#which to the skykids would explain why they are everywhere

[skyabove]

I mean re: “light tributes”, you always access the elders by lighting candles, and then once you are in the cutscene you always give them light (which is maybe a sort of. A mental representation of them accepting the light from the candles?). Plus, when you get cosmetics, I interpret it as paying tribute to these spirits with your candles, for which they give you a gift (rather than “buying”. It would be kind of weird if all the spirits you saved were like hey kid *opens jacket* wanna see my wares? And they were all just these weird ghost merchants who had no purpose in their afterlife other than selling you stuff cjdnjdndjdmd). On the thatgamecompany website (and in the game I believe) their cosmetic trees are referred to as “friendship trees”, and unlocking more of these nodes is “developing your friendship” (just like with other player characters). So in sky you forge and grow relationships by offering light tributes, for which you sometimes get gifts. Imo it is kind of weird how this sort of. Turns relationships into a transaction. But the light can always signify something other than currency (experiences, memories, conversations, quality time) where the more you share that light with others, the closer you grow to them, the more they share their light (or memories, or trinkets) with you.

Hi! This ended up being a really long response so I'm going to (hopefully) put it under a read more to avoid making everyone have to scroll :)

Yeah, I think it definitely makes sense in universe, and I really like that there is an actual name for them rather than just being a currency for players to use. On the topic of the light of the candles being the same as the light we give to the elders, when I was in Vault I noticed that the little lanterns that you light to charge the platform have the rotating white circle like the meditation spots, until all of them have been lit. This is the same as when the candle light transfers to the floor and becomes the meditation spot that allows us to enter the elders area that is separate from everything else. So I guess the rotating white line signifies transference, both in the sense of literally moving you (to home of the ark etc) or moving the light (from the lanterns to the diamond,or the candle to the other place)

And yeah I get what you mean about the spirits. In a world so connected to light, it probably represents a lot of things, and possibly further for skykids as they are essentially living light, and store the light they collect in their cores to, you know, keep them alive (ie forest rain killing you unless you keep picking up light/recharging) so voluntarily giving that up must be a big deal.

Or who knows, it could be the complete opposite! Light/flame was so common and used for everything that it might not be that valuable. Sure theres candles in important places like the temples and graves and the bell towers, but theres also candles just in the open fields or some unused pipes. It might be more like its valuable to the skykids (being their life energy or whatever) and therefore, it becomes valuable to the spirits when given as a gift in the same way that a kid giving someone some pretty rocks they found that they thing you will like.

I've been trying to work out how the spirits give you items with them being dead, and skykids being unable to take their capes/clothes off as it's part of their body. Getting into speculation here, but I wonder if it's more trading information? So rather than they give you a blue cape, the skykid learns how to make their cape look blue? Or how to reform their skin clothes to resemble the ones a rhythm spirit is wearing? Idk how this would translate for masks or items as they are actual objects that skykids can take on an off, and also wouldn't have the means of making them from scratch.

I do wonder if giving candles as a sign of friendship (side note: they were still 'tributes' before but we don't see any signs of them being given as gifts) started with the skykids as: light is definitely important to them, they have seen candles everywhere and therefore believe they must be important items, and their flame (life, soul, whatever it's supposed to be) takes the form of a candle. So for a skykid, giving a candles is the same as giving a part of yourself.

Sorry for the rambling, it probably didnt need this much of a response, just love the little details of the world they have created, and the possibilities of two completely different civilisations using the same space. Skykids are very interesting (to me at least) when I start to over think their behaviour and structure, and how they would adapt to a brand new world that they dont fully understand.

In summary, I agree with you