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Is Riku's character development realistic?



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hlc1988

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In terms of the concept of the game... is it realistic?

In KH1 and to an extent CoM:Reverse/Rebirth he comes across as quite brash, sarcastic, and quite defiant. Yet the contrast in his character in Days and KH2 is quite different... He's more calmer, more mature, still defiant, but sad...possibly lonely. Is this an effect of what he was doing throughout the year Sora slept? Continually fighting with the darkness inside him?

In DDD he seems surprised that he succeeded whereas Sora did not... Sora is the one who is thrilled by Riku's new title, yet Riku doesn't really react. He just stands there... Surprised. Go back a few games, he'd be quite brash, open about it. He's quite a hesitant character but will do what he can to do the right thing.

I like that he has evolved... and there were hints towards his more quiet personality in CoM... It was only recently that I got to play CoM and see the cutscenes for Days with 1.5 release. I always remember years ago wondering why his character had changed so much between KH1 and KH2. Now I know...

It makes me wonder what he will be like in KH3... Can they do anything more with his character?

What do you think?

I hope I've put this in the right place...
 

Gram

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I think it's realistic. Rikus attitude in KH1 was a result of his brainwashing and darkness abusing lead by Ansem and Maleficent.
After this he becomes depressed and retentive but not finding himself worthy of things. And during CoM we watch him come to grips with his fear of darkness after falling to it and then learning to control it.
In Days/KH2 the more depressive/retentive side shines through cause he's in control of that darkness now but realizes he can't get rid of it. And given all the time he spends alone he has ample time to remember the actions he took in KH1.

DDD was were he saw the test as a means of evaluating himself. He wasn't fully forgiving of himself yet even with being free of Ansem. And as he goes through his story in DDD he reflects on himself and sees many dream characters actions as mirrors of his own. As well as his confrontations with the Xehanorts who make it a point to remind him what he's done. But he's also reminded of better things like having a friend or friends in general rather than that he's alone.

CoM showed Riku accepting and learning to control his darkness and DDD shows him coming to term with his actions. He's effectively reached end of his "road to dawn" in which he's left the darkness and stepped back into the light.

What makes Rikus development more real than any other character is that he actually has it and we see it having actual impact on him. He went from the calm but somewhat enthusiastic little boy in BBS who was easily manipulated in KH1 to the more mature and quiet master in DDD.
By the end of DDD he's more like himself showed in BBS but more mature and having learned from his mistakes.
 

Oracle Spockanort

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It makes me wonder what he will be like in KH3... Can they do anything more with his character?

Riku has overcome his inner demons and the self-esteem issue that came from said inner demons. If there was one last thing they could do with Riku in terms of his growth, it'd be him apologizing to everybody he felt he hurt along the way and being faced with a big resounding "You don't need to apologize when there is nothing to apologize for!"

For his character in general, he'll likely continue to serve as that down-to-earth, rational voice to other characters and provide advice when needed.
 

Rydgea

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To be fair to the other characters, he's really only one out of a handful that's been fleshed out.

I think in his own Petri dish, however, Riku has behaved realistically. People can and do change over time, and the evolution has been a gradual process with him. That being said, he always came off a little darker and somber, and I'm not sure that will change even though he is wiser now.
 

Blackdrazon

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CoM is really the pivotal moment in Riku's development. If you missed it, he's going to seem like he took a major jump. That's what happens when you miss an entire part of the story!

*mumbles* That's what I keep saying to everyone who calls these games "spinoffs" I mean this is what happens when you call a major part of the story unnecessary.
 

kuraudoVII

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I'm going to keep this fairly brief since everyone else has already said what I wanted to say, but yes, Riku's character development is the most realistic in the series. Unlike damn near every character throughout the games that aren't named Sora and Roxas, Riku is the only main character that had the honor of being prominent in multiple games (basically every game with the somewhat possible exception of Birth by Sleep where he was a small, but important, bit character for Terra; coded as well since we mostly saw Data Riku which, admittedly acted the same as the real Riku). This automatically meant that he had far more screentime than almost any other character which lends more time to actually show the gradual shift in his demeanor and character. Each major game focused on HIM and his actions for himself and other people rather than trying to bring in a new character to try to drive the plot for that character (Xion comes to mind here).

As for what happens with him now, I'm expecting something along the lines of what Master Spockanort mentioned earlier and say that he's going to try to beg for forgiveness to all of the people that he wronged with most of them saying that it's all right. He's still going to be a darker character than Sora, but that has more to do with Sora not being all that dark in comparison.
 

hlc1988

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I think it's realistic. Rikus attitude in KH1 was a result of his brainwashing and darkness abusing lead by Ansem and Maleficent.
After this he becomes depressed and retentive but not finding himself worthy of things. And during CoM we watch him come to grips with his fear of darkness after falling to it and then learning to control it.
In Days/KH2 the more depressive/retentive side shines through cause he's in control of that darkness now but realizes he can't get rid of it. And given all the time he spends alone he has ample time to remember the actions he took in KH1.

DDD was were he saw the test as a means of evaluating himself. He wasn't fully forgiving of himself yet even with being free of Ansem. And as he goes through his story in DDD he reflects on himself and sees many dream characters actions as mirrors of his own. As well as his confrontations with the Xehanorts who make it a point to remind him what he's done. But he's also reminded of better things like having a friend or friends in general rather than that he's alone.

CoM showed Riku accepting and learning to control his darkness and DDD shows him coming to term with his actions. He's effectively reached end of his "road to dawn" in which he's left the darkness and stepped back into the light.

What makes Rikus development more real than any other character is that he actually has it and we see it having actual impact on him. He went from the calm but somewhat enthusiastic little boy in BBS who was easily manipulated in KH1 to the more mature and quiet master in DDD.
By the end of DDD he's more like himself showed in BBS but more mature and having learned from his mistakes.

So, he has come full circle then which I think is something rare. I am not much of a gamer but I think KH is the only game series where the characters are cared about.

Riku has overcome his inner demons and the self-esteem issue that came from said inner demons. If there was one last thing they could do with Riku in terms of his growth, it'd be him apologizing to everybody he felt he hurt along the way and being faced with a big resounding "You don't need to apologize when there is nothing to apologize for!"

For his character in general, he'll likely continue to serve as that down-to-earth, rational voice to other characters and provide advice when needed.

I think by this point, Riku needs to know people do not hate him. I hope that is something that is covered eventually... even if it is a small scene.

CoM is really the pivotal moment in Riku's development. If you missed it, he's going to seem like he took a major jump. That's what happens when you miss an entire part of the story!

*mumbles* That's what I keep saying to everyone who calls these games "spinoffs" I mean this is what happens when you call a major part of the story unnecessary.

I started off KH, playing KH2 (was thoroughly confused), stopped, went back and played KH1 expecting that game to end with Sora sleeping but it didn't. I did manage to read up on CoM but being in the UK, the PS2 version was never released over here. But being able to play through Riku's story in 1.5 it does help to explain how much he changed between KH1 and KH2 and actually understand the story better!

I'm going to keep this fairly brief since everyone else has already said what I wanted to say, but yes, Riku's character development is the most realistic in the series. Unlike damn near every character throughout the games that aren't named Sora and Roxas, Riku is the only main character that had the honor of being prominent in multiple games (basically every game with the somewhat possible exception of Birth by Sleep where he was a small, but important, bit character for Terra; coded as well since we mostly saw Data Riku which, admittedly acted the same as the real Riku). This automatically meant that he had far more screentime than almost any other character which lends more time to actually show the gradual shift in his demeanor and character. Each major game focused on HIM and his actions for himself and other people rather than trying to bring in a new character to try to drive the plot for that character (Xion comes to mind here).

As for what happens with him now, I'm expecting something along the lines of what Master Spockanort mentioned earlier and say that he's going to try to beg for forgiveness to all of the people that he wronged with most of them saying that it's all right. He's still going to be a darker character than Sora, but that has more to do with Sora not being all that dark in comparison.

Kind of makes me wonder if they are setting up Riku to be the eventual hero... as he was supposed to be before he screwed up big time... With Sora playing a rather major role in it. I hadn't thought of it that way that he has had the most exposure in the games.

I like that everyone seems to believe his character development has been realistic. It's been good to be able to follow a character's evolvement throughout a series.
 

Gram

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I think by this point, Riku needs to know people do not hate him. I hope that is something that is covered eventually... even if it is a small scene.
Funny part about that is that the supposed people don't even know he did anything. Those that don't wind up on some random world having no idea what happened just fall into darkness and then return at the end of KH1 never knowing the world vanished.

It's really more about Riku thinking he should be hated cause he's all up on hatin himself.
 

kuraudoVII

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Funny part about that is that the supposed people don't even know he did anything. Those that don't wind up on some random world having no idea what happened just fall into darkness and then return at the end of KH1 never knowing the world vanished.

It's really more about Riku thinking he should be hated cause he's all up on hatin himself.

Technically, there is the Beast, but I'm pretty sure that by this point, he's already forgiven him. Actually, I get the feeling that he may have been the first to forgive him considering that he himself was also seeking redemption through Belle.

But yeah, it's essentially Riku trying to overcome his whole guilt complex over his past deeds. His story arc is essentially Cecil Harvey's quest of redemption but with dashes of Kain Highwind.
 
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