Snake Recommends Vidjagaems

[Solid Snake]

As I no longer have a job and have been ruled unworthy of continued existence as a functioning adult in society, I've been playing a fairly eclectic mix of videogames lately and I thought I'd compile a list of intriguing titles to recommend to y'all.

Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel:

So far, it's basically Persona 4 at a military academy with a bit of communist / socialist commentary on the side; also, the game is slightly less heteronormative than Persona 4 was, as you ultimately can choose to spend your lovey-dovey romance time with a guy or girl (unfortunately, you don't actually dance in public if you choose a guy, and the same-sex undertones are downplayed into vague possibly-platonic possibly-more territory...though the mood does vary slightly depending on the guy or gal you choose.) Still, the underlying formula is similar: You're building social links with your team, getting benefits from those links in battles and studying throughout the year as you deal with conspiracies and political machinations and monster-slaying on the side.

I do appreciate that the combat and dungeon-crawling aspects are a bit faster-paced than Persona 4; it's less time-consuming to make progress. Unfortunately, the game is marred with less-than-ideal voice acting, no Japanese VA option, and inconsistent writing. (Fortunately, the soundtrack is stellar and has been a pleasant surprise.) If there's incredibly objectionable content here from a social justice perspective, I haven't run into it yet (though I do wish the game's token lesbian character wasn't given such an overt 'sexual predator' vibe...and this game does follow Persona 4's lead of including an unrealistically and inappropriately flirtatious teacher.) All in all, it's a fun RPG that isn't revolutionary, but does the basics well enough to merit a playthrough.

Assassin's Creed Rogue:

Surprisingly, Rogue is my favorite Assassin's Creed since the Ezio trilogy; this is likely because it's the most stripped-down since Assassin's Creed II. There isn't an excessive amount of extra stuff to do beyond some interesting story missions and bits and pieces of the ship-improving, town-improving formulas from previous Creeds. It's shorter and more compact, which is a good thing, as this Assassin's Creed title doesn't overstay its welcome. It also presents a nice twist on the AC formula, insofar as you're exposed to shades of grey -- the Assassins aren't as great as they've been presented in previous titles, the Templars aren't quite as evil, and you witness a different perspective on the eternal struggle between the factions.

In terms of gameplay, it's basically Black Flag all over again -- if you enjoyed the naval combat there you'll like it just as much here. There are slight improvements in the formula, but nothing ground-breaking. Personally, I actually prefer the Arctic setting here over the Caribbean -- I'm not really sure why -- and watching Shay betray the Assassins felt practically cathartic after so many terrible Assassins Creed III memories, insofar as you're basically destroying much of the cast of that game, Kill Bill style. The soundtrack integrates all the previous PS3-era titles in a way that proves fitting for the finale of its era; I particularly enjoy the new take on the Main Theme from Assassin's Creed 2, which makes a well-deserved reappearance here.

Rogue Galaxy:

I'll say this much; from an aesthetic perspective, the cel-shaded graphics have aged incredibly well; you could have told me this was a PS3-era title (circa 2010) and I would have believed you.

Unfortunately, from a social justice perspective, the game has been a miserable slog, in large part because the first planet you visit after the tutorial section (and some beautiful-but-brief space exploration) is a stereotypical Jungle Planet Full of Hostile, Primitive Brown People Who Hate Technology, and said natives include misogynistic creeps (complete with 'jokes' at the poor heroine's expense, who's repeatedly nearly sexually assaulted by these douchebags, with little more than an amused "Haha aren't these primitives weird?" reactions from the nonplussed guys.) Oh, and the women in the tribes -- including the tribeswoman who joins your party -- seem to wear very unrealistic clothing that basically amounts to bikinis, complete with the necessary dosage of male gaze applied to all kinds of cutscenes to ensure we see copious cleavage. It is annoying and frankly, it feels really out of place for a sci-fi RPG that takes place in outer space.

Fortunately, I have escaped that hellhole and gone to the planet that is basically this galaxy's Coruscant. Hopefully things improve, as this is a game that I want to like a lot more than I've been liking it -- it's got a fairly interesting battle system that's aged gracefully and the soundtrack is pleasant, if a bit unmemorable.

Life is Strange:

If you choose Warren over Chloe YOU ARE DEAD TO ME.

Anyway, Life is Strange is kind of a second-rate Steins;Gate, which is actually a compliment in a sense, because Steins;Gate was so incredible (more on it in a moment) that even a second-rate version of it is still thoroughly worth playing. My main criticism of Life is Strange is that its relatively short length prevents it from really exploring the consequences of alternative timelines to the extent it should (in fact, you really only see one completely new timeline; the rest of the time shenanigans you pursue have comparatively small-scale implications.) This is largely because, compared to other time-traveling protagonists, Max is just so damned responsible in refusing to abuse her powers.

Max is a great lead, though, and there's a great inner story told within her characterization where you basically watch her learn, within the context of her gaining powers, to become more assertive. This is one of those narratives where all the crazy and outlandish time-shifting powers really merely serve as tools to explore the relationships among relatively mundane, real-world people; the clashes among personalities are more interesting than all the bullshit about storms and Armageddon. There's also some great social justice commentary in here, whether it was explicitly intended or not, about male privilege and how men exploit it -- either as active assholes (Nathan) or as passive parasites (Warren.) Most of the men in this story -- even most of the relatively decent men in this story -- are pretty unlikable, insofar as nearly all of them seek to strip Max of agency on some level.

Chloe is a great supporting character, as well -- you and Max are both driven to question her life choices and her morality on some level before you're both shamed by the context of what fuels her rebellious streak, and once you grow to understand both her and the shitty town she lives in, you'll be throwing stones right alongside her. She's great in that she's selfish and has her own agenda -- she doesn't just unconditionally support Max for ulterior reasons like a certain paper-thin White Knight -- but she truly cares for Max, and was even hurt by Max. It's rare to see a friendship (or something more, should you choose something more romantic) so convincingly portrayed in a videogame, particularly one between two women, so kudos to the developers for that.

Oh, and the soundtrack is superb. It's introduced me to a lot of folky HYYYYYYPPPPPSST-TUR music I'd never have heard of otherwise, and I dig it.

Steins;Gate:

So, first of all: The visual novel is long. It's better than the anime by a sufficient amount to justify recommending the visual novel on its own credentials (I'd suggest watching the anime only after playing through the VN, personally) but by the standards of the genre you will be up a few late nights before you even reach the Chapters where the time-travel mechanics start to get interesting.

But, boy, is Steins;Gate worth it. It's an extremely dense visual novel with such attention to detail that it really rewards a second playthrough to understand the nuances of each timeline and exactly what you've unknowingly changed to get from Point A to Point B.

There are, to be blunt, social justice issues. Perhaps to Steins;Gate's credit, there's never really a moment where it endorses certain characters' bad behaviors, but Daru's a bit too perverted (and, worse still, he seems to get away with said perversions largely because he's ugly and non-threatening to the girls he's ogling; he's basically treated as a joke, but I'm often not laughing along with the game when the misogynistic comments come fast and furious.) Okabe's unreliable narrator routine is simultaneously fascinating and annoying, up until you receive the context that justifies the charade. Kurisu often has the thankless task of the Only Sane Person in the Room, and I have to say I'm fond of her relationship with Okabe, even though it often follows some tired gender cliches. And I feel that Luka should've been presented unequivocally as a transgendered woman, but like many Japanese games with Japanese narrators, Okabe seems hellbent on defining Luka by biological sex.

There's a certain amount of these problematic elements that I desperately want to forgive because Steins;Gate does so many other things so damned well. It's probably the best time-travel story I've ever encountered in terms of the consistency of its time-travel mechanics, and the plot twists are so juicy and full of emotional resonance and impact. Steins;Gate develops its characters methodically, to the point where you truly care about them, and then it repeatedly punches you in the gut, forcing you to make heartbreaking choices and forcing you to watch as Okabe's health and sanity is stretched to its limit. I don't know if I've ever witnessed a story where watching so many tragic emotional breakdowns was so satisfying -- yet I use the word unironically here -- it was actually a genuine treat to become teary-eyed as I realized how much certain sacrifices meant to me.

The soundtrack was pretty good, though the Orchestrated version of the soundtrack you'll find online is even better. But the real treat here is the Japanese voice acting, which is phenomenal -- Okabe and Kurisu's voice-actors in particular are just incredible to listen to, with real chemistry in their bickering. Luka, Suzuha and Shining Finger also turn in memorable performances. (Suzuha's voice actress does a sublime job with my favorite scene in the game, which simply involves her speaking a single word repetitively, but each utterance is a fatal punch to your psyche.)

I can't recommend Steins;Gate enough...if you can make it through a slow first eight hours or so, you're in for a real treat through the finish line.