Character Directions Post-DoC

[Ghost X]

Ooo. I forgot about Priscilla. Add her to my list of protagonists =p. How about Choco Billy too. Oh yeah .

 

[Unlucky]

Plenty of fans see him as an unredeemable villain. Personally I think they're wrong and that when you look more closely at his character and his actions, he's a lot more interesting than that.

Seconded. What made Rufus interesting to me is that he's not some typical character who you can clearly categorize as a villain or hero. The only reason imo for him to be branded mainly as a villain is because he's untrustworthy. I hope he retains his unpredictability just like he was in ACC if he's ever featured in a new game.

He does want power, but unlike his father he doesn't want it at the expense of the world, because what would be the point of that? What I think he is, is really arrogant. I like me a Rufus who honestly believes that only he and Shinra have the foresight and the power to save humanity from itself and the planet from self-destruction. He may even see Cloud as nothing more than a sticking-plaster solution. Cloud drives Sephiroth away for a while, but the evil always returns. Cloud is reactive, not proactive. Also, I think the fact that Rufus's geostigma was cured by Aerith's healing rain is something he would seek to find meaning in (despite the fact that it was probably indiscriminate, falling alike on the just and the unjust, as the saying is).

Agree with this, he believes that it is his role to oversee everything in the Planet-- because he thinks it's still his. Hence it would be more appropriate for his character to remain stoic, unpredictable and cunning for him to fulfill such a role.

Case of Shinra did a good job of portraying the human side of Rufus. Within it, Rufus was already shown to be a vulnerable being, that someone had already seen him 'bleed'. And how he reacted to such circumstances is worth noting. He laughs, is intimidated, and even helps a lady-- his emotions are left unsaid yet you know that he's not devoid of them.

Rufus is problematic. I could probably write an extended essay on him by this point.

Please do! I love your version of Rufus in your fic-- it's pretty much like how he was in Case of Shinra.

 

[Masamune]

Seconded. What made Rufus interesting to me is that he's not some typical character who you can clearly categorize as a villain or hero. The only reason imo for him to be branded mainly as a villain is because he's untrustworthy. I hope he retains his unpredictability just like he was in ACC if he's ever featured in a new game.

I wouldn't be so sure about that. Are we working from the OG here or the Compilation's 'fuck it, let's just rewrite the characters' logic?

One of Rufus' very first speeches in the game was how he was going to rule the world with terror instead of trying to monopolize everything like his father did. And Shinra wasn't averse to public executions under Rufus' reign, either. But I guess this has probably all been sanitized by some spinoff material.

 

[Roger]

I wouldn't be so sure about that. Are we working from the OG here or the Compilation's 'fuck it, let's just rewrite the characters' logic?

One of Rufus' very first speeches in the game was how he was going to rule the world with terror instead of trying to monopolize everything like his father did. And Shinra wasn't averse to public executions under Rufus' reign, either. But I guess this has probably all been sanitized by some spinoff material.

Case of Shinra was more interested in excusing his seeming heroism in AC by making it clear he just objectively realizes that he needs to start getting back on top from scratch again as opposed to when he started on top of the world and terror alone would have sufficed, then excusing his seeming villainy in the OG. Tseng on the other hand...

 

[Octo]

We might also want to involve Mr. Dolphin somehow, but I don't have any ideas for this High-Jumping-Flipper. Dolphins (in general) can live up to 40-50 years, so Mr. Dolphin could certainly return in this FFVII title.

I dunno, if we're going with this bummer vibe I think Mr Dolphin should have been caught in a tuna net

Also I can't bear the thought of any of the Turks dying, or any of Avalanche, either.

Yeah, I couldn't handle that. If they're going to kill off a Turk it should be some new person who is annoying.

I wouldn't be so sure about that. Are we working from the OG here or the Compilation's 'fuck it, let's just rewrite the characters' logic?

One of Rufus' very first speeches in the game was how he was going to rule the world with terror instead of trying to monopolize everything like his father did. And Shinra wasn't averse to public executions under Rufus' reign, either. But I guess this has probably all been sanitized by some spinoff material.

Yeah, there was a definite U turn with the compilation. Ditto with the Turks. I think its largely down to the large fanbase wanting to lick clear honey off of their pecs. Personally I wasn't too bothered that they were baddies but I guess SE felt otherwise.

 

[Obsidian Fire]

Rufus again!

What sets Rufus apart from the WRO is that he is an "ends justify the means" type person. This can be traced back to Shin-Ra. Unlike Shin-Ra, Rufus actually has his priorities right. It's canon that not only does he not want to get back to human experimentation, but he also recognizes that the Planet is... well the Planet. What he has going for him that Reeve doesn't is that he's not a manipulatable person. If the villein (lets just say it's Sephiroth, it makes it easy) were to try to manipulate people, I'd be more worried about Reeve then Rufus.

 

[Unlucky]

I wouldn't be so sure about that. Are we working from the OG here or the Compilation's 'fuck it, let's just rewrite the characters' logic?

Sorry, forgot to specify that I had AC in mind with that. In the OG it's pretty clear he's on the bad side. In AC I don't think there's enough happening in there to tell whether he's still mainly on the bad side or neutral whatsoever, at least as how I saw it. I wouldn't say he's on the good side either, because it happened that he had the same goals as Cloud. What if that changes, as we have speculated before? There's only him being an untrustworthy fellow.

 

[LicoriceAllsorts]

I would say that in the OG it's pretty clear that Rufus is against Avalanche (although I'm not sure what that scene on top of the Shinra building means: is it just supposed to be hot air, or is he actually wondering if he can make a rapprochement with the people he thinks killed his father?). It's also pretty clear that he has a very immature attitude towards ruling, although again maybe he's just putting on an act for them. When do we ever see him actually trying to rule by fear? And because we are Avalanche and he is against us, he is clearly an antagonist.

But to some NCC looking on, the lines of good and evil are not so clear cut. Tifa and Barret blew up reactors and killed people. They followed Sephiroth around the world only in order to give him a Materia that was a weapon of mass destruction. They then scupper Shinra's attempts to save the world from the problem which they (or so it might appear to an onlooker) caused. Obviously for us as game players Rufus's attempt to execute our beloved party members confirms him as a nasty antagonist, especially since he probably knows enough to suspect that they're not the bad guys. But they're being put to death for their terrorist crimes; Yuffie, Red XIII, Vincent, and Cid are all, apparently, released, and Cid even seems to be given his piloting job back.

 

[Octo]

Yuffie, Red XIII, Vincent, and Cid are all, apparently, released, and Cid even seems to be given his piloting job back.

It's never really explained that part, I think I was always under the assumtion that Cait Sith/Reeve managed to free them, but couldn't do the same for Barret and Tifa.

It kind of makes sense that they would let Yuffie go, if they didn't want to inflame things with Wutai perhaps. Yet she feels the need to be in disguise when you encounter her again?

Maybe they thought they could use Cid, I get the feeling that he is the best pilot, but I didn't think they gave him his old job back, I'd have to check but I thought Cid stole the Highwind back from Shinra.

As for Red, I don't really see why they would let him go. Sure it would be kind of absurd to execute a talking cat-dog for terrorism but I feel like Scarlet or Heidegger would want to keep hold of him for future research.

 

[LicoriceAllsorts]

It's never really explained that part, I think I was always under the assumtion that Cait Sith/Reeve managed to free them, but couldn't do the same for Barret and Tifa.

That makes sense, and I think Reeve might have said something to that effect, but I can't remember.

 

[Octo]

I looked it up, Reeve doesn't actually say anything other than he's here to help (to Barret, when you meet Yuffie she says theres no time to explain.

I could have sworn there was some optional dialogue about how the Highwind's crew wanted to serve under Cid again? I think you had to talk to one of them, but it doesn't appear in any of the game scripts I've read. Oh well, I guess we can use our imaginations on that one.

 

[Shademp]

I could have sworn there was some optional dialogue about how the Highwind's crew wanted to serve under Cid again? I think you had to talk to one of them, but it doesn't appear in any of the game scripts I've read. Oh well, I guess we can use our imaginations on that one.

When Tifa is the party leader, speak to one of the crew outside the meeting room.

“Wanna hear why we rebelled?”
-> Listen
-> Don't care

“Working on the Highwind, we spent every day slaving under Heidegger.”
“Whenever he got yelled at by the President, he'd immediately take it out on the crew.”
“We put up with this all the time, even when he beat us.”
“I mean, I finally made it on the crew of the famous Highwind, and there's no way I was going to quit over him.”
“Let's see, it must've been a week ago…it was my shift and we were heading towards the North Cave.”
“Everyone, including the President and Scarlet, got on.”
“And with them, I saw {Cid}, a legendary pilot!”
“And he was looking around the inside of the ship looking really, y'know, nostalgic…”
“He even talked to us.”
“I couldn't believe it! I was so impressed! He was every bit as warm-hearted as we'd always heard.”
“{Cid} said that if he had the Highwind, things would be a lot easier.”
“And now here we are off to save the Planet. It's true. He really overwhelmed me.”
“And that's why we decided to help.”
“After the North Cave, we went to Junon, and I started screaming 'Fire! Fire!'”
“In the middle of all the commotion, we stole this ship from the Shinra.”
“That's how it happened. Just a minor mutiny against our leaders.”
“But {Barret} and you were captured by Heidegger…”
“We waited seven days for a chance to rescue you guys before we finally could.”
“So thanks to our successful mission, we were able to see you again.”
“I hope I didn't bore you too much with that long story.”

 

[Octo]

I knew I didn't imagine it! Shademp to the rescue!

 

[LicoriceAllsorts]

Ah, true, true - but what the extract doesn't clarify is whether or not Cid is Rufus's prisoner. I mean, he ought to be, but it's open to interpretation, which is just the way I like it! I imagine Shinra let Yuffie go for diplomatic reasons, like you said, Octo, and I can't imagine how they could have kept Vincent against his will, but I'm surprised there's nothing about Reeve rescusing Red, who, after all, isn't an optional character.

 

[Obsidian Fire]

I like how the entire success of breaking out of prison comes down to the NPCs on the Highwind.

 

[Roger]

“[Cid] was every bit as warm-hearted as we'd always heard.”

I imagine his exact words were "Gimme my ship assh*le!"

 

[Captain Jack Harkness]

hey, what about this: due to Shin-Ra's fault, the life of the planet is shorter so Rufus (because he want to atone etc,etc) want to foud a new planet where humanity can carry on existance if something will happen to gaia. that will create a relation between Rufus and another Avalanche (Cid). at the end of the game surely this will remain just a dream, and probably this will never realize, but surely will complicate the relationship between heroes and Rufus.

 

[LicoriceAllsorts]

It's an interesting suggestion, Loki, because I think it would be divisive. Some members of Avalanche (Cid?) would be all for it. Others might realise that by leaving its own ruined planet to seek another to, basically, take over, humanity would be acting like Jenova.

[Actually, I don't know if they can leave the Planet. To what extent does the Lifestream hold them in symbiosis with their Planet?]

 

[Shademp]

I am astounded by how little I can imagine there should be done with Yuffie, Red, Vincent, Barret and Cloud. Again, for Cid I imagine the new space program, with Tifa I retain the view that there should be some involvement with the other students of Zangan style and with Reeve I imagine him being fooled by Rufus and temporarily losing his control over the WRO for a while.

But I just can't muster anything remotely solid with the other main "heroes".
Say the game takes place ten years after the original game.
*WARNING: Brainstorming questions here*
Should Yuffie be more mature? What of her Materia obsession (which surely will not end), has it led to anything? In Case of Yuffie, we know that see brought some curative Materia with her back to Wutai. But would it be in her nature to try and sneak in more and more offensive Materia in Wutai's war arsenal? How much does Yuffie want to see Wutai's glory restored?
What if Wutai stocks on powerful Materia then gets discovered by WRO? Would this lead to a new war? Maybe a new (brief) war would happen with Rufus in charge of WRO or is such an action just as stupid as it sounds? I reckon it probably is.

I'm asking all these questions because I am not qualified to answer them. What do you guys think? What plot should Yuffie and Wutai have?

It's an interesting suggestion, Loki, because I think it would be divisive. Some members of Avalanche (Cid?) would be all for it. Others might realise that by leaving its own ruined planet to seek another to, basically, take over, humanity would be acting like Jenova.

EDIT:
[Actually, I don't know if they can leave the Planet. To what extent does the Lifestream hold them in symbiosis with their Planet?]

Spirans, who had their own Lifestream, apparently could migrate to Gaia and still survive. The same might apply in reverse, with Gaian inhabitants going to other planets.

 

[Captain Jack Harkness]

my vocabolary says that Yuffie will never became more mature than a 12 years old girl

 

[Octo]

*WARNING: Brainstorming questions here*
Should Yuffie be more mature? What of her Materia obsession (which surely will not end), has it led to anything? In Case of Yuffie, we know that see brought some curative Materia with her back to Wutai. But would it be in her nature to try and sneak in more and more offensive Materia in Wutai's war arsenal? How much does Yuffie want to see Wutai's glory restored?
What if Wutai stocks on powerful Materia then gets discovered by WRO? Would this lead to a new war? Maybe a new (brief) war would happen with Rufus in charge of WRO or is such an action just as stupid as it sounds? I reckon it probably is.

I'm asking all these questions because I am not qualified to answer them. What do you guys think? What plot should Yuffie and Wutai have?

I'd hope that Yuffie would have matured and realised that having shitloads of materia isn't what Wutai needs - I mean the ability to defend itself is good and everything but I think Wutai needs to get a better economy and stuff. Obviously in-game we don't get much of an idea about Wutai (and maybe someone who's played CC can elaborate) but I get the impression that they were devastated after the war and people there lead a largely uh...whats the word I'm looking for? Medieval? What I'm saying is that people there seem to do farming and shit but they havent really embraced industry/technology. So I think Yuffie would be trying to focus on that.

I'd hope so anyway, materia-hunter Yuffie is very limited in terms of character development.

 

[Shademp]

I'd hope that Yuffie would have matured and realised that having shitloads of materia isn't what Wutai needs - I mean the ability to defend itself is good and everything but I think Wutai needs to get a better economy and stuff.

Too bad Godo doesn't seem to be that mature, at least in OG.

Godo
“After their battle is over…”
“Do you think they'll still want all their Materia?”

{Yuffie}
“Dad…!”

Godo
“Go! Fight till the end! But come back!”
“With the Materia!”

{Yuffie}
“Heh, heh…you bet!”


Obviously pulled for laughs, but even if not Yuffie then perhaps somebody else will have been stocking up Materia.

 

[Octo]

Yeah thats true, but at the time Shinra were still in power so I guess that motivated Godo to say that stuff, more of a grudge thing. Post AC I'd think he would have twigged that Wutai has to do more if it wants to compete on a global level.

OOH what about a space race between Shinra and Wutai?

 

[Edley]

Yuffie's going to become a Doctor, she said so herself Actually, I do think Wutai and Godo and possibly even Yuri from the novella would play a role in the actions she takes. In DoC she's working with the WRO, but her friends and materia still seem to be more important in her mind. I think the word octo is looking for is anachronistic. The question is does Wutai want to rebuild as a world power or be part of some sort of confederation of city states (I don't see it) and that's really what Yuffie could be motivated by. Obviously whatever Godo wants she'll disagree with.

Cid's not going to develop to much further, he's got his flying dreams and his wife and that'll keep him occupied.

Barret's a bit more interesting because there's this strong sense that he's still trying to atone for his past actions. I'm not sure how much it weighs on him, but there's an obligation he feels to Corel and the people kicked around by Shinra as a whole that would motivate his actions. Maybe Marlene would be hurt by the fact that he spends more time and effort on the outside world as she grows older, but then again I think she would see Cloud and Tifa as her parents as the years progress.

I see Nanaki and Vincent being for the most part absent from the rest of the group. They'd come in to a battle if needed, but other than showing how Nanaki finds his mate (seems unnecessary) we're all going to assume they're not dying anytime soon.

Cloud and Tifa would continue to deepen their relationship and they'd fit well as mentors for their kids as well as other orphans. I think the fact that they're both orphans would motivate them. I doubt Cloud would do the delivery service gig much longer, WRO would probably develop a more efficient post and parcel service. Tifa could do that Zangan student interaction Shademp was talking about. The bar is also something she would probably not do forever. Maybe a dojo/orphanage?

 

[LicoriceAllsorts]

What if Shera dies from Geostigma and Cid blames Aerith?