Changing the game character: examples in the games STAR WARS: Jedi: Survivor and the Final Fantasy series

In single-player video games, the player character is key and does not change throughout the game. However, sometimes game designers offer players the experience of changing the game character during small tasks or even part of the game. There is such an experience in NieR: Automata, where you can play not only for several androids, but also for numerous cars after hacking them. There is such an experience in Detroit Become Human, where the narrative is told from the perspective of three androids at once. Also in Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and many others.

But in this article I want to talk about examples from the Final Fantasy series of games and in the game STAR WARS: Jedi: Survivor, which inspired me to study this topic.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor

In the penultimate chapter of Jedi: Survivor (Chapter 5), an unexpected plot twist occurs in the archive at the Cere base on the planet Jedha. And the main character Cal Kestis. Cal Kestis is forced to pursue Bode. Bode Akuna) on a speeder bike. During a confrontation with him, despite the player’s best efforts, he is defeated and falls off a ledge. A few seconds after respawning, we see a cutscene of the Imperial troops attacking the base, and suddenly the hero’s mentor, Jedi Cere, becomes the playable character. Cere Junda).

She still has her sister of the night, Merrin, as her partner. Night Sister), who always accompanied Cal on the planet. The player’s tasks are to resist the attacks of the Empire and move towards the hangar. Cere has a lightsaber, a protective barrier and telekinesis in her arsenal. Once at the base, the heroine meets survivors and before departure goes to the archive to pick up important access codes. And there we will have a battle with the iconic Darth Vader. Upon completion, Cal Kestis appears and returns to his status.

It was completely impossible to predict such a change in the game character at such a moment. And there were no prerequisites for this. Moreover, why is she? But it happened, and it was interesting, although it was not always clear what needed to be done, what other abilities the heroine has, besides those that were in the hint, and how long she could be controlled. But the biggest question was what happened to Cal! Is this the end?

The duration of the game as https://casinojoyuk.org Cere until the meeting with the Sith Lord is no more than 25 minutes, and the battle itself takes different times depending on the difficulty level of the game and the player’s preparation.

Japanese game designers of the Final Fantasy series offer a different experience compared to Jedi: Survivor. In FFVII Remake and FFXV, playable characters temporarily become partners or team members who, in one form or another, follow the main character almost from the very beginning of the game. In Jedi: Survivor, the choice of Cere is probably explained only by the history of the series itself.

Final Fantasy VII Remake

In Final Fantasy VII Remake, there are several episodes where the playable character Cloud Strife. Cloud Strife) gives way to others.

Playing as Iris

In Chapter 12, "Struggle for Survival". Fight for Survival) together with members of Avalanche, Cloud tries to prevent representatives of the Shinra Corporation from destroying the support column of Sector 7. While the heroine Iris Gainsborough. Aerith Gainsborough goes in search of Barrett’s daughter Marlene. She becomes a playable character in this story quest called "Saving Marlene". Saving Marlene).

The quest is short in time, takes no more than 15 minutes, and does not include a combat component. Playing as Iris involves running through the slums, cutscenes with local residents, and reuniting with the girl in the Seventh Heaven bar. Further in the story, the action returns to the support column, where Cloud again becomes the playable character.

Playing as Barrett

In the next chapter 13 "The Shattered World". A Broken World) the surviving heroes find Marlene safe in Iris’s house, while the heroine herself is captured by Shinra. Cloud, Tifa and Barret decide to save her and head to the corporation’s headquarters. In the territory of the destroyed slums, they find the entrance to the Shinra underground testing site.

While moving inside, one of the platforms collapses, and Barrett falls down with it. The hero regains consciousness and after the cutscene becomes a playable character. The instructions that appear on the screen suggest destroying the debris blocking the path using the light machine gun that he has in his arsenal. It can also be used to protect against numerous hostile inhabitants of the landfill.

Barrett’s task is to find a way out and reunite with his comrades. First we find Tifa. She joins the team and can be switched to in battle. After the meeting, the command menu for using abilities, spells and items that was previously blocked also becomes active. At the end of the search, the heroes find Wedgie and face the boss – the result of a failed experiment. Failed Experiment). The battle ends in the form of a cutscene, where Cloud appears on the site and delivers a stunning blow, and Barret finishes off the enemy.

After the reunion, you will have to play as Barrett for some time to deliver the wounded Wedgie to safety. But already in the next chapter, “In Search of Hope” (eng. In Search Of Hope) Cloud will again be a playable character. The duration of the game for Barrett will be on average 30-40 minutes.

Playing as Tifa

In Chapter 16, "Belly of the Beast". The Belly Of The Beast) Cloud, Tifa and Barret infiltrate the Shinra building. On one of the floors, in order to move further, they need to obtain a key, which is stored in an isolated information kiosk. Tifa is called upon to complete the task and becomes a playable character in this story quest "Get the Key". Acquiring the Keycard).

Unlike Barret, in the game Tifa, like Iris, does not need to fight enemies. The heroine needs to get from point A to point B and to do this, jump on lighting structures, climb stairs and cover distances along beams located on the ceiling. The quest takes an average of 8-10 minutes to complete, and after gaining access you need to play as Cloud again.