#early overworld history

[minecraft-inspo]

Why are slimes placed as an early branch off of the kingdom Animalia? 

Slimes are enigmatic. Taken at face value, they could fit anywhere or nowhere in the tree. They tick all of the boxes required to be defined as an animal, but don’t closely resemble any real phylum, though they do bear some resemblance to certain basal animal groups such as ctenophores and cnidarians. 

Why is the elytra branching off from the insects?

The word elytra refers to the hard wings of beetles. This is where beetles would be placed on the tree.

Why is the shulker a mollusk?

It’s a shelled invertebrate - anything beyond this is unclear. It has a pair of shells like a bivalve, but could belong to any of a number of different related groups. 

Why is the sea pickle so close to vertebrates?

The sea pickle is either based on a real life sea cucumber (an echinoderm), or a sea pickle (a tunicate). Either way, both of these groups are deuterostomes, which means they, like us, develop their anus before their mouth. Yeah. 

Why are guardians labeled as manufactured?

It’s an idea I’m not totally sold on, but a theory nevertheless. It has been posited that guardians were created to guard underwater monuments and are not actually animals. I am of the opinion that if this is the case, they are still at least partially biological, as they do drop edible raw fish. In this case, they likely represent a lineage of jawless fish comparable to real life ostracoderms that was further modified for their role as temple guardians. 

Why are the dragon and sniffer related? Why do they branch off the tree so early?

Both are 6 limbed, meaning they are not tetrapods, the group which includes all real terrestrial vertebrates. Instead, they may represent a different lineage of fishes which separately developed a third limb girdle and then followed a line of parallel evolution with the tetrapods. This is comparable to the various invasions of land by arthropods, in which arachnids, myriapods and insects separately evolved mechanisms of terrestrialization while also convergently evolving many of the same structures as each other. 

Aren’t creepers described as “plant-like?” Why are they included with the vertebrates?

They have indeed often been described as plant-like by various developers. It is my belief that they are vertebrates with a symbiotic relationship with some form of plant, probably a moss. This is why they are also included in Bryophyta on the other side of the tree. All promotional merchandise that shows creeper internal anatomy shows the presence of bones and the general anatomy reflects a familiar yet distorted version of the common tetrapod body plan. They do not share much in common with either reptiles or mammals, and so I split them off early in the vertebrate portion of the tree. While creepers share a developmental history with pigs, they do not actually bear any synapomorphies to suggest this relationship is canon, and so I chose not to place them nearby. 

Why are phantoms reptiles?

I’m honestly not sure what else they could be. The underside of the texture reminds me of the plastron of a turtle, though the wings are arguably more bat-like than anything else. Phantoms are all undead and their living version is likely now extinct, so we can’t fully understand the anatomy they would have had. 

Why are striders synapsids? What is a synapsid?

Synapsids are mammals and their extinct, reptile-like ancestors. Striders have hair, like living mammals, but otherwise share very little with modern mammals, suggesting they split off early in synapsid evolution.

What is the warden/sculk?

I don’t know. It’s very purposefully the most alien life in Minecraft. Most realistically, I think it’s not from the overworld at all. However, that’s not really in the spirit of this project. Therefore, I hypothetically place it as a fungus, as fungi are capable of the sprawling growth in dark environments and possible parasitism in the case of the warden itself. 

Why are blazes labeled as “manufactured?”

I haven’t got a clue what blazes could be. Are they sentient fire? Are they living creatures that mimic fire? Who knows. I finally ended up considering them to be something akin to vexes or golems - summoned by someone or something to guard nether fortresses, rather than naturally evolved creatures. This is actually supported by a really old (and likely since retconned) article from the Minecraft website. https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/article/visit-nether- 

Why is glow lichen connected to two separate branches?

Because lichen is a symbiotic structure formed by both algae and fungi!

Why are chorus plants where they are?

They are angiosperms, meaning they bear flowers and fruit, but do not have the characteristics of either of the more derived major lineages of flowering plants.

Why are dripleaf plants alismatales?

To me, they bear a great resemblance to members of the arum family, such as elephant ear plants, arrowhead plants, and Monstera. 

Torchflower?

It bears greatest resemblance to bromeliads, a group of plants related to grasses.

Why is the spore blossom placed where it is?

The spore blossom is another anomalous species. If “spore” is taken seriously, it must be a fern. However, ferns don’t have flowers, so I assumed the spores are actually just pollen. I placed it as a dicot based on the fact that dicots typically have flowers with 4-5 petals, while monocots have flowers with petals in multiples of 3. 

Why aren’t vines and glow berry vines placed together?

The “vine” form has evolved dozens of times in separate lineages of plants, just like the “tree” form. It alone is not enough to indicate a close relationship. I tentatively placed vines where the grape family would go, and placed the glow berries where staff vines (Celastrus) should be. 

Why aren’t dead bushes grouped with sweet berry bushes and azaleas?

Like vines and trees, “bush” is a description of a body form and not an evolutionary group. I depicted the dead bush as a real form of desert bush, a tumbleweed, specifically the Russian thistle, a common tumbleweed in the order Caryophyllales.

Sweet berries, on the other hand, are most likely based on lingonberries, a commonly grown crop in Sweden, where Mojang is based. These belong to the order Ericales along with azaleas, as well as many other common plants not yet represented in the game such as blueberries and cranberries. 

Pitcher plants are real - why isn’t there a “confirmed” lineage on the tree?

Pitcher plants have evolved several times in different lineages, and there is no clear indication which ones the ones in Minecraft are. In fact, most likely, the Minecraft pitcher plants don’t belong to any real group of pitcher plants, as none of these produce “pods” nor do they have similar leaves. However, the most likely candidates are the family Nepenthaceae (order Caryophylalles) or the family Sarraceniaceae (order Ericales).

[tiny-minecraft-rabbit]

more to the end than the void

He wasn’t too worried about what happened with the dragon fight, he had a brushed up enough that he was confident with his skills. Whether he survived or not he wasn’t pressed, he’d be deleting this world after either way. He probably would have kept it around a little longer, but he noticed something weird in the code, like the world was older than when he loaded it in. However, there were no loaded chunks in either the overworld or the nether, no player history besides his own. ------ There's something in the End that's not supposed to be there... (Don't worry, he's super friendly!)

Words: 1445 AO3 Link

fWhip had had this hardcore world for about three days now and was already placing the ender eyes into the portal frames. This world wasn’t really anything, just a little reminder on how to play early game hardcore before his new server was up for his friends to play. He couldn’t be one of the first to die when he had a real, thriving hardcore world after all.

He wasn’t too worried about what happened with the dragon fight, he had a brushed up enough that he was confident with his skills. Whether he survived or not he wasn’t pressed, he’d be deleting this world after either way. He probably would have kept it around a little longer, but he noticed something weird in the code, like the world was older than when he loaded it in. However, there were no loaded chunks in either the overworld or the nether, no player history besides his own. 

The portal flashed open, the portal frames groaning and the endless stars sparkling within. He did one last glance through his inventory before dropping in. 

The first thing he noticed was that the end stone was not stone, but bricks. The second thing was the dragon’s health bar, bright purple at the top of his comm, did not read Ender Dragon, as it always did; no, the name atop the health bar was much different: Mogswamp.

His brow furrowed and he started poking through the code of the world a bit more. This had to be some other player's abandoned world, or the portal brought him to another player’s End. 

There was player involvement in the End. He could see it in the code, but it was weird, like the player was also a mob. It was like the code for an Enderman placing a block was there instead of a player’s, but endermen didn't move crafted blocks. It looked a lot like a new player code, where they hadn't brushed off the last of their Creation, but some of these placements were years old at this point. 

“Why, hello there!” A voice piped up. fWhip looked up for the first time, catching sight of the player. He was dressed in all purples, skin pale and grey hair, a crown atop his head and the most honest smile he had ever seen on a player. His black wings, scaly and each one bigger than fWhip himself, were spread out behind the player and one of his blue eyes was half lidded and unfocused, the pupil settled to the side. “You're new! I’ve never seen something like you before.”

“Oh. Um, hi-” 

“You can talk!?” The player shouted, dropping down from the wall he was perched on and landing right in front of fWhip. 

“And you’re so colorful! Blue and orange!” the player’s hands were immediately on him, grabbing, pinching and pulling. Clawed hands brushed through his hair, “I’ve only seen this color on saddles! Are you what the saddles are for?” 

fWhip laughed awkwardly, taking a big step back, “No. No no. I am not what saddles are for. That's horses; and other rideable mobs, I suppose.” 

“Horses?” The player repeated, sounding the word out awkwardly.

“Yes. Horses. Have you.. have you ever seen a horse? How long have you been here?” fWhip asked, scrolling through his comm to find the player statistics. It took some digging. Mogswamp wasn't exactly on the player list. 

The player’s eyes went wide and he made a grab for the comm. fWhip quickly lifted his arm out of immediate reach. He didn't make another grab, just watched fWhip's hand with excitement, “You have one of those too? Does that mean you're like me?” 

“Yes. Sorta of. We're both players. At least, I'm pretty sure you're supposed to be a player,” fWhip answered, finally finding the statistics and scrolling through them. It didn't take long to find the Time Played. 11.8 y. 

11.8 years. 

“Hey, bud, you’re Mogswamp, right?” He asked, hoping to be wrong. Eleven years. Alone, in the End, for eleven years. 

The player nodded, “You can read my name on there? Can I-” he answered his own question by pulling out his comm, clicking through it. “Fwhip? Fah-whip? Fwah-hip?” 

“You had it right the first time,” fWhip responded, taking a few moment to think. 

It wasn’t unheard of, players wanting to spend their first few years alone before venturing off to the Hubs and finding servers and friends. However, the player being seemingly stuck in the End? Eleven years without knowing what a horse was– Likely he didn’t know about the surface at all. His blocks were more limited than those playing on a 1.0 world. At least he was getting updates, since he knew items from the loot tables.

“Okay, Mogswamp– Do you go by Mogswamp?” 

“Just Mog is fine!” 

“Okay, Mog, have you ever left the End?” 

“No! I didn’t know I could!” Mog answered brightly, poking through his own comm and glancing at fWhip's, trying to figure out what fWhip was looking at on his own. “There’s other places besides here? That's where you're from then?” 

“There's whole other worlds. There are more Ends if you’d like,” fWhip replied. He poked through Mog’s code, readying a few commands in his mind. “Here we go, I can fix up your code for you. It'll take a few commands but you should be able to leave no problem then.”

“That’d be great! Does that mean I can meet new people? More things like you?” Mog asked, bouncing in place. 

“Lots more people,” fWhip agreed. He typed out the commands, sending each one into the world chat. The boss bar flicked away, it no longer reading Mog's name. 

“I have hearts now!” 

“Yes, that's your actual health bar. Now you already had an inventory and player stats. I think we should be good. Can you see the Leave Game button on your comm now?” 

“Oh! Yes! Should I press that?” Mog asked, before his eyes widened and he grabbed a hold of fWhip's arm, “Wait! I haven't shown you around yet! You have to see everything I’ve done. What if I never get to show anyone again?” 

“As long as we don't delete the world it’ll stay around,” fWhip reassured, “Though, eleven years is quite impressive. I’d love to see what you’ve done.” 

So, Mogswamp showed fWhip around. 

fWhip would like to say he was impressed, but that would be too far of an understatement. The main island had been completely leveled, reworked, and built upon to be ten times it's original size, but that wasn't what left fWhip speechless. The buildings. The buildings were works of art, each one carefully designed and unique despite the limited pallet. 

The center piece, a large doomed building, was probably the size of a naturally generated mountain. Inside pf it were the obsidian pillars, each decorated finely with end stone, the floor dug around the closed bedrock portal and stairs leading up to it, lofted like an alter. The roof was an extravagant pattern, end stone and purpur mixed to create a geometrical marvel. It was stunning feat of architecture. The entire End, from what he could tell, was a dazzling city. fWhip had to see what this guy could do with an actual color pallet. 

As they reached the end of the tour, and it was probably a few hours to see everything, fWhip had made his decision; “Hey, Mog?” 

“Yes, new friend?” He replied, looking to fWhip. They sat on a bench, overlooking the void. A nice view for a while, but it had to get tiring. 

“I’m starting a new server. It’s- Well the premise is a bit confusing. It’s hardcore with a twist, I can explain it in full later. What’s important is that it’ll be a new place for you to build and meet people. A bunch of my friends will be joining, and I’d love for you to be a part of it.” 

“Really?” Mog asked, his eyes widening as he sat up on the bench, “I can join you? I get to come with you?” 

fWhip laughed a little, “Yes, you can come with me. I think you’ll enjoy it.” 

“Count me in!” 

The two of them laughed together, and fWhip began the process of explaining the actual server rules. It would be a lot for what was basically a brand new player, but fWhip had no doubt he would fit right in to their little group. He could already see his high energy personality bouncing off of Oli and Sausage and Jimmy. 

Yeah. Mogswamp was going to be a great addition to SOS. 

[smilingberryy]

The story on how an old frame redraw leads to not only one(1) but two(2) story remakes set with these three having a main role in the plot!

Made these three girls around the time I was in middle school and remember drawing them all the time, and after some digging, I found their names again in an old sketchbook. From left to right, this is Sam, Lizi, and Kizzy! City girls that went from their everyday walk and talk's in forest parks to being in a different world entirely, saving a near extinct species in abandoned lands whose history remains unknown for years to come all due to some mysterious crystal/ceramic like heart.

Some silly doodles and old illustration ideas for early scenes, how did they manage to live this far who knows. That question will get asked a hundred times as time passes on :3 (ft. cursed lamb smile hoj god)

This is 'The Calamitous Heart' a old story remake and fun passion story I'm working on as well as another story they take place in that, while it doesnt have a story name rn, will eventually as it follows a runaway blaze princess from the Nether kingdoms who wishes to learn more about the overworld.

In the time of making the doodle where they wear armor with the ceramic heart(hardcore) symbol on it I wrote "in their Next life" but as of current it should say instead "in Another life" as the events within TCH have gotten to the point where not only will I not spoil them, they gotta deal with that world with their whole heart before it breaks. :)

Love Minecraft stories sm ahebdnbbdhfj

[wfagamerants]

The one thing I want to start this off with is to say I have no interest in participating in Paper Mario discourse. If you asked me if I enjoyed Color Splash and Origami King I’d give you a genuine yes (Sticker Star not so much, but few would fight me on that one). I have my preferences leaning towards the old stuff, but this isn’t about shitting on the new, just a celebration of what’s currently happening.

With that said, let’s get this going.

I don’t think a big introduction and recap of the Mario RPG history is all that necessary here. Only thing I’ll note is that I played all of them in release order over the years, apart from RPG, which had to wait until the Wii Virtual Console release in 2008, I even played the Mario & Luigi remakes, so I have a lot of opinions.

Needless to say, the Mario RPGs were one of those branches of Mario I just always expected to be there over the years. Along with the platformers, sports games, Kart, Party, etc, it was always one of those reliably present parts of the franchise I could count on to be there system after system.

The past couple of years though did feel very different. Paper Mario, while still retaining RPG elements, has shifted to a more adventure game kind of focus and with Alphadream gone, Mario & Luigi series is now in limbo, with nothing certain on whether the series will be handed off to another developer or be kept dormant for some time.

There are the Mario + Rabbids games and I like those a lot, but I personally never saw them as part of the RPGs, moreso strategy games with RPG elements like Fire Emblem. It’s just how I see things but I won’t argue with people that think otherwise, perfectly fine in my book.

It just felt like that part of the franchise was basically done for, after so many years of being around, but then, this happened.

Super Mario RPG was announced to get a remake. This was obviously huge for many reasons. It is a niche title that did well back then, but doesn’t really represent the Mario world as we know it now. Not even Peach’s Castle had its design set in stone at that point, that’s how early a take on Mario as a world it is.

It’s extremely faithful to boot. Mario, Peach and Bowser were updated to their modern looks and Toad now has dips on the blue vest, all more than fine changes and besides that, the game is a modernized take on the original to a tee. The environments, original character designs, even everyone’s proportions, are spot on and kept as you remember them.

There is more to say, but that ties into the big announcement we got last Direct too. You know the one:

Paper Mario The Thousand Year Door is also getting a remake and it’s looking every bit as faithful as the RPG remake.

Given how much I have adored this branch of the franchise, I can’t put into words how much this return to what we used to have means to me, it’s genuinely special to me.

It’s hard to say which of these I would have deemed more out of reach, but having both of them on the horizon really makes me wonder about some stuff. In particular, perhaps they are deliberately aiming to relaunch the RPG branch with these, especially knowing the Switch successor is more than likely on the horizon.

Regardless of what the future holds, this announcement hit me in the best way on a personal level. I love RPG and was excited to see it get such a loving comeback, but Paper Mario felt like an even bigger deal. RPG was a one-off that did its thing and then went quiet. Paper Mario is a series that after the second game, has seen change after change that, along with interviews, made it seem like the series I fell in love with, wouldn’t ever go back to what it used to be.

Gonna say once again that this isn’t a means to bash the new games, there even is a lot to them I enjoy. The overworld gameplay is consistently good and it’s more explorative edge and things to do in it even are something the old games can learn from. I also really like Huey and Olivia and genuinely think they and their dynamics with Mario really do a lot to keep me engaged with their games.

Thing is,I still think the old formula was more rock solid and don’t believe in tossing that out just for the sake of being different. There really isn’t anything wrong with sequels that take an established foundation and just expand on and play with it and it’s not like the Crafts Trilogy, as I’ll call them for brevity, don’t repeat ideas either. Every new game has a castle in the sky, a crafts themed main partner, some level of Toad rescuing,  a game show at some point, Luigi popping up once per area, etc. Not even saying that as a bad thing, just saying it’s not like the series over the past 11 years hasn’t been using some elements multiple times too.

There is also THAT subject, character variety and yes, I am in the boat that the lack of it has harmed the modern games and no, I don’t think that what the old games did was very different from what Mario always does. 

I said this back in my essay on 64, but Mario always does what needs to be done to adapt itself to a new genre. In the platformers, new takes on established species are usually reserved for the mooks or bosses, because they are such an important asset of the game. In an RPG you get that too, but the NPCs you interact with also get more variety, especially the Toads, because interacting with them and a large chunk getting various bits of involvements in story beats or sidequests, is a big part of the game.

I genuinely don’t see how Galoombas, Goombrats, Cat Goombas or in a non-mook example, Goombette from Odyssey and RPG Goombas like Goombella or Frankly are all that different. They all serve a particular purpose and are given distinct designs and characteristics that compliment them. They’re the same thing and of course that’s also gonna mean more unique designs in the RPGs, because while reused models/sprites for generic NPCs is an RPG norm, you do want to create the impression of a lived in, diverse world, instead of making you consciously feel like you’re talking to the same guy over and over again.

It’s a reason and I was floored when I learned it, that the Super Mario kun adaptation of Color Splash has more Toad variety than the game itself:

Sure they got the same outfits, but that's what kun always did, even during TTYD days;

It’s just a massive benefit to establish character and a reason that the Rescue Squad, Captain T. Ode and the Professor from TOK are standouts of the Crafts trilogy, because they DO have something to visually communicate their character and go from there.

These games ARE still deeply rooted in Mario and just add what needs to be added to translate well into an RPG. Like people give a lot of flak to say, the old Dry Bones design in the first two Paper Marios and I get it, but it is important to note this was the most recent design available for them at the time:

The modern Dry Bones design wasn’t established yet, so they worked with what they had. The games never twisted anything Mario in ways that defiled its vision, they just did what they felt was needed to make the game enjoyable as an RPG and a Mario game.

Goes without saying, but seeing the battle system not tampered with is also really lovely to see. I won’t throw shade at the modern games, but I do personally think none of the modern games have come up with a replacement that compares to the old system, with SS and CS even having ways to softlock you in certain circumstances like a really unlucky Kamek curse in the latter, keeping you from using Jump cards against flying enemies.

This isn’t about me not liking something different. I’m an avid pre-Switch ND Cube Mario Party defender who would play all five of them over Super Mario Party (now here’s a hot take).

It’s not about me being pissy about the paper focus. I prefer when it’s just a stylistic choice, with the occasional visual gag nodding to it, but I can give credit when I feel a use of it is creative and not just the characters mentioning they’re paper like that’s a joke of its own.

I had more points like this but decided to trim things because as I said, the point isn’t to bash the new games, I just genuinely think RPG and TTYD have a stronger foundation and are just better translations of Mario into the RPG genre and hope to see them signal a return to this style of Mario RPGs. Heck, they can still make adventure games like the crafts trilogy as their own sub-series and freed from the burden of having to please an existing fan base of a different style, I honestly want to see them go all out with the direction they go for. It and the RPG Paper Mario can easily co-exist that way.

More than anything though, I am amazed these two games exist at all. Both RPG and TTYD are treasured by many, but they aren’t the platformers or Mario Kart or something more recent that can be seen as currently relevant. Bringing these two back shows they are listening to the fans and I hope they do well enough to show to Nintendo that this is something that pays off.

Above all else I want to celebrate that we are getting this kind of Mario game again. Sure, I’ll argue WHY I think it’s such a good thing, but this is more than anything a time to be happy, not to fight.

[crazybooklover0]

The Four Eras of Minecraft History

First official post for this project!

So, I've divided up minecraft history into 4 eras, based on the decay of various structures and the loot that you can get from them. I've tentatively given each era a name, but they are absolutely not set in stone and subject to change.

So, the 4 eras. I'm just giving some brief summaries of each one, this project will eventually deep dive into each era

1. The Early Era

This era spans from the beginnings of the universe to the creation of the first nether portal. The structures that remain from this era are the trail ruins and the ocean ruins in the overworld, and the bastion remnant in the nether.

2. The Overworld-Nether Era

This era goes from the the creation of the first nether portal to the creation(/discovery?)* of the first end portal. Structures from this Era include the ruined portal, the ancient cities, nether fortresses, and strongholds.

*I'm not sure yet if the end portals were found or made, but I can make a whole different post about that.

3. The Tri-Dimensional Era

This era is likely spanning the largest amount of time, and doesn't have the clearest end or transition to the next era. The reason why will become clear in the next era. The structures from this era include, but are not limited to, desert temples, shipwrecks & buried treasure, mineshafts, and jungle temples in the overworld, and end cities in the end.

4. The Player Era

This era begins when a player first joins the world, which explains the unclear ending to the Tri-Dimensional Era. The structures in this era include those that are still actively occupied, whether it be by villagers, illagers, or witches. Therefore, the structures include villages, woodland mansions, pillager outposts, igloos and swamp huts.

[the-wizard-writes]

Urban Fantasy Worldbuilding [Long Post]: Underworld Tours

Route 666 Open Hell Tours Poster, 1979

As most people say, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Though sometimes those good intentions can mean hurting others in the process. Route 666 was one of those intentions. Route 666 has a history of being one of the most interesting points in human and non-human relations where man was faced with an enemy that they have all known too well. Demons. Even till this day there is heavy distrust on demonic civilians and for no good reason other than heavy stereotypes perpetuated by media. Though there are some bad apples within the bunch, that doesn’t mean that all demons or demonically link species are inertly evil by nature. Mischievous maybe but, not pure evil. Some might equate their mannerisms of that of the fae. Mischievous and sometimes pesky to humans but, not vicious in anyway.  Thus, this strange idea came about in the height of the distrust of humans and demons where one man wanted to bring about a new wave of peace in his own interesting way. 

History Just like how angels are one of the oldest species on the planet, demons are also very ancient. Depictions of demons can even found in early forms of writing and documents. Though modern day demons are different from their earlier counterparts the thing that remains the same are their modes of transportation. Before man made objects dug into the earth demons relayed on nature made structures and or summoning to come to the overworld as they call it. When humans started to dig mineshafts for coal in the 1880′s and oil some lucky [or unlucky] individuals found away to literally dig a hole into hell. These unofficial holes were usually abandoned by humans, however it gave demons much easier access to the overworld. Some demons even settled around these abandoned mineshafts and created unofficial settlements close to humans. These settlements were small in numbers but, were some of the first contact that humans had with demons giving us data on the infernal language they use to communicate. (1.) The Idea  In the late 1970′s going into the 80′s there was a huge influx of xenophobia around demons and demonic entities due to recent outbreaks of demonic possession cases around North America. Most of these cases nowadays can be related to hysteria and a sort of “panic” swept the nation. However, one man decided to take this panic and change it into something more educational. Damien Adams a well known demonologist proposed an idea at a the 30th annual Worlds Fair in New York. He an a well known hotel chain runner Ernest Barkly have created an idea for a tourist trap/ Hotel underground where people can vacations in the depths of Hell! The idea was coined due to some studies showing that the fiery brimstone that most people know the underworld to be is only but, ONE of the main vibrant ecosystems that the underworld has. This push to monetize the underworld came under-fire with several groups questioning the safety  of humans surviving underground. “This idea was madness!” Pastor Heath Mcnoland of the New Mages Church  said to the Daily Dragon in a 1973 interview. Even though there was a very loud minority of people who did not enjoy this idea there was the other majority who sought it out as a new way to gain traffic in the tourist industry.  The “Urbanization” of Hell itself.  During the integration of demons being introduced into the overworld scientist found out that due to the limited contact with humans and other species. Demons had a different outlook on what the world was at the time. They were years behind on what humans and other species were experiencing so, in an effort to “urbanize and build the Route 666 hotel.” Damien Adams, Ernest Barkly and some other government officials agreed to the monarchy of hell at the time to bring the underworld into the modern age in turn they will grant permission to build their hotel. Damien Adams was ready to show the world that the underworld was not only scary but, also a world full of interesting and monetizable. Thus, the Route 666 Open Hell tours was open to the public despite the controversy.  

[thewapolls]

So the Adult Mags boss fight became a recurring thing starting with Wild Arms 3.

In their first appearance they feature the NPC Claudia, whom Melody had disguised herself as in an attempt to seduce Gallows and Clive, which of course notoriously failed. It's not entirely clear what was on the back cover.

In Alter Code F is has the dream demon, Elizabeth on the cover and also the interior pages.

Then for WA4 and 5 they use the same cover art with the Raid Buster enemy on the front?? for some reason, and the Doctor Gob on the back.

Weirdly, they did make an overworld model of the Adult Mag in 5 that doesn't match the one used on the actual enemy model in battle; It features Yulie, from WA4.

It's actually kind of odd that the enemy stuck around, because for WA4 and WA5 there aren't that many magic book enemies, where as they had been kind of a staple of the Wild Arms bestiary in the early games, starting with Cecilia's prologue dungeon being the hidden library. And in fact, I want to kind of trace the history of this family of enemies while we're on the subject...

The seminal entry to the bestiary is the Blue Book, found in Cecilia's prologue in the original Wild Arms, and as a sort of throwback, also appears in Lilka's prologue in WA2. Despite the seemingly overly literal name, it's actually a reference to the above pictured style of British almanac.

I like the idea that it's a kind of living magical book, not because it's some cursed grimoire or ancient tome of magic, but just because it's an encyclopedic collection of information that happens to include enough aetheric truth about the nature of magic that it manifests magic itself. It also accounts for why it's such a low level monster, because it's not really a deliberately magical being.

(I had trouble getting a good shot of its front cover in WA5 but I assume it's the same as in 4 and F)

After that the obvious progression in magical books is the Necronomicon itself, famed grimoire of Lovecraftian lore, allegedly written by Abdul Alhazred, "The Mad Arab," whom is of course the namesake of the Wild Arms 1 villain, Alhazad.

It appears consistently as a book bound in black leather with some form of golden trim or clasps. Hard time getting a clear shot of the front cover in 3 or F. They have been variously localized as Necromicon, Necronomic, and actual Necronomicon as less of a translation issue and more a character limit problem.

Perhaps the more surprising addition to this family is the Targum (initially mislocalized as "Talgium") which is a Hebrew term used to refer to the original Aramaic translation of the Tanakh.

For one, it's a really obscure kind of thing to pull for a bunch of Japanese creators, but I kind of love how it isn't some faux-qabal derived grimoire the sort that was popular with Christian occultists of the middle ages, from which a lot of Christianity's fake lore comes from, and from which demonology owes its roots. Instead it's just the idea that this original translation somehow holds power in and of itself. It doesn't seem to hold innately biblical implications, instead suggesting a kind of rosetta stone sort of role. It's the closest thing a modern Filgaian reader has to some ancient lost text that they couldn't possibly understand; it's the shadow on the wall of Plato's cave, the distinct shape of an otherwise blindingly unknowable truth, and that in and of itself gives it this immegnce power.

Moreover, the model in all(?) appearances seems to be based on old Japanese side-stitch. (it's why the models rather distinctly don't have a spine and you can see the leaf edge along the back just like on the sides) It's an older style that doesn't require adhesive, and has at this point become less practical and more of a novelty. In any case, its immediate effect is to give the Targum the distinct feeling of being archaic and foreign; so old that they're entirely outside the style of printing and binding standards of Filgaia's loosely western european setting.

And finally* the rather goofy one time entry in Wild Arms 3, the Manga enemy --localized as Comic Book. It seems to feature the official character art of Dario and Romero ont he cover, with a feature highlight of Martina?

*I nearly missed Apocrypha being another WA3 original book enemy. It's pretty mundane recolor of the Bluebook, with a slightly different cover, but it's notably a neat sort of companion piece to Targum as another "biblical" text. Apocrypha are books of otherwise bible related or adjacent texts that aren't considered biblical canon, thus apocryphal texts. It's neat that the only two references to biblical texts that appear in the game with power are the original translations of the Tanakh and noncanon texts. Actual Christian new testament be damned.

And another really cool detail is that in the original Wild Arms, each book had its own unique interior texture as well, which could often barely be spotted during attacks

[becca4leafclover]

Aphmau/MCD/Void Paradox AU where after jumping into the literal Void to escape the spread of it in the overworld, Laurance ends up in the player multiverse. Not IRL, think how other MCYT fics have the players able to server jump, infinite lives, etc.

He's really, REALLY confused about a lot of things- how are there all these different styles and histories and technologies and cultures and species and people, all living peacefully together? For... infinity?

Where he's from different cities of humans could barely keep it together without bloodshed and the world he jumped to with the Void chaos, people died. These "players" don't.

:readmore:

A friendly player-person approaches Laurance

And then one day, some kids recognize him. Kids that are players, that Laurance of Meteli and Pheonix Drop has FOR SURE never met before. But they know him, and his story, and his secrets. He rightfully freaks out!

And so his friend shows him the old videos. Minecraft Diaries, in the early days where it was framed as a player exploring and building in a world that happened to be inhabited by a few people, but not enough to warrant the usual blending-in that players adhere to in isolated worlds. Then when Aphmau realizes how big this world is, she does start blending in. Pretending to be one of them, worming her way into places she shouldn't as an outsider to the world. Playing god where she has no rightful power. Where she starts pulling strings for the sake of these... stories. Videos. They're fiction, to these gods. Laurance's whole life, is fiction.

His friend knew. He says he didn't want to tell Laurance, because Laurance wanted to go home. People who find themselves outside their home worlds that are isolated, not part of the multiverse... they tend to not be able to go back to how things were. If they can even find the unmarked world, but the friend thought since there was evidence of it they could eventually talk to someone who'd been there and get Laurance home.

And also, his friend notes, something isn't right about all this. There's MCD, there's MyStreet, there's VOID Paradox. Three versions of Laurance- technically, maybe, three versions of Aphmau. That doesn't happen in the multiverse. There aren't "alternate realities" of people. There's separate people who can be similar or fulfill the same roles in history, maybe, but not two modern and medieval versions of the same person. The Universe loves you. YOU. No one else, not another version of you. His friend doesn't get it.

Laurance is, rightfully, angry. He's just found out his life is a lie. His world just shattered into a million unfixable pieces. The woman he LOVED and has RISKED HIS LIFE FOR was never in any danger at all, was she? She's MARRIED, she has KIDS! He's been lied to, so, so many times. Everyone has. Garroth, Dante, Evelyn, Nana. They'd been through so much- and are going to go through more, from the looks of the videos posted years ago? And when they end... there's no resolution. They're left in the dust.

Laurance never gets an ending. No one does.

He... doesn't know how to feel about that. He's just, hollow. The raging anger that was flooding his veins just disappeared when he realizes that nothing in his world amounts to anything, because the goddess telling the story of their fates left it unfinished. There's so much that is missing! Of the world, of Laurance, so many things that are just, poorly mentioned sidenotes in these stupid, STUPID videos!

Laurance may have broken the borrowed "phone" thing he was given in his metal gauntlets. After that, he took those gauntlets off. And his pauldrons, and his cape. He didn't have anything to fight for anymore, really. His friend was right- he couldn't go back home to Ru'aun. Not after knowing all... this.

His brothers wouldn't believe him if he tried to tell them all this. Dante would laugh it off that he had too much to drink when getting lost in the woods. Garroth would think he finally snapped. Though he's suppose that would also entail a firey column of anger in his eyes, as a Shadow Knight and all.

His friend finds him later, and asks if Laurance wants him around. He wants to hold a grudge, he REALLY does- but he did just do exactly what his friend thought he would if he learned the truth, and he honestly didn't want to be alone. His friend makes a stupid suggestion for an icebreaker: kiss, marry, kill.

Laurance laughed despite it. Aphmau, Garroth, or him?

[theironguardianandfriends]

Anon has unlocked Runhi!

Runhi's Bio

General

Name: Runhi

Age: 180,000

Birthday: Unknown

Gender: Nonbinary

Pronouns: They/Them

Romantic/Sexual Orientation: Aromantic, asexual

Relationship Status: Single

Species: Ender

Powers and Weaknesses

Strengths: Planning, brute strength, hard to kill, doesn't fear death

Weaknesses: Little self control, refuses help, loose cannon, water

Powers: Teleportation, heals quickly, telekinesis, cryokinesis, necromancy

Personals

Region of Residence: Unknown

Occupation: None

Likes: The dark, being alone, winter, snow, leaves, sweets

Dislikes: Sun, hot weather, crowds, too much noise, cats, Brine

Personality: Calm, calculated, independent, ambitious, blunt, sassy, aloof, ruthless, rigid

History: Runhi spawned into a haunting of enders in the Nether, quickly becoming an outcast and bullied by the others in the haunting for having red hair, eyes, and blood rather than the usual purple. This led them to be cold and aloof early in life, even killing and eating other enders. In the end, they were banished to the overworld where they met Glistenia, a stronger ender who ruled the monsters. They enjoyed her company and the fact that she let them wreck havoc on anything they could catch. She even gave them a TeaBane by the name of Nightshade. They considered Glistenia a good friend, quickly became her apprentice, and rose to be her favorite. Then, Herobrine came along, a ragged mess of a demi-deity that Runhi quickly disliked. The two fought constantly over who should rule the mobs, the fights getting more and more intense as time dragged on. They were slaughtered by the demigod after a particularly bad argument. Luckily, Glistenia brought them back from the dead and left them with a hunger for vengeance. Recently, their mentor was murdered by Brine and his friends, fueling their rage further. They sent Nightshade to spy on the group while Runhi worked on perfecting necromancy in an attempt to get intel and look for the opportunity to strike. They would kill Herobrine if it was the last thing they did.

Extras:

-They have a scar across their stomach and are missing their right eye from being killed by Brine.

[satoshi-mochida]

3D action RPG Angeline Era announced for PC

Gematsu Source

Anodyne series developer Analgesic Productions has announced Angeline Era, a 3D action RPG inspired by action throughout gaming history, from the Ys series to Elden Ring. It will launch for PC via Steam in 2024.

Here is an overview of the game, via its Steam page:

About

Bump into enemies to automatically attack—no attack button needed! This fast-paced and athletic combat experience is easy to pick up, but difficult to master. Intense boss fights will test your skills!

Explore the nonlinear overworld however you’d like. Challenging, ancient dungeons sit near quiet forests, each filled with outrageous hazards, charming creatures, and unholy abominations.

Hunt down the greatest Sinners plaguing the esoteric land of Era. Within an intertwined history of Angels, Humans, and Fae, seek the truth of Angeline Era!

Key Features

Fast-paced combat combining buttonless Bumpslashing, ranged gunplay and jumping!

Eclectic levels filled with moving walls, deadly volleyballs, sentient hammers.

Inspired by action throughout gaming history, from the early Ys entries to Elden Ring.

Mix and match upgradable weapons and armor for alternate playstyles.

A nonlinear world! Explore freely, and search the overworld for hidden levels and secrets.

A challenging core experience, with multiple difficulty and approachability options.

A world influenced by Irish fantasy and arcane Christian myth.

From the creators of Anodyne 2 and Sephonie, Melos Han-Tani and Marina Kittaka!

Watch the announcement trailer below.

Announce Trailer

[chaoshaven]

Chaotic Card 12-Intress

Who doesn’t love an early 2000′s catgirl? And she is effectively the 2nd in command for the Overworlders. Maxxor is someone who loves to decide arguments with his fists. He’s not the most diplomatic, Meanwhile Najarin is another advisor, a Muge who spends his free time studying books and is all about taking the higher road. Intress is the middle ground, I’d definitely say she the most competent of the Overworld Tribunal. But also note the Hero tag? She has done something great in the service of her tribe.

Stat Spread:

Courage: 30-50

Power: 25-45

Wisdom: 30-50

Speed: 45-65

Energy: 35-45

Mugic Counters: 1

Elements:

Fire

Air

Earth

Water

Ability:

Water 5 means that any water damage she deals does just a little bit more.

Playstyle:

...in DoP she was a support character. Unfortunately they shafted the female character in the tcg because, well, a lot of tcg is male focused. She’s 1 of 2 female Overworlder’s in the first wave, and come the M’arrillian Invasion wave, she’s 1 of 4. This card is never played in modern games for the same reason as Attacat; the stats are too low for a front liner and the Ability isn’t a good support, and having a caster with only one Mugic counter is a waste. Okay, but give a battle gear to boost it’s stats! Or to double down on Energy, and use it in a water based deck! You could...but Intress with Battlegear is on par with other later released Creatures without. Speed is decent, but there’s already been 3 Overworld Creatures with high speed for fighting, which again makes Intress be a support or caster, with a wasted ability. 

Biography:

Just because the card is bad doesn’t mean the character is. Intress is Maxxor's most trusted adviser, his second-in-command, though the exact nature and history of their relationship is unclear. Siblings, one night stand, ex’s? Whatever the truth is, the fact is she plays a central role in the politics of the OverWorld. Her exceptional judgment is matched by exceptional battle skills, making her one of Perim's most respected and feared fighters. Intress is seen as an OverWorld role model pf her heroic deedds, such as the Battle at the Passage, in which Intress single-handedly shut down an UnderWorld invasion. She has helped in many a battle against the UnderWorld army. As well as other tribes who have attacked the OverWorld. She also was stunned when Maxxor forged a alliance with the Danians later on in the show. It is also suspected that she may be the sister of Takinom, an Underworld Commander, due to what it says on both their texts. I personally think it’s that they dated, it’d be cool to see Takinom and Intress as leaders of their respective tribes and leaving the beefy men Maxxor and Chaor to just beach off all day.

[ziskeyt]

I don't think I've ever talked about playing My Time at Sandrock on here? Idk. Maybe I have, I'm not searching my blog. Anyway I'm playing it early access and I need to share that you can pet the animals and it is great. (Even if the cats are a bit uhhh super deformed)

If you like RPGs and/or sim games you'll probably enjoy this, it's pretty unique in gameplay from my understanding of like typical game genres (as a person who doesn't have a history of playing a ton of games). The story is really cool, and still in development but we should be getting what I believe is the final update by June. You play as a builder who just moved to this oasis desert town that has been steadily shrinking in population, and in oasis water size, in the past number of years. You take town commissions for machinery, furniture, bridges, and other things to build. It takes place in a post-apocalyptic world about 300 years after the calamity. You go mining for ore and old world relics in the ruins of old malls, office buildings, transportation hubs, ships, and more. There are interesting creature enemies that you fight in the overworld and in dungeons, townsfolk you can befriend and romance if you'd like, and a bit of a mystery/intrigue plot going on that you can try and figure out. It's really fun, and I recommend it. Okay back to making my camel bond with me.

[ciaranswritingportfolio]

Breath of the Wild - Kass’ Theme [Blog Article]

The upcoming release of the latest instalment of The Legend of Zelda series, ‘Tears of the Kingdom’ is causing excitement to tremble once again for one of Nintendo’s most secretly developed games. What’s more exciting for some, is that the new release will bring about a whole new soundtrack to indulge in, and will no doubt inspire a new wave of covers, including guitar versions of the most beautiful tunes. For any budding guitarist who is also a video game enthusiast, the thought of brand new video game guitar tabs will be enthralling. So, to celebrate Jone Ruiz’ release of the Kass Theme guitar tab, this article will revisit the music of Breath of the Wild, specifically the Kass theme on guitar! 

Breath of the Wild: A New Musical Direction 

Manaka Kataoka, Yasuaki Iwata, and Soshi Abe created the music for Breath of the Wild. This seems to be a momentous and high pressure task when considering the striking aesthetic departure from earlier Zelda titles. They wanted to match the style of the Ghibli-esque art, whilst staying true to the heroic and whimsical nature of the series. The main addition to this game was the free-roaming open world which was wider and much more relaxed in terms of guiding the player on a specific path. This caused a problem for the composers. However, what do musicians do when they come across a problem? Solve it through practice! The sound team working on the game tried using different pieces of music from old Zelda games and they found that the typical heroic overworld music just doesn’t work for what the game designers had in mind for the open world. The focus on nature was paramount as Link explores the various regions and different biomes of the ruined ‘Kingdom of Hyrule’. The survival aspect in the exploration sections of the game was something the composers were keen to portray, and they would do this with silence, at least, on part of the music. 

History of Kass’ Theme in the Game 

Sound Designer for Breath of the Wild, Hajime Wakai, said in an interview that he tried placing some of the exploration music from The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, in the field music system for Breath of the Wild during the early stages of development. He said that the heroic music drowned out a lot of the opportunities for more interesting musical mechanics and discoverable items hinted at through sound design. He even went as far to say that it “forced undesired intensity onto the players” and complained that the “stirring and dramatic music” would be conflicting when the player just “threw away a mushroom…” They ended up with very sparse, piano-centric, and fluttering phrases of music which play periodically throughout exploration. This creative musical decision was key to making objects and characters in the field, like the character of Kass, to stand out. The silence made it so that the music accompanying Kass within the game stuck out to any exploring player, and signified a point of interest. The music for Kass is used as a tool by the game designers to point out this interesting development, and designed by the composers to fit the style of the character, and genre of the game. The manner in which the wonderful tune is presented within the relatively calm, quiet, and ambient open world makes it it so memorable that musicians, and music lovers would create, watch, or learn from, renditions of this tune in its various formats. Particularly the guitar covers, as they are often coupled with the game tabs. The busker, or bard type character that Kass is almost lends itself wholeheartedly to the creations of all of these fan versions of the tune, and is almost adding to the trail of stories being told, that guitarists especially can share with the Kass theme tab.

Why Does Kass’ Theme Work So Well?! 

In addition to the ties of accordion music to folk music, the actual content of the music is dripping with historical influences and distinct flavours that make it work so well. For example the theme is in a Waltz rhythm, emphasising the 3-beats in a bar timefeel, and sounds extremely similar to anyone familiar with traditional French musette music. Associated commonly with dances, this is effective in the gameplay as it is very distinctively human. Now, I know it’s an Rito playing here, but it clearly distinguishes music that’s being played from a character within the game, as opposed to soundtrack music that is just accompanying the journey. The same can be said for the very loose, and expressive tempo.

Which Came First, the Accordion, or the Music? 

While writing this tune, it was evident that the theme was written with the means to be appointed to the eagle-eyed travelling bard character, Kass. His travelling instrument: an accordion. This instrument is widely associated with folk traditions in music, and it makes a lot of sense that the game designers would choose an accordion to accompany this character. Folk music, and utilising folk traditions is a great way of emphasising the sense of locality, and local culture within a game world, this is especially the case of a game with a large open world like Breath of the Wild. It just so happens that the guitar also works as a fantastic medium, and the playing of the games music through the use of the Kass Theme tab can extend this traditional feel beyond the game, providing a deeper sense of meaning while in play. While it’s truly unknown which actually came first, it’s likely that the game designers and character artists designed Kass to play with an accordion first, and the composers were tasked with writing the accordion tune. It’s also not unthinkable that Kass had many iterations beforehand and it isn’t unreasonable to assume that there was almost a Kass theme on guitar! 

References: Interview from: 

https://nintendoeverything.com/breath-of-the-wild-composers-on-changingup-zeldas-music-formula-and-more/ http:///www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFxZ15xXVRk 

[galacticnova3]

idk if you explained it before but what exactly is an AI-Controlled Halcandran Starship? I know you mentioned that in a narrative sense, they are parallel equivalents to Starcutters, but what are they in a in-universe sense? what’s their history? i’m dying to know about it

Like you already mentioned, they’re Parallel Halcandra’s version of Starcutters/Umbramakers. Rather than being named in a symbolic sense in-universe (Halcandra will cut the very stars to achieve what we seek/Mirror Halcandra will defy the very laws of nature to achieve what we seek) they’re just named after what they literally are. Spacefaring vessel created by (Parallel). Halcandra and primarily controlled by an AI unique to that individual ship. Other than their name the main difference between them and their counterparts is just that they had a significantly larger degree of autonomy in comparison; sure, they had jobs to do, but they were seen as closer to equals of regular folks and treated accordingly, even being able to pursue knowledge and skill in magic beyond just what was inherent to them. That said, it does come with some pretty big risks*, and further separates A.I.C.H.S. from the other magic ships.

*Simply put, every construct that contains aether, soul, and elemental magic has the capacity to create a doomer of equal power, but that is prevented by keeping those magics separate. Letting your boat do WIZARD SPELLS!!!, while being good in the sense of providing freedom akin to that of a normal person, means they are many steps closer to undoing that key safety measure. If something were to go very, very wrong and their AI was to be disabled… Well, it could have dire consequences for them and the ships and people around them.

Parallel Halcandra itself was generally much more peaceful than its counterparts; there was much less government corruption and more focus was put into improving life than expanding the empire or making advancements solely for advancement’s sake. After all, you can’t get very far in Another Dimension if you don’t invest in your own continued survival and ways to deal with the chaos and unpredictability of the place that isn’t a place, and a society built on a foundation of who is better and who is worse would be doomed to collapse when it came time for people to set aside their differences just to survive. As a result of that mindset, people were overall happier and this extended to the constructs, though that only really applied to A.I.C.H.S. because there are no parallel clockwork stars. The technology to create them exists, but it was decided pretty early on that “y’know denying someone an afterlife in favor of using their soul to power huge machines that can warp reality isn’t very ethical, we shouldn’t do that”.

I used the past tense because Halcandra essentially invaded and violently assimilated its parallel counterpart upon discovering it sometime between modern times and Lor being sealed under the Haldera. No A.I.C.H.S. have been made for a very long time as a result, and many of those that did exist didn’t make it through the initial attack. Some stayed behind in the hopes of someday ousting Overworld Halcandra and returning to a semblance of normalcy, like Loa did, but most fled with their crews and anyone else they could take with them and have been hiding out elsewhere, unaccounted for and all but forgotten.

[megantga]

minecraft

Minecraft is a 2011 sandbox game produced by mojang, following several early private testing versions, it was first made public in May 2009 before being fully released in November 2011, with Notch stepping down and Jens "Jeb" Bergensten taking over development. Minecraft is hands down the best selling game in all of history. Minecraft's original name was cave game

In Minecraft, players explore a blocky, procedurally generated, three-dimensional world with virtually infinite terrain and may discover and extract raw materials, craft tools and items, and build structures, earthworks, and machines. Depending on their chosen game mode, players can fight hostile mobs, as well as cooperate with or compete against other players in the same world. Game modes include a survival mode (in which players must acquire resources to build in the world and maintain health) and a creative mode (in which players have unlimited resources and access to flight). The game's large community also offers a wide variety of user-generated content, such as modifications, servers, skins, texture packs, and custom maps, which add new game mechanics and possibilities.

game play

When starting a new world, players must choose one of five game modes as well as one of four difficulties, ranging from "Peaceful" to "Hardcore". Increasing the difficulty of the game causes the player to take more damage from mobs (non-player characters), as well as having other difficulty-specific effects. For example, the Peaceful difficulty prevents hostile mobs from spawning, and the Hardcore difficulty can affect the way the animals and the mobs spawn and they're attacking. if they really wanted to they could even set a seed, my current world seed is just 67.

to start out the player usually starts by punching trees to get wood and then after that the opportunity's are endless.

there is 3 dimensions in Minecraft, the OVERWORLD, the NETHER and the END and each dimension has different difficulties and different things to do for example. you can build a house, get resources like iron and gold and diamonds or go swimming mobs don't spawn until night but some mobs like enderman, spiders and creepers do not go away in the day while skeletons and zombies disappear. some mobs like spiders turn nice once the sun rises, while in the nether there is mostly just lava and other dangerous mobs that spawn all the time no matter what time of day it is in the over world but there is other important information in the nether like quarts and gold, which can be traded for important things with piglins, but don't forget your gold boots if you want to go piglin traiding, the end has possibly one of the hardest bosses which is the ender dragon at the end of the game which is a very long tedious task which needs alot of preparing, most do it with diamond armour.

the image above is all the dangerous Minecraft mobs all ranging in difficulty, example in certain Minecraft versions zombies spawn in groups like little armies while skeletons are you spawn once

[tonkisolutions]

Ravio a link between worlds masked

Ravio a link between worlds masked series#

Ravio a link between worlds masked series#

There is, as there always is, a comfort to this familiarity, although A Link Between Worlds feels like the most direct iteration the series has ever seen. The rest will be immediately familiar to those who know the Legend of Zelda series, largely because A Link Between Worlds treads the well-worn path of previous games. The fact that navigating the world as a painting becomes second nature is a huge accomplishment: it's so central to A Link Between Worlds that I couldn't possibly imagine the game without it. Many previous games in the series have had players use bombs start the timer on a frantic dash through a quickly-closing door, but here you'll be doing like that while instinctively jumping into the wall and shifting around to another platform. It's not just a feature you'll use to get at the odd treasure chest, either, as Nintendo has done a fantastic job deeply intertwining every area of the game in ways that can only be accessed as a painting, as well as layering it as a required step in other puzzles. Many puzzles involve a two-dimensional Link wrapping himself around the walls of 3D environment to reach switches and chests nestled atop faraway platforms, slithering through thin cracks to enter new areas, or even traversing between two worlds by shimmying through the fissures that connect them. Link, as history has taught us, must rescue them. The ability comes to him by way of Yuga, the game's main antagonist, who seeks to revive Ganondorf after the events of the original game by trapping descendants of A Link to the Past's seven sages as portraits. The painting is the game's central mechanic, its version of a time-travelling ocarina, wind-summoning baton, or werewolf transformation, and many of the dungeons make good use of the new tool. As a painting, Link is a stylised riff on a Romanesque mural beautifully animated to look simultaneously static and vibrant, with bouncy movement and flickering eyes. Yet this game's accomplishment lies with Link's new ability to transform into a portrait and traverse walls. The fleeting cameo of Majora's mask, hanging on the wall of Link's house, is just one of the occasional nods from Nintendo acknowledging where the series has travelled since muddying its boots around the gardens of the original Hyrule Castle. Now Playing: The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds Video Review A series of murals explain the events of A Link to the Past.Ī Link Between Worlds is molded by the history it treats with reverence, but the game quickly creates an identity of its own. But while many elements of this sequel are familiar, this is a fantastic standalone adventure that excels on its own individual merits.īy clicking 'enter', you agree to GameSpot's The heart of A Link Between Worlds is buried firmly in the pre-3D age of the early '90s, and Nintendo has produced an almost note-for-note polygonal reproduction of the original game's Hylian overworld, complete with the triumphant boom of the series' main theme charging out of the 3DS's speakers. The famous green tunic, castle, and characters are all revived in this 3DS sequel, and the passing of two decades and three console generations has done nothing to dull the sharpness of Link's first triumphant swing of the Master Sword.įor those who have cherished the original over the years, the nostalgic opening moments of this loving sequel will rekindle your memories of the classic game that precedes it. It's not easy to return to a place after a 21-year absence, so it's a surprise how effortless it is to slip back into the Hyrule first introduced in 1992's The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.