#if someone makes a bad product on purpose and you buy it its on you

[appri-dot]

I will watch 100 Garten of Banban before I let Rainbowfriends take over my YouTube rec page‼‼💥

[leog4u]

Game Design and Porn Pt. 1

or, How To Fuck Up The Best Intrinsic Reward Ever

Hi, I'm Leo G, veteran pervert. One time while chatting in a server exclusively made of porn artists, I brought up the game design of a porn game I enjoyed. One of them laughed, saying "Who cares, it's just a porn game?" Being unwell, I never let this go. Since then, I have played many adult games and took each one as serious products made by professionals. Fast forward to today, and the demo for my porn game, Joker's Trip, is nearing completion. I also have some sci-fi erotica you should check out.

So you wanna make a porn game. You heard they make money, and hey what’s more fun than making a video game AND porn? But you don’t know where to begin! Well don’t worry, Leo’s got you covered. We’re gonna walk through the line of thinking you should have when designing your porn game. There's gonna be at least three parts to this, with part 1 focusing on how to reward your player.

Define "porn game" for me, Leo.

There are porn games, and then games with porn in them. A porn game is a game where you won’t last 5 minutes, where everything exists solely to meet and, subsequently, fuck. A game with porn in it is a game where everything exists for the purpose of the game, and also, you fuck. Fate Stay Night, for example, is a VN with a story that just so happens to have some CGs where the protagonist rails Saber, but is mainly about Shirou and the Holy Grail War. Much like how I would call Castlevania a game with horror in it, but not a horror game.

Porn games are a lot like horror games. They both get a bad rap for being cheap to make, appealing to base instincts, and generally being low quality. They're also both not actual genres of games, but genres of content. Think about it, if I asked you what a horror game is, you'd say a game that's scary. But what's the actual game part? The unfortunate answer would most likely be "walking sim," but there are a lot of examples that are FPSes, puzzles, driving sims, platformers, deck builders, the list goes on.

The most common genres of game I see for porn games these days are by far RPG Maker RPGs and VNs. I won’t be talking about VNs because they’re closer to writing than game design, which isn’t a flaw but a feature. What used to be everywhere, in days of old, were breakout games, where the more bricks and levels were cleared, the more of the sexy image would be revealed in the background. Other arcadey type deals like shoot ‘em ups and mahjong were also around, and had a similar “strip ‘em down until you have sex” gameplay loop.

Okay, so what’s an intrinsic reward?

There’s intrinsic rewards, and there're extrinsic rewards. Extrinsic rewards, generally, are the number go up rewards. Things that make your character stronger, or give you more resources to buy new gear or whatever. Intrinsic rewards in games can cover a large swathe of things. It can be the feeling of satisfaction of completing a puzzle, a piece of lore or world building, or a new dialogue option with a character you want to fuck.

I like fucking characters, are we talking about porn now?

Yes! I’m of the opinion that you literally can’t make a better intrinsic reward than pornography. On top of setting the tone for the entirety of the game., at its best it can add to a story, add to someone’s character development, or be a beautiful piece of art to look at. AND you can jack off to it! Unfortunately, that’s at its best. Let’s talk about how porn is delivered in a theoretical RPG porn game. (As a head’s up, there will be talk of “bad end” scenes, but this is under the assumption that the player is the one consenting.)

So you’re playing an RPG and get into a fight. Maybe you were underleveled or too cumbrained to remember to buy healing potions. Then your HP goes to zero, and instead of going back to the title screen, you’re getting fucked by orcs. That’s right, let’s talk about Game Over CGs.

You get to watch porn when you lose?

To someone making a porn game with a battle system, this delivery method makes sense. The characters in this world are driven primarily by lust, this is just the obvious conclusion. And it doesn’t even have to be non-consensual! Games like Future Fragments show that it can be presented as a sexy inconvenience rather than anything uncomfortable for the player or our hero. Game Over CGs even have the benefit of softening the blow of defeat, by giving the player a chance to reflect on their defeat and jerk off. Even better if losing a fight isn’t lost progress, but rather a bump in the road. However, there’s a problem here. The player is a dog, and we’re rewarding bad behavior.

The porn is an intrinsic reward, so why are we giving it to the player for losing? Incentivizing losing on purpose isn’t just bad game design, but a waste of time. And to that end, a lot of porn games try to give solutions to this. One being a kill button on the keyboard or a skill that instantly KOs our hero to get to the lose screen faster. What might seem like a convenience is really just expediting failure.

What it says is that the gameplay doesn’t actually matter. You’re just here for the porn, right? In that case there’s plenty of places I can go to see a chick with huge knockers get railed by an orc, with the added bonus of not having to play forgettable and mid turn based combat!

Another solution I’ve seen is the game outright telling you, “hey don’t bother killing yourself to see the porn. Once you beat the game all of the scenes you missed will be unlocked!” At first this seems like a reasonable way to go about it, but it comes with another problem: your game better be fucking good to make me play through the entire thing before getting to see cock. Like I said earlier, porn at its best can reveal things about the world and drive character development. I uh. Just beat the game. I don’t care anymore. Showing me a scene that’s taken out of context by a factor of 5 hours or more isn’t what I’d call great game design or story telling. It’s also too little, too late.

What if we made the porn actual rewards?

Now we’re getting somewhere! Let’s make the reward…a reward! What if, every time the player beats a level, we get some porn? If we tie the CG to beating the boss, we’ll be tying the reward to game progression. That’s good right? So now, on top of the extrinsic rewards you’d normally get for beating a boss (a lot of EXP, better gear, opened areas) we also get that sweet dopamine rush of pornography! So we’re good, right?

There’s 1142 words left in this post, so I’m assuming no.

Well. It’s a start. It has the problem of predictability. If not handled properly, it comes off as lazy. As a game designer, one of your goals is to not constantly remind your player that they’re playing a video game. Get through the level, get porn. It feels a little too “mouse in a maze looking for cheese” for my taste. And much like the game over method, if the actual game itself is mid, the player will start to question if the reward is worth it, and might be afflicted with the worst condition a player could receive: boredom.

Of course there are exceptions. In puzzle or arcade type games where you don’t get extrinsic rewards, giving the player porn as another form of reward per level or whatever is perfectly reasonable (though it does have the issue of being predictable.) This is a perfectly good way of doing it if your game is short, or if the game is, y’know, good and fun to play. Bad Color’s game, Heroine Conquest, is a level based puzzle game with porn as the reward, but only when you do good. Combining the actual challenge of mastering the game, with a genuinely unique game loop makes for a feeling of accomplishment when beating a level. Pair that up with a sex cutscene, and the dopamine rush will hit.

So! Let’s combine giving the player a power trip, with a less rigid structure for giving the player porn. Instead of tying the porn to purely progression gates, let’s tie it to the progression.

Plot milestones

In Third Crisis, sex scenes are peppered throughout the regular game’s plot, starting with some lesbian bondage before introducing the protagonist, who goes through a tutorial before having their own horny encounters. It’s not just given when you win or lose, but is a natural part of the game. Beating bosses, losing to enemies, and exploring dialogue options in sidequests all lead to unlocking new CGs.

Now what’s nice about that, is that the sex isn’t placed somewhere extremely predictable. It isn’t just a reward for beating The Boss Of Forest Zone, Now Go To Ice Zone And Beat The Ice Boss For More Cock. Because that’s the biggest issue of predictable rewards, you know you’re not getting anything until that checkpoint, which will make the player weigh whether or not it’s even worth continuing. This is fine, again, for an arcade type game, not an RPG or adventure game. By sprinkling sex throughout the plot itself, the player will not only want to progress, but their curiosity will have them wondering “what else is out there?”

Rewarding exploration

By putting sex scenes behind optional side quests or encounters, the dog that is the player will scour every single corner of the map, and leave no pixel unturned. Personally, that’s more exciting to me than what you’ll get in the main progression route. In Future Fragments the player can find their rival Faye in sexual situations if they explore the map enough. These are completely optional, and don’t give any direct rewards like more HP or an item, but they’re by far what motivates me to explore the maps as thoroughly as possible, more so than the plot macguffins the game is named after!

So now the player is excited. Sex can happen anywhere. Maybe that daunting off road path with stronger monsters isn’t just hiding a secret, but a sexy secret! They’ll be more likely to venture down those optional paths you painstakingly made.

If we’re using sex in game overs, boss fights, and just randos, why not put it everywhere?

So now I want to talk about the concept of a “sex stat”. It’s not a bad idea! Say, the higher the player’s sex stat is, the more opportunities you unlock for fucking. It could even be tied to the player character’s personality, and affect the story! Instead of using a sword and shield, they’ll end any conflict with sass and sex. They open their eyes to the horny world around them and stop being a hero, and instead become a succubus, and the ending is a massive cum filled orgy.

That sounds excessive

Yeah, it does, doesn’t it.

I’m not a fan of “corruption” systems in porn games. Corruption as a kink is totally fine, and having it be a part of the story lets you incorporate more sexuality into the plot. But as I alluded to, it snowballs pretty fast (and I’m not talking about spitting in someone’s mouth). It ends up being like a cheat code, where you’re bypassing parts of the game for no cost. It stops being a reward, it stops being unexpected, and it stops it from being sexy.

Wait, what? Stops being sexy? What’s not sexy about a succubus orgy?

Alright, listen, we gotta rein it in for a minute. This isn’t so much about game design as it is about writing erotica, but if you have a world where everyone’s fucking and sucking 24/7, there’s no contrast to make what would normally be a hot taboo a hot taboo. If everybody’s naked, nobody’s naked. The aforementioned snowball effect of a corruption system can be seen if you play literally any game that has one. It won’t take long to not have to engage with any combat or adventuring system if you can just press the “Submit to the big dick warlock” button and watch porn to progress.

Which, now that I said that, is exactly the problem. Imagine any other rpg you’ve ever played. Now imagine if every encounter and dialogue option had an option to just watch a short cutscene to skip the encounter. That would suck ass, right? Literally no difference here.

It would. Hey, I’m sort of lost now.

Don’t worry, we’re wrapping this up.

So what did we learn? We learned game over CGs have a critical design flaw that shouldn’t be relied on. We learned that predictable rewards can lead to boredom. We learned to keep sex as a reward and not devalue it.

To summarize, here’s a neat trick to know where to put your porn scenes.

”Would I put an Xbox Live achievement here?”

It’s that easy. “Lose to Goblins for the first time,” that’s an achievement. “Beat orc commander,” that’s an achievement. “Find Hubert the Magical Dickhead,” that’s an achievement. Using that as a guideline is foolproof. Almost.

This sounds like it’d take a lot of resources

It sure does! But don’t worry. I’ll cover that in the next post talking all about how to deal with the resource management of a porn game.

(Shoutout to Taylor, my guy for editing!)

[utilitycaster]

@notstinglesstoo replied to your post “The thing is, and I haven't gotten a chance to...”:

I saw someone not long ago say cr has always felt like a product to them vs D20 feeling organic and I protected my peace but I did want to ask them if they were brain dead

​Oh man I wanted to address this at length because I feel this. My posts have been centered, again, specifically on published journalists picking Daggerheart aprt critically and applauding themselves for doing so despite it being within a couple of hours of its release and therefore any analysis is necessarily going to be based on at best, a skim, when they just as frequently will claim D20 seasons/Kollok are flawless works of genius based on only a partial read, but man D20's got a fandom problem too. (and all of the following comes with the caveat of "I really enjoy D20, and Dropout, and while we're at it WBN and NADDPod which both are half D20 Intrepid Heroes cast, and think Brennan is a particularly brilliant GM, and also it's obvious that the D20 and CR casts are on great terms, and wish the fandom for D20 were more welcoming and enjoyable because I feel it wasn't like this when I first started watching, as a CR fan, in late 2019 and has since curdled into something really weird and bad.")

The first point is the obvious one: technically speaking these are both products. These are performers doing an art form; it is also a portion of how they make their money with which they can buy goods and services. Believing that art is inauthentic when the artist gets paid and acknowledges that is a thing that happens is a fucking libertarian position at best. Like cool, you think only people who are independently wealthy by other means can make art, because it's not real labor, my kid could paint that, etc etc.

The second point is also pretty obvious. I have pushed back pretty hard on the "uwu CR is just watching friends! it's like we're in their living room" mentality among the fandom, which has decreased, thankfully, but like...it did in fact start organically as a private home game, and they decided, when invited, to make it A Show For An Audience. D20 was created on purpose as a show for an audience. This doesn't make it bad or fake - reread the previous paragraph - but in terms of "this is an group of people who really played D&D in this world together even before the cameras were rolling," Critical Role literally is that, and D20 is not.

I think beyond that...my biggest issues with the D20 fandom are first, the level of discourse is abominable. The tag is almost always just shrieking praise and the most surface-level readings possible. I keep bringing up the "Capitalism is the BBEG" mug but it genuinely sums up so much of how I feel; people who want their existing beliefs fed to them as surface-level no-nuance takes. I mean capitalism is fucking terrible but I do not need every work I watch to have a character turn to the camera and say "capitalism is bad" to enjoy myself, and indeed it makes it harder due to the lack of subtlety and grace. For all D20 fans complain about how unhealthily parasocial CR fans can be (and some can be), I find that a lot of the most unhealthily parasocial "how dare they BETRAY my TRUST by having a ship I don't like or not speaking up about every single societal ill" ex-CR fans move over to D20 and then pull the exact same shit; it simply doesn't get called out. Every time D20 fans are like "we don't want to become the CR fandom" it's like "your toxic positivity and unhealthy parasocial behavior exceeds the HEIGHT of what I've seen in CR; the main difference is that CR started in 2015 when D&D was still shaking off the raging bigot dudebros and so in the early days it acquired more of those fans, whereas by the time D20 came around the landscape of who played D&D and watched Actual Play had shifted wildly, and you need to judge September 2018 D20 fans in parallel to September 2018 CR fans, not September 2015 CR fans."

I also feel, and I alluded to this in the post about journalism, and other people have said this better than I have, but the pedestal people have put D20 on does feel like a single...not even misstep, but just, difficult choice that doesn't capitulate to the loudest fans will bring a good chunk of that fandom crashing to the ground. And that includes the journalists. For all the fans of CR can still be obsessed with the cast to an unhealthy degree? The cast and company have put up pretty strong boundaries and have not budged. D20 hasn't, and I think the second they do - and I think it will be for their benefit as a company and a channel - a big chunk of their most vitriolic CR-hating portion of the fandom will viciously turn on them.

[otterlyfoolish]

No Smoking Indoors

(Shiba Togo x GN!Reader)

Warnings: Mentions of war, Possibly OOC, not edited

Tags: Small Age Gap, unrequited crush, its like really subtle though

Word Count: 3k

Summary:

Cafe Haru Haru has all sorts of people. Typically, you'd usually find people that's skilled in combat visiting the most for work. So it really shouldn't surprise Shiba to see a fellow war veteran there.

If you like Ao3 for reading fics more, here!

-----

Café Haru Haru is a café. Obvious, right?

You can buy coffee, you can get tea, you can get some sweet treats if the owner remembered to restock it for that day, otherwise you can settle for some sort of fruit juice she has in a little fridge under the counter. (Which is most of the time, since she tends to snack on her own products.)

From the decoration, you might think that its kind of like a bar, but there's no alcohol being served there - the wine glasses on the shelves are mostly for decoration. You can tell by the dust on the shelves - it might have been used to serve drinks once, but now it sits there solely to reflect the warm lighting and any sunlight it catches. It's probably for the best considering the main purpose of the business though.

It's not just a café, because if it was, it would be out of business extraordinarily fast. The main function is that it connects sorcerers to paying clients, and collects a fee. Typically it's yakuza looking for a little more firepower (sometimes literally,) or some blood thirsty fool that doesn't know any other way of life.

With a ring of the bell from the front of the store, it lets the owner know that someone's come in, whether it's a client looking for some protection, or a violent guard dog, she welcomes them in with a idle smile, hoping that its something more exciting this time.

"Excuse us!" The man yells out, already treating the place like a second home as he saunters in, the younger man next to him following closely as he gives him a blank stare.

"Ah, Shiba." She dejects with something of a scowl, leaning on the counter with a slump in her shoulders. "I'm busy right now, sit down and I'll get to you." She waves at him dismissively then shoots Chihiro a warmer greeting: "Hey, you look cool today as well, Chihiro!" To which she get a slow nod of confusion in response. Shiba glances between the two of them, the preferential treatment clear as day.

The two of them sit down at the stools, staying quiet as they glance over to Hinao explaining the details of a job to another customer - this was uncommon, they've never really been around seeing her handle her customers.

The customer has been served a cup of coffee (something Shiba and Chihiro had to always make themselves), and sat silently at the counter, reading over information Hinao had handed them. With a small thank you from them, Hinao nodded and then walked away, greeting Shiba now.

"So! What do you need?" She asks, leaving her customer to their own devices as she slides over to her regulars, hands flat on the table. "Need another job, Shiba? I got a couple, you might like." She says, "or just checking up on intel?"

"Just dropping by Tokyo." He answers simply, "but while I'm here, thought I'd also just ask you, how's it going on that front?"

"Bad." She sighs, looking out the window with a shoulders slumped. "I got nothing. Nada."

"Ah." He mouths back, while Chihiro lowers his gaze towards the counter, his face remaining as stoic as ever. Shiba had a feeling that the teen was pretty disappointed at the news though. "Well, let me see the job listings then. I'll check it out if it sounds promising."

"Sure, just wait 'till they're done." Hinao nods back at him, putting her hands into her coat pocket, using her head to motion towards the only other person in the room. "They've got the nice juicy ones right now. 'course, I've other ones if you're looking for something easier for a old man like you."

Shiba ignores that last jab. "Huh, really?" He utters back in response with a eyebrow raised - usually Hinao tried to pair up the difficulty to the person so her customers wouldn't be disappointed. If they've got the 'juicy' ones, that meant that they've got the high-risk, high-reward offers.

She nods back at Shiba, about to say something more before her other customer placed the papers down on the counter, waiting patiently for Hinao to speak to them again with their hands folded on the counter. Shiba glanced over again towards them as Hinao walked back over, discussing the details with the sorcerer.

"I'd like to take this one, please." They say holding one in particular. Their voice made Shiba's ears perk up.

"Okay, I'll give them a call, and we can arrange a meeting sometime." Hinao says, marking it down in a little notepad under the counter before grabbing the pile of job offers, sliding it over to Shiba. He didn't catch it, seemingly frozen as he looked across the room, leaving Chihiro to stop the pile of paper before it hit the floor.

"Thank you." They nodded back in response to Hinao who walked over to the rotary phone, humming absentmindedly as she rung the customer, one hand in her coat pocket.

"Mr Shiba," Chihiro starts out, trying to get his attention as Shiba still seemed to be frozen in his seat.

"Huh? Yeah, what's up, Chihiro?" He snapped out of it, glancing back at him as Chihiro fixed the pile of paper.

"The job listings you asked for." Chihiro answered simply, putting them in front of Shiba in a neat pile.

"Ah, thanks." He nodded, then turned his face back to the other side, looking at the only other customer again. Chihiro joined in, blinking at the two of them with a blank expression, but it was obvious he was wondering why Shiba seemed so interested in this other person. Slowly, he moved his hand to rest on the hilt of Enten, his eyes narrowing in anticipation, glancing over to Hinao, and made some mental calculations in his mind.

There didn't seem to be anything unusual about them - they seemed to be a pretty normal person overall, so Chihiro isn't sure what Shiba is picking up on. He's just trying to follow Shiba's lead. Then, there was finally movement.

The person from across the room pulled out a pack of cigarettes, pulling one out as they waited for Hinao to finish the deal for them. At the sight of them taking out the little box, she narrowed her them and shooed them out of her store, motioning towards the 'NO SMOKING' sign.

They nodded, then slowly made their way out. They seemed to have expected to be ushered out of the room. Choosing to wait outside as Hinao stayed on the phone, still discussing the details with her client.

Shiba's eyes followed them as they walked past him and Chihiro, still not even bothering to give either of them a single glance as they pulled the door open and walked out, standing outside for their smoke.

Chihiro blinked in confusion, then moved his hands back to his sides.

Shiba was quick to move after this. "Chihiro, you stay here and look through the pile, I'm going to have a smoke." He says, getting up from the stool, readjusting his shirt to look messier as he walked out.

"Mr Shiba, you ran out of cigarettes." Chihiro answers back, watching him walk out the door without another word from him. Chihiro blinked at the sight of him walking up to the stranger before turning to the pile of paper on the counter and reading through it carefully like he was told to.

-----

"There's a first for everything, huh?" A masculine voice calls out to you as you light your cigarette. You already knew who it was, so you didn't bother looking up as you took a deep breath as you let him continue speaking. "Never seen you in trouble before."

He looked at you as you slid the lighter back into your pockets, your eyes lazily turning to him as you began smoking, leaning against the cold walls of Cafe Haru Haru. You've aged, he could tell, but at the same time you looked younger - it's probably because of the fact the dark eye bags he's used to seeing on your skin wasn't so prominent anymore, unlike the past. You don't look so tired - maybe you've finally been getting some peace at night.

"Mr Shiba," you rolled his name off your tongue as you finally lifted your head up, blowing out a cloud of smoke as you spoke. You don't sound too different. "You still follow strangers into dark alleyways. Break that nasty habit, why don't you?"

He scoffed slightly at your answer, "we're not strangers, don't address me so formally."

"Apologies," you nodded back at him as you stood a little to the side, letting him stand next to you in the narrow space. He took you up on your unspoken offer, standing opposite you, back against the other wall of another building. "Oi. You brat," you verbally slap him as you let him settle near you.

"You're not old enough to start calling me a brat either!" He retorted back, but you could tell that he doesn't really care about the way you address him. He's playing around. "We're not in war times anymore either, so you're not my superior."

Shiba doesn't get angry easily, the both of you know that there's worse things to get riled up over compared to this. You somewhat miss the days where he would show you something that's a little more of a normal reaction.

"I wasn't done speaking," you say, pulling the cigarette out your mouth to speak again. He stayed quiet after that, listening to you. "You were worrying the young man by staring at me like that," you murmured out, gazing up at him with furrowed eyebrows. Your eyes seemed to catch something, as you briefly looked down. "Oh for goodness...! Fix your clothes." You grumbled, putting your cigarette back into your mouth to free up your hands. They smoothed out his collared shirt, and you pulled his suspenders back into place. "Why don't you notice these things, Shiba?"

Damn you and the eyes on the back of your head. But your observant nature was also what he was betting on. "Sorry."

He had noticed, but he knew that nothing would happen, so he didn't bother giving Chihiro any form of commutation regarding you. Though, he should have really at least gave him a wave or something. "I was just making sure that it really was you."

"Hm." You flicked your eyes up at him, not really buying his answer but chose not to linger long on it. "He looks like a young Rokuhira. But with less peach fuzz."

"...Yeah." Shiba nodded at your words, his shoulders slumping slightly at your words. His tone changed as he spoke, you noticed but couldn't place what he was feeling in response to your statement. "He's grown up a lot."

Your eyes flick over to the street and then back over to him. "Nice swords he's got." You state, taking another deep breath of your cigarette. Nonchalantly as ever, Shiba thinks, as you don't bother seeing if you're crossing boundaries you shouldn't be. "I take it that one of them is..." You say, not finishing on purpose, and Shiba is forced to mentally retrack his last statement.

"Yep." He nodded firmly at your unfinished question. If this was anyone else, he might have to reconsider sharing this bit of information, but he knew that you wouldn't do anything with it - it would just betray everything he knew about you.

You blinked at him slowly, already understanding any implications about that statement. "...I see."

A small moment of silence fell between the two of you - he rested his back against the cold walls of the building behind him as he gave you more space to stand with him. You stared at him, watching him watch you, the two of you aware of how close you were but didn't want to move further apart either.

"I saw the little poster about the Hishaku Ms Hinao put up." You stated, looking at him in the eyes, already knowing that he was the one that requested for the information. You've never asked Hinao about who put it up, but judging by what you know right now and the time frame that poster went up on the corkboard, you took a small leap of faith. He stared back into yours, occasionally glancing down to the cigarette in between your lips. "I'll let you know if I hear anything about them."

"...Thanks. That would help." He says, now looking off to the side before slowly guiding his eyes back to you, tracing your features as he tries to read your expression. He wouldn't be surprised if you were disappointed in him - he had a feeling that Kunishige would be.

You stare back at him, not caring about the way his eyes never really left your face. "Be careful," You say to him, locking back onto his pupils as you breath out another small puff of smoke. He stays silent, no random interjections. "I know you probably don't want to, but guiding or helping teenagers to commit violence doesn't settle nicely on your soul." As you spoke, your voice grew quieter. "Don't put more on your conscience if you can help it. The both of you."

...Huh. Shiba thought for sure you'd scold him for letting Chihiro do this. There was a part of him that followed you out of Cafe Haru Haru because he needed to consult to someone with a stronger moral compass. Kunishige wasn't there anymore, Azami could only assist him so much as part of the Kamunabi, you were the only one left.

"...Speaking from experience?" He asks you, though he really doesn't need to. He was there, from the start to the very end.

"I mean, that's all I have." You say back with a light voice that's meant to clear the tension, but he doesn't latch onto it. You take another inhale, shifting your eyes away, unable to bring yourself to look at what expression he had. "Sorry. I shouldn't lecture you."

"It's fine." Shiba says, but doesn't touch on it again as he shifts to another topic as you seem like you want to leave the conversation already. "How you've been doing recently?" He asks and the simple question already makes you want to let out a small groan.

"Eh." You start off, trying to think of a way to summarise your current everyday life in a way that won't concern him, but is enough to be honest at the same time. "Good enough. I'm currently teaching sorcery though."

"Huh?" He lets his mouth hang open at your words, blinking at you repeatedly. "Like, to a class? Or are you back in the Kamunabi?"

"Don't be ridiculous." You scoffed out at his guessing. "Just this kid that ran away from home." With a chuckle, you go on. "He's got potential, but he has a tendency to stick his nose into things he shouldn't be. He's like you when you were younger."

"I didn't cause that much trouble." He says, straight up denying your words.

"Only because you got away with it." You say, "The three of you would scuttle away to pull some shit off, and I would be forced to clean up any mess you made because I was in charge of your damn group." You let out a verbal exhale, thinking back on it. "If it wasn't for the fact it was war times, I wouldn't even be put in charge of you guys, y'know...? I'm not that much older than you."

He opens his mouth to say something in response to you, but when he receives a sharp glare in response, he closes it again, noticing something in the background. You turned around, looking at whatever he was looking at.

At the sound of a bell ringing behind you, you faced Hinao who had just exited from her store, holding a little bit of paper. The two of you instantly stop talking in anticipation of her speaking to either of you.

"Yo, you still- ah, there you are!" She said, walking up to you and extending the object in her hand to you, not caring that the two of you were just standing in the alleyway. "Here, they wanna meet up with you before working, but it seems like they're willing to hire you."

"Thank you, Ms Hinao." You said, taking it from her - you could tell from the lines that it was just torn out of her notepad. As you folded it neatly, you continued speaking, "I'll give you a cut of the pay if I get it, is that okay?"

"Eh?" She glanced over to Shiba who had forced a completely blank look on his face, not daring to show anything on his face to Hinao. He tried to look serious, but she thought that he just looked like a frog. "...Yeah, I mean, you always remember to pay up so I'm not too bothered." She agreed rather easily, before walking back into the café, realising that Shiba was talking to you, and there was just some sort of weird vibe coming from him. "See you."

The two of you watch Hinao go back into the café, a pensive thought on your face while Shiba continued to try to stay stoic. It doesn't really suit him, in your opinion.

"...Hm." You mumbled, sensing that she didn't want to hang around outside for too long for whatever reason, but once again, you don't care enough and just slip the paper into your pocket. "Well, I guess I should be going now."

His eyes darted over to you, "already?"

"Yeah?" You said, raising an eyebrow back at him. "I mean, I don't have a reason to stick around."

"You could talk to me." He said, "let's smoke together a little longer."

"Quit slacking," you shot down with a light laugh, rolling your eyes at him. "You haven't even been smoking while talking to me anyways."

He let out a small huff of annoyance, but you knew that he wasn't actually offended. "...Here, let's stay in contact." He says, pulling out his flip phone and handing it over to you.

"...Yeah, sure." You agree, putting your cigarette back in your mouth as you typed with both hands. When you handed his phone back over to you, he stuck his hand out, looking at you expectantly. You stared down at his palm, trying to think of what on Earth he wanted before taking the cigarette out of your mouth and putting it in between his fingers without another word.

He gave you a incredulous look, his pupils going back and forth from the object in his hands to your dumbfounded expression. "What?"

"...Huh?" You uttered back at him.

"I'm asking for your phone," he states, giving each word time to sink in, "so I can, you know, put my number in your contacts."

"...But I'm not going to contact you." You state, crossing your arms. He narrows his eyes at you, about to say more, but you chuckle at the expression on his face. "Goodbye, Shiba. Please give the young Rokuhira my sincerest condolences." you say back to him as you begin to walk away, joining the crowd. He watched your figure slowly disappear into the flock of people.

Shiba looked down at the object in his hands, it was still burning at the cherry. His eye flicked upwards again.

He pressed the cigarette to his lips, taking one last inhale of it as he looked at the crowd of people, trying to find you once more, before snuffing it out, walking back into Cafe Haru Haru.

[remisummerglow]

Shrink Toys Reviews

Sex toys > Fetishes > Macrophilia > Shrinking and Growing Tools > Marcus and Johnson’s FAST Shrinking Powder, 500 mg

Reviews

Carl M.

A must-try for macrophiles

177 of 181 users found this useful

Thanks to this I was able to make my dream come true. I tried it with my girlfriend and the next thing I knew I ended up half a cm tall in her hand. I was able to explore her body all night. A few tips: 1) Make sure you get the antidote as well when you buy this. It’s sold separately so unless you want to stay tiny… plan accordingly. A lot of people complain about this. First they shrink and then they have to stay tiny for the next couple of days until they can get a taste of the antidote. Well, that doesn’t sound that bad to me at all! But whatever you wish to do, if you are reading this, you have been warned.

2) Make sure you can really trust the person you’re going to use this with. Horror stories are surfacing about people shrinking and then terrible things happening to them. DON’T use this with someone you just met, no matter how hot that may sound. DON’T use this with prostitutes. DON’T use this without telling your girlfriend/wife/whatever.

3) It’s called FAST because it’s meant to be used fast. Its effect wears off a few seconds after it’s opened. It’s made that way for a reason, otherwise it could be used to shrink unwilling peeps by adding it to their food and drinks. So don’t hesitate and just swallow it as soon as you can once you take it out of the blister. It’s not cheap so you’ll want to make sure you don’t waste it.

4) There are currently four sizes available: M (turns you ten times smaller, so about 17/18 centimeters if you’re average), S (turns you twenty times smaller, so about 8/9 centimeters), XS (about three hundred times smaller, more or less half a centimeter) and XXS (almost two thousand times smaller, more or less a millimeter). Make sure you get the version you would enjoy best. Essentially S means human dildo, XXS microscopic fun. Personally I made sure to try them all and can’t wait for new sizes to be added.

Rating: 10 out of 10

Jack D.

Works as intended, tastes awful

74 of 92 users found this useful

I have no qualms about the functionality of this product. It works just as advertised. I only wish it didn’t taste so bitter. It left a horrible taste in my mouth which almost ruined my playtime with my wife and I was too small to do anything about it. Because of the peculiar way it has to be used, there is no way it can be added to some orange juice or soda. They could make some strawberry or chocolate flavored versions to fix this problem and I really hope they do.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Jenna M. Should be outlawed

44 of 74 users found this useful

I haven’t used this product and I don’t intend to. However, since it was made available to the public, all kinds of freaks and perverts have started using it to sneak into my house and spy on me. Just so you know, everyone I’ve caught has ended up underfoot. I have no reservations about stepping into perverts who have no respect for the privacy of women, and no one should!

Rating: 1 out of 10

Karen E.

Beware of compatibility!

61 of 65 users found this useful

I wish I never agreed to let my (now ex) husband use this thing. Apparently the growth formula in the antidote does not react with his body, so he stayed small. He’s here with me as I write this, sitting on the desk. Five millimeters tall. I’ve spoken with doctors all around the state and no one was able to ultimately find a cure for him. Just do not use this. It’s not worth the risk.

Rating: 1 out of 10

Olga S.

Not just for sexy purposes!

79 of 86 users found this useful

I’ve gotten a bottle of this and I’ve started using it to carry my boyfriend around. I can sneak him into a concert then hide in the bathroom and get him back to normal there. Of course, because of its high price, it doesn’t make sense to use it for a $10 movie ticket. Just do your math and make sure the money you’re saving is worth the effort. EDIT: Beware because it can backfire as businesses are starting to wisen up to its use. Airports are a no-go. They have updated their metal detectors so they can sense hidden tiny people. It made the news once when they found a woman who was carrying someone in her panties. Imagine her embarrassment! Trains and buses are still fair game as far as I know.

Rating: 9 out of 10

Sophia T.

SO much fun

110 of 142 users found this helpful

Rating: 10 out of 10

Ivan M.

“Cured” me of size-related fantasies

28 of 30 users found this helpful

I guess this is personal, as many people enjoyed it just fine. For me shrinking down wasn’t a very good experience. My girlfriend at the time was very careless and rough and ended up bruising me and leaving me in pain. When she finally returned me to normal, I ended up with a broken leg. We broke up soon after. I don’t fantasize anymore about that kind of thing. I guess it’s some kind of PTSD, but whenever I check some size related materialnow, I sorta panic. I guess my advice would be: use it if you really want but make sure you really know who you’re getting in bed with.

Rating: 4 out of 10

Laura D.

Me and my husband divorced over this

75 of 100 users found this helpful

Honestly I found this kind of annoying. My husband would come to me and ask me to be his giantess. OK, I said at first, why not. But then he started wanting to do it every night. Regular sex wasn’t on the menu anymore. Instead he would climb up my feet as I sat down on the bed or on the armchair. All he wanted was to be at my feet and sometimes other parts of me while shrunken. Naturally this was boring to me, so I began to object to it. Eventually I told him I didn’t want to do it anymore. It was about that time that he started seeing another woman, I think. Eventually he left with his new mistress. Our daughter is mad at him and says I should have crushed him back when I had the chance. She’s probably right…

Rating: 1 out of 10

Jill F.

Writing this review in place of my boyfriend

80 of 134 users found this helpful I’m writing this because he can’t. He is currently 1 mm tall and licking (I guess? I can barely see or feel him) my feet. Since he shrunk a week ago he hasn’t wanted to return to normal (I’ve given him the antidote a few times, but he refuses to take it). So for him, this thing would be a 10 out of 10. For me, it’s more of a 0 out of 10… I’m getting real bored of having a speck-sized boyfriend hanging out on my toes. To other girls who might be reading this: learn from my mistake and if your boyfriend is that much of a pervert, dump him on the spot and go look for a normal one instead. Rating: 5 out of 10

Katy S.

Ooops! I lost her

20 of 25 users found this useful

My girlfriend had always wanted to be tiny so I let her have her way. Problem is… I can’t find her anymore! I’m not sure where the hell she might be. I’ve searched anywhere, from my clothes to our bedroom. Be really careful what you do once you shrink someone down. I’m leaving a good rating anyway since this thing clearly works.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Susy R.

I squished my brother 99 of 127 users found this helpful

this is maybe too personal to share, but i wanted to warn other people of the dangers of using this “shrinking powder”. one day we couldn’t find my brother anymore. me and my mom thought he had run away from home and wanted tocall the police. that’s when we found the bottle of shrinking powder in his room. we started panicking and searched the whole house. we were very careful of where we were stepping and completely clueless as to why he would use such a thing. i only found out a few hours later, when i was about to do my laundry. he had climbed on the crotch of my dirty panties and was frolicking in there. it grossed me out at first, then i got so mad. he had shrunk himself so he could go into my bedroom and perv on me, his own sister. i could not think straight anymore and squished him on the spot. to this day i don’t really regret it but i never told mom the truth. she thinks he’s just missing and hopes maybe someday we’ll find him on the floor of the living room…

Rating: 3 out of 10

Jim D. Voyeur paradise

55 of 110 users found this helpful

I prepared for this in advance. I started searching for a house with a hot female roommate. I found the perfect apartment and signed a one-year deal. I’m really sorry about this, Sarah (not your real name, of course), but I’ve been spying on you for months now. I make myself small enough that I can sneak under a closed door, then make my way under your desk. That’s the perfect place to look at you undressing. Sometimes when you’re studying at your desk I stare at your beautiful feet and legs for hours. The shape of your toes, every wrinkle in your sole is forever burned into my mind now. You don’t know how many loads I’ve blown under your desk, Sarah… To you, I’m the rommate who’s always outside. I heard you talking on the phone, you’ve said it so many times. You love having me as a roommate since it means having the house for yourself most of the time. Ah, if only you knew the truth…

Rating: 10 out of 10

Mary N.

Great for busy moms

78 of 104 users found this helpful

I realize many people don’t endorse this use of the powder, but who cares. I think it works great for busy moms like me. I just make my kids small, then bring them to the office so I can keep an eye on them all of the time. My co-workers actually find them cute. It’s way cheaper than a nanny when you consider the money you save on food. And if needed, punishing them requires no effort. Just a tiny fickle with your finger and boom! They straighten out. They fear me like I’m some kind of god, which I appreciate. I don’t even need to raise my voice to make them afraid of me. Some people in my family have criticized me for the way I’m raising them. I told them I’m sure my kids will grow up (no pun intended) as better people than most of their peers, we’ll see who gets the last laugh.

Rating: 10 out of 10

[techmomma]

guys not every cult will tell you to go live in a secret compound in Guyana and drink kool aid

sometimes cults tell you to follow these specific tenets and Buy Their Products(tm) while a disgustingly swole guy tells you that if you do you can get your body back to its primal state untainted by sin 5g waves and modern conveniences all from the comfort of a multi-million dollar home and bucketfuls of steroids

i beg of you all please memorize the BITE model and what that usually looks like okay there’s so many red flags and sometimes they’re super quiet

sometimes cults are really, really fucking subtle. and have been getting more subtle and insidious over the decades, and sometimes aren’t even religious! sometimes friend groups start modelling themselves after this by accident! (and sometimes on purpose!) even if the group isn’t technically what we would define as a cult they can still fall prey to cult-y tendencies! if your yoga group is mistrustful of people outside of your yoga group THIS IS STILL A RED FLAG. some cults have, fortunately and unfortunately, figured out that they can make more money if their members don’t die. and some cults will inhabit this weird “sort of is sort of isn’t” grey area that is still unhealthy and dangerous

most of all if you can boil down what someone is saying to “modern world/people bad, us group good, follow my steps to not be bad anymore” then fucking run

[effectiveadvertisment]

EFFECTIVE ADVERTISEMENT

UNDERSTANDING THE BASICS

A sales page is a webpage designed to persuade people to make a purchase or take some other action that leads to conversion.

 Conversion refers to when a site visitor becomes a customer or lead.

A lead is a potential customer who has provided their contact information, such as an email address or phone number.

 Leads are important because they are a step before a purchase and require further information and clarification before making a decision.

A prospect or potential customer, once their contact details are obtained, becomes a lead. Prospects typically have more questions and need more information before they are ready to buy.

A sales page can be used to sell immediately or to encourage visitors to take less binding actions, such as filling out a questionnaire or leaving contact information.

In the past, sales pages were referred to as sales letters and were sent through direct mail. However, with the rise of the internet, direct mail has become less popular due to the ease and cost-effectiveness of email communication.

Direct marketing involves asking people to take immediate action, often through a call to action (CTA) at the end of an advertising letter.

 This allows for measurable advertising campaigns.

Today, sales pages are more commonly found on websites and can be measured similarly to direct mail. Tools like Google Analytics 

can track the number of visits and the percentage of people who take the desired action.

A landing page is the entry page on a website, often used for advertising campaigns. It does not have to be the homepage and can be

 specifically designed to convert visitors into leads or customers.

THE PURPOSE OF A SALES/LANDING PAGE

A landing page, as it receives paid visits, aims to convert visitors into leads or customers. Therefore, every sales page is also a landing page if it is used to sell something or persuade visitors to take a desired action.

Every sales page, landing page, and even a blog post has its own goal. The goal is to convert visitors into people who take action, whether it's becoming a lead, client, or making a purchase.

For example, a blog post may aim to attract visits but also have a secondary goal of converting visitors into leads or clients.

 This can be achieved through lead magnets, such as offering free content in exchange for contact information.

When planning an action, whether it's for people to become email subscribers, call, fill out a form, or make a direct purchase, each action requires different levels of commitment. The purchase decision requires the most persuasion, so it's important to offer low-risk options

 initially to build trust.

Offering testers or free samples can generate positive reactions as it allows potential customers to experience the product without risk or obligation. This is especially effective in Facebook marketing where people may not be ready to buy immediately.

When advertising on Google AdWords, it's easier to go for the sale right away as people actively searching for a solution are already aware of their problem and looking for the best option.

Ultimately, the success of conversions depends on the quality and source of website visits.

SALE

If the source of your website visits is bad and the quality of those visits is generally poor, even the best copy in the world won't lead to high conversions.

No matter what the initial action is, the ultimate goal is always to make a sale. That's the only way to make a profit.

An email subscriber or a lead that fills out a form means nothing until they actually make a purchase. Even someone who expresses interest over the phone hasn't bought anything yet.

All of these potential customers are worth nothing until they actually buy something.

The good news is that sales often happen in stages. It's rare for someone to buy on their first visit to your website, no matter how persuasive your page is. If you try to convert people on the first click, you'll end up losing a lot of money. Instead, the strategy is to cast a wide net and capture people at different stages of readiness to buy.

Some people will buy immediately, but others will need more time. You need to capture their attention and make them remember you. Then, you can sell to them later using data that requires less investment on their part.

Regardless, every page on your website needs to be convincing in order to convert the maximum number of visitors.

If people remember your name, brand, and offer, they will specifically seek you out when they're ready to buy.

WHAT IS COPY AND WHAT IS ITS PURPOSE?

Copy refers to the sales text on your sales or landing page, blog, and throughout your entire site. It's responsible for convincing potential customers to make a purchase. Copy is written by a professional called a Copywriter. Copywriting is a skill that involves using proven formulas and psychological principles to create effective sales text.

It's important to understand that copy is more important than design, logos, and everything else. The text is the essence of your message and where you tell your story.

The main reason why copy is important is because conversions depend on it the most.

A common mistake is to create a website first and then try to fit copy into the design. Instead, you should plan the sales content first, which will then guide the design to enhance the copy.

Before creating a website, it's important to conduct market research, create a marketing plan, and at least sketch out the copy for each page.

You have to pay for website visits because there are no free visits. Even organic visits through SEO-Google require investment in creating and marketing content. If you pay for visits through Facebook or AdWords, having good copy will increase your profit by reducing the number of clicks needed for a conversion.

Copy needs to address the reservations that customers have. Customers always have reasons not to buy, and it's the sales text's job to overcome those reservations and make them happy to buy.

Customers may openly express their reservations, but often they won't. People don't buy because they don't believe you understand their problem, they doubt your expertise, they don't trust you, they don't need the product right now, they're unsure if they'll like it, they can't afford it, or they don't think it will work for them. The sales text must address and overcome these reservations.

 STEPS TO OVERCOME THESE BLOCKERS

1. Get their attent

2. Identify their problem

3. Offer a solution

4. Present your credibility

5. Show the benefits

6. Give social proof

7. Make your offer

8. Give a guarantee

9.  Insert constraints

10.Call to action

11. Give a warning

12. Give a little reminder at the end

Each step adds emotion to the reader while addressing their fears. People are afraid of making the wrong decision, so they buy from those they trust, like, and know.

Motivation is emotional. People buy for emotional reasons and use logic to justify their purchase after the fact. Logic is the evidence that it's a good deal and the justifications they use to explain their purchase decision to others.

Emotions motivate people to take steps towards a purchase. There are two main motivators: the promise of profit or the fear of loss. Negative motivators are often stronger than positive ones. People are afraid of losing what they already have.

In addition to these basic motivators, there are 8 universal motivators that work beneath the surface. Every product or service should be positioned to provide one or more of these motivators: becoming rich, looking good, being healthy, being popular, having security, achieving inner peace, having free time, and having fun.

These are the ultimate desires that people have. Your product or service is just a method or a way for people to reach these desires. Your product is only the path to these desires. The question is how your product or service contributes to these basic human desires.

GET THEIR ATTENTION

The title, first sentence, and paragraph are the most important elements of a sales text. People have a short attention span, so you only have a few seconds to catch their attention and make them read the rest of the text or click on it.

The title should be interesting and hit their interests. Here are three proven good titles:

a) How to ________ (something)

People like to learn how to do something. The second part after "How to" should be a powerful benefit that they want to learn and find useful.

b) We reveal the secrets of _______ (something)

People like secrets that only insiders in a certain field know. They believe that there are certain secrets that other experts won't reveal. Knowledge is power, and those who have information that others don't feel powerful. It's exciting to discover little-known secrets.

c) Warning: Don't even think about _______ (something) until you _______ (something)

People are afraid of losing something. Enter what interests them. It can also be a warning not to do something until they do something else that you want them to do. For example, "Warning: Do not go on vacation until you read this story."

After the title, it's good to ask them a few questions to identify them better. People should think, "Yes, it's me, this one knows me, this is for me." It's good to phrase it with "If...then..." For example, "If you've been thinking about vacationing in Greece, then today you're really in luck. We have prepared for you a detailed guide to the 25 most beautiful destinations in Greece for a family vacation. If you are vacationing with children, this is perhaps the most useful thing to read before choosing the perfect destination in Greece."

IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM

From the start, tell the reader what it feels like to have the problem they have. Remind them of how they feel.

SHOW THE BENEFITS

People need to feel they are getting a good deal and have a reason to buy something. Now is the time to tell them how they will personally benefit from your product or service.

Instead of just stating the features of your product or service, focus on the benefits. For example, instead of saying "fast service," write "Our fast service means that in less than 48 hours, you will have a ready and accurate translation from German to English in front of you."

People care about what they get out of a product or service, not just about the product or service itself. It's crucial to tell your story well and present the product in a positive light.

GIVE SOCIAL PROOF

People look for signals that others like something and are satisfied. Include testimonials from satisfied customers to build trust. Testimonials should come from someone relevant to the topic or an authority in that field.

Having a FAQ section on your website can also be helpful, as it prompts others to ask questions. Displaying the number of likes on your Facebook page can also serve as social proof.

MAKE AN OFFER

Present the offer at the end to make them think they would be crazy to miss it. Make the offer valuable and include bonuses for ordering now. Increase the perception of the value of the offer by adding something free. An irresistible offer is the basis of a successful sale.

Make them an offer they can't refuse.

A good copy can be both shorter and longer. Generally, it is better to have a longer copy with more subheadings. However, it is important to run them in order through all the elements of the copy.

Let's take an example of selling a vacation package to Skiatos, Greece..

Firstly, you need to research the market, product, and clients. You should know who you are addressing and who the audience is.

Here is an example of an ad that would target people interested in Europe on Facebook. These people may have already been to Europe but are unsure about where to go specifically.

"10 Reasons Why We Vacation Exclusively on Skiatos"

For years, my family and I went on vacations to distant and exotic destinations, but we always returned disappointed. We realized that the rest of the world envies us because Greece is perhaps the most beautiful place for a summer vacation. However, with thousands of beautiful beaches, islands, and peninsulas, it is difficult to decide where to go.

We accidentally discovered our little paradise in Skiatos in 2015, and since then, we haven't gone anywhere else. However, most people can only go on vacation once, and if you want to relax, it's not worth the risk.

You want to be 100% sure that you're going to a place where you can completely relax and recharge your batteries without spending a fortune. That's why we fell in love with Amsterdam and why we recommend it to family and friends.

People who have been to Skiatos often ask us what is so special about it. Here are our answers, from the first reason to the tenth.

In these 10 reasons, all the elements I mentioned earlier are included. At the end, when the idea of the destination is sold, the exact agency that needs to be called is also promoted.

1. Attention: "10 Reasons Why We Have Been Vacationing Exclusively in Skiatos for Years"

2. Problem: How to choose among 1,000 places and find a convenient and awesome place.

3. Solution: Skiatos is the first solution, an ideal place for a family vacation. The best way to arrive and enjoy Siatos is through the XYZ agency because going alone can be challenging in terms of finding accommodation and expensive flights.

4. Credibility: We have traveled all over the world alone, but now we have been going to Skiatos for years through an agency because it's better.

5. Benefits: The 10 reasons include beaches, prices, people, music, food, accommodation, attractions, plane accessibility, socializing, and children. Each benefit is accompanied by a relevant image.

6. Evidence: Pictures of happy children and beautiful beaches serve as evidence. There are hundreds of satisfied families who have booked through an agency that specializes in Greece.

7. Offer: We recommend the agency that offers perfect, verified, and affordable accommodations. However, the seats fill up quickly, and only those who react fast and book on time are guaranteed a spot.

8. Guarantee: If you book on time, the price will not increase. The XYZ agency ensures that the price remains the same for its clients.

9. Limited Availability: There are only a limited number of seats at this price, and they are limited to specific dates.

10. Call to Action: You tell them what to do next. They can call a number, fill out a form to receive a special brochure and be notified if a place becomes available, or reserve a place now.

11. Warning: Despite the limited availability, Skiatos is still an undiscovered treasure with very few tourists. It's uncertain how long it will remain such a good deal. Missing this vacation might mean waiting for a different opportunity next year.

12. Reminder: Call once more and reserve your place for X%. You can also provide a link to view the  most beautiful beaches of Skiatos or remind them of other bonuses included in the arrangement/price. This is where the P.S. comes in handy, as it is one of the most read elements. And that's the end.

The advantage of this type of ad is that it appears like a blog post but functions as a sales page. That's why titles like "Top 10" rank better than product pages because people want choices and to see more options.

That's why you shouldn't include the price and similar details at the beginning of the offer. It turns people off and raises their guard. Instead, the price and final offer should only appear at the end of the text, after using all the other sales elements.

Now that you have written the copy, the next question is how do you determine if the copy is good or not? What defines a good conversion?

The answer to that question is relative. A good conversion is one that brings you a profit that outweighs the cost of the visits. It means getting enough requests, sales, and subscribers to grow your business.

Once you start making sales and seeing positive results from SEO, content marketing, Facebook ads, and AdWords, then your copy is doing its job.

However, it doesn't stop there. You need to continuously fix, improve, and test other elements. This process is called Conversion Rate Optimization. It involves optimizing the copy, funnel, advertising content, targeting, and headlines to achieve a cheaper click and a better Click Through Rate (CTR).

The percentage of conversion varies in different markets. It is often said that a conversion rate of 2% is good, especially for direct mail offers. But how realistic is that?

Well, it depends on the quality of the visits. How well you warm them up and the kind of offer you have. Even the best copy in the world cannot compensate for a bad offer. So, it is crucial to have a good deal or offer in the first place.

If you offer something for free, like a free evaluation or analysis, then you can expect a much higher conversion rate, maybe even 10-20%, especially if you have targeted traffic. For example, if you get visits from Google using the best keywords that align with what you offer.

On the other hand, until the actual sale, your conversions may be around 1%, and that can still generate a great profit. This is a more realistic number to aim for. It means that for every 100 visits to the offer page, you get 1 sale.

However, you cannot expect a 1% conversion rate on a site with thousands of visits if those visits are going to non-sales pages. These pages are designed to attract initial visits and gradually guide people into the sales funnel.

The conversion percentage is primarily calculated on the sales or landing page itself. On a blog, the goal is usually to convince people to sign up for a mailing list, which is the opt-in rate. Since it's free, naturally, the percentage will be higher than 1%.

Keep in mind that there are many factors involved in conversion rates. It is possible to have a 5% conversion rate on the sales page, but that would require a very small number of highly interested individuals.

Building that interest usually happens through email marketing, which is considered the best form of marketing. With email marketing, you have direct and personal contact with people who have already shown interest in your products or services.

On the other hand, if you bring cold traffic from Facebook to your landing page, the conversion rate will naturally be much lower. Depending on the market and the cost per click, it may not even be worth it. In such cases, you'll need to find alternative ways to guide those visits into the sales funnel, rather than sending them directly to the offer page.

That's about it. I hope this mini-guide has been helpful to you and that you will use it when writing advertisements.

[livenewstrack-blog]

Sand Cleansing Of Crystals

Everyone knows that crystals have always been associated with psychics and healing. Their very nature is what allows them to get on the energy and the colors of the aura that people extend. Crystals reflect these energies back and also channel healing electric.

healing crystals : Crystals are products of our earth, minerals and issues. We too are products with the earth in order that it isn't tough to believe that wearing crystals can help heal. Remember, our bodies can heal through absorption, so by putting on a healing crystal over your body you heal through the skin. But healing crystals employment in other ways too; they activate our internal healing abilities. To charge your crystals and give them a boost, leave them outside the particular light regarding your full moon all night. If you just enjoy your crystals and never have a particular purpose notion for them, you don't need to program your stones. However, if specific niche market to make use of crystals to the specific purpose, you might sit, hold your crystals and envision what ought to be like all of them. This is the simplest in order to program uric acid. 5) Sometimes, the crystal may just "speak" you r or seem to call to you. Many times when I'm doing shows, someone ought to up to my table and mention that they heard a crystal call their name. Certainly they will stand quietly until they are capable to determine which crystal is theirs. To charge your crystals and all of them a boost, leave them outside your light full moon all evenings. If you just enjoy your crystals certainly not have its own purpose in your thoughts for them, you do not need to program your stones. However, if anything to use your crystals to buy specific purpose, you might sit, hold your crystals and envision what merely fewer like from them. This will be the simplest strategy to program deposits. The idea behind urates is that getting gone all that nasty negative energy in the specific place can aid healing, which what usually are very well primarily useful for. They get rid of the bad, in fact doing so, heal and help provide the quite. Most crystal practitioners say that crystal healing is often a way to focus yourself exactly what your body needs, incredibly similar to a type of mediation. It's complementary technique not that will replace almost any medical treatments. In terms of cleaning and clearing your crystals, everybody has their unique method. Superb the easiest methods were to rinse them having a bit of soppy soap, then rinse again with drinking. Place them on a dry, soft cloth, the actual sunlight to acquire a few hours, and then put them in their usual submit your space.

[scraplyofficial]

What You Need to Know Before Buying Spare Parts for Your Vehicle?

Is your trusty vehicle in need of some new parts? Before you dive into the world of spare parts, let's embark on a journey of knowledge to ensure you make the right choices. Just like a puzzle, every vehicle part has its place and purpose. But worry not, understanding the basics isn't rocket science – it's about knowing your vehicle, picking the right parts, and avoiding common pitfalls. 

In this guide, we'll unravel the mysteries, helping you cruise confidently through the realm of spare parts, so you can keep your ride running smoothly and safely.

Understanding Your Vehicle

When it comes to understanding your vehicle, it's like getting to know a friend. Here's how to do it without any car jargon:

Know What It Is: Your vehicle has a name, just like you. It's called the make (like Toyota), model (like Camry), and year (like 2023). Remember these, and you're off to a good start.

Find the Problem: If something's not right with your ride, you need to find out what's acting up. Is it the brakes, the lights, or something else? Figure out the trouble spot before going shopping for parts.

Read the Book: Every car has a book that explains its secrets – it's called the owner's manual. Check this book or other papers that came with your car to see what it says about the part you need.

Understanding your vehicle is like understanding your favourite game – it takes a little time, but it's worth it.

Genuine vs. Aftermarket Parts: What You Should Know

When it comes to fixing your vehicle, you'll encounter two types of parts: genuine OEM parts and aftermarket parts. Let's break it down in simple terms:

Genuine OEM Parts

Genuine parts come straight from the vehicle's manufacturer. They're like the original puzzle pieces, made to fit your vehicle perfectly.

Pros:

Guaranteed fit and performance.

Usually covered by your vehicle 's warranty.

Match the quality of the parts your car came with.

2. Cons:

Often more expensive than aftermarket options.

Might not be readily available in every shop.

Aftermarket Parts

These parts are made by other companies and might look a bit different from the original ones. It's like using a puzzle piece from a different set that still fits.

Pros:

Can be cheaper than genuine parts.

Offer a wide range of options and features.

Some aftermarket parts can even improve your vehicle's performance.

2. Cons:

Quality can vary – some might not fit or work well.

Might not come with a warranty.

Could affect your vehicle's warranty if not approved by the manufacturer.

Considerations based on Vehicle Warranty

Using genuine parts usually won't void your vehicle's warranty. However, using certain aftermarket parts that aren't approved by the manufacturer might cause warranty issues.

Remember, choosing between genuine and aftermarket parts depends on your budget, the importance of quality, and your vehicle's warranty terms. It's like deciding between a brand-name product and a generic one. So, before you pick a puzzle piece, think about what's best for your ride!

Quality and Compatibility

When it comes to getting parts for your vehicle in Australia, two things matter: quality and compatibility. 

Why Quality Matters: Think of quality parts as the 'good stuff.' They keep your vehicle working its best and make sure you're safe on the road. Cheap parts might seem tempting, but they can mess up your vehicle and even put you in danger.

Certifications and Standards: Imagine parts like official stamps of approval. When parts have certificates, like the ones from respected organisations, it's a sign they're up to the job. Look for these stamps when you're shopping.

Fit for Your Ride: Just like shoes, parts need to fit your vehicle. Imagine trying to put a shoe meant for someone else on your foot – it wouldn't work well. Get parts that match your vehicle's make and model for a smoother ride.

Avoiding Bad Bits: Using cheap, poor-quality parts is like putting bad fuel in your vehicle. It might work for a bit, but then everything goes wrong. These bad bits can cause accidents or sudden breakdowns – things you definitely want to avoid.

Remember, it's all about making sure your vehicle stays strong and safe. Choose wisely, and your ride will thank you on every road trip.

Researching and Selecting Suppliers for Your Vehicle's Spare Parts

When it comes to finding the right parts for your vehicle, it's like finding a reliable friend – you want someone you can trust. Here's how to do it:

Go for the Good Guys

Look for suppliers with a good reputation. You know, the ones people talk positively about. Like finding the best ice cream shop in town. Also, you can take advice from service providers like cash for cars Sydney, as they regularly deal with cars so they have high knowledge. ca

Listen to What Others Say

Imagine you're choosing a movie to watch. Read what others thought. Same goes for parts – check what folks say online. If they're happy, chances are you'll be too.

A Safety Net

Imagine buying shoes that don't fit. Yikes! Look for suppliers with return policies and warranties. It's like knowing you can return the shoes if they're too tight.

Ask the Experts

Ever asked a friend for a restaurant recommendation? Do the same for your car. Ask professional mechanics – they've got the inside scoop on the best places to get quality parts.

So, remember, when hunting for spare parts, it's all about finding trustworthy suppliers, hearing from others, having a safety net, and asking the pros. Happy driving!

Price Considerations When Buying Spare Parts

When you're shopping for spare parts, how much you spend matters. Let's look at some important things to remember about the prices:

Quality and Cost Balance: Think of it like buying shoes – you don't want them too cheap that they fall apart, but not too expensive either. Balance is key. Good parts might cost a bit more, but they'll last longer.

Watch Out for Super Cheap Stuff: If something costs way less than others, be cautious. Super cheap parts might not work well and could even harm your vehicle.

Avoid Paying Too Much: Just because it's costly doesn't always mean it's the best. Some places overcharge. Do some checking to make sure you're not spending extra for no good reason.

Compare Prices: Imagine if you saw a candy bar for $1 in one shop and the same one for 50 cents in another. It's smart to compare prices for parts too. Look around different shops or online stores to find the best deal.

Remember, finding the right price is like finding a treasure – you want something that's worth what you're paying for. In case your car requires a lot of repairs or parts to be in perfect shape then consider removing it and investing in a new vehicle. You can earn cash for old cars by reputable service services available throughout Australia.

Warranty and Return Policies Made Simple

When it comes to spare parts for your vehicle, understanding warranties and return policies is like having a safety net. Here's the lowdown:

Warranty Terms: Think of a warranty as a promise from the seller that the part will work as it should. Different parts might have different warranty lengths, so take a quick peek to see how long you're covered.

Clear Return Policy: Imagine buying a puzzle piece that doesn't fit. A clear return policy is like being able to swap that piece. It's essential to know if you can return a part if it doesn't work or doesn't fit your vehicle.

Coverage Duration: Just like a movie ticket is only good for one show, warranties have a time limit. Check how long the warranty lasts. It's like having a guarantee that lasts for a certain period.

Returning Faulty Parts: If the part you bought turns out to be a dud or doesn't match your ride, don't worry. There's a procedure to return it. It's like a road map that shows you how to get your money back or a working replacement.

Remember, warranties and return policies are like having insurance for your purchases. So, when you're hunting for spare parts, make sure to understand these simple things – they can save you hassle down the road.

Consulting a Professional Mechanic

When you're in doubt about your car stuff, a car expert can be a big help! Find a car pro who knows their stuff. They'll look at your car and figure out what's wrong – like a doctor for cars. They'll suggest the best parts to use and even tell you which brands or shops are good. They'll make sure the parts fit your car and are good quality. So, if you're not sure, ask a car expert. They'll save your ride and your peace of mind!

Online vs. In-Person Purchase of Vehicle Parts

When it comes to getting parts for your ride, you've got choices to make – online or in-person. Let's break it down without the jargon:

Buying Online

Benefits: The internet is like a massive auto parts store that's open 24/7. You can compare prices, read reviews, and pick from a wide range of options without leaving your couch. Plus, it often saves you some bucks.

Risks: The parts might not look exactly like you expected. Sometimes, what you see isn't what you get. Also, shipping delays can be a pain when you need that part pronto.

Inspecting In-Person

Benefits: When you see the part with your own eyes, you know what you're getting. No surprises. It's like picking the ripest fruit – you can spot any flaws upfront.

Risks: Not all stores have everything you need, and it takes time to go from shop to shop. Also, you might not always get the best deal on the spot.

Seller Reputation Online

Understanding: Look at the online store's reviews and ratings. If people are happy with their purchases, chances are you'll be too. If the reviews are fishy or non-existent, it's like a warning sign.

So, think about what suits you best – the convenience of online browsing or the certainty of seeing it in person. Just remember, whatever route you choose, it's all about getting your vehicle back on the road safe and sound.

Installation Considerations

When it comes to putting in new parts for your vehicle, there are a few things to think about:

Do It Yourself (DIY) or Get Help:

You can either do the installation yourself or ask a pro to do it. DIY is like fixing things at home, while a pro knows all the tricks.

Tools and Skills:

DIY needs some tools, like wrenches or screwdrivers, and a bit of know-how. Pros have special tools and lots of experience.

How Hard is It?

Some parts are easy to put in, like changing a light bulb. But others, like engines, can be super tricky. Think about what you're comfortable with.

Follow the Guide:

Always, always follow the instructions that come with the part. It's like a recipe – you need to do it right for the best result.

Remember, whether you're a DIY hero or prefer a pro's touch, getting the installation right keeps your vehicle happy and ready to hit the road!

Conclusion

In conclusion, making well-informed decisions when purchasing spare parts is crucial for your vehicle's safety and performance. Ensure you understand your vehicle's needs, choose between genuine and aftermarket options wisely, prioritise quality and compatibility, and seek professional guidance. Thorough research and consideration of warranty, return policies, and installation methods will ensure a smooth and satisfactory experience, keeping your vehicle running smoothly on the road ahead.

[universalinfo]

A Quick Product Design Guide: Principles & Approaches You Must Consider

When it comes to product design, there are a few key principles and approaches you need to keep in mind. From user experience and customer feedback to branding and marketing, this guide will help ensure your product designs are on point. So let’s get started!

Define the purpose of your product

It’s always important to remember the adage: “Fail to plan, plan to fail!” When it comes to designing a product, one of the most important steps is defining its purpose. Not only will this ensure that you have something specific in mind throughout the design process, but it will also help guarantee that you wind up with a product that meets (or exceeds!) your expectations in the end. So go ahead and give yourself the gift of planning for success by taking time to figure out what you want your product to do – then start crafting away!

Do your research

Don’t be caught off guard! If you’re designing a product, make sure to do your research and keep product life cycle engineering top of mind. You want to produce the perfect product that serves its purpose while lasting, so be sure to consider all phases of the product life cycle engineering—design, manufacture, operation, maintenance, and disposal.

Doing your research helps you save time, money, and resources in the long run. So don’t skimp on the research portion when designing a product; it’s worth the extra effort!

Identify your target audience

When designing any product, it’s essential to identify your target audience; otherwise, you’ll end up shooting in the dark! After all, how can a product be successful if it doesn’t meet the needs of the people who are likely to buy it?

Knowing your target audience provides invaluable insight into which features they want and value most, helping to ensure that what you design resonates with them. Plus, it saves time and energy by ensuring that there are no surprises or mismatches that can derail a project later on. And don’t forget – understanding your target audience also keeps the creative juices flowing by inspiring new ideas tailored to their preferences.

Hey designers – don’t sell yourself short; identifying your target audience is one step you won’t want to skip!

Create a prototype

When product life cycle engineering is utilized to its fullest potential, creating a prototype should be at the top of any product designer’s list.

The importance of this cannot be overstated: with a model to refer to and test, it’s easier to analyze the product’s functionality and design flaws before taking the plunge into product development. It not only ensures you create a product that works as intended, but also saves time by avoiding potential hiccups in production. Plus, it’s just plain fun to see your product come to life!

So next time you’re ready to start designing, don’t forget the joy of unleashing a new product — create a prototype first.

Test your product

It might be tempting to jump straight in and launch your product without first stepping back to test it out, but resist the urge! Testing is one of the most essential steps when creating a new product; it is not only important for debugging any code issues, but also serves as an opportunity to ensure that the user experience with your product is top-notch.

Without testing properly, you could unwittingly release something that isn’t quite finished, which could mean bad news for its reception. Perhaps most importantly, testing is a chance for you–the creator–to step back and admire your work from the perspective of someone who has never seen it before. Now there’s something worth testing for!

Make improvements

Designing a product can be as simultaneously thrilling and intimidating as designing your rollercoaster. You pour time, energy, and resources into building something that other people will eventually use, so it’s no surprise that you want to make sure that your hard work pays off!

Making improvements to the product you’ve designed can ensure its success; tweaks big or small to streamline processes or tweak an existing feature can result in an even more favorable customer experience. Ultimately, when it comes down to it, perfecting the product you created is a way of giving yourself and your customers the ride of their lives!

Conclusion

By following these simple steps, you can increase your chances of developing a successful product. Of course, nothing is ever guaranteed – but if you take the time to do your research and create a quality product, you’ll be well on your way to success. So what are you waiting for? Get out there and start inventing! Source: https://cloud9planning.com/sb/quick-product-design-guide-principles-approaches-must-consider/

[thaiamulet-us]

Bia Gae Phra Ves Setthi Bang Guard Sap (Millionaires born wealth) By Lp Tha Thanuttaro

Bia Gae Talisman Magic Pendant

Bia Gae Phra Ves Setthi Bang Guard Sap (Millionaires born wealth) By Lp Tha Thanuttaro, Khok Map Samo Temple, Muang District, Buriram Province Millionaire's Amulet Bia Gae is lucky, victorious, wins everything, solves poverty, Open your luck. Open the way of success as intended, open the way to get rich, solve poverty, "Phra Ves Sethi, born of wealth" calls for money, summons luck, summons fortune to come in, protects wealth and gold, prevents it from flowing out, has a good fortune. Worship and enhance Good fortune is already added even more. Open the way for success in your career Open the way to success, enhance the kindness of the trade to make it easy to buy and sell fluently. Enhance the power of ascendancy to the owner. Thao Wessuwan, the great one, everyone fears to eliminate all problems and metaphors, protect from danger, solve the paranormal, prevent bad things, prevent bad things from becoming good, rich, rich, successful in everything. safety

💖 "Bia Gae” are Thai amulets steeped in history and mysticism, made from the ornate shells of the cowrie, a saltwater mollusk. Since ancient times, the cowrie shell has been regarded as a sacred item and is symbolically linked to the Brahmin gods. It is often associated with the reverence of Lord Vishnu, who presides over the Ocean of Milk. Being from the sea, these beautiful shells have come to symbolize him as the Preserver of Life. The practice of carrying cowrie shells as amulets have existed across Thailand since time immemorial. It is believed that Bia Gae possesses magical powers, helping their owners to fix their problems and overcome adversity, by single-handedly reversing ill-fortune. ** This Bia Gae empowers Principally for Ridding Poverty and Attracting Prosperity, and to Protect from Black Magic and Dangers.The Bia Gae Protects against Black magic, Physical Dangers and Enemies, prevents Poverty and Debts, Increases Wealth, can be used for Healing and to make Holy Prayer Water, banish Demons and Curses. Removes Poisons (rub on skin area around wound and chant Kata), protects against poisonous creatures. The Bia Gae was empowered with Wicha designed to protect the wearers from both physical and psychic attacks, ghosts, demons and evil spirits. It also protects from 'Ya Sang' which is a spell mixed into food to slowly kill or destroy a person. It protects agains love spells and curses which may be unkowingly cast upon someone. If you are suffering illness due to karma, then take the Bia Gae and immerse it in a clean bowl of fresh pure water, and make holy water with it, then drink the water. You can also alternatively take the Bia Gae and rub it around where your aches and pains or wounds or affected area is.

  Methods of Use; The Bia Gae is usually worn strapped to a cord around the waist, but can also be worn in the pocket, or on a pendant chain. At best, it shoold be fed onto a waist cord which can be slid around to wear on either side, rear or front, to be used for different purposes in the same way as the 'Takrut Maha Ruud', which also must be slid from one position to another around the waist to change its purpose in the same fashion as this Bia Gae. If you have an Enemy or Opponent, or have to enter into war or battle in any fashion, and face your enemy, then wear the Bia Gae on your front side. if your Enemy is so strong that you must choose to flee instead of facing and fighting, then wear the Bia Gae on your back side. If you wish the Bia Gae to work as an Attraction Charm, then wear it on the right flank. To protect against deadly weapons, then wear it on the left flank.   *************************************************************** Note: 🙏 The actual Amulet & Talisman Or Thai Product might be slightly different from the display image due to camera light and/or brightness of screen monitors. Likewise, The features mentioned above Still the same in all respects 💖 The result may different for each person. 💖 The amulet is a personal belief. Please use consideration 💖 If you have faith into something , you can felt invisible power inside what you believe. It is always be better true for amulets users 💖 We’re glad that you found what you were looking for. It is our goal that you are always happy with what you bought from us, so please let us know if your buying experience was anything short of excellent. We look forward to seeing you again. 🙏 If you have any questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to let me know. I look forward to hearing from you. 💖 May God continue to bless you and your family with divine light, love and power that will bring much love, joy, peace, inner strength and overflowing abundance in your home . Best Regards 🙏🙏🙏 Thank you very much & Good Luck and Happy and Enjoy Shopping Read the full article

[digitalmarketersind]

Tips to Get Backlinks Correctly and Fix Common Link Building Mistakes

Acquiring new backlinks is one of the vital jobs of SEO experts while running website SEO marketing campaigns. Even the top trustworthy SEO agencies invest resources in backlink building to provide excellent results while offering the best website SEO services to its clients. Novice SEO managers or SEO companies make major mistakes in generating backlinks. 

This blog post is crafted by one of the most experienced SEO specialist that offers the best website SEO services for more than 14 years. Learn the top mistakes that many SEO experts make while performing backlink building. She has also shared how you can avoid these mistakes.

Discounting User Intent

Perhaps one of the most common link building mistakes is ignoring user intent. User intent, also known as search intent or query intent, is the user’s intention or goal when performing a search online.

So as you build backlinks, user intent should be at the forefront of your mind when you write a guest post for a relevant, third-party website.

Not Producing Link Worthy Content

Ideally, Google prefers websites to build backlinks organically rather than buying or exchanging links. When you invest in white hat SEO techniques and producing link worthy content, your website will likely earn backlinks naturally, meaning other websites will share your post or cite you as their source.

Performing Bad Outreach To Build Backlinks

The potential of your link building SEO strategy designed by the best trustworthy SEO company significantly hinges on your outreach skills. If you send bad outreach emails to your prospects, you can guarantee that you’ll remain ignored or, worse, tagged as spam, leaving your outreach campaign ineffective.

Here are outreach and link building tips:

Keep your subject line straightforward and include necessary information.

Express your fair desired outcome, but if you wouldn’t say something in person, don’t say it.

Explain the value of what you’re offering to them and their audience, presenting stats as proof.

Be editorial and use proper grammar along with spelling and punctuation.

When sending follow-ups, show eagerness but be respectful.

Buying Backlinks Mindlessly

Another link scheme Google considers is buying links to manipulate their system and violate their Webmaster Guidelines and SEO managers must avoid.

You sell or buy links when you:

Exchange money for links or any post that contains links.

Exchange products or services for links.

Send someone “free” stuff, so they write about it and link back to your site.

Here are some other ways your site can be penalized through link schemes:

Exaggerated link exchanges

Large-scale marketing with articles or guest posts containing keyword-rich anchor text links

Utilizing automated programs to create links to your site

Demanding a link as a component of your Terms of Service or any contract

However, not all paid links are considered link schemes that violate Google’s guidelines; buying and selling links are parts of the web economy when done for advertising purposes, not manipulation.

To prevent Google’s PageRank from tagging your link building SEO strategy as one of the link schemes:

Indicate the link is sponsored by putting a qualifying attribute to the <a> tag.

Redirect the links to an intermediate page blocked from search engines through a robots.txt file.

Overdoing Exact Anchor Text in Search Engine Optimization

Aiming to improve the website’s rating, some end up abusing exact match anchor text.

A hyperlink’s clickable text is called an anchor text. Users use this kind of link to navigate between internal and external web pages. Although they can be used on images, hyperlinks are most commonly identified as the blue text that automatically underlines itself when you hover your mouse over it.

While it’s best practice to use exact anchor text that precisely matches a keyword, doing so excessively or failing to include keyword variations can backfire on your link building and search engine optimization efforts.

Two factors contribute to this:

The excessive usage of the exact anchor text could be considered spam by Google, potentially causing the ranks of your page to drop

Missing out on keyword variations that address a wider range of search phrases could result in lost traffic

So as a link building tip: If you want to implement the best link building strategies, be creative or, even better, do further keyword research and avoid using the same anchor text repeatedly.

Focusing on Quantity over Quality

Compromising quality for quantity when launching a link building strategy is a pitfall many fall prey to. You might encounter ill-meaning search engine optimization experts who will try to convince you their approach on how to get quality links works. But, instead of helping to raise your ranks, they simply collect your money and send you tons of low-quality backlinks.

On the surface, this may look amazing: You open your SEO tool and observe the flood of backlinks, so the more backlinks, the better, right?

No, not always.

Not every backlink possesses the same level of authority. Some of them could be toxic backlinks, which are spammy or low-quality links that are more likely to harm than benefit your rankings. The likelihood that high-quality backlinks come from authoritative, reliable and relevant websites is why high-quality backlinks are better than high-quantity backlinks.

So aim to have high-quality websites to link back to your site.

Ignoring Small Yet Relevant Websites

Without question, the ideal backlink donors are sites with a high domain authority and relevant to your business niche according to SEO specialists.

As you learn how to get quality links, avoid going overboard with your backlink prudence.

While it is best to steer clear of spammy, poor-quality links containing irrelevant or duplicate information, there is a case to be made for small- to medium-sized websites that churn out quality content and are well-established in a market related to your own.

How To Get Backlinks Properly And Fix Link Building Mistakes?

Now that we have looked at common mistakes on how to get backlinks, you may ask, “what are link building strategies I can benefit from?” Here are three uncommon but best link building strategies many tend not to focus on.

Broken Link Building

Broken link building involves finding a relevant broken link on a website, and producing similar content to the broken resource. Then an outreach is sent to the website linking to the dead resource to ask them to link to your own. This is the best technique used by the top SEO agencies in India.

Unlinked Mentions

Many external sites will mention you or your brand without linking to your website. In this case, you’re halfway through earning a backlink, and you only need to professionally pursue the site mentioning you and convince them to convert that mention into a backlink.

Community Site Link Building

Forums, Reddit, Quora and other message boards are good places to market your website while building some relevant links that diversify your backlink profile.

Are you looking for a reliable SEO agency India that can help you build the best website SEO services and backlink building services?

You can take the help from the top digital marketing agency, namely, Digital Marketers India.

To know more about this Digital Marketing Agency and its website SEO services, please visit https://www.digitalmarketersindia.com/

[digitaldocumentservice-blog]

The Complete Handbook of Disc Publishing Systems

Businesses are constantly looking for ways to cut costs while increasing efficiencies. One frequently overlooked way to see a high return on investment is to invest in one of several automated disc publishing systems. Small businesses to large corporations can produce their own professional-grade optical discs using these simple to use and manage systems that are widely available on the market. Professional-grade automated disc publishing systems are perfect for small, medium, and large businesses, such as:

1. Government and military

2. Medical records and imaging systems

3. Banking and insurance

4. Any business that backs up or archives data

5. High-Definition video

6. Digital post-production houses

While these automated disc publishing systems are packed with features that can help almost any business, look for the following in the model you buy:

1) Burning in multiple formats:

Check that the model can burn to CD, DVD, and Blu-ray. Each disc format has advantages, and you want to be able to use the right medium for the right job. CDs are inexpensive and can be played on any computer that has a CD drive, but they only hold 700 MB of data. DVDs hold a lot more information and can be read by almost any computer; they can hold up to 4.7 gigabytes of data. Finally, ensure that your publishing system supports Blu-ray. Blu-ray is commonly used to present high-definition movies, but it can also be used for other purposes.

2) Fully automated:

There are a number of consumer-grade systems on the market that can copy discs, but the cost savings are negated if someone must constantly load and move discs during the copy process. An automated system, often equipped with robot arms, can handle all of the processes involved in multiple disc printing. Simply load the job, configure the parameters, and the system will handle the rest!

3) Graphic Printing:

Labeling the discs is another time-consuming task with room for human error. Without human intervention, automated disc publishing systems should include printing on each disc.

4) Large-scale duplication:

While many duplication systems can run a series of discs as a duplicator, the best return on investment comes from using a duplicator that can run up to 800 discs on its own. Even the most advanced system takes time, and many businesses schedule large disc duplication jobs to run overnight while the staff is away. Your system should be capable of handling a large job without human intervention.

Whether you are duplicating audio, video, movies, software, photos, or backing up data for archival purposes, investing in automated disc publishing systems is a worthwhile investment.

A CD/DVD publisher makes it simple to distribute information

It is simple to provide the information that your company's clients require with a CD or DVD publisher:

1. When your company has a CD or DVD publisher, it is simple to provide information because you can create a "customised" product. When you provide leads, your clients will request certain demographic characteristics, such as families of a certain size or people of a certain age; you can prepare these products as they are required.

2. If you have a CD or DVD publisher in your company, you will find it simple to update the contact information on the disc. You would be required to purchase a number of discs if you contracted out the publishing of informational CDs or DVDs; however, with Do Not Call legislation in place, by the time you get through outsourced CDs or DVDs, you could be providing information that will not benefit your clients (which will definitely not benefit you in the long run); with a CD or DVD publisher, you can remove bad leads from your product.

3. If you have a CD or DVD publisher, you will most likely discover that you can get information sent out in a timely manner. You may have to wait for a company to get to your project if you outsource the publication of your CDs or DVDs; if you do the work yourself, you can be certain that the job is completed the same day.

4. When your company has a CD/DVD publisher, you will be able to take control of your marketing materials as well as the products and services that you provide. You may also discover that there is more that you can do, such as including proprietary search software to make your product easier to use.

Olympus Series CD, DVD, and Blu-ray Publishers

The Olympus Series systems are fully automated, self-contained CD, DVD, and Blu-ray publishers with a built-in PC. The systems are asynchronous and can be configured with two drives with capacities of up to 330 MB, four drives with capacities of up to 630 MB, and seven drives with capacities of up to 900 MB, all with inkjet or thermal disc printers. With the Olympus Series CD, DVD, and Blu-Ray publishers, all you need is a monitor, keyboard, and mouse to have a complete publishing or duplication system at your disposal.

Browser-Based Client Application: Web clients can begin production jobs using a browser. The jobs can then be sent to the Olympus CD/DVD Publishers server via the Internet, and the production status can be monitored. The web client does not require installation and works with any operating system. As a result, with the Olympus Blu-ray DVD CD Publishers, Mac and UNIX users can now automate and centralise media production on a professional production system.

We take pride in the work we do at All Pro Solutions. That is, we build the world's most durable, dependable, adaptable, and efficient autoloading systems. The Olympus Series CD, DVD, and Blu-Ray publishers are simple to set up.

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The Zeus Series automated standalone and networked CD/DVD publishers, configured with 2, 4, or 7 DVD CD or Blu-Ray duplicator drives and integrated with inkjet or thermal CD/DVD printers, fall into the mid-range category. The Zeus series systems also include an embedded PC preinstalled with Windows and all necessary networking and labelling software. Depending on the printer, disc capacities range from 220 to 900.

Three different production jobs can be run on the same machine in the Zeus Series: copy-only DVD CD duplicators, copy and print CD DVD publishers, and print-only automated printer autoloaders. Multiple Zeus DVD CD Publishers can exist on the same network and run concurrently for high volume.

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[caba-111]

So how in the WORLD does working at the Kiss work. Are there protective suits? Is it a huge production? On a scale of 1 to 10, how bad are the workplace safety standards? What happens if the light touches your skin?

The first and most important step to staying safe in the kiss is covering up. If the light can't touch your skin, it can't harm you. You can buy purpose-made suits, or you can layer up with normal fabric. But nothing works 100%. There's always a bit of light that gets through. That's not a problem day to day. But if you're working in the Kiss for years...  Safety standards involve exposure limits. No more than 12 years in the safest roles, less in riskier ones. Accidents shave off time. Enforcement is good, because it's extremely obvious when someone has reached their limits. Which leads me to... What HAPPENS if you're exposed? The Kiss makes plants grow forever, right? You'd think lizards would be safe, because lizards aren't plants. And you'd be MOSTLY right. But channeling tissue-- the stuff that makes up lizards' "magic" organs-- isn't like the rest of their anatomy. It looks more like roots, or mycelium. As you might expect, the Kiss has an affect on it. Bathed in the Kiss's light, channeling tissue grows on its own. Inside of lizards' bodies.

Mild kiss exposure makes you a little.... fuzzy. Black filaments push their way through your skin. Channeling nodules begin to swell and distort. It's not painful, but it can be uncomfortable. Especially while you're still being exposed.

This is as bad as it gets within the limits. Growth halted before it can affect their mobility or vision. It actually makes them a little more sensitive to flux.

More serious exposure, you get fuzzier. Your body begins to distort as your channeling tissue grows unchecked.

There’s no upper limit. The more exposure you receive, the worse it gets.

This degree of exposure is usually intentional.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Games Workshop declares war on its customers (again)

There’s a difference between a con-artist and a grifter. A con-artist is just a gabby mugger, and when they vanish with your money, you know you’ve been robbed.

A grifter, on the other hand, is someone who can work the law to declare your stuff to be their stuff, which makes you a lawless cur because your pockets are stuffed full of their money and merely handing it over is the least you can do to make up for your sin.

IP trolls are grifters, not con artists, and that’s by design, a feature of the construction of copyright and trademark law.

Progressives may rail at the term “IP” for its imprecision, but truly, it has a very precise meaning: “‘IP’ is any law that lets me control the conduct of my customers, competitors and critics, such that they must arrange their affairs to my benefit.”

https://locusmag.com/2020/09/cory-doctorow-ip/

In that regard, it is a perfect grifter’s tool — a way to put you on the wrong side of the line for simply living your life in the way that works best for you, not the grifter.

Now, copyright and trademark’s framers were alive to the possibility that they might become this kind of weapon, and they wrote limitations and exceptions into each doctrine that were meant to safeguard the public’s right to free speech and free action.

But those limitations and exceptions are weirdly self-eviscerating. Both trademark and copyright’s limitations assume that they aren’t being weaponized by immoral sociopaths. Both collapse if they are.

Take copyright. Copyright has a suite of limitations and exceptions under various global legal systems, including US law. US law also contains a specific set of exceptions colloquially called “fair use,” a subject of much mystification for lay people.

Under fair use, someone accused of copyright infringement can ask a judge to find that their use of someone else’s copyrighted work is permissible because to deny it would be socially harmful.

The fair use law sets out four factors that judges MAY consider when considering such a claim. Note that these four factors are neither comprehensive (judges can weigh other factors), nor dispositive (failing to satisfy a factor doesn’t disqualify your use from being fair).

If that sounds confusing to you, don’t worry. It is confusing. As the lawyers say, “fair use is fact-intensive.”

The specifics of a use really matter: who’s making the use, what they’re using, why they’re using it, how they use it, and how much they use.

That’s why anyone who claims that “X is never fair use” (for example, commercial fanfic) are full of shit — as are people who say “X is always fair use”).

Commercial fanfic absolutely can be fair use. No less a body than the Supreme Court says so:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wind_Done_Gone

Despite all this ambiguity and nuance, IP grifters who want to force other people to arrange their affairs to their own benefit are laser focused on the four factors, reasoning correctly that if they show a judge that the factors favor them, they’re more likely to prevail.

Half of the four factors are out of the grifter’s reach. As a rightsholder, you can’t control “the purpose and character of the use,” or “the amount and substantiality of the portion used.”

But the other two factors are more readily within the IP wielder’s remit. As someone seeking control a work, you can frame “to the nature of the copyrighted work” by talking up how much creativity and originality went into it, which judges will weigh in your favor.

More importantly — and disturbingly — is the way that an IP holder can influence the fourth factor: “the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.”

Think about that fourth factor for a moment here: if my use of your work doesn’t cost you any money, then it’s more likely that my use is fair.

The corollary: if you can bully some people into paying for something they’ve always gotten for free, then you can claim that the people who refuse to pay are ripping you off — that there is a “market” for the use, and that their failure to pay weakens that market.

This is effectively what’s happened to music sampling. Seminal albums like “It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back” were produced with thousands of uncleared samples — but at the time, no one was clearing samples.

https://memex.craphound.com/2011/07/08/creative-license-how-the-hell-did-sampling-get-so-screwed-up-and-what-the-hell-do-we-do-about-it/

Had the rightsholders to those samples dragged Public Enemy into court, they wouldn’t have had the fourth factor on their side. No one was paying for samples, so a failure to pay for samples had no “effect on the potential market for the copyrighted work.”

However, in the 33 years since Nation of Millions dropped, paying to license samples has become common practice — and the mere existence of paid samples makes not paying for samples more legally risky.

So say a rightsholder decided to aggressively license simple quotations — as the Associated Press did in 2008, when it offered to sell you a license to a 5-word quotation for a mere $12.50.

http://nielsenhayden.com/makinglight/archives/010341.html

All other things being equal, a short quotation from a news article is likely to be fair use. But if the AP managed to terrorize enough bloggers into coughing up $12.50 for a 5-word quote, it could create a market for 5-word quotations.

That market would change the fair use argument for people who don’t pay — yes, they’re making a transformative, critical use, but they’re also undermining the market for the copyright, and a judge might find this change tips the scales away from fair use.

Even more importantly, the additional uncertainty might stampede more people into paying $12.50 for a 5-word quote rather than risk a $250,000 statutory damages award for copyright infringement.

The more people who pay for 5-word quotes, the sturdier the market becomes and the riskier it is to rely upon fair use.

The fourth factor looks like an escape valve for uses that harm no one.

But it actually rewards to bullies who intimidate others out of money they don’t actually owe — until they do.

Trademark has a similar gotcha. Trademark is very different from copyright. Fundamentally, trademark is about protecting buyers, not sellers. Trademark meant to help buyers avoid being tricked into buying an inferior product because it was deceptively named or styled.

If you buy a can of Coke, you want the true Black Water of American Imperialism, not an inferior brand of dilute battery-acid.

But if your Coke turns out to be a fake, you might shrug off the harm or balk at the expense of punishing the fast operator who mis-sold you.

So trademark empowers Coke — and other vendors — to punish third parties who trick their customers, acting as their customers’ champions. Trademark doesn’t exist to prevent Coke from losing money to a rival — it exists to help Coke drinkers get what they pay for.

Trademarks can be registered with the USPTO, who nominally weigh trademark applications to ensure that they’re distinctive and original. Practically, examiners are busy, sometimes careless, and ideologically inclined to grant, not deny, claims.

https://memex.craphound.com/2018/06/14/son-of-cocky-a-writer-is-trying-to-trademark-dragon-slayer-for-fantasy-novels/

But you don’t have to register a trademark to assert it. You can threaten or pursue legal action on the grounds that someone has violated an unregistered trademark, which is any distinctive graphic or phrase that is associated with your product.

Registered or unregistered, trademark enforcement primarily comes down to whether a “naive consumer” would be mislead by someone else’s use of a mark. That is, when you bought a Coke-branded sack of chicken feet, did you think it was blessed by the Coca-Cola company?

If there’s no likelihood of confusion, trademark holders struggle to enforce their trademarks.

This standard seems reasonable, but, like the fourth factor in fair use, it has a sting in its tail.

One of the ways you can induce confusion in the public is to gain a reputation for being a litigious bully. Say Coke is known far and wide for clobbering anyone that uses its trademarks, no matter how trivial the use and no matter how bad it made them look.

If Coke is truly notorious for its zero-tolerance policy, that will lead to a widespread public understanding that every time you see Coke’s marks, the use was blessed by a Coke lawyer — meaning a use that might not otherwise be found to be confusing can be made confusing.

“If that was any other company’s trademark, I’d assume that they had nothing to do with it — but since I know Coke has an army of baby-eating attack lawyers who destroy anyone who uses a mark without permission, that must be an authorized use.”

Like fair use’s fourth factor, trademark’s confusion standard rewards the most vicious and uncaring businesspeople with new rights that their more reasonable competitors do not enjoy. IP selects for sociopathy.

Now, IP — in the most sinister sense of the phrase — has pervaded every industry, but the contradictions of IP are felt most keenly in its spawning grounds: the culture industry.

Culture is in tension with the control of ideas, because culture is the spread of ideas.

Creators (and execs) are vulnerable to the pirate/admiral fallacy: “When I take from my forebears, that’s legitimate artistic progress. When my successors do it to me, it’s theft.”

This pathology, combined with ready-to-hand IP weapons, incentivizes all manner of wickedness. Remember when Marvel and DC teamed up in a bid to trademark the word “super-hero” so that no one else would be allowed to use it?

https://memex.craphound.com/2006/03/18/marvel-comics-stealing-our-language/

These perverse incentives are made tragic by the inherently participatory nature of culture.

It’s not merely that Marvel and DC wanted to steal the word “super-hero” right out of our mouths.

It’s that super-heroes are culturally important because of how we take and remix them in our lives. Marvel went on to use the law to stop us from pretending to be superheroes online, something Casey Fiesler called “Pretending Without a License.”

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/277598023_Pretending_Without_a_License_Intellectual_Property_and_Gender_Implications_in_Online_Games

Which brings me, at last, to Games Workshop, a company that has consistently led the IP bully pack, indiscriminately terrorizing the Warhammer 40k fans who made it a massive commercial success.

Warhammer is a strategy/roleplaying game that is played with miniature creatures that players buy, modify and paint. If you’re not familiar with all this, maybe this sounds a bit like toy soldiers.

It’s a lot more interesting — not just because of the game rules or lore, but because of the incredibly, unbelievable, jaw-dropping virtuosity of Warhammer players when they paint and style those miniatures.

There’s a reason I look forward to Saturday morning’s weekly linkdump from Jonathan Struan of the week’s best Warhammer and other RPG miniatures:

https://www.superpunch.net/search?q=warhammer&max-results=20&by-date=true

and why I follow incredible painters like Aurelie Schick:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/110246635@N06

Warhammer is intrinsically participatory, co-creative and active — it’s not media you consume, it’s media you produce.

Games Workshop has become fantastically rich off of this…and they hate it, and they always have.

For years they’ve pursued fans for producing their own fan-made supplements and additions to the game:

https://www.lumendatabase.org/notices/99301

The more Warhammer players complained about the indiscriminate censorship of their fan media, the harder GW cracked down on them, wiping out whole genres of creative work:

https://www.boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/48933/games-workshop-files-purge-09

GW claimed it was only defending its rights, the grifter’s signature move, making you a crook for having the audacity not to put their shareholders’ interests ahead of your own.

Then Games Workshop claimed a trademark on “space marine,” a generic term that had been widely used in science fiction for decades, including, notably, in Heinlein’s classic “Starship Troopers” (1959).

https://web.archive.org/web/20130207002144/http://mcahogarth.org/?p=10593

They didn’t just go after RPGs that used the phrase — they used trademark claims to remove novels from Amazon for having the phrase in their titles.

“Space marine” is a generic phrase, but GW was betting if they were sufficiently, spectacularly brutal in their enforcement, they could create a proprietary interest: “Now, I know GW destroys anyone who uses ‘space marine,’ so this ‘space marine’ must be endorsed by GW.”

GW just launched a new set of terms of service, including: “individuals must not create fan films or animations based on our settings and characters. These are only to be created under licence from Games Workshop.”

https://www.games-workshop.com/en-WW/Intellectual-Property-Guidelines

Now, this isn’t how copyright works. There are many ways in which a fan film or animation could be fair use, no matter whether GW forbids or permits their production. But this isn’t mere overreach: it’s a direct play against the fourth factor in fair use.

If GW can establish that all animations and vids are produced under paid license, then any fanvid that doesn’t pay for a license has a weaker fair use case, because the fourth factor protects existing licensing markets.

Indeed, as Rob Beschizza points out on Boing Boing, GW timed the terms of service change to coincide with the announcement that they’re launching a subscription service including “cartoons, in-house hobby videos, access to a vault of ebooks and mags.”

https://www.pcgamer.com/now-even-warhammer-has-a-subscription-service/

This is bullying with a business-model, in other words. Fans have figured out how to have fun with each other for free, and GW wants them to stop and pay the company for its in-house version of that fun.

Warhammer creators are demoralized and disheartened. The creator of the hugely successful Oculus Imperia Youtube series posted a heart-rending message of surrender.

https://twitter.com/OculusImperia/status/1421136444437970949

Oculus Imperia also edits “If The Emperor Had A Text To Speech Device,” (TTS) another beloved Warhammer fan series. Alfabusa from TTS posted his own absolutely demoralized goodbye to his work.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXljeaktnDA

Ironically, both channels would have a stronger fair use case if they mocked and criticized Warhammer, rather than celebrating it, as fair use tips favorably towards critical uses.

The fact is, they love their hobby and its community and they want to improve it, not tear it down.

Neither wants to get dragged into a brutal copyright case against a deep-pocketed corporation. Even people with great fair use cases balk at that:

https://waxy.org/2011/06/kind_of_screwed/

Now, some people might be thinking, what’s the big deal? Why don’t these creators just make up their own stories instead of remixing the ones that come from Games Workshop?

Those people are assholes.

*All* stories are fanfic of some kind or another. Every mystery novel is a remix of Poe’s Murders In the Rue Morgue. Games Workshop’s stories are the thrice-brewed teabags of many sf writers (remember “space marines?”).

Tolkien straight up ripped off his characters from the 1000-year-old Norse poem “Elder Edda,” which features dwarves named “Thorin, Balin, Dwalin, Fili, Kili, Oin, Gloin, Nori, Dori, Ori, Bifur, Bofur, and Bombur.”

https://musingsofatolkienist.blogspot.com/2015/07/hobbit-origins-catalog-of-dwarves.html

Culture is made of other culture.

GW made something wonderful with Warhammer — by plundering the stories that preceded it.

The sin isn’t in the taking, it’s in the pretense that it never happened, and the vicious grifting that punishes anyone who does unto GW as they did unto everyone else.

[shihalyfie]

About the Adventure: reboot, the likely reason why it exists, the question of target demographic, and whether I would recommend it or not

I think this reboot has been kind of a strange outlier in terms of Digimon anime in general, in terms of...well, just about everything. I also feel like everything surrounding it has kind of been giving us mixed signals as to what the intent and purpose behind the anime is -- well, besides “cashing in on the Adventure brand”, but looking at it more closely, that might be a bit of an oversimplification.

I’m writing this post because, having seen the entire series to the end for myself and thinking very hard about it and what it was trying to do, I decided to put down my thoughts. This is not meant to be a review of what I think was good and bad, but rather, something that I hope will be helpful to those who might be on the fence about whether they want to watch it or not, or those who don’t want to watch/finish it but are curious about what happened, or those who are curious as to why this reboot even exists in the first place, or even maybe just those who did watch it but are interested in others’ thoughts about it. I'm personally convinced that -- especially in an ever-changing franchise like Digimon -- how much you like a given work is dependent on what your personal tastes are to the very end, and thus it’s helpful to understand what kind of expectations you should go in with if you want to watch something.

With all of this said and done, if you want to go in and best enjoy this series, I think it is best to consider this anime as a distinct Digimon series of its own. The relationship to Adventure is only surface-level, and by that I mean it’s very obvious it’s doing things its own thing deliberately without worrying too much about what prior series did. Of course, I think everyone will have varying feelings about using the Adventure branding for something that really isn't Adventure at all, but we are really talking about an in-name-only affair, and something that’s unabashedly doing whatever it wants. So in other words, if you’re going in expecting Adventure, or anything that really resembles Adventure, you’re setting yourself up for disappointment. But if you’re able to approach it like yet another distinct Digimon series, and the other aspects of it fit your fancy, you’ll probably be able to enjoy it much better. And, conversely, I think it’s also important to remember that this series seems to have a writing philosophy with a fundamentally different goal from most Digimon series, and since it’s understandable for most long-time Digimon fans to have their tastes built on those prior series, it’s fine and completely understandable that this reboot may not be your cup of tea, for reasons that probably don’t actually have much to do with whether it’s an Adventure reboot or not.

There are no spoilers in the following post. (Although I use some emphatic language for the duration for it, these are mostly just my personal thoughts and how I see the series and the overall situation.)

On what exact relationship to Adventure this series has, and why it’s an “Adventure reboot”

If you ask why they did an Adventure reboot, the easiest answer to come up with is “Adventure milking, because it’s profitable”, but that’s kind of an oversimplification of what the issue is. This is especially when you take into account a key fact that official has been very well aware of since as early as 2006: most kids are too young to have seen Adventure, and therefore have no reason to care about it.

That’s the thing: Adventure milking only works so well on today’s children, and Toei and Bandai know this. This is also the reason that the franchise started going through a bit of a “split” starting in around 2012 (after Xros Wars finished airing), when the video game branch started making more active attempts to appeal to the adults’ fanbase with Re:Digitize and Adventure PSP. (Although they were technically still “kids’ games”, they were very obviously aimed at the adults’ audience as a primary “target”.) The generation that grew up with Adventure and other classic Digimon anime was getting older and older, and targeting that audience would require tailoring products more specifically to them -- ultimately culminating in 2015 and the solidification of “very obviously primarily for adults” media in the form of both games (Cyber Sleuth and Next Order) and anime (tri.). Note that Appmon ended up getting its own 3DS game, but since it was targeted at kids, it seems to have been developed by a completely different pipeline/branch from the aforementioned adults’ games, so even that had a split.

So if we want to talk about full-on nostalgia pandering, that’s already being done in the adults’ branch. In fact, Appmon development specifically said that they felt free to not really care about the adults’ audience because that was tri.’s job. Of course, the hardcore Digimon adults’ fanbase is still keeping an eye on the kids’ shows, and it’s good to not upset them -- and, besides, even if we’re all suffering under the hell of capitalism, people who work in kids’ shows still tend to be very passionate about the content and messages they’re showing the kids, so they still put an effort into making good content that adults can enjoy too. But, nevertheless, adults are still the “periphery demographic”, and a kids’ show is not a success if the kids (who have not seen and do not care about Adventure) are not watching it or buying the toys. Appmon ended up being extremely well-received by the adults’ fanbase, but that all meant nothing since the kids didn’t get into it.

Most kids are not super incredibly discerning about so-called writing quality (it’s not like they don’t at least unconsciously know when something is good, but they’re much less likely to be bothered by little things adults are often bothered by), so there’s a certain degree you have to get their attention if you want things to catch on with them. Critical reception does matter a lot more when we talk about the adults’ audience, but for the kids, the more important part is how much you’ve managed to engage them and how much fun they’re having (especially in regards to the toyline). Moreover, there’s the problem of “momentum”; Digimon’s sister shows of PreCure, Kamen Rider, and Super Sentai have sometimes had really poorly performing shows (critically or financially), but have managed to recover it in successive years to avoid getting cancelled. Digimon never managed to get to that point, with sales nearly dropping to half with Tamers and again with Frontier. So in essence, Savers, Xros Wars, and Appmon were all attempts at figuring out what was needed to just get that “kickstart” again -- but things just never lined up for it to work.

So if kids don’t really care about Adventure, why would they do Adventure nostalgia pandering? The answer is one that official has actually openly stated multiple times: they want to have parents watch it together with their children. Both Seki and Kinoshita said this in regards to watching the reaction to Kizuna, and it was also stated outright as a goal for the reboot, but, believe it or not, there’s reports of this having been stated back as early as Savers (followed by an admission that maybe 2006 was a little too early for people who grew up with Adventure to be old enough to have their own kids). So the little nostalgia references in Savers, Xros Wars, and Appmon aren't really meant to magically turn the series into Adventure as much as they’re supposed to be flags waved at the parents to get them to pay attention, so that they can introduce their kids to Digimon and watch it together with them, until the kids eventually take an interest on their own and they don’t need to rely on that kind of standby as much. (I say “as much” because of course PreCure, Rider, and Sentai all are still very indulgent in their anniversary references, but they’re not nearly as reliant on it to the point of life-and-death.)

This is also why Kizuna’s existence and release date two months prior to the reboot is a huge factor in this. The reason tri. wouldn’t have done it is that it never actually reached a properly “mainstream” audience. It’s a huge reason I keep emphasizing the fact that tri. and Kizuna are two separate things with completely different production and release formats, because tri. being a limited OVA screening released in six parts over three years means that, although it was a moderate financial success that did better than the franchise’s other niche products, in the end, it didn’t actually reach the “extremely casual” audience very well. We, as the “hardcore Internet fanbase”, all know people who watched all six parts, and the difference between tri. and Kizuna’s release formats doesn’t hit us as hard because of international distribution circumstances, but even on our end, if you talk to your casual friends who barely remember anything about Digimon except what they saw on TV twenty years ago, you will almost never find anyone who got past Part 1, maybe 2 at most. (That’s before we even get into the part where a good chunk of them got turned off at the character design stage for being too different.) Sticking with a full six-part series over three years is a commitment, and if you’re not someone with a certain level of loyalty to the franchise, you aren’t as likely to put aside the time for it!

Kizuna, on the other hand, was a full-on theatrical movie with full marketing campaign that was aimed at that extremely casual mainstream audience, including a lot of people who hadn’t even heard of tri. (due to it being too niche) or hadn’t bothered to commit to watching something so long, and thus managed to “hype up” a lot of adults and get them in a Digimon mood. (Critical reception issues aside, this is also presumably a huge reason Kizuna isn’t all that reliant on tri.’s plot; Adventure and 02 both averaged at around 11% of the country watching it when it first aired, but the number of people who even saw tri. much less know what happened in it is significantly lower, so while you can appeal to a lot of people if you’re just targeting the 11%, you'll lock them out if you’re overly reliant on stuff a lot of them will have never seen in the first place.) We’re talking the kind of super-casual who sees a poster for Kizuna, goes “oh I remember Digimon!”, casually buys a ticket for the movie, likes it because it has characters they remember and the story is feelsy, and then two months later an anime that looks like the Digimon they recognize is on Fuji TV, resulting in them convincing their kid to watch it together with them because they’re in a Digimon mood now, even though the actual contents of the anime are substantially different from the original.

So, looking back at the reboot:

There’s a huge, huge, huge implication that the choice to use Adventure branding was at least partially to get Fuji TV to let them have their old timeslot back. Neither Xros Wars nor Appmon were able to be on that old timeslot, presumably because Fuji TV had serious doubts about their profitability (perhaps after seeing Savers not do very well). This isn’t something that hits as hard for us outside Japan who don’t have to feel the impact of this anyway, but it’s kind of a problem if kids don’t even get the opportunity to watch the show in the first place. While there’s been a general trend of moving to video-on-demand to the point TV ratings don’t really have as much impact as they used to, I mean...it sure beats 6:30 in the morning, goodness. (Note that a big reason PreCure, Rider, and Sentai are able to enjoy the comfortable positions they’re in is that they have a very luxurious 8:30-10 AM Sunday block on TV Asahi dedicated to them.)

Since we’re talking about “the casual mainstream”, this means that this kind of ploy only works with something where a casual person passing by can see names and faces and take an interest. This is why it has to be Adventure, not 02 or Tamers or whatnot; 02 may have had roughly similar TV ratings to Adventure and fairly close sales figures back in 2000, but the actual pop culture notability disparity in this day and age is humongous (think about the difference in pop culture awareness between Butter-Fly and Target). 02, Tamers, and all can do enough to carry “adults’ fandom” products and merch sales at DigiFes, and the adults’ branch of the franchise in general, but appealing to the average adult buying toys for the kids is a huge difference, and a big reason that, even if they’re clearly starting to acknowledge more of the non-Adventure series these days, it’s still hard to believe they’re going to go as far as rebooting anything past Adventure -- or, more accurately, hard to believe they’ll be able to get the same impact using names and faces alone.

This advertising with the Adventure brand goes beyond just the anime -- we’re talking about the toyline that has the involved character faces plastered on them, plus all of the ventures surrounding them that Bandai pretty obviously carefully timed to coincide with this. One particularly big factor is the card game, which is doing really, really well right now, to the point it’s even started gaining an audience among people who weren’t originally Digimon fans. Part of it is because the game’s design is actually very good and newcomer-friendly, but also...nearly every set since the beginning came with reboot-themed Tamer Cards, which means that, yes, those cards with the Adventure names and faces were helping lure people into taking an interest in the game. Right now, the game is doing so well and has gained such a good reputation that it probably doesn’t need that crutch anymore to keep going as long as the game remains well-maintained, but I have no doubt the initial “Adventure” branding was what helped it take off, and its success is most likely a huge pillar sustaining the franchise at the current moment.

Speaking of merch and toys, if you look closely, you might notice that Bandai decided to go much, much more aggressively into the toy market with this venture than they ever did with Savers, Xros Wars, or Appmon (Appmon was probably the most aggressive attempt out of said three). They put out a lot more merch and did a lot more collaborative events to engage the parents and children, and, presumably, the reason they were able to do this was because they were able to push into those outlets with the confidence the Adventure brand would let them be accepted (much like with Fuji TV). Like with the card game, the important part was getting their “foot in the door” so that even if it stopped being Adventure after a fashion, they’d still have all of those merchandising outlets -- after all, one of the first hints we ever got of Ghost Game’s existence was a July product listing for its products replacing the reboot’s in a gachapon set, so we actually have evidence of certain product pipelines being opened by the reboot’s precedent. (The word 後番組 literally means “the TV program that comes after”, so it’s pretty obvious this was intended for Ghost Game; in other words, the reboot’s existence helped ensure there be a “reservation” for this kind of product to be made.)

I think one important thing to keep in mind is that Toei and Bandai have as much of a stake in avoiding rehashing for their kids’ franchises as we do. Even if you look at this from a purely capitalistic perspective, because of how fast the “turnover” is for the kids’ audience, sustaining a franchise for a long time off rehashing the same thing over and over is hard, and even moreso when it involves a twenty-year-old anime that said kids don’t even know or remember. Ask around about popular long-running Japanese kids’ franchises and you’ll notice they practically rely on being able to comfortably change things up every so often, like PreCure/Rider/Sentai shuffling every year, or Yu-Gi-Oh! having a rotation of different series and concepts, or the struggles that franchises that don’t do this have to deal with. And, after all, for all people are cynical about Toei continuing to milk Adventure or any of the other older series at every opportunity, as far as the kids’ branch of the franchise goes, this is only capable of lasting to a certain extent; if they tried keeping this up too long, even the adults and kids would get bored, and there is some point it’ll be easier to try and make products directly targeted at the kids’ audience instead of having to rely on the parents to ease them into it.

So it’s completely understandable that the moment they secured a proper audience with the reboot and finished up their first series with this, they decided to take the risk with Ghost Game right after. And considering all that’s happened, this is still a risk -- they’re changing up a lot (even if not as much as Appmon), and there’s a chance that the audience they’ve gathered is going to shoot down again because they’ve changed so much and they no longer have the Adventure branding as a “crutch” to use -- but they’re taking it anyway instead of going for something at least slightly more conventional.

Which means that, yes, there’s a possibility this will all explode in their face, because the Adventure branding is that huge of a card they’re about to lose. But at the very, very least, Ghost Game is coming in with the “momentum” and advantage that Savers, Xros Wars, and Appmon all didn’t have: a brand currently in the stage of recovery, all of the merchandising and collaborative pipelines the reboot and Kizuna opened up, a fairly good timeslot, and a premise somewhat more conventional than Xros Wars and Appmon (I’m saying this as someone who likes both: their marketing definitely did not do them many favors). There are still a lot of risks it’s playing here, and it’s possible it won’t be the end of more Adventure or reboot brand usage to try to keep that momentum up even as we go into Ghost Game, but it’s the first time in a long while we’ve had something to stand on.

Okay, so that’s out of the way. But the end result is that we now have 67 episodes of an Adventure “reboot” that actually doesn’t even resemble Adventure that much at all, which seems to have achieved its goal of flagging down attention so it can finally going back to trying new things. This series exists, we can’t do anything about the fact it exists, the period where its own financial performance actually mattered is coming to an end anyway, and we, as a fanbase of adults hanging out on the Internet keeping up with the franchise as a whole, have to figure out how each of us feels about this. So what of it?

About the contents of the reboot itself

One thing I feel hasn’t been brought up as a potential topic very much (or, at least, not as much as I feel like it probably should be) is that the reboot seems to be actively aimed at a younger target audience than the original Adventure. It hasn’t been stated outright, but we actually have quite a bit of evidence pointing towards this.

Let’s take a moment and discuss what it even means to have a different target audience. When you’re a kid, even one or two years’ difference is a big deal, and while things vary from kid to kid, generally speaking, it helps to have an idea of what your “overall goal” is when targeting a certain age group, since at some point you have to approximate the interests of some thousands of children. Traditionally, Digimon has been aimed at preteens (10-11 year olds); of course, many will testify to having seen the series at a younger age than that, but the "main” intended target demographic was in this arena. (Also, keep in mind that this is an average; a show aimed at 10-11 year olds could be said to be more broadly aimed at 7-13 year olds, whereas one aimed at 7-8 year olds would be more broadly aimed at something like 5-10 year olds.) Let’s talk a bit about what distinguishes children’s shows (especially Japanese kids’ shows) between this “preteen demographic” and things aimed at a much younger audience (which I’ll call “young child demographic”, something like the 7-8 year old arena):

With children who are sufficiently young, it’s much, much more difficult to ensure that a child of that age will be able to consistently watch TV at the same hour every week instead of being subject to more variable schedules, often set by their parents, meaning that it becomes much more difficult to have a series that relies on you having seen almost every episode to know what’s going on. For somewhat older kids, they’re more likely to be able to pick and pursue their own preferences (the usual “got up early every week for this show”). This means that shows targeted at a young child demographic will be more likely to be episodic, or at least not have a complex dramatic narrative that requires following the full story, whereas shows targeted at a preteen audience are more willing to have a dramatic narrative with higher complexity. This does not mean by any shake of the imagination that a narrative is incapable of having any kind of depth or nuance -- the reboot’s timeslot predecessor GeGeGe no Kitaro got glowing reviews all over the board for being an episodic story with tons of depth -- nor that characters can’t slowly develop over the course of the show. But it does raise the bar significantly, especially because it prevents you from making episodes that require you to know what happened in previous ones.

The thing is, the original Adventure and the older Digimon series in general didn’t have to worry about this, and, beyond the fact that their narratives very obviously were not episodic, we actually have concrete evidence of the disparity: Digimon has often been said to be a franchise for “the kids who graduated from (outgrew) a certain other monster series”. Obviously, they’re referring to Pokémon -- which does have the much younger target demographic. That’s why its anime is significantly more episodic and less overall plot-oriented, and Digimon wasn’t entirely meant to be a direct competitor to it; rather, it was hoping to pick up the preteens who’d enjoyed Pokémon at a younger age but were now looking for something more catered to them. This is also why, when Yo-kai Watch came into the game in 2014, that was considered such a huge direct competitor to Pokémon, because it was aiming for that exact same demographic, complete with episodic anime. When Yo-kai Watch moved to its Shadowside branch in 2017, it was specifically because they had concerns about losing audience and wanted to appeal to the kids who had been watching the original series, but since they were preteens now, they adopted a more dramatic and emotionally complex narrative that would appeal to that audience instead. So you can actually see the shift in attempted target demographic in real time.

Adventure through Frontier were aimed at 10-11 year olds, and here’s the interesting part: those series had the protagonists hover around the age of said target audience. We actually have it on record that Frontier had a direct attempt to keep most of the kids as fifth-graders for the sake of appealing to the audience, and so that it would be relatable to them. You can also see this policy of “matching the target audience’s age” in other series at the time; Digimon’s sister series Ojamajo Doremi (also produced by Seki) centered around eight-year-olds. Nor was Seki the only one to do this; stepping outside Toei for a bit, Medabots/Medarot had its protagonist Ikki be ten years old, much like Digimon protagonists, and the narrative was similarly dramatic. The thing is, that’s not how it usually works, and that’s especially not really been how it’s worked for the majority of kids’ series since the mid-2000s. In general, and especially now, it’s usually common to have the protagonists of children’s media be slightly older than the target age group. This has a lot of reasons behind it -- partially because kids are looking to have slightly older characters as a model for what to follow in their immediate future, and partially because “the things you want to teach the kids” are often more realistically reflected if the kids on screen have the right level of independence and capacity for emotional contemplation. Case in point: while everyone agrees the Adventure through Frontier characters are quite relatable, it’s a common criticism that the level of emotional insight sometimes pushes the boundary of what’s actually believable for 10-11 year olds...

...which is presumably why, with the exception of this reboot, every Digimon TV series since, as of this writing, started shifting to middle school students. That doesn’t mean they’re aiming the series at middle school kids now, especially because real-life 13-15 year olds are usually at the stage where they pretend they’ve outgrown kids’ shows (after all, that’s why there’s a whole term for “middle school second year syndrome”), but more that the narrative that they want to tell is best reflected by kids of that age, especially when we’re talking characters meant to represent children from the real world and not near-immortal youkai like Kitaro. In fact, the Appmon staff outright said that Haru was placed in middle school because the story needed that level of independence and emotional sensitivity, which is interesting to consider in light of the fact that Appmon’s emotional drama is basically on par with that of Adventure through Frontier’s. So in other words, the kind of high-level drama endemic to Adventure through Frontier is would actually normally be more on par with what you’d expect for kids of Haru’s age.

But at this point, the franchise is at a point of desperation, and you can see that, as I said earlier, Appmon was blatantly trying to be one of those “have its cake and eat it too” series by having possibly one of the franchise’s most dramatic storylines while also having some of the most unsubtle catchphrases and bright colors it has to offer. Moreover, one thing you might notice if you look closely at Appmon: most of its episodes are self-contained. Only a very small handful of episodes are actively dependent on understanding what happened in prior episodes to understand the conflict going on in the current one -- it’s just very cleverly structured in a way you don’t really notice this as easily. So as you can see, the more desperate the franchise has gotten to get its kids’ audience back, the more it has to be able to grab the younger demographic and not lock them out as much as possible -- which means that it has to do things that the original series didn’t have to worry about at all.

Having seen the reboot myself, I can say that it checks off a lot of what you might expect if you tried to repurpose something based on Adventure (and only vaguely based on it, really) into a more episodic story that doesn’t require you to follow the whole thing, and that it has to break down its story into easy-to-follow bits. In fact, there were times where I actually felt like it gave me the vibes of an educational show that would usually be expected for this demographic, such as repeated use of slogans or fun catchphrases for young kids to join in on. That alone means that even if the “base premise” is similar to the original Adventure, this already necessitates a lot of things that have to be very different, because Adventure really cannot be called episodic no matter how you slice it.

Not only that, even though the target audience consideration has yet to be outright stated, we also have interviews on hand that made it very clear, from the very beginning, what their goals with the reboot were: they wanted the kids to be able to enjoy a story of otherworldly exploration during the pandemic, they wanted cool action sequences, and they wanted to get the adults curious about what might be different from the original. Note that last part: they actively wanted this series to be different from the original, because the differences would engage parents in spotting the differences, and the third episode practically even goes out of its way to lay that message down by taking the kids to a familiar summer camp, only to have it pass without incident and go “ha, you thought, but nope!” Moreover -- this is the key part -- “surprising” people who were coming from the original series was a deliberate goal they had from the very beginning. They’ve stated this outright -- they knew older fans were watching this! They were not remotely shy about stating that they wanted to surprise returning viewers with unexpected things! They even implied that they wanted it to be a fun experience for older watchers to see what was different and what wasn’t -- basically, it’s a new show for their kids who never saw the original Adventure, while the parents are entertained by a very different take on something that seems ostensibly familiar. 

On top of that, the head writer directly cited V-Tamer as an influence -- and if you know anything about V-Tamer, it’s really not that much of a character narrative compared to what we usually know of Digimon anime, and is mostly known for its battle tactics and action sequences (but in manga form). In other words, we have a Digimon anime series that, from day one, was deliberately made to have a writing philosophy and goal that was absolutely not intended to be like Adventure -- or any Digimon TV anime up to this point -- in any way. And that’s a huge shock for us as veterans, who have developed our tastes and expectations based on up to seven series of Digimon that were absolutely not like this at all. But for all it's worth, the circumstances surrounding its production and intent don't seem to quite line up with what the most common accusations against it are:

That it’s a rehash of Adventure: It really isn’t. It’s also blatantly apparent it has no intention of being so. The points that are in common: the character names and rough character designs, some very minimal profile details for said characters, Devimon having any particular foil position to Angemon, the use of Crests to represent personal growth, the premise of being in the Digital World and...that’s it! Once those points are aside, it’s really hard to say that the series resembles Adventure any more than Frontier or Xros Wars resembles Adventure (which are also “trapped in another world” narratives) -- actually, there are times the series resembles those two more than the original Adventure, which many have been quick to point out. The majority of things you can make any kind of comparison to basically drop off by the end of the first quarter or so, and trying to force a correlation is basically just that: you’d have to try forcing the comparison. The plot, writing style, and even the lineup of enemies shown just go in a completely different direction after that. So in the end, the base similarities can be said to be a marketing thing; if I want to criticize this series, I don’t think “lack of creativity” would actually be something I would criticize it for. (Of course, you’re still welcome to not be a huge fan of how they’re still guilty of using Adventure’s name value to market something that is not actually Adventure. We’re all gonna have mixed feelings on that one.)

That they don’t understand or remember Adventure’s appeal: Unlikely. All of the main staff has worked on character-based narratives before, which have been very well-praised while we’re at it. The producer, Sakurada Hiroyuki, was an assistant producer on the original series, and I would like to believe he probably remembers at least a thing or two about what they were doing with the original series...but, also, he’s the producer of Xros Wars, which definitely had its own individuality and style, and, moreover, was more of a character narrative that people generally tend to expect from Digimon anime. (Still a bit unconventional, and it has its own questions of personal taste, but a lot of people have also pointed out that this reboot has a lot in common with Xros Wars in terms of its writing tone and its emphasis on developing Digital World resident Digimon moreso than the human characters.) All signs point to the idea they could make a character narrative like Adventure if they really wanted to. It’s just, they don’t want to do that with this reboot, so they didn’t.

That they misinterpreted or misremembered the Adventure characters: There’s been accusations of said characters being written in a way that implies misinterpretation or lack of understanding of the original characters, but the thing is, while I definitely agree they have nowhere near the depth of the original ones, there are points that seem to be deliberate changes. (At some points, they’re actually opposites of the original, and certain things that operate as some very obscure references -- for instance, Sora complaining about having to sit in seiza -- seem to also be deliberate statements of going in a different direction.) The lack of human character depth or backstory doesn’t seem to be out of negligence, but rather that this story doesn’t want to be a character narrative to begin with -- after all, we’re used to seven series of Digimon that are, but there are many, many kids’ anime, or even stories in general, where the story is more about plot or action than it is completely unpacking all of its characters’ heads. In this case, this reboot does seem to have characters that are taking cues from or are “inspired by” the original, but, after all, it’s an alternate universe and has no obligation to adhere to the original characters’ backgrounds, so it stands to reason that it’d take liberties whenever it wanted. (Again, the head writer outright stated that he based the reboot’s Taichi more on V-Tamer Taichi than the original Adventure anime Taichi. He knows there’s a difference!) Even more intriguingly, the series actually avoids certain things that are common misconceptions or pigeonholes that would normally be done by the mainstream -- for instance, the Crest of Light (infamously one of the more abstract ones in the narrative) is fully consistent with Adventure’s definition of it as “the power of life”, and, if I dare say so myself, Koushirou’s characterization (emphasizing his relationship with “knowledge” and his natural shyness) arguably resembles the original far more than most common fan reductions of his character that overemphasize his computer skills over his personal aptitude. In other words, I think the staff does know what happened in the original Adventure -- they just actively don’t want to do what Adventure did, even if it’s ostensibly a reboot.

That it’s soulless or that there’s no passion in its creation: Well, this is subjective, and in the end I’m not a member of the staff to tell you anything for sure, but there are definitely a lot of things in this anime that don’t seem like they’d be the byproduct of uninspired creation or lack of passion. It’s just that those things are all not the kinds of things that we, as Digimon veterans, have come to develop a taste for and appreciate in Digimon anime. That is to say, there is an incredible amount of thought and detail put into representing Digimon null canon (i.e. representing special attacks and mechanics), the action sequences are shockingly well-animated in ways that put most prior Digimon anime to shame, and the series has practically been making an obvious attempt to show off as many Digimon (creatures) that haven’t traditionally gotten good franchise representation as they can. Or sometimes really obscure “meta fanservice” references that only make sense to the really, really, really, really hardcore longtime Digimon fan (for instance, having an episode centered around Takeru and Opossummon, because Takeru’s voice actress Han Megumi voiced Airu in Xros Wars). If you follow any of the animators on Twitter, they seem to be really actively proud of their work on it, and franchise creators Volcano Ota and Watanabe Kenji seem to be enjoying themselves every week...so basically, we definitely have creators passionate about having fun with this, it’s just that all of it is being channeled here, not the character writing.

So in the end, you can basically see that this series is basically the epitome of desperately pulling out all of the stops to make sure this series lands with the actual target demographic of children, dammit, and gets them into appreciating how cool these fighting monsters are and how cool it would be if they stuck with them even into a series that’s not Adventure. The Adventure branding and names to lure in the parents, the straightforward and easy-to-understand action-oriented narrative so that kids will think everything is awesome and that they’ll like it even when the story changes, and the merchandise and collab events booked everywhere so that they can all be reused for the next series too...because, remember, they failed with that during Savers, Xros Wars, and Appmon (I mean, goodness, you kind of have to admire their persistence, because a ton of other kids’ franchises failing this many times would have given up by now), so it’s a bit unsurprising that they went all the way to get the kids’ attention at the expense of a lot of things that would attract veterans, especially since the veterans already have a well-developed adults’ pipeline to cater to them. This does also mean that this series is more likely to come off as a 67-episode toy commercial than any previous Digimon series, but it’s not even really the toys as much as they’re trying to sell the entire franchise and the actual monsters in the hopes that they’ll stick with it even when the narrative changes.

Nevertheless, here we are. The series is over. Ghost Game -- which, as of this writing, is looking to be much more of a conventional Digimon narrative, complete with older cast, obviously more dramatic atmosphere, and pretty much everything surrounding its PR -- is on its way, presumably thanks to the success of this endeavor. It’s hard to gauge it; we have it on record that they also intend it to be episodic, but remember that this doesn’t necessarily prevent it from having an overall dramatic plot or nuanced drama (especially since the abovementioned Appmon and Kitaro were perfectly capable of pulling off this balance). Nevertheless, it seems to be a lot more of the conventional kind of Digimon narrative we usually expect, so, as for us, adult long-time fans of the Digimon franchise (many of whom don’t have kids anyway), what exactly should we make of this? Well, as far as “supporting the franchise” goes, you’ll get much more progress supporting Ghost Game than the reboot; I highly doubt view counts and merch sales relative to an already-finished series will do nearly as much for the franchise’s health as much as the currently airing series, and, besides, it’d probably do us all a favor to support the endeavor that’s actually new and fresh. So when it comes to a “past” series like this, it’s all just going to come down to a question of personal preference and taste: is this a series you, personally, want to watch, and would you find it entertaining?

For some of you, it’s possible that it just won’t be your cup of tea at all -- and since, like I said, the majority of us here have based our expectations and preferences on up to seven series of Digimon that were not like this, that’s also perfectly fine, and in that case I don’t actually recommend you watch this. Of course, I’ve never thought that it was ever fair to expect a Digimon fan to have seen all of the series released to date; the more series we get, the more inhumane of a demand that’ll become, and I think this franchise becoming successful enough to have so many series that most people won’t have seen it all is a good thing. (It’s actually kind of alarming that the percentage of people who have seen it all is so high, because it means the franchise has failed to get much of an audience beyond comparatively hardcore people who committed to it all the way.) But I think, especially in this case, with a series for which adult fans like us were probably lowest on the priority list due to the sheer amount of desperation going on here, it’s fine to skip it, and if you’re someone who lives by a need for character depth or emotionally riveting narrative, the fact this series is (very unabashedly and unashamedly) mostly comprised of episodic stories and action sequences means you won’t have missed much and probably won’t feel too left out of any conversations going forward. That’s before we even get into the part where it’s still completely understandable to potentially have mixed feelings or resentment about the overuse of the Adventure brand for something like this, especially if Adventure is a particularly important series to you.

But for some of you out there, it might still be something you can enjoy on its own merits. I’ve seen people who were disappointed by the limited degree of Digimon action sequences in the past or the fact that the series has gotten overly fixated on humans, and had an absolute ball with the reboot because it finally got to represent parts of the franchise they felt hadn’t been shown off as well. “Fun” is a perfectly valid reason to enjoy something. It’s also perfectly possible to be someone who can enjoy character narratives like the prior Digimon series but also enjoy something that’s more for being outlandish and fun and has cool Digital World concepts and visuals -- and, like I said, it does not let up on that latter aspect at all, so there’s actually potential for a huge feast in that regard. I think as long as you don’t expect it to be a character narrative like Adventure -- which will only set you up for disappointment, because it’s not (and made very clear since even the earliest episodes and interviews that it had no intention of being one) -- it’s very possible to enjoy it for what it is, and for what it does uniquely.