#monument is what the textbox in game says though

[marstyler42]

A moment dedicated to those souls lost

[boysenberrybunny]

3 Seasons Review

(7/10) Features: -POC Protagonist -Pronoun Options (He/They/She) TWs: N/A Average route time: About 45 minutes to an hour

Link: https://hamiltonhour.itch.io/3-seasons Three Seasons by HamiltonHour is a fun and light-hearted, albeit short, experience! Here we follow our protagonist, whom you can name and select pronouns for, as they go to supposedly be interviewed at Three Seasons Inc., only to be whisked away into the elemental realm. Stuck there for "a week", you meet our current three choices, Yuto (the Winter Spirit), Sol (the Summer Spirit), and Rye (the Fall Spirit.) Let's start with Yuto!

Going into it, I expected Yuto to be cold and closed-off, as he claimed the others described him as 'cold-hearted.' I find this a bit odd, as he doesn't ever really act that way, always acting about as kind and open as the other two, although in a much more responsible manner. His route has some cute date moments, but, like the other two, it is tragically short, and I feel as though the development from strangers to lovers happens much too quickly. As well, he comes out of his shell extremely fast. Even so, his unexpected cheekiness gave this route a certain special something that I find mediocre romantic visual novels often lack.

Sol also managed to surprise me, given that when I had selected Yuto the first time Sol had made a passing flirtatious comment, giving me the impression that he would be the flirt of the game. Upon selecting his route, however, he had much more of a himbo energy, and was monumentally oblivious to my advances. It was cute, and despite how short and fast the route was, it made much more sense for his character to fall for someone so quickly, so I didn't mind it as much. His concern after the MC is nailed in the face with a volleyball was especially wholesome and sweet. As well, his design is one of my personal favorites.

The current final route, Rye, was fairly decent. His design was the warmest and coziest, and his office was definitely the comfiest looking. What made him stand out a bit amongst the other two options is that he had an actual plot going, separate from your own "trapped-in-the-elemental-realm" thing (this plot being his art show.) His love of art and reading was very cute, and his hopeless romantic energy was extremely pleasant, giving him an overall comforting and warm vibe, much like Fall itself. I also loved his teasing, though this is something he shares in common with the other two boys as well. His ending was the most satisfying, ending with a kiss in the rain, although I still must bring up just how quickly things escalated. Speaking of which...

The Problems with 3 Seasons. Every game, no matter how good, has problems. The first, and smallest, issue is with the textboxes. There's no easy way to tell who's talking, aside from the nametag, as all the boys talk relatively similarly. I feel as though we could benefit from some flourishes on the textbox, both so it looks less 'default' and so that we can better differentiate who's talking at any given time. Different fonts could also help add more visual interest to this section of the screen. The routes also could use a little more variety in the beginning, as they’re all a bit too same-y pre-dates. One issue with the game is that, as stated multiple times before, the routes are extremely short. The game is supposed to take place over "a week" (re: five days, re: two to three days), but due to time passing much faster in the elemental realm, it feels like we barely get any time to get to know the boys, and it certainly feels like much too little time for them to fall in love with us. As Yuto said, the time we spent together is a drop in the bucket of his life. I feel like the game would be better if the time was extended, say to a month, or if time didn't pass so quickly in the elemental realm, so that we would have more time to see these characters grow, and give more reason as to why an immortal being would fall in love with you so fast. Another issue is how useless the protagonist feels. There are two minigames wherein we do our job, and whilst functional, they (the minigames) don't add anything to the experience, both being extremely short and pointless. Were these to stay in the future product, I would recommend a wider variety of them, or perhaps a more difficult and frequent version (which would also be easier to accomplish with an extended time limit!) As it stands, the protagonist does two tasks and then nothing, and whilst I understand the justification being that they don't have magic, the other boys mention how, once teleported, the protagonist is wearing a "Spring staff" uniform. Surely, not every menial task the Spring Staff does requires magic as well? Introducing some side-characters in the form of seasonal staff (such as the Spring Staff) who you could help and work alongside would help breathe life into the game and add some variety aside from the gorgeous boys we have! As well, it would help feed into the sense of progression in the game, especially if they were to note subtle changes in the boys you pursue, something you yourself probably wouldn't notice since you didn't know them beforehand. Praises for the game are still abundant, despite those issues! The character designs and backgrounds are gorgeous, and I feel as though each office fits the boys perfectly! Despite the short length, the game still manages to be quite funny and even romantic at times, with each of the boys' dates being unique and enjoyable experiences. I hardly ever felt as though they said something out of character, which attests to how pleasant the writing can be. Additionally, I absolutely love how each boy gives you a customized piece of jewelry at the end of their route, making it all the more personal and special, as well as giving closure as to how you would find or see them again. The music, also, is nice, if not repetitive. Overall, I would recommend this game to someone with around two to three hours open and who enjoys isekai-type short stories. Please excuse any clunkiness, as this is the first review I’m posting, and I’m still working out the kinks in organization! Thank you for reading, and I hope to see you again soon! <3

[addicted-to-darkness]

Hi there! As someone who never played FF before 13, I've heard a lot about Kefka's actions as the only villain to actually destroy the world, but know nothing about him as like.....a person. All I got is "a clown with magic who likes to have fun"? Since he's gonna be in the new patch, I'd love to hear more from someone who likes him so much!

MY FRIEND YOU’VE COME TO THE RIGHT PLACE IF YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT MY DEAREST KEFKA. 

I will try not to rant too much, because you unleashed the Kraken by asking me about him - but we shall focus on the most important points.

Kefka, in short, is eccentric, loud, short-tempered, merciless, sadistic, a narcissist, and nihilist who seeks to mostly entertain himself. He views people as playthings at best and is frequently seen messing with them for his own entertainment. To name the two most prominent examples, he brainwashes the heroine of Final Fantasy VI to serve as weapon of destruction without questioning commands, and he manipulates one of his team mates in Dissidia, feeding him false memories after the loss of his own just because he can. 

Contrary to what people like to say, Kefka isn’t a clown, but was the first soldier in the Imperial army to have a procedure performed on him which would infuse him with the ability to use magic - and it’s implied that this is what made him this…. eccentric. 

“That guy Kefka? He was Cid’s first experimental Magitek knight. But the process wasn’t perfect yet. Something snapped in Kefka that day….” - A NPC in the Imperial capital Vector

He still holds one of the highest positions in the military at the start of the story in Final Fantasy VI, later in ditching it all and becoming the God of Magic by absorbing the energy of the Warring Triad (who you will fondly remember from Heavensward. SKIP SOAR OR DISBAND!!!11). The make-up is actually linked to his narcissism: The Final Fantasy VI guide lists Mirrors as his favorite things and one of his Dissidia encounter quotes when faced with himself is literally

“Now that’s what I call a true work of art!“

The most important trait in Kefka is his nihilism. He sees no value in morals or life, no use in hope and dreams, and no reason in existence. While not obvious in the beginning, towards the end he makes it painfully clear, musing the heroes sound like books from a self-help booklet and questioning 

“Why do people insist on creating things that will inevitably be destroyed? Why do people cling to life, knowing that they must someday die? …Knowing that none of it will have meant anything once they do?“

While most people write him off as completely mad and nutcase, I wouldn’t quite agree. There’s a book out there called Final Fantasy an Philosphy, which made a very good point about him, calling him and his goal to destroy everything arational, instead of irrational - because when you truly believe that life holds no meaning, there is no madness in destroying everything. 

“I will destroy everything… I will create a monument to non-existence!“

But going into detail on that would explode this answer into a size beyond compare. So on we go, to the thing he’s probably most known for: his sense of humor and lines in-game. The combination of glee and the merciless actions behind what he does really tell a lot about what kind of person he is. For some of my favorite examples:

“Fire! Fire! Heh-heh-heh!” and “Oh? Then…welcome to my barbecue! Hee-hee-hee!“ - After setting a castle on fire with people still in it because they wouldn’t cooperate.

“This little hamlet has too much boring and not enough burning… TORCH EVERYTHING!” - Leading a group of soldiers to an assault, after one of them voices his concern about innocent people there. 

“Hee-hee… Nothing beats the sweet music of hundreds of voices screaming in unison! Uwee-hee-hee!“ - After dumping poison into a river, wiping out all of Doma castle, including the Empire’s own people.

And the ultimate classic of all quotes which just needs to be here for reasons:

“I hate hate hate hate hate hate… hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate hate HATE YOU!“

These quotes probably speak for themselves. 

And that’s it for my attempt to not completely blow up the textbox and limit myself to what I think is most important. If there’s still something you wish to know feel free to ask~! Though I believe I completely chewed off most peoples’ ears already with this. I could write a whole thesis on him….