Recommend Snake Some PSP Games

[Kim]

I was clarifying points so that Snake could make an educated purchasing decision.

You yourself don't actually have a history of taking problematic content in video games seriously on these forums. Snake, in contrast, is the sort of person who wants to know these things before making such purchasing decisions.

Thus, in a thread about whether or not he should spend his money on these games, bringing such things to his attention is just as relevant as elements of gameplay and story.

That you interpret such an explanation as a personal attack is no fault of mine.

[Locke cole]

Originally Posted by EVILNess

I think if only if you get a new physical copy of 3rd Birthday, which isn't a bad game you know. It's an average 3rd person shooter that controls pretty well despite the lack of a second analog stick on the psp, and the only justified hate I have ever heard about the game is Aya's chickification (Which has a justified story reason) and the fact that you have to read a lot to get the full story from the game when you change the past (Who and who is dead now is a big thing that changes.) (The clothing damage thing is a bit sexist, but I'm more taking about gameplay and story here. That is another can of worms.)

There is a Lightning costume for Aya as well from Duodecim.

I actually have an unused card for the costume (I also have the extra costume for Cecil from FF4 Complete Collection) somewhere in my drawer of PSP games. I can dig it out if anyone REALLY wants it.

I don't suppose I could convince you to give me what is needed for that Cecil costume? I don't plan on buying FFIV The Complete Collection any time soon. I have FFIV Advance, FFIV DS, and FFIV The After Years on Wiiware. I don't feel like buying FFIV again just to have both games on the same disc. No matter how shiny and new the sprites and extra bonus battle against Proto-Babil are...

[Inbred Chocobo]

For Monster Hunter: Freedom Unite, being a huge fan of the series myself, I do really like the game. However, I'll be honest, this is a better game to do with a buddy or someone you can get with to play. Soloing will be fun, but hard at times, however nothing quite captures the joy in the game as joining with friends to take down something. There is no online play either, got to find someone with a PSP/Vita that has the game as well if you want to join up. (Though I will say if you do that, prepare to be forever entranced in the game).

For Vita specific, Touch My Katamari was pretty entertaining, but you kind of have to like that type of game.

There is also a Ratchet and Clank game coming next year for the Vita as well. Full Frontal Assault I believe its called. With what little I have heard about it, its back to the classic style, though it has a "Tower Defense Mode" in it as well. I've always enjoyed a good Ratchet and Clank game so that may be worth picking up.

[Solid Snake]

I think I've come to the conclusion that I'm going to wait for a Vita version of Monster Hunter, if at all possible. Just seems like it'd be more fun with that series to take advantage of WiFi.

In regards to 3rd Birthday and Legend of Heroes, I do want to hear specifics regarding problematic homophobic and sexist content. Subsequently, Kim's analyses are appropriate to the discussion and much appreciated on my end.

Games with such glaring content have higher thresholds to cross before I'd consider a purchase. P4G's onerous content (barely) crosses that high threshold by virtue of characters and gameplay I'm very fond of. That's likely a consequence of my own weakness, but that's something I'm willing to acknowledge.

But since I'm not a fan of the Parasite Eve series and I've never played a Legend of Heroes game before, in those cases, their regressive bullshit story scenes and disappointingly brazen male-gaze aesthetic design choices will be enough to prevent a purchase.

[Ryong]

Originally Posted by Solid Snake

But since I'm not a fan of the Parasite Eve series and I've never played a Legend of Heroes game before, in those cases, their regressive bullshit story scenes and disappointingly brazen male-gaze aesthetic design choices will be enough to prevent a purchase.

You seem pretty sure about that.

Parasite Eve's issues are basically 3rd Birthday's whole clothing damage mechanic and fetish wear...And the shower scenes in 2 and 3? I can't remember if 1 had one. Either way, 1 and 2 were rather interesting and I'd give them a try.

Legend of Heroes, I'm afraid I can only speak about Trails in the Sky, which is the fourth one released in the west and which has nothing to do with the 3 earlier games, which were released as some sort of trilogy even though they're not connected.

And, well, what I can say about it is that it's a fantastic RPG the likes of which I haven't seen in ages. It does end in a temporary cliffhanger, however.

[Solid Snake]

Originally Posted by Ryong

You seem pretty sure about that.

What's up with your stubbornness about these games?
Why should it matter to you whether I purchase or play them, or what reasons I have for avoiding them?

...I'm aware that games can still be enjoyable despite of homophobic or sexist content. But I'm trying to deliberately avoid snaring myself in more series like Persona. My addiction to that story and its gameplay has translated into financial support for socially regressive content I personally oppose.
I'd rather avoid that conundrum with other games and other series I haven't already gotten attached to.

So, to reiterate: I don't think anyone -- not Kim or I or anyone else here -- is implying that those games you like are awful or that everyone who likes them is automatically sexist or homophobic for finding some enjoyment in them.

...But insofar as I don't yet know how 'great' those games may be, and insofar as I have no nostalgic ties to those games' existence, there's little psychological cost in disavowing them the moment I hear that some of its content caters to privilege while stereotyping and oppressing disparaged minority groups.

If I can include social justice into the equation as to whether or not I purchase a product, I will. Doing so is not a slight against you or the game itself. It's just me managing my own money the way I see fit.

[Bells]

It's angles... if you actually play 3rd Birthday with a different point of view to it, there is actually a explanation to the clothing thing and the "chickification" thing that ties -directly- into the story the game is trying to tell. And it's characters...

on THAT note, it's actually pretty well designed. Even clever.

On ANOTHER note, it's poorly executed and an overall bland game that in the end isn't as smart as it seems to be trying to be. And it comes across cheap, thick and pointless when it's trying to be meaningful... and failing at it.

It's a Squeenix game, so there is bloat load of Symbolism and "in-between-the-lineism", that, as many Squeenix game tend to do, you actually need to stop and think about it instead of... you know... enjoying the game. And when you DO think about, you get it... but it wasn't that much of a big deal that would justify all the cryptic shit...

It's a mature game trying to dress like a kid to look cool. Comes out dumb.

...so, it's ok to Oppose content, but usually not a good idea to oppose context.

[Ryong]

Well that escalated quickly.

I've PMed you the content that was found to be homophobic, since I'd rather avoid derailing the thread even further.

Originally Posted by Solid Snake

What's up with your stubbornness about these games?
Why should it matter to you whether I purchase or play them, or what reasons I have for avoiding them?

It doesn't. It's just a game I like that I haven't seen a lot of people talk about because it's a PSP RPG that everyone assumes to be bad - like, say, Tales of Legendia for the PS2 which people hate but are fanatical about Tales of Abyss, for example - based on hell if I know.

Originally Posted by Solid Snake

So, to reiterate: I don't think anyone -- not Kim or I or anyone else here -- is implying that those games you like are awful or that everyone who likes them is automatically sexist or homophobic for finding some enjoyment in them.

Not assuming that. Chill.

Originally Posted by Solid Snake

...But insofar as I don't yet know how 'great' those games may be, and insofar as I have no nostalgic ties to those games' existence, there's little psychological cost in disavowing them the moment I hear that some of its content caters to privilege while stereotyping and oppressing disparaged minority groups.

If I can include social justice into the equation as to whether or not I purchase a product, I will. Doing so is not a slight against you or the game itself. It's just me managing my own money the way I see fit.

You've asked for recommendations, I made a recommendation of a game I find to be good, you've both said you never played them and gave a description that shouldn't be thrown around so lightly and I tried to explain myself.

[Solid Snake]

Originally Posted by Ryong

I've PMed you the content that was found to be homophobic, since I'd rather avoid derailing the thread even further.

Your 'PM' was a vitriolic way to attempt to recommend the game by belittling and dismissing Kim's legitimately revolting reaction to an awful scene. I'm assuming you included it in a PM as opposed to posting it here in public so as not to catch Kim's ire in this thread.

It was a wholly negative representation that captures a heck of a lot of the anti-Kim sentiments that's been bubbling underneath the surface over these past few months. You heavily implied through the PM commentary that I should purchase the game in spite of Kim's reaction because she was -- in your view -- emotionally and irrationally overreacting to a scene where the homophobia was contextually justified.

Having read about the scene and having done my own research into the subject matter, I can say that the scene is brazenly homophobic. Kim's private and personal reaction was unnecessary at best and inappropriate at worst for you to disclose (Kim can choose whether or not to disclose something so deeply personal on her own prerogative, without your doing so in a mere attempt to dismiss and discredit her perspective.)

Also: I created this goddamn thread. Do NOT attempt to so much as suggest or imply that a discussion of homophobia in a PSP game is 'derailing' a thread in which I am asking for game recommendations. You continually do so, and it insults me. When I ask for opinions on whether to purchase PSP games, issues of social justice in those games are NOT, I repeat NOT, derails. That may be true for you, but don't insert that passively-oppressive 'let's not upset the status quo' bullshittery of evading social justice conversations into my mouth and tell me what can and can't be discuss in my thread. If a Mod believes such conversations are against the rules for any reason, that's within their jurisdiction to set the boundaries, but it's certainly not within yours.

[MSperoni]

I really like the Metal Slug games. Metal Slug XX is pretty fun.