I can't believe you wrote it up so quickly, especially considering how a good part of it is a summary of events (these things take me foreveeeeeeer due to lack of motivation, whether or not I sprinkle them with analysis XD), but yay, I'm so glad you made that other topic and got this idea because this seems to be such an interesting character (and exactly the kind of character I'd adore)!
I can only echo what others have already said, especially sutkarak; I like how you split up the sections and structured them to further emphasize the contrast between "before" and "after" - not just before and after the end of the world, but also before and after the transformation. The last two sections starting from "The Reason" were lovely to read due to your nuanced approach in judging her, and though I'm not at all familiar with the game, they're easy to understand for me and really put the story sections into perspective. :> (Ugh can't believe I still haven't played any Shin Megami Tensei games, why must the series be so intimidating size-wise. D:)
This is the most precious though lmao:
nyxmidnight wrote:Shit I was so happy to be finally done I plugged mine yesterday D: Forgive me!
Both despair and ecstasy are part of the elements that compose a person.
Your layout styles are always interesting. I love it. I also read through part of your shrine and it made me want to read through the whole thing. I enjoyed it a lot, and as one who has never played a SMT game I found it really easy to follow.
There are shadows before us - but only because the light is at our back.
I encourage you to pick up Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne to see more of Chiaki! The game can be found on PSN. It's not an easy game, but it's perfectly conquerable. It's a beautiful and thought-provoking JRPG that needs a ton more fans.
Lethe, if you need help dipping your toes in Megaten, I am here to help!
Lethe wrote:This is the most precious though lmao:
nyxmidnight wrote:Shit I was so happy to be finally done I plugged mine yesterday D: Forgive me!
As usual, you bring solid analysis about a Megaten character!!!
I had to skip a few (very small) parts because I still haven't finished my first Nocturne playthrough. I just opened up the tower above the Obelisk, but I think I want to finish exploring the Labyrinth of Amala before going in there (Beelzebub tho). Besides, my current demons suck lmao I've just been tanking through the game with Focus + heavy physical attacks tbh
Either way, I really love how you provided a summary of the game's events that felt so comfortable and easy to read, almost as if Nocturne's plot wasn't, like, totally crazy?? Seriously, I'm at the last stages of the game and I still haven't a good enough grasp on what Reason belongs to whom and what the hell it's supposed to be called. Musubi?? Yosuga??? what the hell tbh lmao
ANYWAY IM GETTING SIDE-TRACKED but this happens a lot when I'm talking about Megaten, the POINT is that your shrine is very well written!!! Personally, I couldn't say Chiaki is any less evil than any other individual trying to survive in that kind of post-apocalyptic world; I prefer to see her as someone who became completely broken as a result of being exposed to very harsh circumstances - which in the end makes her entire speech about beauty and perfection seem kind of ironic? I do like, though, how you traced Yosuga back to fascism, nazism and social darwinism; the alignments in these games clearly mirror real-world philosophy. When you put Chiaki's Reason and these philosophies together and notice the similarities, I guess it becomes easier to say Chiaki is evil the same way Hitler or Stalin were inhuman. But the latter weren't living in a post-apocalyptic, nerve-wrecking, demon infested wasteland, so they can't be excused!!!!!!
Chiaki is a poor baby ok that's all I wanted to say in this post,,,,,
BTW I remember I posted a rly long post back when you launched your Adil shrine and I said the same exact thing back then that I'm going to say now, but I'm not really trying to change your opinion or anything!! As I said, your shrine is excellent and I really enjoyed reading through it and, just like your Adil shrine, it really made me think a little more about Chiaki which led to this huge post!!!!
Thank you for this great read, and I'm looking forward to seeing more Megaten shrines from you! Megaten shrines man, they're like the best kind of shrines??? Help me god I love Megaten shrines
♕ ♔ nightly dance of bleeding
swords remind me that i still live.
Thank you thank you @high seraph! Always happy to please you with my Megaten shrines :D
I'll have to disagree on one point, though. I'm not denying that Chiaki is in dire need of a hug (and intensive therapy). However, I still say that enacting the genocide of the Manikins, Vortex or not, puts her squarely in the evil category. She could have taken on anyone for magatsuhi, in accordance to her Reason of Might Makes Right; hell she could have taken on Isamu easily, like she does in the Tower of Kagutsuchi if you agree with her. But no, she chose the pseudo-human, defenceless people, calling them slurs all the way to their birthland she desecrated.
Similarly, I consider Hikawa evil for exterminating 99.999,999,99% of the human population for his religious ideal, even if it's debatable that no one realized what happened.
SMT: Nocturne: Your friends are shitheads and so are you.
