Jimquisition: Batman Is Everything Wrong With Square Enix

[Ipsen]

Only caveat to that is the fact that it WAS relatively unique back then. Sure, it's all relative; we STILL seem (or at least these corporations seem) to have a perpetual desire for better visual flourish, but, by virtue of being a younger medium, at least it wasn't crammed down our throats so far back then.

I really don't understand the point you're trying to make. Why should it matter that gaming was "a younger medium" back then?

For better (developers honestly attempting to improving the medium back then) or worse (our ignorance of what that would bring about), the demand for graphics have lead us to where we are today; a medium that still struggles with one of it's major demands of story/meaning, while having no issue or qualm constantly scaling up graphical quality. Square Enix microcosms the AAA industry by neglecting something key in what (they think) is forward.

And don't get me wrong, I like that games look better, and it's definitely a boon in games. But it's an old, boring boon. It's to the point now that (while still positive), I have little care for good graphics now, and virtually null concern for how graphics will be in the future.

I care about other things in games that resonate with me (and others); story, mechanics, art design, cohesion between these. This seems at odds with the Square Enix of now, AND of the Square that fufilled these for me years ago.

 

[Theopenmindedgamer]

What new game as Square enix done lately? I think the last one was The world ends with you back in 2008. Since then, it's been nothing but Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest and Kingdom Hearts games. They're milking those franchise for all that they're worth. Right now, i think they are working on 5 different Final Fantasy's which is ridiculous.

Also, NEVER FORGET All The Bravest. NEVER. FORGET.

 

[Baresark]

I couldn't agree more. While I don't hate that super detailed design on a lot of things, every goddamn character doesn't have to have 9 million extra bits to make up for the fact the writing has gone to complete hell. I could never stand how they concentrated on Lightning because she is a pointless robot in those games. No personality with shit writing. And you are also correct in the story of Final Fantasy 13, it was complete shit that made no sense what so ever. It's like they were afraid it was going to end too soon, so they just piled more of the same shit on the plate, just like in their costumes.

 

[Trishbot]

Yes... yes, Square Enix has screwed up a LOT last gen. Probably the biggest fall from grace I've ever seen from a company. And, yeah, the whole Final Fantasy 13 saga (which was ALL the consoles really got) was one giant bag of disappointment.

... But I will throw out there that the new Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn is shockingly great and Bravely Default was a well-appreciated return to form, while Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD was appreciated, the latter two even managing to outsell Lightning Returns.

Square Enix at least is learning some lessons. Unbelievably obvious lessons that took too long to sink in and cost them millions, but they're learning.

We'll see if they can keep their priorities straight.

 

[Merlark]

Hah, Thanks for that one Jim. I've been saying the same thing for years, I have always thought "Well maybe I don't understand the culture or i'm missing the point."

Nope, pretty much everything they make these days is complete nonsense.

I never know what I am looking at or what I am doing or what the characters are talking about. Final fantasy 13 is a perfect example, I waited for like 3 hours hoping maybe we would encounter a character that didn't know what was going on so the main characters would explain what all these things are and what it actually means but no.

They can't understand why the market doesn't care for RPG's so they buy up all these other IP's then a game like bravely default comes along under the radar and everyone's like, "Wow, a JRPG without stupid craziness and things that make no sense."

And Bravely default isn't even that good, it really isn't, it's only so good because it has so much less. so much less that they basically stopped making the last half of the game and just repeated the first half but you know what, people still loved it because at least it wasn't robot batman nonsense.

It's amazing how much they simply don't care about the customer, where art direction and story telling just go off the deep end as gameplay gets butchered for the sake of "Well throwing shit at the wall worked for us a few times lets just keep doing that!"

guess what, some of the shit doesn't stick. to bad no one from Square are jim fans I suppose.

 

[Ryan Hughes]

"Brevity is the soul of wit." Says Polonus, the longest-winded character in Shakespeare's longest-winded work. Be careful when quoting Shakespeare because he will turn and bite you in the ass like that frequently. Polonus is basically meant to represent how empty and meaningless those types of platitudes are.

Overall though, I do agree with the main point here, that Square has become so fat and bloated that its legs can no longer support it, figuratively speaking. This as opposed to Mr. Amano's wonderful watercolor designs that perfectly blended complexity, color and detail. Why Square stopped using him after FFVI is beyond me. Just as why Square continues in this insane desecration of Final Fantasy baffles me.

 

[hyplion]

I'm guessing that if you went on a friends picnic with Square Enix, the sandwiches would be overdesigned...

With lots of pointy bits and hair....

 

[Xman490]

In this excellently titled episode, we look at how a Batman action figure represents everything wrong with a major videogame publisher.

Except only one thing was wrong with the actual publisher, and even that can be chalked up to "corporations exist to earn more money". The other criticisms were against some of their development teams.

Keep in mind that the publishing center of Square Enix is the part that greenlighted Sleeping Dogs, new Tomb Raider, Just Cause 2, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, and Hitman Absolution. And all of those have gone on $5 or $3 sales. And they come with no extra DRM. Square Enix has also ported old Final Fantasy games to PC and mobile devices quite properly.

 

[DragonZA]

Heck space marine armor makes more sense! SPACE MARINE ARMOR!

You make Warhammer armor look sensible and functional... that's how far you have come.

Oh dear god you're right. And - I say this loosely - at least the space marine armour sort of makes sense and is consistent given their long history and pseudo religious militaristic doctrine.

Hmm... That sentence needs more words on it's words, it's not spiky enough.

 

[-Dragmire-]

It seems like Jim has maybe forgotten that Square Enix made Bravely Default much more recently than FFXIII (and declared it a major success, at that). Also that XIII-2 fixed at least the part of XIII's writing that he was complaining about. I mean, this is just about 100% accurate up to around a year ago, but I think this topic might be slightly less "evergreen" than Jim believes. The video really feels like it was displaced in time. Also, it felt like he was really playing for time on both this week's and last week's episode. Hyperbole is one thing, but padding just isn't entertaining.

Wasn't Bravely Default developed by a different company? I know SE was the publisher but I'm pretty sure someone else made it.

 

[Theopenmindedgamer]

Wasn't Bravely Default developed by a different company? I know SE was the publisher but I'm pretty sure someone else made it.

Indeed. The game was made by Silicon studio, not square.

 

[CharrHearted]

... I actually like all those weird and fuck crazy designs... >_>

I mean, i guess it's just my taste, I suppose.

 

[Trilandian]

Fantastic video. The best in recent memory, imo (and I don't even play Final Fantasy).

 

[SonOfVoorhees]

Less money on graphics and more money spent on a good writer for the plot and script. Also i want the fighting style more like FF7, or an updated version. Cant remember what FF8 - 10 had. Hated the fight mechanics in FF13 and FF13-2 as it didnt feel like you were fighting, just pressing the button and the console did all the work.

Simple can be better, especially in character design - because what they wear can reflect who they are. Although where FF games have failed of late is the increase in really annoying characters.

 

[Silentpony_v1legacy]

Maybe its just me, but Square Enix's decline into heartless sell-out land began with FF7. I know its a classic to many people, but I thought it was an absolute convoluted mess of plot holes, terrible writing and hair. Its sad that compared to characters of today, Cloud is considered straight forward and simple. At the time, Cloud was a mess of angst, hair and zippers.
Not saying that awful Batman toy isn't awful and worth getting angry at, but its important to note the slide into awful began decades ago.

 

[Fappy]

You can never find enough reasons to complain about Rob Liefeld.

 

[Kenjitsuka]

I agree, with every single bloody detail.
But.... they always DID have the hair, though. So hard to hold that against them

 

[Bocaj2000]

It's a bad design thing. Usually this is the mistake of new artists, but is still common in various superficial experienced artists. Because we have the ability to draw anything from the mundane to the extraordinary, we tend to go all out and overdo things. After we see the bullshit of this extreme, we calm down and do something more mundane until we get bored of it and do something extraordinary but not as extraordinary. We flip back and forth getting less and less extreme until find comfort in our happy middle. This is the cycle of art.

The cycle is only achieved through consistent critique, discovery, and experimentation. Younger college students tend to reach this with the right guidance, but there are many egotistical and stubborn people who refuse this path. This can cause a creative plateau in which there is only one style and one method of doing things. This happens most often when artists draw really pretty things with lots of detail and polish despite the lack of depth and content. They often brush off criticism because their work is very popular among a layman audience. Scott McCloud can explain it better:

 

[Elijah Newton]

*chuckle* Ok, great points all around. The analogy holds and while it's not directly related it'd be a pip to see Jim hold forth on Warhammer: 40k design, with it's bizarre baroque style.

But one of the three trailers I ever saved to my 360 was the one for FF13 ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJPbozRomX4 ). Because it was perfect.

Not perfect in the sense that it made me want to play the game. Quite the contrary, I knew I wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole. My enthusiasm for the series kicked in for eight, and saw me through ten and ten:2 but I'm pretty sure that's going to be it for me. I'm pretty sure you can track the evolution of style over substance through those games, too - there was a lot which I liked but absolutely admitted that it worked only in that setting. For me that made a lovely kind of sense because that was the fantasy of it all. You ought to look back on it and think that it makes no sense for a school to turn into a flying ship full of weaponized students. Or that the protagonist is a blah blah blah spoiler spoiler.

But back to the FF13 trailer. I love that trailer.

It is the most perfectly styled ?thing? I've ever seen. It is nothing _but_ style. There is no substance you can discern. And that's hard. There's an almost zen-like vacuity going on. The words - all understandable. Characters which appear unique and intriguing. The phrasing of the trailer, the visual language of the thing, is perfectly timed and recognizable. You know there is an intro, a build, a climax and catharsis. There's music going on.

And there is No. Meaning. o.0 I've got no sarcasm regarding this. It's one of the most fascinating things I've ever seen. I watch it from time to time just to marvel at the damn thing.

The astounding thing is that even though it's entirely style and no substance, by about the four minute mark something in me starts working desperately to suspend my disbelief because I want to know this style. Based on the stuff I liked about eight and ten, the trailer leaves me thinking they've actually perfected the idea of fantasy in a game and left meaning in the dust because it has no bearing on fantasy.

 

[Jaytr13]

This episode wasn't my cup of tea. Dude, I'm sorry but you lost me with this episode. I don't play any FF games, I'm not a huge fan. I have played other Square games, like KH which is one of my favorite game series, and that's the most FF I get these days, and it's just the theme park version.

It basically just sounds to me like you're crapping on a fanbase, a terrifyingly awesome figure, and a company. I mean sure, you do it all the time, but it's actually justified when people are acting like idiots. I didn't get the overarching point to this episode, just a bunch of rambling and subjective personal views.