#and metal mario is a power up also

[galaxygermdraws]

I finally beat LM3. Took...well it came out in 2019 and I restarted it sometime last year so. I’ve had the game for a while heh. Anyways I beat it and drew this. Also Robo Mario design because I miss him and in my head he and Gooigi are like brothers. I mean they basically are.

(relogs with tags/comments are appreciated. Thankyuuuuu)

[weirdmarioenemies]

Is King Bob-omb a robot?

Is he? Huh?

Recently I have been thinking about the nature of King Bob-omb, because I think it is more interesting than one may think upon first consideration! Yes, he is a big living bomb. But what does this mean for him? Let's discuss!

Bob-ombs

Bob-ombs! They are bombs. Even a dog could look at a Bob-omb and tell you "Rhat's a ralking romb! Hreeheehee!" What do we know about Bob-ombs? Well, they are very clearly artificially created entities. I mean, they're bombs. They're powered by wind-up keys! And they're mass-produced in factories. These are artificial, mechanical creatures. Automatons! The ones in Sunshine are very overtly robotic, and even if those ones are Bowser Junior creations, it may reflect how he views the real ones.

There is a history of sentient, talking Bob-ombs and Bob-omb society, so these are clearly rather advanced automatons. All the more reason for me to confidently declare them to be robots! It's weird to make a living bomb capable of thought and emotion, but as established by Origami King, the ones working for Bowser are intent on making their single blast really make a difference. So I guess making them sapient is ultimately helpful for Evil purposes, if unethical.

King Bob-omb

Now let's consider the King! That guy loves to be considered. He is NOT mass-produced. He does not have a wind-up key. He does not even have a fuse! And of course, he has arms. No Bob-ombs have arms...

...but Chuckyas do! Big, Bob-omb-like, with arms for throwing Marios. King Bob-omb seems like he could be a stronger, more refined model of Chuckya! Chuckyas are absolutely robotic, so this does make a good case for the King being such, as well!

Could a robot have such a magnificent mustache, though? Yes, a robot could. Even standard Bob-ombs are capable of having mustaches, as are creatures made of ice, and also this is a silly cartoon world. So yes, I think a robot could have a mustache.

Mecha King Bob-omb

Now HERE's the thing that got me thinking of this in the first place! Mecha King Bob-omb, from Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope. This is a robotic version of King Bob-omb... hm. This IS obviously a robotic replica based on him, and there's no reason a robot based on another robot couldn't exist, but that WOULD make the "Mecha" title pretty weird! Is the original king mechanical or what? I guess the "Mecha" could also be referring to this version being a pilotable mecha, unlike the real version, which is a Guy. This brings up questions, and answers none!

The Big Dud

Finally, the last possibility of King Bob-omb's origins. If you are aware of the Super Mario 64 Iceberg, you are aware of the Big Dud theory! After Big Bob-omb (as he is known in 64) is defeated, an additional metal ball will be rolling around at the base of the mountain, and a Bob-omb Buddy will declare that the Big Bob-omb is nothing but a big dud now. This has led some to believe that the additional cannonball might be Big Bob-omb himself, made inanimate upon his defeat!

And then THIS gets me thinking about Power Stars. They do weird things to Mario creatures! I think it is likely King Bob-omb could have been created BECAUSE of the Power Star he holds. Maybe he was an ordinary Bob-omb enhanced into a new, regal form by the Star, or maybe he even was an ordinary inanimate metal ball, chosen to be extra resilient compared to his subjects! You know, in 64, he doesn't even explode like a Bob-omb. Is he a FRAUD? (No, he explodes in other games)

Final thoughts

So, after all this analysis, is King Bob-omb a robot or what? I don't know. Maybe. Maybe not. No one knows. This guy is weird! He can fly with no effort if thrown off the mountain. When killed, he congratulates Mario for killing him and invites him to do it again sometime. If I HAD to come to a conclusion... I would say he is technically robotic, but that's not something the designers/developers actually ever have or had in mind, and is just a result of being a Bob-omb.

I don't mind that there is no concrete answer! I was not expecting there to be! This is Super Mario we're talking about. They're not going to expect us to analyze evidence about characters and come to conclusions. But it is so much fun to do! That's why we do it! Call this guy a robot if you want! Or affirm that he is not if you don't! I don't really care as long as you are nice!

[peakyswritings]

Heart, Body and Soul || Tommy Shelby x OC

PART I

Summary: When the conflict with a powerful family threatens to bring down the Shelby Clan, Tommy takes a trip to Italy. In order to stop the disaster, two families must become one: marriage seems to be the only way to seal an alliance and bring peace. It’s Nina Ferrante, fierce and rebellious, the one who slowly makes her way into his heart, with steps so light he doesn’t even realise it. But things are not as easy as they may seem: one, Tommy is expected to marry her cousin, and two - Nina has no intention of getting married.

Warnings: mentions of arranged marriage, slow-burn, small age-gap (Tommy’s 30, Nina is in her early 20s), English is not my first language.

A/N: here’s the first chapter of my new series. This is set somewhere between season 1 and 2. At the end, you’ll find the translation of a couple of Italian expressions. Feedback is always appreciated🤍

SERIES MASTERLIST

SERIES MOODBOARD

Gif credit

Dividers credit

Tommy gazed out the window of the car, watching the landscape pass before his eyes. The small Sicilian village was so different from Birmingham. It was rural, peaceful, and the air was clean, he could fill his lungs without smelling the smoke and the shit. Beyond the uphill road, he could even hear the sound of the sea. Had he been in a different situation, he would’ve enjoyed that sound, along with the feeling of the sunlight on his face.

But he had to stay focused. Because he was alone, and the men in the car with him were speaking words he couldn’t understand. They could’ve easily taken him to an empty field and put a bullet in his head, and no one would’ve known. His hand went to the gun inside his coat, taking in the feeling of security brought by the contact of the cold metal against his skin.

Vincenzo Ferrante said something to the driver, then his eyes met Tommy’s through the rearview mirror. There was a strange glimpse in them, something that vaguely resembled amusement. He knew he had the upper hand.

A familiar tingling sensation crawled over the back of Tommy’s neck. It was the way of his body to tell him that danger was near, had started to get it in France, and it hadn’t left him since. His fingers forcefully pressed against the grip of the gun as his hold tightened for a few seconds. Then, slowly, he released it, his hand coming to rest on his lap. He took a deep breath, pulling himself together. He had a deal with those people, and it would go through.

One week earlier

Tommy walked into the betting shop, his steps resonating over the wooden floor as he strode among the desks in the empty room. Empty, except for his aunt, who was waiting for him behind the main table.

“Here’s the information I found.” He said, tossing a folder on the wooden surface. Polly furrowed her eyebrows, grabbing it so that she could examine its content. It was full of photographs, letters and documents. God knew how Tommy had managed to get his hands on them.

“Go on.” She mumbled.

“Antonio Ferrante has two brothers, Vincenzo and Mario. They came to England when they were children, and they were raised here. Twenty-five years ago, Vincenzo and Mario went back to Sicily to start their business, both legal and illegal, while Antonio stayed here to carry on their legal race tracking operation. Of course, his organisation also has two sides. Vincenzo moves between Italy and England to help him with the other side. He’s here now. He’s been helping him with the attacks.”

Three attacks. Three attacks in one week. Tommy had never seen something like that. Those Italians were sly and quick, and extremely organised. They started by blowing up two of the pubs under the Peaky Blinders’ protection, then they proceeded to find one of their warehouses, and they blew it up as well. It was a matter of time before they came for the Shelbys.

Polly sighed, putting the papers back into the folder. Just when everything seemed to be going in the right direction, another bomb was dropped upon them. Quite literally.

Tommy rubbed his eyes, taking his time before continuing. “Ferrante was cooperating with Kimber. Thanks to this alliance, the family had secured a place at the top of the betting business. By killing Billy Kimber…”

“We stepped on their toes.” Polly finished his sentence.

“And now they want revenge. Yesterday they took three of our men.” He sighed, leaning against the desk behind him. That was another thing he had to take care of. He had to write to their families, send his condolences, and open a fund for them so that they could manage to sustain themselves without their husbands, fathers and brothers to take the money home. It was unpleasant, but it had to be done.

“It’s the Italian Mafia we’re talking about.” Tommy spoke again. “They have an organisation of bigger dimensions. If Ferrante calls the rest of his relatives from Sicily, it’s over for us.”

“So what’s the plan?” She asked, taking a cigarette from the pocket of her apron before placing it between her lips.

“Antonio Ferrante only has sons,” He started to explain, taking a match to light his aunt’s cigarette. “But his brothers have daughters-”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Polly’s head shot in his direction, eyes wide with disbelief as she could already imagine what he was trying to say.

“I’m talking about marriage, Polly. I’m going to marry one of the girls.”

Tommy couldn’t even believe his words as he said them. Before Grace, marriage had never crossed his mind, and after she left for New York, he was quite sure he would never find another woman. But there he was, selling himself so that his family could survive.

Despite the initial shock, Polly quickly regained her composure. She took a long drag from her cigarette, pondering her nephew’s words. “Why would they accept your offer?”

“Because by joining our forces, we can take down Sabini.”

“Do you think they’ll go against their own?” She inquired, a hint of scepticism in her voice.

“The Italians are fighting among themselves, now. Ferrante is also at war with Sabini, and he can’t defeat him on his own. Once Sabini’s taken care of, we’ll grant the Ferrante family a good place at the top of the business, even better than the one they occupied with Kimber.”

As much as Tommy tried to sound confident, he couldn’t hide his agitation. He couldn’t estimate the odds, there were no chances, no percentages. Everything felt unpredictable and beyond his control. He turned to grab the bottle of whiskey from the desk and poured himself a glass under Polly’s stare. It felt like she could read into him, like she could see right into his brain and know each one of his thoughts. It had always been like that, since he was a kid. It bothered him, sometimes, but deep down it was a relief to know that there was someone who could understand him without needing him to speak.

He downed all the whiskey in his glass, relishing the burning sensation. It grounded him, in some way. “Today I’m meeting Antonio and Vincenzo Ferrante.” He said, placing the glass on the table with a thud. “I’ll make the terms for peace.”

“How did it go?”

Tommy heard Polly’s question before he could see her. As soon as he entered the kitchen, he was met with her expectant eyes, her gaze scanning his face, looking for an answer. She poured him a glass of whiskey as he removed his coat and placed it on a chair.

“They accepted.” He just said, grabbing the glass. Polly’s expression relaxed for a moment, and she breathed a sigh of relief, but that relief was swept away as she noticed how her nephew was avoiding her gaze.

She waited for him to continue, but her patience ran out quickly. “And?” She asked.

Tommy sat on a chair and took a sip of whiskey. “And I’m going to Sicily to meet my spouse.”

There was some kind of inflection in his voice, one that not even Polly was able to define. But there was also a small particular in what he had said, and it didn’t go unnoticed.

“You’re going to Sicily?” She inquired, raising her eyebrows.

“Yes.”

“Alone?” She emphasised, leaning with a hand on the table, not taking her eyes off of his face.

“Yes.” He repeated, keeping his eyes on the bottle in front of him, well aware of how dangerous and imprudent it sounded.

“Tommy, are you mad?” She yelled, yanking away the bottle so that he would look at her. He finally raised his eyes, and silence fell between them for a while as he tried to find the words.

“I need you here to take control of the business while I’m gone. You’re the only one who can do that.” He explained, standing up so that he could speak to her face to face. “And I can’t take John and Arthur with me, because there need to be Shelbys here in Small Heath.”

“You’re going to get yourself killed.” She spat.

Tommy placed his hands on her shoulders, the hint of a smile making its way on his face. “Think of it like this: if I don’t come back, all of this will be yours.” He pointed towards the door that opened on the betting shop. “You’ll make a good fortune.” He joked, trying to lighten the air.

However, his aunt didn’t seem amused. She just shook her head, a look of defeat in her eyes. “I could try and talk some sense into you, but you’ve already decided, haven’t you?”

Without answering, Tommy walked past her to take ahold his glass and drink the rest of his whiskey. He cleared his throat, gathering himself as best as he could. “Vincenzo Ferrante is going back to his family in three days. I’m going with him.”

Present day

The car drew to a halt. Beyond an iron gate stretched a large garden, which was divided in two halves by a gravel path that led up to two big houses. As the driver got out of the car to open the gates, Tommy couldn’t help but feel relieved. No empty field. No ditch waiting for him.

“I guess you’re hungry, Mr. Shelby. It’s been a long journey.” Vincenzo Ferrante suddenly spoke, taking him away from his thoughts. Before Tommy could answer, he continued. “Later we’re having lunch, and I’ll introduce you to the family. Communication won’t be a problem, me and Mario raised all of our children to speak both English and Italian, just like Antonio. For the sake of business.” He clarified.

Tommy just nodded, unsure about what to say. He half expected to be dead before even getting to the village, so communication had been the last of his thoughts.

Not caring much about his silence, Vincenzo pointed towards the house on the left. “That’s my house, and the other is my brother’s. You’ll be my guest. Since we’re suggesting you to marry my niece Agnese, we thought it would be improper for you to stay in the same house as her.”

Agnese. She was said to be the oldest, and the prettiest, and the most fitted to be a wife. However, they had assured him that if he were to find someone more to his liking, he would be free to choose, he just had to make the decision before starting to court her. They wanted things to be done the proper way.

Tommy leaned back in his seat, the need for a cigarette suddenly kicking in. “It’s understandable.”

The brief ride towards the houses was silent. In that short amount of time, Tommy tried to guess what the following weeks had in store for him, how his life would look like in a month, but truth was, he really couldn’t tell. He had no idea, and that was terrifying, even for someone like him. But he had to stay calm, focused. He couldn’t allow himself to let his guard down.

When he got out of the car, he had to keep himself from breathing a sigh of relief. He was finally able to stretch his legs after being seated for what felt like ages. He thanked the driver who handed him his suitcase, then proceeded to take a look around. The two houses - even though they were separated from each other - formed some sort of angle. In the shared garden a long table had been set up, and from the numbers of chairs Tommy could tell that a great number of relatives would be joining them for lunch.

“Papà!”

A female voice echoed in the garden, and a raven-haired girl ran down the stairs that led to the front door of Vincenzo’s house. In a matter of seconds she was in the garden, and she wrapped her arms around the man’s neck.

“Ciao, amore di papà.” Ferrante said, taking her face in his hands to leave a tender kiss on her forehead. “Come stai?”

She opened her mouth to say something, but was quickly distracted by Tommy’s presence. A glimpse of confusion flickered across her dark eyes, then something really close to realisation seemed to hit her.

Ferrante took a step back, so that Tommy and that girl could be in front of each other. “Nina, this is Tommy Shelby. Mr. Shelby, this is Nina, my daughter.”

Tommy watched has she furrowed her brows, hesitating for a couple of seconds before holding out her hand. Her eyes, that a few seconds before were warm and full of affection for her father, were now cold and wary. And there was something defiant in the way she refused to be the first to break eye contact. It was something that Tommy wasn’t used to, he had grown accustomed to people lowering their heads in his presence, not daring to even look at him. This girl clearly knew who he was, and yet she refused to be intimidated. It was quite admirable.

Soon, Tommy realised that he had probably let his hand linger in hers for a bit too long. He let it fall to his side, clearing his throat. “Pleasure.”

“Nina, why don’t you show our guest his room?” Ferrante suggested, placing a hand on his daughter’s shoulder. “So you make yourself comfortable before lunch, Mr. Shelby.”

She said something in Italian, and even though Tommy couldn’t understand a single word, from the tone of her voice and her disgruntled expression he could tell that she was displeased. Nevertheless, a reproachful “Nina” uttered by her father, accompanied by a stern look, seemed to do the trick.

She glanced at Tommy one more time, before turning around and starting to walk towards the house. “Come with me.” She said, without worrying about whether he was following her or not.

Tightening his hold on the suitcase, Tommy started to walk behind her. If Nina’s cousin was half as hostile as her, he was truly fucked.

“Ciao, amore di papà”: “hi, darling” (literally - “hi, dad’s love”)

“Come stai?”: “how are you?”

NEXT PART

Tagging @zablife , cause I remember you asking me to tag you when this was out🤍

[anim-ttrpgs]

"All our projects" so there's other ANIM projects in production? anything you're able to talk about?

Yes, we plan to have a long-running career in the TTRPG space, and have several backburnered!

I’m just gonna rapid-fire these off the top of my head. We don’t know exactly which one of these is coming after Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy is fully released, because it is actually our patreon subscribers that vote on that.

Mastadon(title pending)

Yes, this is intentionally misspelled though we might change that in the future in case it hinders search results and stuff. This is a world where dark fantasy and 90s retro-futurism collide, literally. Think of knights with machine guns, space marines with enchanted swords, high-calibre rounds leaving dents in mythril breastplates, and men-at-arms on cybernetic horses. In the distant future of 2016, a scientific experiment on a lunar research station opened a portal to another world. At the same time, in a dimension of sorcery and feudalism, a council of wizards opened a portal to another world, and explorers from each land found themselves in the same mysterious place.

Cultures and technologies have clashed and mixed in these mysterious lands since. The PCs are mercenaries, taking odd, usually violent, jobs to get by.

Gameplay-wise it’s largely a combat-focused dungeon crawler emulating retro-FPS combat in TTRPG form, with an emphasis on making every type of gun feel totally unique by tying them to entirely different dice mechanics, which in turn makes warriors using these guns strategize entirely differently.

Bone Grinder

Bone Grinder is a “dumber” game, but still with an emphasis on combat. It has a notably more punk and metal aesthetic. Imagine a rocker with a mohawk and leather jacket killing a demon with an axe guitar that is also actually an axe. One of the core mechanics is that players will “bone” the game master by “throwing the bones” at them, which means literally trying to hit them with dice. A successful hit will add a bonus to whatever dice roll comes up when the thrown die lands. When it is the monsters’ turns, the game master will throw that same die right back at them. So if you throw a D6, that’s a D6 attack coming back at your PC next turn. If you throw a D20, that’s a D20 attack coming back at your character next right, so you better make it count, better kill ‘em in one shot!

(We recommend using plastic dice for this one, no metal dice!)

Death Bed

This is another working title, and it is a very serious attempt to emulate Dark Souls and Dark Souls style combat in a turn-based TTRPG in response to the abysmal Dark Souls: The Role-Playing Game that was just a lazy D&D5e book.

This game will be a bit more OSR-y, with D20 roll-under mechanics like old-school D&D for skill checks, and very simple attack determinants. It will have an emphasis on predicting enemy movement, stamina management, and choice between blocking or dodging attacks. It will also feature a system whereby the PCs are not permanently dead after being killed, but do “hollow” after each death. There are several stages of hollowing, each with downsides and upsides. Fully alive PCs will be more nimble, alert, and powerful, but stand out more to mindless hollow enemies, drawing more aggro. More hollowed PCs will have stat debuffs, but hollows are less likely to attack other hollows, giving them less aggro priority. Of course, if a PC dies too many times without restoring their life force, they will become a mindless hollow themselves, becoming an enemy that the party must slay if they want to recover that PC’s equipment.

Untitled Mushroom Game

A working title of course. This game takes a lot of inspiration from the earlier Paper Mario games, and like Bone Grinder, it will have actual physical things you can do with the dice to gain bonuses to your characters’ attacks, which is meant to emulate the “action commands” from Paper Mario in TTRPG format. One example would be building a larger dice pool for an attack based on how many D6s you can stack into a tower before they fall down, with the tower falling down constituting the rolling of the dice.

Eureka Adventure Modules Vol. 2

(Vol. 1 is the set of adventure modules that are coming with the Kickstarter.) Eureka fully releasing won’t mean we’re done with it. We plan to support all of our games for as long a time as possible with new adventure modules and other supplements. (But expect the other supplements to be very cheap if not outright free. We don’t want to make Eureka a game where you have to buy 15 $50 books just to have the full experience.) This will be a set of 5, 10, maybe more pre-written adventure modules for use with Eureka. For a few teasers, one of our ideas features the PCs getting stranded in the Mojave desert, one of them features the PCs getting trapped in underground drainage tunnels with a mysterious creature stalking them, and more horrifying mysteries.

The Eureka Mobster Manual

Another working title, but it’s pretty catchy. This will act as a “monster manual” for Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy, featuring prémisse stats and GMing advice mundane NPCs like cops, mafia enforcers, hapless bystanders, etc. and also actual monsters, both human and inhuman. One of the monsters I am most excited about introducing is actual demons. Not just some red guy with horns, in fact they’re likely to be completely invisible. I know this term gets thrown around a lot by people who don’t know what it means, but in Eureka demons will be more “biblically accurate.” Think more The Exorcist and less DOOM. A demon doesn’t want to go “blahrarawa!” and kill you, a demon wants to gradually talk you into killing yourself. This also may feature additional playable monsters, such as the gorgon and dullahan(Kickstarter stretch goals for the main rulebook that I don’t think we’re going to meet unfortunately), plus others if we can come up with more.

Overdose

A working title again. This will be a large collection of “drag-and-drop” tactical combat encounters for Eureka, for when a GM needs a fleshed out and challenging final showdown between the PCs and the bad guy goons. These will feature plenty of cover, alternate routes, and “woo roll elements”(stuff that can get knocked over, exploded, destroyed, etc. by stray bullets, thereby changing the environment in exciting and unexpected ways.). All of this is so that the GM doesn’t have to come up with all the complexities of a good Eureka combat encounter on the fly.

That’s about all I can think of right now. After Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy is fully released and the dust is settled, we will hold a vote with out patreon subscribers to find out what the fans most want us to work on next.

However, all of these things that I have mentioned are in a very raw state of completion, or even just in the idea stage. If you want to see all these projects, and more, release in the coming years, then RPG-making needs to be a long-term viable career for us. I, personally, am disabled and have a very hard time finding regular, sustainable work at “real jobs,” so this is especially important for my financial future. It’s about the only (marketable) skill I’m good at, and it’s something I enjoy doing, so I’m making this push now for my future.

The best way you can make this a viable long-term career for us is to support the Eureka Kickstarter (only 24-hours left at the time of posting this), buy our games, and subscribe to our Patreon.

The more successful the Kickstarter is, not only does more art and stuff get added to the Eureka rulebook and adventure modules, but the more buzz it generates, and the more buzz it generates the more journalistic support and more financial support we get. Even if it’s just for charity purposes to help me pay future bills when I can’t hold a normal job, pledging $10 is enough to get your name in the Eureka rulebook, and if you can’t give anything, we totally understand—we’d rather you put food on your table than go broke supporting our dreams. If you can share the Kickstarter to discord servers and the like in the last 24 hours of its crowdfunding window, or just share news of the game with people after the Kickstarter closes, that is a huge huge help on its own.

We, and especially I, am thankful beyond my ability to express in words for how much support the Kickstarter has already gotten, and the patreon subscribers whose support paid for all of our advertising budget to get Eureka as well-known as it is. This is a project of extremely professional scope and calibre, and I’m proud to say that we probably shouldn’t have been able to pull it off with as small a team as we are, we’re just that talented and persistent, but no matter how talented or persistent we are, it is the fans and supporters that make it possible for us to pursue a creative career. Thank you all.

24 hours left on the Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy Kickstarter, crowdfunding closes at 2:00 PM CST on Friday, May 10th! That’s mid-day tomorrow! Please support it while you still can! If you’re reading this after the Kickstarter has closed, you can support us through ko-fi or patreon, and if you’re a $5 subscriber or more to our patreon, you will get regular PDFs of increasingly finished beta versions of Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy and its adventure modules as we continue to work on finishing it using the Kickstarter money.

You can also help us by checking out our merchandise!

If you just want to play, you don’t have to pay. You can get a beta PDF of the Eureka rulebook plus character sheets and adventure modules FOR FREE from our website or itch.io page.

Join our TTRPG Book Club We nominate, vote on, and split into groups (based on schedule compatibility) differnt indie games, then discuss, just like a book club! Plus it’s just a great place to discuss and play new TTRPGs you might not be able to otherwise!

We hope to see you there, and that you will help our dreams come true and launch our careers as indie TTRPG developers with a bang by getting us to our base goal and blowing those stretch goals out of the water, and fight back against WotC's monopoly on the entire hobby. Wish us luck.

[pianokantzart]

Realistically, the 1up shroom would be the best plot-wise, but I can’t stop thinking about double cherries and the comedy of Mario turning around and finding like four Luigis

I suspected the 1up would be the favorite for many. At least 85% of this fandom wants to see a Mario Brother have an emotional breakdown over their sibling and I am among them. But actually... my number 1 choice would be the hammers because of the fight choreography possibilities. The hammers make good defense AND offense tools, and I would love analyze the different ways Mario and Luigi handle their weapon and perform combo attacks. Also, I noticed there were some flails on the gift table for Bowser and Peaches wedding...

I don't know if those were just decoration.... but if the stars align and we get a scene where Bower uses a giant spiked flail against the hammer-wielding Mario brothers? I would die from happiness and then explode. They would have to call someone to scrape me off the floor of the movie theatre with a spatula. My second choice would be the 1-up, of course, because I love to suffer. I would also love to see the "Oh God no" reaction in the theatre the first time a Mario brother eats a green mushroom like "hey, what does this do?"

My third choice is, surprisingly, the metal cap, because.. again... the fight choreography possibilities.

I imagine that at first they fumble the powerup because they don't know how to function with the sudden heaviness, but eventually learn to use the power to their benefit, especially when shielding their sibling from a heavy blow, or using the newfound weight in an attack.

BUT... the double cherries would also make a banger action sequence. Imagine Bowser trying to take on 5 Marios and 5 Luigis at the same time. Sheer chaos.

[worstvideogamesong-poll]

Worst Video Game Song Tournament Masterpost

The tournament has begun! We are currently in round 4, and each poll will be open for a week. I will also be reblogging each poll 12 hours after it is posted so that people in different time zones are able to see them more easily. If you don't want to see these reblogs, block the tag #12th hour reblog. There will be a total of 8 polls in this round. 4 polls will be posted a day for a total of 2 days.

When you vote, I would recommend listening to as much as you can of each song before voting, but how you choose is up to you. Remember to be civil in the tags and replies! Some posts will have propaganda included with the songs, but feel free to add more propaganda in the tags and replies, or send it to me in the ask box and I'll try to share it as soon as I can!

View the bracket, make predictions and more on Challonge here

View the spreadsheet of submissions here

View the original introduction post here

Read the FAQ here

Listen to the full playlist on YouTube here

Full list of polls under the cut:

Round 1

Match 1 - Lavender Town (Pokémon Red/Blue) vs. Vs. Odd Yo-Kai (Yo-Kai Watch)

Match 2 - K.K. Synth (Animal Crossing New Leaf) vs. Bad Feeling (Mad Rat Dead)

Match 3 - This is Where You Are Caucasian Destination Boy (Project Sekai: Colorful Stage! feat. Hatsune Miku) vs. Morpho Knight (Kirby and the Forgotten Land)

Match 4 - Track 6 (The Ring: Terror's Realm) vs. Fallen Down (Undertale)

Match 5 - Rodeo Time! (Yo-Kai Watch 3) vs. The Fade (Dragon Age Origins)

Match 6 - Rivers in the Desert (mito Remix) (Persona 5 Dancing in Starlight) vs. Birthday Cake (Jet Set Radio Future)

Match 7 - Let's Start the Killing Game (Danganronpa v3: Killing Harmony) vs. You've Got to Eat Your Vegetables! (Commander Keen 4)

Match 8 - Venus (Doom Troopers Sega Genesis) vs. GB Hunter Theme (GB Hunter)

Match 9 - Know What I Mean? (Mario Party 2) vs. Boss Theme 1 (Sonic Superstars)

Match 10 - Area 4, 8, & 13 (Santa Claus Saves the Earth GBA) vs. The Yoshi Clan (Yoshi's New Island)

Match 11 - Bomb Rush Blush (Remix) - Splatoon 2 vs. Mansion Basement (Resident Evil Director's Cut)

Match 12 - Monkeys (Nancy Drew: Ransom of the Seven Ships) vs. Vacation Music 1 (The Sims 1)

Match 13 - Hazy Lane (Yo-Kai Watch 3) vs. Central City (Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood)

Match 14 - Mumble Blues (Armed and Delirious (Dementia)) vs. Crazy Bus Title Screen (Crazy Bus)

Match 15 - Striptease (Persona 4) vs. Professor Birch's Laboratory (Pokémon Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire)

Match 16 - Oppression (Cave Story) vs. Spookwave (Undertale)

Match 17 - Nocturne (Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood) vs. Ancient Chozo Ruins (Metroid II: Return of Samus)

Match 18 - Diggity Dog (WWF No Mercy N64) vs. YZAP (Yo-Kai Watch 3)

Match 19 - Versus (Sonic Eraser) vs. Neo-Opportunist (Mad Rat Dead)

Match 20 - 50m (Donkey Kong '94) vs. Black Tar (Xenoblade Chronicles X)

Match 21 - Shadow World (DE DE MOUSE Remix) (Persona 4 Dancing All Night) vs. Mushroom Road (Tales of the Abyss)

Match 22 - Fest Zest (Splatoon 2) vs. Survival Instincts Kicking In (Bravely Default II)

Match 23 - Drawbridge Dilemma (WarioWare: Get it Together!) vs. Fight Theme 1 (Omikron: The Nomad Soul)

Match 24 - Thrifty Megamart (Pokémon Sun/Moon) vs. Metal Gear MS DOS Soundtrack (Metal Gear MS DOS)

Match 25 - NLA (Night) (Xenoblade Chronicles X) vs. Spooktune (Undertale)

Match 26 - Namco Arcade 80's Retro Medley (Super Smash Bros. for Wii U) vs. I Love Beijing Tiananmen (Hong Kong 97)

Match 27 - Stage Theme (1942) vs Red-Green-Yellow-Yellow (Mother 3)

Match 28 - Din's Power (Harp) (The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword) vs. Wildfire (Honkai: Star Rail)

Match 29 - Midna's Lament (Remix) (Super Smash Bros. Ultimate) vs. Tired of Life (Lady of Beestmeel Bro)

Match 30 - Holy Orders? (Guilty Gear XX) vs. Burning Men's Soul (Persona Trinity Soul)

Match 31 - Built to Scale (Rhythm Heaven Fever) vs. Main Theme (Beverly Hills Cop)

Match 32 - Just Leave Me Alone (OMORI) vs. Denegul (Lagoon)

Match 33 - Now or Never! (Remix) (Super Smash Bros. Ultimate) vs. Crown Dungeon (The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages)

Match 34 - Heart and Soul (Cutscene) (Sonic Frontiers) vs. Dungeon Man (EarthBound)

Match 35 - Resetti's Theme (Animal Crossing: Wild World) vs. Rise & Shine, Ursine! (Danganronpa v3: Killing Harmony)

Match 36 - Belly Flop (Splatoon 3) vs. Lemon Jelly (The Sims 2)

Match 37 - mmm yess put the tree on my pizza (Pizza Tower) vs. The Moving Gigantic Ship (Tales of Xillia)

Match 38 - Comin' at ya, My girl (Yakuza 5) vs. Track 7 (Frozen Fruits)

Match 39 - Battle (Field) (The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild) vs. Title Theme (The Adventures of Rad Gravity)

Match 40 - Emphasis on Scat (BattleBlock Theater) vs. Shipwreckin' (Splatoon 2)

Match 41 - Tem Shop (Undertale) vs. Character Select (Marvel vs. Capcom 2)

Match 42 - Title Screen (Tagin' Dragon) vs. Path of Pain (Hollow Knight)

Match 43 - What's Your Name? (San Fransisco Rush) vs. Pathetic House (Undertale)

Match 44 - Mine: Zew (The Void/Tension) vs. Chocobo Theme (Final Fantasy 2)

Match 45 - Versus Giegue (EarthBound Beginnings) vs. Dragon's Den (Pokémon Gold/Silver)

Match 46 - Great Bay Temple (The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask) vs. Sagat's Theme (Street Fighter 1)

Match 47 - Chocobo Theme (Final Fantasy X-2) vs. Honeylune Ridge (Super Mario Odyssey)

Match 48 - Close in the Distance (Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker) vs. Shrimp Shuffle (Rhythm Heaven Fever)

Match 49 - Desert (Super Mario Bros.) (Super Mario Maker 2) vs. National Anthem (Double Dribble Arcade)

Match 50 - Dubble Bath (DIY Remix) (Splatoon 2) vs. Fun House (Spider-Man the Animated Series)

Match 51 - Options (Sonic Spinball) vs. Welcome to Mario Cars 2 (Mario Cars 2)

Match 52 - Twilit Battle (The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess) vs. Confusion (Digimon World 3)

Match 53 - 25m (Donkey Kong) vs. Buying Goods at Palmira (Evergrace)

Match 54 - Crazy Shuffle Theme (Action 52) vs. Joke's End (Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga)

Match 55 - Treasure Caves (Wild Woody) vs. Long Elevator (Undertale)

Match 56 - Conspiracy (わるだくみ) (Muv Luv) vs. Opening (Sonic Blast 3D 5)

Match 57 - Digital Roots (Deltarune Chapter 2) vs. Lying in the Darkness (Tales of Graces)

Match 58 - Victory Road (Pokémon HeartGold/SoulSilver) vs. Title Music (Manic Miner)

Match 59 - Donut Plains (Super Mario Kart) vs. Nightclub (Sabotaged) (Payday 3)

Match 60 - Credtrap (Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill) vs. Cole Train Rap (Gears of War)

Match 61 - Tragic Prince (Castlevania: Symphony of the Night) vs. Theme of Stardust (Yakuza 2)

Match 62 - Vital (Fornite) vs. Title Screen (Ballz 3D)

Match 63 - Emblem Engage! (Fire Emblem: Engage) vs. Sub-Tree Area (Kirby Super Star)

Match 64 - Maximum Power (After Burner (Amiga)) vs. Imp's Song (DOOM)

Round 2

Match 1 - Lavender Town (Pokémon Red/Blue) vs. K.K. Synth (Animal Crossing: New Leaf)

Match 2 - This is Where You Are Caucasian Destination Boy (Project Sekai: Colorful Stage! feat. Hatsune Miku) vs. Track 6 (The Ring: Terror's Realm)

Match 3 - The Fade (Dragon Age: Origins) vs. Birthday Cake (Jet Set Radio Future)

Match 4 - You've Got to Eat Your Vegetables! (Commander Keen 4) vs. GB Hunter Theme (GB Hunter)

Match 5 - Know What I Mean? (Mario Party 2) vs. The Yoshi Clan (Yoshi's New Island)

Match 6 - Mansion Basement (Resident Evil Director's Cut) vs. Vacation Music 1 (The Sims 1)

Match 7 - Central City (Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood) vs. Title Screen (Crazy Bus)

Match 8 - Striptease (Persona 4) vs. Spookwave (Undertale)

Match 9 - Nocturne (Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood) vs. Diggity Dog (WWF No Mercy (N64))

Match 10 - Versus (Sonic Eraser) vs. 50m (Donkey Kong)

Match 11 - Shadow World (DE DE MOUSE Remix) (Persona 4 Dancing All Night) vs. Survival Instincts Kicking In (Bravely Default II)

Match 12 - Fight Theme 1 (Omikron: The Nomad Soul) vs. Metal Gear MS DOS Soundtrack (Metal Gear MS DOS)

Match 13 - NLA (Night) (Xenoblade Chronicles X) vs. I Love Beijing Tiananmen (Hong Kong 97)

Match 14 - Stage Theme (1942) vs. Din's Power (Harp) (The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword)

Match 15 - Tired of Life (Lady of Beestmeel Bro) vs. Holy Orders? (Guilty Gear XX)

Match 16 - Main Theme (Beverly Hills Cop (PC)) vs. Denegul (Lagoon(SNES))

Match 17 - Crown Dungeon (The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages) vs. Dungeon Man (EarthBound)

Match 18 - Resetti's Theme (Animal Crossing: Wild World) vs. Belly Flop (Splatoon 3)

Match 19 - The Moving Gigantic Ship (Tales of Xillia) vs. Track 7 (Frozen Fruits)

Match 20 - Title Theme (The Adventures of Rad Gravity) vs. Emphasis on Scat (BattleBlock Theater)

Match 21 - Character Select (Marvel vs. Capcom 2) vs. Title Screen (Tagin' Dragon (NES))

Match 22 - What's Your Name? (San Fransisco Rush) vs. Mine: Zew (The Void/Tension)

Match 23 - Versus Giegue (EarthBound Beginnings) vs. Sagat's Theme (Street Fighter 1)

Match 24 - Chocobo Theme (Final Fantasy X-2) vs. Shrimp Shuffle (Rhythm Heaven Fever)

Match 25 - National Anthem (Double Dribble Arcade) vs. Fun House (Spider-Man: The Animated Series)

Match 26 - Welcome to Mario Cars 2 (Mario Cars 2) vs. Confusion (Digimon World 3)

Match 27 - Buying Goods at Palmira (Evergrace) vs. Crazy Shuffle Theme (Action 52)

Match 28 - Treasure Caves (Wild Woody) vs. Opening (Sonic 3D Blast 5)

Match 29 - Lying in the Darkness (Tales of Graces) vs. Title Music (Manic Miner)

Match 30 - Nightclub (Sabotaged) (Payday 3) vs. Credtrap (Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill)

Match 31 - Theme of Stardust (Yakuza 2) vs. Title Screen (Ballz 3D(SNES))

Match 32 - Emblem Engage! (Fire Emblem: Engage) vs. Imp's Song (DOOM)

Round 3

[ray-nintendo]

I Know that luigi’s never going to have lightning powers again, it’s superstar saga and mario strikers Only. and I Know why nintendo didn’t want to draw a direct line between the mario & luigi series and the paper mario series.

but I Cannot get Mr L with lightning powers out of my head.

there’s how it works Thematically of course

- that tie between electricity and mechanics - Mr L naming himself “Green Thunder” - the Poses he makes. reaching up to the sky with one hand while he’s making his L with his arms, Pointing for emphasis. you know how fire benders shoot lighting out of their pointer fingers in avatar? It’s Like That. - Listen. Listen. the symbolism of Mr L retaining the power that ties him to his brother. one of a pair. in exactly the same way he filled that void he couldn’t quite name with brobot.

but there’s Also the functionality. not just making Mr L the Character cooler, but how it could’ve been used in game.

because Metal Conducts Electricity.

a pretty consistent complaint about super paper mario is that the boss fights are too easy, and Mr L is no exception. I think a potential remedy to that is having a phase (or core move set depending on how it’s implemented) that’s Super Charged with Mr L’s lightning !

you could just up the damage it does, but you could Also have the attacks be more accurate or have the net they cast be Wider because of the way electricity moves !

and what I Specifically can’t get out of my head is the Animation flourishes you could do with it. there’s obviously the fun you could have with his Poses. but making it Clear where the electricity is coming from in his brobot battles would be Cool (showing the transfer from his hands to the machine). have him get shocked when parts of the brobot break ! give him a little zapping animation when you’ve picked him up (with or without giving him the possibility of breaking out of it with enough wiggling) ! it’s Fun !

some other positives include:

- pushing that symbolism of brobot as a replacement for mario even further by having it fill the role in the bros attack that the lightning originates from ! mario and luigi are at their strongest when they’re working Together and Mr L’s subconscious knows that (in the same way that the paper mario series pushes that feeling of inferiority. luigi Needs someone else to be at his strongest, because he Can’t do it on his own. and yet he’s also Needed).

- it makes the fact that paper luigi never fights on screen before or after this that much funnier.

[duckapus]

Game Idea: Mario & Sonic Party

(Part 2 so you don't have to scroll all the way to the bottom if you've read this already) (3 as well)

Story: Bowser and Eggman team up and use a machine to combine their two worlds so they can use the resulting chaos to take over. To stop them, the heroes of both worlds team up to collect Emerald Stars (Power Stars that have been infused with Chaos Energy due to the dimensions colliding) that are appearing in seven different locations, so that they can summon the Chaos Emeralds and use their power to fix everything.

Each Board is a combination of a Mario Series location and a Sonic Series location (or a location from one series and level theme from another, or themes from both), and their Emerald Stars are the same color as the Chaos Emerald that gets collected on that board in Story Mode. Also, each board has a Mario Series Host and a Sonic Series Host. Bowser and Eggman are physically on the Board to cause trouble, either through Board Events or interfering with star collection in some way, and Kamek and Sage are the ones manning the Bowser and Eggman spaces.

We're also bringing back the function of the DK spaces from the Gamecube era, particularly the MP5 version with an Event Roulette, but using Rosalina and Silver.

Coins and Rings are separate currencies because I couldn't find a good way to combine them. For boards with standard roaming Star Spaces, Stars can be bought for either 20 Coins, 20 Rings, or 15 of each. Blue and Red Spaces can give and take either 3 Coins or 3 Rings based on a coin flip, but on the last 5 turns give and take 6 Coins and 6 Rings.

Mario-Related facilities, items and events affect the Coin count, while Sonic-based ones affect the Ring count. Because of that, there's two each of the usual passing spaces:

The Item Shops are run by Toadette and Charmy

There's the Koopa Bank and the Orbank (run by Orbot of course)

Cubot is the Sonic equivalent to Boo. (in terms of how their space works. I am aware that the Sonic Series has their own version of Boos, I just wanted to use Cubot).

I'm also bringing back Team Match, complete with team names for each combination, partly because forcing Omega and Metal Sonic to work together in a casual party game amuses me. And character-specific taunts.

CPUs can be set to Easy, Normal, Hard, Master, and the unlockable Super Difficulty. Super is unlocked by completing a match on every Board in Party Mode at least once. This includes the secret eighth Board you unlock by beating Story Mode, so that's technically also a requirement.

Playable Characters

Mario Luigi Peach Yoshi Wario Donkey Kong Daisy Waluigi Birdo Bowser Jr. (Not selectable in Story Mode due to being an enemy CPU) Ashley (Unlocked by completing Story Mode. Not selectable in Story Mode because she's an important NPC in it) Petey Piranha (Unlocked by putting 100 Stars in the Star Bank. Playable in Story Mode)

Sonic Tails Amy Knuckles Shadow Vector Cream & Cheese (Cheese does not affect gameplay) Espio Rouge Metal Sonic (Not selectable in Story Mode due to being an enemy CPU) Blaze (Unlocked by completing Story Mode. Not selectable in Story Mode because she's an important NPC in it) Omega (Unlocked by putting 100 Stars in the Star Bank. Playable in Story Mode)

Boards

Goomba Hill Zone Hosts: Captain Toad and Vanilla Emerald Star Color: Green A combination of the standard first level grassland theme from both games. Hills with eyes and loops, brick blocks and palm trees, Goombas and Badniks, you know the drill. A linear board with a stationary Star Space at the end. There are Board Events that can affect the price of the star, how many stars can be bought at a time, and move Players forward or backward along the path.

Labyrinth Bay Hosts: Marine and Captain Syrup Emerald Star Color: Blue Labyrinth Zone got dumped into a 2D Mario water level and now everyone can breathe down there just fine and the place is full of aquatic Mario enemies. Lots and lots of branching paths.

Soleanna-Delfino Crossing Hosts: Elise and the Hotel Manager Emerald Star Color: Cyan The Kingdom of Soleanna and Isle Delfino got merged, and the board takes place in the canals and winding streets of their mixed-up capital cities.

Diamond Casino Hosts: Mona and Gemerl Emerald Star Color: Purple One of those Zones made up of giant pinball table elements and gambling machines appeared in Diamond City and Wario saw a moneymaking opportunity, so now it's all WarioWare Themed and Rigged as Hell. There are no Star Spaces, instead you earn Stars by gambling in the Board Events.

Shrine Jungle Hosts: Diddy Kong and Tikal. Emerald Star Color: Red Angel Island and DK Isle got combined and Cranky Can and Will complain about it. Goes in a rough figure 8 around DK's Treehouse and the Master Emerald Shrine, with a permanent Star Space directly in front of each landmark. Diddy's Star Space only accepts Coins, while Tikal's only accepts Rings.

PaperCraft Camelot Hosts: Merlon and Merlina Emerald Star Color: White The version of Camelot from Sonic and the Black Knight got put into the Paper Mario Universe's book, and is now available in Pop-Up form in Peach's Library.

BowsEgg Battle Cruiser Hosts: Bowser and Eggman Emerald Star Color: Yellow A Warship that combines elements from the Koopa Troop's Airships and the Egg Carrier. Nearly every Event on this Board has a negative effect.

Dimensional Collision Zone (Unlocked by completing Story Mode) Hosts: Polari and Yacker Uses special Vortex Stars instead of Emerald Stars. This is purely cosmetic and only there for story reasons. Consists of the Comet Observatory and debris from the Death Egg floating in a swirling vortex between the two worlds, with the Death Egg itself visible in the background with a big chunk blown out of it. Created when Bowser and Eggman overloaded their machine while trying to keep the heroes from stopping it.

Story Mode

Since I've already explained what the story is, I'll just stick to the mechanics.

This time, Story Mode allows up to two players, who will be on a team together. The Player team must pick one Mario Character and one Sonic Character, while the Enemy team is always Bowser Jr. and Metal Sonic. They play a standard 20 Turn Team Match on modified versions of each board, and if they beat the Villain team they play a Boss Minigame related to the board's modification to earn that Board's Chaos Emerald. Or just to beat Bowser and Eggman, in the case of the final Board. Goomba Hill Zone is always the first Board, BowsEgg Battle Cruiser the penultimate, and Dimensional Collision Zone the final, while the other five are played in a random order.

Also, BowsEgg Battle Cruiser doesn't get modified because it's already enemy territory, and Dimensional Collision Zone doesn't get modified because it's designed for story mode already.

Spaces

Landing Space

Blue: Gives 3 Coins or 3 Rings. On the last 5 Turns, gives 6 Coins and 6 Rings.

Red: Takes 3 Coins or 3 Rings. On the last 5 Turns, takes 6 Coins and 6 Rings.

Happening: Causes context-specific events depending on where it is. Randomizes Space Color during Minigame Category Selection.

Item: Initiates an Item Minigame. Every Board has two unique Item Minigames, each run by one of the Board Hosts. Randomizes Space Color during Minigame Selection.

Chance Time: Initiates the Chance Time Event. It works exactly how it does in Mario Party Superstars, except now there's Rings added into the mix. Counts as a Blue Space for Minigame Selection.

Duel: The landing Player is asked by a Shy Guy riding a Motobug to choose which of the other three Players to duel (random is an option, declining is not), and then hits a Roulette Block to decide whether they’ll be dueling for Coins, Rings, both, or Stars, as well as the amount of Coins and/or Rings (Players can only play for one Star each). If both Players have no Stars, Stars cannot be selected on the Roulette. If one player has no Stars they must bet: >40 Coins >40 Rings >20 Coins and 20 Rings >20 of one currency plus however many are needed to compensate for the other (so if they have 30 Coins and 17 Rings they have to bet all their Rings and 23 Coins) >All their Coins and Rings depending on what they can afford. If they have 40 or more of both currency, it's decided at random which of the two gets used. Then the Duel Minigame is initiated. Randomizes Space Color during Minigame Category Selection.

Coin Battle: The Mario Series Board Host collects coins from all Players, with the amount determined by the landing player hitting a Roulette Block, and initiates a Battle Minigame. Randomizes Space Color during Minigame Selection.

Ring Battle: Same as the above, but run by the Sonic Host and uses rings instead of coins. Also, Battle Minigames can randomly take the place of 4-Player minigames during normal Minigame Category Selection, and when that happens it's random whether they're for Coins, Rings, or both. The end-of-turn Battle Minigames can be turned off when setting the parameters of the Party.

Bowser: Kamek appears and chooses a Bowser Event from a Roulette, usually with negative effects for whoever landed there. Any currency-based events only affect Coins. In Story Mode, he instead steals 20 Coins from the Player team or gives 20 coins to the Villain team if one of them lands there. Counts as a Red Space for Minigame Selection.

Eggman: The same as above, but using Sage, Eggman Events, and Rings.

Rosalina: Rosalina appears and chooses a Rosalina Event from a Roulette, usually with positive effects for whoever landed there. Currency-related Events only affect Coins. In Story Mode, she gives 20 Coins to the Player team or takes 20 Coins from the Villain team, depending on who lands there. Counts as a Blue Space for Minigame Selection.

Silver: Same as above, but using Silver, Silver Events, and Rings.

Thrown Item: Modified versions of Blue and Red Spaces created when a Player chooses to put a Throwable Item there. The Space will now initiate the effect of whichever Item was thrown, in addition to its original properties. Depending on the nature of the Thrown Item, the Space will either return to normal after the effect is initiated or will be permanently altered until overwritten with another Thrown Item.

Chaos Control: Shuffles the positions of all Players. Counts as a Red Space during Minigame Selection.

Lucky: Initiates a Roulette that can give a set number of Coins or Rings, a useful item, or a Board-specific perk that makes getting the Player's next star easier. Counts as a Blue Space for Minigame Selection.

Koopa Bank: Every player who passes the Space gives 5 Coins to the Koopa Troopa, and whoever lands on the Space gets all the Coins the bank has accumulated. Randomizes Space Color for Minigame Selection.

Orbank: Same as above, but Orbot runs it and only accepts Rings.

Passing Space These can't be landed on and don't count towards number of Spaces walked, but still require some sort of interaction.

Star Space: Any player who passes has the option to buy an Emerald Star (Vortex Star on Dimensional Collision Zone) from one of the Board Hosts for 20 Coins, 20 Rings, or 15 of each, after which the Star will move to another of several specific spaces, replacing a Blue Space. The Hosts alternate every time a Star is sold, with the Mario Host going first. Star Spaces work differently on Goomba Hill Zone and Shrine Jungle (explained in the Boards section), and don't exist at all on Diamond Casino. Some Boards have Events that affect the price of Stars, number of Stars that can be bought at a time, or number of active Star Spaces.

Toadette's Shop: Allows the Player to purchase one of the three displayed Items. Which Items are available and what price they are is somewhat random, but strongly influenced by both which turn it is and where the Player currently is in the rankings. Toadette only carries Dice Blocks and Mario Series Items, and only accepts Coins.

Charmy's Shop: Same as above, but Charmy only carries Dice Blocks and Sonic Series Items and only accepts Rings.

Item Dispenser: Gives the Player one random item when they pass over it, assuming they have space in their inventory.

Boo: Any Player who passes has the chance to have Boo steal either Coins or a Star from another Player, with Random as an option. Stealing Coins is free and the targeted Player can mash "A" to struggle, with Boo able to steal a maximum of 30 Coins. Stealing a Star costs 30 Coins.

Cubot: Same as above, but for Rings instead of Coins.

Junction: Requires the Player to choose which branching path to follow. The shortest path to a Star Space is always chosen by default. Some Junctions may have a path blocked off until certain conditions are met.

Event Arrow: Context-sensitive, just like Happening Spaces.

Rocky Wrench and Egg Pawn's Shops: Exclusive to BowsEgg Battle Cruiser, and replace the real shops for a maximum of three turns as the result of a Board Event. Forces the Player to buy a special item with a negative effect (which I haven't come up with yet) for 15 Coins at Rocky Wrench's and 15 Rings at Egg Pawn's.

Bowser Events

Disappearing Coin Trick: Kamek steals 10, 20, or 30 Coins from the Player based on a Roulette.

Incredible Disappearing Coins!: Same as above, but affects all Players.

Bowser Minigame: Initiates one of the three Bowser Minigames.

Bowser Revolution!: Splits all Players' Coins equally.

Get 100 Gems!: The Player is given 100 Gems...which have absolutely no purpose in gameplay, effectively meaning that no event has occurred. Rouge and Wario have positive reactions to this event despite functionally getting nothing.

Head to the Star!: Kamek uses his magic to send the Player one Space after the Star Space. On Shrine Jungle, this places them one Space after Diddy Kong.

Star Donation: Kamek steals a star from the Player. If they have no Stars, he gives them 10 Coins instead.

Go Away!: Kamek teleports the Player to the Eggman Space.

If the Player has no Coins when they land on the Bowser Space, Kamek will give them 15 Coins out of pity. He will not do this during Story Mode.

Eggman Events

All of them are functionally identical to the Bowser events, but with different names and aesthetics that fit Sage's personality and abilities, and currency-related events involve Rings instead of Coins.

Ring Retrieval

Ring Retrieve: All

Eggman Minigame

Economic Balance

Receive 100 Egg-Credits: Unlike Kamek's version, no-one has a funny reaction to this. (Edit: Actually no, I've decided that Yoshi and Amy have positive reactions to getting Egg-Credits. For Some Reason)

Tele. To: Star Space: On Shrine Jungle, this places the Player one Spece after Tikal.

Star Retrieval

Leave This Place

If the Player has no Rings when they land on the Eggman Space, Sage will give them 15 Coins and wish them luck. She will not do this during Story Mode.

Rosalina Events

Cosmic Bonus: Gives the Player 10, 20, or 30 Coins, based on a Roulette.

Rosalina Minigame: The Player hits a special Dice Block to determine if Star Bits will be worth 1, 3, or 5 Coins, then initiates one of the three Rosalina Minigames.

Cosmic Gift: The Player may open one of three Question Mark Blocks, which contain a Triple Dice, 15 Coins, and a Star.

Launch Star: Sends the Player one Space before the Star Space. On Shrine Jungle, this sends the Player one Space before Diddy Kong.

Silver Events

Like with Kamek and Sage, these are identical to Rosalina's Events, but use Rings instead of Coins and are modified aesthetically to fit Silver.

Temporal Bonus

Silver Minigame: Uses Time Gears instead of Star Bits.

Temporal Gift: Uses Monitors instead of Question Mark Blocks.

Psycho Boost: On Shrine Jungle, this sends the Player one space before Tikal.

Bonus Stars

At the end of each Party, three of these are randomly selected to be given to the Players. This feature can be turned off when setting the Party parameters.

Happening Star: Awarded to the Player who landed on the most Happening Spaces.

Spender Star: Awarded to the Player who spent the most Coins and Rings on Items.

Running Star: Awarded to the Player who moved the most Spaces.

Slow Star: Awarded to the Player who moved the fewest Spaces.

Minigame Star: Awarded to the Player who won the most Minigames.

Item Star: Awarded to the Player who used and/or Threw the most Items.

Hero Star: Awarded to the Player who landed on the Rosalina and Silver Spaces most often.

Villain Star: Awarded to the Player who landed on the Bowser and Eggman Spaces most often.

Chaos Star: Awarded to the Player who landed on the Chaos Control Space most often.

Lucky Star: Awarded to the Player who landed on the Lucky Space most often.

And that's enough for this post. Part 2 will be about Minigame Mode, and will come out when I feel like having it come out.

(Edit: I lied. Not on purpose but I lied. Anyway Part 2 here.) (And 3 here. this one does have minigame mode)

[ask-zaukodar]

For those who don't particularly follow gaming, there's currently a hot new game out in the field called "Helldivers 2" and it is making hype train waves like very few games have before. There is also a lot of discourse about why it's doing the kinds of numbers and having the popular support that it currently has, and while I know this may not reach a lot of people I still want to drop my thoughts on things.

Just to recap briefly: "Helldivers 2" is the sequel to the titular PC/PS4 game "Helldivers" where you play satirical Starship Troopers waging a war of aggression pre-emptive strike on alien powers who were content to be left alone dangerous enemies of humanity and democracy in the name of subjugating these powers to steal their resources and technology liberty, freedom, and defending our way of life. It was developed by Arrowhead games, who in addition to the original Helldivers previously made Magicka (not Magicka 2) and Gauntlet (2014), and the devs very clearly knew what they wanted to make in regards to all three games and hyperfocused on making those elements work to make the game the best possible experience.

Yes, there are live services aspects such as a rotating armor shop and a "seasonal pass" in the form of something called a War Bond, but the game has gone to impressive lengths to ensure that you aren't pressured into buying stuff through old tactics like FOMO and the like. And yes, the dev team has been in crisis mode addressing the server issues and fixing bugs and (hopefully) addressing the cheater problems, but they have a clear vision and have been working hard to make sure everyone can enjoy it. But it isn't the no-pressure live service, or the on-the-up-and-up dev team in and of itself, or even the chaotic and satirical nature of the game itself I spotted after playing as long as I have.

Helldivers 2 is a perfect (and perfectly-timed) B-game.

For anyone who never owned a console before the seventh generation (Playstation 3, Wii, and XBox 360) I'll explain briefly: every console had its "big title" (later known as AAA) games: Mario, Zelda, Final Fantasy, Battlefield, Call of Duty, Metal Gear, and all of the other ones an elder millennial can name off the top of their heads. But there also used to be games that very explicitly weren't that big-named that were still amazing games in their own right, like the Legacy of Kain series or Jak & Daxter series or Wild Arms or Guitar Hero or Pikmin or Overlord or Saints Row, there's lots of examples of "great games that didn't have mega-bux budgets". These games were the backbone of any console you owned, ever, and some of the best times you had with friends. They were not priced or marketed like AAA games were, but were the kind of game that kept you going back to any video game store of your choice.

For reasons I still don't fully comprehend these types of titles started drying up in the seventh generation, I don't know if it's because of the always-online culture that started appearing in gaming or if it had to do with the emergence of "indie games" or if it was manufacturers wanting bigger slices of the pie or whatever, but for whatever reason these games eventually fell into obscurity, and everything started to fall into "indie dev" or "AAA studio" with little exception. The few games of this category from this time period that were saved in PC ports are old and clunky and not as enjoyable to play, so people don't appreciate just how satisfying these games could be.

The thing about B-games is that they were incredibly solid. Yeah they might have reminded you of other games that were more mainstream or older games that you played on lesser graphics, but even if you didn't always enjoy the game you couldn't deny that it was decently made and it was the kind of game the devs wanted to make so you could play it. They weren't always the flashiest, highest-poly-count, or biggest marketing budget titles ever, but it still left an impression on you that could make you think back to it even now.

Flashing forward back to the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand and Twenty-Four and the landscape has changed so radically that the concept of a mid-level game that sets out to do something it wants to do is almost alien. But this is what Arrowhead started doing back in the 2010's when they made a dopey magic game where spells were based on your controller input that could friendly-fire (or outright troll) your friends. They used to be indie, but now they've grown enough to be a legitimate mid-level developer making the kind of games they know they want to make.

And because the gaming community is starved for something remotely original or fun they piled on it like sharks on bloody meat and they are eating it up wholesale. Which is great for the devs! And hopefully great for the gaming community at large, because maybe we'll get a return of some of these "not quite AAA games but still very solid and definitely not basement-developed" games.

[skyfcx]

i am unabashedly going to speak about my favoritism to certain people and their blogs. kill me where i stand if you must.

whenever i see ame, rain, or gaby on my dash, i feel my brain perk up and go "it's them!!!! it's the them let's write i wanna write with the them!!"

and then there are people who take me SO far back like phia. again, i remember phia from like. my second blog ever on this accursed site, it's a delight to see old friends still kicking.

bwaze you just followed me from your metal sonic and you're in that same category. i remember the smash rpc. i will never forget the smash rpc. and you fell off the face of the planet for a good long while and im super glad to see that you're back in full force.

haley you are also on this list, your shadow is so fucking peak and the desire to write with you never goes away, we just have to do it more we just Have To.

zac i dunno what blog you're on right now but you also live rent free in my head. thinking of you.....

kia we mostly interact on sonic and knuckles but your knuckles in general makes me so jazzed. it doesnt matter if im even writing with him at the time, the brain cell explodes every time i see The Boy.

and the last ones off the top of my very useless brain are byte and nikki but they're not around anymore. but their mario and geno continue to reside in my head despite their absence and i think that speaks to the overwhelming power their portrayals carried.

and obviously there are a grand number of other blogs that i enjoy seeing on my dash, but this is specifically like. for the folks who arent always around, yknow? and since yall aren't, it makes the dopamine pop the fuck off whenever you jumpscare the dash with your presence and i just want yall to know that you are appreciated and remembered even when you are not active on the dash. gun to your head i love yall.

[zee-reviews]

Cavern of Dreams (Steam)

First time?: Yes

[Note: this review will be as spoiler-free as possible, though some minor things from later in the game may be brought up in passing.]

If you're not aware of what Cavern of Dreams is, it's an N64-inspired exploration platformer by Bynine Studio. I've been following the creator on Tumblr for a while and this game has been on my radar since it released, and now that I've finally played it, I can honestly say I enjoyed it a LOT.

The plot of the game is that you are a young dragon named Fynn, and you are trying to rescue your siblings (who are eggs) from a bat artist named Luna. The cavern's guardian, Sage, helps you out by watching over your rescued siblings in the hub world, and giving you new powers when you reach certain milestones.

One of the game's defining traits is that there is no true "combat", to speak of. There are hazards, and you have attacks that interact with the environment, but there's no enemies or bosses to defeat, and no health or lives system. This works out well, as the focus of this style of game is exploration and platforming, so the experience doesn't feel lacking for the omission.

The movement in the game is somewhat unique, as Fynn doesn't quite have the jumping prowess that a Mario or a Banjo would have. However, he does have a roll ability that allows him to go very fast and even ramp off of sloped surfaces like Sonic. The roll controls similar to the roll in Yooka-Laylee, or the Spongeball in Battle for Bikini Bottom; it can be a little tricky to control, but you can carry the momentum into your standard run when you need more precise movement at higher speeds.

Fynn does get more abilities later on, such as a tail whip to slap objects, a glide, a bubble projectile, and perhaps most usefully, a bounce ability that can not only attack the ground, but also gives you more height than your standard jump. The sense of progression you get with each new ability is very satisfying, and towards the end of the game, you'll find the movement to be very complex and rewarding.

Now for the aesthetics. This game was designed primarily by a visual artist, and my god does it show. The game is GORGEOUS, and does a great job at paying tribute to the bold colors and lighting of games like Banjo-Kazooie or Spyro while also having a unique artstyle of its own. Different areas can have different moods; a wooded lake area in a cozy autumn sunset, the metallic interior of a sentient airship, the creepy black-and-white basement illuminated only by the occassional lightning strike, and so much more. I have so many screenshots just of areas I thought looked visually interesting.

My only criticisms of the game are nitpicks, really. For one, the sound design could be underwhelming at times. According to the credits, many of the sounds were grunts made by the people working on the game, or were sourced from freesounds. Nothing was egreiously out-of-place or anything, and it is a passion project by a very small group, so it's easily forgiven.

The only other thing is that I had my camera set to inverted, but the camera in first-person mode was non-inverted, and it would throw off my muscle memory when switching. Though, there aren't a lot of times where you need to switch to first-person mode, so it was never that big of a deal.

This isn't a particularly long game, it's maybe 2/3rds the length of a game like Banjo-Kazooie, but there's still a lot here to enjoy, especially considering the game is only $13 on Steam (even less if you get it in a bundle). I would HIGHLY recommend it to anyone who's even a little interested.

[impietient]

Scopophobia, implied gore, body horror mention warnings, smg4 western spaghetti and it’s gonna be perfect spoiler

Okie so I had another smg4 dream that I drew sketches for cause holy crap. In a nutshell, it was a messed up among us/guess who game show.

Before i talk about it, I’d like y’all to appreciate Melony’s heart patch with Axol ;-;

So the dream started out simple, the smg4 crew were hanging out in the new castle but then smg4 and melony noticed something outside of the window. 4 started to frantic and said to hit it with everything and the crew did this with no questions asked, throwing bob-ombs, guns, frickin tanks, eggdog, power ups, furniture but it wasn’t enough and whatever was outside of the window broke free with a flash of light fading to white. Mario and Luigi woke up in a tainted colored glass dome. Outside of the dome was their castle but looked more like a circus tent. On the otherside was the rest of the crew in a play set box with them as dolls, and their castle on top as if it was a dollhouse. An unseen announcer welcomed the brothers into the game show. Mario was in amazement because he didn’t realize his friends in danger and just heard a game show but Luigi kept asking questions. That’s when a snap of the fingers and the game started. The first game was a among us(I kid you not) but in each game sequence, the bros would have their memory wiped to throw them off that they were trapped. So anyways, Luigi was doing his tasks but then melony came over and shook Luigi by the shoulders yelling at him that they were in danger and he needed to get out of here. Melody glitched out of existence and the announcer apologized for that game error. So he went on to do his tasks. He started looking for Mario and found him locked in the bathroom cause he said he didn’t want the imposter to find him. So Luigi had to drag him out but when he came in, the door was a metal door and locked them both in. Mario took this as a chance to tell Luigi about what was happening, about the gameshow trap, about whatever was out there but the imposter was banging on the door with an alternate’s corrupted voice of one of the smg characters. The game restarted and the bros had their memory wiped again.

The game started with them in a hospital, it was more like a modern day murder mystery but more happier(like had some kidcore themes here and there) and each of the characters as doctors or nurses, they were trying to find a missing patient but also a fraud doctor in their midst. So Mario started looking for the patient and found Meggy, she was a doctor there and didn’t give any information about the trap but when she spoke, all she repeated “Hows it going Mario?” getting Mario confused and scared until she glitched out of the game, followed by an apology. Mario was confused and ran off to find his brother because he started to remember about what happened the last game, that this isn’t what it seemed. He started searching rooms, slamming doors and such until he reached a room with Meggy on a hospital table, strapped down with her eyes huge black pupils, a smile and the repeated phrase. Mario rushed over to help her but she grabbed his arm, snapped out of it and started to panic and just said in a pained voice “help me”. Mario looked over at her stomach with rainbow strand gummies and star candies sticking out of her stomach. Mario backed up in fear for his friend but the announcer said “sorry folks, we’re experiencing an error..again” making the whole room all static-y until Mario was just in an empty room. Mario started to panic and call for Meggy, 4, 3, anyone that he knew until he heard footsteps coming from behind him. He slowly turned with an ominous sfx playing until it cut to black. The announcer continued on with the game with Luigi and the rest of the crew left. This game they were at a fishing dock, all fishermen but there was a disguised siren in their midst(yes these were all murder mystery or who’s what games) So Luigi started to question Bob and Boopkins and Bob tried to blame Boopkins to get him kicked out but he started defending himself. That’s when Luigi heard a voice in the water.

Luigi wanted to investigate and dragged the other two to prove their innocence and they took a boat out to find the voice. It sounded like a little girl’s voice in distress. They looked around the water and Luigi jumped in the water to find the girl and landed in the black void Mario was in earlier. He started to call out for the girl. He found the girl and she said “You found me! Yay!!” and giggling. Luigi couldn’t see her but only a silhouette of the girl in a distance. She started to walk over but every step she took she grew new limbs or her body became disfigured until she glitched out, and was replaced with Mr L, doing the same thing. Then it kept glitching characters in and out until the figure came in sight for Luigi. It was Goo-uigi but with that flesh stuff still in him. Goo-uigi spoke with multiple voices of people overlapping and saying “You completed the game. Congratulations! Was trial and error perfecting it but this means you are perfect.” Luigi started to remember everything about before, especially about the flash of light. It was the flesh from the treasure city dream. It dragged them to the game for the fun of it, and to make up for the last time they all escaped a good going show.(YES HE IMPLIED THAT IT WAS THAT TV BRAND FROM WESTERN SPAGHETTI) Apparently, the tv brand gave an opportunity for the flesh to start it’s show, to get back at them, while the tv brand did the same. Luigi knew he needed to leave and tried running but was running in place. Goo-uigi appeared behind him in a second, pushed him to the ground, into a pool of water, started to wring his neck/ water boarded him. As Luigi struggled, the setting was glitching out into different places while goo-uigi was saying that this could’ve been a thriving perfect show. But if none of them could be perfect, then they didn’t deserve to leave, perfect or imperfect at all. Luigi got a flash of images of his friends, the castle, happy or chaotic memories he had with them. Luigi had to rip the flesh out with a bunch of images of memories flashing in his head, and started to feel nauseous from the flashing memories and glitching background. He grabbed the huge chunk of the purple/pink flesh in goo-uigi’s chest and pulled it out with a screech from Goo and the squiggly flesh as if it was alive, making everything flash faster. UNTIL IN A FLASH I WOKE UP, AND I TRIED TO FALL ASLEEP AGAIN TO FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENED AFTER BUT MY ALARM WENT OFF THE SAME TIME

EDIT: I FORGOT TO SHARE BUT THERES TWO OTHER SMG4 DREAMS IVE HAD AND DREW SCENES FOR, ALSO FOR SOME CONTEXT ABOUT POSSESSED GOO-UIGI

[weirdmarioenemies]

Name: Honebon Debut: Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins

The year is 1992, and Nintendo is making a hit sequel to the video game Super Mario Land for the Nintendo Game Boy. The previous two games in the Super Mario series, Super Mario Land and Super Mario World were both massive hits, and if you know anything about video games, it's obvious why: both had Skeletal Fish Enemies!

If Super Mario Land 2 was to have a chance of succeeding at all, they'd have to include a Skeletal Fish Enemy. But they couldn't just bring back Honen or Fish Bone, no. It was the '90s! We needed a hip, new skeletal fish for Cool Teens!

And so, Honebon was born! Isn't the miracle of childbirth amazing? Unfortunately, Honebon was born a skeleton, which is always a bad sign, because as it turns out, Honebon was dead on arrival...

Now don't get me wrong, Honebon has a few distinct traits to separate it from its Skeletal Siblings. Its attack pattern is unique, since it moves in a zigzag shape instead of a straight line, and according to Perfect Ban Mario Character Daijiten, while Fish Bone is the type to hold a grudge, Honebon has an amiable disposition! So if you're ever looking to befriend a skeletal fish, let that be your guide!

I also think Honebon's name is really funny. It's a portmanteau of hone, the Japanese word for "bone," and the English word "bone". And despite the fact its name doubles down on this being a skeleton, all the official material seems to describe it as a Cheep Cheep's gh-gh-gh-ghost!

But even with all of that, it's clear that Honebon's story as a Mario enemy ended as soon as it began. Honebon was competing for a niche that had already been filled multiple times over. It's a real Spike Eel situation over here! Clearly, Mario games didn't need any more skeletal fish enemies...

Name: Jean de Fillet Debut: Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island

But just because they didn't need another, that doesn't mean they didn't want another! I mean, come on! None of the previous skeletal fish had names that were dated pop culture references, so clearly there was an untapped market there!

You think there wouldn't be much ground to cover with another skeletal fish enemy... and you would be right! There is not all that much unique about Jean de Fillet. Much like Fish Bone and Honebon, it is described as a skeletal Cheep Cheep, despite none of the three really having Cheep Cheep anatomy at all, and much like Honen, its attack pattern involves jumping up to attack Yoshi. They can swim through lava I guess, but I'm not really convinced the other skeletal fish can't do that.

You see what happened? They ran the well dry, and all the fish that were living in the well for some reason died. Nintendo was just left with a bunch of fish skeletons, and all they could do at that point was put them in Yoshi's Island! Sad! Many such cases.

But due to Yoshi's Island going on to become a whole series of its own, Jean de Fillet would have a little more staying power than Honen or Honebon. Which is to say it appeared in Yoshi's New Island, where it even gets a boss variant named Furious Fred de Fillet!

Now it's kind of debatable whether or not Yoshi's Island is mainline, but if you include it, that's four mainline entries in a row that each introduced a completely new skeletal fish enemy! Super Mario Land and Super Mario World both did it, and so would their sequels.

Did this madness ever end?!

Name: Bonefin Debut: Super Mario Galaxy

Not before they could sneak in just one more skeletal fish enemy! It had been over a decade since Jean de Fillet, and in that time it had become the future! That meant their next skeletal fish had to be made of metal. Everything is chrome in the future! (Reference to "Bob")

And since they had a whole new dimension to play with, we were no longer starved of unique attack patterns! Bonefins lock onto Mario, and charge in that direction until they either hit him or hit a wall and explode. (Reference to "Bob")

Bonefins solely appear in the Bonefin Galaxy. They serve as mooks to Kingfin, a giant Bonefin that appears to be actually made of bone! This boss fight is kinda all that exists in Bonefin Galaxy, but at least they got a whole galaxy to themselves, right?

This would mark the end of an era however, as when Super Mario Galaxy 2 rolled around, there was no new skeletal fish enemy to be seen. In fact, Bonefin would only cameo as a skeleton, which is obviously and very intentionally meant to represent the fact that regular new skeletal fish enemies are a thing of the past, a product of a bygone age...

Since then, the series has standardized Fish Bone as their skeletal fish of choice, as they made their grand return in New Super Mario Bros. Wii and have been a series staple ever since. In the process, however, they gained Bonefin's homing attack, letting them do a little more than be Cheep Cheeps for ghost houses and castles!

Is the lack of new skeletal fish enemies another disappointing example of Mario Homogenization? Or did they make the right call, picking a skeletal fish and sticking to it? I dunno. I am completely neutral towards this development.

[emile-hides]

Can I interest you all in my extremely self serving Mario and Luigi game concept featuring Gooigi and Metal Mario as alternate reality Mario Bros?

I’ve been calling it Mario and Luigi: Elementals and it sounds dumb and that’s because it is dumb

The basic premise is E. Gadd didn’t actually make Gooigi, rather Gooigi is from a Universe where everyone is made of one pure element, and Gooigi ended up in our reality on accident.

Kind of

He splatted through a portal and was pretty much all but dead or “broken” as his universe would put it, but E. Gadd of our world manged to “fix” him, bringing him back. The problem is he lost all his memories, and also can’t speak.

That was a year ago today.

The Mario Brothers are visiting Professor Elvin Gadd in his research laboratory to see his latest invention, and also learn that Stuffwell has become Gooigi’s right hand man, and can even understand his blurbly speech. 

E. Gadd’s been fascinated with the portal Gooigi origonally came through for some time now, and has finally made a device that will (hopefully) open it once again. Mayhaps he can get more goo, make more Gooigis! How exciting!

If only the blasted thing worked

His device doesn’t turn on, or work at all, so he sends Mario and Luigi around the lab to fix multiple things; jumping, using the Spin/High jump moves, Mario drinks and spits water, the usual stuff all gets tutorialed at once this way until he’s finally ready to try again.

This time a massive portal opens, sucking in everything in the lab, mostly Luigi who was right next to it. Mario grabs Luigi, E. Gadd grabs Mario, Gooigi grabs E. Gadd, and Stuffwell complains about his unfinished Arm Modificationings

Mario’s grip slips, and Luigi goes flying into the portal, which then closes.

Luigi wakes up in a forest where everything is made of Rock. The Trees, the Ground, the over sized Mushroom kingdom looking mushrooms, all pure rock. Like sculptures. He looks around, calls for Mario a few times, cowars a bit, and then starts to wander, eventually coming across another research lab like E. Gadd’s

Inside is Professor Ectoplasm Gadd, a gooy translucent, almost ghostly like version of Professor E. Gadd, along with Rock Toads; Toads made purely or unpolished, rough rocks.

Ecto Gadd looks up from his machine that is very much like E. Gadd’s portal machine, and immediately starts making a ruckus about Luigi’s Return. He sends the Rock Toads off to “Go get his brother!” and starts marveling at Luigi’s new unique make-up, asking what he’s made of now, and apologizing for the accident.

Luigi Italianese babbles that he has no idea what Ecto Gadd is talking about and starts explaining the portal, when the door breaks down.

“Goodness! I know you haven’t seen eachother for a year now but you didn’t have to break my door!”

Metal Mario puts the door down to the side gently and approaches Luigi, looks him all over, takes a few steps back, and then punches a random machine, destroying it.

It takes a few moments for the shock to were off and for Luigi to notice Metal Mario is really broken up over his missing brother. Luigi does his best to comfort him, a little There There back pat turned into a spine crushing hug from Metal Mario.

Ecto Gadd realizes this is the Wrong Luigi and explains the portal machine, and how he’d been working on it ever sense Goo Luigi went missing. Luigi recognizes “Goo Luigi” as probably being Gooigi, which Metal Mario responds to by grabbing Luigi by his overall straps, picking him off the ground, and shaking him in a “You know where me brother is???? Where??? Take me to him!!!” kind of way.

Ecto Gadd says he can get the portal open again, but he needs more power for his machine to work and stabilize the portal, so he sends Luigi and Metal Mario off to the Plasma Kingdom together.

This is where gameplay starts and also my story concept kind of ends, so this is just all my thoughts mashed together now

You play as two sets of Bros through most the game (this first mission has them mixed up, but eventually swaps them back correctly); Mario and Luigi, and Gooigi and Metal Mario.

Mario plays the same as usual Mario games, High Attack and Speed, Low Defense and Health, if you don’t watch him he’ll become a Glass Canon

Luigi also plays the same, High Defense and Health, Low Attack and Speed, a random extra bit of Stache, might fall behind Mario if you’re not careful

Metal Mario plays sort of like an Extreme Luigi, with wild high defense and stupid slow, but he also hits like a truck with a crazy attack stat. He’ll go after everything else, but he will also likely kill it all in one hit. Also his and Gooigi’s Stache stat is called Sheen and might cause enemies to miss, rather than they randomly get lucky hits. They’re shiny.

Gooigi in turn is like an Extreme Mario, Wicked speed and abysmal defense, but with no attack to back it up. Instead, almost all of Gooigi’s basic attacks inflict status; Poison, Sleep, and Stuck (a Gooigi exclusive status in which the enemy is stuck in goo and can’t move), making him more of a set up for Metal Mario than his own attacker.

You switch between the two groups on set story beats as they traverse eachother’s worlds; Our usual Bros in the new Element lands, and the Element Bros in the usual Mushroom Kingdom worlds. Think like Bowser’s Inside Story meets the Peach sections of the Paper Mario games.

Mario and Luigi can do their usual jumps, the spin and high jumps, they cannot be separated, and eventually get the elemental Fire and Thunder attacks from Super Star Saga, and the Bros Ball from Partner’s in Time. These are also their Bros Attacks. No more shell or fire flower or weird surprise tube I hate those things.

Metal Mario and Gooigi get the hammer abilities, Metal Mario can smash Gooigi over the head to make him small and fit into small spaces and Metal Mario can drill into the ground to get beans. The two can be separated, usually when Metal Mario explores the ocean floor, as Gooigi dissolves in water and Metal Mario sinks.

I can’t decide what Metal Mario and Gooigi’s bros attacks will be. The main thing with them is they’ve been separated for a full year, and Gooigi’s memories are still missing, so they’re not as in-sync as the normal Bros are. Maybe they can have Bros Items from Partner’s in Time?

They’re a lot like the babies from Partner’s in Time I think, more immature and juvenile in my head. Metal Mario constantly forgets his own strength and breaks things on accident, and Gooigi is eager to help anyone who’ll give him a task. They’re both childishly curious about the world around them.

The twist would be someone sent Gooigi through that portal on purpose to get rid of him. I’m thinking a version of King Boo from this Elemental Dimension, but I haven’t thought on it too hard just yet. Maybe Ecto Gadd did it. That’d be fun.

Rose Gold Peach is there and she’s called Rose Gold Peach not Pink Gold Peach I hate that name she is Rose Gold and she’s a lot like Metal Mario in that she forgets her own strength a lot and ends up hurting regular Mario in funny slapstick ways just by interacting with him a lot.

The previously mentioned Plasma Kingdom is the Element Lands version of the Koopa Kingdom. I’ve been trying to decide if I want Bowser to be just pure Fire or not. Magma Bowser maybe? Where some of his upper layer has cooled so he looks like Bowser’s Fury Bowser in color scheme? The Goombas are wooden because I think that’s funny.

I also think the Elemental Bowser and Mario have a much more extreme rivalry compared to our usual duo. Where Mario and Bowser can square off every here and there and then also play tennis, the Elemental Mario and Bowser will fight to the death if squared off together. This Bowser also doesn’t have the Romantic Feelings for Peach to soften him, he wants her just as dead as he wants Mario.

His only soft spot then would be Bowser Jr., who I don’t know if he should be included because it feels like too many main story characters, but he’d be made of paint, and be gooy and fragile like Gooigi, this why Bowser, a Magma/Rock being, is so protective of his soft son.

Finally, I want Wario and Waluigi to be a sort of Rival Encounter to Metal Mario and Gooigi, Like Mid bosses that show up every other big event a little stronger than previously, sense they’re extreme versions Mario and Luigi, much like this version of Gooigi and Metal Mario are.

[heartnosekid]

requests are open!

but this time there are some guidelines and changes 🔽🔽🔽

i will only be taking certain requests. anyone can suggest any type of board that does not have media attachment, like name stimboards, animal / bug / sea creature, plant, fungi, etc stimboards, themed stimboards like kidcore, glowcore, cottagecore, etc, and only from media i am familiar with!

please be as descriptive as possible if you have preferences for what you want to see or what you do not want to see in your request (i.e only slime, no long nails, only pink and blue for colors, slow moving gifs only, no hands, plushies, etc)

(i am also very hyperfixated on bugs right now, specifically butterflies, moths, and mantids, but i will make a board for any bug! please just include the common name and the scientific name or perhaps even a picture so i can get the correct bug, and this goes for sea creatures, plants, and fungi as well!!)

don't be scared to send in a request, regardless of what it is, but just bear in mind i will only be able to take the ones i feel i can confidently complete in a timely manner. i also will not be completing requests in the order that i receive them, because i feel that fudges with my creative process. 

i also still take requests for oc stimboards! the guidelines are located at the bottom of this page on my carrd ^^

i hope y'all understand my reasons and that the list in the keep reading is broad enough to cater to several fandoms and folks that wanted to request a media-centric board from me!

here is a comprehensive list of all the media you can request from (please note i am critical of all of this media):

general: 

care bears (all bears, tv shows, movies, etc ; will also do some fanmade bears)

most kids cartoons (nickelodeon, cartoon network, disney, toonami, etc)

any disney / pixar / dreamworks movies / shows and i'll take the ones i've seen (which is quite a few)

sanrio / san-x

squishmallows

beanie babies

pusheen

my little pony (all gens, tv show)

pokemon (all games / movies / tv show)

tamagotchi

video games (as well as phone / computer games):

apex legends (current hyperfixation)

OFF (mortis ghost)

hades (supergiant games)

baldur’s gate 3

destiny 1 / destiny 2

stardew valley

animal crossing (all games)

minecraft

slime rancher

identity v

dead by daylight

genshin impact

nier automata

titanfall

yume nikki

danganronpa (all games)

red dead redemption

warframe

splatoon

neopets

mario

sonic

metal gear 

super smash bros

bloodborne

skyrim

undertale / deltarune

five nights at freddy’s (all games, specifically security breach)

the last of us / the last of us 2 (hbo show included)

overwatch / overwatch 2

cookie run ovenbreak

cookie run kingdom

love nikki dress up queen

among us

cuphead

wadanohara & the great blue sea

gray garden

mothlight

legend of zelda (all games)

hollow knight 

anime / tv shows / movies: 

houseki no kuni / land of the lustrous

cardcaptor sakura

arcane

naruto (no boruto plz)

neon genesis evangelion

claymore

sailor moon

soul eater

blue eye samurai

mirai nikki / future diary

spongebob squarepants

one punch man

kuroko no basuke

wonder egg priority

puella magi madoka magica / magia record

avatar the last airbender / legend of korra

the promised neverland

blue eye samurai

death note

aggretsuko 

yuri on ice

jojo's bizarre adventure

powerpuff girls

ouran high school host club

she-ra and the princesses of power

artiswitch

one piece

bananya

violet evergarden

boku no hero academia

tokyo ghoul

deadman wonderland

chainsaw man

kekkai sensen / blood blockade battlefront

steins;gate

death parade

sabrina the teenage witch (the old tv show)

fullmetal alchemist brotherhood

stranger things

puss in boots: the last wish

everything everywhere all at once

turning red

encanto

coraline (book included)

winnie the pooh

most if not all studio ghibli movies

bands / music:

(not actual human musicians, but i will make specific song / album / music video based boards [also i feel it is necessary i say that these are just bands / musicians i am very familiar with, i will also take requests for artists i can vibe with that i haven’t heard of before, so feel free to send song stimboard requests freely])

vocaloid (this includes songs from artists / producers who use vocaloid as their medium [ghost and pals, kikuo, maretu, etc] as well as the vocaloid characters themselves) 

glass animals 

hozier 

the crane wives

florence + the machine

marina

ki:theory

disturbed 

bring me the horizon 

killswitch engage

motionless in white 

babymetal 

evanescence

ice nine kills (current favorite band)

sleep token (current favorite band)

bad omens

system of a down

shield of wings

honestly i’ll do most songs if you ask me 

comics / books / manga / written media:

(very short list rn, sorry ;-;)

homestuck

the locked tomb series (current favorite series)

kuroshitsuji / black butler (manga only)

tokyo ghoul / tg:re 

iron widow 

any anime that i mentioned above that has a source manga / comic, i will also make boards for them

miscellaneous:

welcome home

indie games are always welcome, i’ll decide based on how i feel about them!

i will add to this list over time, but this is a start!!

- ish 💕

[marioheritageposts]

KYOTO, Japan — In case anyone might have thought otherwise, several higher-ups at Nintendo have clarified that, were he in possession of a firearm, Mario would still lack the desire to kill.

“I know what you may be thinking,” Shigeru Miyamoto explained in a press conference. “Haven’t we seen Mario with a gun before? We’ve seen him wield a Super Scope in Yoshi’s Safari, dual wield blasters in Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, and pick up whatever ammunition he could get his hands on in the Super Smash Bros. series. But rest assured: any firearm normally wielded with the intent to kill would not be done so in the hands of Mario. That is a fact.”

When pressed to elaborate on the surprise announcement, Miyamoto produced a handgun.

“Go ahead, try it,” Miyamoto continued. “Put a pistol in Mario’s hands and see what happens. The two of you alone in a room, Mario with a gun pressed against your temple—you’re still walking out of that room alive, I promise you.”

Concerned that something may have been lost in translation, Doug Bowser, the president of Nintendo of America, who was also in attendance, further echoed the sentiment. 

“What Mr. Miyamoto says is 100 percent true. Should Mario ever have the barrel of a gun in your mouth, resting on your tongue as your teeth chatter against its cold, metal exterior in fear, worry not: we have made sure that whatever genetic disposition that causes one human to snuff out the life of another would not be present within Mario, or his brother Luigi, for that matter.”

Bowser then turned solemn and, after an awkward silence, prompted Miyamoto to continue with the next announcement.

“We… unfortunately cannot say the same for Wario,” Miyamoto said, eyes facing the floor. “We’ve tried everything in our power to make sure we could say the same for all of the characters we create here at Nintendo, but something went horribly wrong during the development of Wario. I fear him, and I worry that should that fear ever subside, that would be the moment Wario would appear and take my life.”

One reporter asked if they were aware that these characters are all, in fact, fictional. The team at Nintendo all shot each other a knowing glance and the meeting was abruptly adjourned.