LUTZ!
Many times people ask me why I like Phantasy Star so much. I think if you played it when it came out you'd perhaps understand how groundbreaking it was. Best graphics of the time. Multiple planets. Woman as the main lead character (and not a bimbo one at that). 3D dungeons. Many frames of battle animations. Destructible terrain. All of these were firsts and way ahead of their time.
But one thing I always thought of that was also way ahead of it's time is a character called Lutz (Noah in the US version) that was human. When you play the game, Lutz is referred to as both a "he" and a "she". This is done at different times during the game. Most people totally miss this because, well they probably don't play it as much as I have (and there is a female heroine in the game so it's easy to gloss over).
This always made me think that Lutz was supposed to be androgynous, but I had no way to prove it. So I've always referred to Lutz as both "him" and "her" just to go with the game.
However, I just found this interview from the mid-90's on the making of Phantasy Star with the creators of the game. Reiko Kodama (lead designer) is asked about Lutz. She says:
"Since so many people have asked whether Lutz is male or female, let me say a little about that. In the original story drafts of Phantasy Star, Lutz was a hermaphrodite, and as Alisa grew up, Lutz could become male or female. I thought that was interesting so I depicted Lutz that way."
MIND BLOWN.
Holy shit, after all these years, my intuition was correct. I've never actually heard anyone else refer to Lutz as anything other than a "he" before, except for myself. The fact that I've been holding on to this view of Lutz all these years and basically "got it" is the coolest thing ever!
Like I said, Phantasy Star was way ahead of its time!!
But one thing I always thought of that was also way ahead of it's time is a character called Lutz (Noah in the US version) that was human. When you play the game, Lutz is referred to as both a "he" and a "she". This is done at different times during the game. Most people totally miss this because, well they probably don't play it as much as I have (and there is a female heroine in the game so it's easy to gloss over).
This always made me think that Lutz was supposed to be androgynous, but I had no way to prove it. So I've always referred to Lutz as both "him" and "her" just to go with the game.
However, I just found this interview from the mid-90's on the making of Phantasy Star with the creators of the game. Reiko Kodama (lead designer) is asked about Lutz. She says:
"Since so many people have asked whether Lutz is male or female, let me say a little about that. In the original story drafts of Phantasy Star, Lutz was a hermaphrodite, and as Alisa grew up, Lutz could become male or female. I thought that was interesting so I depicted Lutz that way."
MIND BLOWN.
Holy shit, after all these years, my intuition was correct. I've never actually heard anyone else refer to Lutz as anything other than a "he" before, except for myself. The fact that I've been holding on to this view of Lutz all these years and basically "got it" is the coolest thing ever!
Like I said, Phantasy Star was way ahead of its time!!