A final plead for salvation is cried out towards a callous Saviour, and then swiftly rebuked through a hail of merciless gunfire. One’s existence has now become tantamount to sin. An absurd delusion in infinite growth, contained within a finite world, has become undeniably irreconcilable. And those deemed as excess are to be culled. Any semblance of a natural order within the world now long gone extinct. Those permitted to survive is instead based upon one’s social circumstance. And a covenant of blood dictates the few whom are allowed to attain power in this world.
“Even if we steal the damn transport, it won’t mean anything if there’s no one to ride in it.”
One of the chosen few stirs from their slumber, although the distinction between the subconscious and the waking world has worn thin. The imagined becoming analogous to reality. So a pointless rescue mission, for now fresh corpses, proceeds unadulterated without hesitation. The momentum induced by a revengeful desire is much too steep to slow down one’s conviction. A war waged upon the living, for dreamed delusions imposed upon the dead.
“Kachua’s gone… Think of the living – like me!”
Violence begets violence. A perpetual reciprocation that further emboldens animosity. Another infinitely growing cycle has manifested. Except this one has been deliberately incited to be. As the two forces clash, the Saviour revels at the strength of the monsters formed from a mutual hatred. Their contest will surely unmake this world, as she meant for it to be. Her ambitions lie beyond the containment of this finite plane after all.
“Change can be a scary thing when you don’t know how to change back”
The battle is settled, and yet it is not deemed destructive enough. One side enigmatically relents from escalation, instead accepting their annihilation. The other must now be enticed into further proclivity. So a vision of the future is laid out bare before the victors. The doomed prospect of this world consumed beyond its means. Of the futile connection between their human hearts. Yet one that bears progeny, born in spite of the uncertainty in their union. A vision sought to rebuke attachment instead provides solace. The surviving monster violently rejects the potential of forming a new world, in favour of familiarity within the doomed old. And so willingly chooses to wade through the ocean towards the setting sun.
“The old Earth will die soon, killed by the very people it fed”
(Sin and Punishment is an incredibly visceral experience. A visually dazzling violent spectacle that glamorises indulging in its brutality. While it is perhaps curt on commentary, much of this can be attributed with just how incredibly condensed it all is. Its story as a result is perhaps a little hard to follow from the game content alone, and I needed the relatively brief excerpt and character profiles to follow along (I used the translations provided here: https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/n64/366184-sin-and-punishment/faqs/14085). Understanding what is going on however is secondary to the overall experience, the game’s focus placed upon its pristine game-play. Your patron would actually prefer to have you indulge in it’s depravity unquestionably. As it is already famously distinguished within its genre space, I would additionally recommend it to any one already acclimatised to the N64 catalogue, as indulging it’s control scheme is perhaps its greatest barrier to entry)
In the end this is a fun ride. It showcases some really incredible looking scenes for the Nintendo 64 and there are a lot of enjoyable cutscenes in between the action, its a really good balance of things I felt, as well as takes inspirations from various kinds of anime into a big ball that makes no sense at all (in the way that only an anime can a manage to pull off and get away with it) If you don't mind outlandishly absurd stuff you'll appreciate this.
