#and seeing other players’ contributions to the world and interacting with them is so cool and makes me feel social

[floral-hex]

Anyway, I finished Death Stranding, and by finished I mean I sat and watched 2 hours of cut scenes with the occasional walking around

and I loved it.

[gamegeekly]

All you need to know about Minecraft Live and the 1.21 update.

Another Minecraft Live is upon us, and with the fast-encroaching 15th anniversary, Mojang announced plenty of brand new updates that will leave fans on the edge of their seats in anticipation. Between update 1.21, the new mob vote, and plenty of other new materials announced there was a little something for all Minecraft fans this year. 

Update 1.21

Agnes Larson, the Game Director, reveals this year’s 1.21 update and discusses how the development team is leaning more towards combat adventure and tinkering. Agnes takes viewers into the game to view the newest addition, Trial Chambers. Trial Chambers is a randomly generated dungeon players can find in the world that offers a different style of spawners, loot, and block designs. Matthew Dryden, level designer, walks players through the entrance to the trial chambers update, “The corridor leads to different rooms, and it can lead to supply chests. You can find things that will challenge you but also things that can help you.” Some of the trial spawners and mobs showcased are the stray spawners; what makes these spawners different than usual is they consistently release mobs onto players until defeated, to which it will undergo a cool down so they can always be farmed. The spawners also adapt to the number of players that join the fight. After defeating a spawner, it will release enough loot for party members. The newest mob is called the breeze, a funny, inconvenient mob that pushes players around using a wind attack that doesn’t cause damage and has an ability that does harm. For those more interested in crafting, they have added the Crafter. Oscar, a game developer at Mojang, elaborated on what the Crafter does, “…With the Crafter, you can automate crafting with Redstone. It’s pretty similar to a crafting table except pulling the items out yourself; you can use the Redstone pulse to get it out.” 

The Mob Vote

Every year, the developers release three concept mobs with a brief explanation of what they can offer or do for players, where to find them, and what they will look like. Mojang will then place a pull on their website, Twitter, etc., to get fan’s opinions, and during Minecraft Live, they announce the new mob. This year’s mobs were the Armadillo, Crab, and Penguin, each offering unique contributions to the game that, if you click the individual mobs, will take you to the Minecraft YouTube page for those particular mobs. After a few hours of the polls being open, Minecraft Live began, and they finally announced this year’s winner…The armadillo, now why some were extremely happy to see these armored buddies that will help their canine friends, while others were devastated to see the others disappear into the missed mob abyss. 

Additional Announcements

Minecraft also announced the release of Star Wars Path of the Jedi. This interactive game allows players to play as a padawan on their path to becoming a Jedi with the help of Yoda and other familiar faces. Players can battle monsters and dual other Jedis, all while wielding a lightsaber and using the force. There is no concrete release date, but from what players could see during the Live, the animation looks very sleek and well done.

Minecraft Legends has also announced an update during the Live, and here are a few things players can look forward to on release. Their most significant announcement is that players can finally pet the animals, which fans have asked for since their early release. They also announced a new mount, which is the frog, and the ability for players to play as the llama. Two new mobs were showcased: the witch for non-hostile and the piglin clanker as an enemy. There were a few other announcements for Legends that should excite fans for the update.

BBC Earth will release its last installment of Planet Earth 3 in 2024; this interactive experience allows players to see the world they live in a new, close, personal light. Players will see a brand-new ecosystem, animals, and more with the final installment. Minecraft Education has been highly praised and used in many personal and academic settings; the new installment has fans excited to dive back into the world around us. For more information on the updates announced above, click the link to Minecraft’s game page and peruse the plethora of new material for yourself. 

Minecraft Live has always offered plenty of new material to get old and new fans excited to immerse themselves into the game for the first time or dive back in again. Seeing these updates and how fans react to them when they are finally released will be exciting. Stay tuned for more Minecraft talk and happy mining.

[letsgofoletsgo]

Playing With Fire

Disclaimer: While this fic features nothing explicit, it does get suggestive, so I’d rather no one under 16 interacts with this post. Thank you!

~

It had been two weeks since the defeat of the category 5 Kaiju. The war that had raged for over a decade had finally shifted in humanity’s favor, and the world rejoiced as the beasts were seemingly conquered once and for all. However, for those in the fight against the Kaiju, there was still work to be done. Surveillance was still required in case of a resurgence, and scientists had their work cut out for them with the new discoveries of the Kaiju themselves.

Among these scientists, Newton Gieszler was likely the most excited about these new discoveries. Being obsessed with these other worldly beasts since the first attack, he was at the forefront of this new wave of information regarding the Kaiju. Being the one to discover the hive minded-nature of them, he provided a catalyst for new discoveries of their biology. Yet, even with this age of information unfolding around him, he found his mind away from scientific pursuits; for the first time in recent memory anyway. 

Instead of vigorously studying in his lab, tirelessly experimenting and researching the very existence of the kaiju, he was instead in his barrack. In place of his typical attire of a white button up and slacks, he was in a more comfortable T-shirt and sweatpants. He was lounging on his bed, The Hangover playing on a small portable DVD player (it was a miracle they even found the thing, nevermind getting it to work). Newton usually found himself restless if he wasn’t occupied with studying the kaiju, but tonight he felt different. Maybe it was the newfound relief of their victory, maybe he finally felt fulfilled in his contribution, 

Or maybe it was because Ramsey Rockefeller was in his company tonight.

Newton didn’t know what surprised him more; witnessing the defeat of the Kaiju, or the fact that someone he had a crush on liked him back. Even if they had a rocky start to their friendship, xe was the only person willing to accompany him to find Chau, and even stuck by him when he ended up being a target for the beast.

Even after two weeks, he was still trying to process everything that happened. Ramsey shared this sentiment, and opted for the two of them to just spend a night relaxing. While Newton was for the idea, he was rather estranged to the concept of relaxation. His crush lounging a couple feet away from him did not help his nerves. 

“You know, this part was foreshadowed.” Xe said, snapping him out of his trance. “Before the guys leave to find Doug, they notice the mattress on the roof.’

“O-Oh, really?” He sputtered, refocusing on the film. 

The two watched the finale of the film, Ramsey giggling as the four men looked at the photos in horror as the credits rolled. 

“And, that was The Hangover!” xe said as xe stretched xyr arms about xyr head. “What did you think?” 

“I thought it was pretty cool!” Newton said earnestly, even if he didn’t remember parts of it. “I can see why you like it so much.” 

“You know, I didn’t actually watch it for the first time until I was eighteen.” Ramsey chuckled. “Was with an old buddy of mine from college.” 

“Oh yeah?” 

“Yeah, his name was Ryan. Used to go to his place to hang out all the time.”

“You know, I don’t think you’ve ever told me where you went to college.” Newton realized. 

“University of Pittsburgh, majored in engineering.” Xe held up a hand in a claw formation playfully. “Go Panthers! Heh.” 

“Pittsburg, huh? Heard that’s a pretty good school.” 

“It’s decent enough as they go, I applied there because they had a great engineering program. I’d say I learned some useful stuff.” Xe turned to him. “What about you?” 

“I went to Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Was the second youngest person to ever be admitted there, actually.” 

“Wow, that’s impressive!” xe exclaimed. 

“I guess so. After I graduated, I taught there for a few years until 2016, when I joined the Jaeger academy.” 

“The Jaeger academy? What did you do there?” 

“I was mostly a Conn-Pod instructor. Helped make scenarios for the students to fight against.” 

“Gotcha.” Ramsey thought for a moment. “I’m curious, what was college like for you?”

“Well, it wasn’t particularly interesting socially. I mostly just kept to my studies.” He wrung his hands around each other. “I bet it was the opposite for you- I mean, socializing was always so easy for you.”

“Maybe. But I wasn’t always like that.”

“You weren’t?” He asked with wide eyes. 

“Nope. While I had Ryan and some other people that I hung out with from my GSA, I was mostly on my own.”

“Guess we have more in common than I thought, huh?” Newton laughed nervously. 

“Well hey, even if I didn’t have many friends, the ones I did have meant the world to me.” Xe mused. “Taught me the concept of quantity over quality in a way.” 

“Yeah, I get that.” He nodded.

“Even when Ryan was one of the few people who I talked to, he helped me out of a really rough time in my life.” 

This caught Newton’s attention. “What happened? I-If you don’t mind me asking.” 

Ramsey shrugged. “It was kind of a lot of things. My anxiety spiked, my classes were giving me grief, I was caught in some drama between internet friends, and I just felt so alone.”

“... I’m sorry to hear you went through that.” 

“Thanks, it was years ago anyway. Eventually I got on meds that helped stabilize my mental health, and I started to reconnect with my friends and be more open about what I was going through. But, in those few months where I felt like the world was against me, going to Ryan’s place and just watching movies, playing video games, and goofing off kept me sane. I know it sounds silly, but it was kind of a sanctuary for me.” 

“No no, I get it. Sometimes it's the small things that can add up a lot.” He reassured xem. “When I went through my own rough patches, learning about the Kaiju comforted me. It made me feel like I  had some sort of purpose, if that makes sense.”

“It does. I’ve had times where my interests brought me comfort, sometimes you just need something that you feel like you have control over.” 

“... Yeah, you’re right.”

Ramsey reclined against the couch. “You’re right Newton, we do have more in common than meets the eye.” 

“We do?” Once again, his nerves got the best of him. “W-Well, if you think about it, it makes sense; people are subconsciously attracted to people similar to them, even if they-”

Newton’s ramble was interrupted by Ramsey leaning against his side, resting xyr head on his shoulder. He immediately froze, not used to this sort of contact. 

“I’m really glad I met you.” Xe said softly. 

He could feel his heart beating out of his chest, his face turning red with a bright blush. “Er- uh, same to you.” 

Ramsey remained quiet as xe rested by his side, leaving Newton with his own racing thoughts. He dared not move a muscle, almost forgetting to breathe at times. Was he doing this right? Should he put an arm around xem? Was he acting weird??

Upon building the courage to look down at xem, he felt at ease at the sight of xyr tranquil expression. He felt the weight and warmth of xyr body against his, and he started to realize just how good it felt. Ever so slowly, he leaned his head against xyrs, relishing in their closeness. 

“... Newton?” Ramsey spoke after a few minutes. 

Newton’s head shot up as he looked down at them “Y-Yeah?” 

Xe turned up to him, positioning xemself upwards as xe met his gaze. The look in xyr eyes was raw and vulnerable, seemingly peering into his soul with tender sincerity. 

“I love you.”

It was all Newton could do to stare back at xem, mouth agape in disbelief. Seeing the shock on his face, Ramsey withdrew. 

“But, if that freaks you out, that’s okay- you can forget I said it, I-”

“No! No no, its alright, really I-” he paused, taking a breath. “... I love you too.” 

The way xyr face lit up made Newton’s heart flutter. 

“That… Makes me really happy.” 

Ramsey shifted towards him, reaching xyr arm to cup his cheek. Feeling xyr breath against his face for just a moment, xe pressed xyr lips against his. The same fleeting feeling in his core from that night returned, but he found it lingering as xe almost seemed to ground him to the spot with xyr presence. He closed his eyes as he ran his hands up xyr back, returning the kiss.

Ramsey was gentle in xyr affection, grazing xyr lips on his in a chaste manner before pulling back. However, Newton brought his hand to the back of xyr head, continuing the kiss as he let himself express his pent up affection. The motion almost surprised himself as much as it did Ramsey, but xe returned the passion as xe clasped xyr hands around his jaw. With the weight of xyr body on his, he felt like he was on fire. He wanted to keep xem in his arms forever, he was addicted to how soft and warm xe was, the sounds that escaped xyr mouth as he caressed xyr skin. Their tongues slipped into each other’s mouths, savoring the taste of each other. 

He wanted xem. He wanted to be inside xem, he wanted to hold xem and love xem and make them feel so good-

“Newton.” Ramsey broke the kiss, trying to catch xyr breath. “Do…Do you wanna go all the way?”

For a brief moment, he was brought back to reality, processing the fantasies that burned in his mind just moments prior. 

“I-I uh, I mean- only if you want to.” He muttered sheepishly.

“I do. But only if you want to as well.” 

With his tongue tied by the escalation of the moment, Newton could only manage a nod in response.

“Okay.”

Xe shifted to Newton’s side, sliding xyr hand down his torso and grasping at his belt. He held his breath, eyes locked on xyr hand- and his growing erection. 

This was going to be one hell of a night. 

[sage-nebula]

Thinking about all the clues in canon that Susie is an orphan who, before the game started, never had any friends or anyone who really cared about her (with their care for her being known to her), such as:

— At the beginning of Chapter 2, Ralsei reveals that he has set up rooms for Susie and Kris in his castle, so that the Dark World can be like “a second home” to them. When Susie sees her room, she spends a moment marveling about how she has her own room and awkwardly asks Ralsei how long he spent setting it up for her. After that, she’s overjoyed about how cool it is, bragging about it to both Kris and Lancer. While it could be that she just likes the room, the emphasis she puts on it being her own room makes it seem like this might be the first time she’s ever had a room to herself. Which, to be fair, Kris shared their room with Asriel as well, but the room Kris shared with Asriel was still their room, at least on one side of it. If Susie is from a group home, it could be that she never even had that much to herself.

— Susie seems to care greatly for Toriel, but in Chapter 1 also seems a bit jealous of Kris for being Toriel’s child. In Chapter 1, after Susie threatens Kris about biting their face off, she stops and says, “Nah. Kris, you have a good mother. It’d be a shame to make her bury her child.” If you try to skip school instead of going to the closet after that, Susie stops Kris by saying, “If you skip school, your mother will have a heart attack.” In both cases, Susie is expressing care for Toriel’s emotional well-being; however much Susie might not care for others, she does care about Toriel enough to not want to stress her out. Keeping in mind that all of this happens before the first Dark World trip, it can’t be explained away by Susie’s character development like Susie’s eagerness to bake a pie with Toriel (and otherwise adherence and respect that she shows for Toriel) in Chapter 2 can.

But going along with that, when you follow Susie to the closet in Chapter 1, Susie mocks Kris by saying, “Not used to walking without someone holding your hand? Come on, freak.” Given the respect and care Susie has already shown for Toriel, it’s clear that her mocking of Kris here is not because Kris should be ashamed for holding Toriel’s hand; rather, it could be jealousy that Susie doesn’t have someone to do that for her, and perhaps never did. It’s easier to call Kris a freak for having a loving mother who holds their hand than it is to admit that she wishes she had the same.

As a final note on the Chapter 2 interactions, Susie is surprised that Toriel knows her name and remembers her. This, in addition to her eagerness to help out with the pie, her laughing at Toriel’s jokes, etc, shows that Susie has a fondness for Toriel, who is the most motherly character in the series. Considering that Toriel acts kind and motherly toward Susie, the idea that Susie might not have never had a mother (+ people to care about her) suggests that her fondness for Toriel (+ jealousy of Kris) contributes to how quickly she latches onto / how much she cares about Toriel.

— Susie eats chalk, and while this could be a “haha monster snack” joke, not only do we not see other monsters eating chalk (in fact, Noelle thinks Kris is lying to her if you choose to tell Noelle this about Susie at the end of Chapter 1), but eating chalk can be a sign of a nutrient deficiency. Specifically, craving chalk can be a result of an iron deficiency. If Susie is an orphan who hasn’t had parents to take care of her, then she could have an unbalanced / nutritionally deficient diet, and thus she does things like eat chalk in an effort to make up for it. (Her jeans are also ripped up, and while distressed jeans are cool, it’s also possible those are the only pants she has.)

— While the other kids in Alphys’ class openly detest Susie (e.g. laughing at Kris for being paired with her, warning Kris about possible death at Susie’s hands, refusing to hang out with Kris if Kris is hanging out with Susie, etc), Monster Kid tells a story to Kris in Chapter 1 that suggests that, at one time, Susie might have wanted to be friends with them. Specifically, if you talk to Monster Kid at the end of Chapter 1, Monster Kid tells Kris about a time when the kids from Alphys’ class (sans Kris) were playing kickball in the street. MK says that Susie was “standing in a corner” staring at them, but that when the ball did get kicked over to her, she froze before kicking it so hard that it hit Undyne’s car. Monster Kid doesn’t say what Susie did after that (only that Alphys came out and kicked all their asses at the game), but does go on to insult Susie some more, and notes that Kris looks increasingly annoyed at the insults. Regardless, the thing to take away from this story here is that Susie was watching all the other kids play, and froze when the ball came to her. She kicked it . . . and it hit Undyne’s car. Monster Kid’s retelling of the story suggests that they and the other kids thought that Susie did that on purpose, but my interpretation (knowing Susie as I do now, and also knowing what it’s like to watch other kids play while not feeling invited to play yourself) suggests that it was probably an accident. Susie wanted to play and be included, but accidentally kicked the ball into the car, and was thought of as a freak and bully after despite her actual intentions.

— To that end, at the start of Chapter 1 Susie is pretty blatantly of the opinion that everyone hates her and wants her to get kicked out of school. She flat out says as much to Kris in front of the lockers at the start of the chapter. (“Everyone wants it. Everyone’s waiting for it.”) It’s not only the other students, either; Alphys is afraid of Susie and uses any opportunity she can to get Susie out of class, which would explain why Susie doesn’t hold nearly the same care or respect for her that she does for Toriel, someone who actually did care about and treat Susie with kindness.

— Susie expresses shock when Lancer wants to be like her / wants to be her friend, and in turn, latches onto him with fierce loyalty that is only momentarily shaken when she thinks he’s betrayed her (and she even reasons that with, “why would anyone want to be my friend?”). That line, suggesting that she feels stupid for thinking Lancer would want to be her friend, points to a friendless background. But her fierce loyalty to anyone who shows her even a bit of kindness also shows just how incredibly lonely she is. In fact, if we think about it, the people who Susie latches onto are those who have shown her some big act of kindness before:

Noelle: Lent Susie the candy cane pencil and smiled at her. Considering how the other kids in Alphys’ class treat Susie, the simple act of lending a pencil with a smile probably seemed like a huge act of kindness to her.

Toriel: Acts motherly toward Susie, as she does with all her students. Might not be special treatment in the grand scheme, but it’s special to Susie who typically doesn’t get that treatment from others.

Lancer: Said that he wanted to be like Susie, that he found Susie cool, wanted monogrammed track jackets with her, etc. Actually wanted to be Susie’s friend and appreciated her.

Kris: Defended Susie from the King’s attack. Note that although Susie was working with Kris before this, she wasn’t to the level of calling Kris her friend before Kris defended Susie. Also note that this is not an action that we, the player, make Kris do; Kris does it on their own regardless of the choices the player makes.

Ralsei: Healed Susie’s injured leg after Susie fell from the trash heap in Chapter 2. Granted, Susie was being nice to Ralsei before that and seemed to consider him a friend (enough), but it was only after Ralsei went out of his way to heal Susie’s injury and offered to teach her healing magic that she yoinked him off to spend time alone with him in the city and wanted to bust out of prison to find him when she thought he was being tortured in Queen’s Castle. Ralsei showed Susie some dedicated kindness, Susie latched on for life.

The fact that it takes on gesture of care on someone else’s part for Susie to be willing to kill for a person suggests that not only has Susie not had friends before, but perhaps that her feelings of loneliness were mixed with rejection to the point where she latches on fiercely to these people who care for her and doesn’t let them go.

— In addition to all this, although Susie latches on strongly, she also seems to be worried about losing those connections, too. When Lancer seemingly betrayed her, she said “why would anyone want to be friends with me?” When they returned from the Dark World, Susie hesitantly asks Kris if they’ll still be friends even if it turns out the Dark World was just a dream (well, she doesn’t finish the thought, but it’s clear that’s what she was about to ask before she fled). In the Snowgrave Route, when Noelle flees Kris at the hospital, Susie assumes Noelle is fleeing because of her and expresses dismay that Noelle is “scared of [her] again.” Susie’s default is that people fear or hate her and will run at the first opportunity despite how she tries to keep them close, which again speaks to a history of loneliness and rejection.

— Susie got banned from Free Ham Sandwich Day. This is a throwaway joke line, but if you consider that Susie might be an orphan with food insecurity, it could be less that she was just stuffing her face to be a pig and more that she was eating as much as she could because she didn’t know when she’d be able to eat again. Considering that she also eats things like chalk, candy cane pencils, apple-scented shampoo, and moss . . . well, the idea that Susie is food insecure doesn’t seem too far-fetched. (Kris also eats moss if the player makes them, yes, but the player has to choose that. Susie just does it on her own.)

Anyway, none of this is Conclusive Evidence, of course, but I think there’s a lot to suggest that Susie could very well be an orphan possibly living in a group home, and that she’s never really had the love of family or friends before the game started. Her aggression is defensive aggression more than anything else and it’s pretty clear that she just wants to be loved and give love in return. Susie’s fantastic and I can’t wait to see what more we learn about her as the game goes on.

[the-ferocious-kittyrose]

My complicated opinion on Keith Kogane

Keith Kogane is definitely one of the more popular characters in the VLD fandom. People love brooding emo bad boys.

My feelings on Keith are... complicated. I definitely don’t hate him. I have a lot of problems with the character but I don’t think I could ever bring myself to actually hate him. Mainly because I kinda relate to him. We both have problems controlling our emotions, interacting with people, and making friends.

And we both have trouble believing there are people who truly have our best interests at heart and won’t abandon us because we’re a burden.

What I do hate is the way his character was written and the way it negatively impacted the characters around him.

There are definitely a lot of factors that contributed to VLD ending up the way it did. But to me, Keith and the writers insistence on pushing him to the forefront was the poison that killed the show.

Ok, before we get into this whole rant I feel like I should talk about the things I do like about Keith.

I like the premise of Keith’s character. He’s half Galra and never really fit in on Earth. He didn’t act like the other “normal” kids so kids made fun of him and adults didn’t want to deal with him. So in order to protect himself from the pain of rejection he would put up a tough angry facade and push people away and reject them before they could reject him.

This is something that really resonates with me personally having grown up neurodivergent. It’s awful growing up in a world that isn’t made for people like you and not knowing how to interact with or connect with your peers. Especially when you don’t know why you’re like that.

You learn to avoid social interaction because it always ends up negative. You put up walls because you don’t feel like anybody understands you or what you’re going through.

I know the writers probably didn’t intend to code Keith as neurodivergent. They just wanted Keith to be a hothead with abandonment issues, but nonetheless, this interpretation means a lot to me.

I also really like his relationship with Shiro. Keith is so used to being left behind and abandoned that when he meets someone like Shiro who’s patient and genuinely cares it’s new and strange. He’s so ready for Shiro to abandon him, even telling Shiro to send him back to the home, but Shiro refuses to leave him and tells Keith ethat he’s never going to give up on him.

It’s also interesting to see how their relationship develops over time. It’s clear Keith trusts Shiro, but you can tell that that fear of abandonment is still there deep down. In S2, Keith tells Shiro that he’s like a brother to him, and then in season 6, he takes the extra step and tells Shiro that he IS his brother and that he loves him. And for someone like Keith, telling their friend they love them is a big scary thing.

And also it’s just great to see a platonic “I love you,” especially between two guys. Don’t be afraid to tell your bros you love them!!!

Now let’s talk about the stuff I didn’t like.

Keith doesn’t have much going for him in terms of personality. He’s just sorta brooding and serious all the time. He does make jokes occasionally but it’s rare. The writers were more focused on making him cool and badass rather than fun.

I always loved the idea of Keith as a cocky carefree asshole who doesn’t give a shit about rules/laws and is kinda rude/aggressive but has a heart of gold deep down and would do anything for the people he cares about. (Just like a cat.)

I would also make him more alien esc. In terms of design I like the idea of Keith having red eyes with narrow pupils and fangs. And also just small things like the way he walks and holds himself. He growls and bears his teeth when he’s angry, his hair puffs up when scared, he’s fast and agile, disappearing and reappearing without making much noise, small things.

Then you have his race and sexuality. I have no doubt in my mind that Keith was intended to be a straight white dude. A lot of people see him as gay and Asian but there’s no evidence for this in canon. Acxa was originally intended to be his love interest and his race was never mentioned in canon. His name isn’t even Kogane in canon. (And the race of the voice actor doesn’t equal the race of the character. If that was the case Shiro, Hunk, and Lance would be white.)

They should’ve totally made Keith Japanese like he was in the original. It would’ve been so easy! Just canonize Kogane as his last name and have the book say he’s half Japanese half Galra. They could’ve also done what they did with Shiro and keep his og GoLion name. Just have him be Akira Kogane. Definitely cooler than “Keith.”

And as for his sexuality, I definitely think they should’ve had Keith be gay. But well get to that Later...

I also don’t like how they handled the whole Krolia thing. Not only was it crazy rushed, but it completely goes against the shows theme of found family.

Keith’s arc should’ve been about overcoming his abandonment issues and learning to accept the paladins as family. But instead they just get rid of the abandonment issues by just giving him his mom back.

I know a lot of people love Krolia but I don’t feel like she should’ve been introduced in anything other than flashbacks. Because Keith’s mom isn’t really that important. The show is about found family and friendship, not blood relation.

You can definitely have Keith learn about his mom and his family, but I feel like giving him his mom back was too much.

Personally, I always headcanoned that Kolivan was Keith’s grandfather or just a close friend of Krolia’s, and when Keith showed up at the Blade’s base Kolivan recognized the blade as his Krolia’s. Keith could learn about his mom through Kolivan telling him about her, how she was a great person and warrior who died fighting to make the universe a safer place for her son.

Another thing I didn’t like was the whole Keith leaving the team for the Blades thing. I know why he did it, he felt like the team was gonna reject him, he wanted to be more useful, and wanted to learn about his family, but I feel like you could’ve touched on all that without having him abandon his team.

One of the biggest problems with the show is that they did a bad job at establishing the paladins as friends, they feel like coworkers more than anything, and I feel like Keith being absent for two seasons contributed to that.

And his absence is hardly addressed. The team forms Voltron perfectly without him and no one ever says they miss him. Keith doesn’t even seem like he missed them after being gone for two years.

And a lot of the weight was taken out of that Keith v Kuron fight by the fact that Keith and Kuron hardly interacted.

That whole thing amounted to four things, Keith meeting Krolia (which I don’t think should’ve happened), them finding the colony (which was a dumb plot I don’t think should’ve happened), Keith aging up two years (which was weird and unnecessary), and Keith meeting Kosmo (which is... complicated).

I don’t think this plot was necessary. Keith should’ve stayed with his team.

Then you have his relationship with Lance. I know people are very sensitive about this topic. People have very strong opinions about whether or not Keith and Lance were intended to be romantically coded.

Personally, I do like Klance but I don’t believe they were romantically coded. I think if you want them to get together some things would have to go differently.

For example, the bonding moment. In canon, Lance tells Keith, “we make a good team.” I don’t see this as referring to him and Keith. I think he was talking about the whole team. If you want it to be about the two of them, I feel like it should be Lance telling Keith something like, “ya know, you’re not so bad after all,” and then Keith smiles and responds, “you’re not so bad yourself.”

Another example could be the scene where Lance comes to Keith with his insecurities. (Whether it’s as a leader or a friend.) This scene was weird in canon, Lance comes to Keith for advice and Keith basically tells him to just stop thinking about it.

I would prefer if Lance brought up to Keith how he doesn’t feel like he’s good enough or that he doesn’t have, “a thing,” and Keith is completely dumbfounded like, “what are you even talking about?” He goes on about all the good shit about Lance. Talks about how Blue chose him, how he’s a great shot, how he’s good at dealing with people, meanwhile Lance is standing there in shock as Keith says all these nice things about him.

Over all you would just have to develop their relationship more. More meaningful interactions. And if you want the relationship to be romantic you would have to establish that early on. Establish that one or both has romantic feelings for the other in like S1/S2 because if you wait too long it’s gonna feel forced/out of no where.

And then... you have the Black Paladin arc... I’m gonna be real with y’all, this is the arc that killed the show for me, for a few reasons.

One, even ignoring the whole quintessence bond thing, it makes no sense for Keith to be the bp. He doesn’t fit the role. I adore Shiro but choosing Keith as his successor was a dumb move. I get that he saw potential in Keith but they’re are fighting a war, there’s no room for favoritism.

Shiro should’ve chosen Allura as his successor. Not only does she have actual leadership experience, but you would only have one paladin in a new Lion instead of three.

If a lifeguard breaks his leg and can’t work, he should choose an experienced swimmers to take his place, not his little bro that’s still in water wings in the hopes that it’ll teach him to swim.

Two, Keith being the bp doesn’t help his arc. Keith’s arc is about overcoming his abandonment issues and learning to be a team player, he doesn’t need to be the leader for that.

VLD should’ve been about the paladins growing into the best versions of themselves they could be. Their development shown by unlocking new abilities in their respective lions, new forms for their bayards, and new Voltron bayard power ups. They shouldn’t have to change lions and themselves.

Keith and Red have a strong bond and work great together. Keith and Red are both temperamental, unpredictable, and have issues with trust. Keith having to fight to get Red to trust and open up to him mirrors how others have to fight to earn Keith’s trust and get him to let down his walls.

It would’ve been interesting to see them grow together. Keith has no emotional connection with Black.

We never even get to see them bond. Keith just suddenly becomes the “perfect” bp/leader because he got over his mommy issues

Three, it’s a MASSIVE disservice to Shiro’s character. Shiro put all the work in earning his position as the bp, he literally fits fought Zarkon on the astral plane to earn her trust, yet Keith is the true bp? What?

It sucks. Sendak told Shiro that a monster like him could never be a paladin and the writers went and proved him right. Hell Shiro didn’t even get to kill Sendak, Keith got that too.

And don’t tell me, “but he got the Atlas!” REALLY!? A massive Deus ex machina that required absolutely no effort from him to acquire!? Filled with a bunch of rando background characters no one gives a shit about!? You’re totally right, that 100% makes up for it.

I could go on and on about how the treatment of Shiro in this show (and fandom) is blatantly ableist but that’s a rant for another time.

It sucks. I want to like Keith! He had the potential to be an amazing character but the writers just kept on trying to turn him into something he wasn’t and it ruined him for me.

They kept trying to turn Keith into the main character and ignored that ALL the paladins are the main characters. It’s an ensemble cast! You don’t have to have everything come back to one guy.

[deathcelot]

This is a selection of OC from the roleplay game. The RPG has recently celebrated 2 years, which for me, as a little stuffy player, is an incredible record, coupled with gratitude to the co-player. Thanks for your hard work and patience, Rose! :D Most of these people are third-rate and you would probably soon forget about them when reading the text, however, I believe extras and their contribution to the story are as important elements as the activities and interactions of the main characters. At the end of a day, without them any plot turns out to be implausible and even “dead”, especially when the baseline of a story is a long journey around the world. I’d like to share abstracts where OC’s made their first appearance: A guy from Hokuto: “…A young stocky man, casually and loosely dressed in a local shinobi uniform, without due care not about ammunition, but about the Hidden Leafe’s honour. His bright and shining eyes wanted to see real battle landscapes, which will certainly be saved in legends and parables, but not the homogeneous streets of Hokuto or dormant faces of guards at their posts”. Yūjo: “...Behind the cool shadow in the depths of a hallway a yūjo of a nondescript look and unadorned appearance spent her day. Her silhouette could easily melt away from one's memory as if she had a face of an ideal pickpocket. She looked guests up and down with her blurred sight, her eyes tired, oily and unnatural. She had no curiosity to light her eyes, and then she uttered a greeting memorized by heart so indifferently, that it would be better not to hear it at all”. Izakaya owner: “…The sound of someone else’s steps was lost against the background of conversations spilling in the izakaya. Sayaka noticed the woman who was carrying the dishes on a large wooden board. Her movements were light; she shifted steps in the stream of people scurrying back and forth. There was a lot of mischief and warmth in her amiable tone”. A Mustached dick: “...He was a short, skinny man in a kinagashi of a fermented in a sun wine shade, contrasting with a haori, loosely lying on his shoulders with a cape of colourful stripes crossing each other. The man was sitting on top of a shabby basket, surrounded by broken crockery made of a dark clay and well-cut fabrics torn to tatters, smoking kisera and looking strangely peaceful for a devastating situation”.

[proxyedgy]

Today is April 6th!

To celebrate this wonderful occasion, here are 33 Hakumen fun facts:

1. Hakumen’s mask can come off, but nobody knows what his face looks like. Indeed, this may very well had been retconned after the first game and we’re none the wiser

2. Hakumen’s sword, Ookami, is over 2 metres long, being actually taller than Hakumen himself. You know what they say about samurai with long swords...

They can do some badass poses

3. Hakumen has 16 eyes. Not a single one of them is on his face

4. Hakumen is Toshimichi Mori’s favourite character, making him the worst Blazblue character by default

5. Hakumen approaches every situation with almost mechanical detachment, as he has perfected the art of being a dick

6. Despite everything, Hakumen still cares for the other Six Heroes. Yes, including Terumi. Especially Terumi. Don’t believe anyone that tells you otherwise

7. Hakumen's hobbies are unknown, as he doesn’t like anything, but some say he bakes sweets in his spare time

8. Hakumen is the only character in Continuum Shift not to have an alternate gag ending, since he’s boring af

9. In every game of the franchise, Hakumen’s plot relevance changes. By the time CentralFiction comes around, his only contribution is to die so Terumi can become the cishets’ favourite main

10. Before the 2.0 update to Cross Tag, Hakumen would speak Japanese in his special interaction with the Six Heroes, despite whatever vocal settings the game had for him. He could do that because he’s Hakumen, and he doesn’t give a fuck about your voice settings

11. My friend has asked me at least three times what the hell this hole in Hakumen’s armour is for

I still don’t have a good answer to that

12. In the main series, Hakumen only has three files for in-game portraits, because emoting is for the weak

13. The only thing Hakumen players know is to press D. Yes, they’re winging everything else, the goddamn menaces

14. In CentralFiction there is no Unlimited Hakumen

but he got this new move instead which is arguably worse

15. Hakumen’s sword can cut through projectiles. Because fuck you that’s why

16. The Hakumen at the end of Terumi’s arcade in ChronoPhantasma is not real but the pain and suffering he caused me when I first started playing are

17. I only defeated this bitch with the “deny Astral Heats” ability and I’m still salty about it

what the hell was I supposed to do, grab the bastard?

18. HAKUMEN is sometimes written as HAKU-MEN or HAKU=MEN in the games. Nobody knows why

19. Hakumen shares his voice actor (David Vincent in English, Kakihara Tetsuya in Japanese) with Jin Kisaragi, much to the surprise of the 7 people that bought Cross Tag without knowing Blazblue

20. Hakumen’s name can be translated as “white mask", but you can also read it as “white noodles” if you want, no one’s gonna stop you

21. Technically Hakumen and Jin Kisaragi should not be able to exist at the same time, but since Hakumen is really cool he gets a pass (Jin is on thin fucking ice though)

22. Although some think the insides of Hakumen’s armour are silent, the little horns on the sides of his helmet are, in fact, antennas, so he’s always tuned into the radio. He can’t turn it off

23. Some of Hakumen’s sprites have his hair as a separate object

The first time I saw this one in particular I almost had a heart attack

24. At the time of the Dark War, the OLN wanted to capture the Six Heroes, but never went through it because Hakumen scared them (no, really)

25. Hakumen has a technique called Time Killer, which “strips a target of all their remaining time in the world and instantly kills them”. Anybody could achieve the same result by stabbing their opponent, but Hakumen trademarked the term, so he’s technically the only one who knows it

26. After losing to Hakumen many, many times in my first playthrough of Calamity Trigger, every single time I see this portrait without fail I will say:

“stick that damn sword up your ass” 

27. Hakumen is currently only at 20% of his usual jerkassery, and he better stay that way if he knows what’s good for him

28. When Taokaka steals food from Hakumen, he drops a tiny Pakumen-shaped foodstuff, though it’s anybody’s guess as to where exactly it comes from

29. When electrocuted, Hakumen’s sprite has no body inside the Unit, so the “white void” part of his speech is probably not metaphorical

30. Hakumen’s speech also has a funny quirk in that every time he says it I can feel my soul leaving this earthly vessel, just for it to be drawn back through sheer force of anger

31. In gameplay, Hakumen’s techniques are named after nature, seasons and Buddhism, as he denounced his Catholic upbringing after donning the Unit

32. Hakumen is canonically British, as if we needed any more reasons to hate him already

33. Finally, for the last fun fact, I would like to remind everyone that Terumi is very much jealous of Hakumen’s enormous, beautiful, honking great knockers

and that’s why he stole the Unit back.

[ratingflavourtext]

Rating the Flavor Text of  MTG Cards: Part 1: Introduction and Criteria

I think in many ways writing flavor text is one of the most underappreciated arts in games. When people talk about the stories and narratives of games that aren’t Dark Souls, they usually don’t care about the words about an item that don’t relate to it’s ability to do things in the game.

There is a temptation when no one seems to care about a thing to simply do nothing with it, or to not put thought into how you fill a space that you might assume no one would look at. I think that there are many writers who have, conversely, stepped up to the challenge of telling small, often contained stories, jokes or lore tidbits.

Because there are actually a decent amount of people who read flavor text. Just like there are people who will explore every nook and cranny of a game, or just like there are people who don’t read the quests when they take them in MMORPGS. There are speed runners who turn games into a cross between an engineering puzzle and an Olympic sport. A single game can have many facets which not all players will value or interact with the same way.

The best place to start to prove the value of flavor text is Magic the Gathering. However, since telling magic fans that flavor text is cool is tantamount to telling the pope that you think god exists, my other goal in this is to highlight flavor text that can get missed in the shuffle. We all know the Feldons and the Obliterates, but I hope to highlight more obscure cards with some good flavor.

You may now be asking how I am qualified to definitively rank Magic Flavor Text. The answer is: I’m not. I have no license, but at the same time I cannot be stopped. You don’t have the power to stop me from doing this wildly unimportant job no one asked for.

But enough preamble. Here is the criteria I will be rating cards by:

Each card will be given a score.from 1 to 10, with 1 being poor and 10 being good. Cards start at a rating of 5 and can gain or lose points from there. I will attempt to make this less arbitrary by listing the ways cards can gain and lose points. A card can gain or lose up to 5 points for any one feature. 

Generally I will be pressing the random button on scryfall until I hit a card. I’ll make a post with that card and it’s scoresheet, and I’ll release multiple of those posts at once.

I will also be including commentary to justify my decisions and also tally the points the cards gained and lost.

A card can gain points by:

- Evoking Emotion (Humor, Sadness, Joy, etc)

- Adding depth to a card’s story or abilities

- Creating an atmosphere that is conducive to the atmosphere of the set it’s in.

- Having or being part of a well formed narrative

- Teaching us something about the world or character

- Is memorable in it’s own right

A card can lose points by:

- Evoking Emotion (Rage, Bafflement, Irritation, etc)

- Making a card or the story more shallow, boring or otherwise worse

- Contributing to a bad storyline or otherwise breaking established cannon or rules in a discordant way.

- Being incongruous with the set

- Being overly wordy

- Confusing us about the world or character

To show you a few examples.

Rune Snag -

Transcription: “Concentration is key. Without it, a mage conjures nothing but a splitting headache.” —Zur the Enchanter

Commentary: At first I was somewhat pleased with the flavor text on this card. It has some clever wordplay and a reference to a known magic character. I like that it explains it’s own effect: It breaks spells by disrupting the concentration of the spellcaster.

However one thing bothers me is that Zur says this, and it seems like the sort of thing that any spellcaster would say. This is the sort of flavor text which helps us understand the world at the expense of obscuring one of it’s characters. I’ve played magic for 8-9 years and I know basically nothing about Zur, and even less now that I’ve read this flavor text.

Ultimately, though, I think the neat things this card does outweighs the one hurdle it stumbles. But not by all that much.

Rating: 6/10

Score Breakdown: 

-1 point for confusing us about a character

+1 point for teaching us about the world

+1 point for adding depth to a card’s abilities

Daemogoth Titan -

Transcription: “Of course it offered you power. Demons always do. But trust me—the sweeter the prize, the more ruinous the price.” —Professor Onyx

Commentary: That is how you do a quote from an established character. For those who don’t know, Professor Onyx is Liliana Vess in disguise on the world of Strixhaven, basically magical College but without the crippling debt. And she is very much speaking from experience. Liliana made a pact with demons for immortality, so it’s good to see her telling students not to make the same mistakes.

It’s very heartening to see actual character development in a flavor text. Long running games like magic have a temptation to keep things in a sort of stasis, where characters broadly never change or do anything different. So seeing some sort of steps in a new direction for a character is very nice to see.

This is really well executed. It doesn’t quite have the 10/10 perfection, but it’s really well formed.

Score: 9/10

Score Breakdown: 

+4 points for adding depth to a character

--------

Anyway, that’s the two examples for now. If you want to dispute the ratings, or tell me what the heck is going on with Zur then please do so. I may actually come to re-rate cards if there’s enough demand for a re-appraisal, though only if I feel it’s justified. I’ll also feature the responses that convinced me if I do so.

[ashengro-tto]

hello! hope it's okay to ask for more than one? otherwise you can answer the ones you'd prefer to! ♥️♠️🦑👑🐱

Hi! It is more than okay to ask for more than one hehe

[ the rest are under the cut ]

[ also I’m bad at summarizing my thoughts so if the jumps between points feel weird, that’s why ]

[ ALSO also I’m sorry this took so long to be finished (lol) ]

Marlowe & Ace ♥️

Best Friend / Headache #1

Their first meeting was not the best (yes, it’s the same as our canon first meeting with Ace)

Marlowe felt very offended that he would even think of saying stuff like that to their face. “Ignorant”? “Go back to kindergarten”? They don’t like being looked down on, especially when it comes to things like intellect

...Okay, maybe those insults were directed primarily at Grim, but Marlowe felt hurt too!

They’ve had to deal with a great number of terrible personalities in the past, and so, they were able to keep their cool. Grim, however...well, you know how it goes

After a while though, his asshole-ness simply turned into annoying-ness, and Marlowe was able to just brush it off as Typical Ace Behavior

When Ace isn’t being a dick, they get along great! Marlowe’s pretty playful, and a bit of a trickster as well, so the two like to play harmless pranks on the other first years from time to time

And by other first years I mean mostly Deuce. Marlowe apologizes afterwards. Ace does not

Ace likes to tease Marlowe about how badly they’re adjusting to NRC school life (and also their abysmal history and PE grades) but it’s okay because they tease him back about how they’re better at alchemy than him

Hanging out with a guy like Ace who just screams Typical Teenage Boy feels really refreshing to Marlowe

Ace asks a lot of questions, partially because he’s genuinely curious about where Marlowe’s from, but mostly because they told him not to and he knows it annoys them. Marlowe knows he’s doing it to be annoying, so it’s more bearable

Marlowe admires Ace’s bravery (though some might call it recklessness). It was during chapter one, when he stood up to Riddle, that they really felt that “oh, this guy is really cool” feeling. Ace’s willingness to stand up for what he believes in inspires Marlowe to do the same

Marlowe & Deuce ♠️

Best Friend / Headache #2

Their first meeting was also the same as the one in-game

After Deuce summoned the cauldron and dropped it on Ace’s head, Marlowe actually screamed “WHAT THE FUCK” out loud. They don’t swear often, which goes to show how shocked they were

They gave him a very stern lecture about how dangerous that was, how he could have shattered Ace’s skull, how other people could have been injured as well...Deuce felt like he was being scolded by his mother

Don’t even get them started on the heart attack they had when Deuce flung Ace onto the chandelier

After getting to know him a bit better, Marlowe starts liking him a lot more

They adore his decision to leave his delinquent past behind! Marlowe greatly values learning and education, so they’re willing to support him every step of the way

Study buddies!

Their study sessions often turn into tutoring sessions, though, with Marlowe having to explain the lesson to him, but they don’t mind. They’re very patient, and also good at simplifying terms without taking away from their meaning, so Deuce learns pretty quickly with them

They feel a small sense of pride whenever he comes to them showing off his test scores (still low, but certainly an improvement)

The headache part mostly comes from when his Bad Boy Mode activates

Marlowe doesn’t like violence. They recognize that progress isn’t linear, and of course Deuce is going to...go back to the way he was at times, but they urge him to keep his calm and remember that “violence is never the solution”

Ohh, Marlowe was so disappointed when they found out he, Ace, and Grim went to Azul in chapter three. They didn’t even need to scold the three of them, their eyes said it all

Deuce felt the guiltiest, since Marlowe was always the one telling him not to cut corners. He felt extra guilty knowing how much Marlowe hated Azul. They take so much time out of their schedule to help him study, and he goes and asks for help from the one they hate most...!

What Marlowe loves most about Deuce is his willingness to learn and change. He was able to realize that his past actions were hurting his mother, and grew as a person because of it. He’s still growing, and learning to be someone his mother can be proud of, which is something Marlowe greatly respects and admires

Marlowe & Azul 🦑

Answered here!

Marlowe & Vil 👑

They’re actually pretty close!

They’re in the same club, so they interact quite frequently

Vil originally wanted them to try acting in one of the films he was in the process of making. He handed them the script, gave them some props, and the cameras started rolling

Marlowe’s attempts at acting were not good. The delivery of the lines was stilted, their movements stiff. Multiple times they had accidentally dropped the props. They had no clue why they did so terribly, they’re usually good at this kind of stuff. Maybe it was because there were cameras on them?

Vil eventually moved them to the costume department, just so they could contribute even a little bit

Marlowe’s very interested in magical pharmaceuticals. They love learning about how magic intertwines with medicine, and Vil is more than happy to teach them

Vil often scolds Marlowe for not following the skincare routine he’s provided for them, but Marlowe’s not used to such fancy products and strict routines...they really can’t keep up, no matter how hard they try

There’s a lot he nags them for, actually. Their fashion sense (he’s the one who styled their uniform), their diet (it’s not their fault Crowley doesn’t give them enough money for good food), and their sleeping habits (they’re not used to sleeping early, or sleeping a lot) just to name a few

Marlowe likes a lot of things about Vil. He’s hardworking and confident, but most importantly, he helps the people around him

Vil pushes people to work hard so they can reach their full potential and go from a dirty potato to a shining red apple. He isn’t just concerned with his own self-improvement, but the growth and development of others as well. Even if others don’t put in the effort, he still keeps pushing because he never gives up

Marlowe originally thought he’d be a selfish, crab-mentality kind of person, so finding out that he actually wants to see others around him prosper was a surprise, but a welcomed one nonetheless

What they dislike is his method of doing so. Marlowe is very much a kind, gentle person who believes real change shouldn’t come from brute force. They always feel a little annoyed when he acts so harsh towards others

Marlowe & Grim 🐱

Best Friend / Headache SUPREME (yes, he surpasses numbers)

Marlowe called him a “disease-ridden raccoon” when they first saw him, which Grim did not take kindly to

Imagine the Prologue, but all the player choices have an “insult Grim” option

When they found out that they would have to be two halves of one student in order to attend NRC, Marlowe groaned internally. They did not like the little troublemaking furball one bit

All he did was bring misfortune! Their first NRC experience could have gone a lot smoother if he hadn’t caused so much trouble! Disturbing the entrance ceremony, burning an important statue, the chandelier fiasco...randomly waking up in a new world was stressful enough, all that just made things even worse

Honestly, their first few weeks together were terrible. It was all bickering, arguing, snide comments...the ghosts in Ramshackle seriously considered relocating

As time went on, however, the two slowly grew on each other

Marlowe is Grim’s henchman! They buy him food, help him study, and scratch that one part behind his ears to help him fall asleep (which he totally doesn’t like, absolutely not)

Grim is Marlowe’s familiar! He protects them from danger, helps clean around the dorm (if bribed with enough tuna), and looks so cute when he’s sprawled out snoring on the makeshift cat bed they made him

Eventually the arguments turned into playful banter. Marlowe would nag him for not doing his homework, Grim would complain about it, then Marlowe would nag him for complaining, so on so forth

What Marlowe appreciates most about Grim is...his company. He was the first one they met in this strange new world. They both have no place to call home, no family to call their own. All they have is each other, so Marlowe’s really thankful for his company, even if he can be a little annoying at times

Marlowe would never admit it, but they’ve grown so attached to the little monster. They can’t imagine life in Twisted Wonderland without him...but don’t tell him they think that! He’ll never shut up about it!

[radramblog]

Halo Through its Guns: Reach

The year is 2010. Bungie has one final game left on their contract with Microsoft before they can make something that isn’t Halo. They were going to make it count.

Reach is the last Halo game that Bungie developed, and the latest non-numbered entry in the series that’s still a First-Person Shooter (unless Infinite dropped the 6?). It came at a time where FPS games were at the height of their popularity, when they dominated living rooms and the fledgling days of e-sports, before the rise of MOBAs and mobile games and the like.

The game is a reflection of all of this. It’s a mirror to both the franchise past and those others that sprung up in its wake. It’s a deliberately different game in story, aesthetic, and play to the others around it. And it’s proof that Bungie’s developers as a whole really loved working on this series, seeing as they put so much into their final entry.

As per usual, I think you can use the weapons as a lens into the game. As such, this is Halo: Reach through its gun- the Grenade Launcher.

In order to talk about Halo: Reach, we have to talk about Call of Duty. I know, I don’t like it either.

2009 and 2010 were the height of what could be referred to as the Halo/Call of Duty rivalry. Halo 3 was still huge, ODST had just released, with the franchise arguably at its peak of popularity- but Call of Duty was faring similarly, with the incredibly popular Modern Warfare releasing the same year as Halo 3 and the series sill riding the high of Modern Warfare 2 in 2009. Moreover, Halo: Reach and Call of Duty: Black Ops were set for release within the same few months of 2010. In effect, if you were, like me, a preteen middle class dude who had touched an Xbox controller before, you had to have an opinion about which one is better. Lines were drawn in the sand over which you preferred (with the other clearly being dirt), though CoD had the advantage of not being a console exclusive.

To those unfamiliar with shooty mans games, the two franchises look incredibly similar, but this isn’t especially true. Call of Duty is what many refer to as a “twitch shooter”, with an increased emphasis on reflexes and map awareness. Engagements between players are typically much shorter owing to their increased fragility, with much more weapons being able to kill in one or two hits. A melee is always a kill in CoD, whereas in Halo that’s only true if you catch someone from behind.

In place of the weapon sandbox from more classic shooters (like Halo), the CoD games of the era featured a huge range of customization options in the form of Loadouts. This kind of completely changes how weapons are treated in the series- since you can spawn in with any weapon in the game, the idea of a “power weapon” cannot exist for game balance, and so traditionally powerful weapons like sniper rifles and grenade launchers are significantly weaker than they’d be in other games. This, combined with the restriction that the guns have to be, you know, real actual guns that exist, makes the guns all kind of blend together. Most of the time, the differences are statistical rather than functional, and minor at that. I’m not saying this is an inherently worse way to go about things, but it’s very different, and something that will likely determine how much you enjoy either franchise.

This brings us to Reach. Bungie was very obviously aware of Call of Duty’s design at this point- they’d already been outsold by Activision twice- but I’m not sure anyone was expecting them to so deliberately change the way their own series works as a result. While obviously the game is still Halo, the way the gameplay has been facelifted in Reach is a clear reflection of the influence of the franchise’s primary competitors.

The biggest, most clear divide is in the massive complexity increases with weapons both old and new. Especially seeing as Reach heralded the final, permanent removal of dual wielding from the franchise, individual weapons were enabled to be more differentiated as a result. Looking at the new weapons from the game, only one of them could be argued as “basic”, and that’s the DMR- yet that’s also a major change, as it replaces the series’s now iconic Battle Rifle, having a longer range and scope to allow the Magnum to reclaim some of its former glory at medium/close range now that it’s been buffed and scoped once again.

I shit you not, every single one of these weapons is fucking odd. The Plasma Repeater’s fire rate slows as heats up, making it worse in an extended firefight, but you can press the reload button to vent it out it a pinch. The Needle Rifle features the Supercombine effect from the Needler on a longer range weapon, with the 3-bodyshot explosion making it much stronger in the hands of less experienced players. The Plasma Launcher echoes the Spartan Laser, but fires homing Plasma Grenades and allows versatility in how much you charge it up. The Beam Rifle has been replaced by the Focus Rifle, a long-range…Sentinel Beam? I dunno I’m not a huge fan of the Focus Rifle actually.

And then there’s the Grenade Launcher. The most obvious comparison to Call of Duty the game has. Modern Warfare 2 had an underbarrel Grenade Launcher available as an option for many primary weapons, with its quick switch option and instant-kill potential earning it the nickname of the “N00b Tube”. Bungie, on the other hand, nicknamed their Grenade Launcher the “Pro Pipe” and it shows in the gameplay. It has effectively two firing modes, requires very precise aim and timing to use most effectively, can shut down vehicles, and most importantly won’t be one-shotting anything anytime soon. It can be used to flush out enemies behind corners, as a trip-mine in objective-based gamemodes, and if you’re good, can even work very well against airborne opponents.

Speaking of airborne opponents, the Grenade Launcher interacts very interesting with most of the game’s new addition of Armor Abilities. Just about every gamemode has multiple available to spawn with, and they all work great in different situations. Unfortunately, just about all of them paled in usage compared to the Sprint ability and Jetpack- Halo not having an increased speed option was a deliberate choice, which Sprint really messes with, making it typically the best option. And Jetpack is so utterly insane for mobility, especially when you’re playing a game with powerful weapons in far-off spots. The Armor Abilities replaced the Equipment from 3, and I’m ultimately not sure how I feel about it. They did, however, contribute to something else, which we’ll get to in a moment.

Before that, I want to talk about factions. Much of Halo 2’s weaponry was dedicated to parallelising the UNSC and Covenant loadouts, to make going between Chief and the Arbiter easier, and 3 continued this with the Brute weapons. By contrast, Reach goes out of its way to deparallelise the two factions, deliberately making the two play slightly differently. You can still pair them up (though some of those are kinda a stretch), but there’s enough difference between each pairing that each weapon feels different, which especially makes playing as a Spartan or an Elite a subtly changed experience.

This is all (arguably) in service of what I’d call Reach’s crowing achievement- Invasion mode. It is the culmination of everything the game has to offer- an asymmetrical, objective-based gamemode with massive maps and incredibly complexity. The default loadouts are fairly basic, but as the game progresses, the power of each player’s equipment ramps up. The round-three loadouts are extremely cool, often letting you spawn with what would be considered a power weapon (albeit a more niche one like the Shotgun), each with a different Armor ability that suits its weaponry, and each forming a different role in an effective team. The Grenade Launcher gets to seriously shine as a part of the Grenadier loadout, particularly on Defense, as a tool to keep vehicles at bay, and the loadout’s Hologram ability lets you get an idea of enemy placement or movement so you can more effectively fire on out-of-sight targets.

Invasion is just such an incredible game mode. It perfectly suits the story and gameplay changes of Reach, and it is just really bloody fun. It has a scale that no other Halo Gamemode has managed to achieve, dwarfing even Big Team Battle. It lets you fully take advantage of everything the game has to offer, from weapons to abilities to vehicles to maps. As well, with Reach’s massively expanded gamemode customization and Forge map editor (with Forge World being a much greater canvas to work with than Sandbox ever was), it can and has been expanded and played with for years, being arguably the game-mode with the most potential for variety of all of them.

This complexity is what made Reach great. It’s what set it apart from its competitors, and what sets it apart from the other games within its own franchise. Sure, it doesn’t have dual wielding, but it really doesn’t need it. Bungie set out to make their last Halo game a memorable one, and its inarguable that with Reach, they succeeded.

Unfortunately, it’s also a level of complexity we’d never see again. While Reach was deliberately different from its contemporaries, the next games in the series would instead fall further in line with them. Join me next week, as we enter the 343 era of Halo.

…I’m going to need to find a way to play Halo 5 real quick, aren’t I?

[botwstoriesandsuch]

I think the biggest issue that I have with Botw’s writing is that in most every memory(which are basically a part of the main story), almost always focus on Zelda instead of Link. And I wouldn’t have an issue with this if they hadn’t made the fact that Zelda was kind of a b*tch to Link in the beginning a part of her character and in turn I really just don’t like Zelda that much! [1]

(Sorry this has been sitting in my inbox for awhile)

I agree that the main problem with the writing is probably the memories. You’re right that some of the more important parts of Zelda’s character are kept in more obscure diaries, rather than in actual memories. Although, I don’t know if focusing more on Link would actually help, as despite everyone wanting Link to express more emotions, I’m pretty sure that Nintendo is gonna keep him a blank slate (but I hope I’m wrong!)

And yeah, the failure to have Zelda actually apologies to Link is a completely justified complaint, and frankly I think it’s the fault of the memories being crafted with the goal of being watched in any order, rather than a three act structure. Zelda apologizing to Link in a memory would have been confusing to those who haven’t seen the other memories which I think is a big flaw in the system. The memories are made to be self contained, meaning they can’t interact with the other memories that much which pretty much the only exception being either the Yiga Clan one of the Calamities Awakening. Other than that, the memories all tell the same information, with static rather than dynamic characters. 

My personal opinion is that the way all the memory scenes themselves are crafted just fail at being compelling? There’s barely any subtext, and they’re designed to be seen in any order, so, all the information or exposition or character they give is basically the same. (Again, we don’t necessarily see Zelda apologize, since the developers wouldn’t want the player to be confused if they saw one memory before the other) All the memories convey is either broad characterization for the Champions and the dramatic stakes of Zelda trying to unlock her powers. That’s it...and it leaves a lot to be desired. 

Sure we can headcanon all day, but at the end of it the memories were designed too stoically, and independently that they fail to actually contribute to a flowing narrative. I feel like if there were more memories, and more structure to them it might have improved, oop it’s time for hypothetical and tangents about how it could maybe be improved below the cut

I think the whole thing where you are left with a simple photographs, and having to explore and find your way to these areas it really great! It keeps the player moving and adds to the games theme of exploration. But I feel it would have been improved if there was more substance rather than an X marks the spot

Like what if for one memory, you get a picture of a forest, and a stable is in the background. So eventually you find this location, but you’re still not triggering anything. Maybe sometime later, after you finish a Divine Beast or something, you can go to the stable and find an npc, and they talk about how 100 years ago a Champion or Champions were doing something blahblahblah at a certain tree. Maybe you hear a certain detail from their dialogue that triggers something in Link And that would be when you could go to that location and trigger a memory cutscene. 

Granted, this structure is more linear and not as open ended, but I think it’s strengths outweigh its costs considering now that you can add structure to the memories, you can actually craft compelling arcs. Let’s just do Zelda for example. 

Let’s say we have the original 12 memories out in Hyrule and you can go to any of them at any time. But, as you unlock more Divine Beasts, you unlock more opportunities to find even more memory locations. So you start off with the one in Sanidin Park, or maybe the one by the Sacred Grounds, or even the Ancient Columns. From those memories you establish the starting point of Zelda and Link’s relationship. 

Then, later on you might complete a Diving Beast, and that unlocks opportunities to find other memories. Since you’ve unlocked a Divine Beast, you were more likely to have done those other memories, so now you get the chance to delv further into these characters. Maybe now you get a chance to see Zelda and Link growing on each other and bonding, you could see Zelda apologize, you could world build or see more internal struggles. I really liked that memory of Zelda watching Link under the tree and expressing her doubts. You could do more of that stuff but now you can BUILD off of other memories that the player has already seen!! Even further than Zelda and Link, you could further characterize the Champions. Have a little banter with Revali or maybe have him see Link in battle and he could grow respect for him. Or how does Mipha deal with Link being Zelda’s knight? Fuck it, have some internal conflict with all the Champions with each other, then have them grow into a found family dynamic as you unlock more and more Divine Beasts and you unlock more and more memories.

If you add structure to what memories can be unlocked, you can add structure to how scenes and characters grow because you’re not limited to having each memory be independent. 

For the love of Hylia you could add anything so long as it isn’t telling the same thing for everyone of the memories, so long as it tells something different than “Zelda is struggling with her powers,” or “This character has a crush on Link.” If you structured the memories system you could actually have compelling growth and change and eVEN STILL KEEP LINK AS A BLANK SLATE NINTENDO! All the original memories do is talk about all the amazing things the Champion’s did. Zelda talking with Link after he killed 3 Lynels. Boy, would have been cool to see that fight and learn about how competent a fighter Link was. Oh, Link and Daruk are good friends? Would have been nice to see them hanging out and establishing what good friends they are rather than just TALKING about how good of friends they are. Even in the DLC, which does have really great cutscenes and diary entries to be fair, they don’t count because that was optional and not something that everyone can experience. How great would it have been to unlock memories that shows (show not tell!) Mipha caring and healing her people, or Revali training in solitude. Then as you play further into the game, you unlock memories of Link fighting along side Mipha, or Revali teaching Link how to shoot in mid air. 

and WHAT IF NINTENDO ACTUALLY HIRED WRITERS, instead of leaving it to their game devs, TO WRITE COMPELLING CUTSCENES WITH IMPROVED DIALOGUE, GENUINE SUBTEXT, AND INTERESTING DYNAMICS

It pains me to no end that the memories in botw are just...there. It could have been so much more. I love this game and I love it’s story despite its flaws and I really hope the sequel doesn’t have linear storytelling, but my god please pLEASE hire writers nintendo.

You can agree or disagree with my proposal all you want but can we all agree that more memories wouldn’t have hurt? Right?

As you can see I have a lot of feelings on this.... :P

[shewantedtobeasecretgirl]

The Backstage Pass (Out)

Hey everyone... this is still not an update of Do You Wanna Dance? but another pathetic attempt of me to provide you with PJ-related reading material... Sssooo, there was this post of @gardenofstoney... and I’ve always taken tags verry seriously. I felt addressed since the situation she described sounded absolutely like a perfect fanfic material so I ended up playing with the idea. One thing led to another and a Stone Gossard one-shot happened, which I hereby share with you (with her and @mookiebaelock’s consent). Disclaimer: may contain traces of Jeff Ament!

Ps. I solemnly swear I get Judy out of the shower soon.

„Are you sure you don’t want to move towards the side of the stage? These Vedder-fanatics seem pretty dangerous, I’m not sure I want to be here when they go wild…” Mel asked fidgeting with the setups of her professional camera.

“No, I’m pretty sure I’m fine here…” Maggie answered leaning her forehead against her arms that were resting on the barrier. She was dog-tired; she and her best friend, Mel were cueing the whole day to get there at the show of their favorite band, Pearl Jam. Actually, Pearl Jam was their second favorite band but it was the rock group that brought them together. They saw each other’s introduction in the “Pen Pal Wanted” column of Footsteps, the band’s fanzine and the rest was history... And finally, they were there, standing at their precious front row places, waiting for the show to begin…

They agreed on standing in front of the center of the stage since they both had different preferences… Mel was dying to make close shots of her bassist crush (and maybe steal a few smiles and glances from him), while Maggie was interested in the other side of the stage… to be more accurate, in the person who regularly ruled it. Stone Gossard. The absent-minded, aloof alien who played the rhythm guitar parts and who, unfortunately, wasn’t the most responsive member of the band. He was said to be a sarcastic, hilarious and nice guy but at shows he just… didn’t give a shit about the crowd. He was usually absorbed in the songs, following the rhythm with his entire body, marching to the beat or just bobbing his head… but that was all. No interaction, no communication, just the chords. If Maggie had been alone there, she would have picked his side and stayed there as if she had been pinned to the ground… but Mel wanted to stand near Jeff so they made a compromise. Of course, Mel tried every kind of dirty trick to lure her closer to Mike’s and Jeff’s territory and Maggie begged desperately with her irresistible sad puppy face to move in the other direction, after all, if the mountain won't come to Muhammad… and Jeff would bounce around, anyways, she argued. But neither of them could convince the other one so they were stuck in front of the place of Eddie Vedder and they knew they would have to fight hard to be able to keep their position.

“You will defend me, I know.” Maggie cuddled to her friend, letting herself be pulled in a bear hug. She was short and slim, the top of her head barely reached the level of the tall Mel’s chin, that’s why they often joked about themselves being two dogs coming from different species but being allies and best friends forever.

“I’ll defend you just… not now, oh my god, ohmygod, they’re here, that’s him!!!” Mel suddenly let her go frantically taking one picture after another of her main target.

“Okay, I can’t win against Jeff Ament…” Maggie shook her head with a forgiving smile only to discover the object of her admiration appearing on the other side of the stage, walking around with a deadpan on his face. She couldn’t help chuckling when she noticed he was wearing a black socks-dress shoes combo... with light brown shorts. She’d already got used to these weird testimonies of his terrible fashion sense but he always managed to surprise her with a newer unacceptable outfit.

When the singer finally showed up too, the crowd moved forward, pressing the girls against the barrier… and from that moment on, they only had some rest during the slower songs. Not that they wanted to complain, they were singing along the lyrics, screaming, laughing, crying or just squeezing each other’s hand making sure they were not dreaming, they were finally together, having the time of their life, really living their favorite songs. Mel was overly contented with seeing the bass player’s manly moves in the tight tank top he was wearing and the passionate solos and dazed-off moments of Mike pleased both of them too, even if they were within the spitting range of Ed. But as time went by, they both started feeling the depressing thought that this would be over soon, even if they tried to fight against it by bouncing and screaming twice as intensely as before…

When Stone started playing the opening chords of State of Love and Trust, the crowd went completely nuts and Maggie had to tighten her grip not to be drifted… the pressure behind her eased for a second but at once, she felt a sharp pain in the back of her head and lost the touch with the outside world…

***

Mhmmmm… what are these bright lights? I must have died and got in that shining corridor about which people who experienced clinical death always tell…

“Jesus, I go blind…” I mumble… or am I just hearing my own thoughts? Shit, this splitting headache, I’m definitely alive, I must have fallen asleep after taking in my migraine pill.

“Do you prefer low light?” a nasal male voice asks and as I look around, I find myself lying on a couch but I’m not in my own apartment, I don’t know this place. Oh, so I’m in a dream, nice, let’s see where it’s going…

“Yes, please!” I groan covering my eyes.

“Clouds roll by… sorry, bad joke, here, is it better his way?”

I take away my hand from my eyes and let them adjust to the pleasant half-light provided probably by a standing lamp somewhere out of my sight. When did I learn how to change the setting of my dreams? Cool… The owner of the voice takes place opposite me only to make me realize, I’m in a Stone dream, moreover, this time it’s a new one.

“Are you okay?” he’s checking me with the inquiring but still expressionless stare of a toad.

“More or less…” I mumble helplessly. Interesting, I’ve never had such a vivid dream about him, it’s somehow different, like I was in charge, I’ve never felt like this before while dreaming… Familiar melodies provide the musical accompaniment, I have to listen for a few bars until I recognize Yellow Ledbetter… but he’s here… and the music comes from…?

“Are we… at a show?” I ask suspiciously, I’m afraid that despite the realistic surrounding, it’ll turn into an incoherent screenplay written by my subconscious.

“Yes, we are…”

“But how come you’re not playing? You should be on the stage with the others…”

“I don’t feel like playing… I mean in that song, I have basically not much to do, I strum the same chords as Mike, it’s boring. At sound checks, sometimes I beg until I can play the drum parts, I’m a desperate drummer but I love it. But the rhythm guitar part is just… nah. Plus, I had to pee, anyways.”

“Fair enough.” I snicker. He’s such an awkward dork, even in my dreams. “Well, that happens if a musician is too busy with drinking beer at gigs instead of playing”.

“Excuse me?” he startles offended. That’s my favorite thing in dreaming, I can do and say what I’d never dare in real life.

“Do you think we don’t notice when you’re just fudging, walking around with the guitar and use the change of amplifier setups as an excuse to take a few sip of your booze? That doesn’t really count as musical contribution.”

“Ugh, busted. I try not to drink before the show though. Right as soon as I get onstage I start drinking. But come on, I never belch out of key, what’s this if not musical humility?”

I snort shaking my head and keep grinning from ear to ear. If he’s such a hilariously funny guy in my fantasy, how adorable he can be in the reality… I know he used to be an annoying, sarcastic little shit but when PJ got really successful, he mellowed down and made himself to the main target of his irony… The mixture of this down-to-earth humbleness and calm confidence was one of the main reasons why he became my favorite member in the band; in the band that only consists of great, relatable people, by the way.

Maybe I should use the occasion to have a chitchat with him, I could ask him questions about stuff I’ve always wanted to know… even if the answers are only the products of my mind…

“Do you see the world in yellow?”

Okay, maybe that’s not the best start but the colored lenses of his spectacles somehow distracted me and it just slipped out. He reacts with that short, amused eyebrow twitch I love… good job, Maggie.

“It’s a good question! It’s funny, nobody asked that before… but to answer it, I do, it’s like being trapped in that moment of sunset when everything is glowing in that golden light… but to be less poetic, it makes everyone look as if they were Lego figures, they have yellow head, y’know…”

The mentioning of my favorite toy brings back old memories about the times when I was building my own town with eclectic houses that served as the scene of the made-up action stories crafted by my cousin and me.

“I you were a Lego figure, you’d be a bad boy.” I remark with a timid smile and try to ignore the fact that my cheeks are in flames.

“Only if I were a Lego figure? That’s offensive. I was the member of the gang Newton Street Boys. We were the most dangerous guys on whole Capitol Hill, we terrorized the district by taking protection rackets from kindergarten pupils. They were scared to death when we showed up riding our bikes, I liked the banana-seat ones with the high handlebars - maybe a card in the wheel could have been part of it.” he chuckles playfully. “Anyway, why a bad boy?”

“It’s because of the scruff.” I giggle and reach out to pinch his neck but he leans away.

“Please don’t touch me.” he grunts.

Hey, brain, we had an agreement: if I behave decently enough in real life, you won’t throw any obstacles in the way of my naughty tendencies at nights. So if I want to touch Stone’s perfect neck, I’m gonna to do it. Period.

“I said no!!!” he repeats this time angrier when my fingers approach his skin again. What the hell???

“Sorry. I… I just wanted to say that there were those bearded figures… and you could get them mostly from the pirate or the police station series.”

“You mean they had an attachable Lego beard?” he inquires confused and excited at the same time; I’m sure he’s already forgotten the embarrassing intermezzo and is now desperately trying to recall the look of the little yellow dudes.

“Haha, no, it was just painted on their face. There was the moustache, the regular beard and the scruff that basically meant black dots on their face. And the scruffy guys always played the role of the bad boys in my stories. You know, the bank robber, the fleeing prisoner…”

“… the fucked-up musician… we should definitely have a Lego party once!”

“We should…” I repeat and we’re smiling silently at each other for a few seconds… I clear my throat and swallow hard since my mouth got completely dry, shit, it must be that damn gum-shield I have to wear at nights to prevent myself from gnashing.

“You want some water?” he asks walking to a fridge standing at the door.

“Fuck, yes, I’m dying of thirst.” I moan and I mean it.

“Here.” he hands a small bottle to me while he opens a beer can. I rather don’t make any remarks, the show is over, after all… But now that I think into it, maybe the other band members will show up too… I can’t wait!

I lower my head and press the ice cold bottle against my forehead. It feels incredibly good, that blinding pain is still pulsing in my head. As I direct my gaze onto the ground, I can’t help laughing again when I spot his dress shoes and the black socks tucked into them. The hem rolled down around his left ankle making the socks look like they were unmatched.

However thirsty I am, I can only take small sips since I’m already snorting at the next part of this weird vision.

“Anyway… before the others would arrive, there’s one thing we have to discuss.” I begin when I finally manage to force my facial muscles into a serious expression.

“Something that stays between us? Like a dirty little secret?” his face lights up with a boyish smile.

“Kind of, if your socks are dirty…” I roll my eyes. “It’s the footwear.”

“Yours or mine?”

“Of course yours, mine is normal. Matching boots, a totally adequate choice for a rock concert. But yours is just… criminal.”

“Don’t be rude with my shoes, they look good and they are comfy as fuck!” he circles with his feet comically.

“They do but man, look in that mirror!” I point at his reflection in the mirror hanging on the opposite wall. “You look like the mixture of an elementary school boy and a bachelor dressed by his mother. Shorts with dress shoes? How? Why? It’s an obvious no-no!” I scream.

“I have only these ones, sneakers and flip flops with me, which doesn’t leave much variation.” he shrugs briefly.

“You should have chosen the sneakers… as for the “f” word, I’m not even willing to pronounce it.”

“I always wore hiking boots in the earlier times, they were the most comfortable choice but they weren’t compatible with the heat on stage. And then, I got introduced in the magical world of orthopedic sandals but the band somehow vetoed them, I don’t really understand why... I was only allowed to wear them between shows and at soundchecks but at gigs, I had to wear the boots… Once, before a show, maybe in Atlanta, I can’t remember exactly, the sole of my boot separated so I could only wear my sandals… the guys freaked out about my velvet shorts-sweatpants-white socks-sandals outfit and obliged me to wear Jeff’s shoes during the show.” he recalls but I can barely listen to him, his hand talk and the fidgeting alien fingers are definitely more appealing than the image of Birkenstocks worn with socks.

As my eyes are glued to him, I involuntarily start playing with my hair but my fingers land in something sticky. I check them and glance at him helplessly, as if he could help me find out why blood is the next nonsense feature in this scene.

“Fuck, why didn’t you tell me earlier that you’re bleeding?” he shouts and rushes to the fridge.

“Because I didn’t know…” I mutter and can’t form further coherent sentences since he steps back to me with an ice bag and presses it to the back of my head… and he keeps standing opposite me with his arms laced around my neck. I’m desperately trying to look at the ceiling, the ground and the four walls at the same time, anywhere but him…

“This is too embarrassing, I want this to finally end… this is terrible.” I whisper in pain, fixing my gaze on the ugly shoes and working on calming down my hyperventilation with all my nerves.

“Hey, I just wanted to help! Just for the record, we don’t often let passed-out fans in the backstage, you were in bad shape and…”

“No, I mean, thanks and all but this dream… it’s going nowhere, it was funny but you entering into my personal space creates a tension that needs resolution, like a hug or a kiss or anything, this makes just no sense!” I blurt out, basically arguing with myself, the director of the movie.

“What? That doctor could finally arrive, you must have a concussion!” he gently tries to push me back onto to the couch but I shake his hands off me.

“What doctor... wait… the pain… the blood… is this… real?” I flail still hoping he doesn’t exist and suddenly disappears or turns into my real crush or Edge from U2 or whatever.

“You got hit with by a half-empty beer can and you passed out so the security personnel fished you out of the crowd. Since I came back anyway, I suggested that they should lay you down here until they get a doctor. You got a backstage pass by passing out. A backstage pass out.” he tries to ease he situation with a pun but I’m not really in the mood.

“No… the scruff… the shoes… the ki… I can’t believe I said all this bullshit, this is worse than a nightmare…” I bury my face into my palms completely mortified and stumble back towards the couch dizzily. Suddenly, I hear a familiar voice… Mel!!!

***

“I’m not going to repeat this again, my best friend is in that room so if you won’t let me in immediately, I’m going to fuckin’ sue you!!!” Mel pointed with her index finger outraged at the huge guy standing in front of the door of the dressing room. Actually, instead of suing, she wanted to headbutt him in the chest but she knew it would feel like running into a concrete wall. She’d already been arguing with him for like fifteen minutes but the guy was just standing there with folded arms, stoically bearing the threats and the various spells casted on him by the furious girl.

“Hey, Ernie, I think you can let her in, her friend has just woken up, it’d be better if she’s with her when the doctor arrives…” a top of a head with ruffled hair peeked out of the door. The security guard obeyed and silently stepped aside.

“Maggie!!!” Mel shouted and tossed the young man in the door away to get a free way to her friend. “I was so worried about you!!!” she captured her into a rib-breaking hug.

“I’m… I’m okay… Stone took care of me…” Maggie mumbled against Mel’s chest trying to point at the guitarist under her friend’s arm.

“Stone???” Mel screamed making both of them turn around without breaking the hug.

“Yup.” the guitarist waved clumsily with one hand at her, digging his other hand deeply in his pocket.

Maggie managed to tiptoe enough to rest her head on her friend’s shoulder, which allowed her to saw the door opening… only to recognize the other members of the band arriving back from the stage. The small group was guided by Jeff who stopped at the door exchanging a surprised look with the embarrassed guitarist standing in the room.

Maggie started silently shaking of laughter because she could already imagine what’d happen next…

“Uhm… Mel… I’m choking… please let me go…” she acted patting her friend’s back a few times. “I think you should turn back… slowly…” she recommended biting her lips to hide her amusement when she pulled away to see the girl’s reaction.

“Why… what…?” Mel looked back over her shoulder and… due to the bassist’s excellent reflexes, she didn’t land on the ground but in his arms. Jeff stared shocked alternately at the unconscious girl and the other ones, begging for help with his eyes.

“Jesus, not again… “Stone sighed facepalming.” She’s yours, I’m out.”

[blubberquark]

Making of Deep Sea Settler

Download any play Deep Sea Settler from itch.io.

Comment on the game jam entry for Deep Sea Settler LDJAM.com.

Deep Sea Settler is a puzzle-ish colony builder made for Ludum dare 48. It's loosely inspired by Reus, Dorfromantik, and Solar Settlers by tumblr's own @brickroaddx. Based on the theme "deeper and deeper", you have to slowly build out your underwater colony by placing buildings in a hostile environment - without destroying said environment.

Day 1

I came up with two main game ideas for this theme: The first was a game about a submarine navigating in complete darkness based on sonar and dead reckoning. The second was an under-water colony builder with an ecological theme.

The first would either have looked really boring, with no visible environments, only 2D submarine controls and instruments, or it would have been too much work to mode the interior of a submarine and interesting underwater environments.

I decided to work on the colony builder, and to set it on a hexagonal grid. You start out just below sea level, and as you go on, the sea bed gets deeper and deeper, sunlight becomes scarce and pressure increases, so the game gets more difficult. (The depth and difficulty mechanic did not make it into the final game, but tiles of varying depth did.)

I started by working on the art and rendering code.

I made a simple renderer for infinite hex tilemaps (stored in a hash table), and drew some tiles. They all had a "base" or "depth" to them, allowing me to raise or lower them a bit without "floating" over the playing field. After seeing the tiles arranged like that, I decided to re-work the tile shape to allow for a better perspective when drawing tile contents, and I drew a bunch of tiles based on an ecological and "humorous" theme:

A fishing submarine with a fishing rod and a fish farm with fish fenced in in a 2D enclosure felt like the peak of humour to me at the time.

Day 2

I drew some graphics for UI elements and cursors, and started making the map clickable and interactive. For this, I repurposed the drawing code and the hex marker that shows the selected tile. After a broad-phase collision check, the game checks if the mouse is inside the drawn tile by checking a collision mask at the positions of nearby tiles, preferring the tile nearer to the "camera" if two or more overlap. This was easier to code than convex hex shape collisions, and allowed me to stay a bit more flexible with depth and overlapping tiles. At this point I was still thinking about making depth a more prominent mechanic, but the interaction with the map and judging of distances got a bit too difficult when tiles were occluded too much.

Then I added the wavy underwater effect. It took me way too long to add it, and although everybody tells me it's a bit too distracting, without it it's not clear that you are underwater, which is an important thing to convey at all times, because of the theme.

I drew some sprites for resources and tile products, but I was still unsure which should become which.

After playing around with different configurations, I decided to focus on just building, without a way to destroy built structures, and without "turns". There were discrete actions, but no "turns" and no way to pass time. There was also no way to accumulate resources over time. The only action was clicking on a tile and building, with instantaneous effects: Left-click a tile, select what to build, repeat.

This gave the way a much more puzzle-ish feel, that I really liked, but it also meshed with the "ecological" theme: Every action is irreversible, every tile is a precious resource, every decision is meaningful. Using a tile for building can cost you food or oxygen production. Expanding can destroy synergies between tiles.

To make this more obvious, I added a UI that shows a tile's output when you hover your cursor over it.

Day 3

The game was "feature-complete" after the second day, but I felt a bit unhappy with the balancing and the UI. I took a third day and spent Monday evening adding mining tiles to make tile space more precious, and UI improvements like drawing the perimeter of the buildable area (instead of the range of the current habitant) when the cursor is outside of the buildable area.

The farms were too easy to build, and the power plants were too difficult, so I added power lines to distribute energy (at the expense of building over more tiles) and mining of rifts for science juice to build farms. This way, food, energy, and oxygen are more of a trade-off, and you can't just tile the world with farms, but you can upgrade some of your farms to undo your worst mistakes. If there are not enough volcanoes where you want to build, you can build power lines, but that will make habitat placement more difficult.

What Went Right

Scope: I am really happy with the tight focus of the game, but at the same time, this game mechanic has "legs". It would be easy enough to add more tile types, make the map bigger, and to increase the goal population in the future based on what I have now. But as it stands, it's an interesting game already. Adding more systems would have made it harder to balance, and I am glad I didn't add turns with actions per turn, or tiles that generate resources over time.

Art: For the most part, I stuck with the db32 palette, plus some transparent shades of those colours in the domes and bubbles. I don't think the tiles are as funny as I first intended, but they are distinctive and legible enough.

Balance: After playtesting the game for hours, it's really easy for me, but it's a decent challenge the first few times. Some of the difficulty stems from not knowing what tiles are available and the lack of undo, but it's replayable for some time without feeling "solved" even after you have internalised all the mechanics. None of the tiles is too abundant or too rare.

Game Design: The core loop is build habitat->connect food and energy->expand range->build habitat, but it's also possible to go back and increase the population of existing habitats by mining, upgrading farms and connecting more energy. In the endgame, the player can sometimes increase the population by densely packing the centre of the map with habitats after spreading on the map, and sometimes, it's the other way round. That gives this game a thinky, puzzle-ish feel.

Tile products follow the pattern [adjacent tiles->built tile->product->habitat], so that there are no loops. It goes kelp->fishing sub->food->habitat; rift->power plant (->power line optionally?)->energy->habitat; kelp forest->oxygen->habitat; farm->food->habitat. Evaluating the output of a tile is straightforward both for the computer and the player.

Theme: I tried to work in an ecological theme, where Oxygen is in short supply, built structures cannot be reverted into pristine nature, and tiles are an important resource. Players picked up on that.

What Went Wrong

Jam Theme: Unfortunately, the jam theme "deeper and deeper" got a bit lost in the process. The game was already difficult enough without making tile depth contribute to building costs, and complicated enough for a jam game without adding more mechanics. Making the terrain generation more extreme would have made tile adjacency hard to determine. I would have needed to use a 3D engine to make 3D game mechanics.

Tutorial: There is no in-game tutorial that introduces the tiles gradually. I added some text on the itch.io download page and the LDJAM submission, but that can easily be missed.

UI: The UI is too busy and the mechanics are not discoverable enough. Adding more things to the UI would make it busier, removing things would make it harder to see what's going on. The UI needs a complete overhaul if I add anything more.

Time: Looking back, I could have implemented all this and some more polish, animations, and sound effects within the time constraints of the compo, if I hadn't had anything else to do that weekend. I really wish I could have added some audio.

What I learned

Don't try making depth a mechanic thing in a 2D game if you can't rotate the camera and look behind things

Some users get annoyed by waves even if they don't get sea-sick

People call every visual effect a "shader", even if it doesn't use the GPU

Hexes are cool. Some games don't work on a square grid

My visual jokes are not as funny as I think they are

I can do LDJAM without feeling hungover and tired on Monday

Try not to accidentally take out the jam theme when cutting down the scope!

Download here: https://blubberquark.itch.io/deep-sea-settler

[and-then-there-were-n0ne]

The livestock sector is one of the top two or three most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global. 

When assessing animal agriculture’s overall contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, estimates range dramatically depending on what is included in the calculation. The 2006 report Livestock’s Long Shadow from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) claimed that animal agriculture caused 18 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. [x]

The livestock sector is a major player, responsible for 18 percent of greenhouse gas emissions measured in CO2 equivalent. This is a higher share than transport. […] Livestock are responsible for much larger shares of some gases with far higher potential to warm the atmosphere. The sector emits 37 percent of anthropogenic methane (with 23 times the global warming potential (GWP) of CO2) most of that from enteric fermentation by ruminants. It emits 65 percent of anthropogenic nitrous oxide (with 296 times the GWP of CO2), the great majority from manure. Livestock are also responsible for almost two-thirds (64 percent) of anthropogenic ammonia emissions, which contribute significantly to acid rain and acidification of ecosystems.

The FAO calculation includes the CO2 emitted when forests are cleared for animal feed crops and pastures, but it does not take into account the CO2 that those forests can no longer absorb. (Imagine a life insurance policy that covered the cost of the funeral but not future lost wages.) When researchers at the Worldwatch Institute accounted for emissions that the FAO overlooked, they estimated that livestock are responsible for 32,564 million tons of CO2 emissions per year, or 51 percent of annual global emissions.

Between 2010 and 2050, rising demand for animal products means emissions will continue to rise. Even with best efforts to reduce the footprint of livestock production, the sector will consume a growing share of the remaining carbon budget. [x] 

To avoid dangerous climate change, global yearly emissions must fall rapidly from today’s levels of 49 GtCO2 e to around 23 GtCO2 e by 2050. If meat and dairy consumption continues to rise at current rates, the agricultural sector alone will soak up 20 of the 23 gtco2 e yearly limit in 2050, leaving just 3 gtco2 e for the rest of the global economy. Even under the most ambitious of decarbonization scenarios, it will be near impossible for emissions from other sectors to drop to such levels by the middle of the century. [x]

The environmental impacts of the food system will exceed the planetary boundaries for food-related GHG emissions by 110%, for cropland use by 70%, for bluewater use by 50%, for nitrogen application by 125%, and for phosphorus application by 75%. This means that, by 2050, the livestock sector alone may either occupy the majority of, or significantly overshoot, recently published estimates of humanity’s “safe operating space” in each of these domains. [x]

Barring unforseen technological breakthroughs, worldwide animal product consumption at current North American per capita rates is incompatible with a 1.5°C warming target.

In addition to its effects on greenhouse gases, animal agriculture affects the environment by the conversion of natural ecosystems to agriculture since growing the crops used for feeding animals, such as soy and maize, eats up land. 26 percent of the earth’s terrestrial surface is used for livestock grazing. 40 percent of our cereal production is not destined for human consumption, but for animal feed. So is 80% of Amazon soy. [x] [x] [x]

Land use and habitat conversion are, in essence, a zero-sum game: land converted to agriculture to meet growing food demand comes from forests, grasslands, and other natural habitats. Consequently, cattle ranching is the largest driver of deforestation, accounting for 80% of current deforestation rates in South America. Seventy percent of Brazil’s deforested land is now used as pasture, with feed crop cultivation occupying much of the remainder. [x]

These numbers are the result of today’s meat consumption levels: If developing countries were to eat as much meat as developed countries per capita, the amount of agricultural land required worldwide would be about two thirds larger than today. [x]

This is concerning, especially in light of the new UN report warning that “We have 12 years to limit climate change catastrophe”: the IPCC maps out four pathways to achieve 1.5C, with different combinations of land use and technological change. Reforestation is essential to all of them as are shifts to electric transport systems and greater adoption of carbon capture technology.

To raise livestock also takes water: nearly one-third of the total water footprint of agriculture in the world is related to the production of animal products. The water footprint of a live animal consists of different components: the indirect water footprint of the feed and the direct water footprint related to the drinking water and service water consumed (service water refers to the water used to clean the farmyard, wash the animal and carry out other services necessary to maintain the environment). For example, 89% of italians’ water footprint relates to consumption of agricultural products and 7% to industrial products. Nearly, half of the water footprint of Italian consumption is related to the consumption of animal products. [x] [x]

An important distinction must be made here between water “use” and “consumption”. Hydroelectric power is one of the largest “users” of water in the USA, but actually consumes very little water. The water is used to power turbines or for cooling and is almost always returned to the source immediately. Agriculture is the largest “consumer” of water because it pulls water from the source and locks it up in products, not returning it to the source immediately, if ever.

Fishing also affects ecological processes at very large scale. The overall impact on aquatic systems has been described as comparable to that of agriculture on land. In fact, with the rise of commercial fishing methods marine animal populations are no longer able to replenish themselves fast enough. Between the 1950’s to 2011 worldwide catches increased 5 fold while the amount of fish in the sea was reduced by half. Some scientists predict that we will see fishless oceans by 2048.

The most obvious reason for the reduction of marine life is overfishing. 90-100 million tonnes of fish are pulled from our oceans each year, with some sources even estimating 150 million tonnes. ¾ of the world’s fisheries are exploited or depleted. But it’s not just the amount of fish being taken from the ocean for food that is the issue. there is also the method of species targeting. Humans tend to go after the biggest fish first until they are no longer available, then they move on down the chain: over the last 50 years, the abundance of large predator fish, such as cod, swordfish and tuna, has dropped 90 percent. Fishing vessels now increasingly pursue the smaller forage fish, such as herrings, sardines, menhaden and anchovies, that are lower on the food chain. The removal of apex predators leads to what’s called “trophic downgrading” where the loss of predators allows other species to grow unimpeded, upsetting the entire ecosystem. One study suggests that the removal of sharks may contribute to climate change by leaving the unchecked numbers of species to feast on the ocean’s vegetation, releasing the ancient carbon found there in massive quantities. Dr. Peter Macreadie, one of the study’s authors, cautioned that “If we just lost 1 percent of the oceans’ blue carbon ecosystems, it would be equivalent to releasing 460 million tonnes of carbon annually, which is about the equivalent of about 97 million cars. It’s about equivalent to Australia’s annual greenhouse gas emissions.” With 73 million sharks killed every year for the shark fin industry and 40-50 million sharks dying every year as bycatch*, this is more than mere speculation.

*bycatch is a fish or other marine species that is caught unintentionally while catching certain target species and target sizes of fish, crabs etc. According to the FAO, for every 1 pound of fish caught, up to 5 pounds of unintended marine species are caught and discarded as bycatch.  

Even marine plastic is in large part a fishing issue. It turns out that 46 percent of the Great Pacific garbage patch is composed of discarded nets, and much of the rest consists of other kinds of fishing gear. To put this in perspective, things like plastic straws - which everyone seems so eager to eliminate - make up 0.03% of all marine plastic. [x]

All these sources of global change will rival and significantly interact with climatic change in environmental and societal impacts.

For more information: [x]

[clownao]

Hear me out- AssClass Open World Video Game

Whaaaat?

Listen, I know AssClass has/ had several video games, and the mobile one was centered around… cards I think? (I got into AssClass after the game shut down RIP.) But imagine… open world AssClass game… set in Kunugigaoka… where you can create your own character… and you can befriend all of the 3-E kids (and maybe even the teachers/ some main campus students)… plus skill trees… different stat points that you can allocate to build your character… lessons… different weapons… different assassinations… just IMAGINE. The P O T E N T I A L. 

Okay I have many unrealistic thoughts about this idea so I just had to vomit them all out. This is a long post. You have been warned.

Character Creation

Like the premise of half of the AssClass Wattpad fics, you can create your own character/ 3-E student! You can customize hair colour, eye colour, hairstyle, etc. To prevent OP assassins, MC will be a normal student at Kunugigaoka who had been dropped down to 3-E because of 1) poor grades or 2) violation of school rules. 

I think it would be nice if the player could choose the reason why MC was sent to 3-E. If they chose “poor grades”, MC would have a lower INT stat and have a harder time in lessons/ exams. If they chose “violation of school rules”, while MC would have the default INT stat, they would have a harder time befriending the other students due to their negative reputation. 

I think some sort of RPG style stat point allocation would be fun, with basics such as STR, AGI, VIT, and INT. As MC levels up, they gain more stat points. STR of course boots raw power, AGI for speed, VIT for stamina I guess, and maybe INT for increased chances of critical attacks?

Gameplay

There are two parts- the main quest, and the sidequests. Obviously the main quest is the plot of AssClass, while the sidequests can be cutesy little ways to increase your bonding/ friendship with the 3-E kids.

I think in this hypothetical game, there would be roughly 365 in-game days to correspond with the time 3-E spent with Korosensei. For every day in the game, the player would have to complete certain necessary tasks. Once the tasks are completed, they can either choose to do sidequests/ other stuff, or move on to the next day. Some of the days are plot relevant, such as the day of Irina’s first appearance, the day of the Island Assassination etc., but for most days, the player can do whatever they want.

It would be interesting to see how this game would do weekends and holidays. Why am I phrasing it as if it’s ACTUALLY real. :P I guess MC can go out to town and meet up with their friends? And they definitely need to train for the Island Assassination during the summer holidays.

The Best of Both Worlds

Assassination Classroom is not only about assassination- it’s also about education. And this game will show both sides of 3-E.

Studying

The INT stat of MCs will contribute to this side of the game. I’m thinking there might be three compulsory lessons (taught by Korosensei/ Irina) and maybe one training session per day (at least, per schoolday). Like maybe the lessons will be mini-quizzes or mini-games or something, and after a lesson is successfully completed, MC gains XP and knowledge, which can then be used in… assassinations, I guess? And of course the knowledge will be used for clearing exam levels. The more knowledge MC has, the easier time they have with exams and assassinations. The INT stat affects how much knowledge MC can gain in one lesson.

Test and exams are sort of like mini-bosses and bosses in the game. Since AssClass portrays exams as some sort of actual boss fight, it would be fun to do that in the game as well. Maybe a higher knowledge level allows you to choose more powerful “weapons” to bring into the “arena” (aka. exams).

Assassination

The STR, AGI and VIT stats would contribute to the assassination part. A skill tree sounds COOL, especially with the wide range of skills the 3-E kids have. Like maybe at the beginning, only knife skills and shooting skills are unlocked, but as the game progresses, MC can choose between camouflage/ combat/ traps/ infiltration and more!

MC can train their skills during compulsory daily training sessions (taught by Karasuma) and optional afterschool practices. It would be nice if the training session can somehow focus on different skills on different days (?). It would also be WACK if there’s a shooting arcade in Kunugigaoka Town or something so MC can train during the holidays.

And now for the exciting part! ASSASSINATION ATTEMPTS! :D :D

I’ve tried to keep things simple, but I feel like I’ve oversimplified assassinations lol :P So there are three parts to a basic attempt- 1) Distract 2) Attack 3) Critical Hit. It’s exactly what it sounds like. Distract Korosensei using something, attack him to disorient him and block his path, and the final critical killing blow. All three parts are necessary. 

(Of course there are different sorts of attempts- like poisoning, but those are special cases.)

Assassination attempts can be made easier if the player has the right information- such as information on Korosensei’s weaknesses. The player can also choose the weapon(s) and the item(s) that will distract Korosensei.

Of course none of the attempts actually succeed (because Korosensei has plot armour), so maybe the game can judge the assassination attempt using other methods (damage dealt, stamina left or something?)

MC uses stamina to activate skills. When all of their stamina runs out, they fail the attempt and they do not get any rewards.

While MC can attempt solo assassinations, it’s best if they find some friends (more on that later). Group assassinations require a certain amount of friendship between the participants because cooperation is necessary. Assassinations can only be attempted once a day, and they reward the player with XP, knowledge, and maybe experience to upgrade their skills.

The Main Quest

Basically all the canon stuff you see in the manga and anime. Maybe cutscenes can be used lol. While compulsory activities (lessons, training sessions) and optional activities (assassinations, afterschool practices) are available every schoolday, plot-relevant days will force the MC to participate in events like exams, whole-school assemblies, or assassinations. While MC can react to the events, they cannot change the main plot no matter how much they try. Korosensei still has to die. Sorry :P

Sidequests

Quests that can increase your friendship level with the 3-E kids. And maybe they can give out special items. Like perhaps after completing a sidequest with Sugaya, not only do you get closer to Sugaya, you can also unlock the “camouflage” skill or something.

Friendships

It would be ideal if you can like, befriend ALL OF THE 3-E KIDS. I actually thought a lot about this.

MC’s Friends

Maybe MC has like five friend slots or something, which can be filled up with NPCs (3-E kids) after a certain friendship level is reached. These “MC’s friends” will form a squad of sorts and will sit with MC during lunch, go out with MC during holidays etc. They can also cooperate much better during assassinations.

Reputation

If MC behaves well, their reputation increases, and they get more friendship XP through each interaction. Vice-versa when MC behaves badly. If the player chooses “violation of school rules” as the reason why MC was dropped into 3-E, they will automatically start off with a low reputation.

Friendship level

MC can talk to NPCs and react correspondingly to get friendship XP and increase their reputation. Some NPCs are easier to approach, like Isogai and Kataoka. You gain more friendship XP compared to the default amount. Others, like Chiba and Hayami, are very introverted, so you gain less friendship XP per interaction. You can give gifts to NPCs. You can even give birthday gifts if you know when their birthday is. Through interactions, MC can gain knowledge of the NPCs, such as their favourite colour, food, etc, and give them presents which correspond to their likes. 

If MC reacts negatively, they will lose friendship XP and reputation.

Maaaaybe there can be different levels like “Classmates” “Acquaintances” “Groupmates” “Partners” “Friends” “Close Friends” and “Best Friends”. And maybe even “Rivals” and “Enemies” if MC insults them LMAO.

When a friendship is maxed out, the classmate gives MC something special. It could be a weapon, or an accessory, or a book that can increase knowledge or something.

Established Friendships

The 3-E kids already have friendships of their own! And if you befriend a 3-E kid, it’ll be easier/faster to befriend that student’s friends. For example, if you befriend Yada, it’ll be way easier to befriend Kurahashi. The same happens if you insult a 3-E kid. If you insult Hayami, you won’t find a very friendly Chiba anytime soon.

Group Assassinations 

In order to be able to recruit a classmate into a group assassination, MC needs to have a certain level of friendship with them. The recruited classmate can have special skills, like increased speed for Kimura, infiltration skills for Yada, close combat skills for Karma etc, which can be very useful. I think being friends with Nagisa also gives you special insight into Korosensei’s weakness. The higher the friendship level, the better the group will work.

For example, you can have Kurahashi perform the Distraction, MC and Kataoka Attack, and Chiba perform the Critical Hit. Or maybe MC can train up their skills and perform the critical hit themselves.

Romances???

I have NO idea how this would work??? It would probably fuck up the canon crushes/ relationships lol. It’ll probably require a maxed out friendship.

Kunugigaoka Town

MC gets to hang out in town!! Yeeeeee

There are different shops in town which can be used to buy gifts/ supplies for assassinations.

MC can visit shops/ eat with classmates to gain friendship XP after school/ during weekends and holidays. 

NOTE: THEY ALL REQUIRE MONEY

MC probably receives some pocket money every week/month. They may also earn money from other places (such as jobs)????? Maybe they can convince Isogai to give them a discount? Lmaoo.

(Maxed out friendship with Muramatsu definitely allows you to eat at his family’s shop for free :D)

Maaaybe there’s a gym/ shooting arcade that allows MC to train outside of school.

Anyways I’m tired, this is all I have for today. If you’ve managed to come this far, thanks for reading this chaotic mess of an idea dump :D (Sorry for the weird phrasing and sentence structures ;-;) I’m definitely not an expert with video game terminology, and if anyone has something to add, please do so! :D

[usual-day-dreamer]

Let Me Touch Your Fire (Steve Harrington x Henderson!Reader) Chapter Four

MASTERLIST

"I've been having really weird dreams lately"

Robin was on her break and you were sitting at the farthest table so you could talk and relax a little before you started figuring out how to get inside the elevator.

"What kind of dreams?" She asked you

"I don't really know, I just remember this guy I've never seen before, he repeats over and over 'save them' but I don't know what he's talking about"

"You dreamt that last night?" She asked you

"No, probably because I slept with Steve"

"Oh" you missed her disappointed tone and eyes as you clarified

"Not like that, we just shared a bed" you blushed

Robin kept quiet, looking down at her sandwich

"I hope you figure out what the dream means" she said and as she looked at you, you noticed his saddened look.

"Robin are you okay?"

She nodded "Totally" but her eyes said otherwise

"Maybe later you could-"

She interrupted you abruptly by standing up and running towards the tip jar

"Hey! Half of it is mine!" Steve said

"Sorry, I'll be back in 20!"

And she was gone

Steve looked at you with a frown

"Where is she going?" He asked

"I have no idea"

"The best things is to wait" he agreed, and you walked next to him hitting him playfully with your elbow. He smiled at you and you smiled back.

Dustin frowned looking at your interaction, that was new. He looked at you deep in thought as Steve gave you an ice cream. Suddenly it clicked

"You two had sex!" He exclaimed. The costumers on the tables turned to look at him with weirded faces, Dustin ignored them.

"What?" You asked and looked at Steve

"You guys have been acting weird since we left Steve's house and I figured that you two had sex last night"

"Woah woah" Steve said "What's gotten into you, Henderson?"

You were blushing madly now completely uncomfortable

"It's just that you-"

"I forgot I had to buy some stuff for later, I'll be back" you walked hurriedly out of Scoops Ahoy and soon disappeared into the crowd.

"Congratulations genius, you scared her away" Steve said with a scoff, turning back to cleaning the counter.

"You totally have feelings for my sister"

"I told I don't, you should really drop it Dustin I don't want her to feel uncomfortable or something, I mean, she literally ran away just now"

"She went to the record store; she loves it and she told me she was looking for a new album or something"

"Whatever"

A costumer ended their argument

"Welcome to Scoops Ahoy, I'm Steve and I'll- what the he'll are you doing here?"

"Hello Steve"

Dustin couldn't remember the name of the guy but he knew who he was, he was part of the basketball team and if he remember correctly, it was the guy that Steve was complaining about because he kind of stole his role with the ladies even though he never actually played on any basketball match.

"Working here seems pretty cool" his sarcastic tone made Steve glare at him.

"Yeah, it's cool because I have a perfect view of how you lie to all the girls telling them what an awesome basketball player you are even though you don't actually played" Steve ended his comment with a smirk.

"Anyways, I'm looking for a girl that seems to hang around here a lot" he ignored Steve's comment completely

"You mean Robin?"

"No, not your coworker" he said walking closer "It's a really cute girl with Y/H/C not wearing a stupid sailor costume"

"Y/N?" Steve said confused

"So that's her name" he was smirking now

Dustin looked at Steve trying to hide his smile at the sight, Steve was beyond furious.

"Hey Steve, can I- oh..." you were back, a plastic bag hanging from your wrist

You paused, the tension in the room unbearable.

"I was just asking for you"

"Really?" You looked quizzically at the guy in front of Steve.

"Yeah I'm-"

"You want to leave those at the car babe?"

The nickname made you froze, you looked at Steve and nodded slowly, you face showed how confused you were but decided to play along. He walked out of behind the counter and handed you the keys to his car

"Okay... I guess I'll get going" you said and kissed Steve's cheek "Goodbye" you waved at them with a smile and walked away. Steve felt his cheek burning in the spot where your lips touched, he cleared his throat and looked at the guy.

"She really isn't interested, and now that that's settled, bye" Steve made a small gesture with his hand and the guy walked away angrily.

As soon as he was out of sight Dustin laughed loudly

"What?"

"You should've seen your face; you were beyond pissed" he laughed once more, and Steve scoffed

"What the hell was that all about?" You walked inside Scoops Ahoy again, you needed answers.

Steve jumped and looked at you "He's an asshole not worthy of your time"

You eyed him suspiciously and looked at Dustin, he just shrugged his shoulders and smiled

"I'll decide if he's worthy or not" you said and looked at Steve crossing your arms across your chest

Steve looked at you and opened his mouth, then closed it again.

"You'll be surprised what 20 bucks can do" Robin's voice brought you out of your conversation and you followed her to the back room.

"So" she placed the blueprints on the table "Turns out, that mysterious room beds ventilation like every other room here"

"This is Scoops" she circled the spot with a red marker "We just need to get inside the air vents and move from here to here" she drew a line from one spot to another "We just need someone to do it"

"I'll do it" your gaze moved to Dustin "Are you sure?"

He nodded

"I can fit anywhere, I'm like jelly"

A few minutes later, Dustin was trying to get inside the vents

"Push me harder Steve!"

"I'm trying" Steve grunted

"What did you said he had again?" Robin asked you

"Cleidocranial Dysplasia, he has no clavicles"

Robin nodded with a small oh, her mouth slightly open.

"You'll have to touch my butt" Dustin said

"I don't want to do that!" Steve exclaimed and you laughed

"Touch my butt!"

Steve pushed Dustin harder but failed

"You don't fit in there Dusty" you said, and he sighed.

The bell made you turn away from them. A little girl was impatiently touching it

Robin and you looked at each other, thinking the same thing.

Erica hummed checking inside the air vent with a lantern.

"Yeah, I don't know" she said coming down the ladder. Steve, Robin, Dustin and you were watching her every move.

"You don't know if you can fit in?" Dustin said

"Oh, I can fit. I just don't know if I want to" she answered.

"Are you claustrophobic?" Robin asked

"I don't have any phobias" She snickered.

"Then what's the problem?" You asked

"The problem is" she said "I still haven't heard what's in this for Erica" her sassy tone almost made you laugh.

A few seconds later you were all sitting on a table, all kinds and flavors of ice cream filled the table as Steve handed her one.

"More fudge please" she handed it back to Steve and he hesitated "Go on" she ushered him with her hands and Steve walked back with the ice cream in hand.

As he walked away Robin grabbed the blueprints again

"Okay, you see this? This is the route you are going to take" she pointed at the line she made a few minutes before.

"Then we just wait for the last delivery to go out tonight" you added.

"Then you knock out the grate, jump down, open the door" Robin said, her tone making it sound like the easiest thing in the world.

"Then you find out what's in those boxes?" Erica said playing with the spoon.

"Exactly"

"Mh-mmm, and you say this guard is armed"

"Yes, but he won't be there" Dustin quickly answered

"And booby traps?"

"Booby traps?" You asked. Robin, Dustin and you exchanged looks.

"Lasers, spikes in the wall?" Erica said it as if it was the most obvious thing.

"What?" Robin said

"You know what this half-baked plan of yours sounds like to me?" Erica looked directly at Dustin "Child Endangerment"

"We'll be in radio contact with you the whole time-" you said

"Ah, ah, ah!" she said with the sassiest tone ever "Child Endangerment"

Robin rolled her eyes annoyed, honestly, you were starting to lose your patience too.

"Erica? Hi, uh" Dustin looked at her "We think this Russians want to do harm to our country, great harm. Don't you love your country?"

"You can't spell America without Erica" she answered and took a long sip of her float.

"Uh, Yeah, yeah" Dustin looked confused but you decided not to interrupt him "Oddly, that's totally true, so don't do this for us, do it for your country, do this for your fellow man"

She continued to sip loudly

"Do this for America... Erica" Dustin ended the speech with a smile, you almost melted, he's so cute.

"Ooh!" Erica exclaimed "I just got the chills... oh yeah, from this float, not your speech"

Dustin's smile disappeared

"Know what I love most about this country?" Erica continued "Capitalism" she looked towards Dustin.

"Do you know what Capitalism is?"

"Yeah" Dustin answered

"Yeah" you and Robin answers in unison

"It means this is a free market system. Which means, people get paid for their services, depending on how valuable their contributions are. And it seems to me, my ability to fit into that little vent is very, very valuable to you all. So, you want my help? This USS Butterscotch better be the first of many, and I'm talking free ice cream for life" she ended her speech eating the cherry looking at Robin.

"We have to agree, it's our only chance" you said

Robin sighed "Okay Erica, you'll have your free ice cream"

Erica smiled triumphantly.

Steve finally came back "What did I miss?" He asked sitting down next to you.

"Erica agreed" you said with a laugh, Steve smiled at you.

"Great! Now what?"

"We wait" Robin said.

___

Closing time came faster than you expected and honestly you were anxious to see how the plan would turn out.

"Erica, do you copy?" Robin said through the radio

"Mh-mm, I copy" she answered "You nerds in position or what?"

"Yes, we are in position. It's all quiet here so you've got the green light" Robin answered.

Dustin has the binoculars, you and Steve next to him.

"Roger that, commence operation Child Endangerment"

You rolled your eyes and smiled at her comment.

"Can we not call it that?" Robin said and Steve nodded.

"See you on the other side nerds"

Steve and you looked at each other, worry adorning your faces.

The next few minutes felt like hours, your hands were starting to sweat, and a weird feeling settled in your stomach. You tried to push it away and wait.

"All right nerds, I'm there"

Erica's voice made you relax; you closed your eyes with a sigh and waited for the next step.

"Do you see anything?" Robin asked

"Yeah, I see those boring boxes you're so excited about"

"Any guards?"

"Negative"

"Booby traps?"

"If I could see them, they'd be pretty shit traps, wouldn't they?

You smiled, relaxing more at her comment

"Thank you for that" Robin sounded a little annoyed.

Steve looked at you with a small smile and you returned trying to contain your laughter.

"I'm in"

"Oh, god" Steve said covering his face with his hands. He was just as nervous as you were and that made you smile a little, he was really cute.

A novice came from the door and Erica walked out

"Free ice cream, for life" she said.

You quickly stood up and made your way towards her. Your heart beating loudly, excitement running through your body.

Once you stepped inside the room Steve quickly made his way towards a box and opened it, inside there was another metal box with a lever in the middle, he turned it around and pulled it opening the box.

You looked inside and found four round things with levers

"That's definitely not Chinese food" Steve said looking down at the contents of the metallic box.

He grabbed one and looked at us "Maybe you should, you know, stand back"

Erica and Robin did, and you hesitated. Steve gave you a nod and you did the same. Dustin didn't move.

"Come on Dustin, do as he says" you said

"No"

"Just stand back"

"No"

"Step back, seriously" Steve said placing and arm in front of Dustin

"No! No!" He said "If you die, I die"

"Okay" Steve said, and you looked at them with widened eyes but before you could move again Steve turned the lever and pulled out a container with a green liquid inside.

"What the hell?" He said

"What is that?" Robin asked staring at the container

Suddenly the room started to shake violently, and you looked around

"Booby traps" Erica whispered

"Let's just grab that and go" Robin took the container out of Steve's hands and walked towards the entrance.

Dustin presses the button, but it didn't work

"Which one do I press Erica?" He said

"Just press the damn button nerd" she answered

"Which one?"

"Press open door!"

"I'm pressing open door!"

Everyone started talking, giving solutions and commands, Steve walked towards the panel and tried to help Dustin while Robin was trying to move them away so Erica could press the right button.

Your head was spinning thinking of what to do as your heart hammered inside your chest.

Another door closed and you froze.

The room started moving faster, it felt as if you were falling.

Robin screamed

"Dustin!" You screamed and ran towards Dustin holding him as the room continued to fall.

"Shit" you heard Steve said as you closed your eyes holding Dustin tighter.