bullied by grown-ass adults over this shit, again, as the case has been for over 20 goddamn years?
| | SONIC FRONTIERS IS OUT | |
Hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhholy fucking shit dude
| | THE ARCHIVE IS SONIC | |
Battle Network is really cool. The internet is bright and wild.
Loose data, like thoughts flowing in the mind.
Is it possible to explore them, and would I want to if I could…?
| | OPEN ZONES AND CYBERSPACE: DICHOTOMY OF NOISE | |
Sonic Frontiers splits gameplay between the more experimental, sandbox-y open zone islands and the traditional, focused boost stages in cyberspace. While this change means that most of Frontiers lacks proper level design (something that’s really important to Sonic being a good platformer), Sonic Team traded off by min/maxing every facet of control possible. Almost every move Sonic’s been able to pull off since Adventure 1 is here in a single, cohesive moveset, and you’re given free reign to tweak individual acceleration, turning and speed parameters in the options. This is the best Sonic has ever felt in a 3D space, period.
Open Zones are deceptively-addicting to explore, arguably doing the shtick better than some of the games it was inspired by. The worlds are a really odd bunch; barren, realistic ruins populated by inorganic clusters of stock platforms, rails and obstacles. It looks cheap at a screenshot’s glance, but suits the game tonally and facilitates world traversal by allowing you to jettison ahead to your map markers while constantly taking detours into gimmick sections for goodies at a whim. It’s not seamless, but that’s what makes it cool: You, as Sonic, are physically breaking the seams of the world to burst around wherever you want. If this isn’t some of the most metal game design of the entire series, I don’t know what could give it a run for its money.
Cyberspace is for the traditional boost gameplay, contained ala the BOTW shrines. It’s hard to hype these up because they re-use old assets and stage layouts, but it works out because they find a way to contextualize it in the story really well, and Sonic’s improved gamefeel makes these stages feel pristine. Playing these returning SA2 and Unleashed/Gen maps with the most precise-yet-forgiving movement the series has ever is sublime, and more than anything, it was the first time I played Boost-formula Sonic and felt like I was the one controlling the world instead of being confined by it. There’s so many opportunities for tech, skips, and smooth recoveries, that it makes the prior games obsolete in terms of functionality. Only thing I don’t like about them is the 2D stages, which still feel too static and uneventful for this type of moveset.
When both of these gameplay formats are put together, a near-perfect loop is created. I treated open-zone as a jungle gym to throw myself around in, wander aimlessly and be rambunctious. It’s a loud, intoxicating environment with a lot of shit trying to take your attention away, like an abstract painting. And when it all gets to be too much, cyberspace becomes this therapeutic retreat, to refocus your senses on a more concrete and goal-driven game style.
| | THE WOUND IS SONIC | |
I remember being angry over video games. I was a sore loser when he beat me at Sonic. I cared more about video games than family.
Does he still think about it?
| | NOSTALGIA: MEMORIES AND THE PAST AS A VESSEL TO THE FUTURE | |
Frontiers’ content is nostalgia-heavy, as has been the case for Sonic since 4 ep1, but it’s not as a fandom safety blanket this time: It’s thematic (It’s also to save money, but we already established Sonic is expensive and Sega penny-pinches, so, what’s the use in complaining lmao). Old franchise concepts that haven’t been touched forever get re-introduced and given proper lore, relevant to both the franchise’s long-running chronicle and the immediate plot. Sonic’s not traveling through old levels just for retro funsies; they’re actual distortions of his memories of his old adventures that the cyberspace computers are making him re-experience.
And that's the hook: Ian Flynn’s prose benches heavily on memories, as ethereal feelings and concepts to directly interface with. The central antagonistic force is the ancient technology of Starfall islands, imprisoning Sonic and co. between their physical and spiritual selves. Sonic escapes its effects at first, but has to absorb its negative after-effects to free Amy, Tails and Knuckles. Coming from other games, you’d expect to save them at the end of the world, have a ‘thank you’ moment and move on; instead, you save them at the start of the world, and they accompany you throughout,. It’s a good setup for giving these characters screentime and development that they haven't seen in decades, but it’s also to depict the trauma and subsequent healing they experience. Everyone remains hurt from the cyberspace exposure after being rescued, and Sonic plays the role of a mediator to their struggles. He’s a bit dismissive to them at first - wanting to rush ahead, ‘gotta go fast’, ‘outrun my demons’ and stuff, - but he’s quick to empathize with their pain. He doesn’t try to ‘solve’ their problems or wrestle into their mind, but reaches out as a shoulder to cry on: Asking how they feel, making them feel strong for bearing through it, and sharing sentimental memories as they go. And the way he interfaces with the cast beautifully illustrates the differences in relationships he has with everyone: Being tender and mentor-like to Amy and Tails, but having a more dude-bro and silently-acknowledged heart-to-heart with Knuckles (he also flirts the shit out of him).
| | ARTIFICIAL HEART: GOSSAMER BETWEEN THE COGS | |
Data-centric technology has fundamentally changed all facets of humanity, our self-expression, and our forms of communication. We embrace some parts of it, and reject others, all based on differences in fundamental and ethical values.
AI is contentious: A hyperbolic name assigned to the programming concept of automation through observation and repetition of pre-configured or adaptable parameters. We come to understand it through the lens of a fake being that cherry-picks choices for you, and that’s Silicon Valley’s most vainly-spoken application of the concept - but, AI really just means ‘we programmed a non-human thing to make choices based on data we feed it’. Your YouTube recommendations are AI. Your Tinder matches are AI. The shitty SNK boss that stole your laundromat quarters is AI.
We all know and experience a ‘gross’ brand of AI, especially in the Musk-dominated dystopia. Self-driving cars that have and continue to kill living human beings, by design. Advanced militarization of robotic dogs and walkers, that have and will continue to kill and terrorize in the name of capital. Basement-dwelling gremlins that twist and distort humanist works of art into algorithm-blended, eye-straining canvas smears. Social media platforms that actively reward dissention and misinformation. The literary world of artists is all-aware of this, and it’s not even remotely a new concept: From as early as the 1930’s and beyond, the wondrous-yet-horrifying automaton is the tropal prefigurement of action and sci-fi.
And Sonic loves this shit.
Sonic’s most common adversaries are Eggman’s and others’ robotic creations, and a recurring trope in their stories is the tried-and-true ‘robot becoming human in spirit’ jam session. They’re also some of Ian Flynn’s favorite characters to write - in turn, his best. The ever-iconic Metal Sonic’s core identity is a facsimile of another, and his perpetual identity crisis feeds his rage across both the games and comics. Gamma is the fandom favorite, with his tear-inducing story of silent sacrifice and redemption in the original Adventure. Omega’s militarian specs and transparent honesty make for a character that’s perpetually direct to friends and foes alike, violently deadpan in his own vocab-broken way. These characters shine high not just as individuals, but for their ability to foil the flawed, creatural cast of heroes.
Sage - Frontiers’ new token OC, - is one of the best because she’s the most gently-overdriven version of the unfeeling automation, while taking on the most distinctly-human appearance and mannerisms of a Sonic series robot to date. The ultimate planeswalker between data and spirit; a character whose snark and bitterness is always hard to discern as a product of AI or personality. She’s number-obsessed, living solely on the wings of objectivism, while having to deal with Sonic’s mind-on-my-sleeve, impulsive bullshit. She’s so impossibly strong of a character at all of the story’s best moments, and I’m desperate for her to get inducted into the mainline cast going forward. I’d love to gush so much more about her and the overall plot, but these beats are better fresh and unspoiled.
| | THE VECTOR IS SONIC | |
Drawn spiky hair is beautiful. It blows in the wind like a warm flame.
Somehow the wind never blows the flame out.
| | CHRONOLOGICAL CHOIRS | |
Music is the undeniable strongest and most consistent part of the Sonic experience. Across jazz fusion, house, disco, butt rock, metal, EDM and trance, Sonic takes the people's sounds and twists them in a way wholly unique to video games as a medium.
Frontiers is very subdued by comparison - arpeggiated melodies that are felt passively and not heard, ambient overworld music that soothes never announces its presence, and cyberspace techno that drives action but never speaks over it. I couldn’t name many individual songs that match the hybrid beauty of past games, but it works great in-context and is a great change of pace. Listening to an overt melody on repeat over the course of hour-long traversal sessions is a recipe for disaster, and they found a good way to keep the musical spirit alive without having it grate.
Of course, all the angst and energy was built up and released for the titan boss themes, and GOD DAMN they go H A R D. Pent-up, cannon-fired emotions are a nonstop driver of Sonic’s penultimate tracks, but nothing can compare to the unbridled screamers Frontiers fires out in its few-but-fantastic moments.
| | ! ! ENJOY YOUR FUTURE; IT’S GONNA BE GREAT ! ! | |
Frontiers had me singing along with the larger fandom ‘Sonic is back’ - but that’s not new, is it? We heard it after Colors, riding on the short-term pessimism of ‘it doesn’t have cringe!’. We heard it after Generations, only for its follow-ups to start from square one with terrible Mario knock-off design and horribly milquetoast cartoon tie-in games. We heard it after Mania, only for Forces to be ‘just okay’ as an unfinished budget title.
Why does saying ‘Sonic is back’ feel so different now?
Because Frontiers is a victory for the future: It’s a Sonic experience that loves its past but embraces newcoming things, celebrates its beautiful cast’s growing character arcs, and experiments in ways that drive ambition rather than insecurity. Like us, it accepts itself as beautiful while understanding the need to break out of its shell. It’s a wonderful, heart-soothing, chaotic piece of work through-and-through. Without a doubt, it’s going to be a permanent sentimental star in many new Sonic fans’ hearts, the same way the Adventure games grew up with me and my generation.
“I now understand why I am here. I made a promise and I’m here to keep it. Today, I put my past behind me.”
| | THE WORLD IS SONIC | |
Naruto-running past you in the park. The bend of a minigolf ball careening wildly between walls and slopes. A bike yanked by gravity down the neighborhood hill. Pinballs smattering between bright lights and crashing machinery. The imaginary running man sprinting beside your car on the sidewalk, leaping over the streets and pedestrians.
Universe Is Sonic.
Neon colors and sharp, fashionable vectors. A nostalgic minor fourth. A ‘docx’ file with elaborate descriptions of an unknown figure’s likes, dislikes, origins and realities. 444,600 results on the world’s most popular art website. 240p anime playlist from 2009. Playground rumors, cosplay, metal remixes, YM2612 emulation, physics, debate, AMV, theatrical film, CMYK, baseball caps, webcomics, lawsuits, and designer shoes.
As a game and character, Sonic’s freedom-loving spirit and energy transcends barriers, beloved by people of all gender, ethnic, racial and neurological spectrums.
Sonic Is Universe.
| | THE CRINGE IS SONIC | |
Sonic in the modern eye is an object of ridicule and an ethereal mascot of the cringe culture boogeyman. You can’t so much as acknowledge Sonic’s existence without drawing ire and daft comparisons to princess-kissing, vertical-glitching, gun-toting embarrassment.
The Genesis originals were born out of anti-Nintendo competition - a story not worth repeating, but it’s notable for being a conversational millstone around the franchise’s entire existence. At every point in time, Sonic as a video game has strived to be its own style, but the marketing factors around it prevent the larger gaming press from seeing it outside any contrast but ‘how does this compare to Mario?’. An exhausting scenario that not only neglects the franchise’s individuality, but glosses over the figurative and literal development hell that’s plagued Sonic Team at the hands of Yuji Naka and SEGA’s business personnel.
| | SUITS RUIN EVERYTHING | |
Sonic did not have a rough transition into 3D.
It DID, however, have a violent transition into post-console SEGA.
At every turning point of history, Sonic has been unable to outrun tight deadlines and under-financing, with Sonic 1 being pitched at a point in time where Sega was aghast to the idea of spending more than 3 months time on a single video game, and 2 and 3K both rushed to meet consumer demand among growing trends. The final straw was the financial failure of the Dreamcast. With Sonic jumping multi-platform and creative leads wanting to market the series to every possible age and console demographic, the games had to cover ten times as much ground with only a fraction of the budget. SA2 was produced with only a third the staff of SA1, Heroes was infamously rushed, Shadow was born out of SEGA’s interest in pulling the mature crowd, etc etc. Sonic 06 was the killing blow, with its budget cut in half so Naka could produce a Wii spin-off, also at a time where the entire industry was struggling to adapt to shoddy 7th gen hardware and hi-fi design trends. The creative endeavors of Sonic Team never wavered, yet the environmental factors and outright stupidity of The-Powers-That-Be doomed the series.
| | THE CHILD IS SONIC | |
I was spinning my arms really fast, fists in a circle in front of me. They were spinning like feet. Sonic’s feet. Woosh.
| | NOSTALGIA AND SELF-EMBARRASSMENT | |
Sonic’s combination of unique design and unfortunate circumstances invites a loud, volatile fanbase - though ‘fan’ is maybe too charitable to a culture that is encouraged and rewarded for hostility. Youtubers, journalists, and influencers with no qualification whatsoever in game design all flocked to Sonic like vultures darting at a lion’s carcass, quick to reinterpret the series’ financial struggle as a fearmonger against progress. “Sonic can’t be 3D! Sonic’s friends are invalid! Sonic can’t compete with Mario! The classics were better!” It’s a conversation that is 100% functionally impossible to avoid in any long-term discussion of the hedgehog. A conversation loud enough for SEGA to hear and take to heart.
Since 06, Sonic games have been extremely reluctant to embrace themselves as what they’re meant to be, trying to cater not just to more audiences across the consumer board, but to malicious posers who don’t have a goddamn clue what they’re talking about - and ultimately, no interest in the games for what they truly are. The writing’s on the wall, everywhere from Colors-onward works featuring Saturday Morning writers that equally see Sonic’s adventures as one big noodle incident, to constant callbacks in unnatural 2D sections and much-aligned Green Hill revivals. There’s been tons of great moments and projects born within the cracks, but there is a universal truth that must be acknowledged: Post-06 Sega is embarrassed of Modern Sonic.
| | CULTURE PANIC: VULNERABILITY, INSECURITY AND CONFRONTATIONALISM | |
Sonic Frontiers is announced with the most bafflingly poor marketing approach in the entire industry. The ‘Sonic is bad’ cycle starts up again and journalists continue to rake in the hate clicks.
Then demos and invites to events start getting thrown to press. And all of a sudden, coverage is, positive? Reactions are optimistic and excited? Not just from Sonic fans, but from the journalist sphere as a whole?
It has a full 4-year development cycle and actual funding???
The road to Sonic Frontiers’ release triggered an insane frontload of anxiety into the internet, and bad-faith content creators were quick to profit off of it. Pre-release reactions have been nothing short of chaotic, with moments ranging from attacks at Ian Flynn, doxxing, in-fighting about the most microscopic movement design details, and so on. I couldn’t help but be exhausted by how much effort nay-sayers were putting into starting discourse when they could just move on to a game series they do like.
And then it hit me.
Sonic critics love Sonic, but are really, really embarrassed to admit it.
Sonic takes an extreme vulnerability to love because it's a series about being emotionally vulnerable - like Kingdom Hearts. They’re loud, sincere stories that breed affection, love, self-identity, - bullet points that attract ire, the same way a 5-year-old dismisses a Disney princess flick for ‘being girly’. And people are really harsh to admit it, because it’s easier to pass it off as ‘bad writing’ or ‘cringe’, interfacing with canon exclusively through ironic layers - but why else would they stay invested in a series for so many decades if there wasn’t something deeply personal they were getting out of it?
The cause-and-effect of this was that Sonic fans - that being, people that love the series, stories and games, unfiltered from irony - became INCREDIBLY anxious about their interest in it. It's not hard for that to happen when 90% of your community is on the spectrum and already endures abject hate for the crime of Being Different.
Objectivism became weaponized against fandom, and is the reason why we have theorycrafters debating every little detail of every single game - millions of arbitrary, asinine ‘’’’design’’’’ tests that each game has to be rotoscoped underneath. And whenever people do like something in the series that fails to meet objectivism, they have to conform to the ‘haha, it’s cringe, but i like it :)’ moniker - the only acceptable way to phrase affection to 3D Sonic today. It’s a perpetual motion machine.
For me, Frontiers discourse became too overwhelming and I did the smarter thing of distancing myself from it until I could actually play it. It was all just so much to take in, that I couldn’t even put any energy into getting excited for Frontiers announcements - because what if it didn’t meet expectations? What kind of discourse would I have to be surrounded by for the next 4 years? How many young fans who did love the game would be ridiculed and bullied by grown-ass adults over this shit, again, as the case has been for over 20 goddamn years?
| | SONIC FRONTIERS IS OUT | |
Hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhholy fucking shit dude
| | THE ARCHIVE IS SONIC | |
Battle Network is really cool. The internet is bright and wild.
Loose data, like thoughts flowing in the mind.
Is it possible to explore them, and would I want to if I could…?
| | OPEN ZONES AND CYBERSPACE: DICHOTOMY OF NOISE | |
Sonic Frontiers splits gameplay between the more experimental, sandbox-y open zone islands and the traditional, focused boost stages in cyberspace. While this change means that most of Frontiers lacks proper level design (something that’s really important to Sonic being a good platformer), Sonic Team traded off by min/maxing every facet of control possible. Almost every move Sonic’s been able to pull off since Adventure 1 is here in a single, cohesive moveset, and you’re given free reign to tweak individual acceleration, turning and speed parameters in the options. This is the best Sonic has ever felt in a 3D space, period.
Open Zones are deceptively-addicting to explore, arguably doing the shtick better than some of the games it was inspired by. The worlds are a really odd bunch; barren, realistic ruins populated by inorganic clusters of stock platforms, rails and obstacles. It looks cheap at a screenshot’s glance, but suits the game tonally and facilitates world traversal by allowing you to jettison ahead to your map markers while constantly taking detours into gimmick sections for goodies at a whim. It’s not seamless, but that’s what makes it cool: You, as Sonic, are physically breaking the seams of the world to burst around wherever you want. If this isn’t some of the most metal game design of the entire series, I don’t know what could give it a run for its money.
Cyberspace is for the traditional boost gameplay, contained ala the BOTW shrines. It’s hard to hype these up because they re-use old assets and stage layouts, but it works out because they find a way to contextualize it in the story really well, and Sonic’s improved gamefeel makes these stages feel pristine. Playing these returning SA2 and Unleashed/Gen maps with the most precise-yet-forgiving movement the series has ever is sublime, and more than anything, it was the first time I played Boost-formula Sonic and felt like I was the one controlling the world instead of being confined by it. There’s so many opportunities for tech, skips, and smooth recoveries, that it makes the prior games obsolete in terms of functionality. Only thing I don’t like about them is the 2D stages, which still feel too static and uneventful for this type of moveset.
When both of these gameplay formats are put together, a near-perfect loop is created. I treated open-zone as a jungle gym to throw myself around in, wander aimlessly and be rambunctious. It’s a loud, intoxicating environment with a lot of shit trying to take your attention away, like an abstract painting. And when it all gets to be too much, cyberspace becomes this therapeutic retreat, to refocus your senses on a more concrete and goal-driven game style.
| | THE WOUND IS SONIC | |
I remember being angry over video games. I was a sore loser when he beat me at Sonic. I cared more about video games than family.
Does he still think about it?
| | NOSTALGIA: MEMORIES AND THE PAST AS A VESSEL TO THE FUTURE | |
Frontiers’ content is nostalgia-heavy, as has been the case for Sonic since 4 ep1, but it’s not as a fandom safety blanket this time: It’s thematic (It’s also to save money, but we already established Sonic is expensive and Sega penny-pinches, so, what’s the use in complaining lmao). Old franchise concepts that haven’t been touched forever get re-introduced and given proper lore, relevant to both the franchise’s long-running chronicle and the immediate plot. Sonic’s not traveling through old levels just for retro funsies; they’re actual distortions of his memories of his old adventures that the cyberspace computers are making him re-experience.
And that's the hook: Ian Flynn’s prose benches heavily on memories, as ethereal feelings and concepts to directly interface with. The central antagonistic force is the ancient technology of Starfall islands, imprisoning Sonic and co. between their physical and spiritual selves. Sonic escapes its effects at first, but has to absorb its negative after-effects to free Amy, Tails and Knuckles. Coming from other games, you’d expect to save them at the end of the world, have a ‘thank you’ moment and move on; instead, you save them at the start of the world, and they accompany you throughout,. It’s a good setup for giving these characters screentime and development that they haven't seen in decades, but it’s also to depict the trauma and subsequent healing they experience. Everyone remains hurt from the cyberspace exposure after being rescued, and Sonic plays the role of a mediator to their struggles. He’s a bit dismissive to them at first - wanting to rush ahead, ‘gotta go fast’, ‘outrun my demons’ and stuff, - but he’s quick to empathize with their pain. He doesn’t try to ‘solve’ their problems or wrestle into their mind, but reaches out as a shoulder to cry on: Asking how they feel, making them feel strong for bearing through it, and sharing sentimental memories as they go. And the way he interfaces with the cast beautifully illustrates the differences in relationships he has with everyone: Being tender and mentor-like to Amy and Tails, but having a more dude-bro and silently-acknowledged heart-to-heart with Knuckles (he also flirts the shit out of him).
| | ARTIFICIAL HEART: GOSSAMER BETWEEN THE COGS | |
Data-centric technology has fundamentally changed all facets of humanity, our self-expression, and our forms of communication. We embrace some parts of it, and reject others, all based on differences in fundamental and ethical values.
AI is contentious: A hyperbolic name assigned to the programming concept of automation through observation and repetition of pre-configured or adaptable parameters. We come to understand it through the lens of a fake being that cherry-picks choices for you, and that’s Silicon Valley’s most vainly-spoken application of the concept - but, AI really just means ‘we programmed a non-human thing to make choices based on data we feed it’. Your YouTube recommendations are AI. Your Tinder matches are AI. The shitty SNK boss that stole your laundromat quarters is AI.
We all know and experience a ‘gross’ brand of AI, especially in the Musk-dominated dystopia. Self-driving cars that have and continue to kill living human beings, by design. Advanced militarization of robotic dogs and walkers, that have and will continue to kill and terrorize in the name of capital. Basement-dwelling gremlins that twist and distort humanist works of art into algorithm-blended, eye-straining canvas smears. Social media platforms that actively reward dissention and misinformation. The literary world of artists is all-aware of this, and it’s not even remotely a new concept: From as early as the 1930’s and beyond, the wondrous-yet-horrifying automaton is the tropal prefigurement of action and sci-fi.
And Sonic loves this shit.
Sonic’s most common adversaries are Eggman’s and others’ robotic creations, and a recurring trope in their stories is the tried-and-true ‘robot becoming human in spirit’ jam session. They’re also some of Ian Flynn’s favorite characters to write - in turn, his best. The ever-iconic Metal Sonic’s core identity is a facsimile of another, and his perpetual identity crisis feeds his rage across both the games and comics. Gamma is the fandom favorite, with his tear-inducing story of silent sacrifice and redemption in the original Adventure. Omega’s militarian specs and transparent honesty make for a character that’s perpetually direct to friends and foes alike, violently deadpan in his own vocab-broken way. These characters shine high not just as individuals, but for their ability to foil the flawed, creatural cast of heroes.
Sage - Frontiers’ new token OC, - is one of the best because she’s the most gently-overdriven version of the unfeeling automation, while taking on the most distinctly-human appearance and mannerisms of a Sonic series robot to date. The ultimate planeswalker between data and spirit; a character whose snark and bitterness is always hard to discern as a product of AI or personality. She’s number-obsessed, living solely on the wings of objectivism, while having to deal with Sonic’s mind-on-my-sleeve, impulsive bullshit. She’s so impossibly strong of a character at all of the story’s best moments, and I’m desperate for her to get inducted into the mainline cast going forward. I’d love to gush so much more about her and the overall plot, but these beats are better fresh and unspoiled.
| | THE VECTOR IS SONIC | |
Drawn spiky hair is beautiful. It blows in the wind like a warm flame.
Somehow the wind never blows the flame out.
| | CHRONOLOGICAL CHOIRS | |
Music is the undeniable strongest and most consistent part of the Sonic experience. Across jazz fusion, house, disco, butt rock, metal, EDM and trance, Sonic takes the people's sounds and twists them in a way wholly unique to video games as a medium.
Frontiers is very subdued by comparison - arpeggiated melodies that are felt passively and not heard, ambient overworld music that soothes never announces its presence, and cyberspace techno that drives action but never speaks over it. I couldn’t name many individual songs that match the hybrid beauty of past games, but it works great in-context and is a great change of pace. Listening to an overt melody on repeat over the course of hour-long traversal sessions is a recipe for disaster, and they found a good way to keep the musical spirit alive without having it grate.
Of course, all the angst and energy was built up and released for the titan boss themes, and GOD DAMN they go H A R D. Pent-up, cannon-fired emotions are a nonstop driver of Sonic’s penultimate tracks, but nothing can compare to the unbridled screamers Frontiers fires out in its few-but-fantastic moments.
| | ! ! ENJOY YOUR FUTURE; IT’S GONNA BE GREAT ! ! | |
Frontiers had me singing along with the larger fandom ‘Sonic is back’ - but that’s not new, is it? We heard it after Colors, riding on the short-term pessimism of ‘it doesn’t have cringe!’. We heard it after Generations, only for its follow-ups to start from square one with terrible Mario knock-off design and horribly milquetoast cartoon tie-in games. We heard it after Mania, only for Forces to be ‘just okay’ as an unfinished budget title.
Why does saying ‘Sonic is back’ feel so different now?
Because Frontiers is a victory for the future: It’s a Sonic experience that loves its past but embraces newcoming things, celebrates its beautiful cast’s growing character arcs, and experiments in ways that drive ambition rather than insecurity. Like us, it accepts itself as beautiful while understanding the need to break out of its shell. It’s a wonderful, heart-soothing, chaotic piece of work through-and-through. Without a doubt, it’s going to be a permanent sentimental star in many new Sonic fans’ hearts, the same way the Adventure games grew up with me and my generation.
“I now understand why I am here. I made a promise and I’m here to keep it. Today, I put my past behind me.”
Elden Ring
2022
Starnger Of Paradise will be better
Agony
2018
from the TWISTED minds at "Madmind Studio" comes a true turd of shit. Totally dysfunctional, tedious, loathsome in its every misguided design choice. Definitely made by someone with the same edgelordy sixth grade boy mentality as Doom, but by that kid's weirder, grosser rotten.com/suicidegirls obsessed peer with none of the good natured doofiness and a self-serious misanthropic streak that, when juxtaposed with this totally laughable vision of horror, falls completely flat on its face. Skairie lesbianic crunkcore demonesses with corset piercings gyrating on phlegmy cavern protuberances and doing cock and ball torture on poorly edited poser models with softbody physics modifiers flopping their sad little weewees to and fro. completely visually incoherent and devoid of any semblance of a successful horror atmosphere; Every vile environment looks like a bunch of morgellons fibers emanating from a giant petrified dookie. A highlight was the looping animation of the mopey mutilated hell denizen nonchalantly grinding up deformed fetuses and using them as paste for placing cobblestones in a makeshift wall--less a solemn visage of UNSPEAKABLE degredation and horror and moreso just like... legitimately hysterical slapstick? Agony is a completely busted conceptually pathetic mess! needless to say i cant wait for Succubus!
Metroid Dread
2021
This review was written before the game released
more like metroid head
as in this game should have intercourse with me
as in this game should have intercourse with me
Shin Megami Tensei V
2021
While it sounds crazy enough to write a review about a game thats not even OUT LMAO. I why I can 100% confirm that this game will be my favourite game ever when it releases.
Shin Megami Tensei V is from a series I'm genuinely not that familiar with. beside playing Persona Q on the 3DS 10 years ago. Having played a few hours of Devil Survivor on the 3DS and having watched like 7 episodes of Devil Survivor 2 and then dropping it out of boredom. You would genuinely be insane from a series where your intertest was never fully captured nor grasped to have the latest entry be your FAVOURITE GAME EVER?! Well here I will try to concretely enough explain my "My insanity" or for some of you guys "Stupidity" I'm assuming.
I found out about Shin Megami Tensei V pretty late actually the game was revealed at the Nintendo Direct in 2020. I accidentally stumbled upon the game in march pure on whim. I was watching videos about JRPGs and I saw the games Trailer in my recommendations. I didn't even wanna click on the trailer nor did I want it to play YouTube Autoplayed it for me when I went to the toilet lol... but when I came back I was like "fuck it why not" and pressed replay and my mind was blown away... to most it's a standard trailer nothing outstanding or experimental enough for someone to lose their shit over it but man... I WAS IN. From the VA of Lucifer the silent build up and the narrator to the strong post-apocalyptic athmosphere but with a striking distinct visual style. It reminded so much of every favourite post-apoc series I love and it happens so rarely that I ever have such a strong sense of nostolgia from past of something in the present that I have no strong knowledge. But from the previously mentioned things and flashy gameplay and strong and striking character designs. I just knew it was the one. The post-apoc genre is a VERY important genre to me because it helped me allot as a person throughout my life and I honestly watched allot of post-apoc media but super rarely has this same feeling been matched before. I literally searched up every information about the game since and don't think I've ever been as hype for something as this game. The latest Info dump just made me even more confident in my feelings. I rewatched each trailer over 10x and watched the gameplay showcases over 10x. Did as much research as I can on the people working on it. Theorize heavy about future characters , environments and potential story beats. I genuinely have 100% trust in this game and don't think I can get dissapointed really.
So it really a case of pure feelings of nostolgia , charm and trust that makes me so sure. I know this seems goofy asf to write this but I know myself the best so I know best what my true feelings on the game will be.
( P.S I've done this before and know how my expectations work so I really cannot be dissapointed. also I will do a follow up in November on this when I play it.
EDIT: OK i finished it (got the true ending) and this game is AMAZING this is such an amazing sequel to nocturne but also a great standalone game its so GOOOOOD
Shin Megami Tensei V is from a series I'm genuinely not that familiar with. beside playing Persona Q on the 3DS 10 years ago. Having played a few hours of Devil Survivor on the 3DS and having watched like 7 episodes of Devil Survivor 2 and then dropping it out of boredom. You would genuinely be insane from a series where your intertest was never fully captured nor grasped to have the latest entry be your FAVOURITE GAME EVER?! Well here I will try to concretely enough explain my "My insanity" or for some of you guys "Stupidity" I'm assuming.
I found out about Shin Megami Tensei V pretty late actually the game was revealed at the Nintendo Direct in 2020. I accidentally stumbled upon the game in march pure on whim. I was watching videos about JRPGs and I saw the games Trailer in my recommendations. I didn't even wanna click on the trailer nor did I want it to play YouTube Autoplayed it for me when I went to the toilet lol... but when I came back I was like "fuck it why not" and pressed replay and my mind was blown away... to most it's a standard trailer nothing outstanding or experimental enough for someone to lose their shit over it but man... I WAS IN. From the VA of Lucifer the silent build up and the narrator to the strong post-apocalyptic athmosphere but with a striking distinct visual style. It reminded so much of every favourite post-apoc series I love and it happens so rarely that I ever have such a strong sense of nostolgia from past of something in the present that I have no strong knowledge. But from the previously mentioned things and flashy gameplay and strong and striking character designs. I just knew it was the one. The post-apoc genre is a VERY important genre to me because it helped me allot as a person throughout my life and I honestly watched allot of post-apoc media but super rarely has this same feeling been matched before. I literally searched up every information about the game since and don't think I've ever been as hype for something as this game. The latest Info dump just made me even more confident in my feelings. I rewatched each trailer over 10x and watched the gameplay showcases over 10x. Did as much research as I can on the people working on it. Theorize heavy about future characters , environments and potential story beats. I genuinely have 100% trust in this game and don't think I can get dissapointed really.
So it really a case of pure feelings of nostolgia , charm and trust that makes me so sure. I know this seems goofy asf to write this but I know myself the best so I know best what my true feelings on the game will be.
( P.S I've done this before and know how my expectations work so I really cannot be dissapointed. also I will do a follow up in November on this when I play it.
EDIT: OK i finished it (got the true ending) and this game is AMAZING this is such an amazing sequel to nocturne but also a great standalone game its so GOOOOOD
Tales of Arise
2021
This review was written before the game released
This review contains spoilers
While it sounds crazy enough to write a review about a game thats not even OUT LMAO. I why I can 100% confirm that this game will be my favourite game ever when it releases.
Tales Of Arise from a series I'm genuinely not that familiar with. beside playing Tales Of Vesperia on the 360 10 years ago. Having played a few hours of Tales Of Abyss on the 3DS and having watched like 7 episodes of Tales Of Zesteria and then dropping it out of boredom. You would genuinely be insane from a series where your intertest was never fully captured nor grasped to have the latest entry be your FAVOURITE GAME EVER?! Well here I will try to concretely enough explain my "My insanity" or for some of you guys "Stupidity" I'm assuming.
I found out about Tales Of Arise pretty late actually the game was revealed at E3 in 2019. I accidentally stumbled upon the game in march pure on whim. I was watching videos about JRPGs and I saw the games Trailer in my recommendations. I didn't even wanna click on the trailer nor did I want it to play YouTube Autoplayed it for me when I went to the toilet lol... but when I came back I was like "fuck it why not" and pressed replay and my mind was blown away... to most it's a standard trailer nothing outstanding or experimental enough for someone to lose their shit over it but man... I WAS IN. From the SFX of Shionne her heel the silent build up and the narrator to the strong fantasy athmosphere but with a striking distinct visual style. It reminded so much of every favourite Fantasy series I love and it happens so rarely that I ever have such a strong sense of nostolgia from past of something in the present that I have no strong knowledge. But from the previously mentioned things and flashy gameplay and strong and striking character designs. I just knew it was the one. The Fantasy genre is a VERY important genre to me because it helped me allot as a person throughout my life and I honestly watched allot of fantasy media but super rarely has this same feeling been matched before. I literally searched up every information about the game since and don't think I've ever been as hype for something as this game. The latest Info dump just made me even more confident in my feelings. I rewatched each trailer over 10x and watched the gameplay showcases over 10x. Did as much research as I can on the people working on it. Theorize heavy about future characters , environments and potential story beats. I genuinely have 100% trust in this game and don't think I can get dissapointed really.
So it really a case of pure feelings of nostolgia , charm and trust that makes me so sure. I know this seems goofy asf to write this but I know myself the best so I know best what my true feelings on the game will be.
( P.S I've done this before and know how my expectations work so I really cannot be dissapointed. also I will do a follow up in September on this when I play it.
Okay the follow up I already played the demo and wanted to follow up this but backloggd got scared and locked the ability to write reviews that haven't been released yet understandably 💀. Anyway
So yea coming out to yea I loved this game and it's my favourite video game of all time now I'm going to explain why.
First is just following this game was an experience harder than I expected I've been hyped for games and such but at most I had to wait a few months or I could just play it instantly after watching some videos or trailers on it. But for this game I had to wait 2 YEARS bro it was torture waiting. Constantly rewatching the trailers and seeing all the intriguing stuff , gameplay sections , environments and the characters. Reading every blog or info dump prior to release of the game in MULTIPLE LANUAGES. Like I was reading shit in Korean or Japanese using Google translate to get info about the game I was so hyped about it. Each trailer and new released stuff just got me more excited and it the more I heard about the game the more reassured I was about it being what I wanted. Which led to me playing the demo ( I touch upon that later ) and then finally the reviews of the game coming out which basically was just a last confirmation for me about the game. But just following a game for so long and looking crazy because you were hyping it up so early on with barely any footing on it just felt so rewarding which I never experienced with a game before nor do I think that is ever going to happen again. Also seeing the tales of series while me not being a person with a huge connection to the series I guess see the series get genuinely good reviews and reviewers not referring to the series as "jrpg fastfood." Or "jrpg comfort food." made me happy for my friends and the fans who have been long apart of franchise. Now about the game tho ( finally. )
First off the visual presentation of the game. I REALLLY BUT REALLLY LOVE how the game looks perfect sense of an artistic style mixed with realism. From textures of close up rocks , stones and ice where all just amazing to look at. The sense of scale it also adds by far off locations looking like a watercolor painting as some sort of highlighting it to spark curiosity and mystery for the player which happened several times for me.
Now the gameplay
• Exploration
I really loved the gameplay loop of this game. Explore looking for ingredients find a chest or find a hidden pathway that leads to a secret location. With great level and environmental design made traversing the world tons of fun. My favourite JRPG series xenoblade is where I love exploring too but the characters walking speed ( not including X ) being the same as a crippled grandma kinda put me off sometimes exploring new areas because of some backtracking I had to do. Here that wasn't present for me at all the environments where big and wide enough when it was needed but it never felt like a slog for me to get thru them.
• Combat
Probably my favourite thing about the game easily. The way it's heavy combo based , rewards the player for experimenting allot , rewards the player for going the extra mile being extra flashy WHILE also granting super flashy 1 hit finishers to satisfying kill enemies. On top of that love the break mechanic of the game. Insanely satisfying fighting an enemy and committing to a move that could potentially lead to your death but destroying their core which downs them which gives me immense pleasure for taking that risky decision. I know people don't like the lack of arte and move cancelling which I understand the dissatisfaction and frustration of it completely but in return getting that reward of labbing with certain moves and combo latter's seeing them payoff for me fully committing too it was just a great feeling that I rarely get from playing games at all. Now onto Boss Battles which I also know most people aren't a fan of either but I honestly loved them. It is a shame that the human bosses that stagger constantly which leads to a limited combo celling sadly enough. I think it would've been ideal for some type of revenge value hidden mechanic for the bosses where if you spam too move or don't punish accordingly they reach their Overlimit easier or something. Either way tho I still really enjoyed them from the presentation , to the build up , hype and the fight itself. Especially Balselph fight caught me by surprise how great of a 1st boss it was. Him being one of the bigger human bosses which makes it possible for effective use of aerial dodges that don't eliminate the usage of your aerial artes in his fights. Also the summoning spirit appearance which added allot of hype which really made me realise yea... this game is going to be something big lol. Anyway a fight like dohalim I think would've benefitted from the hidden mechanic that I mentioned earlier either tho the satisfaction I felt from double counter edging his arts and seeing him stagger because of it felt so hype to me. With also the amazing QTEs which I didn't expect to see in the game in the slightest which added another hype factor into the fights for me. The usage in strategy the bosses emphasized for me which made them all so memorable to me aswell. Me getting frustrated and cursing the game out for some fufu or cheesy shit but then changing my AI strategy, changing my arte layout and tweaking my party members art usage to fully capitalize on the bosses weaknesses. From battle going from 10min + vs 5-3min for me. Also love the battle gauge mechanic when you for example finish a battle there is this gauge that rewards you if you continously keep doing them which encouraged me to do some fights I honestly would've skipped if it wasn't for that mechanic.
• Music
Now I won't lie and say this probably the most mixed bag for me off the game. Music is one of the most important things to me and so "bad" music bothers quite allot. Which was one of the worries I had with the game since from what I heard of Sakuraba can't lie that stuff wasn't pleasing my ears and it made sense to me why I never heard praise of this series OST beside the titles go shiina worked on sadly enough. Either way tho the music in arise to me is just "good." And emphasis of just. Like the overall ost a 7/7,5 which is honestly a bit dissapointing but the reason for it isn't because I think the songs are bad but more so a lack of variety and lack of distinctiveness between the tracks. I love OSTs with choirs , vocals and that bombastic grandiose feel. ( Apocalyptic Noctis one of my favourite OSTs of all time. ) but when that is basically the whole soundtrack it loses the weight and eventually some songs come off as "white noise." To me but I'm honestly happy tho that I still love the style of the OST which led to me enjoying a good portion of the tracks overall. I'm still satisfied tho that the OST isn't BOTW or DQ11 bad to me. BOTW ambient approach to its OST I understand but it just didn't do anything for me personally. dq11 has had enough slander for the ost I'm not gonna say anything about it lol. But yea arise was more so 1 that focused on ambience rather than songs you could listen too outside the game. It did its job and enhanced the scenes & environments where tracks where played so again I'm okay with that.
• Story/Characters
May come off weird to some but I didn't expect this game story to be the greatest thing to touch fiction. I more so expected a story where its themes intrigued even tho me already being quite familiar with them already. Also wasn't expecting a xeno type of series full of insane plotwists and such more so dramatic irony where I'd have a strong idea where its leading to but wondering how it's being executed and how the game handles the theme's. I can confidently say im satisfied never did a story made me think of "slavery is as much a mental thing as it is physical." I ofcourse heard the lines such as "everyone is a slave to something." "A slave to one's desires." Blah blah those stories usually mentioned it briefly and wouldn't explore it fully or just never touch upon it again. (Which that neccasary didn't upset since the story wasn't about that theme in the first place lol would've been dope tho but probs out of place.) But yea the game asking questions such as when are you a slave and when are you your master of something. Which mainly was explored thru the protagonist of the game. Alphen being a slave "raised" in a slave camp.(wooahh insane right you didn't guess that huh ) that led him develop percussions and certain perspectives of the race of his oppressors. Where he basically was so deep in it during a conversation he basically asked "if we just commit genocide against the renas will we be truly free?" Which is ofcourse because he saw nothing but tyrany and misery from them. Seeing Alphen develop from a slave who was in the mental slave that he only could be a slave -> to a slave who started fighting because of the opportunity being presented at him in the moment because of others -> where he blindly followed them and their order's -> then being told that he should be his own master & think for himself and then finding out the answer to ending the conflict he's stuck. A slave to his percussions, a slave to the ones his follows and being a slave to the desperate need of guidance in his life. The way it's explored in the 3rd area in the game and with the main party and antagonists is probably my favourite tho. Shionne a slave to the ideal that she could only live in solitude, Kisara a slave to her dream/ideal , the people in menancia being slaves to the belief just because they get treated on "equal terms." that they aren't any different from other slaves just because they get treated fairly for their labor and the antagonists being slaves to power. I know people think the antagonists either are ass or just whatever. I think their simplistic approach fits better into the narrative and beside Vholran (Which I touch upon later.) Don't necessarily need a moral ambiguity or a some super complex motive with the root of a tragic backstory. They where victims of the elitism and social views of the renan society where power and status is everything which lead them all to be chained to the concept of Power. We see it in Balselph remove before he dies where he's genuinely shocked on why Shionne doesn't care about power and betraying renans. Ganabelt desperately clinging to ideal of him needing to be powerful for his followers on Lenegis , amahoela ( don't remember her name ) her basically being the 2nd biggest victim of it by how Dohalim discussed on how lenegis she did everything in her power to rise to the top. On top of that Vholran one who grew up in a environment where he was believed to be the one most powerful of all by triumphing , dominating , ruling and conquering all and anything. 1st display of him showing dominance towards alphen and the party by killing all the zeugles , conquering the party in that duel after you leave menacia , ruling heartlessly over the people who devoted too him and finally trying to triumph Alphen in their last fight. He was the ideal Renan Lord based on the social views that the renans preach and reinforce but in actuality being the biggest slave of all nothing but a hollow person with no ambitions of his own , convictions of his own and Ideals of his own. A Dahnan slave throughout that never got to break free from his chain and being the perfect Puppet that the renans wanted him to be. While the story has multiple messages and social commentaries but this one just stuck with me the most. When is a person a slave , when is a person his own master? How much in control are you of your ideals that they don't chain you? How do you keep being your own master throughout and never get stuck into those chains again? I never gave it much thought nor did I personally need the message but it's one I always will appreciate. Also the main cast I love them all and it's my favourite jrpg main cast. Love their conversations , banter , dynamics and relationships. Both in just how fun it is to see and how they impact the game thematically.
• Ending
2nd act of the game sadly enough goes a bit downhill in quality in my opinion more so story wise rather than gameplay for me but it didn't upset or affect me enjoyment that much where It stopped making me love the game since I still enjoyed act 2. It's just act 1 was a 10/10 and act 2 a 7/10 with a 10/10 ending so yea. Some stuff I want to address tho. The forgiveness and understanding stuff doesn't come out of nowhere as much people try to make it seem. It comes off cheesy at first and you think it doesn't make any sense conclusion wise if you only look at it from face value but Alphen character was never going to be that he just "kills" every lord. The reasons for that is at FIRST and FOREMOST helping his FELLOW SLAVES to a better future. So him aim changing from the Lords to wanting to end the cycle of hatred what him and Zephyr discussed about isn't a weird or drastic change. It's inline to what his character was leading to so stuff like wanting liberate the renans on lenegis aswell isn't weird or out of character since they are practically SLAVES mental wise too. Also the answer he was searching for on was forgiveness and understanding. Not always out of sympathy but also out of NECESSITY. He wants to end the cycle of hatred and stop the clogs that shift the conflict. Vholran is the biggest one of it. Alphen being the only person that could understand him and which led to him have such a obsession with Alphen in the 1st place is why the forgiving isn't so out of place. Also forgiving doesn't mean FORGETTING it's neccasary to move forward to a new future. The game also hammers the point of there being a limit to how much forgiveness and understanding can reach. Vholran was the nail of that point. Him killing himself was a proper conclusion and fitting narrative wise. Other stuff of act 2 tho obviously needed more breathing room and just more time overall great spirit , summoning spirits etc. Game would've benefitted from better placement of some of the exposure dumbs in act 1 or just act 2 being much longer. Stuff I liked tho that Great Renan spirit felt fear and anger which lead to Hatred. Symbolizing the end of the world's potentially being the hatred the races have for eachother. Uh the last dungeon was not as bad as I expected from the way people spoke about it I assumed I was just going to keep walking straight like FFXV later half and just fight bosses the whole time. Also only 2 being mandatory and the others avoidable or fleeable not souring my experience as much as I thought it would have. Uh stuff like Dahnas will too it being introduced early would've definitely helped maybe it was foreshadowed haven't looked thru all the cutscenes of the game tho so maybe the issue isn't as big as it now for me. Also probably me playing the last few stuff in sessions because of IRL stuff made it probably not as bad as I assumed it would lol. Uhhh loved the ending overall tho shionne finally being able to touch the party and rinwell being the 1st one making it 1st much more endearing how hateful they where early on with eachother. Stuff like seeing Dohalim play the violin again for Alphen when he talked about making a promise to him for playing it again little stuff like that also the song ofcourse and just the icing on cake. But yea despite the rough edges in act 2 I still love the game.
• Conclusion
For me something being my all time favourite just means a really positive unique experience that I can't have with anything else. Personally it doesn't need to be the greatest thing to touch humanity objectively. It doesn't need universal acclaim nor the most ambitious and thing in the world. Never did I play a game this much back to back nonstop , having fun discussing it with my friends and just a game that appeal to me in every way and shape. It being from my favourite gaming genre , type of story and themes , type of cast , type of gameplay and combat, type of art direction and just my type of game. Confidently say that is my favourite game of all time and that is not changing ever. Not a perfect game by any means but it will forever be my most memorable one.
• Extra shit
Gripes and stuff I love I wanna say in short
Beyond me how nobody talks about the lack of configuration options genuinely shocked lmao but yea hopefully the game gets a patch like scarlet nexus or so.
Lack of proper audio mixing biggest issue with the game for me didn't happen allot but when it did? sheesh
Love the character designs of each character especially Alphen. He gives off a edgy vibe. But he's just a good willed person with great characterization. Playful Rivalry with Law like them role-playing student and master during combat. His old man dynamic with Dohalim because both of them being the oldest of the party. His bickering and snarky remarks towards shionne to the point it's childish meshing well with his mature attitude. Him being a geek for weaponry and armor. His love for spicy food because he compensates it with his inability of pain and his vagabond like nature because he never had the chance to explore so much so he takes of too interesting routes and paths. I wish his personality was more of a thing in the main cutscenes of the game seeing people write him off just as "haha hero guy go brrr." comes off a bit irritating but the game treats parts of his personality as side bits which makes it understandable.
Sidequests being surprisingly worth it both content wise and also the types of sidequests. Like there are fetch quests but them being based on pairs and which leads to funny dialogue made them worth it imo. Also some really character focused Sidequests like Law getting a letter from Zephyr or the pancake one where great.
Uhh pop in issue obviously but yea we already know that lol.
Vholran being a villain that fits his purpose but most definitely still a underbaked antagonist his dynamic with Alphen could've been great the biggest miss of the game for me.
Yea I love this game thank you bandai Namco for making me a enjoy like this for the 1st time and the only time.
Still nr 1 just XBC3 kinda goated with the sauce takahashi his strongest warrior my loyalty always resided with Xeno.
Tales Of Arise from a series I'm genuinely not that familiar with. beside playing Tales Of Vesperia on the 360 10 years ago. Having played a few hours of Tales Of Abyss on the 3DS and having watched like 7 episodes of Tales Of Zesteria and then dropping it out of boredom. You would genuinely be insane from a series where your intertest was never fully captured nor grasped to have the latest entry be your FAVOURITE GAME EVER?! Well here I will try to concretely enough explain my "My insanity" or for some of you guys "Stupidity" I'm assuming.
I found out about Tales Of Arise pretty late actually the game was revealed at E3 in 2019. I accidentally stumbled upon the game in march pure on whim. I was watching videos about JRPGs and I saw the games Trailer in my recommendations. I didn't even wanna click on the trailer nor did I want it to play YouTube Autoplayed it for me when I went to the toilet lol... but when I came back I was like "fuck it why not" and pressed replay and my mind was blown away... to most it's a standard trailer nothing outstanding or experimental enough for someone to lose their shit over it but man... I WAS IN. From the SFX of Shionne her heel the silent build up and the narrator to the strong fantasy athmosphere but with a striking distinct visual style. It reminded so much of every favourite Fantasy series I love and it happens so rarely that I ever have such a strong sense of nostolgia from past of something in the present that I have no strong knowledge. But from the previously mentioned things and flashy gameplay and strong and striking character designs. I just knew it was the one. The Fantasy genre is a VERY important genre to me because it helped me allot as a person throughout my life and I honestly watched allot of fantasy media but super rarely has this same feeling been matched before. I literally searched up every information about the game since and don't think I've ever been as hype for something as this game. The latest Info dump just made me even more confident in my feelings. I rewatched each trailer over 10x and watched the gameplay showcases over 10x. Did as much research as I can on the people working on it. Theorize heavy about future characters , environments and potential story beats. I genuinely have 100% trust in this game and don't think I can get dissapointed really.
So it really a case of pure feelings of nostolgia , charm and trust that makes me so sure. I know this seems goofy asf to write this but I know myself the best so I know best what my true feelings on the game will be.
( P.S I've done this before and know how my expectations work so I really cannot be dissapointed. also I will do a follow up in September on this when I play it.
Okay the follow up I already played the demo and wanted to follow up this but backloggd got scared and locked the ability to write reviews that haven't been released yet understandably 💀. Anyway
So yea coming out to yea I loved this game and it's my favourite video game of all time now I'm going to explain why.
First is just following this game was an experience harder than I expected I've been hyped for games and such but at most I had to wait a few months or I could just play it instantly after watching some videos or trailers on it. But for this game I had to wait 2 YEARS bro it was torture waiting. Constantly rewatching the trailers and seeing all the intriguing stuff , gameplay sections , environments and the characters. Reading every blog or info dump prior to release of the game in MULTIPLE LANUAGES. Like I was reading shit in Korean or Japanese using Google translate to get info about the game I was so hyped about it. Each trailer and new released stuff just got me more excited and it the more I heard about the game the more reassured I was about it being what I wanted. Which led to me playing the demo ( I touch upon that later ) and then finally the reviews of the game coming out which basically was just a last confirmation for me about the game. But just following a game for so long and looking crazy because you were hyping it up so early on with barely any footing on it just felt so rewarding which I never experienced with a game before nor do I think that is ever going to happen again. Also seeing the tales of series while me not being a person with a huge connection to the series I guess see the series get genuinely good reviews and reviewers not referring to the series as "jrpg fastfood." Or "jrpg comfort food." made me happy for my friends and the fans who have been long apart of franchise. Now about the game tho ( finally. )
First off the visual presentation of the game. I REALLLY BUT REALLLY LOVE how the game looks perfect sense of an artistic style mixed with realism. From textures of close up rocks , stones and ice where all just amazing to look at. The sense of scale it also adds by far off locations looking like a watercolor painting as some sort of highlighting it to spark curiosity and mystery for the player which happened several times for me.
Now the gameplay
• Exploration
I really loved the gameplay loop of this game. Explore looking for ingredients find a chest or find a hidden pathway that leads to a secret location. With great level and environmental design made traversing the world tons of fun. My favourite JRPG series xenoblade is where I love exploring too but the characters walking speed ( not including X ) being the same as a crippled grandma kinda put me off sometimes exploring new areas because of some backtracking I had to do. Here that wasn't present for me at all the environments where big and wide enough when it was needed but it never felt like a slog for me to get thru them.
• Combat
Probably my favourite thing about the game easily. The way it's heavy combo based , rewards the player for experimenting allot , rewards the player for going the extra mile being extra flashy WHILE also granting super flashy 1 hit finishers to satisfying kill enemies. On top of that love the break mechanic of the game. Insanely satisfying fighting an enemy and committing to a move that could potentially lead to your death but destroying their core which downs them which gives me immense pleasure for taking that risky decision. I know people don't like the lack of arte and move cancelling which I understand the dissatisfaction and frustration of it completely but in return getting that reward of labbing with certain moves and combo latter's seeing them payoff for me fully committing too it was just a great feeling that I rarely get from playing games at all. Now onto Boss Battles which I also know most people aren't a fan of either but I honestly loved them. It is a shame that the human bosses that stagger constantly which leads to a limited combo celling sadly enough. I think it would've been ideal for some type of revenge value hidden mechanic for the bosses where if you spam too move or don't punish accordingly they reach their Overlimit easier or something. Either way tho I still really enjoyed them from the presentation , to the build up , hype and the fight itself. Especially Balselph fight caught me by surprise how great of a 1st boss it was. Him being one of the bigger human bosses which makes it possible for effective use of aerial dodges that don't eliminate the usage of your aerial artes in his fights. Also the summoning spirit appearance which added allot of hype which really made me realise yea... this game is going to be something big lol. Anyway a fight like dohalim I think would've benefitted from the hidden mechanic that I mentioned earlier either tho the satisfaction I felt from double counter edging his arts and seeing him stagger because of it felt so hype to me. With also the amazing QTEs which I didn't expect to see in the game in the slightest which added another hype factor into the fights for me. The usage in strategy the bosses emphasized for me which made them all so memorable to me aswell. Me getting frustrated and cursing the game out for some fufu or cheesy shit but then changing my AI strategy, changing my arte layout and tweaking my party members art usage to fully capitalize on the bosses weaknesses. From battle going from 10min + vs 5-3min for me. Also love the battle gauge mechanic when you for example finish a battle there is this gauge that rewards you if you continously keep doing them which encouraged me to do some fights I honestly would've skipped if it wasn't for that mechanic.
• Music
Now I won't lie and say this probably the most mixed bag for me off the game. Music is one of the most important things to me and so "bad" music bothers quite allot. Which was one of the worries I had with the game since from what I heard of Sakuraba can't lie that stuff wasn't pleasing my ears and it made sense to me why I never heard praise of this series OST beside the titles go shiina worked on sadly enough. Either way tho the music in arise to me is just "good." And emphasis of just. Like the overall ost a 7/7,5 which is honestly a bit dissapointing but the reason for it isn't because I think the songs are bad but more so a lack of variety and lack of distinctiveness between the tracks. I love OSTs with choirs , vocals and that bombastic grandiose feel. ( Apocalyptic Noctis one of my favourite OSTs of all time. ) but when that is basically the whole soundtrack it loses the weight and eventually some songs come off as "white noise." To me but I'm honestly happy tho that I still love the style of the OST which led to me enjoying a good portion of the tracks overall. I'm still satisfied tho that the OST isn't BOTW or DQ11 bad to me. BOTW ambient approach to its OST I understand but it just didn't do anything for me personally. dq11 has had enough slander for the ost I'm not gonna say anything about it lol. But yea arise was more so 1 that focused on ambience rather than songs you could listen too outside the game. It did its job and enhanced the scenes & environments where tracks where played so again I'm okay with that.
• Story/Characters
May come off weird to some but I didn't expect this game story to be the greatest thing to touch fiction. I more so expected a story where its themes intrigued even tho me already being quite familiar with them already. Also wasn't expecting a xeno type of series full of insane plotwists and such more so dramatic irony where I'd have a strong idea where its leading to but wondering how it's being executed and how the game handles the theme's. I can confidently say im satisfied never did a story made me think of "slavery is as much a mental thing as it is physical." I ofcourse heard the lines such as "everyone is a slave to something." "A slave to one's desires." Blah blah those stories usually mentioned it briefly and wouldn't explore it fully or just never touch upon it again. (Which that neccasary didn't upset since the story wasn't about that theme in the first place lol would've been dope tho but probs out of place.) But yea the game asking questions such as when are you a slave and when are you your master of something. Which mainly was explored thru the protagonist of the game. Alphen being a slave "raised" in a slave camp.(wooahh insane right you didn't guess that huh ) that led him develop percussions and certain perspectives of the race of his oppressors. Where he basically was so deep in it during a conversation he basically asked "if we just commit genocide against the renas will we be truly free?" Which is ofcourse because he saw nothing but tyrany and misery from them. Seeing Alphen develop from a slave who was in the mental slave that he only could be a slave -> to a slave who started fighting because of the opportunity being presented at him in the moment because of others -> where he blindly followed them and their order's -> then being told that he should be his own master & think for himself and then finding out the answer to ending the conflict he's stuck. A slave to his percussions, a slave to the ones his follows and being a slave to the desperate need of guidance in his life. The way it's explored in the 3rd area in the game and with the main party and antagonists is probably my favourite tho. Shionne a slave to the ideal that she could only live in solitude, Kisara a slave to her dream/ideal , the people in menancia being slaves to the belief just because they get treated on "equal terms." that they aren't any different from other slaves just because they get treated fairly for their labor and the antagonists being slaves to power. I know people think the antagonists either are ass or just whatever. I think their simplistic approach fits better into the narrative and beside Vholran (Which I touch upon later.) Don't necessarily need a moral ambiguity or a some super complex motive with the root of a tragic backstory. They where victims of the elitism and social views of the renan society where power and status is everything which lead them all to be chained to the concept of Power. We see it in Balselph remove before he dies where he's genuinely shocked on why Shionne doesn't care about power and betraying renans. Ganabelt desperately clinging to ideal of him needing to be powerful for his followers on Lenegis , amahoela ( don't remember her name ) her basically being the 2nd biggest victim of it by how Dohalim discussed on how lenegis she did everything in her power to rise to the top. On top of that Vholran one who grew up in a environment where he was believed to be the one most powerful of all by triumphing , dominating , ruling and conquering all and anything. 1st display of him showing dominance towards alphen and the party by killing all the zeugles , conquering the party in that duel after you leave menacia , ruling heartlessly over the people who devoted too him and finally trying to triumph Alphen in their last fight. He was the ideal Renan Lord based on the social views that the renans preach and reinforce but in actuality being the biggest slave of all nothing but a hollow person with no ambitions of his own , convictions of his own and Ideals of his own. A Dahnan slave throughout that never got to break free from his chain and being the perfect Puppet that the renans wanted him to be. While the story has multiple messages and social commentaries but this one just stuck with me the most. When is a person a slave , when is a person his own master? How much in control are you of your ideals that they don't chain you? How do you keep being your own master throughout and never get stuck into those chains again? I never gave it much thought nor did I personally need the message but it's one I always will appreciate. Also the main cast I love them all and it's my favourite jrpg main cast. Love their conversations , banter , dynamics and relationships. Both in just how fun it is to see and how they impact the game thematically.
• Ending
2nd act of the game sadly enough goes a bit downhill in quality in my opinion more so story wise rather than gameplay for me but it didn't upset or affect me enjoyment that much where It stopped making me love the game since I still enjoyed act 2. It's just act 1 was a 10/10 and act 2 a 7/10 with a 10/10 ending so yea. Some stuff I want to address tho. The forgiveness and understanding stuff doesn't come out of nowhere as much people try to make it seem. It comes off cheesy at first and you think it doesn't make any sense conclusion wise if you only look at it from face value but Alphen character was never going to be that he just "kills" every lord. The reasons for that is at FIRST and FOREMOST helping his FELLOW SLAVES to a better future. So him aim changing from the Lords to wanting to end the cycle of hatred what him and Zephyr discussed about isn't a weird or drastic change. It's inline to what his character was leading to so stuff like wanting liberate the renans on lenegis aswell isn't weird or out of character since they are practically SLAVES mental wise too. Also the answer he was searching for on was forgiveness and understanding. Not always out of sympathy but also out of NECESSITY. He wants to end the cycle of hatred and stop the clogs that shift the conflict. Vholran is the biggest one of it. Alphen being the only person that could understand him and which led to him have such a obsession with Alphen in the 1st place is why the forgiving isn't so out of place. Also forgiving doesn't mean FORGETTING it's neccasary to move forward to a new future. The game also hammers the point of there being a limit to how much forgiveness and understanding can reach. Vholran was the nail of that point. Him killing himself was a proper conclusion and fitting narrative wise. Other stuff of act 2 tho obviously needed more breathing room and just more time overall great spirit , summoning spirits etc. Game would've benefitted from better placement of some of the exposure dumbs in act 1 or just act 2 being much longer. Stuff I liked tho that Great Renan spirit felt fear and anger which lead to Hatred. Symbolizing the end of the world's potentially being the hatred the races have for eachother. Uh the last dungeon was not as bad as I expected from the way people spoke about it I assumed I was just going to keep walking straight like FFXV later half and just fight bosses the whole time. Also only 2 being mandatory and the others avoidable or fleeable not souring my experience as much as I thought it would have. Uh stuff like Dahnas will too it being introduced early would've definitely helped maybe it was foreshadowed haven't looked thru all the cutscenes of the game tho so maybe the issue isn't as big as it now for me. Also probably me playing the last few stuff in sessions because of IRL stuff made it probably not as bad as I assumed it would lol. Uhhh loved the ending overall tho shionne finally being able to touch the party and rinwell being the 1st one making it 1st much more endearing how hateful they where early on with eachother. Stuff like seeing Dohalim play the violin again for Alphen when he talked about making a promise to him for playing it again little stuff like that also the song ofcourse and just the icing on cake. But yea despite the rough edges in act 2 I still love the game.
• Conclusion
For me something being my all time favourite just means a really positive unique experience that I can't have with anything else. Personally it doesn't need to be the greatest thing to touch humanity objectively. It doesn't need universal acclaim nor the most ambitious and thing in the world. Never did I play a game this much back to back nonstop , having fun discussing it with my friends and just a game that appeal to me in every way and shape. It being from my favourite gaming genre , type of story and themes , type of cast , type of gameplay and combat, type of art direction and just my type of game. Confidently say that is my favourite game of all time and that is not changing ever. Not a perfect game by any means but it will forever be my most memorable one.
• Extra shit
Gripes and stuff I love I wanna say in short
Beyond me how nobody talks about the lack of configuration options genuinely shocked lmao but yea hopefully the game gets a patch like scarlet nexus or so.
Lack of proper audio mixing biggest issue with the game for me didn't happen allot but when it did? sheesh
Love the character designs of each character especially Alphen. He gives off a edgy vibe. But he's just a good willed person with great characterization. Playful Rivalry with Law like them role-playing student and master during combat. His old man dynamic with Dohalim because both of them being the oldest of the party. His bickering and snarky remarks towards shionne to the point it's childish meshing well with his mature attitude. Him being a geek for weaponry and armor. His love for spicy food because he compensates it with his inability of pain and his vagabond like nature because he never had the chance to explore so much so he takes of too interesting routes and paths. I wish his personality was more of a thing in the main cutscenes of the game seeing people write him off just as "haha hero guy go brrr." comes off a bit irritating but the game treats parts of his personality as side bits which makes it understandable.
Sidequests being surprisingly worth it both content wise and also the types of sidequests. Like there are fetch quests but them being based on pairs and which leads to funny dialogue made them worth it imo. Also some really character focused Sidequests like Law getting a letter from Zephyr or the pancake one where great.
Uhh pop in issue obviously but yea we already know that lol.
Vholran being a villain that fits his purpose but most definitely still a underbaked antagonist his dynamic with Alphen could've been great the biggest miss of the game for me.
Yea I love this game thank you bandai Namco for making me a enjoy like this for the 1st time and the only time.
Still nr 1 just XBC3 kinda goated with the sauce takahashi his strongest warrior my loyalty always resided with Xeno.