Kuja [Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage]

"A sadistic, narcissistic silver-haired man of a delicate, epicene beauty."
— Description

Kuja is a playable character on Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage, a Final Fantasy fan-made ORPG which I create.

Character Information
Kuja is described as a Graceful Glider. With porcelain skin and long, silver hair, he has an elegant appearance. However, this beauty is strictly external -- Kuja is cruel, assertive, narcissistic, and extremely envious of his rival, Zidane.

Character Appearance
Kuja wears a deep purple jacket held closed by a silver band, with white sleeves and gold lining. His legs are covered in the back by a white skirt-like piece held in place by four straps connected to a codpiece. From the thighs down, Kuja wears purple leggings and pointed boots. His hair is more silver than lavender as it was in Final Fantasy IX, and retains the feather.

Abilities
- Ability 1 - Burst Energy [Q]:
Causes chains to burst from the ground, immobilizing, disarming and damaging a target enemy temporarily.
Additional Effect: Bind

- Ability 2 - Strike Energy [W]:
Slings energy orbs at the opponent. If close to the opponent, Kuja then rises into the air striking with the orbs multiple times. If further away, Kuja creates three explosions around the opponent.
Additional Effect: Stun

- Ability 3 - Flare Star [E]:
Throw 6 sphere of holy magic forward that gains energy and explodes. Damage enemies in target area of effect.
Additional Effect: None

- Ability 4 - Snatch [R]:
Creates a swarm of holy orbs that drain the life energies of nearby enemy units. They store the life energy they drain from their victims and use it to replenish Kuja's HP when they return.
Additional Effect: Absorb

- Ability 5 - Ring Holy [T]:
Creates holy ring that covering Kuja. Damaging nearby enemies around him.
Additional Effect: None

Kuja Preview Screenshot

Wallpaper Art
Kuja wallpaper art that I made for the project.

Kuja from Final Fantasy IX

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Tidus [Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage]

"A light-hearted, cheerful youth able to calm others even through the most trying situations."
— Description

Tidus is a playable character on Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage and Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage 2, a Final Fantasy fan-made ORPG and RPG which I create.

Character Information
Tidus's battle style is Spry Striker. He is a lighthearted, cheerful youth, he follows his father's footsteps as an ace Blitzball player for the Zanarkand Abes. In battle, he is an agile fighter who easily dodges opponents' attacks as he performs his own.

Character Appearance
Tidus wears a torn pair of black overalls with a yellow hooded shirt with the left sleeve torn off, instead covering his arm with a dark blue pauldron and a gauntlet. Around his neck is a pendant with the Zanarkand Abes insignia, which also appears on his overalls.

Abilities
- Ability 1 - Sphere Shot [Q]:
Throws a fast Blitzball straight towards the opponent, stunning them.
Additional Effect: Stun

- Ability 2 - Hop Step [W]:
Quickly slashes with his sword and then kicks the opponent away. Stun and knockback enemies around.
Additional Effect: Stun, Knockback

- Ability 3 - Wither Shot [E]:
Throws a Blitzball with slight homing. Causing damage to enemies in a line and has a chance to deal multiple damage.
Additional Effect: None

- Ability 4 - Energy Rain [R]:
Jumps on opponent and leap away, then send a barrage of energy orbs at them that create an explosion. Stun the target enemy.
Additional Effect: Stun

- Ability 5 - Mirror Dash [T]:
Increases Tidus' Attack Speed and Movement Speed.
Additional Effect: Speed Up

Tidus Preview Screenshot

Wallpaper Art
Tidus wallpaper art that I made for the project.

Tidus from Final Fantasy X

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Cecil Harvey [Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage]

"A kind-hearted knight wielding both the powers of light and darkness, he prizes the bonds with his allies that at times are the cause of his doubts."
— Description

Cecil Harvey is a playable character on Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage and Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage 2, a Final Fantasy fan-made ORPG and RPG which I create.

Character Information
Cecil's fighting style is Split Soul. He relies on experience as both a Dark Knight and a Paladin, and can use both ligh and darkness magic during battle. As a Paladin, aerial combat is his forte, combining speed with expert swordplay. He also has supportive abilities to boost his attack and defense, and also Heal to recover allies or his own HP.

Character Appearance
Cecil dons a cape and white-blue armor with gold linings. He wields lance-like swords in battle.

Abilities
- Ability 1 - Searchlight [Q]:
Throws a magic seal towards the opponent that fires projectiles of light.
Additional Effect: Stun

- Ability 2 - Sain't Fall [W]:
Dive towards opponent in a rising arc, then slam to the ground and stun them.
Additional Effect: Stun

- Ability 3 - Gravity Ball [E]:
Fire a slow-moving ball of dark energy. Causing damage to enemies in a line and has a chance to deal multiple damage.
Additional Effect: None

- Ability 4 - Paladin Arts [R]:
Cast a holy light that can heal a friendly living target or damage an undead-type enemy.
Additional Effect: HP Recover

- Ability 5 - Inner Strength [T]:
Cast a holy magic, increasing target damage and defense.
Additional Effect: Damage and Defense Up

Cecil Harvey Preview Screenshot

Wallpaper Art
Cecil wallpaper art that I made for the project.

Cecil from Final Fantasy VI

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New Kill Screen Article: A Sackboy Says No Words

Awesome art thanks to Josh Holinaty

The second article I have written for Kill Screen Magazine's website is up now. It looks at LittleBigPlanet and how communication because an intrinsic activity between characters, as opposed to a solely extrinsic activity between players. Please check it out and let me know what you think!

Just like last time, many thanks to Ryan Kuo for the awesome editing job. Without his suggestions, I wouldn't be half as happy with this post as I am.

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The Inevitable Exploitation of Chain World

Today (or possibly yesterday; I am a bit behind on Internet News), Jason Rohrer's entry into this year's GDC's Game Design Contest, Chain World, went up on eBay.

Some quick background information: The theme for this year's contest was 'religion'. That is, the contestants were not to make a game about religion, but a game that could be a religion. Returning champion Jenova Chen created the most disappointing concept, essentially sticking TED talk videos on YouTube with a little bit of gameification. John Romero had an interesting idea for a live-action game that he was able to perform in the room. It was a very western-centric idea of religion, but it worked and was fairly interesting. If I ever get the chance to write up about the actual session, I would like to cover Romero's concept in more detail.

The winning concept, and my personal favourite, however, was Jason Rohrer's. Rohrer's concept was based on his personal feelings of what religion is. In an over-simplified nutshell: religion is the myths we tell ourselves about those that came before us. He used examples such as things his family always say his grandfather used to say (though none of them are actually sure) and the stories and beliefs we form around artifacts such as Stonehenge. Essentially, we craft narratives and reasons around the things we don't know the actual history for.

Rohrer conceptualised this with a modification of Minecraft. One player has one life, and when they die they pass the game on to someone else on a USB stick. Once you play the game, you may never play it again. It was an interesting and inspired concept, and the most grounded in an actual interesting idea of religion. At the talk, Rohrer passed the USB stick onto the second player (himself being the first), and from there the game would continue as player passed it on to player.

Except now, player number two is exploiting it. He is selling the USB on eBay to the highest bidder. I could write a huge rant about how pathetic and despicable I think this is, but as my opinions seem to mirror Darius Kazemi's, I'll just link to his brief thoughts on it. You should read it before carrying on with this piece, just so you know where I stand on the matter.

So yes, the fact that this is happening made me angry. However, unlike several people I have been debating with on Twitter, I don't believe this necessarily implies the game was poorly designed to begin with. On the contrary, I think this exploitation crowns the game an absolute success. Chain World didn't fail. It is we, humans, that failed.

The reasons why others seem to think this exploitation of Chain World implies poor design (and I am not naming these 'others' on the high possibility that I am misquoting them and deforming their arguments, as Twitter is prone to do) can be boiled down to two things: firstly, the game fundamentally relied on players passing the game on, which was a tenuous hope at best; secondly, Rohrer never anticipated the game to be played this way and thus the game fails at achieving the thematic goals intended by its creator.

I agree with both of these statements completely, and I absolutely hate what the current player is doing with the game, yet I still do not believe Chain World failed. Why? Because Chain World is currently being used in the same way religion is used: exploited by the few to obtain money and fame from the many.

No religion starts as an institution. Religion start as faith and belief. It is only when they gather enough popularity that those in charge start exploiting and cashing in on the faith of the many. This isn't a particularly shocking thing to say. You only have to look at the wealth piled up in the Vatican while the preachers of Christianity insist we should give everything to the poor to see it is true. Does this mean religion is essentially 'bad'? No, of course not. Everyone is free to believe in whatever they desire, and nearly all religions are founded on noble, commendable goals. It's the institutionalisation of this faith and the exploitation of the faith of the many by a few that is bad--but also, I would argue, inevitable.

Those who founded Christianity did not do so to gather a huge pile of gold and tell others what to do. They founded it because they thought it was a pretty decent way to live your life and they thought everyone else would gain something from it, too. And then comes the inevitable stage where those in charge find themselves in a position of power over the faith of the many. Sure, it's greedy, but it's human. And I don't mean to pick on Christianity; the same happens in all the world's major religions at some point in history or another.

Now back to Chain World. It started with a belief of Rohrer of what religion 'is' and how that should be conveyed as a game. This belief tapped into similar beliefs of many others, either because he gave a really good presentation (which he did); or because most of those people love Minecraft, or Rohrer's previous work, or both.

And now, those shared beliefs of the many are being exploited by a few. Just like the most popular religions, Chain World is being institutionalised. Chain World is being treated just like a religion.

So was Chain World poorly designed because a) it is no longer conveying the themes Rohrer intended (or arguably it never conveyed those themes as the very first player after Rohrer exploited it), and b) because there was no fail-safe in the game design to prevent this from happening? No. Chain World was exquisitely designed, perhaps even better than Rohrer intended, because it has been able to evolve in the same way major religions tend to evolve: from personal beliefs into the exploitation of many, far beyond the control of the religion's founder.

So while I think what the current player is doing is pathetic, I also think it was inevitable, and perhaps even necessary if Chain World was to succeed at the contests stated thematic goal: make a game that could be a religion. As the bids for Chain World on eBay approach $500, and as Rohrer futilely urges on Twitter that the believers reject this reappropriation and exploitation of his creation*, those currently in power are taking suggestions for a tenth commandment for the game (essentially, putting their own rules over Rohrer's) as they institutionalise Chain World into the religion it had no chance of not becoming.

Chain World succeeded. Humans, on the other hand, have not.

(* Interestingly, I could be reappropriating Rohrer's words in a similar way myself by saying this is what he meant in this tweet, which he quite possibly didn't!)

(** Also, for the sake of full disclosure, and if it wasn't clear from the post, I am an agnostic/athiest (it depends what day you ask me). I apologise if my cynical views on religion offend you and your faith as I mean no disrespect to anyone's personal beliefs.)

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Firion [Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage]

"A virtuous youth who seeks to end conflict. He uses the nostalgic phrase "Wild Rose" as a source of motivation."
— Description

Firion is a playable character on Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage and Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage 2, a Final Fantasy fan-made ORPG and RPG which I create.

Character Information
Firion is a Weapons Specialist. He is a young man skillful in armed combat, including swords, lances, bows, knives, and staves. He has a passionate soul and an unshakable sense of justice. Firion is one of the most passionate of the heroes, fighting for a world "where wild roses can bloom freely", symbolizing a world free from war and tyranny.

Character Appearance
Firion wears black and blue armor with a blue cape. He has silver hair covered by a blue, orange and white bandana, and carries a wild rose as a reminder of his dream. Firion fights using six different weapons and is skilled in unarmed combat.

Abilities
- Ability 1 - Swordslash [Q]:
A quick, short-ranged sword slash that stun and knocks the opponent away.
Additional Effect: Stun, Knockback

- Ability 2 - Lance Combo [W]:
Swing lance around to draw opponent in, then knock them back and stun them.
Additional Effect: Stun, Knockback

- Ability 3 - Weapon Mastery [E]:
Gives Firion percentage bonus damage for his melee attack.
Additional Effect: Damage Up

- Ability 4 - Blizzard [R]:
Fires a fast ball of ice in straight line. Causing damage to enemies in a line and has a chance to deal multiple damage.
Additional Effect: None

- Ability 5 - Thunder [T]:
Conjure lightning bolts over opponent's head. Damage and stun a target enemy.
Additional Effect: Stun

Firion Preview Screenshot

Wallpaper Art
Firion wallpaper art that I made for the project.

Firion from Final Fantasy II

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Jecht [Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage]

"A former blitzball star, and Tidus's father. His surly and rough-spoken nature belie a much gentler heart."
— Description

Jecht is a playable character on Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage, a Final Fantasy fan-made ORPG which I create.

Character Information
In battle, Jecht is a Brutal Blitzer. Jecht was once a famous Blitzball player from Zanarkand. Burly and rough-spoken, Jecht's style of brawling is straight from the Blitzball arena.

Character Appearance
Jecht wears black shorts with an orange and red sash over his right leg and bears a large black tattoo of the Zanarkand Abes logo on his chest. He wears a red bandanna, a metal gauntlet on his left arm, and carries a large black sword. Elements of his Final Aeon form have been added, giving him what appear like clusters of spikes on his sash and emerging from his left shoulder pad.

Abilities
- Ability 1 - Jecht Blade [Q]:
Charge forward and attack with a barrage of sword attacks to knockback the opponent. Damage and stun the target enemy.
Additional Effect: Stun, Knockback

- Ability 2 - Jecht Rush [W]:
Charge down and forward to slam opponent with an exploding punch. Damage and cause enemies around into Diziness.
Additional Effect: Dizziness

- Ability 3 - Jecht Stream [E]:
Bombards opponent with a flurry of punches, kicks and sword attacks. Initial strike can be charged for better range, power, and to make it unblockable.
Additional Effect: None

- Ability 4 - Berserker Rage [R]:
Charge and increasing Jecht's power for a certain duration.
Additional Effect: Rampage

- Ability 5 - Jecht Block [T]:
Has a chance to create temporary shield that blocks almost any attack. Blocking attacks that would normally crush guards will cause him to stagger along with the enemy.
Additional Effect: Damage Block

Jecht Preview Screenshot

Wallpaper Art
Jecht wallpaper art that I made for the project.

Jecht from Final Fantasy X

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God-Damned Crazy: GDC Postmortem

After a ridiculous long long trip home (over 30 hours spent on planes, trains, and in airports), I am back in Brisbane after what was easily the most phenomenally insane and overwhelming and outright amazing week of my life attending the Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco. Lectures were attended, reports were written, hotel rooms were partied in, tacos were eaten. It was one hell of a week.

I won't go too far into my experience partly because I am so jetlagged and mostly because that is a piece I am meant to be writing for Pixel Hunt, so I will surely link that when it is done.

Speaking of links, I was planning on linking to all the reports I wrote for Industry Gamers throughout the week, but they are currently migrating to a new server so I can't get to my articles, I am afraid. Instead, here are my favourite three things to come out of last week:

• The Many Faces of Tim Schafer, Paste Magazine. Double Fine's Tim Schafer hosted this year's Game Developer Choice Awards and did a stellar job. He was entertaining, funny, and even managed to slam Penny Arcade over the whole Dickwolf thing. It was incredible. Unrelated to all of this, Brian Taylor took a lot of photos of Schafer's head during the ceremony and they turned out awesome.
• Kill Screen & Copenhagen Gaming Collective Party. The social highlight of the week for me was partying with the amazing writers from Kill Screen Magazine (and a whole bunch of other people!) Games were played, dances were danced, and a certain Sydney-based blogger got a bit drunk and hugged a lot of people. Brian Taylor, once again, grabbed a whole stack of amazing photos worth checking out.
• Holding the Bag: How I Gamed GDC's Top Social Game Developers. The Social Game Developer's Rant/Debate was a chaotic highlight of the conference. Strong opinions were thrown back and forward. An experiment/game was run where people had to collect coins to win. One man took things into his own hands and stole the entire bag. He has since written up his own account of the thievery and has drawn some interesting comparisons with social gaming and the gaming industry in general. It is well worth a read.

I am sure there is more incredbile stuff out there that I have not had time to read yet, so please link to whatever you wish in the comments.

I am utterly humbled to have met so many amazing developers and writers this past week and I can't wait to see you all again next year.

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Ultimecia [Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage]

"A powerful sorceress possessing a deep-seated rage and the ability to control space and time."
— Description

Ultimecia is a playable character on Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage, a Final Fantasy fan-made ORPG which I create.

Character Information
In battle, Ultimecia is a Sorcerous Fusileer. She is a sorceress possessing the power to control time, her magical strength is immense, and she attacks with magically animated swords and arrows, in addition to wielding traditional spells.

Character Appearance
Ultimecia wears a revealing red gown with a plunging neckline tapered just below the navel. A black fur ruffle extends along the neckline and eventually merges with her wings. Her feet and hands bear violet talons, and she has long silver hair, some of which is pulled up into two "Horns" on either side of her hair. The hair in the horns has red tips.

Abilities
- Ability 1 - Great Attractor [Q]:
Conjure a swarm of magical orbs that create a planet, then release to fire the orb forward. Damage and stun the target enemy.
Additional Effect: Stun

- Ability 2 - Knight's Arrow [W]:
Fire pairs of magic bolts in the air that travel up and rain down on the opponent. Damage enemies in the area of effect multiple times and stun them.
Additional Effect: Stun

- Ability 3 - Apocalypse [E]:
Send out a field of energy that straight forward. Causing damage to enemies in a line and has a chance to deal multiple damage.
Additional Effect: None

- Ability 4 - Time Crush [R]:
Ultimecia cast a time magic at opponent to reduce their Attack Speed and Movement Speed for certain duration. Slow effect is stackable with Sorceress Aura.
Additional Effect: Slow

- Ability 5 - Sorceress Aura [T]:
Sorcery sign grow under Ultimecia's feet, slow enemies around her by using time magic. Slow effect is stackable with Time Crush.
Additional Effect: Slow

Ultimecia Preview Screenshot

Wallpaper Art
Ultimecia wallpaper art that I made for the project.

Ulimecia from Final Fantasy VIII

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Sephiroth [Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage]

"A legendary member of SOLDIER once revered as a hero."
— Description

Sephiroth is a playable character on Dissidia Final Fantasy: Warriors Voyage, a Final Fantasy fan-made ORPG which I create.

Character Information
In battle, Sephiroth uses a "Focused Blade" style. He is a legendary SOLDIER operative who wields an impossibly long blade with great ease, but one day, he discovered the secrets of his past and went rogue. In battle, he combines long reach with incredibly swift swordplay that crushes opponents in the blink of an eye.

Character Appearance
Sephiroth wears a long black coat with silver pauldrons, black boots and black clothing. The top of his clothing is open to reveal his chest, with his leather SOLDIER suspenders crossed over it. Sephiroth's hair is long and silver with his bangs parted to either side of his face.

Abilities
- Ability 1 - Hell's Gate [Q]:
Sephiroth swing sword and rapidly descend to stab opponents and drive them down. If he hits the ground, a fissure erupts into the air around him. Damage and stun enemies around.
Additional Effect: Stun

- Ability 2 - Scintilla [W]:
An impenetrable shield surrounds Sephiroth, protecting him from all damage and magic for a set amount of time.
Additional Effect: Invulnerable

- Ability 3 - Fervent Blow [E]:
Swing sword to fire multiple energy waves to nearby enemies. If the waves strike the opponent, Sephiroth teleports closer to strike them again and knock them downward.
Additional Effect: None

- Ability 4 - Shadow Flare [R]:
Summon 8 orbs of energy around opponent that converge upon them. Damage and stun the target.
Additional Effect: Stun

- Ability 5 - Reaper [T]:
Make Sephiroth's single sword swing can hit multiple target.
Additional Effect: Splash Damage

Sephiroth Preview Screenshot

Wallpaper Art
Sephiroth wallpaper art that I made for the project.

Sephiroth from Final Fantasy VII

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