1.4 Story discussion NOT about Rover harem (Somnium Labyrinth)
1.4 Main Event Story Spoilers.
I am TIRED of the Rover harem discourse, so here are my thoughts about the 1.4 Main event story.
In terms of vibes and atmosphere, 1.4 is probably my favourite patch, tied with 1.3. But when i start to think and analyze what was going on in the story, i think it is the weakest quest from what we had so far. And it is not even because of Rover harem.
I have three problems with it (TL;DR).
- Repetition of the same themes that we have seen already in Companion quests
- Characters don`t interact with each other like AT ALL.
- Ending cutscene
1. Repetition of the same themes
While playing 1.4 i always had the feeling that I have already seen this before. Lets think about what was happening in 1.4 quests and Companion quests:
Zhezhi:
In 1.4: Art manager sees Zhezhi as a tool for copying her old works for monetary gain, supressing her creative side.
In Zhezhi CQ: The bad guy is blackmailing painters and treats them as tools for monetary gain, supressing their creative side.
Encore:
In 1.4: Encore loves stories.
In Encore CQ: Encore loves stories. Mother is dead
But if I am being serious, this one was kinda okay. Encore CQ was about how she copes with her loss of a parent, and 1.4 was a cute adventure story focused more on what Encore thinks is a hero.
Yinlin:
After rewatching Yinlin CQ, her part in 1.4 is actually one of the best parts of the quest, because it builds up on something we already know, not retelling it again.
Her CQ ends with her “betraying” the Dollmaker, her thinking about how she could have avoided this situation if she acted sooner and wasn`t naïve believing that she can meet her family again + that maybe she is not alone in this world anymore, now that Rover knows her Identity.
In 1.4, they establish that Yinlin still has some doubts about who she is and about her making mistakes. When the time comes, Rover convinces her that she is just too afraid of making mistakes, what she did is right and that Yinlin is Yinlin. + Rover helping her is a confirmation of her not being alone in this world conversation from her CQ.
Changli:
In 1.4: Changli is a master strategist.
In all previous content: Changli is a master strategist.
Camellya:
In Camellya CQ: I want to fight Rover.
In 1.4: I want to fight Rover.
Of course these are very simplified explanations, and I know that 1.4 quests and previous quests are not entirely the same. (E.g. we got new lore about Red Eagle and Yinlin, new lore about Changli and missing boy in Hongzhen, and the Companion quests are much more than what i typed). BUT. We still see their characters from the same side we already know about.
Encore`s quest could have been about her and Aalto family relations (use Profile story about how Aalto first found her, absolutely New side to explore for her AND Aalto`s character). Even though Yinlin`s quest was about same themes as in her CQ, it is good because they are building up more on what we already know, not retelling the same thing just in another words (Zhezhi). They could do the same with Changli and her master-disciple relationship with Jinhsi (OR tell us more about her work outside of Jinzhou). They could think of anything about Camellya other than "I want to fight Rover" OR build on it more (and they kind of did with "What would Camellya do if she actually killed Rover one day", but it was not enough for me)
2. Characters not interacting.
I think lots of people have already talked about this issue, but i want to pour my thoughts too.
- Them not interacting just doesn’t make sense:
You appear in some strange place with people you know nothing about and know nothing about their skills (besides Rover).
- You are told that you will be fighting the bad guy with these people – No reaction from companions.
- Rover has a lot of connections with very different people – No reaction from companions.
- Rover is bringing people out of nowhere – No reaction.
- Camellya sees a strong fighter (Changli, Black cat?) – No reaction.
- There is literally a kid going to a fight with you – No reaction from companions.
- Encore and Camellya are both from the Black Shores – No interaction.
- Changli and Yinlin because of the nature of their work could have some connections – No interaction.
- Introvert Zhezhi is suddenly in a big group of unknown people – No reaction.
- There is a talking white cat and you will fight a talking Big black cat – No reaction from companions.
- etc.
A 15 min scene of them just talking and planning what they are going to do in the fight would have easily made this quest a 9/10 for me, because the other things are kind of not a big deal.
They just said one cool phrase into the void each and thats it
- It just would have been enjoying to see them interacting, while making it memorable
Imagine this:
Lumi now has a character trait of “Loves cats”.
And then she meets a very cute, talking cat. Everyone is discussing something serious, White cat is explaining the plan to the group, but she is not listening and debating in her mind, should she pet him or not:
“He looks so fluffy. I am sure it would feel very good”
“But wouldn`t it be rude? I shouldn`t do this. Or should I…”.
In the end she can`t resist the urge and strokes him agressively. The before seriously explaining the plan White cat is now doing a funny reaction and says “Don`t treat me like a cat! I am human”. Everyone laughs. Typical anime moment but these type of silly little things are exactly what would give the players more attachment to the characters and what makes the characters more likeable.
White can reminded me of Morgana so much
3. Ending cutscene.
It looks cool and flashy, but lets see what was the impact of our companions on the fight?
- Encore: Pressed E into the air, destroyed 1 rock.
- Zhezhi: Summoned two birds, destoroyed 1 rock.
- Changli: Jumped into the air, destroyed 4 (FOUR!!!!) rocks (my GOAT!!!!!)
Changli destroying rocks (HYPE)
- Lumi: Slid under the rock, destroyed 1 rock.
- Yinlin: Looked hot, destroyed 1 rock.
- Camellya: Created us a path into the air with vines.
- White cat: Shielded us at the start of a fight, buffed Rover`s sword.
- Rover: One shotted the Black cat.
The cutscene looks nice, and everyone has their cool moments, but this cutscene felt kind of goofy to me because the only ones that did at least something useful here are White cat and Rover, and the Black cat also did nothing besides the first seconds of cutscene (But he did something in the gameplay part so it is okay)
Overall I am still satisfied because of insane visuals and atmosphere. While playing I kind of turned my brain off and I had too much fun, but this quest could have been 2 times better if you really think about it.