#relinquox

Perhaps on a normal day, Sam would've liked all this attention. As it were however, she was tired and drained from all the work she'd been doing, and the last thing she really wanted was someone standing right in front of her car in the police parking lot as if they had nothing better to do.

At least she had the patience not to run them over - although it seemed to her as if they'd appeared out of nowhere. They weren't there when she got into her car - how did they suddenly get there in the two seconds it took her to look up at her window after getting into the car?

She rolled down the window and stuck her head out, resting against the door with one arm to keep herself steady.

[/whispers] [that was me, /Rev/. Squall doesn’t even know you’re there—]

*paps pretty face*

//Pretty face full of TEARS

renegatnarcissique replied to your post “//Look at all you guys playing Lightning Returns without me. I have to...”

Quiet you //european glare

//Omg I'm so sorry. YOU GUYS CAN DO IT! YOU'LL SURVIVE!

relinquox replied to your post “//Look at all you guys playing Lightning Returns without me. I have to...”

[/waits with you.] I'll probably have to wait until tomorrow for it to download! Let's wait to see Noel's pretty face together!

//Yeahhh :'D 

denzelstrife replied to your post “//Look at all you guys playing Lightning Returns without me. I have to...”

I share your pain Noel~ >>

My muse has love bites in the most indiscreet of places and has failed to cover them. What does your muse do/say?

[♥]        "—you should be more fucking discreet with your opinion."

I think it’s first important to ask this question: “Would Squaresoft develop such an in-depth (and arguably alternative) story line to what is already a complicated plot (for the year it was made) for the game known as Final Fantasy 8?” Your answer can vary, but it’s important to note that Square and Enix hadn’t merged  yet.

I’m not saying the games before 8 weren’t amazing, because we have the revolution of FF7 started, but time wasn’t taken to develop most of the antagonists to the extent that it is now. Fans even wanted more to the previous Final Fantasy games before 7, because they felt either the plot wasn’t filled in enough, or the characters, themselves (be it protagonist or antagonist), were not developed enough. While the stories were more original than other games, the basics were still generic.

It is because of this reason that I think the “Rinoa is Ultimecia (R=U)” theory is what it says it only is — a theory. The development, the back-story even, was not enough for fans. Ultimecia is such an interesting — and let’s not deny it, intriguing — character. But she was made out to be too much of an enigma for fans. Her parallels and opposite-take from Rinoa got fans thinking, this character needed more of a story, but where was it? To fill in the gaps, there needed to be something that fit, and thus I give you the R=U theory.

Ultimecia is the mirror-opposite of Rinoa, and this is done so that the plot can move forward. It gives enough of a story already because it gives a conflict. It just doesn’t give enough. Rumor has it that Rinoa is Ultimecia because of some pretty big points. Some include things like this:

“Others claim that Ultimecia is in fact a future Rinoa, based on several hints within the game such as the fact that Ultimecia’s GF (Griever form) bears the same name (Griever) as a ring that Squall gives to Rinoa during the course of the game. However, before fighting Griever, Ultimecia claims to attach to one of the party members (Squall). It can be assumed that, in doing so, Ultimecia’s GF or, in fact, Ultimecia herself takes a part of Squall which he holds close - the Griever emblem. As such, it should also be noted that Griever is not only part of the ring which Squall gave to Rinoa but is, also, presumably, the lion head at the end of his keychain and on part of his many belts.”

Now, this sounds really good, right? Sure, it could fit. The only problem, though, is that this is purely speculation. "This could have happened" and "maybe" and "it’s possible" are just words to make everything sound legit, to sound canon. And while this theory is definitely not canon, I suppose it could be taken as a definite possibility. But like anything else, a good theory that fits is always something nice to believe. We see it happening everywhere in life. We see it when we need something to be justified, and what is trying to be justified is the lack of structure from Ultimecia and the lack of understanding about why she had the goals that she did.

There have been points such as saying Rinoa and Ultimecia share the same facial structures, and while it holds some truth to it, it’s important to realize that they were always supposed to be opposites, but similar enough to progress the story of FF8. Squaresoft, and even after merging with Enix to become Square Enix, has always used symbolism in the Final Fantasy franchise. The dividing line between an evil sorceress and a good one is evident. But the symbolism goes deeper than that, displaying balance. For as much evil as Ultimecia shows, as much good will Rinoa show in return. It’s a representation of society, which we see also in other games, such as Final Fantasy X.

Squaresoft, Square Enix, whichever you’d like to call it, has always reused names, ideas, and structures for characters in the FF franchise and we see it repeat throughout the different games. It shouldn’t come as surprise then that Rinoa looks like Ultimecia and that Ultimecia looks like Rinoa. It can be argued that Ultimecia’s GF has similarities to the Aeon, Anima from Final Fantasy X in Overdrive mode. Just because Rinoa looks like Ultimecia doesn’t mean that they’re the same person — Square has always repeated these types of things, be it for symbolism, excitement for the fan to find (think of it like an “I Spy!” game), or for lack of creativity. Basic idea: design is repetitive and happens in all the games. You can’t just forget about all of the other similarities between elements of different games and just look at Rinoa and Ultimecia.

I think the Compression of Time has way too much guessing involved, and way too much speculation. It sounds like people keep trying to add to the theory, and like any good story, it grows and becomes more heavily created. I believe fans have created a story for Ultimecia, and that’s not a bad thing. It gets the fans involved — and this is what a successful company does. Perspective from fans is what keeps a franchise going, it’s what keeps a fan buying the Final Fantasy games. No two interpretations will ever be the same. It’ll be a different story to everyone, or a different take. Square has never talked heavily about the R=U theory, my guess is because it’s up to the fans, because the interpretations and wonderment is captured, it’s kept alive. Like any good game, this was one to catch the attention of gamers. While I don’t think it was the intention of Square to make FF8 fans speculate so much, or even at all, about R=U, of course they aren’t going to say to their fans “you’re wrong.” Square lives for the interpretations and perspective of their fans. While they’re infamous and terrible at announcing games and sticking to their word about release dates, SE really does care about the fans. They’ll let you have your perspective, and they love it because you’re talking about their game.

While I believe it’s a theory and no more, it’s important to note that R=U is a possibility, because let’s be honest — no one actually knows. However, while coming up with more for the theory, everyone should know that the term “evidence” does not mean “speculations that fit very well.” So while people are finding “evidence” to support R=U…it’s not actually fact. It fits well, sure. As long as Square Enix hasn’t directly disproved R=U theory or approved it, I think fans should be entitled to whichever opinion they desire. But it’s important to realize how slim of a chance Ultimecia is actually Rinoa.