The writers, then. But I still don't think "Nomura's vision" accounted for all this extra craziness. Maybe the writers could've made it flow better altogether, but everything still feels like an add-on to the first game. That story was, for all intents and purposes, complete, and the re-use of characters from it dulled their personalities. And the translators can't fix what's already broken. :\ It has nothing to do with that.
...Well... you're wrong. As of this past July, you are 100% incorrect. "Athlete" is beginning to grow apart from its old definition, "one who is gifted in a contest of physical fitness," and "sport" hasn't meant simply "A contest of physical fitness" for a long, long time, as I said. Besides, this wasn't just a snap decision made so that greasy, pockmarked teenagers could laugh it up in front of their jock peers; it was done so that grown men and women with a passion for a particular team competition can do what they love all around the world. If you read the article, you'd know that one of the points of celebration for Riot was the ability to get international players visas to play in America. Point being, it wasn't done for no reason. "Gamer" is a ridiculously broad term, and we all should know this. It encompasses many age groups, target demographics, any cultural minority you can think of, and hundreds of play styles. Is it so far-fetched to believe that one of those play styles could encompass the attributes of a professional sport? Besides, football's a game. Technically, we could call football players gamers, if we wanted to. Again, point being, the definitions are less technical and more psychological, and we should be able to recognize that and be willing to restructure the definitions as we go along. If you want things to be easy to understand, call every competition that's physically OR mentally taxing, and fun to watch, a sport; and call everyone who plays them an athlete. Don't nitpick.
Again I say, I honestly believe Nomura ran low on material. He probably thought the only way to follow up the success of the brilliant first game was to drown it in sequels, because that's what's in. I say this because, yes, the later games have some very poignant moments, but they're in much shorter supply. And let's be clear, I still enjoy the later games; I just think the writing peaked with the first one. The gameplay is finally picking up again after the train wreck that was KH2 combat, several of the recurring voice actors gave downright stellar performances in 3D, the music is getting better and better, and KH3 looks gorgeous even at this stage—Crossing my fingers it'll look at least that good as a finished product, you never know with trailers these days.
The characters were great in the first game, because it's all in the details, and KH had details in spades. In particular, the way the game shows the radical shift in Riku's worldview and relationship with his friends in short, controlled bursts was brilliant: first wary, yet happy to be reunited in Traverse Town; then, playfully competitive in Monstro; and ultimately downright antagonistic in Neverland, running over into pure evil at Hollow Bastion. Sora showed real growth as a person, and every world either contributed to or showcased that growth. The villains were many vibrant shades of intimidating and actually in control of their environments, making them all credible threats in their own right. And ASoD's performance, no matter how hammy, was just beautiful thanks to the work of his talented voice actor and vivid expressions. No matter how many times I go back over it, I can't find a sore spot in the cast. I liked every character for what they offered. Then something happened. Scientists are still puzzling over it to this day. Everyone can now be easily condensed into a list of five or less traits, and one of them is probably a gameplay mechanic or magic element. My honest opinion is that Nomura wasn't ready to write an epic of so many installments.
That's... kind of what a prologue is, Bel. That said, if it's ancillary to another game, it's basically a spin-off. Doesn't matter if it's tacked onto the beginning or the end.
You know why that is, right? Because the writers treat their own story that way in several installments. Or can you honestly tell me that anything in KH2 that didn't happen in Twilight Town, Radiant Garden, or The World That Never Was really mattered or affected the outcome of the story in a meaningful way? Anyway, it's nice of a story to be self-contained, but when it takes place in a world dominated by an overarching narrative, it has to work hard to be entertaining by comparison. From what I understand, Re:Coded is trying to tie itself into the main plot, and doesn't quite get there. That's not a mark against its own plot, but it's probably what's meant when people say it has none.
This is one of the most ignorant posts I've read in a while, and I say that with the utmost of emotional detachment. This is not strictly nor is it originally an American notion. For one, Starcraft players have been recognized as athletes in Korea for years, and some of the champions make six figures. You openly admit you don't know the basest of elements about the game, such as whether it collects a kill/death ratio. How can you judge its worth as entertainment? "Some thirteen-year-old" who "sits at home and clicks away on the computer" is going to get trounced playing these games at the professional level. Just because the competition isn't physical doesn't mean it's not rigorous, and just because it's a game doesn't mean it's for kids. Gaming has been a perfectly adult hobby for decades now, get with it. People seem to be under the impression that a sport's a sport if and only if it's physically taxing. If that's true, then war should be a sport. No? How about juggling? The fact is, there are other factors. While a sport in the past has traditionally been viewed as a test of fitness, the term has always encompassed tests of wit. All sports are competitive by definition. Further, recognized sports are entertaining to watch; they draw a crowd, they incite cheers and jeers. E-sports check all these boxes. If you must be outraged, be outraged that a game so unstable, so poorly constructed, so subservient to trends and popular opinion, and with such an ill-behaved following was the first competitive game to be recognized as a sport. If you have an antiquated view of what constitutes a sport, well, be outraged at yourself.
That opening indie catalogue is looking so f██king juicy. Would I re-purchase Rogue Legacy just to see if I can 100% it even faster? WE'LL SEE...
"Life is just looking for someone who thinks your brand of crazy is adorable and sexy." ~ Aidan Bailey "It's not about channeling energy into productive things. It's about producing something with that which your energy goes to." ~ Justis Mills "A book, once it is printed and published, becomes individual. It is by its publication as decisively severed from its author as in parturition a child is cut off from its parent. The book 'means' thereafter, perforce, — both grammatically and actually, — whatever meaning this or that reader gets out of it." ~ James Branch Cabell "All the works of man have their origin in creative fantasy. What right have we then to depreciate imagination?" ~ Carl Jung "Imagine that over the course of someone's life, they are truly capable of every conceivable action at any moment, and did indeed take each of those actions in different branching realities. Doesn't a scenario like that deaden a person's agency just as much as one where their fate is decidedly etched in stone as a single path of unavoidable decisions? Who exactly is that person who can and does take all conceivable actions, other than someone perfectly generic, who only appears to have unique predilections and motives when you examine the arbitrary path they happen to occupy?" ~ Aranea Serket, Homestuck "Spiritual has nothing to do with Christianity anyway. It has been here since the beginning of time." ~ Max Cavalera "You do not have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body." ~ C.S. Lewis "Everything is nothing, with a twist." ~ Kurt Vonnegut "The opposite of a trivial truth is plainly false. The opposite of a great truth is also true." ~ Niels Bohr "I love everything about Tokyo, even the things I hate." ~ Rhyth, Jet Set Radio Future
