Ironically, on the heels of my article suggesting a parallel between Suda 51's auteur persona and Hitchcock's celebrity comes my review of No More Heroes 2, which is much less flattering.The game suffers from eschewing the strengths of the first game, its engagement with themes about violence and solipsism and how they relate to gameplay.
I really love Suda, and I want him to make more games. However, I think that his innovative approach is badly constrained by making a "better" sequel. So, I hope that there will be no more sequels in Suda's future, and instead, new wacky, weird, and thoughtful games. I know that the commercial market is not conducive to this model, but for the sake of the art, I think it would be better to let a mind like Suda's to be free to do what he does best rather than try to make a commercially viable product. I just want there to room for folks that have niche audiences.
My review can be found here:
No More Heroes 2
Hey, have you checked out the Squall is dead theory. It seems like something you'd be interested in. I wrote a blog post about it if you want to check it out.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I'd love to get your insight on grad school. I'm an English major with one year of undergrad left.
I'm unfamiliar with the Squall id dead theory. The plot of FF VIII is probably the one that I remember least. But I'm always interested in interesting analysis.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if I have any specific insight on grad school--only my own experience, so it depends on what kind of info you're looking for. You can track down my e-mail address at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point where I teach.