#Game discussion

[polling-sonic-fans]

Which one of the Sonic Frontiers bosses is your favorite to fight?

Giganto

Wyvern

Knight

Supreme

The End (original ending)

The End (final horizon ending)

I've never played Sonic Frontiers/Results

Thanks for the poll! Polls for the Sonic fandom on just about anything. Share polls you like to get more data. Asks and submissions always open.

[dr-spectre]

I heard about how in Bancala Walker there was a short story about Marina and Acht and their time in the domes. And I'm gonna be 100% honest with you. It kinda makes me mad, and it really highlights a massive problem with Splatoon as a whole, and that's how it treats its stories.

(Yep I'm rambling about Splatoon's storytelling for the 500th time, welcome to my blog.)

Since Splatoon 2, the series has had a weird relationship with its storytelling, the main stories of each campaign are very simplistic and are very video game like plots. "Go get the Great Zapfish back and save Captain Cuttlefish. Go get the Great Zapfish again and find Callie. Find the thangs and get out. GO GET THE ZAPFISH AGAIN AND SAVE CAPTAIN CUTTLEFISH AGAIN!!! Climb up the tower." Splatoon 1 got away with this because it's clearly the most "tutorial" mode out of any of the single player campaigns and it doesn't really try to say any deeper messages or express a character arc.

Now, obviously video game stories must have goals for the player to work towards, I'm not complaining about that, you gotta have that stuff in games to motivate the player, however, what really drives me up a wall is when they decide to add depth and interesting things relating to the characters and world, yet they intentionally throw away that same depth and chuck it to the side. Hell they sometimes retcon the optional hard to find lore or make it more confusing just because!! If you're gonna add depth and something else to these stories, you HAVE to actually explore it and expand upon it WITHIN THE STORY! You cannot add it as "extra lore" when it's stuff that should have been in the main storyline to begin with. It's like not adding seasoning to chicken and that you boiled the fucking chicken and wrapped it in lettuce and mayonnaise.

I could obviously talk about the elephant in the room... you know... this little goober right here. This freak.

And I'm going to.

From the concept art we were given, we know that Callie was originally gonna have more exploration into her troubling mental health issues as seen by her being in the shadows and being comforted by Octarians. It's a significantly different tone compared to the final product.

However in the final game, they tossed MOST of this shit away and say in the game as well as in official media, "naw she was kidnapped and brainwashed forcefully because she's a dumb clutz lmao." They tried to backtrack with an obscure relationship chart, the sunken scrolls and Squid Sisters web prequel series, but then they backtracked AGAIN with the Splatoon 3 artbook that states that she was "brainwashed." It's an incredibly simplified and frankly insulting version of events that are TECHNICALLY canon but Nintendo and others don't treat it as such and i don't know why. I dont know why they treat Callie like this. Is it because she's silly?

Wouldn't it be more interesting and more powerful as a story if they made Callie had more control and awareness of her actions? That she was truly acting upon her mental illness and isolation? Putting DJ Octavio, the fucking funny octopus guy on the same level as Talon from Overwatch and Hydra from Marvel, the literal nazis who damaged Bucky Barnes' brain and removed all of his memories, making him into the Winter Solider, is fucking psychotic and actually insane of Nintendo to do.

There is also Acht and how they were shown between Octo Expansion and Side Order.

Some of the most powerful stories in media have strong character arcs and characters overcoming their struggles and pain. It is inspirating and incredibly real to see a loved one reach out to a person that they care about who have lost their way, either from mental illness or drugs. Trying to bring them back and help them go through their pain together. When someone is under distress and mental health troubles, they can act like a completely different person and the fact that Nintendo half assed serious topics like this and made shit WAY WORSE boils my blood to no end.

In Octo Expansion, we were told that they went under Sanitization willingly in order to remove doubts in their mind and put their all into music. Now due to the unknowns of Sanitization at the time, this made for a really interesting character and brought up a lot of interesting questions as to why they would do this and who they are.

However, in Side Order when they explained Sanitization further and told us that Acht lost all of their free will and were FORCED to make music for Tartar, it kinda damaged their story a little bit. Like sure, Acht still probably wanted to go under Sanitization to clear their doubts and remove emotion, but the added information kinda goes against the interesting story they were trying to tell with Acht. Acht doesn't even mention why they went under Sanitization in Side Order and their reasoning is only found IN A SOCIAL MEDIA POST BACK IN 2018!!! THEY DON'T RESTATE IT AT ALL WHEN IT WOULD HAVE BEEN IMPORTANT TO DO SO! They kinda tell us via their letters, but guess when you get those, IN THE POST GAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This leads me to another big talking point, most of the lore is hidden and hard to find. You have to go out of your way to find most of the shit Splatoon has to offer. Sunken Scrolls are hidden collectables and most people don't wanna go through the effort of finding them all in the stages, the chat logs in Octo Expansion are completely optional due to entries being tied to specific stations and you can choose to easily skip them, the dev diaries are locked behind lockers and some people may complete Side Order in a manner where they can get to the final boss and be done with the main campaign before seeing most of the entries. Now I'm not saying that there cannot be extra lore tidbits for players to find, hell no, i love extra stuff like that, i think Splatoon 1 and 3's hero modes did a really job of that. BUT WHEN YOU HIDE AWAY IMPORTANT DETAILS LIKE CALLIE'S MOTIVATION IN SPLATOON 2 AND MARINA'S AND PEARL'S BACKSTORIES!?!? YEAH I GOT A FUCKING PROBLEM RIGHT THERE!

In other games, these would be cutscenes or a bunch of mandatory dialogue, BUT NOPE! THEY ARE IN HARD TO FIND SPOTS!

Some of the other lore details are found on social media posts and some of them are YEARS old or on Splatoon's dead Tumblr account. Most people would rather go to Inkipedia and even they can sometimes make vital mistakes or have wording that gives people the wrong idea on what happened in particular events, which heavily impacts the community and discussion. When i talk about my perspective on what happened to Callie in Splatoon 2, I've seen people say to me "wait really? Huh?! I didn't know that." The amount of research you gotta do to go into these characters is an absolute nightmare, AND DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THE SPLATBANDS!!! Their lore is literally locked behind Japanese exclusive expensive artbooks!!! WHY?!?!

I really do wanna stress again, is it cool to get cool lore outside of the games and as collectables?! ABSOLUTELY! You know how awesome it was to read the Alterna logs for the first time? The smile on my face seeing Pearl and Marina back in the Final Fest in Side Order. But when the main stories suffer because of important information being tossed to the side and not applied to the main games... I dont know man, it just becomes incredibly frustrating to me personally. Especially with all the misconceptions and other things that occur within the community, the fandom has an information problem and honestly, it's Nintendo's fault. Imagine if Side Order had flashbacks to a younger Marina and Acht, it would have helped with the middle chunk of the story being so... nothing.

[lowrezbonuslevel]

you... are my nakama.......!

Day 2 Revenge Kirby Fighters 3 and Knuckles: Old Man Yaoi Edition

⚠️ LONG (but good-faith) RANT (that gives a little extra context for today's drawing) UNDER THE CUT (don't worry it's not shipping discourse lmao) ⚠️

Okay so I know neither of these modes are canon and therefore it's SORT OF a moot point, but NARRATIVELY SPEAKING, Meta Knightmare Returns and Dededetour are completely and utterly backwards, right???

What beef does King Dedede have with Dark Meta Knight? What beef does Meta Knight have with Sectonia and Dark Matter Swordsman (besides the fact that they both breathe and hold pointy weapons)? I understand that there's this ongoing plotline with having MK face swordfighters to test his skill, but I still think King Dedede should have been the one to rematch both DMS and Sectonia in Robobot (I do know Sectonia DX in TDX exists, but she isn't the final boss of the Dededetour mode which kinda sucks).

Shadow Dedede himself is a decent idea, but he's new to the series and has absolutely no story introduction (and his design isn't all that interesting, at least to me). Sectonia? Love her, but she deserves a Dedede hammer to the face for all three phases and more. DMS (and Dark Matter in general)? The ORIGINAL Dedede opp (besides Kirby lol). I know these are just clones in-story, but the coolness factor is still there.

You can make the argument that MK got to fight Mecha Knight because of MKR--which is cool, definitely, but if it were King Dedede the same could be said for the Dedede Clone fight, so in my eyes it evens out (actually... Dedede beating Stock Mecha would probably have been even more hype. imho).

Also, a Galacta Knight battle with solo King Dedede would be rad. The power scalers would have a FIELD DAY!!!

Likewise, Meta Knight never actually got to beat DMK in a proper battle at any point, did he? So based on both canon and alt timelines, DMK could still whoop MK's ass. That's just wrong... :(

It's my understanding that TDX was made with absolutely no anticipation of Robobot, so it could be the case that they simply didn't want to give Dedede the spotlight twice. But I sort of wish they had held back on MKR regardless.

Really, I don't think you NEED the anticipation of Robobot's specific plot/mechanics to see that MKR would have fit perfectly in TDX, because it answers the question of "where the hell is MK and why did he sit back when Dedede got kidnapped"? Having him fight DMK would be a way cooler explanation than an implicit "he was doing something somewhere else."

Maybe he's been fighting on the sidelines and is now clearing out the castle--which is full of Sectonia's remaining minions, the strongest and most loyal--and getting to the bottom of some source of magic still coming from the castle. Meanwhile Dedede and Kirby are helping out the people of mainland Popstar that were displaced by Sectonia and the Dreamstalk. And DMK (or, even better--a form of Dark Mind!) serves as the final boss.

Likewise, while the main events of Robobot are going on, the King could be helping Floralia defend themselves from the invasion. (The existence of Sectonia Clone combined with the pause screen that claims "Floralia is too remote to be mechanized yet" is literally just a plot hole anyway. The invaders couldn't overtake Floralia by the time we're fighting Sectonia Clone... despite the fact that they obviously DID find the huge plant that leads DIRECTLY to their kingdom AND the invaders have a mother(computer)ship the size of Planet Popstar AND practically infinite robot soldiers...? Be so fr...)

Extra work/game industry deadlines are a consideration too, but I don't think that applies too heavily here because both modes could have heavily reused and repurposed assets and level designs.

MK could have just had the typical EX mode recolors and stuff, but maybe with the story explanation/design concept that the bosses are being controlled by the Dark Mirror this time, instead of being aggravated by Taranza.

Dededetour in Robobot could have subsequently reused TDX assets. I feel like this is even a case where reskins are the objectively cooler option, as opposed to entirely new assets: seeing the flowery, green areas of Floralia converted to gross, grey landscapes would have been AWESOME, as well as seeing the insects and flower-based enemies turned to robots. Maybe the People of the Sky have been mind controlled: the six main flower fairies work together as a miniboss, and defeating them/breaking their mind control apparatuses is how they are "rescued" here, in parallel to their game of origin. Maybe Taranza is also being mind-controlled in an act of universal karma and Dedede has to bail him out. That would be sick!

This stuff isn't a series-ruiner by any means, but it genuinely feels like a glitch in the Kirby matrix that the plotlines here are so mismatched. If I were whimsically rewriting the Kirby series, the MKR and Dededetour swap would probably be the first change I'd make. (And, again, I'd like to acknowledge that there are/were probably practical considerations of which I'm ignorant.)

You know how the series could still fix everything, though...? Kirby Fighters 3, BUT this time King Dedede and Meta Knight are the main protags. They get to fight magically-summoned/echo versions of DMK, DMS, Sectonia, King D-Mind, Yin-Yarn... you name it. TOGETHER. As husbands should!!!

[glitched213]

Had a weird dream but a great game idea:

In the dream, I was playing a new sonic game with my sister that has just come out.

It was a game where everyone is a human instead and students at a high school or college. Sonic, Shadow, and a few other characters are in a band (anime school-festival style) and Sonic pretty much rules the school. He also hates Shadow for some petty reason and it's hilarious.

There is some kind of outbreak (like a zombie virus but more fixable than that silver one) going on and you go to investigate but get stopped by their defense system. Despite it being a school, think high tech blasters most likely made by tails. Sonic shows up on a giant screen beside the door. He seems surprised your there because you aren't one of the student but decides to let you in to help fix whatever is going on. Apparently the outbreak has been happening inside the school, too.

After leaving that room, you hear Sonic make an announcement over the PA system for everyone to stay in their rooms and not leave them unless you have fighting experience or 'fuchsia' camouflage pants (what shadow apparently wears and the only person who wears them). He also says you especially can't go out if you have delicate hands that can't be fighting (something clearly about him as he holds his 'delicate hands' up on screen).

Sonic has either blue hair or blond with blue highlights. He wears a school uniform and is the band's singer. His personality stays the same but he is also lazy enough to make you do everything, trivial fetch quests included.

Shadow has a school uniform but actually shows up in fuchsia camo pants (thick cargo style) and a black tank top or t-shirt. He has black hair with red highlights. He's the drummer. He was most likely dressed up for their band practice but it got cut short by the outbreak.

Amy doesn't show up or speak yet but she's there to and is either the guitarist or the keyboardist.

No comment yet on who else is in the band.

Weird but awesome, right?

I think I might right a story about it :) Feel free to use this how you please, actually seeing a game come out of it would be awesome.

[usagi-luna01]

omori ending spoilersss

a lot of the discussion surrounding the ending is very wack to me because i’ll see people claiming that the game spent all this time trying to convince us that sunny and basil are ‘good kids’ and that the twist is just unbelievable. but i’m like. who said they’re ‘good’ kids? what does that even mean, anyway? sunny and basil are two mentally ill children (even before mari) who are deeply traumatized. that is fact. and they did a horrible thing! they kept a horrible secret for a long time from their loved ones. regardless of any labels of ‘good’ or ‘bad’, they’re kids who need help. do you believe kids who do bad things are still deserving of help?

without being able to take that to heart, i don’t think the final battle has nearly as much significance. omori’s words in the fight hurt so much because they genuinely feel true, to sunny and to the player who has just learned this secret. as the player, we’re supposed to feel betrayed, angry, even disgusted. at least that’s what i felt. sunny’s friends will probably feel that way at first. and sunny obviously feels that way about himself. in the game, sunny has to forgive himself, and as the player who acted in sunny’s shoes for 20+ hours, the game asks if we can forgive him, too.

[thewandererh]

anyone ever heard of unravel? it’s one of my absolute favorite games, and it’s message and experience will never leave me. you’re a lil yarn fella exploring the memories of an old lady, and uncovering a heartfelt and realistic story of growth and loss along the way. absolutely gorgeous scenery, puzzle design, and metaphor of a game.

it does all of this with absolutley zero words. the only thing you hear from the game is ambience…and the music. i need to talk about the music.

one thing that’s always stood out to me about Unravel’s music is that it’s based completely on violin. composed and preformed by frida johansson and henrik oja, it’s a work of art (and awesome for studying!). i love this choice of experimenting with an emotional instrument to describe different areas: it succeeds so naturally in capitalizing on the emotion. your character goes through areas themed with sun, snow, water, ice, forests, and metal, and the music compliments it every step of the way. the environment changes pallette after pallette as you experience the story through a vessel of expression that admires and fears the world around it.

you are a yarn cat reminiscing on the good and bad of life. you go through trials and triumphs just like anyone would. but in this journey through the eyes of a wordless red thread of destiny, you experience life to the fullest. this thesis is reflected to its full potential in the music.

frida and henrik are masters of expressing emotion through music alone and i will always admire them for that. never have i heard a question, statement, and exclamation interpreted so thoroughly through instrumentals. they handle cord progression and storytelling so extremely well. the sequel, Unravel 2, continues this emotional-musical trend while incorporating additional instruments, giving the game a collaborative and heartfelt feeling. they add guitar and digital doodads that groove endlessly in their own ambient way, further expanding the style of the unravel games. the music of this game (series?) is a friend to you on your journey—empathizing and playing with you through the ups and downs. it’s a masterpiece of design and i will never stop preaching praises for it.

please play the game (and it’s sequel with a friend!!) on steam. i am on my knees. please. it isn’t covered as much as it needs to be and deserves all the love it receives. the message is timeless, the music is wonderful, and the puzzles are worthwhile. it’s an absolute indie gem that will never leave you for as long as you live.

.-.

this was something different for me, and a bit of a ramble-tumble, and that’s ok. i’ve always admired video essays and rants on social media that feel like persuasive essays. i’m been experimenting with wordplay and sentence structure recently, and wanted to give something like this a try :]. it’s unprofessional since i’m no expert, but i’m noticing something and commenting on it to the best of my ability. thanks for reading!💛

[jack-shadow]

Its crazy how quickly pepole have really turned on Tears of the kingdom. Like a few months after release we were all talking about how incredible it was and saying it made botw look like a tech demo, then pepole starting comparing it to breath of the Wild, and more pepole were siding with botw because it's story was a bit less all over the place, and it had the fully original world with totk just kinda piggybacked off of, which makes sense, though frankly I think it's pointless considering that both are so amazing.

But now is seeing a really negative reception, like pepole are saying it shouldn't have released, and now the public opinion is thar it was pointless or unnecessary. It's just crazy how the public consensus has changed.

And frankly I kinda miss the more positive perspective, it's not a perfect game, the sky islands are repetitive, the fused weapons look ugly, the story feels separated from breathe of the wild, and it messed up the timeline. But it also has the best combat of any zelda game, has way more interesting enemies than botw, has amazing caves, the depths were perfect, the building system was beautiful, and the story is genuinely beautiful misteps and all. I understand looking at things with a critical perspective, but can't we just enjoy flawed things and be more positive towards media, not everything needs to serious and have a point, least of all games.

of course this is not to say that pepole who didn't enjoy the game are negative pepole, I'm just saying we don't need to constantly be critical, we can just have fun

[vannalamba]

TAKES AN INCREDIBLY DEEP BREATH

curly. captain curly, grant curly, whatever his name is. curly. an enabler, an abuser’s ally, blabbity blabbity blah.

we all know what happens to him. jimmy crashes the ship after being crushed under the weight of his actions, curly tries to stop it and takes the damage ruining his body forever, is assaulted by jimmy whenever he gives him his meds, fed his own leg, and put into cryostasis to prolong his suffering rather than end it.

i see some people saying he still cares for jimmy even after the incident and only regrets what he did because it ended up in him being bedridden. and to that i say.. did you watch/play the game with a blindfold and your ears plugged???

did he act immediately after anya told him? no. should he have? yes. but we have to remember that he had just realized that his best friend— childhood best friend— was an abuser and a terrible person and he turned a blind eye to it.

no, that’s not an excuse for his actions, but so many people throw that away just to find an excuse to hate curly. hate him all you want, he’s not perfect, but he’s not the devil.

i think the developer’s games before mouthwashing, how fish is made and the last one and then another, portray curly’s thoughts while in the pod. he considers what he should’ve done instead and how he could be so naive, but ultimately has to face the reality of what his blindness lead to.

even so, after the confrontation with jimmy, curly was torn. he couldn’t do anything about it seeing as the ship needing a co-pilot and nobody else was qualified enough, but he wishes he did something, anything. because inevitably, his neglect lead to everybody else’s downfall.

there were two ways he could’ve avoided what happened: never recommend the job to jimmy, or put him in cryostasis the moment he found out and train somebody else to be co-pilot. he brought up the job because he wanted his best friend by his side during the long trip, and the idea of locking jimmy away hurt him, scared him even. so he remained idle by choice until he didn’t have one.

in short, there were a lot of things he could’ve done. he didn’t do them. he hurt and lead everyone to their doom. but i know that if he had a choice, he would take off his rose tinted glasses and act. they could never make me hate you curly

[villain-byteniwoha]

there's been "discourse" between genshin and wuwa recently (and i use the word "discourse" very lightly as there has yet to be a popular/widely accepted and viewed exchange between the two fandoms outside of barbed insults at each game's problems)

i bring this up because i have not thought about genshin for a LONG time (i have never played wuwa) but its players have brought up an interesting argument against wuwa, which i never accounted for when pondering genshin's success

because there are many, many criticisms to be had with genshin (from its use of real cultures as inspiration to the lack of quality of life upgrades) but it is still undeniably popular. if you haven't played it yourself, then you definitely know someone who did or still does

back to my point, in this (frankly tiring) discourse between the two gacha games, genshin players brought up that wuwa is like any run of the mill gacha game because it caters solely to please the player by leaning into the aesthetics and faux-parasocial-ism of its character designs i.e. the characters don't interact outside of the MC because the world revolves around the MC

and, interestingly, through this narrative choice, wuwa garnered a kind of fanbase that doesn't have an organic fan content system—AKA the shippers, the fan artists and fanfic writers, the zine and bang mods, the theory crafters, the content creators; fans who create and circulate the love

which isn't to say that there are no wuwa artists (of any kind!) because i have seen fan works doing rounds—it's just that, wuwa's players may already be satisfied with the interactions they get, through the MC's fulfillment and interactions with the game's characters

I don't want to use demeaning language like "gooner game" but that's basically genshin's argument here, which is still ironic considering genshin's large mass, and the subsequent breadth of nsfw fanmade content because of that

this dichotomy of ([apparently/allegedly] mostly male) fans who only consume vs fans who celebrate creating is the real meat of my point

because there are tons of wuwa art (though admittedly, the most popular ones that bleed into my algorithm are often on the lewd side and are mostly women) but the community isn't as coordinated to come together.

the most telling sign is probably the impact of hoyofair and/or hoyofest, as they can showcase just how enormous both the community is as well as the labor of its love

anyways, because of this niggling thought, I decided to test something, and my tool of choice is our most beloved AO3

wuwa is turning one year old next month (in May 2025), so I checked how many fanfics are currently published under the fandom tag

keep in mind, i applied no other filter so this number is the collection of fics from all the ratings, all the languages, with crossovers included, plus completed AND ongoing works

curious, i wanted to compare numbers, so i pulled up genshin's stats which i filtered from Sept 2020 (when the game was launched) to Sept 2021

like it or not, a lot of the most popular fandoms have creator type fans to thank for its success. fandom history has already dictated how amazing women are with organizing together and creating something beautiful out of love. and even back then, it was gay fanfic that bonded us

here's the top 10 relationship tags for genshin in its first year btw

idk maybe it's all insignificant to you but the difference is so, so fascinating. to me. and while i know this'll all just blow over soon enough, i thought i'd put my two cents in

even if you can't really buy anything with that, in this economy, so maybe i contributed nothing in the bigger picture lmfao

my final words for this silly long post are: popular doesn't automatically mean good, fan creations are the heart of fandoms, and oh my gosh isn't it amazing how we live in an era where communities like this can exist? fandoms and shipping and nerding out over niches are a lot more mainstream nowadays, but with that popularity comes a price.

but hey, would you rather we move two steps forward one step back than or stay stuck and stigmatized forever?

EDIT: i also want to acknowledge that genshin launched at the peak of lockdown and that there was still luck involved with its success. BUT in doing so, you have to remember that it was fans talking with one another and building its momentum that made genshin the godzilla it is today; the rise of streamers, content creators, fan challenges—community boomed!

in contrast to this, when wuwa first launched, most of its discourse surrounded comparisons to genshin (better quality of life, better movement and fight mechanics, better gacha stats, etc) which was fair! genshin is stingy as fuck!!!! but notice the difference in how genshin's community persevered because of emotional attachment to the characters and the story vs wuwa's hype (like tower of fantasy, now that i just remembered it) dying when it established itself as the friendlier game to play, but ultimately didn't flesh out characters for their potential stories so much as they were created as products to be bought

which, hey! it's gacha! it's supposed to be addicting! you're supposed to want these characters enough to be willing to spend real money for even the chance of obtaining them. but if all that's tempting your player base is the character design (aesthetics and parasocialism like i said earlier) then that's not going to run as strong or as long as genshin, I'm sorry!

have you seen the dedication this fanbase can amass? people saving for characters that may never even be playable. old fans coming back from the dead when old lore gets expanded upon. hell, ONE submission to hoyofair is enough hard work already, and there are so, so many submissions every year!

it's been a rough journey and there's no telling if it'll get better or worse from here, but it DOES make you wonder. why, just why, is genshin still getting traction when there are clearly other options that "treat its fanbase better"

i fear the difference speaks for itself

[taempteng]

【 Analytical Essay 】 Lies of P: Lying is Innately Human

Introduction | The Concept of Lying

Humans lie. Some more than others, but the fact remains. No matter the background, humans always lie.

Lying is when you knowingly make a false statement. Since it is used to deceive someone, lying is seen as a bad act of character. However, is delusion all there is to lying?

Disney’s Pinocchio puts heavy emphasis on the act of lying. Whenever Pinocchio lies, his nose grows longer. Disney popularised the connection between Pinocchio’s story and the moral “never tell a lie”.

Lies of P also explores the concept of lying through its gameplay. Unlike Disney’s moral-of-the-story approach, the game encourages you to lie. It is a necessary feature Pinocchio must carry out to become human.

Interestingly enough, Lies of P does not paint lying in a bad light. In fact, it justifies Pinocchio’s lies. Through the many circumstances he encountered, the game shows us the different scenarios where a lie would benefit over the truth.

Like many aspects in life, there is nuance to lying, and deceit may not be the only reason for a person to lie.

One | Preserve One's Feelings

Honesty can hurt. Not everyone is built for the cold hard truths. However, if you have the ability to spare their feelings, will you not do that? Especially if the truth will not bother them for the foreseeable future. One white lie cannot possibly hurt anyone, right?

The first person Pinocchio ever lied to was the Weeping Woman. She resided in the quarantine zone where she lived separately from her baby, Elena. She asked Pinocchio to reunite her with her baby, stating that he could find her at the Krat City Hall.

However, upon arrival, Pinocchio found no survivors. He picked up a broken baby puppet at the venue before returning to the Weeping Woman. Sensing his presence, she urged Pinocchio to give her Elena.

He handed her the broken baby puppet. Believing to be holding her child, the Weeping Woman cried in relief. She asked if Pinocchio found Elena cute, which led to the puppet’s first lie to a human.

Pinocchio indulged in her question, omitting the fact that the baby was a puppet. The Weeping Woman was too emotional to realise she was not holding Elena. She truly believed she was reunited with her child.

When Pinocchio set off to find Elena, the Weeping Woman was already losing her sight to the Petrification Disease. By the time he returned, she could not see anymore. She trusted Pinocchio’s expedition to be a success and never found out that her baby had already passed.

The Weeping Woman would have been heartbroken if she found out Elena was gone. Pinocchio did not want her to live in grief and solitude. So, he pretended the broken baby puppet was her child, allowing her to live peacefully with the belief that she is now with her beloved daughter.

Later in the game, Eugénie caught wind of Alidoro’s arrival at the hotel. In the past, Alidoro lost a finger after saving Eugénie from the collapsing Workshop Tower. As a token of appreciation, Eugénie crafted a pair of gloves for his missing limb and asked for Pinocchio’s help to deliver the gift.

Sadly, when Alidoro received the gloves, he was offended. He insulted the gloves’ design and waved Pinocchio off. When Pinocchio returned to Eugénie, she asked about Alidoro’s response.

Pinocchio did not relay the message and instead claimed Alidoro liked the present. Eugénie was delighted by the news and thanked Pinocchio for his help. It is unclear whether Eugénie ever encounters Alidoro after the incident, but it is safe to assume she never finds out about his true reaction.

If Pinocchio had told Eugénie the truth, he could risk hurting her feelings. Though it did not happen in the Truth route, it was still a plausible outcome. So, by lying about Alidoro’s response, Pinocchio could ensure that Eugénie was not hurt by the reaction and maintained a perfect image of her saviour.

Further on in his journey, Pinocchio met a soldier named Belle. When he found her in the hotel, she asked for his help in locating her partner, Atkinson. Belle had separated from him when the Puppet Frenzy took a turn for the worst.

When Pinocchio found Atkinson, he was in the final stages of mutation. He had been infected by the Petrification Disease. He gave Pinocchio a letter, asking him to tell Belle that he died a soldier.

Pinocchio reported back to Belle about his findings. He handed her the letter and claimed Atkinson met his end while fighting a puppet. Though grieved by the news, Belle still thanked Pinocchio for his service.

No matter the truth or lie, Belle will be hurt anyway. At least, by claiming Atkinson died in combat rather than turning into a monster, Belle’s image of her partner would not be tainted. She can remember him as a brave soldier, instead of a pitiful man who succumbed to the disease.

Although honesty is enlightening, a white lie does not hurt anyone. Rather than scarring the listener for life, telling them a lie can spare their feelings. It is occasions like these where lying can be justified.

Two | Politeness and Courtesy

Emotion is fickle. It is fluid, allowing room for random outbursts. Humans may lie in fear of the truth evoking these reactions from a listener.

Ego and dignity are just as fickle. Everyone has an image to uphold. When that image is challenged, people will become defensive and react harshly.

Humans lie regularly in formal settings. Even if a person hates someone, they must show the other person respect. They will use honeyed words to stroke the listener’s ego and maintain their own image.

Humans also use honeyed words on their loved ones. Usually, it is to comfort the loved ones from the apparent but ugly truth. Their sweet lies are seen as a form of support and courtesy.

As the game progresses, Antonia showed signs of the Petrification Disease. She lamented on her youthful past and asked Pinocchio if she was as beautiful as her younger self. When he answered “yes”, Antonia gave praise to Geppetto for teaching him well.

Even if the words are not true, you will be perceived to have good manners when you sweet talk a person. It shows that you respect their feelings and thoughts. It will reflect well on yourself and those acquainted to you.

Three | Appease the Listener

There are times where people will ask you about your opinions. Stating the truth will tell them what they want to know; stating a lie will tell them what they want to hear.

During his journey through Krat, Pinocchio came across a gentleman named Julian. Julian asked for Pinocchio’s help in retrieving his wife’s, Melody’s, belongings. When Pinocchio found Melody, he learned that she was actually a puppet.

After Pinocchio returned Melody’s belongings, Julian apologised for not mentioning she was a puppet. He explained how both of them were actually in love, even when everyone mocked them. He then asked if Pinocchio had ever heard of a human and a puppet falling in love with each other.

Instead of answering, Pinocchio claimed he found a message left behind by Melody, stating her love to Julian. Julian believed Pinocchio’s words and mourned for the lover he lost. He rewarded Pinocchio for his help and hoped he would also find true love.

Though Pinocchio made that claim, he did not actually find said message. He did find it later on in his venture, but the fact remained that he pulled that declaration out of thin air. Pinocchio knew how much Julian loved Melody and lied about the message to ease his aching heart.

After his talk with Antonia, Pinocchio met with Polendina. He confessed to having an awoken ego, and through it he fell in love with Antonia. Polendina worried for Antonia as she showed signs of the Petrification Disease and voiced his anxiety towards her death.

Polendina asked if it was possible for a puppet to fall in love with a human. Pinocchio responded by showing Melody’s wedding ring. Polendina swooned over the sight and thanked Pinocchio for his answer, even if it may be a sweet lie he told.

Unlike other puppets, Pinocchio can lie. Despite knowing that, Polendina chose to believe Pinocchio’s words. He accepted the possibility of a puppet falling in love with a human and continued to exist knowing his love for Antonia was real.

Pinocchio met Simon Manus at the Grand Exhibition Conference Room after defeating Victor. Simon explained that he had been using the Petrification Disease to strengthen humans, and Victor was a result of such an experiment. He asked for Pinocchio’s opinion on his “cure”.

Pinocchio replied that he saw Simon’s “cure” as a hope for humanity. Simon expressed surprise at Pinocchio’s open-mindedness, despite knowing it was a lie. Simon then raved about his discovery, saying how he can achieve an übermensch through this experiment.

Simon has the ability to tell apart truths and lies. Yet, he accepted Pinocchio’s dishonesty as it agreed with his perspective. He was glad to find a like-minded person, even if the words do not resonate their true thoughts.

Four | Personal Safety

Lies do not just protect a person’s mentality and emotion. It can also protect them physically. It redirects unwanted attention and shields them from danger.

Pinocchio first met Alidoro at St Frangelico Cathedral Library. He was seeking refuge and asked Pinocchio about a safe place. Before his journey, Geppetto warned Pinocchio against disclosing the Hotel Krat to outsiders. So, Pinocchio pointed Alidoro to Venigni’s Works. Alidoro was worried since it was the place where puppets were made, but he trusted Pinocchio’s words nonetheless.

Although the Hotel Krat is a safe shelter, inviting unwanted guests can bring harm to the inhabitants. We can never tell if a stranger is dangerous, since they can turn against us on a whim. It is best to avoid them altogether than to risk everyone’s safety in the name of kindness.

After his second fight with the Black Rabbit Brotherhood, Pinocchio returned to the Hotel Krat. Venigni succeeded in decoding the King of Puppet’s Message and asked Pinocchio to give it a listen. Through it, he learned the culprit behind the Puppet Frenzy, and it was Geppetto.

Venigni could not hear the last part of the message, where the identity of the instigator was revealed. When questioned on whether Pinocchio caught the name of the culprit, he lied and said he did not. Venigni was visibly disheartened by the news, but tried to maintain hope as he entrusted Pinocchio to save Krat.

Geppetto is Pinocchio’s father. Perhaps Pinocchio did not believe his father capable of such atrocity. Or maybe, he feared what the survivors would do if they realised Geppetto was behind the Puppet Frenzy. Not wanting to put his father in danger, Pinocchio lied about not catching the name of the culprit. His love and loyalty to his father proved stronger than his commitment to the safety of those around him, because he cannot bear any harm befalling Geppetto from the discovery.

While journeying through Krat, Pinocchio answered many phone calls from the King of Riddles. On their final phone call, the King of Riddles asked Pinocchio: Was he a killer or not?

Pinocchio answered “no”. The King of Riddles was flabbergasted. He wondered if Pinocchio was being self-conscious of his actions and mocked him for feeling guilty. Still, the King of Riddles let Pinocchio off with a parting gift.

When accused of a crime, it is reflex for humans to deny. Even for Pinocchio, despite being aware of all the Puppets and mutated humans he slain. No one wants to be branded a sinner, so a lie they shall tell to claim innocence.

In the final arc, Pinocchio found Geppetto at the Arche Abbey. He informed Pinocchio about Simon’s plans and entrusted Pinocchio with the task of stopping him. However, Geppetto needed to make sure one query — whether Pinocchio trusted him.

Pinocchio said Geppetto was a trustworthy father, much to his relief. He was then sent off with well wishes before his showdown with Simon Manus.

At this point of his journey, Pinocchio knew Geppetto was the culprit behind the Puppet Frenzy. Geppetto was clearly not a man to be messed with. If Pinocchio answered earnestly, who knows what Geppetto will do to him?

Lies are powerful in deterring the attention of people who want to harm us. If it does not convince them to back off, then it takes them off into second guessing themselves. It keeps us safe or gives us time to escape from the danger.

Conclusion | An Innately Human Action

Lies may reflect badly on a person’s character. However, it is not without its merits. From sparing one’s feelings to protecting oneself from physical harm, lying can bring good not just to the speaker, but also to the listener and those outside of the conversation.

Lies of P captured the complex nature of lying through Pinocchio’s interaction with the world. Instead of condemning the act, the game presents difficult scenarios where lying is more merciful than honesty. In doing so, it taught Pinocchio the depth of humanity and to be thoughtful with his words.

Much like humans, the act of lying is complicated. Though we are advised against lying, we still do so in our daily lives. It is just an innately human act, and that is okay.

[r47b0y]

Are y’all fucking with the art style change it’s not like crazy crazy off of 3 but it looks like it’s closer to the movie borderlands style(if you can call it that). But the jump is wild from this to the original games art style

[polling-sonic-fans]

Is Sonic Forces overhated? Yes/No/Unsure/Never Played (note: overhated doesn't necessarily mean criticism isn't valid, but is it disproportionately hated compared to other games?)

Thanks anon!

Polls for the Sonic fandom on just about anything. Share polls you like to get more data. Asks and submissions always open.

[dr-spectre]

Hey gamers, I wanna ask y'all a question.

You know how people tend to say that "Splatoon needs to evolve, the games are very similar to each other. They need to go beyond. They need to do something dramatically different. Otherwise, things will go stale."

While I agree with this, i wanna ask you all,

How would you evolve Splatoon? How would you make a hypothetical Splatoon 4 dramatically different from the previous Splatoon games?

[co-mei-dy]

Pikmin 4 is such an odd case to me. After years and years of waiting and rumors and spinoffs, we finally get the proper continuation. When it first came out it was such a fun game, I played it non stop the 3 days after it came out. I thought it was almost on par with Pikmin 2 for fun, but now after a year+ of it being out a lot of cracks are showing. A game that I thought was on par with the best in the series kept falling down the rankings, and after finally playing Pikmin 3 WiiU I keep debating on if I like more than 4 or not. Now I see a lot of people saying how people are "turning their backs" on Pikmin 4, along with some other recent-ish game releases. But like, are people not allowed to change their opinions on something? Are people not able to see glaring issues after the honeymoon phase of a release? By no means am I calling Pikmin 4 a bad game. I just wish it was more like the previous games in some ways. Have toggle-able auto lock on. Have enemies respawn in the overworlds. Make the enemies put up a damn fight.

[limbobilbo]

Girl if you like:

Pokemon

Difficult video games

Killer music

Mythological creatures

Choice

The forbidden knowledge of the gnostics and esoteric belief in the evil of god

Play Shin Megami Tensei. I don’t care if its persona (3 reload, 4 golden or 5 royal on pc without emulation) or mainline (III Nocturne, V Vengence on pc without emulation) or what but play SMT its a fucking amazing franchise