And so, we finally reach the conclusion... well, not yet, truly, but we're getting there. And now I can finally talk about Ryan Gray and how much he perfectly embodies everything the game has been saying about memories and identity. But, first of all, Omega, what did YOU think about Ryan Gray? His character, his motivation, his nature, the plot twist, everything. I really want to hear your answer, at least this time. Pretty please, Agent, talk to me! T_T/jk Anyway, onto my thoughts. The thing I love the most about Ryan Gray is that he ISN'T Ryan Fitzgerald. The two of them AREN'T the same, and it's all because Gray is the result of many extracted memories from all kinds of subjects (that part was admittedly VERY messed up). As the series says, one's identity is shaped by their memories, so it's only natural that Ryan Gray is referred to as a "conscious lifeform born out of memories" or even as a person. Because he is, he's not just a copy of someone else and, in trying to find his own reason to exist, to find HIMSELF, he does exactly like his father before him: he uses everyone. He fixates on someone who's dear to him (Sayoko) just to bring her back, consequences be damned. All the while, being alone and knowing his day was gonna come sooner rather than later. Also, now that you know the fully story behind him, the info inside the tank room makes more sense: the error in the chronological arrays probably means that the memories extracted from the test subjects (who could be of all ages) are mixed up together regardless of time period. Also, the fact that the information stored in liquid memory is fixed means that Ryan was always gonna fade because he's not propagating in the lake. If anything, he's being scrubbed away. Also, not so fun facts. One: Ryan Fitzgerald died at 12, exactly like D... it's almost like they're foils! Two: if we consider 1992 as the year of birth of Gray, he's only 15. He's younger than Ashley, and he's dying. Three: Ryan's theme has been called "Spring of memories" ever since the Wii game. So, the fact that you last meet him near the spring of Lake Juliet (which existed in the OG game too, btw), where the body of the boy from whom he sprung is buried makes it all the more poetic. Aside from that, I also really like Judd's portrayal here. It gives you just enough to figure out just how much he truly loved his child but never understood him and gave him time to heal. No, Judd decided to just brute-force the recovery process and ended up killing the one he loved so much. The grief destroyed to the point of probably killing other people (you can't tell me those test subjects were alive after being brought to that prototype ANOTHER) and mass brainwashing the locals. After all his attempts, after all the time spent swearing to a tank that he would bring "him" back, he finally meets Ryan. But that's no longer his son: that's a whole other person. The moment at 22:27 left me numb for a moment because the implication to me has always been that Judd died of heartbreak right there and then. All of his efforts and hopes had just been crushed: he probably thought he should've listened to Sayoko in his last moments. Long story short: I love this plotline in the game. It's SO much better than the original, and I'm just thriving. Say what you want about the plot, but the thought put behind Ryan's character is amazing, and it perfectly encapsulates all the themes of Another Code. Gosh, it's so late, but I really can't wait for the finale. I will see you again soon! Bye, Omega!
And so, we finally reach the conclusion... well, not yet, truly, but we're getting there. And now I can finally talk about Ryan Gray and how much he perfectly embodies everything the game has been saying about memories and identity.
But, first of all, Omega, what did YOU think about Ryan Gray? His character, his motivation, his nature, the plot twist, everything. I really want to hear your answer, at least this time. Pretty please, Agent, talk to me! T_T/jk
Anyway, onto my thoughts. The thing I love the most about Ryan Gray is that he ISN'T Ryan Fitzgerald. The two of them AREN'T the same, and it's all because Gray is the result of many extracted memories from all kinds of subjects (that part was admittedly VERY messed up). As the series says, one's identity is shaped by their memories, so it's only natural that Ryan Gray is referred to as a "conscious lifeform born out of memories" or even as a person. Because he is, he's not just a copy of someone else and, in trying to find his own reason to exist, to find HIMSELF, he does exactly like his father before him: he uses everyone. He fixates on someone who's dear to him (Sayoko) just to bring her back, consequences be damned. All the while, being alone and knowing his day was gonna come sooner rather than later.
Also, now that you know the fully story behind him, the info inside the tank room makes more sense: the error in the chronological arrays probably means that the memories extracted from the test subjects (who could be of all ages) are mixed up together regardless of time period. Also, the fact that the information stored in liquid memory is fixed means that Ryan was always gonna fade because he's not propagating in the lake. If anything, he's being scrubbed away.
Also, not so fun facts. One: Ryan Fitzgerald died at 12, exactly like D... it's almost like they're foils! Two: if we consider 1992 as the year of birth of Gray, he's only 15. He's younger than Ashley, and he's dying. Three: Ryan's theme has been called "Spring of memories" ever since the Wii game. So, the fact that you last meet him near the spring of Lake Juliet (which existed in the OG game too, btw), where the body of the boy from whom he sprung is buried makes it all the more poetic.
Aside from that, I also really like Judd's portrayal here. It gives you just enough to figure out just how much he truly loved his child but never understood him and gave him time to heal. No, Judd decided to just brute-force the recovery process and ended up killing the one he loved so much. The grief destroyed to the point of probably killing other people (you can't tell me those test subjects were alive after being brought to that prototype ANOTHER) and mass brainwashing the locals. After all his attempts, after all the time spent swearing to a tank that he would bring "him" back, he finally meets Ryan. But that's no longer his son: that's a whole other person. The moment at 22:27 left me numb for a moment because the implication to me has always been that Judd died of heartbreak right there and then. All of his efforts and hopes had just been crushed: he probably thought he should've listened to Sayoko in his last moments.
Long story short: I love this plotline in the game. It's SO much better than the original, and I'm just thriving. Say what you want about the plot, but the thought put behind Ryan's character is amazing, and it perfectly encapsulates all the themes of Another Code.
Gosh, it's so late, but I really can't wait for the finale. I will see you again soon! Bye, Omega!