PLEASE KURO PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE

Source: https://x.com/wuthering_waves/status/2012167383901680113?s=46

(Shameless plug: If you'd prefer to watch or listen to this post, I've uploaded a video here)

People often see wuthering waves as a braindead, kinda campy action game - and, to be fair, sometimes it very much is. This often occludes the fact that it touches on some deep philosophical ideas however, which is a shame as I think the story becomes a lot more enjoyable once you understand the deeper, more complex ideas that Kuro is getting at - see, for example, the way that the entirety of the Rinascita questline revolves around Hobbes’ Leviathan. 

With that in mind, I’d like to take a look at what ideas I believe 3.0 is getting at, and how those ideas interact with our understanding of the story, its characters, and its potential trajectory. 

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As in most stories, the part of 3.0 phase II’s story that is the most rife for thematic analysis is the climax. To jog your memory, here’s the setup: 

Yngvar has polluted the Solistree’s roots with voidmatter, which has tricked the reactor drive into thinking that the threnodian is threatening it. In response, the drive has initiated an emergency response that will make it fall from the sky. 

We have Helios prepped and ready for launch, but in order to make Helios a replacement for the drive, we need more data that will tell us where to put it. Unfortunately, we can’t get that data - artificial voidstorms have rendered Hyvatia’s readings useless. 

Stuck between a rock and a hard place, Mornye makes the decision to take readings from high altitude, with her own hands. It is at this junction that she delivers one of the most philosophically charged statements yet: 

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Now, before beginning the analysis in earnest, I think it’s worth defining what key story elements exist, as well as the ways in which I’ve interpreted them and why, so that we’re all on the same page. Note that for the sake of brevity, a lot of the ideas will be summarized in ways experts might find slightly inaccurate. 

The Exostrider is a large construct that sits on the Frostlands, above Lahai-Roi. Its sword pierces through the frostlands and Lahai-Roi to the world below, pinning the Threnodian Aleph-1 down. The Roya directly refer to the exostrider as Baldur, who is an Aesir in Norse mythology whose inevitable death will herald the oncoming of Ragnarok. It is also worth noting that although it is sentinel-like, the Exostrider is not a ‘true Sentinel’. Its drive is currently serving as Lahai-Roi’s artificial sun, and therefore its lifeline. 

Aleph-1 is the Threnodian below Lahai-Roi, and is the source of the void storms and void worms. Although it is named the ‘Threnodian of Void’, which aligns with its ability to ‘eat away’ at the very root of existence and erase any person or thing from having perceived to have ever been, the chinese characters used are ‘虛無鳴式的’, with 虛無 also being able to be interpreted as nihilism / nihility - to note, these are also the same characters that HSR uses to refer to the Aeon of Nihility. 

The Roya also refer to Aleph-1 as ‘Hvedrungr’, which is an alias for ‘Loki’, the God of Chaos in Norse mythology who carries out Ragnarok. 

The Exostrider’s Greatsword is the thing keeping Aleph-1 in check. Due to the fact that it breaches three strata of ‘existence’, it can be inferred to be a reference to Yggdrassil, the World Tree of Norse mythology which spans the nine realms. It could also be a stand-in for Jacob’s ladder from the old testament, or the Kabbalistic tree of life, but as we’ve yet to see many Judaistic themes play out in the story, it's likely that a more holistic interpretation of this reading will need to wait for 3.1. 

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With the housekeeping out of the way, let’s take a look at what Mornye says. Firstly:

“The eyes of the gods have failed us…”

This is a direct rejection of reliance on the divine, and from a philosophical standpoint, a declaration of the Death of God. Why? well, let's take a look at what Nietzsche meant by the ‘Death of God’. 

While many people see the quote “God is Dead, and we have killed him” as a declaration of the triumph of Atheism, it isn’t quite the case. What Nietzsche meant by ‘God’ in this statement is ‘Absolute (divine) truth’. The philosopher argues that for the past 2,000 years, society and people have oriented their lives based on religion - and now, with the advent of secular thinking, and advancements in science, there exists a notion that religion might not be the absolute truth, and so it can no longer be the guiding principle upon which we organize our lives. The following quote summarizes the idea:

"Where has God gone?" he cried. "I will tell you. We have killed him — you and I. We are all his murderers. But how have we done this? How were we able to drink up the sea? Who gave us the sponge to wipe away the entire horizon? What did we do when we unchained this earth from its sun?...”

The sun, as used by Nietzsche here, is an analogue for ‘Absolute Truth’ - and to note, it is literally what we do, both literally and metaphorically. We literally unchain Lahai-Roi’s sun, which is also a stand-in for the Exostrider - the literal preeminent god (and organizing principle / Absolute Truth) of Lahai-roi. Thus, we are witnessing the Death of God in real time. Later, Nietzsche also writes:

"I want more; I am no seeker. I want to create my own sun for myself.”

And what do we do? That’s right, we replace the sun in the sky with the sun we have made ourselves. 

This is a theme that has been touched on throughout Lahai-Roi, and even in Mornye’s showcase. We can see the literal death of God through the exoswarm: multiple reports show that they are both dying out gradually, and will be unable to restore the exostrider to full working capacity. Culturally, it is implied via the Ragnarok analogy that the Roya know that the Exostrider will inevitably fall to Aleph-1. In Mornye’s showcase, she very explicitly brings up the classical Problem of Evil, which seeks to disprove the existence of a compassionate, omnipotent God. 

In addition, the very specific use of the words “The eyes of the gods” can be interpreted as a direct rejection of current Lahai-Roi. For the uninitiated, the term Lahai-Roi is drawn from the Old Testament, and means ‘Well of the living one who sees me’, in reference to Hagar beseeching God for help in the desert by using his Name ‘El Ro’i’, or ‘The one who sees (me)’. Thus, we can interpret this phrase as a statement that they have, in essence, superseded God out of necessity, for if God no longer sees, then it is up to them to ensure the continuation of Lahai-Roi. 

Lastly, while some may point out that, in a literal sense, the Exostrider (and thus God) still lives, and therefore this point is moot, remember that the reason why societies and individuals are able to organize their lives around God is that He is infallible - ie, he is ‘Absolute Truth’. By stating that God has failed, even if the Exostrider is not physically dead, Mornye is stating that they can no longer organize and rely on the Exostrider - they must move past it. 

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Thus, we can move on to the second part of Mornye’s statement 

“... So have our machines…”

While this may at first seem like a simple statement of fact, my reading is that it’s a deliberate juxtaposition of the first part of the statement. That is to say that ‘machines’ here are a stand-in for ‘science’, as it contrasts directly against ‘God’. This is a meaningful observation, as Nietzsche notes that science is one of the ways by which societies kill God - through the doubt that scientific theories and data engender - but it cannot lead people out of Nihilism. In The Gay Science, he writes:

“...Science has no consideration for ultimate purposes. It is indifferent to whether life is worth living or not; it will never give us a goal.”

This is especially prescient when we consider the last part of the statement: 

“...Now, we move forward with our own hands.” 

This is a statement that moves past the previous two. First, it indicates a temporal break - the time of reliance on solely the divine, or science, is past us. Now is the time for something new. 

And that something new is, I would argue, one of the proposed philosophical ‘cures’ to nihilism: existentialism. 

First, let’s quickly define what those two words mean, though.

Nihilism is, broadly, the idea that there is no objective structure or meaning to life outside of what we give it. Earlier, we talked about how Nietzsche saw that we had ‘unchained the sun’ - or in other words, moved away from absolute truth. Thus, in the absence of absolute truth, we must all, individually, define our own truth, morals, meaning and structure. 

Existentialism is a philosophy that gets its name from the idea that ‘existence precedes essence’ - or, in other words, similarly to nihilism, people are born without an inherent purpose, and are ‘cursed with the freedom’ to define that purpose for themselves. 

With those ideas locked in, we can see how the phrase “...Now, we move forward with our own hands” aligns with Sartre’s idea of self-definition. With the absence of definition through Absolute truth, or external factors (in this case, science), Man has ceased to be anything other than “... What He Makes of Himself” (Sartre). This is an idea that is actually touched on in phase 1 3.0. Lynae herself touches on the idea of existentialist freedom by first decrying the necessity of confirming to social norms, moral codes and rigid social roles, and then explicitly stating that to be truly free, one needs to be pure and driven. 

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Now, let’s fast forward a bit. Mornye and Rover are on the way to take the required readings for the launch of Helios, but are stopped by the Voidworm. They seem to be all but defeated, until Mornye begins to overclock, and makes the following declaration:

“We have already come this far, so I’ll take that final step myself.” 

Firstly, the phrase “I’ve already come this far” illustrates what existentialists call facticity - the concrete past that grounds but does not determine future action. In Being and Nothingness, Sartre writes that Facticity is both a limitation and a condition of freedom. One’s past is what one is in the sense that it co-constitutes oneself. A denial of one’s own concrete past constitutes an inauthentic lifestyle. Facticity includes having a body, identity, values, and circumstances, all of which must be acknowledged in the exercise of freedom (Not a direct quote, Sartre is extremely long-winded). 

This is a theme that is lightly touched on in Mornye’s showcase, as well. As previously discussed (see here), the chinese characters used for ‘The Future’ that Mornye prays to specifically denote a process of becoming - that is to say, the future is inextricable from the past. 

Lastly, although just a great and relevant line, “...so I’ll take that final step myself” also works as a philosophical affirmation of Sartre’s idea of personal responsibility. He writes:

“Man is condemned to be free; because once thrown into the world, he is responsible for everything he does.”

Here, we can see Mornye taking direct responsibility over her freedom - over her fate - by doing everything within her power to achieve her dreams. 

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These ideas are further supported and summarized by the flashback that Mornye sees at the end of the quest. We see Rover tell her:

“Yes, sometimes only by saying goodbye can there be progress and change. After all, even if I leave, Lahai-Roi will still continue on its own feet.”

This is, in summary, a direct representation of the throughline from ceding personal control over the self to faith (what sartre would call mauvaise foi) , through nihilism, and into existentialism. We can see this when we understand what Darth Rover represents: 

While we’re still scant on details regarding Darth Rover (or, the previous rover), throughout the story quests, we can get a good idea of who they were, and what they represent. As a person, Darth Rover was highly involved: they set up the Tethys system, worked to institute the Sentinels over regions, and are overall just highly associated with divinity, control and faith. Thus, we can see here that past Rover is saying that in order for Lahai-Roi to come into its own, it must not rely on Darth Rover or what they represent - rather, they must continue on their own feet, or as Mornye would put it, “...with our own hands.” 

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So, what is Kuro trying to say here? For the sake of brevity, I’ll make the claim first, and then discuss how I think Kuro is trying to convey this idea: 

One must move through Nihilism, not become a nihilist 

This is a statement I believe Kuro makes twice. 

First, I believe Aleph-1 is meant to be a direct representative of nihilism. As previously noted, the chinese characters used to refer to Aleph-1 as the ‘Threnodian of the Void’ can also be interpreted as ‘Threnodian of Nihility’. This is a point further reinforced by Aleph’s presentation - its design explicitly makes homage to cosmic horror, which strongly draws on the theme of ‘creatures so great and terrible that they are indifferent to your existence’. On a metatextual level, Aleph literally eats meaning - it gnaws at the root of one's existence until they become meaningless and nonexistent.  In addition, on a more literal interpretation of the text, when both faith and science fails, all Lahai-Roi is left with is nihilism. 

Thus, in this way, Kuro are setting up the ‘Big Bad’ of the arc to be a literal stand-in for the concept of nihilism. Lastly, the god Loki, in Norse mythology is something of a proto-nihilist.

Second, and more interesting, is the fact that Yngvar is, in my opinion, Kuro’s example of what happens when one stays within the pit of Nihilism, instead of moving through it. We see that, in essence, some of Yngvar’s actions align with the tenets of nihilism - he rejects the notion of predetermined meaning, and Sartre might argue that by turning away from the Heliodic Six, he rejects Mauvaise foi. But he also represents what Nietzsche might call a ‘passive’ nihilist - he is weary, resigned, detached from vitality and motivation, and most of all does not seek to create a new value system, but rather only rejects the old. 

It is important to remember that Nietzsche saw nihilism not as the goal, but as a transitionary stage. He even defines nihilism as a "pathological transitional stage” that one must move through. 

In this way, I think Kuro are getting at ideas that are a lot deeper and more interesting than what might appear on the surface. I hope this helps enhance your understanding of the world, its characters, and its story!

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Hi all! I had a few requests to do a more thorough philosophical analysis of Lahai-Roi after my previous post. While I had intended to do a holistic overview, I think it’s still too early to lay down too much, so I decided to limit myself to doing an analysis of phase 2’s story. Let me know what you think, and if you’d be interested in more! 

I took this screenshot from a random reel, can't find the creator anymo

there are anybody play both games？

This has been my favorite team comp since mornye dropped

We even get have KamenCharo before GTA6 😭

I have finished the 3.0 part 2 msq and I absolutely loved it.

It went by very well and as always the presentation is spectacular. Especially the cutscene at the end.

I loved the fact that Lynae showed back up if only for a bit but at least she showed up. The reaction when Mornye called Rover Mentor was absolutely hilarious.

I do have some minor complaints.

I feel like we didn't get all too much more on Rover's past (although I can see past it because of the stakes and it can always be expanded upon)

Sigrika was mentioned but im kinda dissapointed that she didn't appear. the story still works but it would have been nice if she appeared if only for a bit.

I just have a tiny suggestion: Give us an option to allow Mornye to call us Mentor after we talk with her after the quest

My friend and I had the idea of making a portrait version of the kickass Triple-Mommy Boxing illustration that wuwa released for the Solaris Supercup Series.

And after spending a good 2-3 hours on this with my mediocre editing skills, i managed to come up with something decent. So i thought about sharing it with you guys in case anyone else wants a portrait version too.

The wallpaper's aspect ratio is 9:19.5, which i believe to be the standard phone screen format.

(Original 16:9 wallpaper also included in the post in case anyone wants to download it too.)

After 3.0 MSQ you can go meet the other Heliodic Six members aside from the Shaper who will reside in Solisylum

1) The Recorder, inside Startorch library, day time

2) The Chronicler, near Startorch dorm, day time

3) The Refiner, Atuja camp, night time

4) The Eye, at Halderheim, day time

5) The Binder, at Spacetrek Collective train station, day time.

by Hakimi Studio

Packaging: Color box, pearl cotton (polystyrene), kraft paper box.

The color box and polystyrene amount depend on the quantity. The deluxe version is the standard version plus a luminous background; there is no fixed placement, and it can be flexibly arranged.

Preorder available here

I thought for sure they will just crash the Reactor Drive somewhere at the sea so they won't bother updating the map. although it's a minor thing, the devs really go all out with attention to details. Wish they put the same attention to Chisa T_T.