To my fellow Veilguard positive angels... let me hold your hand softly... as I offer a gentle observation (not just about us, but about the state of modern fandom and social media)...
We should try to resist prefacing our positivity with caveats like "it wasn't perfect," or "it has it's flaws..." I understand the urge! I've used these phrases too. But isn't it a bit sad that we feel like positivity can't hold its own without a disclaimer? This is, overall, a clever, thoughtful, analytical fandom (for good and ill, I know! A lot of this analysis, particularly for Veilguard, is NOT done in good faith: negativity attracts engagement, the allure of schadenfreude is powerful, but! --) Positive fans are aware of the flaws, and love Veilguard anyway! We are here for your joy.
Ideally, a "positive" critique should acknowledge weaknesses and strengths. The two are not mutually exclusive, nor does one diminish the other. When we engage with media, the experience constantly shifts! This is normal. And it's engaging. Some elements are enjoyable, others are lacking or disappointing - that's art, baby! It's compelling because it's flawed. And it's flawed because humans made it. Flaws are inherent in art, even when it's packaged for consumption as a video game. There is no such thing as perfect - ultimately, striving to improve is what matters most.
In the case of Veilguard right now, highlighting what you ENJOYED is far more fascinating than yet another dissection of the game's flaws. At this point, a year after the game's release, "Veilguard critical" is a walking corpse that has been thoroughly picked over. Of course, critique of a major franchise made by a large studio like Bioware is valuable and important. We owe it to the creatives who poured their blood, sweat and tears into these games to be aware of the Big Picture. I appreciate some of the critical analysis I've come across, especially those spotlighting the horrific working conditions in game development and how significantly this impacted Veilguard. Having said that... the negativity about the game after its release was exhausting from day one, overwhelmingly marked by entitlement and bigotry. In essence, a lot of it was (and remains) mean-spirited and, frankly, disproportionate to the content it targets.
Negativity is easy. It's reactive and self-serving. It is also deeply defeatist, disinterested as it is in progress.
Positivity takes work, but it's worth it. Like all of us, I've been despairing at the state of online "discourse," and the seeming erosion of critical thinking both in fandom spaces and beyond... It feels like positivity is a casualty of the sensationalism this knee-jerk bigoted turn in online spaces feeds on. Blind positivity is obviously useless, but informed positivity is constructive. It's aware, morally conscious and makes room for hope. It doesn't revel in the failure of creators to be paragons of perfection - it takes note of why and how noteworthy issues occurred and asks, "well, what worked? And how do we do better?"
I strongly believe it is NOT foolish to be positive! Conscientious positivity is so important, not only emotionally and mentally, but politically - in every aspect of life, be it in fandom communities or real ones. Hope is a powerful critical tool, especially now.
Anyway, I'm clambering off my soap box, thank you for reading 💗 Be mindful in your media consumption, love what you love with clear eyes and an open heart, and you'll be OK darling! We're in this together, after all!
