man baldurs gate may be my game of the year
That's so hard to admit considering tears of the kingdom also launched this year. And it blew my socks off too. It's a marvel of game design. And I haven't even gotten to play starfield yet...
But baldurs gate is in another ball park for me. Because I've been playing since early access, I've had so much time to form a comfortable nostalgic attachment to many aspects of the game.
Plus because it's more niche in its appeal (than Zelda at least), following the development cycle, watching the player base grow and interacting with the community has really felt like a more connected experience. Certainly more connected than waiting in silence for 6 years for totk (not a dig, honestly it's fine and I get it).
AND it's one of the few games in a long time I've been able to actually play with my IRL friends. It's just basically the perfect recipe.
I can sing Larian's praises all day but I can't say anything that hasn't been said a million times already. If you haven't played this game yet, PLEASE DO IM BEGGING
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crowley saying "if any harm comes to aziraphale because of this i will–" to gabriel is SO fucking special to me bc he was so clearly afraid of gabriel after the trial like just look at his reaction when he first sees him and him saying he spent a WHOLE NIGHT worrying that gabriel's gonna smite him like he's actually terrified and still after ALL THAT he still threatens gabriel and i just think threatening someone like THAT is actually so vulnerable bc he's making it abundantly clear that he cares for aziraphale and wants him safe and that aziraphale is HIS to protect and he WILL protect him no matter fucking what and i just i can't deal with how outright and upfront crowley was this season not only with aziraphale but with other people ABOUT aziraphale too like he was really not fucking around this season and he needed everyone to know aziraphale is his and made gabriel almost JUMP OUT OF A WINDOW for wanting to hurt aziraphale and the vulnerability of it all is making me go NUTS
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just love hearing kieran culkin talk about succession/roman because he always talks about, like, the process of it and it’s so interesting — the scenes that are kept, the scenes that are taken out, the choices writers made he didn’t agree with, the choices he made that the writers (originally) didn’t agree with…. always really hammers in not only how collaborative the show is in that input from the actors is taken very seriously but also just how much culkin cares about roman like as a character? which i mean ya know all actors do. but culkin always talks about being a fan of the show first and an actor in it second and i think that’s such a huge thing. like, the way he cares about roman isn’t just as the actor playing him, it’s as a fan of the show — he’s approaching it not just from, like, a This Is My Job angle but also from the perspective of a fan who is just genuinely invested in the character of roman and would feel frustrated if they saw him do something that didn’t feel in-line with his character! kc would hate tumblr just like he hates all social media but he would indeed kill it on here
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having vague thoughts about E3 and the current state of AAA game development in general..
like yeah direct promotions have had more of an impact than Big Events for me, and the main thing I'd want to see out of E3 are trailers for new games or the conversations that follow online - but a few points on that
I can just as easily look up “new games for [platform] [year]” on youtube
Something about the way AAA games are built these days makes me get bored of them ⅔ of the way through, if I even make it that far, on top of them charging more for less content and hiding away the rest behind multiple DLC packs
I've mostly been buying indies the past few years and have gotten a lot of fun out of them; they continue to deliver a nearly unrivaled experience of fun gameplay mechanics and interesting/emotional stories at a ridiculously low cost
I also have emulators for going back and playing old games I really liked so I'm not exactly desperate for new games
and idk!! weird to see E3 officially ending but I also think the landscape is very different these days including the game companies themselves. I'm not a game dev so I can't rly speak to what the change has looked like on their end over the past 10-20 yrs.
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I gotta say people have done a really good job at the "dont look up anything about outer worlds just play it" thing despite it being, as far as I know, out for years (I couldn't double check, because, well, you know, the aforementioned) that I could still not tell you a single thing about it other than the fact that it is, presumably, very very fucking good
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Path to Freedom: an Amprule First Note analysis thingy
Due to popular demand (of my 3 friends), I've decided to type up another break down of an amprule illustration!!! yippee!!!!
Once again let's start simple!! the light composition!! There is a clear light/shadow duality happening in this illustration so here's a neat chart I made to show it:
Now you might notice the red/green tint I added, as well as how Chungsung is in the light meanwhile Dongha is in the dark. So let's break down the components of each side.
Dongha is surrounded by shadows. The shadows likely show how he feels trapped in the Yeon family. The paintings that surround him add even more pressure because he has the Yeon family name to live up to.
He is looked down by the paintings behind him (it's only Chungsung who's looking up at him) meanwhile Dongha doesn't look at anyone, he fears that he has failed the family (his father). He seems to be considering his choices between the two paths he could take.
What are his two paths exactly? Well, they're shown through the doors! The door next to him and the door below him.
The door next to him will possibly take him deeper into the mansion. The path is pitch-black and the darkness will make him feel even more lost. This path will probably keep him trapped in the mansion forever.
The door below him is lit up and will possibly lead him to the exit. The path is lit up and it all seems good, but there is yet another painting in the way. His fight for freedom won't be easy but we already know that he is determined to take that step forward.
The physical locations of the doors could also mean something. The one that leads inside the mansion is higher up, it means that if Dongha wants to keep his social status he's gonna have to give up his freedom. But if he wants to become free he'll have to "lower" himself and possibly lose his status. (It is worth pointing out how the positions of the characters show their imbalance as well.)
Now, everything I've mentioned to this point has been focusing on Dongha's struggles, so where's Chungsung in all of this?
I've talked about the role colors play in Amprule art in my previous post. Chungsung's red contrasts with the Yeon family green and gives Dongha a place to Be. There is no red in this illustration, Chungsung is as trapped in the family as Dongha is.
Just with the way he's positioned shows us that he is leaning toward the idea of freedom (is it his freedom, does he want Dongha to be free, or is it just his willingness to be a tool for Dongha's freedom). And if we take account of the light = freedom & shadow = restraint meanings, the light is practically shining upon him.
But at the end of the day, he is still only a butler and he is waiting for Dongha to make a decision. His loyalty to Dongha is not something to question, we all know that Chungsung will stand by his side no matter which path he chooses. However, if Dongha chooses to go deeper into the mansion he might end up being separated from Chungsung and their distance would become even bigger.
"To me Amprule means freedom." is something Dongha says to Hajun in the Showdown Aftermath drama track. Dongha forming Amprule is not only him choosing his freedom but choosing to get closer to Chungsung as well. Though I suppose neither of them are aware of how they've been closing the gap.
Considering how this is a bit of a "prequel to Amprule" type of image it gives us a decent look into just how suffocating their lives in the Yeon family were. They still haven't made it to equal footing, but we know that they're slowly getting there and setting themselves free.
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Winter concpets.....
(these first ones are At Least a year old 😭😭😭)
First up, a Winter Sharena concept!
And a little comic about it
The last panel would have been Sharena begging to "steal Alfonse's body warmth" while Alfonse subtly/sarcastically teases her about it, Moe trailing behind them (I lost steam/focus though 🥲)
This was The Year Of Bruno as well, and I was testing out/playing with the scenario presented (From the Tempest Trials and from what Winter Bruno says, it seems Alfonse and Sharena spent the holiday together while the Summoner was spending it with Bruno the Envoy)
(funny aspect of this is I don't even really enjoy "why does so and so call you babygirl" jokes anymore LMFAOOO like. Nothing wrong w em and was a decent set up here, but Moe would Not Fucking Say That skskksk) (also you can Tell this is Early On in Moe's development bc its fangs aren't even piercings 😔)
This year I Did revisit Winter Concepts, espp wanting to redo my Idea of a winter Moe who's helping out Bruno with Envoy Duty
All it needed was to become more of a furry and some loose BDSM gear inspo 👍 I was also thinking about a few different things! Like how Bruno's fit is literally just his regular outfit with some Santa suit on top LMFAO. But I was also thinking about how Moe is probably not meant to be recognized here? If it is hanging out with Bruno? Who is actively avoiding being seen by Alfonse and Sharena? So Moe keeps the shoes/tights, but little else!
Final version would have most closely resembled this one!
And another little comic
Once again I'm parsing how okay well how are they interacting with each other. What's the vibe here?
I wanted to draw a bigger piece of them hanging out, maybe spending the night together by the fire with hot cocoa after a hard day's work (again thinking about how it's implied the summoner spent the holiday separately from Alfonse/Sharena). I may revisit the concept again, I feel like there's a lot of potential story-focused comic wise here.... and a lot of set up for some funny conflict later.
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