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I've got to wonder about how the japanese don't get sick and tired of friendship speeches in their media. This comes to me after watching part of HPAW's Kingdom Hearts 2 marathon where Sora gives Winnie the Pooh and his friends this long speech about always being connected to them metaphysically through their hearts. Not only is the entire conversation extremely creepy from the get-go but giving the connection more thought makes it even more squick-worthy.
At the beginning of the conversation Pooh is trying to convince Sora to stay in the 100 Acre Woods forever (don't think about that too hard, seriously) and this comes at a point in the story where the main plot has been going pretty badly for Sora and the crew. For every victory they score against the main antagonist they serve to further his great scheme at the same time. The gang has also been strung along on a wild goose chase for Riku and Kairi with no hope in sight of finding either of them.
Now Pooh isn't the brightest crayon in the box but would it have killed Sora to actually explain that he is needed elsewhere because people in other worlds are suffering unimaginable horrors and he (Sora) is the only force capable of pushing the forces of darkness back? Instead Sora just dimisses Pooh's suggestion which prompts the little bear to keep pushing that he stay while quite obviously not getting the message. Talk about a wallbanger. How in the world does the 100 Acre Woods not burn to the ground with Pooh living there? Oh right, it's magical fantasy with a megadose of idealism ...
It's a world where Heart is a real power and Love conquers all. Or so the writers say at least. The only way these two forces can even hope to compete in a universe where magic is real and people can be split into multiple primal forms that manage to continue existence concurrently, in different dimensions, is to Take a Level in Badass - a great number of levels, actually.
So that brings me back around to my original point about japanese media being absolutely ga-ga over friendship. I understand it's rooted in their culture and that they see loners as some manifestion of darkness. I find it rather grating combined with the attitude here in the States where loners are also stigmatized - usually by slapping them with an 'emo' or 'goth' brand. Lone wolves can be perfectly well adjusted and happy people who just aren't all that interested in having lots of friends. It seems almost like a gut reaction to fear a loner but let's not forget that many a murder and madman has been of the charming and persuasive mold who seemed like a perfectly normal, likable person.
So I'd like to see a japanese RPG that seems to focus on the power of Love and Friendship and all that happy, vomit-inducing stuff but whose main character is actually a pathological liar. They say all that friendship stuff just to make the other characters shut up and go about saving the world. I'm not talking about some aloof mentor directing our plucky heroes. I'm talking about the stalwart and otherwise nice guy hero who doesn't have amnesia, isn't being mind-controlled, and doesn't manage to BSOD himself every ten minutes. If writers could pull that off and do it well I'd definitely play that game.
However, if it gets inverted in the end and he's converted over to the goody two-shoes side there WILL be hell to pay. Oh yes ...
At the beginning of the conversation Pooh is trying to convince Sora to stay in the 100 Acre Woods forever (don't think about that too hard, seriously) and this comes at a point in the story where the main plot has been going pretty badly for Sora and the crew. For every victory they score against the main antagonist they serve to further his great scheme at the same time. The gang has also been strung along on a wild goose chase for Riku and Kairi with no hope in sight of finding either of them.
Now Pooh isn't the brightest crayon in the box but would it have killed Sora to actually explain that he is needed elsewhere because people in other worlds are suffering unimaginable horrors and he (Sora) is the only force capable of pushing the forces of darkness back? Instead Sora just dimisses Pooh's suggestion which prompts the little bear to keep pushing that he stay while quite obviously not getting the message. Talk about a wallbanger. How in the world does the 100 Acre Woods not burn to the ground with Pooh living there? Oh right, it's magical fantasy with a megadose of idealism ...
It's a world where Heart is a real power and Love conquers all. Or so the writers say at least. The only way these two forces can even hope to compete in a universe where magic is real and people can be split into multiple primal forms that manage to continue existence concurrently, in different dimensions, is to Take a Level in Badass - a great number of levels, actually.
So that brings me back around to my original point about japanese media being absolutely ga-ga over friendship. I understand it's rooted in their culture and that they see loners as some manifestion of darkness. I find it rather grating combined with the attitude here in the States where loners are also stigmatized - usually by slapping them with an 'emo' or 'goth' brand. Lone wolves can be perfectly well adjusted and happy people who just aren't all that interested in having lots of friends. It seems almost like a gut reaction to fear a loner but let's not forget that many a murder and madman has been of the charming and persuasive mold who seemed like a perfectly normal, likable person.
So I'd like to see a japanese RPG that seems to focus on the power of Love and Friendship and all that happy, vomit-inducing stuff but whose main character is actually a pathological liar. They say all that friendship stuff just to make the other characters shut up and go about saving the world. I'm not talking about some aloof mentor directing our plucky heroes. I'm talking about the stalwart and otherwise nice guy hero who doesn't have amnesia, isn't being mind-controlled, and doesn't manage to BSOD himself every ten minutes. If writers could pull that off and do it well I'd definitely play that game.
However, if it gets inverted in the end and he's converted over to the goody two-shoes side there WILL be hell to pay. Oh yes ...
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