Ive been thinking about Gabriel Belmonts character arc in the Lords of Shadow games, trying to understand his motivations for becoming Dracula. Ive come up with a list of sequential events that facilitate Gabriels transformation and a brief analysis as to how each event contributes to his motivations. Needless to say, there will be spoilers for anybody who hasnt played and/or beaten Lords of Shadow or Mirror of Fate. 1. Lords of Shadow starts when Zobek, the Lord of the Dead, uses the Devil Mask to manipulate Gabriel into killing his wife, Marie; this is a blow from which he never recovers. 2. Gabriel generally has a tendency to fall into dark moods which can only be broken by Marie; with her dead, Gabriel becomes increasingly morose and moody. 3. The Brotherhood of Light tells Gabriel that he must travel to the Lake of Oblivion, where he will be able to contact Marie; according to Mirror of Fate, the Brotherhood already knows at this point that Gabriel will one day become Dracula. They send him on his quest anyway. 4. Gabriel meets up with Zobek, who poses as an elder member of the Brotherhood and Gabriels friend; this sets Gabriel up for future disappointment when Zobek betrays him. 5. Gabriel learns about the God Mask, which is supposed to have to power to bring back the dead; this fills him with hope, determination, and desperation. Since the God Mask does not actually have this power, it also sets him up for future disappointment. 6. Gabriel meets Claudia, whose beauty and innocence remind him of his wife. Again, Zobek uses the Devil Mask to manipulate Gabriel into killing her. 7. Gabriel meets Cornell, the Lord of the Lycans, who informs him that the Lords of Shadow are the dark sides of the founders of the Brotherhood. This begins Gabriels disillusionment with the Brotherhood; he has to clean up the mess the founders have left behind. 8. Zobek reveals himself to Gabriel; Gabriel is betrayed by a man he thought his friend and is confronted with the fact that he himself killed Marie and Claudia. 9. After Gabriel defeats Satan, he discovers that the God Mask cannot resurrect Marie. Although he has saved the world, he has lost everything he held most dear. 10. Laura tells Gabriel about the Forgotten One; once again, he must clean up the mess the founders have left behind. At this point, Gabriel is full of guilt, sorrow, and rage. 11. Laura sacrifices herself so Gabriel can become a vampire and pursue the Forgotten One into the Shadow Plane. Her death exacerbates Gabriels guilt, sorrow, and rage; he turns these emotions on the Forgotten One, along with his newfound bloodlust, defeats him, and claims his power. 12. In Mirror of Fate, Gabriels son, Trevor, confronts his father, now known as Dracula, and loses. As he lays dying, the titular mirror reveals the truth to both of them. Gabriel desperately tries to save his son by turning him into a vampire. Thinking he has failed, he is once again consumed by guilt, sorrow, and rage; he turns these emotions on the Brotherhood, who, knowing about his ultimate fate, hid his son from him and trained him to kill his father. Ironically, his attack on the Brotherhood kills Sypha Belnades, his daughter-in-law, and turns his grandson Simon against him. Gabriels attempt to avenge his sons fate only drives his family further away from him. 13. By the time of Lords of Shadow 2, Gabriel blames the Brotherhood, and God by proxy, for lying to him, getting his wife killed, and turning his family against him for all eternity. When Lords of Shadow 2 comes out in February, well see how Gabriels character arc is finally resolved. Despite his guilt, sorrow, and rage, the Gabriel desires nothing more than to join his beloved Marie in the afterlife. To accomplish this, he must first somehow redeem himself, thus becoming worthy of Heaven, and then die. Not sure which one will be easier.
Posted on: Sun, 17 Nov 2013 06:09:15 +0000
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