Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin Is Right To Embrace Chaos

Sometimes it’s okay for Final Fantasy to kick back and show it’s silly side.

You Are Reading :Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin Is Right To Embrace Chaos

We have a habit of taking games too seriously. When you break them down to the most basic definition – games are toys, to be enjoyed and discarded, yet they’re also works of art that deserve to be treasured like films, literature, and television. The Last Guardian and The Last of Us Part 2 are rightfully regarded as objects of genuine cultural merit to be valued and dissected, while obscenely camp experiences like Earth Defense Force and Dynasty Warriors are games designed to be enjoyed as the silly examples of excess they evidently are.

It’s okay to admit that games as a medium can occupy all of these categories, being seen as masterful inventions of creativity and over-the-top examples of entertainment that can be enjoyed in so many different ways. Both of these approaches are perfectly valid, and Final Fantasy is a series that perfectly understands that divide. This is the property that spawned the likes of Kingdom Hearts and Advent Children, two things filled with so much convolution that it’s almost laughable. But I love both of them so much, fully aware I can enjoy them for what they are while continuing to value them whenever the series decides to be serious and contemplative at the very same time.

While it has moments of cutesy aloofness, Final Fantasy 7 Remake is a serious political adventure that delves into mature themes and narrative consequences that its characters are forced to confront. It adapts and enhances the 1997 original in countless ways, preserving all of its masterful qualities while building upon it in ways that feel bitingly modern. It’s meant to be taken seriously, given that Cloud and company are fighting against an evil corporation that is more than capable of destroying the planet they call home. Sure, the storytelling eventually goes in some wild directions and dares to usurp the existing canon, but it does so with a straight face, so we buy into its melodrama for the entire ride.

The series’ main entries have managed to strike this balance for decades, and it’s often in the spin-offs where things become a bit sillier and far more self-indulgent. Dirge of Cerberus is a load of absolute nonsense, while World of Final Fantasy is an adorable homage to the entire franchise that incorporates original characters and locations in a way that still feels fresh and exciting. Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin (gosh I hate that name so much) seems to occupy the same place in the gaming zeitgeist. From its very first reveal trailer it was clear that this game was going to be undeniably batshit.

You play as a dude called Jack who has seemingly been plucked from the modern world and is tasked with working with a ragtag group of adventurers as they seek to defeat Chaos and save the universe. At least, that’s the rough lay of the land, the trailers and gameplay I’ve been subjected to are so ridiculous that anything could happen in the full game when it arrives next year. He’s just a bloke, finding himself in a fantasy world where he wields giant weapons and dons absurd outfits all while maintaining his same no-nonsense attitude. It feels like an edgelord meme we’d use to riff on games like this, but it’s real. There’s one scene where he actually pulls his phone out, blasts out some sick nu-metal, and walks away from the enemy because he’s tired of dealing with their bullshit. Yes, that really happens.

While some of the characters that accompany him are your typical JRPG archetypes, others feel equally out of the place, and there’s a strange, absurdist beauty to it. Part of me loves how Stranger of Paradise is embracing this chaos and isn’t trying to take itself too seriously. Or it actually is trying to be nuanced and meaningful but it’s backfired in the most spectacular way possible. Either way, I’m along for the ride regardless of the intention. It’s a deliberate reinvention of the four Warriors of Light scenario that plays fast and loose with the series’ canon in a way that is oddly exciting. While the game was originally pitched as a modern exploration of the first Final Fantasy, recent footage and previews hint that locations and motifs from Final Fantasy 13 will also be included. Knowing this, is Stranger of Paradise actually just a bizarre universe-hopping adventure featuring a bunch of edgy losers trying to save the fabric of reality? If so – sign me the hell up.

Final Fantasy has millions of fans around the globe, and all of them are waiting for Final Fantasy 16 and the second chapter of FF7 Remake to be vast, uncompromising journeys into obscenely detailed worlds both old and new. I’ve no doubt they will succeed in delivering such a vision, but sometimes it’s okay to appreciate more eccentric titles like Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin (still hate the name though) and how they’re willing to try something different even if it means becoming an internet meme or the butt of a joke for their entire existence. Such a reputation is worth taking in your stride, and I hope Square Enix leans into this reaction to market the game as a bold, divisive, and ultimately fun time that fans and newcomers will love. Please put several Limp Bizkit songs on the official soundtrack. For culture.

Link Source : https://www.thegamer.com/stranger-of-paradise-final-fantasy-origin-embrace-chaos/