How Kingdom Hearts 3D showed Religion in a great, and subtle, way.

I don't know why, but games shy away from using crosses in games.  I can see if someone was using to use a cross to impale people... yes.  That's offensive.  But using it in it's proper context or as an easy way to mark a grave isn't offensive at all.  (And I'm saying that as a Catholic)

Now, in Kingdom Hearts 3D, one of the worlds you can visit is "Les Cities de Cloches" aka "City of the Bells" or Hunchback of Notre Dame.

This world:

For various (and should be understandable) reasons, Disney modified the original novel into the movie.  (Such as making Frollo a judge instead of a priest, and having a lot of people live at the end, along with various edits for time since the novel is massive and animating is a very time intensive process)

But they did keep most of the religious imagery in, it's called "Hunchback of NOtre Dame" for a reason.

Now, Kingdom Hearts 3D takes the story and... shortens it even more.  Almost all of the religious imagery was stripped, characters vanished, and Frollo became much less conflicted (Okay, Okay, I know it's space reasons and Kingdom Hearts always does the abreviated versions... but the movie and book are very complex and deserve a bit more discussion!)

Which means I was very happy when I noticed this: (yes, I took the picture myself)

It's not the best picture, but it's a carved picture  of  "Jesus' Ascension into Heaven" which, while not a cross, is a very important theologically.  It's also behind a wooden altar in the Cathedral... and you can't step on the altar (I tried in order to get a better picture.  It made me quite happy when I couldn't.)


Okay, Okay, theology time.

At the end of the Gospel of Mark and the Gospel of Luke, they both spend a bit of time talking about what happened AFTER Jesus rose from the dead.  After 40 days past, Jesus took the disciples up to a hill, gave one final speech, the rose up into the clouds and disappeared.  After the Apostles spent some time looking up after him, Angels showed up and basically told them to leave.

I'm horribly simplifying it, but the main part is, this is a KEY part of Christianity.

And while there is no cross in the game, there is a Nave, and in that Nave, right where the Crucifix and the Monstrance should be, there is a wooden Altar and a carving of Jesus being assumed into Heaven.


All this Catholic Symbolism, without it being actually said.  It's brilliant.

Playstation 4 announced

This may end up taking a while.

So, the PS4 was officially announced, after weeks of rumors.

The system seems to focus more on social network and immediacy (aside from a more PC structure)

There were a few games announced, but they are probably saving the  big guns for E3.  They need enough information to tease the reviewers.

Honestly... some of it seems really creepy to me.  the whole streaming and instant share will probably be used a lot by other people, but having someone else take over your controller to help long distance?  Honestly creepy.  Also Creepy?  Having the PS4 analyze your game purchases and then predownload games for you to play. (They did not mention if you or the PS4 would actively purchase them)

And then they did imply they might do away with disks which is a problem for some people. On the other hand, they will allow used games so probably not.

Information is still trickling out, so I don't actually have much to say.  Share looks like an interesting feature, depending on how it's used, I'll need to feel the controller before I decide on that, graphics are nice, but they've never been a selling point for me, I wasn't really sold on any of the games they had but they have to be holding back the big guns for later.

I guess, over all, it was kind of Meh.  And with no actual PS4 or Price point, I'm really not sure where to go from here.

I'll keep on ruminating as information comes out.  E3 will have more information. 

Curse you Sony event,

I thought the darn thing was earlier today.

In case you don't know, Sony is doing... something later today.

And, to be honest, it's looking pretty likely that Sony is ready to announce the PS4. 

Ignoring the rumors that have been flying around:

Sony has started putting up youtube videos about their previous systems.

IGN has leaked what may be the prototype controller

and Kotaku also has some information about the system.

To top it all of,

Do you remember "The Last Guardian"?

The main developer recently came out to say that while the game is STILL being worked on, it's up to Sony to release more information.

Which does hint to being on a Next Gen system.  (While Beyond Good and Evil 2 has also been confirmed for a Next Gen system, Ubisoft has talked about it in that way for a while.  This is the first time something like this has been said about TLG and only a week before the PlayStation event.)


With that being said, I don't really want there to be a new system right now.  The PS3 still more than does it's job, it looks amazing, and I really don't get the need to share every game achievement.  In addition, some rumors state that the PS4 will keep you from playing second hand games and to use online features you'll have to have a paying account.  ((AKA, if you want to play CoD multiplayer, you may need a PlayStation Plus account) 

I REALLY hate those ideas.  Movies can be shared and sold with no one complaining, and you don't need to pay Penguin Books to host a book club. 


But we won't know what is happening until tonight at 6PM Eastern.

So, let's spend the day preparing and drinking tea.  I wonder what will be announced?  (And if it IS the PS4, which games?)

Fridging Women, part 1 (AKA what is Fridging? and why is it problematic?)

Oh, Fridging.  Oh, Sweet Cosmos Fridging.

Welcome to what is easily one of the most controversial ideas in "Gender Politics in Fridging."



Let's define some terms.

"Fridging" (Short for "Women in Refrigerators") Refers to an act where the villain kills, maims, depowers, or rapes someone close to the hero in order to break the hero's spirit and attempt to make the hero chase him.

It comes from a "Green Lantern" comic (1994) where Hal Jordan comes home to find his girlfriend killed by one of his villains, possibly dismembered, and stuffed into a fridge.

Gail Simone, a well respected writer for DC comics, read it and realized there was a very large pattern here, so she began to pull together a list of women in comics who are killed/maimed, etc by the villains in order to manipulate the male heroes.  (While it can happen to male heroes, they tend to come back with stronger powers.  Females tend to stay dead) 

One of the earliest examples in Comics is...

Gwen Stacy.

And there is really a long list, and it happens in all media, including video games.
Aerith?
Fridged:

Her death serves no purpose in the over game narrative OTHER then to motivate the characters (especially Cloud) in addition, it was not a self sacrifice (even if she did know that she would probably die) and she did not put up a fight.  It... happened.



And why is this problematic?  It turns a female character (who - as a character- should be fully fleshed out with her own ideas, dreams, skills, and emotional and character arc)  into someone who exists solely for the male character's arc. They exist only to propel the main character forward.  We don't know if Aerith wanted to be a teacher or a scientist, or a mom.  And even if we did find (Like we probably did with Gwen, I haven't read her comics) the simple act that she was killed off to promote Spider-man's arc NEGATES any dreams she may have had because she did not die on her own terms or for her own arc.  It was all for Spider-man's. 


Start looking over your old games.  See who dies and why.  Is it to promote their own story? Or someone else's? 

Musical Monday: Sly's Tango

I bought my brother Sly Cooper 4 a few weeks ago.  It's EXACTLY how a Sly game should be, so it's good.

And, while I heard some good music in the game,

So I'll just pass along to one of the best sequences from the second game.

Sly 2's Tango.

 A well done Tango set to fantastic music.  I really wish this would come back.

Warhammer 40K, Space Marines, and everything inbetween

Ah, Space marines.  What would the Sci Fi genre be without you.

Well, Warhammer 40K wants to find out!

Warhammer 40K recently filed a motion to say that they have copywrited the term "Space Marine"  which has massive ramifications for the Science Fiction universe, IF it goes through. They tried to take down a book called "Spots the Space Marine" and had the e-book version removed from Amazon, It has since been returned

A space marine is a staple of the Sci Fi Genre.  They are highly qualified military units who work on planets.  They've been around since at least the 1930's.

However, Warhammer 40K is claiming they own at the very least the word.The word in question has been in existence since at least the 1930's with the story "Captain Brink of the Space Marine."  and it's become a generalized term throughout time, which exempts it from copyright.

On the other hand, Warhammer 40K DOES own a copyright, but it's only for the pieces and other times related to how to play Warhammer 40K  Not for the generic term itself.

IF Warhammer believed that "Spots the Space Marine" was used as an infringement they are perfectly valid in their attempt to go after it.

However, it does not seem to be the case. 

Happy Valentine's Day, take 2!

Last time I talked about The Prince and Elika

This time I want to talk about

Aqua/Zack from Kingdom Hearts

While the Prince and Elika had an entire game to bond (if out of order)  Aqua and Zack are only together for one jaunt through a world.

But Sweet Cosmos does it make an impression.

Let's look at a few of the incidents:
Zack is incredibly cheerful, and while he's not afraid to fight Aqua, he also wants to protect her.
Aqua is very much okay with fighting boys, but knows Zack can't handle an ice giant so she has him stop.

Zack has one of his most famous interactions in Final Fantasy with her:

He's also one of two people to touch Aqua throughout the entire game (via cutscene).  The only other time is when Terranort lifts her up by the neck in an attempt to kill her. 

Aqua is noted to blush when Zack leaves (though the graphics didn't show it.)  and she also covers her heart while she's shown to be embarrassed.  She's not shown to be embarrassed in front of any other character.  The only other time she's shown to cover her heart is in the opening when a (possibly) corrupted Terra walks by her.

And then there's their goals.  Zack wants to be a hero in order to protect people, as does Aqua.  They both train to do it.  But while Aqua gets to actually go out and do it, it's for more selfish reasons then Zack's.  She's going because she's ordered and she saves the worlds semi accidentally as she tries to find her friends.  Zack may not have left yet, but when he does he will do it with no ulterior motives.  (With that being said, Aqua's motives are pretty pure all in all, and none  of the Trio left to save the world)

Unfortunately, as Birth By Sleep is one of the most recently released Kingdom Hearts games, Zack does not show up in the earlier ones since Birth By Sleep takes place ten years before Kingdom Hearts 1 takes place.  So, we don't know what happened to him.  The credits imply that Sephiroth may be responsible for his disappearance.  However, as Aqua has disappeared too (and Terra, and Ven) I hold he's doing what he always wanted to do.

He's out, being a hero and searching for them. 

(And by that, I mean Hades threw him into the Realm of Darkness when Zack started asking questions so he's currently living there with Aqua until Kingdom Hearts 3.) 

System Shock 2

I started to write about the Space Marine/Warhammer 40K controversy.

Then this article appeared today. 

GOG has FINALLY got the distribution rights to System Shock 2!  Long cited as one of the scariest and most progressive of the FPS genre, it has long been impossible to get unless you keep an old computer and are willing to shell out the money (According to Amazon, it can cost as much as $300 new.)

The reason why it's been so hard to get a hold of (apparently) for a digital or physical rerelease is because of how the rights were divided up.  EA held the gameplay rights while a now defunct company held the name rights.  (The rights were transferred to an insurance company when that happened)  At the very least, that's the short version.  I would love to read the long version. (And I have heard it both ways.  In either way, the rights were split between EA and the now defunct company)

Then, in October of last year, GOG started to work on the digital license.  The process had actually started LONG before then, with GOG and it's related parties tracking down who held which rights. IP, gameplay, the original code...  GOG figured it all out and tracked down each party.  October started the full negotiations and starting tomorrow, the game will be able to be purchased for 9.99.


This is a fantastic coup.  The game is (apparently) the standard to judge the other games, it's given GOG a tremendous power in the digital market, and it's proven they listen to their customers.   While they have kept a list of requested games and features that people can vote on, only some manage to fully make their way out the list.  This is due to a number of reasons, in some cases it is not feasible to release games because ALL the rights holders are defunct.  Other times, the programming used is no longer compatible with current systems and GOG can't preform the necessary upgrades.  Other times, the companies just don't want to give the game up for digital distribution, or the rights for the games have disappeared from the said company.

But for GOG to do this, to pull off System Shock 2 AND make it playable for modern audiences?  It's cemented it's place as a premier digital distributor with games, made it a serious competitor for Steam (as Steam- as of yet- has not stated they are also getting this game.  Meaning you can only buy it on GOG.)  and it can cause people to peruse the other games in it's catalog which can bring in more money, money which GOG deserves because they have several games not available elsewhere, and you don't get the bonuses via Steam. 

So, as someone who adores GOG and has bought several games from them, please go and buy the game when it comes out, and several others that tickle your fancy.

Now, I have a copy of Syberia waiting when I finish plaything through Psychonauts.  I should probably go beat that. 

Character Design: Marluxia

Marluxia, the (sort of) first Big Bad of the Organization.  (Although, the Final Mixes throw a boss battle with Xemnas in KH1)

He is also a localizer's nightmare.  He's got a giant pink scythe, a flower motif, and his frightening motif is based dramatically more in Japanese ideas then American ideas with no real way to explain them in text.

Marluxia is based on the ideas of Shinigami, the Japanese version of the Grim Reaper.  However, the idea of the Grim Reaper didn't make it to Japan until around the 1800's (by which time the European and American ideas of the Grim Reaper were already firmly established)  the Japanese ideas of Shinigami tend to be a bit... wide ranging.

The World Ends With You Shinigamis (they are called Reapers in the localization)  are completely different from the Bleach Shinigamis which are, in turn, different from Death Note. 

Examples: The World Ends With You:

Generic Reaper: 

Bleach Shinigami:

Death Note 


The flowers, on the other hand, are Cherry Blossoms.  In Japanese mythology, Cherry Blossoms are connected with the fleetingness of life.  So those flowers that accompany him everywhere? It's him saying "YOU ARE GOING TO DIE."

These subconscious cues are very important.   These should be our ways to let the player know his motif and powers.

And, in cases like this, normally there would be text inserted to explain the powers.  Unfortunately, there was no space to do it with Chain of Memories, so these cues are lost on non Japanese audiences. 

Musical Monday: I Want You Gone

Going over my musical monday posts, I realized I had NEVER put on a Portal song.

That has now changed.

Why did I pick this one over Still Alive?

Because when Johnathan Coultrain wrote "Still Alive" he didn't realize exactly how well Ellen McClain could sing.

As in: this is her singing Opera

(Okay, fine, modulated since it's the turrets singing it, but it's still her voice!)

When Portal 2 came around and he was hired again, he used this knowledge to write both Cara Mia and I Want You Gone.   He made them more challenging and complex in order to fit her skills as a singer.


Okay, fine... here's Still Alive

edit: Excuse the delay.  The queue did not work as I had hoped.