#i get that tetris effect so easily

[defenderoftomorrow]

guys I just started rdr2 should I be scared?

I get the Tetris effect so easily (to the point I heard and saw Ellie and Joel from tlou talking when I was tryna fall asleep more than once) and rdr2 is so long I’m just going to end up convincing myself I’m a cowboy.

[improbable-implosions]

This one, contrary to that cat paw I've posted previously, really felt like I was just sort of tossing things together. But even despite that, I really enjoyed the heck out of the process of this mend, bit by bit making art out of something that's been bothering me.

Step one: get those holes to hole-d still! Threw some whip-stitches onto the fabric to get these three little cat-pokes to no longer expand through the fabric. Did this with some leftover scraps of light-purple thread from an earlier project we've seen around here, the finger guns mask! We don't quite know it at this point, but that color choice is going to make a lot of fuss later.

After a bit of digging around in RSN Stitchbank, I found an interesting pattern that I thought would be super fun to execute here, called the wild goose chase stitch: https://rsnstitchbank.org/stitch/wild-goose-chase-stitch So, following the pattern, we first lay down the blue stitching (counting rows of stitches in the tshirt instead of canvas openings).

Then, after a good little bit of fuss to get all those stitches to align Just So^tm over the hole, (seriously, it was a lot of wrangling horizontal stitches where they'd fit as anchoring points, knotting the vertical stitches in place so they'd fit right, etc, etc) since they didn't really have fabric to anchor in for a little bit there, we wound up with the purple stitching looking like so (quite good, I'd say, given I was improvising this while waiting in line at the DMV!), not quite perfectly saving that arrowed effect for one batch, but not half bad either.

Lastly but certainly not leastly for the wild goose chase here, we've got a third set of stitches, in a lovely pink color this time! But, trouble abounds, I measured completely wrong when setting this stitch up, there's still two more holes that need covering! Whatever shall I do?

Enter a very useful new tool we'll be seeing a lot of in future mends: dissolvable backing! This simply self-adheres to the fabric, and washes away quite easily with nothing more than water. The longer I was looking at the wild-goose chase stitch, wondering what I could put over the two holes, I honestly felt that the texture would fit right in along the border in a tetris arcade game.

So, I landed on a design that looks like a t-piece from everyone's favorite falling block game! First up, some simple black outline stitches, to make sure that the form makes sense as a tetris piece to the passing eye. Much, MUCH easier with the drawn-on guidelines here, even despite the pleasing geometric shape of tetrominos, I'm not sure that I could have nailed the stitch placement quite so nicely without the help of the dissolvable backing.

With the addition of some dark purple satin stitching, we've got a T tetromino! I haven't grabbed a good shot of this after it went into the wash, but I promise, the backing dissolved just fine after heading into the laundry. We'll be seeing a lot of that backing for future mends, it's super handy, especially for sashiko prep!

[askmadouandpuyo]

Heyo! Welcome to Ask Madou And Puyo. Here you can ask your favorite characters from this franchise (almost) anything. One ground rule though: no NSFW. Reason 1, this blog should be suitable for all ages, reason 2, I’m sex repulsed, and reason 3, most of the characters are minors. I don’t play Quest so don’t try to talk to any Quest Exclusive characters because I can’t write what I don’t know. Also I don’t consider the Tetra crew to be Puyo characters, they are Tetris characters, so they won’t be here.

I will generally start answering asks and reblogging and stuff around 8:30 p.m UTC-6 (United States Central Standard Time) and end around 1 am. Feel free to send stuff before that tho so I have stuff in the box

If your ask isn’t answered it means I’m not creative enough to come up with an answer

Please try not to break the fourth wall. Don’t go mentioning games by name. Anons and askers are not all powerful and you do have limits. If I say a character can’t break something, you can’t easily break it and you DEFINITELY can’t give people invincibility. As for evil asks I don’t like, I will answer those and say as mod not to send asks like that. I am a hurt/comfort writer though so arcs maaaay involve Teen rated violence/torture so sorry.

Anyway, in regards to pairings on this page, there are only canon ones at the start, but these ask blogs can have story arcs. In which case only three pairings I enjoy can be achieved. Other than that, power of platonic love. Those three are ScheArle (when Schezo is headcanoned as a minor), SigAmi, and MaNgo.

Also, please refer to The Dark Prince as that, not his japanese name. Due to my religion I prefer using his localized name

Below the cut will be several headcanons which will effect the blog. For the most part you can discover headcanons via just…interacting but there are some I wanna get out of the way

First up, ages of characters with unconfirmed canon ages. Here are the characters and the headcanon ages:

Schezo: 16 (normally I’d go with unable to physically or mentally age past 14, but I don’t wanna deal with existential anons so yea)

Amitie: 13

Lidelle: 13

Klug: 12

Raffina: 14

Sig: 13

Feli: 13

Lemres: 18

Maguro: 13

Ringo: 13

Now you may be thinking “but Eway! In Tetris, Tetris 2 and Puzzle Pop, Sig, Klug and Schezo sound older than the ages you gave” and you’d be correct…for the English version. They all sound around the ages I mentioned in Japanese. Klug’s English VA in Fever sounds between 10 and 13, and I have ideas for recasting (4 for Schezo, one for Sig) but for now, I suggest you imagine them speaking in their Japanese version

For the timeline of Compile Era events, see here

Klug does not have a crush on Lemres. The duo are brothers in all but blood and Klug’s admiration plays into this trope

Ally and Rafisol are sisters, same way characters like Pit and Dark Pit are brothers (Allisol shippers please don’t kill meeeeeeee)

With all that outta the way, have fun sending asks!

[douglasanondr]

Random Thought about Schezo

SPOILER FOR PUYO PUYO PUZZLE POP I THINK.

So while waiting on new stuff in puzzle pop to drop, (said by a being with no apple device) I went and started reading some old stuff on puyo (browsing the wiki till I get bored), I realized something.

Schezo has a very interesting Dichotomy about him that no one really talks about, mostly because it's tied to a more recognizable trait about him that overshadows the other. I mean the other trait is said every now and then but not as much as the other.

The Dichotomy is that Schezo can't speak without accidently saying an innuendo every so often, but he always has information on him whenever needed (not like random information either, information that is always useful with the issue at hand).

You can probably understand when I say this dichotomy is normally overlooked, no one's gonna talk about Schezo always knowing something about what's going on at all times, when they can easily talk about the many times Schezo shoved his entire leg in his mouth.

That doesn't mean it's a rare sight to have smart Schezo, if you look into it, it happens quite alot. The latest example is Puzzle Pop, but their are smaller examples like in both tetris games, Everyone's dreams coming true, he both has and knows how to stop the effects of the dream box. It's literally how Tower of the Magician starts.

Now to me this could go in two ways:

The Funny Route: He knows alot about the world around him, and is knowledgeable about most situations that come at him, but he can't say anything because he always has his entire leg in his mouth.

The Interesting Route: He might know alot of lore that isn't outright stated or is impossible to obtain and we just don't know it. For all we know he might know stuff about like, the Crimson Demon, Ecolo, All the different God/Goddess incarnations and we just don't know it.

the 2nd option to me is interesting when you realize that in puzzle pop, despite probably not running into him for an extended amount of time, he knew Ecolo's title (Space Time traveler/ Wanderer of Worlds), and after Ecolo leaves, Schezo still remembers his name. That is interesting.

[ahiijny]

one thing I find cool about games is when you make a small, pretty subtle change to the gameplay rules and it actually results in a pretty significant change to how players behave

e.g. with NES Tetris, one issue they ran into after players discovered rolling (if you're not familiar that whole thing, agamescout has a great video about it), players ended up being too good at surviving after level 29 (because after that point, the fall speed is maxed out and doesn't get any faster), and can basically survive indefinitely. and in fact in CTWC 2022 the games ran way overtime and the event venue was actually closing up for the night and they had to secure like special permission to stay later to finish up the bracket

the other issue with the post-29 play was the gameplay was not very exciting compared to before. since the speed doesn't increase, you just need to outlast your opponent, so this just resulted in players playing very very safe, i.e. constantly burning singles and doubles, staying very low on the board, and no tetrises at all

so to figure out things for the next year, they discussed multiple possible ruleset changes, one of which was imposing a hard level cap

at first I was doubtful, would that really have that much of an effect? surely players would still play it safe post-29 to avoid the risk of topping out early

but it worked!! for CTWC 2023 they imposed a custom rom hack that added a "double killscreen" at level 39, which basically doubles the fall speed again. and with just that subtle change, players were playing tetrises again post-29.

at first glance, I didn't think just adding a small change at level 39 would change playstyle at level 29 so much. but I guess it makes sense!! because now that there's a hard level ceiling, to maximize your score, you have to score tetrises in that limited window. if you don't the other player can get ahead.

and so just with that change, you go from players playing super safe and burning singles at the bottom of their board, to players building up more greedy stacks and clearing tetrises :o

another example of this that I've come across is Widow's ult in Overwatch. her ult is infra-sight, which basically turns on wallhacks for 15 seconds and you can see exactly where every enemy player is

now for me, I initially thought this was a very underwhelming ult, compared to Dva's self-destruct or Reaper's death blossom or Pharah's barrage, which can easily team wipe (in case you can't tell, im bronze 😅) I guess I can use Widow's ult to make sure no enemy players are sneaking up to me. but I can't use this to win a team fight at all.

but yeah when I happened to tune into an Overwatch tournament stream with actual pros, it was a very different story. when one of the attacking players popped infra-sight on Rialto, the defending team immediately backed away and gave the attacking team so much space. they did not want to peek out at all!

I was shocked to see such a subtle, non-flashy ult casting such a wide area-of-effect on the opponent team :o

but yeah I guess the mind games in play is very different up in the ranks where people can actually aim 😅

[thedurvin]

I’ve been distracting myself from various Horrors by going through all the public domain jpgs I’ve been saving for @starstabberzirc collage graphics and clipping them out into pngs, and I’ve been doing it so much I’m getting Tetris Effect about it where I look at shapes and objects in real life and imagine where I could use the Select Wand tool vs the Lasso Select vs having to manually use the Eraser to remove them from the background

Like “that man’s hairline is so distinct I could easily select his skin tone and invert to capture his haircut” or “the sky around that building is really distinct but the bushes around the bottom are so ragged it would be too much of a pain to cut them out”

[4lbon]

dts s3 e1-3

e1: -i'm glad that i /have/ seen lawrence stroll outside of his businessman mode (chloes wedding pictures came to mind) because i'm SURE he's a kind n lovely guy but holy cow -otmar has littlefingercore advisor to the king energy. i'll say it. -lance is very adorable bbgirl here if i became a fan in 2020 i would've been easily convinced -lando is so LIL im so excited to see more of him~ -[lando squeals] subtitle is always so funny to me. print that on a t shirt -the pink mercedes drama is So Juicy 2 me i wish i was there 2 see it -this poor mclaren man trying to spoonfeed lando pr friendly sentences -cash is king? cash is king. is SO iconic 2 me. the sport is not the same w/o sewis

e2: -christian wants to fuck toto soooooo bad its embarrassing its the end of a multimonth quarantine and ur like when can i tease my work enemy again?? embarassing -the urge to put alex getting deepthroated by that covid swab in my next gifset lmaooooooo -favorite part of christian/toto dynamic is christian will talk SOOOO much shit in front of the camera but when hes talkin to toto he's like *head craned up at a 50 degree angle* hey how ya doin -first time i watched this "DAS" as an acronym threw me off So Bad bc it's also used to describe a tetris playstyle (delayed auto shift). still really throws me off alkdjfaklsdjskjla -HI MICHELLE YEOH'S HUSBAND -"against a mercedes team that is so strong, so dominant, you have to exploit every opportunity you possibly can" hi christian i hope you respect this mindset when the tables are turned! (he wont) -love lando celebrating his p3 start (face down ass up) -being hyped up abt a potential first alex win while knowing how it ends is PAINFUL -also contextualizes alex's anger around checo only getting a 5 second penalty in singapore this year, and hes right!!! its not fucking enough -lando's first podium is so SO special tho!! and netflix do an amazing job with it with the shots of the garage going nuts and the music swelling its just incredible -and the contrast with alex's missed podium is so well done narratively. another very great episode from a writing/editing standpoint

e3: -age old mercedes driver right of passage: listening to lewis sing next door -having watched the brawn docuseries now--i think there are some interesting parallels between valtteri&lewis vs rubens&michael. theyre very different people but how many others have had that experience with a teammate like that? -always LOVE the bits with valtteri in finland my soul yearns for scandanavia -BROCEDES INTERLUDE AAAAAAAAAAAAAA -i do like these lil bits about time penalties explained in episodes because before watching races you really underestimate how much they can effect races. i'm looking forward to seeing netflix continue to use these instances for drama (especially season 4 max v lewis 👀) -TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN. FUCK YOU

[superbinteriors]

Optimize Space and Boost Productivity with Modular Office Furniture in Nagpur.

Are you not happy with the size of your Nagpur office, formation, and productivity? Have you ever been stressed out organizing furniture, like a game of Tetris? If that's the case, you’re not alone: so do a lot of workplaces. With output of business in Nagpur rising with its growth and increasing space requirement, what if it isn’t a new desk per se that is required, but a more versatile, multipurpose one?

Superb Interiors is the modulated office furniture manufacturer Superhero your office requires. This is why it is high time to get rid of the stereotyped approach to furniture and go for the open, free, and effective – modular options.

Nagpur on the Move: The New Age Work Fight

Nagpur's workforce is dynamic. Everything is growing fast: startups and businesses are restructuring themselves, freelancing. With a stagnant work environment, traditional office furniture falls short of offering proper support. Large wooden tables are permanent fixtures, designated collaborative spaces are an add-on, and don’t even think about finding a place to integrate breakout spaces or nap pods – there isn’t room for that!

Modular Office Furniture to the Rescue: Flexibility is the Key

It’s time to think of building blocks for grown-ups! Offices have different types of furniture such as desks, workstations, storage units, and even conference tables which are designed in a way that can easily be configured or reconfigured and also can be easily added to depending on your requirements. Requires a temporary space for a project? Oh, okay, well you can simply cut off a few units and then turn it into a cooperation area. Is your team expanding? Simple, can add more workstations into the design without making a drastic change.

Beyond Flexibility: The Advantages of Modular Furniture in Nagpur

Modular furniture isn't just about creating adaptable spaces; it offers a multitude of benefits for Nagpur's space-constrained offices:

Space Optimization: Space is scarce in Nagpur and every square inch needs to be filled. Modular furniture is designed to be flexible in placement as it can fit nicely at the corners, can be easily arranged to fit the customer's requirements, and does not leave spaces that are unused.

Improved Ergonomics: This kind of furniture can be reconfigured to meet specific employee needs by adjusting elements such as the height of seats, thereby helping prevent work-related disorders.

Enhanced Collaboration: Say goodbye to dreary days when employees stuck in the cubicles feel left alone. The open concept can also be achieved and implemented through modular furniture, which is a feature that may serve Nagpur-based companies’ culture well.

Cost-Effectiveness: I like the fact that it is a wise investment as the pieces can be moved around and changed time and again. Over the years, you can just add on units, rather than purchasing new sets, which can be fairly costly.

Aesthetics with Ease: Modular furniture is available in various designs, acoustics, veneers, and colors to give you that classy corporate appearance.

Selecting Modular Furniture for Your Nagpur Office Space

The beauty of modular furniture in Nagpur is the sheer variety available. Here's a quick guide to finding the perfect solutions for your needs:

Workstations: The themes are versatile mobile tables and chairs with rotating tops, conveyors, and cabinets combined as multifunctional tables for people to design their work zones.

Seating: Depending on the chair, it should be ergonomic with such aspects as height regulation. Think about using foldable furniture like ottomans and mobile chairs when planning the workforce seating alternatives.

Collaborative areas: Modular tables, ottomans, and writable surfaces can be reconfigured to form envisioned brainstorming areas or meetings.

Storage: Shelving and Cabinets can be built in modules to address your specific functional requirements and also to optimize height.

Nagpur's Office Furniture Revolution: Change is inevitable

The nature of work in the business world of Nagpur requires flexibility and effectiveness in the environments that they work in. Modular furniture is not an unproven concept anymore, it has become the solution for any company, small, medium, or large. By using modularity, you can ensure that the work setting is flexible, inspiring and leads to innovation and efficiency gains. Now is the time to update the furnishings and bring added flexibility to your Nagpur workspace – the office of the future is modular!

Next Steps: Revolutionize Your Nagpur Office with Modest Furniture Systems

Ready to explore the world of modular furniture for your Nagpur office? Here's what you can do next:

Research: Search for modular office furniture manufacturers or sellers in Nagpur. Go through the catalogs and just get an idea of the types of selections that are out there.

Consult a Design Expert: Most furniture firms provide free layout advice. Discuss the needs and constraints of your workplace with a specialist.

Invest in Quality: Modular furniture is one that can be used for many years hence making it a long run investment. Select an appropriate supplier whose products are of high quality and can last long.

Your Nagpur office should not be the lightning rod for inefficiency. Superb Interiors modular furniture is a great opportunity, use it to design your workspace and see your team grow!

ConclusionAll in all, office furniture manufacturers hold significant responsibilities for creating efficient and quality workplaces for enterprises in Nagpur. Because these manufacturers are more focused on quality, innovation, and customization, they help businesses attain their vision and goal by offering fashionable, comfortable, and utilitarian workplaces. Whether it is a young start-up company that is looking to purchase furniture for a workplace of one office or a large company purchasing furniture for head office, the manufacturers of office furniture in Nagpur are ready to help in the attempt to be more efficient.

[charlesmwa]

Are Protective Cases Worth the Investment for Audio Equipment?

So here you are, splurging on a new audio setup with the speakers, mixers, and maybe even a few microphones. With your glorious new gear staring you in the face, that question creeps into your head: Do I really need to spend money on protective cases for all this?

" Okay, let's talk about cases. And by the end of this blog, you'll know whether to whip out that credit card for some sweet, sweet protection.

1. Protection from the Elements

First off, let's address the perils your audio kit might come up against. When you're out at gigs, or just moving things around in your pad, there is all manner of enemy to evade: moisture, dust, and the occasionally spilled drink (grateful thanks, Jerry). Protective cases go a bit like armor protecting gear from the outside world. Imagine that beautiful shiny new mixer, left defenseless, suddenly exposed to a rogue rain storm. Not cool, right? A good case can protect your equipment from damage and dry it out.

Types of Protective Cases

Selecting a case, which helps to protect from the elements, is also very important. There are a few different types:

Hard Cases: These are made with robust material such as molded plastic or aluminium. They protect against impact very well and keep rain or moisture out.

Soft Cases: Soft cases are of low weight. They are often padded. Though they cannot be as hard as the hard cases, they are effective for storage in indoors and even for light translocation.

Weatherproof Cases:If you're going to be outdoors for a long time and that too frequently, look for weatherproof cases. These will let in moisture and dust and debris but will not permit those things to compromise the case.

Tip: If you do most of your gigs outdoors or in uncertain environments, look for the water-resistant or weatherproof cases! 

2. Avoiding Physical Damage

Accidents happen, people. You may bump your gear into something hard while loading in or out, or maybe your buddy decides to use your speaker as a seat during the final song of the night. A good protective case will absorb impact, and your equipment won't be a victim of a bad decision or simply clumsy yourself.

Shock Absorption Features

Most protective cases carry features that are devised to cushion or absorb shock:

Foam Padding: Some carrying cases are filled with foam, and they can be tailored to fit your gear perfectly. Foam padding prevents movement and reduces the chances of your equipment getting damaged while moving.

Reinforced Corners: Look out for reinforced corners in the case. These are where the case is most prone to getting damaged, and that little more reinforcement around the corners will save your equipment.

Fun Fact: Some cases will even have foam inserts that are molded to hold your equipment. And there you have it: a personalized pillow for your mixer!

3. Transport Convenience

The last thing I will mention, is that protective cases make transport much easier for somebody like me who likes to take their audio equipment on the go. Many come with handles and wheels, sometimes even straps to cart all your gear about like a rock star, it's not so terrible, and they often stack neatly loading up your car like a Tetris master.

Ease of Use

Now imagine that, actually, you carry your mixer inside your luggage, say you arrive for a gig. You do not awkwardly carry that heavy thing; you have that big case so you can simply roll it into the room with ease. Most cases are designed to be user-friendly and can transport all your gear easily.

Wheels and Pull Handles: Some cases have wheels and pull handles, which makes a difficult process become an easy, fast ride; this also makes it a pleasure when you are moving about, especially for professional instruments like survey equipment or other pieces of machinery to move around.

Modular Cases:  If you have much equipment or gear, modular cases are ideal for tailoring how you want your piece of equipment to be carried. Stackable cases can also help save some space and transportation becomes easier in the process.

Humor Break: You don't have to play the "careful, don't drop that!" game every time you load in gear. Instead, just roll on up like the audio boss you are!

4. Organizational Benefits

Yet another unsung virtue of protective cases is the organized manner in which they offer. Most of the cases have compartments and pockets, so you can place all your cables, microphones, and other accessories in one place. Say goodbye to digging around your bag as if you were searching for a missing sock-you will always know where everything is!

Tips for Organization

Cable Management: Cable management: There's no question you want your case to have dedicated cable slots and accessory areas. This will save you a lot of time and headaches at gigs.

Labels and Color Coding: You can label your cases so that you know what type of gear is in them, or you can use color codification according to the type of gear. Using this approach will allow you to grab exactly what you need instead of going through the heap.

Pro Tip: Organization will make the gig less stressed. The more you know where things are, the better because that way nothing seems important but the music.

5. Cost-Effectiveness Over Time

One has to face the elephant in the room, though-the cost. So, yes, a protective case is often pricey, and you may wonder whether it's the right investment. Still, the cost of an effective protective case is but a fraction of repairing or even buying new gear. And if you happen to drop your $500 mixer, then you are in for repairs or even have to replace the whole thing. Well, at that point you'd be shelling out a great deal more than you could have spent on a case.

Quick Math:

If you're going to save you $500 in a repair, the investment in one of those protective cases has been covered at $100.

Warranty Considerations: Some manufacturers will cover accidental damage under their warranty if you are using a protective case. The ideal would be to verify that your gear is in this category.

Depreciation: Gear that is kept in good condition does not depreciate as fast. Should you want to sell your gear at some point in the future, the investment in protective cases ensures it stays in outstanding condition, meaning you get a better resale value.

6. Reputation and Resale Value

Lastly, we have resale value. If you really take good care of your audio equipment, it'll look better when you're prepared to sell or upgrade. This means that your equipment will be in pristine condition, making it quite easy to fetch a decent price when it's time to let go. Value in Good Condition

The Value of Good Condition

Less Wear and Tear: Gear stored in protective cases usually undergoes less wear and tear. This can be particularly crucial for high-end gear since even small scratches or dents could mean all the difference between a good and poor resale value.

Documentation: If you have maintained your gear well, you can provide documentation to potential buyers. It can include original receipts and information on how you've maintained it. This builds credibility in your sale.

In short, you hope you never need them, but a protective case is like your seatbelt with your audio equipment: it's nice to have just in case. Many professional audio shops like VIP PRO AUDIO would mostly also offer cases to add to your protection. Whether you are a professional DJ, home studio wizard, or weekend warrior, spending money on protective cases will save you time, money, and heartache down the road.

[scribe-of-stories]

Alright well @scribe-cas and @squarebracket-trick threw their talking sticks back in my face with a few more questions in their posts so here we go again:

Three Ships

Apollo 11, Theseus', and if you consider the vastness of space an ocean (as I do) then what is Earth but a ship. Joke answer aside, I don't really have any ships. Though I liked one too many pictures of two LOTR characters that @conkers-theficwriter keeps relogging; so now I have an amount of emotional investment in a dwarf and hobbit cuddling in a comfy bed.

Currently Listening

Pulls up Spotify apparently the soundtrack to Tetris Effect (yours forever and next chapter).

Last Movie

Technically Junk Head (2017) though I mostly skimmed it before bed one night. I should go back and give it a full watch. I really need to get around to watching the new Spiderverse movie, also I heard something called Nimona is pretty good.

Currently Reading

How to Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Niel Gaiman House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski I really need to get around to finishing these. Almost done with Time War, Ocean easily next, and that accursed book last when I get enough mental energy to process it.

Last Thing Searched (for Writing Purposes):

How to spell something, I'm a terrible speller. By and large I ignore reality and make up my own when I write, so often don't double historical accuracy. Helps that by and large Lexical is malleable in that way.

Currently Consuming:

Nachos.

Currently Craving:

More Nachos.

I'm not going to tag more people for this one, but consider this an opening to steal the stick once more from my possession and make up some new and weird questions to answer.

9 People You Want To Know Better Tag

@touloserlautrec cursed me with the talking stick and I'm making that everyone's problem.

Last song: Orca Force - Wild Tokyo (was playing some League with friends, needed hype music)

Currently watching: too much video Essays on youtube (watch history says I've been binging Munecat)

Current obsession: Well it's that time of year for my irl friend groups yearly "Summer Server"; we have for the past decade or so (longer?) started and played a minecraft server during the summer. This year we have been playing Dungeons, Dragons, and Space Shuttles. Absolutely miserable experience, mobs are terrifying regardless of equipment, and it took us 2 days before anyone on the server could make iron equipment. It's been so much fun. Oh also Battletech. I've fallen back into my "giant square mechs my beloved" phase.

I am handing the talking stick to: @scribe-cas @covenscribe (scribe unity), @yamiunicorn @iced-ginger-tea @palebdot @mjparkerwriting @squarebracket-trick @conkers-theficwriter @vicstmichael

[post-punk-revival]

I appreciate the DM offer, though i am a little shy lol. I suppose I am just curious about daemonism and am maybe thinking of dabbling, though I am unsure. it is something that i have had some level of interest in in the past, i like the concept and can see myself flowing into it somewhat easily, but i never really dove into it to learn more or actually try it. i think it would be a fun outlet to try to better myself, give some kind of form to my inner voice that tells me to keep improving when things otherwise suck. i also think it would be nice as a way to feel more connected to my kintype that is really important to me, and have the dae take the form of my companion from my source. i suppose the different philosophy is a little overwhelming because it seems like there is simply so many lines of thinking and so much to take in and consider. - i guess i am just rambling, but i appreciate you reading nonetheless lol

That's understandable, just thought I'd offer ^v^ And yes, there's a lot of different philosophies in the community -- at some point we just stopped trying to follow a specific line of thought and started doing it our own way though we definitely started out by following examples -- but those are all very good reasons to try it out. Dæmonism can be a very effective coping skill. Sometimes Tetri is the only reason I'm able to get my work done lol. He helps with improving both what I get from life and what I put out into it.

[curious-minx]

Notable 2020 Video Game Soundtracks That Can Be Enjoyed As Standalone Experiences

Video Game Music is gaining recognition, with many soundtracks receiving vinyl pressings, orchestral concert reviews, and an increasing presence on music streaming platforms such as bandcamp and Spotify. We’re also witnessing the uprise of indie video game development teams where games are being made by the sort of passionate type of game designer that takes soundtracks seriously.  Soundtracks by small teams of developers such as Celeste, Undertale, Disco Elysium, Hollow Knight, RuneScape, and Lisa: The Joyful are titles with soundtracks that easily stand up against the likes of bigger budget productions made by reliable sources of video game music like Square-Enix and Nintendo.

2020 is no exception in terms of having one of the biggest budget soundtracks around with Final Fantasy 7 Remake, which builds upon a legacy of industry-standard-creating soundtrack work. Taken as a whole, Final Fantasy 7 Remake’s soundtrack is clocking in at over 8 and half hours of music. The soundtrack has three composers with the Beethoven of video game music, Nobuo Uematsu, most notably coming out of retirement to get the job done.  Here are some other amazing 2020 video game soundtracks more conducive for standalone background listening:

TETRIS EFFECT by HYDELIC 

Genres: EDM, Ambient Pop and straight up Ambient 

Describing this album makes me feel like I’m some sort of burnt out fanciful raver, head permanently lodged in the clouds. The level of giddy technicolor enthusiasm rivals that of Icelandic Sigur Ros frontman Jonsi, but if he wanted to keep his post-rock firmly planted in the outdoor music festival on Mars territory. Despite the album’s notable two hours runtime, each and every song feels like its own uniquely crafted composition, no repetitive motifs or nostalgia-baiting.

There is unfortunately still a Tetris movie in some sort of shaggy state of development in Hollywood right now. The movie is being billed as a dull biopic about the creator of the Tetris game. Whereas listening to Tetris Effect you imagine a Tetris movie directed by someone more fitting like the Wakowskis. Tetris Effect’s opening song “Connected (Yours Forever)” is a bonafide vocal pop song, like a more sugary CVRCHES-style cooing of the lyrics:

“I’m Yours Forever

There is No End in Sights For Us,

Nothing Can Measure the Kind of Strength Inside Our Hearts,

It’s all connected we’re all together in this life, don’t you forget it

We’re all connected in this”

Try your best not to imagine a cast of Hollywood’s most beautiful plucky orphan mutant misfit youths using the power of Tetris to heal a broken and dying planet!

Notable Track: Next Chapter

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HADES by DARREN KORB

Genres: Progressive Metal, Folktronica, Folk Metal, Dimotika, Greek Folk Music

Darren Korb has become one of the most notable video game composers of the past decade. Korb, an integral member of the Supergiant family, continues to outdo himself with each and every soundtrack. Bastion and Transistor originally found Korb creating a niche for himself with downtempo folk-infused electronic soundscapes and even some vocal pop with collaborator Ashley Barrett. Hades is an altogether different beast for Korb, who much like the developers of Hades, have found themselves at the height of their powers.

Korb also contributes vocals on this album, and I can say without hesitation that these are some of the nicest vocals I’ve ever heard from a video game music designer, because video game musicians are bonafide musicians.The album clocks in at two and half hours and separate from its game is still an absolute thrill ride.

Notable Track: In The Blood

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DEFECTIVE HOLIDAY by MECHATOK

 Genres: Ambient Trance, Balearic Beat, Progressive Electronic, Nature Recordings, Spoken Word, New Age

One glance at the album artwork is all it took for me to know that I must listen to this album. Defective Holiday is an indie walking simulator that is explicit about its intentions: a lightly interactive one hour experience. This soundtrack clocks in at only 31 minutes and it is purely the most conventional album in terms of length.

Last week in late November, Mechatok announced a collaboration with one of the leading zoomer Swedish cloud rap mavericks Bladee, the cofounder of the Drain Gang. Last month gives a pretty clear picture of what kind of circles Mechatok is floating in on. Highly online gonzo vaporwave maestro James Ferraro is another apparent influence on this soundtrack, especially regarding the way the sinister mundane dialogue is woven into the soundscape. There’s one particular track on the Defective Holiday OST, “Rescue Shot Buibo”, that is adorned with standard trap-style drum fills that give the album a shot of energy before wandering back off into the haze. This soundtrack and video game is all about the pure vibe and aesthetic nature that are currently trending in these extremely stressful times.  In a time where all of our holidays were defective from the very start, I think the casual walking simulator will remain a genre high in demand. I have a feeling we’re going to hear a lot more from this empathetic young German.

Notable Track: Valley

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Last of Us II by Gustavo Santaolalla, Mac Quayle (and Ashley Johnson)

Genres: Ambient, Cinematic Classical, Dark Ambient, Spanish Folk Music 

L

The Last Of Us is a horror game where the music itself is arguably playing a critical character role, which can only be expected billing two titans of audio visual soundtracks. Of course Academy Award winner Santaolalla knows his way around a soundtrack. Wielding a resume of astonishing versatility in various TV and film projects, he might have found his higher calling in not only video games but in the horror music canon. Last of Us is an extremely emotional series, and with the wrong soundtrack, the experience could become insufferably bleak. The occasional  splashes of color and light are what make this soundtrack so unsettling and eerie. Not since Silent Hill 2’s Akira Yamaoka has there been such an effective standalone horror video game soundtrack experience. No wonder Gustavo Santaolalla is one of the only video game composers integral enough to the game to warrant a cameo banjo-playing character model based off of him.

As if having one major composer from prestigious TV and movies wasn’t enough, Mac Quayle, composer of the whole Mr. Robot series, contrasts against Santaolalla’s acoustic contributions. The soundtrack itself is sequenced in a way that switches between the two composers. “The Cycle of Violence” composed by Quayle, a track that more than lives up to its name, is immediately followed by Santaolalla’s somber “Reclaimed Memories.” This dance between violence and heart is what the Last of Us excels at as a franchise, and that is why this soundtrack is an effective stand-alone experience.

The only disappointing part of the soundtrack is that Ashley Johnson, voice actor of Ellie’ three songs, is not included in the game’s official tracklist. Ellie’s “Take On Me” a-ha and “Future Days” Pearl Jam covers have made a little history by being the most powerful songs sung by a video game character. When Ellie sings and plays on her guitar they aren’t some little Easter egg idling moments to provide levity for this heavy revenge horror story. These songs are used to make some of the strongest character development choices made by a video game character seen in recent years. Ellie is joining a small club of singing video game characters alongside Parapa the Rapper and  maybe the cast of obscure Atlus title Rhapsody: Musical Adventure.

Notable Track: Unbroken

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Persona 5 Royal Straight Flush Edition by Shoji Meguro 

Genre: Acid Jazz, Alternative Rock, Alternative Metal, Lounge, Jazz-Funk 

This is one of those soundtracks that, much like Nobuo Uematsu’s work in Final Fantasy, is really the heart and soul of the entire Persona franchise (and his work in the adjacent Shin Megami Tensei universe is equally as noteworthy). Persona 5 Royal finds Meguro making his most complete, funky, and otherworldly opus that sounds like no one else in the biz.

You will find many people online scouring message boards, subreddits, bandcamp features, and Yahoo Answers looking for more music like Persona 5. Outside of Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater, how many other games are packed to the brim with truly foxy songs!? Persona 5 could not predict how badly the title “Throw Away Your Mask” would age, despite the game being more than ahead of its time with the majority of NPCs wearing PPE. Be a good Joker, put on your mask and keep chasing Meguro’s acid jazz-infused dragon through many more semesters to come.

Notable Track: I Imagine

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Streets of Rage 4 by Olivier Deriviere & Various

Genres: Electro House, Nu Jazz, Synth Funk, Acid House 

Composer Olivier Deriviere is a living definition of a video game soundtrack journeyman. He has a career stretching back to the early 2000s working on notable big budget titles like the divisive 2008 Atari fifth Alone in the Dark installment and Remember Me, an unsung buried gem from the PS3/360 era Capcom title. Remember Me is where Deriviere’s electronic leanings started becoming especially prominent in his sound. On the Streets of Rage 4 soundtrack Deriviere has completely come into his own element, developing a whole new sense of campy playfulness.

Electronic French House music can be a divisive genre. For every Daft Punk commercial success there is a band that ruffles feathers like Justice. I sense a strong presence of late departed French House titan Philippe Zdar of Cassius as well. If you’d played this soundtrack for me out of context, I would have guessed an obscure voguing tape from the 80s or a really talented mysterious DJ set. Instead, this is a sequel to a classic beat em up franchise that left a portion of players disappointed by the game’s four hour playtime. The soundtrack is over an hour and fifty minutes long of high octane House music bliss. Much like the Tetris Effect soundtrack, it is truly impressive how much depth these tracks have when they could have easily been nostalgic recycled beats. Sometimes a game’s soundtrack can offer more post game enjoyment than an actual game.

Notable Track: Chill Or Don’t

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Hylics 2 by Chuck Salamone & Mason Lindroth 

Genres: Experimental Rock, Neo-Psychedelia, Hypagogic Pop, Stoner Rock, Jazz-Rock

A soundtrack that comes closest to capturing the experience of hearing the Earthbound or Katamari Damacy soundtracks for the first time. The Hylic indie RPG series is a wonderful and strange beast that is ready to frolic and show its playful side. Hylics is a part of a recent uprising of indie games being developed on the RPG Maker software. 2020 year has left us all with variations of the same stressed out adjectives: Weird. Messed Up. Surreal.

Why not listen to an album from a game that is the perfect embodiment of that surreal mantra? Step away from your computer, draw a bath, and put this album on. Thank me later!

Notable  track: Xeno Arcadia

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Ultrakill: Infinite Hyperdeath (Act I Soundtrack) by Heaven Pierce Her aka game developer Arsi “Hakita” Patala 

Genres: Drum and Bass, Industrial Metal, Ambient, Progressive Metal, Acidcore 

Nothing says “modern indie game development” more than a game built completely from the ground up by one person. Ultrakill’s developer “Hakita” is one of those kindly folkloric DIY figures that make video games such an extensive art form. The game is a painstaking gloriously bloody ode to Dooms of yesteryear but with plenty of its own fine tuned style. The perfect soundtrack for when you’re painting your personal Hell a darker shade of gore, but also would really like to kick your ass into shape if you need an adrenaline boost to your Quarantine blues.

Notable Track: Panic Betrayer 

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Risk of Rain 2 by Chris Christodoulou

Genres: Progressive Rock, Space Rock, Space Ambient,  Post-Rock

Something about the country of Greece brings the best kind of futurism out of the country’s composers. Christodoulou’s Risk of Rain 2 soundtrack is no Bladerunner knock off. This soundtrack for the colorful sci-fi indie rougelike is punchier and less nocturnal than your typical synth-heavy sci-fi soundtrack. Risk of Rain is one of the more successful Kickstarter series around and has the best quality an indie game can have: it feels like a labor of love on all fronts. There’s no reason a rougelike like Rain of Ruin or Hades needs a soundtrack this good, but Christodoulou casts a spell with his electronic-driven prog rock that makes you want to keep respawning. A huge missed opportunity if Christodoulou does not get to soundtrack an earnest sci-fi action-adventure for even big screens. Oh! This soundtrack also features some spoken word segments from Werner Herzog; what more do you need to know?

Notable Track: The Rain Formerly Known As Purple

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Warhammer 40,000: Mechanicus by Guillaume David

A big debut project from an up-and-coming composer Guillaume David. Prior to the making of this soundtrack, David was a video game voice actor who worked on a Resident Evil Devil May Cry crossover voicing the character of “Hunk.” Warhammer 40K might become a franchise that more people will care about solely based on the quality of this installment’s soundtrack. When you see the title Warhammer 40,000, what sort of sounds come to mind? If you guessed “Neo gothic cyber Gregorian chants that seamlessly melds the ancient and futuristic”, you would be correct. A turn-based action game could possibly fall into dull territory, but with a visual identity as strong as Warhammer 40K  melded with a suitable musical atmosphere, the action and world becomes irresistible. This soundtrack is a brisk 56 minutes and the other soundtrack on this list with a more conventional runtime. Not a second is wasted on this dynamic and fantastical soundtrack. Prior to hearing this soundtrack I had no intention of ever looking into playing a game based off of something as convoluted as Warhammer 40K, but now I very much want to know what these robot priests are about. That’s the magic of a quality soundtrack.

Notable track: Millenial Rage

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Honorable Mentions:

Happy Listening! 

[localwebslingers]

There was a smile at that, “I can definitely relate to “oh hey that high spot looks like a perfect place to chill for an hour”, and then you do that the first time, right? And now you’re just up there. In a corner, wondering why you’re up there, and so happy to be there in the first place, and after about the third time you just sorta stop questioning it.” one of the many things that happened post spider bite that Peter just had to learn to roll with.

Right up there with suddenly reaching over and catching things without really thinking about it.

Peter watched as Also Peter got himself upright to start making another hammock and listened to the slight rambling, in a very familiar way, about how he came up with them, “I promise you, waiting in boring warehouses never stops being boring.” he chuckled, waiting for the hammock to be secured before moving to pull himself into it. Easily holding onto but not being stuck to the webbing much like with his own, and getting settled in. Making sure he was laying to face the other so they could see each other easily.

“I made a massive web in the sewer once.” he said, “I was trying to track a guy named Curt Conners who turned himself into a giant, mutant, lizard-thing and was going through the city. But there were a bunch of these little lizards swarming around the subway stations trying to get into the water ways. No idea where they came from, didn’t seem important. But I figured that was where he went then to lay low. I hung upside down and shot a bunch of webs down different pipeways with them all meeting in the center for me to hang out on while waiting for vibrations. Super effect, but I got bored about twenty minutes in and sat there playing tetris instead.”

\\ @wallcrawlparker \\

continued from here with @localwebslingers

"It's so cool that you relate." Peter couldn't begin to explain how nice it was to be able to talk about this stuff with someone who actually knew what he was going on about. Not that it wasn't fun to tell the others about the weirdness going on in his life; this was just WAYYY more awesome. And.... well, if he was honest, he was starting to feel as though this other Peter had fallen into a big brother role in his life rather than the super crazy trippy reality that there are infinite universes out there with like a million and one other Peter Parkers.

Yeah, for sanity's sake if nothing else.... This was just his very very similar, very awesome older brother who just happened to also be Spider-Man and also be named Peter. Yeah, he can roll with that. Wouldn't be the weirdest thing he'd dealt with. "I gotchu!! I love making these, man. And, you're actually spot on." He chuckled while positioning himself to make another hammock right next to his own - like a ceiling-forward slumber party.

"I was lurking on some creepy guy called The Vulture and his noobs, they were trying to steal hella Alien tech from mister Stark and they were a nightmare to spy on so I ended up having to wait like a thousand years in this really boring warehouse. Only so much homework and comic books I could bring with me y'know?" The teen looked up as he shifted to secure the other end of the newborn hammock.

"Anyway, I made one of these then, 'cause it was safer than the ground and I was getting reaaaaally bored."

[gallyg]

Nitpicking Metroid Dread

Metroid Dread might be one of my favorite games, but even Tetris has flaws, so I wanted to just braindump some of the nitpicks I had with Metroid Dread.

Checkpoints Undermine the Horror

I like it when the Metroid games are scary, and the EMMIs are clearly attempting that kind of atmosphere. The sound design, the film grain, the music, and the stealth/chase gameplay are all fantastic pieces of horror, but it never felt truly scary to me in the way that Dark Aether in Echoes, SA-X in Fusion, or the gamma Metroids in Return of Samus did for one simple reason, and that's the checkpoint system.

It's hard to truly fear for my life when I know that the most I'll ever lose by dying is barely a minute a traversal. Echoes, Fusion, and Return of Samus all let you lose devastating amounts of progress, and while that can be frustrating, it also makes me truly proceed with caution and, well, dread. I'd argue that even the less horror-focused games like Prime and Super facilitate emergent horror sections more effectively than Dread by simply forcing you to occasionally think to yourself, "oh no, when was the last time I saved?"

I'm aware that I could just reload from last save every time I die, but that's clearly not the same experience. Saying "boo" to yourself is not the same as attending a haunted house.

No Denouement

This is a problem I've noticed in a lot of Metroidvanias recently. You defeat the final obstacle between you and the villain, you hear the villain's climactic speech, you defeat the villain, and the game just... ends. There's no time taken to really process and decompress from the resolved tension.

It's a bit of a shame, because whatever else you can say about them, Other M and Samus Returns both had pretty good denouements. After defeating the Metroid Queen and MB, we get rather extended sequences with lower tension that guided us to reflect on our journey. They both have a weird post-climax climax, but that's not the most narratively offensive thing ever.

In Dread, there is no such sequence. You blow everything up, the twist happens, and credits roll. I don't necessarily need something as elaborate as the baby Metroid item cleanup or the stardust Melissa CGI, but even something as simple as a conversation between Samus and Adam would be nicer than the hard cut to credits that leaves me with without any idea of how life is going to be different for them now compared to the start of the game.

Only One Controller Setting

I understand and appreciate that you can remap buttons with the Switch UI, but I think it would be nice if there were more options available than just that. For one, the button prompts in-game aren't correct if you use console-level remaps, and that always results in a pretty janky experience. I can also envision potential for the basic movement to be improved in ways that aren't supported by simple button remaps.

I don't think I'm being too controversial by saying that D-pads are better than analog sticks for 2D games, all else being equal. Obviously the game as-is needs you to aim in more than 8 directions, but it's not like the right analog stick is doing anything right now. You could even free aim while running in multiple directions if this was a control scheme option, which would make the game feel that slight bit more fluid.

No Easy Mode

I'm a big girl gamer with over 300 confirmed kills and would never use an easy mode in any game ever, but I don't begrudge those who would get use out of an easy mode, and I know people who I think would enjoy Metroid but don't care too much for difficult games. I find it a bit hard to recommend Dread to those people.

Also if you think this is sacrilege, it is actually you who is the fake gamer because Fusion, Zero Mission, and Prime Trilogy all had easy modes available from the start.

Native 900p

Easily my pickiest nit, but the native 900p internal resolution is a bit annoying. When the Switch is docked, your only options for output resolution are 1080p, 720p, and 480p. None of those look great with the internal 900p resolution.

I wouldn't have minded too much if there were visual settings to pick between 900p or 720p with antialiasing or something, but alas. Muddy pixels is our only option. I don't usually care about this kind of thing, but I actually did kind of notice this on my first playthrough.

Not The Best Recap Video Ever

When Nintendo Treehouse announced that there would be a recap video at the start of the game, I kind of thought that it would cover every event throughout the series, or at least every event relevant to Dread. Alas, it skims over many basic facts and even entire games.

It covers the events of Samus Returns and Fusion, and I suppose those are technically the only two mainline stories that you can't current play through on Switch, but I still think reviewing Zero Mission and Super Metroid would have been nice.

Ignoring that, they didn't even cover every relevant fact about Samus Returns and Fusion. No mention of the baby Samus spared whose DNA now pumps in her veins, which colors the events at the end of the game rather profoundly. No mention of who Adam originally was to Samus, which leaves their relationship profoundly underdeveloped in this game. There's even a moment near the end of the game ("I was right to let you live") which plays almost entirely differently if you know Adam and Samus' history.

There's even events from Other M and the 2004 manga which would have benefitted from being included in the recap.

Honestly I don't care that much since I've played every Metroid game at least twice in the past year, but I still enjoy a good recap video, and I didn't feel very catered to with this one.

Final Missile count isn't a nice round number

This is something only the Prime Trilogy has only really handled well, but I'm tired or pretending this final missile count of 275 (285 with EMMI Amiibo) is acceptable. Just give me 300! 275 tries so hard to be a round number but let's be honest. Between 00, 25, and 50; 75 is the burnout loser child. Fuck 75.

Hope you all are enjoying Metroid Dread as much as me.

[zosonils]

surely post some autistic ferb things for us all,,,,,,

hell yeah anon!! here’s an absolute hell dump of Ferb Autism Indulgence Things because i have really been wanting to get my grubby little autistic hands all over him lately

his special interests are engineering and tetris [which is the game he’s internationally ranked in!]

he stims vocally by humming or repeating other vocalisations, but rarely with actual words

if he’s too nervous to vocalise/just not in the mood he goes for small hand movements to stim like clicking pens or tapping his fingers

he does flappy hands/arms when he has a lot of excitement to release! otherwise he prefers to stick to smaller/more subtle motions for a variety of reasons

he only repeats actual words as echolalia, almost always off of either phineas or perry! that thing they do where perry chatters and the boys mimic it and they all just loop off each other for a while is absolutely an echolalia loop for all of them [yes even the platypus]

a very epic headcanon i have is that owca agents are typically labelled as having therapy animal training to give them some more wiggle room with showing intelligence, so perry is officially a therapy platypus for the flynn-fletcher kids, especially the boys. ferb does the aforementioned echolalia chatter thing with perry and also just generally finds him extremely comforting to hold. of course perry’s figured out all of ferb and his siblings’ needs by observation and makes sure to subtly be as comforting as possible for his kids, especially if they’re having a meltdown and need to hold someone who won’t try to talk to them

ferb genuinely dislikes communicating verbally, due to a combination of general social anxiety, struggling to translate his thoughts into words, and finding it physically uncomfortable to talk. it’s not serious enough to prevent him from cracking a joke or vocalising his thoughts every once in a while, but he prefers to be nonverbal as much as possible and communicate through gestures and body language

throughout the series he only ever speaks on his own terms and as much as he’s comfortable with, so it comes out without issue, but if he’s forced to talk when he doesn’t want to or while he’s under stress he struggles to string sentences together and stutters really badly. fortunately he’s got nice friends and a great family so this issue rarely presents itself, although it comes up sometimes during the school year in battles with pissy neurotypical teachers over oral presentations

over time he starts to work past the discomfort [genuinely, it’s on his own terms as opposed to masking to get allistics off his back] so that by the time he’s an adult he can hold an entirely verbal conversation for a decent while before it drains him, but he still tends to avoid speaking if he can

phineas instinctively understands ferb’s silent emotional cues, a lot better than he understands most people’s [but that’s a whole other infodump lmao], and unless ferb actively indicates that he wants to talk for himself phineas usually speaks for both of them and translates any of ferb’s less neurotypically obvious signals

phineas and ferb made The Ultimate Fidget Cube as one of their daily projects [they were being mass produced for an hour or two and then something or other happened, there was a mobile phone and an avalanche of instant noodles, long story short only the handful they made for themselves and their friends are left now] and neither of them go anywhere without it

ferb doesn’t have any specific comfort/security objects but he feels significantly more at ease if he’s got some kind of tool in his hand or within reach [or, failing an actual building-stuff tool, anything he can hold and Do Something with, like a pen or his fidget cube or a video game controller], and is a lot more stimmy with his hands and generally anxious if he isn’t holding something

perry performs the task of comfort item better than any inanimate objects but platypi aren’t allowed to come to school even if they’re very polite :(

believe me the brothers have tested this numerous times

school is stressful for ferb because it fires up his sensory overload and is usually where he’s forced to do some neurotypical shit that upsets him, but his friends always have his back and linda and lawrence are definitely super involved in making sure their kids’ needs are met and respected by their teachers, so he manages pretty well unless something really bad happens to set him off

he’s susceptible to sensory overload, mostly with bright lights, sudden noises, and being touched. the light and sound involved in many of his and phineas’ projects is alright because he usually designed them and knows exactly when they’ll come on and what it’ll be like, but if he doesn’t have that prediction available he freaks out easily. being touched [especially without warning] is the absolute fucking worst and he almost invariably flips out if someone unfamiliar tries to touch him or he’s hit with an unexpected sensation he doesn’t like

he only rarely has meltdowns because he’s good at self-regulating when he needs to and his friends and family know what does and doesn’t fly with him, but when he does they’re often triggered by either sensory overload or being forced to talk

when ferb starts entering meltdown territory his verbal skills are the first thing to shut off, and if it gets worse he usually stops communicating altogether and enters a really bad dissociative state that he won’t come out of until he feels safe again and can be carefully brought back to his senses

standard procedure for ferb meltdowns is to get him a weighted blanket and some tea and a perry if you can find the slippery little bugger, let him snap back to reality at his own pace, and once he can communicate his needs again pay extra close attention to them until he calms down enough that he can properly self-regulate again

his favourite sensations are weight/pressure, the funky bumpy shit perry’s tail has going on, and anything soft!

most of his clothes [including his usual outfit in the show] are tight-fitting but made out of soft fabric for maximum comfy

the blanket on his bed is a weighted one, but if he’s too far from his room or it’s too hot to be comfortable under a blanket sometimes he’ll just find the tightest spot he can wedge himself into without getting hurt or stuck and squish himself in there to calm down a bit

his favourite food texture is crunchy stuff, and he samefoods with particular cereals and sandwich combos that rotate every few months when he finally gets tired of the exact same breakfast and lunch every day and wants slightly different identical meals

while he’s fine with variation from day to day, he’s very firmly attached to the summer/weekend formula of wake up > cereal > big idea > where’s perry > [building montage] > mom holy fuck > sandwich > [having fun montage] > our fuckoff massive contraption has vanished somehow > oh there you are perry > snacks > nondescript vibing > dinner > bed time, and if this schedule gets significantly thrown off it really bothers him

ferb shows his emotions more subtly than neurotypicals, which can make him seem hard to read, but his external emotional range is still extremely distinct - he just expresses it in atypical ways sometimes!

one of his most notable atypical emotional cues is that thing he does when he’s startled and he pulls his hands up - he does this in we call it maze when candace falls over on her skates in the beginning, split personality when busting candace scares him, lost in danville when he’s worried another capsule might fall on him or phineas, and the phineas and ferb effect during how do i do it when milo’s exercise bike crashes, just to name a few instances! this boy has Unique Emotional Cues and i love him for it so much

he’s better at reading emotions than phineas [as low as that bar is], but sometimes misses more subtle cues and doesn’t quite trust his ability to read anyone aside from phineas, candace, and his closest friends

he’s been aware that he’s neurodivergent ever since he was diagnosed as a little kid [he was first diagnosed with autism when he was extremely baby, not even three years old, and had it continually reconfirmed as he got older] and he’s been entirely happy with being autistic for as long as he’s known what that even means, with this only being reinforced as he found siblings and made friends with other autistic kids :)

good lord this is such an infodump i’m sorry i just love my son so very much and have been feeling particularly self indulgent today ;<;

[nintendowife]

The year is nearly over and it's time for my personal game of the year picks again. Finished a record amount of games this year (53, full list of games at the end of the post). COVID-19 pandemic didn't really cause an increase in my gaming, the main contributing factor was Xbox Game Pass for PC which allows me to easily pick up and try out a variety of games. As a "blast from the past" I finally beat a Nintendo 64 game Blast Corps together with husbando, a game I had been stuck in in the 90s. Like usual, I didn't play many games released in the current year so most of my picks are older games. But without further ado, here are the best of the best. 

1st place: Yakuza Kiwami 2 (PC, also available on PS4, Xbox One)

Thrilling and serious crime drama featuring the legendary ex-yakuza Kiryu who finds himself in absurdly hilarious situations at every turn. This is a game you don't want to miss, but playing Yakuza 0 and Yakuza Kiwami prior to this is recommended. 

+ Amazing story with various charismatic and memorable characters + Some incredibly funny side quests and entertaining minigames + Gorgeously detailed environments in 4K + Cool soundtrack and superb voice acting + Majima Saga is a nice continuation to events of Yakuza 0 + Well-made PC port with no issues besides occasional amusing ragdolling - Lack of different fighting styles make battles a bit repetitive - No Ansel support 

See my posts about Yakuza Kiwami 2

2nd place: Octopath Traveler (Switch, also available on PC)

Classic JRPG of modern times with quality of life improvements and gorgeous presentation. Each characters' stories, the game's engaging turn-based battle system and mechanics kept me glued to the screen for over 125 hours.

+ Fun and rewarding battle system with a good amount of team customization and strategy with subclasses and skills + Beautiful visuals mixing old-school sprite graphics with modern lighting effects + Splendid soundtrack, dual audio option and great Japanese voice acting  + Likeable characters with their own individual stories and engrossing overarching story that lets you find the connections of the characters  + Quality localization with rich language. I learned many new words and H'aanit's old manner of speaking added a new layer of immersion. + Nice quality of life features like fast travel and seemingly unlimited inventory space - Random encounters (they didn't actually bother me much in this game as the battle system was engaging) - Sudden crazy difficulty spike when encountering the real final boss 

See my posts about Octopath Traveler

3rd place: Portal 2 (PC, also available on PS3, Xbox 360)

Immersive sci-fi first-person puzzle game with fascinating game mechanics and tons of great humor. Portal 2 lives up to the universal praise it has gotten.

+ Interesting premise and great writing + Well designed physics-based puzzles + Difficulty is just right, not too hard and not too easy + Super good voice acting and soundtrack that fits the environments spot on + Great humor right from the starting tutorial + The first-person camera immersed me into the game - Some issues like autosaving at unfortunate moments 

See my posts about Portal 2

Honorable mention: Xenoblade Chronicles X (Wii U)

Sci-fi action JRPG with a surprising twist in its story and a peculiar setting where the player isn't really the protagonist. Battle system is fun and rewarding once you get a hang of it.

+ Impressive world that made me go "woah!" and "ooohh!" + Cool sci-fi story + Great use of Wii U GamePad + Skells (flying mech suits) make traversing the vast world pleasant + Online multiplayer is still active - Tedious fetch quests (wiki/guide recommended) - Soundtrack isn't consistently good

See my posts about Xenoblade Chronicles X

Honorable mention: Ruiner (PS4 & Switch, also available on PC, Xbox One)

I'm in love with this game. I've played it on 4 platforms already and I'm waiting for my Switch physical copy. Ruiner was in my top 3 games last year so I'll just give it a honorable mention now.

+ Amazing world-building and atmosphere + Great soundtrack + Fast-paced action gameplay that stays fun even after multiple playthroughs - Some glitches in PS4 version, Switch version aiming doesn't feel as accurate as on other platforms

See my posts about Ruiner

Honorable mention: Death Coming (PC, also available on PS4, Switch, mobile)

Kind of like a point and click isometric Hitman game. Humorous game where you need to figure out how to reap as many souls as possible, causing fatal accidents with the environments.

+ Fun assassination gameplay with well-designed, wildly imaginative levels + Charming graphics and presentation + Hilarious ways to kill targets - More levels would have been welcome 

Nominees for my personal Game of the Year 2020

Only games I have finished in 2020 have been included.

A Plague Tale: Innocence (PC)  ACA NeoGeo: Metal Slug X (PC)  Bayonetta (PC)  Blast Corps (N64)  Carrion (PC)  Cat Quest (Switch)  Costume Quest + Grubbins on Ice DLC (PC)  Death Coming (PC)  Doki Doki Literature Club (PC)  Etrian Mystery Dungeon (3DS)  Final Fantasy XV + DLC episodes (PC)  Gears 5 (PC)  Gris (PC)  Helltaker (PC)  Her Story (PC)  Hypnospace Outlaw (PC)  Katana Zero (PC)  Kirby: Triple Deluxe (3DS)  Lonely Mountains: Downhill (PC)  Mario Kart 8 (Wii U)  Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite (PC)  Mr. DRILLER DrillLand (Switch)  My Nintendo Picross: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (3DS)  Observation (PC)  Octopath Traveler (Switch)  Paper Mario: The Origami King (Switch)  Pikmin 3 (Wii U)  PictoQuest: The Cursed Grids (Switch)  Pikuniku (PC)  Pokémon Shield (Switch)  Portal 2 (PC)  Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology (3DS)  Rainy Season (PC)  Ruiner (PS4)  Ruiner (Switch)  Star Fox 64 3D (3DS)  Stella Glow (3DS)  Streets of Rage 4 (PC)  Super Bomberman R (Switch)  Super Mario 64 (N64)  Super Mario 64 (Switch)  Super Mario Sunshine (Switch)  Tacoma (PC)  Tetris Effect: Connected (PC)  The Gardens Between (PC)  The Messenger (PC)  The Touryst (PC)  Thimbleweed Park (PC)  Watch_Dogs 2 (PC)  Wilmot's Warehouse (PC)  Xenoblade Chronicles X (Wii U)  Yakuza Kiwami (PC)  Yakuza Kiwami 2 (PC) 

Wishing you all a safe journey to a brave new year 2021! May it be blessed with plenty of quality gaming.