Maliki the Rideable Lion
by BONZO, HSM Editor
Riding mounts have been in games for a long time, since the 8-bit generation. The earliest game I can recollect which included an animal you rode was Joust, which included an ostrich you could ride. There is something to riding a mount over riding a machine which makes the experience more primal. Perhaps it is the cooperation between two living organisms.
In my life time I have ridden a horse, a donkey, once a camel, a pony, and once got to sit on top of the elephant but she didn’t go anywhere. I probably would have freaked right out if she had moved, but the experience of being on an animal that big was amazing. Riding on an animals back changes your perspective because you are immediately aware of being on a living creature, you can feel the muscle movements, the animal’s breathing and the smells of the creature. My first time riding a horse, I was about seven years old riding behind an older relative. I was hanging on for dear life and was too anxious to enjoy it. But since that experience, it has been something I try to do whenever possible. It is difficult to not hold some respect for the animal when you ride it; these animals outweigh you and you are essentially using them. Most horse riders I have met have a tremendous amount of love and respect for these animals, and I honestly feel that those who do enjoy the experience more.
Riding any other exotic creature has been a concept for fantasy writers since the invention of mythology. Kiburi and Maliki made waves when introduced as companions, and with the Home client update, developers are coming up with some very creative ideas when it comes to taking advantage of the use of portable items as more than just companions. Recycling a companion as a rideable mount is brilliant. The community has been clamoring for a change, and developers finally have some of the tools to provide what the community has been asking for. Among these is the introduction of locomotion variations with mounts, and rideable machines. But when you have an established attachment to a companion, providing that companion as a rideable mount expands on that attachment.
Personally, I love Maliki the companion, and though I haven’t been too thrilled by the mounts available to date, this is one I must have. For one thing, it is a companion I already own, and purchasing a new function for him doesn’t seem unreasonable. The new abilities for locomotion also take away the functionality of a companion, so if I use a hover disc or a flying motion, I can’t use a companion at the same time. If I have the option of using the companion by purchasing a variation of it as a locomotion alternative, then I am all for it.
A fantasy mount serves a purpose other than providing an alternative to walking, it reinvents the Home atmosphere in a way. For so long it has been an emulation of real life seemingly trying to replicate it rather than suspend it. New developments are seeing greater experimentation and variation that skew our perspective of what Home is and should be. It’s starting to feel like you aren’t just travelling from one Disney theme zone to another, but rather really inhabiting an alternate world.
Seeing avatars flying around started to add to the fantasy of Home, and including transportation devices and companions, this is shaping the evolution of this platform which really seems to be kicking off now after several years of the status quo. Lions have held a place in fantasy and mythology; it is only fitting to have them make their way into Home as more than statues or trailing companions and into more utilitarian function as locomotion alternatives. Who hasn’t fantasized about riding a lion in their lives? Particularly if you ever saw it in real life in a circus act.
Other games have introduced Lion mounts with a unique twist depending on the developers who have introduced it into their particular game. They never really cease to amaze as a level status symbol of power and coolness. But they never seem to get old either. This new trend of mounts can provide a new direction for the companions to go, and revitalize the market to go beyond pets.
Animal representations are generally more appreciated than machines. Machines you take for granted as tools, but a simulation of a life form seems to stir something instinctive with in us to appreciate it as a life form. While they remain extensions of ourselves, the idea of having a living creature with us not just as something we own but as a partner a companion that becomes one with us is the greater lesson we have drawn from the animal human partnership in all its reincarnations – from the fables to the myths, the games, and every story we have ever heard involving a partnership of that kind.
I have encountered that surrogate attachment in many games. In Skyrim, I held on to Frost the horse as long as I could, in Red Dead Redemption I rarely changed horses and protected the life of the horse as vehemently as I protected my own. In fact, I often dismounted in a safe zone and continued on foot to the danger or battle zone to avoid incidentally getting my mount killed. We don’t face that danger in Home, but the attachment is there for any one who is an animal lover or has ever had an attachment to a pet and particularly cherishes an experience with a mount in the real life.
November 21st, 2012 by BONZO | 2 comments
BONZO is an editor and artist for HomeStation Magazine.
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Nice read Bonzo. I have ridden a few horses in my time and I agree it is an exhilarating experience. I haven’t bought any riding animals in Home yet as I am waiting for my horse to show first. Lions are very cool and I think that the fact he is a companion too will boost sales here as well. You made some good points here about our relationships with real life animals and how that can translate to Home.
Chocobos. We totally NEED chocobos! Someone’s licensing department needs to get on this now. Just saying.