Why is lt that Final Fantasy or and Square games is all about anxiety issues?
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Most stories are stories about anxiety, dealing with anxiety, nearly being overcome by anxiety, and then (hopefully) finally defeating anxiety. Some stories end with the anxiety beating the hero/heroes but still end up being good stories in execution and for making us think.
Even romance movies, or even comedies often deal with themes of anxiety at some point in their plots.
I'm not sure if I think that Final Fantasy is any more extreme on that front than various other fictional universes. Sure, it isn't the most upbeat of franchises either, but it has plenty of moments of levity and humour too.
While I can feel sad at times while playing particular scenes in a Final Fantasy game, the moments where friends come together and aid each other, or the moments where people tell jokes or take a brief moment to relax in an unexpected way help to balance it out so that I don't feel totally depressed at the end.
There are some exceptions, and interestingly, I think that the darker endings have actually been my favourite even though they put me through some emotional discomfort.
Even romance movies, or even comedies often deal with themes of anxiety at some point in their plots.
I'm not sure if I think that Final Fantasy is any more extreme on that front than various other fictional universes. Sure, it isn't the most upbeat of franchises either, but it has plenty of moments of levity and humour too.
While I can feel sad at times while playing particular scenes in a Final Fantasy game, the moments where friends come together and aid each other, or the moments where people tell jokes or take a brief moment to relax in an unexpected way help to balance it out so that I don't feel totally depressed at the end.
There are some exceptions, and interestingly, I think that the darker endings have actually been my favourite even though they put me through some emotional discomfort.
FFXV, for example...
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Dionysios has pretty much covered it there. The best drama unfortunately does derive from emotional distress. Even comedies will often times use awfully discomforting moments to create a laugh.
Maybe it's purely because that's what the audience relates to best. No matter the world, fantastical situation, etc. there will be fear, anxiety and hardship, which is something everyone can understand. And let's face it, the darker moments are often the most interesting. I personally prefer the Final Fantasy titles that are a little more grim because the antagonists are far more heroic in the end.
Maybe it's purely because that's what the audience relates to best. No matter the world, fantastical situation, etc. there will be fear, anxiety and hardship, which is something everyone can understand. And let's face it, the darker moments are often the most interesting. I personally prefer the Final Fantasy titles that are a little more grim because the antagonists are far more heroic in the end.
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Most of the the game creators try to build dynamic protagonists/antagonists who go through their own life issues. They try to make it identifiable as possible as Gal mentioned. The beauty about Final Fantasy is it puts a myriad of protagonist scenarios in front of the player. The same is true for the antagonists.
I actually love to see a good well balanced "evil-doer." He/she might have not been always like this. They go through their own trials filled with anxiety and stress. They try to question what they are doing is right or wrong. They then have to choose the part to play in the end. Some of these "evil-doers" make the person playing feel always sorrowful due to the twist in their humanity. It's either the person can be extremely good, or extremely bad from their choice.
It's like this. Have you ever seen or heard of watchmen? Have you ever heard of the thought process of "kill off a few, save millions?" That's when things start to trickle in terms of story line for these antagonists. The stress and then when they absolve themselves of stress, they become their own god or their own rational bubble of info. They look to only limited resources and trust only them self to make the right decisions.
I actually love to see a good well balanced "evil-doer." He/she might have not been always like this. They go through their own trials filled with anxiety and stress. They try to question what they are doing is right or wrong. They then have to choose the part to play in the end. Some of these "evil-doers" make the person playing feel always sorrowful due to the twist in their humanity. It's either the person can be extremely good, or extremely bad from their choice.
It's like this. Have you ever seen or heard of watchmen? Have you ever heard of the thought process of "kill off a few, save millions?" That's when things start to trickle in terms of story line for these antagonists. The stress and then when they absolve themselves of stress, they become their own god or their own rational bubble of info. They look to only limited resources and trust only them self to make the right decisions.
I am not particularly sure if its a a"J-Rpg thing" element since the beginning to the newer Final Fantasy titles that have shifted to a accomodate wider and diverse audience. Nevertheless, many of its earlier titles comprises of a lot of elements relating to "never giving up", "friendship", "liberating", "overcoming", "freedom" and etc. Something that personally expresses the "Inside" and try to make it relevant to the gamers to immerse themselves and find common themes to be identified with different protagonist/antagonist. Personally I find that to be a good trait that keeps Square Enix surviving, which is to continually pass a generation's worth of material while shaping new sophisticated stories around these characterics; adapting the same characteristics adored by its fans despite the ever-changing story.
I personally find anxiety to just be a common issue to be tackled and it is subtly noticed by Gamers which is why some adores it or others finds it too cliche. Nevertheless, it isn't as what I have experienced as the central theme of the different titles that make it still a relate-able trait. In most scenarios I actually think that going beyond those 'anxiety' is where the scriptwriters can surround the complexities of the protagonist/antagonist traits around the story so that Square Enix can bring out their elements of "never giving up" and etc to Shine instead. Thus allowing more room for dynamic story-plot and hence, making it more relevant and attractive for Gamers to keep on persevering and finish through the game in the shoes of the protagonist.
I personally find anxiety to just be a common issue to be tackled and it is subtly noticed by Gamers which is why some adores it or others finds it too cliche. Nevertheless, it isn't as what I have experienced as the central theme of the different titles that make it still a relate-able trait. In most scenarios I actually think that going beyond those 'anxiety' is where the scriptwriters can surround the complexities of the protagonist/antagonist traits around the story so that Square Enix can bring out their elements of "never giving up" and etc to Shine instead. Thus allowing more room for dynamic story-plot and hence, making it more relevant and attractive for Gamers to keep on persevering and finish through the game in the shoes of the protagonist.
