章 8: C8: Philosophy
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"Well, this UI looks pretty nice for a 10 yuan game!"
After entering the game, My eyes lit up like a lich king who has seen some new souls in a decade~ when I saw the game UI.
Although I'm not an experienced player of gentlemen's games, I have dabbled in a little. Such games I've played in this genre are usually chaotic messes, especially with their UI content and elements.
But this game, "Magic Mirror," really stands out—at least in terms of its UI.
"Can I only choose one character?"~ I thought~ Of course, buy the rest of them.
After clicking to enter the game, I noticed a diamond in the centre. There are various characters inside, but only one black-skinned elf is available for the choice. The rest are locked.
"So many characters to choose from? Seems... quite generous!"
A surprised expression crossed my face, and at the same time, I felt a little excitement bubbling up within me. Subconsciously, I glanced at the dormitory door. It is not locked up. It was still closed, though, and touch wood my roommates had gone out for the day.
Walking over to the door, I locked it and returned to my computer.
Such things need no explanation with words~ action is what matters. Looking at the game screen, I took a deep breath, my expression becoming solemn and a little bit... sacred.
Of course, but my thoughts, I had another: Is this a black-skinned elf character? It's getting exciting! (Bro, you are losing your character)
With that excitement buzzing through me, I followed the instructions and clicked on an icon that looked like a battle.
'On this night, some isolated Blackwater Castles unexpectedly welcomed uninvited guests.'
'The almost invisible shadow gradually emerged.'
Looking at the unfolding story, I was taken aback and a little speechless. "Wait... isn't this supposed to be a gentleman's game? Why does it feel like a story-driven adventure?"
I scratched my head, but didn't think too much about it. I clicked a few more times, moving through the intro. Then, I got to the actual combat.
Once again, I was surprised. "Is this game secretly a match-three puzzle game?"
I remembered seeing people on forums calling this one of the best puzzle games they had played in recent times. At the time, I thought it was an exaggeration as such. But now, seeing this gameplay, it looked suspiciously like a well-made match-three game.
"Okay, so the orange ball increases physical attack, the sword icon is for physical attacks, the star is for spells, and the potion restores health."
"Four matches in a row give you a power-up, and five matches create a magic diamond that deals massive damage."
"There are also items and special skills you can use, but for now, I only have a health-boosting item."
Following the tutorial, I quickly grasped the basics of the combat system. To my surprise, this game wasn't just about gentlemanly content—it had real enjoyable gameplay!
The match-three mechanics were more complex than I expected. This was afar from the simple, shallow gentleman's games I'd played before.
In those games, you'd maybe solve a basic puzzle or two, and then a static image would appear. But *Magic Mirror* was different. It had depth. The combat system was surprisingly rich for a game of this genre. Plus, there was an actual plot, which was another pleasant surprise.
As I leaned forward, lips pursed, I noticed that the game also had, well... a generous amount of the gentlemanly elements I was expecting. Still, I temporarily turned off the small speaker on my desk, pulled out my earbuds, and plugged them in, listening with one ear to the sounds.
As I progressed in the game, defeating enemies after enemies and breaking through barriers, I noticed the black-skinned elf character would react when taking damage. As her health dropped, her clothes started to... well, deteriorate. ~ So here is the Gentlemanly content.
"Huh," I thought to myself,
"I guess the medieval era was tough on clothes!" I chuckled at the historical accuracy, to speak logic.
But I couldn't deny that the gameplay itself was still holding my attention. Match-five combinations, magic diamonds, special skills, and strategic item use—it all required some real thinking.
After playing through two battles, I unlocked the more intimate "PLAY" mode. And that's when it hit me: all the gentleman's games I've played before? They seemed pointless in comparison. This has value, while others are mere speculations and bragging.
This is what a gentleman's game should be!
The other games? They had some gentlemanly content but lacked engaging gameplay. Some were even poorly made and downright lazy. Did they think players like me would spend money on that? No we will search for pirated version
But this... this game had it all!
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Have a look at this "Magic Mirror." Not to mention the practicality, the game content is so rich—this is the quality a true gentleman's game should have! And yes, it even has elements of a game.
Is it a double ending? When I played through the pure love ending for the first time, I started thinking about the different choices I had made. As I watched the progress of unlocking the dark elf character reach 50%, I couldn't help but feel extremely excited.
Unexpectedly, while searching for a specific book, I stumbled upon this magical game!
"Well, let's not jump into new characters just yet. I'll check out another part of storyline of dark elf first."
Following normal game logic, I figured the second ending would be the one where the dark elf turns evil, right? I clicked back in with curiosity, mixed with a bit of excitement and nervousness.
...
Ten minutes later—
"Why did it end like this?"
Sitting in front of my computer, I was both thrilled and emotional. The dark elf was born into nobility, but she cared deeply for the poor. She even went so far as to sacrifice herself to help them. But the same poor people she had helped were ugly, shameless, and repaid her kindness with cruelty.
When the dark elf was captured by the devil, all those people could think about were their evil desires, none came to help her free from the clutches of the dark lord.
While the in-game artwork remained stunning as always, and the voice acting was top-notch compared to other gentlemen's games, I still felt conflicted. Especially when a guard, who initially had good intentions, failed to maintain his moral ground and extended those sinful hands toward her.
That moment was like the straw that broke the camel's back.
And then, seeing the devil smile slyly outside the wall in the last scene—it hit me hard. I finally understood why gentlemen on certain forums had such differing opinions about this game. It's not just a typical gentleman's game. There's more—a deeper exploration of human nature, of good and evil.
At that moment, I, Jiang ping began to have some serious philosophical thoughts. Is human nature inherently good, as Mencius suggested? Or is it inherently evil, as Xunzi argued?
How could people repay kindness with cruelty toward someone who had helped them? Why, in the end, did good intentions falter, allowing evil to take the upper hand?
Lost in thought, I pondered these philosophical questions. But I had a feeling this was just the beginning.
Idiom:
Straw that broke the camel's back - a minor action that causes a sudden and large reaction due to a build-up of previous small actions
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