Amicia is a terrible human being

[Black Snake]

It is so baffling playing a character like her. She is the most destructive monster and the main villain of this series. She is consistently wrong about every single action she takes in this game. EVERY SINGLE time. She and Hugo has a body count in the thousands because she is so blind as a char she can't even see obvious red flags. You can't even make the excuse that she is desperate. She makes wild assumptions based on nothing, gets thousands of innocent people killed, doesn't see red flags that are very obvious to every other character (even Hugo the five year old kid calls out). But then tries to defend her and Hugo's actions. I can't think of a single time in this entire game where she did one thing that was good. She is a monstrous dictator that will kill anyone who dares get in her way and it's almost scary how villainous she is in this game.

[walls]

Maybe your opinion it's based from a point of view that you never lived or felt before.

You cannot even imagine how it feels to fight for what it's supposed to be right, to fight for what you love, the people who is around you, your goals, etc.. to try your best and realize that what you're doing is destroying it all, even the ones you are fighting for.

I saw most of my life in this videogame and it played with me in a way that it shocked me.

For example, I wanted to "please" Lucas when he says to you to not kill the guards knowing in that moment that it was the right path but I couldn't and had to do it to protect him, Hugo, and the rest of the peasants... and it responds with the characters loosing their control destroying everything it more.

The game is constantly presenting situations like the one I explained before but you need to have suffered something similar for being able to realize what is the game trying to explain to you.

And yeah, I guess you cannot win every battle you're fighting and just need to turn the pages and keep going on.

(English is not my mother tongue, so I may explain myself a bit wrong, hope you can understand me)

[Salinga]

Originally posted by ++Windtaker++:

It’s a traumatized girl that was probably also sexually abused by the farmer son at the start of the game.. She can only kill to defend her brother and herself.. Violence is the only really working language she really knows.

Not sexually abused, but choked to death und Hugo saved her by bringing the rats out. You didn't see it, because it happened off camera while zooming in on Hugo's face. In photo mode you can turn the camera around and see the farmers kill Amicia while Hugo is forced to watch.... until he acts. Here are some shots of what is happening off camera:

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904599485
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904599514
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653617
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653576
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653585
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653640
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904599498
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653602

This is also the reason why Amicia is crying out "I am tired of being scared" in the barn and not run away from the soldiers: It is a callback to this traumatic event at the beginning of the game, where she is killed just because she was a child and played around with Hugo, exploring the environment.

The people condemning Amicia are always leaving one thing out: She acts in self defense.

You only have a problem with Amicia if you are a bully in real life and generally don't like people who fight back against bullies. "How dare she!"

[Black Snake]

Originally posted by Salinga:

Originally posted by ++Windtaker++:

It’s a traumatized girl that was probably also sexually abused by the farmer son at the start of the game.. She can only kill to defend her brother and herself.. Violence is the only really working language she really knows.

Not sexually abused, but choked to death und Hugo saved her by bringing the rats out. You didn't see it, because it happened off camera while zooming in on Hugo's face. In photo mode you can turn the camera around and see the farmers kill Amicia while Hugo is forced to watch.... until he acts. Here are some shots of what is happening off camera:

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904599485
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904599514
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653617
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653576
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653585
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653640
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904599498
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653602

This is also the reason why Amicia is crying out "I am tired of being scared" in the barn and not run away from the soldiers: It is a callback to this traumatic event at the beginning of the game, where she is killed just because she was a child and played around with Hugo, exploring the environment.

The people condemning Amicia are always leaving one thing out: She acts in self defense.

You only have a problem with Amicia if you are a bully in real life and generally don't like people who fight back against bullies. "How dare she!"

Ah yes, because the best way to deal with bullies is to go psycho ♥♥♥♥♥ mode and shoot up a school. See in games it's normal to kill bad guys and mindless soldiers. that's fine. what this game does wrong is try to make you sympathize with Amicia. Trying to draw attention to the fact that the game wants you to think her actions are noble, and feel sorry when bad things happen to her. But she is just as evil the so called bad guys you kill. Trauma does not excuse poor judgement or brutal murder. You can't shoot up a school and expect sympathy just because "I had a bad home life". You are still a cold blooded killer.

Amicia actively makes bad decision after bad decision when the red flags are flying. She gets angry at people who are just trying to help her. And her actions actively destroy 1000's of lives. Then the camera pans in with sad music as if you are supposed to feel sorry for Amicia. How dare she have to go through this. But when the player is actively forced to do things that they know are stupid, its hard to feel anything but frustration with the main char and the story as a whole.

[Kitty]

I won't bother reading this garbage

[Black Snake]

Originally posted by Misa:

I won't bother reading this garbage

k

[Kitty]

Originally posted by Black Snake:

Originally posted by Misa:

I won't bother reading this garbage

k

No offense but it's just a game

[Black Snake]

Originally posted by Misa:

Originally posted by Black Snake:

k

No offense but it's just a game

A good game, like a good movie or book, gets you invested in its plot and characters. Otherwise, why make a story at all?

[Salt_Extractor]

Originally posted by Black Snake:

Ah yes, because the best way to deal with bullies is to go psycho ♥♥♥♥♥ mode and shoot up a school. See in games it's normal to kill bad guys and mindless soldiers. that's fine. what this game does wrong is try to make you sympathize with Amicia. Trying to draw attention to the fact that the game wants you to think her actions are noble, and feel sorry when bad things happen to her. But she is just as evil the so called bad guys you kill. Trauma does not excuse poor judgement or brutal murder. You can't shoot up a school and expect sympathy just because "I had a bad home life". You are still a cold blooded killer.

Amicia actively makes bad decision after bad decision when the red flags are flying. She gets angry at people who are just trying to help her. And her actions actively destroy 1000's of lives. Then the camera pans in with sad music as if you are supposed to feel sorry for Amicia. How dare she have to go through this. But when the player is actively forced to do things that they know are stupid, its hard to feel anything but frustration with the main char and the story as a whole.

First I think it's a bad comparisson.
An average person is not Josip Tito
If someone tries to KILL YOU, it's very different from being bullied.

From her perspective she knows what's best for Hugo (that's the perspective the game wants you to have, mainly by showing you exacly what Hugo's dream was)
That's why she is convinced they need to go to the island, that's why she doesn't hurt guards on the island at first.
You can kill mercenaries (I think you can't pass without killing any) because they are trying to kill the dude you are looking for.(seems kinda reasonable to me idk)
After that they chase her until the bitter end.
City guards don't let you leave a collapsing city... of course you get out by any means necessary at that point.
The only group I'm not sure about is those you go past while traveling with Arnaud (but best part gameplay wise imo)

Of course there is that scene where she frees Lucas and get's them both captured because of her rage, but the game is trying to show you she is not thinking straight even before that (very nervous sitting outside of Hugo's room, Lucas forcing her to sit one out...)

[++Windtaker++]

Originally posted by Salinga:

Originally posted by ++Windtaker++:

It’s a traumatized girl that was probably also sexually abused by the farmer son at the start of the game.. She can only kill to defend her brother and herself.. Violence is the only really working language she really knows.

Not sexually abused, but choked to death und Hugo saved her by bringing the rats out. You didn't see it, because it happened off camera while zooming in on Hugo's face. In photo mode you can turn the camera around and see the farmers kill Amicia while Hugo is forced to watch.... until he acts. Here are some shots of what is happening off camera:

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904599485
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904599514
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653617
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653576
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653585
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653640
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904599498
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2904653602

This is also the reason why Amicia is crying out "I am tired of being scared" in the barn and not run away from the soldiers: It is a callback to this traumatic event at the beginning of the game, where she is killed just because she was a child and played around with Hugo, exploring the environment.

The people condemning Amicia are always leaving one thing out: She acts in self defense.

You only have a problem with Amicia if you are a bully in real life and generally don't like people who fight back against bullies. "How dare she!"

Thank you for scene explanation and screenshots !

[Rotbarschbube]

I dunno man, I'd still bang her if she was 18 or older

[LT. Dan's Legs]

Contrast the way Spec Ops: The Line deals with Captian Walker's PTSD in relation to her.

Amicia does not accept responsibility for her actions throughout much of the story. Arguably, she killed more than Walker did (especially if we consider the multiple occasions in which she brought her infected brother to multiple populated cities and acted surprised when everyone began to die).

[Bankai9212]

Originally posted by Spec_ops_Gaming:

Originally posted by Black Snake:

But she didn't save him. Nothing she did helped him. Not a single thing. Going after the magister in the slums of town, ended with her hating the magister's methods for wanting to quarantine hugo and then the city getting destroyed. The trip to the island. A bunch of running around killing guards, her mother dieing, the entire island getting destroyed and the near destruction of the world. The only thing she got was learning that they tried and failed with the first macula. but that did nothing. Her big reveal at the end of the game was to kill the kid and save the world.

Look I agree she had no way of knowing in the first city that this would happen. I can also fully understand her wanting to kill the guards and getting a little carried away in the barn. I will admit that because I was playing stealthy and trying to avoid killing people, it was very frustrating to go into the next area and be forced to kill a bunch of people while Amicia screams out things like "keep coming! Yes follow me! good dog!" It is really weird that the game praises you for playing stealthy and not killing anyone (actively adding different dialogue) then suddenly she is rambo with a rock. especially when like lucas said, they could have gotten out of there. They didn't HAVE to kill anyone (arguably she did need to kill at least one to save lucas). But if the game wanted me to be a killer right out the gate then dont give options to be pacifist in other sections. It makes the cutscenes and forced kill sections feel way out of place and jarring.

And from there I started liking her less and less. I always felt like I was playing a character who in the first game was extremely smart and cunning to a char in this game that was always angry and quick to kill and betray. At one point she gets mad at the knight for using Hugo for his own deeds. Arnaud wanted to use hugo to kill the captain and that was the only reason he was traveling with them. So for the rest of the game she hates him. He betrayed her trust. I get that. But then a few chapters later she reveals to the pirate sophia that the she had been hiding the truth from her because she needed her. She was actively using the pirate for her own needs. Sophia had no clue what she was getting herself into. She was tricked by amicia for her own needs. the same thing she got mad at Arnaud for doing with them. At least Sophia was a god send of a character and didn't leave her side.

The problem I have with Amicia is that almost everyone in the cast is handeling things with a level head and a sound mind. They say things throughout the story that ironically is correct (won't repeat again because this thread is getting to long). Every single one of the cast has lost loved ones, been attacked by guards, etc. But they continue to take a deep breath and think of a rational solution. And Amicia was that way in the first game. I just keep thinking throughout the game, "stop Amicia. stop fighting with every person you come across and maybe listen to their ideas. They might be wrong but you have been too."

The issue with that is, if they would have gotten to la cuna sooner, before the macula developed into the last stage then she literally could have saved Hugo, like legit if ANYONE had actually listened to what Hugo was saying about his HEAVILY reoccurring dream then they could have saved hundreds of thousands of lives along with Hugo himself.

But also you have to take what a 5 year old says about certain situations with a BIG grain of salt, because they have yet to have enough life experiences to make adult decisions, and amicia is mostly in the same boat, she had never encountered anything of this caliber before "innocence", but her brain and knowledge is matured enough to learn quickly that there isn't always the option of fleeing a fight, but also that fighting isn't always the answer (hence the stealth sections of the games), but once cornered and faced with either death or continuing to live and potentially save your brothers life, she obviously chooses to fight.

and she very clearly does not take pleasure in that act as you so fervently suggest, she actively says on multiple occasions that she is "tired of running, and tired of people hurting us", it's not that she is taking pleasure in it, she's just simply reached the point to where she feels like there is no other option because nearly every adult they come into contact with wants to harm Hugo or amicia or both.

You forget the fact they learned that there is no cure on the island. Never was only that negative emotions or anger increases the spread of the disease, something they both forget upon seeing someone of importance killed.

[kangirigungi]

Originally posted by Black Snake:

Originally posted by Salinga:

Ah yes, because the best way to deal with bullies is to go psycho ♥♥♥♥♥ mode and shoot up a school. See in games it's normal to kill bad guys and mindless soldiers. that's fine. what this game does wrong is try to make you sympathize with Amicia. Trying to draw attention to the fact that the game wants you to think her actions are noble, and feel sorry when bad things happen to her. But she is just as evil the so called bad guys you kill. Trauma does not excuse poor judgement or brutal murder. You can't shoot up a school and expect sympathy just because "I had a bad home life". You are still a cold blooded killer.

Amicia actively makes bad decision after bad decision when the red flags are flying. She gets angry at people who are just trying to help her. And her actions actively destroy 1000's of lives. Then the camera pans in with sad music as if you are supposed to feel sorry for Amicia. How dare she have to go through this. But when the player is actively forced to do things that they know are stupid, its hard to feel anything but frustration with the main char and the story as a whole.

The thing that makes Amicia an interesting character is that there is no one good interpretation of her. She is a complex, multifaceted character with her own strengths and flaws and struggles. She is impulsive and emotional, but what do you expect? She is 16, she lacks the wisdom and life experience of an adult, yet she is put in situations that would crack even many adults. Unlike too many Hollywood movies nowdays that tell you that the main character is always right and how dare you criticize them in any way, this story leaves you the possibility to condemn Amicia for her deeds or to admire her for her trying to do what's best, or anything in between.

After all, Amicia is not the kind of psychopathic mass murderer that goes "I'll kill anyone who've ever crossed me and their little dogs too", but she does indeed go overboard when she thinks Hugo and/or herself are in danger, and she tends to regret it afterwards. And remember the scene where she stopped Arnaud from killing the Count. Yes, she made the wrong decision because ultimately the Count was the bad guy, but it shows that she considers violence the best solution only when someone she cares is in immediate danger. I'm not trying to say that her trying to do the right thing removes all the responsibility from her, but that the story gives us reason to sympathize with her as an anti-hero even though she is wrong most of the times.

And of course it's a combat focused video game, and unlike some other games that divorce the gameplay from the story and you go killing whatever enemies you are presented and the story makes it look like it didn't really happen that way, here the story and the characterization justifies the game mechanics. Many tactical/stealth games incentivize the player to kill as many enemies as possible even if in a realistic situation you'd more likely to avoid most enemies and only go for the kill when it's really necessary. Incentivizing the player to knock out enemies instead of killing them doesn't change it much. In this game, however, it's Amicia's personality trait that when she feels she is in danger she goes overboard with killing everyone. But even here there are scenes that can be solved by multiple different tactics, while others are more action oriented where the only solution is to kill all incoming enemies as quickly as possible.

[Salinga]

The third part of APT is currently in cinemas: "Oppenheimer". ;)

[DeadBabyJuggler]

Amicia is a good character with obvious problems. She is clearly blinded by her own love for Hugo that she doesn't care about others and it's clearly portrayed in the last 5 or so chapters in the game where even Hugo has essentially given up hope. Side note but the real standout character in Requiem is Sophia. Great new addition.

What's hilarious to me is I see similarities between this game and the TV Series "The Walking Dead." I stopped watching it because it was literally "Rick's group goes to new location...ruins it for everyone, repeat." At least this game characters feel real, flawed and are well written despite the fact that Amicia is a 1 Lady Powerhouse. I think the french dialogue/voice over helps over-come some of the major video game tropes as well.