#multi-platform release

[zentendo]

Unleash the Cursed Power: JUJUTSU KAISEN CURSED CLASH Drops Explosive Trailer - Nintendo Switch Included

Get ready, Jujutsu High students! Satoru Gojo is bringing the heat with a brand-new trailer for JUJUTSU KAISEN CURSED CLASH, the action-packed 2v2 brawler set in the JUJUTSU KAISEN universe. Dive into the cursed techniques, synergies, and ultimate moves as the game gears up for its grand release on 2nd February 2024. Don’t miss the action – watch Gojo’s trailer now! [Watch the trailer…

[bokujou-monogatari]

So, the Marvelous CEO stepped down.

Let's talk about that!

❕This post contains speculative discussion covering: Marvelous Entertainment, Rune Factory, Story of Seasons, and touches on other IPs in the Marvelous folio. Also some fiscal discussion! It might be boring 😅...❕

Following the money

For those unaware, Marvelous isn't doing so well fiscally. In response to a (consistently) poor earnings report from 2024, the current Marvelous CEO Sato Suminobu announced his retirement from the position to elevate Shinichi Terui (an executive director) in his place.

The reasoning for the poor fiscal reporting was cited as "too few core IP releases and low sales".

What does that mean for the future? Well, while this decision focuses on 2024's performance, let's first take a bit to recap the first-time releases from 2019 to now:

January 18, 2019: Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes

June 3, 2019: Dead or School

June 9, 2019: Senran Kagura: Peach Ball

July 18, 2019: WACCA

September 13, 2019: Daemon x Machina

October 17, 2019: Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town

February 6, 2020: Granblue Fantasy: Versus

February 25, 2020: Rune Factory 4 Special

August 25, 2020: Kandagawa Jet Girls

November 5, 2020: Shadowverse: Champion's Battle

November 10, 2020: Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin

February 25, 2021: Story of Seasons: Pioneers of Olive Town

May 20, 2021: Rune Factory 5

(Almost a year later!) May 19, 2022: Deadcraft

October 17, 2022: Potionomics

November 2, 2022: Doraemon Story of Seasons: Friends of the Great Kingdom

January 26, 2023: Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life

March 2, 2023: Rune Factory 3 Special

June 1, 2023: Loop8: Summer of Gods

October 3, 2023: Silent Hope

November 3, 2023: Fashion Dreamer

November 9, 2023: Cuisineer

(Almost a year later, again!) November 1, 2024: Farmagia

Dry Spells

From 2019 to 2024, 23 titles (please correct me if I missed any!) were delivered. 2022 and 2024 were undoubtedly fiscally dry periods, with one-year periods between releases.

Of the released titles in this period, 10 were from more notorious series; and 6 of those were from the company's self-described Flagship IPs (3 from Story of Seasons and Rune Factory respectively)!

Despite Rune Factory and Story of Seasons being flagship IPs, over half of the games (4/6) released 2019-2024 were remakes or remasters of previous titles (Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town, Rune Factory 4 Special, Rune Factory 3 Special, and Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life), leaving only 2 titles as standalone, new mainline entries in their respective series. Oh, and there was Doraemon too, I guess.

Even with the massive sales seen - with Pioneers of Olive Town being the fastest selling XSEED published title ever and Rune Factory 5 topping 500,000 units sold worldwide after an unprecedented comeback - the games still massively under-performed at launch. The backlash was so strong for Olive Town that the producer (Dai Takemura) was run off his social media platforms and formally apologized for the poor launch. Rune Factory 5 also suffered during the Japanese launch, garnering criticisms from Japanese and North American fans alike amid celebrations of the series' return. This left fans in each space wondering what their favorite series would look like after such rocky starts on the new Nintendo Switch hardware.

The Future, Sprouting

Despite the struggles and setbacks, and nothing to really "make it rain", the flagship series are continuing to grow with 2 new additions to Story of Seasons - a cross-play online multiplayer title, and the next mainline game (purportedly the 30th anniversary entry) - and 2 new Rune Factory games - with entry 6 in development, and Guardians of Azuma releasing in May 2025.

These games are really going to have to do something outstanding to make up for the broken trust of their fans. But with a company struggling with its financials, there's always going to be a tug of war between satisfying fans and generating revenue.

This is where speculative analysis on my part comes in.

Flexible and Mobile

Current market trends point towards more open-world, cel-shaded style games for mobile (ala Hoyoverse games, Wuthering Waves notably). And the Nintendo Switch is, after all, a glorified touchscreen tablet. It's not lost on fans that there's something going on in the background regarding the games' development, and how eerily alike they are in visuals into some of the bigger, heavy hitting and grossing mobile titles out there.

The style on its own is simplistic, colorful, and warm. It's also very fast to develop and refine - no overly complicated textures or super granular details. The art direction also makes it lighter than other games which have many materials or polygons. It just works.

However, that can point to speculation around development; whether the studio is trying to streamline into shorter times...or is headed in a mobile direction. Let's take a look at some recently released screenshots from Guardians of Azuma.

There are elements of UI design displayed here that would feel right at home on a device held in one's hands, and not just with controllers in palms! Make no mistake, mobile is not an insult here. In fact, mobile may be just the direction these series need in order to sustain themselves in the current market era. Mobile gaming currently accounts for (roughly) 110 billion USD annually, across the globe! Even indies like Stardew Valley can see sizeable mobile market gains from concurrent releases on app stores.

It also wouldn't be the first time either series appeared on mobile. A company with as long a history and staying power as Marvelous would surely see no small number of players and a steady revenue for Story of Seasons and Rune Factory by tapping back into that market. Perhaps we're due to see things sprout on that platform soon?

(What happened to that in-development Story of Seasons Mobile title, anyway...?)

[256gb]

here's the latest trailer for our expressive momentum-based shmovement platformer The Big Catch we debuted at IGN Live (the show even opened with our trailer which is such an honor)!

and as a big bonus, we've just released the tacklebox on steam—an entire free multi-hour standalone prologue for you as an appetizer for the main game. please give it a try and see all of the love and hard work we've put into it :^)

i'm the sole UI/UX designer on this game btw so please look respectfully at my UI hehehe

please give it a shot and share it around and tell me what you think!

[failbettergames]

will mandrake eventually be available on the switch? sincerely guy whos pc is a laptop not built for gaming but has every other fallen london universe game on his little switch that he adores

the idea is to do a multi-platform release when we leave early access; i couldn't 100% say it will be switch or switch 2 but 'switch' is on the list!

[piosplayhouse]

I too watched the hbomberguy video and went straight to Twitter, whereupon I found that James Somerton had mentioned danmei in one of his videos and it made everyone mad, so I went looking and. yeah here's a full transcription of his just completely incorrect coverage of cql and mdzs from "Hollywood's (Gay) China Problem" so you don't have to watch it and give him views:

"The 2019 fantasy series The Untamed, featuring an unlikely bond between a man with magic powers and a stoic prince, started an online craze over the pair's implicit romance, but the show's promotion focused on its portrayal of Chinese traditional culture, a push consistent with Chinese communist party propaganda.

The show was... Queerbait-y. But the novel on which it was based [shows a picture of the fanmade cover for The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation made by fan translator team Exiled Rebels] certainly was not. That featured a very explicit love story between the two main characters, but was self-censored when adapted to meet the censorship guidelines of the Xi Jinping government. But it didn't matter. Like so much queerbaiting before, people saw through the weak veneer of heterosexuality. They "took the bait", so to speak. The series has accumulated a total of 9.5 billion views in China as of this summer, and had also received an international release via Netflix. It was described as a global phenomenon, taking off like no BL series before it, making its way all around Asia and with the Netflix deal, all across Europe and North America as well.

Tencent, the Chinese streaming platform it originated on, saw 2.6 million new subscribers to the service when it was released. And WeTV, an app that lets you watch BL content anywhere in the world, saw growth of 250% while the show was airing. In January of 2020, the cast members planned to embark on a multi-city, worldwide fan meeting tour. Cities included Bangkok, Singapore, Tokyo, Seoul, Macau, Kuala Lumpur, Toronto, Los Angeles, New York... But it was cancelled due to COVID-19.

Even the Chinese government has endorsed it. The overseas popularity of these romantic sword-wielding heroes is often highlighted in Chinese media coverage focusing on the massive overseas streaming numbers and its ability to build a growing appreciation of the charm of Chinese culture."

[resonancepodcasts]

Hey audio drama fans, do you speak French?

If you do (or even if you sort of understand it, it's fine, we don't speak too quickly) you may want to give our show, Thanatoscope, a listen!

Thanatoscope is a 6-episodes multi-genre anthology. Its theme is Human(ity) facing its end. There's science-fiction (a lot), dystopia, drama, sadness, and some episodes even have a poetic side to them!

Already three episodes have been released!

Oh, your French is limited, you tell me? NO WORRIES, DEAR BARELY-FRENCH-SPEAKING FRIEND, for we have ✨subtitled videos✨ on Youtube.

You can listen to it on any platform!

🍏 Apple Podcasts

🎧 Spotify

🔊 Deezer (French people will know this one, no worries)

And other podcatcher apps, like Podbean, Podcast Addicts, etc.

Hope you like it ✨

[positivexcellence]

Jared Padalecki Joins ‘Fire Country’ For Guest Arc That Could Lead To New Franchise Offshoot

EXCLUSIVE: Jared Padalecki is returning to series television. The former Supernatural star, coming off a four-season run as the lead of Walker, has been tapped for a three-episode arc on the upcoming third season of CBS‘ hit drama series Fire Country, headlined and executive produced by Max Thieriot.

He will play Camden, a SoCal firefighter and maverick with a surfer swagger who is a force to be reckoned with and immediately recognizes Bode’s (Thieriot) raw talent.

The deal with Fire Country producer CBS Studios is strictly for the recurring role, sources said. Given Padalecki’s status as a popular leading man with two hit series under his belt, I hear there is a possibility for the guest stint to lead to a new spinoff headlined by him that would join the upcoming Sheriff Country.

Sources stress that the idea is still in its nascent stages. And similarly to the NCIS franchise, which originated on CBS and has generated four domestic offshoots on the network but has also expanded into streaming with the latest spinoff, NCIS: Tony & Ziva (as well as the streaming/broadcast NCIS: Sydney), a new Fire Country spinoff could be for broadcast or streaming. Reps for CBS and CBS Studios declined comment.

Fire Country, which was the most watched new broadcast series in its freshman season, was quickly identified by the CBS leadership as a potential franchise anchor that could spawn multiple spinoffs.

“We are focused on mass-appeal franchises,” CBS President and CEO George Cheeks said in June 2023. “This season’s number one show was Fire Country, which completely lends itself to building out a whole new universe… It became very clear that not only was the show special, it really felt like this could be a great example of us building together a franchise from scratch.”

The first Fire Country spinoff, the Morena Baccarin-starring Sheriff Country, which started off as a planted spinoff episode on the mothership series this past season, was recently picked up to series for 2025-26.

Keeping Padalecki in the fold has been a priority for CBS Studios following the end of its CW drama Walker, on which he was star and executive producer, leading to creating the opportunity for him on Fire Country. Walker was canceled for financial reasons despite being the network’s most watched series.

Fire Country averages more than 10 million viewers per episode in multi-platform viewing. (Live+35-day on Paramount + and CBS TVE)

Season 1 became available on Netflix in the US August 1 and has already reached #3 in the streamer’s daily rankings. This is an additional domestic streaming window for Fire Country whose first two seasons are on Paramount+. It is designed to give the show additional exposure ahead of its Oct. 18 Season 3 premiere on CBS.

From creators and executive producers Tony Phelan, Joan Rater and Thieriot, inspired by Thieriot’s experiences growing up in Northern California, the series follows Bode Donovan (Thieriot), a young convict seeking redemption and a shortened prison sentence by joining a prison release firefighting program in Northern California, which sends him back to his hometown.

Billy Burke, Kevin Alejandro, Diane Farr, Stephanie Arcila, Jordan Calloway and Jules Latimer also star. Tia Napolitano, who also serves as showrunner, executive produces alongside Jerry Bruckheimer and KristieAnne Reed of Jerry Bruckheimer Television.

Since the end of Walker, Padalecki also has discussed a role on the upcoming fifth and final season of Prime Video’s The Boys, developed and executive produced by Supernatural creator Eric Kripke. He is repped by UTA, Industry Entertainment and Fuller Law.

deadline

[disneytva]

Disney Television Animation Multi-Platform has made a brand new "ELIO" crosspromotion short with "PHINEAS AND FERB".

This in honor of the upcoming release of "ELIO" this Friday. This is the project that Yonas Kibreab recorded at Disney TVA a month ago.

[halcyone-of-the-sea]

FLOWERS FOR THE SICK AND GONE (II)

NAVIGATION || RAVISHING ALLURE MASTERLIST || NEXT: CHAPTER III

PAIRING: Nikto x F!Reader (Soulmate AU)

WORDCOUNT: 6.3k

WARNINGS: Angst, mentions of stalking, talks of death, weapons, explosives, violence, gore, strained mother-daughter relationship, suggestive thoughts, mentions of sex, toxic modeling standards, etc. (Series 18+)

A/N: I started this before Nikto was confirmed for MWII multi., but I'll be using the 'Powercell' skin as his main attire now because it's literally so attractive.

*I do not give others permission to translate and/or re-publish my works on this or any other platform*

You look at your hands as they rest in your lap, right foot jumping up and down in a display of internal anxiety under the table in your Mom’s office. It was cold, and the AC was turned all the way up; the floors barely helped—tile covered by thin rugs and windows open to the chilly morning. Like the opposite of Hellfire. 

Two days had passed since the explosion and you’d only just gotten the ability to leave the hospital. The doctors had wanted to keep you longer, but you had turned in a favor from your matriarch to have them ease off with their prodding and poking. 

The fact that they had been more interested in your permanent colorblindness had tipped you off that all the help you were going to be given had already been passed out. As a whole, that had been in the form of pain medication and surgical glue to the minuscule cut on your temple. 

The head bleeds a lot, you know, even if the injury is minor. You weren’t overly surprised the gash had been tiny; you know what a violent wound to that part of the skull looks like. 

Feels like.

Your lips thin at the thought of the nurses and their curious and narrowed eyes��the doctor wanting to do more in-depth tests as if you hadn’t gone through a slew of them before.

There was a reason you hated hospitals.

Shivering, you take a deep breath to calm down right as the door behind you opens with the sound of heeled feet and a hurried sigh. The door automatically shuts with a slam and a click of metal hinges.

“Thank God nothing happened to your face!” A hand sets itself on your shoulder and you restrain a flinch, looking to the side to the familiar face of your mom as her head tilts to look you up and down in your seat. “Stand up, let me see you.”

You open your mouth to speak but you’re quickly cut off by her serious expression. 

Standing, you steady yourself by placing a hand on the side of the seat, knuckles tight as your casual sneakers take your weight. “It’s just a scratch Mom, promise. I got lucky.” When you can stand without the fear of falling over, you release it and study your mother’s fancy attire.

Dress pants, blouse, and pounds of extravagant jewelry around her neck and wrists like shackles. She looks just the same as you’d always seen her. Cold. 

In some ways, she was more suited to this city than you were. 

“I’ll say—you could have damaged your skin.” She motions to your body, shaking her head and sighing before moving behind her desk to sit down. A large window is behind her—shining in chilled light. “We’ll have to hope and pray that the cut heals before the next photoshoot you have scheduled. Have they told you when you’ll be back in the Agency?”

“...three people are dead, and you’re worried about me?” you say quietly, gut-twisting. “What about them?”

She pauses, her hand half holding a piece of paper from her pile. She glances up at you and thinks for a moment. Your eyes dig into hers, dejected. But she doesn’t think much of this, judging by the confused emotion that swirls behind her gray pigment. 

“I’m sorry, Beauty,” no, she’s not. Your face pulls at the nickname, but you say nothing until she’s done talking. “But their job was to keep you safe. They succeeded, it’s unfortunate, I know, but if they had to…pass,” she strains through the word, not wanting to say the other. For your benefit or hers, you know not. “To keep you alive, then I say it was an even trade.” 

It’s nearly like a slap to your face as your body goes tight, sitting back down into the seat with a puff of air. Like you’d just been slipped poison, your throat starts to fizzle with bile. 

Yefim’s dead body slashes in the back of your mind; the lower half gone and the rest spilling out. Confused eyes and burned skin that smells like something out of a kitchen no matter how morbid the thought was. 

She wasn’t there, you tell yourself. She doesn’t know how bad it was.

Screaming mixed in with crying and Alyona’s insistent barks of orders. Her hands pulled you up and shielded you from the disintegrated ash of Petya and Aleksandr. One splayed out the broken window and the other lay in an unrecognizable heap a foot from the bakery. 

The only people to survive were the Baker’s boy and the two of you, but then again that was half. 

“I don’t think that’s right—”

“If you were a mother, then you’d be agreeing with me,” the Consul explains, shaking her head. “But that’s not why I wanted to bring you here.” With your mom, sometimes it was better just to let things go and have them disappear into the past; you’d gotten good at brushing past comments just to satisfy her. It was just easier.

“Okay,” you whisper, looking down at your lap before closing your eyes. Looking back up, the woman is signing papers and doesn’t glance at you before speaking. 

“There was a break-in at the bakery an hour before you went there,” your body stills, a strange feeling in your gut as it tightens. “Nothing was stolen but Mr. Morozov,” the owner, “says the locks were broken off; he never told authorities until now because it was minor. I think that leaves us with the answer about how that explosive got under the floorboards.” The scribble of a pen before it’s placed down and your mom’s eyes settle back on you with a frown on her lips. Her makeup makes her look like a stone statue you’d see in a museum; blank with an undertone of something else. 

You stutter in broken intervals, repeatedly tapping your finger on your wrist, “How do you know about this?” 

“I’m paid to know,” your mother mutters but offers more. “One of the employees is American. He’s here and planning to extend his visa for four years to care for his dying father.” Her voice drops. “Thank God that he wasn’t working.” 

Being one of the two American Consulate Generals in Russia, your mother’s job was to, officially, “...Preserve and protect the relationship, and be a point of contact, between the United States of America and Russia.” 

It also meant that any American citizens in Yekaterinburg were under her watchful eyes. This Consulate building provides a multitude of services—issuing visas, and renewing passports were the big ones, while registering births and deaths was also added to that chart. You’d never looked much into it, but knew it was intensive work. Everything ‘American’ going on in this city, your mom knows about. 

“I’ve got a landfill of paperwork, so I’ll have to cut this off at the base,” she continues and you rub at the base of your cut with a flinching hand. You carefully tense as if a bombshell is going to be dropped on you, thighs shifting on the seat and feet unconsciously putting themselves farther under the chair. 

The woman blinks at you and folds her hands on the table, knuckles tight. 

“The Russian government is eager to keep lines of communication open with the USA, which means me.” You don’t like where this is going—certainly not with that folder that your mother was grabbing from out of her top drawer; having to unlock it with the name tag around her neck. A small beep echoes over the large room. “I don’t think I need to explain how much this puts me in a hole now that a stalker is after a Consul’s daughter and everyone knows about it.” You feel guilty but you don’t know why. This wasn’t your fault….right? 

“I have meetings planned into next week from the second the sun rises until it peaks its stupid ass back up on the other end.” She speaks low, running a hand over her head but still keeping you in her sight. She slaps a bulging manila folder onto the desk and leans back with a sigh. 

Your eyes meet in a locking of wills and you restrain yourself from apologizing. In your lap your hands clench.

“Any weapon,” she speaks slowly so you take in every word—as if you were a toddler. You hate when she gets like this. “Any goes through so many hoops to be owned it’s practically not worth it, and the same goes for possible parts used to make them. Whoever did this either has connections or a pile of money to use for bribes; I don’t know which I’d prefer, but based on his presents I have a good guess.” 

“But why would someone do that?” You have to speak—to ask. How could someone be so cruel and malicious? Kill someone—multiple someones? To you, it was just unthinkable. Even just being a part of it had wreaked your sleep schedule, left you writhing in bed from an inability to sleep out of fear of seeing Yefim’s face again—gray blood; colorless gore. It was a chore to get up in the morning and eat what little you could.

Being unable to see color had never left you more terrified than when that pretty boy’s eyes had stared into yours until everything was snuffed out like a matchstick. 

“Because this person,” the Consul states, answering you firmly. “He doesn’t care about you as an individual. To him, Beauty…you’re just an object that he wants to own. Your picture is all he thinks about and everyone else needs to be out of the background, do you understand?”

You go lightheaded, face quickly tilting down and contorting into itself. 

Your mother sits straighter and reaches a hand across the table, lightly saying your name with the voice she would use to read stories in your youth. Skin burning, you look at it, but after a moment you weakly place your own into hers, heart hammering and brain laced with a primal fear. Though the woman’s grip tightens and squeezes lightly, you get no warmth from the gesture. Yet still, it’s better than nothing. 

Alyona was away with her relatives and fiance since she’d been released from the hospital earlier; you’d spoken there briefly, but it wasn’t the same as it would have been if you’d had her here.

“We’re going to get this figured out, okay?” You nod, trying to smile as she studies your face—lingering on your temple before she frowns deeply and pulls back. Loudly, she states, “I’ll order some scar cream to your penthouse when we’re done.” 

“Alright,” your lips mumble, ribs like iron cages for too-large lungs.

“But now into the important part. I need you to pick one.” She pushes the folder closer to you, and your hand snaps out to grab it. It instead punches the desk and you hiss, bringing it back to your chest. Your mother minutely blinks in shock, eyes confused. “Still with that Spatial Awareness? I thought you said it was getting better?”

“I’m…still working through it,” you grumble. You wanted to tell her there wasn’t any ‘getting better’ from this. It was just another problem you’d have to deal with your entire life. But, again, it’s easier.

She huffs as you correctly locate the folder and pick it up, placing it gently into your lap and flipping it open. Inside you find file after file, taking the first one into your fingers and propping it up before blinking in confusion at the black ink and tiny picture of a man. 

You briefly look at the name, processing, before gazing back up at the woman with a furrow in your brows. 

“Mom?” 

She smiles.

“I have three men of Russian descent who are candidates to be your next around-the-clock guard.” Your matriarch is oblivious to your apparent hesitation to take on another person into your life, your shoulders hunching in. “All part of a PMC group called KorTac. I’d ask for a broader scale, but being born here and previously serving in the military would give them far more privileges than any others.” 

You’re already shaking your head, “I don’t want anyone else to get hurt. I still have to send my apologies to all the others’ families. I–I,” your voice cuts before you can let the tears weigh your sentence down with emotion. 

Your mother didn’t do that kind of thing. 

“Sweetheart,” the woman draws out, shaking her head, “they don’t want to hear from you, you know that.” Her voice hardens. “You’re my responsibility. Now, look at the options.” 

Gritting your teeth, you want to stand and stalk out, say to hell with her PMCs and her bland eyes. The way she talks with care but hides it behind a wall of knives like some protective barrier; like she needs to do that. 

But you stay your voice and look back down, brushing past pages to have all of the pictures lined up right next to each other.

Blinking, you ask, numbly, “What kind of privileges?”

Your mother smiles though a thankful breath. “Weapons, body armor; they’ll be allowed to enter and go about business as they see fit without normal blockades. People here trust their own.”  

Fire races through your mind, all-consuming black smoke and the bland ash of a burning building. Trust their own? One of their own had just killed three people and injured three more just to get your attention. How was that trust?

Your eyes gloss over words, or what little of them you could read beyond inked-out sections. Names smudge and achievements blurr; medals with no hold on you and a list of missions accomplished with what you assumed to be perfect records. 

“These men have killed people,” you say, shifting to the last file as you don’t look at it right away, instead leveling the Consul with a pleading twist to your lips. “A lot of people.”

As an individual, you wouldn’t say you were very confrontational or quick to jump to violence—you did damage control and appeased more than antagonized. There was less stress when everyone could get a portion of what they wanted.

You just didn’t like senseless brutality.

“Then there’s no one better for the job.” Sometimes you wonder if your mother even raised you at all. 

Forehead creased, you shift back to the papers, staring at the last man of the three in a moment of flickering orbs. His intimidating appearance makes your eyes go slightly wider with shock as you focus in. 

Nikto is all that was given for the man’s name—Russian: Никто—and the individual was shrouded in so much black you wondered if he might create a void of energy around him; some kind of gruff and grueling cloud. Even from the picture, the pale, contrasted, eyes dug into you, even brighter than Petya’s had once been. Though, these eyes were inlaid into some strange mask, the top of the covering a type of Kevlar and the bottom covered in rough canvas that pulls back and completely covers the rest of the head. There are straps that extend to hold his chin and on the sides of his nose… 

Your face pulls with mild disgust. Are those two screws? What the hell…?

This Russian was, plainly put, the face of death. Perhaps even something worse.

The theme of black continued, as it was the only color besides white you could identify. Strapped vest of armor plates, arms and hands that rest behind his back covered by long sleeves. Ammo was clipped at the sides of his upper chest and a large collar of armor stamped with the letters and number of ‘MP-0’. Your eyes slide to what you can read about him, morbidly intrigued as you frown at his belt full of grenades and knives. An assault rifle hangs from his chest by a long strap, limp as a dead limb.

But as you look, there was even less information available about this beast than there was visible skin behind the face-paint smeared into his sockets. Not even an age.

“Nikto,” you murmur. You wondered why you liked how it slipped off the tongue. 

But you’ll also wonder in the future why you choose him at all. 

Maybe it was the way for the first time in two days you’d felt something other than fear and regret; something that spread like water into the lines of your face to make them smooth. Maybe it was because out of the others, he would be the type to do his job and then leave entirely without a trace.

A blink and then…gone. 

You can't have anyone else die on you—and Nikto seems the only one able to take death by the throat and throttle him with the handle of his own scythe. 

Maybe.

Maybe.

Your head tilted, and you blinked. 

“This one,” you toss the file to your mother’s desk and watch it hit off-center. the woman’s face twitches at the monster-esc profile. It’s like she ages ten years.

“...Lovely.”

—

One day later you meet Nikto, but before you do, you make a quick visit to the hospital with a bundle of fresh flowers. You’d brokenly asked for blue and white, but you can’t verify if that was really what you were holding. 

At the front desk, you ask for room three and are simply pointed down the hallway without a word. A small smile is handed over, but no one answers as you slink away, guiding your legs along the lines of the tile on the ground. Standing outside you knock softly and grasp the handle, pushing it open after a deep breath. 

The Baker’s Boy lays in a bed and his dark eyes snap to yours immediately, widening. His curls are crisped and shorter now, singed at the ends. Arms taped with bandages and gauze, his wounds are not wide-spread but severe enough to keep him for longer than you and Alyona. 

“Sergei?” You ask, standing in the doorway and plastering a soft smile on your face. You’d gotten his name through a text with Aly, where she asked you to give him a kind word as you dropped off your gift.

Sergi blinks quickly at you, and something like fear slashes his face. You raise your hands rapidly, flowers in the crook of your elbow. 

“N-no, I’m sorry. I know you’ve probably heard a lot about me, the news has been…uh…” Your words trail to a fake chuff of laughter, looking to the side wall for a moment. “Well, it’s not right of me to take no blame.” The man only stares and stays silent, sitting up straighter in bed and thinning his lips. His body is tense. 

“I’m sorry, I just wanted to drop these off. I-I’ll leave.” Walking quickly to the side table, you place down the flowers and clear your throat, sending him a very guilty glance. “The woman I was with gives her well-wishes for your recovery. I’m sorry,” you say again, nodding your head and locking your hands in front of your abdomen. 

Turning on your feet like an elite track star, you dart quickly back to the door. 

“Girl.” You halt in the doorway, one arm quivering just as it had before the explosion. Your head swivels, surprised. 

Sergi gazes at you, his dark eyes large and serious, tinged with unease. His English is barely understandable, and he struggles through the words with an accent so deep it’s a series of throaty grunts. 

“Do not come back.” 

Your lungs tighten as if someone squeezes them in a ruthless fist. Nodding shakily, you dash out and don’t stop until you’re back outside, breathing in gasps and putting a hand to your mouth to stifle your ragged breaths. People who come and go look at you as you lean heavily into the wall, some concernedly furrowing their brows but ultimately walking past. 

You suppose they didn’t recognize you in all of the normal clothes—a thick turtleneck under a jacket and sweatpants. No makeup with a ball cap atop your head. Clearing your dry throat, you get a hold of yourself and keep your face down-cast, slithering off with a zig-zag pattern of feet. 

It’s okay. It’s okay. He has a right to feel like that. It’s going to be okay.

But it doesn’t stop the pit in your heart from growing until it threatens to swallow you whole.

It’s only when you’re five minutes late to the Consulate building that your mother levels you with an unimpressed look, standing at the entrance with her arms crossed. You walk quickly to hide the rings around your eyes from her, not wanting to start an argument about what went wrong.

“He’s been here for half an hour, Seraph,” you cringe, waving to the woman at the front desk who nods and gives a pitying tilt of her head. 

Half an hour? Talk about a time freak.

“I know, I’m sorry, I just lost track of time.” Hands take you by the side of your arms and swivel you back around as you hang up your jacket, making you flinch but go along with the action. 

Your mother levels you with a stare that the long it goes on, eases. It mingles on the border of comfort and concern before she awkwardly squeezes and lets go of you, eyelids blinking to study the trash can near the door. 

“Stop…apologizing, Beauty.” The curtain re-falls and your mom stands straighter, brushing down her fitted blouse and clearing her throat. “It’s unbecoming. Now, remember to smile—everyone loves your smile.” 

You hide your yearning and plaster on a fake grin, feeling nervousness infecting your blood. 

In your career, meeting new people was a requirement. Photographers, other models, business associates who reach out for brand deals; the list was long. Beyond a desirable body and the mask of provocative expressions, physical image was only a part of it—being good at playing sales broker added to appeal. At the parties AMA shipped you off to, especially. 

Alyona often called the two of you exceptionally well-paid and up-standing sex workers, but withholding the intimacy of sheets and panting breath. You sold the idea of sex just by being there, which, oftentimes, is far better than the sin of flesh itself. Your agency knows it well.

Your face was an asset; just like your body and expressions—a tool.

But somehow you knew that whatever face you put on, model or the woman who’d just seen immense horror, it wouldn’t matter in the slightest. Just on a picture alone, Nikto had ingrained himself in your mind as an idol of seriousness and blunt orders. Not like Yefim, but somehow that made you feel better about this situation. It was even the reason you had chosen him in the first place.

No getting close to this one, you reason as your mother guides you down a hallway, hand firm on your back. 

“Is there anything I can know besides his name?” Watching room after room passes you, you’re brought to the far back of the Consulate building. You study the large wooden door. 

It’s a moment before your mom responds, rubbing lightly along your spine. “I’ve heard he’s a former FSB Agent. Spetsnaz as well. He has an extensive record, but no...concerns to worry about. You’re in exceptionally good hands.”  

“Concerns?” A huff. “Like if he’ll kill me before the creep has the chance,” you’re leveled with a stiff look.

“No one is going to die, Seraph.” People already have. 

With a frown, you grasp the handle and shrug off your mother’s touch, entering the room and letting the door shut behind you with a thump as you pad through. It’s only a millisecond, but you plaster back on a content expression and loosen your muscles; the internal warfare of constant tension makes everything ache. 

You lock eyes with a standing absence of light. 

In person, he was even more dark…and you didn’t just mean the outfit. Staring, bright eyes dig into your soul with no emotions—so departed from normal expression it’s like looking into a corpse. 

Nikto’s standing with his hands behind his back, his shoulders loose but pulled with soldier-like authority. He’s tall, and the large bulk of his chest and thighs make you swallow down saliva as you stand still and blink quickly. His stomach bulges with muscle from under his armor—the same you’d seen in his profile. 

The Russian was all the same except for the lack of weapons, though, the duffel bag at his side certainly held them in its inky depths.

He’s built like a damn brick wall, your mind blanks, not lying with the feelings of slight unease. Nikto was just…still. Not blinking. Watching you with a gleam of something strange. The Russian man’s eyes narrow with…disgust? Maybe you were reading too much into that, but one thing was certain.  

He was studying you... aggressively. Prodding.

A second passes like this.

Oh, your face remains a plastered calm but your heart skips a beat, he’s waiting for me to introduce myself. You quickly clear your throat and walk forward, not seeing the way he tenses and sets his feet harder into the ground. 

“Umh,” scolding yourself for your hesitation, you shakily put out a hand for him to shake, keeping a respectable distance away. 

Finally, a slight movement; a dart of his eyes down to your limb.

“I’m Seraph, nice to meet you. You go by Nikto, right? Just Nikto…? I’m sorry, that was all I was able to read on your file.” You’re blinked at slowly, left gazing up into this beast's covered face and his terrifying mask of fabric and rigid material. 

How tall can a man be before it becomes insulting to be standing next to him?

As the silence continues, your hand stutters before you let it fall, awkwardly stuffing it into your pocket. 

Alright.

“There was…” You lick your lips, glancing off to a gray picture on the far wall. “A lot of black ink, to be honest. Quite the record, huh?” 

A strained chuckle bounces off the small space. 

Nikto doesn’t respond and you blink quickly through confusion and growing embarrassment. Your face burns like a heat gun was set on it. A highly uncomfortable silence falls, but you very much doubt that the man in front of you even feels it like you do—a slow deterioration of your confidence.

And why in the hell was he still looking at you like that?! All you’d done is walk through the damn door and lock eyes with him!

But then he speaks as you’re just about to turn away and walk out of the room with your tail between your legs, mentally exhausted and needing to put ice on your forehead. 

“Seraph, like angel?” Broken English, but better than Sergi’s. What caught you was the depth of it—the rough scrape of vocal cords and raspy grit. Sandpaper, nearly. You restrain yourself from cringing. Nikto scoffs and he looks away from you, stance immobile. “You do not look like angel.”

Your mind takes a moment to latch onto the words, jaw slackening in shock and lashes fluttering for a second. “E…excuse me?”

Nikto grunts and glares at the door. 

It’s your turn to stare, mouth opening and closing with small smacks of lips with a sudden blankness to your brain. Your ability to speak seems to leave you in a small instant between the stab of insult and brief anger. While you felt yourself above the base instinct of vexation, Nikto’s words had soaked you in their substance of prodding bluntness. 

Your beauty was all you had, certainly, he hadn’t meant that. Surely it was just a translation error. Your lips darken with a frown, eyes flashing. 

But something else pierces you in the chest, too.

Without another exchange, you turn around and begin walking to the exit, hands in your pockets clenched into your palms. There’s a silent padding of feet right behind you and the shuffle of a duffel bag. Your body freezes and you slowly look over your shoulder. 

The Void follows, bag in hand and dead eyes peeling back your psyche as if this was normal; you find him a few steps forward from where he was, like your own personal shadow.

He freezes as you do, but this is more… purposeful. Both of you lock gazes, nothingness and veiled discourse flaring. 

But you were better than that. 

You had to be better. 

So you soften your expression and, under your breath, sigh heavily. “I’ll write you up my schedule,” Nikto blinks, brows barely pulling in. “Get you a copy from AMA or something.” 

“Already acquired.” His hulking figure seems to always be tense and ready to strike. For a second you’re reminded of Petya with a sharp slap to your face. But Nikto’s bark is far sterner if that was even possible. Almost like a single sound.

You bring a hand to itch at your temple, stopping before you can peel at the soft skin covered in scar cream.  

“...Right,” at a slight loss of what to do, you shuffle your feet and open the door—leaving the room and holding the thing partially open behind you for the Russian. “Of course.” Your grumble only meets your ears, put off. 

Nikto moves out of the doorway, having to slightly tilt his shoulders to fit through the opening without slamming into the frame. He does so fluidly and almost robotically. 

“Has anyone ever told you that you walk like a scary dog?” You let go of the door and pull ahead, smiling somewhat more real as the light eyes snap down at you. There’s a brief grunt of breath from behind his mask.

Nikto is silent for a long while, growling out, “Hет.” Formal. Brisk. 

No. 

You get the feeling that you’re annoying him, but you can’t help but slightly enjoy it. Finally, some semblance of normality you could cling to. “Well, they should,” you admit, studying the loping walk—a slightly tilted pace that would suit a wolf or a bear, even. Making sure your own hand slides against the wall to keep you in a straight line, you continue, cheekily. “Because you do.” 

Nikto stares straight ahead and stays silent, something akin to irritation in his visible portions; free hand twitching. You tilt your head.

“Y’know, this would be better if you could hold a conversation.” 

“Да.” You smile wider.

“So you’ll have a conversation with me?” 

 “Hет.” Nikto glares from a side-eye, the words hissed through clenched teeth. If he was this easy to rile up, this would be more fun than you thought.

Your eyes linger on his form, the biceps, and the forearms that strain behind padded pieces of thick material. Combat boots and loose black cargo pants shoved into them.

This might be a good distraction, at the very least. Let the authorities work in the background and keep this cut of the crop. No feelings, of course. Not like Yefim, you remind yourself again. Never again like Yefim. 

The dead man’s face slips behind your eyelids and you blink your face forward. 

“Are you only going to say ‘yes’ or ‘no?’” Nikto’s bulk enshrouds you heavily as you take a right back to the lobby where your mother waits. He hums in his throat, before muttering something under his breath in harsh Russian. You have no idea what that means or if you even want to decipher it, you shrug and shut up. 

It was probably a curse anyway. Or a plea for reassignment. 

Your mother’s face pulls tight as Nikto shows himself beside you, his sights locking onto the Consul as you grab your jacket, missing the hook once before you grasp it firmly and slip it on. 

“If everything is in order…?” She trails, before frowning at the man and coming over to you. 

“We can always find a way to bring you back to the States,” you blink, her face serious as it slashes through you. “Get your passport up to date and find a different modeling agency.” 

What’s with the change in attitude? You ask yourself, brows pulling in and studying your mom’s expression. She’s older, but maybe you’re only realizing it now that you care to look. Wrinkles and a certain film to her gaze that parents seem to grow when they’re trying to convince you of something.

Nikto watches and listens closely a few feet from the door, duffel bag still in hand. 

“You know that’s not an option. Allurement is exclusive—I won’t get a better deal than the one I have.” Your words come out confused. “Weren’t you the one that told me this was the best option, that they would be the only ones to take me?” You pause. “Especially with the way I am?”

Her face twists, shaking her head instantly with a scrunched nose and flashing orbs. Even mentioning what happened made her act like water near the brim of a glass; one shake and the liquid would seep over and pool to the counter. “I don’t remember saying that.” 

You close your mouth before changing the subject, offering an easy, yet strained, smile. 

“I’m going to be okay, Mom. Besides, the guy’ll get caught before we know it. All of them do. Petya, Aleksandr, and Yefim,” your voice tightens, “will get to rest easy.” 

Your matriarch gives a small twitch of her lips back, kisses your forehead, and says, “Alright, Beauty,” you hide your cringe, “I’m one call away.” 

She walks off with a click of her heels. 

“Girl,” you look up from zipping your jacket. Nikto glares at you. “быстро. Hurry up.” 

“Hurry up?” Your voice bounces as you make your way to the exit, sending a thinly hidden face of amusement. “I’m just going home, there’s no rush to things.”

“We need to secure the premises.”

We? You nearly ask, wondering what he meant. Obviously, he didn’t mean you and him, based on general attitude right now. Maybe that was just a strange quirk of his. 

“Around my penthouse?” Nikto’s shoulder presses on the barrier and he’s outside before you can finish your sentence. You narrowly catch the door and slip past like a horrible snake, elbow slapping the frame—you hold back a hiss and enter the street. “I…I don’t think it’s overly necessary, the police move through that area a lot—”

“Not the penthouse, Whelp,” you struggle along, feet rapid to stay at his side and multitask by staying in a line. He walks in long strides, parting people away from him with only a sharp glance and a scoff. “Inside.” 

Your body halts before you blink back to your senses and make a noise in the back of your throat.

“I-inside, Nikto? I’m sorry, I’m not following.” You huff under your breath and stick beside him, using his presence as a sort of barrier. He walks near the road. “I never agreed to that. And Whelp? What the hell, man?”

“I do not care.” 

“You’re just a ray of sunshine, aren’t you?” You grumble, sighing. 

I guess I’m having guests. 

Has your mother given permission for that? A stranger with weapons thumping inside of your penthouse like he was your live-in boy toy? Eating in your kitchen and putting his feet up on the coffee table? God, the public would have a field day with it when they saw him walking down with you in the morning to go to work.

He couldn’t have been put in the building across the street? But you suppose there are worse things that can happen—you have the space for it. With a dejected expression, you sigh; you seem to be doing that a lot recently.

“Yeah, yeah, okay.” Nikto stares down at you as your feet stutter along, seeming to raise a brow in annoyed question as to why you were struggling to keep up. 

You wondered how much he had been told beyond some rich Consul's daughter needed a new bodyguard. Did he know any of it? 

“What?” Your lips twist, smile flicking out. “See something you like?”

“No. You’re slow.” You hide your groan and face forward, brows falling into a line.

But you’re not oblivious to the way his piercing eyes survey the crowd, and while the mask is drawing attention, random people peeping break off like sticks as he’s clocked by you, darting to make room. How his large shoulders span and block the road from you, pace pulling back to fit right behind you with a low grunt as your arms brush. 

A grunter too—he really is a scary dog.

“Why do you walk like this,” Nikto growls. “Are you unable to feel your feet? It is pathetic.”

“Are you going to stop insulting me?” You glare ahead and cross your arms. “Or are you going to keep playing the jerk until this is over?” 

His eyes burn into yours for a moment, before he places such a heavy hand on your shoulder that you almost squeak at the pressure. It nearly slants you forward before your back tightens. 

“Keep quiet. Walk.” 

“Well, now I don’t think I’m going to,” his eyes flash, those colorless films going into themselves with tiny flecks of surprise. You suppose no one’s ever had banter like this with him before, being in a PMC…or really just being him as a whole. He doesn’t seem the joking type over a back-handed sarcastic comment.

“So, how has your day been, Nikto?” Your voice is smug and your smile large, perfect and bright, and ravishing. “Today I woke up at five AM and ate an apple with yogurt. Then I—”

Nikto growls deeply and forces you on through a gawking crowd. 

The rest of the walk is filled with a one-sided conversation coming from a grinning face, pale, boiling eyes, and the shadow across the street who watches through the thin glass of a bookstore. The perfect view.

A hat on his head. 

A slight distance to his addled expression.

A medium slip-joint knife in his pocket.

TAGS:

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[lol-jackles]

Hi, hope you are doing well. Do you think these stats mean anything about Jared’s future on Firecountry; particularly his spinoff?

CBS says Tracker averages 18 million multi-platform viewers, up 4% year over year, while Elsbeth lures 11 million multi-platform viewers, up 3%.

Here are some other stats that were released by the network via Nielsen: Fire Country averages 10.6 million multi-platform viewers with streaming alone, up 43% year over year; NCIS averages 10.4 million multi-platform viewers with streaming alone, up 3%;

https://tinyurl.com/6wx38p5z

Thank you friend. I think the odds are on Jared's favor for all his projects with CBS. *Read article* (Link) I do love these self-reporting trust me bros. Third party, who need third party reporting! Anyways, it confirms my thoughts that the the odds are in Jared's favor for all his projects with CBS.

[phantomandknight]

would u take their hand if they asked u to jump off a parisian rooftop with them?

im a bit tired today, so no ask answers rn, just a quick doodle i did during the day. hoping to do some multi panel stuff over the weekend though!

oh, while im at it, they finally decided to release a few of the soundtracks from the paris olympics by victor le masne on streaming platforms!!! the gojira cover of ça ira is already out, and tomorrow parade will be released as well :DD im super excited ngl

oh, one last thing:

[bitter69uk]

“Recorded in England, Private Dancer uses blazing hard-rock guitars as a platform for Turner’s mammoth power. Showing off her lion’s mane wig, runner’s legs and dominatrix high heels on the album cover, the 44-year-old Turner stunned the world with her ferocious, mature sexuality. Released at the puritanical height of the feminist anti-pornography crusade, the album daringly invoked prostitution in its title. But “What’s Love Got to Do with It” makes a feminist statement, as Turner embraces a radical freedom of sexual choice. The five-times-platinum album projects her as a hybrid superwoman, her Amazonian militance melting into bluesy yearning. She is both hard and soft, raw and smooth, a truly modern woman for all seasons.”

/ Camilla Paglia writing for Billboard magazine in 2014 /

Released on this day (29 May 1984): force-of-nature veteran soul queen Tina Turner’s triumphant all-conquering Private Dancer album. Allmusic website calls it in “one of the most amazing comebacks in the history of American popular music” and Robert Christgau concludes “Private Dancer remains the archetypal all-singles all-hits multi-producer crossover” - and who could disagree? As Turner herself noted, her age, colour and gender were all strikes against her in the youth-obsessed music industry of the 1980s (hell, they would still be issues today!). But after previous desultory solo attempts sank without a trace (like Rough (1978) and Love Explosion (1979), which wasn’t even released in the US), Private Dancer conclusively ended the down-on-her-luck diva’s hardscrabble post-Ike wilderness years playing corporate gigs for McDonalds executives, doing disco medleys in Las Vegas lounges and appearing on Hollywood Squares and The Brady Bunch Variety Hour. Considering it was cobbled together from cover versions and off-cuts (“Better Be Good to Me” was intended for Pat Benatar! “What’s Love Got to Do with It?” was originally recorded by Bucks Fizz!), its authority and cohesion is stunning. And the songs feel like Turner’s autobiographical statements, depicting a tough, independent woman seeking love on her own terms. In conclusion: Tina Turner slayed! Pic: portrait of Turner by Brian Aris, 1983.

[didalexiabreakupwitholgaisback]

Couple of quick questions:

1) Will the WWC 2027 be streamed on Netflix for you/Spain or is that just a U.S. deal?

I’m hoping that Netflix is committed to filming and platforming a lot of different teams and players. They’re really trying to grow their sports content and have a few women’s soccer things already so I’m hopeful.

2) What teams or players or organizations would you most like to see? I’d love if they did some clubs to show players with different nationalities but Barça feels very very private and unlikely to agree to that. I could see UEFA agreeing to do something with them for the euros for example.

hi anon - so according to the netflix press release, it looks like the deal only includes US rights. of course, that doesn't mean that netflix won't try and buy up market share in other countries, but it doesn't seem that way now.

of note, the athletic has an interesting article about what it means for these types of major sporting events to be behind pay to watch streaming platforms.

as for your second question, if you mean a kind of behind the scenes of barça type series, then personally, i don't think they would agree to it. it seems that netflix has a thing going with real madrid, as the upcoming vini jr. (and other docs) may indicate. and barça may want to focus on creating content in-house.

what i would love to see is a multi-series follow up to #seacabo that goes into more depth about the selection and all the history behind it. alexia's agency (you first) was just bought by los angeles based gersh agency, which is the fourth largest talent agency in the world, so there may be more going on in the future with streaming content.

[picklemafia]

Release

Release

Beautiful

Multi-faceted

Many stories in a single word

Love

Painted on your canvas

Grip

On the tools that shape us

Catharsis

Solace in these turbulent waters

Freedom

Our prisons bared open

Release

Multi-faceted

Necessary

I release you

- J.Lamana

© 2025 picklemafia/J.Lamana | Reposting on this platform is permitted with proper credit. Reposting on other platforms is not allowed. No edits. All rights reserved.

[daily-nikki]

IN News: Apology Letter April 29, 2025

Via Official Infinity Nikki Discord.

Apology Letter Regarding Version 1.5 Gaming Experience

Dear Stylists,

First and foremost, we would like to extend our sincerest apologies. We are truly sorry that we were unable to provide you with a stable experience upon the release of the new version. We understand that every stylist's love and trust in Infinity Nikki is something we must cherish and uphold with the utmost dedication.

With the desire to offer Nikki and all of you a more vibrant and colorful journey, we had planned various new content for this update—designing outfits in diverse styles, creating fun and engaging gameplay, and crafting unique landscapes. We hoped Nikki could embark on thrilling adventures across parallel worlds, discovering endless surprises and joy in Miraland.

However, this time, we fell short of expectations. Following the version update, we received a lot of feedback regarding game experience issues, primarily concerning the DIY Workshop, co-op feature, and overall game performance, including issues such as login failures, crashes, and resolution problems. We have been carefully collecting each report and immediately working with our teams to address these issues.

We sincerely apologize for the issues that disrupted Nikki's dazzling and dreamlike journey.

Following an urgent review by the development team, we have already resolved nearly one hundred issues, improved the stability of multiplayer servers, and carried out emergency fixes for certain visual display issues. Moving forward, we will continue to monitor the game's performance to ensure these problems do not reoccur.

— ISSUES THAT HAVE BEEN RESOLVED

Resolution setting issues.

Material and lighting display issues in areas such as Sea of Stars, Serenity Island, and Land with No Name.

Interaction smoothness and interruption issues across mobile, PC, and PS5 platforms.

Frequent startup errors on the PS5 platform.

Issues that may block stylists during quest progression, such as abnormal black screens that may occur during cutscene playback in the new exclusive quests.

Performance and experience issues in multiplayer gameplay.

Interaction and sharing experience issues in the DIY Workshop and Color Lookbook.

Ongoing optimization of the performance and visual effects of the outfits [Snowy Ballad] and [Crimson Feather].

Abnormal material rendering for the [Bubbly Bath] decoration on specific devices.

— ADDITIONAL CLARIFICATIONS BASED ON COMMUNITY FEEDBACK

Number of Pieces in the 5-Star Outfits [Snowy Ballad] and [Crimson Feather]

In Version 1.5, the Bubble Season update introduced multiplayer gameplay to create a richer, more engaging adventure for Nikki and all stylists. This idea also shaped the design direction of the new outfits.

From the early design stage, we intended the 5-star outfits to embody themes of collaboration and companionship, symbolized by the story of the ever-blazing bird sacrificing herself to save the iceborn mermaid. Thus, we introduced dedicated dynamic effects, transformation animations, and unique music compositions for these outfits.

In [Snowy Ballad], we introduced highly dynamic special effects for the pieces and special aurora effects for the hair. The [Crimson Feather] outfit was designed around the core concept of "rebirth," featuring a unique ash form appearance and different transformation effects depending on whether Nikki is in the air or on the ground. In addition, to align with the theme of the new version, we introduced multi-player features in the design of both the decoration item and dance move.

The [Eternal Snowdew] decoration now features a special co-op interaction, and for the [Everlasting Hope] dance move, we attempted to create a co-op dance mode based on the original dance move. Both the versions were developed with dedicated custom music compositions.

To enrich styling combinations, the total number of pieces for these outfits was set at 11. We sincerely apologize for the lack of prior communication regarding this adjustment. Moving forward, we guarantee that the number of pieces in 5-star outfits will not exceed 11, and major changes will be communicated in advance through official channels.

Duration Changes for the Mira Crown Pinnacle Contest

To offer a richer and more diverse styling experience, the Mira Crown Pinnacle Contest and the Special Effects are periodically refreshed and updated.

As each version varies in duration, the duration of each Mira Crown Pinnacle Contest has also differed accordingly. We have taken note of the community's discussions regarding the contest's duration. In response, we are planning to end the current contest at 03:59:00 on May 16 (Server Time), with the next contest starting immediately at 04:00:00 on May 16 (Server Time). Starting from the next cycle, the Mira Crown Pinnacle Contest will be held twice a month, starting on the 1st and 16th of each month (Server Time).

DIY Workshop Design Intentions and Future Plans

The original intention behind the DIY Workshop was to provide stylists with greater freedom in outfit design and styling combinations.

We have received all of your feedback and are carefully reviewing the current designs to further optimize the DIY Workshop experience. In addition, for fully evolved outfits, we plan to introduce a more advanced dyeing system in the future, offering expanded customization options and richer visual effects.

If you have suggestions regarding the DIY Workshop, please feel free to email us at:

infinitynikki_cs@​infoldgames.com.

Every piece of feedback from you is a driving force for us. Your voices guide Infinity Nikki's path forward. In the future, we will conduct thorough reviews, strengthen our QA processes, and approach every update to prevent such issues from happening again.

As an expression of our heartfelt apologies, we will be distributing the following compensation to all players via in-game mail: 10x Revelation Crystals, 10x Resonite Crystals, 1200x Diamonds Thank you once again for your support and understanding.

Finally, we would like to speak from the heart. Version 1.5 marks a major milestone for Infinity Nikki. In this version, we took a bold step forward—introducing co-op gameplay for the first time. We hope Nikki's journey can now stretch even further across the vast Sea of Stars, where every heart longing for warmth can find connection and companionship.

Every member of our team shares the same deep love for the Nikki IP, and treats your companionship, Nikki's journey can continue to push the boundaries of imagination.

Please give us one more chance—to let Nikki's starlight continue to shine for us all, and to keep the warmth in our hearts forever burning bright.

[heartmachinez]

CELEBRATING 10 YEARS OF HEART MACHINE

A Decade of Creativity and Community

A decade ago, we began a journey that would lead to the birth of Heart Machine - a game studio committed to crafting immersive, vibrant experiences that resonate with players on a profound level. As we celebrate our 10-year anniversary, we reflect on our history, achievements, community, and the exciting future that lies ahead.

THINKING BACK

Glitch City, Kickstarter, and Hyper Light Drifter

In 2013, we took a leap of faith and launched a Kickstarter campaign for our debut project, Hyper Light Drifter. Little did we know that this campaign would not only secure the funds needed to bring our project to life, but also ignite a beautiful connection with supporters, players, and community members who believed in us from the outset.

Fueled by a need for camaraderie and knowledge, we spent those early days of Drifter’s development as a part of Glitch City, a then-small collective of independent game developers, artists, and creators all working together out of Alx’s basement. Those early days and (often) sleepless nights vision were critical in defining our design philosophies, studio culture, and grassroots community connections - setting the stage for what was to come.

Our Heartfelt Gratitude to Our Early Contributors

To date, thanks to the incredible support of our community, the Kickstarter for Hyper Light Drifter remains one of the most successful game projects on the platform. It smashed through the initial funding goal of $27,000 and ultimately raised over $600,000.

To our early backers who believed in us and our vision, and those fellow devs who helped us through endless rounds of playtesting and feedback, we extend our deepest gratitude. Your unwavering support enabled us to bring our dreams to life and emboldened us to continually push the boundaries of game design.

Special shout out to core Drifter team members: Alx Preston, Beau Blyth, Teddy Dief, Casey Hunt, Rich Vreeland, Akash Thakkar, Sean Ward, Lisa Brown, and Cosimo Galluzzi.

The critical reception following the release of Hyper Light Drifter was incredible - beyond our wildest expectations. We never could have anticipated the accolades and recognition it received, or the impact it made on players far and wide. It was humbling, and affirmed our dedication to continue to make great games to share with the world.

Moving Into a New Dimension

We started development on Solar Ash about a year before the multi-platform release of Hyper Light Drifter. Early on, we joined forces with Annapurna Interactive, whose expertise and resources facilitated our exploration of 3D game development. Over the next five years, Annapurna's support played a pivotal role in bringing this ambitious project to fruition. The vastness of the game's ethereal landscapes and fluid movement mechanics opened new avenues for worldbuilding and storytelling.

To date, Solar Ash continues to engage new players and inspire returning ones to create beautiful works inspired by the game. It is following in the footsteps of its predecessor and is now available on a a wide array of game platforms for a worldwide audience.

All of the positive reception that followed Solar Ash’s release proved that our community was ready to continue along this new aesthetic path with us. Just as Drifter smashed through its initial Kickstarter goals,  we are poised to once again smash the boundaries of possibility with our upcoming projects.

HEART MACHINE TODAY

Reimagining a Familiar World

As we celebrate our 10-year milestone, we're thrilled to now be well underway with our newest title set in the familiar Hyper Light Universe. This new project, Hyper Light Breaker, builds upon the foundations we've laid, evolving our creative vision in unexpected ways.

A Shared Journey

Our journey would not be complete without acknowledging the invaluable contributions of our community. From community leaders who pave the way forward with creativity and kindness, to creators who challenge us with incredible skill and passion,  to modders who continuously breathe new life into our games, to wiki writers who meticulously document every detail, to speedrunners who push the boundaries of possibility – you are the heartbeats that keep our worlds alive.

Over the years, we've had the privilege of connecting with our wonderful community at conventions and events across the digital and physical world. These gatherings allowed us to share our passion, hear your stories, and learn from your insights. Your presence and enthusiasm continue to inspire us.

We’re so grateful to: Polare, Lukas, Durtle, Clark, Yrrzy, CornMayor, Aza, Andreas, Conscy, Perfectly Mediocre, Thunderbrave, Bryonato, Utsu, NicowithaC, Covert Muffin, Sylvi, among many many others who make our work worth doing.

Our Company Vision

At Heart Machine, we've built more than games. We've cultivated a company culture that values kindness, inclusivity, and pushing the envelope. Our mission has always been not only to entertain but also leave a lasting impact. This dedication has enabled us to support and grow a thriving studio of some of the most talented, thoughtful, and fun people in the entire industry.

Our ethos revolves around fostering a work environment that prioritizes professional advancement, mental and physical health, and employee happiness. This commitment takes shape in various dimensions of our culture. We proudly offer Heart Machine University (HMU), a collaborative peer-teaching initiative where we cover everything from how to LARP or make sculptures out of driftwood to environment, concept, and tech art techniques. We also organize activities like group gaming and anime sessions, provide access to networking and learning resources, and support social and charitable initiatives to reinforce our team’s sense of purpose. As a studio, we strive to hang our culture on a framework where each individual can flourish and achieve their own growth and learning goals.

It’s no accident that the trajectory of these past 10 years has led us to forming the team we have now. We have always and will continue to adhere to our culture of high quality standards, emphasis on creative innovation, and heart-first leadership practices.

LOOKING AHEAD

As we stand at the threshold of the next chapter, we're excited to announce that Hyper Light Breaker will be arriving in Early Access in 2024. This project represents our ongoing commitment to pushing boundaries, taking risks, and creating experiences that captivate and challenge players in our specifically unique ways.

Beyond Hyper Light Breaker, we have other projects currently under wraps that will continue to define us as a studio. We can't wait to share these journeys with you as we forge into this next decade.

Thank you thank you thank you for joining us on this incredible ride. Heart Machine wouldn't be the same without each and every one of you. Here's to the many more adventures that lie ahead!

With love and gratitude,

The Heart Machine Team