Adventures in cosplay (no.5)

And here we are with the final installment of this series. As the month of November ends so does this series on cosplaying video game characters. This has been a fun serial to bash out and a slight change of pace from the nonsense I've bashed out so far.

So, what more do I have to say about cosplay? Well we started with a Final Fantasy cosplay so we may as well end with a Final Fantasy cosplay. And which character? One Zidane Tribal.



This came about last year: I played my way through Final Fantasy 9 and Kathleen watched me do so every step of the way. Prior to doing so, my understanding of FF9 is that it was underrated and never reached the levels of popularity achieved by 7, 8 and 10. Well being a champion of the underdog, I played it, loved it and was impressed enough with the lead character. Kathleen too loved Zidane that she needed little persuasion into cosplaying as Garnet (although her liking Garnet as already good enough reason).

In a way, perhaps this represents the accumulation of things I've mentioned before: I cosplayed as a character who came from a little known game because I loved the game and the character and wanted to express it. I've seen some cosplays of the character done before and thought "I can do that too". And yes, it was another excuse to create an impression as a couple in both life and cosplay.



Now this was a variation of the Zidane design: This was actually for Amaranth, an anime ball run in conjunction with Manifest. Whilst Kathleen looked all set to go with the Garnet princess dress, we decided to go with a slight alteration with Zidane so he'd look the part. Thus whereas Zidane in the game had bare arms, I wore a white shirt.

As for the rest of the cosplay, the pants were purchased, the vest was made (through a friend of ours), the gloves were purchased before being attached to the cuffs, the caveat was rescued from a previous cosplay and the wig was salvaged from my Link cosplay. I wasn't able to get a tail due to money and time limitations.

All in all this was heaps of fun to do and the 'formal' variation worked a treat. It was great to go around Amaranth dressed as such and it made an excellent counterpart to Kathleen's (already ballroom) cosplay.
Looking back on it I think this cosplay would have to rank as one my favorites. For me it's one to be proud of and for good reason: I look at it now and there's not one damn thing I'd change about it. Ask any cosplayer: If such a feeling ever arises about a cosplay then something must've worked.
And it is the greatest feeling.



And this concludes this series on Adventures in cosplay. Note that this series has just been on characters from video games and thus a representation of a much greater whole. If I were to include the anime characters I've cosplayed as this series would've gone on for much longer. Mind you for the curious, go check out the link to my (joint) cosplay.com account in the side bar to the right of this page.
Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed reading this series and from here? Well I enjoy cosplay and get a lot of fun out of it so who knows? I may just sit down and bash out another Adventure in cosplay sometime in the future. Until then....

Wii are one but Wii are many

I was expecting a tonne of nasty comments to my last post but none such came. No matter: Guess I'll keep rambling on in the vain hope that someone else is listening.

Anyway, I've noticed there seems to be a lot of contempt for the Wii. It is indeed strange considering that, so far, the Wii has outsold both the PS3 and the Xbox 360. What, didn't the console wars end? I thought they were over now that many gamers these days own more than one console and many gamers waking up to the fact that ignoring a particular console may result in missing out on something good.
But I'd be a fool to think such puerile nonsense.

I find it kind of strange that people are turning on Nintendo with such venom. This are the people who pretty much broke out from the Post-Atari crash with the NES, wrote the rulebook for game design, and gave us such iconic characters such as Mario, Link, Samus and Donkey Kong. It begs the question, what went wrong? Why the sudden change of heart? I do recall Nintendo's fanbase being quite passionate during the early/mid-nineties to the point of ruthlessly mocking the Sega fanboys (like myself) but it is interesting to see such passion turn against the seemingly untouchable Nintendo.

Some would say that Nintendo's fanbase has grown up and moved onto pastures new. I beg to differ: I use my Wii for the Virtual Console and many games I recall from my childhood still hold up pretty well. Even games I never played manage to maintain my interest - which of course, goes to show that a well-designed game can still weave it's magic when the console it appears on has long since gone obsolete.



Some are unimpressed with the motion controller. I read that Nintendo aren't interested in competing against Microsoft and Sony in the technological department so, instead, they are looking for new ways to play games. It may sound like a good idea in theory but really, what is going to achieved via taking away the tenuous link between gamer and console? Taking it away kinda defeats the purpose of games being a fun way to relax.
True I can understand the contempt between motion controller but I'll give Nintendo credit: At least they're trying something new. It may not be a successful idea but at least they realise that graphics aren't going to get any better so a new approach could well be necessary.

Some are cross that the Wii is attracting the unlikeliest of gamers with pensioners and mothers. I never understood the distinction between casual and hardcore gamers. People are just playing games! Who gives two shits HOW they go about it? If anything the distinction exists just for snobbery and elitism. The way I see it, people playing games is a way to connect with people in social situations and make friends. Isn't that how people bond - over a common interest? Who cares if people take different approaches to the same task? Again, this is the case of doing something for fun and how much time can be spared.

Some are annoyed by the lack of quality software for the Wii. I personally never have this problem as I'm far too busy using my Wii for a virtual console. True, some people may be annoyed that people like me may be encouraging Nintendo to rely on past glories instead of inspiring development of something new but, again, if a game is well-designed it can, and will, be played for many years afterward.

But I must admit, some of these factors, however supposed, against Nintendo aren't very promising: A console outdone by more powerful rivals? A catalog of games that comes across as underwhelming? Franchises that are milked to a point where consumers are left unimpressed? A game developer focusing on the glory days when it's clear are those days are lost in a bygone era?
Didn't all these things happen to Sega?

Pwned

Earlier this week, Pure Pwnage wrapped up on ABC2. I sat through all of it becuase, very much Good Game, any show about gaming is good enough for me even if the end result leaves me dissatisfied. True I watch Good Game but it's the only gaming show on TV - thus it is a chore for me to sit through the nonsense in order to find something informative.

So did I come away from Pure Pwnage dissatisfied? Of course.
Much of it stems from the lead protagonist, Jeremy, being a deplorable one. He's lazy, rude, narcissistic and down right obnoxious. Thus, Pure Pwnage breaks a key rule in fiction by not having a character the audience can connect with. If such a connection isn't made, the story isn't going to go very far. Thus, Jeremy is not someone I'll give up twenty-odd minutes of my life for - no, he is someone I want to punch in the face.
By comparison, Kratos from God of War is too an unlikable character but at least this is balanced out through giving him a decent motivation (well at least in the FIRST game).

In addition, Jeremy's actions seem to enforce the equally detestable perception of gamers and how they interact with the real world. You know what I mean (don't pretend you don't): The stereotypical gamer who plays games with an almost religious devotion, has a grudge against society and who can't function properly on a social level.
I mean, considering that games are now more popular than ever, this stereotype seems to have severely challenged with games attracting people of many walks of life. Seriously you don't see people reacting to movies or books with the same passion as people who like games now, do you?
Thus, Jeremy's misadventures comes across more as being a backward step.

Some say these observations are precisely the point, inspiring a car-crash element to the series but I refuse to buy that. Stereotypes aren't there to be celebrated, they are there to be mocked. I don't want to hear about a guy who walks away with having learned nothing from his experiences. I don't want to know about guy who exists in his own little universe. I don't want to know about a guy who achieves victory without having to lift a finger to earn it. I don't want to know about a dude who has no admirable qualities to balance out his faults. I don't want to know about a guy who refuses to accept his shortcomings even when they're staring him directly in the face.
Indeed, I would rather watch a movie about a guy who wins with blind optimism despite everyone knowing he's a moron (case in point, Tim Burton's Ed Wood) than a serial about a guy who wins with obnoxiousness and immaturity despite everyone knowing he's a moron.

That being said, do I think I can come up with a better story?
Oooh, now there's a challenge...

Adventures in cosplay (no.4)

And here we go again with another Adventure in cosplay. Hope you're enjoying this series so far!

Now when it comes to cosplay, Kathleen and myself are inspired by our favorite games and anime. Most often than not, it's a case of one putting forth the suggestion and then trying to convince the other into doing so. And the convincing usually involves showing an anime, a game or even a picture (as was the case with the Link and Zelda). Which now brings me to Skies of Arcadia. I played this, on my Dreamcast, and loved it before we met and I was interested in cosplaying as Vyse - cos he rules and I liked the game a lot.
I then did a second playthrough, this time with Kathleen watching, and she seemed interested enough to cosplay as Fina to match.
Now seeing as we've done recognizable characters in the past, to suddenly do characters from a Dreamcast game would seem an odd move. But it mattered little: We liked this game and we both took great pride in cosplaying as lesser known characters - after all, if pulled off well, any cosplay can make the unfamiliar curious to know more.



Much like previous efforts, this cosplay was a combination of the manufactured and the assembled: The boots were from the Link cosplay (which subsequently fell apart on the day), the turtleneck was from an anime cosplay and the jeans were my own. The jacket was crafted by Kathleen (as was her Fina) and the eyepiece was crafted from swimming goggles!

Also pleasing is for once I was now able to actually do a cosplay using my real hair! As much fun as it is to wear wacky wigs, they eventually do create a strain on my head and it does get irritating at times. So whilst chances to use my real hair are slim, when they do come about, I seize upon them :D



If any of these photos seem a bit difficult to see, I'm afraid that these are the only photos that were taken of us at the con (that being AI-Con) itself. Remember what I said earlier about cosplaying as lesser-known characters? Well as it turns out, we were not recognized at all. Of course we have only ourselves to blame as this was in AI-Con, a much smaller scale con then, say, Manifest. As such, many people were left puzzled as to who were cosplaying as. This was particularly telling when I participated in a roleplay event and ended up winning. Also telling is whereas we had grown accustomed to be continually recognized and stopped for photos, this time it didn't happen at all. Indeed, it is hard to say whether it would've different had this been done at a larger scale con.

So is the Vyse a failure? I don't think so. I thought the end result was great and I don't feel ashamed to have worn it at all. Okay so yes being unrecognizable may have prompted a rethink in doing lesser known characters but I'm not too bothered (and after all, you can't win them all). We liked the game the characters are from, Skies of Arcadia, and we wanted to tell the world we did so - which is pretty much the entire point of cosplay.

Final Fantasy Fight

So a sequel to Final Fantasy Dissidia is in development eh? I never played the original (perhaps due to me not owning a PSP) but personally, I'm not in any rush to. If anything, what I have learnt over the years is that sometimes an outsiders view can make a whole lot of difference. As such, being interested in Final Fantasy (I wouldn't call myself a fan becuase being a FF fan means you played all of them. Including the crummy ones) I can see the value of a fan-service product.
True, pandering to the fans is never a good move but I can see the potential in having a fighting game featuring Final Fantasy characters. The problem is, that potential was squandered with the 'popular' characters making the final character roster - many of which fulfilling the 'paladin' role. So no knights, no ninjas or blue mages. Yay.

Granted there is potential for some ideal match ups (Sephiroth and Kefka being one that comes to mind) but for me, I think SqueeEnix was being too timid with their roster. So if Dissidia is truly going to expand the current roster then SqueeEnix should run with it. Some say that could result in an unnecessary overload but a fighting game CAN have many fighters as long as plenty of thought and effort is put into the development (I'm thinking of Bleach on the DS, and maybe even Super Smash Bros Brawl, by way of example.)

That being said, who'd I like to see included to the current FFD roster?
- Freya (IX): I don't care what anyone says: Freya is the best character in number 9 and the best knight in the entire series.
- Cid (VII): The second best knight character in the series. And ya gotta have a Cid!
- Edge (IV)/Shadow (VI): To fulfil the necessity of ninjas.
- A Monster Summoner: Be it Yuna (X) or Rydia (IV) one can't argue the opportunity to have giant critter tearing shit up on screen.
- Gilgamesh (V): Personally I think he was unjustly snubbed in the original for Exdeath.
- Seifer (VIII): Should've been in the original where Ultimecia was
- Aerith (VII): If SqueeEnix are truly listening as they claim, then they would at least present the chance for getting payback on Sephiroth. True it may undermine the impact of Aerith's (in)famous death scene but if she is absent from this new Dissidia, then it really isn't a fan service-based product then, right?

Don't Fear the Reaper

Another game has been beaten: This one being Mass Effect 2.

I've spent the past few weeks singing praises for this game and, really, I can't think of anything more to say. This game is brilliant, it's succeeded over its predecessor in every possible way, it is well-written with an epic feel and really goes to the effort of making my care about the characters enough to make me complete it a second time around to make sure no one gets killed (true).

Okay so maybe the planet mining sections were monumentally tedious but everything else is done really well and it is certainly fun to see decisions being made in the last game effect the second one. The game held my attention all the way through and was fun, exciting and compelling. In addition, having the T-800 as the final boss was the icing on the cake.

Thing is, where can this series possibly go from here? Topping Mass Effect was a tough job indeed - and ME2 pretty much achieved it. Resetting Shepard's stats though resurrection at the hands of Cerberus at the beginning was a clever move - how can it be topped? I liked the integration of the old crew in the sequel - can it done again with a crew of ten/twelve? I liked how every element in the previous game was improved upon - so if it ain't broke why fix it?

Can Bioware achieve the impossible with ME3? Well they would if gamers would lower their expectations but what's the chances of that happening?

Adventures in cosplay (no.3)

And welcome back to this ongoing series. So let's not dither about, let's talk cosplay!

Today I want to talk about another Final Fantasy cosplay. The Final Fantasy series truly is popular among cosplayers - and, through my experience, this popularity can be attributed to two factors: a) due to the major success of the Final Fantasy series many of the characters are immediately recognizable and b) the sheer crazy designs that go into some of the characters may strike some cosplayers as a challenge worth rising up to.
As a result, it's not unusual to go to a con and see numerous people cosplaying as one of the many Final Fantasy characters. Even some of the lesser known FF's still get a look in: I've seen one guy cosplaying as the Red Mage from FF1 and even he showed an incredible amount of detail that went above and beyond the original 8-bit sprite.

But I digress. Whilst I've done numerous Final fantasy cosplays in the past this was the very first one: Tidus from Final Fantasy X.



I mentioned in the last post in this series that the best cosplays are those which have a story attached to it - and this is certainly the case here. Around early 2008, I met a woman called Kathleen. We were heading to the same anime convention, AI-Con, and she wanted to cosplay. This was to be her first but it there was the problem of what to do, having two options. One such option was Yuna from FFX and, recognizing the character, I convinced her to do so. Then, somehow, I ended up doing Tidus to match. And thus the wheels were sent into motion - this was the foundation stones of something that eventually blossomed into a relationship.
So yes, cosplay got us together.
Still, I suppose relationships have started in weirder places....

But no matter - I'm not the biggest fan of Tidus so cosplaying as him was a bit of a stretch on my part. But I like Yuna a lot so, believe you me, it was worth it to have someone cosplay as Yuna hanging around me :D



Mind you, this is one cosplay that has gone through numerous incarnations: The first one, as displayed in the above photo, was the first but it faced problems with the shorts being wrong, the arm armor being hopeless and some other minor details were somewhat lacking. A second Tidus cosplay has since been acquired which was better but recently has been facing problems in the form of a disintegrating arm armor.
Yes I seem to have some trouble with the arm armor - could it be some sort of karmic justice for my contempt for this character? Maybe...

But one interesting point is the hair: The first photo in this post is my natural hair - at the time, it was in dire need of a trim but somehow it ended up working in my favor for the cosplay. The second photo is again my natural hair - this time it was in a much more reasonable haircut but in cosplay terms it doesn't seem to work. And since then I finally got a wig going:



The hair's still wrong but at least the colour's right. Sort of. Oh well....

Well there's not really much else I can say about this. Whilst not the first cosplay I did, it was however a step in the right direction. It has been dusted off and worn again numerous times and I've never once gotten tired of it. And, most important of all, it was the foundation of something special. Indeed, it's been great to wander around cons and to be recognized both as a character and a couple.
So whatever contempt I may for Tidus, at least in this time, he did inspire a cosplay that turned out one of my widely-used. Indeed it's strange to think that character I don't like made for a cosplay that turned out right - so whatever it was that worked I'm grateful for.



And to have someone willing to match it is ever the more sweeter.