Characterization in Wandersong
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- Опубліковано 28 вер 2024
- (SPOILERS FOR WANDERSONG)
Wandersong quickly went from that game I didn't know I owned to one of my favorite games of all time, if only because of the character arcs that the story highlights, and how it offers new perspectives on optimism, pessimism, and our senses of self.
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You know it's sad that most other games antagonists are typical, never going outside the stereotype & are evil for the sake of being evil.
That’s usually true, but antagonists who are evil for the sake of being evil are sometimes a lotta fun to play with in terms of character, like some all-powerful being who just starts fuckin stuff up cause they’re bored, and is stopped by being challenged to a game of chess? That’s an interesting/fun character!
I've said many times since I played this game: Audrey is a terrible person, but a fascinating character. It's incredible how much you can really *hate* a character and still love to learn more about them and their thought process.
I think the Earthsong itself is another big example of how the bard and Miriam have developed and grown through their story; the bard doesn't like expressing how they feel (btw, the bard is canonically nonbinary, according to the developer) and thinks sharing their own fears and sadness doesn't help anyone, but that moment when it was so close to ending when they sang out into the silence, I interpreted as their first real cry for help; telling the world that they're scared and can't do it alone. And of course the very end of the song with Miriam, standing literally in a spotlight when she's been withdrawn to the shadows, after being afraid to express her soul that candidly for so long.
Bard is NB but uses any pronouns! (If you already knew this, just ignore me)
Wandersong is yet another gem on my list of indie games that are criminally obscure. More people deserve to play this masterpiece. It is absolutely, totally disgusting how a game with this much heart and soul poured into every square inch of it, into every aspect of its design, is so horrifically overlooked.
any recommendations?
I love Audrey so much. I also hate her so much. She's a horrible, mean, fascinating character that you never really get to know before she self-destructs entirely. She gives you little glimpses into her psyche but also shuts you out with lies and performativity. A truly juicy and compelling villain and very fun to get angry at.
I also feel the Bard so much-- I too am a boundlessly optimistic friendly person who gets real hurt and bounces back by shoving my bad feelings somewhere unreachable. The conversations where they discuss this with Miriam came out for my blood, not the least because I tend to attract friends who are grumpy and pessimistic like Miriam, and who also felt really called out lol. I love that the game doesn't shy away from examining both of these characterizations realistically.
IVE BEEN WAITING FOR A NEW VIDEO/STREAM FOR SO LONG
Also, Nice job as usual; this game looks quite interesting. It seems it really nailed the characterization well which is something I can't get enough of.
I personally wanted her to get redeemed and felt worried about her, and when she didn’t it felt unsatisfying but the death of the king of hearts and even during the final battle I didn’t think of her in a completely negative light I did always think of her as my adversary though
Oi, this really made me want to try out the game. It looks incredibly charming.
It's worth it
Got free for Xbox game pass
I played it on the switch and it’s amazing
I played it on gamepass then bought it on switch bc i lived it so much
I forgot how I found this game, non of the youtuber's I know plays the game, but the artstyle caught my eyes.
I've always wondered what became of Audrey after the end of the game.
Great video! But here's a small(very minor, don't worry) nitpick: The Bard is canonically non-binary, not male
Again, very minor.
WAIT WHAT HELL YEA GAY TROLLS AND A ENBY BARD HELL YEA
I admittedly wasn't paying too much attention to the video, so I'm not sure if they strait-up called the bard male, but if they just used he/him pronouns then it still fits because the bard canonically goes by any.
The bard goes by any pronouns, so using he/him is actually ok, altho I usually use they/them, any is fine :))
@@w_nder there's also another non binary character in the game named Ash! They're super neat
Just finished the game lol
Damn thats deep
My absolute favourite part of Audrey's characterization is what you see her do in the game's epilogue... which is to say, absolutely nothing. She's the ONLY person you meet in the entire game (barring the dead Overseers) who doesn't appear singing as the world is saved, or in the epilogue, and barely anyone acknowledges her. While Audrey's fate is deliberately left completely ambiguous, I think it's implied that Audrey made the conscious choice to die the Hero rather than live as a nobody again.
I've been waiting for someone to make some kind of video on this game. I played it back when it came out in 2018 and it literally replaced my favorite game of all time. I love this game so much, thank u for making this.
What was your favorite game before this? I just finished this game today actually
there's also a recurring idea of people working together being more effective than one important person. Hala, despite her best efforts, cannot end the war, it's ended by the combined voices of everyone in the two kingdoms. We're all as insignificant as bugs, but the bugs get you through the cave. You need to assemble a whole band to revitalize Delphi, you need to assemble a group of people to stop the happy factory. You need to spend time with everyone to make the Wandersong at the end of the game. Maybe we're all nobodies, but we're all significant.
Now I'm really tempted to try this. At first I wasn't intrigued with the whole earth songs thing, but then when it became all sad and vulnerable I thought "hey that's cool I've never seen that before"
Same thing with me. Was a bit bored with the game for the earthsong bit, but the rest of the game makes going through that part worth it for sure
100/10 would reccomend it honestly changed me a bit
@@BoldlyWired I was recommended the game because it's really cute and funny, and because of my love of music. But I never thought that it would turn into such a genuine, deep storytelling experience that actually made me cry in the end. The lessons you can learn from the whole game mean the world to me.
One thing I love about Wandersong is the entirely unique feeling it inspired in me. In Act 8 when Audrey opens up, I grew to care for her, and hoped she meant what she said. When she killed the king of hearts, I was first disappointed in her, and then once that passed, I started feeling an intense determination. This was the best shot at connecting with her I could imagine, she still didn’t take it, and now she’s off to end the world. I felt sad but capable, and like I had to stop her by any means necessary, even if it meant Audrey didn’t make it to the credits, because at this point it’s either her, or the rest of the entire world
>Looking through Switch library.
>”Hmm, maybe I should replay Wandersong...I’ll think about it.”
>This shows up in my sub feed.
>LET’S FUCKING GOOOOOOOO
Played this game a few months ago and its one of my favourite indie games and its cool seeing this game finally getting attention
Where are your views!? Where did they go?! You deserve them back, you'll get them soon don't worry.
Excellent video, an entertaining listen, and the game looks wonderful as well. Thank you for introducing this to me, I'll most certainly be picking it up whenever I next can
this video makes me sososo happy! I adore this game, it's characters, writing, art style, colors, and representation just made me so happy and I think you captured it's magic so well in this video! also you might be the first person I see use they/them pronouns for the bard and I really appreciate it! just aaa!!!! I hope you feel proud of this video :)
I remember seeing this game when it release in 2018. I was tempted to pick it up, but didn't when I learn it was about music. I'm not a musician nor into music all to much. This video however did change my mind and now going to look into it some more.
Also I loved the video!
Audrey is... such a good character, honestly. I end up on this same train of thought constantly, because like, okay. During the events of the story, she's not very likeable at all. She's a jerk, and only cares about her title as the hero, and actively chooses not to be better. But that's kind of the reason I like her so much. She _chooses_ not to change. Not to get better, as a person. She has the capacity for it--act 6 shows us that--but to her, the idea of simply being the hero is far more important.
I don't like Audrey because of how she acts in Wandersong. I like her because if there was more to it, if we saw her again, if she had to face the reality that she, The Hero, failed, then I think she would change. At least a little bit. I honestly think we see a little bit of that in act 6 itself too, when all hope seems lost and she doesn't have her sword. She's just. She has the capacity for change. She COULD change, if she wanted to. But as we see her in-game, she doesn't. And it makes her all the better as a character.
You know, if it weren't for this video, I never would have discovered Wandersong... I don't know how I would have gotten through Christmas 2019 without this game! Thank you for introducing me to the game that helped me through a very VERY tough time in my life!
I also named them Bird the Bard!
thank you so much for this video, i have recently finished it and have adored it so so much
"Being a nobody"
Perfect description of me,most the time
I love watching reviews of this game bc I love it so much
I agree with almost everything about the video (although a spoiler warning for those who care would be nice), but I have 2 points I would like to raise:
about the earthsong: the song from the end of the game is canonically not the earthsong. it was a new and unexpected song and iirc it intrigued Eya into keeping the universe largely the same during the new creation cycle. the real earthsong would've done nothing, just like Eyala keeps telling you.
about Audrey: cool motive, still murder.
I get that this was a while ago but the bard's name is technically Kiwi if ya look on the wiki
This is an amazing video, I'm glad more people are finding and talking about this wonderful game
Excellent video