Little by little, new Forspoken trailers have given fans better insight into the game's protagonist Frey Holland. When the game was first announced as Project Athia, fans didn't even know her name or see her face, but noted from details of her design that she seemed to be a modern human displaced in a fantasy world. Thanks to the latest Forspoken trailer, fans now know much more about Frey's difficult life on Earth and what her sudden displacement into Athia means for her. There's a lot of questions for Frey to answer about herself in Forspoken; it wouldn't be surprising to see the game make Frey explore questions of self-worth and meaning as she suddenly shifts from being a troubled young adult to being a powerful mage.
Frey doesn't get the sole spotlight in the newest Forspoken trailer, though. Between the trailer revealed at Sony's latest PlayStation Showcase and previous gameplay clips, Forspoken fans are starting to get a better sense of Frey's companion Cuff. In the latest trailer, Frey discovers that arriving in Athia equipped her with a series of bracelets forming a sentient artifact called Cuff. In a few ways, Cuff is reminiscent of J.A.R.V.I.S., Tony Stark's AI companion in much of the MCU, helping him operate the Iron Man suit. Based on Cuff's personality and implied capabilities, he'll probably play a very similar role in Frey's journey as Jarvis does in Iron Man's adventures.
Comparing Cuff's Personality to Jarvis
Personality is a major area in which Cuff is reminiscent of Jarvis. Although Jarvis is an AI, he's nowhere near devoid of personality. He's largely based on Edwin Jarvis, the butler who served the Stark family for a great many years. As the butler's technological successor, he inherits the butler's composure, politeness, and unwavering loyalty. That loyalty often shows through in Jarvis' concern when Tony Stark does something reckless or dangerous. However, the digital Jarvis has a good sense of humor too, often making dry, sarcastic comments on Tony Stark's requests.
Forspoken trailers indicate that Cuff has a very similar mix of traits. The latest trailer shows Cuff and Frey's first meeting, in which Cuff gently teases Frey as she tries to figure out who's speaking to her, only to realize the artifact on her forearm is what's talking. In spite of this early joking, Cuff seems prim and proper overall, speaking deliberately and politely as if he were a butler himself. Forspoken's title reveal trailer also indicates his concern for Frey's safety around a dragon, though, rounding out his similarities to Jarvis.
Cuff and Jarvis Provide Similar Assistance
The role that Jarvis plays in Tony Stark's life seems very similar to the part that Cuff plays. In the Iron Man movies, Tony Stark is constantly speaking to and collaborating with Jarvis, since he partially resides within the Iron Man suits. Jarvis operates many of the suit's systems and configures details in emergencies; in other words, Jarvis' technological know-how means that he helps make Iron Man's life as a superhero possible. Beyond running the suit, Jarvis also broadly serves as a source of information for Tony Stark, passing along messages and finding information for Tony.
Cuff will definitely do many of the same things in Forspoken. Frey is a stranger in a strange land, but luckily, she has Cuff to guide her. Cuff is presumably quite familiar with Athia, meaning he'll be a valuable source of information and guidance to Frey as she strives against the Tantas. Beyond that, he seems to be a partial source of Frey's magical power, much how like Jarvis enables Tony Stark's superhero work. The latest Forspoken trailer suggests that Frey and Cuff work together to use magic, rather than it being Frey or Cuff's work alone. Frey's power partially leans on Cuff's support, much like how Tony Stark leans on Jarvis.
Forspoken: A Friendship Between Cuff and Frey
Perhaps the most important similarity between Forspoken's Cuff and the MCU's Jarvis is the potential relationship shared between the character and their user. Jarvis is Tony Stark's creation, but he's never treated purely as a tool. Tony's banter with Jarvis and their frequent collaboration shows that they're friends, not colleagues. Tony bonds with the mechanical Jarvis in just the same way that he bonded with the butler that inspired the machine.
Cuff and Frey will certainly do the same thing over the course of Forspoken. Cuff may appear to simply be an accessory, but he's clearly a person with thoughts and feelings. His future is closely tied to Frey's future. As he teaches Frey about Athia and magic, he'll probably learn about Frey's hard life in New York City, allowing the two to bond, even though they couldn't be more different as people. Frey will certainly learn more about herself as she progresses through Forspoken's plot, but odds are she'll bond with Cuff along the way and potentially help Cuff learn some things about himself too.
Jarvis and Cuff Shape Their Respective Worlds
In a way, Cuff is only the latest character in a long tradition of sci-fi and fantasy exploring artificial companions to humanity. The Halo franchise's Cortana is another excellent example, as is Sophia from Persona 5 Strikers. These characters often have their programming and innate prerogatives clash with their desire to connect with humans. What sets Cuff and Jarvis apart from many of their peers is that they're already very human. They may not look like people, but they already know how to think and feel for themselves, which results in entertaining interactions and rich relationships.
One wonders what's in store for Cuff. Longtime fans of the MCU are well aware of Jarvis' transition into Vision, giving him incredible new powers, a deepened perspective on the world, and a crucial future in the MCU, as WandaVision indicates. It's possible that Forspoken plans on taking Cuff on a similarly surprising and complicated journey. If Cuff really has such magical power, then maybe there's a lot to learn about him too. Even if he doesn't become a walking being like Vision, Cuff could grow in power and wisdom in a lot of other ways. Frey is undoubtedly at the center of Forspoken's story, but just like how the MCU took Jarvis in surprising directions, Cuff could have a great destiny of his own.
Forspoken releases in 2022 for PC and PS5.