cidthesquid - Tumblr blog

[cidthesquid]

Final Fantasy XIV - Looking through the closet.

I first created this character long before I played style savvy, Since then I've learned a lot about making outfits, (I'm still not great!) I thought it could be fun to look back through some older outfits I made for this character long before I turned them into 'Cid'|my avatar

This will probably be the last set of FF screenshots I post for her until the 7.0 Graphics update! So today, I'll be looking through a few of the outfits I made over the years for this character,Both good and bad! (this is my 5th alt character, and their current outfit)

I don't know why, but it feels really weird for me to post a ton of screenshot without text. So'll just say I really like the FF:XVI crossover outfit. The FF8 looks great too, as well as Cloud's pants,but I think I've shown both off in the past:

I just love making cool outfits for her! But I think the under-eye marks are a bit much.. maybe I should change the color a bit. -- Beyond this point I'll be sharing some 'older outfits' these are from before I decided to rework this into my 'Style Savvy' Character. I still think they're still interesting, but they don't really represent who my character is now. --- Here's their old fishing and gathering outfit:

I just love making cool outfits for her! But I think the under-eye marks are a bit much.. maybe I should change the color a bit. -- Beyond this point I'll be sharing some 'older outfits' these are from before I decided to rework this into my 'Style Savvy' Character. I still think they're still interesting, but they don't really represent who my character is now. --- Here's their old fishing and gathering outfit:

I still like this one, I still think it's as a bit of a cool edge to it, I'll probably stick with it for a little while, But I think it may be a little 'too' simple. Also, I think the color choices could have been better. Here's a 'town' outfit, (not really for combat)

It's super simple, and the shoes really don't fit, so I'm guessing I made this pretty early on. Not bad for simply mixing low cost+seasonal event gear, But not something I can see 'Cid' wearing without notable changes. I was super strict about my color choices back then, I eventually tried mixing some white into my attire, and by this point I could afford more clothes and dyes:

I think Both are a little 'too busy', but it was really my first time branching out with styles. I think the one on the left may have too many colors and textures going on. The one on the right I think just melds too many styles, the colors match up, but you have the standard exotic veria 'shoes' that don't really fit with the more elegant and refined gauntlets. And I think the top looks really the cover is nice, and the bikini top as a nice decoration and the jewels are a nice touch, but the skit choice at the bottom is just too plain, it stands out. Here's an older use of that same coat:

I think the Green flows way better, especially when paired with a green skirt. I think The darker color headband work much better here too! I have no idea why I thought those shoes fit... they stand out a little much... And the last one worth showing about:

(Don't tell Yoshi-P, but I have the bunny hats mod!) I've tried more extensive modding in the past, but it was a ton of work to make sure everything was compatible, and I did not really find many 3rd party outfits that I liked. I actually really enjoy playing around with the vanilla outfits, just like this outfit, sometimes something basic can be fairly effective. And I feel I can actually be more creative when working within the games restrictions. --- But anyway thanks for reading! I had a lot of fun making this, so I hope you had fun reading it as well. I don't currently have any plans to show off my main character here, for privacy reasons, but I may share more alts if people request it. As always, all comments, questions, and suggestions are welcome! You literally can't bother me, unless you go out of your way to be a jerk, so post whatever you want to say!

[cidthesquid]

A Battle Royale Game with less guns and more Fashion! (Naraka Bladepoint)

So just putting this out there, this post is not a knock againsts FPs game or standard battle royales, I used to play a lot of COD, halo, PUBG and the like. So I have nothing against them. (I just needed a catchy title)

But I have not really engaged with any of those series much in the last few years, and generally lean towards single player focused JRPGs. But the one online game (Aside from FF:XIV) that I've spent the most time in has got to be Naraka Bladepoint!

Now I should mention that this game is F2P, so the actual outfits in this game will cost real money, But I've been playing this for a few weeks and have been having fun without spending any money. Mainly because this game features a detailed character customization!

I've seen some Single player rpgs that has less options than this! ...And to be honest, it's a little overwhelming, even if they really just let you edit the face and skin only.

Just look at all these options for the Second 'Chin adjustment' Section!

I'm going to have to leave most of this alone..

They also have a dedicated section for 'blush', most games pair this with other settings, making it so you have to trade off blush for tattoos or other features. And you can also adjust where the blush appears on your character. And for eyebrows..

What even is this? you get a choice of not just the 'pattern' but also the 'shading' (brightness) and a separate color option. Then there's a whole separate section with slides three different parts of the eyebrows, insider, middle and outer. not just left/right side. It's pretty crazy to see just how much a tweak to the eyebrows changes the expression:

I'm trying to create my standard 'cid' avatar, From style savvy, it was pretty easy in Fashion Dreamer and FF:XIV, As both have presets, but It's much harder with this game's more realistic style, and lack of presets for each section. And now the section I always get stuck on:

I don't know what it is about noses, but I never know what to do with them. I guess I've never paid any attention to them on others, so I don't really know what's considered 'a good nose' nor do I really have any preferences for designing them. Unless they distract from the rest of the face, I normally just want to leave them alone.

At most, I'll just tweak a few sliders to make it 'not generic' (i guess) and try to not make it look worse. This is really hard! Next we move on to lip options:

And here's where they decided to cheap out:

A few basic patterns, and two sliders 'shading' (color) and Luster (finish). It's not a huge deal, but feels like an odd choice, especially when eye makeup has like 3 times the options:

But when it comes to lip model, don't worry, you'll be back to being flooded with sliders:

Aside from skin tone, they also have two different "skin types:

It may be hard to see without zooming in, but they change the shading a bit, and how light interacts with your character's skin tone.

You'll also be able to adjust the luster, aging, and give your skin a metallic sheen?

You'll have multiple design slots for each character, and you can always go back and edit them for free!

Extra hairstyles can be unlocked as well, and can be switched at any time, as they not saved in your custom 'faces' for each character.

So here's my final look:

Not exactly a perfect fit, but I still think it turned out well:

(Turns out I had noting like the in-game outfit unlocked in ss, oops!) But again, my 'Cid' design does not have any set rules, other than "look cool and confident" so I guess this fits! I still need to mentally work on the "You don't need to justify your character creations" bit, But I think branching out my 'Cid' design with each game is helping a little, hopefully I'll be able to move to just saying "I want to make a cool looking character". or any other style, Fun, cute, funny, tough, etc. but that's still a work in progress! Anyways,I've been having a lot of fun editing various characters, but playing F2p means I'm limited in who I can unlock, But I'm not limited by how much creativity I can use!

Although, it's kinda sad that all these really cool outfits are locked behind $15+ purchases and lootboxes.

But, I guess they gotta fund their game somehow :-/ Anyways, I had a lot of fun playing and talking about this game with you all! Thanks for sticking by and reading this super long post! I've wanted to talk about a create-a-character in a game for a while, and this game happened to be wild enough to justify a post!

As always, all comments, questions, and suggestions are welcome! You literally can't bother me, unless you go out of your way to be a jerk, so post whatever you want to say

[cidthesquid]

My First Look At: Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA Mega Mix+

If anyone here has been wondering what's been eating up all my free time recently, it's been this game.. "Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA Mega Mix+" I don't know if I've mentioned this here, but my three favorite game types are actually ARPGs, Fighting Games and Rhythm games! And now I've found a really fun Rhythm game with Fashion elements!

Clearing songs, and improving your scores gets you points that you can use to unlock new outfits for the various characters, and there are a TON of choices:

Not only that, but you can even mix and match outfits and hair styles, to find something you think suits the look better.

(This changes the hair, and some face features such as makeup)

You'll have multiple accessory slots as well, and you can attach one item in each spot to further customize your look:

(Some of these are very silly, But they're fun to try out!)

I'ts really fun to try out various custom outfits when playing songs! You only get 4 'Custom slots' but for songs that have multiple singers, you'll be able to edit all of them, still only taking up a single slot.

The game only has one standard 'mode', with a few difficulty options. But you'll also have the option to practice specific parts, or you can watch a 'music video' of the song, where it plays its self with the hud removed. (show in the above gif)

As for the characters... I was never much of a miku fan before, Only hearing a few songs in other games, I never sought out her content. And while I won't break down all the characters, I will talk about my impressions of Hatsune Miku.

One game is not much to go on, but she definitely feels like one of those “Universal Appeal” characters, I'm by no means bother by that. But it just means they can't really give her any kind of personality,

On the other hand, it is nice to know that means they don't simply confine her to sticking with one style for her songs.

The game offers a wide range of Vocaloid music, each with a (swappable) lead singer.

And even though Miku's song's are mostly cute and up beat, there are a few edgier and slightly darker ones too. So I'd argue my opinion of Miku has improved overall, as before, I'd really only hear her more popular hits in 'Taiko no Tasujin', and just seeing her posted everywhere as gifs and avatars, I'm not sure if I'd call myself a 'huge Miku fan' but I am enjoying this game.

-- And, as for what character I played the most.. Well, If you've followed my content for any amount of time, You probably already know what type of characters I generally gravitate to:

It looks like Meiko is supposed to be the 'Cool Girl'/Mature Character, But much of her outfit selection feels a bit off to me:

(sorry for the small preview, it's just for reference) It looks like they wanted to give here the tomboy style personality, but they don't really have any outfits that match that, (...Okay, maybe I'm just projecting the personality I want on to her, but the But this game does not really give you a whole lot to go on..) Lots of 'cute' outfits, with only a few mature ones thrown in, (And some of the mature ones honestly feel a little generic) And then there's stuff like these, feels like the start of a good outfit, but then goes a little off the rails... (they look way too busy)

I have no problems with offering revealing outfits as an option, I've play games using some myself. But I just don't personally find these visually appealing. It really feels like they were too afraid to branch out with her outfit styles I really feel they should have given her better variety, or at least a specific style that stood out more from the rest. I'm not even sure what's going on with here 'modern' outfit (left) I feel they could have used some of the cool designs from luka (right)

But anyways, I really don't know anything about Vocaloid culture, maybe I missed the point, and this all perfectly fits Meiko's personality, IDK, (let me know in the comments) ..But I still work have preferred more options. --- Anyway, I've still been having a blast playing this game! and even though the fashion elements are fairly light, I still enjoyed them. Oh and just as a disclaimer, I was using a few QOL mods in this post, So be aware that some things (like having English subs) may be different from the vanilla game! Anyways, thanks for reading! (comments/constructive criticism is always welcome!)

[cidthesquid]

A Quick Update! - Style Savvy Trendsetter #09

Hello all! I know many of you may have followed primarily for Style Savvy content, And that's 100% okay! I want everyone to be able to enjoy whatever part of my content they want, however they want!

I would actually start to feel bad if people felt obligated to read my extra ramblings, or check out posts that don't interest them. I make these post for my own enjoyment and journaling my digital fashion journey, across multiple games! So as Iong as I find new experiences I'll keep posting! (Questions/Comments are always welcome!) ----- Style Savvy tendsetter has slowed down quite a bit, so I have not had much to post about, But I feel like it's been long enough to share at least a quick update! First, Chad is getting a little worried about the massive amount of clothes getting sent to my apartment:

He's not very confrontational about it, and it seems like genuine curiosity, and he's a really nice guy, so I won't hold it against him. :) I also ended up entering another fashion contest! I'm still stuck in beginner rank, until the story progresses further. But I think I was able to come up with a cute outfit to match the girly theme:

There's not much challenge at this level, but it's a fun little distraction.

While I'm at least playing a few days a week now, I actually took a break for a while, my adhd just had trouble staying engaged with a game that was this laser focused on one specific activity. It actually being stuck in a waiting room for a doctors appointment, for me to boot it up on my phone again. (don't worry, it was just routine)

Contests don't really give you any money, and only give you a single clothing item for willing, so while replaying them is fun, it's not a great use of your time. I also changed up my outfit for the first time in over a month, I really liked the green kimono, but the pattern was a bit much for wearing around town. So I decided to mix it up a bit:

I found a really nice combination of items that offers a shoulder-less look that I did not think was possible in this game.

Yeah, it's fairly monochromatic, that's pretty much my 'panic play', when trying something new, even if it's not boring, at least it's not messy. haha!

The furniture shop also just opened, so I can now start decorating my character's room!

They seem very excited about it! haha

I decided to go with a mint/pastel purple color scheme, mostly because it's one of the few 3 color matches I could remember at the time for brown/tan, so I figured it would match the flooring well. I'd never want to live here IRL, but I think it looks pretty nice for the game.

Also, fun fact, your apartment's wallpaper will also be applied as your background for the apartment menu. And yeah, that's really it for this update, I'll leave you with one extra screenshot, and those who are interested/comfortable can stick around for the bonus existential stuff! :P

---- /!\ Caution: End of Cute screenshots, Mostly unedited Ramblings beyond this point /!\ Alright, so again, keeping this confined to thoughts I had when playing the game. I've already changed my character's name once, to make them better fit their new identity, and to match the name of the blog. But whenever I see the name 'Cid' printed out in game, It still feels a little weird, Maybe I had just gotten used to the other name as I used it in monster hunter, and other games? It may also because of the masculine connotations from that name, especially since I've been playing a lot of Final Fantasy XIV recently. Because of that and other FF games whenever I see that name, I think of a gruff older man who's also an airship engineer! XD So my initial thoughts would simply be to change it to something similar, like 'Sid', as that could have a more feminine feel that could feel less out of place. And I know most won't relate to this, but this line of thinking often gets me into meta thoughts like: "Why do you feel you NEED to change the name? It's all in your head!", "Is this what YOU really want, or what you think is expected based on others possible perspectives?", "Is this just your way of ignoring your feeling about being a guy playing these games?" So what seems as simple as changing one letter, brings up a whole lot of stuff I'm not currently equipped to unpack. It can be hard to keep track of how you actually feel outside of external pressure. Trying to find my own answers currently, feels like it's starting to unravel some of the stuff I already thought I'd worked through and processed. But it's not a huge deal for now, so I figure I can just focus less on finding a solution, it can take things one at a time, and come back to this idea when I'm better ready to deal with it!

[cidthesquid]

Princess Peach: Showtime Demo! - More than Just Cute Outfits!

Today l'll be talking about the demo for:Princess Peach: Showtime!

Yeah, I know this is not a 'Fashion Game', But I make the rules here! Also I think even the 'ideas' here are worth talking about, as well as the gameplay! The demo is free, so I'd really recommend checking it out for yourselves if you're interested, but if you're interested in my commentary with a few personal connections, feel free to stick around! --- Alright, so first off, I've never really had any strong connections or feeling about peach as a character before playing this. She was just another Mario character to me, and did not really represent or stand for anything. I remembered hearing she first got her own spin-off game on the DS, "Super Princess Peach" (2005) where her actions are powered by various emotions, people often described it as "the game where one of her powers is crying:

Also, it was still very much just a platforming game, so it did not really stand out for me. This game however is a lot more difficult to categorize:

I guess the easiest way to describe it would be an 'Adventure Game', You'll be given various challenges, based on the level, there is some combat as well as mini-game style activities, and each level with have multiple activities, so it's not like "just do one baking mini game, then move on to the next level.

There's combat, even if it's very simplistic, I still find it enjoyable. You have a jump button, and a single button that does everything else, attacking, dodging, counter hits, etc. But you'll have a health bar to manage, and enemies may have invulnerability phases, so while it's simplistic, the game by no means 'plays it'self' some level of interaction is still required.

The Mini-games are also simplistic, but do allow you to mess up, they also have a 'soft failure state' so the time limit does matter, and you can actually fail the event, and will be required to retry.

Most gamers would not consider this game difficult, or challenging to any degree, but unlike some other 'cute games' it dose actually offer some form of push back, and I think that makes it more rewarding! --- Ok, Now with gameplay out of the way, I'd like to talk about the game's ascetics. It's clear that making the game as cute and charming as possible was a core design decision. And this is shown from the very start when they make a change to peach's default hairstyle:

Now, I actually see written out in my notes "Don't spend multiple paragraphs talking about peach's new ponytail", So I'll have to keep this short, I think it's a great addition, for a long time I just saw the concept of a "ponytail" as something exclusively reserved for very young people, that's how it was mainly shown in western media. So I was surprised when a lot of Japanese games gave it as an option for adult characters, Monster Hunter, Final Fantasy XIV, and tons more had it as part of the character creator. And while it's not the style I generally go with for my own characters, I've come to embrace the idea, and see how it can be a cute or fun additional to a character design regardless of their age. And I think it works really well here, especially as it offers great secondary motion:

I'm sure there are plenty of ways to interpret Peach's last game, using emotion as peach's own real actions. But I vastly prefer this game's ideas, the whole idea is someone's ruining all the plays, and corrupting them and the participates with negativity, and you fight back with positivity and encouragement!

When things start to get dark, and the characters' perspective change. But Giving them hope (by attacking them :P) you're able to help them push through.

When I first saw this game's trailer, I though it was just an excuse to put peach in various cute outfit, and (I have no problem with that), but it seemed to lack any real substance But overall, I really enjoyed this short demo, You get cute outfits, a very pleasant world, and a nice theme! The game is just full of charm, and there is just so much detail in the background characters, and even the idle animations,

So I'll probably pick it up regardless of the game length, it's just really nice. I probably won't blog about like I do with style savvy.

(Screenshot from the nintendo store page NOT IN THE DEMO) It looks like the full game may offer some unlockables and a little customization, so that could be fun! At $60, It's a bit on the pricey side, so I may end up buying the JP version on play asia to save a little money (~$40) But much like Style Savvy, I really enjoy the variety of outfits, and how it shows that style is more than just one thing, and how various outfits can impart various different moods and feelings.

--- Alright, that's my main thoughts on my small sampling of the game, but feel free to stick around for my added personal notes! ---- /!\ Caution: End of Cute screenshots, Mostly unedited Ramblings beyond this point /!\

So I've been thinking a lot about the concept of 'Cute' in general, to some people, this may seem like an odd thing to think about, But if you've followed my blog for a while, you'll probably understand why. But regardless, I've started to get over the weird feelings of being a guy playing 'cute games', but one of the things I was still trying to figure out was where my own perspective of 'cute' lies when it comes to characters. I have no trouble designing cute outfits for others in style savvy, and I do really like a lot of cute designs, but when it comes to created characters that I plan to stick with long term, it's not really a style I focus on, generally leaning more towards Bold/Rock or even Elegant/Feminine Styles.

For a while, I thought I was subconsciously avoiding anything 'cute', and that I needed to 'fix that' or something. But recently I've been learning a lot about the different ways you can 'like something', You can find something nice because you relate to it, you could like how neat and organized it looks, or you could even really like the feelings it evokes. And I think this was the missing piece and understanding how I relate to various types of fashion. As silly as it sounds, I was not even aware there was an option to like different styles for different reasons. For example: I now know that I do like the 'cute' ascetic, for character designs, outfits, and tone. However, it's not really something I'm drawn to, or relate with. So if something looks 'cute', it may receive bonus points in my brain over something plain, and it can offer a bit of a relaxing feeling.

The Cool/Bold Style has a much bigger draw for me, and as such, when I'm making my own character (especially in a multiplayer game), and want to stand out, this is what I go for. I love the energy it gives off, and playing character that look cool, make me feel cool as well! as such, I'd have to say it's my favorite to use. Elegant/Feminine Style: I still don't really have my exact feels on this nailed down yet. But I really enjoy the flexibility it provides. It offers a lot of what I like about the 'bold' and 'cute' styles, without being too loud or aggressive, you can make this style as mature as you want, or add a more youthful edge, And it can look a bit simplistic, or very stylized. This refined style honestly feels like it has endless potential, yet I have the hardest time designing for it, but it's probably my favorite to experience others interoperation of.

--- Alright, hopefully that was still a fun read, and not 'too personal' . As always, any comments/critique are welcome!

[cidthesquid]

The origin of this account! Answering Questions+ Quick Update 03/26/24

Quick Update 03/26/24 + The origin of this account!

Hello all, It's been a while since my last post, so I figured I'd post a short update regarding new content.

In short I'll continue to update this blog when something of note happens in Style Savvy Trend setters, but it's still been pretty quiet/slow, and with FF7:Rebirth out soon, my progress will be slow. ---

Also, I'd like to take some time to respond to a few questions that were sent in. For some reason, I can't see my question inbox, so I'll just be making a short reply based on what showed up in the email preview.

Since, I'm not sure if this person is comfortable with me sharing their name, So we'll just call them 'sender', and I'll 'find and replace' it later if they're okay with me sharing it.

Anyways, 'sender' mentioned that they have a two-week wait before they can post comments. I did not know tumbler had a wait system like that. I'm still fairly new here.

From what I've seen 'like' and 'reblogs' are the most common forms of interactions, so comments are pretty rare, (Fairly different from other social media.)

I've actually been a bit hesitant to comment on others posts because of this. (don't want to rock the boat) But anyone is free to comment here, and I'm open to constructive criticism as well. So if you have an idea of how an outfit could look better (in the style I'm going for) feel free to let me know!

---

'Sender' Also mentioned various setups I could use to make playing ' MODEL Debut 3' easier. Holding up my phone to my pc screen was very uncomfortable, so their suggestion of using a phone tripod setup would have helped a lot, if I go back to the game, I'll give it a shot!

---

'Senders' Third message mentioned how they'd been enjoying reading through the content I'd been posting, including both the game commentary, and the sections that tied it into some of my related personal stories.

And that really meant a lot to me, I honestly considered just switching to 'Outfit of the day' style posts, as in a comment-lite platform like this, it was hard to see what from the content people enjoyed most.

This is why I started front-loading a lot of the outfit pics, After posting them, I'd add a line or two about what happened that day (in-game) as a quick summary, then I'd say "hmm, maybe I should explain a little more about thought process behind the outfit", followed by "ok, but wow, X was done way better (or worse) here compared to Fashion Forward", and next thing I knew hour and hour had passed, XD

As for the little personal stories and connections to my experiences with fashion, and why these games mean so much to me, that has its own story behind it, (buckle up!)

---- /!\ Caution: End of blog updates, Mostly unedited Ramblings beyond this point /!\

The short version is, a few years back I was looking for a way to try to practice being more social, and open about stuff. Normally people would just post online to do that, but I'd been using the same online name since high school, so most the people I knew IRL new it, and it was used on all my social media/online games.

And as it was prime covid time, everyone I knew irl was at home on social media, so any post on my normal social media would likely actively promoted to the people, who I did not really want to see it.

So I figured a 'fresh slate' would be the best way to practice being more social, without having to worry about what people thought about me!

It sounds kinda crazy now, but I ended up making a new discord twitter, reddit and steam account, tumbler was honestly just an afterthought, as I hardly ever used my main tumblr.

So I played some online game, joined some discord groups, and followed and messaged people on twitter…

…and after the first year, I was borderline right back where I was before. Still second guessing everything I post, leaving tons of replies in the drafts, and while I had 'mutuals', there were just other people I followed so I could get more of the content I already enjoyed, there was no real connection outside of a quick reply here or there.

I spent so much time thinking "oh I'm just not comfortable with these IRL people", that simply having a new 'pool' of people to interact with would fix all my social issues, and while I did feel a little more comfortable talking about a wider range of topics with these new people, I'd still feel held back in many of the same was as before.

Every action had to be fueled by multiple layers of second guessing.

"I like this art, I should tell them…well they probably already hear that all the time, it won't matter" "I Also like the thing they're talking about, but they're WAY more interested, so I can't really add much to the conversation" "I really like that outfit/artwork, but it is a tiny bit suggestive, so would that sound creepy coming from a guy?"

…and much more. Addintally, when I often have trouble wording things in a natural sounding way, I'd have to worry about not just 'what' I said but "how I said it" And with multiple questions behind each action, just like with my main account, I just stopped interacting.

And it really took a lot of positive exposure to situations for me to be able to see, sometimes the intent matters almost as much (or sometimes more) than wording.

I've already gone into details on the process here, and in my reddit post prior to posting on tumblr.

But in short, playing in the fantastic Final Fantasy XIV community, gave me a lot of great places to experience this.

You could get carried through a dungeon by a tank that only speaks in the 3rd person, or get great healing from a cat girl, who's every single message contains at least one cat-related pun.

How they presented that help, did not matter, it's the fact that they were willing to help. And you could also look however you wanted, Even if that meant you were protected by a 2.5' very angry munchkin of a tank, people would just roll with it.

Style Savvy was just as helpful, I may never understand modern fashion or trends, But if someone comes into my shop asking to look a specific way, I get to help them achieve their ideal image!

I got to explore a small section of the fashion world, without having to worry about "well, technically that's out of season" or "ooh, that was IN last year, but now it's OUT", or "Why am I dressing this person that way, what would they really want?"

I just got to have fun living in my own little fashion cubbyhole, a comfortable little cutout with only the parts I enjoy.

And Fashion Forward had such a big impact on me, I just really had to share it, so I made the above reddit post, I kept playing and kept enjoying the game, and started sharing my thoughts here as well, as it's much better for images than Reddit.

And just like with playing the games, over time I started sharing more of my thoughts, and eventually explaining "why" I felt specific ways about some parts, it felt fairly uncomfortable at first, but I remember just telling myself, "It's still topical, and if they've gotten this far, they kinda know what there getting into",

My main concern was not making anyone uncomfortable, or upset

but still trying to be open, and I think I've managed to strike a fair balance. As in general, I want this blog to be more about my adventure with fashion, rather than simply sharing screenshots, or just me venting. And even if a majority of people are here for the screenshots, it still means a lot that others are interested in my content!

---

Anyways you all for reading, hopefully this little look inside the creation of the channel was insightful! (I have to head start work, but I'll do a quick edit pass later) I still have a long ways to go when it comes to 'social improvements' , but I feel I've made a ton of progress in the last year or so. These games have helped far more than my 'dramatic social media change', and now I'm getting some external support to manage as well!

And while I won't yet be providing exact details of my situation, Questions and comments are always open!

[cidthesquid]

My Debut! - MODEL Debut 3 #nicola

Trying a New fashion game today! Also, Happy Valentine's Day! If you don't have someone special to spend it with, try to at least do something fun for yourself! I'm going to be spending my day trying a new fashion game!

I've seen a few clips of this, And heard it's "the best fashion game on switch!", (Released around the same time as 'Fashion Dreamer') With the only drawback being it's only available in Japanese. So We probably won't be sticking with this too long, but let's get started! ---- Alright, it looks like we just passed our audition, and we're trying to decide what to do next... and wow.. Google Translate is really struggling with this game...

That's fine, fashion is an international language,

Ok, time to create my usual character...and..oh...

Is that really the darkest skin tone? I know this game is made for japan, but really? Style Savvy Ds had more options, and so did Fab Style on the DS/3ds They have a million eye designs, and a full RGB slider for hair colors, But for skin, all you get is a very mild tan :-/

Oh well, hmm this is interesting, they have a dedicated eye size/positioning section.

Three presets for each, eyebrow height, eye height, eye size, and pupal size. It may feel a little limiting, but that's a bit more control than style savvy/fashion dreamer, without overwelmming the player,.

Here's my final character design: (I hope they let me edit it later)

Okay outfit time!

Wow, this game has full layering, bags, and lets you equip multiple accessories! Even though the starting options are limited, the fact that you can (as silly as it sounds) wear a neckless under a scarf. Means you have more freedom than the older style savvy games! (even if I still prefer the outfit designs in SS)

wow there is a lot of dialogue in this game...

umm, I just wanted to have fun making outfits, what is all of this?

Ok, so I guess this is the SS 'Photo studio' equant:

You can't move the camera, but you can adjust the pose, expression and background. (real backgrounds in a game like this look pretty weird. You'll also have added controls for head position and gaze direction:

Anyways, with our first photo shoot out of the way, we now get to see the world map:

our only option is to go to the studio, so lets start there: And once we arrive, we're given a few jobs to choose from:

I really don't know what any of these mean, so we'll go with the 'Cherry blossom viewing coordination' as I think that may just mean "style using pink", maybe?

Nope, it looks like they want me to dress in a casual top for work, Luckily everything is labeled here, so you can just scroll over an item and check the tags.

I'm not sure if all items need to match or we just need something that fits the theme, so let's try this:

This is cute, but apparently dresses don't count for the 'casual top' category, (I should have guessed.)

Let's Try again...

Nope, They're still complaining about the "illustration, I'll need to look that up..." ok, I found a fantastic video from the youtuber "HamsterButtocks", and watched the start of her playthrough. Turns out, you need both tags shown to mach the item in question, so, we'll use the search function to find a top that matches both requirements.

And here we go!

Next up is posing and framing and we're done!

Once you complete the job you get points to 'rank up' as a model, and you get little NPC comments on your post.

And it looks like once we get further in, we'll eventually unlock some fashion show type event:

So very interesting, I should have guessed from the game's title, But unlike Style Savvy and Fashion Dreamer, this game seems to be exclusively about modeling, and dressing up your own character, rather than helping others find their own sense of style. That's fine, and it's a neat idea, Style Savvy Fashion Forward ad a similar event, but I'm not sure how I'd feel about sticking with a full game based around that. I'm still super early on, and I'm sure tons more options will unlock as I go, but this seems to be the core gameplay loop. I had fun trying it out, and I may go back later, But for now, I have to work on the new fashion dreamer event that just went live, and I still have to finish Style Savvy: trendsetters, so I got plenty of stuff to do! Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed another entry in my weird fashion game blog!

[cidthesquid]

🫶 - Final Fantasy XIV

Valentines day came arrives early in FF:XIV, This year we get a super cute 'heart hands' emote!

[cidthesquid]

Aaaand we're back! - Style Savvy: Trendsetters #08

So I just 'obtained' "MODEL Debut 3 #nicola", and REALLY want to try it out! ..But we'll save that for next time.. For now, back to Style Savvy! And since I know some of you are here just for the outfits, so let's start with that:

Wow, I had no idea how much this blends into my room, and I think I'll need to adjust the hairstyle a bit to match...

Ok, that's a little better. Geez, I'm not used to working with this color, I feel like a chameleon, blending into everything. haha! ---- Onto the blog portion: ---- So the first thing I'm doing today, is changing the 3ds system clock. Unlike Fasion Forward, this game dose not fully use a real time clock, However it does use your real world month to affect the seasons of the game. And I got a little tired of having to include a coat with every outfit, as it's currently 'February', So I switched the in-game month to 'June'

(I guess I don't really need the scarf any more then!)

This also means summer clothes! ...And since I started fasionfoward in winter as well, this is my first time working with summer fashion!

..And I'm now starting to realize, that I have no idea how to use this. Like I really like the hibiscus bikini design, very bright and colorful, but how do you even layer with something like that? just a coat?

I know it's just a game, but I still want all my NPC's to be fashionable and comfortable. So I don't want to just put them in something showy unless they specifically asked for it. (and then I'd still feel a little weird about it) Anyway, I'm sure that's not what you came here to hear me talk about, so we'll move away from that topic. Let's just focus on our first summer makeovers:

I'm terrible at guessing styles, but he seemed to like this.

Pretty simple request, but I'm happy with the outcome. And...Maisie.. ..Who let you come in here looking like that?

Is the scarf too much? idk, but I think it's still an improvement overall. I also keep forgetting that I changed the calendar...

Also...

um...ok? is moisturizer even an option in this game?

Anyways, that's all for today, I think the game will be a little slow until the next fashion contest. So it may be a little while before the next blog entry, (Hopefully at least someone finds these interesting to read, XD) See you next time!

[cidthesquid]

Getting distracted... Again. - Style Savvy DS #1

Recently picked up the original Style Savvy for pretty cheap, and since 'trendsetters' is calming down for the moment, I decided to start it up!

I've played this game a little before, So I started the game over (I'm also playing the PAL version now) I played the rom on my 3ds in the past, but I only played for like an hour. And it looks SOOO much better on an emulator! Here's a comparison shot:

DS resolution (Left) vs emulator [4x] (Right) Sure, it will look less blurry on a real Ds/DSi, but it will not be as detailed as the emulator due to the lower resolution! However, 2D assets, and character previews are still rendered at DS resolution, and the contrast can be pretty jarring:

The character customization options are obviously lacking compared to the later game, especially in terms of skin tones, But at least the staring outfit is pretty nice:

I remember someone telling me that 'Style Savvy: Trendsetters' is pretty much a remake of this game, and I can see that.

All the Style Savvy games follow the same basic formula, But this entry and trendsetters seem to have the most common so far. You start as an assistant, making outfits, restocking inventory and getting stamps from customers, then you eventually get to run the shop yourself. They even have the same in-universe fashion magazine:

I don't know who this dude is, but I've seen pics of him on tumblr, so I'm guessing he's important.

Anyways, that's all for today, since this game is so similar to the others, I'll likely have even less to post, but I will check back in from time to time. Thanks for reading!

[cidthesquid]

Fashion Contest Anxiety! - Style Savvy: Trendsetters #07

Hey, it's been a while! I pretty much played all of Fashion Dreamer since the last check-in. But we're back now, and it's time for the first fashion contest,

I've heard they're different than the 'fashion shows' I've done in 'Style Savvy: Fashion Forward', and many claim there even better! ...But First! new outfit of the day!

It's nothing too different, and this game lacks a photo studio, so I'll show it off more as we go... Anyways, so last time we unlocked mens fashion, I have not messed with it much, but I did mange to progress the plot enough to unlock the first fashion contest!

So lets see what this is all about, I'm going in mostly blind, so I don't know what to expect. In 'fashion forward' it was not really even a mini game, they were fun, but it was more about just designing an outfit to fit the theme beforehand, but once you started, all you could do is like pose and wave at the crowed, and I don't think those motions effected your score. It was just a fun little extra activity that was more about the prep, with the event just being a way to enjoy your work. So let's see how they work this time...

So we only have access to the beginner contest right now, And it looks like they actually give out clothing as a reward,

The first theme is the academic style 'preppy', and want to take a wild guess as to what brand I have not unlocked yet? XD And wow, I have not started my outfit yet, and this is already very different:

You don't participate in the shows yourself, but instead pick a model to represent your outfit, and take care of all the prep personally.

They each have their own profile, and bio. But it can be hard to pick when I don't yet have an outfit in mind. I think Jean best fits the general style I'm going for, but we'll see... Ok, a quick search says I have 83 items that qualify, so let's see what I have to work with... Ok, are you ready? How about....

It's always hard working with a style you're not used to, I also considered going with tights instead of the socks, It can be weird as a guy, trying to design a female outfit and deciding how much leg to show, (or skin in general) But I figured based on the limited options I had this just looked better overall.

The only tights I had were just 'too much', the pattern did not feel like a good fit, the color felt all wrong, and overall it was just too distracting. The socks just felt like the perfect fit, and I still this is a fairly modest and cute design! (But again with any of my designs feel free to post a comment with feedback/suggestions.)

Ok, with that done on to the next step:

..And this is where I realized I have no idea what 'preppy' hair looks like! Can I at least get some reference photos?

Oh geez, why are all these highlights soo bright!?!?

ahh! what do you mean the there's no custom makeup option? You have like 6 different brands here, but nothing preppy? I guess we're gonna wing it then! It Eventually came down to these two: Stunning Chic (327) vs Bittersweat Beauty (578)

I really liked (Left) a bit more at first, it seemed a bit more reserved but still very stylish, so it seemed like a perfect fit for my design. But the more I loom at right, the more I think it's just eye-catching enough to draw attention, without betraying the look. The eye color is a much better fit, and the brighter colors all around feel flashy enough to give it that fashion show edge, without being to intense for the outfit. (I guess.. I don't really know much about this stuff, haha)

Anyways, were all done here, off to the show!

All the contestants brought great outfits, I really like the first with the punk-rock ascetics, the second has a nice modern look, and the third has a nice clean look contrasting with the ripped jeans, very cool, in comparison mine looked very traditional... And in the end.. the winner was...

Us! We actually manged to pull it off, without even having a 'preppy' brand available, I guess there was enough crossover to make it work!

Overall, I had a lot of fun, and I can see why some people were upset these were changed for the sequel.

'Fashion Shows' and 'Fashion Contests' may seem very similar, and I don't really know how the judging works, but the selecting a model, aspect really forces you to change up how you design, both outfits and makeup/hair. ...and the fact that that (unlike in Fashion Forward) your not just competing against your friends, over and over who also make you design their outfits.. makes it feel more like a competition, rather than a fun hangout. I still love Fashion Forward, and had a blast with the shows, it's just kinda sad to see them downplayed from the previous game. I'm a bit worried that I only saw two icons on the 'fashion contest' screen, So I'm going to assume 'beginner' and 'advanced' with shifting themes each time you run them, That would be a bit sad if true though.. Edit: I looked it up the game has 4 contests, Beginner Contest, Premier Contest, Elite Contest and the International Contest. ...Anyways I guess I'm famous now!

Well, I've hit the 30 image limit, So I think this is a good stopping point for today! Thanks for reading! I'm really enjoying blogging my style savvy Journey! ...And if you're just here for the cute screenshots,I appreciate you too!

[cidthesquid]

New Style Boutique DLC?

Someone on the Style Savvy discord asked about the DLC for New Style Boutique! (the EU version of 'Style Savvy: trendsetters') So we'll be taking a little break from our standard 'My journey with Style Savvy' blog posts to take a look! So first, I made sure we were on the latest version 1.1, (patch notes) and clicked 'download' on the main menu.

(Download option should unlock after the prologue) This took me to a new menu, but it dose not work on citra (emulator)

So, I decided to dig my 3ds out of storage, and I transferred my save.. I'm using a modded usa 3ds, so it's region free, but I still have a usa region eshop, so i was worried that I would not be able to download the DLC due to region restrictions. and the eShop shutdown, But...

It loaded up just fine, and I saw 3 outfit sets available for download! It appears that Nintendo is not using the eshop servers to distribute these. It loaded up just fine, and I saw 3 outfit sets available for download!

Each one showed up with a preview, and brief description of what was included. The first two were animal crossing themed:

And the last one was a little different:

When downloading, any of these sets, you'll even see a 3d preview of each of the included items. And they're not installed as packages like normal DLC, instead they're stored directly to the 3ds's SD card as 'exdata'

This may why you cant find easily installable downloads for this 'DLC' else where online (like you can for NSB2) One you download a set, itgets removed from the list. So once you have all three, the empty list looks like:

I don't know if the data's encrypted, So you probably won't just be able to copy it from one 3ds to another. (This is NOT a tutorial) But I backed it up with 'checkpoint' and copied the files to: /citra-emu/sdmc/Nintendo 3DS/00000000000000000000000000000000/00000000000000000000000000000000/extdata/00000000/00000A90/user and...

...not my preferred style, But it works! Unlike Future games, they actually show original brands, instead of using purple moon! And much like future game, DLC items have their own indicator:

I've already archived the DLC files, but I'll need to do some testing before I release them publically. (to make sure they don't break anything)

But yeah, I don't know if more DLC was added and removed before this, But this is just a quick rundown of what I've learned looking into DLC for this game! Hopefully someone found this interesting or helpful! If you know the risk and want to test the files anyways, or want the raw version of these screenshots for your wiki, feel free to contact me! Thanks again for reading!

[cidthesquid]

I Guess I Beat The Game? | Fashion Dreamer #2

That was fast... But just hit the credits in Fashion Dreamer, But just like Style savvy, the game's not over, there's still a lot to do, ..but no more fixed goals. I'll give my final thoughts on the game... after the screenshot break:

I had a lot of fun with this game! And I do intend to keep playing it! I also have decided to make a male muse based on my own appearance, this will give me a way to experience fashion in I way I could never do in real life! (I may post pics, it would be the closes thing to a face reveal I'll do here, haha! Let me know if you're interested in seeing that !👀) --- But in short, even though I've started the game less than a week ago, and only have just over 10k in-game followers, it looks like the game has no more standard goals to reach.

The new post-game 'Cocoon Love' just opened, so I have a whole new area to explore! There are tons more outfits to make, I could grow my brand and follower account further. But really the limited time (online-only) fairs are the main thing keeping me going for now. My adhd brain does not really put much emphasis on self-made goals, so while I finish the current 'Dramatic Fair' I'll probably take a break from Fashion Dreamer, and return to my Style Savvy play through until FD's next big update. I 100% knew what I was getting into with FD, but I still with it had a few more set challenges to work towards, it's in dire need to some QOL updates.... But I'm still glad it exists, and had fun playing it, and will probably drop back in for a few minutes from time-to-time, as it has completely replaced mobile fashion apps for me. As I said in my last post, the community aspects is by far the best part of this game! But I still feel you really can't even get the full effect without joining a discord or knowing others who play. (since there's really no in-game communication outside of likes/thanks) I had no problem paying full price for this game, as my main goal was supporting Syn Sophia, for the huge positive impact they've had on my life. But I can both fully understand why some people love it, and while others were disappointed. I'm definitely closer to the 'love it' side! While I still a lot to 'figure out' for myself in terms of how fashion works, and how I interact with it. Style Savvy helped me understand and accept my love of fashion. And Fashion Dreamer, Gave me a way to share that with others!❤️

[cidthesquid]

So I finally got around to updating my tumblr header to reflect the focus of this blog. Previously, it was some generic image from "Trails to Zero" an Rpg I was playing at the time, But now it's...

(Cropped Version) [Left FF:XIV, Middle SS: Fashion Forward, Right Fashion Dreamer] Here's the original edit:

(uncropped version) I had a lot of fun making this, and actually made new outfits for it, so I guess this counts as an outfit of the day! I keep saying I won't have a reason to boot up Fashion Forward anymore, at least until I get to and finish styling star, but it's by far the definite look of my avatar, so I keep going back for reference. :D Anyways thanks for reading, here are the source images:

(Final Fantasy XIV)

(Fashion Dreamer)

(Style Savvy: Fashion Forward)

[cidthesquid]

Best If Used By.... |Fashion Dreamer #1

Hello all! I spent a few days playing Fashion Dreamer, and have been having a blast! It's not 'Style Savvy', but it ever meant to be! I have some concerns.. But first... Outfit(s) of the day! (Fasion Dreamer ID: a8xv8rRA3A)

Nothing Fancy yet, Here's my second muse: (WIP)

Alright, so my thoughts on the game as a whole. (not a review) It's super fun..if you know what you're getting into. It's closer to most modern 'Dress-UP' apps than classic Style Savvy. But that's really what I was looking for! You can think of it as Shining Niki, Covet Fashion, etc, But with no microtransactions, and a much heavier emphasis on community! The game DOES NOT require a paid switch online subscription, It ABSOLUTELY requires wifi to get the full experience. All the events are online-only, you can see and dress up other players characters (muses) based on their stated preferences, And you can even put in requests from people you've met, or you can just list your preferences for anyone to style. You specify your style, colors, patterns, etc, and other players will send you custom outfits!

(sorry, this filter looks really bad in screenshots) I played the game for a few days via emulator, while waiting for my copy of the game to arrive. And honestly, 'Offline Mode" felt like an entirely different game. You can still dress up your character, and fulfill outfit request for NPC's, and design your own showroom, but that's it.

The world feels much smaller when just cycling through the same small handful of NPC's with very similar dialogue. You still play the role of an "influencer", looking to grow their online following and brand, But without any other real players, it just becomes a grindy numbers game.

You make check the billboards, grab the items, make an outfit, take a photo, and get automatic 'likes' from the game's imaginary public. Then you just keep doing it over and over to increase your 'follower count. There are a few bonus things you can do, such as take pictures with other people, and 'pin' the post to boost incoming 'likes' and 'follows', But without the online community aspect, it's extremely repetitive.

And that's where the title of the post comes in, The game was clearly designed similar to a live service game, the players are expected to be online almost all the time, and new features and items become available over time. However, while this game is $50, it doesn't feature microtransactions

That's a HUGE plus for me, But it makes me wonder how financially viable this game will be for the publisher in the long run. When the sales start to slow, they'll have far less money coming in, And that may make it harder to keep updating the game. And if they stop updating the game, older fans may stop playing Less people online means the 'community' aspect will lessen ...And at the end of the day there are server cost to consider.

So it really makes me wonder, how long they'll choose to support this game. Will the game end up with a "best if used by date", because the game costs the devs some amount of money just to keep it running, ...not even including the time it takes to make more items to keep people interested. I've been having a lot of fun now, but I think they should have focused a bit more on the single player experience, and implemented more interesting offline goals. As who knows, 3, 5, 10 years down the line, the game I'm enjoying now will may longer exist. ---- Sorry for the more 'bleak' post, I'd still highly recommend this game to those who think it sounds interesting. I've just seen a ton of VERY Strong opinions on this game, but no one mentioning the live service trappings. Anyways, feel free to leave your thoughts or comments down below!

[cidthesquid]

It's Here! Playing Fashion Dreamer Live NOW!

Game Just arrived! Watch my first hour live here: (stream over, thanks for watching!)https://www.twitch.tv/cidthesquid1 (stream over, thanks for watching!) I have played the game for a few hours "On PC" before, but this is my first time getting the full online experience!

[cidthesquid]

Movin' on up! - Style Savvy: Trendsetters #06

This title serves a double meaning, I made some good progress in Trendsetters.. ...and my Copy of 'Fashion Dreamer should be arriving today! But until then, new outfit of the day:

I'm a little less happy with this one :-/ I was told I needed something in the 'feminine style', for a meeting with Imogen. (The current head of the luxurious 'Enin Chen' brand, also the founder's granddaughter) But I was broke, and did not have a lot of stuff that fit in my closet, So I ended up with this feminine/bold hybrid look, as I feel it's the best I could do without going against my character style (without spending more money) But in the end, I guess it was not enough to impress her :'(

Ok, well, I guess we gotta do what we gotta do... I don't have enough stuff in my normal color scheme, and the exhibition hall is closed, so....

It's been a while since my character's worn pink, I think the last time was... my first fashion show in fashion forward. Basically my first ever real event in a 'style savvy' game! I have nothing against pink, I use it all the time for customers, But, I never really felt it fit my own character, I've always preferred 'pastel pink' over most other shades, and I think it turned out pretty well! (given my limitations)

And it was enough to pass the event!

So I was able to unlock the high-end brand! (too bad I'm broke, haha) Also, the very next day...

Men's Fashion is now available! This should be interesting, Since I played 'Fashion Forward' First, I have no idea how this is going to work. (good thing they give you free stock to get you started) I may be a guy IRL, but that does not mean I know how to dress, lol. And lastly...

I now have a way to actually get rid of old/unwanted stock, you can have clearance sales! Not as convient as the 'buy back' from the later games, but I'm glad to now have at least something, and it's a bit more realistic too! --- Overall, the Game Started Pretty slow, Noticeably more so than 'Fashion Forward', But for the last few sessions, I've been enjoying it a little more each time I play. I still think I prefer 'Fashion Forward', but I strongly disagree with those that call this game 'skippable'. It may not be the ideal starting point, but I still think it's worth playing.

"But that's just my opinion!" XD