#i think ive watched up to game 4

[mcrizzystardust]

me talking about fnaf: foxys so sweet. hes just babygirl, id be his friend. hes so misunderstood

me playing fnaf: NO NO NO. DO NOT LEAVE YOUR COVE. FUCK OFF NO NO NO NO. STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP

[b4kuch1n]

in the video game pikmin four by nintenbo your player character has an option in ur menu that is "rewind time". positing this as a power that you have that nobody else seems to. at least to ur perception. this power is commonly how u achieve dandori beast status by getting practice in thru repeating dungeons. the other dandori supercharged character in the game is louie. he knows how to cook alien animals perfectly seemingly through repeated experiment. but he has not wiped out any species in a certain are yet . do you see my vision

[crescentfool]

recently, i’ve been thinking about what a 100% social link/confidant run is like from the perspective of the persona protagonists, rather than the player. i’ve always been a sucker for thinking about the type of narrative created by a person’s gameplay choices (it can be so fun and deep) so!! i wrote this analysis / musing.

some notes before we start: this was written with the lens of persona 3 being the most recent game i played- but the concepts are applicable to the p4/p5 protagonists as well! no spoilers for any of the games are mentioned; this is moreso a general discussion of ludonarrative dissonance with the game mechanics and narrative and how it makes for fun angst (ft. personal interpretation).

(more under the cut!)

the framework: game mechanics

in all of the games, the social link system’s existence coincides with the social stats mechanic. certain social links require a specific set of stats in order to initiate it, or surpass a certain rank. each game has around 20 of these- each of which represent the major arcana (+ some bonuses, e.g. aeon / jester / faith / councilor).

for any players going for a 100% social link run, this basically requires each social stat to be maxed out. anyone who’s followed a guide for a 100% run would know that the beginning of the game tends to be very “strict” with how time can be used, most of which involves getting the stats raised  as soon as possible.

outside of characterization and worldbuilding, completing social links are incentivized for a variety of gameplay reasons. so how could this completionist play style affect the protagonists?

prioritizing social stats over everything else: a general view

regardless of which protagonist you want to put under a petri dish, with a 100% run, you’re essentially asking the protagonist to form amicable bonds with 20 or so people, give or take. granted, not everyone becomes adjoined to the hip to the protagonist.

personally, i feel that forming 20 different bonds over the course of a year would be rather strenuous. during these 100% runs, the protagonists may feel that they’re spreading themselves thin trying to dedicate their resources to multiple different people as well as raising their “social stats.” i find the implications that this has on said bonds is so, utterly fascinating.

while this isn’t reflected in the game and would be better represented within a fic, i find it difficult to believe that this type of behavior doesn’t have any ramifications on the quality of the protagonist’s closer relationships (or their self-image, for that matter).

just… imagine calling one of your close friends but then they consistently give responses along the lines of “lmao sorry i’m busy doing other things,” and they rarely make the time of day for you. how would you feel? gameplay-wise, this deterioration of the relationship is best represented in persona 3 with social links reversing if you haven’t spent time with them in awhile.

part of my fascination with this concept is influenced by my own experiences. trying to maintain so many relationships can be difficult to keep up with and it quickly gets overwhelming (see dunbar’s number for more information). jumping between so many people also makes it difficult to focus on a few relationships meaningfully- meaning that relationships may be limited to being simple pleasantries. even then, ‘successfully’ keeping every relationship satisfying comes at the cost of being unable to pursue your own development and interests.

overall, i think that trying to do so many things ends up lowering the quality of the relationship(s) involved, especially when you also consider the fatigue from going to school as well as fighting shadows.

playing the therapist friend / listening role: a general view

another aspect of the 100% run that i think about is how the protagonists rarely open up to other people. a good chunk of SLs follow a storyline of the protagonist acting as a therapist friend/helping the other person through one central issue. some SLs are an exception to this and have a more casual “we’re just hanging out vibe.”

basically, SLs tend to be weighted toward the other character’s growth, moreso than the protagonist’s (which is handled by the main story). that said, the idea of mostly playing a listening role across most of your relationships and not having many that you feel comfortable to speak freely about your own stuff… feels really unbalanced and unhealthy?

i do think that part of the lack of “input” can be attributed to the silent-protagonist approach taken in the games (which is a whole ‘nother topic). but!! i find that each protagonist’s options, while limited, are fun to think about! some of the traits and interpretations i’ve seen for the differing protags, to name a few, include:

being afraid to open up / get attached and keeping people at arm’s distance as a result

needing to be around other people, even if it’s just listening them, to distract from their own struggles / pretend nothing’s wrong with them

enjoying helping others, being a good and careful listener who can provide an appropriate and helpful response

the willingness to prioritize others over themselves; a lack of self-preservation

compulsive people pleasing

at its worst, the lack of “protagonist talking” or equal reciprocation in response could be misinterpreted by the other person as disinterest (like they’re talking to a wall). alternatively- the lack of “personal tidbits” could be taken as, “you don’t trust me enough to be able to open up, huh.” and i just think that seeing this in a fic would be the biggest shitshow ever (and i would read that).

concluding thoughts:

overall, i feel that the protagonists taking a predominantly listening approach to several relationships at once can lead to compassion fatigue and general burnout. the protagonists are rarely at the receiving end of being listened to and/or having their issues worked through… and that’s kind of sad?

while the 100% social link run can provide great power to any persona fusions (and other cool battle abilities + hijinks)... i ultimately think that there’d be a lot of mental strain that would make achieving this much more difficult when you take a narrative-emphasized approach.

i do realize that it is possible to see the general vibe of this post as “100% social link is bad,” but like… there’s something i find really appealing about the messiness of attempting to manage so many relations at once- only to fall short in several of them and attempting to salvage the last bits of their sanity. when you think about the complications of the 100% SL run from the shoes of the protagonist… yeah!! that’s the good shit!

anyways! if anyone knows of any fics with this kinda vibe for the p3/4/5 protags… feel free to drop it in my askbox… i like them all VERY much :3c… and if this raised any food for thought- i’d be equally honored! let the protags go through shit i wanna see their emotions and coping mechanisms damn it! 👏

[lecliss]

I want to watch Naruto but I don't want to start from the beginning.

[sea-buns]

the things my mind will do to NOT have to face the consequences of a traumatic story arc

"oh so and so died last week? and the new episode is tonight? hmm sounds like it'll be a good one...

.....y'know i've really been meaning to get into [absolute rabbit hole of a fandom]"

[haeroniel-doliet]

God that mood where you both need to do stuff and want to do stuff but both needs are vague and have too many options so you just. Do nothing you want or need to do and realize all the time you had is disappearing. A good time!!!

[southislandwren]

ive gone back into full dorm mode. i need ice for my water bottle but i cant leave my room because i might encounter someone which is the worst possible scenario in the world

[sc3n3kitt3h]

SOON!!!!!!!

[daisy-mae]

update

hi guys finally finished reading the thh manga and it's giving me more inspo, i do have the first comic draft done but also i feel a little rushed lol, so i might restart what i have posted so far (3 panels lmao) and take a bit more inspo from the mangas i think? idk. New semester started and i feel really burnt out already lol, so things will probably be slow to post

[tasmanianstripes]

Amazing how it took the developers of Poppy Playtime two whole chapters to finally make a bare minimum of a functional game

[madzieloss]

you know the worst thing about getting into American football (as a woman)? thinking I can talk to my male coworkers about it. what a fool I am

[skswriting]

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[master-gatherer]

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[astranauticus]

gonna start a new tag 'half baked goods' for some of my story ideas that like. idk if i will ever execute but SOUND DAMN COOL in my head and im worried i'll forget about

anyway may i present: story idea about a crime story club/interest group that gathers to discuss like detective novels and the occasional true crime case from their region (and maybe through these discussions the audience gets a feel of how they think, e.g. one of them's the perfect logician type, one really love criminal psychology and analysing suspects motives, one is a really good communicator and is more into the storytelling part of crime stories/reporting, etc.) until one of them gets like, Actually Murdered and the rest of the group is called to assist in the investigation by police as the victims closest friends (as in, provide statements and eyewitness reports or whatever), and of course as crime nerds all of them start their own little investigations into Who Killed Their Friend, each going off in their own wildly different directions based on their own personal strengths (investigating the crime scene for physical evidence, interviewing the victims family/coworkers for a possible motive, bribing/manipulating the police investigators into revealing leads from the official investigation, etc) and as the story and their little investigations go on it gets revealed that the killer is very very likely another member of the club, so their investigations also become this mind game where they have to exchange information with each other to proceed but they're also not sure who to trust because they dont want to reveal to the killer that they're on their tracks

and to the audience it slowly becomes clear that each of them are in this little club because of/to escape from something from the rest of their lives (like, one of them is definitely neurodivergent and this is their special interest/hyperfixation) (but also for some of them its absolutely just shit life syndrome) and this investigation is slowly forcing them to confront that as the people around them realise how it's consuming their lives (and in the end the killer's motive is also tied to this Thing that they're avoiding/escaping from, like running away has become so important to them that they're willing to do anything including commit actual murder)

and maybe the final part of the story can be this knives out-esque perspective shift (spoilers for knives out btw) where like, at least one member of the club has actually figured out who the killer is and we're following the killer's pov as they try to cover their tracks and clear their own suspicion and even like, converting other members of the club to their side and helping to vouch for them and stuff (also if you go back and look at this character's 'investigation' from the earlier part of the story its actually reframed as them trying to conceal evidence/gaslight witnesses/throw the other members off the right track)

(also the police suck in this because of course they suck. like the police investigators are super slow and inefficient and susceptible to bribery. like partly to make the members' investigations more interesting but also just partly because that feels like it would make sense for the tone of this story KJDSHFKDSJHFKJSD)

[chrliebot]

i think i will start doing minecraft again

[spyder-junkie]

EARTH 42 MILES MORALES X READER Part 3

part 1 part 2 part 3 part 4

this one was short because we’re bringing mama Rio in the next part

The next thing you notice about miles is he is NOTT a good texter.

nonetheless, you work with him, trying your best to pick a day where your schedules to meet up.

“Dont worry about it, mami. Just be cute when I get there.” Miles’ voice rings out through the phone as you look for an outfit. You can hear the clicking of his game controller through the phone.

Its 12:00pm right now, Miles was coming to you meet you at 1:30

“Mkay.” You mumbled, putting different shirts up to your chest in the mirror.

“Ill see you when you get here.” You say, looking at the phone.

“nos vemos pronto, hermosa.” He says, hanging up the phone.

you take extra care while getting ready. You were not quite sure if this was a date, but spending the day with Miles still had your stomach in a twist.

You close the clasp on your necklace just as your phone dings with a text from miles.

You grab your bag, jogging through your apartment to the front door.

Miles bares a little smile when your eyes meet his.

“You look nice, ma” He says, stepping aside so you can lock the door behind yourself.

“Youre not too bad yourself.” You smile,

Miles leads you away from your apartment building and down the block. Its mildly warm outside, and the sun is out.

As you walk to begin to notice Miles’ hand continuously brushing yours. Then slowly his fingers crawl into your palm until your hands are clasped together.

You look over at miles, who is exaggeratedly looking at the sky and pretending to whistle with a goofy smile.

You giggle, holding his hand tightly.

You didnt even know Miles had a sense of humor.

“You feelin’ icecream?” He asks suddenly, pointing to an icecream spot on the strip.

“Always.” You reply, letting him lead you inside.

The place is cute, summer beach themed, and empty momentarily.

Miles smirks down at you as you browse all the flavors in the display case.

“What are you gonna get?” You ask, not looking away from the glass.

“Vanilla.” Miles’ answer is quick.

“What? Thats so borninggg.” You say.

“I havent really gotten into crazy flavors.” He shrugs.

You shake your head.

“Pick a flavor for me then.”

You look back at him, then at the case again.

You choose brownie for yourself, and cookies and cream for Miles.

And as soon as the woman behind the counter hands you the cones, Miles is at the counter, paying for the both of you before you can protest.

The two of you find a bench down the block to sit at afterwards, enjoying your ice creams peacefully.

“You like it?” You ask, gesturing to his icecream.

“Mhm, its real sweet.” He says

“Wanna try?” He extends his cone towards you.

You shyly take a lick from his ice cream, savoring the flavor thoughtfully.

“Its good.” You smile.

“Wanna try mine?” Miles doesn’t think too hard about it, pulling in a bit of yours with his lips.

His face scrunchs up for a moment.

“Yours is MAD sweet.” He says.

“You dont like sweet things?” You ask, turning to face him on the bench.

“I like you.” He says suddenly.

“But nah, im not huge on sweets.” He goes back to eating his ice cream

The two of you go to a park afterwards, spending the day outside.

Youre still there just as the sun begins to set.

“Its gonna be dark soon.” You say, staring up at the sky with your head in Miles’s lap. He was seated upright on the grass, you laid against him.

“Imma walk you home, ma.” Miles says, looking down at you, while you watch the sky.

“Gonna make sure there arent any more men following me?” You joke.

“That shit wont happen again, not while Ive got you.”

And he means it.

He keeps his hand in yours on the walk home, rubbing the back of your hand with his thumb.

When the two of you reach your door, hes giving you a pretty smile.

“Be careful, okay?” Miles’ eyes widen as you press a small kiss to his cheek.

“Im always careful.” He says, pressing his hand to his cheek

you give him a flat stare.

“Aight aight, not always. Mi mal, hermosa.”

You shake your head, wishing him goodbye with a warm smile.

tags: @kezibear @urmotherswhor3 @ladylovegood-69 @thetoetickler @cumbermovels @cozmicwonder @yams-ley @sh-tposter2021 @vampjacinda @roadkillmeal @animechick555 @the-smut-plug @iluvdi0r @stevenknightmarc @yoashh @kitsunna @caffeine-mess @arachnenotes @erensbbg @nightshxdex @el-chiste @3alvatore @sh-tposter2021 @miatjie @agstuffsworld @ella34435 @iluvdi0r @pulling-out-my-eyes @vakiui @bigpepperpicker @swaggybae @tsukisaiki @osebb