Let me start off by saying that I'm new to reddit and I had to join and create a post since beating FFXV left me with an empty feeling (and this is after doing everything in the game). And so, I'll shall begin my rant/breakdown of how I perceived the cast of characters in FFXV from what's been released so far: Brotherhood, Kingsglaive, Prologue Novella, and FFXV (game).
Character(s): Noctis: In my opinion, I feel as though Noctis's character was believable enough. I mean, at the age of 5 he was chosen as the King of Light. Then when he was 8, he's convey was attacked by a daemon, Marilith, on his return from watching fireflies. This right here is enough to traumatize any normal kid. Then he goes to Tenebrae, meets Luna, is comforted by her only to have to watch her get left behind when General Glauca and Niflheim attacks. It's no surprise Noctis grows up having trouble with his emotions especially since he's been ordained for some great destiny and really has no one to confide in (Luna being the only one able to possibly relate to him but he has minimal contact with via notebook). I mean, yes, he's surrounded by people including his friends but they really don't understand the pressure on Noctis's shoulders. When I think of Noctis, I think of someone who can feel alone even when he's in a crowd. And because of that, it causes Noctis to not have so much confidence in himself.
Playing through the game, I feel like Noctis is held to a very high standard by everyone around him (apart from maybe Luna and Prompto). In Ignis's episode of Brotherhood, he's basically told "When your father dies, it's your duty to take up the mantle as the next king." Noctis, a high schooler, has to confront the possibility of his own father's death. Cut back a few years before this to Gladio's episode. When he was 8/9/10 (or maybe it was before the entire daemon incident), Gladio gets frustrated with having to guard Noctis, who he views as a stuck up prince. Yeah, I get Noctis didn't really show much interest in the sparring and was nitpicky about vegetables, but he's a kid! What does Gladio expect of him? To be Luna (and as much as I like Luna, she was the ultimate Mary-Sue in FFXV). I mean already, we see them restricting Noctis’s character to: You’re going to be a king, so you better act like one. And when Noctis does ever try to show some emotion, he’s automatically shut down in the game. Even in chapter 11 when wading through the swamp with Gladio, you (the player) will get chewed out if you dare try to insinuate that Noctis was just a normal person.
In this regard, I felt like we lost a lot of insight into Noctis because the game focuses so much on his chosen destiny. Playing through FFXV just made me feel bad for Noctis because it seemed that every time he hit a rut, he wasn’t allowed to react in a normal, emotional way. His troubles are just swept under the rug with the excuse that he had to be kingly. Other than that, Noctis’s character didn’t really bother me, but then again I played mainly from his point of view.
Ignis: Out of everyone in the gang of friends, I enjoyed Ignis’s character development the most. Apparently, Ignis’s back story was that as Noctis’s childhood friend he was placed into special training so that he could learn to better serve Noctis, the next king. It didn’t specify if Ignis did so out of his own willingness or because he felt obligated to due to circumstance like family ties to the royal family (Ignis’s uncle was an attendant to the royal family but little else is known about his background in general). I felt with Ignis, he sacrificed the most for Noctis and he truly believed that Noctis would become king without them needing to shove him towards his destiny. Ignis is the what I dub true bro as he did everything he could for Noctis’s sake (even losing his eyesight in the process but still wishing to continue on with the group). This right here made me feel for Ignis because at that point in the swamp when Ignis is defending Noctis from Gladio, you can tell that Ignis did it because he felt for Noctis despite having suffered a grievous injury. More so than an advisor to his king, Ignis was defending Noctis and actually seeing Noctis as a normal human who should be allowed to his grief. And this aspect of Ignis is emphasized when in his Brotherhood episode and in some of his dialogue when he says that he enjoys cooking because he enjoys watching other people eat his food and smile/be happy. I just enjoyed Ignis’s character throughout the game. Not only that but on a completely unrelated note, his tech skills are probably superior to Gladio’s and Prompto’s.
Prompto: Prompto to me was the guy who tried to cheer everyone up during the rough patches. The awkward friend who always has to deal with his other friends who are constantly fighting. Nothing realy stood out to me about Prompto’s character except for his great willingness to change his appearance so that he could have confidence to befriend Noctis. Apart from Luna, I feel that Prompto is Noctis’s true friend, unrelated to his duty and his position as crown prince. Even in the picture he sent to Luna in her extra Brotherhood clip, Noctis says: I made a new friend. Prompto’s existence was to counter Gladio and Ignis who despite being friends to Noctis is duty bound to him. With Prompto, he didn’t have to be there but he still wanted to. And him trying to normalize Noctis’s journey by taking photos and making stupid comments is his attempt to try and ease Noctis’s burden. But then, Prompto’s character kind of plateus for me in Chapter 13/14 when you learn of his past as a test baby for the MTs and that (state in the guidebook) he’s Verstael’ son. Yes, this is probably going to be expanded upon in Prompto’s dlc but since that’s not out yet, it doesn’t really do much for his character at this point in time. And the group’s reaction to this news is the typical, “Don’t worry, you’re still one of us.” Not saying that Prompto isn’t but the reaction was so meh, I’m wondering if even adding this aspect to Prompto’s character did more damage than cause audience intrigue since you’re left with the feeling of “What? That’s it?”
Gladio: Oh boy, I have a lot to say about Gladio. His character was the worst in my opinion (the blame most likely lies in the execution of his character). The moment I watched his episode in Brotherhood, I thought to myself, There’s a good chance I’m not going to like him in the game. And I didn’t for many reasons.
So let’s start with square 1: Brotherhood. We are prefaced with Gladio’s obvious irritation with Noctis’s spoiled attitude. Noctis isn’t interested in his sparring lesson and is nitpicky about eating vegetables. Gladio expects Noctis to attack more like a king, even voicing his displeasure at having to guard a “brat” like Noctis. The thing is…Noctis is only like 8/9/10 (maybe even younger if this episode took place before the daemon attack)? I mean, it’s normal for a kid Noctis’s age to act like a brat. Yeah, Gladio was right on the money with that. But to already show the makings of a king? How unreal are those expectations? If Noctis was in his mid-teens, yeah I can see the frustration. But c’mon, he’s just a kid at this point. Then by the end of this episode, Gladio eases up on Noctis for taking the fall for Iris running off. I don’t know about anyone else, but I don’t really think this isn’t the best way to start a friendship. Noctis hasn’t changed as a character, Gladio only sees a facet of Noctis’s character but everything he disliked about Noctis is still there. He just decides not to be bothered by it…and it comes full circle in the game when Gladio gets on your case after Ch.9, but more on that later.
Square 2: FFXV the game. Skip a few years into the future to the game. Gladio doesn’t change. If anything, he’s more critical on Noctis’s character and we’re supposed to see it as a friend showing tough love to another friend when all I could see is Gladio, Noctis’s shield, is trying to mold Noctis, his king, into a personality he can approve of. And this doesn’t start in Ch. 10, it starts from Ch. 2 for me.
When Noctis finds out the Insomnia has fallen, his father was killed, and Luna was supposedly dead he’s probably gone from a state of happiness to utter desperation in the blink of an eye. In this situation, any normal person would start crying their eyes out because this to Noctis is literally his worst nightmare. So, you get in the car and go to meet Cor at Prairie Outpost, searching for answers. During this car ride, Noctis vents and was going to angrily rant about Niflheim only to be shut down by Gladio. Something along the lines of “That’s enough.” Here, I would have given Gladio a pass since he also lost his father (Clarus though he never really shows any emotion) but Noctis’s rant (sort of) came after Gladio found out that his sister was safe. And it just irritated the heck out of me. So once he finds out his sister’s safe, Noctis can’t grieve for his lost father, and they just have to focus on the mission? Ughh…I can’t even.
The next instance was when they got separated during the confrontation with Titan. Gladio just awkwardly pulls Noctis to the side and rails at him to man up as king. Here I see this as an example of poor execution. And I gave Gladio a pass on this one since Noctis was being whiny in the worst location to ever throw a tantrum: at the foot of some god who’s holding up a meteor. So, Gladio is forgiven here.
What really took the cake with Gladio’s character was when Jared was killed. Gladio decides to up and leave the group as they go to find the mythril to fix the boat to head to Altissia. Right, so a shield leaves his king…who’s being hunted by the empire and has to deal with his destiny as the Chosen King. Gladio, who is the biggest proponent of duty one can find in this game, just completely abandons his duty to go vent his frustration at not being able to save Jared. Not cool (though it did let us have Aranea in our party so I didn’t care if Gladio left. Honestly, if I could have switched him for Aranea, I would have then and there). Then he comes back and nothing is asked. Again, this is because Square most likely deliberately cut the content (because of money, time, etc). But the little respect I had for Gladio disappeared. Afterwards, because he’s worried about Iris, Gladio insist Iris accompany them to Cape Caem and the story goes on from there.
And finally, Ch. 10 and beyond. Like I said earlier, from everything I’ve seen of the FFXV series, I liked Luna (despite her character being sorely underdeveloped and barely seen through the game. Here I blame poor execution since Tabata said she was supposed to be a heroine out of her reach which translates to make sure Luna barely if ever shows up). So Luna has passed away delivering the ring to Noctis and protecting from Leviathan, most likely drowning in the sea if her cutscene was anything to go by. I was upset and then suddenly Gladio just starts venting his anger at Noctis for grieving. Or rather still grieving? Yes, I get it, Noctis is king and now with Luna gone, the Starscourge was going to consume the entire world (if you listened to the radio, 3 hours of daylight was lost upon Luna’s death). Gladio has every right to be pressured into doing something to get them back on their feet.
….But his tough love fell through because to me without knowing what transpired in the weeks between Luna’s death and Ch.10, it seemed like Noctis was carrying out his duty. He was there with them but his mental state was still focused on Luna. And then Gladio adds insult to injury by calling Noctis out for not wearing the ring and for his lack of care towards Ignis’s blindness. Gladio feels like Noctis’s refusal to wear the ring is his refusal to accept his role as king. I also think it’s that and a combination of other things. Wearing the ring is to accept that his father was dead and it reminded him of Luna’s death (my interpretation here). Not only that but the ring literally aged his father by draining his life force to power the Wall. It’s easy for Gladio to stand there and criticize Noctis when he doesn’t have any inkling as to the burden of the Power of the Kings. All Gladio knowns is that Noctis as king should wear the ring and “get over” Luna’s death. Friendship, amirite? Then there’s the way he talks about Ignis’s injury-like its Noctis’s fault Ignis went blind. In the swamp, Gladio just calls you out for it constantly and boy was I glad when Ignis just told him to shut up and trust in Noctis.
Now, my interpretation of Gladio in Ch. 10 from everything I’ve seen so far: he’s afraid/frustrated because out of everyone in the group, he’s the only person with something left to lose: Iris. Yes, he was angry that it seemed like Noctis cared more about Luna’s death than Ingis’s blindness. Yes, he was mad about Noctis’s withdrawal from the group. But I attribute his anger more to the fact that Gladio doesn’t want to risk losing Iris and he vents his anger on Noctis as they are literally losing daylight now with Luna gone. Had Gladio allowed Noctis to grieve over his losses in Ch. 2, I’m pretty sure Noctis would have been able to accept the ring more easily. But because Gladio kept forcing Noctis to put a cap on his emotions, it all came rushing back to him when Luna died.
My last take on Gladio. To be honest, I felt as if Gladio didn’t trust in Noctis enough. He didn’t seem to believe that Noctis had what it took to be king. Each time he riles Noctis up in the game, it’s always in relation to the same tired topic: You’re a king so act like one. Compared to Ignis who actually has faith in Noctis, I felt like Gladio didn’t think Noctis had it in him to ascend and was merely staying with him out of duty and because of “friendship.” Honestly, Gladio’s character was just horribly executed. And I think I’ll leave it at that.
Luna: Luna as many threads have pointed out is a shell of a character with aspects resembling that of Yuna and Aerith but not really emphasized well enough. I personally liked Luna (probably because I keep combing the Luna in Kingsglaive with the Luna in the game). I just didn’t like how she had so little interaction with Noctis and was basically used as a plot device to further the story. There’s also a lot of content about Luna cut from the original game (like what we saw in the Dawn trailer when Luna was tossed to the ground) due to Square’s fear of criticism as they were already having backlash from their portrayal of women (Cindy).
Ravus: To understand Ravus’s character, you have to fill in the gaps between Kingsglaive and the game. But it’s clear that Ravus only desires power as a means to save Luna, the only family he had left. And he views Noctis as incompetent and underserving of Luna’s sacrifice. In fact, he views the entire line of Lucis as incompetent due to King Regis’s failure to save his homeland when Niflheim attacked. But once he put the ring on, Ravus realizes that his views on House Lucis Caelum doesn’t matter as the ring will only side with the line of Lucis. So in the second game, we see Ravus still trying to save Luna by killing off the Astrals as well as trying to come to terms with the fact that Noctis was the ordained king and Luna was going to give her life so that he could fulfill his destiny. But the way the scenes are laid out is a little jarring. Noctis only ever sees Ravus during the one time they met in an Imperial base. And Ravus is angry that Noctis doesn’t know the price of the Covenant and would have probably majorly injured or killed Noctis if not for Ardyn. Then in Luna’s scene Ravus now wants his sister to deliver the ring to Noctis. Probably because he doesn’t want her thinking that she was going to die and probably because he believes that so long as Luna’s duty was unfulfilled she would keep holding on to her life. And then he’s killed off screen and turned into a daemon by Ardyn. While fighting him, I literally didn’t feel a thing apart from, another character ruined. Sigh.
Ardyn: Don’t like him. Don’t hate him. Basically Barthandelus v2.0 in my books. Just snarkier and less caring. Aranea: Why couldn’t I have you as a permanent party member? Why? (Because Tabata wanted to focus on the idea of Brotherhood, I know. But I love Aranea’s character design. And how she kinda flirts with Ignis and shuts down Gladio).
Other characters: Emperor Iedolas, Iris, Verstael, Cindy, Cid, Cor, King Regis…Barely any development to be mentionable.
Well, I think I’ve vented about my feelings enough. Sorry, just had to get that out there since I was so excited for this game, paid the $300 price tag for the Ultimate Collector’s Edition, and felt like I was slapped in the face with disappointment after the ending.
Submitted December 26, 2016 at 11:18AM by Rainxoxo http://ift.tt/2hHtq3L
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