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bethanythebogwitch · 8 months

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I've been going over my thoughts on all the aquatic Digimon. Previous posts here: all fish, all mermaids, and aquatics part 1. Since I've gone over the aquatics with a default evolution line, today I'll just go over all rookie/child, champion/adult, and armor level mons that I haven't already discussed.

I will say that my previous post's analogy on how Digimon evolution works was not at all helpful, so I'll try again. Digimon evolution is branched, where each stage has multiple possible next stages that do not necessarily need to have a thematic connection to prior stages. Stages are not mutually exclusive and separate Digimon can evolve into the same thing. Digimon can also evolve backwards and not to the same thing they started as. For example, an Agumon (little dinosaur) can evolve into Centaurumon (centaur), then evolved back down to a Patamon (winged hamster). The animes usually simplify things from the games and virtual pets by giving their Digimon characters much more linear and thematically consistent evolution lines. I may do an intro to Digimon post some day.

Starting with rookie/child levels we have an old mon that hasn't been used much: Gizamon. It's been around for a long time, but rarely gets any attention and as far as I can tell, has never gotten a spotlight, even as a monster of the week. That's too bad, it's a neat little critter. It's a marine mammal, but has the body shape and jumping ability of a frog.

Next up is Crabmon (Ganimon in Japanese). People compare Pokemon and Digimon a lot, but one comparison I haven't seen is that they both made a monster that's literally just a crab. Crabmon and Kingler are both fiddler crabs too, with one much bigger claw. I like it and there are a few crustaceans of higher level that I think could be a good pre-evo for. Crabmon also has a x-antibody variant.

Crabmon

Crabmon X

The last of this level is Sangomon, a very new Digimon. I love it so much, it's a little staghorn coral monster with polyps for arms. It's so cute and such a creative way of making coral as a monster. I wish it has a full through-like of coral reef evolutions. If I had to pick any of the rookie/child Digimon form this series as a partner, it honestly might be this one.

Moving onto the champion/adult level is Ebidramon. Ebi means shrimp and dramon indicates that the Digimon is draconic, so it's a shrimp dragon. It clearly isn't fond of shrimp being used as a synonym for tiny as it will attack those who make fun of it.

Next is Gesomon, which clearly takes ofter humboldt squids as its very violent and scary. It attacks those who enter its territory, but won't bother those outside of it. It's also very intelligent and cunning, which is very appropriate for a squid. I really like Gesomon, I think it's a great choice for an evil aquatic line. Gesomon has an x-antibody variant which is incredibly ugly and not in a good way. Its ugly in an "I don't want to look at this any more" way.

Gesomon

Gesomon X

The last aquation at this level is the excellent Octomon. I don't like any of the octopus Pkemon very much and Digimon deliverd for me. It's a kleptomanian who wears a pot for a head much like how a coconut octopus lives inside coconuts and other hard objects. The crown came from a sunked treasure chest and that gun squirts ink. Weirdly enough, the little gold barnacles on it are identified as another Digimon called Fujitsumon and Octomon's reference book entry is the only place Fujitsumon has ever been mentioned.

Next up is the armor level, which lies outside the normal evolution levels. It was introduces fro the anime Digimon Adventure 02 and outside of media related to that show, armor Digimon are often treated as being synonymous to the champion/adult level.

First is Archelomon, a sea turtle with knives for flippers. Digimon has had much more ridiculous designs, but for some reason this one seems over the top for me.

Next is Depthmon, who absolutely should have been in the mermaid post but I forgot about it. I really like this guy, a merman wearing a diving suit. The suit lets it dive way deeper into the ocean than most Digimon because it can endure incredibly high pressure. Armor Digimon are the result of a Digimon evolving with an object called a Digimental that represents some virtue like courage. The anime only used a few combinations and a lot of the official armor Digimon are the result of filling out the other matches. For example, in the show, Veemon/V-Mon used the Digimentals of courage and friendship to become Flamedramon and Raidramon respectively. Depthmon is one of the unseen combinations, Veemon plus the Digimental of sincerity (reliability in the dub). The unseen combinations don't get nearly as much attention as the ones that did appear in the anime, which is a shame because some of them, like Depthmon, are pretty cool.

Next is Orcamon and I absolutely love this goofy beast. An Orca life guard is such an exceptionally silly concept executed quite well. It actively rescues other Digimon that are lost at sea. Orcamon seems like a good friend. What's even better is that it was designed by a fan as part of a contest. That fan has some great ideas.

Next is Submarimon, which I probably could have justified in the fish post. Its a fish-shaped submarine of course, but that harpoon nose also makes me think of sawfish. This is one of the armor Digimon that appeared in the anime where it was a bit underutilized due to being strictly aquatic. Fortunately the writers seem to have agreed because it got to appear in some of the other anime seasons as an ally.

Finally we have Tylomon, which is a tyloaurus, a type of prehistoric marine reptile. I like marine reptiles like mosasaurs, so Tylomon is pretty cool to me. It also has an x-antibody variant which is a classic overdesigned form. It's kind of weird that some of the more obscure armor Digimon got x-antibody forms befrore the ones that showed up in the anime, but I'm all for more obscure mons getting more attention.

Tylomon

Tylomon X

That's it for today. Next post will finish up the aquatic Digimon with the ultimate/perfect and mega/ultimate levels

#digimon #aquatic #aquatic animals #gizamon #crabmon #ganimon #sangomon #ebidramon #gesomon #octomon #archelomon #depthmon #orcamon #submarimon #tylomon

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otakween · 10 months

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Digimon Adventure Drama CD 3 (Character Song + Mini Drama 3)

The final part in this drama CD trilogy! There are other Digimon Adventure CDs for me to go through, but this is the end of the character song + mini drama collection. So great that these are easily accessible online. I've had a lot of fun going through them.

Download link

Translation

The Stolen First Dreams of the Year - Parts 1 & 2

The gang realizes that none of them had a New Year's dream (it's a Japanese tradition to analyze your first dream of the year). Yamato and Takeru go to investigate and Bakumon reveals he ate everyone's dreams! Dun dun dunnnn

Gotta love the totally realistic conversations of people being like "you didn't have a dream either, so weird!" I feel like I don't remember my dreams most nights lol.

I've always known that tapir were associated with dream-eating in Japan (due to anime and video games), but I've never looked up the origins of this. According to Wikipedia the nightmare eating, supernatural "baku" and the tapir are both called "baku," but they're different...but also baku look just like tapir lol. Not confusing at all!

In part 2 of this drama Yamato and Takeru are trapped in Takeru's dream. Takeru is a cat, Patamon's a kite, and Gabumon's a shishimai. I thought it was funny that Takeru had a profound reason for Patamon to be a kite, but Gabumon was a shishimai because...he just kinda looks like one lol

Takeru uses the power of lucid dreaming to defeat Bakumon and escape his dream...that's a pretty obvious weakness

Image Song 1 - Walk on the Edge (Yamato Ishida)

Translation

A very "cool" song for Yamato, very fitting. A lot of it is directed at Taichi, telling him to stop being so hot-headed and just be cool, like Yamato.

I feel like there's some conflicting vibes here because at one point in the lyrics he's like "we're the chosen children, we can do anything!" but then he's like "I'm fine on my own." Kinda jarring that both ends of his arc would be put into one song like that. Like...pick a personality.

I liked that they incorporated his harmonica in the song's intro. Smart.

Image Song 2 - Be All Right (Takeru Takaishi)

Translation

This had a similar vibe to Hikari's song, kinda abstract and hopeful about the future. (Makes sense since Hikari and Takeru become a duo).

I feel like Takeru's voice actress didn't even try to do her character's voice when singing this. It just sounds like some lady lol. In my opinion, when it comes to image songs, I prefer the song to sound more authentic to the character than to sound "good."

The Digimon’s New Year Performance

This was definitely the best gag drama yet! They threw a lot of dumb jokes in there that made me laugh/roll my eyes. Best bits were probably: Gabumon finally taking his fur off (in the AUDIO drama), Tentomon speaking without his accent (cursed), Sora and Joe praising Piyomon and Gomamon for their lame tricks and Hikari judging Tailmon for acting cutesy.

I felt bad for Agumon for being booed, glad he got his revenge at the end lol.

Image Song 3 - Shinka de Guts! (Partner digimon, minus Tailmon)

Translation

This one snuck up on me. It's so cute!! I feel like this is one of those anime songs that make you feel like you can do anything and everything's gonna be alright ;w;

Love hearing the digimon sing. This is what I was talking about in my critique of Takeru's song. I love in-character songs that aren't worried about sounding kinda goofy.

The digimon sing about their power together and their love for their human partners, very wholesome. There were also some lyrics thrown in there about taking it easy and stopping to smell the flowers. Cozy.

#digimon #digimon adventure #drama cd #drama cds

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tobiasdrake · 1 year

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Tailmon/Gatomon is an interesting example of the corners that writers can accidentally work themselves into, and the ways that writers can then work themselves back out.

Hikari and Tailmon are unusual for Digimon protagonists. Traditionally, a partner Digimon rests in their Child state, evolving to Adult, Perfect, or Ultimate form as necessary for battle. What makes Tailmon unusual, possibly even unique, is that her natural state is her Adult stage. Her child stage, Salamon, is only seen on rare occasions when she exhausts her strength.

This is an important distinction, since Digimon "power levels" so to speak are often wrapped up in those evolution stages.

In Digimon Adventure, this didn't matter so much. Hikari and Tailmon were introduced very late in the series. By that point, everyone had Perfect evolutions to battle with, and Taichi and Yamato were about to unlock their Ultimate evolutions. Adult-stage fighting was so last season.

But in 02, this presented a conundrum. The show was starting over fresh with new protagonists, new partners, and an escalation reset. Hikari and Takeru would join newcomers Daisuke, Miyako, and Iori and start over from the beginning.

This presented the writers with two separate problems. The first is that, as veterans of the first series, Hikari and Takeru were already comfortable evolving their Digimon to Perfect stage. This was resolved with the Dark Towers and Dark Digivice, which suppress evolution and force the characters to rely on the new Armor Evolution instead.

Blocking normal evolution served to nerf Takeru and Hikari, bringing them down to the new kids' levels - While occasionally lending them opportunities for Angemon and Angewomon to come out and shine, as a teaser of things to come.

But there was one other problem. Since the escalation was starting over, that meant the series would present the kids with Adult-stage Digimon as deadly threats that they needed Armor Evolution to overcome.

But the thing is? Tailmon is an Adult-stage Digimon in her natural state. This distinction suddenly mattered. The show needed all five kids to be running around in terror of Adult Digimon until they get the ability to fight back with Armor Digimon, but there was nothing stopping Tailmon from getting in there and throwing paws.

The solution? One of the very first things the show established is that Tailmon lost the golden ring she wears on her tail. Her "Holy Ring" would go on to have a plot-important role after the Kaiser arc was complete. But the more immediate effect it had was that losing her tail ring cut Tailmon's power dramatically.

This was kind of a new concept. Other Digimon don't work like this. Andromon doesn't turn as weak as a Child Digimon if you knock off his right index finger. But it needed to happen in order to bring Tailmon down to the others' level and stop her from walking all over the challenges that the protagonists would face in the early series.

I've often wondered why Digimon abandoned the concept of a consistent continuity, opting instead to wipe the slate clean and start over fresh with a new world with each series. Looking back now, I think I finally understand.

From the Dark Towers and Digimon Kaiser to the Holy Ring to Armor Evolution, it's kind of amazing just how much of 02's story had to be done the way it was, specifically to prevent Hikari's LVL100 endgame Digimon from effortlessly stomping all comers and nuking the tension. The show had to go out of its way to nerf Patamon and Tailmon, and then go further out of its way to nerf Tailmon some more.

#digimon #digimon adventure #digimon adventure 02 #hikari yagami #yagami hikari #kari kamiya

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trainingdummyrabbit · 10 months

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I always see a ton of Pokemon AUs for Demon Slayer, but I never see any Digimon AUs! For the AU ask if you're still taking them

. okok iam Absolutely still taking these and ill do my best but anon this is a really funny ask because i. do have a mini digimon au. like its ridiculously self-indulgent and tiny but. getting this was like a kick in the shins (affectionate) WAHAHAHA

so!! i hope you dont mind if this is very blatantly biased, but its certainly a starting point! as well, i havent really interacted w/ digimon since watching the anime years ago + playing world dusk and championship a while ago, so i wont have as much knowledge to pick from as i would other things! with the disclaimers out of the way...!

...hey what if we isekai'd the tokitwins? (post-writing edit: this ended up over 2k words long. This Is A Warning.)

so, you've been oh-so-luckily chosen to be digidestined and whisked away to an unfamiliar world where just about Everything wants to kill you, you have No way to contact your own world, and you have No idea how to get back. great! cool! excellent!

introducing our funny little guys of the week: yuichiro and muichiro tokito! just them for now, before i scope-creep myself to death. but, that aside, you can't be digidestined without a funny little digital partner of your own! so, introducing:

-Patamon, Muichiro's partner! an observant yet skittish little thing that never tends to stray far from its partner. it takes its job very seriously, oftentimes coming across as a bit fussy. even so, it is very easily overwhelmed and may need encouragement to press on. as well, it also tends to take things at face value more often than not, making it very earnest but Very gullible. -DemiDevimon, Yuichiro's partner! a mischeivous little thing that rarely seems to take things very seriously. its defiant and a bit self-centered, and honestly at times seems to genuinely only stick around the twins because theyre entertaining to mess with. it's here for a good time and Nothing Else. despite its yapping, it does occasionally let a bit of protectiveness slip through-- always fiercely sticking by them despite its nigh-constant complaints about how it wants to leave.

this ragtag group of four must make their way across the digital world to find a way back home-- and hopefully remain alive in the process. in such an unfamiliar and dangerous world, however, problems are sure to arise.

the twins, of course, stick together-- but more and more often, their desires and personalities begin to clash in ways that make it more difficult to progress. it's easy to keep your head low and follow along, but just how long can you really take that-- how long can you pretend it's okay? it's easy to keep a brave face, but there's only so much you can do with what you have-- and what you convince yourself that you don't. there's only so long you can stay in such a high-pressure environment before something begins to break.

throughout their journey, they'll discover more outlandish and mystifying places, meet more new faces, and uncover strange secrets-- what's the connection between their digimon partners? how did they get sent to the digital world in the first place? and most importantly: why does this world seem to already recognize them?

///

with that out of the way... time for the fiddly bits.

the twins have an arc with each other much alike the one they get in canon-- but pressed a bit further. the two learn to stand their ground, speak their mind-- and ultimately, learn to really, truly trust one another.

yui oftentimes takes the lead, and tends to do a better job keeping everything in order-- but... he's still just a kid. a kid that cares deeply for his brother, and would do anything to keep him safe. but in a world like this, there's not much that he Can do. so he plays the part as best he can-- even if it means that he has to make hard choices.

mui, on the other hand, wants desperately to be able to help-- he slowly starts getting bolder and more forward, away from that more shy personality he'd been known to have. of course it was more dangerous. of course they didn't know what would happen next. but he would never forgive himself if he just did Nothing.

at its core, the two begin to actually almost switch places through their arc-- mui becoming more active and yui more passive-- as they make their way forward and sort themselves (and each other) out.

and of course: their partners have a whole Thing(tm) going on too! with the twins And between each other.

mui+pata are like odd little peas in a pod, oftentimes found staring at something or other with their big ol owly eyes, going back and forth over this-and-that about it in a way that makes sense to nobody but them. pata knows more about the world and where they might be going, but mui is a bit of an emotional rock for it-- providing encouragement and talking it through any roadblocks it may have come across. theyre odd little enablers! at least, when pata isn't pulling mui's hair over the fact that theyre going the wrong way, they went the wrong way we have to go that way-- no, thats the wrong way too we-- were lost were lost oh no were lost what do we DO--

yui+dDevi are. a goddamn mess. dDevi loves messing with this kid, always talking at him like it knows better-- which it does, technically, but it doesnt have to say it like that, shut up. it talks like a shitty older brother as if it wasn't leagues smaller than him and shaped exactly like a kickball. (yui doesn't vocalize this. he is so very tempted to, though.) despite all the ribbing, yui is pretty much the only person it'll talk seriously with. obviously yui is rather frustrated with it at times, but he can tell it does genuinely mean well. mostly. they squabble, but they do keep each other from doing anything too stupid. and further than that: even if he doesn't say anything, yui can tell when there's something on its mind.

the digiduo are... odd, certainly. but, strangely, there seems to be some sort of tension between the two-- they... really dont seem to get along. pata is deeply distrustful of dDevi, noting its existence as an evil digimon. like, it's in the name! devimon! not to mention how often it leads them astray or messes with them just for kicks-- something's up and it's not sure what.

on the other hand, dDevi doesn't much like pata either. it's a stuck-up killjoy thats convinced it's always right when it can barely make any good calls. always hiding behind its whole spiel of "good" and "evil" like it's so trustworthy. it doesn't even know what it's talking about half the time! if it's going to lecture them, it should at the very least be right about it. get a reason to be upset other than "that ones clearly evil, look at it!"

and then... there's the memories. or rather, the lack thereof. both seem to remember parts of some grand legend that they no longer have the ability to recall the whole of. something important to their reason of being-- and the presence of the digidestined twins.

pata seems particularly insistent of it being a prophecy, a series of steps to follow that foretell what and who they should be. (something about it seems to stress them out particularly badly, though... what exactly is it that they're living up to? why doesn't it know?)

dDevi... pretends not to care, at least. but it recalls the legend too, and hearing the fragments of it seems to make it upset. it wants nothing to do with the legend, and just wants to do... anything else. (anything to get further away from that stupid story. it's not one to be shackled by expectations like that.)

and again, the twins seem to differ on what they make of the story. yui sides with pata, believing its their best bet to at the very least figuring out how to get home. mui, on the other hand, slowly begins to wonder what exactly the gaps in the legend could mean, and wants to find out what it truly is. it's hard to follow a broken path. after all, who's to say its really a path at all? which brings us to... a bit of a conflict.

///

after a particularly rough leg of the journey, things start to get... difficult. theyve had little to no luck learning much of Anything of the way forward-- and things are just getting harder and harder as they go. yui isn't sure how much more they can really take of this. they're starting to barely make it out of these situations alive, so... so maybe they're better off just accepting it. nothing's leading them anywhere, nothing is making sense-- they might as well just... find a place to hide and keep their heads low. live it out as best they can. (he isn't sure how much more they can take.)

mui, of course, protests-- there were so many more places they haven't looked through yet! there was no telling if they found something or not unless they went for it! it was always going to be hard-- they couldn't just give up and wait for the difficulty to find Them. (he can't stand the idea of just giving up after all that...)

the two begin bickering, and it gets... hard. pata starts experiencing some doubt, unsure of if they should really be pressing on into certain death-- they'd just had some ridiculously close calls, and maybe waiting it out would reveal something..? (the knowledge of the unfinished legend hangs above its head, and the thought of unravelling it... is starting to give them a bad feeling.) dDevi doesn't want to sit around and do nothing while waiting for death-- that's boring and pathetic. itd much rather do something with itself even if it's scary. (it needs to know the truth. why so many others know them, why it keeps getting such bitter stares... why? it's frustrating.)

and the bickering turns to arguing. after a few too many harsh words from both sides... they split up. mui heading off with dDevi to find out what was really going on, and yui with pata to... find somewhere safe. figure it out.

for yui and pata, it's... a bit of a long journey. the two rarely speak, mostly just quick words to keep each other alert and avoid attention. yui is mostly pushed forward by his stubbornness, but... it does bother him. it bothers him a lot. he's afraid, he's worried, and he doesn't know what to do. he wants to figure it out, he wants to have all the answers. but he doesn't, and it was stupid to think he ever couldve. legend or not-- prophecy or not, they were just kids. what could they really do? what were they supposed to do?

and as it turned out, pata was worried sick as well. it isnt until a quiet moment that yui catches pata crying-- and they finally talk. because pata hated this too. it hated feeling like it should be able to lead them, but being unable to because of the gaps in its knowledge. it hated giving up, because it knew they needed to do something, and it was letting them down by doing nothing. and most of all... it missed mui. it argued because it was afraid, but it knew this was no better. more than anything, it just wanted to help.

they both knew they couldn't keep going with this. if not for their own sakes, then for the others'.

team mui's progress is... equally difficult. it was already hard enough moving about with a halved party, but they also aren't with their bonded partners, so their Actual Useable FIrepower is much much more limited. the entire time, dDevi goes on and on insulting the other pair, insisting it was really about time this went and happened, and that their own pair was obviously right all along. mui stays quiet through much of this, but after a particularly cruel jab, mui snaps back.

because he knew it didn't really mean any of it. dDevi was smug and irritating, sure, but it was just about always a joke. it was never this mean about it... unless it was actually, personally upset. that was a lot of talk for someone who insisted it didn't care. and even if it were to deny it, mui wouldn't stand for someone saying the people he cared about weren't worth anything. of course they were afraid-- they all were. answers were never easy. it was why they were working so hard to begin with.

and dDevi was genuinely taken aback-- because it was always convinced that mui was the pushover of the group. but just like that, he'd managed to completely read its actions without so much as a word. and... he was right. it wasnt proud of what it said, but it had to stand by it. it just didnt know how else to justify itself-- how else to keep going. but... all of this-- everything had always been for each other, hadn't it? and they certainly wasn't going to stop there.

they just had to find a way to convince the others.

of course, nothing was ever easy. its the risk they knew they were taking, but... maybe a risk they weren't quite prepared for. wherever they go, together or not, some new threat will always find a way to rear its head. but between the two of them, there wasn't much they could do to fight back. and they full well wouldn't have been able to make it... had it not been for team yui showing up at a crucial moment, yuichiro putting himself directly in the line of danger to draw attention from mui-- giving him and pata a chance to actually fight back now that they were reunited.

it's a messy fight, but with all of them together-- and a newfound but concrete trust-- they manage to push through relatively unscathed-- if a bit battered on yui's end. after a few moments to make sure everyone was all right (and ironically, to scold each other over being so reckless,) they finally get the chance to talk. and... to apologize.

///

and now for more scattered notes before i end up writing another minific in a tumblr post.

the legend goes very similarly to a typical fairy tale-- a battle between forces of good and evil, and the champions of each. long ago, there was another pair of digidestined that stumbled across the digital world, and very quickly became unrivaled in power. one half, however, became corrupted by the allure of strength and jealousy, splitting both the digital world and their familial bond. as things came to a boiling point, their conflict brought unseen destruction to the digital world, each of the chosen digimon destroying each other in the battle. crushed and in denial (for varying different reasons,) the old digidestined simply... vanished, one day, never to be seen again. as for their chosen digimon, their data was wiped nearly clean, to be born anew for when they were needed again.

as a whole, it's a story of forging bonds, learning to trust, and breaking cycles of violence.

dDevi hates the idea of digivolving due to lingering memories of that past life. it refuses to interact with it at all, and commits itself to just having a good time and living a life it can enjoy. it doesn't want to become... that again.

pata remembers that betrayal and remembers something awful happening, but... something about having to distrust the other makes it deeply, deeply sad. it want to believe in the best in dDevi, but it also feels the pull of responsibility of having to live up to the legend. that was the only thing it felt it could trust.

the old digidestined are, of course, the tsugikuni twins. whether they show up again or not is still in the air-- yoriichi being pata's old partner and michikatsu being dDevi's.

i dont feel like digging through the digiwiki for another hour but id like to somehow integrate dDevi's original digivolution line being more in line w/ canon, going all in on the Hehoo Evil(tm) thing, but with yui, it follows a more neutral route, following its own desires rather than the course of what the story Expects of it.

SO !!! YEAH!!! DIGIMON AU!!!! i care about this a very normal amount, and if you read this far: thank you, and I Am So Sorry.

#ask game #long post #LONG LONG POST.#kny #kny spoilers #UM. THIS WAS MORE THAN I THOUGHT.#youve activated my Secret Digi Fixation trap card unfortunately #but!!! um!!! anyway i hope u like it and i hope i didnt go too all over the place!!!!#but um. thanks for enabling me n letting me actually expand on this-- it was more fragmented before #and now its ! 2.6k words! have fun !! ^w^

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thesmurfchick · 3 months

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Who tf is Kaito Shinonome (Part 8)

My interpretations/headcanons (cont.):

Dracmon already reached his Adult/Champion stage before meeting Kaito

I actually wanted to include this in a longer post detailing each of the partnerships the kids have with their digimon, but FUCK IT I’m going to write about it here first

Champion stages are called “Adult” stages in the original Japanese, following Rookie stages (“Child” in the original Japanese)

This is meant to symbolize “growing up”

Adult stage digimon tend to… y’know… act like adults compared to the more childlike Child stages

Compare Angemon and Patamon, for one of the more extreme examples

Dracmon already had his Adult stage unlocked, because this reflects the fact that Kaito already had to “be an adult” once in his life (and still kinda does now, with the way he treats Miu “like her dad”)

You could argue that Ryo also had to grow up fast after losing his mother (and possibly Saki, too, with her own complications)

But I think the difference is that Ryo responded to his Life Changing Incident by becoming withdrawn and depressed, while Saki became rebellious and “spoiled” (she’s not actually, but she does what she can to get what she wants)

But Kaito responded by becoming independent, not trusting others to take care of him, and deciding that his own needs were unimportant compared to Miu’s

Another hint is that when Takuma first meets him, he thought Kaito “was an adult”

Does that mean Dracmon evolved randomly one day?? …That would be hilarious, but tbh I don’t know

I don’t know the exact mechanics behind evolution among bonded digimon -- do they need their partner physically with them to evolve? Maybe Dracmon just had it unlocked but couldn’t access it without meeting Kaito?

He just meets Kaito that day in Part 3, and he’s like, “I don’t know why, but I have an intense urge to howl at the moon”

He likes cute things

There’s a dialogue option you can choose where he’ll go on a looong spiel about how adorable he thinks Miu is

Sooo… cute things probably remind him of her, and he loves Miu, so by association, he likes cute things

That has been my scientific analysis thank you for reading

He fell for the fake Dracmon in the waterways at first for like 0.001 seconds until the fake Dracmon talked a bit too much shit with no actual sass, and he was like, “... You’re not Dracmon.”

And proceeded to ignore every other fake until he found the real one

Alternatively, the fake ones just talked shit while the real one offered to help him find Miu (parallel to when they first met?)

The point of the fakes was to distract everyone from finding each other (specifically Shuuji), and he seemed to be doing just fine distracting himself by searching for Miu :^)

There was a period where he and Miu were very close, before drifting apart a bit before the Incident (but in a normal sibling way)

Tbh, I flip-flop in my head about what their relationship was like before the Incident, since we never get anything fully concrete about it

I think it’s obvious they got along at the very least

For now, the impression I get is that they used to be close when they were a few years younger (played games together, teased each other, played pranks on each other), before growing up and getting more interested in their own lives instead of the other’s

And then the Incident happened and made things Very Complicated

In Part 4, when talking to Shuuji about siblings, the original Japanese has Kaito say something along the lines of his and Miu’s personalities not meshing well

The English localization kinda has a similar line? “Maybe she and I just can’t get along.”

Maybe this led to them being unable to connect with each other like they used to when they were younger?

Syakomon mentions in the Harmony route that the ordeal of the kemonogami world made the sibs realize how strained their relationship had become

Implying their relationship had to have been closer than they are now

But that could mean a lot of things…

This might be refuted by the flashback at the beginning of Harmony Part 8, where Miu says that after the Incident, “even Kaito is clingier than usual”

Implying that he was always “clingy”

I’m not sure what the original Japanese says, but the Korean version actually says something different: “and my brother’s sticking to me like never before”

Idk how accurate the Korean translation is, but given the similarities between the two languages, I can’t see many mistranslations happening unless it was a creative decision

This could also have many possibilities: maybe he wasn’t protective over her before? Or maybe he was, but just not to that extent

Given his strong sense of responsibility and general kindness, I feel like the latter’s more likely

But you can be protective without being close, especially in an older-sibling/younger-sibling relationship

This could also explain why he took the Incident so badly and personally -- if he hadn’t been that involved in her life before, he’s trying to overcompensate by being TOO involved

He has a good sense of direction

The basis for this is just that he seems like he would

Also, from the fact he knew the right way to the amusement park from the forest

This could tie into just having good instincts (which he claimed was the reason for the above lol)

Or maybe he’s just good at navigating woodlands due to living by one

Idk I’ve tried navigating forests before and it’s hard, maybe I just suck ):

AAAAND that’s all folks! Hope you enjoyed reading! I might make another post some time in the future because, believe or not, I had even more to say about this loser alksfjdkhfad

I tried to only add headcanons that had SOME basis in canon (whether or not you agree with my interpretation is up to you!), but I might make a post about more silly headcanons that have little to no basis in canon. Some of which might even contradict the things I wrote here, but… Mom said I can do whatever I want so I’m doing whatever I want >:(

I also plan on making a post like this about Miu and Minoru (my other faves) and maybe even the other characters (Aoi and Shuuji have been growing on me) so stay tuned!!

Check out the other parts here: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8

#digimon survive #kaito shinonome

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minticecodes · 1 year

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An indulgent mega man zero + digimon AU.

The partnerships are:

Ciel + Zero (Guilmon X)

I didn't draw her with goggles here, but she has them. She uses a visor while researching "digital phenomena."

Unlike the regular Guilmon line, Guilmon Xs' digital hazards are sealed thanks to the X-antibody.

Elpizo + X (Patamon)

Elpizo pushes X to digivolve and become more powerful, while X tries to get him to calm down.

Neige + Craft (Grapleomon) are a different kind of partners.

Neige's a journalist chasing rumours of a secret government division. She's also looking for her old friend--though she can't remember his name or what he looks like. Meanwhile, Craft wants her to stay far away from what he's up to.

More long, rambly (subject to change) plot stuff under the cut:

The secret government division (basically a cross of DATS and Hypnos) has been researching the 'chosen child' phenomena. Wouldn't it be useful, to harness the ability to control powerful monsters? Particularly if you wanted to exterminate this parallel world full of walking nukes, thinks Director Weil.

Ciel either knows exactly what's happening or has men in black style amnesia to stop her from forming a resistance too early. In both options she has a creeping sense of dread/guilt that she's done something terrible and left someone behind.

Zero definitely has amnesia. Ciel first finds him as a hurt Gigimon, plopped out of her computer when she wishes to be stronger to protect others.

Arc 1: Involves Ciel and Zero getting used to a partnership as monsters start appearing in Arcadia city

Half of these encounters are solved without violence. Most digimon are fleeing to the human world for safety--only some elites are seeking to harm humans. Ciel ends up creating a network of digimon in hiding.

T.K. Thoreewon (but much prefers 'Elpizo') is Ciel's lancer, and he's far more ruthless than her. He doesn't have a digimon partner though, despite how he wants to help out in battles.

Occasionally after each battle they catch glimpses of a flickering angel, who repeats the message "stop me."

They eventually do, tracking down the vengeful Holyangemon who's been driving digimon to flee the digital world to escape his reign.

Curiously, Holyangemon (previously Seraphimon X) was once known for his peaceful policies and caring nature. He was one of the few leaders left after a nightmareish red dragon tore apart the world. But citizens whisper he changed after he left for the final battle to seal away that dragon--not just that he lost his X-antibody and dropped down a level. However, no one saw the old human escaping the scene that day when his monster was defeated.

Ciel, meanwhile, has a terrible sense of recognition when she sees Holyangemon's control ring.

Arc 2 involves investigating cases of missing digimon. Ciel has a theory it's humans--though others report a lion general doing the dirty work. At the same time, Elpizo's new partner Patamon rings deja vu...

#mmz #mega man #mega man zero #digimon #guilmon #ciel mmz #zero megaman #cyber elf x #elpizo #megaman x #craft mmz #mmz digimon au #as you can see this is an embarrassing brainrot blog #at least 12 year old me would be happy #i've drawn more in the past week than in the past 6 months. this isn't going to last.

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digimonarchive · 1 year

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A picspam of Mimi Tachikawa and her digimon partner, Palmon

(Also included in the picspam: Yamato Ishida, Sora Takenouchi, Takeru Takaishi, Jou Kido, Koushiro Izumi, Taichi Yagami and their Digimon partners)

Digimon Adventure episodes 2, 3, 4 and 5

I did not post a screenshot of Mimi, Palmon, Yamato, Gabumon, Takeru and Patamon from episode 1 (which is supposed to be the first appearance) because it's the same picture for the picspam.

#Mimi Tachikawa #Palmon #Digimon Adventure #yamato ishida #gabumon #sora takenouchi #piyomon #takeru takaishi #patamon #jou kido #gomamon #koushiro izumi #tentomon #taichi yagami #Digimon #picspam

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andersqueuetea · 5 months

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Every year I typically do a review of all the video games I play throughout the year and I post it on Twitter. As I'm not particularly active on Twitter, I figured I'd start this little blog to post things like this so that I can share them with anyone who might find it interesting! 2023 was a big year for me-- I'll make a post about how my 2023 has been overall and everything that's happened and everything that I feel I've accomplished later on, but, in general, I beat my thread of video games from last year by more than double.

In 2022 I listed a total of 20 games, though it didn't seem to include everything I tried. This year I was able to play 50 different video games that I would love to talk about this year. I'm also splitting them into four different categories: Unfinished, Group Games, Replays, and New Titles. Let's get into it.

Unfinished Games

This includes three games that I either gave up on or haven't completely finished yet.

#50 Digimon World 2

I first played Digimon World 2 as a child alongside my older brother, Jake, on the Playstation. We were both Digimon fans, having rented the original Digimon World video game from our local blockbuster but never getting particularly far. Unlike the original Digimon World game, this title is a dungeon crawler similar to the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series that follows Akira, a boy who lives in Digital City on Directory Content, and is tasked with joining one of three guard teams (Vaccine, Data, and Virus types) and gaining a partner Digimon.

The player and their partner then take their tank, a Digi-Beetle and travel the dungeons beating and recruiting other Digimon to their party while beating bosses and liberating parts of Directory Continent.

I played this game on my Steam Deck and joined the Gold Hawks team with the Vaccine Digimon so that my partner Digimon was Patamon, a favorite of my childhood. I was increasingly frustrated by the lack of explanation of the various mechanics in game and how difficult it was to find any early game recruitable vaccine Digimon, making it so that I was stuck with a party of one from the get-go. Eventually I put the game away and, while I'm sure I may pick it up again in the future, the experience was clunky and slow, even down to the slow dialogue and walking animations.

#49 Banjo-Kazooie

Flame me. Bully me. I get it. First off, let me tell you: this game is great. The concept, the silly plot, the goofy characters-- I understand why this is such a popular game and why people have so much nostalgia about these characters and their world! The music is amazing, the worlds are unique, and the dialogue is catchy. The problem with this and, genuinely, why I didn't complete it, is that the collectathon aspect was more of a hassle than anything else due to the clunky 1996 controls and lack of quality of life upgrades that they could have brought to the Nintendo Switch Online version.

I enjoyed portions and the genuine inspiration that this took from other early 3D platformers, but the controls, the hitboxes, the punishing failures... it made it unenjoyable for me to attempt complete once I realized that I would need to go back and collect and additional number of hidden collectables to be able to open the next door.

#48 Pokemon Emerald (Randomizer)

As we'll note as we get further down the list, I've been replaying some of the Pokemon games that I've enjoyed in the past. However, as I decided to start Pokemon Emerald through my Steam Deck, I opted to play a randomized version of the game to spice things up a little. Unlike the first two games on our list, this is unfinished because I hadn't quite made enough progress to complete it-- I'm still working through the game.

The third installment of the core generation 3 Pokemon games, Emerald takes place on the continent of Hoenn after moving with the protagonist's family to Littleroot Town from Johto. My protagonist, a boy named Dersy, gains his first partner Pokemon, a Totodile, from Professor Birch, and sets on his trainer journey, meeting Birch's assistant, May and immediately battling her Beldum in an infuriating fight when you only have a Totodile who knows two moves.

As of now, I've found a fun and interesting party as I move past Slateport for the first time: Pharaoh the Ampharos, Zelda the Typhlosion (shoutouts to Muttski), Kaya the Kyogre, Fleshlight the Weepinbell (sorry), A-aron the Lairon, and Menace the Salamence.

Emerald is a slow play. It's taken me a while to get anywhere, primarily because I only play on my Steam Deck in bed when I have a little down time.

Group Games

I've played quite a few games with friends this year that didn't have specific 'endings' so I couldn't quite say that I beat them. Still, I wanted to talk about them here! There are 12 games on this portion of the list, starting with...

#47 Project Playtime

A spin-off of the horror game Poppy Playtime, this prequel was developed and published by Mob Entertainment as a co-op free-to-play horror set in a toy factory.

I didn't get much playtime on this as the game was still in early access and didn't always run as intended, but it allows six playes to try and solve puzzles and collect toy pieces to fix their train and escape while being hunted by a player controlling a monster.

The game has potential and, if asked to play it again, I definitely would! Unfortunately, last time friends wanted to play the launcher was busted.

#46 Borderlands 2

Another fan favorite that I've only played one time, Borderlands 2 is something that I've been discussing playing with my friend Emma for years and years.

Finally, in 2023, we got a group together to play a little bit. I believe I played as a Gunzerker and, while I'm not a great FPS gamer by any means, I did have some fun with this game being dragged along to various missions by friends who knew much more about what they were doing.

Unfortunately, my experience was ruined by an outside issue and I don't, at this time, think I'm ready to play Borderlands 2 anytime soon.

#45 Phasmophobia

I'll be the first to admit that I have very bad FOMO. I don't like missing out when friends play games and, therefore, I, a scaredy-cat, purchased and played Phasmophobia.

I am, additionally, very bad at Phasmophobia and am often dead the entire time.

Still, dead Ders loves to take random items from the map and drop them in the truck for everyone who's still alive!

When Phasmo went through it's big truck update I found myself extremely frustrated-- I didn't understand how to buy and load items into the truck and every time we tried to play it was one issue after another.

In the end I uninstalled the game and, while I'll probably reinstall if people want to play, the update really ruined a lot of the enjoyment for me.

#44 The Anacrusis

Space Left for Dead with aliens instead of zombies! I jumped right on this funky little game as a Lance main, as you know I love a nondescript basic-ass white guy.

Again, FPS games aren't my thing, but this was really fun co-op horde combat! Though only one friend of mine actually owns the game, leaving us with a tougher time getting games together, the game is still very fun and exciting!

This year they added the versus mode, allowing teams to play alternatively as survivors and alien hoards and... as someone unfamiliar with this playstyle... I hated this. It was really difficult as the alien to do anything and, since my friend has so much more experience in this format, I felt like I was completely helpless to do anything.

I hope that more friends will get this game so that we can play together, especially now that it's out of early access.

#43 Among Us

Innersloth's Among Us became a household name during the pandemic and dominated my life every evening for at least eight to ten months, spawning the discord server in which I spend most of my time.

I only played Among Us once or twice this year, most importantly on my friend Emma's birthday where we played a few rounds to celebrate and hang out.

The game is good and fun. I have no interest in playing with randoms-- just not my thing, and while I love playing with friends... after a while I find myself becoming so comfortable with everyone's play-styles that the game just becomes repetitive. A great game for every once in a while.

#42 Party Animals

All the ragdoll physics applied to cute little animal critters? A great soundtrack? This game is totally fun, however, I didn't play it too much. Much like Among Us, this is the kind of game that I'd rather just play with friends in customs-- a group of us in a voice call beating the crap out of each other and laughing while doing so.

The games are fun-- reminiscent of Fall Guys and American Ninja Warrior in a way and the customization that you can find through every character is wonderful. Hopefully this game stays in the repertoire going forward.

#41 Dead by Daylight

To say that this was a bad year for Dead by Daylight was an understatement.

I first played DBD in 2021 after the Among Us craze died down and I found myself experiencing FOMO as my friends played DBD in our discord and I discovered a hot blond basic white-man, Felix Richter, was a playable character.

Eventually I purchased the game and have clocked over 2,000 hours in it.

At the end of 2022 they released a killer by the name of The Knight who was the first draft of an extremely boring playstyle that the devs doubled down on in May of 2023 with their first killer release of the year.

Adriana Imai, The Skull Merchant, is one of the biggest mistakes that BHVR has made-- the 'chess merchant' style of gameplay, which can extend the length of games so much that the killer can hold them hostage for 45+ minutes at a time was so boring and disrespectful that BHVR attempted to rework the killer to combat this... only to make it comparably worse. Between the Knight's release, the Skull Merchant, and the various perk reworks and glitches that BHVR gaslit the community into pretending didn't exist, I stopped playing DBD for a while.

Every once in a while I would log in to play, to experience the new killer and survivor, The Singularity and Gabriel Soma, or to see if the addition of Nicolas Cage could really save the game for me but... unfortunately... no. Ellen Ripley and The Xenomorph were the next releases and the first releases since I bought the game that I didn't purchase, followed by Chucky from the Child's Play series who, I will admit, is a very fun and well balanced addition to the game.

I log in to play every once in a while, when friends want to play and I'm feeling particularly good, but other than that... DBD's lack of integrity regarding their own issues has made the game a big disappointment for me.

#40 Fallout 76

A new game to me, this was gifted to me by my friend PJ. I've played a Fallout game once before for roughly two hours and, honestly, Fallout 76 has been a fun, silly, buggy experience.

First problem: I messed up my character's nose and now he looks silly. Yes, I know I can fix it. No, I do not plan on fixing it.

Exploring in this game is fun! There are so many little funny moments that the devs put in, a solid community that has seemed really nice, and a heavy difficulty that makes me feel like I'm actively accomplishing things when I survive.

I particularly like it when I see another player and I use the wave emoji at them and they wave back!

I'm not a big bug person, so those kinda freak me out, but in general the world that they've created is horrifyingly beautiful.

#39 Fortnite

Never thought I would play Fortnite, however, when DBD took a turn for a worst a group of us defected to zero-build Fortnite and... it's fun! Not something I love to play all the time, but the goofy aesthetics, the variety of characters and emotes, it's easy to see why people get excited about something so silly!

To be able to make the Demogorgon from Stranger Things ride around in a little dinosaur is fun as heck. The changes in the game, updates, game modes, and maps are all interesting and provide a varied experience.

It's not a forever game for me, but that's fine. I still enjoy it, especially when playing with my friend Yellow!

#38 Lethal Company

This game is fun, scary, and stressful! I love pressing 1 and 2 to point and dance-- honestly, makes the game so much fun. Yes, I know that's silly. :)

Since they added arachnophobia mode I feel a lot better playing this! I'm still inexperienced, but I love playing this with friends. The monsters are so varied and intense, the different planets and weathers make it so new and exciting, and the procedural generation of each type of map is a welcome surprise. The different types of scraps are a joy-- the horror of finding a little toy robot.... the fear of hearing a little girl say "hey!"

Overall, this game is a great asset. A great, great asset.

#37 Deceive Inc.

I spent a lot of time this year playing Deceive Inc. after discovering the game while watching Otzdarva stream it one day.

You take the role of a spy trying to steal a package from a villainous lair by unlocking three vault terminals and extracting while surviving against a plethora of other agents who all have abilities much like yours.

The characters are fun, the NPCs are great, the gameplay is stacked. The community has been SO kind and the devs are some of the best devs ever! I took some time off due to my anxiety with FPS games and my stress overload, but this game will always have an amazing place in my heart and I still watch it almost every day!

I'm actively watching it now.

The little nods to spy culture... the additions of skins like Yu-Mi's Sailor Moon inspired skin, the integrity of the maps, the little "dossiers" about each of the characters and NPCs... this game and their amazing dev team deserve so much more respect and love. I wish more of my friends enjoyed playing this game with me.

#36 Labyrinthine

Capping off our group games for the year is Labyrinthine.

I love this game so much and am always up to play it.

The case files mode with the cosmetic hunting on top of the content they release frequently, the events, the monsters, the maps... it's so fun. The jump scares are great and the little puzzles can be super fun to figure out.

I still haven't finished the story chapters, but I really would like to! The toughest part of this game has just been convincing my friends to play with me, as it's not a solo game.

Replays

I replayed eight games that I've played previously this year-- some for the first time, others frequently.

#35 Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age

I'm a big Final Fantasy fan! I last played the original Final Fantasy XII in 2012 while I was dating a wonderful man who encouraged me to finish it!

Let me be clear-- I still enjoyed this game... I liked a lot of the concepts that they put in and I loved visiting Ivalice. As you'll notice, I replayed a LOT of Ivalice games this year.

The characters are boring. The plot was completely inconsequential to everything. The battle system was so silly that, during the final boss battle, I didn't actually have to press a single button.

Why is it that they set this game in FFTA style Ivalice yet every character in your party is a hume save for Fran? Where's the variety? Even the job classes added in the TZA version just felt... like an afterthought.

There was a lot of exploration that could be done, the license board was... interesting... and the monster variety was mostly great! Overally, the game was.... fine... I'd be fine waiting another 11 years to replay it again.

#34 Pokemon: Special Pikachu Edition

The original third core game, Pokemon Yellow was loosely based on the popularity of the Pokemon Anime, updating the sprites, adding Jessie and James from Team Rocket, and giving you a partner Pikachi who followed you around the entire game and refused to evolve.

I love Pokemon, so why is this so low? Specifically, because it's generation one. The QOL things that I've come to love and expect from Pokemon weren't present here and it showed. The game, in general is a fun and nostalgic experience where I get the chance to relive my childhood and bide my time for other new releases.

My team, as the champion, included my Pikachu, who I nicknamed Mimikyu, a Victreebel, an Aerodactyl, a Nidoking, a Mr. Mime, and a Gyarados.

#33 Final Fantasy VIII Remastered

Join Cloud Strife, but lamer, as he-- wait.... shit... I mean Squall Leonhart, right? Join Squall Leonhart... a teenage student at assassin school who graduates and leads a team of mercenaries, including his former teacher who got fired and is in love with him, a guy who loves hot dogs, a cowboy with no relevance to the plot, and a quirky girl as they meet Rinoa Heartilly, a resistance leader who is essentially rebelling against her father while she harasses and embarrasses Squall.

Other plot points include all the characters other than Rinoa remembering that they actually grew up in an orphanage together and just forgot it because they continued to use the Guardian Forces which make them lose their memories... only to continue using Guardian Forces for the rest of the game. Can't forget the mess of sorceresses, Squall falling in love with Rinoa somehow??? Uhm.... some space? They go to space.

It's not a secret that I think this game is overrated. It adds some cool things-- Moombas, gunblades, and Edea, to name a few. The junction system is overcomplicated and broken and plot is swiss cheese.

Will I play it again? Absolutely.

#32 Pokemon Gold Version

Technically, you can argue that I didn't finish this. I completed the eight gym badges and the elite four and... I did go ahead and do the eight Kanto badges but... I didn't fight Red. The credits rolled, so I count it complete.

The Johto region is one of my favorite regions-- I've been dreaming of a Legends Ho-oh game featuring the Burnt Tower and the Legendary Beasts from before they all burned, but we'll see what we get!

My team for this run included Ho-oh, Gloom, Feraligatr, Ampharos, Sudowoodo, and Dragonite. The difficulty spikes in this game can be a little frustrating and it still has some rough QOL moments, but man... I still love this game so much!

#31 Final Fantasy Tactics Advance

As a big Final Fantasy Tactics fan, I remember my excitement as I played through this GBA game during my childhood and was all too excited to pick it up again this year!

We meet Marche, a new boy in the town of St. Ivalice, who befriends the pink haired Ritz and quiet boy Mewt during a snowball fight and invites them over to look at an old book with Marche's sick younger brother, Doned.

The next morning, Marche wakes up in the mystical country of Ivalice and is greeted by Montblanc, a moogle who takes him under his wing and allows Marche to help lead his clan. Mewt is no longer teased and is, instead, the prince of Ivalice alongside his mother, Remedi, who is dead in the real world, while his father, Cid, is the head judgemaster. Doned is no longer sick and Ritz has found a clan of her own.

Marche takes it upon himself and his clan to destroy the crystals keeping Ivalice together and return them to their true homes in St. Ivalice, much to the chagrin of Mewt, Doned, and Ritz.

The game features turn based tactical combat and a job system as well as Nu Mou, Moogle, Hume, Bangaa, and Viera.

My biggest issue with this game is the grind and the fact that, unlike FFT, there aren't any named characters who join your party, something I'll discuss more fully in a few more games.

#30 Pokemon: Let's Go, Eevee!

A remake of Pokemon Special Pikachu Edition including integration with Pokemon Go, mega evolutions, Alolan forms, and the dark, steel and fairy types, this game is technically set in an alternate world after Pokemon Red and Blue, since the characters Red, Blue, and Green all exist and are successful in their own ways.

The protagonist, Chase or Elaine canonically, is given an Eevee who does not enjoy its Pokeball and serves as your companion throughout the game, even going as far as to learn non-move HMs. The partner Eevee can also learn a ton of new attacks and has a different BST than other Eevees.

Instead of battling wild pokemon, you catch them in a form more similar to Pokemon Go, simply tossing Pokeballs and going for streaks to level up your Pokemon. It's a silly and fun remaster that proves a solid entry point for new and younger gamers who are hoping to get involved in Pokemon and for older games who may want to introduce new friends into this series.

I specifically didn't want to use my Eevee, so my final team included Dewgong, Exeggutor, Zapdos, Ninetales, Rhydon, and Haunter.

#29 Final Fantasy Tactics

Honesty time: I was obsessed with this game in sixth grade and I played it constantly.

The complicated plot only grew better as I grew older and became an astrology boi.

We meet Ramza Beoluve, son of a noble, his commoner best friend, Delita, and more as we travel through a complex socio-political vortex caused by the 50 Year War against Ordalia. Delita learns a harsh lesson as his sister, a commoner, is murdered during an uprising as a political statement, a church takes a terrible plot to try to control the country, and a group hopes to resurrect their demonic leader all while we meet a cast of unique and powerful characters on top of our own base characters who circle through a job system.

What makes this better than FFTA to me is the characters-- not only do we have Ramza, but we get Mustadio, Agrias, Rafa, Malak, Orlando, Meliadoul, Beowulf, Reis, Construct 8, Byblos, and even Cloud Strife, all with unique powers and abilities alongside our minor characters. Personally, I had a self insert who I trained in every mage class until I stopped using him in favor of others!

#28 Final Fantasy IX: Remastered

My favorite Final Fantasy, my first Final Fantasy, and my favorite replay of the year.

I replay FF9 every few years and I always love it. Vivi is my favorite character in the series and I'm also a humongous fan of Garnet's story. Zidane is a good character, though he obviously has some flaws that are pretty cringe. I can easily accept that characters like Amarant, Freya, and Quina definitely were forgotten and fall into obscurity as the game progresses, the game's overarching message of identity and family has always drawn me in.

We first meet Zidane, an orphan taken in by the traveling group of thieves and thespians, the Tantalus, as he and his crew partake in a plot to kidnap Princess Garnet during a production of I Want to be Your Canary, performed by them. Meanwhile, a young black mage named Vivi at also planning to attend the premiere after the death of his adoptive father.

Throughout the story we meet amazing characters, whimsical locales, and are asked difficult questions about what it means to be alive, what it means to be family, how to cope with grief and loss, and are given the best mini-game in all of Final Fantasy: Chocobo Hot'n'Cold (shout outs to Emma).

I want this game to get a proper remake. Even writing about the game takes me back to a place where I would watch awful AMVs on YouTube and read articles explaining the confusing and disjointed ending (which, yes, I agree is messy).

I also thank this game for bringing me to Twitch, which has been where I've met to many friends, primarily due to me wanting to watch a Final Fantasy IX speedrun.

New Titles

These may not be new games to you, but they might be! This is the countdown of the 27 new games that I played this year-- the list you've likely been waiting for if you care at all or the list that you skipped to!

#27 Final Fantasy II: Pixel Remaster

Last year this game was the last on my list. I didn't finish it and I didn't like it and I was constantly frustrated trying to play it.

I tried it again this year and... yeah... this is a flop for me. Bad character design, bad level up mechanic, confusing key words system... I followed a guide. Why? Because I specifically wanted to finish all the mainline Final Fantasy games.

Leon's villain arch and role reversal... not great. I just... maybe this one wasn't for me.

#26 Final Fantasy III: Pixel Remaster

Y'know what? Maybe this one wasn't for me either.

We are onion knights with no actual personality or anything, but that's not that much of a change from the personalities we found in FF2.

The job system was fun and interesting and some of the characters, including the fake Warriors of Light, were very cute... but overall, the game just didn't have that much to offer in terms of a compelling story and interesting mechanics.

#25 Cave Crawler

Cave Crawler is a short narrative mystery horror game in which you pilot a drone into a cave and try to uncover the mystery of some terrible incidents.

This game was gifted to me by my friend Blitzer and didn't take me too long to beat. It was creepy, interesting, and definitely made me sit on the edge of my seat.

#24 Final Fantasy V: Pixel Remaster

There's a plot point in which the antagonist fakes his death and travels through dimensions while disguised as a splinter and there's a turtle who loves pizza. The game is silly and slightly frustrating in that sense, but the characters are mostly good (Faris is wonderful) and the job system is really fun!

As is my issue with many other older FF games, there's a lack of direction and a semblance of penalty for over exploring and getting lost. It's a cute time, but like many of its predecessors, I don't see myself revisiting them anything soon.

The great news? With this, I finished all the mainline FF games that aren't 11 and 14! Well... kind of... stay tuned.

#23 Star Ocean: The Second Story R

I loved Star Ocean: Til' the End of Time. I read a preview article about it in Game Informer as a kid and fell in love with the blue haired protagonist and waited for years for the game to come out.

When this game was remade and released, I decided to give it a try! I was... mildly happy with it. I ran a Claude campaign and found that I was pretty frustrated at first that the mage characters, who were the only other characters in my party, wouldn't auto attack after they ran out of MP. Eventually, the game picked up. I missed out on SO many party characters because I wasn't feeling encouraged to recruit or anything... it seemed like it would all come organically in the course of the game when I saw them in cut scenes but... no.

I know that there's a NG+ and... maybe I'll do that? Probably not. :(

#21 Gotham Knights

My older brother bought the preorder deluxe edition and I ended up getting this for ~80% of a few weeks later after it bombed.

Jake loved the Arkham games and was right to be disappointed by this mess.

I am a huge Nightwing fan, so I played Nightwing and... on top of the glitches and the crashes, the game was just... overly repetitive. The different suits and equipment were overly complex for what they were, the night watches were repetitive and boring, and when I finally felt like moving on through the main story...? Well... the main story was fine. But it was short! They expected players to spend tens of hours exploring the city and taking down hoards of bad guys who... never did anything different. So disappointing... I hope they learned their lesson when it comes to Suicide Squad Kills the Justice League but...

#20 Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons

A beautiful and short narrative puzzle game in which you control both brothers in a journey to find medicine. The gameplay was fun and rewarding and the scenery was wonderful but... man... that last third? I get what they were going for but... it was just disappointing.

Apparently there's a cap on the number of pictures I can post here, so please chill a bit while I write up numbers 19-1!

#andersQT #video games

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jakdaw-arts · 4 months

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Info dump about your digimon OCs pls. 🥺

*chuckles nervously*

That’s a can of worms. Most of the digimon OCs I’ve got are connected with an AU story idea that’s been percolating for a Hot Minute. Main things of note about the universe are that there are no chosen children, no canon characters, the human-digimon partnerships are due to an online game that [reason pending] ended up slightly connected to the digital world, but the digital world has existed for as long as the real world. Humans in the digital world are converted to something closer to a digimon, and ones that die there are treated as digimon and get egg’d, losing their memories in the process unless backed up via a digivice.

That is all to say that there is so much rattling around my brain about this world lmao. Anyway. There are so many ocs in this setting that i’m just gonna pick a few of em to info dump about.

Characters:

Rush

Keemon > Yaamon > Impmon > Wizarmon > Reapmon > Beelzemon. Self-indulgent reality hopper. Sometimes breaks things and/or makes things weird by yeeting themself into a reality. That noodley little impmon I drew recently.

The purpose of Rush is usually to be a living macguffin. In this case, they jumped into this reality, splitting off a new timeline because of the Major Change of there being a person where before there hadn’t been. The rules of the digital world decided to be strict about the Weird Thing that invaded, converting Rush into data and having them solidify as an egg, sans memories. Memories slowly come back as they digivolve, they end up traveling with a group of humans with their digimon partners, shit goes down, eventually the day is saved, yadda yadda yadda.

Rush-with-memories is a fairly even-keeled individual, having bounced around realities and dealt with plenty of Situations. Rush-without-memories is an inquisitive creature with little regard for personal space and a whole lot of confusion, once they get past the just-vibing stage they were in as a keemon and yaamon. They have thumbs, an ability to set things on fire, and little regard for how squishable they are (they learn, and shortly after also learn how quickly they can skitter on all fours. thankfully, pretty fast).

Beelzebumon - The Ratvatar (don’t call him that)

Demon Lord. Similar vibes to the Beelzemon in Digimon World: Next Order. Demon lords’ cores exist outside the realms of space/time, with physical avatars in each of the realities that can ‘respawn’ after a time if they are destroyed. The demon lords’ powers are split up among their avatars, so adding a new split makes them eeever so slightly weaker. Beelzebumon doesn’t care, the rest of the demon lords are displeased. The ripple that happened with the split let him wiggle out of the dark area so he spends most of his time taking in the sights and occasionally watching the shenanigans that a bunch of human children in the digital world are getting up to. Might give them a helping hand in passing, if only out of amusement of derailing the plans of the other demon lords.

He finds the fleeing-from-danger impmon, who is less afraid of him than whatever was chasing them. He lets them tag along for a bit, vaguely intrigued when they talk about the bits and pieces of memories they’re getting back. When they come across a little band of humans he herds the impmon towards them so he can go back to his preferred state of mostly-just observing. He’s the first one to figure out the little impmon is the reason reality got a little wibbly wobbly and made a new branch.

Kai & Storm

Kai- Human that would very much like off this ride, please. (to be fair, all the humans want off this ride at some point) Storm- Kai’s partner, Puttimon > Cupimon > Patamon > Angemon. Just glad to be here.

Intended to be the primary pov duo. Sheltered religious kid figures themself out in the digital world whether they want to or not. Have I mentioned this bunch gets stuck in the digital world for years? Cuz that’s a whole Thing when they get out and they’ve all aged like five years in what seems to everyone else to be [exact time difference pending]. Kai takes a while to warm up to Storm, since they didn’t play the game nearly as much as most of the others that got dragged in, and *gestures at the whole impromptu long, dangerous camping trip.*

Storm just wants his human to be happy and safe. Once he’s able to maintain his angemon form for longer than the length of a battle he spends most of his time as that, since it’s big enough to pick Kai up and haul ass if something dangerous sneaks up on them. Which, due to the maneuverings of some grumpy demon lords that assume the humans appearing was the cause of the split, is a fairly common occurrence.

Lawrence

Agunimon. Previously human, died in the digital world, came back as a digiegg. Regained most of his memories with time, most comfortable in his agunimon form (fairly human-shaped, has hands... useful things). Pretty fly for a dead guy. Ends up playing a bit of a guardian role for the human gaggle, leomon-adjacent but with less dying. He’s still a pretty vague idea, but I just think he’s neat. Big ol armored fire guy with horns, being used as an impromptu jungle gym for a bunch of kids and their tiny digi buddies.

Otherwise there’s a gaggle of other human kids and their digimon partners, to fill out the “a bunch of kids who played this game at one point in time who happened to be close to/in contact with their computers and got yoinked to the digital world” requirement, most of whom are background characters. Plus some mature digimon that take some pity on the kids and help them out, and at least one more human-now-digimon that doesn’t much care to prod around for old memories and is quite happy with how she is now, thank-you-very-much.

I have... far less Actually Written Down than I'd like for this whole mess lmao

#jakdaw jabbers #digimon #oc!rush #oc!the ratvatar #oc!kai #oc!storm #oc!lawrence #reality!wrath of the demon lords

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