okay thoughts on season of migration quests (from the storytelling and lore perspective!!! the visuals are pretty but i don't care about them that much sorry) so far. my opinion may change later depending on how future quests are, but this is what i think for now:
(for the following points, i will mostly take into consideration the game itself + some of the concept stuff. i'll try not to go into headcanon territory). correct me if i'm wrong about something; i wrote this in class with no references
i feel like the idea to have us travel through every single realm is not developed well enough. because like. we have seven/eight vastly different areas with their unique history and themes, and the "base" game (the main storyline without seasons) makes it pretty clear
isle of dawn, where we learn how to fly and get to know birds and butterflies, as well as spirits (at least, this was the case pre-aviary). it is not hard to navigate the realm: all we need to do is light the two bells on the ledge, fly up with the birds, and "talk" to the elder in their temple
daylight prairie, where we discover how to help each other and get to know mantas and get closer to butterflies; birds are still there to show us the way. this is where we see darkness for the first time (at least, this was the case before the darkness-on-spirits update; i don't count the darkness in the isle temple cave because not all may find it on their first playthrough) and learn that we need to burn it. the realm is vast, but to succeed in going farther, all we need is to free the three bellls from darkness and call the mantas, who will carry us to up the hill. the prairie elder brings us closer to butterflies, and we move on
notice how things are becoming slightly more complex? anyway, have forest as well (not discussing the other realms in detail because we haven't got the quests yet):
hidden forest, where we have to face the deadly rain and angry crabs, as well as fight darkness; thankfully, we have jellyfish on our side, and birds continue guiding us. it is a long and hard trip, but we learn how to persevere, and at the end, we finally light the bells and can enter the temple. oh yes, and the realm is filled with darkstone-activated gates, but for these ones, we don't need other players' help (i wonder why) — we do it very well ourselves. the temple is filled with darkness, too, and the elder does not show happiness or awe when they see our light (unlike the previous two). they seem to be in a hurry. as if they needed light desperately and there was no time
in valley, we travel alone (birds remain though, birds always remain), and there are no bells. the elders are the opposite of serious.
in wasteland, creatures are monsters, they are what we hide from. no bells here, either — our light itself attracts all animals, although it is not exactly what we want. the elder fights said creatures.
in vault, creatures are dead, and we are invited to think about the consequences of our actions. when we wake up, we have not moved an inch; no bells ring here, but light creatures come to help us of their own volition.
in eden, we die. no bells. orbit is a big bell itself — or perhaps it is us
so, why have i yapped about all this?
notice how every realm has different mechanics? how our path has different obstacles and different helpers, how light creatures (and our and the realm's relationship with them) change? how each elder is not like the rest? how we can't apply the same strategy everywhere?
now look at the migration quests
yes, we did have a slightly different quest for isle because we had to build a boat. and it was cool. but that was an introductory quest, and since it was over, we've had no diversity. we spent two quests in prairie and two in forest, yet what we did for both realms (and isle) remains the same. we put bells, light them, and carry the boat. in the exact same way everywhere. without having to adapt to the state the realms are in (rain doesn't even play a role in the story; it only annoys the player. imagine how cool it would be if a manatee got hurt and needed help? or if it got trapped in darkness?) OR discussing the realm's culture. we don't even meet the elders, the very same elders that the base game shows are THE ONLY beings that can allow us to continue our journey. and in this season, they're not even there!!!! we don't even enter the bloody temples for fuck's sake! like hello! this just undermines the original story, both the environment of the realms and the role of the elders!
AND in addition to this, we don't even get the chance to learn the culture of places we pass by, the way light creatures are treated. the light cycle and migration are such an important thing in sky (hence the birds everywhere, hence our own journey), and in the season dedicated to it we don't even learn anything! we just. ignore stuff. un-learn it even
okay this is enough ranting ig. my only hope for the following quests is that wasteland's danger is addressed and that we see creatures die in eden just like we can see other players die. i dare not wish for more, i don't think we'll get it anyway
