#I find video game controversies FASCINATING

[area51-escapee]

I hope that in the future we no longer have to deal with people who don’t play video games trying to decide which games are too graphic or harmful and should be banned but then I look at people my age or younger and I’m like yeah we ain’t never getting out of this

[nightcolorz]

What do you think Armand’s favorite video game is? Or perhaps favorite genre. ((If he had a movie phase, I feel like a video game phase isn’t too far fetched.))

lmao omg I love this question 😭🙏I agree 100% Armand absolutely had a video game phase, that is so him

I think Armand would rlly mf like mobile games 💀 like those really mundane repetitive sensory games, where u stack layers of cake or tap balls through hoops. He’d do that shit for like multiple days straight without getting bored 😭. I feel like the thing Armand would be most enamored by with video games would be the coding and technology aspect rather then like, story or entertainment value, so I feel like he’d be into games that most ppl would find pretty boring. I think he’d play online chess and care wayyyy too much. He’d be more fascinated by the Ai chess player function than the actual game tho (yknow where u can play a single player round against the app), bcus the whole concept of playing chess against a computer would be mind blowing to him. I think Armand would also like basic puzzle mobile games, like candy crush and tetris (once again, would be hyper fixated on that for multiple days straight). The issue Armand would run into with mobile games would be always, without fail falling for the clickbait adds and then immediately downloading whatever he clicks on 😭. His iPad data is absolutely devastated by how many shitty mobile games it’s trying to support 😭

my potentially controversial opinion is that I don’t think Armand would be interested in violent/fighting games. He explains in queen of the damned that he doesn’t understand what is cathartic about violence, and he finds the concept of seeking out violence disturbing and confusing. I feel like Armand would have a similar reaction towards shooter/war games as a conservative mother with a gaming son would 💀. “Why would u enjoy that 😦?? War is not fun 😦”. Lmaoooo. He would definitely try those games out to try and understand the appeal (endlessly curious and desperate to understand other ppls perspectives as he is) But I think Armand would be immune to any catharsis that comes with game killing, bcus of how often he experiences real killing💀 The only appeal he would find in violence based games would be the competitive aspect and the visuals + technological components. he is so easily stimulated that I feel like if Armand were to play like, Red dead redemption for example, he’d end up spending hours and hours riding the horse around and looking at the visuals instead of participating in any of the game play 💀 yknow? If he were to try Fortnite or Dead by Daylight or smth like that he’d be so focused on the running around and jumping functions that he’d die immediately 💀

I think Armand would be captivated by story games and visual novels, part of me thinks that he is so easily entertained that he would be too busy staring at a single environment or clicking around buttons to engage in the actual story 💀. Armand would 100% be obsessed with video games, but I think he would not play or engage with them in anyway conventionally, just bcus of how he experiences his fixations and what things he takes interest in. Armand is so invested in sensory experiences that I think if he were to play a large scale game he’d spend tons of time fixating on tiny little aspects of the features instead of working to finish it😭. Armand plays like, life is strange for a year and never gets past the first scene bcus he enjoys listening to the sound design so much 💀

Thank u SO MUCH for the ask I love this question I was smiling and giggling writing this 😭 I hope my response was enjoyable, I honestly don’t know much about video games so I have a sort of limited perspective, but I hope my Armand knowledge makes up for it 🙏lol

[imoenhatesthis]

Lily Orchard and Imoen: Is the Mod Popular?

So unfortunately, Lily Orchard talks about the Imoen Romance mod in her 'Addressing Allegations' video (starting at 39:31, ending at 41:13) in regards to Courtney, whose made allegations against Lily you can hear for yourself here. Please heed the trigger warnings in both videos, though I won't be going in-depth here.

In this video, Lily describes that Gorion's Ward and Imoen are "the best of friends whose closeness borders on romantic at times...", (40:13) who discover being siblings in BGII. That isn't true but whatever, I'm not here to talk about the game itself. After going through her other sister OCs, she ends by going, "[I] talked about one of the most infamous and positively received mods for one of the most popular RPGs ever made," (41:05) end quote, so clearly this doesn't have anything to do with the real life allegations.

Two issues: One is that this is a deflection that does not address Courtney's allegations at all, or why she would find the fascination with those characters suspect. But the second is that this idea that the mod is popular and well-loved is just not true, and I'm going to spend time arguing against. If anything, how decidedly unpopular it is says that Lily is the one actively seeking out this content.

So why didn't Lily show proof about the mod's popularity in her debunking video? Maybe include a positive review? Well...

There was once a forum dedicated to the mod, populated only by people who'd want to play this kind of thing. So, if Lily is remembering this forum, that information is going to be skewed one way with any negative reviews chased out. It's long gone now, so I can't pull numbers. Instead, I'll be using general forum spaces that are probably the most popular with general BG fans, Beamdog and Reddit.

On the official EE mod release thread on the Beamdog forum... the total combination of posts from the author/coder and players only total 30 pages, with posts as recent as this month. 25 posts a page equals 750 posts altogether from across 10 years, though the most recent page is just 1 post, so 726. If we're SUPER charitable and say that's about 700 people playing and posting there throughout 10 years, not including mod authors, that's a minuscule audience. Especially when the original BGII game sold about 2 million copies, as well as Steam estimated selling about a million copies of the Steam release of the Enhanced Edition. Let's say the old deleted forum had about 1 thousand, maybe 2 thousand members, let's say there may be 10,000 downloads of the mod--that's still such a small percentage as to not matter. Definitely not enough to call it popular in the community.

Googling for lists of the best mods for BGII will bring up mods for the UI, general tweaks, difficulty, visuals, and portraits/voices. Especially portraits, people really like portrait mods. Sometimes the BG1 NPC Project is mentioned (which has it's own controversies, it's just probably the most talked about of any of these), but all of these will come long before a mention of NPC mods. So, NPC mods, especially romantic ones, are a niche of a niche.

On a few forums where I do see someone recommend the Imoen Romance as a "required mod"... most of the time they get a negative response.

(Source)

(Source)

Just straight Googling Imoen Romance mod or mod reviews will bring up forums with pages in the single digits, with general discussion devoted to "Is this incest?" questions. It's impossible to go onto any forum post about the romance without at least one person weirded out by it's existence. So, there's at least a variety of opinions on the mod, it's not overwhelmingly positive.

But fine, that's general forums. What about BG mod reviewers? ONCE AGAIN, never ever reach out to these people.

Lily uses the Smoldering Mod Bar's review of Saerilith Romance to condemn that specific mod for its bad writing and taboo themes. It sure would be something if the mod reviewer also had a negative view on Imoen Romance...Oh wait:

(Source)

Okay, well, let's look at positive reviews instead. Lily has also quoted a Beamdog forum review to defend her views on the mod:

(Source)

Why didn't Lily link to the review in question? It would prove to everyone people love her favorite mod just as much as she does, right? Well, I can link it below:

(Source; scored on a 5/5 scale)

Oh, that's not quite as positive as she'd have you believe. Still liked it, but not quite to the level Lily does.

Here's another Beamdog mod reviewer making similar negative points, despite overall loving the mod:

(Source) Even reviewers who champion the mod as great can point out "Wow, this talks about incest quite a lot in a way it didn't even have to." And about it's other flaws too, things Lily never does.

I'm not saying NO ONE thinks the mod is good or that no one has ever mentioned it. I included positive reviews for a reason.

The issue is lying about how popular and well-liked the mod is in order to paint her sister as a crazy obsessed stalker whose just overreading into things. Especially saying this in a video about those allegations, and especially after saying the Gorion's Ward and Imoen are "romantic at times" all in the same breath. Putting ANY lie in this specific video is a serious stain on the credibility of Lily, thus it's important to call it out.

[rottenbrainstuff]

IWTV S2 ep 5 - the good Young Daniel shit. TW: mild suicidal ideation? imp of the perverse? or something?

Nice, I was really waiting for this one. I just love Young Daniel, I find him so incredibly delightful, and I’m trying to pin down why.

Part of it of course is that the actor does such a good job, part of it is how charming I find his big goofy grin, how he flips back and forth between XD and DX so quickly. But I think it’s also because since episode one we’ve focused mostly on nothing but vampires, who’ve had decades or centuries of trauma and grapple with super-human sorrows and fears, and even old Daniel has had a full life of disillusionment and regret and physical pain. But here's Young Daniel and he is so different from everyone, even his future self, so young and naive and fresh, really the absolute antithesis of every other character we’ve got used to at this point. Maybe that's it.

Armand continues to be so pathetic to me in how simple he is. Like, while I watch all this, I'm reading up on V:tM for my daughter's game, and like. Armand isn't running some elaborate political long-game with complicated motivations only a 7th generation methuselah would understand, it's all just so pathetically basic, he wants someone to love him (Lestat, Louis, Daniel... doesn't matter who) and he doesn't understand why no one loves him like he wants. Man I remember his face back when Louis was talking about his Lestat hallucination, the very bare hurt. So lonely and so simple.

Mr. Easeful Death. I found this whole bit extremely disturbing, because Assad is a good actor and the whole thing is extremely comforting and compelling to me, like an anglerfish lure drawing the deep sea fish right in. It would work on me, in a heartbeat, and I find that disturbing to contemplate, like standing at the edge of a big drop and being terrified of how easy it would be to fall. Armand's little merciful hunting that he talks about in that one short story, finding the people who are so tired of being alive, or finding the people who desperately want to be consumed by a demon lover, and becoming that for them, yeah that would work on me, pathetically easy. Don't Fear the Reaper and all of that jazz - I would be gone, gone immediately, gone before he even finished his spiel. Rest - my god, yes please. I am so tired. And so, I found the whole scene so incredibly disturbing. Armand is the feeling of comfort that comes at the end when someone is freezing to death, the relaxing nitrogen narcosis that urges the deep sea diver to do something stupid and sink to their death, the light that lures the little fish right into the mouth of the anglerfish. That is 500% my jam, that scares the shit right out of me, gentle loving death as a mercy, a service, a putting-out-of-misery, yikes. It's terrifying. I fucking love it.

To my surprise though, Daniel fights against it. He has things he wants to keep working on, his life isn't pointless, he likes his life, he wants to live. Broke my heart. Perhaps you could say that my surprise with his reaction comes from my own extremely bad world view. But I wonder if that's not the normal reaction Armand usually gets. He didn't really react to Daniel's objection - I kind of wish he did, I think it would be neat to establish this was something that sets Daniel apart and surprises Armand. Armand thinks he's grasped the threads that will help him unravel Daniel's resistance, he's done this so many times before, but this time it takes a couple tries to get it right. I wonder if it makes Daniel fascinating to Armand as well. Oh well! Just a thought.

Poor old Louis, poor old everyone.

I had mentioned I had watched some video analysis of the show (which pointed out the characters I thought were new were actually based on stuff from the book, which I had forgot/missed, dummy) Seems that, understandably I guess, ep 5 was (is) controversial. And now I feel like a bad fan, because unlike a lot of people, apparently, I like that Lestat has done something that is actually unforgivable. I am not excusing his behaviour, I think it's inexcusable, and that's why I like it. I... yeah man. I dunno. I feel like a bad fan. Everyone talked about how book Lestat would not do that. And at the time when I first watched the ep, that's exactly what I thought as well - Lestat was always a shit but he was never this bad. Episode 6 made me think back on that some more though. I just... Look, I don't really care for book Lestat. Not towards the end, anyway. To me, as the books went on, he became more and more like someone's bad dnd character, the most special and the most skilled with the most sad backstory and this and that and blah blah blah and not enough realistic flaws to balance things out.

In the video it said gross fans are excusing his behaviour like oh, well, it's because of xyz abuse, it's because of abc thing, my gosh I even saw a post saying that you know maybe the reason for the ep 5 fight was all because of Amel (lore stuff - it's this spirit of violence and rage that infects all vampires) and that wasn't the "real Lestat" at all like... noooooo no no no no no no *sigh*. I'm not excusing anything. I mean, the past abuse puts things into context and makes it sad and interesting because it's a perpetuation of cycles of abuse, but that doesn't excuse it. I like that Lestat has done something legitimately inexcusable. I liked how shocked I was in ep 5 and how convinced by his sincerity I was in ep 6 and I like how that left me conflicted and confused. I like that it's difficult. I don't want it excused or explained or handwaved, I want it to stay ugly and uncomfortable, exactly as it is.

Man. I really do feel like a bad fan though. Am I the only one who can't stand the later books and wants this show to be 6 seasons max? Two seasons each for IWTV, Vampire Lestat and Queen of the Damned. They can inject appropriate bits of Vampire Armand as needed. And then after that, stop. No more. Am I the only one? Anyways. Creeping closer to the end of season 2 now. I can't wait to see more of Madeline and Claudia, even if it's so sadly short before the big bad wrap up.

[nonsubstantial]

January 2024 art fascination diary

We're already most of the way through February, but I thought it would be kind of fun to write diary posts about my favorite things of each month, in 2024. Then, I can easily look back and remember what was making me happy all year long! If you are reading this, then maybe you will enjoy hearing about some of these things as well!

MUSIC: my favorite album of January was 「TORIENA makes me smile」 It came out in 2021, and even though I did enjoy it, I still slept on how truly good it was. Its genre can be described as hard electronic, rave, trance, or gabber. I felt compelled to relisten to every Toriena album this month, and after hearing them all back to back, it was by far my favorite one. I mostly listened to it while I was working, and it somehow motivated me, even as I felt like my body and mind were falling apart. You can listen to my favorite song from the album, linked here!

ANIMATION: my partner and I watched Adventure Time: Fionna And Cake! Obviously, I would only recommend this show to someone who has seen all of Adventure Time and Distant Lands, since it picked up right where Distant Lands left off. I should note that while I didn't agree with all of the character writing, or even major parts of the plot, I did think that it was a much better ending to the series than Distant Lands was. I'm still going to imagine my own alternate ending to Adventure Time, and especially Finn's future, but I liked that the show didn't hold back when incorporating some bold new ideas... even if I didn't agree with most of them >:/ On another bright side, I thought that most of the vocal performances were fantastic, and every aspect of the show's artwork and animation was superb. (You can find it on any cartoon streaming site, or just torrent the whole series like I did.)

REALITY / GAME SHOW: I had never watched it before, and to be quite honest I always thought I would be a hater, until a couple of friends (who I love dearly) convinced me to watch RuPaul's Drag Race Season 16. This is the season that is still ongoing, and surprisingly, it is the most fun that I can ever remember having while watching something weekly. I have both friends and coworkers to discuss it with, and every time a new episode comes out, I'm shocked by how much wit and talent goes into the entire production. I know it's a pretty popular show, and it has had its fair share of controversies, but the current season still feels revolutionary in a really good way. It has been a celebration of both community and creativity, so of course I would recommend it to any skeptics, like I used to be. (Additionally, this one also gets uploaded to many free streaming sites shortly after it airs, for those who can't pay to watch.)

VIDEO GAME: I started playing Lunacid on a plane ride back in December. I was returning home from visiting family, and I wanted a dungeon crawler that I could just mellow out with, with minimal mechanical complexity. I checked this game out after hearing that it was a modern take on the old Fromsoft series, King's Field, but I was completely sold as soon as I heard that the dev, Akuma Kira, worked on the dollhouse DLC for Spooky's Jumpscare Mansion. This game turned out to be exactly what I wanted. It scratched my dungeon crawling, treasure hunting, map-making itch, and delivered some fantastic artwork and music along the way. The dev also seems like a super cool person, and I hope I have the time to try out any games they make in the future too. (I feel like the type of person that will like this game knows who they are. Check out Akuma Kira's website for info, and support them if you can!)

MANGA: knowing that the anime would soon be airing, I started reading Dungeon Meshi. And I quickly realized that it is a series that is impossible to overhype. The artwork is consistently top-tier, the content and characters are mature yet lovable, and the tone is cozy yet riveting. It's so perfect, that the few inconsistencies I encountered came as so much of a shock to me that I ended up re-reading those chapters, just to make sure that I wasn't imagining the flaws instead. As I just mentioned, I love dungeon crawlers, so I feel I'm probably more inclined to love this manga than your average reader. But I would truly recommend this series to anyone who's into reading comics at all, because it has been such a uniquely exceptional experience. I don't have all the books yet, but I'll probably continue to read the physical copies throughout the early part of this year, most likely until completing the series. (I am buying the physical copies of this manga, but you can easily find it online as well!)

NOVEL: We Have Always Lived In The Castle was famous horror author Shirley Jackson's final full novel before her untimely death. I've never read any of previous work, but from what I understand, her final book incorporated as many of the themes and ideas of her past works as she could squeeze into it. And it shook me to my core. Even as I read through analysis of this book, I couldn't help but think that no single essay truly remarked upon the entirety of this novel's brilliance. It is perfectly concise, beautifully written, and certainly unique amongst all the books I've ever read. If you like tragedies, and gothic fiction containing very bleak social criticism, then definitely read this book. (I have so many gripes about the modern book covers, I truly wish I could get my hands on an old copy of this novel. Oh well... for now it's just another one that I have torrented. The audiobook is great too, btw.)

(that's it. my favorite art of January. There might be some repeats in February that are ongoing, like Dungeon Meshi and Ru Paul. I hope you have a good month!)

[thisdykesthoughts]

What Makes Something Scary?

this is a shit post but I just wanted to get my thoughts out about it.

I have always been fascinated with what makes something scary in film. I have seen my fair share of horror media and I have come to the conclusion that the answer is very simple. however, so many writers and directors seem to still be getting it wrong.

jumpscares or startling someone is not what makes a film scary.

look at Skinamarink, for example. a film that has stirred lots of controversy because of its nature. I have heard people say that it's not even a film.

Skinamarink has to be one of the most chilling movies I have ever seen. and don't think of me as someone who is only scared of analog horror or first-person horror games, because I am not. I am an avid enjoyer of Hereditary and other mainstream horror films.

but they all have something in common.

suspence. I know you've heard this before, that suspense is the most powerful weapon when curating a jumpscare, which is likely true. but what if there were no jumpscares at all? this is what Skinamarink explores.

and I urge you all to watch Matpat's video on Skinamarink if you haven't already because his analysis of the film really puts it into a different, even scarier light.

the suspense and darkness of Skinamarink, along with excellent audio design, create a horrifying movie that just makes you want to cover your eyes. Even if you have read the reviews and you know nothing is going to jump out at you, the movie still manages to make you feel terror.

on a different branch, hereditary is one of my favorite movies ever. not just horror movies, but movies in general. hereditary gets its scares from the same place as Skinamarink, but this film has the extra level of fantastic acting.

the performances in Hereditary are second to none and really make the audience feel the terror. especially after Charlie's death following the party. if you have not seen Hereditary, please go watch it. it will change your life.

alex wolff, who plays Peter in the film, delivers a fantastic performance of true fear following his sister's death. his performance goes hand-in-hand with Ari Aster's incredible direction. this scene in the car and following the accident is a stroke of genius on Aster's part.

the things that I tend to find in all scary movies or media are the suspense, and performances of the actors. of course, content and scripting play a part in this. but assume that you had the best concept for a horror movie you have ever seen and gave it to a director and a group of actors who just butchered it. if those two elements are not in check,

it becomes a parody. something making fun of brilliant movies like Skinamarink and Hereditary.

[amethystblack]

I'm sorry if my questions are offensive but I have to get something off my chest. Why is your writing so clumbsy? Like, I know we're only human and all and I appreciate your attempt at a good story but this isn't it. It tries to be realistic but I feel as though it's not. And one other thing is that I love challenge but your balancing is just super weird to me. Like, everytime I play Reborn I felt like the battles weren't very difficult if you use certain pokemon and felt the battles were samey.

i dont want to just "*your" and end thread but there is something so cosmically funny to me about "why is your writing so clumbsy" being spelled that way

anyway, i'm just going to take a guess that this subsequent ask is also you:

and i'm glad you sent it because my original response was basically going to be "what exactly is clumsy about it to you?"

because under normal circumstances, my answer to that would be the circumstances behind it-- the narrative structure is a mess because from the start we were gluing unrelated league characters together. it's a poor structural foundation with which i've done the best i could, and i eagerly anticipate the chance to do better.

but if this is about amaria then this is a completely different conversation. and that explains a lot, like for instance, the attitude. many people really seem to have a special brand of vitriol for her, which i continually find genuinely fascinating. i also love the line "controversial characters the community despises" because it acknowledges that people have opposing opinions on her, but in the same breath you speak for the community as a whole as if it has one unified, objective stance. some might say that that kind of writing is a bit messy.

so let's talk mindset. especially regarding the depression, that was based partly on the experiences of a friend, and mostly on my own personal experience with it. i am keenly aware of how depression makes a person feel, and i somewhat resent the implication that i am somehow unfamiliar with that. more than anything, i do not accept the outside criticism that my portrayal of my own depression is unrealistic. in fact, i was very happy when the episode released that it resonated with their experiences as well. in terms of personal, vulnerable and emotionally-resonant writing in the game, i would actually go so far as to say that amaria's depression is actually some of my most successful.

of course, it's also true that not everyone's experiences are the same! you obviously have strong opinions on what depression does, which i can only assume by the objective confidence you say them with is based off of your own experience rather than something flimsy like opinions on characters in a video game. the contrast of experiences is a great opportunity for both of us to learn a lesson about how each other experiences these things. in the sense of being an opportunity to compare emotions and understand where they differ, i feel as if this bit of writing has actually been quite successful.

finally, there is, of course, a strong, vocal population of people who just despise amaria. after all, she does whine about it a lot, doesn't she? she even says so and feels bad for it! and she is a terrible person, isn't she? she admits to that and feels bad for it too. but when in the game are you ever expected to forgive her for that? when have i asked you to do that? when is the depression ever framed as an excuse? i'm pretty confident i expressly have not framed it that way, because i certainly do not view it that way. i think amaria is one of my best characters exactly because she is so flawed. i suppose that a shallow reading of her presence in labradorra might be taken as narrative endorsement of her behavior, but i hope a more emotionally-nuanced interpretation would understand how actively and intentionally uncomfortable it is for her to show up and insert herself into a battle alongside you after that. because that, also, is very personally-motivated. i had a very complicated relationship with the aforementioned friend on which she was based. so while i also put a lot of myself into her, i am also so very vindicated when people hate her as well. in terms of creating a divisive character who people have a variety of strong opinions about, i actually feel as if i've been very successful with her writing.

what's weird to me is the point at which this stopped being about the character being bad, and started being about me being bad. like, there is a lot of bad faith from you to me here, but the expectation to excuse her behavior based on depression, which you take so much issue with, didn't come from me. as a firm believer in the concept of death of the author (if the hydreigon scene didn't make that clear), i really feel like that expectation which seems to have stirred you up so much came from yourself-- from your reading of the game.

and i'm okay with that. that's a new one to me, but i've enjoyed hearing the new hot take fresh out of the oven. you say you don't mean offense, and i kind of believe you, but the amount of bad faith and the sharp wording you've now punted two asks at me with... makes me wonder. on the other hand, if it's something you 'have to get off your chest' like you said... well, i get that. because that was also me for writing those parts of the game. it was just something i emotionally needed to do. maybe you can understand that, since these asks were also kind of clumsy on your part.

it's okay, though. after all, we're only human.

[rose-and-lemongrass]

Okay I'm trying to be chill about the fact my computers busted and I can't edit sooo here's my favorite horror films I watched in 2023!! So far, at least, I'll update if I find some more great ones in the next month. These are in no particular order.

Talk To Me (2023) LOVED IT. I was genuinely really really stressed while watching it. Honestly give me a character I like and put them through the ringer and I will be invested. I REALLY wanted Riley to make it. I know some people don't like the end but I did. It's a very existential and depressing ending but I thought it was fitting.

Sissy (2022) This is a super super underrated movie. Barely any discussion of it all online. I thought it was incredible; it perfectly nailed what it feels like to be in a social situation you know you don't belong in. I felt called out several times. Cecilia is a really fascinating character too, and I loved the social media aspect.

Creep 2 (2017) I couldn't believe how into this movie I was. It's basically just two really weird characters manipulating each other (with one being way way way more successful than the other) and it's so wild to watch. I liked the first Creep but the relationship here was so fascinating. I almost feel like this movie would have been better as a standalone bc we as the audience know that Aaron is a serial killer. It would be fascinating to be like Sara and not know for sure. Either way though, I loved it, I hope they make a third one.

Terrifier 2 (2022) Dude I LOVED this movie!! Controversial opinion maybe but I thought it was fantastic. Sienna is such an amazing character, Art the Clown was on his A game. I weirdly resonated with the family stuff (i got emotional at points) The special effects were great. I know it has a reputation. And it has earned that reputation. I have found no one I can comfortably show this movie to that I trust isn't going to be horribly traumatized. Which sucks bc when I saw this in theaters I got like. Sexually harassed. And I dont want it to happen when I see the third one. I wish I had a buddy I could take. But regardless every time I watch it I have a blast, and I really wanna make a video discussing this series soon bc I have so many thoughts!!

Halloween (1978) Yeah everyone was right this movie is awesome. I'm totally going to add it to my halloween watchlist every year.

Candyman (1993) Yeah again it's really really good, everyone was right lol. Really dragging my feet on the remake bc honestly this movie is basically perfect.

Cube (1997) I always thought I'd like Cube. And I did. It's really weird and psychological and cool. I watched it like 11 months ago so I don't feel like I have a lot to say right now, but I just remember how much I was invested while watching it and how much I gushed about it after I finished.

Deadstream (2022) Honestly this was most fun I had with a movie all year. I was dying laughing the entire time. I've watched it three times and I sent the opening scene to everyone I know. It's just a very funny and very spot on parody of YouTubers and I love it

Fresh (2022) I don't love the abrupt ending but the rest is basically perfect. The levels of performance during the dinner scene OH MY GOD. And it's a really fun and disturbing exploration of how terrible dating is and I appreciate that a lot.

Hereditary (2015) This movie hurt the entire time and I loved it. Toni Collette's performance is the best I have ever seen, I am actually furious she wasn't nominated. Her screams man, they are haunting. Also really realistic dream dialogue I pegged right away it was a dream bc that's exactly how people talk in my dreams. This is a movie with a lot of layers and something about it resonated with me, especially after the terrible terrible year I had.

Midsommar (2019) I vibed with this one hardcore. I think its just weirdly cathartic to see someone in a bad social situation get accepted while the person who put them in that situation gets rejected. Again because of the terrible year I had. But also its bad that that happens! Like its creepy how easy it is to be taken in by a cult. I also didn't feel the length at all I was very very invested the whole time. My friend Emily absolutely hates this movie though lol

Trick R Treat (2007): I didn't find it scary at all. But I vibed with it. It just FELT like Halloween, and some of the stories really really worked for me. Particularly the werewolf one and the one with the zombie kids.

VHS (2012): This is entirely because of the Amateur Night and 10/31/98 segments. I love those segments to death, I've watched them over and over. I still haven't watched Siren (the full length Amateur Night adaption) but I am so psyched they kept the same actress. She was an absolute star I'm planning on watching it entirely for her.

It Follows (2014) I know I can't keep saying I vibed with these movies but I did. I love the dreamlike quality, the ambiguity, the idea behind the monster is actually one of the most terrifying things I can imagine. Even if you get rid of it there's a chance it'll come back to you so you're never safe. Certain sequences were really really cool. Also one of the best jumpscares of all time in this. Like I don't even like jumpscares, they never get me, but this one did! Also I adore the opening sequence and how it's complete nonsense until you rewatch it and realize what's happening.

Infinity Pool (2023) I went in completely 100% blind. It was a wild ride that's for sure. I said "oh fuck me" full volume at one point if that tells you anything. Honestly I have nothing to say about the plot but the feelings this movie evoked in me were intense. Really good movie for someone who secretly hates themselves and is scared that everyone around them does too, I guess, because it captures that feeling perfectly.

[meeda]

my opinion on this tends to fluctuate the more i read different people’s experiences but whenever i see discourse re: coping with sexual trauma through art or kink or other means of self expression, i consider my own experience with (a non sexual) trauma

my fixation and fascination with hospital settings, aesthetics, sounds, smells, and paraphernalia stems from medical related trauma. as a result, i enjoy engaging in behaviors that mimic or remind me of my time in the hospital. i like to wear my grippy socks, eat “hospital food,” daydream that i’m in the hospital, listen to hospital themed asmr, fantasize about going to a hospital, watch videos related to hospitals, engage in “hospitalcore” or menhera subculture, and so on. It’s my way of dealing with what i went through, and i personally find it cathartic and healing.

while none of what I do is nearly as “weird” or controversial or taboo as something like cnc or age-play or other kinks, i can relate to getting questioned by people about if what im doing is really “healthy” or if it should be “encouraged.” After all, im engaging with a traumatic memory, something that objectively made my life worse. And by engaging with it, I’m “reliving” or “enabling” it. I’m “turning the trauma into a game/hobby/aesthetic.” Im “endorsing” hospitalizing people against their will. I’m “making a mockery” of myself and especially other people who have gone through something similar. And that my enjoyment of it could be triggering to others.

Not all of these things have been said to me personally but they are all sentiments I come across irl and online. I see the but same kind of criticisms being made about kink. But with the connotation surrounding sex and violence, there’s an added layer of putting into question the morality of kink. After all, how can an act as egregious and heinous as sexual violence possibly be construed in a way that makes it morally justified?

Something I learned as a teenager who was new to sex positivity was the bdsm mantra safe, sane, and consensual. The idea is, when engaging in kink with yourself or someone else, are you 1) making sure your lives, health, and safety are not at risk 2) is the activity within reason and are you able to tell the difference between fantasy and reality, and 3) do all parties consent to the activity. The answers to all three of these will determine if what you’re doing is okay or if it’s a literal crime.

And when it comes to engaging with kink by yourself, like exploring it through art, writing or other mediums, the same mantra can be applied. 1) will what you’re doing pose a threat to anyone’s life or physical/mental wellbeing? 2) can you actively distinguish the difference between fiction and reality? 3) if you share your work with anyone, are you being mindful about other peoples boundaries? are you making an effort to ensure that minors or nonconsenting adults do not engage with your work?

For outsiders, non kinksters, or people who prefer to use other methods of coping with their trauma, I leave you with some food for thought. What do you personally gain from telling someone how they can and can’t cope? What good will it do society if we put restrictions on what goes on between consenting adults, or if we censor how a person expresses themselves artistically? When it comes to coping with trauma, what determines if something is healthy or unhealthy? If the person coping feels better after doing what they do, shouldnt that matter more than the steps they took to get there?

Think about that, and in the meantime, im going to put on my hospital socks, listen to medical equipment asmr, and write about my cnc fantasies.

[vkq103487428]

Week 9: Communities, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Game

#MDA20009

Gaming can be anything you want

Ever since the dawn of man, we have always been interested in finding different ways to entertain ourselves. First, it was cave painting and making weird noises around the campfire, then it became writing and reading, then making up physical games to pass the time.

Then, somewhere down the line, some absolute genius of a man (or woman, we don't know for sure) invented The Royal Game of Ur in Mesopotamia, and that action changed the course of human history forever.

This boardgame, which would not look out of place among a lineup of the latest boardgame collection at your local bookstore, was so universally loved that it eventually acquired superstitious significance among the population:

"Instead of seeing randomness, people saw the invisible hand of the spiritual realm. Landing on the Waters of Chaos in senet was no random event but a message from a god, a ghost, or even your own soul" (Donovan 2017, p. 16).

Jeez, and they say games were good for nothing...

Fast forward to today, and games are everywhere. From boardgames collecting dust on the shelves of bookstores (seriously though, Vietnamese children should REALLY start playing boardgames again instead of burning away their dopamine receptors by watching YouTube Shorts and TikToks 24/7), to video games covering basically every single need imaginable.

You want a competitive experience with challenging gameplay? Pick up League of Legends!

You want to just sit back and have some fun with a couple of friends? Boot up Among Us!

You want to experience a heartfelt and gripping story about love, loss and regrets, that would forever change how you look at your life and the seemingly mundane experiences you go through? First off, are you okay 🥺? Secondly, play To The Moon!

All in all, gaming has come such a long way that in its current form, it literally has something for everybody.

Gaming just really brings people together

Games have always been a core part of my life. Even before I was introduced to digital devices, I was fascinated with traditional Vietnamese games like Ô Ăn Quan and Cờ Cá Ngựa.

This love for playing games has led me to many different friend groups over the years, and while we all come from different walks of life, when we got together, only one thing mattered: having fun.

And that, in my opinion, is where gaming's the most powerful. Even though some games can be played alone, the experience has always been about connecting with other people through a medium that is enjoyed by all parties involved.

Like every other hobby, gaming really brings people from all different backgrounds together. But perhaps due to the fact that most of the interactions between members of gaming communities happen online, which eliminates the need for face to face interactions, the medium has become a safe space for introverted gamers to fully emerge themselves in their hobby, without fear of being judged (Kowert, Domahidi & Quandt 2014).

Furthermore, gaming as a hobby is still a controversial pastime, with many parents complaining that they are good for nothing. Research has shown that 4 in 10 adults still believe that people who play video games are more likely to be violent (Duggan 2015). Parents also associate their children playing games with more conduct and peer problems, as well as less prosocial behaviour (Lobel et al. 2014).

This negative attitude towards gaming has given the communities built around it this sort of aura of mutual empathy for each other, a trait similar to counterculture and outcast groups of the past decades (Steltenpohl 2020).

References

Donovan, T 2017, It’s All a Game : the History of Board Games from Monopoly to Settlers of Catan, Thomas Dunne Books, New York, p. 16.

Duggan, M 2015, ‘Gaming and Gamers’, Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech, viewed 13 March 2024, <https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2015/12/15/gaming-and-gamers/>.

Steltenpohl, CN 2020, ‘Exploring online and gaming communities through community psychology’, Thesis Commons (OSF Preprints), Center for Open Science.

Kowert, R, Domahidi, E & Quandt, T 2014, ‘The Relationship Between Online Video Game Involvement and Gaming-Related Friendships Among Emotionally Sensitive Individuals’, Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, vol. 17, no. 7, pp. 447–453, viewed 13 March 2024, <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4080869/pdf/cyber.2013.0656.pdf>.

Lobel, A, Granic, I, Stone, LL & Engels, RCME 2014, ‘Associations between children’s video game playing and psychosocial health: information from both parent and child reports’, Cyberpsychology, behavior and social networking, vol. 17, no. 10, United States, pp. 639–43, viewed 13 March 2024, <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25272237>.

[lemonjuice978]

Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku review and analysis

Wotakoi is a manga and anime written by Fujita. The story is a slice of life romance that follows 4 adult office workers struggling with relationships and being an anime or video game fan in society. 

I was initially attracted to read this because the song in the intro to the anime was trending online, sticking it in my mind when I inevitably found it in manga form at Indigo. I picked it up over a year ago but only finished it in February after procrastinating reading it which I regret extremely. I absolutely loved this series and a lot of scenes had me giggling or squealing over the troupes and cute romantic moments.

To summarize, Wotakoi’s main character is Narumi Momose, a young adult starting at a new job after her previous workplace and boyfriend discovered she is an “Otaku”. On her first day at her new job, she encounters Hirotaka Nifuji, a childhood friend and fellow Otaku. Together, they reminisce about childhood, video games, and Narumi’s failed relationships, when Hirotaka decides that if love is so hard for the both of them, they should date each other. This deal of course comes with Hirotaka’s gamer prowess to assist Narumi in video games, as well as a bonded agreement to protect each others nerdy sides. The story shows them struggling with their interests in daily life and interactions with their just as nerdy coworkers.

Gender and sexuality play a large role in this series, as well as emphasis on “Otaku” fan culture. Though there are 4 main characters, a lot of the story follows Narumi, who can be classified by the term “fujoshi”. A fujoshi is typically a girl who obsesses over boys love manga and anime. She herself writes and illustrates this content to sell at conventions as well. This has striken controversy about this series since the whole idea of being a girl hyper-fascinated in male-male romance is considered creepy or weird in real people, nonetheless in fictional characters. Momose is heterosexual herself, but many scenes show her fantasizing about her coworkers in BL romance troupes. The other female main character, Hanako Koyonagi, is similar to Momose in her BL fantasies, but she is also a cosplayer, or in this case, a crossplayer (a cosplayer who dresses up as primarily characters of the opposite gender). This often creates funny dynamics between her and her boyfriend, Tarou Kabakura, who often questions how he feels about dating a girl who frequently looks like a guy (referenced in image below). Koyonagi and Momose have a few scenes where they have crossdressed their boyfriends to look like women, making for more entertaining gender conflicts. Generally, this story uses gender and sexuality as a point of amusement rather than a focal point or dramatic effect. 

A different discussion of gender occurs with the side characters of the manga, Naoya Nifuji and Kou Sakuragi, two college students with very contrasting personalities. Naoya is bubbly and outgoing, yet chooses to befriend the socially anxious Kou after meeting at Naoya’s workplace. Kou is a biological female, but appears very androgynous, and Nao mistakes her for a boy during the start of their story. This turns into the largest plot point of Naoya discovering that Kou has been a girl all along, and Kou’s embarassment and fear that Nao wouldn’t like her after discovering she’s “lied” about who she was. Kou has spent her whole life very lonely and doesn’t want to lose Nao because of how he has given her new confidence in social situations. This relationship develops into a somewhat cliche dynamic, with Naoya realizing he has feelings for her now that shes a girl in his eyes, but this gender change does play a large role in Kou’s character development and self expression as a woman. My only note on this side story is that Kou and Naoya were my favourite couple while reading the manga and was very disappointed to find out that the Wotakoi anime stops before going into their relationship further. Hoping for another season to see them progress in colour :).

All four of the main characters in this story are considered “Otaku’s”. Otaku is a Japanese term that refers to anyone who indulges in nerdy content like video games, anime, manga, cosplay, etc., and are typically stereotyped in society as losers. The groups have many scenes where they visit conventions and manga stores, or when they are displayed as their characters in the video games they play. This manga/anime puts a lot of effort into the accurate depiction of life as an Otaku and fan interactions within the community. This really adds to the slice of life part of the genre, being relatable to viewers as they themselves are just as nerdy as the characters they’re watching. This is an important thing that I don’t see a lot of manga or anime represent, being realistic representations of Otaku culture and relationships. Most romance manga is very fantastical or idealized, where interactions seem structured and poetic. In this story the characters feel a lot more familiar, often arguing or encountering silly antics that could happen to anyone. 

Wotakoi has been my favourite when it comes to romance so far, and I really hope to see more updates from the creator in the future. The manga artstyle is absolutely stunning and the plot is simple but funny. Overall an easy read that I would recommend to any romance fan.

[sitespeedmexico]

Window call of duty modern warfare 2 multiplayer

More information on the official website. In this style, take a look at Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Call of Duty Modern Warfare Remastered. Adrenaline is felt throughout the game, and this is when you take up arms and move forward. Also, one of the most controversial stages of this game still exists and it is unlikely that the Russians will like the No Russian stage. The game’s graphics have reached their final level and you can fight the Russians with stunning details. In this version of the game, we only see the story part and its multiplayer mode has not been remastered. The game maps are very attractive and fun and there is a very good balance between the story and the gameplay. Many critics of the Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 Campaign Remastered gameplay call it a revolution, one second you are shooting with a gun and the other seconds you have to take control of a fighter jet and clear the way ahead. The courage and bravery of American soldiers throughout this story has been a constructive goal and focus, and you will understand the sense of patriotism from the very first seconds. On the one hand, you have to find Makarov with Captain Price’s team, and on the other hand, it is the Russian soldiers who have done the impossible in an unprecedented attack on the United States. He goes so far as to finally ignite the fire of war between Russia and the United States and achieve his long-held dream. Certainly we all remember the story of this game, where Makarov’s negative character is found in Russia, seeking criminal revival of the Soviet Union and the Red Army around the world. The story of Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 Campaign Remastered is undoubtedly one of the best narratives among the versions of this fascinating series. Beenox Studio recently remastered one of the best versions of the series, and now Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 Campaign Remastered is a guest on your consoles and PCs. Entering a new gameplay style and of course great storytelling and creating popular characters like Captain Price made the Call of Duty action game series become the franchise we know today. Infinity Ward Studios has done a great job in video game production with the launch of the Modern Warfare series. This is hell itself, born entirely of a human hand. The view is of smoke and gray helicopters, the sound of a barrage of fear has taken over my soul, and I, looking at my counterparts, pick up the control device and force the war jet above my head to bomb the opponent ahead. freeload Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 (Remastered) Cracked and Crack Only The following text may have been translated by Google Translator One-time license fee for play on account’s designated primary PS4 system and other PS4 systems when signed in with that account. Online features require an account and are subject to terms of service and applicable privacy policy. Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 (Remastered) + Crack Only … The Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Campaign has been fully remastered with improved textures, animations, physically based rendering, high-dynamic range lighting, and much more.

[grimespostarchive]

the grimespostarchive mission statement

“mission statement” lol it sounds so serious but i wanted to talk briefly abt why i made this blog and the goals with it now that it’s not just me posting into the void

seems obvious, but im a big fan of grimes and her music. even with the controversy/”dIsCoUrSe” that surrounds her i find her to be a fascinating cultural figure. i’m also interested in lost media - how media can get lost, how it gets found, etc. etc. and if you know grimes you know she has a very fickle social media presence (no stranger to tweeting then quickly deleting, probably so her words don’t get taken out of context). 

if you’re unaware, grimes purged most of her tumblr once in 2013 and again in 2018 for a few reasons - the main one being that she was tired of her random personal posts being taken and turned into headlines by music publications like pitchfork and such. understandable for her, but kinda the burning of the library of alexandria for fans because grimes’ tumblr is almost historical looking at the incremental rise to popularity she had. it was also very humanizing, to see this successful musician was just another nerd on tumblr posting about game of thrones and reblogging anime gifs. i see why it became such a liability when she got more mainstream.

so now some of her old posts are still accessible on her blog (@actuallygrimes) but it’s been reduced a signifcant amount, any post pre-2013 is *poof* gone. the things that stayed were: promo for her music, fanart she reblogged/reposted (w/ credit), sharing music/videos she enjoyed, and random reblogs of art and other stuff. it’s fun to look through but it’s much different from how it used to be. (as far as i know. i became a fan around 2019, i’m in no way an og lol).

but, when you delete something on tumblr it doesn’t exactly get wiped clean or become unrecoverable. with how tumblr works with reblogs, a deleted post that’s unavailable on op’s page can still be accessed on the active page of someone who reblogged it. (i panicked one time because i accidentally deleted a pretty popular post on my personal blog, but that post is still floating around in the ether getting likes and reblogs, i just don’t get notifications about it.) 

i got inspired to make this blog after seeing that the blog @/worldheritageposts has some of grimes old deleted posts logged on their page, the actual post and not just a screenshot. i thought it would be fun to try and find these old deleted posts in the wild and compile them into one place - cuz there’s loads of screenshots of her deleted posts, but there isn’t really one place to find all of it. i have massive respect for orgs like Internet Archive and others who try to preserve internet content (preservation is sooo important esp in the internet age) so i wanted to do something like that on a smaller scale. 

idk how popular this page is going to get (i just made it for myself, anyone who finds it and enjoys it is more than welcome to stay) but know that i probably will post some of her more controversial/unflattering deleted tweets relating to e*** m*** for preservation. with that, i DO NOT!!!! DO NOT DO NOT DO NOT want any discourse or fighting on this page. i want this blog to be an archive of grimes’ lost internet posts, nothing more than that. anyone who tries to hate on grimes or start fights gets blocked, please don’t bring that here. actually if there’s anything important to takeaway from this post it’s this.

most of all, i just want this to be fun! if you like grimes or lost media or both i hope you enjoy your stay. i’m still trying to figure out how sideblogs work actually (i’ve only had one personal blog since like 2015) but i want to follow some ppl back. also if you see me fuck up and accidentally post something to this blog that i meant to post to my personal, no u didn’t. have a good day yall stay grimey

[thewritetofreespeech]

MC + Cursed Toddler-fied Boys

prompt: All the boys suffer the same fate as Satan by reading ‘The Forbidden Book of Toddlerization’

Lucifer

You have to wonder why they kept so many cursed books around, just out like this. You would think, like any normal person, with this continuing to happen, that they would keep them locked up or something. But no. They just leave them out for anyone to find….

“I’m going to the meeting!” Lucifer yelled, stamping his foot. His face twist in a petulant frown. It would be rather adorable, if you hadn’t been arguing with him for the past 20 minutes

“Lucifer, we talked about this. You can’t go to the meeting. You need to stay here.”

“No! I wanna go to the meeting! It’s very important and everyone is counting on me!” His arms are wailing now as he stamped his foot more.

Of course, you couldn’t let him go to the first of the month meeting like this. His pride would be wounded beyond compare if anyone else saw him like this. But reasoning with him wasn’t working. You had to resort to more, unsavory tactic to win. “But the meeting was cancelled. Lord Diavolo called earlier to let me know.”

Lucifer stopped stamping his feet and waving his arms to look at you with a vacant expression you didn’t know he could muster. “Really?”

Gods help you. “Yes, really.”

He seemed to think about this for a moment before he beamed, “ok!” His mood instantly brightening. “I believe you, because [Y/N] would never lie to me.” ‘Forgive me Lucifer’ You think to yourself. “What are we gonna do instead then?”

“Why don’t we play a game instead to pass the time? Would you like that?”

“I know chess!” He exclaimed loudly. “Let’s play that.”

Of course, knowing and being good at it were two different things. In this state you were actually able to beat Lucifer several times. When he retuned to normal the day was ‘conveniently’ put away for sometime after.

Mammon

“Mammon. Please. I’ll just be gone for a minute.”

“Nooooooo!” Mammon wailed when you tried to get up again. Clinging to your waist tightly to keep you on the couch. “Onii-chan said you had to stay with me! Stay with me! Stay with me!”

After reading The Forbidden Book of Toddlerization, Mammon had, of course, reverted to the personality of a small child. His brother made fun of him, say ‘what’s the difference’, but Lucifer knew that this could be a disaster if he was set to wander free in this state across the Devildom. So he sat you to babysit him.

“Mammon, I promise I’ll be right back. I’m just going to get us some snacks for our movie.”

“Then let me come with you!” He whined, still clinging to you. In this state it seemed he had also taken on the personality of a baby duck. Imprinting on you and following you around everywhere you went in his room. He hadn’t left you alone for 5 seconds since he got this way. “I promise I’ll be good!”

“It’s not a question of you being good or bad Mammon-chan.” He liked to be called Mammon-chan right now. “It’s that you need to stay here. If someone sees you like this well…they could use it to tease you.”

“No…I don’t want to be teased anymore….” His voice was low, and sad. His bright eyes looking on the verge of tears, like kids do when they’re said, before he buried his face into your side. “Mammon-chan doesn’t want to be made fun of anymore. Mammon-chan also doesn’t want to be alone anymore.”

You sigh. Unable to argue with him when he was like this. Your hand lifted to pet his head, which he seemed to appreciate, before you text Satan to bring you some snacks. He was always reliable and would do it for you.

Once the affects of the book had worn off, Mammon denied any of this happening. The mere mention would cause his face to turn red and yell about how, “that didn’t happen!” You almost wish you had taken a video of it to show him. Guess you would just have to keep Mammon-chan forever in your heart.

Levi

You went to Levi’s room after class to check on him in his….condition.

Since he did remote learning a lot of the time, being an otaku, it was pretty easy to keep him away from people so they did see him in the current state he was in. Apparently as a toddler he didn’t like being around people either.

So, you had set him up comfortably in his room before heading to class. Promising to come back that afternoon to be with him.

“Levi! I’m back! How are you—what are you doing?!?!”

“Playing with my toys.” Levi replied, with an obvious expression, as a sea of toys stretch out in front of him where he laid on his belly on the floor.

Your brain stopped. Completely at a loss for words. Levi was going to kill you when he returned to normal, because toddler-Levi, left unattended, had unboxed nearly all of his figurines from their packaging. Some of which were incredibly rare, and unable to get anymore.

“I just…I mean…Why?? Why would you do this??”

“They’re my toys.” Levi replied with a pout. Sitting up. “I can do what I want with them. What’s the point in having neat toys if you aren’t going to play with them??”

He did have a point there. But adult-Levi was going to be so mad!

“Do you want to play with me?” The demon asked with a hopeful expression. “You can even be blue Ruri-chan.” The limited edition, color swap Ruri-chan from 1999. He was gonna blow a gasket!

“Yeah. Ok.” But then again, when were you ever going to be able to touch them again.

As expected, Levi totally lost it when he came to his senses. Of course, there was no one to blame but himself, in the end, so he just had to be upset and mope alone. Thankfully, none of them were broken or beyond just out of their originally packaging. He bought them all clear showcase boxes for his ‘ruined’ figurines. Some of them he could rebuy to replace; which seemed to make him happy to have two.

Satan

It had been hours since the affects of the book had taken ahold of Satan. You were starting to wonder if they would ever wear off.

Lucifer had left in search of another book, one that might help speed the process along, and left his younger brother in your care. Of course you were happy to help, but you were getting nervous you would never see the old Satan again.

“[Y/N]-chan?” You look up from your phone, waiting for Lucifer to text you back, to see the blonde demon looking timidly at you from around the corner. 

“What is it Satan?”

“Would you….read to me?” His hands holding out the small children’s book he had some how found in the piles of books covering his room.

You smile softly at him. Your heart warmed by his request. “Of course,” you tell him, and the demon scampered over to sit on the bed beside you. His long legs and body tucked neatly into you as he waited for you to tell him the story of a little lost chicken and it’s journey back home. “[Y/N] tells the best stories!”

After 3 stories, he had fallen asleep. When he woke up, Satan was back to normal. He doesn’t answer your questions on where the children’s books had come from, but you spot the red & gold spines on his book shelves sometimes.

Asmo

There was no denying that Asmo was fascinated by art and all things beautiful. He went on and on about it any chance he got. So you shouldn’t have really been surprised when his toddlerfied self just wanted to draw all day.

“Look, look [Y/N]-chan! I finished another one!”

“That’s great Asmo.” You praise. Just like you had done with all the other ones he had handed to you. “Wow! This is really great! Is that a….chicken?”

“No, silly! That’s the white horse for our carriage when we get married!” The demon beamed, then shuffled over on his knees to instruct you on his picture properly. “That’s you, and that’s me. That’s the princess carriage that’s going to ride us off into the sunset. That’s Solomon and Simeon throwing flowers at us. That’s my brothers crying because I got to marry [Y/N]-chan and they didn’t.”

“You certainly seem to have all the parts here.” You praise. Giggling at his enthusiasm and picture.

“I want to have a perfect picture of when we get married. Because I love [Y/N]-chan! And we’re gonna get married and live happily ever after.” He replied, with certainty, with a smile.

“Well, I’ll be glad for that. Why don’t you draw me our perfect house for after we get married?” Asmo scampered off and did just that.

When Asmo came to, and back to his normal self, he took all the pictures he had drawn and framed them. Forcing his brothers and Solomon to take a tour of his mini-art gallery. The piece ‘Marriage of Two Bonded Souls’ was met with some controversy.

Beel

Beel, in his younger days, seemed to have boundless energy. Or you at least had to assume he did, because ever since he had read that stupid book he had been running around.

Lucifer had told you to take him outside. Irritated at hearing his large feet clump around the house, but trying not to show it since it wasn’t his fault. He even let you both take Cerberus outside to help run Beel out. It would be good for the pup too. Get some exercise, he said.

That had been sometime ago, and it seemed baby-Beel and Cerberus were an even match in energy. They had been running around, chasing each other, and play fighting in the back yard all afternoon. You were tired just watching them.

“Beel! Do you want to come in? I think it’s time for a break.”

Both Beel and Cerberus pop their heads up, in a comical and adorable unison head tilt, before jogging over to you. “Break time means snack time right?!”

You chuckle a little. Somethings never changed. “I brought some apple slices & peanut butter for you, for now. We can get you something bigger when we go inside.”

Beel grinned and sat in the grass with the container. “I like apple slices!”

“You do hn?” You don’t think you’ve seen Beel eat an actual fruit on its own. It was usually attached to, baked in, or covered in something, to get him to eat it.

“Yep! They’re crunchy and sweet. Just like you! Though, I guess you aren’t crunchy. Do you want one of my apple slices [Y/N]?”

You blush a little at Beel’s bright, unwavering expression. How could he look so innocent while still looking like that?

He finished his apple slices, minus one, before asking if he could go play again. You let him, but then all of a sudden he spotted playing with Cerberus and stood straight up. Seeming confused on how he got out here and what was going on. “Did I eat an apple? I haven’t had one since….do you think we have more in the kitchen?”

Belphie

It was honestly hard to tell if Belphie was under the spell of the forbidden book or not. He’d been asleep for most of the time; which was not uncommon for him. Then he would wake up and whine a little about something; again, not uncommon for him. Then he would take another nap.

You had figure out that he was still under it’s spell by the requests he was making when he woke up. Juice boxes. More plushies. His ‘blankie’. Eventually it would run its course though, and Belphie would be back to his own sleepy eyed, grown up self. “[Y/N]?”

You walk over to the bed when the demon called your name. The boy half sitting up, but still tucked under his covers. “What is it Belphie?”

“I can’t sleep.” He stated. Which seemed ridiculous since he had been sleeping most of the day. “I miss Lilli. And Be-be. Can you sleep with me?”

You blink at little at the request. You supposed it made since. Kids often wanted someone to sleep with them, so they didn’t have bad dreams or could keep them safe. Maybe that’s why he had been sleeping so much. Because he hadn’t been sleeping well, just sleep.

“Sure Belphie. I’ll lay down with you.” The demon smiled softly, sleepy, before he scooted over to give you some space to lay next to him.

He slept for a while this last time. Clinging onto you in his sleep, with a soft smile on his face. When he woke up, it seemed he was back to normal. “Gosh [Y/N]. If you wanted to sleep with me, all you had to do was ask. You didn’t have to trick me with that lame book.”

[jeremy-queere]

i was supposed to write more today but i spent most of that time trying to research mall rat culture (80s-early 2000s) that bmc worships

i posit to you, the reader, that “be more chill” is not intended to portray the tiktok generation. it does not take place in the 90s or early 2000s. it takes place in a quasi-timeline. 

every set piece in be more chill is a loud and proud liminal space--bathrooms, malls, high school, places defined by their in-betweenness. it claims to have a sense of time, a knowledge of pop culture. 

A sixteen year old is intimately familiar with the works of Joe Pesche (an actor active 1981-1999) and considers Robert De Niro (now age 77) a sex symbol. He idolizes Keanu Reeves (most popular 1989-1999 until his mid-2019 comeback after the musical was written). 

The same teen considers tape cassettes (common until the early 90′s) to be “vintage” and roller skates (whose popularity peaked around 2000) to be “retro.” 

The Japanese technology boom (whose decade-long hold over the market seems to have waned around 2002) is still a source of wonder and fascination to an average high schooler.

At the same time, smartphone use and emojis (which grew popular in 2013/2014 until the present) run rampant. Teenagers embrace Twitter (popularized by 2008) but no other social media, communicating solely by text and tweet and telephone call. The only porn available to one teenager is on cable TV while another teen finds porn online, but must wait for their slow (possibly dial-up) connection to load. Teenagers’ music choices consist of Whitney Houston (1987) for the cool kids and Bob Marley (passed away 1981) for the retro kids, although cool teens may also listen to Eminem (who seems slightly outdated, but recent enough for a 16-year-old to remember being popular) but reference his “anti-women” controversy beginning in 2000 and his “super old” age (he is 48 years old now). 

The “classic literature AND ZOMBIES” trend from 2009 until its flop in 2016 is current and a viable marketing strategy.

Sodas discontinued in the 90s are sought-after collector’s items, sold at Spencer’s Gifts (a name that was discontinued for the store in 2003). 

The most current video game system is the first generation XBox (2001-2005).

A teenager dresses as “Prince” (active by that name 1975-1991 and from 2000-2016) in their outfit from 1984.

And quantum supercomputers are predicted to be viable technology by 2030 if we’re lucky. 

Some of these dates are arguable, but in general, with this information, the musical takes place around 1999, 1978 or so, 2020, 2000, 2015, 2008, 2005, 1988, 1981, 2001, 2010, 2003, 2004, 1985, and 2035.

All at the same time.

[latibulesims]

Hey Lati!

I’m so sorry to press you for more information, but I’m so fascinated by your filming process and I have some additional questions if that’s okay. Specifically around your sets that are just individual rooms, are these just multiple secular room sets on one lot, or do you use a different lot for each set? Like with the River’s house when any family member is coming downstairs, is Tresor or Raign’s room not on that lot? The living room and kitchen? Lol I’m just so fascinated by this if that’s the case, and if so it’s extremely impressive because they look like they all could actually be one complete set. Sorry if this makes zero sense, I’ve just never thought to try this and now I really want to! ☺️ Thanks so much!

Haha no you make total sense!! First of all thank you for watching my series, and don't worry at all about asking questions! I know filming with The Sims 2 can be difficult bc of how often it crashes and its loading time, so any tips I can give to help the game crash less, im happy to share 💖

The sets are actually on different lots entirely! So, when Tresor "comes downstairs", or the characters go from the living room to the kitchen, I load an entirely new lot! I think the only exception I make is with bathrooms because they're so tiny haha, but any time you see the characters going from one room to the other, it's usually a different lot all together. :')

It may sound exhausting to some, having to jump from one lot to another, but over the years (I've been doing this since 2017, at least!) I've managed some tips that help, for those that are interested:

1) I make multiple sims of the same character, so that every sim belongs to every lot! So, if Tresor for example needs to be in her bedroom, the living room and Simons bar within the same episode, I create 3 Tresors (TresorBED, TresorLIVING, TresorBAR), and that way I don't have to move her around.

I should also note that I change neighborhoods every episode (more on that in tip #3), so it might sound like a lot of sims over the episodes but really it's usually just 3 versions of the same character in one neighborhood at a time.

You might find it's easier to just move the sims from one lot to the other, but in my experience moving the sims around (or using the tombstone to extract them) always ends up crashing my game so this is a really good way to avoid it all together!

2) I don't film chronologically, but by sets! This is my #1 tip. I basically gather up all the scenes I have in 1 set and I film them. That way i dont have to go back and forth between lots, instead I just finish off all the scenes I need using a lot and move on to the next! Sometimes a set has so many scenes I end up filming in one set for weeks at a time (usually Simons bar, haha, that S2E1 Christmas episode needed like 3 sets (Simons bar, Simons living room, The Rivers living room), and I spent two months just filming in Simons bar).

The only time I won't recommend this, is when you havent yet found your own style. Then you might risk something like this happening: You're just starting to film, and you have the 1st and last scene in the episode in the same set. So, you film them both. Then you film a couple more scenes after that, and then you reach the final set and by then your filming skills have changed (if you haven't found your style and take months filming an episode - which is completely valid, BTW - this could mean a drastic change). Then, scene #1 (which you filmed at the very beginning) could have a completely different filming style than scene #2 (which you filmed at the very end), and so on. You wouldn't want that.

I had something like that happen to me, where I discovered reshade mid-filming an episode, so the scenes I filmed at the beginning of the episode didnt have it, and then the scenes I filmed at the end did it. It made the epsiode look incosistent, which is something I don't really care about (and neither do my viewers, really), but you might so letting you know as a heads up! Some of these tips do compromise the "professionalism" of the episodes, but it's how i manage to film and pop out episodes with (relative) quickness :').

Thats why for many reasons, including should you want to film by set instead of chronologically, I suggest you find your style before filming an episode or starting a series all together. This can be done through creating small machinimas, filming tests, music videos, etc. Take it from someone who can't even handle sitting through the first 8 episodes of my own series because of how much my style back then. The way it drastically changed from one episode to another irks me so much! 😅

3) And this is my most controversial one, LOL, but I always build sets + new neighborhoods from scratch with every episode. As I mentioned above, I change neighborhoods with every episode because, in my experience, neighborhoods get corrupt with time so starting with a fresh neighborhood every episode helps avoid crashing. Previously, neighborhoods would get so corrupt, they'd stop loading at all mid-filming an episode, so im forced to interrupt my filming streak and build the sets and characters all together which absolutely wrecks any motivation I have to film afterwards. Once, this happened mid-filming a scene and so I had to rebuild, and let me tell you: Theres a difference between sets looking a bit different because I had to rebuild between episodes, and sets looking different within the same scene. At least when you rebuild the set with every new episode, you can blame minor changes on the fact that time passed from one episode to the other.

Also: I make sure to build all the sets I need for the episode before I start filming, because I dont want anything to interrupt my filming once I start it. If Im forced to build when I'm motivated to film, I end up losing that motivation in the time I spend building, if that makes sense. As u probably already know as a machinima maker, we do the work that is usually required of a team (writer, director, editor, and also stylist and set designers), so I like to do things one at a time so I can have a clear understanding of my schedule and timetable. So, I dedicate 2 days to style all the sims, a week or so to build all the sets, usually months to film the episode, then another week to edit and audio edit. I try my best not to have all of those parts overlapping, otherwise it gets too overwhelming.

The reason I rebuild from scratch, as opposed to just extracting the lot and installing it in a new neighborhood is because, again, I prefer a fresh start and have found that lots are less likely to get corrupt if they're "new". A lot of people think im crazy for it LOL, or that it's a colossal waste of time, and maybe it is! But it's the process that works best for me, and I end up filming really fast with much less crashing and hiccups because of it!

Hope that helps!!! :') Let me know if you have any other questions about my filming process or any other tips 💖💖💖 I'd love to help!