During some time I've been thinking on how to make a good post both for anime fans and for gamers worldwide, it was really difficult because I wanted to search for something that had both great gameplay and a great anime that added value to those who had played the game... after much consideration I decided that the best game/anime I could review is the FATE/EXTRA trilogy.
Source. Fate/Extra Main characters.
Introducing the Fate Franchise
The Fate franchise is owned by Type Moon. Some entries in the franchise share the same world or some characters and are related in one way or another while others are really different and only share some core concepts.
All fate entries are about the Holy Grail, a magic artifact capable of granting a wish to its holder and how mages fight for control of the grail using heroes of the past as servants. The mages make a ritual using fragments from an object closely related to the hero they’re trying to summon. The heroes fall into one of seven categories:
- Saber: Proficient in close combat using swords and resistant to magic, considered the most powerful class.
- Berserker: Devastating attack power and resilience, loses part of their memories or their being as part of the pact for becoming a berserker.
- Archer: Proficient in extremely large distance combat using bows and other projectile weapons.
- Caster: Skilled in magic, summons and rituals, weak in physical combat.
- Rider: Specialized in combat using beast, animals or other means of transportation.
- Assassin: High mobility and stealth capabilities, they’re often skilled in close combat as well.
- Lancer: Skilled in close combat using lances. Resilient and devastating.
Source. Fate class cards.
The representation of the heroes is pretty unique and while they represent most historical or mythical events correctly, the character itself may or may not be like the one depicted in legend, like the case of King Arthur which is depicted as a busty blonde woman.
Source. Fate's representation of King Arthur.
There are many entries in the franchise and all are worthy of a five star review, fights, friendships, betrayals, love, hate, magic, legends and more make the backbone of this franchise and many entries in the franchise have both games and anime.
Taking part in the war in Fate/Extra
Disclaimer: I’m writing this from my memories of almost 10 years ago and I had poor japanese skills back then so I might make a few mistakes here and there, I ask for forgiveness and comprehension beforehand.
I decided to review Fate/Extra because it’s a bit special for me and it’s the most awesome of the franchise in my humble opinion. Fate/Extra was released for the PSP in july 2010 as an RPG only in japanese and fortunately I had nothing else to play at the time and was learning japanese so I decided to surpass my limits and play it anyways.
Fate/Extra starts as you decide whether to use a female avatar or male avatar and then you’re introduced to the moon cell, a virtual space inside a giant supercomputer where magicians (aka programmers) call upon a hero from legend to serve them and fight for the privilege of obtaining the Holy Grail and fulfill a dream of theirs.
You don’t start as one of these great magicians however, you’re more of an NPC with amnesia that due to certain events is forced to enter a zone where you’re able to make a pact with one hero and become their master, effectively granting you the power to participate in the war for the Holy Grail.
Source. The pact is made.
You’re given a choice of three heroes:
- Saber class: Emperor Nero Claudius (the emperor of Rome)
- Caster class: Tamamo no Mae (japanese mythology)
- Archer class: Emiya Shirou (Fate/Stay night)
This choice is very important because it defines both the difficulty and the scenes and endings depending on the combinations of your gender and the servant’s gender, giving 6 possible routes, though there isn’t much difference if you’re a man or a woman, just some more intimate conversations at some points.
Enemies, friends, rivals and the bloody path to the grail
After making the master/servant pact you will start facing enemies and fighting them in a turn-based fashion. You can pick an attack choice in a paper-rock-scissors manner, so it’s important to understand the personality and patterns of your enemies. For example, the tutorial enemy only uses the same type of attack, so after being hit once you’ll know what he’s going to do the rest of the turns. Bosses have certain patterns too but it’s really difficult to detect them, like the berserker class uses tons of heavy attacks and at least one special every 6 turns.
Source. Combat interface: your choices at the top, the enemy's choices at the bottom.
After finishing the tutorial you will start exploring the moon cell in all its splendor, going through virtual hallways training and developing your skills as a mage and master as well as fostering relationships with your servant. These interactions are a pretty important part of the game as they bring a great deal of backstory and give you choices as to how to proceed in your relationship.
Eventually you will start climbing your way up to the top of the moon cell and will meet other mages who will face you in combat and reveal YOUR backstory and how you came to be in the moon cell in the first place.
Most bosses’ stages and fights also have special conditions and rules; and the bosses themselves need preparation in order to beat them, especially if you’re playing with Caster. One of them is actually so difficult they made a reference to it in Fate/Extella; when facing Berserker (Lu Bu) there is a moment where he charges an attack and then uses his ultimate technique, if you’re using Caster then you’ll need to have and use her defensive ability at max health and hope for the best… he’ll often one-shot you if you make a mistake.
Depending on your choices and the interactions you made with your characters then you’ll have the possibility of unlocking their true power near the top where you get betrayed, find friends in rivals and ultimately obtain the holy grail; many things happen and your backstory is explained as well as the truth behind the moon cell and the fact that humanity has perished (or is in the brink of extinction, I don’t clearly remember)…
And that’s it for spoilers about the story and the review of the original Fate Extra, moving on…
Fate/Extra CCC
Unless my memory betrays me CCC isn’t exactly the successor to Fate/Extra, it’s more of a parallel world or alternative route. In fact it happens on the opposite side of the moon cell and while they're related they aren't directly connected.
There are too many changes with the original so it’s best to see it as a standalone game. This time however you have 4 heroes to choose from; the three from the original plus:
- Archer class: Gilgamesh, the king of kings (Ancient Mesopotamian myth)
Source. The 4 servants of CCC.
Combat remains the same, but it’s more balanced and you’ve got more skills and abilities to choose from. Enemies are similar but some changed their AI patterns and there are different bosses all around.
The biggest changes however, are in the story. There are 9 routes, one for each hero * gender of the main character and one special CCC route.
I honestly don’t remember as much of CCC as I did of the original, despite playing it three times; but in CCC when you finished the stages and bosses you would go inside them, to the very core of their personality to try and fix (or not) their problems.
It was complicated because some people had very conflictive personalities, specially the AIs born from the moon cell, where one was a masochist with complex due to her huge breasts.
Source. Secret garden.
The other greatest change is in your base of operations: this time you remained most of the time in your school and had your room, could talk to other NPCs and some of the people you meet during your travels during the dungeons. You would cooperate with several other mages as well while trying to advance further and had many more choices than in the first.
Many choices were more mature and in some cases they even were sexual-oriented, in fact the game got a rating of CERO (17+), though there is no adult scenes in the game itself, just some underwear images at most. These choices again led you to the ending, but this time it was pretty different overall due to MANY reasons, especially due to who betrayed you and who the final enemy in the game was.
After beating the game you’ll get access to new game+ and then it’s highly recommended to play it again to get access to the CCC route. Technically the CCC route is available from the start but its better enjoyed by those who beat the game first due to the story content. The route itself is easy to get in new game + due to some options having butterflies surrounding them, marking them as the choices for the CCC route.
The CCC route is arguably the TRUE ending route where your full backstory is explained, including the reasons why you were so lacking in skill and power as a mage; where good and evil mix in a series of fights to rescue your loved one and the Holy Grail literally makes the impossible possible.
Due to HEAVY spoilers I will only disclose that at the end of the CCC route after the credits roll you’ll wake up in a kind of… stasis shell back in the real world and you don’t wake alone, someone is there to wake you up and back into the world you fought for…
An English patch got released for these games, I would highly suggest playing them if you find them and if not… well, there is always the anime:
Fate/Extra: Last Encore
In case it wasn’t obvious above, I loved both games to the point I still remember them after all these years, so when I saw an anime was being released I was worried they wouldn’t live up to my expectations and would betray my feelings. I lowered my expectations radically but once I saw the first episode I understood something… the ones behind this anime were the same people that made some of my other favorite anime, even the opening song shows how Fate/Extra isn’t just a standard shonen or battle anime but something more deep, more focused on sacrifices, on complex human feelings and relationships.
Fate/Extra last encore is different from both games, though it bears the most resemblance to the original Fate/Extra. It starts in a similar fashion to the original game meaning the protagonist is pretty much an NPC in the school that gets dragged into the war for the Holy Grail…
In the anime the servant who accompanies the protagonist is Nero (the saber class) and it’s represented as in the game: a strong, prideful and beautiful girl who is like a flame, shining brightly before disappearing.
However it’s a helluva lot different from both games because in their journey through the moon cell they face different masters and the depth of the enemy masters’ backstory is much higher. Amongst the new changes there is the addition of new masters and a special support character in the cast.
The anime takes the best of both games and presents a trip to the top of the moon cell, facing enemies and friends in a trip to the top. In order to better understand why this anime is so spectacular I will need to add some minor spoilers, so skip over the next paragraph if you wish to avoid them.
//////////////////////MINOR SPOILER////////////////////////
The protagonist doesn’t have a clear reason to go to the top but feels compelled to do so, and this fact is mentioned by Shinji, one of his ex-friends, when they face each other in the first floor. Shinji betrays him and his really surprised to see the protagonist alive after “all these years” yet the protagonist himself transforms into a dark entity revealing powerful “code casts”.
///////////////END OF MINOR SPOILER////////////////
These small details might seem like mistakes from the author or poor storytelling but it’s all interconnected and they just play with your perspective, making you follow the protagonist as his past is revealed and his connection to saber’s previous master is explained.
Yet the best part is precisely that breaking point where the identity of the protagonist is revealed and his dream takes shape, with Nero explaining to him how similar he was to her past master as well as identifying some key characters and roles for the grand finale. Fun fact: Both of Nero's masters are the male and female genders from the game.
At that point you’ll probably think that you’ve reached the climax and that there is nothing else to be told or no surprises left… until they advance to the next floor.
//////////////////////MINOR SPOILER////////////////////////
In order to avoid major spoilers all I’m going to mention is that friends die, and they die due to a choice forced upon the protagonist. Their backstory is tragic, really tragic and due to the rules of the war the only way to advance to the top floor is to defeat a master, there is no other solution and thus the choice is forced upon the protagonist… the choice to select which friend to let die.
///////////////END OF MINOR SPOILER////////////////
The anime itself took some weeks off after this episode and then came back in full strength for the final floor, blazing away with a grand finale where people introduced in episode 1 (but those who played the game knew him well) made entrances and explained the truth of the moon cell, humanity and who the real villain was, achieving the climax in an special episode of 40+ minutes of supreme animation and soundtrack coolness. The ending, BTW, is one of the most bittersweet endings out there.
//////////////////////MAJOR SPOILER IN THE VIDEO////////////////////////
This is a PV and it's awesome, but it does show some of the most epic scenes that you're NOT supposed to see and know until later in the show.
Conclusions and final words
Ehem, I got a little excited at the end and almost spoiled some really important things but it’s just that it’s really that good. The original Fate/Extra game is good, considering the capabilities of the PSP it had really good graphics and soundtrack so I would give it an 8.4 out of 10; yet CCC goes above that with an even better story and improved graphics so I’d give it a 9.1 or 9.2. Google says that 93% of users liked it, so I'm not that off the mark it seems...
The anime is really good, deserving no less than 10 points, if anyone would say something against it it’s the fact that it’s short, and it’s OK to be short: the brighter a flame the darker the shadow it casts. I personally give it a 10, though I’d love to have seen more, yet by seeing more maybe it would have had less of an impact. I tried my best to be concise and avoid spoilers about the anime because everything is connected so any info I give has the potential to break some of the surprises held in store.
This trilogy however is more than the sum of its parts… it’s not just the maximum 10 points, it’s 11, each part adds even more value to the whole. The anime isn’t just a representation of the game and instead shows real depth and originality and it’s a valuable addition to the experiences caused by playing the game.
Kind regards
Eilder Jorge
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Well this was quite a post, eh?
I haven't watched the main body of the Fate Anime but I know some bits of information here and there.
The game and the anime both looks interesting, though! I mean, i'm just inclined to watch Last Encore only because of this post. And maybe play the games as well if I get my PsP emulator work again!
Cheers man! What a great post!
Thanks man! the fate universe is really interesting if you can manage to look behind some of their shortcomings and weird stuff, like making heroines out of heroes :P
Fate/Stay Night is still considered nowadays one of the best visual novels ever made but I've got to admit that this trilogy is the one I liked the most due to the setup. If you look at it carefully this is kind of like the ultimate MOBA tournament, where many people come to the arena and duke it out by using "heroes", and the winner of the tournament has the right to get any wish granted.
The anime is just plain awesome, honestly... it was hard as HELL trying to avoid spoilers while talking about it and at the same time try to get attention towards it. As for the games... well they're 8 years old now, so you'd better prepare for the graphics, the good thing is that emulators allow for turbo mode which should allow you to clear battles faster and focus on the story.
I'm really interested in the anime... Also one doubt I had, Is that blonde saber girl in the red dress the same character as the Fate stay night's saber? The dress is confusing me but they look somewhat the same
That's because they're both Saber, the class itself is the same. Fate Stay night's saber is King Arthur, this saber is roman emperor nero.
They have VERY different personalities though, but I understand what you mean... they look somewhat similar, though Nero has a more bright blonde and has more bust too. Do make some time to watch it... I mean, it's really good even if you haven't played the games, though it's even better if you DID play the games.
omg I never answered or read this.
I think you're convincing me to download a psp emulator, lol
Hi @ejgarcia!
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Well the post is so great I spoiled some things on myself, (and if I read it 4 months ago I would have spoiled Archer identity on myself too!)
~I really have to watch the anime sometime~
Thanks for stopping by @ahmadmanga!
Lol, I probably shouldn't have left archer's name THAT out in the open huh? I didn't even think of it because Unlimited blade works is quite a bit old but you're right.
Glad you loved it, I did too!!!
About the anime... it's honestly one of the best that aired this year. The animations and drawing style are a bit "unique" so it may look a bit weird at first, but in a few episodes you'll get used to it. Since you played the game you will enjoy the anime a TON more since you WILL understand some of the little details and nuances that aren't directly explained and that my friends who didn't play it couldn't understand. Like the reference to the two masters being the two genders of the game who have the same name and several others that I won't spoil :D
well, yeah... But I only watched UBW in 2018:
It's amazing though when you know that he's That Person! It also explains why he's good at cooking.
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TrufflePigAnother wonderful post. Fate/Extra: Last Encore really got my attention. Having Studio Shaft from Monogatari and Puella Magi Madoka Magica is an Extra Plus. I'm not that interested in the games. The Deen Stay Night was OK. The UBW movie made Emiya Shiro into my most hated anime character ever and the UBW series did an excellent job in all departments. But I still felt that it could get a little edgy with a minor Gen Urobuchi rewrite. Although I want to like UBW more than Fate/Zero I consider the masterpiece to be perfect. Both directing and writing is top notch and Ufotable is Ufotable.
Anyway try giving God Eater a Chance. It's on of the greatest flawed masterpieces ever made. It only gets good at the end of episode 5. The ending was one of the greatest ever (it's really the message). I could define the series in one simple sentence: The Bleakest Story Ever Told About Hope.
Maybe you could even call it a post post-modern shounen. Just bear through the first few episodes.
Thanks for stopping by vimuthki!
It's just like you said, from the moment I saw Studio Shaft I knew I was going to like it, period. Well, the games were interesting on their own back then, but if you aren't an avid gamer there are certainly other games and other things to do so I can understand that you're not that interested :D
You can say that again... 100% agreed. It seems we share an opinion with UBW and Fate/Zero... I mean, both are awesome with Fate/Zero having an slighty upper hand but UBW is more... IDK, sentimental or easier to get in? I don't know the exact words but I kind of understand what you mean.
I've played God eater 1,2 and Rage Burst and of course I watched the anime too :) which BTW is TOTALLY unrelated to the games. It truly is a flawed masterpiece, but the god tier quality animation helps a ton in ignoring those flaws. The games go farther than the anime in terms of history, let me spoil you a bit about it:
God Eater 1: The protagonist are Lindow, Soma and the russian girl (I think it was Arisa). In the first part you work for the far east branch of Fenrir in a "investigation" department whose main objective is to obtain information about the Aragami in order to develop a countermeasure. At one point in history Lindow is left to die due to Arisa's issues with the Aragami and how her family was killed and past traumas and stuff, plus the fact that she had some kind of drug interfering with her thought patterns. The reason is that the upper government wanted to get rid of Lindow because he knew stuff that normal god eaters shouldn't know and was investigating the dirty stuff.
At one point in the late game you discover an Aragami with human form named Shio (I think) and she and Soma open up to each other in a weird way. A lot of things happen in the mid but at the end Shio explains part of the reason of existence of the Aragami and transforms into a vessel to nurture the moon and bring life to it. At this point Soma abandons the front lines and decides to become a scientist like his father in order to better understand Shio and the Aragami. In the meanwhile you'll discover some of the dark stuff Lindow was investigating and they set up a trap for you, yet Lindow comes and saves your ass and explains how he survived and the effects of having the god eater merge with you.
God eater 2: This one is in the same setting from the anime. In this one you're in the military instead of a research facility and your objective is to subjugate the advancing Aragami in order to provide for your family and to protect the citizens. A strong mutation starts appearing in several Aragami, effectively pushing mankind to the brink once again and the team is forced to go to the far east to speak with doctor Satake in order to resolve it. Lots of stuff happen and the backstory of the characters is told to you, as well as the explanation of how Lindow became the base for unlocking the potential of the god eaters. At some point in the mid game the villain appears, a scientist gone rogue that had been injected Aragami cells as a child to promote tissue regeneration but ended up becoming an human-shaped Aragami. The villain explains how YOU had been extending the evolution of the Aragami by following her commands and, like in any game, decides to face you because you're a thorn on her side and dies by your hand.
Burst is an extension of God Eater 2, adding more lore and a continuation to the story.
BTW, the anime is pretty toned down in comparison to the games, which are already toned down.
This post was shared in the Curation Collective Discord community for curators, and upvoted and resteemed by the @c-squared community account after manual review.
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I know Fate!
I have never seen games or animation, but it was really popular in Japan!
Although it is an anime of the past, I think that there are still a lot of persistent fans🙂
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Well, it's true that it's pretty old, but they still keep bringing new stuff, like games or anime!
Give it a try sometime when you've got nothing else to do, it's actually quite good! I actually got interested in the mobile game thanks to my own post so now I'm trying to find a way to play it here :D
I think that it is still really popular proof that the contents are still evolving!
Ok! Thank you!😀
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Your post was upvoted by the @archdruid gaming curation team in partnership with @curie to support spreading the rewards to great content. Join the Archdruid Gaming Community at https://discord.gg/nAUkxws. Good Game, Well Played!
Thanks guys! I'm already preparing for my Cross Code post (I've given a ton of propaganda by now :)
hi @ejgarcia
I didn't hear from you in a while so I decided to check your blog to see if you're still active or taking a break.
Im glad to see tht you're still around. Obviously upvoted :)
ps. I wanted to ask you a question. You mind telling me what's your view on latest HF20 introduced on steemit? Did it affect you in any way?
Obviously upvoted.
Yours, Piotr
I noticed you have not posted in a while. Thought I would drop by and say hi.
Have a great Friday and an even better weekend!
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Dear @ejgarcia
I just visited your account to see if you published anything new only to realize that you seem to give up on Steemit? :(
Hope you're not done with this platform yet.
Yours,
Piotr
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