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Breath of Fire (series)
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==Theme== As in most RPGs, the main conflict in the Breath of Fire series is the battle between good and evil. Although this theme is extremely common in RPGs, the Breath of Fire series is unique in its treatment of the subject in that the plot is of a decidedly religious nature. In each installment of the series, the main [[antagonist]] is a [[demon]]; the [[protagonist]] Ryu, the last surviving member of the messianic [[dragon]] clan, must save the humans from their otherworldly foe. The plot often involves corrupt or misled religious leaders who are eventually revealed to have helped the demon. Although religion in games is not an uncommon theme today, it was extremely unusual in the [[History of video games (16-bit era)|16-bit era]] when the series first debuted, and the early Breath of Fire games were a pioneer of this trend. While topics of faith had long since been considered fair game in [[Japan]], they were largely ignored by American companies who feared that the subject was too controversial. Typically, when a game which had any religious references in it was ported to an American console, (usually from a Japanese or [[Personal computer|PC]] version of the original) all of those references, no matter how small, were edited out (such as the [[SNES]] [[Ultima]] games). There were even a few cases of games that were denied American releases specifically because they were deemed as being too religious in content, such as the SNES game [[Terranigma]]. In fact, it is likely true that Breath of Fire II was the first American console RPG to have its plot center around a religious conflict. The Breath of Fire games are also unique in the fact that, while most RPGs are easily recognized as either Eastern or Western inspired (as in [[Dungeons & Dragons]] or Anime inspired), the Breath of Fire series has shown clear elements of both cultures. Dragons and enemies from both cultures are usually used, and although the series does have a slightly anime feel to it, the morally ambiguous plots owe much more to the cynical early PC RPGs of America than to traditional Japanese RPGs, which were typically much more black and white in their presentation of good versus evil. The earlier games' official artwork and especially boxart was also of a decidedly western nature (even retaining a slightly western look, although to a much lesser degree in the Japanese releases). However, as the series has progressed its artwork has shifted to a more traditional anime look, and some of the newer games even feature [[full motion video|full motion]] anime [[cutscene]]s. Finally, where as many RPG series tend to re-invent themselves with every game, the Breath of Fire games have retained essentially the same tone and style of gameplay throughout the entire series. Only the fifth game, Dragon Quarter, differs greatly in these aspects from the original. Some changes are introduced with each sequel, as is to be expected. For example, Breath of Fire III features a more [[science fiction|sci-fi]] inspired setting compared to the semi-[[Middle Ages|medieval]] backdrop of the first two. In addition, the more recent games have replaced the traditional worldmap setup with a more "point and click" based one, similar to those commonly featured in strategy games. Despite these aesthetic changes, the core gameplay remains intact. The result is that whereas games in other series such as [[Final Fantasy]] are often completely different in style from one game to the next, often to such an extent that the only recognizable characteristic is the title, the Breath of Fire games are instantly recognizable as being what they are. There is almost a general timeline for most of the games. Breath of Fire 1 (which means that it was before 2 and 3) linked to Breath of Fire 2 and Breath of Fire 3 in the art of certain stages (earlier characters are depicted or appear as NPCS). Deis/Bleu who is in almost every Breath of Fire game. Breath of Fire 4 which has characters from Breath of Fire 3 but as trainers or NPCS. A reference point might be the wings of Nina who shrink thorough the series, caused by marrying outside her clan. If this could be inferred, then the timeline would be Breath of Fire I-Breath of Fire II-Breath of Fire IV-Breath of Fire V-Breath of Fire III. There is enough evidence that at least Breath of Fire I, Breath of Fire II, and Breath of Fire III belong to one timeline in some fashion. The character design has changed little for the core characters. Ryu characters have blue hair, and equipped with sword and fishing rod. Nina is usually a Caucasian looking blonde female with wings (or something sticking out her back) that provides magical support. Deis/Blue is (in 3 of the games) mysterious mage who needs to be awakened.
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