Day 29: A game you thought you wouldn’t like, but ended up loving.
Goddammit 30 Day Video Game Challenge. You keep presenting questions that only have one answer for me, and I’m sure the people are growing tired of it by now, if they haven’t already. I can usually think of more than one response to these things, but for this question, there really is only one…
I had zero desire to play this game when I first heard about it. I thought it was too sci-fi. I grew up reading fantasy. It’s my favorite genre to this day, so when Final Fantasy VI came out, I was overjoyed that there was a video game that could easily fit into the same niche as my favorite stories. Though I’d been writing for years before that, VI centered my attention on its narrative, had me shaping, twisting, and exploring its motifs, and at one point I attempted a novelization. I was obsessed with FFVI all throughout high school, and I thought there could never be another game or story that would topple it from its throne. Though I was definitely into darkness (I was pretty goth in high school), I wasn’t really into dystopia, and my tolerance for science fiction extended only to Star Trek: TNG (this has changed greatly in my old age). I was a bit bummed out about FFVII because the series to me was Final Fantasy, not Final Sci-Fi.
But…even in the midst of this, I was obsessed with Sephiroth. I was obsessed with him long before I ever considered playing the game. I’d never seen such a beautiful person, let alone man, even before.
Discovering he was the villain did nothing to dissuade me of my love (in fact, it might have made it worse). I want to say it was Christmas of that year that my brother bought me the Eidos/PC version of the game, and, well…you know the rest (if you don’t know the rest, a feel-o-rama version of it is here).
Final Fantasy VII is probably the best example of having no interest in something and developing a lifelong obsession. Oddly, enough, it’s not the only narrative I can name in this camp. They’re quite numerous and transcend media. Harry Potter, Frozen, ASOIAF, and Bob’s Burgers just to name a few. I am perfectly content eating crow in these cases, since it means I’m consuming another epic narrative along with my swallowed pride.
What game did you think you were going to detest and/or had no interest in playing that you love now?
The Shameful Narcissist Speaks 
Pingback: 30 Day Video Game Challenge: Day 28 | The Shameful Narcissist Speaks
Gone Home. The elevator pitch wasn’t very interesting but it ended up being one of my favorite gaming experiences of all time.
LikeLiked by 2 people
AAAHHHHHH I was right!!! haha 😀 That’s so cool though, for a game to go from loathed to one that is so important to you 🙂
I mentioned this before, but for me it was Final Fantasy: Every Number. What is it about Final Fantasy games that make people judge them so harshly?
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s just amazing that I had zero interest and now I’m a fan for life lol.
I actually have a post planned for that eventually! Well, it’s more of a discussion on why popular things are often hated. It’s a really interesting phenomenon that the more popular something is, the more vehement haters it attracts. I’ve been on both sides of this, so it’s made me think about why it happens. Sometimes the reasons are legitimate e.g. the narrative encourages harm behavior or beliefs like Twilight, Fifty Shades of Gray, or more recently 13 Reasons Why, and sometimes the reasons are due to people wanting to be in a particular “in” crowd by putting something on the outs. Human behavior is often dictated by in/out groups because of how social we are, and it’s fascinating and disheartening that some in groups only exist to keep something or someone out.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’d really be interested in reading that! At a first glance, I’d agree that it has a lot to do with being seen as “in” with a certain crowd (or even “out” of another one). But I wonder, too, if some folks might already feel “out” and so shun anything that might be part of that world or that group. They’re an outcast, and so anything popular is seen almost as “the enemy.” (Yes, my brain goes to weird places sometimes…)
At any rate, I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s definitely one of the facets of counter culture! It’s kind of the hipster attitude, too lol. I actually know people who’ve said they won’t get into something if it’s too popular. I kind of roll my eyes at that though, because it almost seems like they’re purposely trying to not like things that are popular, but if they were true to themselves, they probably would. If you legitimately don’t like a popular thing, you are entitled to your informed opinion and preference, but if you’re only not even giving it a try because you want to still be seen as counter culture cool, then that’s a pity.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s a good point about trying to maintain an “image” and then missing out on something great because of it, which does seem a little silly. I think I was thinking more along the lines of… Picture a kid who is bullied a lot in school, and their parents try to get them interested in popular music, books, movies, etc., so they can relate to the other kids, but the kid refuses all of it because they don’t want to have anything in common with the people who torment them. I’m not sure that’s the same as being part of a counter-culture or not, but it could be a way of distancing themselves from what could be considered a “painful” experience. Like I said. My head goes to weird places haha.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh that makes perfect sense to me, too! They reject it by proxy. I’ve been in that situation unfortunately. Where I don’t do something because the people who bullied me were into it. In fact…yeah, well, it could be argued that I’m the way I am for that very reason. Unfortunately, I wasn’t considered “black” enough by some of my classmates for a variety of reasons. That pushed me away from stereotypical things (and gave me a disdain for them that I regret to this day. Also I hate saying “stereotypical,” but that’s the best way to describe it). The majority of my friends were white. Now that I’m older, I obviously know there’s no wrong way to be black or female or anything else (hooray intersectional feminism!), but ass a hypersensitive, super anxious and depressed kid, I just wanted to fit in/belong, enjoy the things I liked without being made fun of, so I mostly just hid it. Disdain by proxy is pretty terrible when you think about it, but I understand why you’d associate certain media with the people who bully you and avoid it.
LikeLike
I mentioned this previously but for me it was Halo. Back when I was stupid and a fanboy, I thought Halo was the most overrated pile ever witnessed. Of course, I had never played it but logic does not stop fanboys. Anyway, I ended up getting a 360 because of Gears of War and at that point had stopped being such a raging idiot about brands, gave Halo a try and it has since become one of my favorite pieces of entertainment (games, books, comics, etc…).
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ah you did the same thing I did with FFXIII, only I haven’t played XIII yet to vindicate myself. Thankfully, LightningEllen is VERY forgiving.
I’ve noticed that popular things will often get a hate-following just by nature of being popular, because humans have this desire to be counter-culture sometimes. We LOVE to be “in,” and sometimes in means we’re on the outs of something else. The whole “I’m too cool for this.” We’re all guilty of it, but I think very highly of people who can admit it.
I’ve seen a few of the Halo movies or animated shorts. The background and lore is REALLY interesting.
LikeLike
I’m glad you tried out FFVII in the end! The Great General needs you in his corner and NO ONE understands VII’s narrative as much as you do. 🙂
I’ve never went into a game expecting to hate it. There are a few games on my To Play list with a bad rap, but I’m giving them a fair shot before judging them. I know by now that my opinion greatly differs from the internet masses, haha.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I can’t even imagine my life without it! Like if they ever wanted to erase my memory of it, they’d pretty much have to obliterate enough of my brain that I probably couldn’t survive lol.
I could seriously be his lawyer lol. It’s actually in the back of my mind when I’m updating the RP Facebook page 😀 The roles have already been established, but there was a trial when everyone was first brought back, and well Seph would have to have good council who understood his plight.
Having your opinion differ from the internet masses means your opinion is more than likely worth something. Some of the books I really like on Goodreads have a rating that hovers around 3.5 if not lower. Sometimes people don’t like things for petty reasons, not that I’m immune to that :p
LikeLiked by 1 person
I just got a new game idea! Ace Attorney: FFVII Edition 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Omg for a second I thought you were saying there WAS an Ace Attorney: FFVII Edition. As Sephiroth’s council, I’d instruct my client to plead insanity, and I will prove it within a shadow of a doubt. Hehe, I was actually going to write the Defense essay as literally a legal defense at one point. That might still find itself written at some point.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That would make a great FFVII remake DLC! I hope you write that legal defense essay too 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Skyrim. I even watched as it was played, and I didn’t pay much attention to it.
Then, one Christmas (after we got our goodies and a hefty amount of gift cards) my brother and I went to GameStop for the “after Christmas sale”. I saw skyrim, and then put it right back. It was then that my brother said he really never had an interest in playing until he was over a friend’s house and started to waste some time fiddling around with games he never played. As soon as he could, he purchased it.
So, I picked it up again. It was $10. If I ended up not liking it, $10 wasn’t too bad of a loss.
When I got home, I looked at my loot. Skyrim, of course, collectors version of Mass Effect, and Kingdom Hearts. I already knew I enjoyed ME, so I just randomly picked Skyrim. After 2 days and very little sleep, I was completely addicted. Now, since it’s such an expansive world, I’ll pop it in and play for a couple of hours.
I have yet to play Kingdom Hearts.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I really like the music in Skyrim, especially as rendered by Malukah. I’ve never been much for open world RPGs, but then again I want to play Breath of the Wild, which could be considered that, not to mention I want to play FFXV.
LikeLike
I’d probably have to go with Monster Hunter. Told myself that I wasn’t going to ever get into it, and yet now I’ve played two of the games for at least 100 hours each. Crazy!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hm, an RPG about a hunter who hunts monsters, eh? How is the story on it?
LikeLike
Non-existent. It’s more of a backdrop to the game and usually involves missions given by the villages about monsters threatening their way of life. It’s an action RPG, but it’s also a big team-based game that’s fun to play in a group of experienced “hunters.” The main hook is that each monster is a drawn-out boss battle that feels great to take down with different weapons.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pingback: 30 Day Video Game Challenge: Day 30 | The Shameful Narcissist Speaks