Ms Chievous

[mschevious]

The YRP Problem (VG: Final Fantasy X-2)

Final Fantasy X-2 was originally released for the PlayStation 2 in 2003 in Japan and America, and 2004 in Europe and Australia. The International Mix + Final Mission was released originally in 2004, and was remastered for the PlayStation 3 in 2013 and later the PlayStation 4 in 2015. It was regarded as the first direct sequel that Square (by then, Square Enix) had ever made to a mainline Final Fantasy.

It follows Yuna (arguably the real protagonist from Final Fantasy X, but that’s a whole other argument that we won’t get into here) as she searches for Tidus after seeing a sphere of someone that resembles him very strongly. With her friend and cousin, the ever peppy Rikku, and a new party member in the form of the mysterious Paine, she takes on challenges around Spira under the banner of “Gullwings”, the name for their sphere hunting troupe.

It’s unique in the Final Fantasy world for many reasons. As well as there only being three party members (there have been four or more, often interchangeable, since the conception of Final Fantasy way back in 1987), it’s the first Final Fantasy headed by a female character, as well as the first to feature a defined single-sex party. It also made waves with its completion percentage and various endings to achieve. In addition, the job system from Final Fantasy III was revived and polished, meaning that it was only the second Final Fantasy with the means to change fighting styles, and arguably the first to bring in the mechanic to do so on the fly in battle (if we take out the “party switch” battle mechanic in its direct predecessor, which still only gave us limited options for battle until almost the postgame).

Opinions on the game were polarized, both with critics and gamers. Some enjoyed the almost whimsical beginnings and the gradual unveiling of a deeper threat, whilst others panned it as a “lesbian road trip”. Many criticisms fell around the endings; in the “good” and “true” endings (which are actually really difficult to get, there’s a lot of very precise things that must be done) Tidus and Yuna are reunited, leading many to say that the impact of Tidus’s disappearance at the end of Final Fantasy X became inconsequential, losing a lot of the meaning of both games. But there’s a subtext, if you look closely.

From being very young, Yuna was “destined” to follow her father’s footsteps in becoming a Summoner and defeating Sin. She dedicated her life to training and steeling herself for the consequences. She knew she would die at the end of her pilgrimage, and her life was nothing more than being a Summoner. There was no Yuna outside of that; that was her destiny and her reason. She had no need for anything beyond that. However, when her fate changed, she lost something incredibly important: herself. She had defeated Sin and lived, she was a heroine and a symbol of peace. But as time went by, she became lost.

Her relentless pursuit of Tidus was actually a lot more than “just chasing a boy”. Tidus had become important; not necessarily just as a partner or a lover, but as a person. All her life, people had treated her a specific way because she was a Summoner, born to die for Spira. That’s all she had and that’s all she was. Tidus was the first person to treat her as just another girl. Whilst he recognised that she was important and powerful, it wasn’t until a late point in the journey that he learned what being a Summoner actually meant. As a result of this, Tidus and Yuna had built up a relationship on a basic human level; more than the sibling relationship Yuna had with Wakka and Lulu, more than the bonds she shared with her Guardians. Their relationship and connection was deeper, it was simply Tidus and Yuna as people. No special treatment, no divine reverence, just two human teenagers enjoying each other’s company and falling in love.

As a result of this, Tidus becomes an important cornerstone. When Yuna defeated Sin, she lost everything she had ever been. Who was she outside of being a Summoner? She genuinely didn’t know. She hadn’t allowed herself to develop that (which is why she can read as being a bit bland in both games). What’s the point of building a life when you know that it’s all going to be torn apart soon? So when she sees the sphere of someone that looks a lot like her lost love, she grabs the thread and yanks. Not just because of the romantic relationship that they shared, but because he is the starting point. For her, Tidus represents life outside of being a Summoner because of his treatment of her and their relationship. He becomes the foundation on which Yuna can genuinely start building her new life. Without the experiences that most teenagers would have at this point in life, Tidus is the one piece she can hold on to, the one tiny piece of scaffolding that she can work around.

The idea of losing oneself is terrifying. You build yourself around a specific thing (in Yuna’s case, being a Summoner) and, when that’s removed, there’s so much doubt. Your whole personality (or occasionally lack thereof, which I believe to be a personality in itself) can come crashing down. You question yourself endlessly; “Who am I without this?”, “Is this behaviour/trait because of this central structure?” “Is this who I am?”

This, in my opinion, is why saying Yuna is “just chasing a boy” is unfair. She’s not just chasing a boy; she’s chasing her identity. She’s chasing a future and a life.

She’s chasing herself.

[mschevious]

Gaslighting and Memory (Mental Health)

Wikipedia defines gaslighting as “a form of psychological manipulation in which a person seeks to sow seeds of doubt in a targeted individual or in members of a targeted group, making them question their own memory, perception, and sanity”. It was a relief for me when this term became prevalent, as I finally had a word for something I’d experienced most of my life. This particular train of thought follows specifically the memory aspect.

For a long time, my memory was called into question by authority figures, usually my legal guardians. “I never said that”, “you said this”, “I said this” and other statements to this effect were mainstays in my daily life. It’s very easy, especially as a child, to just think “I must have misremembered, these people are adults and authority figures, they wouldn’t lie to me”. As a result, I built up a belief that my memory is awful.

I became VERY aware of my poor memory and, as I got older, started taking steps to work around it: shopping lists made on my hand because I’d forget that I had a paper list, always putting things in specific places so that I always knew where they were, etc. Recently I bought whiteboard markers so that I can write the contents of the freezer on it’s door.

But recently, I’ve been wondering; is my poor memory only poor because I’ve always told myself that my memory is awful? What if that manipulation has actually had an effect on the physical functionality of my memory? The Self-Fulfilling Prophecy is a documented socio-psychological phenomenon, most people have experienced it for themselves. When we’re convinced something will go well, it usually does, and when we think something will go badly, we’re not surprised when it does. It can be an act of self-sabotage as much as it can be a force for good.

When in conversations with friends about things that have happened or been said previously, I’ve usually said something along the lines of “I could be wrong, my memory is awful”, but often I’m countered with something akin to “your memory’s better than mine!”. I’ll be the first to admit I forgot what I went shopping for, but EVERYONE talks about that thing where you go shopping for a specific thing and come out of the shop with everything bar that one thing. I forget what I’ve got in the freezer, but I’ve seen friends open their cupboards or fridges and go “Oh, I forgot I had that!”.

Maybe, in reality, my memory isn’t actually as poor as I’ve been led to believe, and I’m simply sabotaging myself by telling myself that it’s awful. I’ll still use my little tricks to work around it, but maybe I need to trust in myself a bit more.It’s definitely food for thought.

[mschevious]

The Vincent Problem (VG: Catherine)

Catherine is a puzzle game released by Atlus (bought out by Sega in 2013) in 2011 in Japan and America, 2012 in PAL regions, and remixed and re-released in 2019. I played it when it first came around, and it hit a few sore spots back then (I found myself in an oddly similar situation at that time in my life, it wasn’t pleasant!), and decided to invest in the Full Body Remix this year as it was a favourite of mine. I like anything a bit unusual, and Atlus were always the Kings of offbeat.

It follows our protagonist, Vincent Brooks, a 32-year old programmer, as he finds himself caught up in the charms of a beautiful young woman named Catherine, leading him to cheat on his girlfriend of five years (Katherine). In the Full Body version, a new interest is added; a young, naive stranger that goes by the name “Qatherine” (usually shortened to “Rin). If you think this is confusing in English, it’s even worse in the native Japanese; the Japanese alphabet is phonetically based, meaning all three names are spelled exactly the same. To circumvent the difference in choices that might happen near the end of the game, English subtitles often replace the name C/Katherine with the word “her”, or skip over it altogether if it’s not part of a sentence, adding to the confusion and mystery.

As Vincent finds himself caught in a web of lies and torn between each love interest, he starts to suffer strange nightmares that are rumoured to have the power to kill.

Beyond the admittedly sexist reasons for the nightmares, my issue isn’t with Vincent and the nightmares. My issue is with his partners of choice, primarily Catherine and Katherine.

Katherine has a pregnancy scare early on in the game, and she uses this to attempt to force Vincent into being ready for things he’s just not prepared for yet - marriage and offspring. The day after her “I might be pregnant” speech, she confirms that she is pregnant. She then proceeds to enter a big speech about Vincent meeting her parents, and how she’ll be in control of the household finances and other decisions that (in my mind) should be made together if the intention is to enter parenthood as a couple. Whilst I understand that that’s just how she might be, or how their relationship may work better, there’s not even a conversation about how these decisions are best made; they’re just made on the spot by Katherine. 

Later on in the game (this pertains to the Full Body version, I don’t think it comes up in the original version), you hear her muse to herself that she “should have been straight with him” and, after a particularly nasty nightmare and the fallout thereof, Katherine tells Vincent that she ISN’T pregnant and has “known for a while”. However, up to that point, she has continued to use the pregnancy as a way to almost entrap Vincent into the life that SHE wants with no discussion and little effective communication. Even if the “Good” or “True” ending for Katherine are achieved and the two get back together/get married, it’s made abundantly clear that life will be on HER terms and she won’t relinquish control over the relationship or Vincent. If the genders were reversed and a male was exerting this level of control and (let’s face it) manipulation, it would be classed as an abusive relationship, but it’s almost portrayed as “fine” because Katherine “deserves” that level of commitment after a relationship of five years that (in her eyes) hasn’t gone anywhere.

Catherine is a whole other can of worms. From the apparent ability to erase the Vincent’s memories of his time with her to her absolute insistence on being with him despite protests, she comes across as needy and manipulative. She emotionally blackmails him (”I’ll die right here”), which quickly turns into threats of violence when she finds something off or Vincent tries to get her out of his life in a gentle fashion (”I die, or I kill you”). In a optional phone call one evening, she even veils a threat to cripple Vincent so that she can have him all to herself (”Maybe I’ll make it so you can’t go to work any more, then I can be at your place all day... But then we wouldn’t be able to go on dates!”). When Vincent actually directly attempts to break up with her, she pleads, saying he can be with them both as long as she’s “his girl” and, when that doesn’t work, beats him up in the bar bathroom. She even goes so far as to use a phrase sometimes used by abusive partners whilst beating him (”I’m protecting you”). Whilst the relationship has the appearance of improving in her “Good” and “True” endings, her “New” ending (exclusive to Full Body) shows her manipulating time itself to be with Vincent in High School, thus eliminating his choices entirely.

As in the case of Katherine, if the genders were switched and it was a man doing these things to a woman, her friends would be yelling at her to get the hell out of that toxic relationship. As is it, his friends just make fun of him for being a cheat. They don’t even seem to try to get him to actually solve the problem of him cheating, they just chide him and make guesses as to what this girl is like, even asking to see the pictures she’s sent to him.

Between two very different, but equally manipulative prospective partners, the only truly good endings for Vincent seem to be the ones where he ends up alone (either through choice or circumstance) or with Rin (Full Body exclusive). The other endings just seem to perpetuate the whole “suck it up” culture that has surrounded men for decades, implying that he’s lucky to be with either of the other girls.

Whilst Catherine is an extremely interesting game full of moments that make you question yourself and unique gameplay, the end result is, accidentally, a game that serves to contribute to the toxic masculinity our culture is steeped in, showing it detrimental to men as well as women. Our society has changed a lot in the years since its initial release, the portrayed themes and problems were more widely accepted as the norm seven years ago. However, the Full Body Remix has revealed a game that hasn’t aged well. It’s a shame, really, because Atlus have successfully tackled some really interesting and controversial themes in recent years. And whilst this new perspective has made me rethink even my own stance on the issues in Catherine, it’s still a game experience that I find interesting and even enjoy, despite its issues.