Sometimes we need heroes. Other times we need superheroes. They're here to remind us our realities, our dreams, our hopes, our failures, our strengths, and our weaknesses. Heroes and superheroes can be anyone. Batman is the most well-known dark hero. Bruce Wayne's parents were murdered in front of his eyes and he chose to be a crime-fighter, not a vigilante. As Batman, Bruce uses any means necessary to stop any criminals without killing them; without lethal weapons or else he would be just like the man who killed his parents. All this because his parents were killed by a petty, scared, thief. Bruce can't let go of the past, he's consumed by a need to "avenge" his parents; in many cases, Bruce might be classified as mentally ill. But Bruce fights crime in a crime-ridden city. Can that justify his obsession? His madness? Bruce could have been an "enthusiastic" cop, instead he chose a more direct path.
Sometimes, we have to take things we want directly. Our past will forever haunt us. We can forget it, but it will always influence us. Why do some try to become rich? Maybe they've experienced poverty and never want to return to that level. Or maybe they saw someone else in poverty and seek to avoid it or even raise others above poverty. Just like what Vergil said in DmC about "control". Why'd he hack and choose to create a virtual security? Vergil needed something to replace what he lost: his brother and parents; something he no control over. He wanted to control his own fate and the fate of others. Bruce wanted to prevent anyone from ever feeling the lost of loved ones.
Humans, no, all sentient beings make mistakes. As a human, even Bruce fails himself and others. He failed to protect Jason Todd. He broke his code by killing the Joker in Frank Miller's
The Dark Knight. He failed us. His failures reminds us that no one's perfect. No one can protect everyone. Failures are a part of life; a part of being human. With failures, we have to grow from them. We have to live with failures.
Superman, Clark Kent, or Kal-El, was a Kryptonian, a being of immense abilities who looked similar to humans. In the past, Superman was the "boy scout" of comics. The white knight of superheroes. Although, undeniably compassionate, optimistic, and courageous, Superman had a dark past, but he couldn't let that get in his way. Superman couldn't let others see he was suffering. Sometimes we have to smile even in the darkest times. Superman was the symbol of hope for the people of Metropolis and people all over. He couldn't let them know that their ray of hope was hurt as well. Even on a march of death, we still have to say that we'll come back, that everything will be fine.
"Hope is what makes us strong. It is why we are here. It is what we fight with when all else is lost" - Pandora, God of War 3 (2010)
So what is all this about heroes and superheroes? Grit is unrelenting courage in the face of the impossible. Bruce is only human and he will fail, but Bruce will never stop fighting crime even when he's old and dying. We cannot back down no matter how hard our goals seem; no matter how broken we are. Superman could have left Earth to its fate. What obligation did he have as an alien to a foreign world? What obligations does anyone have to anything? He suffered enough as the last of his kind. But does that matter? As the last of anything? He can stop Earth from dying and from anyone from having to be the last of their kind. Superman can inspire others that the next day won't be their last. His courage is their courage.
Grit isn't just brown, grey, and black. It isn't just tough guys with tough lives who fight tough odds. But we have seem to forgotten that. Metal Gear Solid V (and the series overall) is gritty in the sense that there is unrelenting courage and uncompromising realism. Not all soldiers come back whole. Everyone is involved in wars; kids, women, men, all of them. That's the truth of war. Against all odds, the cast fight against overwhelming machines, conspiracies, organizations, and themselves. What does Big Boss owe the world? Nothing, but Big Boss chose to take back everything even though he could just disappear or drop dead and be done with it. Why should Solid Snake save the world (again) in his condition? Technically, he's not even human; clone of a human. Solid Snake chose to save the world because if he doesn't, another person would have to waste their life and be enraptured in a conspiracy that should have died long ago. Fighting against something that we might not even be capable of anymore.
The Legend of Zelda can be considered gritty. Why? Well the main character, Link, embodies unrelenting courage. Just as the Mario franchise could be considered gritty. Just look at Luigi's Mansion; Luigi's fighting against ghosts, powerful, supernatural beings, and his phobia of ghosts. Courage against all odds and against an irrational fear that can paralyze anyone. The inFAMOUS series are basically "average Joe" gets powers, what's he going to do about it? Delsin Rowe is just some punk kid who gets powers. Now he's against the world of prejudice and a system to prevent something like inFAMOUS 2's events. People are afraid of anything strange and systems are sometimes very impossible foes. He's in the very same shoes that Cole MacGrath was in. Can't back down or else he'll be another victim of the system and the status quo. Delsin's just another human, except he has powers. Watch Dogs seems like another "Batman". Adrian was wronged in the past and nothing did anything. The world just watched as his family was hurt. Adrian's going to do what he feels is right. One man journeys against the government. That's grit.
Gritty doesn't always have to be dark. Gritty doesn't always have to be shades of brown, grey, and black. Gritty doesn't always have to be edgy, tough, or emotional. All gritty is unrelenting courage and uncompromising realism. Our lives are pretty much gritty.
