VioletFire
This review contains spoilers
If I want to start off this review of Dragon Quest V, I have to talk about the concept of the silent protagonist in video games. The silent protagonist is supposed to be the catalyst for the player to project themselves onto as being apart of the games story. Giving the feeling that you the player are an integral part of the game in the way that is irreplaceable. A bunch of games I love have used this idea well such as Zelda and Pokemon, but it wasn't until DQV where I feel as though I was TRULY a part of this game.
The journey we embark on starts at our literal birth and we see our main heros life unfold through literal decades. Giving each generation of his life a distinct identity and moments that become special to us. Like I will never forget visiting the world of the Fairies for the first time during childhood or exploring the Zenithian castle during the later stage of adulthood. Characters like Henry and Sancho continuing to have our backs no matter how many years go by. Even as far, in the case of Henry, as leaving our party to further develop his own life. People come and go, but that's just how life is. You can argue that DQV doesn't have a "crazy" narrative or whatever, but I feel as though it doesn't really matter. What ultimately makes DQV so compelling to me is the sense of personal journey that is in the game.
However what strongly impacted me about the game is how it tackles grief. At the end of the Heros childhood our father is killed right in front of us. A part of why I was able to connect to this character is because my father was killed years ago. When I read Henrys message on the treasure chest to the Hero I'm gonna be honest I cried my eyes out. Both because the death of Pankraz is a crushing moment in the game and that I was thinking of my father in that instant. The pain of losing a parent is one so great that it can affect our actions moving forward. That's why our journey is dictated by wanting to fulfill our dads wish and to find our mother to see that she is hopefully still alive. Moments in relation to all this that stuck out to me are when we see Pankrazs ghost in one of the towers and when we go back to the past. The latter especially destroying me when I was playing. In our conversation with Pankraz, with us being much older, there is an option warning him not to go to Coburg. Because if he never went there he would've never lost his life, but to be expected he disregards our warning. This got to me because I've had similar thoughts about if I could go back I would warn my dad and try my best to save him. However with Pankrazs dismissal it made me and the Hero ultimately realize something that being what's happened happened. We can't change the past, we can't be haunted by ghosts, and we have to move forward in spite of the pain.
Part of moving forward is putting faith both onto ourself and the next generation. Later in the game we find out that we are not the legendary hero, but rather our son is. On one hand you could be feeling sad about not being the hero of legend, but on the other hand you could be excited about helping the legendary hero! Which was how I felt pretty much. To me our guidance of the hero is a culmination of every choice made in our journey showing that it has been worth it even though we are not "the one". The fact that we are still in control of the party shows that this is still our story to finish. The goals of those who came before us now finally fulfilled and the new generation can move on. Free to learn and face whatevers coming at them head on. To me that is DQV: learning from the past and moving forward. I find that to be beautiful.
I want to dedicate this last section of the review to Akira Toriyama who passed away days after I started this game. To say I was devastated would be an understatement. That man and his art defined aspects of various stages of my life. I wouldn't really know where I would be without Dragon Ball and Chrono Trigger. And I just could not possibly fathom what this game and Dragon Quest as a whole would be like without him and his art. All throughout the game I found myself amazed by all the art for both the human characters and the monsters. This was my first Dragon Quest game and I hope the series can come to impact my life in a similar way DB and CT did years before. Thank you for everything good sir, I hope you rest easy.
The journey we embark on starts at our literal birth and we see our main heros life unfold through literal decades. Giving each generation of his life a distinct identity and moments that become special to us. Like I will never forget visiting the world of the Fairies for the first time during childhood or exploring the Zenithian castle during the later stage of adulthood. Characters like Henry and Sancho continuing to have our backs no matter how many years go by. Even as far, in the case of Henry, as leaving our party to further develop his own life. People come and go, but that's just how life is. You can argue that DQV doesn't have a "crazy" narrative or whatever, but I feel as though it doesn't really matter. What ultimately makes DQV so compelling to me is the sense of personal journey that is in the game.
However what strongly impacted me about the game is how it tackles grief. At the end of the Heros childhood our father is killed right in front of us. A part of why I was able to connect to this character is because my father was killed years ago. When I read Henrys message on the treasure chest to the Hero I'm gonna be honest I cried my eyes out. Both because the death of Pankraz is a crushing moment in the game and that I was thinking of my father in that instant. The pain of losing a parent is one so great that it can affect our actions moving forward. That's why our journey is dictated by wanting to fulfill our dads wish and to find our mother to see that she is hopefully still alive. Moments in relation to all this that stuck out to me are when we see Pankrazs ghost in one of the towers and when we go back to the past. The latter especially destroying me when I was playing. In our conversation with Pankraz, with us being much older, there is an option warning him not to go to Coburg. Because if he never went there he would've never lost his life, but to be expected he disregards our warning. This got to me because I've had similar thoughts about if I could go back I would warn my dad and try my best to save him. However with Pankrazs dismissal it made me and the Hero ultimately realize something that being what's happened happened. We can't change the past, we can't be haunted by ghosts, and we have to move forward in spite of the pain.
Part of moving forward is putting faith both onto ourself and the next generation. Later in the game we find out that we are not the legendary hero, but rather our son is. On one hand you could be feeling sad about not being the hero of legend, but on the other hand you could be excited about helping the legendary hero! Which was how I felt pretty much. To me our guidance of the hero is a culmination of every choice made in our journey showing that it has been worth it even though we are not "the one". The fact that we are still in control of the party shows that this is still our story to finish. The goals of those who came before us now finally fulfilled and the new generation can move on. Free to learn and face whatevers coming at them head on. To me that is DQV: learning from the past and moving forward. I find that to be beautiful.
I want to dedicate this last section of the review to Akira Toriyama who passed away days after I started this game. To say I was devastated would be an understatement. That man and his art defined aspects of various stages of my life. I wouldn't really know where I would be without Dragon Ball and Chrono Trigger. And I just could not possibly fathom what this game and Dragon Quest as a whole would be like without him and his art. All throughout the game I found myself amazed by all the art for both the human characters and the monsters. This was my first Dragon Quest game and I hope the series can come to impact my life in a similar way DB and CT did years before. Thank you for everything good sir, I hope you rest easy.
2001
Kind of a perfect game to come back to after a long kind of absence from the medium. It was so easy to find myself getting lost in the atmosphere of Ico. Even when I would personally get frustrated while playing I was to compose myself right away because everything else just felt so serene. Some of my favorite moments in the game were just jumping around and climbing the castle. With detailed sound design and beautiful visual direction to pair alongside each other.
However what I think what ultimately makes Ico so incredible is its narrative. Its interesting to play this after playing Shadow of the Colossus a while ago because I feel as though their stories are sort of different takes on a central theme. That being the "boy tries to save girl" found in a lot of video games and just stories in general. In Shadow of the Colossus Mono is already under her deep sleep and needs Wander to revive her. Resulting in a journey that he embarks on alone to save her. Whereas here in Ico Yorda is apart of our journey every step of the way. We have to fend off the shadow creatures in order to protect her. Even if these two aren't able to understand each other the simple gesture of holding onto each other is something far more powerful. Ico the boy who was destined to be scarified and Yorda the girl who was destined to be possessed by her evil mother. Coming together like that? How could I not tear up by the end?
However what I think what ultimately makes Ico so incredible is its narrative. Its interesting to play this after playing Shadow of the Colossus a while ago because I feel as though their stories are sort of different takes on a central theme. That being the "boy tries to save girl" found in a lot of video games and just stories in general. In Shadow of the Colossus Mono is already under her deep sleep and needs Wander to revive her. Resulting in a journey that he embarks on alone to save her. Whereas here in Ico Yorda is apart of our journey every step of the way. We have to fend off the shadow creatures in order to protect her. Even if these two aren't able to understand each other the simple gesture of holding onto each other is something far more powerful. Ico the boy who was destined to be scarified and Yorda the girl who was destined to be possessed by her evil mother. Coming together like that? How could I not tear up by the end?
I am in great emotional pain
You don't owe forgiveness to the people who wronged you in your life, but you still are able to move forward and start anew. The cycle of hatred and tragedy will ultimately benefit no one the further and further it goes on. It's not easy to do all of this alone however, especially if you were mistreated by many people in your life. One day though you will find someone who will sympathize and give you the empathy you've needed for years. They can help and reach out their hand to pull you out of the darkness you've been swallowed up by. The people who did do you wrong and their actions can never be excused and it's understandable if they aren't, but knowing the whole truth and the different perspectives can put everything together. The point is to release, not to destroy anymore.
2006
PURE RAWNESS AND SWAG
1998
“In those dreams…
I loved one woman
No matter the day
No matter the era…
That did not change…
Nor did her name”...
Xenogears is everything that art should strive to be and goes beyond any piece of work I’ve experienced. It’s everything I could ever truly want. Ever since first finishing the game in August of last year I’ve thought about Xenogears at least once everyday. All its moments have etched themselves into my subconscious. All those painful, passionate, and loving moments that make all of Xenogears become one whole. My revisit here was not me playing, but a dear friend of mine playing while I sat on the sideline and gave advice. It was an incredible time to both re-experience these moments and to share them with another person. We laughed, cheered, cried, and all the other emotions you could possibly think of. It made me fully realize that Xenogears is an important part of the person who I am now. It inspires me to keep on living and making the most out of an imperfect existence.
It also made me realize that this is also the most life affirming work of art ever created. Throughout the entirety of Xenogears there’s a strong emphasis on the power of the human connection. We follow Fei build on himself and his life experiences through the people that he meets. He has these moments with people that neither he or the player could ever forget. You could argue that characters don’t get enough time in their own spotlight, but it doesn’t really bother me too much personally. Mainly because of the moments and how they impact Fei makes it all the more worth it to me by the end. We humans aren’t meant to be alone and Xenogears reinforces this belief. This is represented beautifully by the one winged angel statues introduced in the Nisan cathedral. To me those angel statues are the personification of the emotional core of Xenogears. Those angels correspond with each other and they need each other to fly. I’ll have moments in life where I am bitter towards humanity and am frustrated to be amongst the horrible people that are out there. However there are also the people I know who are kind and caring, and have helped me become the person that I am today. Humanity is worth preserving because of people like them. The people who are embracing the ideas of love and coming together. That is the human experience, even in spite of everything we have each other, and that’s the most important thing of them all.
A whole lot of the cast in Xenogears come from broken and unfortunate circumstances. The game portrays these characters and their lives with a careful, complex, and tender understanding of circumstances. There is that coming together I mentioned earlier that creates the beating heart emotional storytelling of this game. These people are able to comfort each other in the help that they provide in their companionship. Bart gave Fei a home after the destruction of his village, the party were able to help Billy cope with what happened to The Ethos, they helped Maria confront her “father”, and then there’s everything with Elly.
Fei and Elly is the greatest romance ever written without a shred of doubt in mind. It’s a relationship that so perfectly shows what love is and how it transcends everything else. From their first interaction in the forest you can tell something special is there, especially when Fei was able to guess her name in an instant. Which hit me incredibly hard on this revisit, those who’ve played this game will understand why. Same with the scene in the Nisan cathedral where Fei says that Sophia reminds him of Elly. As we get deeper and deeper into the game we see their relationship get richer and richer. Showcasing that these two will do anything to help each other. At first they turned to each other because they had similar situations and that they could run away from them by being with each other. However they realized that they need each other out of true and earnest love, not solely because they are sanctuaries for their own problems. They are separate pieces that become whole when they are with each other. It’s that sort of loving connection that can topple any kind of cycle of tragedy that our universe can present us with. Fei was always told to “Live!” in spite of everything that had happened. No matter the day and the era that message never changed. However now both Fei and Elly have a home to return to. Love is the greatest power in the universe.
I loved one woman
No matter the day
No matter the era…
That did not change…
Nor did her name”...
Xenogears is everything that art should strive to be and goes beyond any piece of work I’ve experienced. It’s everything I could ever truly want. Ever since first finishing the game in August of last year I’ve thought about Xenogears at least once everyday. All its moments have etched themselves into my subconscious. All those painful, passionate, and loving moments that make all of Xenogears become one whole. My revisit here was not me playing, but a dear friend of mine playing while I sat on the sideline and gave advice. It was an incredible time to both re-experience these moments and to share them with another person. We laughed, cheered, cried, and all the other emotions you could possibly think of. It made me fully realize that Xenogears is an important part of the person who I am now. It inspires me to keep on living and making the most out of an imperfect existence.
It also made me realize that this is also the most life affirming work of art ever created. Throughout the entirety of Xenogears there’s a strong emphasis on the power of the human connection. We follow Fei build on himself and his life experiences through the people that he meets. He has these moments with people that neither he or the player could ever forget. You could argue that characters don’t get enough time in their own spotlight, but it doesn’t really bother me too much personally. Mainly because of the moments and how they impact Fei makes it all the more worth it to me by the end. We humans aren’t meant to be alone and Xenogears reinforces this belief. This is represented beautifully by the one winged angel statues introduced in the Nisan cathedral. To me those angel statues are the personification of the emotional core of Xenogears. Those angels correspond with each other and they need each other to fly. I’ll have moments in life where I am bitter towards humanity and am frustrated to be amongst the horrible people that are out there. However there are also the people I know who are kind and caring, and have helped me become the person that I am today. Humanity is worth preserving because of people like them. The people who are embracing the ideas of love and coming together. That is the human experience, even in spite of everything we have each other, and that’s the most important thing of them all.
A whole lot of the cast in Xenogears come from broken and unfortunate circumstances. The game portrays these characters and their lives with a careful, complex, and tender understanding of circumstances. There is that coming together I mentioned earlier that creates the beating heart emotional storytelling of this game. These people are able to comfort each other in the help that they provide in their companionship. Bart gave Fei a home after the destruction of his village, the party were able to help Billy cope with what happened to The Ethos, they helped Maria confront her “father”, and then there’s everything with Elly.
Fei and Elly is the greatest romance ever written without a shred of doubt in mind. It’s a relationship that so perfectly shows what love is and how it transcends everything else. From their first interaction in the forest you can tell something special is there, especially when Fei was able to guess her name in an instant. Which hit me incredibly hard on this revisit, those who’ve played this game will understand why. Same with the scene in the Nisan cathedral where Fei says that Sophia reminds him of Elly. As we get deeper and deeper into the game we see their relationship get richer and richer. Showcasing that these two will do anything to help each other. At first they turned to each other because they had similar situations and that they could run away from them by being with each other. However they realized that they need each other out of true and earnest love, not solely because they are sanctuaries for their own problems. They are separate pieces that become whole when they are with each other. It’s that sort of loving connection that can topple any kind of cycle of tragedy that our universe can present us with. Fei was always told to “Live!” in spite of everything that had happened. No matter the day and the era that message never changed. However now both Fei and Elly have a home to return to. Love is the greatest power in the universe.
The slaying of the first batches of Colossi are nothing short of jaw dropping and get your adrenaline rushing throughout your body. You see that the team behind SotC perfected the concept of boss battles and how gratifying it can be to figure out their weakness and take down a mighty foe. The world of the game is quite wonderful to explore as well, ideally minimalist while being incredibly vast and distinct.
Now I specified the first batches of Colossi because around after the sixth or so boss battle. I noticed something different about Wander; his appearance was progressively changing. He looked more tired and more beaten up. The narrative of SotC creeps on you slowly throughout the game and it's when you notice things like that it's when the genius of SotC's storytelling really clicks with you. While it is still exhilarating to take down big motherfuckers; there is a far more heavier weight to it the more and more you are dedicated to your quest of taking down these giants. With Colossal Phalanx being borderline harmless and we still have to take it down. Both for it being a video game and for the sake of the main characters personal mission.
One of the greatest games I've experienced yet.
Now I specified the first batches of Colossi because around after the sixth or so boss battle. I noticed something different about Wander; his appearance was progressively changing. He looked more tired and more beaten up. The narrative of SotC creeps on you slowly throughout the game and it's when you notice things like that it's when the genius of SotC's storytelling really clicks with you. While it is still exhilarating to take down big motherfuckers; there is a far more heavier weight to it the more and more you are dedicated to your quest of taking down these giants. With Colossal Phalanx being borderline harmless and we still have to take it down. Both for it being a video game and for the sake of the main characters personal mission.
One of the greatest games I've experienced yet.
2022
Live A Live is a very sincere and a celebratory game. What I mean basically is that this is one of those pieces of media that believes in the power of humanity and its power to be able to conquer evil. Initially you have these 7 chapters of different eras in human history that are only loosely connected by a villain being some version of "Odeo". Live A Live uses this structure of different eras to show off heroism in each said era. What won me over at the beginning of the game is how its influences are utilized and how much love was put into them. The variety, not just in setting, but in gameplay and overall atmosphere is absolutely breathtaking. With Prehistory being reminiscent of early 80s JRPGs, Imperial China taking influence from Martial Arts films, Edo Japan having this really cool pacifist or killer pathway, the Wild West calling back to Old Western tropes, the Present Day being such an awesome homage to Street Fighter 2, the Near Future reminding me of mecha anime, and the Distant Future taking influence from Alien and 2001 A Space Odyssey.
What truly is transcendent about Live A Live is that even though these 7 people don't know each other and are separated by the barriers of time. The good in people allowed them to come together making the last hours of the game a cathartic experience. This remake is the most based thing Square has done in about a decade. It's allowed current generations of JRPG fans to discover a revolutionary SNES title that never left Japan. Forever cementing itself even further into the genres history.
What truly is transcendent about Live A Live is that even though these 7 people don't know each other and are separated by the barriers of time. The good in people allowed them to come together making the last hours of the game a cathartic experience. This remake is the most based thing Square has done in about a decade. It's allowed current generations of JRPG fans to discover a revolutionary SNES title that never left Japan. Forever cementing itself even further into the genres history.
2005
You can make an argument for Leon being the ideal character and I wouldn't refute it at all
2003
Rosemary's Baby but epic
2001
What greatly elevates Silent Hill 2 from its predecessor is that the game is an incredibly heartbreaking experience. While I consider 1 to be a great and revolutionary horror game, 2 is something that is so much more. Silent Hill 2 perfectly combines emotional storytelling and terrifying horror imagery. When I wasn't feeling tense because of the set pieces and sound design, I was feeling overwhelmed by the story of James trying to find Mary. Exploring Silent Hill this time felt more fulfilling and as time went on you learn more about the history of the town. As well as crimes that went on there. The atmosphere of SH2 is also enhanced by the incredible soundtrack. One of the greatest soundtracks I've heard in a video game full stop. That and the sound design were crucial to my fear of areas in the game. The way that you would hear monsters breathing and running towards you, but never actually coming was a brilliant way to fill the players with paranoia.
At the end of the day though Silent Hill 2 is a story about a man processing and grieving over the death of his wife. As James traverses through Silent Hill more and more details about Marys death are revealed to us. James guilt and frustration are manifested in the monsters and residents of Silent Hill. Even the most iconic monster of the series, Pyramid Head, is a manifestation of the sexual frustration of James. As James goes through his nightmare that feels never-ending he learns to come to terms with Marys death. With the ending I got leaving me in a strong feeling of catharsis. I don't think horror games will ever get better than this.
"I can't tell you to remember me, but I can't bear for you to forget me."
At the end of the day though Silent Hill 2 is a story about a man processing and grieving over the death of his wife. As James traverses through Silent Hill more and more details about Marys death are revealed to us. James guilt and frustration are manifested in the monsters and residents of Silent Hill. Even the most iconic monster of the series, Pyramid Head, is a manifestation of the sexual frustration of James. As James goes through his nightmare that feels never-ending he learns to come to terms with Marys death. With the ending I got leaving me in a strong feeling of catharsis. I don't think horror games will ever get better than this.
"I can't tell you to remember me, but I can't bear for you to forget me."
This review contains spoilers
The tragedy of The Boss is the emotional crux of Metal Gear Solid 3. Throughout the entirety of the Metal Gear Solid trilogy loyalty is always brought into question. More specifically the loyalty a soldier shows for its country. The Boss was someone who gave everything for her country and yet her government was willing to throw her away. Allowing her to be put down in history as an international criminal with no one ever knowing the truth. However she told Snake the truth and that meant everything to her. In a beautiful scene in a field of flowers we learn everything about The Boss. Her being the last child of The Wisemans Committee, her child being stolen by The Philosophers, her being set up in Cuba, and finally her being sent up into space. That space trip changed everything for The Boss. Fully realizing that she wants a world where political systems no longer exploit human soldiers for their own gain. Some may see The Boss' idealism as naïve, but for a woman who had to fight endless battles for her entire life; she deserves to feel this way. The Boss was destined to die, but she went down staying true to herself. One day someone who means the world to you can become your enemy (Snake and The Boss, The Boss and The Sorrow) and it's tragic.
Throughout the entire last act of Sons of Liberty I was constantly thinking that I am willing to call this the most essential video game of the century so far. This may be a bold claim in the eyes of some, but this was what MGS2 was able to make me feel. Hideo Kojima tests and challenges the medium of video games in a way I feel hasn't been replicated since. The fact that this game came out in 2001, a mere few months after 9/11, quite frankly blows my mind. It was ahead of its time back then and its ahead of our time now. Its themes of our governments relation to digital information, individuality, free will, truth, and our relation to video games. These themes are already daring on their own, but the way Sons of Liberty is able to cohesively piece them together is nothing short of masterful. However even in the situation, there were brief moments of tranquility and beauty that will still be cherished. Such as climbing down the ladder with Emma with the sunset in focus and the final minutes of the game. Kojima believes in a better future, and we all should too.
Peak Metroidvania
1998
There will come a day where I'm properly able to articulate the many thoughts I have about Xenogears. This is a game I truly view as one of a kind and everything a piece of art should be. It understands the value of human love and connection in spite of our imperfection better then any piece of media I've seen. Beautiful, tragic, compelling, messy, and intimate; that is Xenogears.