#idk shadowbringers just special to me i guess

[lord-pigeon]

To this day I don't think any expansion really can match the hype of Shadowbringer's finale

[motheatenscarf]

Really enjoyed the moment where you get to fight as Thancred, it was up there with fighting as Hien/Lyse/Yugiri in terms of how tense it felt and how desperately you had to hold that line.

Maybe I'm just melee/tank trash tho, I don't fucking understand mages and healing in this game yet, so having to fight as Alphy and Y'shtola was just giving me Arishok war flashbacks....

Anyway, that was a good moment, would have been nice to see him at all try to convince this poor little girl that he DOESN'T hate her or resent her or think she's weak or useless beforehand, but.

Well, I guess he really is her father-figure, he's as emotionally unavailable as the real thing.

Minfilia becoming Ryne and reconciling with Thancred is on paper a good moment. It... would have been nice to have seen this super special deep bond he had with original Minfilia back when they had the chance in ARR but the writing and voice acting were so weak we never got the chance. I guess you had to play 1.0 to unlock that catharsis.

I think they salvaged it as much as they could here in Shadowbringers by at least making it a bit clearer through having Thancred fucking open up a little bit that yeah, he maybe he did keep the original Minfilia at arms' length because of the guilt he felt for her father's death. What he's feeling now is regret for not being there for her more when he had the chance, not just, "I failed to protect her."

The two Minfilias conversing and then everyone talking about how much the originals "kindness and compassion and unyielding character" will live on through the chance she gave Ryne. And I'm like... are you sure we mean the same Minfilia?

Idk, I know there is a tendency for a narrative to place dead characters upon a sacred altar once they die. I've seen it happen with Aerith and Haurchefant, but the difference here is those characters had... fucking personalities that you missed when they were gone, lol. And even then, those serene angelic qualities attributed to Aerith and Haurchefant are actually really depressing because those are two characters who were so fun and vibrant and full of vim and fire. That was the point of them. That's why their loss hurts so much. Minfilia was just... kinda there. Then she wasn't. Her role in the Scions was so fucking expendable that they literally didn't bother to replace her once she died because yeah, we don't... need a useless figurehead. She didn't even have enough moral conviction on her own to refuse blood money from the monetarists in Ul'dah without her mommy around.

This new little girl was born into a dying world with an impossible burden placed on her shoulders and given no chance at a life, a name, or an identity of her own. She was held to impossible standards despite having not one moment of agency and bore the burden of Thancred's anguish and ire directed at her every day for three solid fucking years, hating herself for not being the real savior these people wanted and needed to deliver them from Doom. She was willing to die just to secure a shortcut to access the strength and power she needed to be of any use to people because the world was running out of time.

You got a way better daughter out of this deal, Thancred. I'm glad he finally accept that she's here to stay and that she's a good kid in her own right and she needs him to be the adult here and be there for her. Now hug this girl and tell her you're proud of her or I'll fucking kill you myself.

[semi-imaginary-place]

ffxiv on to shadowbringers full spoilers

i joined ffxiv right around 5.2-5.3 so i actually got super spoiled on shb

really they're putting the gate at the lake and not in the special crystal tower zone where the raids were.

... are those unique animations? that wasn't the default run. wow you can really see how the funding has improved since arr.

oof that bloom effect my eyes are suffering for making a pale ass character dressed in white. the one time in videogaming history where the bloom is narratively appropriate.

so ardbert in shadow. uh i don't recognize the narrator voice. oh hey minfilia haven't seen you in forever. so why did player character get whole body teleported when all the other scions left their bodies behind. (or is the pc secretly collapsed on the source)

now i could go for the map marker.... ooooor i could run around the entire map. boooo the devs thought ahead and blocked me off.

they killed off the brenon clone immediately D:

i can't tell if it's lore significant or not but the crystal exarch's arm doesn't have the lighting effects crystal usually has. like most of the crystal in ffxiv is kinda glowy and a little translucent but the arm is matte like paint. maybe it's a graphics limitation thing idk.

is it me or does the crystal tower look different. i don't remember those basalt looking formations. there's fluffy amaljaa! was initially confused because underground is the WORST place for an herbarium but if the problem is too much light i guess it makes sense. having giant grates in the library seems like a bad idea. hmm the naming scheme seems sharlayan. why is the marketplace called universal music? its a good thing i know most of these terms from other ff games and shab spoilers otherwise if you threw like 7 new race names at me i'd cry. once again the lack of guard rails is concerning. why are the hortorium and sweetsieve no next to each other. a lot of wroght iron and glass.. art noveau? is this entire city built over silvertear lake?

great now the writers have a precedent for timetravel

exarch described feo ul as "kanojo"

ghostbert angst. i joke but i do find this sort of stuff compelling. oh that clears it up, so his title changed. because i just heard that the warriors of light killed the shadowkeeper and caused the Flood but arbert was also going around calling himself the warrior of darkness, and i didn't connect it until now but it was all them. hey this is that melody that plays whenever the pc does something heroic, played prominently in the ultima and around the end of 2.0 but here its real slow and sad.

did the faeries take over ishgard???? especially curious is the faeries are the equivalent to the sylphs. and rak'tika is the shroud equivalent. limsa was gentrified lol. what im curious about is the habitable part of novrant is shown as both an oval and a circle and i don't know which map is right.

exploring lakeland and uh is that a giant lake monster? yeh that's a giatn lake monster. why's there a road at the bottom of the lake. you guys have extremely nice outdoor furniture. like damn going to spend the budget on nice furniture instead of having a roof.

Crystarium architecturally reminds me of my highschool pet worldbuilding project about a magic crystal floating city filled with telepathic shapeshifting immortals.

shb could have been its own game. Post apocalyptic fantasy about civilization on the brink feels like a pretty standard premises minus the light and dark swap. Writers went wild with the worldbuilding. So glad i watched ffxii and xenoblade so i know what a hume is

Theres also how the crystarium is built over silvertear lake the center of all magic. Although middy isnt on the first, then why are there dragons dragonish things around. I wonder how much shared history there is between the source and the first since right around silvertear actually is the elezen homeland and thats where the elf bandits on the first are hanging out trying to reclaim their homeland.

[bi-badass-geek]

Blizzcon 2019

Lmao fellas everyone was jokin how shit its gonna be and guess what ... we weren’t wrong tho at least we got pc titles not mobile like late april fools last year. Can’t make long post at the moment so it’s gonna be pretty brief.

They started with ‘apology’ i heard only piece of it and all i got from it was we will do better in the future let’s all move on nothin bout now.

First title we got on screen was “Diablo IV” which had kinda shitty graphic (like from mobile) if ya ask me but i hope its cause yt and other things that happens while streaming stuff. 5 class in total tho they talked bout 3 at the moment : Barbarian, Sorc and Druid.

 After opening they talked more bout D4 from which we found out : Sorcerer is elemental carnage intarnation , you can custom features of characters like scars hair and other details like this. Talents goin back , runes and skills gonna have tree system or somethin along that way ( they only showed talents tree looked fun if ya ask me), Sets are still game but won’t dominate the game, more push for legendaries we gonna see a lot of them. Open world no more do act this act that now (doesn’t feel Diablo much that way but *shrugs*). 16 time size, social hub which people already complained bout feelsbadman, events in the world you can finish with others (mmo feels much i’m right) and in some areas you can do pvp (kids gonna cry when they outplayed from lied party strategy i feel it already) mounts (horses was what they showed only so far the looks with armors and throphies at the side of it The Witcher 3 vibe much guys i wonder if that’s Roach). Bonus to previous feature combo dismount mounts (GW2 hmmm). They talked somethin bout fire places that inspired DS but not sure if it’s a thing in the actual game or was only concept. They were like let’s talk bout dungeons and hell then procided with showin us concept art only 22/20. Druid will have companions we saw 2 wolfs also can change into bear for example which was interestin.

After demons they went with ‘Blizzard Arcade’ but if its like special abonaments or just con thing i have no idea it was a mess tho ‘Starcraft II’ fans will be able to play vs AI agents, some commander comin back.

Second game they went for was HOTS from which we gonna get Deathwing (however you spell this pal) one of whihc everyone will get when its up and rollin, from now till 10th Nov. all heroes are free to play.

Third on plate was ‘Warcraft’ which i have next to 0 knowledge but from what i read its just old content that smells like other titles from miles away. ‘Warcraft Reforge’ beta open Thursday with virtual ticket. Said title is havin 25 anniversary also World 15th and since everyone likes vanilla actual quote mates they sellin ice cream vanilla there L.M.A.O., Classic will get update soon so tip finish quests if ya have any. New pet gonna be for sale next month all cash from it will go to 2 charities. 3 events cause anniversary whoever finish all will get obsidian pet or somethin like that. Sylv will clap Lich King if i’m correct and tear crown apart ( Go Queen!) preorder fever starts today and it’s literally Shadowbringers vibe from FFXIV or Shadowkeep from D2 *insert can i copy your homework meme* Name of the expansion is “Shadowlands” (so original) which gives new dungeons,raids also zones : Ardenweald,Maldraxxus, Bastion etc.

Forth nap material was “Hearthstone” aka new expansion bout dragons (which is cool still not gonna buy and play it) ‘Descent of Dragons’ on launch day ya get 5 free cards from set. Sept out you can pre purchase today yay! New mode ‘’Battle...’’ 8 players that works together gettin creatures till one remains.  12 Sept-beta (even tho we got Nov already i don’t get it so don’t ask me)

The last but not least i gonna be as bold as i can and say its game after D4 gaymers were waitin for aka “Overwatch 2” weirdly enough O1 will have updates with new maps etc so idk why anyone would feel the need to buy 2 really but whatever floats your boat. Story missions and hero missions which first is like campain and second adventure from Diablo (what they said) , you will be able to lvl up characters (actually showed that on Tracer) Custom skills will guess its either looks or in single cause i only glared at this part (feelsbad bein busy when you want to watch shit), PvE aspect, PvP new maps, New looks (mostly just hair and armor parts if ya ask me) New heroes we saw peak from ‘good guys’ side Soju is the name or somethin like that and works like some kind of soldier at least that was speculations. At the booth ya can play on Torano already. Nice touch skins etc will be transfered from O1 to O2 so yall gamble addicts can chill at start.