But we weren't talking about butt shots - or at least it wasn't obvious to me. If butt shots are the criteria for "otaku bait" then that's like a REALLY wide brush we are painting with. You're going to hit a wide range of personalities and art styles to say nothing of a lot of clearly non-Japanese media too. Though in general I'm becoming increasingly annoyed at how words like "otaku-bait" and "pandering" obfuscate conversations because all it really means is "thing I don't like". Like saying she was a missed opportunity to play into some grim horror tropes or you don't need her butt in your face are both valid points/critiques. However there was no way I could know you meant butt shots by "otaku bait" unless I'm you or can read your mind through the internet
I'm speaking of the context of when people complain "XYZ is pandering!". Technically, pretty much everything that is not some crucial gameplay element in a game is "pandering" as far as I see it. Its just people only complain when a specific element made to appeal to a specific group of people runs contrary to their personal tastes. Which in itself isn't a problem. However, when people don't elaborate and leave the level of discourse at that level (or "bait" or "anime" or whatever), it become really hard to understand what they actually mean and what they are actually critiquing since such terms are SO broad. Occasionally its obvious but many many times (i.e. right now) its not. All I'm asking for is clarity in discussion
The problem (for me) is more related to the "already chewed up" result that characters heavily influenced by tropes are falling in. It's not about the butt or the sexy poses (that's fan service, I-no is doing the same, why not?), it's about small details that will instantly gives you hints at how characters will be acting in the game. Part of what made GG a very interesting game casting wise is how many tropes were difformed to create something fresh that you can feel attracted to but can't "get it" instantly.
This way of doing characters is "dangerous" as you have to trust your audience to understand that there's more than just bizarre or hard to grasp in the characters you put in the game. Xrd decided to remove this way of doing things and pander to the most understandable and classical things you can find in tv/anime tropes. For example, Sol went from a lonely harsh guy that barely talked (most of his lines were 'fuck off'), had an unknown past to a "did you see how an awesome bounty hunter I am? Where's my prize Ky? Oh but I'm also the benevolent father figure with a complicated past". This way Sol became the kind of watered "anti-hero but hero after all" character the series didn't have as it was not needed as the game operated differently.
Now if we go back to Jack'O you can understand where I'm going. Even if Ishiwatari overdid it again with useless details, I kinda like the character design and the way she moves. Her animations are actually giving a lot of good info on her personnality and how it contrasts with the mask and boulder. The clown archetype felt balanced and original this way but in the end they probably thought it was too complicated to chew/sell and went for the cute face, childish woman personnality instead of letting us wondering who and how she was under the mask.
That's basically why I'm not that fan of Xrd new characters and how they turned some old characters. But I'm still waiting for Revelator as the game seems to improve a lot on the gameplay and systems... And I want to try her anyway.
GG to me was supposed to appeal to 90s anime fans, BB more to modern anime fans.
It does kinda make sense that the new GG chars appeal to modern anime fans, even if it kinda turns off the 90s fans.
I'll admit I'm ok with anime tropes, but not modern anime tropes. I like my anime more old school.
Same here. Anime/Manga tropes are ok but you have to build something upon it, not depend on it to build a character. It should be "I created this character that happens to match with this trope" insted of "I need this trope in a character, what can I add to it to make it a bit original?".