Vahn16’s Weblog

Since their inception, video games have been vying to become a legitimate storytelling medium. From Pac-Man’s simple tale of ghost-busting bravado to Dragon Quest’s Japanese spin on D&D swords ‘n’ sorcery, even early games attempted to provide players with compelling plots to back up their sometimes nonsensical gameplay. But if one were to plot out the pivotal points in gaming’s evolution as a storytelling medium, while Pac-Man and Dragon Quest would certainly snag invitations to the show, Final Fantasy VII would likely receive top honors. Regardless of its inferiority to Final Fantasy VI, FFVII introduced to players a fantastically beautiful, movie-esque world that (at the time) existed in a class of its own. Most importantly, FFVII is the game that set many developers on their quest to make gamers cry. Aerith’s death at the hands of the manically insane Sephiroth sent legions of gamers searching for a way to revive their favorite pink-clad flower peddler, but none succeeded. It seems fitting, then, that FFVII’s prequel, Crisis Core, is one of the best examples of character death in video games yet.

When Aerith blocked Sephiroth’s 12-foot long katana using only her midsection, gamers were shocked. This character who, in all likelihood, they had recently taken on a “date,” couldn’t die. It was madness. Crisis Core turns this idea on its head; anyone who’s played Final Fantasy VII (released in 1997) already knows Zack Faire is going to die. It’s been in the books so long, it has three or four special editions. So, if shock isn’t the catalyst for sadness here, then what is? Simple: Square Enix puts you, the player, in the shoes of this cheerful, exuberant, idealistic character — infusing you with his dreams and goals — for 20 hours. Then, after you’ve become comfortable in Zack’s shoes, they brutally snuff out his light; bullet-ridden and soaked in blood, Zack — a hero in the truest sense — dies. You steered him down this road, knowing it was a march to his untimely death, and secretly, you probably hoped he’d find a convenient trap door exit and escape at the last minute, or get carried away by the Turks, or something. But he didn’t, and you can’t help but regret it.

This concept of regret gives rise to Square Enix’s most brilliant decision in regard to Zack’s death: you play his final battle. After controlling his every step for so long, it’s only fitting. Faced with thousands of uncaring Shinra troops, guns gleaming in the desert sunlight, Zack chooses to make his stand. “There’s a high price for freedom,” he quips, and then, Buster Sword raised, he charges into battle. As you dodge missiles, avoid machine gun fire, and cleave hundreds of soldiers into thousands of half-soldiers, the DMW, Crisis Core’s central gameplay concept, is going crazy. See, throughout the game, the DMW acted as a back-end while creating the illusion of slot-machine randomness. Every time it landed on multiple matching numbers, Zack would gain a special stat buff, use an earth-shatteringly powerful attack, or even level up. These events, however, were packed with Zack’s personality; each number on the DMW’s wheel is attached to the portrait of a character in the game, and Zack’s emotions play into that. So, for instance, when the DMW grants you triple-Sephiroths, Zack might flash back to a comical scene wherein he tells Sephiroth to go on ahead while he engages a gang of bloodthirsty beasts, only to turn around and find that Sephiroth has already mangled them in the blink of an eye. And while Zack is hacking and slashing desperately to hold off the Reaper, the DMW is “malfunctioning” — Zack’s life is flashing before the player’s eyes. Sights, sounds, voices, events, joy, anger, love — everything is spewing out of Zack’s mind as a mournful reminder of all he’s left undone. At the same time, however, these DMW scenes aren’t overt tear-jerkers; they’re all over the place.

Come back tomorrow for part two of “…And Protect Your SOLDIER Honor,” where I’ll be discussing Square’s subtlety, Zack’s regrets, and why Tidus and Zack probably play on the same Blitzball team in Final Fantasy heaven.