footloosephoenix - Tumblr blog

[footloosephoenix]

World-building spoilers for Ciconia When They Cry below.

One thing that really stuck with me is when the VN explains, fairly deep into Phase 1, that the Earth is already dead and is only able to support humans through extensive use of nanomachine technology. It just felt so depressingly like us, you know? Despite all odds, we'll stubbornly find a way to push forward, but at what cost?

I'm not normally that into futuristic or sci-fi settings, but Ciconia was real as fuck. I need to re-read.

[footloosephoenix]

Things I'm looking forward to in Dawntrail: An unorganized list

The Story (duh) - Need I say more?

Beastmaster! - As someone who only recently gave Blue Mage a try, I'm really excited to see how this new limited job works. I want to get on this train early and figure things out with the community. It's also so much more my vibe than BLU; I love critters!

Space exploration - I'm imagining this to be like a new Diadem. If so, I'm going to spend so much time on this it's not even funny. I didn't get into the Diadem until it had pretty much run its course, so it'll be great to get in on the ground floor this time. Maybe I'll even get into crafters more. I can feel that compulsion starting to brew in me.

Echoes of Vana'diel alliance raids - I haven't played FF11 basically at all, but I'm super stoked for this crossover. I think it'll give some really interesting lore, and the last time we had an alliance raid crossover with another Final Fantasy (FF12/Tactics in Stormblood), it was incredible. I also just really love alliance raids; they're so chaotic and fun. I've gotta do these day one this time.

Island Sanctuary updates? - I don't know if there are plans to continue this content now that Endwalker patches are complete, especially since IS got a pretty lukewarm to negative reception. But I just got back into mine today and I think it's a very enjoyable distraction to check in on every once in awhile. The rewards are also pretty great. I do hope it continues to be supported at least a little while longer.

Pictomancer and Viper - I'm more into what Picto's got going on, but I think both of these classes look really cool. Definitely wanna give each of these a try, although there's no world where they replace Dragoon/Summoner for my preferred melee/caster respectively.

BIG. FISHING. - I have gotten super into fishing, so I'm very excited to find all the new fishing holes and follow the big fishing scene as discoveries are made each patch. There are gonna be some great ones, I can feel it.

So what are you looking forward to the most?

[footloosephoenix]

Today I got into disc 2 of Lost Odyssey, and the more I play it, the more it becomes clear what an incredibly special game this is. It's very engaging, easy to lose an entire day to, but I'm doing my best to savor it like a delicious meal. So much thought has been put into every aspect, from its visual novel-esque short stories to the simple pleasure of rummaging through your surroundings for items to, of course, each one of its strategic and challenging battles. It's a refined masterpiece of a turn-based RPG, and yet it's also so uniquely itself.

This is the kind of shit that makes life worth living for me. What a serendipitous thing to be alive at the same time Lost Odyssey exists.

[footloosephoenix]

Doing things right

I wake up

I take my medication

I shower and change into new clothes

I make a nutritious smoothie for breakfast

I don’t want to, but I work

I work to pay the bills

I work to buy a new computer

I work so I can play cool games on a better computer

I practice a new language on my breaks

I finish work and I exercise

I have a satisfying dinner

Apple pie for dessert

I watch an interesting YouTube video

I spend time with my rabbit

I consider my friends

I do some writing to unwind

The sky is darkening

It will snow again soon.

[footloosephoenix]

So about Persona 3 Reload. (No story spoilers, but talking about the first ~6 hours of the game.)

It's not the earth-shattering re-experience that I wanted it to be, but it's been quite good so far. They improved all aspects of Tartarus, including the visuals of course. Now the place actually has a sense of scale when you're running around it; the camera stays behind the character instead of changing to an overhead perspective, and the corridors no longer feel so claustrophobic. They also added a couple of new mechanics, such as "twilight shards" you can find on the map that open special treasure chests and breakable objects so that it's more like Persona 5. Honestly, a lot of the changes just make it more like Persona 5. In some ways, that's not great because it overwrites some of the originality and tone of Persona 3, but taken as a whole, I think the pay-offs in the actual experience of playing the game make these sacrifices acceptable.

The voice acting is great, and the fact that all the social links are now completely voiced adds a lot to the experience. I do miss some of the original VAs for SEES, but the new ones do an excellent job. On the other hand, the big story moments so far have not hit as hard. The protag getting his persona was just not as cool as in the original. The backgrounds have also lost their flavor in certain sections due to the green light cast by the Dark Hour looking more sickly than eerie. The music is also incredibly hit or miss; whether or not you enjoy it compared to the original will be a matter of taste, but on the other hand, it still does a lot of work for the atmosphere.

Overall, based on these first impressions, I would recommend the game. The tone is a bit neutered and homogenized into the modern Persona style that Persona 5 introduced. However, I would still probably recommend it above any other version of Persona 3 just because of Tartarus and the fact that you have to spend so much time traversing the damn thing, so the improvements go such a long way in making the game palatable to a modern audience.

[footloosephoenix]

[footloosephoenix]

Seems like 2023 was a hard year for a lot of people.

My life was no exception; between a move to a different (albeit nearby) city in May that set us back financially and generally poor mental health, it's been kinda fucking brutal. But I also landed a new job back in October with much better pay that actually gives me hope for the future. The long-term stability of this work is something of a question mark, but for the foreseeable future, I think I'm safe.

I'm also very grateful to have people in my life who are loving and supportive. I hope I'll be able to start paying them back soon. My mother has said she's always wanted to visit Ireland, and I want to take her while she's still healthy if I can manage to save up the money for it. It'll take some time, but I think I can do it.

As for 2024's goals, I'm also saving to take a driver's ed course in the spring and finally get my full license so I can be less dependent on the people around me. I'm budgeting to get an exercise bike soon to counteract my increasingly sedentary lifestyle, and a laptop so I can work anywhere would be an excellent investment.

I'm not sure what else I want to accomplish. My priority will be saving money since I'm finally able to do that again. As you can see, money's on my brain a lot lately, for better or for worse. But I'm going to take some time to think tonight and hopefully get some ideas on what I want to work on in other areas of my life.

Lately I've been happy to take a break from playing video games and focus on other hobbies, such as coloring and learning Japanese. I've been trying to get away from screens when I can. Part of me is kinda sick of computers, if I'm being honest. But my love of Final Fantasy remains as strong as ever; I'm still regularly picking up my Switch to play a few songs in Theatrhythm.

Anyway, I don't know how to close this off, so happy new year everyone! May this one be a little kinder on all of us.

[footloosephoenix]

Had a lovely Christmas with my family. :3 Gift highlights include coloring books and new colored pencils, a pre-order for FF7Rebirth, and this rad blanket my best friend got me. Merry Christmas! 🎄

[footloosephoenix]

Im excited for Rebirth and all but if Sephiroth doesn’t fast ball the materia at Cloud, flip, then fly away like a missile, i will cry

[footloosephoenix]

Finished my first coloring page. :3

[footloosephoenix]

Every once in awhile I must share my love for The House in Fata Morgana or I WILL DIE, so here's Giselle.

[footloosephoenix]

end of beta server party

[footloosephoenix]

So freaking much has happened during the Shibuya arc that I haven't even had time to process Megumi fighting his dad and not knowing it or even WHAT HAVE THEY DONE TO TOGE.

[footloosephoenix]

I have a hard time expressing myself. I don't even know what I'm feeling half the time unless someone asks me. I'm so scared and anxious of what people will think about me to the point where I fail to make connections at all. It's a lonely existence, but I'm most comfortable being alone. I don't know if I'm autistic, or have ADHD or PTSD, or if it's something else entirely, and I've never been able to speak openly with a therapist. I do know that one of the few people I am comfortable talking to is autistic. I might just be an asshole.

I'm on antidepressants and an antipsychotic. At least I'm not as anxious and depressed as I used to be; I could barely function. So the drugs do help. But I can't shake the feeling that there's something else fundamentally wrong with me besides anxiety and depression, that my symptoms are being treated but the cause is still unknown.

Honestly, my life's not so bad. A lot of things about it are good even. It's just hard, trying to do better but feeling like you're just spinning your wheels in the mud.

My goal with this blog is to be honest and true to myself. It's to have fun sharing my thoughts and interests. It's a way to practice being myself without much consequence. Who knows, maybe it'll help one day.

[footloosephoenix]

Final Fantasy XVI - My Star

[footloosephoenix]

If there is only one thing I would want to tell all trans people, it is this:

Please make it. You are worth it to see a better future; we will make this world kind. You are so needed, you are so wanted. We will make this world somewhere worth our light. I hope you can be by my side forever, I hope we can bask in the beauty of this world. I love you, trans person reading this.

[footloosephoenix]

Still one of my favourite pieces of music of all time.