Character disconnect and disappointing Player Agency in Dawntrail's MSQ [Spoilers]

[Connor]

As i mentioned in other Threads the enjoyment of a lot of the expansion seems to hinge on how much one enjoys Lamatis Character and the tropes she embodies.
I myself very much liked her and saw in her the probably best Ruler in a Fantasy Context with her having a good heart and all that. Koana was the logical choice from RL perspective but he has the flaw that went against the moral of the entire story.
And with where he ended up Tural has the best of both so to speak.

Honestly I wasn’t as annoyed at Wuk Lamat once I realized she’s basically stylised after the ‘happy-go-lucky heart of gold but young, naive and immature’ Final Fantasy protagonist stereotype. Like Bartz, Zidane, Tidus or Vaan.

Obviously though, those protagonists through their games have more aspect to them than just their stereotype

Bartz dad disappeared then his mum died like right after, Zidane is a literal alien, Tidus is an imaginary friend, Vaan has his brother’s death hanging over him and the fact he has no right to be anywhere near the events of the game lol

One of Dawntrail’s biggest weaknesses is that they didn’t do enough to actually develop Wuk into a fully realized character beyond that stereotypical depiction. Meaning that when it is utilised, it doesn’t feel ‘earned’ at all; there’s no logical reason for her to be so unnaturally optimistic and confident when she’s been essentially princess in a castle her whole life. Like, she never stops to question whether her ‘way’ is always going to be the ‘right’ way, Everyone just assumes it is and goes along with it lol. Surely self-reflection is just as important to any ruler as love for their people is? Yet we see essentially none from Wuk Lamat the entire story

[Villa101]

; there’s no logical reason for her to be so unnaturally optimistic and confident when she’s been essentially princess in a castle her whole life. Like, she never stops to question whether her ‘way’ is always going to be the ‘right’ way, Everyone just assumes it is and goes along with it lol. Surely self-reflection is just as important to any ruler as love for their people is? Yet we see essentially none from Wuk Lamat the entire story

Yeah she grew up rich and sheltered. Not only is the point of the story is her unlearning that her father says this outloud, but rich sheltered people in real life grow up with inflated senses of self all the time. We are lucky her high self esteem was complimenting a sound moral foundation and not sociopathithic tendencies