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[CHC]

SIlent Hill 2 and SOMA both feature this, and in both cases I find it unsettling. It adds to the horror.

In SOMA,

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it's because they're not actually people, just copies of them uploaded into hardware. They only can draw on previous experiences to respond to new ones, and as such, have no frame of reference for the hell around them.

In Silent Hill 2,

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the protagonist James turns out to just be utterly fucking insane and unhinged.

 

[VanillaCakeIsBurning]

I was thinking about the OP and just came up with a good one.

In Valkyria Chronicles MAJOR SPOILERS

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Welkin displays very little grief after Isara's death. He gives the excuse that he has to keep it together for the squad but he comes off as a complete unfeeling robot afterwards. There's keeping it together for the team and still displaying grief like a human, then there's what Welkin did in the game.

Contrast this with the anime where after retaking Bruhl Welkin and Alicia walk through Welkin's old home seeing reminders of Isara all over.

Finally, Alicia tells Welkin that it's ok for him to grieve and he ends up bawling uncontrollably. Finally letting out all that grief that he was holding inside of him. I thought that was a much more human display than what they did in the game.

It just really bothers me when someone dies in a game and whoever's supposed to be close to them doesn't actually show it.

 

[SOLDIER]

I was thinking about the OP and just came up with a good one.

In Valkyria Chronicles MAJOR SPOILERS

Spoiler

Welkin displays very little grief after Isara's death. He gives the excuse that he has to keep it together for the squad but he comes off as a complete unfeeling robot afterwards. There's keeping it together for the team and still displaying grief like a human, then there's what Welkin did in the game.

Contrast this with the anime where after retaking Bruhl Welkin and Alicia walk through Welkin's old home seeing reminders of Isara all over.

Finally, Alicia tells Welkin that it's ok for him to grieve and he ends up bawling uncontrollably. Finally letting out all that grief that he was holding inside of him. I thought that was a much more human display than what they did in the game.

It just really bothers me when someone dies in a game and whoever's supposed to be close to them doesn't actually show it.

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if I recall, they skip ahead a couple of weeks after her death.

Unlike my previous examples I feel this one got its due course. It's never forgotten and it all leads up to the bittersweet epilogue where

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he names his daughter after Isara.

 

[VanillaCakeIsBurning]

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if I recall, they skip ahead a couple of weeks after her death.

Unlike my previous examples I feel this one got its due course. It's never forgotten and it all leads up to the bittersweet epilogue where

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he names his daughter after Isara.

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I can't remember exactly if there was a time skip but I think they still should have showed him grieving in some fashion since it was his sister who died. I thought the way the anime handled it was a lot better since he still remained stoic for the squad, but after all was said and done he let out the grief that he was holding back. That was a more powerful moment imo than just having it shoved off with a timeskip.

The ending was a nice touch however and is one of my favourite game endings.

 

[SOLDIER]

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I can't remember exactly if there was a time skip but I think they still should have showed him grieving in some fashion since it was his sister who died. I thought the way the anime handled it was a lot better since he still remained stoic for the squad, but after all was said and done he let out the grief that he was holding back. That was a more powerful moment imo than just having it shoved off with a timeskip.

The ending was a nice touch however and is one of my favourite game endings.

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I do agree and wish we got more grieving from both Welkin and Alicia, but they probably thought it would be redundant after Rose giving her big song moment.

Problem is I found Rose to be a pretty shitty person, and her reasons for hating Isara were just about the dumbest ever (which is in line with the whole conflict between the two of them, where Rose is absolutely in the wrong but everybody plays off the racism as "Eh, let them fight it out.".

Speaking of which, Final Fantasy X:

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personally I felt Wakka had better reasons for hating the Al Bhed. As much as Grand Wizard Wakka as a meme now, his bias was at least reasonably justified.

The part that always gets me is that when he does finally come around and realize the error of his ways, he never apologizes to Rikku directly (the one person who was absolutely 100% innocent and didn't deserve the crap he gave her). He just apologizes to Cid under the pretense that it extends to all the Al Bhed within earshot.

 

[Jyester]

Glad to see my two main examples already got mentioned. RE7 and Evil Within were really bad at this. And I like both games.

Both Ethan and Sebastian are indefensible from a writing standpoint. In RE4, Leon came equipped with an arsenal of one-liners to grant a bit of levity to the story, but he also acted worried, startled and scared at the appropriate times. It made me feel much more involved in the story.

Ethan and Sebastian are mostly blank slates that make the story feel less exciting as a result. Really a missed opportunity. I wish Ethan had more interaction with the Bakers, who are actually really fun characters.

As for TEW, I feel that coming off the DLC and the trailer for part 2, they seem to be going in the right direction.

 

[Vyse The Legend]

I'm surprised it wasn't mentioned on the first page, but there's strong evidence in the game that Ethan works for an Umbrella-esque corporation too. As such, he'd be familiar with all sorts of insanity, and likely be trained to keep calm under intense pressure. Not saying he shouldn't have had bigger reactions to things, but he is hardly the average Joe experiencing these hostilities for the first time.

 

[dark_chris]

I just chalked it all up to adrenaline and being in shock. When it's fight or flight you don't have time to process stuff like that.


What bothered me was how he didn't do the greatest job

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explaining to the police officer what his situation was.

Obviously it was for story conceit, I just wish it had been more believable. Those are not the things I would have said

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to a cop if i was being held hostage.

The cop part bothered me more than anything. I woulda just said,

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"Officer, I'm being held hostage by a group of people. Please call for others! There are terrible things going on and I'm in hiding. They can come at any moment." Or when the officer approaches you in the garage, just say "we have no timento talk, let's go now! Put me in the back, let's just go!!"

But hey, horror genre.

 

[Jyester]

I'm surprised it wasn't mentioned on the first page, but there's strong evidence in the game that Ethan works for an Umbrella-esque corporation too. As such, he'd be familiar with all sorts of insanity, and likely be trained to keep calm under intense pressure. Not saying he shouldn't have had bigger reactions to things, but he is hardly the average Joe experiencing these hostilities for the first time.

His character is simply under-cooked. He hardly responds to his environment, which makes it hard to care about anything he goes through. The writer's didn't commit to making an actual character out of him. That's the problem. Again, Leon was a trained cop who experienced the horrors of Raccoon City and was a fun character. Ethan isn't.

 

[Javier23]

His character is simply under-cooked. He hardly responds to his environment, which makes it hard to care about anything he goes through. The writer's didn't commit to making an actual character out of him. That's the problem. Again, Leon was a trained cop who experienced the horrors of Raccoon City and was a fun character. Ethan isn't.

Ethan is more of an empty vessel for the player than any other RE character since the original Chris & Jill duo.

 

[Ahasverus]

Ethan is more of an empty vessel for the player than any other RE character since the original Chris & Jill duo.

Which was a bad choice. Instead of aiding to the immersion it takes the player out of it.

 

[Jyester]

Ethan is more of an empty vessel for the player than any other RE character since the original Chris & Jill duo.

I thought I was arguing with myself for a second.

Which was a bad choice. Instead of aiding to the immersion it takes the player out of it.

My point exactly.