#and challenges Luigi to mix them well

[kiingbiing]

[simslegacy5083]

Not So Berry (Straud Descendants) Gen 9

Today's (8/28/2024) Episode: On Her Shoulders

Luigi’s reputation was critical to maintain his endorsement deals, buzz for his game, and of course his actual e-sports career, so he took it seriously.

One easy way to make others see him as a “good sim” was regular donations to charity.

He found worthy causes to associate his name with, such as Tess’s ex-boyfriend Julio’s “happiness for all” campaign and the Tomorang Renters Fund, which temporarily paid the rent for sims who were down on their luck so they wouldn’t get evicted and wind up homeless.

Luigi’s enterprising efforts were only possible by the grace of his rock-solid support system.

Now that it was her full-time job, Noemi had taken over the lion’s share of management and development for Project Daisy, in addition to being Skye’s primary caregiver. She’d never been the best at dealing with strangers, and lately organizing their staff of artists and programmers was wearing through her patience faster than it ever had before. It was a trial she could only bear by assigning herself chunks of relaxing code work between meetings.

The freedom to pick her own timelines and teammates was undeniably the part of being “lead programmer” that got her through all the rest, but her strange irritability remained a worrying mystery. Fortunately, at her annual GYN checkup, her doctor put her mind at ease with a simple explanation.

Noemi was officially going through “the change” and her issues were just temporary side effects of her body and mind adjusting to the perfectly normal and expected changes of leaving her child-bearing years (and hormones) behind.

Noemi was honestly relieved by her advancing age. She had never feared the idea of growing older and she and Luigi had long ago decided they were “one and done” in the kid department. If anything, saying goodbye to worries about a second unplanned pregnancy was a big win!

Her doctor warned her about other unpleasant symptoms that might pop up, but she was hardly listening as she gleefully composed emails pushing her most annoying issues back to Luigi.

“These hot flashes make me way too sweaty during the all-hands standup meeting. I’m going to need you to take those over.” … “Susan’s being a plumhole about revising the walk animations. Talk her around before I shiv her. Mood swings, you know.”

By the next time both sims had a day off, Noemi was feeling much more like herself, and they made some time to visit family.

Luigi and the relatives he was closest to had mostly ended up childless or with small families, but Chance and Bianca’s daughter Fern wanted a full house. When her third little one was born, she invited his family over to meet the new addition and hang out with the rest of her crew.

While the energetic Skye played outside with Fern’s doggie and the other kids, Luigi and Noemi headed in to say hello to little Alice. Noemi and Luigi had a great time holding the adorable tiny newborn and an even better time handing it back for a diaper change with big smiles. No more for them!

Even their next stop, seeing relatives at the wake for Denton’s mother Nikita, put no significant damper on Noemi’s improved mood.

She was, of course, sad for her friend’s loss, but the quiet atmosphere, surrounded by sims she knew well as her husband mixed drinks behind the bar, was as close to her ideal evening as was possible without a sturdy set of padded handcuffs.

She’d felt lonely and misunderstood as Kiana’s “too young” wife, but loving Luigi had brought her right into the heart of his warm family circle.

As Denton wept on her shoulder, she reflected on how happy she was to have given this strange family a second chance.

View The Full Story of My Not So Berry Challenge Here

[bulletblade]

What are the odds of Freddy Fazbear actually joining Super Smash Bros.?

Now, many people will say he shouldn't join, me being one of them, whether that's because he's seen as a meme character, lack of moveset potential, or just blind hatred is not the discussion. No, we are asking if it's actually possible for Five Night's at Freddy's to join not only Super Smash Bros. but the other "Challengers of Smash" (posts every Monday) as well.

Can Freddy join Smash?

Starting with Nickelodeon All Star Brawl, No, just no.

Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl has a variety of reasons that they won't add Freddy. The first is that it's a Nickelodeon game, and given that all of the characters are Nickelodeon characters and Garfield, it's highly likely that Nickelodeon won't add them to keep with their brand aimed toward kids, despite most of FNAF's fan base, behind the scenes controversy and the fact that canonically most of NASB's roster will either No Diff Freddy, see this as another Saturday or will be completely ignored by him/her. Maybe if this was Viacom All Star Brawl or if it took up the name of its predecessor: Super Brawl. Then, the odds would rise to being slim.

Rating: Ha, no/10

Next up is Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale. Unlike Nickelodeon, the question isn't because he'd feel out of place due to the entire cast having differing themes and art styles. It's not because Freddy isn't a Playstation icon again due to the roster of the previous game. In this case, Freddy seems just as likely to join as Crash Bandicoot or Gubble. No, the main reason is because PSASBR is dead. The game came out in 2012, a decade, and 2 console generations ago.

Rating: Dead Game/10

Multiversus is up next and...I'd say 50/50. Yeah, unlike NASB and PSASBR, Multiversus is more based upon popularity, moveset potential, and whether WB has its head stuck up it's a__.

Rating: 5/10

The penultimate game is Fraymakers, being an indie based Smash Bros. Crossover makes Freddy a likely contender. The question is, either McCleoud or Scott Cawthon ready and/or willing to let him join?

Rating: More likely than you think/10

Finally, we reach Super Smash Bros. and I'd have to say Spirit or Mii Costume at best. Five Night's at Freddy's is a horror game, a pretty ok horror game, but one none the less. Compared to some of the other "horror" franchises in Smash Bros., we have Luigi's Mansion, which is more of a Scooby-Doo scary rather than actual horror, Castlevania despite being some level of violent is more so Fantasy Horror and Resident Evil, which is a "modern fantasy" version of horror, if that makes sense. And while yes, Eternal Darkness and Fatal Frame exist, they are in because Nintendo was involved in their games. Five Nights at Freddy's, on the other hand, has literal on-screen atari style, child murder as a legit feature, and while there is a chance that some of the other franchises previously listed have some degree of child murder as well, you forget those franchises are multi-generational AAA games. Indie games do have a presence in Smash but to a much lesser degree than the big companies, and Freddy has some tough competition in that department, Shovel Knight, Shantae, Zagreus, Sans, and CommanderVideo already appearing in Smash, and outside you have characters such as Hat Kid and The Knight from Hollow Knight as viable options. So, while Freddy has a chance due to multiple factors, including whether Smash will continue to expand the roster or if it will reboot. Sorry, this is just a party you probably won't be rented out for.

Rating: Sorry, Freddy/10

But what do you think, does Freddy have a chance to join Smash or its challengers? Let me know in the comments. I do have actual roster design ideas, but they felt kinda samey, so I decided to mix in some Roster Chance Ideas into the mix, so i'll take turns with both concepts.

[girlonthelasttrain]

I didn't do a yearly roundup of my fic writing output before the end of 2023 because I was preoccupied with other things, so here it is now:

In 2023

I posted 5 stories, 4 in English and 1 in Italian

for a total of ~53,700 words, the most I've posted in one calendar year ever since I started posting fic online

2 fics for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, 1 for Star Trek: Voyager, 1 for Star Trek: Picard and finally, after many years of only writing Trek-related fic, 1 for Wheel of Time (TV)

all are f/f (because in this at least I'm very consistent), and two of the stories feature polyamory

the longest fic is Best Left (~38,400 words, the longest fic I've ever posted so far) and the shortest is Sotto il Passo Ratosha (~1200 words)

Under the cut thoughts on each fic!

Mistaken for Strangers (Star Trek: DS9, Kimara Cretak/Kira Nerys, ~1700 words)

Kira calls for the Habitat Ring, Guest Sector with more mixed feelings than her usual fare. It’s not that she blames Ezri, or anyone else for that matter, for assuming things about her enmity with the Romulan senator; they wouldn’t understand. In all honesty Kira isn’t sure she does, either. She remembers all too clearly how it was to be on the other side.

Written for the Rare Femslash Exchange 2022, this is the latest entry in my longstanding Kira/Cretak series. It was fun to imagine Kira as a young, and (understandably) rigid, freedom fighter and contrast her with Kira's current predicament (ie, enjoying a secret sexual relationship with Romulan Senator a little too much for her own good).

Even when I am not, I am (Star Trek: Voyager, Seven of Nine/B'Elanna Torres, ~9,600 words)

B’Elanna turns back to the console and resumes entering commands into it with grim determination. Harry watches her in silence, once again unsure what to do. There is clearly something bothering B’Elanna, there’s no doubt about it now, and it’s deeper than he thought.

Once again written for the Rare Femslash Exchange 2022, this one is kind of niche fic. The prompt specifically mentioned the Voyager novel “String Theory: Cohesion” which is an incredibly fun romp for B'Elanna/Seven fans. In it, the girls are forced to become a ‘collective of two’—essentially telepathically connected—and I wanted to explore the fallout from that with a bit of a personal spin. I love telepathy tropes, I'm fascinated by the idea of mind-sharing and horrified that anyone could know someone else's innermost thoughts, or even get lost in them. I was reading a lot of Gloria Anzaldúa when I wrote this (the title comes from “Borderlands/La Frontera”) and I thought that B'Elanna, who all her life has been forced to live on the margins, would especially not react well to that kind of identity-erasing experience, while also being forced to confront a latent attraction which has come to the forefront.

Sotto il Passo Ratosha (Star Trek: DS9, Jadzia Dax/Kira Nerys, ~1200 words)

Si guardò intorno, come stordita; si era nascosta lì per un rastrellamento quindici anni prima, buttandocisi dentro con il fucile, e ora era tornata e aveva in mano quello stesso fucile. Eppure la cesura fra i due momenti non poteva essere più ampia.

I wrote this for the None English Fest 2023, based on the first chapter of an autobiographical novel on the Italian Resistance to the Nazi occupation (“I Piccoli Maestri” by Luigi Meneghello). I admit I haven't translated it yet because I now feel pretty ambivalent about having connected an explicit narrative of decolonization like the Bajoran struggle to this particular page of Italian history (which was not that). The reference is still meaningful to me personally, and it fit the characters and Kira and Jadzia very well imho, but it's perhaps best left as a writing exercise that very few people will be able to read. That being said, in 2023 I realized just how much Italian I'm forgetting; carrying even a slightly involved conversation has become pretty challenging and my vocabulary is shrinking rapidly. Writing this short fic was not a small effort. I want to try and write (and read!) in Italian more often in 2024. And if you're reading this as an ESL fic writer: this is your sign to write more in your native language. Do It. Don't let English monopolize your creative output.

Best Left (Star Trek: Picard, Raffi Musiker/Seven of Nine + Seven of Nine/B'Elanna Torres + Raffi Musiker/B'Elanna Torres, ~38,400 words)

She’s older now, and out of uniform, looking much worse for wear after what she just went through. But there had been a time more than twenty years prior when her face had been on every Federation newsfeed, along with the rest of the crew of the USS Voyager. “You know her?” Raffi turns to Soji, frozen in bemusement beside Emil. “I’ve never met her but yes, I know who she is,” Raffi says. “You two stay here and keep an eye on things. Seven needs to see this.”

Written for the Rare Pair Exchange 2023, with this fic I brought my current OTP (B'Elanna/Seven) into the Picard timeline while also falling a little bit in love with Raffi and learning to appreciate S1 of the Picard show, despite my many complaints. I won't lie, writing this fic was hysterical, challenging, crazy fun and it broke me a little bit. I still can't say whether or not I'm proud of how it turned out; while writing it felt like I was courting disaster at every turn, and it would've certainly benefited from a better drafting process. Still, it is one of the most ambitious projects I've ever undertaken, and I feel like I didn't completely fumble the ending, so there's that. If you read it, please let me know—I'd love to hear what you thought of it, good and bad.

Master's Apprentices (Wheel of Time (TV), Lanfear/Liandrin Guirale + Liandrin Guirale/Moiraine Damodred, ~2700 words)

“All your life you have sought power out of fear,” she murmurs distractedly, as if finding the truth of your existence in braids you don’t remember plaiting. Then, her eyes meet yours again, solemn. “But no more. I found you out, Liandrin. I know every one of your secrets. There is no need for you to hide any longer.”

Written for the Femslash Exchange 2023, I admit this fic caught me by surprise. I've written for years in the same extended universe (Star Trek), and I wasn't sure I would be able to wade into a completely different setting. So in order to get over myself I tried something I had wanted to attempt for a very long time, second person POV. I think it fit well the ‘dreamscape’ I was trying to evoke, and I'm glad I took this route. Liandrin is a fascinating character to write for me, too. I share more than a few personality traits with her (most relevant for this fic her inability to get over old feelings—I still regularly dream about my ex, despite the fact that our break up almost fifteen years ago was hardly amicable), so it wasn't difficult to relate to her or realize that I could make the same terrible choices, or be preyed on by someone figuring out my weaknesses, if I don't take a principled stand. I had fun writing this fic.

[anmagirl]

Mix mash match up winner?

OK so I am currently obsessed with Mario and Sonic.  In my searching to gather more info on both I came across many “who would win” posts.  All are Mario vs Luigi,  Mario vs Sonic, or Luigi vs Tails.  However my question is who would win in a mixed mash battle.  As in heroes vs their sidekicks.  So Mario and Sonic vs Luigi and Tails.

In my thoughts I would think it would be really close but ultimately I think the sidekicks would win.

Here are my reasons

Team work

power

Abilities

So the biggest one would be teamwork.  Sonic is a hero who does work with others but can usually hold his own by himself as well.  Mario is the same but it would seem he also relies on others or power ups to help him instead of his own ability.  If these two were put together I can see Mario and Sonic going at it separately but then would try to work together but find it to be very difficult.  Sonic could find it annoying to wait for Mario to eat a mushroom to get a power up as well as the fact he loses the power when he is hit.  Meanwhile Mario might not be able to get through to the act first, think later Sonic.  I just think they would have issues to work through.  Sonic would have to learn to slow down and Mario would have to adapt to using his powers to help Sonic.

Meanwhile Luigi and Tails are both pretty reliant on others already having to work together, think of a plan, then execute it might come naturally to them.  Tails would be able to use his flight ability to help Luigi.  Plus Luigi can also use power ups and I can see Tails quickly coming up with plans to use them to their advantage.   Plus they are both capable fighters so if they learn to combine Tails tech and Luigi’s power ups then it would seriously put the heroes in trouble.

The next one is power which unfortunately the heroes have more of.  True the sidekicks of the tech and team work but when you remember all the ability the heroes get and have then they are in the lead.  Like if Mario got a strength power up and then combined with Sonic’s ring and spin dash move that would make quite the attack.  But like I said above it would depend on if they could actually strategize.  But even if they don’t they both also have the muscle and confidence to fight even without powers.  Now I doubt either could fight their brothers but if it was in a sparring session or till the opponent is down then yeah they could do it.  

Meanwhile Tail and Luigi are usually shy and timid so they might be on the offense about attacking their brothers.  I can see them only going at it if the brothers attack first which in itself is a disadvantage.  Not to mention they both usually need to rely on something to help them fight.  They don't usually fight by themselves.  So they might struggle even if they worked together.

The final thing is abilities which Mario and Luigi are pretty similar in.  They can use very similar moves and abilities that are slightly different from each other and they both can use power ups.  But because of this and their bond they would both know how to work around the abilities.  

Meanwhile Sonic and Tails are almost polar opposites in fighting styles.  Sonic goes head on while Tails covers the back and uses his tech.  They complement each other when they fight so if they went against each other it would be a battle on who knows the other better and their weakness which I think Tails has the upper hand in.  

So in battle Mario and Sonic would use the knowledge of their brothers abilities and try to use it against them.  However their brothers are also doing the same thing.  So it really depends on who knows the opinion's weaknesses, knowing how to form a plan with that knowledge, and working together to pull off the plan and win.

Here is how I think the battle would play out

It begins with them facing each other. The sidekicks are a bit nervous since they are going up against their big brothers who they admire and/or respect.  Meanwhile the heroes are up for the challenge.  Not to hurt their little bros but to test their strength and just have a sparring match with them.

Sonic would be the one to make the first move before Mario even had a chance to think of what to do or say anything.  However Tails knows Sonic well so he uses his flight to pick Luigi up and dodge Sonic

While in flight they go to the first powerup which Luigi gets.  Mario knowing how powerups work and the fact he knows his brother is taller than him and now stronger than him he quickly goes for his own power up.

Sonic meanwhile tries to face off against Luigi head on but with the power up Sonic has trouble but he keeps his attack going.  

Mario, now with a power up goes for Tails but finds the flight ability a struggle.  He realizes it's a losing battle or more of a battle that will not continue so he goes after his own brother.

He tries to compliment Sonic’s constant attacking but finds complimenting a person is battle is pretty hard and Sonic who is not used to Marios battle style hits him causing the power up to lose effect.  On the up side Luigi who is now distracted by Mario getting hurt also gets hit and loses his power up.

Now they are both at square one but Sonic is still raring to go but Mario tries to talk to him.  But it doesn't work and Sonic attacks Luigi and a repeat happens where Tails flies in and saves him.  

Mario, already aware of this pattern, is already starting heading for the next power up.  He gets there first and immediately goes for the duo in mid flight.  The attack separates them and with the power up Mario has them in a corner.

Sonic then comes in and goes straight for Luigi who is on the ground and with Mario on defense Tails can’t help him.  However, Tails then goes and retrieves the power up and through swift maneuvering gets past Mario and gives the power up to Luigi who can now stop Sonic.

However unlike before Tails immediately starts to go to the power up locations to retrieve them for later.  Mario tries to alarm Sonic but Sonic doesn’t listen. So Mario goes to try and stop Tails.

Eventually Sonic actually notices what Tails is doing and goes and retrieves the rest of the power ups.  

Being unable to use them he hands one to Mario which gives him the power up.  Unlike before however Mario picks Sonic up and Sonic goes into a ball and Mario throws him hard.  With their combined force Luigi gets hit and loses the power.

Tails immediately gives another one to him but by using the same attack Luigi loses power again.

At this point the sidekicks are at a disadvantage but don’t give up.  

They take a moment to strategize and their brothers, thinking they have it in the bag, let them talk.  

Luigi then takes another power up and Mario and Sonic do the same attack but this time before Sonic can land and get back to Mario it is revealed Tails gave Luigi two power ups.  After the first one Luigi immediately takes the second one and goes after Sonic.  Meanwhile, Tails goes after Mario.

Tails uses his brain and maneuvering to make Mario dizzy to where he loses his power ups which Tails retrieves.  

Now with most of the powerups he hands them all to Luigi to hold and then goes to Sonic.  He picks his brother up and flies super high to where Sonic actually gets worried.  While  Luigi faces his brother and sees that Luigi has more power ups remaining and  realizes that he lost.  

With that the match is over and Luigi and Tails win.

It could also end with Luigi and Tails losing if they gave up after Mario and Sonic started to actually work together.

how do you think it will end?

[tickletastic]

Milkshakes From Hell Challenge

Fandom: Smosh

Ship: N/A

Summary: Shayne is sick and tired of Damien always beating everyone when they play video games, so he spontaneously decides to implement a handicap to help everyone else out.

Notes: I accidentally made this kinda long? My bad bros

“Hello gamers and gentlebugs! Today we are going to be playing a personal favourite of mine, Super Smash Bros!” Damien was loud as he introduced the video, everyone around him cheering in response. “We are going to be playing four versus four, and every time someone loses they will have to drink a mystery milkshake from one of the glasses in front of us!”

Shayne had started to absentmindedly flick the shell of Damien’s ear, and was caught off-guard when Damien turned around to face him. “First up will be me, Shayne, Lasercorn, and Courtney! The first one out will be replaced by Ian or Sarah in the next round.”

The four of them equipped themselves with remotes, going through the motions to choose their characters.

Shayne looked directly into the camera to his left, putting his hand in front of his mouth as if to whisper, “Damien once told me that nobody good ever plays as Kirby, so I think I might just prove him wrong.”

Damien laughed in response, shaking his head back and forth. “No way Shayne. Don’t worry though, maybe Matt’ll bring you a tissue box so you can wipe up your loser tears.”

The comment brought about laughter from the rest of the cast, and from behind the camera Matt Raub could be heard disagreeing with Damien’s statement.

They quickly finished up with choosing their characters, Lasercorn as Bowser, Courtney as Jigglypuff, Damien as Pit, and Shayne as Kirby. They randomized the stage and ended up in Luigi’s Mansion.

As soon as the round started, Damien was at Shayne, repeatedly killing him every time he respawned, leaving no room or time for Shayne to move from the platform and try to run or fight back. Shayne started yelling at Damien, the two of them bickering back and forth about Damien’s strategy. 

“Like an old married couple,” Lasercorn mouthed to the camera. 

“Oh no! Trouble in paradise for Shaymien!” Courtney yelled in a high-pitched voice, shaking her head about so her hair tousled a little.

Shayne’s yelling got louder and louder over time as he realized that nobody else playing had been killed as many times as he had, thanks to Damien. When Damien realized the same, he backed off and started to go hard on Lasercorn. Of course, it was too late, and the round ended with Shayne as the loser, all thanks to Damien. 

“This is your fault, asshole,” Shayne grumbled while placing his controller down, looking towards the glasses on the table. He ended up picking a green milkshake, picking it up and sniffing it before moving it away from his face in disgust. “I think I already know what this is, and I don’t like it.”

“Just frickin’ drink it bro,” Damien responded in a dramatic valley girl accent.

Shayne glared at Damien, sticking up his middle-finger in the direction of his best friend. “Fuck you Dami, you’re the sole reason for my suffering. You should be drinking this shit.”

Damien laughed, and Sarah extended her hand, placing it on Shayne’s shoulder. “C’mon, just drink it you big baby.” 

Shayne skipped the straw all together, placing his lips on the rim of the milkshake glass, effectively getting whipped cream all over his face. When he had finished, he ate the cherry on top as he felt his face heat up. 

“Wait, Shayne, what is it?” Sarah inquired, making note of how red his face was going. 

Shayne started to cough, doubling over and spitting into a bucket that had been provided to him. It was exactly what he had suspected, and he attempted to explain through his coughing, “It’s wasabi.”

“Totally gross dude, that would definitely not bring any boys to your yard,” Damien laughed, once again speaking in a silly voice. The only response he received was yet another rude gesture made with Shayne’s hand.

Shayne got a glass of milk, and went back to sit on the couch, sitting behind where Damien was sitting on the other couch. Ian quickly took Shayne’s previous seat, switching the character to Charizard. 

The round quickly started up, and it had been a pretty even fight between Ian, Courtney, and Lasercorn. Damien was trying to go easy, but he still had yet to die. Right before the end of the round, Damien blasted Courtney out of the map, and she ended up losing. 

“You suck, Damien!” Courtney shouted, pretending to throw a fit in response to her loss. She picked up a glass that was reddish-pink in colour, “I really hope this is cherry.”

She gagged a little when she drank it, immediately stopping once she had the taste in her mouth. 

“The whole thing, Court! You gotta drink the whole thing. If I had to suffer through it, so do you,” Shayne yelled when she attempted to place the glass down.

“Bro, I’ll actually puke. This tastes like straight-up shit. I actually cannot drink the rest of this.” Courtney put the glass down, spitting into the bucket. 

“You gotta drink it, Courtney,” Matt said from beyond the camera. 

Courtney let out a whining sound before bringing the straw back to her mouth. She plugged her nose and finished it, immediately grabbing the bucket and spitting into it. “That was disgusting.”

“What’d you drink, Miss Courtney?” Damien asked.

“Actual shit would be my best guess.”

“Wrong! It was dog food.” Matt was laughing as he watched Courtney gag into the bucket again. 

“Gross.”

Courtney sat to Shayne’s right on the couch in the back as Sarah took her seat. Sarah chose Rosalina and Luma, even though Lasercorn advised her against it, and they started the round. Shayne felt that Damien was doing a little too well, as he had been the whole time, but he didn’t act on it. 

Lasercorn ended up losing, drinking a milkshake that ended up being surprisingly good, cereal and milk. 

“I think Damien has had way too much practice in this game, I think it would be fair if we gave him a handicap, don’t you guys agree?” Shayne asked everyone else, all of which seemed to agree.

“Sounds perfectly fair to me,” Sarah laughed, ruffling Damien’s hair.

“Nothing will deter me, I will always come out on top!” Damien announced, punching his fists into the air. 

“We’ll see about that.”

Shayne waited until the game had started, scooting forwards so he was sitting on the edge of the couch. He rested his wrists on the back of the couch above Damien’s head, knowing that Damien would be able to feel the groove in the couch, trying to add suspense. 

Damien decided that this round he would go after Ian, knocking Ian out multiple times like how he had done to Shayne.

“Damien, chill! C’mon Shayne, if you want to take Damien out then I think the time is now,” Ian begged, taking his eyes off of the screen for a second to look Shayne in his eyes.

Shayne laughed in response before he started to poke Damien, lightly at first, in his upper ribs. Without being behind Damien, you wouldn’t be able to see Shayne’s wiggling fingers, but Damien had started to squirm comedically in his seat. 

“Shanye don’t do that,” Damien teased, purposely mispronouncing his best friend’s name. 

“Uh, I’m just trying to make it fair for everyone else that’s playing. I’m doing the Lord’s work,” Shayne teased back. 

Shayne slipped his fingers under Damien’s arms, and Damien’s own mouth betrayed him. He started to giggle, trying to squirm away from his fingers while still paying attention to the game. He was still beating up Ian pretty bad in-game, but his attacks were getting weaker and weaker as time went on. At this point, everyone else had noticed Damien’s little predicament, and Sarah could feel his wiggling as she sat next to him on the couch. 

“What’s wrong Damien, a little ants in your pants?” Sarah teased him, taking advantage of Damien’s weakened state in order to help Ian beat him up. 

Courtney scooted closer to Shayne and reached out her own fingers, laughing when Damien tried to curl up on himself, bringing his knees onto the couch. 

“I alwahahays come out on top,” Damien exclaimed, trying to get back into his previous groove despite the fingers that were tickling him. Courtney wiggled the fingers of one of her hands on Damien’s neck, watching as he brought his shoulder up to meet his ear. 

The game came to an end, and Sarah ended up losing the round. Shayne started to wiggle his fingers faster over Damien’s ribs during the break in playing, and Damien was quick to curl in on himself into the couch when Sarah got up, giggling into his hands as he tried to use his elbows to block the attacking fingers.

“St-stahahap it! Dohohon’t do that, we’re nohohot even plahahaying!” Damien squealed when one of Shayne’s hands slipped under his arm again. 

Shayne stopped for a moment, Courtney following suit, “let’s save it for the next round.”

They watched as Sarah chose a purple milkshake, jumping straight in and chugging the entire thing. When she finished, there was a wide smile across her face. “It’s blueberry! This is amazing!”

Courtney started clapping, inviting Sarah to sit next to her as Shayne got up to sit on the front couch next to Damien. 

“I can go easy on you, but I’ll still win,” Damien told Ian, looking over at him. “This round, I will play as Wii Fit Trainer.”

Ian stuck out his hand to shake, “may the best gamer win.”

Shayne was immediate with Damien’s handicap when the round started, wiggling his fingers fast and rough over Damien’s tummy. Damien’s laughter was loud and bubbly as he tried to dodge Shayne’s fingers. He once again felt Courtney’s fingers join the mix, spidering up and down his ribs from behind. 

“Why are you laughing Day? Huh? What’s so funny, buddy?” Shayne teased.

Damien snorted softly, shaking his head rapidly. “Thihihis isn’t fair!”

Lasercorn laughed, looking at Damien, “you think this isn’t fair? What’s not fair was expecting us to win Smash Bros against you, someone who definitely has at least 200 hours of gameplay, without any handicap.”

“Honestly!” Courtney agreed, digging her fingers in harder. 

Damien cried out, trying to prevent his body from betraying him and forcing his head back. 

“How am I still losing?” Ian questioned angrily, simply trying to dodge Damien’s attacks instead of initiating his own at that point. 

“Maybe I can help with that,” Sarah responded giddily.

Damien started begging for Sarah not to, but he knew he was doomed when he felt her fingers under his arms, where Shayne’s had been only a round earlier. 

Damien yelled out and dropped his remote to the ground, covering his face with his hands. Even though he wasn’t even playing, Ian was still pretty behind from before, so Sarah, Shayne, and Courtney continued their torture to make sure that Damien couldn’t reach for his remote. Damien’s laughter was bubbly and high-pitched, soft snorts and hiccups laced in between. Damien couldn’t help but beg for them to stop, twitching erratically as the fingers continued to prod him. 

“Yes! Yes! Yes!” Ian exclaimed, tossing his remote onto his chair as he got up and cheered. 

Sarah removed her fingers, and Courtney did the same, ruffling Damien’s hair. Shayne kept up his fingers, knowing his best friend well enough to know what tickles would drive him crazy. 

“Shayne, buddy, I think you might kill Damien,” Courtney reasoned, putting her hand on Shayne’s shoulder. Damien’s face had become pretty red, and his laughter was becoming more hiccups than giggles. 

When Shayne stopped, Damien instantly curled into a ball, bringing his knees up onto the couch, his face still hidden behind his hands. 

“How adorable,” Sarah cooed, looking down at Damien on the couch. 

Damien’s giggling went on for a few minutes, his body shaking with every giggle, and when he finally calmed down he was holding his ribs. He sat back up on the couch, panting softly while he reached for the final milkshake. 

The milkshake was dark brown, with small specks of red in it. He definitely wasn’t excited to drink it. He looked at Ian, playfully glaring, “this drink would have been yours if everyone weren’t plotting against me.”

Damien skipped the straw, much like Shayne had, and chugged it in a few seconds. His face, which had began to lose its redness since he had calmed, started to turn red again. 

“What is it?” Ian asked excitedly. 

“Chocolate and hell,” Damien started to cough violently, searching for a drink. 

“Matt?” Sarah asked, looking over at him. 

“It is leftover ghost pepper chocolate from our Mario Party video!”

Damien rapidly consumed the milk that was brought to him, trying to fan the heat from his tongue as Ian did the video’s outro. 

“I hate you guys,” Were the final words that Damien muttered before running out into the kitchen to get more milk, and they were the final words that made it into the video.

[flopsider]

What Makes a Paper Mario Game Great?

*This post was turned into a script for a Game Domain video which I’ll post here once it’s out!

The Paper Mario game series has undergone massive changes with its last few installments. Most fans can agree that the first 3 (or, if you’re strictly fond of the formula from Paper Mario 64 and The Thousand Year Door, the first 2) games achieved something brilliant. They cemented Mario’s role in the RPG world, providing players with unforgettable experiences that left many with powerful nostalgia and an urge to revisit the titles as they grew older. However, with the newer titles, the gaming community’s feelings on the franchise have been shaken. Once Nintendo began to develop Paper Mario as an Action-Adventure series, many fans were left feeling like the company stopped listening to its fans and were taking the series in an unwelcome new direction. For some fans, however, particularly younger players who are just now discovering the Paper Mario games through the newer titles, these new changes and formulas offer some very enjoyable experiences. Undoubtedly, nostalgia plays a huge role in how we view video games, but there is more at play here than just sentiment. The question I’d like to pose, then, is “What Makes a Paper Mario Game Great?”

Let’s take a look at the individual games and see which areas they thrive in, and what holds them back. Keep in mind that every opinion listed here is just that: an opinion. I’ve tried to be objective in my analyses here, but like all people, I have biases and nostalgia which affect my opinions of video games, so don’t take what I say as the undisputed truth. This is simply my attempt to answer the question posed as best as I can, so if you disagree, let me know peacefully and respectfully in the comments!

 Paper Mario 64

 I feel like this game is the perfect entry to the series. It has a charming art style that I feel still holds up, offers fantastic gameplay and controls and a solid battle system, and has memorable characters. The main things that hold it back are the more basic storyline and villain, and the less unique character types compared to the next 2 games. However, both of these things can be forgiven since it was the first entry to the series. The chapters are all joys to explore, the leveling system is satisfying and allows for customization, and the badges are a great way to personalize Mario based on your playstyle. Paper Mario 64 laid the groundwork for the games that would follow, and most of the aspects of its formula would evolve throughout the next two entries.

 Paper Mario: TTYD

 There’s not much I can say about this that hasn’t been said before, but in summary, this game took everything that made Paper Mario 64 great and evolved it into something phenomenal. It built upon the battle system, offering what is widely considered to be the best battling in any Paper Mario game. The audience feature made battles livelier and more exciting, offering further incentive to pursue optional enemy encounters. It gave players new attacks and new ways to orchestrate them, with less repetitive actions than in the first game. It offered a much deeper, darker story with compelling antagonists, partners and NPCs unique to this game which made the world feel alive, and side quests that allowed you to progress through the game and level up your character in a less linear way. The world was crafted beautifully, with areas that stand out in many players’ memories and are far less formulaic than the typical Mario worlds. There were tons of secrets and areas to explore, as well as the first iteration of the Pit of 100 Trials, a side quest arguably more challenging than the game’s final boss. It’s no wonder this is likely the most acclaimed Paper Mario title to date. 

 Super Paper Mario

 First and foremost, I have tons of nostalgia for SPM. It’s maybe my favorite video game of all time, or at least in the top 3. It’s the first Paper Mario game I ever played (I was 7 or 8 years old and have since replayed it many times), and when I played it I had never heard of Paper Mario. There’s a chance that if I instead played 64 and/or TTYD first, I’d be more partial to those games because of nostalgia. However, I truly believe that, nostalgia aside, SPM provides the best overall game experience. I also think that if SPM had come first, and the creators then shifted into a more straightforward RPG style over time, it would be less polarizing.

The move away from turn based combat and into the more classic Mario platforming/real time combat was bold, but not universally appreciated. I totally get why some people feel it was a bad change. If you were in love with the camera perspective, movement, and combat mechanics of the first two, this may be less fulfilling. However, if you are a huge fan of platformers, then it’s certainly a welcome new angle. And if you’re like me and you grew up enamored with classic 2-D Mario platforming action, but also fell in love with the style, RPG elements, and stories of the first two Paper Mario games, then you’ll likely find the perfect mix of the two in SPM. Plus, I feel like turn based combat was never the basis of the Paper Mario franchise, or at least was not the core concept that made the games great. Some people disagree with that, but I personally believe that all the before listed criteria make up the greatness that is the Paper Mario series, and I think Super Paper Mario lives up to them. Despite its many differences, Super Paper Mario felt like a true successor to TTYD. The graphics were quite similar aside from the camera angles, the dialogue and storytelling were stylistically similar but done even better this time around, and several elements were revisited such as the Pit of 100 Trials. I loved the turn-based combat in 64 and TTYD, but I also adored the platforming and real time combat of SPM. Overall, I just feel SPM has the most to offer and provides the most unique, thrilling, and memorable experience. The New 2-D / 3-D switch feature quite literally adds a whole new dimension to the game. I think this is super interesting and fun to use, and it allows for more interesting level and puzzle design. It offered a nice balance since much of the game is played 2-D style whereas the first two entries were set in a 3-D space. Without the 3-D option it’d still be a great game, but might end up feeling a little basic by comparison. The Pixls, in my opinion, are a fantastic reimagining of the partner system. Since the game ditched turn-based combat in favor of platforming combat, the Pixls affect your movement, attack, and defense abilities in real time and can be swapped quickly. This makes platforming, fighting, and movement in general more fun and varied. In my opinion, they’re a fresh take on partners, and even though I love the old partner system, I see this as a welcome new take on it. Flipside and Flopside serve as effective and memorable hub worlds where you can touch base after exploring other dimensions. They have tons of explorable areas, puzzles, characters, and secrets, all of which contribute to the world development. The NPC’s helped add depth and contribute to the lore, with the Flipside and Flopside bartenders being the best examples. The ability to play as 4 different characters, each with different special abilities and movement characteristics was a huge step forward and made the level design much more interesting. In several areas, you have to utilize all available characters to access certain areas, some secret and some required. The best example of this in my opinion is in Castle Bleck, where in order to effectively maneuver around the platforming challenges and access secret areas you have to take advantage of Mario’s ability to flip into 3-D, Peach’s parasol gliding, and Luigi’s super jump, while Bowser is your key to easily clearing rooms of tough enemies. Maybe the least controversial thing I could say about this game is that it has a phenomenal story, the best of any Paper Mario game to date in my opinion. It’s darker than any other Mario game I’ve played, and despite its cartoony appearance, the stakes were higher than ever. It had incredibly memorable characters, small bits of backstory at the end of each chapter which slowly reveal the connection between the antagonist and Mario’s partner Tippi, excellent dialogue and humor, and a darker plot than any Mario game I’ve played. This is balanced by the game’s colorful visuals and soundtrack which make it a joy to play. The game had an inspired world design with bold style choices. For example, in the space levels of Chapter 4, the game temporarily becomes a Defender type horizontal space shoot ‘em up. It was a perfect blend of the RPG style from the first two games and the side scrolling platforming of older Super Mario games. The music is a fantastic mix of retro and modern, a concept mirrored in the graphics and gameplay. All in all, Super Paper Mario is a perfect blend of old and new. 

Okay, clearly, I have a lot of love for this game. But I want to be as objective as possible here, so let’s look at some of its shortcomings. The XP system was more basic than the first two games. It being present was a huge plus, but when you level up, it upgrades a predetermined stat (HP or attack) as opposed to you having stat customization. Along these same lines, the lack of badges meant less customization and attack options. Level design wise, some areas felt somewhat empty in 3-D. I didn’t really feel like this as a kid, but as an adult I feel like they could’ve done more with the 3-D perspective in certain areas. In some places, they totally nailed it though. 

 That brings us to the more recent, more divisive action-adventure titles. To preface, I have the least experience with these games, and the majority of my familiarity with them is from reading articles and watching videos which analyze them and compare them to the older games. So I’ll try not to be too critical, as I’d like to play them all the way through before completely solidifying my opinion on them. That being said, you can learn a lot about a game by watching gameplay footage and reading analyses of them, so I’ll do what I can to go over their pros and cons.

 For all three of the newest titles, it’s worth noting that I didn’t include the world being made of Paper in the list of what makes these games great. I don’t hate the jokes, comments, or visual references to paper and crafts in these games. In fact, sometimes I think they’re quite clever and add to the feel of the game. However, in the first 3 “classic” Paper Mario games, it wasn’t a major point of plot or world development, but rather something casually referenced in some well-timed jokes. In fact, the first game wasn’t even meant to be a paper based world. It had many titles in development, and the one directly preceding Paper Mario was Mario Story. The name Paper Mario, more than anything, is a reference to the art style being reminiscent of a pop-up book, and is not the basis of the gameplay or world creation. At least until the more recent games, that is. Sticker Star, Color Splash, and Origami King all base many core gameplay mechanics, the visuals, much of the humor, and even some of the world development on everything being made of paper. This is a cute idea, and the graphics in the newer games are undeniably vibrant and beautiful, but it ends up holding the newer games back only because they focus more on paper gimmicks than they do the story, unique character design, and gameplay. To be fair, I haven’t played the newer games completely, and from what I’ve seen, Origami King looks like a phenomenal stand-alone game and a much stronger Paper Mario entry than SS or CS. I just think Arlo summed it up perfectly when he said, “We didn’t love Paper Mario because it was paper, we loved it because it was Mario’s story.” That being said, let’s look at each game and see what they have going for them.

 Paper Mario: Sticker Star

 This is easily the most universally criticized Paper Mario title. Every so often you’ll find someone who will defend it, but for the most part, the fans of the series see this as the point where the games took a turn for the worse. Instead of just adding to the overwhelming pile of hatred for the game, I’m going to try and discuss some specific things that hold it back while giving it credit where credit is deserved. Sticker Star is not irredeemable. It has some of the charm the series is known for, some solid dialogue and humor, and appealing visuals. Unfortunately, there’s not too much more I can give it credit for, at least in the context of the other games in the series. So much of what made the first 3 games great were lost here. One of the most obvious steps backward is the near-total lack of original characters. Instead of a world packed with new NPCs and enemies with distinct personalities, the game almost exclusively utilizes classic Super Mario characters. You’ll see plenty of toads, goombas, and koopas here, and not anything in the realm of demonic shadow queens, members of ancient tribes, or mysterious cape and monocle wearing antagonists threatening the existence of all worlds. The villain here is Bowser, which is not just disappointing because it’s formulaic, but it almost feels like it separates the franchise even further from its roots because of Super Paper Mario’s inclusion of Bowser as a protagonist. The battle system also fails to reward you for entering into enemy encounters, and feels much more basic than the previous games. Overall, my main criticism of this game is that it took several steps backwards and not enough steps forward to justify them.

 Paper Mario: Color Splash

 This game improved upon the action-adventure formula of Sticker Star in almost every way. In that way, it can be seen as a parallel to TTYD, which improved upon its predecessor’s formula. The difference is, TTYD’s predecessor established a formula that was already phenomenal, whereas the groundwork Sticker Star laid for Color Splash was far weaker. Most of the criticisms I have for Sticker Star could be echoed about this game, just less harshly. Speaking more positively, this game had gorgeous visuals (second only to The Origami King), excellent dialogue and humor, and some creative levels, such as the section where you operate the cannons aboard a sailing battleship. 

 Paper Mario: The Origami King

 Overall, The Origami King looks to be the strongest Paper Mario entry in years. It seems to have developed the action-adventure formula of its two immediate predecessors, while including a handful of RPG elements. The battle system is both new and familiar - it’s turn based, but the ring system adds a puzzle element that, to some players, makes battles much more enjoyable and to some distracts from the battling itself. Utilizing the rings, it seems like there are far more creative ways to reach your opponents, but far fewer creative ways to actually attack them. Once again, the world and characters are more formulaic, relying heavily on classic Super Mario locations and characters. However, this game offers more uniqueness than the previous two, starting with the non-Bowser antagonist. The fact that King Olly has a previous close relationship with Mario’s main partner Olivia is reminiscent of Count Bleck and Tippi from Super Paper Mario. This provides the foundation for a better story than Sticker Star or Color Splash. In addition, the visuals are undeniably beautiful. It has the best graphics of any Paper Mario game, and some areas are truly striking, particularly the desert oasis area. The huge con of this game is that is triples down on Nintendo’s shifting of the Paper Mario series away from its RPG roots and toward a more formulaic action-adventure approach. The major positive is that it seems to be a solid game in its own right, one which makes much better use of the new formula than Sticker Star or Color Splash did. It’s got loads of charm and some solid gameplay, but if you’re looking for an experience comparable to the first 2 or 3 Paper Mario games, you’ll likely be left wanting something different from it. 

 So let’s return to the original question. Based on what we discussed about each title, what makes a Paper Mario game great? I’ve done my best to narrow down what I consider to be the 10 most important criteria that, when met sufficiently, provide the best possible Paper Mario experience. These are:

A compelling story with unique characters

Partners to assist in combat and movement

Clever dialogue

Visually appealing art style

Exploration

Puzzles and Secrets

Cohesive world design with unique areas

An XP system which rewards combat

World development and lore

And finally, a willingness to go darker than other     Mario games

 There are plenty of other criteria I could add to the list, but these are the main ones which stood out to me as I analyzed each game for their strengths and weaknesses. 

 Answering the question of what makes a Paper Mario game great is not a simple task, nor is it an objective one. As I said before, my nostalgia for Super Paper Mario is a huge part of why I discuss it so positively. I truly believe it’s worthy of the praise, and I stand by the opinions I’ve stated for the other games as well, but my thoughts on each game in this series are my own, and many of you will and should have different thoughts on them. So share them in the comments, and keep it respectful! 

[captainvideogame]

Underhero game review

A game that reminds you what Mario RPGs used to be.

Just because its called Underhero doesn't mean the game is heavily influenced by Undertale. Its actually more influenced by the Mario RPGs especially Paper Mario and Mario and Luigi series. I saw this game thanks to Jim Sterling's video about it and from a glance, it looked interesting. After playing it, I can safely say that this is a really awesome game that people should get their hands on! Here is my review of Underhero.

Story: 4.5/5

Once upon a time, There is a kingdom called chestnut kingdom where evil always lurks and Heroes always arrive to fight away evil and save the princesses. And the tradition keeps continuing. One day, a Hero arrives to defeat the main villain but before doing that, he is blocked by minions. However, the strangest thing that happened is that the hero gets killed by a minion's scheme. From here on, this is where the story begins.

The story is almost fantastic and well written. It has a great sense of humour all around like breaking the fourth wall, having characters do foolish actions etc. Every single character has some level of depth and personality that you will like them regardless. Almost none of the characters in this game are dull nor annoying and that's the really best part of the entire game. This moment right here reminded me a lot about what Mario RPG games used to be.

The only real problem here is how the plot ends because it ends on a cliffhanger and an unsatisfying one at that. Had that ended on a higher note, I would have personally given it a full star rating but sadly, that's not the case.

Graphics: 4/5

Yes. Even the game's graphics are not bad as they are colorful, pleasant to look at and never has anything bland. The animations for the most part are spot on. The only flaw here is the little bit of a lack of additional animations such as falling on a bottomless pit or defeating an enemy.

Music: 5/5

The music in this game is overall fantastic. It has a mix between music that is chiptune to music that is deep. The music infact makes some of the characters stand out. My personal favourite is Stiches theme because it reflects on his overall character. Even the sound effects are great as they add depth to the humour of the plot.

Gameplay: 3.5/5

And now we come to the ultimate slice of the game which is the gameplay. You play as a minion who wears a mask that is similar to a Mario enemy called a Shy Guy. You're only functions are walking or running left and right, jump and use your hood to glide and of course climb on ropes, entering doors and talk to NPCs around you. The game normally plays like a platform game where you jump on platforms, collect coins, solve some basic puzzles and explore the level around to find treasure chests that reward you with either coins, upgrades or a side quest items.

When you encounter enemies by simply touching them, you are in the turn based battle gameplay and this is where the Mario RPG similarities begin. You have three types of attacks which are the sword, the slingshot and the hammer. Each has their own advantages and disadvantages. The sword is the basic and the fastest of the three but it is weak while the slingshot helps to shoot enemies from a far off distance and the hammer, while slow to execute is powerful and deals massive damage. The final move you get is the Rush mode where you must first fill both your stamina and the Rush gauge and then use your sword to do massive amounts of slicing at the cost of your stamina and the rush mode gauge being fully depleted. You can also deal bonus damage if you time your attacks based on the rhythm of the background music that plays.

Of course all of this comes for a price which is the stamina. Using the attacks cost some amounts of stamina and if you drain the stamina, you will get exhausted and you will have to wait for a while to resume combat but the same applies for the enemy.

For defence, you have your jump, crouch and the shield. Jumping and crouching help for dodging the enemy attacks similar to the Mario and Luigi RPG series while the shield is used for blocking attacks that are hard to block but this depletes your shield health and if it reaches zero, you can't use it unless you get it repaired. But if you time the block just right, you create a parry which not only stuns your enemy but also does not deplete your shield kind of similar to Paper Mario.

Besides combat, there are also two things you can do. Talk to enemies before fighting them but if you attack them, you can no longer talk to them. The other option is to pay them so that you don't have to fight them but this is a problem due to money being very scarce.

Now the reason why this gets a lower score compared to the others is because the gameplay has some flaws. The problem here is the game mechanic as its not always well executed. When facing bosses, you won't encounter them on battle mode as you often instead have to stun them so that you can damage them in battle mode making them not very challenging.

Then comes the problem with leveling up. Now interestingly, this game doesn't ask you to grind a lot. Infact, when you defeat enemies, they are gone for good just like how it is in Undertale. The downside here is the overall lack of satisfaction. While the game isn't hard to the point that you need grinding, it doesn't seem rewarding getting a level up because of how pointless it almost is besides the stamina gauge filling higher. Unlike the Mario RPG games where there is a reason for the battle systems to exist, here, if you remove this mechanic and made it to like Super Paper Mario style of gameplay, then this game would have been much better. But for what it does now is half baked at best.

And finally..the replay value. Now this game is pretty short of about 12-16 hours at best but the issue here is that there are almost no side quests to get into with only about few of them and that's that. There's no additional modes that you unlock, no optional bosses to face. Its just the main story that you deal with and nothing else.

Overall: 4.5/5

While the gameplay might not be well polished, its still great for what it does especially the plot, graphics and music and since this is an RPG game, the overall experience is still satisfactory and for anyone into RPGs or just want to remind themselves of what Paper Mario used to be, this is a game for those type of people.

[echoeternally]

Which Mario characters would be, as Watership Down Characters, and vice versa?

You know, I took some time to think about this one today, and I’ve got to admit, for my tastes, I can’t think of a feasible way that this works out. And it’s for a few reasons that kind of get me hung up.

Honestly, I think it comes down to at least four pretty divisive factors that keep them from being compared on an equal scale, and adds a terribly heightened challenge to it all. These would be: gender ratios (A), inconsistent characterizations (B), mismatching personalities ©, and cast prominence (D).

Obviously, it’s a lot to get into, so, I’ll include that in a portion below the cut. If you keep going, I’ll try to properly explain why it’s not just a clear-cut question to answer for this one.

A) First, gender ratios, which can be worked around based solely on personality, but still glares out big time. Watership Down has some female characters on the roster, but they tend to matter little comparatively. Hell, there are multiple characters that started as male that were later swapped to female roles in later adaptations. It’s good, and shows that the role can be played by a character, not a gender. But it’s also a reminder that the original work is dated in its viable female cast. By contrast, Mario has a nice number, and they stand out a lot better, each with unique and distinct roles, personalities, and general flavors that they add. They’re fun and dynamic, a highlight to see.

B) This actually leads into the next point, though, which would be the inconsistent characterizations. Both franchises kind of mess around with how their characters are portrayed and what they do. Sure, you get the basics well enough with the major characters: Hazel’s the brave hero leader, Mario tends to be that too. Fiver’s the timid younger brother, so is Luigi.

But it gets weirder the further down the cast list you go. Bowser’s the big bad guy, but depending on his role as the main villain or not, he can either be sympathized with, or totally evil; he’s maybe just looking for love, or has insatiable desires for conquest. Bigwig is a strong authority figure, but can either be super loyal or a part-time jerk that questions his own leader’s authority. Peach is helpless, or more powerful than she lets on. Hell, Clover took over half of Hyzenthlay’s role in the latest adaptation, and they’re far from the only instance of variable depictions in the series, further depending on the characters that are used. Overall, these changes can make them flexible to develop over time, but it makes them harder to pin down on which role defines them best.

C) And that flexibility also leads to mismatching personalities between the casts of both stories. Because Rosalina first appeared as this quiet, graceful, and yet all powerful entity, we’d picture that side to her, kind of elevating her above the usual human counterparts she’d stand beside, calling into question if she’s even human herself. But she’s later show to have simple joys and pleasures, so she’s not totally detached and above it all. This doesn’t quite equate to any particular character in Watership Down; you could try to make her on par with the Black Rabbit of Inlé, based on powers and ethereal-vibes, but Inlé is too tied with death to be a fair comparison for Rosalina.

Likewise, we have characters from Watership Down known for their stock personality types: Blackberry is the smart one, Strawberry is the big eater, and Hawkbit is the deadpan snarker. None of these particularly hit Mario characters due to their shifts in depictions. Sometimes the big eater is Bowser, sometimes it’s Luigi (yeah). Rosalina seems smart, but Yoshi and Toad have been depicted this way as well. Virtually any one of the Mario cast can fall into sarcasm and dry humor. It’s touch-and-go, but doesn’t give a solid match-up for anyone.

D) Finally, if the mentions above didn’t already make it obvious, then the issue falls to how the casts line up with first themselves, and then one another. The core cast for Mario’s main game franchise tends to fall upon Mario, Peach, Bowser, and typically Luigi to round up the rest, though sometimes he can be left out. Watership Down’s main group would likely be Hazel, Fiver, Bigwig, and General Woundwart. These are more or less the essential characters to have for there to be a story to tell for the franchises.

From there, have fun figuring out who matters and to what level. You can probably safely include higher profile picks for the major characters of each. Mario tends to favor Yoshi, some form of Toad, and generally a rotating female cast member, plus a sidekick villain or a few. Watership Down gets a way better story including the heroism from Hyzenthlay (or a female character that takes on her role for the story), and the undermining plots of whoever gets to be Woundwart’s second-in-command. That could form your secondary main characters.

But it just keeps going from there, and each character is weighted differently. Toad can be an individual and important, but also can get shafted for another more important Toad (Toadette, Toadsworth), or simply suffice as a species, not an individual. Should he be considered main or minor? Dandelion is usually lorekeeper alongside being the fastest, but both of these roles have been divided and distributed to other rabbits (Bluebell and Blackavar respectively), calling into question his prominence. Kehaar tends to always appear, but he can be written around pretty easily. Similarly, Bowser sometimes relies on the Koopalings, but they can also be missing for something close to a decade without the blink of an eye. Who matters, who doesn’t? It depends on the audience, and their interests.

…

Honestly, I even tried breaking it down for the characters on each level, and I had a list spanning past 20 characters on each side. And I wasn’t even including everyone, but just the characters that I felt were important. Trying to mix and match them was even worse, to the point where it really couldn’t be done on a really fitting level.

Going by canon interpretations for both, I think you’ve got, at best:

Mario = Hazel

Luigi = Fiver

Bowser = General Woundwart 

Peach = Hyzenthlay

Yoshi = Bigwig

That’s going by a core cast, with some additions to make sure the major-most of each group gets included. It’s not great either, for several reasons, since Bigwig and Yoshi do not have comparable personalities, but are both strong. Bowser’s also got redeeming qualities to him that actually earn him some sympathy points, whereas Woundwart…well, I think writers have tried, but he’s best as irredeemable and blatantly evil.

Personally, if I were to go maybe one extra level and include Daisy for main cast on the Mario side, I’d fit her to Bigwig, and instead equate Yoshi to Dandelion, as both of the latter two are known for speed, while the former two can be tough, but also caring as well. But I don’t feel that Dandelion and Daisy are as important to their franchises, whereas one could argue a little harder for Yoshi, and Bigwig is easily important to the story.

I even tried going on my fanfic interpretations (of at least the Mario characters) to see if that would line up better, but then that just screws up where the main villain connects. Because, that would instead look like:

Mario/Luigi = Hazel/Fiver

Bowser = Bigwig

Peach? = Hyzenthlay?

??? = General Woundwart

Because, based on how I’ve written them so far, Bowser’s even less of an evil force, and more motivated based on his heart and his people. This makes no one particularly equal to Woundwart. Conversely, Peach is a lot, well…she’s hardened. If one were to go by Hyzenthlay’s depiction in the Netflix miniseries, I’d wager that’s good enough. But this splits who Hyzenthlay is, so the character doesn’t quite feel whole. Oh, and Mario tends to be leader-like, but also has weird powers and visions going on, which helps Luigi step up into his role in his absence, so…they both have shades of Hazel and Fiver’s roles.

Furthermore, I get lost in my own biased interpretations of the fanfic I’m never writing for Watership Down, so that would make going down the rabbit hole a lot more terrifying. Well, for you reading this, anyway; I’d be thrilled to keep it going and gush about personalities in my head for the WD cast, lol.

So, that’s kind of how it goes in my mind. Yes, I’m positive there’s enough flexibility to go down each list and match up characters based on as much as possible for each side of them, or by ignoring some things. Mixing some canons together, you could get:

Mario = Hazel

Luigi = Fiver

Peach = Hyzenthlay

Daisy = Bigwig 

Bowser = General Woundwart

Kamek = Vervain/Orchis/Whoever the schemer to Woundwart is

Yoshi = Kehaar 

Toad = Pipkin/Bluebell

Toadette = Clover

Wario = Strawberry

Waluigi = Cowslip

Bowser Jr = Campion

Rosalina = Dandelion

Here, not only do these feel weirdly off when you look further into those characters, but it doesn’t really cover them properly, nor does it pick the best from the rosters of each. Yoshi’s kind of the foreign type to the core cast, so he connects well enough with Kehaar. This, however, chooses to ignore his famous speed that aligns him best with Dandelion, which instead relates his storytelling to Rosalina, because both tell stories, but that’s where their similarities end. We also choose to ignore Yoshi’s big appetite, which would connect best to Strawberry, putting the much less important Wario up to that role.

Similarly, this also confuses the interpretations on certain Watership Down characters based on how they’re depicted, and then sort of picks a Mario character that might connect. The easier one is Woundwart’s right hand scheming little twerp, which has been both Vervain and Orchis in the tv series and miniseries respectively. They work in a role similar to Kamek, a dutiful but terrified henchman.

It gets worse, though, when we hit something like Pipkin or Bluebell, as the latter was absent from the tv series, the former from the miniseries, and though both have some childish innocence to them, neither personality ends here for either. Toad, when he’s fleshed out as a standalone character, probably could be seen as innocent and childish, but I doubt he’s alone, and also has roles that elevate his mindset, which doesn’t quite make him on that same level.

Not to mention that some just don’t outright fit (Junior to Campion), but going that far along, that’s about all that works out well enough for characters that can be argued for their prominence.

…

Bottom line would be that, while I totally love both franchises and would like to put them on a equal level for comparisons, it doesn’t do either one justice.

All the same, thank you for the interest and the ask! It was fun thinking it over.

[simslegacy5083]

NSB (Straud Legacy) Gen 9

Today's (7/29/2024) Episode: Birthday With Family

After his fun pre-birthday party with his friends Luigi was excited to invite his relatives over for a Kava party on his actual birthday. 

This time Valentina stepped in to cook up a big pot of stew, freeing the usual chef to show off his grandbaby to all his nearest and dearest. Luigi, who had recently been focusing on embracing island life, was busy mixing big batches of the traditional island drink Kava at his well stocked home bar.

On the other side of the room Noemi was making an effort to be sociable, congratulating Fern on her incoming bundle of joy and thanking Cullen for some “fun ideas” to consider for her own quickly approaching birthday as well as the wedding that she and Luigi had yet to set a date for.

She did her best, but being around so many sims at once, many whom she was still getting to know, quickly drained Noemi’s social batteries.

When she made her way over to Luigi, snuggling up close and quiet, he picked up on her anxiety and invited one of their favorite relatives, Denton, to join them in the much less crowded living room.

Once she was in her small “friend bubble” Noemi began to relax and noticed Denton’s own pensive mood. He confided that one of his favorite horses back home had recently passed away and she offered her sincere condolences, wrapping him in a hug while telling him how sorry she was.

After that they settled nearby to watch Luigi “kick butt” on the big screen with his playthrough of a hot new videogame Denton was planning to stream the next day. According to Denton watching his cousin solve some of the trickier puzzles would help him be ready to showcase it for his own audience.

With his girl feeling a bit better, Luigi moved onto the main event of the night, blowing out the candles on the beautiful cake his dad had made.

He extinguished the flames and decided to take a victory lap around the table as his relatives cheered before spinning his way into adulthood.

In the excitement, no-one noticed Peachy slump gently over in the corner of the room, his vision dimming on his last living glimpse of his son.

The family quickly realized that Peachy had hit his final milestone, and an intense wave of grief hit the not so young Luigi. 

Everyone had known that the elder Lawbourne's life would soon be ending, but that didn’t make watching Grim collect his soul any easier.

Peachy’s sudden absence made continuing the celebration impossible. Luigi put the uneaten cake in the fridge and placed his dada's urn next to his papa's in the living room as all his grieving relatives made their farewells.

That night he clung tightly to Noemi as he fell asleep, hopeful that his dads were once again happily reunited in the ever after.

View The Full Story of My Not So Berry Challenge Here

[grimesgalloway13-blog]

Books

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To help raise money for the activity, Ora's programmers have released Possum Stamp, a mini game application on call on iOS or Android. Having every one of this all together, our team're waiting to a game that needs to be larger, deeper and also hopefully much better. Black Moon, the part two to the authentic Luigi's Mansion on the Nintendo GameCube, is an experience video game fully. Earlier, you were actually provided a complete 30 days on the Recuperation button (under Environments) where the option was available to change to an earlier improve your Personal Computer - guaranteeing that those using the free gift Windows 10 upgrade possessed a full month through which to try the new Operating System and rollback to Microsoft window 7/8.1 if they weren't delighted. Yes, featuring one of last production's best games amongst this generation's finest is actually somewhat monotonous, yet GTA V on Xbox One is too great to dismiss, with HD visuals, a longer draw proximity as well as a much faster frame-rate. One more kudo for the video game is its use Component Concept That possesses thin fonts, intense shades and also and sharp shades to really feel ideal in the home on a Lollipop gadget. The release on Wednesday from video of the killing from Dylan Noble, a 19-year-old shot at a gasoline station in Fresno on 25 June, happened simply hours after the cops division informed the Guardian this will certainly not discharge the video. Download and install Video games totally free is a helpful computer game downloading tool, and also although this may be actually made use of for installing business titles, that is actually likewise a fantastic resource to discover several of the greatest free of cost video games out there.

[monsters-conquer-the-world]

10 Games

For Jack’s 10th birthday, Will got him a RetroPie.  Pretty cool, especially since it’s so easy to just dump a zillion games in there and let the kid go nuts.  But that’s a one-way ticked to analysis paralysis, so Will had a a super sick idea.  He asked me and Jess and some other friends to put together a list of 10 must-play classic/retro games and write a little bit about why we chose them.  As someone who loves video games and writing and lists, I was ALL ‘BOUT THAT.  

Now that Jack’s birthday has come and gone, I can share all the junk I wrote about these ten games that mean so much to me!  Check it out:

I love this idea.  I know the initial prompt was just "pick your favorites" but I couldn't help but impose a bunch of additional caveats. I know where this list is headed (and I have a pretty good idea of what games will pop up on the other lists)!  I could have easily listed off 10 Super NES games or 10 N64 games, but I wanted to hit a variety of consoles and franchises.  I would have liked to have hit a variety of genres and studios too, but I can't lie: I love platformers, and I love games by Nintendo.  It was challenging but rewarding to shave this list down to ten--a lot of old favorites and recent discoveries couldn't fit on the list, leaving these few.  The ones I've always treasured, the ones that stuck with me, the ones I memorized the music and sound effects to, starring the characters I love, exploring the worlds I wanted to live in.  Maybe you'll dig 'em too.

NES

Super Mario Bros. 3

I had spent some quality time with our Atari 2600 well before we ever had an NES in the house. I have fond memories of playing but not really understanding Pac-Man, Haunted House, and the bleak nuclear apocalypse masterpiece Missile Command.  But the first game I really wrapped my head around was Super Mario Bros. (and Duck Hunt, but that's not as relevant!).  Mario and Luigi's multi-screen adventures under a friendly blue sky expanded my concept of what a video game could even be--plus it was super fun, and Rochelle and I could both play it together! Super Mario Bros. 2 was technically more impressive, but so weird (and flanked by so many similar games) that it didn't rock my world like Mario 1 did (though I of course have a huge soft spot for it anyway).   Then Super Mario Bros. 3 came along and Mario had learned how to fly.  It was bigger, more beautiful, and stuffed to the brim with secrets and surprises! It was so exciting even Mom and Dad would play it with us.  Super Mario World is maybe the bigger, better, beautifuler game (and you can ride a FREAKING DINOSAUR), but I'll never forget the day I woke up to find my dad and sister playing this in the living room because we finally owned it.  It was too good to just keep renting! Kid Icarus

I didn't catch Kid Icarus the first time around.  I didn't even play it until high school, but I was inspired to track it down because of my love for Greek mythology and the Metroid series.  Kid Icarus takes place in a world heavily inspired by (but still distinctly different from) the swords, sandals, and sorcery epics of ancient Greece!  It's considered a "sister game" to the original Metroid, released around the same time by the same team, and the game shares a lot of the core elements that make Metroid so unique and awesome: eerily lonely, dangerous worlds to explore, a challenging beginning, player-empowering character growth, and a focus on exploring vast, often vertically-scrolling worlds with satisfying run'n'gun'n'jump gameplay. Kid Icarus borrows all the best stuff from Metroid, but tempers it with a slate of unique design choices: instead of one sprawling world, KI is split into discrete levels.  The first world is an ascent out of Hades with vertically oriented levels, the second world is a horizontal trek across the surface world, the third is another vertical ascent into the sky, and the finale is a horizontal, forced-scrolling shoot-em-up to reclaim the heavens!  Every fourth level is a sprawling, maze-like, Metroid-ish dungeon, capped off with a frantic boss fight!  Plus, Eggplant Wizards, credit cards, and RPG-style character upgrades!  They don't make 'em like this anymore!! Duck Tales

It's not as groundbreaking as Super Mario Bros. 1 or as innovative as Super Mario Bros. 3, but that doesn't change the fact that Duck Tales could possibly be my favorite NES platformer of all time. You don't need to know anything about or even like the original cartoon (or the comic books that birthed it) to appreciate the challenging charms of this hop'n'bop classic.  Duck Tales only has a handful of levels, but they're huge, full of hidden treasures, packed with alternate paths, swiss cheesed with secret passageways, and just gorgeous translations of Disney's lush cartoon worlds.   Getting to choose your own path through Duck Tales' roster of big beautiful worlds is reminiscent of the Mega Man games (also by Capcom). What really sets Duck Tales apart is controlling Scrooge.  He's spry for a septuagenarian billionaire, but his real talents lie in swinging and pogo-sticking off his cane!  It's delightful cartoon nonsense, but if you get the hang of it, it's also incredibly satisfying, allowing you to make some wild, death-defying maneuvers.  If you dig this and find yourself hungering for more bounce-centric gameplay, Shovel Knight takes Scrooge's cane, turns it into a shovel, and builds a deeply satisfying modern classic around it.  Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze finally gives Cranky a chance to shine as a playable character, and he straight-up jock's Scrooge's style, cane and all.  It rules.

Super NES

Yoshi's Island

The first thing you'll notice about Yoshi's Island is that it looks like it was drawn with crayons, markers, and colored pencils!  The second thing you'll notice is that Mario is a freaking baby!  It's an odd premise, but it all comes together in perhaps the best sidescroller ever made.  With Mario mustache-less and diaper-clad, this game puts you directly in control of Yoshi, and he is a joy to play as.  Hovering to extend his jump power, turning enemies into eggs and chucking them, and butt-stomping are Yoshi's primary tools of the trade, and they mix things up nicely.  This doesn't feel like "just another Mario," but it also feels right at home in the Mario pantheon. Beyond the Yosh-man's most basic maneuvers, there are some wild power-ups that turn Yoshi into a helicopter, a train that zips along in the background, a mole-tank, and more, plus special areas where Baby Mario gets superpowers and runs up walls and stuff!  Yoshi's Island is another magical micro-world, jam-packed with extremely clever and fun level design and very possibly the biggest and best boss fights of all time.   Ya gotta play this one.

Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong-Quest

I know I just talked about Yoshi's Island maybe being the best platformer of all time, but Donkey Kong Country 2 is right behind it, nipping at its heels.  DKC2 has a wildly different aesthetic, dropping you into beautifully computer-rendered pirate shipwrecks, janky-but-glitzy night time carnival rides, endless bramble patches, a skyscraper-sized beehive, haunted forests, and more!  They're not just beautiful to look at, but beautiful to listen to, because DKC2 features one of the all-time greatest video game soundtracks.  Maybe the greatest.  But this game ain't just another pretty face!

DKC2, like Super Mario Bros. 3 and Duck Tales, is stuffed to the gills with tricky little secrets and hidden areas and surprises.  This game doesn't just have secret levels, it has a secret WORLD.  This game doesn't just have a secret world, it has an entire secret ENDING.  The classically solid platforming is accompanied by a wealth of mine cart challenges, awesome animal buddies, mini-games, and enough level design variety to keep you coming back for every last hidden treasure.  

Super Metroid

Super Metroid doesn't just have secrets, it has mysteries.  This was the first game to ever actually scare me. The first one to ever creep me out.  And that just made me want to play it even more.  It feels lonely and dangerous.  Unlike the games earlier on this list, it is one HUGE and continuous world.  It is a world of incomprehensible alien horrors, ancient moldering ruins, and high-tech space-faring bio-terrorists.  This world, named Zebes, is a world where the sky continuously rains acid and almost every living thing inhabiting it wants to kill you.  Good thing you're Samus Aran, the toughest, smartest bounty hunter to ever clean up Space Pirate scum!

Samus explores this acid-drenched nightmare planet by running, gunning, and jumping... but also by solving puzzles and thinking her way out of traps.  With each power up she gets a little stronger, and can find her way deeper into this gnashing alien hellscape.  It's a game that is sadly beautiful just as often as it is ghoulish.  The story, simple and sketched-in as it is, is also deeper and more moving than you will ever expect. The boss fights are as massive, memorable, and epic as the ones in Yoshi's Island, but about a thousand times more intense and frightening.  The music perfectly sets the dark, burbling mood of each region of Zebes, and by the end of the game you will feel like the most powerful hero in the galaxy.  This mix of sci-fi, horror, and adventure isn't just a must-play, it's a life-changer.

Gameboy Color

Wario Land II

I love the Mario series, but I'm also absolutely crazy about Wario.  He's a fat, greedy, chaotic, prideful, disgusting, bull-headed oaf.  He's the polar opposite of Mario... and that's why I love him!  He's not exactly a villain, but he's a definitely a troublemaker, and it is hilariously fun to walk (or stumble!) a mile or three in his shoes.  The game before this, Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land is a ton of fun (as is Super Mario Land 2 before it!), but Wario Land II is the first one that truly feels like a Wario game.  What makes this game so different?  Wario can't be killed!

You read that right, there's (almost) no way to actually "die" in this game!  No way to lose lives.  That might sound too easy, or boring, or both, but it's not!  Wario might be unkillable, but all KINDS of bad stuff can and WILL still happen to him.  A LOT.  He'll get flattened, set on fire, trapped in bubbles, fattened up, frozen, drunk, zombified, and more!  And here's the kicker: those wacky conditions are required to solve the puzzles and challenges of each level!  On top of that ingenious and perfectly wacky set of game mechanics, the story branches off in wildly different directions: you'll blow up the annoying alarm clock in your castle, play street basketball against a giant bunny, be nice to a chicken, visit Atlantis, race through a weird world of mouths, noses, and eyes, and more!  There are multiple endings, multiple hidden exits, and multiple secret treasures and minigames to find and conquer.  Almost all of the Wario Land and Wario Ware games are oddball masterpieces, but WLII is the perfect balance of weird, smart, funny, and challenging.

Nintendo 64

Super Mario 64

This is it.  This is the game.  In 1996, when I was in sixth grade, Super Mario 64 was the only thing I cared about.  I begged and wished and hoped for a Nintendo 64 that Christmas, but it didn't come.  I was crushed.  Occasionally I was able to rent an N64 and Super Mario 64, and I'd lose whole days to this magical, miraculous game.  When I couldn't rent it, I'd bug my classmates about it endlessly.  "What level are you on?  What's that level like?  What stars can you get?  What secrets have you found?"  They'd answer a few of my ravenous, bug-eyed questions before getting uncomfortable and leaving to do something else.  What was the big deal? Why was I (and still am) so obsessed?

The leap from Super Nintendo to Nintendo 64 was like the leap from console and computer games to virtual reality.  But instead of short, funny minigames, it is a huge, sprawling world where anything seems possible.  A magical, secret garden full of surprises, wonder, challenges, and secrets.  Where the sun always shines in a cloudless sky... except when you plunge into the death-defying Bowser levels or the inappropriately terrifying Big Boo's Haunt.  Oh Mario can definitely fly in this one like he did in Super Mario Bros. 3, but just the simple act of running around in circles and jumping through 3D space felt like a joyous miracle... one that puts 2-dimensional flight to shame.  Each world (accessed by jumping INTO paintings in Princess Peach's sprawling but empty castle) is colorful, full of possibility, and chock full of distinct personality.  Adventuring through 3D space for the first time ever was incredible on its own, but doing it in such richly detailed, lovingly crafted worlds made me want to play there forever.  I still do. 

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Take everything I just said about Super Mario 64 and multiply it by ten!  Well, sort of.  Ocarina of Time took the lessons learned from Super Mario 64 and applied them to the dungeon-crawling, puzzle-solving Legend of Zelda series.  The result was an incredibly groundbreaking game that I cherished almost as zealously as Super Mario 64.  I don't think it's aged as well, but I don't care.  Ocarina of Time is a grand story, spanning seven years (!!!) and the entire fantastical country of Hyrule.  As Link, you jump forward and back through time, meet strange and wonderful new friends, discover hidden kingdoms, face the blood-soaked evil of Hyrule's past, save its future, outwit cunning puzzles and traps, steal and ride a magnificent horse, challenge towering, Super Metroid-style end bosses, wield magical weapons, break hearts, play beautiful music, and go fishing.  It's an entire, epic fantasy life in one little cartridge. 

This was the first Zelda game I ever spent SERIOUS time with, and the fact that it plays like a fantasy-fueled hybrid of Super Mario 64 and Super Metroid means I've lost entire days to it.  I've played it start to finish at least 8 or 9 times.  It never gets boring. Like Super Mario 64, Ocarina of Time invented how we make and play 3D games.  This was the first 3D game where you could lock onto enemies and points of interest, plus a bevy of other camera controls that come standard in 3D games now (or at least they did for about a decade after Ocarina's release). The story is surprisingly cinematic and even gripping at times.  You'll want to live in this world.  You'll be sad when you see the end credits.  Not because of the ending itself, but because there's no more game for you to play... until you start it all over again on the next save file.  

Star Fox 64

Star Fox 64 was a life-changing event for me, just like Super Mario 64 and Ocarina of Time.  So is Star Fox 64 a slow-paced, exploration heavy adventure into beautiful and fantastical solitude like those other two games?  N O P E.  It's a guns-blazin', fast action, dogfightin', barrel rollin', rock'em sock'em intergalactic action epic in supersonic spaceships!  Piloted by talking animals!  That actually talk!  YES!

Instead of the wide-open freedom of Super Mario 64 and  Ocarina of TIme, Star Fox 64 either puts you on (invisible) rails in a forced-scrolling attack run or in a contained 3D arena.  Here's the kicker though, the levels are all so perfectly designed and the action is so expertly paced that you never feel restricted.  You're too busy racking up kill combos, saving your wingmen, and navigating through flying, burning space debris and buildings and asteroids and terrain to think about what you can't do.  And even on rails, Star Fox 64 gives you ways to explore!  Most levels have multiple exits and there are a whole mess of different, branching paths through the entire, war-torn Lylat system.  The game is designed to be played start to finish in a single sitting, but experimenting with repeat playthroughs is the only way to experience everything this laser-blazing action classic has to offer.  On top of all that, it's got a great story, iconic, meme-worthy dialogue, and an absolutely banging soundtrack.  It might not have changed the face of interactive entertainment like Super Mario 64 and Ocarina of Time, but it delivered the ultimate shoot'em up space adventure.  

[aion-rsa]

Nintendo Holiday Gift Guide: Best Consoles and Games to Buy

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

This article is presented by Nintendo.

Got a video game fan in your life and want to treat them to something special? Luckily, with the holidays just around the corner and the 35th Anniversary of Super Mario Bros. is currently in full swing, there are plenty of Nintendo-themed gifts to choose from. But if you need some guidance on the latest and greatest from the House of Mario, we’ve created a helpful guide for you!

The following is a curated list of products we think would be ideal for both dedicated Nintendo players and those ready to have their first Nintendo experience. From exciting first-party exclusives and the best games for the Nintendo Switch to mixed reality playsets ready to take over your home, here is Den of Geek’s ultimate Nintendo holiday buyer’s guide:

Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros.

Nintendo is celebrating the 35th anniversary of Super Mario Bros. in various ways throughout 2020, and the biggest anniversary release is definitely the return of the classic Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros. handheld. This special golden handheld boasts a sleek and clean look that also stays true to the portable device’s iconic design, especially the legendary Widescreen Game & Watch line. 

Not only does this new version of the handheld have a full-color LED screen but it comes pre-loaded with the full version of Super Mario Bros. as well as Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels and a new Mario-themed take on the first Game & Watch title, Ball. Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros. releases on Nov. 13.

Nintendo Switch

Nintendo Switch is a system that represents all the Japanese company’s best ideas rolled into one, seamlessly combining the joys of both handheld and home console gaming to deliver the ultimate experience. Because of the Switch’s home/handheld console design, players can easily take their games on the go or sit down in their living room and plug into their big-screen TVs. This is a feature unique to the standard Nintendo Switch, which is jam-packed full of exclusive games that can’t be played anywhere else – and now boasting improved battery life. It’s the ultimate gift for Nintendo players!

Need some Switch game recommendations? We’d suggest starting with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and a few other games we’ll recommend below.

Nintendo Switch Lite

Nintendo Switch Lite is a slimmer, lighter, and more budget-friendly version of the standard hybrid system. While you can’t plug the Switch Lite into your TV, players can still enjoy one of the most robust and diverse video game libraries on a beautiful LCD screen while on the go. 

The Lite is currently available in four distinct colours — Coral, Turquoise, Yellow, and Grey — allowing players to customize their Switch Lite experience to fit them. Despite not being dockable, the Lite is the Switch of choice for players wanting an easy and affordable entry point into the wonderful world of Nintendo.

Super Mario 3D All-Stars

After years of wondering when fans would be able to play Mario’s greatest classic adventures on Switch, Nintendo finally announced Super Mario 3D All-Stars. This collection brings together Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and Super Mario Galaxy in one neat package, ideal for players who may have missed these 3D platformers the first time around as well as those keen to play them again! All three games benefit from improved resolutions and modern controls, ensuring that Super Mario 3D All-Stars is now the best way to play these gems.

Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit

Just when you thought you’d seen it all from Nintendo’s trademark racing series, the aptly named Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit brings the colorful karting action directly to your home, thanks to augmented reality. This game’s design is incredible: you set up gates and arrow markers on your floor, which can then be tracked by the physical Mario or Luigi toy cart that comes equipped with a camera. 

After setting up your own personalized home circuit, you can race through your home through the Switch screen, dodging, drifting, and boosting your way to victory. With Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, the racing possibilities are endless.

Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is widely considered to be one of the best Nintendo games ever released, transporting players to the most fully realized version of the Hyrule Kingdom yet. While not a mainline entry, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity is a standalone prequel spin-off that will let players live and fight through the events that led to Breath of the Wild. 

Hyrule Warriors plays differently to other Zelda releases in that it emphasizes hack and slash combat over exploration and puzzle-solving, but anyone craving more reasons to return to this universe will find it in Age of Calamity. The game is out on Nov. 20.

Ring Fit Adventure

External forces have made it incredibly difficult to stay fit and healthy during most of 2020, leading the exercise-driven Ring Fit Adventure for Nintendo Switch to surge in popularity. This Wii Fit successor gets you up on your feet and working out by gaming the system, challenging you to battle an evil dragon by way of squats, jogging, and crunches. In fact, Ring Fit Adventure is more than just an exercise game and has quite a few things in common with a traditional RPG. You’ll battle your way through obstacles and enemies using the unique Ring-Con controller, staying fit and healthy at the same time.

Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics

One of the year’s most surprising Nintendo Switch hits is Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics, a charming compilation of familiar board games, card games, and sports games that everyone can play together. It’s by far the most convenient way to play timeless games like Chess, Four-In-a-Row, and Texas Hold’em, all of which boast various difficulty levels and modes to always keep things interesting. 51 Worldwide Classics is an ideal gift for solo players and families alike, and a good example of how video games can bring people of all ages together.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons

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Animal Crossing: New Horizons is the game that saved many gamers from the woes of lockdown in 2020, giving everyone their own personal private island getaway to tweak, improve, and customise. It’s a cutesy life simulation game suitable for players of all ages, granting you the tools to create a character and then live out a full virtual life. Become friends with neighbors, spend the nights catching bugs, and spend time with your real world friends on your island or theirs! After all that, you can return to your island in real-time during seasonal events, which ensure there’s always something new to see and do!

The post Nintendo Holiday Gift Guide: Best Consoles and Games to Buy appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[maryjeanstar]

Grabbed by the Ghoulies, a self-analysis:

To me initially it was a slap to the face. "WHAT?" I cried when I saw the makers of this Xbox game. "Rareware!? What the HECK is this piece of crap Grabbed by the Ghoulies!?" We kids had got a big bundle-set of xbox games from our uncle and were going through them. This was one of them.

It had become a routine; once every few christmases was the Christmas of Games, where a series of video games were given out by our parents (Santa) to fuel our latest and greatest gaming system. Many many ago we received Donkey Kong Country 2, made by Rareware for the Super Nintendo. It was the bomb. We loved it to death. We loved it and the first one so much Rareware was a household icon we came to love and cherish. Come the 64, my eldest sib bought it with Goldeneye 007, also Rareware, later supplemented by its spiritual successor Perfect Dark, also Rareware. These games were great, worth hundreds of hours of fun. They were cold, cool, well planned and done straight no-nonsense superspy first person shooter adventures. Had nothing to do with jumping on kremlings and throwing barrels, but it didn’t need to; it was James Bond. We already knew who James Bond was and how cool we thought he was. Especially after playing Goldeneye.

What we never played or saw any of was the OTHER games Rareware had been making at the time. Donkey Kong 64, Banjo Kazooie, Diddy Kong Racing, Conker's Bad Fur Day, these games all had a hub-based progression of challenges, bouncing anthropomorphic objects and quirky original characters with voice acting/grunting. They were action puzzle adventure games, and it is in this spectrum of Rareware's development and style that Grabbed by the Ghoulies comes right out of, down to the grunting, visual gags, and minigames, even collecting stuff. You run room to room completing simple challenge themes that later mix together for harder more innovative struggles against following a rule system or not and dealing with the consequences.

Anyway when Grabbed by the Ghoulies plopped into my lap, I was taken by surprise. It was not donkey kong country, and it was not a first person shooter spy game. At this point in my life I was set in my bubble. Routine and consistency were of utmost importance, and this new game did NOT live up to my Rareware Schema. Primarily because I didn't have all the pieces of Rareware's narrative. Things don't change, said little kid me. The same company would make the same quality stuff every year to come. I thought this about Pixar smh and I thought it of Nintendo as well. I was also elitist about it.

But in retrospect I see now the progress of Rareware's products and how Grabbed by the Ghoulies does in fact fit right in with Donkey Kong Country 2 Diddy's Kongquest. The Bonus Games of DKC became the Bonus Barrel in DKC2, which incorporated a rule system. Some bonus games required you to knock off all the enemies, some said Get Alla Banans, others were of the Search and Find sort. This is in GBtG except it's like, every single room you enter is a different rule, and some rooms mix two or seven rules together.

Then there's the art. OK? Runnin' around on ships and castles and roller coasters in DKC2, there's all this junk and garbage everywhere filling the space with aesthetic. All kinds of junk in the background and foreground made the game feel full, alive, popping. In later games they made that awesome junk tangible. Banjo Kazooie had whole three dimensional worlds filled with bouncing junk to collect and interact with. GBtG just jumped off of that and made it so you could break all the junk you find, and use a lot of it as weapons against skeletons, like a detached anchor, or a pool rod, or a convenient pile of hamburgers.

On top of that, this Grabbed by the Ghoulies game I so readily dismissed for being strange ended up being a whole lot of fun. The music was memorable and thematic, there were creepy parts, funny parts, and it got seriously frustratingly hard at times. I ended up actually trying to collect alla gold medals in the mini-challenges mode. This game was without a doubt a Rareware game, made with the care and originality unique to Rareware. WHY was it made? Prolly cuz Microsoft wanted to give their Xbox something to compete with the Nintendo Gamecube's Luigi Mansion. Well if that's the case they got the right company. Heck. It was a fun game. Dunno why I spent so long hating it and thinking it was garbage. My excuse for playing it was always "it's the only game that doesn't freeze." It was true though. Forza froze, Halo froze, Fusion Frenzy you betta believe it but Grabbed by the Ghoulies? Never. Not once. And never will now cuz im lazy and dont wanna ever play it if it means finding the xbox cord and unplugging something from the powerstrip behind the tv just to play gbtg i mean its dated stuff now id rather spend my time reminiscing about my personal development than listen to people making weird grunt noises to glorified title cards

[simslegacy5083]

NSB (Straud Legacy) Gen 9 Ep 100: To Put it Simply

The interior of the “love cove” their ancestors led the couple to was like something out of a dream:  a lush, glow-in-the-dark, secret garden dream.

Noemi gazed around in wonder at the overgrown pond and sparkling crystals , but Luigi’s eyes were locked on the final ghostly “helper” of the evening, his grin widening as he smelled the delicious aroma of a dish he’d never thought he’d taste again in this life.

His beloved Papa Jack stood by a small table bearing dainty heart shaped pastries and a large bowl of his signature Matzo Ball soup. “When I heard about this plan, I jumped at the chance to cook with your dad again and meet my boy’s love… Hi Noemi.” The ghost smiled and came forward for hugs.

Jack found himself practically bruised by his son’s enthusiastic embrace. When he was finally released, he turned to Noemi, as happy to meet her and his gestating grandson as she was to finally meet Luigi’s beloved Papa Jack in person.

Jack invited the pair to sit down for dinner at the familiar card table Luigi recognized from the homestead. Instead, Noemi surprised them both by spinning into her swimwear!

“What I need more than dinner right now” she said, “Is to cool off in that magical looking pond!” Luigi followed suit, offering a smile and a shrug for their ghostly host, who laughed as the pair of young ones splashed into the water arm in arm.

Jack wished them well and took his leave, but not before promising his boy “I’ll be back to see that grandson of mine sometime soon!”

After that Luigi got in a bit of exercise while Noemi floated peacefully on her back, not emerging from the water until he began to fret “Let’s eat. You won’t get to enjoy the full experience of Papa Jack’s signature dish if we let it get cold”!

Luigi served them both a steaming bowl of soup, wolfing his down while Noemi did her best not to let on that dumplings wasn’t her favorite.

Once they finished Luigi cleared away the bowls, but instead of returning to the table with dessert he set a small box down in front of his lady love.

He hadn’t prepared any big speech, and he certainly hadn’t planned to propose in his swim trunks, but he refused to let that get in the way of speaking his heart: “Noemi, you know I love you. I’ve always loved you as much as you would let me. Will you let me be your love forever?”

🎶I’m asking you to be my true companion🎶

Noemi stared at the sparkling ring with an unreadable expression as the silence stretched painfully for the anxious Luigi.

He remembered how sure he’d been back in high school that Haylee would accept his prom invite. What would he do if Noemi said no? Historically with her the answer seemed to be “just carry on until she feels differently” but would that work the same with their baby in the mix?

From Noemi’s perspective time wasn’t frozen but rather a swirl of memories, both good and bad. Kiana’s very different proposal, the ups and downs of her first marriage: all of it so very different than she had thought it would be. Was she ready to try marriage again, with a child?

The child in question kicking enthusiastically in her belly finally broke her trance. Noemi glanced down and smiled. They didn’t have to get married to raise this little acrobat, but she knew in her heart that she wanted to. She slid on the ring. “Yes, Lu. You and me, and baby makes three. Forever.”

View The Full Story of My Not So Berry Challenge Here

[khalilhumam]

Building a stakeholder economy

New Post has been published on http://khalilhumam.com/building-a-stakeholder-economy/

Building a stakeholder economy

By Addisu Lashitew Norms and expectations of what corporations should do are changing rapidly. In August 2019, the Business Roundtable, an influential club of the chief executives of major U.S. corporations, announced a new statement on the “Purpose of a Corporation”. Signed by 181 CEOs, the statement of purpose called for a departure from “shareholder primacy” to “stakeholderism” as a core principle of corporate governance, with the CEOs committing to “lead their companies for the benefit of all stakeholders”. This change of heart in corporate America is a belated response to the decades-old critique and activism against shareholder-primacy. Preoccupation with quarterly profits is blamed for making corporations short-sighted, leading to environmental pollution, income inequalities, weakening workers’ rights, and lower capital investments—all of which are believed to undermine social cohesion and long-term competitiveness. Stakeholderism, also called stakeholder economy/capitalism by the World Economic Forum, is expected to encourage a long-term orientation by rebalancing the asymmetric power of shareholders vis-à-vis other stakeholders, and revitalize the legitimacy of business. A sizable share of corporations already practice some form of stakeholderism in response to pressure from value-conscious investors, consumers, and others. More than 80 percent of large corporations, for example, claim to explicitly contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals. Environment, social, and governance (ESG) investing—a class of value-based investments that target corporations that meet minimum ESG criteria—has been growing rapidly, with an estimated total value of $45 trillion in assets under management.

Ambiguous definitions, mixed results

But stakeholderism has had mixed success. While some companies have managed to create environmental and social value, many engage in “greenwashing” or “impact washing” to mask their unsustainable performances. This is in part due to a mismatch between a renewed corporate purpose that emphasizes stakeholder value, and corporate governance principles and incentive structures that are primarily designed to maximize shareholder returns. Even as corporations make commitments to take greater societal and environmental roles, they often fail to change their governance guidelines and board structures to reflect these intentions. This has resulted in a dissonance between what they aspire to achieve and what they can show for it—a process that can also undo the legitimacy of the emerging stakeholder economy.

This is due to a lack of consensus on how corporate governance should adapt to help build a stakeholder economy, due in part to a lack of clarity on who qualifies as a stakeholder as well as what stakeholder value entails. Think of Facebook, with almost 3 billion users, or Boeing, with thousands of customer airlines and hundreds of millions of passenger users, all of whom would qualify as stakeholders. Without specificity on what value a company creates, for which stakeholder and how, a generic commitment to advance stakeholder interests has little practical meaning.

It is also feared that the ambiguity of stakeholderism could enable corporate leaders to amass too much discretionary power that would enable them to dodge shareholder oversight. A vague commitment to all stakeholders could also undermine long-term competitiveness if managers set out to meet multiple goals that are incompatible with one another. Further, implausibly high expectations can end up making managers risk-averse, forcing them to settle for a minimum acceptable performance for all stakeholders rather than excelling in specific issues where they have greater competitiveness. A vague and broad focus on stakeholder value could thus make shareholders and other societal stakeholders worse off.

Needed: Institutional Reform

These critiques, however, do not warrant the conclusion that building a stakeholder economy is an impossible agenda. A growing body of scholarly work, including a recent British Academy report, has documented that building a stakeholder economy requires extensive reforms of market institutions to incentive the creation of long-term corporate and social value. At a minimum, such a reform would include three ingredients.

Renewed corporate purpose. This is best defined by the directors of individual businesses, who should specify the stakeholders to whom the businesses will create value, and how this will be achieved. This facilitates effective corporate governance by providing clearly defined goals, and the mechanism for aligning them with corporate strategy. A study by professors Oliver Hart and Luigi Zingales suggests that organizational purpose anchored in maximizing shareholder welfare can help link corporate strategy with stakeholder value. To the extent that shareholders care about certain non-financial outcomes, such as environmental sustainability, the purpose of the corporation should be geared towards producing these outcomes. Corporations can then communicate their performance via third-party verified reports to demonstrate if and how they have created the desired outcomes to their stakeholders.

Corporate law reform. Corporate law needs to incentivize directors to take responsibility for the company’s long-term interests, including its social and environmental impacts. Corporate law in many countries is anchored on the principle of shareholder primacy, creating legal challenges for firms that adopt a broader conception of purpose. A recent study commissioned by the European Union underscored the need to modify corporate law to foster the pursuit of long-term corporate goals and environmental sustainability by corporate directors. Another positive development is the emergence of legal innovations for new corporate entities with governance structures designed for addressing long-term societal issues. More than 30 states in the U.S. have introduced legal mechanisms for “benefit corporations” that pursue a hybrid mission of creating financial and social/environmental value. Similar innovations could facilitate investments into corporate innovations for addressing social and environmental problems.

Complementary regulations.  Stakeholderism should not be expected to substitute for the regulation of negative environmental and social externalities. Many of the issues that currently fall within ESG domain are in fact negative societal and environmental externalities that are not suited for self-regulation by markets. Effective regulation of externalities, such as CO2 emissions, can also level out the playing field by penalizing the distorting effects of non-compliance. In a positive development, the European Commission has recently started to develop a legal framework for mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence, which is expected to outline corporate directors’ duties “not to do harm”.

Building a stakeholder economy requires breaking the artificial boundaries that isolate purpose from performance and creating incentive structures that make corporations drivers of sustainable prosperity. This will entail systematic effort to rewire market and regulatory institutions to ensure that they serve the long-term interests of society.