playstation – My Geek Wisdom

“To the edge of the universe and back. Endure and survive.”

From: The Last of Us

Genre: Video Games

Who said it?: Ellie

The story behind the quote: This week’s quote comes from the critically acclaimed Sony PlayStation exclusive game, The Last of Us. Developed by Naughty Dog, the game follows Joel and Ellie as they traverse a post-apocalyptic world ravaged by a mutant disease. Not only do they have to contend with monsters and the elements, they also have to deal with other human beings.

The quote comes some time in the middle of the game. Both Joel (played by Troy Baker) and Ellie (played by Ashley Johnson) have just gotten out of a huge battle against some human pillagers. Ellie recalls a quote from one of the characters from a comic she’s reading and tells Joel about it.

Geek wisdom: Life can be hard sometimes and it can feel overwhelming at times. These are the days when you have to grit your teeth and power through it. It’s either that or just giving up.

“Freedom. Boundless, terrifying freedom.”

From: Final Fantasy VII Remake

Genre: Video Games

Who said it?: Aerith Gainsborough

The story behind the quote: This week’s quote comes the Square Enix game, Final Fantasy VII Remake. As the name suggests, the game is an enhanced version of the original 1997 game that was released on the PlayStation. The game follows Cloud Strife, a mercenary who gets wrapped up in a plot that will destroy the planet.

The quote comes near the end of the game. Cloud and company encounter Sephiroth but Sephiroth leaves through a portal he creates. When deciding if they should chase after him, they wonder where the portal will lead. This is when Aerith delivers the quote.

Geek wisdom: Freedom is good but also scary as it hold so many unknowns. But this is what freedom entails as the choices we make do have consequences.

“True beauty is an expression of the heart. A thing without shame, to which notions of gender don’t apply.”

From: Final Fantasy VII Remake

Genre: Video Games

Who said it?: Andrea Rhodea

The quote comes during the climax of the big dance number at the Honeybee Inn. Cloud Strife needs to get a letter of recommendation from the proprietor, Andrea Rhodea. This is order to gain entrance to Don Corneo’s palace. Cloud does have to do a very unexpected dance number of Andrea and, while onstage, Andrea’s Honeybee Inn dancers give the merc a makeover. After the makeover is done, Andrea delivers the quote.

Geek wisdom: Things like gender should not matter when expressing one’s true self. Always be true to yourself and act the way you want to act and don’t let social norms tell you how you’re supposed to behave because that’s what’s “normal.”

“Survival can be a matter of luck or skill. And you can’t rely on luck.”

From: Final Fantasy VII Remake

Genre: Video Games

Who said it?: Cloud Strife

The quote comes very early in the game. Cloud and Avalanche, an ec0-terrorist group, has just destroyed a mako reactor as they believe the company that uses them, Shinra, is sucking up the life force of the planet. As they make their way back to their headquarters, Jessie, an Avalanche member, pulls Cloud to the side to thank him for saving her life. As a reward, Jessie attempts to give Cloud a healing materia, and says she was lucky the mercenary was there during her time of need. This is when Cloud delivers the quote.

Geek wisdom: Always try to be as prepared as you can. While you may be lucky at times, it isn’t reliable as serious planning and really preparing for the unknown.

“Do not be sorry. Be better.”

From: God of War (2018)

Genre: Video Games

Who said it?: Kratos

The story behind the quote: This week’s quote comes from the Sony PlayStation exclusive game, God of War. The game is both a sequel and a reboot of sorts to the original games of the series. This time around, Kratos leads Atreus, his son, to go to the highest peak of the land to scatter his dead wife’s ashes. This leads them to an epic quest to traverse the land of Midgard to complete her final wish.

The quote itself comes early in the game. Kratos (voiced by Christopher Judge) decides to teach Atreus (voiced by Sunny Suljic) how to hunt and fight. Atreus tracks a deer but impulsively shoots his arrow, leading him to miss. Kratos scolds Atreus and his son apologizes. This is when the former God of War delivers the quote.

Geek wisdom: It’s important to know what your current limitations are and you should never apologize if you’re just not up to snuff just yet. But this doesn’t excuse you if you never strive to better yourself. You have to keep improving.

“Infinite ammo.”

From: Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty

Genre: Video Games

Who said it?: Solid Snake

The story behind the quote: This week’s quote comes from the PlayStation 2 game, Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, the much anticipated sequel to the PlayStation smash-hit, Metal Gear Solid. In a rather controversial move, Hideo Kojima places you in the skin-tight sneaking suit of Raiden instead of Solid Snake.

The quote comes near the end of the game. Raiden has just escaped capture on board Arsenal Gear. He meets up with Solid Snake, who gives Raiden his sneaking suit and a sword. As they are about to take on great enemy forces, Snake tells Raiden that, if he runs out of ammo, he will give him some. Raiden then asks if Snake would need some of it. Snake then points to his bandanna/head and delivers the quote.

Geek wisdom: Snake pointing to the bandanna is a wink and a nod to an Easter Egg from the first Metal Gear Solid, as it’s a special item that does grand him unlimited ammunition. However, you can also say that Snake is pointing to his head, referring that his brain has “infinite ammo.”

The brain has limitless possibility and potential. You can actually say it’s unlimited in what it can do. The thing is you have to put it to work.

“Fighting was the only thing… the only thing I was good at. But… at least I always fought for what I believed in.”

From: Metal Gear Solid series

Genre: Video Games

Who said it?: Gray Fox

The story behind the quote: This week’s quote comes from the incredibly popular PlayStation video game, Metal Gear Solid, which was created by Hideo Kojima. In the game, you take control of Solid Snake, a retired solider called back to action to stop a terrorist organization from stealing a mobile tank that’s able to launch a nuclear missile from any where in the world, the titular Metal Gear.

The quote is said near the end of the game. Solid Snake attempts to take down the new Metal Gear model, dubbed Metal Gear Rex. During the battle, a former ally named Gray Fox rescues him and sacrifices himself. Before dying himself, Gray Fox tells Solid Snake that he isn’t a tool for the government before delivering the quote.

Geek wisdom: Always stick to your convictions and beliefs. It may be hard to do so because the world is telling you what you know and what you can do goes contrary to your beliefs. But there is always a way to make things work out to your goals, not theirs.

“I gotta believe!”

From: PaRappa The Rappa

Genre: Video Games

Who said it?: Parappa the Rapper

The story behind the quote: The quote comes from Parappa the Rapper, one of the very first rhythm games to ever appear on the PlayStation. In the game, you control a dog named Parappa and press the buttons at the right time to keep up with the rhythm of the stage’s song.

Usually, before playing the stage, Parappa will encounter some situation where he decides that he has to learn a skill to impress his crush, Sunny Funny. Before he does go try to learn this new skill, he utters the quote, which is sort of his catchphrase.

Geek wisdom: If you want to achieve your dreams, you have to believe you can. But, not only that, you have to work at it. Simply believing that you can doesn’t mean that you will. Parappa may only be doing small steps but those small steps are the first ones he needs to take to actually make his dreams a reality.

“Plug your Controller into Controller port 2.”

From: Metal Gear Solid

Genre: Video Games

Who said it?: Col. Campbell

The story behind the quote: The quote comes from the highly acclaimed Metal Gear Solid for the original PlayStation. The game has you controlling Solid Snake who is on a mission to stop the elite FOXHOUND squad from stealing the latest version of the Metal Gear mobile nuclear launcher, Metal Gear Rex.

The quote comes during the middle of the game, during Snake’s battle with Psycho Mantis. Normally, your attacks will not connect on Mantis as he is constantly reading your mind so he knows when to avoid your attacks. Defeating him is almost impossible if you play normally.

However, if you contact Col. Campbell (your commanding officer) enough times, he figures out that Mantis is actually reading your controller inputs! He suggests to Snake (actually, the player) to use a controller in the other port so the mindreader will not be able to check on your movements.

Also, if you cannot use controller port 2 for any reason, Col. Campbell and Naomi Hunter gives you another way to defeat Psycho Mantis…

Geek wisdom: It’s always best to look think out of the box to find great solutions. This is much easier said than done. But by looking at a problem from a different angle, we can, at times, find extremely simple but brilliant answers to them.

Never restrain yourself by looking at a problem one way. Get another person’s views. Put yourself in another person shoes. Try to come up with solutions that are “impossible” to do. You can even try talking to yourself about the problem! There are a lot more ways to “think outside the box” than what’s mentioned here!

“Kick! Punch! It’s all in the mind!”

From: PaRappa The Rappa

Genre: Video Games

Who said it?: Chop Chop Master Onion

The story behind the quote: The quote comes from one of the first games to come out for the original PlayStation, PaRappa The Rappa. It became a big success for Sony’s new console because of its very unique look as well as having some pretty memorable songs. The game tells the story of PaRappa, an anthropomorphic dog who has a crush on Sunny Funny. Throughout the story, PaRappa goes through different events in his quest to impress Sunny Funny.

The quote comes from the very first stage of the game, entitled I Need To Be A Hero. After watching a superhero film, PaRappa and his friends go hang out at their local burger joint. They get accosted by the local bully before they are “rescued” by a person named Joe Chin, who seems to have impressed Sunny Funny. PaRappa then imagines becoming a hero and taking down the bullies. But, before he’s able to do that, he realizes he needs to be good at fighting. So, he visits Chop Chop Master Onion to learn karate from him.

Geek wisdom: Sometimes, we can set limitations with the things we can do. We can have self-doubt tell us that something is impossible. Bashfulness and shyness can actually prevent us from doing great things. And the fear of failure can stop up from even trying something.

But, like Chop Chop Master Onion said, “It’s all in the mind!” Self-doubt, shyness and fear of failure are pretty much barriers from achieving greatness. So, kick and punch out these things from your thoughts!