Jotari analyzes every single line of dialogue from Sin and Punishment

[Jotari]

Do you ever feel like you're the only one in the world who cares about an IP? That's how I kind of feel about the game Sin and Punishment. Oh the game itself isn't the most obscure thing out there, plenty of people have played it, and it gets the amount of praise one would typically expect from a Treasure title, but most of the focus is on the gameplay. The story people generally view as just weird and confusing. Which is understandable. But, personally, I freaking love the story of Sin and Punishment. It has this sort of retro 80s/90s scifi nostalgia vibe that kind of also never existed and I think it has some actually interesting themes layered into it. Though, perhaps I'm looking too far into it. When I say I feel like I'm the only one that cares, I even include the writer or writers themselves. As I can't even find the person who created it. There game doesn't come with a writing credit. There was a manga and a light novel produced around the same time, but neither of the writers for that appear in the credits of the game (I've read the manga, it's a massive disservice to the story while the light novel, predictably, hasn't been translated into English). The closest to a story credit is the nebulous "director", but considering the main programmer went on to be the director in the sequel I'm guessing that's more director of the whole project with a main focus on the programming side. In other words, it feels like I enjoy and think more about this story than the person who wrote it. And since Treasure is now dead (rip T.T) and Nintendo has no interest in doing anything with the property (there was some hope Saki being removed as an assist trophy meant he'd be a character in Smash Ultimate, but instead it just seems like they don't care about Sin and Punishment at all), it seems like nothing else will ever be said about this series. Well that kind of bums me out so I've decided to go form maybe over thinking the quality of this narrative to definitely over thinking it by analyzing every single last detail of it and posting it here. It's not a long game, totaling at about an hour of playtime (that's story+gameplay) if you don't die, so it shouldn't take too long, but I'm serious when I say I'm going to analyze every last line of dialogue. Without any further ado, let us begin.

PART 1: The Prologue

There is supplementary material giving an overview of the setting, but I'm going to choose to ignore it. I don't think a story should require supplementary reading to make sense and largely I don't think this story needs it. At least as it's currently framed. The fact that the story begins mid action is also one of its biggest weaknesses as we don't have a lot of time to really understand the characters before a lot is changing for them. This was done in service of the gameplay of course, but I do think this short story could have done with more in the beginning.

Anyway the first shot of the game is on digital clock revealing that the story takes place in the distant future year of...2007. This is a good use of visual story telling, even though it's now in the past, displaying the date in such a way immediately tells you that this is something resembling scifi. It's also helped by this bizarrely funky music for the tone of the scene. Our first lines of dialogue is someone crying out Achi's name.

Girl: Achi... Achi... Hurry... Save us... Achi...

The camera then pans up showing a line of shoulders who immediately fire. We pan back and blood covers the screen making it clear that was a POV shot. Again this is just good cinematography, placing us in the shoes of this speaker and creating a link of empathy as she's mercilessly shot down crying out in hope for someone to save her. The voie acting here, which the game gets criticism for as a whole, is also great. This woman is pleading for her life, yet the salvation doesn't some. We cut to an over the shoulder shot of the soldier.

Commander: Are these the rebels?

Soldier: One group of them, sir. They have no strength to resist any longer.

Commander: But the leaders are still alive. There's no time now. Join the
troops intercepting the Ruffians.

The soldiers here talk in a somewhat nonchalant way. This tells us something subtle about the whole affair. They did this without malice despite how merciless it had just been depicted, suggesting the whole morality of the game will be slightly more complicated than typical black and white. Before moving to the next scene we see the same digital clock, now stained with the girl's blood, given rise to an ominous feeling.

The music doesn't cut out as we transition to another scene. Despite the change in location and characters, this is all one continuous sequence. And while it's not narrative, that is somewhat emblematic of the game as a whole. Like I said, the game is just over an hour long including the story and gameplay. Taking just the cutscenes alone ans you end up with something that's about 25 minutes long, or about as long as a single half hour tv show with breaks. Yet they manage to shove a tonne into the story in that short run time.

The next scene is a slow pan over a raised train station where we see another girl, sitting on the edge and kicking her legs. A pair of eyes are overlaid on the screen, giving us our first glimpse at the super natural as a man speaks to the girl using telepathy.

Man's voice: Kachyua, listen. A Ruffian swarm is approaching your position.
I've also confirmed Radan's location.

Kachyua: Didn't I tell you? Make me the bait and Radan will come to feast.
Radan is jealous of me. I took you for myself.

We then get an unconventional cut away as the game shows us exactly who this Radan they're talking about is, a giant wolf like monster.

Man's voice: I have chosen you.

However it's clear from the way they speak of her, that Radan was also once human. Kachua's voice also contains a hint more malevolence than the soldiers who had spoken before. We then get another cut to Radan (without the previous one we wouldn't have known that this creature is the Radan they talk about). She roars as birds swarm the sky. These are the ruffians that both the soldiers and the man talked about. They are the generic monsters of the game that have overrun Japan.

Next we return to the room in which the girl was killed, this time we get a clear shot of the corpses. Though maybe clear isn't the right word as they're still not animated in any great detail given this was the early days of 3D gaming, but it's enough to show us that there was quite a lot of them. The scene then quick cuts to another girl's face with a sound and visual effect that indicate the girl had just been viewing this scene somehow.

Achi: Michiko's group. They've all been killed.

We learn that the girl who was gunned down is called Michiko, and that she was an ally of these new characters. The first of these characters is Achi and she's pretty much the most complex character in the game. If you've played the game already (and I kind of assume you have since you're reading this) you'll know that she is the main villain of the game. Though right now she is working with the protagonists.

http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Achi.png

Her design is a but understated, which both contrasts her character and plays it straight. She wears nothing but a green sun dress and a pair of sandals. Not the most battle ready choice of attire given the setting. Her artwork gives her a rather cute expression on her face, but, while it's no doubt the result of limited animation, I prefer how her face actually looks in game.

Her in game model gives her more of an uncanny valley aspect, which works for her character, it also highlights her scar and draws attention to the weird colouration she has on her upper arms that is missing from her artwork.

We then meet our next principle character.

Airan: Achi, did you seem them? Cold blooded killers! Even if we steal the
damn transport, it won't mean anything if there's no on to ride in it.

http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/AiranJo.png

This is Airan. Her first lines are rather emotional  as she swings her weapon in frustration at the situation they've been put in. Airan's design shows that she's more of a fighter compared to Achi, She has practical clothes, pants and boots and has a weapon in hand at all times. She's not exactly wearing armour, but with the situation she's fighting in she doesn't exactly have access to it. But you get the impression she'd slip easily into Samus's shoes if she had to with her determination and competence. Her left arm has a strange red...thing covering it. That is never explained and that fact actually carries some significant plot implications, but I'll address that when I get to it.

Achi: Relax, Airan. You'll wake Saki. They've put their faith in us. We must try to help the others.

We pan to our third principle character and the nominal protagonist of the game (I say nominal since he's actually the least developed of the three). Before I focus on Saki, however, I'll just note that Achi's words come out calm and measured. The loss of her comrades has not affected her, she's focused purely on how to move pragmatically from here on out.

http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/SakiAmamiya.png

Saki is cool and I want him in Smash Bros. The protagonist from the second game has more moveset potential, but Saki just has a better design. His shorts and t-shirt combo make him look athletic. He has a rather levelheaded and cool looking expression and indeed very little phases him as a character despite what happens to him. Rather hilariously they seemed to have given him two different voice actors, one for cutscenes and one for gameplay. The voice actor for cutscenes sounds like an actual teenager, while the one in cutscenes like a 40 year old man who's been smoking all his life. He doesn't say anything in this intro, being asleep for the entirety of it, which is something of an odd choice, but it actually has a role in terms of gameplay and comes back later in the story in two different ways.

Airan: That's only if the soldiers hit the Ruffians like we expected.

Airan's next line reveals that this is a three way conflict. We have soldiers, monsters and, as they've been thus far identified, rebels. The very fact that we have rebels under a situation in which the city is swarming with monsters tells you something about how these soldiers must be behaving. This is a scenario that has reached extreme levels of shit hitting the fan and people managing it have done such a pisspoor job that the main victims of the monsters are rising up to fight against their very saviors. Everyone is at each other's throat.

Achi: Not expected... As I predicted. Now we'll have a good window.

Achi corrects Airan's wording. The difference between expected and predicted. This, along with the transition into this scene,  makes it clear that Achi has powers of some sort. And she's very confident about them. I've heard one Youtuber back in the day describe the abilities Achi uses as "something like psychic powers, but much more" (or something to that affect) and it's a way of describing her that I find apt. She's powerful in a very distinct way that leaves any new ability she uses as unsurprising.

Achi's voice: Soon... It will all begin.

And there's really no better line to end the intro with, as this is the beginning. Well actually it shouldn't be. As I said the story's lack of context in the beginning is its biggest weakness. We would be well served by having some idea how Saki and Airian met Achi and what kind of relationship all three of them share. But it wouldn't quite be Sin and Punishment if it did have much of that. I don't think you could do it in any way but montage without losing the spirit of the game. For better or for worse, this is where it begins.

And I'm going to hit save post now. I plan on making five posts about this, one for the intro, one for the prologue and Part 1 of the game, one for Part 2, one for Part 3 and one for the ending. I'm going to start writing up Part 1 right away however as I'm enjoying this, but feel free to comment and tell me what you think of my super in depth analysis. I know this is sort of weird content to post and if no one really cares that's understandable, I'm doing it more for myself than anyone else, but if you do enjoy Sin and Punishment, then do tell me. And if I've in any way made you interested in the game, then go ahead and play it. Like I said, it's short, and it's also available on the Switch's N64 collection, so you can play it more or less immediately if you have a Nintendo subscription.

Edited March 16, 2023 by Jotari

[Jotari]

Part 2: Stages 0-0 to 1-3

What I have been describing thus far was the prologue, viewed when you boot up the game and don't press start right away. It's definitely important for the story, but when you hit new game you're thrown directly into gameplay with absolutely no context as you play as Saki running though a dark  golden field with a red sky, fighting Ruffians. You fight without really knowing why as you get to grips with the control scheme and how to play the game.

Airan: Saki?... Oh Saki...

Airan: Good morning, Saki.

Saki: Good morning, Airan.

This lack of context works on a thematic level, as Saki will be expected to accept a lot of things without context up to and including fighting for a cause. The nature of this sequence is explained once it ends, however, you were playing through Saki's dream as he slept before the mission. The fact that Saki is dreaming about fighting, and then wakes up to immediately go into fighting tells you something about the kind of life he's living. But like I said before, Saki takes this in stride. It doesn't seem like he's carrying much trauma from this life of constant violence, which is actually a really strange trait to give a character. Usually a character acting like that would be in some way sociopathic, but Saki very much isn't.

The little exchange Saki and Airan have as Saki wakes up is cute. Airian speaks with more affection than the emphatic words she'd used previously.  You get the impression this exchange isn't just a simple greeting. There's something ironic about it that gives the impression that it's ritual, like they've said these words in this way many times before. And indeed these lines do get a call back later in the game.

Airan throws Saki his gun which he catches almost without looking.

Achi: Come on, we've got work to do.

And so they run throught he door of the empty non descript room they'd been waiting in and the action begins in earnest. Saki, Airan and Achi run through a cityscape fighting the soldiers whom we learn from the boss HP meters are known as the Armed Volunteers. Part way through the level the swarm of birds Radan was with earlier appear along with a series of crab ruffians and a boss which Saki also fights. He expresses some surprise at the Ruffians being here already. We don't actually see Saki being told that Michiko and like all his other friends have just been killed, but presumably he'd been informed in the transtion into gameplay. Would be a bit scummy of Airan and Achi to not inform him of that. Seeing his reaction might have been nice.

And just because I promised to go over every line in the story, here is the ancillarly dialogue played during the level.

Airan: Saki! Watch out behind us!

Airan: Nice shot! Keep it up!

Airan: Take care of it, Saki!

Saki: Ruffins? Here? already?

Saki: Where'd they come from?!

Saki: Airan, cover our back!

This is not actually something the game has a whole lot of. From memory it's literally just here and one level near the end of the game. There's not a whole lot I can say, it's just general dialogue to let you know all three characters are present and fighting even if you're only playing as one.

Saki: Come on, quick! Into the Shinjuku station!

Airan: Hurry! The Ruffian swarm has started attacking!

These lines confirm that the game is taking place in Japan, despite the odd choice to only dub the game in English and then not release it anywhere but Japan.

Airan: There, that should get the elevator moving.

Saki: You think they're on to us?

Airan: Maybe. But they're probably more worried about the Ruffians.

Achi: I hear voices up above.

Saki: I'll check it out. Just keep the elevator moving.

This sets up our next gameplay stage as Saki fights from the top of an elevator scaling the side of the rather large tower of Shinjuku station. I've been to Shinjuku and I don't recall anything of this scale in the train station, but then a lot can be done in the distant year of 2007. Saki starts by fighting soldiers but also fights Ruffians towards end of the level and we even get to see ruffians fighting the Armed Volunteers. Near the end of the elevator rid Radan unexpectedly leaps on to the scene.

Kachyua: Skip the small-fry! Capturing Radan is our top prority!

Kachuya, the girl from the opening who talked about Radan suddenly appears on the lift, and moments later Radan herself jumps onto the top of the lift and quickly jumps off. Let's take a moment to look at Kachuya's design, as, while she's not as large a character as the rest, she still gets offical artwork.

She takes some design ques from Achi in that she's not exactly dressed for battle. And, unlike Airan, she absolutely could be given she works with the Armed Volunteers. Instead she goes for a far more fashionable look than the other characters in the game. This is also telling about her character as she is involved in a love triangle and she seems determined to win it. The most striking thing about her however, is obviously the monstrous right arm. The pose she takes her is one she also has in game, when animated it makes her seem like she's both in great pain, but also overflowing with power. The artist in this picture kind of focused a bit too much on the pain side I think and kind of gave her a lost expression, while in game, even with the limted animation, she has a rather sinister contenance.

Saki fights a mini boss as the lift accelerates to the top of the building. Saki and co get there first as there is the air plane of some sort awaiting them, apparently unguarded.

Saki: A transport! Airan, take the controls.

Airan: Hurry, Saki!!

Airan: Whoa! Hold on!!

Airan's voice: Down, dammit! Fall down, you stupid beast!

This is the transport Airan referenced in the opening. Airan and Achi board but Radan quickly appears to cause trouble. Saki is left outside the transport as Airan and Achi take off. Airan attempts to push Radan off the building. Radan leaps back up however, starting the boss fight. Showing Airan push him off in the cutscene is a guide for how she is to be defeated in gameplay.

Kachyua: I won't let you kill Radan!

Kachyua appears during the boss fight to and just sort of stands there. You can, and probably incidentally will, hit her to knock her down. It is interesting to note that Kachuya does not want Saki to actually kill Radan, despite Kachuya being in some sort of love triangle between herself, Radan and the man with the glowing eyes. Though I guess your love rival turning into a giant wolf monster does kind of take her off the table for a decent relationship. Still this does show loyalty from Kachuya towards her boss.

Kachyua: My research materials... How could you...

Saki: So you're the leader of these killers?

With Radan defeated, Saki and Kachyua turn their attention to each other. Saki takes things in his stride as I said, but he's not jovial, nor, like I said, is he a sociopath. He shows subdued anger at Kachuya and what she represents to him.

Man's voice: Kachyua, stop. He's one of the rebels...

Kachyua: Let me take him. He's only human. Now's our chance to test the power of the blood you gave me.

Kachuya is bleeding throughout this conversation, as a result of you hitting her during the previous battle. The camera focuses on her blood and she talks about the blood she's been given. She also doesn't quite view herself as human based on how she talks about Saki. We don't learn anything further about Kachuya, but she almost certainly is human. What we learn here is that blood in this story has power of some sort and in the following fight Kachuya shows off her powers with the rather esoteric battle strategy of flinging her own soldiers at Saki. A nice detail on the ui in this battle is that Kachuya only has 10hp. Saki has 100hp and most bosses in the game have a few thousand. To some extent this does highlight her human nature. Shooting at Kachuya doesn't work, you need to endure her attacks until you have a chance to finish her off with a melee attack. This leads to some good gameplay story integration as the momentum Kachuya has when you finish her off in gameplay continues into the cutscene as Kachuya upon being injured stumbles to the edge of the building and dramatically falls off.

Kachyua: Brad!

If you've been paying attention to who Kachuya is and what she values, then this dying exclamation from her will let you put 2 and 2 together to figure out that the man with the glowing eyes she's been telepathically talking to is named Brad.

And now this is where the story gets really crazy.  This is the moment I think most people who say the plot is confusing just toss up their hands and give up trying to understand it, as this happens very suddenly and without any real explanation until later in the game. As Kachuya falls off the building there is an earthquake. We get an aerial shot of Japan as sea of blood engulfs Tokyo. Airan and Achia are safe on the transport while Saki is trapped on the roof of the building and is quickly consumed by the ocean of blood.

Achi: Ok, Saki... Show me what you've got...

Achi has been depicted as nothing but a strange ally of Saki and Airan thus far, this is the first hint we see that there is more at play with her. We don't understand what's going on her, Saki doesn't understand what's going on here, but Achi does. Skai emerges from the ocean of blood as a giant monster.

Brad: So Achi and her friends have it in them too? If he's got Ahchi's
blood in him... then what in the world is he?

Brad, as we now know the glowing eyes man to be called, observes these events. Even he is confused by what is happening, but he seems to have a more solid grasp of things than Saki does.

Brad: K-Kachyua?? Don't fight, Kachyua, Wait for me. Can you no longer hear me?

Kachyua also fell into the ocean of blood and emerged a monster. There is no one else in what is now completely eradicated Tokyo turning into monsters, this tells you that there was something special about both Saki and Kachuya that led to this. We already know Kachuya had Brad's blood, and now we have Brad speculating that Saki has Achi's blood, further telling us that Achi is more than she seems. Kachuya is also much more monstrious than the sleeker Saki. This possibly suggests something about the purity of the blood the two of them share.

Now you get to have a kaiju battle. Yes, this game is awesome.

Airan's voice: Saki!! SAKI!!

Achi: We can't go near him yet.

Airan's voice: Is that... Is that Saki?

Achi: We can change him back, ok? Just not now...

Airan's voice: We're the only ones left... Everyone else is dead...

It's not dwelled upon for too long, but Airan takes these events pretty hard. People say the voice acting in this game is bad and, yeah, it's not fantastic, but for the era of video games it was made for it isn't nearly as awful as it could have been and the chracters do clearly emote. I think people view it as worse than it is because the sound quality itself can be bad at points.

Achi: DAMMIT!!

Saki proves himself to be just as mindless as Kachuya was by immediately attacking the ship with his friends in it, fortunately we see a glowling light in the remains of the explosion as Achi teleports herself an Airan to safety, ending the first part of the game.

Like I said, this game crams a tonne of different stuff into it's plot line. Already we've had a confrontation that could very well be placed at the end of the game. It's intense, strange and unpredictable. If you gave me this set up and I knew nothing of the story, I wouldn't beable to hazard a guess as to where it's going to go next. We do have some info in that we know Saki can be transformed back, but even the path to that development isn't straight forward. We've also just lost our protagonist a third of the way into the game. For the next portion of the game (which is also the longest, at least in terms of gameplay) you play as Airan. Which I will talk about tomorrow.

[AnonymousSpeed]

[Jotari]

PART 3: Stages 2-1

The second part of the game opens with an establishing shot showing we're now with an armada of battle ships in the middle of the ocean.

Brad: Kachyua...

We fade through the bridge of one of the ships as Brad's eyes are overlaid on the screen once more, they then shrink until his model appears around them showing us that this character and the mysterious voice are one and the same. Once again, great cinematography.

Brad has artwork too, but since he's the villain they kind of make it indistinct and covered in shadow, which fits how he is in Part 1, but not after he actually becomes part of the plot. In either case we can see that he's rocking some kind of naval uniform.

Man on screen: I understand your feelings, Brad. Kachyua was a good match for
you. Both militarily and emotionally. But I can't lose you too. Retreat.
There's no hope for Japan.

Our next line of dialogue comes from a character on a viewing screen that is never named. There's also a pair of identical twin children shown here that are never commented on. I feel like these are plot threads that were intended to be used in some way but were ultimately abandoned. Regardless the man appears to be Brad's superior, however he's not forceful or commanding. Though he tells Brad to retreat, it feels less like an order and more like advice. Advice which Brad decides not to follow.

Brad: There's an enemy out there... A monster... I won't let it run free.

Leda: Thinking of revenge?

Brad: I lost Kachyua! Now it's Achi's turn to lose something!

Leda: Kachyua's gone... Think of the living. Like me!

Brad: Radan... Kachyua... The women I passed my blood to... How could they...
Achi, I'm going to show the world how weak your beast really is.

Leda is a cat like Ruffian with the ability to speak. Like Radan and Kachyua, she was once human too. That's three (known) girls Brad managed to have in his harem, four if you inclue Achi whom he's not on good terms with anymore but clearly knew in the past. And the official guide info stuff I can't find any more said Brad is super young. I can't remember exactly how old, but like a teenager who definitely shouldn't be leading an armada. He's almost like a typical light novel protagonist gone bad.

We get a lot of characterisation from him in these lines. Not only do we see his hatred for Achi on full display, but we discover he has passed on his blood, like Archi did to Saki. I particularly like the last line, about showing the world how weak Saki is. It shows his vengeful side, but also his desire for people to see him. Brad, as we come to understand later, is a character who very much cares how people perceive him and has a lot of hidden insecurities about who he is. Despite being told to retreat, he simply can't. His personality won't let him back down, he needs to be the big hero who saves Japan from evil godzilla Saki, and he needs everyone to see it.

Achi: This is the safest spot. It's the Armed
Volenteer's Ship.

Airan and Achi teleport on screen, they're at the same location as Brad (well at a different part of the ship as we need some gameplay). This seems a bit forced at first, and it kind of is, but it's a very fast paced story and we need to get our characters into position. At the same time, it does actually make a lot of sense. Achi wants things to come to a head, so she's heading directly for Brad. I think she's lying to Airan here by claiming it's the safest spot. But it turns out Airan doesn't need much lying to, as she's out for Brad's blood anyway.

Brad's voice on an intercrom: Attention. Attention. Our defense of Tokyo has failed. But we
shall remain in Japan to battle this new beast.

Airan: Beast...?

Brad's voice: Its target is a Ruffian Lair in Hokkaido. By eating Ruffians,
it will strengthen. By assimiliating them, it will threaten humanity! Radan's
tragedy cannot be repeated! As your commander I urge you to find the courage
to engage this beast!

Smoke comes out of the speakers when she fired at it.

Airan: Him! So HE'S their commander!

Airan shoots the intercom Brad is speaking out of and then...removes her jacket revealing a blue tank top. This is particularly weird. Is it really hot on the ship? I doubt it, but this is what Airan looks like for the rest of the game, and honestly she looks much better in a tank top, but if they wanted her to look that way from the start they could have just done so. The costume change doesn't really have much narrative function. Though it is something of a dramatic way to show that the player's character has changed as it transitions into gameplay. Though somewhat disappointingly despite having two characters they both play exactly the same.

Brad: I will NOT let you kill Leda!

Leda, the car ruffian is fought as a boss part way through the stage. Brad shows up in his projected eye form and causes earthquakes to assist Leda. This is the first real display of super natural power we see from Brad as it's all been telepathy thus far. But if you're paying attention you'll know that Kachuya got her powers from Brad, so that he can do something like this is unsurprising.

Airan: The traps were for Ruffians? So what they captured broke free?

Achi: Airan!! 

Airan: Wait! Stop! 

So Airan notices there are ruffians on the ship while Achi briefly gets captured by one. I'm not sure if this monsters legitimately got the drop on Achi here or if she was in control of the situation and just wanted to test Airan. The former seems a bit absurd given Achi's power level, but the latter seems slightly too gamey for the narrative. But it is a vioe game too, so sometimes this just happens for the sake of gameplay.

Airan: You could've just teleported free...

Achi: Idiot! Don't you realize how dangerous teleporting is!?

And here we get something of a justifiaction as to why the characters don't just teleport all the time. We never actually see teleporting having any negative affects in this game, but it does come up in the sequel.

Leda: They're dangerous!! They were about to kill me!!

Brad: These enemies out-match you, Leda. They're all that remain of Achi and her followers. It's
quite possible that the girl has inherited Achi's blood. This time I will 
face them. You must stay back.

Leda retreats back to Brad who is now alone on the bridge (rip random twins). Brad speculates that Airan has inherited Achi's blood. This is something we never get any confirmation on. The purple discolouration on Airan's arm could just be a piece of string or it could be a mutation of some sort as a result of the blood. I lean toward Airan not having inherited any blood as it just never comes up after this line and I feel if her arm were mutated it would be something people actually comment on. Seeing when and how blood is inherited is something we never get to do and is another reason why the game could have done with some more plot prior to the situation in which we start.

Airan: Well, Commander! Now I'll avenge my friends.

Brad: The pleasure will be all mine.

Airan and Brad have their boss fight. Brad is the only enemy in the game who uses the same kind of weapon as Airan and Saki which, along with his relationship with Aichi paints him as a foil to our heroes. During the fight Leda is killed and Brad is knocked out the window. Though  he's not finished yet despite that being the end of the stage.

I said I'd cover all of Part 2 in my next post but I've suddenly been called away at this convenient point in which I've just covered Stage 2-1, so I'll be back later to do the rest. Stage 2-2 is the coolest part of the game, but it it's also very light on plot while Stage 2-3 is probably the most plot heavy part of the game. So that'll balance out.

Edited March 16, 2023 by Jotari

[Reality]

I remember when I got into an argument for claiming this game was better than it's Wii sequel.

Will be interested to see you finish when the game goes more off the rails

[BrightBow]

The best premise of a thread I've seen in ages.

It really sucks that they didn't bother to translate the Japanese subtitles except for the ones in the voiceless sequences in the epilogue. Especially considering how distorted a lot of the lines are. Like, that speech of Brad over the speaker? Never understood a single word of it.

Edited January 29, 2022 by BrightBow

[Jotari]

17 hours ago, Reality said:

I remember when I got into an argument for claiming this game was better than it's Wii sequel.

Will be interested to see you finish when the game goes more off the rails

I definitely like the story of this game better, but the second game might have better gameplay. Might. It certainly controls much better, but the first one is at a disadvantage on that front given that it's designed to be played with an N64 controller which just isn't really a practical option. Even putting aside the controls, the second game has more depth in what exactly you can do as tossing two different types of charge shot into the mix is great. The first games attempt at depth, auto versus manual lock on is an interesting idea, but in practical reality the manual is just so much better and the game difficult enough that it's basically mandatory with auto mode only being useful in one or two isolated sections of the game. Isa and Kachi mode in Star Successor worked really well and I'm somewhat surprised it wasn't the default mode of the game. However the flying in the second game does make it feel more generic and like a lot of other on rail shooters. It also has much more generous invincibility frames which makes a lot of it boil down to dodging all over the place while shooting wildly. All in all both of them come out about equal as gameplay experiences to me. Though I will concede the sequel had better music.

17 hours ago, BrightBow said:

The best premise of a thread I've seen in ages.

It really sucks that they didn't bother to translate the Japanese subtitles except for the ones in the voiceless sequences in the epilogue. Especially considering how distorted a lot of the lines are. Like, that speech of Brad over the speaker? Never understood a single word of it.

One big issue with the ending sequence I have is that it doesn't bloody tell you who's talking, which actually makes it rather confusing as to what information Saki and Airan both know in regards to Isa and the future.

[Jotari]

PART 4: Stages 2-2 and 2-3

Airan: He also had strange powers.

This line can look a little odd just playing through the game generally. As during his boss fight Brad exhibits zero strange powers of any sort. He can basically do exactly what Airan can do. Shoot, stab and dodge. Maybe his dodge, which is really quick and like a flashstep is meant to appear super natural in nature (it is quite similar to Saki's dodge as a ruffian), but it's also practical since you're not meant to be able to damage Brad until the end of the fight, much like Kachua. However, Brad id have his earthquake ability during the earlier fight with Leda which went uncommented on at the time and that's probably what Airan is referring to, though it's odd she does so now. I think they could have thrown in some more obviously super natural abilities to him during the boss fight to sell the point more.

Brad: Strange powers indeed. It seems like Achi has taught you nothing. My
powers were given to me by Achi. Achi passed her blood to me. The same goes
for that kid who transformed into the beast.

This is poorly translated from Japanese, despite the voiced line already being in English. He says Achi's name three times in three sentences. Jeez guys, throw a her in there somewhere. It works in Japanese to use someone's name so much, not in English, though. But that's just prose. What's actually being said here is very significant. We knew Brad had some kind of relationship with Achi, but they could have been partners or he could have been her superior or a whole range of things. What we learn here is that Brad is a foil of Saki. Just like him he encountered Achi in someway and just like him he received her blood, turning him into something other than human. Brad also takes a stab at Airan for her blind trust in Achi. Thus far Achi has been our staunch, if mysterious, ally, but now we learn that she is in some way responsible for the villain.

Also Brad is standing on a hovering fighter jet that was conveniently below the window he just fell through, which is stupid, but they commit to it whole heartedly and I love it.

Airan: Saki's nothing like you.

Achi: I never thought you'd tried to make friends by passing your blood.
Perhaps not friends... Perhaps just research for your transformation.
Change can be a scary thing if you don't know how to change back.

And how does Achi react to this? By being smug and condescending.  She mocks Brad for giving his blood to other people, painting his as someone pathetic. She even goes as far as to act disrespect Leda's corpse (this is the line that also suggests Leda was once human too and not just a natural weird cat thing). Achi found Brad, turned him into a monster and is now mocking him for being scared and lonely when she's the one that did that to him. It's pretty fucked up and makes Brad a pretty sympathetic villain.

Achi: Airan... Do you want to change Saki back into a human?

Achi talks more gently to Airan than she did to Brad. It becomes clear now that Achi has been playing Airan and Saki. Airan doesn't react with mistrust, she only nods, but even if Airan was picking up on these subtle points and was wary about Achi, there's very little she can actually do. She is in way out of her depth and Achi is the only one who seems to fully understand anything.

Airan: Wha-?! The floor!

Achi: If they attack Saki from the air, then we'll need this.

Brad: What the-?! All Fighters break apart!

Achi displays her most physical ability yet, using telekinesis, she rips a section of the floor away from the bridge. The following sequence is super fun to play. Achi uses the platform as a levitating platform to help Airan take out the entire fleet. The music that plays is great, the gameplay is at its most challenging and satisfying yet and even though we're talking virtually 90s 3D animation, it still manages to look fantastic, because this is just a cool, bad ass and empowering sequence of gameplay as Airan lays waste to the entire Armed Volunteers. It is a bit ridiculous that Airan's gun is powerful enough to do all this, it kind of should have been able to blast apart the ship they were just in if it can take down plains and the like, but it's only a little bit ridiculous as you have been shooting things of similar scale throughout the game, and Achi moving the platform to engage the fleet on her terms lends a lot of credence to it.

Airan: Him!

Brad: Here we go! You will get us through this crisis!

Here we get a line that establishes what Brad's been doing, Achi explains in full after the boss battle, but the ground work is laid both here and with the intercom scene earlier. Brad speaks very differently to his men than he does to Achi or Leda. We only see it twice, but he tries to give inspirational speeches and supports the people working for him.

Achi: Hahaha! Look at them! They can't even escape!
They're CRYING! Haha! They're crying Brad's name!
The Armed Volunteers are extinct!

And this is the point where anyone would realize Achi is bad news. Sure the Armed Volunteers were an oppressive army, but Achi takes such immense glee in their destruction that it can only be described as sadistic. And look at the name for this organization. They are the Armed Volunteers. They chose to be here because they wanted to fight monsters. Even if the organization ultimately oppressed the people of Japan out of desperation, these people willingly signed up to actually help. They're like a military wing of Doctors Without Borders. Achi's statement that they're crying Brad's name as their planes crash also suggests the relationship between them and Brad was reciprocal, they respected him as a commander.

Achi: You're all alone now. Come back to me if you want friends. Or
would you rather transform? For one last evil gasp.

Achi continues to display her new callous personality by mocking the dying Brad. She also interrupts herself here, which is either awful sound editing or a suggestion at her in human nature. She does it a bit later and she's the only character that ever does so it might actually be intentional. Then again the sound quality in the game can be iffy in parts in general, so *shrug*.

Airan: Is he... dead?

We never do get to see what Brad's ruffian form looks like which is a major tease, but I'm fine with that, we've spent  two chapters fighting him and if he did it might belabour the point. It also works on a thematic level as Brad resisted his inhuman nature so much that he'd rather die than reveal himself to the world. Also note the delivery of Airan's line here, she is genuinely unsure if Brad is dead after he raises up into the air and explodes. She is completely out of her depth here.

Achi: In a final bit of the word justice. He just wanted the world to see him
fight the Ruffians and Saki. To humans, our power is an object of either
hostility or worship.

Brad just wanted the world to see him fight the ruffians. He wanted to be a hero, and he was so desperately afraid of his inhuman nature that it drove him to become one. He created more ruffians using his blood so he would have an enemy to fight against. Achi is right, despite Brad's bravado, he was pathetic, but he didn't deserve to be reviled for his evil action, he deserves to be pitied. Achi also comes out and  admits here that she's not human, though she has yet to truly explain what she is.

Airan: Is that the U.S. Army?

Ah good old Muricans coming into blow stuff up, just like Season 2 of Stand Alone Complex, a show that feels  a lot like this game.

Achi: No, the weapons maker that backed Brad just sent that in.

Oh, it's not the Americans... That was a bit unnecessary to point the finger. But I still like it, as Airan being wrong about something without it being catastrophic in any way is just realistic dialogue. The weapons manufacturer  might also be that face Brad was talking to, but we never get any confirmation of that.

Airan: That's targeting Saki!

This whole sequence is just to add a bit more gameplay and to very directly have Airan save Saki. The two of them approach Saki and this is where things get pretty crazy.

Achi: Hmm... We're still to early. Just exposing a weakness would be bad.

Airan: Is it safe to approach him?

Achi: We're just little insects to Saki. He won't bother us.

Airan: Hurry up and change him back to human form.

Achi: Saki's just forgetting his human heart.

Airan: I'll believe it when I see it.

Achi: To return Saki to human form, you must enter Saki's body and recover
his humanity. I will open Saki's chest. You call to his heart. Tell him
everything... Thoughts, memories, hopes, dreams... As long as he wants to be
with you, he can accept his humanity.

To return Saki to human form we need something very cliched, the power of love. However, how this game treats the power of love is anything but cliched. For one thing it's physical. Airan has to literally enter Saki's chest in order for their emotions to connect.

Airan: Stop it! How can we do that?

Achi: First, we must put Saki to sleep...

Airan: No, we can't do it!

Achi: Just fire at Saki's forehead.

Airan is really at her breaking point now. This has all been dumped on her within a matter of hours and she just does not get any of it. Her life might have been dangerous and chaotic up until this point, but it was probably also a lot simpler that all this chaos and mutations.

Airan: LIAR! FALSE SAVIOUR!

Airan has been with Achi up until this point, but fighting Saki is a line she simply will not cross. She's lost everything in the world except Saki, even if he is a monster she simply won't risk his life. This cheats us out of a Ruffian Saki boss fight, but I respect Airan's dedication here. She also calls Achi a false saviour. It's never mentioned in game, but the rebel group Airan was leading was called the Sviour group. She presented herself as a messianic figure to the desperate people of Japan trying to fight off a hoard of monsters and a tyrannical army. Now all pretense has been done away with and Achi is revealing her true colours.

Airan: Shut up!

Achi: Do you want Saki to stay this way?

Airan: SHUT UP!! 

Everything fades away from Airan and she suddenly finds herself on a train with a crying child as soft music kicks in. It's a crazy new direction to take the game. Though I suspect the train setting was chosen as it would be easy to design and model from a gameplay perspective, still works for the story though.

Airan: Huh?

Boy: I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I-I'll stop crying!

Airan: Where am I...? On a train...? A subway...? Oh! I teleported! This is
Achi's work... But why? Hey, you! Do you know where we are?

Boy: We're on Long Island, aren't we?

Airan: Long Island?

Airan's voice: New York!? America!? Achi!! Where are you? Why did you do
this to me?

Airan is wrong, she didn't teleport, but much like her being wrong about the U.S army, it's a pretty natural misassumption. What's actually going on here is that Saki is basically  mind raping Airan, showing her a vision of the future that can convince her to shoot Saki.

Airan: Get back! 

Airan: I've never heard of Ruffians... Invading America.

Boy: Mommy, are the monsters gone?

Airan: Could you not call me mommy? Is this train out of control? I'm
going to the lead car. Follow me.

What follows is a strangely serene section as the soft music continues to play as Airan fights her way up the train. It works really well as a scene change after the high action previous stage. It also just really  sells the strangeness of the situation and how disorientating it must be for Airan.

Airan: Ruffians... Everywhere! There's no end to them!

This is familiar territory for Airan, but by this point it also must be exhausting. And the mental strain it must be to see Ruffians in another country would be huge for Airan. She's been fighting for who knows how long now, but at least it was a problem localized to Japan. She might be able to escape some day, but now it's a worldwide invasion. This will be how she lives for the rest of her life. But then she sees something that lets her understand things a bit better.

Airan: 2017!? 10 years in the future?

Yes, we've moved from the distant future of 2007 to the even more distant future of...five years ago. Honestly with the kind of tech they show off in this game, it easily could have been set fifty years in the future. Why they went as small as less than a dozen  I have no idea, but it does make for a funny set up in our ruffian free 2022. We just have to deal with COVID instead >.>

Airan's voice: Saki!

Airan: No... This-This isn't the future! Is it a warning to me? A prediction?

Airan sees Saki in ruffian form attacking New York. This is so beyond her scope of consideration, that she doesn't immediately think she's time travelled. She correctly deduces it's a vision Achi is showing her.

Airan: You...What's your name?

Boy: Isa Amamiya. I can even write it
in kanji.

Airan: Isa, huh? I'll remember that. We don't
belong in this future, Isa. Let's go!

So this isn't something you'll get just playing the game, but I'm sure it's mentioned on the box or something, but Amamiya is Saki's family name, meaning this kid if Saki's son. Though curiously when they do make a sequel focused on Isa, he goes by the name Isa Jo, Jo being Airan's family name.

Airan: Saki...?

Saki: That's right. I've taken this form for you. We're
in Achi's vision. Have you chosen your future?

I love the dialogue here, but the delivery on Saki's voice actor isn't great. At the front of the train Airan encounters an evil version of Saki chilling with Ruffians. It's funny as compared to the length of the game, it's actually been quite a while since we've seen Saki, at least in human form. And due to that lack of context at the start, we don't get a good sense of who Saki is, yet this is clearly not the Saki we were playing from the start of the game. Even though he looks human (more human that he ever looks for the rest of the game in fact), he is full ruffian now. He's only in human form to speak to Airan. To make a Fire Emblem comparison, this is basically Grima inhabiting Robin's body.

Isa: Papa!

Saki: Tch. Don't go having a child. This is no future for children.

Airan: You're wrong. Isa will live in a different future. Somewhere there's
a future where I am your wife, Isa is your son and you are human.

Like I said, I just love the dialogue in this section. I'm not sure how to put it, but it sounds like the characters are speaking both very philosophically, but also very practically at the same time. Airan is also filled with a lot of determination in her words.

Isa: Are you and Papa fighting?

Airan: Oh, I'm sorry. What do you think of your Mommy?

Isa: Mommy's scary, but Mommy's nice. Isa loves you, Mommy.

Scary but nice is an apt description of Airan in my view, especially in the eyes of a child. And really, aren't those just two great traits for a mother to have?

Airan: And I love you, Isa. That's why I know we'll see each other again.

Airan covers Isa's eyes as she shoots Saki in the face, simultaniously the ruffians in the background converge on her. The pserpctive in the background also makes this a Bond opening shot as Airan shoots the camera, which transitions (albeit a little slowly because of loading times) into Airan, back out on the sea, shooting ruffian Saki in the face. I've said it before and I'll say it again, this game has excellent cinemtography.

Airan: You just... used the child.

Achi: I thought I should show you at least once.

Achi succeeded, she got Airan to do the one thing she was adamantly against, and she managed to make Airan do it willingly and without hesitation. Airan's line delivery has subdued heart break in it.

Achi's voice: We've only just finished the anaesthesia. Now then...

We cut to Saki lying down in the ocean as Airan literally cuts open Saki's chest so she can enter his body.

Achi: That's enough cutting. I'll do the rest.

Airan: About Saki and Brad... Just what is your objective?

Now that they actually have a moment to rest, Airan finally asks Achi what exactly her deal is.

Achi: My real enemies are very far away. Powerful enemies that have been
fighting since long ago. Soon I'll end it with them, but I can't win 
with your current powers. This has all been mere training... simulation 
of a global war.

Airan: You're crazy! You ruined Tokyo! Will you destroy the
world too?!

This is about as much context we get on Achi in this game, aside from one final line of dialogue near the end of the game. The sequel gives more context towards Achi's battle, but at this point it doesn't really matter. What matters to Airan and Saki is that she has been manipulating them and was willing to destroy their entire country and possibly even the world to do so.

Achi: Don't worry. You'll all live in a different world. Now I need a reason
for an even bigger war. It will be Saki who uses his powers to bring that war
to an end. He'll be feared, respected, his very figure a symbol of command.

I'm very glad that they did make a sequel, even if I didn't like the  plot as much. As it means whatever mad bastard who wrote this did have the entire world fleshed out, even if it doesn't all play a role in this specific story. But like I said, while it's nice to know, it's not important. Achi has treated humans like insects, no matter how rightous her war is, it doesn't matter, she has proven her morals completely incompariable with Airan and Saki's.

Airan: Was Brad the same?

Achi: We had the same ultimate objective. Once he knew what the blood meant,
his own plans took shape. He bred Ruffians with his blood,
writing and acting in his own war. He rushed to beat me to it.

So this is where we get full confirmation that Brad was Saki's predessor. Saki is basicallly Brad 2.0 after Achi failed to control Brad. Once again I have to say how much I'd like to see more to the begnning of this story, as we don't really get to know under what context Achi and Brad met. Did the ruffians already exist at that point? Who first created the ruffians, Achi or Brad? I'd lean more towards Achi with Brad creating more and prolonging the conflict for his own hero complex. After all, Achi would have needed some enemy for Brad to first face to train him as a soldier. Achi also gets more physical with Airan here and her voice becomes to warp as her true nature shows.

Achi: But I'm not impatient. Saki must grow more powerful as a human.
Saki! Wake up!

Achi: Open yourself to Airan's heart! Take back your
own feelings!

Airan commands Saki and Airan to use the power of love to transform Saki back, but to do so would be to just remain in Achi's clutches. She only wants Saki human in order to manipulate him further. She's essentially weaponizing the powerof love. This goes into headcannon territory now as there's nothing to back it up, but I think the difference between Saki and Brad is Airan. Achi didn't seem to recognize Radan or Kachua, only Brad. I speculate that Brad and Achi's relationship was romantic in nature, as love is required to control one's Ruffian form. That didn't work, because although Achi understands love, she couldn't love Brad. So when she went to recreate him, she decided to basically ship her Brad 2.0 with someone else. Once again, shame we don't get to see Saki and Airan interact much before the game starts to see how romantic their relationship was. It's only that one good morning scene. But givne how driven they are to protect each other, I reckon they were already a couple, and that's exactly what Achi wanted.

Achi: They teleported? Do they think they can
escape me?!

Rather than stick around to become Achi's servant, Saki runs away with Airan inside of him, putting an end to the second part of the game and Airan as our player character.

Edited January 30, 2022 by Jotari

[BrightBow]

If the audio isn't distorted, it's most certainly noteable that the dialog has a very fansubby quality to it. Another thing that makes it unfortunate that the subtitles weren't translated, to make the lines easier to parse.

[Jotari]

Part 5: Stages 3-1 to 3-3

We open the next part of the game with Airan defenseless on the beach.

Airan: R-Ruffians...?
Airan: I-I've got to fight them...

Airan is barely conscious as these lines are  delivered, yet she's still focused on fighting ruffians. This girl has been through a lot. She both needs and deserves a break. Fortunately she's not required to do any fighting.

Airan: SAKI!!

Saki:  Good morning, Airan.

Because our boy Saki is finally back, along with a nice reference to the first exchange we see between the two of them and a new look.

The ruffian transformation hasn't been completely undone leaving metallic like skin in place on Saki (a convenient explanation to the question of where his clothes ended up had he returned to normal). It strikes a nice balance of both looking unnatural while also not looking completely hideous.

Saki:  Look out! Get back!

Despite being transformed in some way, Saki still fights identically to his previous self as well as Airan. While it has no impact on the story, I'm sure they could have given some kind of special trait to each of the three player characters you have (counting the two different Sakis as two characters). Then after the game is done you could have an option to play through the entire game as one of the three characters. Even just movement speed or extra HP would be a nice touch. Hell I think it'd be cool to play Raid Blue as Demi-Ruffian Saki even if it had no impact at all.

Airan: Saki! There's a building here!

Ancillary dialogue that doesn't mean anything. The level begins on a beach and then moves to a building. It's probably the shortest level in the game. Well maybe the first level is about as long and the two Ruffian boss battles aren't that long. Overall you play more levels as Saki, but each of Airan's individual levels are longer. Anyway Saki fights a few Ruffians and then he and Airan rest for the night.

Saki: Yeah... All of a sudden, things were all messed up.

Airan: What are we gonna do? This is Hokkadio; Ruffian Central...

Saki: At least we won't go hungry. First let's find a safer spot.

Saki uses his gun as a flame thrower to roast some ruffian meat at this point. Justification for Saki to have a flame thrower move in Smash Bros.? Yes, but more on topic, this is the only reference to the background material explaining the ruffians. Namely that they were artificial creatures that were created to serve as livestock for humans. Basically GMOs that got out of hand. I'm not sure how true this actually is for the game though, as obviously the ruffians do have a connection to Achi. Were they just regular animals that she infected with her blood to go berserk? Or is the GMO story a complete lie to explain things to the public? Probably the former, but it's not important to get bogged down in such details especially when it's not something the game even brings up. Though whether they were GMOs that naturally mutated or were infected by Achi, I'm not sure eating them is the best idea now. They m ight have been livestock before, but they're obviously quite different now.

Airan: Right. Sun's about to set so we'll keep watch here tonight.

Saki: I wonder if Achi will follow us?

Airan: You're instinct brought you here. I think she knows that.

Saki: Yeah. There's a lot I want ask Achi about this transformation.

Again, "there's a lot I want to ask her about this transformation" would sound better. But prose nitpicking aside, this is probably the best example of how chill Saki is a character, borderline (but definitely not passing into) sociopathic. He has been transformed into a monster and visibly can no longer pass for human, yet his reaction is "I have several questions". Most people would be freaking out. Most people would be Brad. But Saki just takes everything in its stride no matter how insane.

Airan: But... Achi would... ... Let's go to America, Saki, and have a doctor
take care of it.

Saki: IF a doctor can take care of it. Heh, if they dissect me it's over.

It's a bit unclear here what exactly Saki knows about Achi. He doesn't have many kind words to say to her when they meet in person, but here it's almost as if he's ignorant of her true nature entirely. However it was Saki that teleported away before, so I think he is aware, it's just another example of how matter of factly he takes things.

[Ruffian roars]
Saki: They're close by... They must be on the road.
I'll check it out. Wait here.

Airan: You're tough Saki...

Saki splits up with Airan for a moment and Saki appears to damsel Airan. This doesn't really bother me. We've been spending a lot of time with Airan throughout the game (comparatively speaking, the game isn't that long). She needs to be taken out of the action briefly (not that much actually happens in terms of the plot while she's kidnapped), otherwise this would be the Airan story entirely instead of the Saki and Airan story. And Airan is completely undoubtedly a strong and competent character. Given her a moment of weakness here by having her kidnapped doesn't take away from the levels of badass she has displayed thus far.

Saki: Airan? Airan!? AIRAN!?

Saki immediately notices Airan is missing which brings us to the second last stage where the game shifts from an on rails shooter do a side scroller, which doesn't work that well given the controls imo. Probably my least favourite stage in terms of gameplay. Not much happens in terms of plot until the end either. We do see eggs suggesting this is where the ruffians are being created. One thing that is interesting here is that the ruffians you fight seem to take on a more humanoid (or centaur) form, up to and including one being called the Man Seemer (though that one looks more mech than man). This suggests there's some kind of evolution going on with the ruffians developing into something human...but it's not actually thematically weaved throughout the game. It's not like we start off fighting more primitive creatures and end up at humans. We just find a random assortment of animals like crabs, wolves, birds, crayfish, moles, jelly(fish?), octopi and spiders, in roughly that order. There are also humanoid looking harpie like ruffians in 2-2, so while I'd like that to be a theme of the game, it just isn't...so I probably shouldn't mention it. What definitely is worth mentioning is that, as you reach the end of the level, you come across an area with tonnes of ruffians, but instead of fighting you, they all bow towards Achi, which is a behavior we never see them exhibit anywhere else in the game. It does a good job displaying Achi's power and control. She also derided humans for trying to make use of her powers as something of worship, yet here she has her own cabal of mutants showing reverence to her.

Achi: So, you finally come.

Saki: What have you done to Airan?

Achi: I've put her to sleep is all.

Saki: Why are you doing this?

Just like when he spoke to Kachua, Saki is clearly pretty angry here. Maybe he was more neutral towards Achi and eager to talk diplomatically about his transformation, but Achi kidnapping Airan solidly made her his enemy.

Achi: I was testing your feelings. Look at yourself. Half of you is refusing
Airan. That's why you look that way.

And we come back to the power of love. Saki hasn't fully regained his human form because he hasn't given himself over completely to the power of love. That's what makes Achi such an interesting villain to me. She might not be capable of expressing love herself, but she still understands it as a concept. And she uses that understanding to manipulate. It's not as an abusive spouse though (although perhaps that is what her relationship with Brad was like), even on the metaphysical level only found in such fantasy stories she knows how to utilize love to make herself more powerful. We see in the sequel she tries again what I speculated she was doing with Brad, by trying to seduce Saki's son. Though that's something that's revealed only in the final line of the game, so we have (and now probably never will) no clue whether it worked or not, or even whether it was even a trick given she's depicted with amnesia. Somewhere out there a universe exists where we got a third Sin and Punishment game in which Saki and Isa face each other in battle.

Saki: I'm not refusing her. Obviously our hearts are growing closer.
But in our hearts there is still fear... There is still doubt...
There are still places and feelings that can't be opened yet. We need
more time to fully accept one another.

And this speech here is basically my favourite part of the game. We have not seen much in regards to Saki and Airan's relationship due to how hectic the plot has been. But it is clear they care about each other and are willing to fight anyone to save each other, but aren't willing to fight each other. And the grand thesis of the game is that despite that obvious affection, love is hard. To love someone so completely as to give up your very individuality, it's not easy and it's not something anyone can do. Saki and Airan are young, they do love each other, but not enough, and that's okay. Love takes time, fear, doubt, embarrassment, the ability to share absolutely everything with someone, it doesn't just happen, no matter how much an evil alien eldritch abomination might want it to.

Saki: We fought alongside you believing you would save humanity. 
But you're using us as weapons with a different goal in mind.

Achi: Uh-huh. You're still in training.
You'll always be on the fron tline.

A small touch I really like here; Saki approaches Achi as he talks until this line, in which he's standing right in front of her. He makes an angry gesture with his hand and Achi reacts, raising her hand slightly to defend, but when it's clear Saki isn't immediately about to attack, she puts her hand back down, but does raise it a few seconds later when Saki actually does attack. It's just a very natural gesture from both characters and it subtly shows something of hesitancy and uncertainty from Achi which is something that we haven't seen yet, despite the fact that all her plans have obviously gone off the rails.

Achi: That's useless.

Achi: That's better.

Saki: (Green energy starts forming in Saki's fist) Is this what works
on you?

Saki tries to shoot Achi, but it doesn't work. He then throws his gun away (a bit hasty imo, that's probably a super expensive weapon considering Airan managed to take out an entire fleet with it, also it's actually her gun and not his, and she might need it in the future) and then uses his ruffian powers to punch Achi (more smash bros moveset potential!). Something like this could have been shown off in Brad's fight to reinforce Airan's strange powers line.

Saki: Airan! Airan!

Airan: Saki?

Saki: Will you hold onto my heart?

Achi begins to transform as we enter the final boss battle. Saki rushes to Airan's side and asks her to love him. What Saki said remains true, love is tough, but even if it's not completely, he does still love Airan and she gives him the sense of control he needs in his ruffian form to remain clear headed enough to fight Achi.

Achi's voice: The old Earth will die soon. Killed by the very
people it fed. When I take it's place I will not make the same mistake. What
I need is a God of War to rule the chaos for me. That's you, Saki. 
You must grow powerful for me. Powerful enough to rule a planet.

"The old Earth will die soon. Killed by the very people it fed." It's a cool line. Cool enough that it's repeated again after the battle. But what does it mean? An obvious first answer is that it's reflecting environmental themes, but that's something Sin and Punishment completely lacks. Maybe in the initial planning stages there might have been something there with the ruffians being GMOs, but if so absolutely none of it reached the final draft. No, the sequel actually gives context to this line and it's bizarrely optimistic. According to the booklet in the sequel, Earth is on the verge of being destroyed by god precisely because it's too peaceful! Which, well, I doubt that's a path many scifi writers would choose to go down. Anyway in regards to this actual story, the line introduces some amount of scale to the story. Achi is a being beyond the understanding or comprehension of our protagonists, and the reasons for her methods are nebulous and beyond scope. By prophesizing the very Earth's destruction it puts Achi again in a place of cosmic superiority to our protagonists. She then restates her goal, to turn Saki into a god of war to serve her own battles.

Airan: She's just replacing the Earth?

Saki's voice: Invade...?

And the form Achi takes for her final battle is that of the planet itself, known as the Earth Mimicry. This has to mean something on a thematic level. Achi could have turned into anything, a dragon, a snake, a giant brain, but instead she takes on the form of the Earth. Now this might just be for a creative boss fight in terms of gameplay, but with my over analyzing I've come up with several coexisting interpretations. First of all it shows her power. The Earth is the biggest thing humans can truly get a scope of. We know stuff like the sun and Jupiter are bigger, but they're so much bigger as to be meaningless to a human. Achi has taken on the form of essentially the greatest thing in the world, the world itself. However, there is a pathetic element to it, as she is the Earth Mimicry. She isn't the true Earth, just an imitation, this wouldn't have worked if she'd just taken the form of a monster. As then she would be just a dragon or a scorpion or something. But by being the Earth, floating up in the air fighting Saki, we know she is not the true thing even without the boss's name being visible. Finally by being taking on the form of the Earth, it shows how alien she is. She is taking the for of something which, by its very conception, cannot exist on planet Earth. There cannot be an Earth existing within the bounds of the Earth. There could be a globe or a projection, but not something that purports to be the Earth. So it must be a fake, something that exists beyond the Earth. Another nice detail that can easily be missed, is that the trippy skybox in the background during this sequence actually is the Earth mimicry's texture.

Airan: Will she lead all humanity away?

Saki: What's best for me is all that matters.

Here we get an oddly selfish line from Saki. Though one that's probably true for far more people than are willing to admit it. What it does show is Saki's ruffian form taking control. He could take Airan up on her offer, become an all powerful god of war. For most people it probably wouldn't be a tempting offer, but the reality of Saki's life has been constant fighting. It probably would be tempting to someone in his position even without the alien monster DNA. While it can only be derived from speculation, given the ruffian invasion, Saki must have spent a lot of his recent life feeling very powerless.

Airan: Saki...

Saki: I understand. I'm of this planet.

But Airan's voice snaps Saki out of it. It doesn't matter what riches Achi can offer Saki for her own galactic war, Saki is a resident of this Earth, and Achi is now trying to replace it. And he won't let that happen.

Achi:  The old Earth will die soon.
Killed by the very people it fed.

And after defeating Achi, she parts by repeating her words. Given an ominous twinge to the victory. This story might have come to its close by defeating the villain that is Achi, but the overall story hasn't ended yet. We'll see Saki and Airan's perspective on the whole affair as well as the last sequel hook tomorrow when I take a look at the ending.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Jotari]

Part 6: Ending

Okay, let's finish this off.

Saki's voice: Where's Achi?

Airan's voice: She's gone... But she dragged us into it right up until
the end.

Saki and Airan are in the middle of ruined land in the ocean.

Airan: Japan's a mess... ... What are we gonna do now?

The ocean isn't a bright blue like the one Achi fought on, the colours are dismal and grey, reflecting the mood of the scene. At least in its beginning.

Saki: ... When I was little, I always wanted to be a cop. Do you think
they'd hire me now?

Airan:  Yeah they would! You could kill all the Ruffians yourself!

Faced with the dismal reality of their world, Airan and Saki choose to face it with utter optimism. It's likely Saki won't be accepted by society as the hybrid ruffian he is. But on the other hand, maybe he will. In spite of things, there is hope.

Saki: Heh. Not by myself I couldn't. I need you to protect me.

Airan: Wanna take them on? Together?

And once again the game reiterates the theme of love. Saki has received immense power, but it is useless to him without Airan anchoring his heart.

Airan: Wanna take them on? Together?

Saki: Let's do it! At least that way we can have some fun!

The scene end with the sun rising, bringing light to the dismal atmosphere. Like, I'm not crazy with this analysis, they had to go to the effort of doing that. This game has themes and cinematography. It is good. Why don't more people love it? 

Achi: The enemy is coming.

And we cut to the fact that our main villain of the game is still alive, floating in space.

Achi: Brad and Saki are lost, I can't hope to prevail against them.

The grammar is a bit ambiguous, but the them in question is the enemy she's talking about, not Brad or Saki. As in she requires Brad or Saki to help her fight against her enemy.

Achi: But...does the enemy know about Saki, and how he inherited by blood?

This tells us what Achi was doing here was somewhat covert. She's been trying to raise a general under her enemy's nose.

Achi: He is not the only one. There is another,

Airan appears on screen as Achi says this, given credence to the notion that she also inherited Achi's blood, however the line that directly on is what makes me lean towards the notion that Airan hasn't inherited Saki's blood. However, I do have on hand a fantranslation of this text that has the ling "she's just realizing it", which does suggest Airan has the blood, but Japanese also doesn't really have pronouns so I'm a bit skeptical of its accuracy.

Achi: Who in turn has inherited Saki's blood.

We see a picture of Isa on screen as this is said, confirming that Saki's child will be like him. A sequel hook to the game that took ten years to get released and only ended up doing so because of the Wii Mote. If there's anyone who liked this game as much as me when it was released in 2000, I bet they were damn excited for Successor of the Skies in 2010. Or Star Successor. They translated it differently in Europe and I can't remember which of the two is more accurate. By the by, while it's usually dropped in English, the first game has a title too, Successor of the Earth, which I guess refers to Saki, but he's not really inheriting it from Achi as she's a foreign presence to Earth, so I don't think it's that great a title.

Achi: A new form of life is establishing itself on that planet.

This is a pretty curious line. I have three theories as to what it's referring to. A) The ruffians, my least preferred theory since it doesn't connect to anything Achi just said, though it is the most observably true one. B) Saki and his brood, who, while humans, have been changed into something indistinct and new. C) Just generally humanity itself, my favourite interpretation due to bias of being human. Achi has been around a long time, so for humans to be a new thing is conceivable, but more than that, even if they are well established, I think the humans of our story have impressed Achi by beating her, suggesting that they are evolving into something new that is a force in the universe to be reckoned with. This also kind of blends interpretations B) and C) together.

Achi: The time for the enemy to call themselves gods is coming to an end.

As Achi says this she is consumed by a ball of light, which may just be visual flare, or it may actually be the moment in which these very gods she fights against have shown up to deal with her. If do think its the second, but it's also probably a bit more ambiguous than it should be. The game was probably meant to end on the note the Achi was destroyed by her enemy, but her work would continue through Saki, Airan and Isa. She does end up coming back in the sequel in a different form though, so maybe it was just visual flare, or perhaps she managed to survive and escape her encounter with the gods. The original Japanese translations also seem to not pluralize god, suggesting that it is one singular enemy and the game is pulling a gnostic angle with god being a Demiurge just conning humanity into believing it is an ominpotent being. I kind of like the notion that it is a collective that Achi is fighting rather than an individual, but with how high concept Achi is such things might not even have any meaning. The sequel reveals that Achi isn't just an alien, she's from outside the universe entirely.

Then we get a pretty weird title card as the credits show. They give you the name with the original title, Glass Soldier. It's not a mistake or anything, as they even say Original Title, they just thought they'd inform you what the game was called in development. The reason it has this title was because Saki went down in just a few hits, so there's not much relating it to the story. The Iwata Asks interview for the game reveals that it was also known as The Wasteland at one point too which works a bit better on the narrative front as that's something that comes to mind upon seeing the ending after Achi is beaten. This title might also have been used in the end credits song in the next game as one of the titles there is "Desolation". Speaking of credits music, they music they use for these credits is the soft music used during the train stage set in a vision of the future. It works quite well just musically to have something soft here, but it also works on a thematic level, as that whole stage was about the future and the ending is about looking towards the future and what will happen next.

Now for the actual credits which uhhh. They decided to translate it, but I don't know if its the fault of the English localisation or the original Japanese script, but they have two different characters speaking without voice acting with absolutely no onscreen indication as to who is speaking. All we can go off of is camera angles and they're not always explicit, so there are some ambiguous lines here as to whether it is Airan or Saki speaking.

Saki: If you look at the map, Hokkaido seems to be right next to Honshu
Yet walking from one to the other would be such a journey.

This line is certainly said by Saki as we see his ruffian form on screen as he says this. This also shows to use that Saki can quite casually use his ruffian form now at will for something as mundane as travel.

Airan: Then we'll walk it together. Besides, teleporting is too dangerous.

The screen splits showing Airan in a red space representing Saki's insides. We also get the reutterance that teleporting is dangerous. I guess if they didn't include it then people would question why Saki is bothering to walk in the ending. 

Airan: Something's been troubling me Saki. Have you ever really thought 
about how you'll use your powers?

This line is obviously said by Airan as she addresses Saki directly.

1. My powers? Well Achi showed me a possible future 10 years from now where

2. Where you were fighting side by side with the ruffians against humans?

This is all delivered with the split screen still in tact making it seem like it's all from one person. The first "my powers" though makes at least those first two words Saki, but then the rest could either be Airan talking about the future Achi showed her, or Saki beginning to tell AIran about it only for Airan to cut in and essentially say she saw it too with the question she asks. The line where is repeated between the transition between the two suggesting that's it, but really this isn't something that should be dissected. It would have been simplicity itself to just include some bloody dialogue tags.

3. I suppose you and the Ruffians have the same blood running through your veins.
It isn't altogether an impossibility.

The other possibility we have here is that all three of these lines belong to Saki and he was shown an image of Airan fighting alongside the ruffians. While I like the idea of Achi showing Saki and Airan similar visions only inverted to manipulate them, I'm not of the opinion that Airan has Achi's blood so I think the first line is Saki while the second and third are from Airan. Especially in the context of the next line.

Saki: No, as long as I'm with you that won't happen.
I see myself in the same recurring dream, constantly battling them
They will always be my enemy while they continue to terrorize mankind

These lines are unquestionably Saki, I think. For one, Airan slides off the screen, leaving Saki alone, but, more importantly Saki makes a callback to Stage 0 in which he fights ruffians even as he sleeps. This solid declaration to stand with humans is what one would expect from a hero like Saki, however the sequel does suggest he takes his ruffian form again for some reason to fight some enemy, so it is possible he eventually fell to his ruffian blood. I like to believe otherwise though.

A dream is just a dream, perhaps it was all just part
of Achi's training.

This one I find very ambiguous. It could be Saki continuing to speak, or it could be Airan reassuring Saki. The fan translation I have here says "what you saw was probably part of Achi's training", which slightly leans towards Saki saying all these lines, but the first few lines also kind of suggest both of them were shown the future.

In any case, you and I, we're both human.

If we put our heads together
we can fight this battle the right way

This one is ambiguous on it's own, but the following line makes it clear who is talking. That doesn't help when you're trying to read it as it's written though -_- Really adding dialogue tags here would have been so easy.

Airan: Saki, always the optimist
and so carefree too.

So that means the previous declaration of being human was definitely Saki. I'd like to think the "a dream is just a dream" line was from Airan so Saki isn't just giving a big monologue.

Airan: It's the reason I can feel so at ease here.
It's so bright and warm.

If you've ever been in love this might ring true for you. When you're with someone you love there is an immense feeling of "ease" just relaxing in their presence. Airan feels that while literally being inside Saki (is there something sexual there....ehhh....maybe, but it doesn't feel like the game leans too much on sex. Though given blood only ever seems to pass between the genders or through inheritance, the blood being some kind of STD wouldn't be the craziest theory).

Saki: That's because you can't feel my pain
and I can't feel yours either, Airan

Here Saki echoes what he said to Achi, that there are still places he and Airan have within themselves that they haven't shared with each other. They are definitely in love, but that love can still go further. They are still holding back their pain, and given their lives, they no doubt have a lot of pain inside them.

Airan: But Achi said that, to regain your human form,
we have to share our hearts entirely.

Clearly an Airan line as she's referring to Saki regaining human form. The next line is quite ambiguous though.

Now isn't the right time. I want things
to be like this for now.

They're saying they want to take things slow and just enjoy each other's company for the time being while things are calm. I find it quite frustrating the ambiguity of the speaker here. It could be Airan continuing to speak, or it could be Saki responding. And who exactly is speaking here kind of affects the entire thing as the back and forth with the next lines are the best guess to know who's speaking. I'll just paste the entire remaining text and then analyze it.

And besides, we have a far more important mission ahead of us.

What... What Mission?

Many preparations will need to be made if we are to
accomplish it.

Just think, 10 years from now... it'll be 5 years old...
Our...

Chi...Chil...Child.

So it's either Saki telling Airan about Isa, or Airan telling Saki about Isa. Airan telling Saki about Isa makes more sense within the context of the story, but the animation seems to show more surprise from Airan and the way the ellipses are used suggests more than it's Saki. I'd rather it be Airan telling Saki about their future child, but I actually think it's the latter despite it not really making a whole lot of sense.

So, stepping aside from trying to figure out who is actually saying what in this ending, what does the whole thing mean? Well, like I said, it reaffirms the theme of the game, that love is hard, but also that it's nice. The only time the word love is actually use in the script is between Airan and Isa, but the feelings on display here are a more earnest display of love than most stories portray. Most stories wrap up love in drama to make a story about it, but Sin and Punishment puts love on display and then analyzes the actual feelings and nuance of it without any threat to that love. In fact, the main threat is from the villain trying to artificially quicken the pace at which love develops. In a way it's a blessing disguised as a curse that we skip over so much of what happens before the story begins. On one hand yes, it's criminal that Saki and Airan's relationship is so under developed. On the other hand, by just skipping over the entire early stages of the relationship they get to jump to the meat and potatoes of things and tackle things in a unique, if hectic way.

So that's pretty much everything I have to say about Sin and Punishment. No, I won't be going over the gameplay tutorial with the shadow monster. It has nothing to do with anything. As far as the sequel goes, I have far less to say about it. Maybe I'll tackle it if anyone is interested, but it won't be a line by line analysis like this. Most of the dialogue in that game is just simple environmental comments. The story doesn't even develop all that much until the end. It's just the characters running away to various different environments while Fox Hound pursues them. It's a bit like Mystery of the Emblem, introduces a tonne of lore to the series, but doesn't really work well as a narrative on much of a technical sense. I am madly curious to know if both games had the same writer though.

Well I hope you enjoyed this extremely niche diatribe. My final comment on the first game is that Agave is a really weird name for a song played while fighting GMOs on a battleship.