So Vorodi said that Sylux had a “great backstory with threaded storytelling that’d make him a great use for future games” but then later Tanabe clarified that Sylux was initially designed by NST as just another one-off for Hunters before he asked them to keep his backstory a mystery so Tanabe could reuse the character and give him his own backstory.
The consensus is that Vorodi had a backstory in mind, but when Tanabe made the request he thought Tanabe intended to save the backstory and expand on it for a future game, rather than make his own. Hence the claim. Tanabe either forgot or never saw it.
But then if Sylux was designed as just a one-off like the other titular hunters, that means his backstory would’ve been something simple and to the point. Not something with “threaded storytelling.” But the more I think of it… And I do acknowledge my personal delusions and bias…
I think Sylux was supposed to highlight the corruption of the Federation; Either as a victim or a corrupt member who got ousted for it. Because before Hunters we got Fusion in the mainline series, which ends with the revelation of the Federation’s corruption via its investment in unethical weaponry as Samus is now apparently on the run from them.
Vorodi, like the rest of us, was intrigued by the idea of a corrupt Federation and probably also assumed/hoped we’d see more of that conflict between them and Samus over it. So when he designed Sylux, he designed a character that highlighted that corruption, hence the Shock Coil being a Federation weapon that utilizes banned technology; Again, a way to connect to how their twist in Fusion was making a weapon out of a banned creature.
So it’s “threaded storytelling” because it ties into Fusion, a game that occurs later in the timeline. And it makes Sylux a good use for future games, specifically set post-Fusion. Because if Sylux is an anti-hero then how do him and Samus reconcile their initial opposition yet shared beef with the Federation over the same reasons? If Sylux was ousted for corruption, mayhaps he’s recruited by the Federation to hunt down Samus as they offer redemption, a way back into the fold since they’ve changed their mind and now agree with the sentiments that got Sylux castigated.
In the end Tanabe had something that… could still lean into the idea of Sylux representing the corruption of the Federation if his successor Tabata chooses to go that direction. Ngl I really hope she does; Imagine Prime 5 having Samus deal with Sylux and his Mochtroids being a menace. Samus defeats Sylux and destroys the Mochtroids and the original Metroid they were cloned from once and for all, but the 100% ending is the Federation finding Sylux alive but injured…
Then comes Prime 6, which takes place right after Fusion. It’s revealed the War Hawks have pulled strings to employ Sylux and get him pardoned or promise it as a reward. Combining Federation assets with Sylux’s own to take out Samus. Sylux is triumphant to earn his “redemption” when really he’s learned nothing new at all from this; Quite conveniently, his hatred for the Federation dissipates as soon as they validate him.
Samus finally kills Sylux for good and then posts incriminating files on the War Hawks she gathered throughout the game; Because this is an idealistic world, the War Hawks are arrested and the Federation is at peace, opening up for Samus’ good terms with them in Dread.
Each standard level of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze typically introduces at least one new platforming mechanic, which can be broken down into three categories: A) platforming elements that allow the player to directly alter them (such as the flipping metal platforms), B) elements that can become hazards (such as the burning treetops), and C) elements that expand the capabilities of the player characters (such as the bouncing jelly). What allows these elements to work so well as that they set the tone and feel of the entire level, where mechanics in category A typically exist in levels focused on puzzle-solving and exploration, category B are in levels about endurance and quick reflexes, and category C are in levels about thinking of the environment in new ways.
Blogging for @starryoak, who asked about my mention of Kensuke Tanabe ruining the Paper Mario series, here’s the vid I learned most of that info from, which talks about how; why Miyamoto may have had a minor role in it; Tanabe is way more at fault.
Again, I hope he gets run out of town by an angry mob...
What do you think about Tanabe's comments about the future of Paper Mario?
It’s very complex. I respect what he’s saying – Tanabe acknowledges that Mario is not his character, and therefore, when Shigeru Miyamoto tells him to jump, Tanabe’s response is obviously “How high?”
(Actually, it’s far more polite than that, but the point is, he wants to honor Miyamoto, because Mario belongs to him)
But on some level, I think it’s also silly, because there are masses of fans out there who are not happy with the direction that Paper Mario is going. By honoring Miyamoto’s request, he is essentially undoing what people love about that series.
And it’s not easy. I imagine he sees it as a challenge, to try and succeed in spite of what could be considered a handicap, but there is no denying that it is a handicap. I wonder if he has considered the fact that maybe, in complying with Miyamoto’s request, could he be negatively impacting how people view Miyamoto? If Miyamoto wants to take away a defining aspect of Paper Mario that fans of the series have come to expect and rely on, even if Mario is Miyamoto’s creation, that’s going to make him look bad in the subset of people who like Paper Mario as it was.
I mean if you think about it. When it comes to the 2D Metroid series, the Federation’s presence is minimal, usually meant for the sole purpose of propping up Samus’ appearance in the story. Whenever it does play a more proactive role, this goes hand-in-hand with it militarizing itself and being placed under unflinching scrutiny for this as the Federation becomes an antagonist. It feels quite meta; The Federation tries to become more involved, and so becomes more fascist.
Likewise, NEStroid makes mentions of a Federation Police, who had to hire bounty hunters to help them with the Space Pirates; There was not an attempt at a proper standing military, just people who could fulfill one-time military contracts and then they’re done. In the Zero Mission manga, it’s mostly the Federation Police we see, with the bumbling Chief Hardy. We do see Adam in charge of a small space fleet that is necessary to counter Ridley’s, but that’s about it.
And any worldbuilding for the Federation places emphasis on its civilian aspect, on its politics. The Space Pirates ARE a legitimate threat but there’s a fascist movement that will of course rely on the fear of the Other to build itself up. Chairman Vogl is a red flag, he wants to combine local militias into a formal military; Chairman Keaton succeeds him and this is a victory for the Federation back home, as Keaton is someone who wants to pursue negotiations with the Space Pirates instead.
There’s this scrutiny towards the Federation to not lose itself in becoming militaristic to combat the pirates, lest they become that which they swore to destroy. There’s so much more diversity of its alien species, but also an acknowledgement of how the Federation as an institution can fail, when “P1” points out the discrimination that Mauk and Kreatz’s species face.
Even Samus herself is not above scrutiny; The second game of the series is her committing an act of genocide against animals who were ultimately just trying to mind their own business, and it ends with Samus having a somber moment of reflection over what she’s done. Fusion doubles down on how this was at best morally gray by revealing that the Metroid genocide enabled the X parasites to propagate once more and threaten the galaxy, which the war hawks in the Federation attempt to capitalize on. Side stories to Super and Zero Mission go on to even reveal that Samus herself was the survivor of a massacre, just to retroactively make her Metroid extermination all the more questionable on her end.
Whereas the Prime series… I mean I love this half of the franchise. But in hindsight, it really does have the most Federation presence, at its most militarized with starfighters and armor and whatnot. Instead of Police Chiefs we have Admirals, Privates, Generals, Sergeants. Echoes begins fleshing them out as purely human soldiers whose logs are like something you’d see out of Starship Troopers. Corruption makes the Federation even more militarized, which fits the grander scale of this conflict, but we also see it use Space Pirate assets such as Phazon and living brain AIs.
At the time, it felt like retroactive foreshadowing to Fusion; Like it played into the political subplot of the Zero Mission manga. The Federation militarized to combat the pirates, but what did it enable later down the line? The PED is justified since Samus needs someone to modify her suit while’s unconscious, but the Aurora Units? We already know the Space Pirates will successfully rebuild Mother Brain, there’s no need for Phaaze’s brain AI to come from the Federation unless, perhaps, this was all meant to subtly tie into Fusion.
…But then we get Federation Force which has the Federation further militarize with its titular new branch of Project Golem mechs because it doesn’t matter that we just beat the Space Pirates, we need more! And like okay fair, it’s a video game so we need stakes and new mechanics. Let’s not question taxpayer dollars going into Blast Ball.
And then we have Beyond, which I’ve already discussed. Hunters made a connection between Sylux and the corruption of the Galactic Federation; We didn’t know much about them, but we knew their Shock Coil originated as a Federation prototype that utilized banned technology, before Sylux stole it and turned it against its creators. So it kinda made you ask, Huh! Why is there a connection between the Federation developing a war crime weapon and this character who hates the Federation, yet isn’t a Space Pirate themselves??? Fusion had already released so there’s a lot of room to consider what NST might’ve had in mind before Tanabe asked them to keep Sylux’s backstory a mystery so he could flesh it out later.
But then we get Beyond and there is no meaningful thematic connection between these two details, Sylux is just a reckless jerk whose hunger for power cannot thrive under the Federation’s military branch. In fact the Federation was even trying to protect him from himself! It’s all his fault. We get more bonding with these Federation troopers who talk about going home when this is all done.
Tokabi is an indigenous man who feels self-loathing for joining the military and questionable acts done in service to it… But the nature of these questionable things is glossed over, handwaved. Armstrong is a beloved Samus fangirl and may or may not be a pinkwashing homonationalism trope. The Lesbian Cop. Him and Armstrong die in service to the greater good, while the guys who hates the military, Sylux, is just an evil monster. It all felt like military propaganda lowkey, didn’t it?
Like… I dunno what to surmise about Yoshio Sakamoto’s politics when developing 2D Metroid or Kensuke Tanabe’s when working on the Prime series. Metroid Prime clearly began drawing influence from Halo, and while I dunno the politics of its human military, it could be as simple as Tanabe and Retro Studios just wanting to do Halo without disrupting their war story by making the military into the bad guys because lasers and space warfare is cool!
But again I have to think about how Tanabe’s idea of exploring the Federation meant expanding the role of its military while elaborating nothing on its civilian sector or politics. Whereas the Zero Mission manga did plenty. I think of how the Prime series goes from a Federation Police to a Federation military. A military that is entirely human no less.
And while Prime humanizes the Space Pirates more (Mostly just to make jabs at their expense), the Zero Mission manga had that powerful moment where in spite of the massacre Samus went through, she still opts not to execute a helpless, pleading Space Pirate. Raven Beak is a reactionary who seems to lament the emasculation of his warrior race via peace, him and Mother Brain have actual political ideas (It’s basic, but it’s the benevolent dictatorship) whereas the Space Pirates are presumably just power-hungry and Dark Samus is an amoral force of nature.
The Prime series has been consistently developed by Retro Studios, save for its two spin-offs Hunters and Federation Force. Retro is located in Texas, a Republican state. But I shouldn’t be disingenuous and pretend Japan doesn’t have a history of imperial atrocities. Likewise neither country is a monolith, there are many Japanese who decry their nation’s violence, just as there are Americans who do.
And this might be a controversial suggestion but… While Samus Aran is kind of hailed as a badass female protagonist, her story and series is not really all that feminist outside of having a compelling female protagonist. There’s very little discussion of actual gender within it, and the most we ever get is from the 2D side of series, which while deeply flawed in its execution at times (Other M) does seem more willing to explore that sort of commentary with Raven Beak wanting to exploit his daughter’s body to create an army, for example. Or Mother Brain’s strange dynamic with Samus. Metroid is inspired by Alien, which very much commentates on gender, so it makes sense.
Whereas Prime, it’s kind of… apolitical when it comes to these themes, which is to say they’re basically completely absent. It’s kinda neat that Armstrong is implied to be Sapphic and Lamorn architecture is Yonic as hell, but nothing really comes of the Yonic imagery, it just feels like a surface-level attempt to invoke the sexual imagery of Alien’s Giger aesthetics without really considering that there was an actual intent behind it.
I mean it might not be anything definitive but I do sometimes think of how the Paper Mario fandom reviles Tanabe for dumbing down the Paper Mario series of its nuance. I’m not saying he’s a full-on fascist but I am suggesting he kind of has a simplistic, “Let’s play with our toys” approach to the properties of Nintendo, a family-friendly company. And “family-friendly” brands hate being political, and so often wind up conservative for it. The Prime series’ approach to a larger Federation presence is to make the military into cool Action Heroes. The 2D series’ response is to capture the unease of the IRL military growing in power.
Hearing Tanabe explain that he asked for a lack of backstory for Sylux when Hunters was released so he could figure it out later when he got around to it, only for Vorodi to claim Sylux had a great backstory with threaded storytelling, is baffling.
He didn’t even work on Beyond??? Which began development three years before he claimed this??? Like did he just have some personal headcanon for Sylux he planned to pitch to Tanabe only for this to not pan out???
