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sketchiedetails · 6 years

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As much as Metal Gear Rising owes to the Metal Gear series, I think it’s also partly an expansion on Vanquish’s themes of heroism and war profiteering.

Vanquish has a very simple plot: Russian terrorists took over a space colony and are threatening the US with its weapons. In response, the US sends Marines to reclaim the colony and DARPA loans out one of their employees Sam Gideon in an experimental Augmented Reaction Suit (ARS) to assist the Marines’ assault. It’s revealed later that the real reason Sam is there is to rescue the ARS’ creator who was on the colony and taken hostage by the terrorists.

Metal Gear Rising continues Raiden’s story after Metal Gear Solid 4 and explores how the war economy has shifted focus onto cyborg soldiers. A rival PMC outfit killed Raiden’s client and in response he spends the rest of the game dismantling their operations across the globe. The outfit shatters Raiden’s worldview, and he has to rebuild it from the ground up and accept a part of himself he’s been afraid of for most of his life.

At first glance these games’ stories don’t seem to have much in common besides a lone hero in his unique suit fighting terrorists, but both games ask what it means to be a hero on the battlefield. Sam is full of conviction for most of Vanquish but at the end of the game he questions himself if he’s any better than Burns for killing soldiers who got in his way. Raiden starts MGR with a strong belief in violence to ensure justice, but by the end he accepts his violent nature as a part of himself and admits that he enjoys the killing he gets to do as a PMC soldier.

Both games feature characters who serve as strong foils for the hero. Robert Burns is a colonel who views duty above all else to be the most important thing a soldier can do, even at the cost of his own men’s lives. Armstrong and the Desperado outfit are strong proponents for might makes right and want to apply this philosophy to every aspect of society. Burns and Jetstream Sam also have similar design concepts in that they are both the right hand men for the real people responsible for all the problems in their respective stories and it’s symbolized in their visual design as they both have augmented right arms. Burns’ arm can transform into a shielded Gatling gun, which represents his soldier background and fighting capability and Jetstream Sam’s arm sports the signature Desperado color scheme which clashes with the rest of his muscle suit.

In contrast, the other Desperado mercs are fully immersed in Armstrong’s philosophy and thus their entire suits sport the black and red motif. Sam was beaten by Armstrong and stays on the team, but like his design implies he hasn’t completely bought what Armstrong preached, which is why he grants Raiden access to his sword after losing to Raiden in a final duel.

Both games try to make the player feel like they have support in the battlefield. The Marines who assist Sam in Vanquish give the player the impression that they’re involved in a large scale military operation, and they’ll frequently get radio messages either from nearby troops, Burns, or Elena who provides remote support specifically for Sam (Small note: I find it funny that Kari Wahlgren voices support characters for both games). Being a Metal Gear game, MGR has a group of Codec contacts the player can call for advice or flavor text to help flesh out MGR’s setting. Later on, there’ll be an NPC in-game who accompanies Raiden in missions, but never in actual fights. They’re meant to scout ahead and provide information on the field. This may be inconsequential, but both games also have the hero losing their signature weapon at the end of the game only to use their rival’s weapon on the final boss.

Both games give you opportunities to be heroic in-game to reinforce the theme of heroism in their stories. Vanquish pairs Sam up with a seemingly inexhaustible pool of Marines to help him in every fight and they do draw attention away from Sam so he can dart across the map and turn the tide of battle.These Marines are fairly hardy, but they can go down if they take too much damage. Sam has the ability to revive downed Marines and in return they’ll give Sam a weapon drop. Some setpieces in Vanquish are escort quests where you have to make sure friendly vehicles get to their destinations without taking critical damage from enemy fire. In MGR, there are civilians detained by PMC soldiers that Raiden can rescue. They don’t reward you in any way and depending on how you look at it that can be seen as more altruistic because you’re going out of your way to helping that NPC without expecting an in-game reward.

Vanquish frequently shows Sam’s heroic tendencies by having him clash with Burns whenever there are soldiers in trouble. It’s stated in Sam’s bio that he was a football player in college and not in the military. This could imply that he’s more a team player than an obedient soldier. He’ll do whatever he can to help the people around him even if it goes against the operation.

Much like everything else in MGR compared to Vanquish, Raiden’s backstory and character arc are a little more complicated than Sam’s. Raiden has a background as a child soldier and the reason why he breaks off from Maverick to take on Desperado and World Marshall by himself is because they threaten the lives of several children and plan to turn them into VR-trained child soldiers just like Raiden. He initially justified his actions as a necessary evil to ensure peace, but Desperado tried to strip those justifications away either to dissuade Raiden or to turn him. What they didn’t expect was for Raiden to take that recently uncovered brutality he’s always had in him and use it against them. He hasn’t forgotten his original philosophy of protecting the weak, but he also won’t lie to himself anymore that he’s no worse than Desperado when it comes to being a killer.

An interesting quality both games share is that their writing are very much parodies of post-9/11 fearmongering, which isn’t something you’d usually expect in Japanese action games. In Vanquish, the Russian terrorists assert that US president Winters helped them with their coup d’etat and now the terrorists plan to attack the US first before the US targets them. Winters is apparently close to Burns and the real reason for the assault on the colony was so Burns could redirect the weapons to Russia and instigate another war, which according to Burns will be an “Economic Stimulus Package.” Armstrong has a similar goal in Metal Gear Rising where he plans to encourage tensions between the US and Pakistan so that the war economy can thrive and purge America’s weaker elements.

I’m not too strong on politics, but it feels like Burns and Armstrong are polar opposites in terms of ideology but they reached the same conclusion as a result of their extremism. Burns has a soldier’s mentality and thinks that duty exceeds any other obligation a person has. Russia destroying San Francisco was necessary in Burns’ mind to ensure the rest of America will thrive thanks to the coming war. Armstrong seems to be a strong proponent of the individual and thinks that the war economy will promote jobs and thin out the weaker parts of America so that every citizen will be strong enough to fight for their own ideals. He’s making “the mother of all omlettes,” and can’t be bothered over a few broken eggs.

What makes Armstrong such a compelling villain to me is that I can’t trust his rhetoric. Armstrong says he plans to use “war as a business to get elected...so [he] can end war as a business.” He also goes on a rant about the problems endemic in First World societies even though those are the means by which he’s able to maintain control. He comes off as someone so neckdeep in their bullshit that it’s impossible to take them seriously, and that makes it all the more enjoyable to kick his ass. Burns at best felt like a good foil to temper Sam’s naivete when it came to war, but his betrayal came way too late into the story to have any real impact. Armstrong could have run the same risk since he doesn’t show up physically in the story until the last chapter, but MGR gave him enough of a spotlight to really shine and be one of the most memetic video game characters in recent history, which is ironic considering MGR explores more of the meme theory material the Metal Gear series introduced in MGS2.

As he’s technically Vanquish’s final boss, I need to point out Victor Zaitsev and where his motivations compare to Burns and Armstrong. Zaitsev feels justified in attacking America because Winters was going to attack Russia now that the terrorists she secretly backed have taken control of the country. Fearing betrayal, the terrorists attacked America first. As Zaitsev says, “The betrayed have a right to retribution.” Just like Burns, his motivation is simple compared to Armstrong’s longwinded bullshit, but it’s too simple a motivation to carry Vanquish’s plot any further than it already is at that point.

I hope I’m not making Vanquish sound a lot more politically intriguing than it really is. It’s an action game first and the story is entirely skippable. Metal Gear Rising’s plot has more meat, and I feel like for the most part it answers the questions it wants to ask, which is something I think Binary Domain (another Japanese third-person cover shooter which I’m going to compare with Vanquish in another post) fails to do.

#vanquish #metal gear rising #mgr #thinking bout games

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weconqueratdawn · 6 years

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Kowalski’s #5 ~ moar holiday edition

Gradence bakery/coffeeshop AU ~ on AO3 / Read from the beginning

Original!Percival Graves/Credence Barebone Teen & up Fluff, awkward flirting, slow burn, first date, holidays

Fic Summary: Where Credence finds solace in baking and a slightly-washed-up Percy finds solace in Credence.

Chapter Summary: First date in a craft store and car trouble.

Millions of thanks to @pangaeastarseed :) And happy holidays everyone!

Credence was waiting outside on the steps when Percy pulled up. He looked half-frozen but was clasping a flask of something hot and steaming.

Percy popped the passenger door open. “I’m not late, am I?”

Credence gathered his bag and his flask and scrambled in. The door banged shut against the cold.

“No, not at all,” he said. “I prefer waiting outside, watching people go by. And our buzzer doesn’t work that well.”

So that was why, Percy thought. Worried he might miss Percy - needlessly so, as now, secreted carefully in Percy’s phone, were all ten precious digits of Credence’s number. Hopefully that meant he hadn’t spent the whole morning wondering who on earth took someone to Kraft-Mart for a first date, like Percy had.

“I brought coffee,” Credence said. “And also doughnuts.”

Percy laughed. “You brought the bakery with you?” He opened the cup holder so Credence could set the flask down - it got stuck sometimes and needed a sharp tug.

“It’s cold,” Credence said. “And Queenie said traffic might be bad.”

“Traffic is always bad,” said Percy. “There’s no escaping it in this town - unless you want to leave at 3am.”

But the traffic wasn’t that bad, after all - and the coffee was very good indeed. Once they’d made it out of the city, it only took another forty-five minutes on the Interstate.

Credence was a very quiet passenger but not the sort which needed constant attention. He seemed perfectly happy to gaze out of the window while he ate his doughnut, and took excruciating care not to douse the car in sugar. The car definitely wasn’t worth the effort, thought Percy. But perhaps it was more than simple politeness - perhaps Credence either hadn’t noticed or didn’t care what a heap of shit he drove nowadays.

It was surprisingly comfortable, and by the time they arrived, found a parking spot, and crossed the enormous lot, it didn’t seem at all strange to be walking around a craft superstore together. In fact, it’s very unlikeliness in the eyes of others made it into a kind of shared adventure.

“That woman keeps staring at me,” said Percy. “I think she thinks we’re lost. Or up to something nefarious. Quick, look interested in these candles before she comes over and quizzes us about Martha Stewart.”

Credence smiled. “The baking section is all the way at the back,” he said. “Once we get there she can quiz us as much as she likes.”

After far too many aisles of holiday-themed crafts - the glitter and foil in red, green, and gold looked appallingly aggressive when encountered all together - signs of hope appeared. Rows and rows of huge pastel bowls and spatulas and moulds skimmed by until Credence found what he was looking for.

There the shelves were cluttered with tiny tools and he spent an age examining piping nozzles and cutters which all looked exactly the same to Percy. On the top shelf was a boxed decorating set - for $300, Percy noted with disbelief. Credence took it down, studied its contents critically, then replaced it.

Percy was conscious of a dull sense of regret - once upon a time, not that long ago, he could’ve whipped out his wallet and bought it for him without batting an eye. Even if Credence would never accept a gift like that, it was still nice to think he could have offered.

He stood uselessly by, waiting, and tried to convince himself that technically he still could - even if it wasn’t a sensible thing to do in his current circumstances.

Credence hadn’t finished, though - the next aisle over was entirely stocked with food colouring pastes and gels. He lingered over these particularly, and took a long time choosing between a sky-blue and a turquoise. The turquoise won out, and after that he seemed ready to leave.

Percy dragged his thoughts from the meagre contents of Credence’s basket and his impotent desire to fill it to the brim, and instead made himself look forward to lunch. There weren’t many places nearby - certainly nowhere fancy - but at least taking Credence out would be something.

“Is there anything else you want to look at?” Percy asked, before they reached the checkout. “While we’re here, you might as well.”

They were just passing through yet another holiday section - the aisles opened out suddenly into a mass of differently-themed Christmas trees. In fake-rustic buckets around them were the baubles, tinsel, and lights which went with each theme.

Credence paused. “Maybe the decorations?” he said. He gravitated towards a sugary pastel-coloured one, and stared at it like it was forbidden fruit. “We never had any when I was growing up.”

Percy absorbed this quietly; of course he’d noticed the menorah in the bakery window but, even for Credence, this seemed a strangely guarded comment.

“I could get some fairy lights,” Credence said, mostly to himself. “For my room.”

“Well, why not?” Percy encouraged. “There’s no law against it, is there?”

Credence nodded rather seriously, and a packet of candy-coloured lights joined the other items in his basket.

After Credence had paid, they trudged back across the lot to Percy’s car. There had been a light fall of snow - not enough to worry about but it was slippery underfoot.

Percy locked Credence’s purchases safely in the trunk. “There’s a place not far from here we could go to eat,” he said. “Haven’t been myself but the reviews were good. Want to try it?”

“That sounds nice,” said Credence. He had a way of glowing quietly with pleasure without actually smiling, and Percy felt his self-esteem buck up a notch.

The car was freezing inside; Percy hurried to get it started but the cold seemed to have got to the engine. It spluttered out, though that wasn’t unusual. When he tried again, the same thing happened. It was only after the third failed attempt that Percy felt uneasy.

By the sixth, he was beginning to get mad. By the tenth, he was outright angry. And by the twentieth, he gave up in utter rage.

He had climbed out and wrenched open the hood before he realised doing so would achieve precisely nothing. He didn’t know anything about engines - he’d never had to learn, not when he’d had a brand-new car every year and a goddamned driver as well.

“You fucking piece of shit,” he said, hopefully in the general direction of whatever it was which had gone wrong. Then he slammed the hood shut again, hard enough to make the whole car judder.

Through the dusting of snow on the windshield Credence’s face was discernibly pale and drawn.

Percy turned his back, sat heavily on the hood, and took a deep breath. He wouldn’t be this angry if he’d been on his own. It was so unfair; why couldn’t he be allowed to keep up the pretence, just a little longer?

He pulled out his phone: a tow truck it would have to be. The woman who answered his call was disconcertingly, if falsely, sympathetic. In the background the general hum of dozens, maybe hundreds, of similar calls could dimly be heard. Percy imagined a throng of helpless middle-aged men, many with impatient wives and children in the back seat. It did not improve his mood.

When he hung up, he remembered Credence was still behind him, waiting. Probably staring at his knees, hunched and tense, rather than watching Percy make a spectacle of himself.

He stood, and went to open the passenger door.

“We’d better find somewhere to wait,” he said. “Could be a couple of hours before someone can get here.” On the other side of the lot were a few smaller stores - among them, hopefully, a place to eat. “There’s a diner over there - come on, let’s go.”

Once the car was locked he strode off toward it, leaving Credence to follow. His quiet glow of pleasure had vanished, and just then Percy didn’t think he could stand the reminder of its loss.

But, if anything, he felt worse over lunch. The food was fine but there were none of the other things he’d pictured - no cosy booth, no gentle flirtation, no shared smiles or laughter. Their table was stuck in the middle of the room, and every two minutes a server swept past them with bowls of curly fries or trays rattling with drinks. Credence focused entirely on his plate and didn’t attempt conversation. Percy couldn’t dredge up anything to say, either.

It seemed he’d done all the damage it was possible to do already - losing his temper and making an ass of himself. Then he’d grimly ordered lunch like spending time with Credence was something to be endured. No wonder he was silent and withdrawn. He’d had a better time serving Percy coffee.

That was the thought which did it - the one which managed to break through Percy’s admittedly ridiculous self-pity.

He threw his paper napkin onto his half-full plate and put his face in his hands. “I’m sorry,” he said. Then he took a deep breath and looked at Credence. “The car breaking down wasn’t great, but everything else was totally unnecessary. I’m sorry for being an asshole and spoiling your day.”

Credence looked up in surprise. Percy watched his face grow rather serious and intent and hurriedly kept talking.

“My temper didn’t used to this bad - or at least I don’t think it did - but there seems a lot to be angry about at the moment. That piece-of-shit car is only the tip of the iceberg.”

He realised he’d started to shred his napkin into little pieces. He dropped it again, and resisted the urge to fold his arms across his chest. It would only make him look sulky. Or threatening.

“I know I’m not showing myself in a very good light here,” he said. “I’ll understand if you don’t want to take this outside the bakery again.”

Credence’s watchful gaze continued on for a few moments. Then, without a word, he got up and went to the counter.

Percy stared after him. Could he be leaving? He saw Credence lean over to speak to someone, but couldn’t tell what he said. He seemed to be pointing at something and then waved over towards their table. Was he asking for the check?

But, no - he turned and came back. Relief flooded Percy; relief and more confusion. Credence had two plates of pie, and a server followed him with two mugs.

He took his seat; silence reigned once more while their unfinished burgers were cleared away.

Once the server had left, Credence pushed a plate and a mug towards Percy. “They’re for you,” he said. He picked up his own fork and took a bite of a pie.

More silence followed. Credence ate slowly and thoughtfully. Percy examined his own plate, wondering if he’d missed something obvious.

“Queenie told me something once,” Credence said, suddenly. “She said even when everything feels like shit - and might actually have gone to shit, who knows? - we can always do something about the moment we’re in. To make it a bit better.”

Even if he’d orchestrated all that to get his full and complete attention, Percy thought, he couldn’t have done a better job.

“Right now, it’s cold outside,” Credence continued, “and we’re somewhere warm, with something good to eat and someone to talk to, and- And even if it doesn’t feel like much, it’s something little to enjoy, while we can.”

Percy was astonished. “Queenie told you that?” he said, hoping he might learn when and why.

“Queenie has a way of just knowing things,” Credence said. “She's real smart but not many people notice.” He stopped and frowned at Percy’s untouched plate. “Try some, it’s good.”

Percy stared at him for a full minute before he too started to eat.

“Are you trying to induct me into the pleasures of comfort eating?” he asked, feeling a little more like his old self.

“Do you feel comforted?” said Credence.

Percy struggled with that for a while before he answered. “Not because of the pie.”

Credence smiled cryptically. “It’s never because of the pie.”

When they eventually pulled up outside Credence’s building again, they were only an hour late. The tow truck had arrived sooner than expected; all the car needed was a jumpstart. By then Percy had been able to bear the ignominy with something closer to humour. Maybe it really was funny, just a little bit.

He killed the engine. They both looked out, to where Percy guessed Credence’s apartment must be. Neither of them moved. A curtain twitched and a face appeared at one of the windows. On the sill below it twinkled an LED menorah.

Credence waved up to the peering face and twisted to get his bag from the back seat.

“I guess I should have wished you a happy Hanukkah,” Percy said, and turned to Credence with a smile.

“Oh,” he said, tucking the empty flask safely into his bag. “Because of Jacob and Queenie? And Tina?”

“Yeah,” said Percy. “I thought you might be related or something… Who’s Tina?”

“Queenie’s sister. I live with her.” Credence pointed up toward the window. “I think you saw her once in the bakery.”

“Right,” Percy said, thinking hard. “So you’re not Jewish?”

“No,” said Credence. Instead of getting out of the car, he sat back in his seat again. “I don’t really know what I am now,” he said, after a moment.

“Can I ask…?” Percy began. He got the feeling this conversation ran deep. “Why all the hesitation about the decorations?”

Credence shrugged. “My mother didn’t approve of the commercialisation of Christmas - she said it was the dilution of God’s message.”

“Wow,” Percy said. “God’s message, huh?”

“Exactly,” Credence said. “No decorations, no presents... nothing but church. And you don’t even know what she would’ve said about me living with Tina and going on a date with you.”

“Sorry it wasn’t a better one,” Percy said, feeling doubly guilty.

Credence gave him a sidelong glance and smiled. “I thought it was pretty good, actually,” he said, and went a lovely shade of pink.

Percy still thought he’d failed somehow but the assurance was nice. He swung open his door open, and went round get Credence’s. At least he could end their date on a note of gallantry.

That seemed to lead straight to them both hovering on Credence’s doorstep. Credence wore a touchingly open expression; one very earnest and a little lost. His gaze wavered uncertainly across Percy’s face, particularly around his mouth.

Percy resolved to make it up to him, next time. He leaned in to kiss his cheek, making sure to linger longer than necessary; it wouldn’t do for Credence to doubt his interest.

“I thought it was pretty good too,” he said. “Merry Christmas, Credence.”

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#gradence #gravebone #gradence au #original percival graves #credence barebone #modern percival graves #credence x graves #graves x credence #credence/graves #credence/percival #graves/credence #fantastic beasts and where to find them #fbawtft #my fic #kowalski's

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