Post by Gelquie on Feb 28, 2023 5:54:51 GMT -5
It has been years coming, but I finally played through all the other games and just finished playing Azran Legacy, including the bonus puzzles. Which wraps up the prequel trilogy.
The twists are all as zany and plot hole-y as usual, but I've come to expect that from a Layton game. xD Anyway, it was a fun ride! It's been too long since I played Spectre and Mask and watched Eternal Diva, so I went in with slight amnesia to things, but didn't feel I suffered too much for it.
Spoilery content
Okay, I'm alluding to major spoiler content here, here goes.
Ramble ramble ramble. It's not a perfect work, but I still enjoyed it.
The twists are all as zany and plot hole-y as usual, but I've come to expect that from a Layton game. xD Anyway, it was a fun ride! It's been too long since I played Spectre and Mask and watched Eternal Diva, so I went in with slight amnesia to things, but didn't feel I suffered too much for it.
Spoilery content
It was kind of interesting going from "exploring a town in-depth" to open world style. It made for different game pacing, and I kind of saw it as an experiment. It did help break up and otherwise "find all the things" plot and exposed the characters to different things while subtly helping us get to know our party guest characters. On the other hand, the different plot segments were obviously disconnected from each other, so it felt very episodic. Kind of made that segment of the game a bit more of a casual play for me before the final segments that are much more plot heavy.
Not necessarily a bad thing though; I thought it was good to show the characters in casual times and getting to know each other over the course of a year. But I'll agree with other sentiments I've read online that the pacing at the end was a bit rushed for what the final plot points were.
Not necessarily a bad thing though; I thought it was good to show the characters in casual times and getting to know each other over the course of a year. But I'll agree with other sentiments I've read online that the pacing at the end was a bit rushed for what the final plot points were.
Okay, I'm alluding to major spoiler content here, here goes.
(So apparently, the end cinematic to Miracle Mask alludes something major that probably gives away the whole Descole thing. Thing is, I completely 100% forgot about that cinematic! So I went in blind to that and experienced it how the main characters would experience it.)
With that blind moment in mind, as a writer, I thought it was a really interesting lesson in learning so much about a character without realizing you were learning more about that character until it hits all at once. I knew there was gonna be a disguise in play (because it's a Layton game, of course there's gonna be a disguised villain), but the question was who. I'll be honest, I thought "yeah definitely that one" at the beginning, then towards the middle went "actually no, nevermind, they seem good," then the reveal chapter happened and more built up and I went "oh darnit I was right the first time." xD
I was spoiled on the family relation twist, which ended up not being that big of a deal besides me "hmm"ing at two characters when they were on screen together (during ties I was suspicious). But I'm really glad I wasn't spoiled on the "who's disguised" twist, because it really changes the context and makes me want to review things. (Same with the other twist with a party member. I knew something had to happen to them but I didn't know what. I didn't see it coming, but I can't decide if that's a good thing or a bad thing; it was very sudden.)
I'll be honest, the arc villain of the prequel trilogy hadn't interested me that much (despite their cool outfit and music) until this game. It was really interesting to follow them. I thought they had a temper and a snarky attitude to them sometimes! It just seemed well under control. I guess different facets of his personality shine through depending on who his persona is. (Since I suspected and had it confirmed in an after-game episode that this isn't an impersonation, but an alter ego maintained during an attempt at living normally, and then used again here. Meaning that's probably his real face and the mentioned credentials are real.) Given how he was apparently orphaned and lived alone (what kind of adoption system is that, most try to adopt out siblings together??), I wonder if he got used to faking identities just to survive and navigate, to the point where identity is... flexible to him. Would explain how he's able to disguise himself so well. Still, those two identities aren't that different upon closer inspection.
(Buuuut it doesn't explain why he attempted outright assault on others including the professor, particularly in Spectre's Call, when here and in other titles it's shown that he tries to avoid innocents getting hurt (but doesn't mind property damage). Especially Layton of all people. Uhh, one of the general Layton plot holes, I guess. x'D Or he has anger issues that makes him lash out that way. Except he seemed able to control it really well this game? Uhh... yeah. xD
(EDIT: Or maybe traveling with the main group for a year had some benefit to his psyche.))
The thing with Aurora's identity makes sense in hindsight as it explains a few things, beyond her ability to survive that long and why she never complained about the conditions when she was wearing a very light outfit in freezing weather or among prickly grass. xD Most of her character development for me came at the end, as otherwise she just kind of... followed the party for a while. Then again, if I was shunted into an entirely new future like that while having amnesia, I'd probably be pretty quiet too. xD
Final villain, I'll be honest, the sad moments with him didn't do much for me. Just didn't spend enough time with him, I guess. Maybe that's the case with some bad parents though; you don't always see them, but the effect is far more prominent anyway.
Layton is really the forgiving type, but I think he handled it well. Allowing contact and reconciliation, but not accepting the heritage. It's a rare nuance on dysfunctional family matters in media, and that stands out to me.
With that blind moment in mind, as a writer, I thought it was a really interesting lesson in learning so much about a character without realizing you were learning more about that character until it hits all at once. I knew there was gonna be a disguise in play (because it's a Layton game, of course there's gonna be a disguised villain), but the question was who. I'll be honest, I thought "yeah definitely that one" at the beginning, then towards the middle went "actually no, nevermind, they seem good," then the reveal chapter happened and more built up and I went "oh darnit I was right the first time." xD
I was spoiled on the family relation twist, which ended up not being that big of a deal besides me "hmm"ing at two characters when they were on screen together (during ties I was suspicious). But I'm really glad I wasn't spoiled on the "who's disguised" twist, because it really changes the context and makes me want to review things. (Same with the other twist with a party member. I knew something had to happen to them but I didn't know what. I didn't see it coming, but I can't decide if that's a good thing or a bad thing; it was very sudden.)
I'll be honest, the arc villain of the prequel trilogy hadn't interested me that much (despite their cool outfit and music) until this game. It was really interesting to follow them. I thought they had a temper and a snarky attitude to them sometimes! It just seemed well under control. I guess different facets of his personality shine through depending on who his persona is. (Since I suspected and had it confirmed in an after-game episode that this isn't an impersonation, but an alter ego maintained during an attempt at living normally, and then used again here. Meaning that's probably his real face and the mentioned credentials are real.) Given how he was apparently orphaned and lived alone (what kind of adoption system is that, most try to adopt out siblings together??), I wonder if he got used to faking identities just to survive and navigate, to the point where identity is... flexible to him. Would explain how he's able to disguise himself so well. Still, those two identities aren't that different upon closer inspection.
(Buuuut it doesn't explain why he attempted outright assault on others including the professor, particularly in Spectre's Call, when here and in other titles it's shown that he tries to avoid innocents getting hurt (but doesn't mind property damage). Especially Layton of all people. Uhh, one of the general Layton plot holes, I guess. x'D Or he has anger issues that makes him lash out that way. Except he seemed able to control it really well this game? Uhh... yeah. xD
(EDIT: Or maybe traveling with the main group for a year had some benefit to his psyche.))
The thing with Aurora's identity makes sense in hindsight as it explains a few things, beyond her ability to survive that long and why she never complained about the conditions when she was wearing a very light outfit in freezing weather or among prickly grass. xD Most of her character development for me came at the end, as otherwise she just kind of... followed the party for a while. Then again, if I was shunted into an entirely new future like that while having amnesia, I'd probably be pretty quiet too. xD
Final villain, I'll be honest, the sad moments with him didn't do much for me. Just didn't spend enough time with him, I guess. Maybe that's the case with some bad parents though; you don't always see them, but the effect is far more prominent anyway.
Layton is really the forgiving type, but I think he handled it well. Allowing contact and reconciliation, but not accepting the heritage. It's a rare nuance on dysfunctional family matters in media, and that stands out to me.
Ramble ramble ramble. It's not a perfect work, but I still enjoyed it.
