Do you Feel Reborn is too "Edgy?"

[Monochrome_Complex]

So on another big game forum somebody brought up Reborn and how GF could learn from it only to be met with immediate hostility and how Reborn was fan trash that's too edgy/poorly designed/overwhelms the player etc. The complainers seem to write off any pokemon fangame as garbage in general so i wouldn't take it too personally, but do you think Reborn suffers from being too "edgy" so to speak?

Now personally I'm quite tired of this "anti-edge" mentality that's rampant among media fandoms as of late. ORAS was trying to be too edgy according to some of these people...feels like edgy as an insult is just becoming a bastardized term to apply to something that you personally feel is uncool. It's getting ridiculous, this "edgephobia" trend.

That said, Reborn doesn't shy away from being a fangame and wears that title proudly. It's not trying to be like the main games in tone and generally does its own thing, edge included. Yeah Reborn is undoubtedly edgy, but I feel like it isn't a bad thing and further enhances the narrative. My only case of rolling eyes is Titania who does feel a bit tryhard and Terra due to how immersive breaking she is with some of her humor(though she is funny). Aside from those, Reborn I feel does edge pretty well and it works in regard to the overall setting and themes of the game.

I'm kind of interested if the creators of the game especially ever replayed and thought, "eh I kind of wished this was done differently" in regards to this.

[Lilleen]

You know what? I'm sick and tired of people using the word "edgy" in a negative way.

I like Reborn because it brings up interesting realistic themes up such as depression, suicide and terrorism. I've never really looked at Reborn as "edgy", if I'm gonna be honest. If anything, Reborns world-building is a very different approach from the official games in a good way. I like that some of the people that is supposed to be on the same side as yourself does questionable ethical acts such as murder and whatnot.

I know that in the past, I have shared my rather negative thoughts regarding Titania's actions in the sewers. You wanna know something funny? I find Titania's character one of the more interesting characters out there, even if she's a bit over-the-top at times.

[Yours Truly]

To be honest my least favorite part of Reborn is the Titania quest line; I mean in order to progress in the game you'd have to blatantly disregard her privacy and read her diary, and every other Titania related problem stems from Amaria reading the still open diary, but other than that I found the story to be quite fun to be honest, and I don't really see why we can't have a little bit of darkness inside of the stories we read, and it's not like the state of disarray the city is in has been presented as a good thing; an important plot point is that the city itself will be restored to it's previous glory.

[laggless01]

To be honest my least favorite part of Reborn is the Titania quest line; I mean in order to progress in the game you'd have to blatantly disregard her privacy and read her diary, and every other Titania related problem stems from Amaria reading the still open diary, but other than that I found the story to be quite fun to be honest, and I don't really see why we can't have a little bit of darkness inside of the stories we read, and it's not like the state of disarray the city is in has been presented as a good thing; an important plot point is that the city itself will be restored to it's previous glory.

That one is/will be alleviated (soon). I thought it was already changed in E15 so you don't have to anymore iirc.

[Nadrel]

Agreed about the Titania part...

Reborn's scenario may not be perfect but I'm curious which game can boast a better scenario than this one (and Rejuv).

I've played tons of pokemon games, most of which were enjoyable, with some things better and some things worse than in Reborn . But, in the end, none had such a complex and well developed scenario.

I'm not saying other games' stories are bad, but most of the time, they're not as well written and don't seem very important in the game.

If you know games with both good gameplay and good storylines, i would really be interested ^^

[NickCrash]

Had this been your regular RPG game, the thought wouldn't even cross your minds. Murder is normal in every game and usually plot revolves around it and its motives. Titania is a warrior princess in her own fairy-tale and a hardened character that has been hurt every step of the way. So killing someone may be easier to her than us. Mind you, canon pokemon games with their flowery attitude have made you soft. Generations shows Kyogre EAT Archie, yet nobody bats an eye.

Reborn has more of a 'dark' theme than a simple murder case. You have prostitution, drugs, terrorist groups that don't hesitate to murder people and pokemon, brainwashing, torture, [REDACTED], religious sacrifices, and more. You knew what you were getting into when you started it, and personally the more mature environment the story unfolds in is what I always wanted from a pokemon game.

There are correct and false reasons to accuse a game or a franchise. People should learn to distinguish between the two. If you are desperately searching for a valid reason to blame such games, their general tone is not one of them.

So to anyone claiming this is "too edgy" for them I suggest playing another game or shutting up and letting us enjoy it.

[Tartar]

Honestly, the word edgy (along with many other words used to describe things people don't like like Mary Sue, etc.) is entirely useless as it merely serves to say that you don't like the way something is told, without needing for one to elaborate as to why they disliked it.

My answer is thus: I do not feel that reborn is too edgy, because the word is inherently subjective and a useless way to describe the game.

[Alistair]

Reborn isn't even "edgy". Bad stuff happens, good stuff happens, just like in every other RPG ever. There's nothing shocking in it. It just suffers from being compared to regular, light-hearted Pokémon games on this one aspect.

Only Titania and to some extent Saphira try a bit too hard to be likeable or truly believable characters. I'm not saying they are not interesting, I just don't see people actually acting like that. They act like your regular, badass type of character. Cain, Radomus or even Charlotte are miles ahead in terms of characterization imo. But I'm going off topic.

Reborn is how it needs to be. If we didn't want a darker, harder game than your average Pokémon game, we'd go play something else.

[Zane0144]

No doubt reborn is edgy as in dark and willing to take risks with its plot. But it it uses those moments to their fullest. This isnt some silly game where they go look at us we're so cool cause we kill off NPCs. In fact very few people actually die, (okay except when titania or saphira are around). Anyway the plot in reborn is amazing because while its not afraid to geg dark its not afraid to be light hearted either. There are plenty of happy people like Cain and Julia and the circus folk that give you a break from the seriousness of the plot. Ive yet to play another fan game with such great balance in its plot.

[Skeleton]

everybody has a fucking emo haircut of course this shit is edgy as hell

the game is way too heavy on the story for me to even come close to finishing it

im not looking for dark themes in a pokemon game i wanna have a cute team and beat a league and not go from gym to gym dealing with someone dying or being traumatized

[DerogatoryTrainer]

It's not edgy enough.

Needs like 5 more Hot Topic stores.

And all the music needs to be replaced with Drowning pool songs while a Naruto Amv pops up every 10 seconds.

Then I'll be satisfied

[Scottieboy2020]

Is pokemon reborn edgy?

Yes.

Is it TOO edgy?

Reaper from Overwatch is too edgy. Pokemon Reborn is NOT too edgy.

Pokemon Reborn is a darkly themed game, for certain, and while it does have a few flaws, you're hard-pressed to find them! Sure, it's painfully difficult at times if you don't know what you're doing, but when you get on a roll in the game, it is an extremely enjoyable experience. You get to know the characters, you get to save a ruined city, you make friends and enemies and lose some of both. It also has the best storyline in a pokemon game that I've ever seen.

So whomever tries to say Reborn is too edgy can take their overused insults somewhere else because I LIKE THIS GAME. And they can deal with it.

[Combat]

I feel like Reborn is beautifully dark, and for the most part isn't painfully edgy. Corey's story for example was dark, but well written. The characters are generally well written, and do have character to them instead of being "Hi I'm a Gym Leader. You win! Goodbye!" Besides Miss Murder (a character I who I doubt I'll ever like) the characters aren't really edgelords. (In her case, that's both a literal and figurative statement.)

In my opinion, Pokémon Insurgence is what you could consider painfully edgy. We have a bunch of uninteresting NPCs trying to kill you with a weak plot.

[DemICE]

Being edgy is not bad. just because it started becoming overused, some people became bored of it and it became negative.

Edgy style, if done well, can offer quality content.

Also different people have different tastes. I preffer my games and stories to be as dark, emotionally crammed, and as far away from realisty as possible, while being as realistic as possible, if that makes sense.

[Alistair]

Being edgy is not bad. just because it started becoming overused, some people became bored of it and it became negative.

Edgy style, if done well, can offer quality content.

Also different people have different tastes. I preffer my games and stories to be as dark, emotionally crammed, and as far away from realisty as possible, while being as realistic as possible, if that makes sense.

I think I understand what you mean. Games that take place in a fictional land that has little to do with the real world, yet offer a detailed, coherent universe in which genuine characters share genuine interactions, live through believable stuff and react accordingly. Reborn does that pretty well. That's often the sign of a great game.

[DemICE]

I think I understand what you mean. Games that take place in a fictional land that has little to do with the real world, yet offer a detailed, coherent universe in which genuine characters share genuine interactions, live through believable stuff and react accordingly. Reborn does that pretty well. That's often the sign of a great game.

yes thank you for the accurate explanation

even if it is a fictional world, it still has to abide under some rules, so it does not become some completely random monsense, or some lame utopia.

And i'm geek enough to want to know everything about it. its physical laws, the limitations of any existing supernatural elements, the culture of the inhabitants, etc.

Edited November 12, 2016 by DemICE

[5hift]

Not really being edgy.

This game covers some rather taboo subjects that you would never expect to find in a Pokemon game.

But nothing comes across as being obnoxiously dark and melodramatic.

Except for Titania...

I think what makes something "edgy" is when it takes itself wayyyyy too seriously.

This game just isn't the case. There are some rather lighthearted moments that keep the game from feeling borderline depressing.

Edited November 12, 2016 by 5hift

[Timber Dragon]

_{Was that big name game forum GameFAQs or IGN by any chance? If so, that explains a lot.}

The game starts off being pretty edgy (nearly getting nailed by a terrorist attack and a Meteor grunt getting interrogated via Torkoal + metal chair, to name a few), but that's really only in comparison to the main Pokemon games. There's waaaay explicitly darker stuff out there.

I'd argue that Reborn actually gets progressively less edgy as the game goes on. It's still pretty dark, yes, but what separates it from being the emo 'edgy' kind of dark is the underlying optimism of the story. Hell, ep 16 will be all about running around in a newly rebuilt city -- a city rebuilt because the people were working together to fix their own home.

The only things I can say are prooobably actually sorta edgy are Titania (who's controversial in the fanbase anyway), Charlotte and Saphira, and imo Corey, who seems very melodramatic in a way that other parts of Reborn aren't. Otherwise the game has plenty of humorous moments and characters, and you probably wouldn't notice it from what those big-name game forums say, but you actually get to help more characters than you watch tragically die.

[Monochrome_Complex]

It was Neogaf actually.

Also rather than realistic, I think believable is more what you're looking for. Personally I never expect realism from my videogames(nor really want it as realism is very restricting) but for me a good story is one that's believable within the context of the game's world. Reborn portrays a believable "if pokemon was a dystopia" scenario. At the very least, it's much more believable than say X/Y where people let a madman run around freely and nearly destroy everyone.

[Ice Cream Sand Witch]

Edgy is a term that I've seen used so many times that I'm not even sure what it's supposed to mean anymore, or if the people who use it even know what it means. Same with "ironic". I've seen people use ironic in so many different ways, some that are the opposite of other peoples' uses of it.

I used to think edgy meant "darkness for the sake of darkness". But I've also seen it used for people addressing controversial topics. I've even seen games and movies called edgy for having characters who aren't straight.

I don't think Reborn is dark just for the sake of it, if that's what it means. Many events from Reborn that would be considered dark actually happened to the people from the online league. Corey really did jump off a bridge. Kiki did have a terminal illness. Amaria didn't jump down a waterfall as far as I know, but she did have memory loss after a car accident. Sigmund really did use electroconvulsive therapy. Team Meteor aren't based on real people (aside from Lin), but you could say the region and plot was made to have some dark themes because some of the league itself had dark times.

I also agree with Timber_Dragon that it gets less like that as the game goes on. There are always surprises to keep the in-game us on our toes, but we've been solving many of the issues in the region, most notably cleaning out all the polluted water.

I'm normally not a fan of darkness at all, since I actually don't believe Earth is real and the planet that's our actual home doesn't have things like death or torture. (closest equivalent to death at home would be going into a coma, which the person would wake up from, how long the coma lasts depending on the type of injury) If the only aspect fangames like Reborn offered were a dark storyline, I wouldn't be playing them. Reborn also has interesting mechanics like field effects, the region itself is very well-done, there are lots of bonus areas to explore and sidequests to do, etc.

[DemICE]

Edgy as far as i'm concerned, is anything that brings one's mentality "on edge" , either that being dark or tense atmosphere, statements in dialogues that are supposed to make you feel tension or dread, etc.

And since this has become more popular over the years, more and more people try to incorporate it, which naturally leads to a higher amount of failed attempts.

Aaand those failed attempts are a big reason "edgy" has become sterotypically negative, since people have memories of those failed attempts.

[HughJ]

rofl please ignore signature

As far as I know "edgy" is a deliberate attempt at being cool, typically as seen from a teenager's eyes, by relying on subjects like death metal, guns, regurgitated statements from villainous speeches, etc

I don't think Reborn is truthfully single-minded enough to be "edgy." It has a wide variety of complex characters like Cain and Shelly that help to balance out the sometimes-oppressive dark atmosphere. Especially later in the game, when the player character heads out to the mountains and forest (a point I'm sure the critics never reach), it becomes clear that the game has branched out from its dreariness.

I think a truly edgy variant of Reborn would be if all the pokemon types were dark and ghost, the entire game was set in Peridot Ward, and all of the characters were Fern-Corey hybrids

[TF2000]

Me personally, I find Reborn to be the right type of dark. It manages to create a mature view on the Pokemon universe, without going too far and have people die left and right.

I would like to bring up the underlying optimism of the story, but several posts have already said that so I'll leave it at that.

In my opinion, Pokémon Insurgence is what you could consider painfully edgy. We have a bunch of uninteresting NPCs trying to kill you with a weak plot.

Insurgence? I've played that game and I don't consider it painfully edgy. Snakewood is so painfully edgy, I almost bled to death while playing it.

[TheCaelondian]

Me personally, I find Reborn to be the right type of dark. It manages to create a mature view on the Pokemon universe, without going too far and have people die left and right.

I would like to bring up the underlying optimism of the story, but several posts have already said that so I'll leave it at that.

Insurgence? I've played that game and I don't consider it painfully edgy. Snakewood is so painfully edgy, I almost bled to death while playing it.

I agree, Insurgence, like many games, isn't perfect but it's nowhere near Snakewood levels of edge.

[PedroHenrique]

Well, I have never been a fan of edgy or dark games, but Reborn has my interest, I find it the perfect amount of darkness in a pokemon game, also, some characters have really good personality and are constantly joking, and that really helps, doesn't let you get too tense.

And I always loved difficult games, I'm glad they managed to make classic pokemon games way more challenging and interesting.