DOS2 Beast Appreciation Post
It looks to me like Beast is the least-liked Origin character overall but, even though itâs really hard for me to choose just one, I think heâs my favorite. I wanted to talk a little bit about why that is because I think heâs awesome and Iâm so glad heâs in the game! I donât expect to change anyoneâs mind but I think his storyâs really interesting and nobodyâs talking about it, so somebody has to!
Beast starts out in a weird place compared to the other Origin characters. In a game where the main characters all seem to struggle with atoning for past mistakes or deciding whether to be selfish or selfless, Beast appears willing to go on living his life despite his first rebellion failing, and he has already dedicated himself to helping others and saving his people. He actually explains that he was sent to Fort Joy because he sacrificed himself to save the crew of the Wavedancer.
Instead, Beastâs story is about his insecurity and low self-esteem. In his persona, Beast, he seems proud and heroic, but he keeps emotionally distant from others. People spread bizarre rumors about him while not connecting with him as a person. Beastâs actual emotional state is pretty clearly depressed. He doesnât view himself as the hero the dwarven people sing aboutâhe sees himself as just some guy with more baggage than he wants. In fact, he seems to see himself and the Beast as two different people. In fact, Isbeil and Justinia both call him a beast as an insult, and this detail combined with Beastâs rambunctious childhood shows he named himself after an insult used by the royal family.
A great moment that indicates all of this is when Beast recounts the tale of how he got arrested and sent to Fort Joy, he begins by boasting about how self-sacrificing he is, but then abruptly cuts himself off and says heâs NOT a hero and was just shackled like the beast he is. He gives all the credit to his crew, which makes no logical sense for him to do.
In fact, when the Voidwoken and the God-King (in the form of that scarecrow) tempt and taunt Beast, they talk about how only they know his âworthâ and how he does so much for others and needs to think about himself for once, which shows this reading was intended.
Another thing I noticed is that Beast talks the least and has the fewest dialogue options out of the Origin characters, and when he does talk itâs usually about his mission. However, whenever he does tell a storyâand storytelling is something he clearly lovesâhe tends to apologize for talking too much and thinks that he should stop. Even if heâs romanced and the player chooses to have the main character say they love his stories, he doesnât seem to believe it and says he was never listened to when he was growing up.
I think Beast is the epitome of the idea that if you canât love yourself, you canât successfully love others, either. He says he can ânever be freeâ and has to give up his freedom for his people. In Stonegarden, when he talks about the two arguing dwarf spirits, he says that âthe true measure of a heartâ is standing up for everybody, not just those who are closest to you⌠but he doesnât seem to have any respect for himself. In fact, heâs the only Origin character to never say he loves the main character when romancedâhe avoids saying it and says it isnât the right time for the two of them to be happy together because he knows he has to go back and help rebuild the dwarven kingdom, even though itâs blatantly obvious that he wants to be with the main character. I also think heâs the shyest and most nervous of the romance options, often freezing up or getting suddenly quiet in his romantic scenes.
Itâs so refreshing that in a game all about the consequences of your actions, a game thatâs so overwhelmingly dark and provides so many opportunities to be morally despicable, Beast is there as a genuinely tolerant, likable, honest, funny, and heroic character who is a good person but whose faith in himself and ability to be happy was damaged by his past and upbringing. Heâs so different from everyone else and thatâs so cool! I also like that how unhappy he is isnât obvious at first but is clear in retrospect. I was also glad that itâs possible for him to get a happy endingâin my run he quickly realized that the courtly life wasnât right for him and ran back to the Lady Vengeance, then became her captain.
vaporwave
prguitarman
romaincrisis
izzy806
