Unreasonable story

[WrathOfMegid]

I've noticed something in PSO EP I. In the latter quests, the endings are quite sorrowful. And everything is a big conspiracy to make everyone misreable by abusing power. The people that try to stop or at least see what's going on behind the scenes always get hurt: Elenor & Ult, Matha's butler and parents, Zoke, Bernie, and Shino, and last but not least Rico. With the right sidequests, even we end up in the hospital in Soul of Steel. No matter the pain or hurt, it is all traced back to the govt and military eploitation of the D-factor, and in the game we are powerless to do anything but go along with the flow.
My biggest question is: where's the closure? Is the entire point of PSO to make us feel like disposable garbage men? We go in, we do the dirty work, and we have no say in how it all ends. We kill DF, Olga, and whoever else in EP's III & IV, and we're just spectators, with no real ability except taking out monsters. Aren't there any "Hey, you set everything right. Good job!" moments? All I've seen in PSO is fear, anger, sorrow, guilt, and a milion other hurts. And no retribution for those who caused it. The game is awesome, but the story is reprehensibly cruel. Why did Rico and Flowen die? For the sake of some over-inflated egos. What can we do? Kill monsters and blow meseta. No recompence and retribution. Granted, the men of Pioneer 1 died, but many on pioneer 2 are just as bad, and perpetuate even further misery. PSU better have something better than this. There, I said it, I'm all pissed-out now, good night.

[Solstis]

The whole "lack of retribution" thing probably makes the story more reasonable.

Hey, the rappies have a party. Isn't that enough joy for you? Can you never be satiated?

[WrathOfMegid]

Never! I must throttle the leaders of WORKS with my own hands, oversee the elimination of Black Paper's organization, and ensure the downfall of the corrupt Bureacrats and scientists. Otherwise, I am just a blip on the screen, and I don't like to be a blip on the screen of a fictional story supposedly created for my benefit. The point of RPG's, story-wise anyways, has always been that the main character has a huge impact on the world other than just killing monsters. Yes, killing DF is a huge accomplishment, but it is immortal, so in the end it's just delaying the inevitable.



<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: WrathOfMegid on 2006-09-09 14:34 ]</font>

[KodiaX987]

Nobody said it was gonna be a fairy tale of capes and swords. http://www.pso-world.com/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_wacko.gif

Hell, I recall recently playing a game where you are shown dying in the introduction and the whole game's spent re-living the events prior to your death.

[Eihwaz]

From what Ian has told me, the Phantasy Star series has a thing for lots of terrible angst and sorrow.

It'd be interesting if that was the point of PSO was to tell us all that no matter what, we're all just pawns dealing with things we can never fully understand. Maybe the creators of the game were big on existentialism. Yes, I can see Yuji Naka reading a copy of Waiting for Godot while dictating how the action palletes would work...

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Eihwaz on 2006-09-09 15:51 ]</font>

[phongi]

On 2006-09-09 15:48, KodiaX987 wrote:
Nobody said it was gonna be a fairy tale of capes and swords. http://www.pso-world.com/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_wacko.gif

Hell, I recall recently playing a game where you are shown dying in the introduction and the whole game's spent re-living the events prior to your death.



My sister played Pariah but she got pissed because in the end, the main character ends up killing himself, which makes you think,
"WTF? What's the point of the game if the hero dies?"

[KodiaX987]

On 2006-09-09 17:27, phongi wrote:

"WTF? What's the point of the game if the hero dies?"



The point of a game is to have fun playing through it.

Tell that to your sister. If she disagrees, confiscate any and all consoles, PCs and Tiger Handhelds she may have in her possession.

[AzureBlaze]

I defenetely see your point.
You derive enjoyment from the game(s) that you play because they give you a sense that "I made things better with my hard work while I play thru it".

PSO does not give you this enjoyment because all it is, is little scraps of futility and vaguely depressing barely coherent plot pieces.

Spoiler Zone!
Rico died, yes. And so did flowen. But flowen took out Osto (and if he didn't, falz did when it asploded at the start of ep1). Rupika took out Leo (head of WORKS) when she got the white haze stuff. Bernie never died, because you see him near death on the floor of SeekMaster, but he shows up again in ep 4.
Either way you slice it, Kireek lives too. If you 'kill' him for his SoulEater, Falz takes the body with that 'falz-fog'...and once you kill Falz, he comes back (somehow yay plothole! but you CANT PROVE Falz didn't spit him back out) because you see him again in ep4 AND 3 (but in 3 he's all jaded and wants to fly off into space)

There's defenetely no 'woo yay victory' spots in it, though, which is annoying. Except maybe the end of ep 4...but if you look, there was WAY more effort applied to the ep4 plot than any other. My guess on it is, that they didn't PLAN anything on pso. They just put anything they felt like, and then started tossing scraps around whether they made sense or not. Their objective was "No great heros/everyone is a hero". But they forgot that the line of thinking leads to mass confusion and no resolution.

You have to do *mad research* to even figure out the plot/npcs. That's simply not professional to do, and is not as entertaining as it could be.
--Not to say that everyone wants total-obvious bs on a platter, either. But too far either way makes for an annoying time.

I guess games as escapism...you want to feel like more then a cog in a wheel, because IRL gives you enough of that already. You do games to do something DIFF than irl grind, but if you feel futile it's not as fun.

Fortunatly, it seems PSU will be solving this with Ethan hanging around and a real 40hrs plot for everyone to go through.

[Otis_Kat]

Almost all the Phantasy Star games have had bittersweet stories. Like in PS2, ya you saved the Algo System but an entire planet exploded with nearly everyone on it, and it can be assumed you die at the end.

With PSO we are left to think that Pioneer 2 just floats around, with them nevering finding a real home.

[Aisha_Clan-Clan]

Gonna break this up into two posts. I can Post the Temple and Spaceship data if anyone wants it.
I typed up data for another use, but it does have some of the story, just incase anyone didn't bother to read the creature data and Flowen's messages. Note: not checked for spelling yet.


Central Control Data:
ANALYSIS DATA

JUNGLE AREA: I'll explain what we've found so far about the creatures here. According to the data from the facility... "Test Code Level Beta Subject: Native Creature" That's what they called it. I guess... Botonical Muntant lifeform. Merillia and Meriltas. Large numbers of these creatures have been found in Gal Da Val. "Males and females of these creatures have been confirmed." "The male carries a toxic substance inside its body." I wonder how you can tell which ones are male? These creatures seem to be very timid... They try to hide and run away when found. But don't let your guard down. Mericarol, an advanced form of Merillia and Meriltas, has been found in the Jungle area. And next... Mericarol has a huge body, and has roots to stabilize itself. However, reconnaissance devices have spotted them actually moving. Like the two releated creatures, it also contains a factor that can cause "abnormal status" within its body. Multiple species exist.

MOUNTAIN AREA: I will explain the creature data that has been uncovored so far. According to the data from the facility... "Test Code Level Alpha subject: Native Creature" Our reconnaissance devices have confirmed it as... Gibbon. They are known to travel in packs. When surrounded by them, running for your life is highly recommended. These have been found in all areas of Gal Da Val, however... Pack leaders have only been found in the Mountain area. The leaders are the same species as the Gibbons, but we have named them Gibbles. Gibbles are much larger in size, and have superb jumping ability. They have destroyed reconnaissance devices placed way up in the sky. It has been speculated that these are very ferocious creatures. So please be careful.

SEASIDE AREA: I will explain the creature data that has been uncovored so far. According to data from the facility... "Test CodeLevel Alpha Subject: Native Creature" That's what they called it. "Mutated giant bee found in Seaside area." We call it Gi Gue here at the Lab. "Gi Gue controls numerous small bees." They are called Gee. Thier relationship works just like the queen bee and soldier bees. Also Gi Gue carries a powerful energy charge on its stinger. Gi Gue have also been observed creating net-like barriers. Don't treat them as insignificant creatures, They're dangerous.

CONTROL AREA: Let's see now... I will explain the creature data that has been uncovored so far. The data from the facility says... "Test Code Level Alpha Product: Search and Capture Unit" According to the analysis on Berill and Spigel... They were deployed to protect the Central area and Test Sites." "D-factor infection has been discovored in the AI of these 2 types." "The viral infection is identical to that found under the Central Dome." "This also demonstrates the D-factor's ability to infiltrate machines." Let's see, what else... It's equipment is: "Photon camouflage. Transport generator. Incineration device." Those are some terms you don't hear everyday! It's categorized under capture type... Part of this technology was developed in teh Pioneer 1 Lab...

AREA STRUCTURE: Let's see. According to the analyzed data... The island is devidedinto 4 areas. The Jungle, Mountain, and Seaside areas... Don't seem to have any large facilities. I wonder if they were used as experimental sites or something...? Located in the center of these 3 areas, is the Central Control area, which controls the whole island. The tower in the Central Control area controls the entire island, but... the entrance gate to the control tower is sealed off. The security for thes gate is on an indipendent system. It looks like the tower has been locked down.

PHOTON CAMOUFLAGE: "Photon camouflage" This new technology was dveloped by Pioneer 1. The camouflage won't make things completely invisible. But it will not be detected by radar. So it makes things tricky. However, if you look real carefully, you can detect them with your naked eye. Also, it seems that some traps were developed using this technology. So be careful when walking around.

SECURITY SENSORS: "Security Sensors" These have been placed in various parts of the facility. They are designed only to warn intruders. That's what the data says, anyway. But you never know! So be careful, just in case!


MESSAGE LOG

LOG 1: ...
I am not sure who will be listening to this message, but...
This message will explain the truth about the planet Ragol.
My name is Flowen.
Heathcliff Flowen, Deputy Commander fo the Pioneer 1 military forces.
Our mission, the migration to the planet Ragol, was going well.
The environment of our homeworld, Coral, was deteriorating rapidly...
The Pioneer project was launched to search for a new home.
We arrived on Ragol, we began investigating its suitability to support life.
We then began readying the planet for habitation.
But. selecting this planet was a mistake.
No... That may have been the plan, all along...
Ragol...
We have awoken "IT." "IT" was way beyond what we could handle.
"IT" was not ment to be discovered.
This cursed inheritance from the past...

LOG 2: ...
The fist time I encountered "IT"...
That was when...
We were well ito the excavation process of the ancient spaceship.
We were researching the remains of an ancient civilization on Ragol...
To find technology that could help advance our science.
That was our mission.
At least, I was led to belive that was our mission.
While terraforming and construction of the Central Dome proceeded
on the surface... The excavation project continued in secret.
No one could've imagined the huge project going on right under them.
After long hours of hard labor, the excavation team finally made it
into the interior of the ancient spaceship.
But the celebration ended shortly after.
We encountered "IT."
...
Everyone on the excavation team died.
No one has ever made it back from the ancient spaceship since then.
We were finaly able to confirm the existance of a hostile lifeform.
With this knowlege, we created an attack plan to remove the creature.
...
I will never forget.
"IT" crawled up from a vast abyss of darkness.
It apeared to be mutating as it moved tward us.
It looked like its "body" was cycling through the stages of life and death.
..
The force under my command was completly demolished.
I managed to escape, but..
I was bady injured.
My wounds move, as if they were somehow alive."
I'd almost believe that my wounds were consuming by body to take control.
...

LOG 3: ...
"D-Type Factor"
That's what Osto said when he saw this wound.
He could barely contain his glee at finding this unknown lifeform.
Then he said to me...
"Would you consider donating your body to the govornment.
"For the good of our people?"
And I thought...
If my body could serve to build a better future for our people...
So I agreed to accept the request, under certain conditions.
Osto was overjoyed, and he said to me,
"Your body will be the subject of an official government experiment."
...
What he ment was,
I would have no say in what happend to my body.
For all intents and pourposes, my life was over.
"The govornment will send a message to your friends and family back home
"to announce your death."
That's what he said.
Even after accepting the fate of donating my body, I thought about it...
The young girl who followed me to explore this unknown world.
She always looked up to me as a hero, even though I was just an old man.
What will she think about my death when se finds out...
Everyone will eventualy forget about me.
My death was announced to the world, and I was transfered here.
Maybe that was the beginning of the end. This disaster...
This decision I made to donate my body could trigger
the chain reaction that will uncover the truth of the planet Ragol.
...

LOG 4: ...
I had no knowlege of this facility, until I was brough here.
I was transferred to this island, far from the Central Dome.
Surface and the seabed...
The island is one giant laboratory.
All of the top scientists from Pioneer 1 were there, waiting for me.
Dr. Osto, of course, and even Dr. Graves, the Photon engineer...
This was all part of their plan.
...
Soon, the experiments began on m body.
I don't know the details, but the reaserch seemed to span many areas.
And from the look on Osto's face, the results were fairly positive.
But then...
I heard of news of another sub-lifeform outbreak from the ancient ship.
...
...
"IT" was still alive.
Now that I think about it...
The concept of death doesn't apply to "IT." We just didn't understand.
That is why the ancients have kept "IT" sealed inside the spaceship,
deep beneath the surface of this planet.
Mysterious Photons... An eternal lifeform...
Now I can see why all the doctors were so excited...





<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Aisha_Clan-Clan on 2006-09-11 21:32 ]</font>

[Aisha_Clan-Clan]

Seabed Data:
ANALYSIS DATA

CODE ALPHA: Codes are assigned to each research project in the facility. The codes indicate time period in relation to the overall experiment. Code Alpha indicates projects started in the early stages of research. The level Alpha project range from technology development to biological research. There's also a project to develop machines called "Recon" and "Recobox." These are miniature patrol and reconnaissance devices. Kind of cute... Oops! Sorry... Let's see. There's also a seabed version of the Seach and Capture unit on the surface. "Zoa type" and Zele type." The basic equipment is the same, but these have a freezing device. Brrrrr...

CODE BETA: Code Beta indicates projects started about midway through the experiment. We found two projects in the facility with level Beta test codes. We call them Dolmolm and Dolmdarl. "Mutant Liform, also Known as Altered Beast." These creatures have really long arms, giving them long attack range. So you must be careful to keep your distance. The data also mentions more evolved ones, with special abilities. There are many things still unknown about this creature. So be careful!

CODE GAMMA: Code Gamma indicates projects begun in the final stages of the experiment. There are three projects with level Gamma codes that we found in the records that can also be found in the facility now. Interestingly enough, they're all D-cellular sub lifeforms. That means the sub lifeforms were created by researchers...I will explain each of these types briefky. First Deldepth, Its movement is very slow when in humanoid form. They change their body shape in order to move. They get drasticlly faster when they transform. So be careful! Second, Morfos. Sub lifeform that resembles a floating wall. Beware of its long-range laser attack. We have lost many reconnaissance devices to that attack. It is best to attack its back side, where its armor is lighter. Third, Delbiter. Foure legged sub lifeform. They are huge and ferocious. It has a tendency to charge twards its target at full speed. Please be careful not to get stepped on!

OLGA: The Seabed facility has some terminals you don't see anywhere else. Those are Olga's terminals. It's one of three autonomous AIs, which controlled the experimental facilities developed by Pioneer 1. Actually, Cal here is another one of the three AI. He's quite amazing... His offical name is "Calus." Cal was a Pioneer 1 AI, but he was recovored and placed here in the Lab. Olga and Cal have almost identical specs. You know, something really bothers me about the data analysis. At the end of Olga's operation record, it says, "Olga AI core successfully implanted in test subject." "Normal operative pattern confirmed." That's what it says. I wonder what happened to the main core? The experiment is... Gamma 119...

BIOWEAPONS: According to the analyzed data... The experiment expanded into many differnt directions. One of those was the development of bioweapons. This research was directed by Dr. Osto Hyle. It apears that only 3 subjects produced results. We found some of the research data in the recrords. Those experiment codes are...
"Beta 630
Beta 772
Gamma 119"
The data from test code Beta 630... And the data from the giant beast you encountered on the cliffs of Gal Da Val are identical. In other words... That giant creature was created by researchers. It was developed as an experiment in this facility... Let's look at the other two. "Beta772 escaped. Infiltrated ducts." "Gamma 119 went out of control and was disposed of at the waste station." Those are the details found in the records.


MESSAGE LOG

LOG 1: ...
There's something strange about the air flowing through the facility...
It seems that Osto's test subject has escaped.
Rumor has it that it's infiltrated the ducts in the tunnels.
Once there, it injected the factor into native animals and vegitation, causing the mutations.
...
The Island's control AI has also been infiltrated
In the tunnels...
Not only are the creatures mutating, but the affected machinery is going out of control.
It's only a matter of time until the Central Dome is affected.
Yet, despite it all...
Osto is preparing to begin the final stage of his experiment.
...
"Escaped subject and artificial lifeforms in the Seabed's cage...
"they were all only part of the experimental phase.
"Everything is going as planned.
"All this outrage will be forgotten when the experiment succeeds."
They're planning to create the substance that makes the sub lifeforms,
with their own hands! There's one difference though...
They're using a human core, in hopes of being able to control it.
In other words,
They're trying to make controllable "Bioweapons" based on "IT."
What could be the outcome possibly be, basing their experiment on
something I know they cannot control, let alone even understand?
How could Dr. Osto even think of creating an experiment like this?
... No.
He must have a good reason for trying this. He must...
...

LOG 2: ...
Pioneer 2, carrying the remaining refugees, is approching Ragol...
...
I have been betrayed by the govornment.
One condition I asked in exchange for donating my body for the experiment
was to send a message to the govornment on Coral, the homeworld.
The message was...
"Suspend the second migration to the planet Ragol."
I should have known the message would never be sent.
The people of Pioneer 2 will soon land without any knowlege of
our current situation...
I heard that there have been assasinations within the military.
Probably the work of those blood thirsty dogs...
Deputy Commander... hah! My blindness led to the deaths of my men...
I realized too late how deep the roots of the problem lay.
The Pioneer Plan itself.
That's where it all began.
But it's all too late now...
No one can stop this insanity...
...
...
I will no longer be myself in a matter of time...
I hear footsteps...
Someone is coming to get me.
I have no will left to fight...
My body is weak...
...
I'm fading away...
...

LOG 3: ...
...

"...Explosion..."
...
"...Born from the abyss..."
...
...
...
"...Crew from Pioneer 1..."
...
...
"...I could see them being engulfed..."
...
"...I could see it all from here..."
...
"...I was already overpowered..."
"..."
"...Searching for..."
...
"...It saw my thoughts..."
...
"...Something to serve as a focus..."
...
"...It wanted to evolve..."
...
"...?"
"...Why..."
"...Left only that..."
...
"...No..."
...
"...Not her..."
...
"...Not that girl..."
...
"...Please..."
...
"...Stop..."
...
...
...
"...!..."
...
"...No..."
...
"...Couldn't stop..."
...
...
...
"...For all things..."
...
...
...
"...She..."
...
...
"...She'll..."
...

LOG 4: ...
"...I am..."
...
"...powerless, yet..."
...
"...I have..."
...
"...everything..."
...
"...In this dark abyss..."
...
"...I wait..."
...
"...for the savior of..."
...
"...the red captive child..."
...
"...My destruction..."
...
"...At the bottom of..."
...
"...the deep abyss..."
...
"...I wait..."
...
...
"...Wait..."
...
"...thciff..."
...
"...Flow..."
...

[EJ]

*cough* *points to Aisha posts*

There your Ep2 info and stuff since it is all right in the game if you look for it.

But who said PSO had to have a happy ending?

[Aisha_Clan-Clan]

On 2006-09-11 21:23, EJ wrote:
But who said PSO had to have a happy ending?


True. Not sure about Ep III yet, haven't played much yet.

[EJ]

On 2006-09-11 21:37, Aisha_Clan-Clan wrote:


On 2006-09-11 21:23, EJ wrote:
But who said PSO had to have a happy ending?


True. Not sure about Ep III yet, haven't played much yet.


Depends on what character for a happy ending.

[Aisha_Clan-Clan]

Ah, ok. I go in to 2P mode to get better stuff to use in story mode, but that's been, um, ages. =^.^;=

[EJ]

lazy go online http://www.pso-world.com/images/phpbb/icons/smiles/icon_wacko.gif

umm..on topic..yea pso is like a giant x file case imo.

[Aisha_Clan-Clan]

Wonder if Psu will be differnt...