Am New To The Game. but: ♥♥♥♥ CLINT.

[boonie]

been grinding this game out the past couple weeks. just wanted to say clint is the worst. im trying to romance Emily and this mf tryna botch it.

[Nakos]

Originally posted by Space Sphere:

I haven't played in a few years (just started on Steam but I have two playthroughs on Switch), but Sebastian is the one whose first interaction with the player is "don't talk to me" or something else annoyed, condescending and dismissive, right?

And unless I'm mistaken Demetrius has a book about how to be a good stepfather on his nightstand so the guy's trying to improve himself on that front.

A number of characters are ... 'unfriendly' at first.

Sebastian, Shane, Haley, to name a few off the top of my head. Linus isn't rude, but is a bit reluctant at first (due to some bad experiences with other strangers).

[Psycho]

Originally posted by BirbNotBird:

Make note that both Demetrius and Pierre are the "work more" type. But Demetrius at least have more loving time with his wife than Pierre's relationship ever will.

I think Shane might be too because every time i see him he says "Don't you have work to do?", and hes always working at jojamart

[Volfogg]

Originally posted by Psycho:

Originally posted by BirbNotBird:

Make note that both Demetrius and Pierre are the "work more" type. But Demetrius at least have more loving time with his wife than Pierre's relationship ever will.

I think Shane might be too because every time i see him he says "Don't you have work to do?", and hes always working at jojamart

Shane is more of "depressed defeatist" type. His job sucks + alcoholism.

IMO Pam is kinda annoying. You have legit to spend 6-digit gold to make her relatively normally functioning community member.
For comparison Shane needs only some moral support and plenty of pizza or hot peppers.
Sigh... Money sinks. Money sinks everywhere.

[Based Jar Jar Enjoyer]

Originally posted by Nakos:

Originally posted by Space Sphere:

I haven't played in a few years (just started on Steam but I have two playthroughs on Switch), but Sebastian is the one whose first interaction with the player is "don't talk to me" or something else annoyed, condescending and dismissive, right?

And unless I'm mistaken Demetrius has a book about how to be a good stepfather on his nightstand so the guy's trying to improve himself on that front.

A number of characters are ... 'unfriendly' at first.

Sebastian, Shane, Haley, to name a few off the top of my head. Linus isn't rude, but is a bit reluctant at first (due to some bad experiences with other strangers).

Uh... Linus's experiences with strangers have been added to by me. On both my playthroughs, inevitable the first time I really interact with that bum is when I catch him going through a garbage can, and I always tell him off.

[xAlphaStarOmegax]

Morris all the way <333

[Exodite-Dragon]

I do have to say, though, I wish that 1.6 had brought in a way to give Clint self-confidence and the realization he can (and should) be his own person without framing his worth through the acceptance of someone else. He thinks that being with Emily would 'fix' him, and it's a shame that we can't get him to understand otherwise.

[Howard Roark]

Clint doesn't come off well, but I feel sorry for him.

You learn that he hates his job, and only does it because it is a family tradition. So he is stuck with a job he hates and lacks the self confidence to either be his own man or try to improve his life. It is arguable he also has an alcohol problem, as he is one of the few NPCs who can be found at the bar every night, though that could be because of Emily.

Honestly, I have more sympathy for him than I do Lewis. Lewis keeps his relationship with Marnie a secret for no good reason even though she wants to be open about it. Why? Because it might impact him being mayor. What the people of Pelican Town will only vote for a bachelor? I mean, sure if he was dating a married woman or he was married I could see it being a scandal, but neither of those are true. Either he is putting his job/having power above the needs and desires of Marnie, or he is stringing her along. Both options are bad, and I don't know which is worse. Clint is awkward but at least he respects Emily, I can't say the same about Lewis.

[Nakos]

Originally posted by Howard Roark:

It is arguable he also has an alcohol problem, as he is one of the few NPCs who can be found at the bar every night, though that could be because of Emily.

It also means he's accessible until quite late in the day, where as most NPCs become inaccessible by 9PM.

Clint frequently posts Ore Quests on the board, and that's a way to make him available to the player despite the passage of time.

[ExecutiveOdin]

He does close the smithy at the same time Emily goes into work.

[BirbNotBird]

Originally posted by Howard Roark:

Clint doesn't come off well, but I feel sorry for him.

Honestly, I have more sympathy for him than I do Lewis. Clint is awkward but at least he respects Emily, I can't say the same about Lewis.

Honestly. I think it's important to note that the Clint dude can change. He is just too introvert to stay at home, and lacks of self confidence. Which is sad, because in the Fall season Fair, he can really boast his good skill as a blacksmith.
And well, no socialization and no sense of grasping the reality kinda... make him into a creep. Especially the lategame movie theater and the midgame Summer green rain. Still feel sorry and creep out by him.

Lewis eh... I still half hate half like him the same as Clint. Arguably, Lewis still do his job selling the stuff from the shipping boxes well. But yeah, I really despite him for the reason that I always beg Marnie to stay at shop lol. Lewis is another mess of a person welp. I don't think dude is normal when asking me for the quest purple pants

1.6 added new lores that just make me hate Clint more than Lewis to be fair. And I think it's good that such "simple" characters have deep nuances/problems that we can somehow relate and understand.

[Útost Alronbem]

Originally posted by 永遠:

Linus couldn't even share his tent for one night when I've been feeding and covering his ass.

Did he asked you to?

Originally posted by Howard Roark:

You learn that he hates his job, and only does it because it is a family tradition. So he is stuck with a job he hates and lacks the self confidence to either be his own man or try to improve his life.

Not exactly hates...
Check his autumn Fair event dialogue. He's good at what he does - and he knows it, and is not afraid to display it. Even if he hates it.
Also, does he need to improve anything?
He's a respected man, one of the pillars on which Stardew Valley's prosperity stood and will be standing.
He embraces his destiny and excels at what he does instead of offending strangers and drinking like horse (like Shane) or slowly drifting towards delusion, setting unfulfilable goals and flailing at oneself for it (as Harvey does).
Even when the player technically betrays Clint, Clint stands firm.
I respect that.
You should have guts to do so too.

[Howard Roark]

Originally posted by DrinkFromTheCup:

Originally posted by 永遠:

Linus couldn't even share his tent for one night when I've been feeding and covering his ass.

Did he asked you to?

Originally posted by Howard Roark:

You learn that he hates his job, and only does it because it is a family tradition. So he is stuck with a job he hates and lacks the self confidence to either be his own man or try to improve his life.

Not exactly hates...
Check his autumn Fair event dialogue. He's good at what he does - and he knows it, and is not afraid to display it. Even if he hates it.
Also, does he need to improve anything?
He's a respected man, one of the pillars on which Stardew Valley's prosperity stood and will be standing.
He embraces his destiny and excels at what he does instead of offending strangers and drinking like horse (like Shane) or slowly drifting towards delusion, setting unfulfilable goals and flailing at oneself for it (as Harvey does).
Even when the player technically betrays Clint, Clint stands firm.
I respect that.
You should have guts to do so too.

I agree that he takes pride in his work, but I do think the game makes it clear he doesn't like his job.

You know, looking over his dialogue in the wiki, he certainly has self esteem/worth issues, and possibly has mild depression. At a minimum he is going through an early mid-life crisis.

From the wiki:
“Damn it, I'm too old to do anything exciting anymore. All I have to look forward to is years and years of sweaty, hot furnace-work.”
“The weather doesn't really matter to me. I typically stay near my shop year-round. Depressing, huh?”
“*sigh*... We're all at the beach but I still feel so alone...”
“I wore my special shoes tonight... No one noticed.”
“*sigh*... All these happy families. But for me, just another lonely year.”
Or the letter he wrote and discarded:
“It's my fault. I'm too shy. I'll never have the courage to tell you the truth.
That's why I'm writing this letter to myself that I'll certainly crumple up and toss in the corner.”
He also has a lot of dialogue being concerned about what others think of him like:
“Oh, hi [Player]. Sorry If I look a little messy."
“Oh no... I forgot to clip my toenails.”
“I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow... Maybe the mermaid show will calm my nerves? But what if they think I'm ogling... *gulp*”

All of this screams of a overly self-conscious guy who questions his own worth to me. Several of those quotes suggest unhealthy mental attitudes, with more than a few being common in people with depression.

As I said, I feel sorry for him, I don't detect malice or anger in him, just a sense that he feels he'll never be good enough. Clint is clear that he blames himself for his problems.

Also, I think he comes off as more creepy to the player than he does to the other characters. They don't seem to know that Clint has a thing for Emily, meaning he isn't actually that obvious. Heck, despite going to the bar every night Gus only suspects Clint likes Emily. And Emily seems completely oblivious to Clint's interest and is cool with him, in Clint's 6 heart event you force him to ask Emily out and she says yes. That doesn't suggest to me that he was overly obvious or creepy.

It's honestly pretty interesting how most of the characters seem to have issues of some sort.
There are the obvious ones like Clint, Lewis, Shane, and Pam. But several of the others have issues too;
Alex had a bad, possibly abusive father and lost his mother.
George was in a mining accident and became crippled.
Penny has an alcoholic mother.
Pierre and his family have already been discussed.
Kent was in a war and probably has some form of PTSD, it is even implied he may have been a POW. This has been hard on his family, Vincent and Sam grew up without a father and his relationship with Jodi is strained.
There are some linger questions about Robin, Sebastian, and Demetrius.
Sure, some characters like Gus seem pretty alright, but it is surprising how many have issues. It adds a lot of depth to the game, but without being too obvious about it.

[Útost Alronbem]

"Implied", huh... Is it that's how it's called in 2024 in your region? Kindly reconsider this wording.

They're personalities. It happens that in modern world all personalities are somewhat flawed.
I believe it adds to in-game personalities'... how would I call it... relatability and believeability.
They're not cardboard cutouts from, say, Graveyard Keeper (although GK have strong plot as a whole, characters are kinda meh).

Originally posted by Howard Roark:

All of this screams of a overly self-conscious guy who questions his own worth to me.

*sigh*
His self-esteem is alright. I'd appeal for his Fair dialogue and Green Rain dialogue for that. Again.
Sometimes situations happen where you can only clench teeth and proceed.
Like, 20 years ago our family was on the brink of bankruptcy. I've just finished school education and had to choose further route. Family decided that I have to go Sales because:
- it looks easy
- it's always in demand
- FaMiLy TrAdItIoN (for real)
- education was government backed so at least I could buy my own bread even in worst case scenario
I hate modern sales. But I had to do sales for eight years straight.
And I'm proud of my accomplishments, which were even acknowledged officially and honoured by some minor regalia issued officially.

And the whole misunderstood love affair between Clint and Emily...
Human beings are not born with innate knowledge on flirting and overall gender relations.
Sometimes life gives 0 chances to learn it.
Which leaves a person somewhat defunct in relationship questions because he simply have no idea what to do.
And David Mellon either wasn't born or didn't wrote "Stuff About Sex" book in Stardew Valley's universe. (do note that while being educational, this book is quite graphical. Kids, it's 18+ stuff, stay away)
So Clint can't even learn the basics without risking making a sounding failure for ages to remember (or so he thinks).
As a man with a pride and reputation, he simply does not take steps he's not sure in.
And Harvey, unfortunately, skipped psychology classes so he can't help or even detect this slight and easily fixable quirk...

[Based Jar Jar Enjoyer]

Originally posted by Nakos:

Originally posted by Space Sphere:

I haven't played in a few years (just started on Steam but I have two playthroughs on Switch), but Sebastian is the one whose first interaction with the player is "don't talk to me" or something else annoyed, condescending and dismissive, right?

And unless I'm mistaken Demetrius has a book about how to be a good stepfather on his nightstand so the guy's trying to improve himself on that front.

A number of characters are ... 'unfriendly' at first.

Sebastian, Shane, Haley, to name a few off the top of my head. Linus isn't rude, but is a bit reluctant at first (due to some bad experiences with other strangers).

I got a bit farther into my Steam playthrough, and it was Shane I was thinking of who was exceptionally rude. Sebastian was fine.

[Tactical Drongo]

Bonus points on Abigail being not Pierees daughter theory:
When you are married she (rarely) says that the purple hair 'dye' doesnt really was out anymore and she doesnt even quite remember when she dyed it the last time