Hello! It's that one anon who accidently posted about heathcardo a day before heathcardo was teased!
Hmmm to be honest quite disappointed with Heathcardo after reading his lines and uptie story. I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised that he's quite shallow, he is very much a crowd pleaser ID like QoH Don or Phillip Sinclair. But I dunno the line about memories in his teaser baited me into thinking he would be more interesting. Maybe I'm missing something but to me he's just Ricardo but with a British accent and even then he doesn't really expand on Ricardo's character besides on (not that i was expecting this ID to, Ricardo is a very shallow character). I was expecting at least a little insight to how and why he rose up the ranks of the middle or maybe something about how he uses the familial bonds of the middle to like fill in some sorta emptiness but instead we mostly get aura and gap moe moments... Which is fine, but a little disappointing when we got the evil intimidating pequod Heathcliff ID in the corner.
I mean he's still got a fun personality I suppose and some of his voicelines are good laughs but overall, very underwhelmed (not helped with some issues i have with his gameplay and numbers but i won't bore you with that)
I agree that Heathcardo does feel really fanservicy. Don't get me wrong, is not a bad thing but if something is fanservicy. If it is, is just is and thats okay. The identity was practically begged for since canto 5 so is normal for him to be one and is not just that but Ricardo plays more as a comedic character more than anything, so I think is normal that they went more for the funnies rather than going in-depth.
Though mmmm... If I we were to say if it expanded on anything for Heathcliff in first sight. Maybe when Project Moon tells us that "Heathcliff isn't stupid and is very intuitive" with him already knowing that, possibly, Shi Yihua wasn't the one stealing the coupons. Which, fair, but we already knew that and like you said is a little shallow. Then there's the whole contrast of Middle's "remember" and "revenge" but that too feels swallow, at least to me. Again not that is bad, but i do coincide. Is not stuff that drives one crazy thinking about.
I feel this identity was more striking to expand the Middle lore and how it works because the sudden drop of the path to become a Great Brother, and could be a foreshadow to Ricardo's own future in the story. So you could say is more of a worldbuilding identity than a character expansion one tbh. Even with that, as shallow Heathcardo can be for him, I've grown fond of him. I find his relationship with his little siblings (Don q, Sinc and Meur) really cute and they play as a boss-goons dynamic to me. I think is the first time too that Heathcliff refers directly to Meursault with a name, not the best one but something is something.
Design wise, I've mixed feelings. I love his sprites and clothes a lot, he looks gorgeous with them, but the hairstyle really pisses me off 😔😔😔😔