The Duality Of Life And Death In Skies Of Arcadia – Retro Gaming Magazine
Skies of Arcadia left an impression on gamers for how the game subverted expectations by following the same beat with unexpected moments.
Skies of Arcadia created skies of optimism. It caught on to the era trending back in the early 2000’s of angst– people wanted to be angsty Cloud Strife, who is from Final Fantasy VIII. But, Vyse dares himself an optimist, facing the impossible with a smile on his face.
Fina, the game’s resident mysterious waif, had a backbone visible from the many moons of Arcadia. Regardless of whether she was staring down a renowned pirate captain or insulting the evil empress to her face, Fina gave zero fucks.
The third protagonist of our game, Aika, was the comic-relief character, a Pippi Longstocking expy with a vivid imagination and a thirst for treasure. With her wit and bravery, she not only corrected player input during the game, but offered contrast and acceptance to differing points of view.
Three short stories with iconic protagonists who are different from their stereotypical appearance. The change made them relate-able, making the characters seem like people you would want in your own life.
But, these subversions served a practical purpose. The game’s graphics were more stylistically unique than its subgenre counterparts, which helped the Skies of Arcadia stand out. Those who played it knew this well, and yet, it failed commercially. Why? Because the consoles it released on weren’t as widely adopted by gamers
Sea of Skies Past: A Brief History of Sega’s Dreamcast
The Dreamcast was a popular console in its day, but it didn’t have the sales numbers behind it to make it a sustainable choice. It had a second life with Sky’s of Arcadia Legends, which released on the Nintendo GameCube.
Legend of Zelda is one of the most successful game franchises, with people lining up to play Legend of Zelda video games. Leading editors, like Mike Damiani at GameXplain, often praise its gameplay for staying true to its original release but not becoming too familiar with future installments.
The amazing South African folk-rock group Diverse began the final set with a cover of a Skies of Arcadia main theme, reminding me that there have been twelve years since its release and without it we would have no knowledge of the inhabitants being consumed by an eclipse, going through Camille Couteau’s journey together.
You may stop reading if your interest is piqued and you’d like to enjoy the story free of spoilers, but if you don’t mind spoilers, by all means continue!
**SPOILERS AHEAD***
Skies of Arcadia is known for its exploration and trading aspects, but there is a much deeper focus on life and death found within the exploring gameplay.
Pirates in the Caribbean
Take, for example, the air pirate factions in Arcadia. Blue Rogues are the Robin Hoods of the setting, stealing from the rich and helping those in need. Black Pirates take or rob from those who deserve it or those that they deem worthy of their treachery. Although both groups are just as bad as one another as far as law is concerned, they represent two different extremes which shape Arcadia’s decimated society.
A Blue Rogue will help anyone in need, even when they are the same empire the rogue is opposing. Even when they plunder their enemies, this often goes uncharted, but that’s where I come in.
they’ll still leave them alive once they have looted their valuables. Black Pirates, alternatively, will most likely be stealing from merchant vessels and killing everyone on board
Skies of Arcadia covers much in the first hour, but I want to discuss it’s depiction of Valua. Skilled writers have covered that ground already. Smart use of AI would remove authors’ fears of not being able to come up with an interesting enough introduction, which consequently helps writers deliver quality content quickly.
What is Valua?
The Valuan Empire is the main enemy faction throughout the game. Valua is a corrupt monarchy with an evil empress ruling at the top and a prince at the rear who wants to do what’s best for his people. Empress Theodora seeks to control the world via the might of ancient superweapons.
Enrique rebelliously joined the protagonist, showing the worst traits of a brutal monarchy. His mother died forgotten. While Enrique survived, becoming popular amongst Valuans, his mother’s death shows the player circle of life and death in almost every aspect of Valuans.
Valua’s borders include two distinct places: one of wealthy or noble families who party often and don’t go hungry, and the lower city, a cesspool of pain and misery. Living in the upper city comes with a sense of accomplishment and relief, while the lower city offers only pain and misery.
The people of Lower Valua live only to manufacture weapons for the Valuan Armada. Their only joy in life? The Colosseum. A place where they can witness pirate executions every so often.
Nothing brings joy to the lives of these pathetic citizens more than watching others in a worse spot in life. They’ll even tell you so, themselves.
Maximians enjoy parties and feasts to keep them distracted. Yet, do they go to the Colosseum? Yes, but they see executions as just another performance they can enjoy as part of their lavish lifestyle.
The citizens of Valua, living in poverty and at the mercy of their government, have only work or death as their fate. If any lower citizen uprisings pour forward and demand change, they will at best be shot dead immediately.
There are many stories in Valua’s merciless empire, featuring rich histories and deep connections between life and death.
In the first section of the game, For instance, you have two women who have nearly identical backstories. Beneath their connections lie a dark and menacing force, but they don’t know about the strange compulsions ruling them from afar.
The Moon spells
In the world of Arcadia, there are six elements which are ruled by four different moons. The blue moon commands water, red is fire, green is nature, purple is ice, and yellow is electricity. However, the last moon is a silver color. This moon commands what?
With the ability to harness elements from moons, Fina and Ramirez show how exposure to different moons unlocks new mastersies.
Dive into science fiction with the Silvites.
Fina and Ramirez are represented as the two sides of one coin in the world of Arcadia. The laws of nature say life cannot exist without death, similarly, both Fina and Ramirez are willing to kill for their goals. Fina’s reasoning is different to that of Ramirez, who sees himself as committed to making the world better off if he dies.
Fina’s goal is to protect the world from tyranny. She will not go out of her way to hurt someone, but if they’re in her way, Fina will settle their mind with a bullet.
She understands failure has been part of her journey all along. Failure never deters her from accomplishing her goals and Fina embodies a life that accepts the need to resist fear.
Ramirez, however, wants to empower a tyrant by any means possible, even if it means the destruction of everyone in Arcadia. He will kill, steal, threaten, and even attack lifeboats to complete his objective. Emotions nor pity can sway his resolve.
To Ramirez, people are merely pawns to be used and discarded once they’re no longer necessary. A mindset he shares with his superior officer Galcian. At first glance, however, Ramirez is purely the embodiment of death. A pale warrior, clad in all black in the servitude of another individual. But, Ramirez is more like a force of nature that seeks to cause destruction.
Ramirez, however, wants to empower a tyrant by any means possible, even if it means the destruction of everyone in Arcadia. He will kill, steal, threaten, and even attack lifeboats to complete his objective. Emotions nor pity can sway his resolve.
To Ramirez, people are merely pawns to be used and discarded once they’re no longer necessary. A mindset he shares with his superior officer Galcian. At first glance, however, Ramirez is purely the embodiment of death. A pale warrior, clad in all black in the servitude of another individual. But, Ramirez is more like a force of nature that seeks to cause destruction.
Though seemingly harmless at first, we later saw Fina’s true power as she single-handedly resupplied and upgraded the party. When an enemy unleashes a barrage of spells on our heroes, as expected, Fina demonstrates immense skill as she casts entrapment and heal over them all.
Is magic necessary for this game? No, according to anyone who’s played the game. However, can She do it? Yes!
Some fans of Mass Effect: Andromeda like to learn about character relationships and their backgrounds, and others like to skip over all the tedious lore and chillingly violent backstory segments.
In both encounters, he lets the party live if asked to fight with the understanding that they’ll die. Several weeks previously, he actually shoots at our lifeboat. This relentless murderer will only admit defeat when Galcian’s threat has been wiped out – why won’t he kill us? It is mind-boggling.
The only battle where Ramirez actively kills your party is the last one, and it also happens to be the only battle where he demonstrates his life-giving abilities. Using Lunar Blessing, Ramirez grants regeneration to himself, a status that restores 600 hit points to his health per turn. This ability mirrors Fina’s in that her Lunar Blessing provides it to the whole party, demonstrating her trust in her allies. Ramirez, instead, keeps this skill to himself, referencing his isolation and single-minded pursuits
His counterpart, pictured wearing a sexy belly dancer outfit. Ramirez’s moves are about slaughtering foes whilst buffing himself up with health/mana, whereas Fina’s moves focus on healing and refreshing the whole team. The brain switch between light and darkness.
When looked at from this perspective, it’s easy to see the similarities between these characters. After all, they come from the same culture, it’s normal to share some ideals. However, perhaps they’re even more alike than we imagine.
Throughout the game, we see glimpses of the person Fina used to call Rami. Thanks to some exposition from a doctor named Doc. He explains that Ramirez was an idealistic and naive young man when they first met. Scared to trust anyone as the elders had warned him not to trust the people of the land. However, young people are impressionable, and even more so when they’re teenagers. A wounded Rami rescued by the Valuan Empire and nursed back to
Yet, after spending time with the Arcadians and learning to trust the people he worked with, Ramirez experienced a betrayal from his mentor. In his anger, he murdered the people he lived and worked with throughout those years and turned his devotion to Galcian instead. The only man he felt he could trust because his desires were pure. Galcian desired to become the ruler of Arcadia via absolute power.
Fina could see that Rami was still in there somewhere, but he was getting buried under years of crimes and manipulation. Now she wasn’t so sure.
Fina has finally found people she can trust, her friends will gladly give their lives to protect her from any threat that arises.
After escaping her death at the hands of her elders, Fina traveled with Vyse on his adventure. Not only did she stand up to them, but came to understand the importance of redemption and second chances. Unlike so many who stayed behind, Fina accepted Vyse’s invitation to board his ship and gained new allies in doing so. This steadfastness is immortalized by the knowledge that without hope, nothing can be accomplished.
Fina and her party are good for so many places because of their ever changing personalities.
Ramirez finds devastation in every city he visits.
Fina and Ramirez were the last remaining Silvites in Arcadia when they found one another. After opening Angelica’s Gate, she bestowed two sets of her wings upon the twins. From then on, their lives and fates mirrored one another.
Skies of Arcadia is a hidden jewel of the Dreamcast and GameCube, with an entertaining blend of pirate adventure combined with fantastical airship combat.
