@Tsukuyomimagi99 Thanks for the vote of confidence, it's appreciated as I also respect and value your opinions as well. They are well thought out and have the depth and breadth of someone who thinks for themselves rather than being chosen to allow yourself to be influenced and bombarded by psychological neurological hype and propaganda. I am introverted very much with the masses, but I am an open book extrovert when talking with soulful, thoughtful, or intelligent people. Well, I'm having fun going back n forth with you so here are some more responses to your comments:
-I agree that Xbox was considered the successor to those who loved the Dreamcast during that era. It's funny because when it comes to Microsoft for Windows or their smartphones they've always made a really bad product, until recently with Windows 10 post-2016 but all of their other software is junk, so it's a shock to me that I took a liking to the Xbox as much as I did. Granted, the OG Xbox is 90% junk nowadays to the point I won't even take them on trade on, same goes with any non-Slim/Elite era Xbox 360 as a majority of them have the red ring of death issues. But when it comes to the overall experience of Xbox versus PlayStation or Nintendo, they always deliver the better package overall I feel. Now, I don't have any interest in any Xbox exclusives really, and I feel the same way about all of Sonys except for Shenmue 3(obviously not a true exclusive due to PC) and of course Ghost of Tsushima. But I'm looking at Sony versus Xbox in the context of the overall package, not just current or last gen. The majority of the games during the PS2/OG Xbox era were available on both platforms, and in every single case, the Xbox outperformed from graphics to controls to the overall experience. Nintendo was and has always been its own unique thing, I just personally never cared for their cartoony characters overall so I tend to stay away. N64 was amazing and I truly loved that console for its time but mostly due to games like Turok, Road Rash, WWF Wrestlemania, Blast Corps, and other oddball titles more so than anything Mario related, but admittedly I feel Mario's heyday was during the N64 era and those games weren't unplayable or completely boring like most of the newer titles tend to be. PlayStation on the other hand I never got into much after PS1 because Xbox always did it better. The Dualshock controller is a brutal experience to use from PS1 through PS4 and it's only now with the PS5 dual sense that I feel a connection. It's still not a great controller overall but it's usable, and I must admit the PS5 dual sense has the best haptic feedback I've experienced yet. Truth be told, if both Sony and Xbox used the Xbox Series/Xbox One controller I would sell my Xbox and switch to Sony simply because PlayStation has every modern era game that I hold dear to my heart available on it on PS4/PS5(except Mortal Kombat 9) and Xbox doesn't have Ghost of Shenmue 3, but I cannot and will not sit through having to use the PS4/PS5 d-pad to play any fighting games or having the two joysticks in the middle of the controller when playing adventure or action. It hurts my hands.
-I am a male and what you say is exactly my thought on it. The reason I feel resentment, fire and disgust with characters(and real-life people)like the 90s/00s Lara is that not only is it a turn-off in and of itself, it feeds the stereotype that I have fought against my whole life to not be boxed with. My entire view on Lara is a prime example of what's wrong with society in every way on this issue the world over, especially here in America. In society, if I find 90s Lara attractive that's 'normal' because of Angelina Jolie and big square boobs, yet in 2013 Lara is a broken girl who struggles with real human emotion, we have to stuff that down and not deal with feelings and ignore science and psychology as well as spirituality....oh no! I can't think of anything sexier, stronger, and on fire than a person dealing with themselves, finding their passion, and pushing through their hero's journey on their spiritual journey. I don't have an issue with Indiana but James Bond is obnoxious(admittedly I liked 007 Goldeneye for N64 back in the day but that's more so because it was the only great FPS multiplayer of its time). Lara of the 90s never positively caught my attention because I felt like she was just another run of the mill action hero who doesn't deal with her mommy or daddy issues and comes off as being 'strong, yet she's incredibly broken and not vulnerable at all in the older titles, which is a sign of false bravado, which is a sign of weakness. There's nothing attractive about a character who is being praised for staying broken and shallow rather than dealing with their inner work or hero's journey. That very sentiment is exactly what attracts me to Lara Croft in the reboot trilogy of 2013. She still has the adventurous and 'face all odds' heroism of the situations she faces externally, but internally she's forced to deal with them against her will in the 2013 reboot and she still shows the human emotions of fear and doubt that makes her real and raw all the while dealing with her inner demons and coming to terms with her father and mothers death while having to murder people to survive for the first time in her life unexpectedly, also her spiritual journey as she self actualizes who she is deep down(destiny perspective). Many haters(typically those who bash the reboot and praise her polygon breasts from the 1990s games)often say she was a whiny child-like character in the reboot who has daddy issues. I say to that: ....And your point?? They don't have one. In real life, each of us has emotional issues and a core of the life we grew up with. This21-year-old orphan girl gets thrown into a violent situation on a research trip in which she has no training and has to kill or be killed, that is an attractive story and attractive character development plot point. My attraction to the reboot Lara is defined by the same repulsion I feel for the pre-2013 Lara, it's a duality as the only thing both characters have in common is their ability to climb all over rocks. It's all about her strength and personality versus her false bravado. I feel the same way about the movies. The 2018 Alicia Vikander Tomb Raider movie was really decent and probably the best video game movie I've seen yet overall, whereas the Angelina Jolie movies were awful and unwatchable. Not only are the 2000s movies themselves broken, but Angelina Jolie as a sex symbol isn't interested in the least, because that's the only reason she was cast in that role at that time. If I never have to see another superhero story again, especially the one about some sex symbol female James Bond(without Pierce Brosnans undeniable swagger) that has daddy issues but never deals with them cause she's too busy looking 'cool' diving around with her dual pistols and showing off her square boobs, then I'm ok with that. From day one I was not neutral or undecided, I *HATED* Lara Croft and Tomb Raider pre-2013, so when the 2013 reboot fell in my lap in 2020 on a trade-in I tested the game out and noticed she looked very different and the vibe was fresh from the intro video, so before I knew it 2 hours went by and I was still playing it. As for general sex appeal in gaming or entertainment marketing, I am cool with it, but ONLY if it's done in a tasteful way where the main focus isn't just about sex appeal, and that's what old school TR bathes in is nothing but sex appeal. Terrible terrible games from the 90s that were broken and nowhere near as good as other 3rd person games on the PS1 but her square boobs got her over with the 12-year-old boys who were just learning about the female body on their PS1. There's certainly nothing wrong with enjoying sex appeal or the female body, but I'm looking at the soul and the mind first, every time.
-Tekken/VF: I can very much see your point on this. VF being better than Tekken isn't something hard for me to disagree with, I see aspects of VF I like better and I do believe that if VF were to reboot today in 2021 with Yu Suzuki spearheading the project it could wipe the floor with all the previous Tekken titles. My main issue with VF is the lack of interesting characters outside of Pai. Visually many of them to my look somewhat generic. For example, Sarah Bryant(who I do like)and Nina Williams both look similar visually, especially in the 90s era, but Nina has more personality. Sarah feels bland. Akira feels like a bland version of Jin Kazama or Kazuya. I understand these games are very well developed on a story like Mortal Kombat is, but I do enjoy playing fighting games that have a good fighting mechanic. Now, I can say one place I like VF better than Tekken is VF doesn't have Panda, Roger, Alex Jr, or any other goofy-ass animal-based character. I feel VF's legacy could have been something more with a little bit more polish on the character development. I can see why you like VF's fighting mechanics though, they are really solid. With fighting games, I enjoy and respect Virtua Fighter and Tekken both along with some of the Dead or Alive titles and of course Mortal Kombat. I cannot say the same for Street Fighter outside of Street Fighter 2 which was just ok in its time. I loved it when Dead or Alive 5 brought many of the Virtua Fighter characters into the mix, it was nice to be able to play tag team as Kasumi and Pai together. Would you personally like to see a crossover with Tekken, VF, and DOA altogether?? I think that would be fire and could work well because even though the fighting mechanics are different, they're not too different where it feels broken or awkward to mix them as it did with Street Fighter X Tekken.
-MGS is another title that I have some difficulty in seeing the appeal with the story, but not the stealth. I thought the stealth was fairly decent. Did I introduce you to Splinter Cell or something?? I don't recall if we discussed it previously. If you haven't played through them all I'd suggest the first 5, with the 6th one Blacklist being optional if you want to keep going. When they changed the voice actor on Sam Fisher I lost interest. Plus, his coming back around to working with the gov after they fucked him in the 4th and 5th game made it hard to make sense of the plot. The first 3 are the best I feel, but 4 and 5 take it in a whole new direction and are very solid. Another stealth title I enjoyed is called 'Stolen' which was on the original Xbox(and I think PS2 as well) and you play a female jewel thief. It's not nearly as good as Splinter Cell or nearly as involved as Metal Gear in the plot but for a budget title it was really enjoyable, and you don't kill to accomplish your missions though you can take down enemies by knocking them out, choking them out or evading them. It's the best parts of Splinter Cell and Metal Gears stealth without the killing.
-Pokemon Arceus looks quite good actually. I haven't seen much but I looked at it the other day and was surprised at how solid it looks like it may end up being. It's kind to've what I imagined Sword/Shield should have been. I think Arceus has the potential to be the best Pokemon game of all time. With that said, I probably won't try it out unless it comes in on trade-in with a Switch since I'm just not feeling it for Pokemon outside of trying the New Snap game.
-Yakuza: Your points here about Yakuza are really interesting because while I cannot agree that I enjoy the way the games operate, I do see why you may like the machismo found in them. Not my cup of tea, but I do get the appeal of that to some extent. After playing Sleeping Dogs which was a great Hong Kong martial arts flick type game I couldn't see why people would be talking about Yakuza over SD. It is very refreshing and free-thinking to hear a Yakuza fan say that the game is very different from Shenmue. I appreciate that statement a lot. I would assume your statement that one is about fulfillment would be talking about Yakuza and Shenmue as the spiritual journey, but rather than assume I must ask, is this a correct assessment?? If not, I'm curious to know why you see it the other way? Also, when I was looking for a game similar to Ghost of Tsushima last year I did try that Japanese-only release of Yakuza that appeared to take place in the samurai days?? I didn't really like that one either, which had nothing to do with the language barrier for me but it had the same energy that the other games had, only with an older time period skin on it. Admittedly, it was still the best one I did play(I've tried them all except the new RPG one from 2020).
-Shinobido was fairly good too, felt just like Tenchu. My understanding it's the same people behind it? I miss Tenchu the more I think about it mouth is watering at the idea of getting a new Tenchu gasomedayday. I'd love a complete reboot where it keeps the base elements of stealth and Asian feel to it but make it more dynamic and push the consoles to their limits with what it can do nowadays versus the older hardware limitations of the PS1, PS2, and Xbox 360. I would like to see them bring back both Rikimaru and Ayame in a reboot and possibly introduce a new character as well. When I said I liked Tenchu Z best, what I'm saying is 100% the gameplay itself and the graphics. It doesn't have a story since you're just a generic created character(which I thought was cool), but the lack of the main character took away some of the elements I loved about the other titles. They were all really good games overall except for the Wii and DS ones. The more I talk about this the more I want a new Tenchu game...damn! By the way, have you tried Red Ninja: End of Honor for PS2? It's a bit broken at times but if you like stealth and Asian lore I thought Red Ninja was a lot better than the critics gave it credit for.
-Regarding romance, I can see your point. Ryo and Shenhua are genuine because it's a soul connection and they have a higher purpose than just the surface shallow stuff that's pushed in many romances of film, games, and storytelling. I've seen a bunch of people say Ryo should have dated Nozomi in Shenmue 1 instead of going with Shenhua later because Nozomi is cuter...I'm like WTF?!?!?....do these people even have the depth to enjoy a Shenmue game with that thought?? I know, very judgemental but it does blow my mind when I see that stuff. Nozomi is perfectly placed in Shenmue 1 as a character who Ryo cannot see in front of him because he has a bigger purpose to fulfill and she fits perfectly in her spot in the story, there's no real reason to bring her back into the game nor did I miss her in 2 or 3. Shenhua on the other hand has something amazing inside her that lines up with Ryo's purpose and it goes beyond just being people who knew each other from high school. I feel very similar about Kitana and Liu Kang in Mortal Kombat, it doesn't feel forced and it makes sense in the storytelling. Their 'romance' doesn't get in the way of their individuality or ambition and they push each other to see more within themselves.
-I respect you as well. Thank You. I can feel your intellect and thoughtfulness put into your responses is genuine.
-I am touched by your gesture of offering your Ayame figure to me. I'm speechless and don't know what to say. I graciously accept your kindness, but I also don't want to take anything from you that you may cherish or value. I'd like to say I have something creative that I could offer of value to you like an action figure of Kazuma Kiryu or better yet Rikimaru, but I don't keep many material items so all I would be able to offer is some of my inventory which is a bit thin currently (and some of it is junk like Call of Duty Black Ops). As lame and without creative thought of exchange as this would be, I can offer you cash
lol ...better than nothing right?