#as far as i know all the games have jp voices

[teecupangel]

From @shortpirateking

Silly ask but is there any way you could post Kadar and Malik's japanese voices? I've searched all the internet but haven't found anything besides the assassination corridors :/ I just wanna hear the lad call Malik nii-san

It's not a silly ask :). Unfortunately, my JP AC1 is on the PS3 and I don't have a capture card. I can, however, find JP gameplay on youtube XD

Here's a clip of Altaïr, Malik and Kadar with JP voices.

Kadar calls Malik 'nii-san around the 00:56 mark

If you're curious, Altaïr is voiced by Katsuyuki Konishi

Malik is voiced by Mitsuru Ogata

I tried looking for Kadar's voice actor but I couldn't find it. He's not even in the character list in the AC Perfect Guide. Poor Kadar XD

(More ramblings about the JP version)

If you think Altaïr speaks too quickly, THAT HAPPENS A LOT in the JP version.

Robert de Sable speaks so quickly in the part where he grabs Altaïr before he could strike him down.

I still can't stop laughing at how fast he speaks.

It's the translation. The JP script has more lines than the ENG script. Robert de Sable speaks in a kinda old fashioned (but not that old fashion) way and that makes his lines looonnggerr. I love it.

Also, Altaïr speaks very respectfully to Al Mualim. It's jarring compared to his monotone voice in the ENG version. He even uses 'watashi' when speaking to Al Mualim when he normally uses 'ore'. Watashi is gender neutral and used when speaking respectfully to someone but commonly used by women while ore is more of an arrogant way to say 'I'/'my'/'mine'.

Honestly, I think JP Altaïr has an 'ikemen ore-sama' voice while ENG Altaïr feels more of 'monotone I don't give a shit ore-sama voice'. I like them both.

BTW:

Lucy calls Desmond "Desmond" while Vidic calls him "Miles-kun" which is an accurate translation of Lucy's Desmond and Vidic's Mister Miles.

BUT it does have a different vibe in the JP version.

Vidic using 'kun' shows he believe he is of higher standing compared to Desmond as 'kun' is usually used for younger boys or if the speaker is the boss or in a position of power (like a doctor or a teacher).

Lucy, on the other hand, has no reason to call Desmond by his first name since they are strangers. That's considered rude by a lot of people. Desmond-kun would have been just as weird but would have softened the blow. If Lucy was being respectful, she would call him Miles-san. This could be a ploy on Lucy's part to form a connection with Desmond early on.

Or, you know, the JP script is just following the ENG script XD

Video From:

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Quick world lore question; does the game ever specify what kind of potions/poisons exist in twst? Like, since it's technically a fantasy world, would things like health/stamina potions like you'd see in rpg's exist? Or would it be closer to reality, like home remedies and basic pharmaceutical stuff?

I'm only an EN player and I havent read all the pomfiore student's vignette's so if they answer this there then im sorry for the bother ; ;

Potions aren't talked about in the only Pomefiore students' vignettes! (In fact, if we're talking just strictly Labwear vignettes... Vil and Rook's don't really focus on potions at all; only Epel's sort of does.) There isn't actually a ton of lore about potions, and in the times when they do become relevant, the writing tends to focus more on the ingredients and/or the preparation process rather than what kind of potion would be produced. For example, the entire Labwear series of vignettes frequently brings up rare or dangerous plants that require the application of magic in order to safely harvest, such as the mandrake and the lantern blossom.

I wasn't able to check all vignettes (since that would be like... what, probably a few hundred at this point? If not that, then at least over 100.), but there's definitely mentions of potions with various effects. From all lab vignettes alone and combing through the main story, here's what I could glean:

transformation/transmutation potions (prologue, book 2, Beans Day, book 6, etc; this is probably the most often mentioned type of potion)

voice-changing potions (Leona Labwear vignette)

color-changing potions (Epel Labwear voice line)

plant growth potions (Epel Labwear voice line)

sleeping potions (Silver Labwear vignette)

awakening potions (Silver Labwear vignette)

magic enhancing potions (book 2)

a potion that changes one part of your body to that of an animal's (book 3)

itch-relief potion (Lost in the Book with Stitch)

potion that heals burns instantly (Jamil Labwear vignette)

On the subject of poisons, no specific kinds are mentioned as far as I'm aware. There's a Poison Refining class (Cater Labwear vignettes), but we don't really get specifics. When poisons are talked about, it's usually in reference to the Fairest Queen or the Pomefiore dorm leader being skilled in making potent poisons, or it's Kalim talking about the many attempts on his life and unnamed poison antidotes. There may be more mentioned in other places, but at this time I don't have the capacity to check every single event and vignette. If you know of any more that aren’t listed here, please let me know and I can update the list!!

It should also be noted that "potions" can also be used for other purposes. This includes creating special effects for movies (mentioned in Vil's Labwear vignettes) and enhancing the effects of skincare (book 6, Azul Ceremonial Robes, etc.).

You'll notice that the effects of these potions can also be achieved via regular spellcasting. (In fact, we see Adeuce practicing color changing magic in Floyd's Labwear vignettes + Vil using color changing magic to help himself hide from paparazzi, etc., Jack's/Malleus's/Azul's UMs also allow them to do things without the help of potions.) Because of this, I believe that potions are meant to be an alternative way of spellcasting without actually needing to use magic. This makes already prepared potions usable by mages who don't want to expend energy/build blot as well as by NON-MAGES.

Within the world of TWST, there is an occupation known as the “medical mage”, who appear to combine magic and medicine into their practice. Furthermore, what is called “Potionology” in EN is written as 魔法薬学 (literally, "magic pharmaceuticals") in JP, implying that there is, in fact, an intersection between magic and medicine. This is similar to how "technomancy" is described to be the cross between magic and technology.

In terms of a "healing potion", there are instances which show that a magic potion may heal or at least speed up the body's natural healing process. For example, in 7-68 of the main story, Baur gives Lilia something to drink to help him with the dire blow he just took. It doesn't appear to restore him to full health though, as Lilia states he still needs rest afterward. In EN, they use the term "potion" but in JP they use "薬" (kusuri), which is "medicine". Baur qualifies the character with "魔法" (maho), which is "magic", so the term he's using is "magic medicine". This is probably the closest thing to a "healing" potion that we know of in the TWST lore.

So technically, yes, TWST has "healing potions". I wouldn’t say there is one blanket cure-all potion though; based on what we know of potionology and how it’s very similar to irl chemistry classes, we can assume that there are generalized “healing potions” but that there must also be far more specialized and targeted ones, similar to medicine irl or non-enchanted or non-magic infused medicine. This is supported by Riddle mentioning a potion that instantaneously heals burns, implying that there is no “cure-all”.

I would imagine that, like transformation potions, “healing potions” would have to be highly regulated since they’re basically a drug 💀 (There would probably be OTC types too, given proper governmental approval!)

[corgitation]

how to play pokemon games to study japanese

I just started playing pokemon omega ruby in japanese and have been having a great time with it! The language has been surprisingly simple so far, and I've found it a lot easier to get into than animal crossing. I used a few different resources, so here's a guide on how you can play pokemon in Japanese for language learning:

Choosing a pokemon game

I used this video from gamegengo to decide which game to play and ended up with omega ruby. The tldr of his video is choosing a game that you have access to (in Japanese), that's easy to read (graphics quality makes a huge difference for japanese characters), that's in level. He documented his findings here

Access: Emulators, especially on the PC, are great options for older games. This is especially true for games that are region-locked and need a specific Japanese version to play the game in Japanese. Multi-language support wasn't added until pokemon x/y, so anything older needs a JP version game

Readability: characters on switch games look great, 3DS is also very good. DS is good, anything older can be a bit of a challenge

Hiragana, Kanji, Furigana: prior to pokemon black and white, all text was in hiragana. This can be really challenging if you're used to seeing text with kanji, it can make words much harder to recognize. However, furigana has only been added in arceus and scarlet/violet

Level: All of the pokemon games rank between N3 to N2 except for arceus, which is N2 to N1. I am studying for N3 and am not having much trouble with omega ruby, although I am slow at reading and this is one of the easiest rated games. Someone who is a complete beginner would struggle a lot with these games depending on the amount of reading they intend to do (you don't really need to read to be able to play pokemon)

2. Game resources

There are a variety of resources to help make playing video games in japanese easier. Normally, I would like to just play the game and absorb the content without having to look up a lot of it. Unfortunately, since most pokemon games don't include furigana and aren't voice acted, there is no way to learn how to read a word with kanji you don't know other than to look it up.

Poke Corpus: amazing tool for querying text dumps from different pokemon games. Select the game you're playing and the language, and then write a query with some of the text from a sentence you want to look up. Works great, keep in mind the search is exact (including spacing). It also shows results from other languages, so in addition to pulling all the text for lookup you can see the english translation (which is localized, so is not always a direct translation)

Yomitan: a japanese pop-up dictionary browser extension. Very helpful if you ever read japanese on a computer. I used this video for getting it set up. Very customizable with different dictionaries

Game2Text (PC only): if you're playing a game on an emulator on your computer, this is a great tool for grabbing the text straight from the game. Additionally, since this works inside a browser, any browser extensions (like yomitan) work with this.

Google translate lens: I really don't like this, because it isn't going to be as accurate and it won't show you individual word translations, it will just blur out and translate the entire sentence. But works in a pinch

[yuurei20]

Hello YuuRei! My apologies if this sounds a little silly, but I couldn’t help but notice that Trey’s voice sounds a little bit different in both Ruggie’s Platinum Jacket card story and his TsumTsum voice lines. (To me, it almost sounds like his voice actor is congested, either from a cold or seasonal allergies.) I honestly do not understand Japanese myself, so I am curious if you know if any JP Players have noticed too and/or are talking about it? Thank you so much!

Hello hello! ^^ Thank you very much for this question!

Trey's voice sounding different for Tsumsted and Ruggie's Platinum Jacket card were indeed noticed by the JP-server! And people have had a lot to say ♣️

Much like you say, some people are also guessing that maybe he had a cold at the time, with some going so far as to ask if the seiyuu has been changed (it is still Suzuki Ryouta!) and others commenting that they noticed some strange sound quality issues in Tapis Rouge, as well!

I am not sure about Tapis Rouge or Ruggie's Platinum Jacket, but there was actually an update message sent out (at 1am!) explaining that a character's voice was not playing at the same quality as it had been recorded and it was to be addressed.

This was followed later by an update that explained that it had been corrected, and they are looking into the quality of other characters' voices, as well!

This was followed again just yesterday by another update:

Ace, Jamil and Trey (Tsumsted) all had their voices corrected, and the game says that this was in no way the fault of the voice actors but was an issue on the development end, even including an apology to the voice cast for the mistake.

An equipment complication? Data issue? Sound team drama? Technical problem? We may never know, but the game seems quite open about acknowledging and correcting these curiosities as they arise ^^

[dadzawa-abc]

☁️ Random Media recommendations ☁️

🍼 Agere Edition 🍼

╰┈─➤ 🌕 These recommendations will also have age range recommendation with them! However: we believe that any little of any little age range can watch whatever they wish to (even if the media itself might be directed to an older audience, etc) the age range is just there for what I think age regressors may enjoy in that range / or what they might want to check out — 🎀

1)) LEGO MONKIE KID.

. Little age recommendation . ( 6-10+ )

. about . "Monkie Kid, also known as MK, a young teenager who leads a normal life as a noodle delivery boy until he is chosen for a legendary quest" -Via google.

. Why I personally recommend it . A very supportive and welcomed community. The show can be for both adults and kids to enjoy without the unnecessary adult themes such as cussing, heavy violence and inappropriate material. The community is also very LGBTQ+ friendly (by the artists, and even some of the voice actors) such as MK having "he/they" pronouns — the main voice actor acknowledging (and very welcoming) a popular MLM ship of the character they VA.

. where to watch . Amazon prime video and HappyKids (Amazon prime as far to my knowledge has all 4 seasons. HappyKids only have 3-4 seasons available for free there)

2)) OK KO! (let's be heros)

. Little age recommendation . ( 0-2 / 0-5 )

. About . "In the future year 201X, naive youngster K.O. aspires to be a superhero in a video game-inspired world set in Lakewood Plaza. Him and his friends go on adventures while also foiling their enemy (and Villian) Boxman and his henchmen' plans"

. Why I personally recommend it . Majority of our littles watch this show, especially our littles who regress a very young age. They enjoy it, and it's very kid friendly. Another friendly community with the main two Villians who's a canon MLM married couple

. Where to watch . Prime video and Hulu

3)) Craig of the Creek

. Little age recommendation . ( 4-12+ )

. About . "Following the adventures of Craig Williams and his two friends, Kelsey Pokoly and John Paul `JP' Mercer, as they explore the untamed wilderness of the Creek, which is dominated by tribes of children." -Via google

. Why I personally recommend it . The show just sits right with me. All of our littles (and even caregivers) enjoy this show. Never bored of the show's episodes and it keeps me entertained everytime I watch it. Once again, a very friendly community. The show isn't afraid to show off that some of their characters are LGBTQ+ (mostly consistent of non-binary characters and Gay characters)

. Where to watch . Prime video, Hulu, Disney+, Max, Cartoon network

🎀 — please let me know if you'd like a part 2 (or) would like to see more of this. I'm happy to recommend shows, songs, media, etc. Just ask!

[himehikoshrine]

Jack Jeanne Explainers: Takarazuka Revue

This post is a quick and probably incomplete overview of Takarazuka Revue specifically for the context of its inspiration on Jack Jeanne, for reference. It's a basic overview but it's not intended as a guide to the form and fandom.

Takarazuka Revue (JP: 宝塚歌劇団) is likely the most direct influence on the game. It also has a very dedicated fan base that maintains robust English Language resources, so if this aspect of things intrigues you, it is quite accessible to dive further into.

Takarazuka Revue is an all-female musical theater company founded in 1913 and based out of the city of Takarazuka. All roles, male and female, are played by women. It also has an associated training school, the Takarazuka Music School.

The original pitch for the game was an All Boys Revue School, so the reference starts at the very beginning, as a kind of gender swap of Takarazuka.

You may notice that the term used here for "Revue" 『歌劇』 is the same one that the game uses. It gets translated sometimes as "opera" sometimes as "theater" - in general the term does mean "opera" but it's pretty clearly not opera that they're training - it's being used as "Revue" the same way that Takarazuka uses it. Which is, loosely speaking, musical theater.

Continued below the cut --

(I suspect that the similarities in first sound and also first character between 宝塚 - Takarazuka and 玉阪 - Tamasaka are intentional as well)

Takarazuka was founded by a businessman looking for an attraction to draw people to the city and settled on the idea of an All Female Musical Revue and a focus on more western style musical, mostly, as far as I know, as a business decision and a feeling that traditional styles of Kabuki were falling out of favor with most people. It drew heavily from French Musical Revue. The full history of the company, like I said, is well documented in English, and is longer than I can get into, here.

Compare and contrast this to the information we get about the 13th Himehiko, the current principal's great-grandfather, Chuza Dairi. He's said to have been born during the Meiji era and lived into the Showa era, and was fascinated by western style musicals. He's credited with the name Univeil, and starting to use the Jack and Jeanne terms.

Takarazuka stands in contrast to a long line of male exclusive theater forms in Japan. Japan, of course, also puts on co-ed musicals, both originals and adaptations, like the rest of the world, but Takarazuka is very much, to use the phrase the game uses, the "pinnacle of all-female revues."

This image is of a showcase from 1930, where you can see the lavish, european revue style inspiration clearly.

In Takarazuka, male roles are called otokoyaku (男役) - which just means 'men's roles' and is the term Jack Jeanne uses for what "Jack" roles are. Female roles are called musumeyaku (娘役) - which translates to 'girl/maiden/daughter roles'. The game actually uses onnayaku (女役) or women's roles when introducing Jeannes.

(Worth noting that the character Kisa plays in the Newcomers' Performance is translated as Maiden but is 娘 (musume) in Japanese which means occasionally when she or other characters are talking about "playing the role of the maiden" they are saying "musumeyaku" which I think is probably an intentional reference.)

Takarazuka puts on Musicals as well as both song and dance revues. It adapts many things, from extant musicals to manga to film, as well as history and classic stories. It has a reputation for being bright, sparkly, and lavish in costuming and set design and dramatic in style.

The voice actor for Tancho, the singing teacher and head of Rhodonite, is a former Takarazuka Otokoyaku. Tancho's outfits and style of speech are directly taken from Takarazuka. The feathers Tancho wears are part of the standard Revue portion of Takarazuka shows.

Right - Tancho's image, from the website, Left - Tancho's voice actor, Nanami Hiroki, from the Asashi article announcing her retirement from Takarazuka, showing her wearing one of the typical feather backed outfits that leads appear in parades after performances.

Otokoyaku are the stars of Takarazuka and tend to draw the biggest crowd and they get top billing, though each troupe tends to have a top Otokoyaku and top Musumeyaku, decided by a complex mix of seniority (especially for otokoyaku) and gradings. I will stop short of saying these are kind of like Jack Ace and Al Jeannes of a class, though. The Musumeyaku is expected to support her Otokoyaku. Using the terms Jack Jeanne uses, for Takarazuka, the Otokoyaku is essentially always the Flower, the Musumeyaku the Vessel, which is more standardized than the point of view of characters at Univeil.

The top Otokoyaku and top Musumeyaku are called the Top Combi (コンビ). Takarazuka and its fandom use that, rather than Partner (パートナー) that Jack Jeanne is fond of, which carries a potentially romantic connotation.

Takarazuka expects its actresses to maintain a more masculine or very feminine (depending on their role) persona on and off stage, and the expectations for behavior and appearance are quite strict even off stage. For example, much like Idols, they are expected to not date, let alone marry and have kids, until they retire.

EDIT: Someone who knows more than me let me know that the rules for dating are slightly more lax now, and relationships are tolerated so long as they are kept strictly out of the public eye - though still no marriage.

Jack Jeanne remains frustratingly vague on the rules for this during school -- No one seems to think dating itself is an issue, but Ao does say that it would 'cause trouble' if people saw them holding hands. So perhaps we're supposed to imagine something similar? But back to the post.

Takarazuka is divided into several different Troupes (組, kumi, read as gumi when used after the name of a troupe). They currently have five.

They break down as follows

Flower Troupe (Hanagumi 花組) - 1921 Moon Troupe (Tsukigumi 月組) - 1921 Snow Troupe (Yukigumi 雪組) - 1924 Star Troupe (Hoshigumi 星組) -1933-1939, reestablished 1948 Cosmos Troupe (Soragumi 宙組) - 1998

Each troupe has a reputation, though they are fairly loosely followed, and many performances get performed by different troupes for different runs. However, I suspect this was a strong influence on the way the classes were divided in Jack Jeanne. For example, Moon Troupe is known for singing. The newest troupe, the Cosmos Troupe is written with a character in Chui's name, and their stereotype is 'experimental and tall'. Snow troupe, interestingly, is known for more traditionally Japanese works (loosely) which is a conspicuous absence from Univeil, especially considering Tamasakaza's style is said to be more traditional than Takarazuka's -- closer to kabuki, even.

In Takarazuka, stars are sorted into these upon graduation. The Music School is probably better as a whole separate post.

The term "Newcomer's Performance" used in the game to refer to the first show of the year is also used in Takarazuka -- shinjin kouen (新人公演), where it has the meaning of a different casting of a play with all newer Takarasiennes (a term used for the actresses of Takarazuka).

The specific announcement that Tsuki makes in the intro is almost exactly, in both wording and tone, the announcement made before each Takarazuka play. His outfit in that scene is a version of a very famous style of Takarazuka Costume, inspired by fancy French dress and specifically the manga Rose of Versaille, whose adaptation is one of Takarazuka's most iconic plays.

I would strongly encourage you to browse their official English Language site (or Japanese one, if you can read it), which can be found here : Takarazuka Revue

While you're there, if you're there for Jack Jeanne reasons, it may be interesting to pay attention to the use of the word "dream" which is one of the theme/motif words of Jack Jeanne, and is use heavily in Takarazuka's official material as well as writings on the subject.

Had to throw this in because these? These are the Takarazuka words right there. Well, their official Motto is "Modesty, Fairness, Grace" or "Be Modest, Be Proper, Be Graceful" (which is a whole lot to unpack elsewhere) but unofficially it could be "So Dreamy and Sparkly."

You'll probably get a more thorough history on the website, too, than I provided.

Rather than make this even longer, I'm going to make a separate post on Takarazuka Music School, the path into Takarazuka, and it's similarities and difference with what we know about Univeil.

I'm by no means an expert of Takarazuka, and I should probably defer to people more involved in the fandom for that, but if anyone has anything to add that I missed in this brief post, please please reblog and add! If you have any questions, I can try to answer, asks should be open!

[elbertsbabygirl]

Title: Wounds of the heart

Nica X Y/n Reader

Note: Hello Robins I missed you all so much it's been A months since I started posting for Fanfiction story because of work I stopped posting for a while but I am here now to present on our new boy in our ikemen villians JP server I hope you enjoy our boy!! Love u all

A field hospital near the frontlines of the war between Germany and England. The sounds of distant gunfire and the occasional explosion can be heard outside, but within the tent, it’s quiet except for the soft rustling of bandages and the murmurs of the wounded.

Y/n is gently tending to the wounds of Nica Schwartz, a German soldier with a mix of pain and intrigue in his eyes. His face is marred by dirt and blood, but his gaze remains fixed on Y/n as she works.

Nica: (His voice is low, almost a whisper, as if testing the waters) "You’re far too kind for this place, Y/n. Someone like you shouldn’t be here, surrounded by all this death.

"Y/n: (She pauses, meeting his gaze with a mix of firmness and softness) "And what about you, Nica? You speak as if you’re any different. War has taken its toll on us all.

"Nica: (A ghost of a smile plays on his lips as he leans in slightly) "Perhaps. But I’ve never met someone like you. So gentle, yet strong. You make me forget, if only for a moment, that we’re on opposite sides of this madness."Y/n’s hands still for a brief second as she processes his words. She’s heard such lines before from soldiers trying to charm their way out of pain, but something about Nica’s tone is different—dangerously sincere.

Y/n: (A soft sigh escapes her as she resumes her work, her voice barely above a whisper) "This war… it’s not something we can forget, Nica. It’s always there, lurking in the background."

Nica: (His expression shifts, a flicker of something darker crossing his face before he softens again) "But what if, just for tonight, we pretended it wasn’t? Just for a few moments, Y/n… let’s be two people, not a nurse and a soldier. No England. No Germany. Just… us."

Y/n feels a tug at her heart, but she’s wary, knowing that Nica’s words could be just another game. Still, the way he looks at her, as if she’s the only thing keeping him tethered to humanity, stirs something deep within her.

Y/n: (She finishes bandaging his wound and meets his gaze, her voice tender yet firm) "You speak as if we have a choice, Nica. But we don’t. Not really. The war will always be there, between us."

Nica: (He reaches out, gently taking her hand in his, his thumb brushing over her knuckles as he speaks with a mix of sincerity and something more elusive) "Maybe. But I’ve never been one to follow the rules. And I think, deep down, neither are you."

Y/n’s heart skips a beat at his touch, and despite the alarm bells ringing in her mind, she doesn’t pull away. There’s something about Nica that draws her in, like a moth to a flame. She knows she should be cautious, but in this moment, all she feels is the warmth of his hand in hers.

Y/n: (Her voice is soft, almost hesitant) "Nica… I…

"Nica leans in closer, his voice a hushed whisper that sends shivers down Y/n’s spine.

Nica: "Just for tonight, Y/n. Let’s forget the world outside this tent. Let’s just be…

"The tension in the air is palpable as Y/n’s mind races. She knows she should step back, remind herself of the boundaries, but something in Nica’s eyes holds her there, teetering on the edge of something she can’t quite name.

Y/n: (She finally whispers, her voice barely audible) "Just for tonight…"

As the words leave her lips, Nica’s grip tightens slightly on her hand, a silent promise of something more, something dangerous yet alluring. And in that moment, as the world outside continues to burn, Y/n and Nica are just two souls seeking solace in each other’s presence, if only for a fleeting moment.

The night deepens, and the sounds of war outside become a distant hum. Inside the tent, the soft glow of a lantern casts flickering shadows on the canvas walls. Y/n and Nica sit close, their hands still entwined, the tension between them thickening with every passing second.

Nica: (He tilts his head slightly, his voice low and almost teasing) "Tell me, Y/n, have you ever thought about what you’d do when this is all over? When the war is just a memory?

Y/n: (She hesitates, her eyes searching his, trying to decipher his intentions) "I… I haven’t allowed myself to think that far ahead. It seems almost impossible to imagine a life beyond this."

Nica: (He leans closer, his breath warm against her skin as he speaks, his tone more serious now) "You should. A woman like you deserves to dream of something better. A life where you’re not surrounded by blood and pain."

Y/n feels a pang in her chest, a reminder of the harsh reality she’s living in. But Nica’s words, though seductive, are also tinged with a sadness that tugs at her heart.

Y/n: (She tries to pull back, to distance herself from the emotions swirling inside her, but Nica’s grip on her hand tightens, keeping her close) "And what about you, Nica? Do you dream of a life beyond the war?"

Nica: (His eyes darken slightly, a shadow passing over his face) "I used to. Before… everything. But now… my dreams feel as distant as the stars. Perhaps that’s why I find myself here, with you. You make me feel like there might still be something worth dreaming about."

Y/n’s breath catches in her throat at his words. She knows she should be wary, that Nica’s intentions might not be as pure as they seem. But there’s something in his voice, a vulnerability that she can’t ignore.

Y/n: (Her voice is soft, almost pleading) "Nica… I don’t know if I can trust you. We’re on opposite sides of this war. How can we even think about… anything beyond this moment?"

Nica: (He leans in, his forehead almost touching hers, his voice a hushed whisper filled with an intensity that sends shivers down her spine) "Trust is a fragile thing, Y/n. But I’m willing to take the risk, if you are. Let’s leave the war outside this tent. Just for tonight, let’s pretend…"

Y/n closes her eyes, feeling the warmth of Nica’s presence, the steady beat of his heart through his chest. She knows this is dangerous, that she’s treading on thin ice. But the way he looks at her, with a mix of desperation and hope, makes her want to believe in the possibility of something more.

Y/n: (Her voice is barely a whisper, filled with a mix of fear and longing) "What are we doing, Nica?"

Nica: (He gently cups her face, his thumb brushing over her cheek as he looks deeply into her eyes, his voice soft and sincere) "We’re holding onto the only thing that feels real in this madness. Each other."

For a moment, everything else fades away—the war, the pain, the uncertainty. All that exists is the two of them, caught in a moment of shared vulnerability and the flickering hope of something beyond the horrors of war.

Y/n’s heart races, her emotions a tangled mess of fear, desire, and the yearning for something more than the life she’s known. And in that moment, she makes a decision—a small, quiet one, but one that will change everything.

Y/n: (Her voice trembles slightly as she speaks, her heart in her words) "Just for tonight, Nica… let’s pretend."

Nica’s eyes soften, a rare, genuine smile curving his lips as he leans in and presses a soft, lingering kiss to her forehead. The gesture is tender, almost reverent, and it makes Y/n’s heart ache with the realization of how much she’s come to care for this enigmatic, dangerous man.

Nica: (His voice is a whisper against her skin) "Just for tonight."

And as the night stretches on, Y/n allows herself to fall into the fantasy, if only for a few fleeting hours, knowing that when the dawn breaks, they will both have to face the harsh realities of the world outside. But for now, in the safety of the tent, they have each other—and for tonight, that is enough.

LOVE MAKING SCENE!! ( MINORS DON'T INTERACT SKIP THIS!!)

The night has grown quieter, with the distant sounds of the war almost completely muffled. Inside the tent, the lantern's soft glow bathes Y/n and Nica in a warm, golden light. They sit close together, their hands still entwined, hearts beating in sync as the tension between them reaches its peak.Y/n can feel the weight of Nica’s gaze on her, his eyes filled with a mixture of emotions—desire, tenderness, and something deeper, something that she’s been trying to ignore but can no longer deny.

Nica: (His voice is low, filled with an emotion he’s no longer trying to hide) "Y/n… I’ve never met anyone like you. You’re… everything I never knew I needed."

His words send a shiver down Y/n’s spine. She knows she should be cautious, that she’s walking a dangerous path, but she can’t stop the way her heart leaps at his confession. Her breath hitches as Nica’s hand gently cups her face, his thumb brushing over her cheek with a tenderness that makes her chest tighten.

Y/n: (Her voice is barely a whisper, filled with both fear and longing) "Nica… this is crazy. We shouldn’t…"

Nica: (He leans in closer, his forehead resting against hers as he speaks softly, his breath warm against her lips) "I know. But I don’t care anymore. I don’t want to think about what we should or shouldn’t do. I just want to be here, with you."

Y/n’s heart races, her resolve crumbling as she feels the warmth of Nica’s touch, the sincerity in his voice. She’s tried to resist, to keep her emotions in check, but in this moment, with the world outside forgotten, all she can think about is him.Slowly, almost hesitantly, Nica closes the small gap between them. His lips hover over hers for a brief, agonizing second, giving Y/n a moment to pull away, to stop this before it goes any further. But instead, she finds herself leaning in, closing the distance, her eyes fluttering shut as their lips finally meet.The kiss is soft at first, tentative, as if both are afraid to fully give in. But as the seconds pass, the tension and longing that have been building between them finally break free. Nica’s hand slides to the back of Y/n’s neck, pulling her closer, deepening the kiss with a desperation that matches the pounding of his heart.Y/n melts into him, her hands slipping up to his shoulders, gripping the fabric of his uniform as she loses herself in the kiss. All the fear, the doubts, the war—all of it fades away, leaving only the two of them, connected in a moment of pure, unfiltered emotion.Nica’s kiss is filled with a passion that takes Y/n’s breath away, his lips moving against hers with an intensity that leaves her dizzy. She can feel the depth of his emotions in every movement, every touch—this is not just a kiss; it’s a confession, a plea, a promise.Y/n’s heart swells with emotions she can no longer deny. She’s falling, and she knows it, but she can’t bring herself to stop. Not now. Not when Nica is holding her like she’s the only thing keeping him grounded, like she’s his last link to humanity in a world gone mad.As the kiss deepens, Nica pulls her even closer, his other hand wrapping around her waist, holding her as if he’s afraid she might disappear. Y/n responds in kind, her own arms wrapping around his neck, pulling him in as if trying to fuse them together, to make this moment last forever.

Time seems to stand still as they pour everything they’ve been feeling into the kiss—every fear, every hope, every longing they’ve kept hidden. It’s as if the world outside has ceased to exist, and all that matters is the two of them, lost in each other.Finally, after what feels like both an eternity and no time at all, they slowly pull back, their foreheads still pressed together, their breaths mingling in the small space between them. Y/n’s heart is pounding, her lips tingling from the intensity of the kiss, but she doesn’t pull away. Neither does Nica.

Nica: (His voice is hoarse, filled with raw emotion as he speaks, his lips brushing against hers as he does) "Y/n…"

Y/n doesn’t let him finish. Instead, she closes the distance again, pressing her lips to his in a kiss that’s just as desperate, just as full of love as the first. She’s no longer thinking, no longer worrying about the consequences. All she knows is that she needs this—needs him.They kiss again and again, each one more passionate than the last, as if trying to make up for all the time they’ve spent denying their feelings. Y/n can feel the love in every touch, every caress, and she knows, deep down, that this moment is real. This love is real.When they finally break apart again, both are breathless, their hearts racing, but neither pulls away. Nica rests his forehead against hers, his breath warm and uneven as he speaks, his voice barely above a whisper.

Nica: "I don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow, Y/n. But right now, I know that I love you."

Y/n’s eyes well up with tears at his words, and she can’t help but smile through them. She’s scared—terrified, even—but in this moment, she knows she feels the same.

Y/n: (Her voice is soft, filled with all the love she’s been holding back) "I love you too, Nica. I think… I always have."

And with that, they kiss again, sealing their confessions with the kind of love that can only be born in the midst of chaos. For tonight, at least, they have each other—and that’s all they need.

With that, they settle back into each other’s arms, holding on tightly as if afraid to let go. The night continues to stretch on, but for Y/n and Nica, time has lost its meaning. All that matters now is their love and the promise they’ve made to each other.As they drift off to sleep, their fingers still intertwined, the outside world fades away, leaving only the two of them—two souls bound together by love, determined to fight for their future, no matter the cost.

I hope you guys enjoyed This I love you guys so much and I promise to make it up to you all to post more fanfics🥰

Taglist: @lilaccosmic @sh0jun @natimiles @judejazza @candiedcoffeedrops

[saturniandragon]

Adra's Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown In-Depth Review (contains spoilers)

(Caution: Extremely long read, please ask for snacks from Long Caster)

Let's start with a little background of me as a player. Before 7, my Ace Combat games were:

Ace Combat 2

Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere (EU and JP versions)

Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies

Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War

Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War

Ace Combat X: Skies of Deception

Ace Combat: Joint Assault

Ace Combat: Assault Horizon

With the exception of Assault Horizon and the EU version of AC3, I played all of them on emulators. Because I was too poor to afford anything. I haven't played AC6 because I haven't seen the reason to buy an X360 just to play 1 game, so I'm waiting for a fully developed X360 emulator that can run 6 flawlessly.

Yes I used to play AH. Quite a lot. Yes it was a decent enough game. Yes it's strayed ungodly far from the true Ace Combat that we know of. But the soundtracks absolutely make up for it. And frankly, without AH, there won't be Ace Combat Infinity, because it used the same game engine as AH. Also AC7 reuses several sounds from AH.

I'm not saying we should accept AH as a true Ace Combat game, because it's not. But over time, it became a necessary stepping stone towards Ace Combat Infinity and Ace Combat 7 we know today.

Just a note that I have never played Infinity. I was still in mid school when Infinity was up and running. I never even owned a PS3. Any mention of AC Infinity in my following review is based on watching YT videos because the game is dead now (thanks Namco, I guess).

I spent 5 years aggressively avoiding spoilers for Ace Combat 7 because it's more fun that way. As such I had no idea what the story is like, what Strangereal country the protag is affiliated with, or which country we're fighting. About the only thing I know is that the protag goes by the nickname Trigger.

Anyway, Ace Combat 7 now. So my first impression was. Wow. I absolutely loved the menu UI. Minimalistic, yes, but very straightforward. And the splash screen before the main menu. The overall dark blue theme of course is a nod towards the blue skies that every pilot knows, whether real or virtual. And apparently also a reference for the theme of the game plot, "Dark Blue."

(Tumblr voice: do you love the color of the sky-- *forcibly removed from stage*)

The controls again are also familiar, although I have to change the scheme in settings first, because I'm used to using the Select button instead of Square to change SP weapons. Again it's configurable, so a nice feature.

The mission briefing scene was... to put it simply, a little convoluted. Maybe that's just me, seeing Ace Combat 5 and Zero also had similar briefing screens with a buttload of flavor text that mostly doesn't matter to the actual gameplay. I let it slide because it's "the Ace Combat DNA", if you will. And I also love the animations, so good job devs.

First mission, you're a peacekeeping pilot. So I guess like the precursor of Ace Combat 3's UPEO. You get F-16C with 4AAMs. And thank God for that because I'm kinda fed up with starter planes being something ancient like F-4s or F-5s. And I quite like Vipers. Not as much as I like Flank-- sorry, moving on.

Oh shit, we're fighting Erusea now. I think we fought Erusea as well in 04, right? So I was interested if maybe there would be a mention of Yellow 13 (spoiler: there isn't).

The graphics were stunning. I played the game on max graphics. Lighting, shadows, glow/bloom effects, clouds, skies, a couple of shadow staircasing every now and then, but it's not super noticeable. And the game was very well optimized as well because I was getting 120+ fps at all times.

Although to be fair Ace Combat 7 is my first proper "next gen" game. After years and years of playing games on 720p Low, playing something on 1080p Ultra with smooth 60fps+ is mind blowing.

I think the only times I switch to first person/HUD view is during dogfights in thick clouds, just so I can see where my aircraft is pointing and avoid a premature nose-first landing.

Then the soundtracks. My god, this game delivers and goes beyond. Several times I get the chills when the music ramps up during the right moment. And the way the BGM gets muffled when you're in the clouds and becomes clear again when you're out? Such a genius idea. Replayability value increased.

The flight model/physics is... well, quite different from what I'm used to, which is AC5 and AC0's flight model. Your left thumbstick input isn't instantaneous, there's a bit of inertia and momentum in plane's roll, pitch and yaw, but I quickly got used to it. In contrast to PS2 titles, AC7 planes are so easy to accelerate and very hard to decelerate, and I learned that the hard way from overshooting enemy planes and crashing to the ground a couple of times trying to do dive bomb attacks.

And then the flight model for landing on runways or carriers is another level of different. Somehow your air speed doesn't decrease when you fully press the decel button and the air brakes are extended. Even increasing sometimes, during approach. Your plane only actually starts losing speed when you're directly above the runway. And I hear you, Ace Combat isn't known for realistic flight physics. Never was, and never will be. I have fully accepted that since Ace Combat 2. But you can actually decrease your speed during landing, as you should be able to, in all the previous titles, so why not in 7? That means most of the time I was landing my plane in AC7 with nose gear first. Doesn't damage my plane in the game or anything, but still, I loved doing realistic landings in previous games.

During takeoffs your plane also pitches up automatically after surpassing V1 and V2 speeds, like in Assault Horizon. I prefer previous titles where you have to manually pull the stick back to takeoff from the runway/carrier.

I'm slightly disappointed that there isn't any vapor cloud forming on your plane when you breach Mach 1. AC5 and Zero had that small touch of realism (I think 04 also did but I don't remember), so seeing it absent in 7 is a bit sad. But not game breaking.

Harling rescue mission. He's no longer president of Osea but he's still alive, and apparently built the space elevator near Selatapura. Flew my Super Tomcat with 8AAM through the radar network. Reminding me of the Mother Goose One escort mission from 5. Even the rescue chopper is Sea Goblin, the same one from 5. I love it.

My hype was shattered at the end of the mission where apparently one of my missiles hit Harling and killed him??? Oh well, solitary now I guess.

Oh great, first mission apparently with other pilot convicts. Take off and make Erusean bombers think they're attacking a real AFB. While Count and other Spare squadron members keep calling me Harling's murderer.

My true complain so far in my first time playing is that the characters talk SO much during actual gameplay. Way too much. Half the time I don't hear or get the chance to read subtitles because I'm too focused on dogfighting or blowing stuff up with HVAAs and GPBs. So I'm missing quite a lot of what the characters say during flight.

About the only thing I catch in the entire game is just Long Caster talking about food (affectionate). He probably has an entire buffet line for himself in his E-767. Hey I don't blame him, you're not yourself when you're hungry.

Although, Long Caster, did you really just say you were gonna order food from "Italian" bistro near LRSSG base? That's a bit of an oversight from PA.

My only source of the game's storyline is through cutscenes, which, may I add, are rendered extremely nicely. Like, I couldn't tell if the cutscenes were pre-rendered MP4 clips or real-time 3D render. We've gone from AC04's manga slideshow, AC5's 3D anime, AC0's green screen mocaps, to realistic and high fidelity CGI cutscenes in 7. With the exception of the static JPEG dog that appears beside the Princess of Erusea and Mihaly's granddaughters.

Speaking of which. Mihaly. What the hell is with that full name, old man? Even the noble Altmer families in Elder Scrolls Online are jealous of your monarchy name. I don't want to be your commanding officer who will probably have to write your full name everytime I make an official report.

The cutscenes show an interesting story from Avril's point of view. How she went from apparently spending years building an F-104 from scraps to fulfill her dream as a sky drag racer, shot down by an Osean fighter for breaching airspace regulation, held as a prisoner for god knows how long, and finally becoming the Scrap Queen for the OADF/OMDF and making tweaks for Trigger's aircrafts.

(You! Solitary, now!)

Let's move to weapons. SP weapons especially, and my god there's a lot of them now. LAAM, HVAA, HPAA, HCAA, 8AAM, GRKT, SASM, IEWS, PLSL, so many to choose from. I still remember when 4AGMs and 4AAMs were just called XAGMs and XMAAs. And now there's even a goddamn 8AGM for when you really hate tank columns. If the next Ace Combat game were to feature the new F-15EX, they should make 10AAM or 12AAM SP weapon for it.

For area of effect (AOE) weapons like UGBs, GPBs and SFFSs, they now use predicted impact point and blast radius as your aiming guide, previously also seen in AH and Infinity. It's a very good way to aim AOE weapons and decide where you should aim for maximum effect. In AC3 and PS2 titles, they just displayed a hovering on-screen reticle that tells you roughly where your bombs will go, no information about how large the lethal radius is.

You have access to countermeasures now like in ACAH! Gone are the days you have to perform pugachev kulbit 60G shit yourself maneuver to avoid incoming QAAMs. You can still do that, of course, but now at least they give you a second option, for when you're in a pinch, which is nice.

Let's talk about the aircraft tree. And my thoughts? I really like it. Intuitive and easy to understand. All SP weapons for each aircraft are also available to view before you buy. A little weird how the F-16C tree branches out to F-2A, but also the F-14D Super Tomcat. I mean I was expecting the F-16C to branch out to Falcon derivatives like F-16XL and F-16 Block 60, and the F-14D would be unlocked by purchasing F-14A first, like in Ace Combat 5. I mean I get to play with F-14D's 8AAM early in the game. Still, a little weird.

(After writing this I just remembered that F-16XL is a DLC, so disregard that)

I also love the way it incorporates aircraft parts previously seen in Ace Combat X, Infinity and AH (yes that game actually had aircraft parts, although a little different, and only seen in Free Mission and multiplayer). And once you unlock one aircraft upgrade part, you can apply it to any aircraft! 10/10.

From my earlier point of "planes too easy to accel and too hard to decel", maybe there are parts that can make decel easier, but I haven't unlocked it by the time I'm writing this review. I will, however, attempt to unlock everything in the aircraft tree because this game is fun.

My aircraft tree path in my first playthrough was F-16C, F-14D, A-10C, MiG-29, Su-33, Su-30M2, Su-34, Su-30SM, and finally for the last mission I saved up enough MRPs for Su-57 with PLSL. Which is quite effective for boss fights I must say. I haven't used pulse laser since AC3's pulse laser (that was usable on R-103 Delphinus 3 and R-311 Remora). Different in how it works because in AC3 the pulse laser occupies your machine gun slot, and in AC7 it's an SPW, but considering AC3 takes place in 2040 Strangereal, it's fine.

Did you know I clapped Mihaly's X-02S with an Su-34, first try, with standard missiles alone? I played on Normal diff, but I was dogfighting him with 90% damage, so I'm quite proud of that.

In the wise words of Lt. Bradley Bradshaw, "It's not the plane, it's the pilot."

Next the flight controls. God it feels so satisfying and immersive. The way your controller vibrates, the FOV shakes when an explosion happens near you, or when going through a turbulence or wind shear in the clouds, I love it. Although not gonna lie I've crashed my MiG-29 once into a cliffside from extreme wind shear in one of that canyon mission, and I nearly pissed myself when my Fullback was struck by lightning and my HUD was gone.

I do miss the oil splatter effect on your screen when you fly through an explosion, that was last seen in AH and Infinity.

The clouds aren't just decors of the sky now, they can alter the gameplay! From masking radar pings, forming ice layers on your plane which hampers its performance, to disrupting missile tracking ability. And in cockpit view, your glass canopy actually gets wet from the water vapors, and icy when your plane's icing up, so that's an awesome level of detail. A great way to make gameplay less boring and make players rethink their strats. Which I'm guessing will be even more important in multiplayer PvP matches.

(Actually now I want to try if SAAM's guidance is affected by clouds at all. I haven't used SAAM in my first playthrough)

The story is good. I mean I didn't get 30% of it because the characters talk so damn much during missions, but I love Trigger's progression from an IUN-PKF pilot (with a suspiciously furry emblem, but hey, I'm part of furry fandom myself), a convict with three white stripes on his tail, and finally the three stripes turn into three claws like the claws of a predator that hunts down every bird in the sky.

Does that kinda resemble the story of Razgriz? Probably. Probably not. I'm overthinking.

They make a several references from previous games. At some points there were mentions of ISAF (AC04), Razgriz squadron (AC5) although indirectly, and Belka's seven nukes (AC0). I think I saw the name Albert Genette once in one of the cutscenes, the reporter/photographer guy from 5! He's still alive by the time 7 takes place! And a mention of the original Kestrel as well as Captain Andersen. Maybe there was a reference from 6 that I didn't catch because I haven't played it. But still, good stuff.

I'm still bummed that Harling dies in this game. In AC5's ending screen it was mentioned that in 2020 Harling would declassify military records about the Osea-Yuktobania war (was it called Circum Pacific war? The war in AC5) to the public. But AC7 takes place in 2019, so I guess the truth of Razgriz squadron's identity, 8492nd and the Grey Men will likely remain in secrecy in Strangereal universe.

There was one mission that took place near Basset Space Center, the place where the mass driver (the railway space ramp launcher thing) is located, that was used to send stuff up to the Arkbird. And my god that mission gave me bad memories of that one mission in AC5 that also took place there. At least this time I don't have to defend the place from falling tanks or a swarm of cruise missiles.

One of my favorite missions was using targeting pods (TGTP) to guide ordnance from bombers above you in order to destroy missile silos. It's almost like a ground target version of SAAM, and reminds me of the bombing run mission in Top Gun: Maverick. Nice gameplay mechanic. Although the final part of the mission where you have to shoot down IRBMs launched from secret locations has to be inspired by the ICBM chase in Assault Horizon. But thankfully in 7 it's not as annoying as it is in AH. My god you do not want to know how annoying it is in AH.

I do appreciate that mission checkpoints are a thing now. In previous titles, if you die at any point before the mission ends, that's it. You start from the beginning again regardless of progress. Checkpoint system was first implemented in AH (because AH is just Call of Duty with planes). Checkpoints in 7 are not common, but that's a good thing. Don't want to resemble AH too much, while also giving casual (and new) players some cushion for failure.

Now let's talk bosses. Arsenal Bird. Or Birds, because apparently there were 2 of them. Fighting them is fucking annoying because of the massive swarm of MQ-101 drones all around it. One standard missile hit does kill the drones, but there's a lot of them. And hundreds of them flying criss cross applesauce all over my screen just gives me sensory overload. Maybe that's the intent.

The design of the Arsenal Bird is... intriguing. Not because it's a flying wing design, we've seen that with the X-49 Night Raven and XR-900 Geopelia (AC3), Arkbird (AC5) and XB-0 Hresvelgr (AC0), but the fact that's it's propeller driven (turboprop, presumably), with counter-rotating blades, and it's in pusher configuration??

By the way, pusher config just means that for a prop driven aircraft, the propeller(s) is behind the engine. Some examples include Airco DH2, a British WW1 biplane fighter, and Kyushu J7W Shinden, a Japanese WW2-era prototype interceptor (don't ask me where or how I know about those two obscure planes). Literally the propellers push the plane forward, like the massive fan on a hovercraft, instead of the more common pulling action in other prop planes like Mitsubishi A6M Zero and Messerschmitt BF 109.

I don't remember the reason why, but they're rare and ultimately didn't catch on in our real world, probably due to complexity issues and no real performance benefit. So seeing an Ace Combat boss plane/mothership that flies on pusher prop engines, in the game's modern timeline where jet/turbofan propulsion is everywhere and tactical laser weapons are a thing, is... something else. There's probably an in-universe explanation for it. Maybe Project Aces just ran out of ideas.

Although, whoever designed the Arsenal Bird (both in the dev team and canonically in the game's universe) must've taken some reference from the Arkbird, judging by the location of laser pod in the middle section, drone pods underneath, and AAM pods on top. Maybe they even salvaged Arkbird parts from the sea after Razgriz shot it down?

You guys remember that the Arkbird had drones, right? The Vogels, that Belka attached to the Arkbird in AC5? Whatever. Someone else reading this remembers.

Let's talk Mihaly. My god, old man, I want to complain about your obnoxiously long full name again, but I'm not going to. At least it's only mentioned exactly one time in the cutscene. But fighting him is actually fun and challenging, both against his Su-30SM and X-02S Strike Wyvern. Especially in Farbanti when the fight brings you near the sunken parts of the city, dodging ruined buildings left and right.

Although I can't help but notice that the layout of his Erusean black and orange livery is reminiscent of Cipher's F-15C livery just in different colors.

(Mihaly: There are pilots like you in every generation, and I felled every last one of them. | Trigger: Ok boomer.)

At the time of writing this review I don't fully remember why he was the enemy boss in 7. Something along the lines of seeing his former country crumble? But then he exhibits certain traits. His body is failing, he loves the skies like it's his one and only home, and his flight data is used to train drones.

Who else shares those traits? Rena Hirose from AC3.

(At one cutscene he was heard talking about borders being an imaginary line that separates countries, which made me think of Pixy and AWWNB, but I felt that's too minor to point out the similarity, so I will gloss over it)

In this paragraph you don't have to listen to me, because I'm not an Ace Combat lore expert. But the similarity of Mihaly and Rena Hirose makes me suspect that Ace Combat 7 is the start of a bridge, one that heads towards Ace Combat 3 timeline. A bridge where we see the next Ace Combat game showing the turnover of the world of Strangereal into the one seen in AC3. We will probably see, in Ace Combat 8, the events that transpire before the continent of Usea (and possibly the entire Strangereal Earth) is ruled by megacorporations instead of countries.

(I just love that some missions in AC7 take place in locations like Waiapolo mountains and Chopinburg, the same locations in some AC3 missons. It's a nice nostalgia)

We've also already seen what looks like an early attempt of thought-controlled combat aircraft, with the ADF fighter series. And in Ace Combat 3, reportedly all playable aircrafts are controlled by thoughts, through the use of COFFIN technology.

Actually now that I talk about it, I'm still damn surprised that old designs like Typhoon, Fulcrum, Raptor, Falcon, Eagle and Hornet all exist by the time AC3 takes place, retrofitted with COFFINs to make them look futuristic. EF-2000E Typhoon II, MiG-33 Fulcrum SS, F-22C Raptor II, F-16XF Gyrfalcon, F-15SMT Eagle+, F/A-18I Hornet ADV, I mean I get that the game was developed in the 90s and there was no way Namco could've predicted what the real world would use in the future.

(Yes I did just recite the full names of those AC3 planes from memory because I'm that much of a nerd)

Regardless, I personally can't wait to see what actually happens before 2040 Strangereal in the next Ace Combat game.

Another mission I really liked. The night mission after the comm satellites in space are gone and every target appears as unknowns. You have to fly close to ID them (with your plane's IRST cam probably) so you don't mistakenly shoot a friendly.

Finally let's talk the ending of the game. Assault on Erusean rogue forces near the space elevator. A coalition of OADF/OMDF, LRSSG and conservative Eruseans. Even the remaining Sol squadron is also here. Really reminds me of the ACES mission in 5 where Osea and Yuktobania gather their senses and fight together against their true enemy.

Mission was fairly straightforward until the second Arsenal Bird appears, its MQ-101 swarm and protective shielding rendering most attacks useless. Kinda felt this mission is a bit scripted because you have to wait until the Erusean princess destroys the Arsenal Bird modules in the ISEV control room. And even after that, this fight is like AC5 Arkbird fight on steroids. Added with the TLS pod and PLSL pods underneath. Still, I downed it.

And oh my god, the music that massively ramps up when the shield is down. Fuck, man. It's just a plane game. It has no right being absolutely majestic.

Last mission. You and your mates versus 2 ADF-11F drones. Saved up enough for Su-57 with PLSL, but I wasn't expecting to takeoff from a carrier. So the sight of a Felon being raised on the platform, taxiing to the deck and taking off to the skies (without even using the catapult or the launch pad, just sheer power of determination and Belkan witchcraft) is a fun one.

ISEV again, Hugin and Munin. The two birds of Odin that fly around the world and act as his eyes. One by one Sol squadron gets shot down. My Su-57 with PLSL makes relatively quick work of Hugin and Munin. Until the last one where its head broke off into a smaller drone and absolutely peppers my Felon with its MG. And of course it's hyper agile with no human pilot inside and apparently learning from Trigger's style. But challenges are meant to be overcome.

Nope. There's another one, it zooms towards the undersea tunnel, heading towards the ISEV. Of course Trigger is up to the task. Or not, because I underestimated the size of the tunnel and clipped my wing on entry, and I couldn't help but laugh at myself. Thankfully the game respawns me already facing the entrance.

Alright, focus this time, no messing about. But anxiety immediately creeps up my spine because of how narrow the passage is. I've flown the tunnels to the ICBM in AC2, the Geofront tunnels in AC3, the Megalith missile silo tunnel in 04, the SOLG control station in 5, and the V2 launch facility in Zero. This ISEV tunnel is narrower than all of them. But Count believes in me (no I don't have feelings for him shut up).

(What are the odds that the next AC game will have you fly through someone's fireplace chimney)

My hands grip my Xbox controller tight, eyes locked to my monitor and my fingers ready to make throttle and yaw adjustments at any moment's notice. Then the shutters start closing pretty quickly in front of me. Fuck, I can't just idle throttle my way through this. I have to push. And so I push my Felon just slightly above Mach 1.

Finally right underneath the ISEV, with no way to go but turn in circles chasing the ADF drone. I don't remember what Count or AWACS was saying but on my HUD there are target markers on the support beams of the ISEV, which I presume are the computer control units that control the ADF drone. PLSL away again, control units destroyed, the ADF drone slows down and I splashed it. This is reminiscent of the AC3 Geofront mission where you have to destroy the support pillars to trap the X-49 Night Raven inside.

But now what, there's no way out. Count said something about exiting out of the space elevator's pillar. I hesitated for a moment, he shouted me to just fucking go, so I went for it. The narrowest of slits in the base of the ISEV, I went through and pitched my nose up, and start sending it.

Are you fucking kidding me, there are actual cargos being moved through the ISEV on the cables. I mean, no shit Sherlock, it's in the name. Space elevator. I've never felt so tense in an Ace Combat game since I fought Pixy in Zero, because I've come this far and I don't want to start again. I kept going for it until I saw an opening. Cutscene plays. My black Su-57 with PLSL pods and three strikes on the tail, soars through the skies and finally out of the ISEV. I heard something about Count making a belly landing in the base of the ISEV. No damn idea how he does it but I guess I'm glad he's alive.

And then, at the end of the cutscene, a name I haven't heard in a long time.

Kei Nagase. She's become an astronaut, callsign Pilgrim One, up in the skies watching over us all.

I wonder what happened to the rest of Razgriz. Blaze, Archer and Swordsman.

"Hey Trigger, you dumbass, tell me something. What color's the sky up there?"

I've won the game. X-02S Strike Wyvern is available for purchase in the aircraft tree. Credits are rolling, tears are flowing. What a beautiful game. I settled my controller down and took a breather after an adventure full of intense action and engaging storyline. Although, PA, could you uhmm, slow down the credits? They scroll too fast lmao.

(Why do I have a feeling that Avril has a crush on Trigger?)

I wanna go learn how to do PSMs now because I heard it's something you can pull off in 7.

At the aircraft data viewer I ended up using Su-33, Su-30M2 and Su-30SM the most (3 times each). What can I say, man? I love Flonkers. I mean Flankers.

Though one thing is still a bit of mystery for me. What is Trigger's canon aircraft? Mobius 1 (AC04) and Warwolf 1 (ACAH) flew F-22A, Razgriz squadron (AC5) flew F-14As, and Cipher (AC0) flew an F-15C. I haven't played AC6 but I think the main character's canon plane is an F-15E? So what is Trigger's canon aircraft? I'm hoping it is some Russian plane because previous protags all fly American planes. A nice change would be welcome.

Although, remembering that fleet destruction mission where all of Trigger's wingmen fly F-15s, it's probable that Trigger's canon aircraft is also an F-15. And the game cover for Ace Combat 7 depicts an F-22. I guess Trigger's canon aircraft is also an American jet, which will be boring if that's true.

Guessing they have to appear appealing to the American audience.

My final verdict, a solid 9/10 game. I loved every single second of it. And Ace Combat series in general. Its thrill, its charm, its embrace of fantasy science fiction with no care of what's realistic and what's not. Because who fucking cares? It's a video game, and it's fun. That's all that matters. We know we will never be real pilots in the sky, but we can know the thrill of it like it's our childhood dreams as an action hero pilot. And elitists who whine about the unrealism of Ace Combat can suck on a Stonehenge barrel.

That concludes my review of the base game. But rest assured I will not stop here until I find all the secrets and unlockables and all unique named pilots because this game is awesome and has become my new obsession. After 5 years of aggressively avoiding spoilers, I can finally enjoy Ace Combat 7 like it's meant to be.

Now I want to tell my experience with DLC missions! Also DLC planes because I bought quite a lot of them, from CFA-44 to XFA-27 to F-15S/MTD. Not all of them, I didn't purchase the MiG-35D or the Top Gun Maverick set.

I played DLC missions after completing the main story. Which is good because before starting the DLC missions (labeled SP Campaign in the game) the game tells you that it's best to play them after completing the story. Also I did not use DLC planes at all in my first time through the main campaign, for that pure Ace Combat 7 first experience (I literally turned off all the AC7 DLCs in my Steam library until after I finished the main campaign).

But I've finished the main story, so great! I could jump in no problem!

Unexpected Visitor. Simple in the briefing, absolutely and unexpectedly challenging in its gameplay. It feels like your wingmen are absolutely useless and everyone is aiming at Trigger. Seriously it's like the later missions in the game's main story where all the AIs are better and harder to defeat, and make it 50% harder. And I'm playing the DLC missions on Normal diff. I don't remember what plane or SPW I used in my first attempt, but I got my ass absolutely handed to me. I began wondering if the DLC missions are supposed to be played co-op at some point during development. Anyway I switched to CFA-44 with ADMM.

And then those twin Berkuts appear. Scream and Rage. The crazed pilot siblings with no desire but to have Trigger's blood, for some reason. I could not get a single missile hit them. In fact I was shot down by an enemy SAM while I was trying to get them in my sights. Although that's kind of my fault because I forgot I could pop flares. Come on man, back in my day we didn't have flares!

Retried the mission with the same plane and SPW, this time deleting all the ground targets first with my flurry of ADMMs before Scream and Rage showed up. It worked. Landed a few hits on them, Scream and Rage fled the AO, mission completed. Kind of. We failed capturing the Alicorn, and Matias Torres has brought it somewhere underwater.

Next, Anchorhead Raid. Briefing showed a shit load of ground targets in a cluster. Hm, maybe ADMMs wouldn't be the right tool for this. But I have downloaded a Morgan, and it comes with a bunch of MPBMs.

First flight out. Once again did not work as well as I hoped for. Enemy CIWS kept destroying my MPBMs before they could get close, no matter which angle I launched them from. Even trying to drop them directly from above caused almost no damage.

Right, back to the hangar. What else do I have? Ah, a FALKEN and FAEBs. Let's try that. Nope. Still no considerable effect against target clusters that have CIWS in them. Back to the hangar again. Maybe FALKEN-TLS combo will work this time? Eh, sort of, but not really, its firing duration is too short to destroy a lot of targets, even when I'm flying real low and level with the ground targets.

Back to the hangar again. Starting to think I need a goddamn Erusean IRBM to efficiently complete this mission. And then I remember what I flew in AC7's final campaign mission.

Su-57 with PLSL, you're up. I dive low until I'm just a few meters above sea, leveling out with my gunsights pointed directly towards the ground targets. Getting closer and when the PLSL reticle turns red, I begin firing. To my surprise, it works remarkably well. From my experience shooting down Hugin and Munin, I start to learn that PLSL has some splash damage/AOE, and you don't have to be pinpoint accurate with it.

Scream and Rage show up again with more thirst for blood, but I also have equally strong thirst for their blood after harrassing me so much in the previous mission. I still have a few hundred "rounds" of PLSL. With no missile lock warning to make them scurry away, Scream is downed easily. Rage naturally, well, rages (ayy). His moves become faster and tighter. A Berkut and a Felon in a deadly dance in the skies above Anchorhead. After a long tail to tail and a tired left thumb, Rage is downed.

Alicorn apparently resupplied in Anchorhead under our noses, using the chaos in the skies as cover. Now intel suggest it's heading to the seas near Oured.

Ten Million Relief Plan. The final DLC mission. I anticipated that I will fight the Alicorn in this one, but did not know the kind of attacks it would have. I know it has massive railguns but no idea about its true capability. But Su-57 with PLSL has served me well, so I fly out in it again.

First phase of the mission. Wait for the allied planes to drop sonobuoys. This is just like the first time I fight the Scinfaxi in Ace Combat 5, but that mission had Arkbird in the skies above me. No orbital laser to help with this one. A few Rafales appear on the horizon, apparently launched from the Alicorn, but I downed them no problem.

The sonobuoys detected something and displayed a circle on radar that prompts me to go there. With the MAD device (magnetic something something device that I don't remember the name of) I begin searching for the Alicorn. The signal homing indicator on my HUD really just reminds me of White Noise mission in AC5 where you had to find Nagase in the snow.

Signal locked. Alicorn spotted. Nope. It's released jammers to disguise its presence. Sonobuoy planes are also harrassed by drones at the same time. Quickly I destroyed the jammers and the drones.

Trying to detect Alicorn again using sonobuoys. Having to keep speed below 800 kph so the tracker can work, all while trying to avoid missiles from more drones. Alicorn was found again, this time allied ships launch anti sub missiles.

Alicorn surfaced. No visible damage. Allied ships taking damage from Alicorn. Order to attack the Alicorn is a go. Unfortunately this time my PLSLs don't seem to make a dent. By the time the Alicorn gets within PLSL's range, my Felon gets peppered from its guns. 50% damage, 75% damage, 90% damage, I pulled out and quit the mission to choose another plane.

The last time I fought Scinfaxi and Hrimfaxi in 5, I used GPBs and LASMs. But those subs were much smaller and weaker than Alicorn, and I don't have any aircraft with high enough performance and durability that can also carry GPBs/LASMs.

I decided to give the Morgan and MPBM another go.

Alicorn surfaces again. This time I already have my MPBM ready, locked to its ballasts on the side. 2 to 3 MPBM hits later, the Alicorn loses the ability to dive, they're...

Surrendering?

No, this is way too convenient. Even the other Striders think this is too easy. AWACS insists to stand down. So we did, but I kept my MPBM ready to launch just in case, flying my Morgan in circles around the Alicorn like a vulture.

And of course it was a bluff. Torres was just simply buying enough time to prepare Alicorn's massive rail guns, aiming for the Osean capital of Oured. Madman thinks he can stop the war and save 10 million lives by sacrificing 1 million in the process. And he plans to start it by killing Trigger first. Order to attack the Alicorn is a go again.

I don't remember who said "they stopped being soldiers the moment they faked their surrender." Probably Count. But I agree with that sentiment.

Now suddenly we're under time constrain of just 1 or 2 minutes to destroy the Alicorn's nuclear core at the base of its massive railgun. But on the radar I can see the Alicorn's railgun predicted trajectory chasing my aircraft. I fly in a tight circle around it and wait for it to fire and miss. This is like the Excalibur onslaught (AC0) but 6 times harder. And when I try to get close to the railgun, the Alicorn yet has another trick up its sleeve. Defensive bubble fields around it, similar that the Arsenal Bird used but on smaller scale.

Time is ticking down. Just less than one minute now. I put max throttle and slip through the defense bubbles, my MPBM is already locked to the base of the Alicorn's railgun. One successful hit but it's not dead yet. I quickly turned around again, pulling dozens of Gs that would probably kill the pilot in real life. I flew in again, less than 30 seconds on the clock, I landed another MPBM in it.

And then the radar clears.

It's done. The Alicorn is destroyed. A massive explosion went off in the middle section, Torres laughing like a maniac on the radio as he dies and the Alicorn splits in half and sinks to the bottom of the sea. Another explosion went off underwater, the force enough to spew a mountain of sea water dozens of meters to the sky, and finally coming down like a pseudo rain that refreshes the atmosphere.

We never captured the Alicorn, but at least this way we prevented another superweapon from being misused.

I completed Ace Combat 7. Again. Such a cool set of DLC missions. Especially with the fact that they have their own storyline adjacent to the main campaign story. It's difficult, yes, but it's challenging enough that makes you want to try and try again until you succeed. Not Dark Souls-level of difficult that makes you want to murder a child with a controller. So, my thoughts on DLC missions? I loved them. Another solid 9/10.

And you know what? I wanna play them again.

And now I can watch Max0r's Incorrect Summary of Ace Combat 7 that I have postponed for so long!

[cirilla-fiona-riannon]

Kicho's Main Story Chapter 4 Gacha Story (His POV)

These translations are not intended as a replacement for the game. Please support CYBIRD by buying their stories. JP SPOILERS under the cut.

I listened to Mai as she told me about her life in our room, where I could hear the sound of rain.

Kicho: “Then, I’ll change the question. Why did you want to become a designer?”

Mai: “Well, because the first clothes I designed made people happy.”

Mai: “I was happy back then that it made me want to make it my job.”

Kicho: “But there will be many opportunities to get those feelings if you live.”

Kicho: “So why did you find so much joy in it that you decided to make it your life’s path?”

Mai: “Um…”

(Strange things sometimes happen.)

Age, gender, and place of birth. Then there’s family history and occupation.

This is what people usually ask to get to know someone, but the one I asked her wasn’t one of those.

Mai: “.............”

(Did I step too far to make her silent?)

(Or did she never even think about it?)

I waited for her reply in silence.

Mai: “Oh...”

I could tell that Mai had found her answer when she suddenly lifted her downcast eyes, and I eagerly anticipated the words she would say next.

Mai: “I was happy because it was something I made.”

Mai: “When I realized I could make someone happy, I felt like I had some meaning.”

Mai: “I’ve always wanted to be someone.”

Kicho: “Someone?”

Mai: "Yes. So no matter where I am, I always end up struggling."

Mai said this in a self-mocking tone and laughed wryly.

(Why does she need to laugh?)

(She just said earlier that she loved that life very much.)

With a faint ache slowly spreading in my chest, I nodded, even though the answer came from someone who had lived a completely different life.

(That is what it means to live.)

(Protecting the value of life is everyone’s duty.)

Kicho: “People are all like that. But that doesn’t make them evil.”

Kicho: “As long as you live in this world, the opinions and beliefs of others will make who you are.”

Kicho: “That’s why everyone has unanswered questions.”

Mai: “Everyone?”

Kicho: “Still, don’t forget. Wherever you are, whatever you do, you are you.”

Kicho: “As long as you have your will to live, this truth will never change.”

(So don't mock yourself.)

(What would you do if I didn't say those words?)

Kicho: “You are not just someone. You’re Mai.”

Kicho: “Wherever you are, whatever you do, just live as you.”

Mai: “............”

Her eyes, shaking with confusion, looked at me with an expression that revealed a myriad of emotions.

Mai: "You're right. I'm me."

Kicho: "Yeah. Even if you run through different times."

Kicho: "You said your dreams got cut off, yet here you are. You didn't give up."

Mai: "Yes, there is no way I would give up."

Mai: "As I said before, I think I'm the type of person who always struggles."

Kicho: "I see."

(She's quite gutsy.)

(I don't hate someone who says that. Rather一Hm?)

Kicho: "Why are you suddenly smiling?"

Mai: "Huh? I'm smiling too?"

Mai: "Sorry. I'm just happy you smiled."

Kicho: "............."

Kicho: "I'm alive, so I also smile. That one was involuntary."

(I see. I've got that look on my face.)

Mai: "Thank you. I feel better now."

Kicho: "It was no big deal."

Mai: "It was. At least, for me."

Mai's expression relaxed, and she suddenly fell silent.

Then, for some reason, her smile suddenly disappeared, and she turned serious.

(Did I push her a little too hard?)

Kicho: “Mai.”

Mai: “Y-Yes?”

Kicho: “You must be tired. Get some rest tonight.”

Kicho: “The rain should stop in the morning, so hopefully, we’ll be able to leave soon.”

Mai: "Okay. Then good night."

Mai, smiling faintly, crawled under the futon and turned her back to me.

(Something's wrong with her.)

(There’s only one possible reason besides fatigue.)

Kicho: “Mai.”

Mai: “----!”

I called out to her in a calm voice, and she turned her head toward me.

Mai: “Um, what is it?”

Kicho: “I know it’s difficult for you not to be cautious of me, but don’t worry, I won’t lay a hand on you just because we’re sharing a room.”

(I can’t prove that she’s being wary, but I guess telling her would make a difference.)

Mai: “No, I wasn’t being cautious. I’m sorry I made you feel uncomfortable.”

Mai: “Although it’s true that I’ve been thinking about you.”

Kicho: “Ha?”

I raised my eyebrow and sighed.

Kicho: “What are you suddenly saying?”

Mai: “Um, I don’t mean it weirdly!”

Kicho: “I know, but that comment is uncalled for.”

(If she said that to someone else, they might take it the wrong way.)

(Also, I think it's a problem that she's not wary of me.)

Kicho: “Never say that to anybody other than me.”

Kicho: “Others might take it the wrong way.”

Mai: “Okay. Hm?”

Kicho: “What’s wrong?”

Mai: “N-Nothing.”

Kicho: “You’re all over the place.”

Mai: “Hahaha… I guess.”

Mai laughed like a fool and lay down on the futon again.

Mai: “I’ll sleep now. Good night.”

Kicho: “Yeah. Good night.”

As we said goodnight to each other, I noticed that she relaxed.

(Looks like she’s okay now.)

I pulled my futon away from her and lay down on my back, just as Mai had done.

As I lay there for a while, the sound of her peaceful breathing reached my ears, mingled with the sound of the rain.

(Mai, huh?)

------------Flashback------------

Mai: “No life deserves to die.”

Mai: “I understand what often happens in a world like this.”

Mai: “Injustices can happen, and you can’t always fulfill your desire to live. However, I don’t think you should give up because of that.”

Mai: “No matter what the truth is, you should not give up.”

---------Flashback Ends---------

(There are those like you who were born into that hellish world一those who refuse to give up on life and living.)

A person who knew the future and a person who came from the future一this strange encounter made me want to put a reason to it.

(If you want to live, I won’t hesitate to lend you a hand.)

(Don't ever die, Mai.)

Previous Part╏Masterlist╏Next Part

[dear-mrs-otome]

Tamamo - Main Story - Chp 01

Standard Disclaimer: I do this for fun. I don’t, and never would, claim to be proficient at JP. There will be mistakes herein. There will be dialogue I choose to smooth out or change, because it feels choppy just straight translating. There will be the occasional snarky aside and irreverence and just plain summarizing. If you’re looking for 100% pure accuracy, without commentary or localizing, this is not for you. If you don’t mind that…then proceed, and I hope you enjoy! And please, support your local localizer (they make this stuff look easy) and Cybird by playing the games and routes if/when they come to English.

If you are unfamiliar with the story of Ikemen Genjiden, I will direct you to read the excellent prologue summaries posted by @/sakura-samsura here - these are the updated ones that include the introductions of the newer characters as well. You may notice discrepancies between my character's onscreen name, Aya, and what I use in the translations, but given that Yoshino is the 'canon' name and I prefer writing that over 'MC' I will use it in these stories.

Done with all that? Then carry on, and meet our mischievous fox.

Outside the gates of the shogunate’s castle, Yoshino is reminding herself of her goals now: absorb enough magical mojo to fulfill her pact with Tamamo, and open her own apothecary business. With an enthusiastic cheer, she thanks the gathered men and says she looks forward to working with them and offers Yoritomo a respectful bow. 

Tamamo, looking on proudly, strokes her head and praises her energetic good cheer. “That’s just like my girl,” he declares, as she awkwardly thanks him.

He brushes it off, thanking her instead for her honest nature with a smile, and she can’t help blushing slightly under his compliments and his hand on her hair. 

Shigehira though voices his obvious mistrust of Tamamo, and the two bicker slightly as Tamamo mocks him back, clearly enjoying pushing the prickly man’s buttons.

Yoshino looks on, fretting, and tries to break up the squabble insisting they shouldn’t get off on the wrong foot if they’re all gonna be comrades.

Kagetoki cuts her off though. “Comrade’s a bit far. We’re just agreeing to use each other for our own ends, aren’t we?”

She’s appalled at his mercenary categorization, but Kagetoki insists it’s important to be clear about these sorts of things, leaving her stunned. 

At a word from Yoritomo, Morinaga threatens both Shigehira and Kagetoki and they both step back from him, clearly chastized...and she’s left wondering if this bizarre dynamic is what passes for the norm around the shogunate. Morinaga insists they’ll get to know each other better soon enough, no need to sweat the small stuff now, which only sours Shigehira’s mood even further. 

“Troublesome man…” Tamamo says at Shigehira’s continued suspicions. “Do you want to know who I am?” His eyes gleam gold, preternatural in the dim night light as he surveys each of them. “I am Tamamo, the Nine-Tailed Fox. Nothing more, nothing less. And I am most pleased to make your acquaintance, humans.”

They all look at him, stunned into silence, as Yoshino thinks that he really didn’t answer ANY question at all.

Shigehira grumbles as much aloud, and Kagetoki agrees. “The only thing we know for sure at this point is he’s a troublemaker.”

Yoritomo muses how the more tails a fox has, the higher its power - and he’s heard that the nine-tailed fox, a kyuubi, is a once-in-an-era being.

“Tamamo’s that big of a deal?!” Yoshino asks, stunned to realize exactly what sort of ayakashi she’s gotten herself tied to - and realizing it’s no wonder he’s got such a dignified air about him if he’s such an illustrious being. 

“Feel free to worship me,” Tamamo agrees with a genial smile, to her sputtering protest. “No matter then...give it time, and my greatness will come to you.” 

She wonders again at the circumstances that have led to him choosing HER of all people to ally himself with...as Kagetoki points out dryly in the background that currently Tamamo has nowhere near enough power left to assume that anyone would revere him.

The two bicker a little now too, Tamamo bristling slightly at Kagetoki’s implications while Kagetoki tells him the equivalent of ‘put up or shut up’ - that it’s not about what you’d done in the past but what you can still do that matters. “My power will eventually recover,” Tamamo reminds him.

“I certainly hope so, or else that’s a real problem,” Yoritomo interjects, looking around at the people gathered there, exuding the dignified confident air she’d expect of the shogun. “All of you, human or not, I have just one thing to say to you - do your job well.”

Tamamo assures him there’s no cause to worry there, and his self-assured smile only serves to highlight his beauty in the luminous moonlight...as Yoshino looks on, wondering if things will really be as simple as all that.

The next morning finds her and Tamamo invited to a meeting with Yoritomo. She’s trying to hustle Tamamo through the corridors, as he keeps getting distracted and gawking at different decorations and other things, strolling leisurely along as she frets.

He whines as they go about humans misguided priorities, and how looking at the art on the walls in infinitely preferable to going and staring at a bunch of dude’s faces. 

She scolds him again, saying they can’t keep Yoritomo waiting - the very idea terrifying her because he seems so stern. Tamamo assures her though they’re too valuable to Yoritomo for him to do anything to them.

“Even so, he could still say something terrible!” she insists, reminding Tamamo that Yoritomo IS the shogun and therefore basically the leader of everything they know. It illustrates the difference between ayakashi and human outlooks, she thinks.

Tamamo finally relents though and admits that it’s obvious Yoritomo has power and influence, if only because it’s illustrated by his rough, samurai-filled war-oriented castle still holding many valuable items of art and craft from all corners of the world. 

“It seems the samurai came to great power while I was sleeping in that stone,” he observes. “It’s fascinating to see the changes of the human world, isn’t it Yoshino?”

Finally, they make it to the gathering hall and find all of the shogun’s head retainers gathered there with Yoritomo - Kagetoki, Morinaga, and Shigehira, along with more than a dozen other samurai as well. 

“Bold of you to be late to the very first meeting,” Kagetoki snipes, and she wilts under the weight of the stares of all those gathered as she wonders if she dares try for an excuse. 

“Yoshino,” Tamamo says in a quiet voice only she can hear. “Just play along, and do as I do.”

Baffled, she watches as Tamamo steps forward and gracefully kneels, bowing his head. She hastens to copy him, as he begins to speak. “Unfamiliar with the place as I was, I found myself lost. I humbly beg your pardon, Lord Yoritomo.”

Yoshino blinks at the abrupt change in Tamamo, and looks around to see all of the samurai appear enraptured by Tamamo’s dazzling smile. 

“Of course, of course - please, take a seat,” Yoritomo replies, fake-charming smile plastered firmly on his own face as Tamamo thanks him.

He and Yoshino head towards the last open seats as the samurai speak up, asking Yoritomo who the newcomers are. Yoritomo introduces Tamamo as a man who’s traveled from China and has paused in his journeys to share his knowledge with the shogunate. 

Yoshino is startled by the smooth lie Yoritomo offers them, but the samurai all seem reassured that Tamamo’s strange air can be explained away by his foreignness. 

“Please forgive me in advance for any rudeness, given that I am not yet familiar with the culture here,” Tamamo demurs, to a chorus of reassurances from the gathered men, and Yoshino notices that - perhaps due to the words of Yoritomo - the vassals all seem to have defaulted to using the most respectful language with Tamamo. 

The men exchange more pleasantries and Yoshino is mostly just impressed with the slick improv of both Yoritomo and Tamamo on the spot - the two men bringing to mind to her a fox and a tanuki conversing, two shifty characters acting their parts so well. 

“What about the woman, then?” one of the samurai finally asks. “ She doesn’t look like a foreigner at all.”

She’s nervous all over again as the attention shifts her way once more, introducing herself and saying she is usually a healer and now she’s acting as Tamamo’s assistant. They all clearly are still suspicious of her obvious commoner status though, especially in comparison to Tamamo’s elegance, and she’s sweating bullets now…

Only for a sweet scent to tickle her nose as an arm comes around her shoulders and pulls her closer. She realizes it’s the smell of incense that always clings to Tamamo, just as her cheek comes to rest against his firm broad chest. “I fell in love the moment I laid eyes on this woman in Kamakura,” Tamamo proclaims. “So forgive my impertinence in asking for your consideration of her during our brief stay.”

Yoshino’s sputtering to herself, stunned at his wild story - love? At first sight?? - when Tamamo interrupts her thoughts. “Isn’t that right, Yoshino?”

“What? Y-yes,” she stammers in confused agreement. 

Tamamo goes on to say he needs some time to get used to living in their country, so please excuse Yoshino’s presence - he would consider it a great personal favor if they treated her kindly as well. The samurai are all so charmed and under Tamamo’s sway they agree immediately...and at Tamamo’s urging she manages to thank them all. 

He finally releases her and she marvels all over again to herself at how easily he pulls one over on people, and how quickly he has them eating out of his hand - so well, in fact, it’s almost scary.

With that, Yoritomo gets the meeting underway and she sits back to listen to the reports and discussion, before Tamamo quietly asks her what’s up. She thanks him for his quick intervention when she had faltered. He says no biggie, and fudging things a bit like that won’t hurt anyone since they’re not staying there forever. 

Shigehira calls them out for not paying attention and talking, but Tamamo just smiles nonplussed. “Forgive me. I was asking after a word I didn’t understand,” he smoothly lies, and Shigehira clams up sheepishly. 

Then, regular business finished, Morinaga segues them to the next  far more somber piece of business. “Minamoto no Yoshitsune is alive,” he tells the gathered men grimly. “From this moment on, the shogunate prepares for war.”

The stunning news ripples through the assembled men like wildfire, setting them abuzz with anxiety and apprehension until Kagetoki harshly tells them to be quiet and listen to what Yoritomo has to say. They immediately fall silent, and Yoritomo begins to explain the particulars - how Yoshitsune and his rebels have formed a base at the town of Hiraizumi, how they have been recruiting amongst the disenfranchised to swell their ranks, and that they plan to attack Kamakura. 

The mood goes immediately somber.

“It is imperative that I crush this movement, destroy it entirely. To protect what we have created,” Yoritomo tells them all gravely. “Which of you will take up their sword and fight at my side? Are there any among you that will brave the very gates of hell with me?”

“Yes! We will give our all for the shogunate!” the assembled men cry. “For Lord Yoritomo!”

As she watches, the men erupt in a fervor, battlelust written plain on their faces...and she realizes what a unimaginable place she’s found herself in, via circumstances utterly beyond her control. She glances over at Tamamo beside her, the source of all of this -

“I’m getting bored,” he proclaims, stifling a yawn, and she wonders if he’s truly that uninterested in human warfare. 

After the meeting she returns to her quarters, exhausted by the morning’s events, and ponders how out of place she feels here in the midst of all these samurai. All of her prior anxieties rise up to nip at her heels again, and just as she’s about to slide into another funk she hears Tamamo’s voice from outside, asking if she is in and if this is a good time.

Confused, she tells him it is and he sweeps in - with a veritable entourage of men and women burdened with trunks.

“Tamamo, who are all these people…?” she asks, baffled. 

He smiles and reassures her, as the boxes are opened and their contents removed and lined up - the room overflowing with a bounty of colorful kimonos and accessories in a matter of moments. Seeing her stunned expression, Tamamo grins like a mischievous boy who is quite proud of himself. “Surprised? I called in a clothing merchant.”

“Merchant?” she echoes, as an assembly of men bow before her. “Whatever for?”

The merchants fall all over themselves, obsequious towards Tamamo, as he thanks them for bringing their wares to him - then he turns to take Yoshino’s hand, pulling her smoothly to her feet. She’s caught in his magnetic golden gaze as he draws her nearer…

“Would you like me to undress you, Yoshino?”

Chapter 02 >>

[junko-jinko]

Hi!! If you don't mind me asking, what's your favorite commission song and cover song from each prsk group?

oh shit let me dig up the list of commissioned songs

I'm gonna answer mostly based on the songs that are available on EN because I'm not up to date with what songs are on JP. Also this response ended up being pretty long and detailed, hope you don't mind! (putting it under cut for that reason. it is a seriously long answer because I have Thoughts)

Commission songs

Leo/need: Flyaway or Teratera orrrr Voices. These are actually the only l/n comms I even really like. Voices only started to grow on me after hearing the Luka and Shiho cover of it. Writing this answer made me go check out the full version of Teratera for the first time and they really left the best parts out of the game huh. So maybe if I have to pick one it's Teratera.

More More Jump!: Parasol Cider 100000000%! what a banger honestly. Had that stuck in my head for hours on end during the event and did not mind it one bit

Vivid BAD SQUAD: Maybe Ready Steady? I'm a Giga enjoyer and the VBS covers have been pretty nice Hitsuji ga Ippiki is a close second though! If I was including the JP songs then Beyond the Way I forgot about Moodlight. Moonlight is my favourite, the melancholic vibes will always be number one for me (this is in no way foreshadowing for the rest of this list, no way)

Wonderland x Showtime: I am in hell, truly, trying to pick just one and not every single one. Back when I started playing proseka for the first time I really adored Tondemo Wonders and it's still one of my favourites out of all proseka songs along with Potatoes but. This one is definitely between Mr Showtime and Donna Ketsumatsu. The angst of both of these songs, the melancholy!! I think it's gotta be Mr. Showtime though, I prefer the style of music of that song over Donna Ketsumatsu.

25-ji, Nightcord de: Since Kitty is not yet released on EN, this is easy, it's Samsa. I absolutely lose it whenever that song plays anywhere (my friends can testify to me going nuts at a con when a dance group doing N25 dance covers started playing Samsa). Used to listen to this song daily and I even read Metamorphosis thanks to liking the song so much (knowing the plot adds a lot to the song imo). Honestly love almost all of N25 comms though!

VIRTUAL SINGER: I'm including this here just so I have a reason to put ÅMARA on this list. What a banger. Wish I didn't suck at stair notes so bad because I would be playing this on expert all the time otherwise

...I also now reread the ask and realised that you also asked for cover songs... I think picking those is even more difficult than this and since this post is already super long

Cover songs

Leo/need: Ok so. Lost One's Weeping is probably my first favourite vocaloid song ever and I want to put it as my favourite for that reason alone but. Dramaturgy because I am also a huge fan of Eve due to, you might have guessed, the melacholy vibes. Also the Ichika cover of that is very pretty! Lost and Found is also a top contender, somehow I don't yet hate it due to how much it gets spammed by tierers

More More Jump!: This would maybe be Darling Dance except I don't really like the MMJ cover. Same with Vampire. So the answer is Viva Happy (Mitchie M my beloved. Best at tuning Kaito if you ask me)

Vivid BAD SQUAD: I actually like every single one of the cover songs so far on EN. Maybe Bring It On? unsurprisingly Aun no Beats is a close contender lmao. I really like kagepro songs and I'd like to include them here but they did something to the drums in the proseka versions that I don't vibe with at all.

Wonderland x Showtime: I thought I was in hell before... Nonsense Bungaku comes to mind first along with Goodbye Declaration. Honestly I don't think they have a single bad cover... You know what I'm gonna make an exception and use a song that's not on EN yet, I think my fav cover from wxs is Childish War (though they missed a huge fucking opporturnity by not making it a Ena and Akito cover, seriously). That song is like the second or third vocaloid song I ever liked, so it has a special place in my heart, enough so that I'm planning on doing a pair cosplay of the Kagamine twins in it with a friend (also the og MV art is by Miwashiba!! I love their games and art a lot!) I think it's a superb cover, Tsukasa yelling it is very fitting and all that.

25-ji, Nightcord de: Phony, no questions asked. N25 has a ton of great covers but Phony is just Good.

anyways. those are my favourite songs.

[officialtwistedfandub]

I don't know if this has been asked before but are you guys going to voice the stories with the JP Server details for major mistranslations (such as Jamil's entire arc or some of the Unique Magic's) or will it follow the EN Server translation fully?

Sorry if this question sounded rude, I didn't mean to make it sound like it if it did ^^" Also major praise to all of you working on this project, the voices sound great (I really like Grim's, Crowley's & Azul's so far! I can't wait to hear how Malleus sounds like :D)

-❄🐉

Thank you so much for asking, and there's no wrong questions at all! We have a JP translator on hand who generally makes us aware of these things, but for the most part, we will be following how the ENG game is scripted. We do, however, add in bits from the JP game that were not carried over in the ENG script — for example, Crowley's unscripted muttering about Yuu under his breath in the prologue. We will not be changing the script from how it's written in the game, however, unless there happens to be a written typo or missed word! We hope this helps and answers your question!

[yellowymellon]

He looks at you with a smile, his cold voice echoes, you are Abt to lose the 50/50 on his banner :

i first need to talk abt sunday's jp va CUZ GOD DAMN

since sunday talks more in 2.1 it's much more noticable, his first 3 lines or so are extra friendly and gentle, sweeter than his customer service voice, and then slowly start to become more apathetic till he uses the harmony powers and it becomes ruthlessly cold, and at the end when aven started losing it his voice returned to being drippy sweet, like he's mocking him. then when he meets acheron and welt his voice is pretty back to his real tone, apathy! thanks hoyo im someone who's heavily attracted to voices you just had to awaken my unhealthy obsessions again!

(btw i play in jp so im talking abt it, i by no means think jp is the elite dub)

okay but i love this scene SM

aventurine was confident abt his advantage over sunday, he first comes strong trying to overpower him in their silly mind game, basically asserting his dominance by telling him how anxious and antsy he is, and how he already knows everything sunday is thinking abt, leaving sunday unable to impose much demands. it was a good deal for aven, he gets to corner and benefit sunday at the same time.

that was until sunday channeled the harmony's power ( i think everyone guessed it he should be an emenator), it might've been a bluff that not answering has consequences, but it was far too risky to actually try, it was that instant of doubt and fear that threw all of aven's momentum and the dynamic shifted, he not only understimated sunday but didnt expect him to carry xipe's will.

i think it's telling of sunday's character when he uses exact seconds to tell time, that is 1.8 minutes not even a full 2

i think it's also a bit weird how sunday keeps talking as if he is a conveying xipe's will when he is mostly doing stuff on his own, it's almost like xipe's will aligns with him not the other way around.

unrelated but this question was at first too random that i double looked at sunday "what ? are you also racist??"

tho i do like how these characters are realistic with their insults, sparkle judged aven based on his race and the both of them made fun of sunday based on that too xD

do you actually think that sunday could see the truth in aven's heart but he himself couldn't answer it? this time around sunday adds "truly" and thought aven's response was interesting the first time.

actually i'm less mad abt dr ratio betraying aven since he shouldnt have known sunday has this power or was going to well, execute him, but more mad abt his every micro aggression like, have you not heard of rhetorical questions?? jokes?? silly banter that alludes to nothing?? LEAVE him alone

i think that even if dr ratio didnt sell aven out, sunday still had his ability to expose lies and he didnt trust aven in either case, also something worth remembering ( when i finish the story that is) is that in his deal with dr ratio sunday mentioned "the" stellaron and not just in general, the family is very much aware of it, well....it makes sense for stellaron hunters to be here ig 😭

Fun fact : the one who was supposed to be in penacony was opal not aventurine, and the thing we know Abt opal is that, um, well he was going to threaten the family then strike, no negotiations no nothing, wonder how that would've went...

[tired-writer-in-progress]

Welcome to me being pissed at some Persona fans and now making this rant. Very sorry to my followers-

TLDR: The ENG VAS for Reload and for FES and Portable are both good and discourse about it shouldn't even happen

Okay so. How this all started was that, I was watching a long video of the Persona 3 Reload final boss fight, which I am not going to spoil for those still playing. The title said it was a Merciless, No Items run which is something I could never do honestly.

But then it also had: JP voices. Which is basically the japanese voice acting instead of the english one.

Now, I'm not going to sit here and say which is better than the other. People have their preferences. Some prefer the eng dub and others prefer the jp dub.

Tell me why.

Tell me why I see people in the comments just shitting. SHITTING. On the Reload english dub and calling some people who defend it Persona 5 babies who play on Safety mode.

LIKE IT'S FINE IF YOU DON'T LIKE THE ENGLISH DUB, JUST. TURN ON THE JP DUB IF YOU HAVE THE GAME?! OR WATCH VIDEOS WITH THE JP DUB, WHICH I'M SURE THERE IS?! IT'S NOT THAT HARD TO NOT SHIT ON THE ENG DUB!

I especially see a lot of hate for Akihiko and Fuuka's VAs, Alejandro Saab/CyYu and Suzie Yeung respectively. I saw some hate for Yukari and the protag's VAs too, Heather Gonzalez and Aleks Lee. And to that, I say:

IT'S YOUR OWN OPINION, NOT A FACT

I have, my own opinions as well. Like how I prefer Yukari's FES voice over Reload's because it just suits her better in my opinion. But I'm not going to say Heather was a miscast! She did her best, and it wasn't that much of a terrible job!

Same with Fuuka and Shinjiro, but reversed! Her Reload voice is so much beter in my opinion, it fits her more timid and quiet self than in FES and the og! And Shinjiro's VA did a killer job with his role! I definitely enjoyed the interactions with him more in Reload! Does that mean the FES and the OG versions of their voices suck? NO!

Mainly because voice acting in games at that time wasn't exactly as solid, and p3 was the first installment to have a game fully voice acted (I know p2 has some voice acting, but I think it's not fully. And p1 only had battle cries, as far as I'm aware)! And for the first installment to do that, it didn't do so bad!

Like I get it! You liked the og game better! It's fine! But that doesn't mean you have to shit on people for liking the remake more!

Jesus christ, people. Respect others' opinions.

I would also like to mention the person who like. Complained that P2 Nyarlathotep was harder than the last boss and that this boss was the easiest boss in the series and said that 55 minutes for the boss, when it was like 26 (confirmed by the youtuber) and then some other stuff which I won't say because it enters spoiler territory.

[yuurei20]

Azul Info Compilation Part 6: Book 4

Book 4 opens with the information that Azul, Jade and Floyd do not go home for winter break as they live in the “far northern reaches of the Coral Sea” and “at this time of year, the whole surface is covered in ice floes”.

The player and Grim get caught up with drama at Scarabia, are briefly held prisoner and escape on a magic carpet only to crash into Mostro Lounge, where Azul greets them by saying he has mistaken them for “dingy dustcloths”.

This expression struck a chord with fans on JP server who adopted it, and even now searching for the term “dingy dustcloths”—even without a mention of Azul or twisted wonderland or anything else at all—will get you a bunch of twst screenshots, videos and octavinelle fan art.

The "dingy dustcloths" line was also picked up by the Disney Games YouTube show "Good Boy!". While full episodes are hosted by Crewel's VA, this mini episode is just Azul's VA trying to guess what "a pair of dingy dustcloths" means in Japanese.

After ejecting the Scarabia students from Mostro Lounge and explaining that the player and Grim will be charged for the damage done to the lounge, Azul hears the story of what has been going on and decides that Jamil—his “very own classmate”—is in need of his help.

Azul strong-arms his way into Scarabia to return the flying carpet despite Jamil’s insistence he stay out (“I won’t even ask for my standard twenty percent finder’s fee”), guilts Kalim into allowing them to stay and offers to “share any insights” he has with the dorm.

They deduce quickly that Kalim is being mind-controlled, with Floyd saying “You gotta have skills and power on par with Azul for that”, though Azul himself says “Even I would be hard-pressed to control living creatures with their own egos like humans”.

It is Azul who suspects Jamil (“a clever hawk hides its talons”) and creates the plan to take him down.

Azul’s plan appears to involve easing the load on the students of Scarabia so that they are no longer tempted to overthrow Kalim and replace him with Jamil.

It is through Jamil’s attempt to mind control Azul that we learn that Jamil’s unique magic apparently causes its victim physical pain until they submit to him.

Jamil underestimated the extent to which Azul plans for all eventualities, however:

Azul entered into a contract with Floyd, taking Floyd’s unique magic (“bind the heart”, which allows him to deflect magical attacks) and gifting Floyd a deep voice in exchange.

Jamil overblots and banishes everyone to the desert, where Azul explains to Kalim that he is the one who pushed Jamil over the edge.

They return to the dorm through Kalim’s unique magic (producing water of any quantity with little effort) and Jade and Floyd’s eel forms, with Azul refusing to transform as he “isn’t a fast swimmer, even in his mer-form”.

(It has been pointed out to me that octopi are very fast, but in Twst Azul is canonically slow compared to other mer-people, so I don’t know what to tell you ww His slowness is one of the things that he was bullied for as a child and pushed him to overblot in Book 3.)

In Book 4 Jade claims that Jamil’s confession was live-streamed, but in Book 5 Azul explains that this was a bluff (“I can’t believe you thought that I, the very soul of benevolence, would willingly destroy a classmate’s reputation and social standing!”) and that his phone was on a speaker with Jade. Azul explains that “unlike Leona” he doesn’t “torment others for sport”, does not do more than what is necessary, and that he “obtained some perfectly good intel from the experience. I would never dream of devaluing my own assets!”

Jamil admits that, thanks to Azul, his and Kalim’s families never learned why he overblotted. Grim points out that Jamil has changed and Azul says “I much prefer it this way...Octavinelle’s doors are always open to you.” Jamil says that he will never transfer to Octavinelle.

[domain-of-sentience]

analysis on the identity of the ch32 act2 narrator + its implications

I haven’t seen anyone talk about the opening dialogue of act 2, which is criminal considering it lends itself to a lot of interesting implications surrounding the potential owner of said dialogue...

which is most likely Senti, but is it truly her? The content of the dialogue is seemingly out of character for someone like her. However, the JP dub is obviously her, and the CN dub, while it was deeper in pitch (but still higher than that of Fu Hua’s)—is verified by a CN friend to be the same voice actor. So let’s take a look at the dialogue itself:

Right off the bat we are greeted by an existential foray into the essence of “God”—who she could be directly talking to is anyone’s guess. There’s not much to examine here since it’s a question many people ask at least once in their life while in the middle of taking a shower.

Afterwards, we are immediately given a dialogue option to “take control of Kiana.” The whole prologue is laden with these overt commands that directly affect the fate of these characters, and often we see little interjections that hint towards the identity of this mysterious narrator.

This narrator is ostensibly omniscient, much like the image of God in our minds. After Kiana falls into the spacetime fracture, we see a continuation of the opening dialogue:

A chide remark, followed by a comparison of the narrator’s abilities to God’s omniscience and omnipotence.

A very Nietzschean commentary! This isn’t Honkai’s first callback to Thus Spoke Zarathustra, which was the namesake of Otto’s arc. "Her eyes” could refer to Kiana’s, but I’m not sure who or what “each of us” could entail (the other herrschers maybe?).

Interesting, we can deduce from here that this “guidance” is a separate entity from that of the narrator.

Afterwards, we change POV to Senti, who was also lured from the Sea of Quanta by this mote of guidance, which (let’s cut to the chase) is Dr. MEI. Obviously this means that Dr. MEI can’t be the narrator, so who could it be? There is no one else who fits the bill of an omniscient and all-controlling benevolent(?) being better than the Herrscher of Sentience. And who else is egotistical and alive enough to compare her own authority to that of God?

But if that’s the case, why does she talk this way?

Far too many of us have underestimated Senti, the very face of many in-game and out-game jokes. But I believe there’s so much more beneath the candid and playful personality that we all know and love. She is a pure herrscher who was born directly from the Will of Honkai. She has familiarized herself with the true nature of this deity and inadvertently carried its will. She herself has authority over the psyche of living beings, and she shoulders 50,000 years worth of memories that would break even the most willful human.

She is the master of illusion, and it could very well mean that she has partly been putting up a facade this entire time—a shrouding of a god that fears deicide.