You know what they should have made, instead of Crisis Core? A game about Barret's backstory. How he met Myrna and got married and his dealings with Shinra in Corel and how he founded Avalanche and his struggles with raising Marlene and his guilt over Dyne's death because of it. I would have played the shit out of that game. But alas, it would never happen, because he is black and old and not animoo enough.
This is another thing that bugged me about Crisis Core — they set it before a game that had the balls to not have the entire cast be pretty boys and teenaged girls for once, and made it about pretty boys and teenaged girls anyway.
Reading this, I realise I'm slowly turning Cloud into Barret, as far as the approach goes, what with the married and the crooked nose and the disfigurement and the getting older thing.
MY SOUL IS DARK BUT MY HAIR IS COLORFUL — Brahian Pokémon AlchemistThat's yet another thing that annoys me about the compilation — the original game actually made an effort to flesh Barret out beyond "token loud nigger due to Japan's questionable depictions of black people at times". And at the time, there actually weren't a lot of father characters, either. And even fewer whose conflict was largely about whether they were a good parent and were doing the right thing for their child.
By the time That Game rolled around, Marlene was living with Cloud and Barret went back to yelling.
MY SOUL IS DARK BUT MY HAIR IS COLORFUL — Brahian Pokémon Alchemist

trip has a new waifu
UN JOUR JE SERAI DE RETOUR PRÈS DE TOI