Stuff, and more stuff
Nov. 19th, 2007 11:05 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
missroseroseBrian recently bought Final Fantasy VI for the Game Boy Advance, which I've found myself rather more excited about playing than I thought I'd be. I played through part of it a few years ago on the Final Fantasy Anthology version for the Playstation, but at that point I'd already played through Chrono Trigger and much of Final Fantasy IV, and I was getting tired of the lag that was unavoidably prevalent in those emulated versions. Fortunately, the GBA port is quite well done by comparison, and the new translation makes for some interesting demonstration of how relations between Japanese and American culture have changed in the past decade. As an example, Cyan is now a Samurai with a Bushido technique (rather than a generic warrior with "SwordTech"); back in 1993, most people wouldn't likely have been familiar with the term, but thanks to the prevalence of animé and movies like The Last Samurai, terms like "samurai" and "katana" have become almost household in their use. On the whole, I dig the new translation - it feels much more fleshed-out and adult, probably due in large part to the fact that they're not aiming the game at kids this time around.
One of the things that the new translation really makes clear, though, is the caliber of storytelling that the game entails. In retrospect, the range of emotion expressed with just a few pixels, some text, and some background MIDI music is truly astonishing - these aren't just blocks of pixels, they're people, each with their own story, their own story, their own talents, and their own relationships. What with the release of Tomb Raider: Anniversary, I've heard a lot of people complain that remakes are pointless and just a symptom of lack of creativity on the part of a studio, and there's certainly an element of truth to that. But when a game is as far ahead of its contemporaneous technology as Final Fantasy VI was, I think it deserves a remake. Imagine, for a moment, an entire steampunk castle diving into the desert sand, rendered in Playstation 3-level graphics. Or the Jidoor Opera House done Phantom of the Opera-style. Or the sheer run-down rained-on wretchedness of the town of Zozo, with an orchestral rendition of the Slam Shuffle playing. Or the rooftop coin toss scene between Edgar and Sabin, a moment that defines the destiny of two brothers, done with real voice acting and a beautiful nighttime view over the desert landscape. And tell me you wouldn't buy a $500 console and a $60 game to experience that.
But for now, the pixels work amazingly well, and it's great to be able to play a game where I feel excited, not just about playing it, but about what's going to happen next in the story.
Surprisingly enough, I have something to talk about today that's not related to gaming, my cats, or politics: we've finally started rehearsals for the Reindeer Monologues. I'm feeling pretty good about the show's prospects so far; Alicia, a friend of mine from an acting class a few years back, is directing it, and while I hadn't seen her direct in the past I'm pleasantly surprised at her ability. Plus she's had some good luck with casting - when we did the first read-through, I could see that several of the cast members were very well suited to their roles. So we're off to a promising start. (But if, for some reason, it ends up sucking, I'll make sure to mention it so you won't waste your time. Because, y'know, it's so very hard for me to tell people when something sucks. ;)
One of the things that the new translation really makes clear, though, is the caliber of storytelling that the game entails. In retrospect, the range of emotion expressed with just a few pixels, some text, and some background MIDI music is truly astonishing - these aren't just blocks of pixels, they're people, each with their own story, their own story, their own talents, and their own relationships. What with the release of Tomb Raider: Anniversary, I've heard a lot of people complain that remakes are pointless and just a symptom of lack of creativity on the part of a studio, and there's certainly an element of truth to that. But when a game is as far ahead of its contemporaneous technology as Final Fantasy VI was, I think it deserves a remake. Imagine, for a moment, an entire steampunk castle diving into the desert sand, rendered in Playstation 3-level graphics. Or the Jidoor Opera House done Phantom of the Opera-style. Or the sheer run-down rained-on wretchedness of the town of Zozo, with an orchestral rendition of the Slam Shuffle playing. Or the rooftop coin toss scene between Edgar and Sabin, a moment that defines the destiny of two brothers, done with real voice acting and a beautiful nighttime view over the desert landscape. And tell me you wouldn't buy a $500 console and a $60 game to experience that.
But for now, the pixels work amazingly well, and it's great to be able to play a game where I feel excited, not just about playing it, but about what's going to happen next in the story.
Surprisingly enough, I have something to talk about today that's not related to gaming, my cats, or politics: we've finally started rehearsals for the Reindeer Monologues. I'm feeling pretty good about the show's prospects so far; Alicia, a friend of mine from an acting class a few years back, is directing it, and while I hadn't seen her direct in the past I'm pleasantly surprised at her ability. Plus she's had some good luck with casting - when we did the first read-through, I could see that several of the cast members were very well suited to their roles. So we're off to a promising start. (But if, for some reason, it ends up sucking, I'll make sure to mention it so you won't waste your time. Because, y'know, it's so very hard for me to tell people when something sucks. ;)
