@Akriel_Boulve: Yeah I played through a huge chunk of the second while it was on Game Pass, and keep meaning to get it everytime it's on one of its numerous sales. The combat is very robust - tons of variety and some flexibility with customization - while feeling crisp and fluid, and a fresh take on gear upgrading & acquisition. If it had had a dual wielding system like Dark Souls 2 (and I think DaS3), all the better.
But thanks for the recommendation, I went and checked and don't own Surge 1, so I think I'll take one of those juicy bundle discounts this Xmas. It's really time that's the limiting factor... Not enough hours in the day to go through the bucket list!
Season of the Haunted, in atypical seasonal trend fashion, is already a possible prelude to Lightfall. Normally in the past the final season of a year would serve as a prelude, but it looks like this year was mostly spent tying up loose ends.
Since a certain strike on the Titan moon (Eye of Savathun) and indeed the baffling reappearance of Taken on Io in Red War campaign of 2017 (baffling in the sense that both Ikora Rey and Ghost speak to you as if you've never encountered Taken before), we've been toyed with by Savathun. Four years and some change until she finally made her play for power. Since then, bc the Darkness is multifaceted, we've had a lot of disparate "side threats" that had follow-ups of their own.
Example: Shadowkeep afaik had little to do with Savathun (who iirc was behind Riven, the threat in Forsaken), but the threads in Shadowkeep played out in Season of Arrivals (which also tied up Warmind), Beyond Light campaign, and Season of the Haunted -- the latter which also follows up Season of Opulence, Crown of Sorrow raid (albeit which Savathun had a hand in that afaik), and Leviathan raids, as well as certain character arcs started in Season of the Hunt and Season of the Chosen.
Example: Red War threads (the Almighty superweapon, etc) played out in Season of the Worthy, Season of the Haunted (Caiatl's part) and a little bit everywhere really, since it was the campaign that shot Destiny franchise forward past Taken King (Rise of Iron is ultimately the equivalent of a Saturday Morning Cartoon's filler episodes).
Another: Season of the Splicer had little to do with Savathun, and itself continues on a Fallen thread that's been intermittent since probably Rise of Iron or House of Wolves from D1 - notably continuing on narrative elements introduced in BL, a la the House of Light, at least, and definitely following up on a hidden side quest involving Mithrax from Forsaken / Black Armory and such. It's also another resurgence of Vex, and still also fraught with in-fighting by way of political intrigue. Season of the Splicer and Beyond Light are themselves continued by Season of Plunder, the current one.
My favourite: Vault of Glass raid -> Curse of Osiris -> Season of the Dawn -> Season of the Lost (itself another follow up to Forsaken) -> Witch Queen -> ? This thread directly involves Savathun, but only midway to the end. It's my favourite of example of the separate plot threads becoming interwoven in Destiny. There were hints of Osiris going awol in secret messages in the beginning of BL, in Zavala's office. After being freed from Savathun nearly a year ago, he still hasn't woken up yet... It could be possible that Season 19 is the direct follow up to that.
@Barighm: yeah there's something about the presentation or production value I just can't quite shake, even in the Surge 2 which I hear is more refined than its predecessors. Remarkable technology though -- whole base game came under 10GB on my One X, iirc.
@naryanrobinson: On that note: 2D Souls like games bypass the drawbacks of trying too hard, and I think it works in their favour. Out of the good few I've tried, haven't yet found a stinker.
Cool, but I'll have to read this in 2023 when it's actually time for me to play it.
I never partake in anything on launch - it builds one's mental resistance to FOMO and instant gratification, and thus builds strength. Something Kratos fans might resonate with, especially if they ever found themselves relating to Atreus.
The answer here is quite simple: if she does what she does strictly at the behest of an influencing male (be it the player or another character), or she shows too much nude gratuity, then she is unequivocally adhering to the male gaze. Otherwise, her existence is a both a social commentary on a type of femininity (and taking self-ownership for it; femininism) but also tongue-in-cheek playfulness from the creators.
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