my overall thoughts of dawntrailok im still slowly recollecting my thoughts but damn what an expansion. i was expecting that this expansion is gonna be a summer vacation + tournament arc + scifi bs (affectionate), but damn, the writers really knocked this expansion right out of the park for me.

i came into this expansion with tampered expectations, as to show concerns over mis-representation and poor handling of certain cultures and topics. as a south east asian, i'm super happy that they managed to deliver all these representations smoothly. while i cannot speak for latam/indigenous folks, i do have a feeling that the way they handled these cultures were good.

i love that this expac basically make the wol play a backseat role. tho i will miss the times where we feel important, given that we basically saved the world from an impending doom and is basically godlike, its a nice change of pace. and the major scions playing a backseat role is also good for me bcos i want to give the other characters from the previous saga who has a role in this expac a chance to shine.

i also (unsurprisingly) LOVE wuk lamat. i was worried at first that she was gonna be a carbon copy of lyse or worst (i love lyse dgmw but u know what i mean) but i'm glad that with the wol being basically playing the role of a supporting cast, she was able to have more time to grow as a character. sena bryer did her justice, but i think her performance can used a bit more polish bcos some of the voice acting lacked expression and personality. on the other hand her JP voice actor really nailed her personality by giving her a more jock anee-san vibe, and really pushed those expressions better.

im also so happy for krile. she finally gets her proper backstory and grow as a character as well. the previous saga didnt do well for lala scion members so i am really happy that krile gets the spotlight she deserves. also the FF5 reference for her updated full name. her scene with her birth parents got me emotional af sobs, but im so happy that she gets to meet them finally even for a short moment.

erenville also grew on me. i didnt expect him to make him important, and god his final scene with his mom punched me in the gut bcos it really hit me personally. im also happy that he is no longer bound to sharlayan commitments after they returned from the final zone.

as for the other characters boy i really enjoy all of them. i dont think i hate anyone, even for zoraal ja. as cruel and heartless as he is as the bad guy of the second half of the arc i kinda sympathize with him bcos guy was just burdened by so much expectations. tho i kinda wish we get to spend more time with him before he becomes the bad guy. like wdym he had a son out of nowhere during the second half of the story; i get there is a time difference between heritage found and outside the zone but still.

koana and bakool ja ja also got their respective good character developments, especially the latter. the part where he explained the origins of the blessed siblings punched me in a gut bcos ive read a fair number of cultures who had this kind of practice in real life, and it hits home.

gulool ja ja is also a gigachad. man he was really the goat. i was really sad that he died halfway thru the story but somehow i wasnt also surprised given the story beats.

i think the only character i was eh about was sphene. idk. i was pretty neutral about her from the start but even when they try to force me sympathize about her i just... cant. i wish we spend more time with her tbh. i was expecting that she appeared from the start as a shade a la venat but no she didnt show up until the second half of the story. sadge :')

onto the story. god where do i begin i am a shounen anime enjoyer but i am normally not a big fan of tournament arcs but i make this an exception. its more like a scavenger hunt thing than an actual battle (save for the last feat where you fight gulool ja ja's shade). and then the second half of the story where its just basically fighting against colonization+existentialism and scifi bs which is just ough, chef kiss, i fucking love it.

i also love that the story covers the themes of bringing people together, family

tho i think some parts of the story can be improved in terms of pacing. for instance the story especially drags on a bit during the second half of kozama'uka segment and heritage found/solution 9 segment.

i know a false sense of security when i see it. the scenes leading up to wuk lamat and koana's ascension ceremony really made me on the edge fr.

each zones were also good in its own right. yak'tel is my personal favourite for the first half of the story bcos it reminds me of rural southeast asian villages. i have mixed feelings about the second half's areas tbh. shaaloani is alright, i think the very dark environment in heritage found kinda makes me get bored easily but i like the cyberpunk dystopian atmosphere in it, living memory is a tear jerker of a zone.

i cry easily, and as someone who has lost a fair number of family members, esp. my grandparents from my mom's side. the scenes in the final zone hits so fucking hard. i had to stop playing after i got through the first half of the final zone because it was too much for me. the melancholic nostalgia of the bgm and the nature of the zone makes me want to cry. but the moment after u shut down all of the areas is bittersweet af, like how it feels after the end of a party. and then followed by the distant sounds of the area theme. i cant wait to come back there to unlock aether currents and complete the map with the empty look.

tho in spite of this, the final zone really nailed the themes of letting go of those who have long gone. i know people are tired of seeing the final zones in every expansion being so depressing af (SHB with amaurot, EW with ultima thule and DT with living memory), but i like how they tackle the themes asaociated with death from all sorts of angles.

if you played FF9, you will love the second half of the storyline so much. they already teased us with viper, the preorder bonus+digital collectors edition items and solution nine but damn, a dungeon named after the main kingdom in FF9 hell yeah. even sphene i think is a reference to garnet.

the music fucking slaps. i love the many genres used for respective areas. soken really went hard on the ost as always.

gameplay wise i love the new dungeon and trial mechanics. some of them really got hands but its good bcos sometimes i feel sleepy if the duty makes me bored. tho my only gripe is that the way they handle the quests in the msq is very... weird. cutscenes were longer than actual gameplay, some quest is like go to point a-cutscenes-go to point b-done, and some quests is just cutscenes fest and bam ur done and i think some important plot points were not voiced, which is a shame bcos i really enjoyed the story.

i just finally had the proper time to go online on socmed and seeing all these people be all negative abt this expac makes me go 'y'all are playing a different game than mine' and sad. i know SB get this same issue as well bcos yeah some people lack media literacy and dont touch grass. i think you would feel much better from being exposed to different cultures and get to know them. i promise it will not hurt. tho i understand for those who expressed the same concerns as i do.

overall, i really enjoyed the expansion's base content. i have a few gripes here and there but it doesnt completely ruin my experience. i know this is the daichi hiroi (bard quest, pandaemonium writer) and his team's first time writing a major expac but i think it could improve on some parts. here is to hope the patches will handle the story better.

i'd say i would give the story an 7.5/10. as the beginning of a new saga i think it is a great start despite its shortcomings. im looking forward to do the postmsq content soon but for now i shall take a break. irl responsibilities and new job awaits.