I'd say your first one of any of these archetypes hits you the most fondly, but I know that's not entirely true. I know I go on about Bern, but Cormag was the first Angsty Wyvern Rider I actually liked (granted, no credibility because I haven't played most of the early games. which is a disclaimer I should just pop on the front of everything I post, lol). I guess it's the nuances that spin the character at just the right angle for each person?
I think this goes for the games in general, too. If you like one game (or continent) in particular and that's your favorite and you like the way it did certain things, then I think there's a tendency to view the ones before it as not having perfected those elements yet and write off the ones after it as diminishing in quality, or just copying what it did. The games at once recycle more than people think and less than people think; for every time I feel a twinge of disappointment that a character I like was "done before," I'm pleasantly surprised at the degree of love and analysis that goes into characters I'd never considered. It's funny, because I was discussing this article with a friend earlier today and I think it hits on a lot of relevant points (maybe if FE was explicitly about the heroes and scenarios being reincarnated we'd have an easier time of things!). If you think about it, it's kind of tough to define a "standard" FE as well, even when you can tease out fundamental similarities and formulas. It's not a strict-progression series-- elements come and go, similar aspects show different facets each time.
I (really hope that) I'm coming to realize that the characters and titles you like are the ones you devote your time and thoughts to, and vice-versa. Maybe it's a little more cyclical than is entirely open-minded. But that's why one person can look at a character and think "bo-ring" and the next person can look at that same character and write paragraphs about how interesting and compelling they are. Is one person thinking too hard, or is the other person not reading between the lines? I don't know-- who can say? But even when I'm feeling down about my favorites for whatever reason, I can't shake the feeling that if a lot (okay, maybe a handful) of smart people have vastly different favorites among the series, isn't that an indication that these games are doing something well?
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Date: 2013-04-27 03:53 am (UTC)I think this goes for the games in general, too. If you like one game (or continent) in particular and that's your favorite and you like the way it did certain things, then I think there's a tendency to view the ones before it as not having perfected those elements yet and write off the ones after it as diminishing in quality, or just copying what it did. The games at once recycle more than people think and less than people think; for every time I feel a twinge of disappointment that a character I like was "done before," I'm pleasantly surprised at the degree of love and analysis that goes into characters I'd never considered. It's funny, because I was discussing this article with a friend earlier today and I think it hits on a lot of relevant points (maybe if FE was explicitly about the heroes and scenarios being reincarnated we'd have an easier time of things!). If you think about it, it's kind of tough to define a "standard" FE as well, even when you can tease out fundamental similarities and formulas. It's not a strict-progression series-- elements come and go, similar aspects show different facets each time.
I (really hope that) I'm coming to realize that the characters and titles you like are the ones you devote your time and thoughts to, and vice-versa. Maybe it's a little more cyclical than is entirely open-minded. But that's why one person can look at a character and think "bo-ring" and the next person can look at that same character and write paragraphs about how interesting and compelling they are. Is one person thinking too hard, or is the other person not reading between the lines? I don't know-- who can say? But even when I'm feeling down about my favorites for whatever reason, I can't shake the feeling that if a lot (okay, maybe a handful) of smart people have vastly different favorites among the series, isn't that an indication that these games are doing something well?