The Professional Gamer - February 16, 2018

This has been the week of watching ReCreators. I'm almost finished with the series (only 2 episodes left), and I think we should talk about it a bit. If you are unfamiliar with the series, the main premise is that characters from various popular media (anime, manga, and video games primarily) are pulled into our world by another character who has nefarious motives. Although you won't find a point by point summary, I'm going to talk candidly about the plot below the fold, so if you want to enjoy the series with fresh eyes, now is the time to steer away.

The main thrust of this anime is the three way relationship between creator, creation, and audience. There are several key moments in the series that deal with how the characters react to the overarching story. For example, Aliceteria changes who she is siding with during the course of the anime. Several other characters and creators doubt that this is an honest change; but her creator, who knows her as intimately as she knows herself. The antagonist of the anime is a creator whose creator has died, but the creation ends up living on in the creations of the fans. Basically, her powers are derived from fan fic and fan art, making her completely unattached from her own story. This lack of story connection and creator allows her to, in essence, to absorb the fan works as cannon. It is a very interesting premise and way to create a villain with almost unlimited power.

Then, in a climactic moment of the battle, the villain points out that the desired story is to watch the other characters struggle against her. And she is precisely right! I was sitting and enjoying the fight, enjoying the struggle, even enjoying the noble deaths of the heroes. This is the trap that the heroes fell into. They are in a conventional narrative, and therefore the characters are restricted to their prescribed roles. I've not concluded the series yet, but I can see how the final gamble of the heroes is a way to break the conventional narrative and take control again.

In other news, I've played a little bit of Dragon Warrior: Builders and am enjoying it. I'm now past the trial material and exploring more building stuff. Crystal is way further than me, but this sort of game is totally her thing.

That's all for this week. I'll be getting really busy for the next few weeks, so my posts will be a bit scant and short. Never fear, I'll be back to being more of a full time geek soon. Have a great week, and game on!