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Anyone else notice a pattern here? (Nier: Automata, GR 2, and Horizon: Zero Dawn)

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Vex_

Banned
GRavity RUSH 2 January
H: ZD February
Nier: A March

All of these games come out in 2017! And in consecutive months( Jan, Feb, March)!


...I'm joking. What I wanted to say is that I am liking how developers seem to be more comfortable with having female leads. It isn't like this hasn't happened before, but back to back like that? Coincidence? Most likely. But I think it is a testament to how times have changed, even if ever so slight.

I mean, they are all badass (from what I've seen so far) and incredibly unique in design. Oh, and it also helps that the gameplay looks great as well. For those of you who have played the demo for 2/3 of these games, I think you would agree that the gameplay IS good. Am I right? I am fully immersed whenever I do a playthrough of those demos.

I'm rambling a bit, but I just wanted to say how happy I am that these types of creative (and risky) games are coming out.
And how immersion I am going to be when these launch.
 

10k

Banned
The only pattern I've noticed is the bait and switch threads that keep popping up.

I agree OP. There's two things I like about this trend.

1) strong female leads. We need more of them.

2) releasing games outside of the Q4 holiday maelstrom.
 
yea but we dont know the release date? Do we? Im not really sure tbh.

Nah we don't, at best Uncharted The Lost Legacy comes not too far after the games you mentioned, but TLOU2 is of course very far.

Hey also, Gravity Rush 2 has the female lead for the main game AND for the upcoming March free dlc.

D3UDNRt.jpg
 

jayu26

Member
The only pattern I've noticed is the bait and switch threads that keep popping up.

I agree OP. There's two things I like about this trend.

1) strong female leads. We need more of them.

2) releasing games outside of the Q4 holiday maelstrom.

You mean malestrom. Ha.

Seriously, of all the big games in released in Fall this year, I can only think of one game with playable female character, Dishonored 2. That can't be right, right?
 

adamsapple

Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
Is there anything coming out in April that continues this trend ?

If the trend switches to PS exclusives, you can put Persona 5 there :p
 

Kaako

Felium Defensor
Oh nice! And I just bought the first game today and it's really really really REALLY good!
You're in for one hell of a ride if you think that highly of the first one. Cause the second one should blow it out of the water and already feels so much better to play judging by the PSN demo alone which is still an old build. Kat & Raven are tag-team goddesses.

Ummmm..Evan is a boy lmao
Close enough LOL.
 

mcz117chief

Member
You're in for one hell of a ride if you think that highly of the first one. Cause the second one should blow it out of the water and already feels so much better to play judging by the PSN demo alone which is still an old build. Kat & Raven are tag-team goddesses.

Like, the game feels almost perfect. Very tight controls, great graphics, super cute main character with a very charming personality, superb performance on the PS 4, very atmospheric music and fantastic and rather unique gameplay. I can't imagine how they can make the game even better!
 

Crossing Eden

Hello, my name is Yves Guillemot, Vivendi S.A.'s Employee of the Month!
Only 1 of those 3 doesn't sexualize their protagonists in anyway sho i'm most excited for that oe and not very interested at all in the other two.
 

Vex_

Banned
The thing that I like the most about GR2 and Nier is that they remind me of the good ol' gaming days. I feel like I am playing a Dreamcast title or an old school ps2 adventure game. I cant describe it other than that. Nostalgia. It's weird.

Something about the collectables in GR2 and the bullet hell gameplay in nier...
 
Jury's still out on how positive the so-called strong female lead is in Nier. But Horizon and GR2 certainly do seem like badass heroines for sure!
 
Only western devs seem afraid of female leads. Japan has never been afraid of female main characters.
Yup I'll be picking up Atelier firis,Nights of azure 2 and hopefully blue reflections next year all female leads with the latter being a party of only females pretty cool. Gets my wife interested too so win win

Edit:welp op you tried get ready
 
Only western devs seem afraid of female leads. Japan has never been afraid of female main characters.
Japan is scared shitless of putting strong female leads who are NOT sexualized. Those are a definite minority because Japan still has their stigmas. Or would you categorize, say, the Onechanbara or the Valkrye Drive girls as a positive representation of a female protagonist?
 

Kaako

Felium Defensor
Only 1 of those 3 doesn't sexualize their protagonists in anyway sho i'm most excited for that oe and not very interested at all in the other two.
Is Kat "sexualized" to you? I don't understand...
I'd say you have a point with Nier but not much with GR2 & HZD.
 

Vex_

Banned
Jury's still out on positive the so-called strong female lead is in Nier. But Horizon and GR2 certainly do seem like badass heroines for sure!

Jury doesnt have to be out. Have you seen her animations? She has SO MUCH SWAG that you could not mistake it for anything else.

Do this in game:

Jump in the air, and then hit hard attack. Then dont do anything. She will hold that badass pose and then look up like "yea, I did that". That's just one example. But my point is that there is more than one way to communicate badassery. In her case, it is through her animations.

I found her comment about being called "ma'am" interesting. We will see why she hates being called that in the future (if they elaborate on that). But I think there is something there.

EDIT: Also her sprint animation. It looks like she commands respect when she runs. It is such a powerful stride. I dunno, man. That really appeals to me for some reason.
 

jmaine_ph

Member
Even Naughty Dog is doing it with Uncharted: Lost Legacy (Chloe and Nadine) and The Last of Us 2 (Ellie). I love it.
 

jayu26

Member
My friend's youngest son's immediate response to Nier Automata yesterday was "eww, you play as a girl!" He quickly forgot about all that once he started playing it.

Edit: It did feel like he was just saying it for the sake of saying it, because that is what other boys in schoolyard would expect. I hope games like these are educational in unexpected manner like this.
 
Jury doesnt have to be out. Have you seen her animations? She has SO MUCH SWAG that you could not mistake it for anything else.

Do this in game:

Jump in the air, and then hit hard attack. Then dont do anything. She will hold that badass pose and then look up like "yea, I did that". That's just one example. But my point is that there is more than one way to communicate badassery. In her case, it is through her animations.

I found her comment about being called "ma'am" interesting. We will see why she hates being called that in the future (if they elaborate on that). But I think there is something there.

EDIT: Also her sprint animation. It looks like she commands respect when she runs. It is such a powerful stride. I dunno, man. That really appeals to me for some reason.

The problem for me with 2B is really simple. Most of the design is great and non-sexualized, in fact, I really like it quite a bit.

Then you can see with the running animation exactly the parts the fan service kicks in. I still don't see it as too much of an issue because it's relatively tame and not at all at the forefront.

But it is a distraction in an otherwise great design and character.

Edit: I got no issues with Kat's design. I think that one "looks" problematic but in game, it's anything but. Though I much prefer the alternates.
 

Crossing Eden

Hello, my name is Yves Guillemot, Vivendi S.A.'s Employee of the Month!
We can't have nice things on this forum at all man
Just my two cents on the matter, also not super interested in the gameplay of those two. It's a valid criticism as it gets in the way of the relatability of the protagonist, like a mod literally had to stop in and tell people to stop being creeps in the Nier demo thread so you can see how that is harmful when it comes to representation?

Is Kat "sexualized" to you? I don't understand...
I'd say you have a point with Nier but not much with GR2 & HZD.
HZ:D has shown no media whatsoever where Aloy is sexualized thankfully. And regarding Kat not as much as these character:
maxresdefault.jpg

Gravity-Rush-2-Dated-WW.jpg


and ofc the alternate costumes in the first along with a pointless nude scene don't give me much confidence, regarding RPGs in the other thread my phrasing was "man can't we get one game without some of this shit?" seems Horizon is that one game in the context of this thread. I'm a bigger fan of Kat's silhouette than the actual design itself.
 

Sesha

Member
There's tons of great and interesting indies past and future with female protags as well, which I never see much praise for, sadly.

Japan is scared shitless of putting strong female leads who are NOT sexualized. Those are a definite minority because Japan still has their stigmas. Or would you categorize, say, the Onechanbara or the Valkrye Drive girls as a positive representation of a female protagonist?

Those games are super duper niche and basically only are bought by the same people every game. You should have used Lightning Returns or something as an example instead.
 

Neiteio

Member
The female lead in Nier is wonderful. She appears to have no personality at all, and her eyes are covered so you can focus on her exposed thighs and buttocks, rather than her soul or feelings. Just the way GAF likes it!

nier-boots2grkgy.jpg
 

daveo42

Banned
She's not, I love Kat design, but they're starting with the questionable outfits already

gravity-rush-2-pso2.jpg

That happened in the first game as well with DLC outfits. Clothing is a bit more sexualized, but Kat as a character is the most up beat and refreshing character out of the three in the OP. Aloy is great, but Kat just makes me smile with the way she handled each and every situation in the first game. Based on the demo, that seems to carry through to the second.
 
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