I'm sorry, but there is no way Larian hired a freelance professional "Sadistic 3D porn animator" specifically for... kiss animations. They have their own team of animators that seem quite capable of achieving what's shown in those scenes, not to mention the mo-cap actors doing their thing. I'd like to add that the Larian animators I've seen online seem quite aware of the story and characters, one of them even added in a hand kiss based on Gale fanart.
Then why does it look like that? I'm not claiming that the Larians hired someone to do this, that's just a guess, just because that's what it looks like. It looks like that kind of content, not like Astarion and Tav kissing.
Originally Posted by jinetemoranco
It's very evident to me those faces weren't included with the intent to be sexy or because someone might find it sexy. Whether or not you agree or think this was the wrong way to do it they're trying to send out the message that A.Astarion is abusive, simple as.
Couldn't they then convey to us WHY Astarion is abusing us? I would still understand if Astarion suddenly became more evil and takes control of Tav who wants to leave him (though, in the script he doesn't do that). What's the point of doing that to Tav, who loves and understands him, when they haven't had a single fight or anything even remotely resembling a quarrel in the entire game?
Originally Posted by jinetemoranco
As is, it's just a poorly thought-out reaffirmation of something that was already clear if you play the game.
What was clear? Everything was clear to me before patch 6, and the story was very clear to me. Now it's not clear to me at all.
Originally Posted by LiryFire
It's even off for an audience that imagines themselves in Astarion's place. It's probably a big slap in the face for them. (Sadists are the small part that headcanon) Astarion realizes that ritual is an evil act. But he wants to do it anyway. It will be a dream come true and dreams must be paid for. And so the deed is done. A dream come true, he had help. No matter what, now we've done it together. For those who associate themselves more with this character than with Tav, it shows that no matter what shit you do, if you have the faithful person by your side, who trusts you completely, is open to you - everything will be fine and fun. Also such people realize, they are not perfect. Living with them can be destructive... Decadence. But this person is just like me and wants it all? You care a great deal about this person. And in reality, people like that can't take everything for objective reasons, lol. That's why there are s\m d\s with clear rules. There are no rules for Vampire Lord Astarion. He doesn't let go, that's where the darkness comes in. But a man like that wouldn't be pleased to see a victim-Tav in his face anyway. At all. That's why Astarion gets so triggered when he's called a Cazador. He has a temper, he has darkness in him - but it's different. He is not dictated by anything other than his personality. That's why he's letting Tav and Karlach go. It makes him feel better if Tav's into it. That's why Astarion says "live your best life, even if you don't appreciate it" - it shows how he is even in the illogical Angst-Tav line. More fun for such people is a faithful spouse who understands and trusts. An evil kindred spirit. Face victim-Tav is wrong on just a few levels.
Yes, that's exactly what it's supposed to be. And all of Astarion's lines in loving treatment coincide with that.
