Guardian Angels update: 07-29-05.

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May 2012

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Guardian Angels
Kia Purity's Site
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[Myaru]

Look, I got over my laziness just before August!  How nice.  Hopefully, today's update will pave the way for another one in August, but let's not hold our breath.

There's a new top pic, scanned from a doujinshi.  Say hello to Billy!  You can't go wrong with blue and angel wings.


Merchandise
An entry for the Xenogears 4-koma Comic has been added, along with a scan.  Yayness.

Analysis
"On Ether, Magic, and Zohar" and "A Common Sense Take on the Prequel Argument" have been added.  "The Destroyer of God" was updated too, but I'll have to redo that one.  The html is weird.  (Hate Microsoft files, hate Microsoft files...)

Fan Fiction
Reynard Fox sent entries in for themes #9 and #10, and there's a special list for them on the fanfic page now, since the character indexes were too much of a pain.

Fan Art
Another submission from Reynard Fox, this time... Krelian.  A very... amusing look at him, I've got to say.  ^-^

Aaaaaand... that's it.  Aside from long-standing projects, I'm out of material to update with.  


Ja.

[A.C]

"A Common Sense Take on the Prequel Argument" have been added.

what the person who wrote that argument doesn't realize is that Nephilim already killed the Xenogears connection along with XS's Zohar being too small to house the Kadamony and KOS-MOS replacing Deus with "awakening to find Lost Jerusalem"...

and Xenosaga doesn't take place before XG Ep 1. it is XG Episode 1, or rather a reworking of Xenogears Episode 1. Takahashi must have had an early script for Xenogears Ep1 written and then converted it to Xenosaga after Square wouldn't fund a XG sequel.

if Takahashi's script isn't messed with too much we should be able to piece together by the end of Ep III what has been modified in the transition between Xenogears Ep 1 and Xenosaga... but i guess Franz and Blur doesn't care about that and would gladly invite a new writer to alter the script, thus making any such analysis impossible.

 

[TheContact]

Franz and Blur doesn't care about that and would gladly invite a new writer to alter the script, thus making any such analysis impossible.

I bet you're glad they aren't directing or producing that game, huh. :smartass:

[BlurYamaneko]

Well, the size of Zohar I believe is moot in a game and universe where we've seen planets explode, a handgun inflate to about 500 times its original size, people disappearing into thin air (always a staple) and other stuff that generally throws the laws of physics down the toilet (and hey, why not?).  Replacing Deus doesn't really bother me since Deus is a big, white, uncharismatic blob with a really generic name that could be applied to anything at all in any RPG.  KOS-MOS is meant to be part of some crazy weapon system isn't she?  Could be that ends up Deus in one way or another.  You guys would most likely know better than me.  I'm going to reserve judgement on the story until the series is finished, so no worries.

Anyway, I don't have any idea what Xenosaga's suckage (not that I think it sucks, quite the opposite in fact) has to do with me or Franz, other than AC getting in a cheap shot.  Well done, AC.  You're dead wrong, incidentally; I wouldn't gladly invite a new writer to do anything, since I wouldn't be aware of one, cause I don't care.  There are probably a billion things worth caring about on this Earth before you get to the staff of Monolith software.

The simplest way I can possibly put it is, when I think of games I don't think "whoa, a new Takahashi game!" or, "whoa, a new Shigeru Miyamoto game!" or, "whoa, a new Sakaguchi game!".  I don't hold loyalty to these dudes.  No, I think "awesome, a new Xeno game," or "great! a new Shadow Hearts!"  I don't spend hours deliberating the downfall of Final Fantasy now that Hironobu Sakaguchi is out, I just play the games.  Isn't that, when all is said and done, what videogames are for?  By all means, analyse, argue, and blame me and Franz for the downfall of Xenosaga, but in the meantime, if it's all the same to you (and also, if it's not), I'm just gonna go play Shadow Hearts 2.

Edit: directing Xenosaga would rule.  I'd have Wilhelm turn out to be Choas' dad, but also an earlier incarnation of Albedo.  The Zohar would be a giant plush just for KiaPurity, and Jin would wear his glasses again, and Rubedo would turn out to be from a small planet somewhere in the vicinity of Betelgeuse and not from Gilford after all.  I'd up the enemies' HP by 10000 so battles are even longer, and I'd have Mitsuda back to do the music - using the NES sound set.  I'd make it sixty hours long, but if you take the movies out it'd be closer to four minutes.. well, I guess they have that down already.  My game would end with the crash of the eldridge, only this time there would be no survivors and no generation of beings, so Xenogears would never happen, so AC could live a more productive and positive life and maybe even change the world for the better and I wouldn't be wasting my time writing this garbage.  Shit, with an outlook like that I give Monolith about ten seconds before they call me.

(Xenosaga could be better, and it could be so so much worse).

[Myaru]

Bravo!

And I see you're still the king of cheap shots, AC.  If you want to criticize, why not email the author directly?  Funny, how you insist on slinging insults exclusively in public.

But that's a terrible assumption I'm making there.  I'm sure my own experience is nothing to go by.

Personally, I find all of these Xenogears-Xenosaga arguments dull and repetitive.  I appreciate Xenogears for what it was, and I dislike Xenosaga for what it is so far, and these days I prefer to have fun when I play my games - something XS doesn't give me.  If I want to analyze something, there are much deeper and more worthwhile projects to dissect.

Take Zohar, for instance.  Takahashi leaned heavily on elements of mysticism when he wrote his story, but Xenogears is a mere shadow of the real thing, and Xenosaga isn't even that close.  To be fair, it looks like he veered in a completely different direction with the new games, though I can't be sure until the series is finished.  But to be honest, I really don't care.  There are other, better stories out there to enjoy.


Ja.

[Metacod]

Personally, I find all of these Xenogears-Xenosaga arguments dull and repetitive.  I appreciate Xenogears for what it was, and I dislike Xenosaga for what it is so far, and these days I prefer to have fun when I play my games - something XS doesn't give me.

Yes.

I really thought people would have gotten tired of the XS-XG relation arguments, not because there's consensus but because 1) no one seems to care too much, because people have made up their minds about XS already, and 2) the situation is singularly messed-up, what with the deliberate protesting-too-much about it being a "new story," the conspicuous re-used story elements that stop just short of the one that would seal the deal (Deus), the more inexplicable references (Nephilim), the story's rambling refusal to focus and clarify its XG elements because it's spending too much time with the characters, which surely isn't a bad thing per se, but what about the budget, and those new writers, and. . . gah!  No fun at all.

The simplest way I can possibly put it is, when I think of games I don't think "whoa, a new Takahashi game!" or, "whoa, a new Shigeru Miyamoto game!" or, "whoa, a new Sakaguchi game!". I don't hold loyalty to these dudes. No, I think "awesome, a new Xeno game," or "great! a new Shadow Hearts!" I don't spend hours deliberating the downfall of Final Fantasy now that Hironobu Sakaguchi is out, I just play the games. Isn't that, when all is said and done, what videogames are for?

OK, I don't want to say it's wrong to do things this way, particularly about video games, or that you "should" care about the developers instead.  But this strikes me as brand loyalty, which is something I can't understand.  Companies, particularly in entertainment, do often use the same brands for related products by the same creative teams, but that's not a guarantee; the only thing guaranteed with the use of a brand is that a company thinks it will sell a product.  Your method may work a lot of the time, and that's fine, but you have to remember there is nothing stopping great shifts of quality or style across a series if the company thinks it's a good idea.  If the next installment in your favorite novel series was written by a ghostwriter, not the original author, you'd want to know.  As I said, this is generally less important in video games, but that's not so true in games like XG, where you're mainly "playing" for the story.

[BlurYamaneko]

I know how you mean with the brand loyalty thing, but it's not really like that for me.  It's not like me going out and drinking Pepsi then going "ha, you drink coke you stupid asshole."  Or a better example: "HAHA XBOX IS CRAP, REVOLUTION CAN SUCK MY BALLS, THEY CAN'T EVEN LAUNCH ITSELF TO THE MOON LIKE THE PS3!" That's what brand loyalty is to me (maybe they are extreme cases) and I've gotta say I find it as pointless and stupid as you seem to.

I don't really go in for that stuff.  That said, a new game in a series I like is just something I get naturally excited about, that was the point I was trying to get across before.  I might get a little intrigued about "Hironobu Sakaguchi is making a game and Nobuo Uematsu is composing!", but I only get excited when stuff about the actual game itself surfaces.  news like "Takahashi disposed!  Soraya mercilessly axed!" doesn't make me cry like a kid with a skinned knee, it makes me go "whoa, I never woulda thought... sucks for takahashi and soraya.  when's the next game out?".  When it's a new RPG in a series, you can assume elements and the style of previous games may be somewhat intact (by style I don't just mean the style of graphics or the storyline, but gameplay elements and generally the way things are done).  Sometimes this holds true and sometimes it doesn't, and sometimes it leads to disappointment and sometimes what comes out exceeds all expectations.  In general, I only ever expect a game I enjoy to play.  If it turns out mind-blowing, then great, but I never make up my mind before I've played the thing based on a name, the team of people who made it, or anything else for that matter.  Just thought I'd clear that up anyway.

[Emperor Cain]

*peeks his head in*

Great to see you're still updating, Myaru.  Its great to see at least one Xenogears site webmaster is still doing something; its been over a year for me.  Just found that Xenogears site/community essay of yours from a while back for the first time and was quite the great read.  I look fondly upon the good ol' days of 1999-2001

As much as I'd love to contribute to the Xenosaga discussion in this thread the sad fact is that I'm hopelessly behind in almost anything related to the subject. It's been well over a year since I've played Ep I and haven't even touched Ep II yet.  I really need to catch up  

Keep up the great work, and yes, EC is still alive!

[Kia_Purity]

I've acknowledged that Xenogears and Xenosaga are two different series now, sadly.

...and Myaru! www.animebooks.com sells three Xenogears books-- A Thousand of Daggers and Postcard Book as well as a guide ^^;

[Franz]

but i guess Franz and Blur doesn't care about that and would gladly invite a new writer to alter the script, thus making any such analysis impossible.

Haha, leave me outta this, mang. I've just come to accept the fact that xenotakus complaining about things they can't change...isn't going to change anything, let alone what some higher-up at Monolith is going to do. I'm sure right now they're more concerned w/making money than what the fans want to see or what Takahashi's pin-point details were. He's outta the circle now and I'm sure they can do pretty much whatever the hell they want.

I wouldn't be surprised if all of Xenosaga took place in space, and we never reached anything resembling Xenogears or any Episodes after.

[Myaru]

I wouldn't be surprised if all of Xenosaga took place in space, and we never reached anything resembling Xenogears or any Episodes after.

It would be better that way, in my opinion.  Xenosaga should be its own story, not bogged down by the existence of its predecessor, and the mistakes the team made with it.  As we can see, they're making all-new mistakes with Xenosaga anyway, so I don't see what point there is in clinging to the two.

Besides, regardless of what Takahashi thinks, I'm of the opinion that Xenogears is fine the way it is, despite its flaws.  I wouldn't want to see it retold.  That isn't necessary.  To remake it now would be to repeat his mistakes in new and different ways - I don't think the story or presentation would necessarily be improved just because they have the capability to make prettier graphics.  Not if Xenosaga is anything to go by.

But that's another discussion, I suppose.

Cain - why not make a fake update?  You know, for old time's sake!  :P  Glad you liked the essay.  I went overboard with the arrogance, but it was a lot of fun to write because of that.  Thank you.

Kia - I've considered buying the game guide, but I'm not sure I trust Animebooks.  They've passed pirated merchandise off on my friends before, so it makes me wary.  But if they've updated their payment options since I last looked, I'll think about it.  I do want that guide...  

[TheContact]

Man, EC is still around?  Good to see you're alive EC  Fake updates and fake pleas for new staff are all that are needed to keep a site alive.  It's a fact!

[Franz]

It would be better that way, in my opinion.

Grah, but I'm TIRED of space! D: I'm also getting tired of the same characters, even though some of them I love. Jr. and Shion are just pieces of shit if you ask me, heh.

[Myaru]

What is that you say?  Shion is worthless?

AMEN.

I don't care enough about Jr. to say mean things about him, though.  Shion just hit a sore spot, because it seems the only kind of protagonist Takahashi is capable of creating is the Really Fucking Annoying type.

Ziggy would have been a better choice.  :P


Ja.

[Metacod]

Shion is frustrating because she never becomes a character you can wrap your mind around, even though she's the "main" character.  Her past is a bunch of gibberish vignettes, just like everyone else's, and it's almost impossible to see where she's coming from in her present behavior.  She doesn't seem at ALL fazed by getting tied up in a deep, universe-spanning whatever-it-is, except in a few token scenes, but she does seem to care about random things for no reason.  It's like they were playing up the fact that she's not considerate of others, so instead of doing it because [she's too wrapped up in something admittedly worthwhile || some other positive trait]--which would at least be understandable or funny or something, even if annoying--she does it for no reason at all!  I once talked to someone who said it was actually interesting and intentional that she acts so non-human, because it's a clue to her unmentioned mysteries, but I think that's a really charitable reading.  I chalk it up to bad writing, especially since the descriptions of her in the manual and other side materials don't mention anything about seeming odd.