second time around ( spoilers )

[inkblob]

not quite yet ready to break up with Naija, I wanted to visit the beginning of the game to see if my worldly experience made any difference to the gameplay.  I found it quite liberating to whip about and dodge the the little pests that had me so freaked out and fun to refind such basics as soup and cake. when Naija gets her premonition of being in energy form and fighting a hopeless battle, I lasted quite a bit longer then I did the first time through ( which I thought went pretty well considering ) and now recognize the critters as being from the last couple of maps in the Body.  I got to the 2nd 'room' there and am curious if it actually is the last map? there seemed to be a heck of a lot more critters to slow you down tho!

I managed to boot through everything pretty quick, I had forgot exactly how you got energy form, so that was fun remembering how and the boss at the bottom was not as intimidating this time through either. I tried to do Nautilus Prime without using any ingredients which didn't totally work out and had to use some healing, spicy rolls and soup to finish him off, which testifies what a rawkin boss NP is, he's still a playa.  some basic things you can do at the beginning of the game I wasn't savy to until later was fun to do straight off, like fishing in energy form with a bind on a rock, and replenishing areas by re-entering them. also figured out how to spend less time fishing: get a kid to do the fishing under the guise of teaching them how the game works    this is all essentially the demo and it's neat to see how packed it is, and that's without learning Aquarian script, for the moment I'll leave that to the true zealots.

[Alphasoldier]

Ehh, about the beginning with the Energy form "preview".

OBVIOUSLY SPOILERS
There are 2 rooms, I believe, once you go up and past the spider you have a exit on the right.
The first 2 times that I tries it I didn't come further then the spider hanging there, after that I got through with ease.
It just sucks that you can't change your form and use the shield spell. xD

[RobertWalker]

*OHMYGOSHSPOILERTASTIC*

I've been wondering to myself what the point of that little sequence is. What is Mia trying to do by having Naija experience that little part? Any thoughts?

[Xiagan]

It is to hook the people who find the start boring because you can't shoot or kill enemies.

[Alphasoldier]

Yeah, the time that you get to the hard parts you have been playing over 5 hours, so this is a just a sneak preview without any concequences, though it WOULD be nice if you get something when you get through it.

[RobertWalker]

Gameplay-wise, yeah, I agree with you guys; it's a nice little tag on that says, "Don't worry; things do heat up in a bit." But story-wise, why? Mia clearly wanted Naija to experience that dark, scary, seemingly dangerous part, but I'm not sure what the purpose would be. If she could kick some serious butt in there, I could see it as enticing her with power, but since it's all you can do just to get through it alive, I don't see that as a reason.

[Alec]

Storywise, its like someone bringing you to the edge of a deep, dark pit. Its scary, but you still want to know what's at the bottom. Some people might even feel compelled to fall in.

I think that's how Naija would have felt. She knew there was some negative presence out there, and she wanted to go confront it and resolve it, even though she didn't know exactly what it was at that time. There was also the inevitable pull of chaos, entropy. (like the idea of gravity and the pit)

I think while it was frightening to Naija initially, it helped prepare her for what she felt she had to do to rescue Li at the end of the game: kill the Creator. This is ultimately what Mia wanted her to do.

There's also the element that while Naija is afraid of killing, she also loves doing it to a degree. (a degree partially determined by the player) Naija is both drawn to and tries to stay away from that kind of power.

Some of the dialog tracks how she's feeling about it, e.g. after killing the rotcores in Mithalas... she wonders if what she's doing is right.

By the time Li is captured, she's comfortable enough with killing to become filled with defiant rage, and feels its her right to take revenge. I think that's the only story point where she decides to pursue one of the bosses and destroy them, rather than being trapped by them.

There was originally going to be dialog from Naija's son in the optional ending to the game, talking more about Mia's effect on Naija. (the idea being that he was really the main character all along, and Naija's adventures were part of a larger story)


(this comes after the mia + naija confrontation/talk)

Secret Ending Part 2
Naija’s Son:

That’s how I found out where mother was. The crystal in our home had told me everything.
I know now that Mia captured her. I can’t bear to think what that witch wants to do to her…
Time is running out, and I have to leave.
I suspect I’ll have to fight… and kill. Father warned me about that. He also saw into mother’s mind – saw how she was changed. How she became a weapon…
I’m determined to save her, no matter the cost.
I’ll try to leave you many memories as I travel. Remember that you’ll always be in my heart, no matter what happens.
I miss you already, but I’ll be back before you know it.
...farewell…

Secret Ending Part 3
Naija’s Son:

The Verse flows throughout Aquaria. Through each ripple and wave. Through every living being.
The Verse binds us all as one.
The Verse binds us, narrator and explorer. My story will become your own, and yours will become mine. You will live my life through my eyes…
and you will learn the truth.

[Cruxx]

Wow, thats really cool, why did you decide to take it out of the game though?

[Alphasoldier]

Lack of good voice actors?

Anyway, that's kind of awesome the third secret ending being the start of the second part, which kind of gives away that you play as Naija's Son first. But I still wonder if they also have a daughter, the one you also see in the end.

[Xiagan]

I like it, thanks for sharing Alec!

[Alec]

It didn't end up feeling right when I put it in the game. We had Lucien Dodge do a read (the character is actually named "Lucien" btw) and then I did a read, and I didn't really like how either one sounded in the game for whatever reason. I also had trouble coming up with action to fill for time for the dialog. So eventually it seemed it would be easier and would work well enough to drop the dialog.

But who knows, I'd like to edit it back in if I could find out a good way to fill out the scene.

[Alphasoldier]

Also that you'd need the SAME actor for the sequel, and I don't know if they would want to wait for the next game. =p

Also, you voiced it? I'd love to hear that sometime. =p

[inkblob]

another sign of how good this game is, the stuff cut out is just as well written. I liked that initial teaser, nightmarishly opposed to the bucolic learning the ropes of swimming around.

[Alphasoldier]

Too bad we never got to go in that cave again though, I'd love to try to kill everything, but at least my normal form with it and energy form. And ofcourse food.

[Glamador]

One thing about the "secret" ending that I wish was that you could switch forms and costumes and still be able to use the cute bikini-thing costume she has.  Because I switched (I don't remember why) and I didn't have it again....I like that one much better than the bikini costume that you can find (it's sexier and cuter all at the same time) so I'd actually prefer if that were the bikini costume.