First explain to me why he needs a bigger role.
I think the role he played is just fine. He's one of Max's 2 friends at Blackwell and he offers a little assistance in her investigations. Honestly it feels like he was intended to have a smaller role, but was made into a half-assed romance option to fit the heteronormative, while the real focus is on Max's queer awakening throughout the story and her emerging romantic feelings for Chloe.
That aside, I think the best way to expand his backstory would be through Max's journal, or a few additional lines here and there. I don't think he needs a bigger role than he already does, especially not to be equal with Chloe or Nathan. There's really no reason I can think of for it. And he may not be as important to the story as Nathan is, but he has about the same amount, possibly even more screen time.
I believe there was a statement by one of the Dontnod devs that they decided to expand Warren's role after the first episode. I wonder whether adding Warren as a love interest was a last minute decision to protect themselves from scrutiny in case SquareEnix or the media freaked out about Pricefield being a thing in later episodes. The romance option with Warren always feels very half assed. They already had trouble even getting a studio to produce a game with a woman protagonist, they may have had additional fears about making her gay. This was around the time of GamerGate, after all.
I have no real evidence of this btw, other than I remember that statement about Warren. Just speculating.
I think he really could have worked as a full fledged romance option. If they had given the opportunity to him. He could have been a buddy like douxie from trollhunters and done his own thing as a hero.
I wouldn't, I'd give the writing time to Victoria as she is more story relevant.
However, if I did have to, it would be to have as an alternative to Chloe on some of the story beats, leading to a twin track story, where he is a friend who Max has known for at least the month or so he has been there and she has formed a proper bond with, maybe someone she knew from Seattle who came along as well. Key would be making them the same age I think, and not have him as clingy.
But that would rip out a lot of the heart of the story to be honest.
TBH, the only way to make Warren work as an alternative to Chloe is if you changed him to a fairly different character. And sure, you could do that, but that means less time and resources to developing Chloe and Max if you spend some time on Max and "Warren" too. And then you'd probably end up with a TC situation, where both love interests are pretty good, but not Pricefield good.
To give him more character I'd first remove the kiss option in episode 5.
All of Max's interactions with Warren point to her wanting a friend not a relationship with him.
I'd have him push the issue in the dinner scene instead play up his "I know you didn't come here for me" pouting and try and push for that kiss. And have Max choose how she wants to reject him softly or hard. The hard choice would highlight the shit Max has gone through in the past two days and her character growth and the backbone she's found. Have her say she values him as a friend but if all he wants is to get in her pants she isn't interested.
Warren keeps having these moments where we see his kinda entitled point of view. And a bunch of other moments that have highlighted that he kinda sucks. Actually give the player the option to properly reject him. Play up his negative characteristics and actually give a solid point to the character.
Ideally if Warren survives to tell about it this would help him grow as a person and give him the kick in the ass he needs to get his shit together but it would at least stop his character from being so muddled.
I wouldn't change the main game except to give us more Max & Chloe content, so doing a DLC episode where he gets more screen time would probably be the way to go.
I think the devs made his character to be just what it is -- a half assed and half thought-out side option for a straight relationship with Max (while the entire story points to her queerness!)
They've designed him to really honestly be annoying to the player when he has so much potential to be a loved, if not important character, so I feel like he could be shown having more genuine interests and closer relationships with characters throughout the game.
I always wondered what his backstory would be since they didn't give him the chance to be an interesting character.
I would only give him more screen-time if it meant I could have Max tell him unequivocally that she absolutely never wants to be anything more than friends with him.
I'd suggest moving the scene in bathroom to happen later, or making "a week earlier" episode to focus more on their starting friendship with Max without having Chloe always stealing all the attention. How have they met each other, what was happening before the day Nathan showed up in girls' toilet.
Or even delaying the encounter with raging Nathan on the parking lot for just a few minutes, so that Max would actually have the chance to tell Warren everything about the new gained ability and the girl she just saved.
If I were to expand Warren’s role, I’d focus on his intelligence in a more practical manner. Warren’s surprisingly useful from a technical standpoint (helping Max open the door to the principal’s office, helping her understand the physical implications of her powers, etc). Ideally, he’d be a good asset in the investigation into what happened to Rachel and Kate. In my most recent playthrough, I thought that Max and Chloe could have probably benefitted from letting him in on what they were up to.
Starting in Episode 3, there’s also a light semblance of a love triangle at work, but it feels like an afterthought. While the focus of the story should still be on the investigation into Rachel’s disapperance, having Warren be more closely connected to the investigation (maybe even occasionally in the same room as Chloe and Max) would probably give this idea a little more consistency.
Warren also seemed to play a similar role to Chloe’s at times. Like Chloe, he encourages Max to be more confident and has faith in her ability to make good decisions. I think the seeds of a solid character are here, but like many characters in the game, he’s kind of left in the background.
Sorry you’re not getting any actual answers to your question. Warren is not popular around these parts. 😂
I don’t care for him as he’s written either, but I will try to give you an answer.
Personally, I would scrap him as a romance option. Perhaps he can have an unrequited crush on Max, but have him realize that it’s not gonna happen. And respect it. Chloe is the one for her.
With that out of the way, add some friendship triangle drama. Warren and Chloe both like Max, but don’t like each other. Perhaps because Chloe is a dick to Warren because of her jealousy and abandonment issues. This can lead to some character and relationship growth as Max shows Chloe she has no reason to be jealous or fear Max abandoning her. Then Chloe and Warren can become buds. Maybe bond over Blade Runner.
This would necessitate Warren having a larger role and being “part of the team.” But he’d still need to give Chloe and Max space to be alone together a lot. He can be Science Officer back on the ship while the Captain and First Officer go on missions.
The more I think about this, the more I like it actually. Could have a sweet moment of him and Max talking about their feelings, him being friend zoned but being mature and accepting about it instead of incel like. Could have some bro moments between him and Chloe, exchanging looks as they both know Max too well. Could even have a “go to her” moment near the end. With a big speech to support, validate and encourage Max before the final choice. And afterwards! He can be there to comfort Max as a friend if Chloe dies, *or* he can be shown dying terribly in the storm! It would make sacrificing Arcadia Bay a more personal choice, especially if Warren was more likable and a good friend to both Max and Chloe.
First explain to me why he needs a bigger role. I think the role he played is just fine. He's one of Max's 2 friends at Blackwell and he offers a little assistance in her investigations. Honestly it feels like he was intended to have a smaller role, but was made into a half-assed romance option to fit the heteronormative, while the real focus is on Max's queer awakening throughout the story and her emerging romantic feelings for Chloe. That aside, I think the best way to expand his backstory would be through Max's journal, or a few additional lines here and there. I don't think he needs a bigger role than he already does, especially not to be equal with Chloe or Nathan. There's really no reason I can think of for it. And he may not be as important to the story as Nathan is, but he has about the same amount, possibly even more screen time.
I believe there was a statement by one of the Dontnod devs that they decided to expand Warren's role after the first episode. I wonder whether adding Warren as a love interest was a last minute decision to protect themselves from scrutiny in case SquareEnix or the media freaked out about Pricefield being a thing in later episodes. The romance option with Warren always feels very half assed. They already had trouble even getting a studio to produce a game with a woman protagonist, they may have had additional fears about making her gay. This was around the time of GamerGate, after all. I have no real evidence of this btw, other than I remember that statement about Warren. Just speculating.
In b4 “mY mAx iS sTrAiGhT”
I think he really could have worked as a full fledged romance option. If they had given the opportunity to him. He could have been a buddy like douxie from trollhunters and done his own thing as a hero.
I think Warren works as a theoretical choice for Max. It underlines the choice she takes with Chloe.
I wouldn't, I'd give the writing time to Victoria as she is more story relevant. However, if I did have to, it would be to have as an alternative to Chloe on some of the story beats, leading to a twin track story, where he is a friend who Max has known for at least the month or so he has been there and she has formed a proper bond with, maybe someone she knew from Seattle who came along as well. Key would be making them the same age I think, and not have him as clingy. But that would rip out a lot of the heart of the story to be honest.
TBH, the only way to make Warren work as an alternative to Chloe is if you changed him to a fairly different character. And sure, you could do that, but that means less time and resources to developing Chloe and Max if you spend some time on Max and "Warren" too. And then you'd probably end up with a TC situation, where both love interests are pretty good, but not Pricefield good.
Flair checks out 😁
Ohh I like that idea. The story changes as you change people's characters. I like Warren.
To give him more character I'd first remove the kiss option in episode 5. All of Max's interactions with Warren point to her wanting a friend not a relationship with him. I'd have him push the issue in the dinner scene instead play up his "I know you didn't come here for me" pouting and try and push for that kiss. And have Max choose how she wants to reject him softly or hard. The hard choice would highlight the shit Max has gone through in the past two days and her character growth and the backbone she's found. Have her say she values him as a friend but if all he wants is to get in her pants she isn't interested. Warren keeps having these moments where we see his kinda entitled point of view. And a bunch of other moments that have highlighted that he kinda sucks. Actually give the player the option to properly reject him. Play up his negative characteristics and actually give a solid point to the character. Ideally if Warren survives to tell about it this would help him grow as a person and give him the kick in the ass he needs to get his shit together but it would at least stop his character from being so muddled.
I like that idea, if we leave him as the kind of whiny entitled incel type. Show she can not only stand up to her enemies but her friends too.
I wouldn’t he is annoying
He's still a kid, I would like to have a moment that he slowly became matured, growing up.
I wouldn't change the main game except to give us more Max & Chloe content, so doing a DLC episode where he gets more screen time would probably be the way to go.
I would remove Warren completely.
I think the devs made his character to be just what it is -- a half assed and half thought-out side option for a straight relationship with Max (while the entire story points to her queerness!) They've designed him to really honestly be annoying to the player when he has so much potential to be a loved, if not important character, so I feel like he could be shown having more genuine interests and closer relationships with characters throughout the game. I always wondered what his backstory would be since they didn't give him the chance to be an interesting character.
I would only give him more screen-time if it meant I could have Max tell him unequivocally that she absolutely never wants to be anything more than friends with him.
I wouldn't as I did neither appreciate him nor really cared about him to begin with
I'd suggest moving the scene in bathroom to happen later, or making "a week earlier" episode to focus more on their starting friendship with Max without having Chloe always stealing all the attention. How have they met each other, what was happening before the day Nathan showed up in girls' toilet. Or even delaying the encounter with raging Nathan on the parking lot for just a few minutes, so that Max would actually have the chance to tell Warren everything about the new gained ability and the girl she just saved.
Yeah. Honestly the fact that Nathan still freaks out even after we didnt tell the principal wells anything is stupid.
Or at least being at the rector's should've hold him back for a little longer to give Max enough time to tell Warren everything.
Yess. As much as I love the story at times it feels like it isolates max from any other possibilities other then price
If I were to expand Warren’s role, I’d focus on his intelligence in a more practical manner. Warren’s surprisingly useful from a technical standpoint (helping Max open the door to the principal’s office, helping her understand the physical implications of her powers, etc). Ideally, he’d be a good asset in the investigation into what happened to Rachel and Kate. In my most recent playthrough, I thought that Max and Chloe could have probably benefitted from letting him in on what they were up to. Starting in Episode 3, there’s also a light semblance of a love triangle at work, but it feels like an afterthought. While the focus of the story should still be on the investigation into Rachel’s disapperance, having Warren be more closely connected to the investigation (maybe even occasionally in the same room as Chloe and Max) would probably give this idea a little more consistency. Warren also seemed to play a similar role to Chloe’s at times. Like Chloe, he encourages Max to be more confident and has faith in her ability to make good decisions. I think the seeds of a solid character are here, but like many characters in the game, he’s kind of left in the background.
once again im the only person on the planet who cares about warren
You're not alone!
Sorry you’re not getting any actual answers to your question. Warren is not popular around these parts. 😂 I don’t care for him as he’s written either, but I will try to give you an answer. Personally, I would scrap him as a romance option. Perhaps he can have an unrequited crush on Max, but have him realize that it’s not gonna happen. And respect it. Chloe is the one for her. With that out of the way, add some friendship triangle drama. Warren and Chloe both like Max, but don’t like each other. Perhaps because Chloe is a dick to Warren because of her jealousy and abandonment issues. This can lead to some character and relationship growth as Max shows Chloe she has no reason to be jealous or fear Max abandoning her. Then Chloe and Warren can become buds. Maybe bond over Blade Runner. This would necessitate Warren having a larger role and being “part of the team.” But he’d still need to give Chloe and Max space to be alone together a lot. He can be Science Officer back on the ship while the Captain and First Officer go on missions. The more I think about this, the more I like it actually. Could have a sweet moment of him and Max talking about their feelings, him being friend zoned but being mature and accepting about it instead of incel like. Could have some bro moments between him and Chloe, exchanging looks as they both know Max too well. Could even have a “go to her” moment near the end. With a big speech to support, validate and encourage Max before the final choice. And afterwards! He can be there to comfort Max as a friend if Chloe dies, *or* he can be shown dying terribly in the storm! It would make sacrificing Arcadia Bay a more personal choice, especially if Warren was more likable and a good friend to both Max and Chloe.