#submitter says that this is a player character

[foundfamilyhq]

[blond-jerk-tourney]

Champagne Bracket: Semifinals, Poll 1

Propaganda from submitters Under Cut

Yoshiya "Joshua" Kiryu

He’s a bitch and a hate (love) him. I will now quote him below: "Sigh... I don't do the whole sweating thing, Neku." "Very impressive, Neku. Show those fifth graders who's boss." "Who needs other people's values? It's easier to just live by your own rules." "Oh! I can't say I'm particularly interested, but... I'll go ahead and ask, for the sake of convenience. Do you have a name?"

Smug asshole. Always playing mind games with the player character. Has many secrets but never shares them. Also did a bunch of spoilery shit.

THE REAL ASSHOLE OF TWEWY!!!!!! (VOTE FOR JOSHUA)

Sharpay Evans

Blonde, HSM antagonist but it was never that deep

vote for Sharpay right now she fought sasuke

[indie-ttrpg-of-the-week]

Agon; Agon is a game of Greek Heroes going on their own little Odyssey. You sail, lost in the mists, wandering from island to island, and encountering weird Greek myth situations that you can interfere with.  And depending on how you act, you may earn the wrath or favor different gods, with your journey only ending when you have appeased the fickle gods.

In the meantime, you will struggle to prove yourself the best of the heroes on your voyage, earning Glory with your deeds using the game’s unique Contest system where the character’s name and epithet can be as powerful as their ‘skills’.  Nowhere else will you hear players say things like “I, clear-eyed Eklaios, scion of Kythia, shall face this challenge!”

(Mod Note: I actually meant to post this game myself but i genuinely just forgot it existed for a bit, thanks for making my job easier submitter lmao. In all seriousness, I really really like this game, it has a ton of different setting books too)

[gamequoteshowdown]

Quote 1: "So, do you work out, or...?" - Axton, Borderlands 2

Quote 2: "Nenji: I'll handle this

Tomi: Didn't you just dismount? You're already at your limit!

Nenji: I don't give a shit about my limits. I love you, and that's why I gotta break 'em." - Nenji Ogata & Tomi Kisaragi, 13 Sentinels Aegis Rim

Propaganda

Quote 1: Axton says this line as a way to flirt with the player's character. Originally, he was only meant to use this quote if the player was a female character and use a different quote for male characters, but due to a programming error, Axton will flirt with the player regardless of gender. Although this was a mistake, the lead writer of the game leaned into it and confirmed that Axton is bisexual! And this is continued in later material. This small quote led to Axton being bi and i think that's really cute.

(Axton isn't the sole main character of the franchise at all, but i would consider him one of the MCs of this specific game) <- Dont come for me the submitter made an argument for it and I accepted it - Mod

Quote 2: Best ship in the game

@ultimafangirl

[thevoicetournament]

reasons under cut

LBP narrator:

"to be honest little big planet is one of the games of all time <3 and stephen fry as narrator really adds to the whole experience." -Submitter #37

TSP Narrator:

"Because you're so so right he's so very valid and should get in!!!" -Submitter #6

"The guy ever!! :D" -Submitter #12

"He and Stanley r gay married <3 hope this helps" -Submitter #26

"Let's be honest, he's the REAL main character of the stanley parable. (Also I am very interested to see how many different submissions from different media are just named "Narrator".)" -Submitter #31

(yes, there were... so many... 34 for "The Narrator" 16 for "Narrator" and 8 for "the narrator") -blog runner response

"He’s gay and autistic. What more could you want?" -Submitter #32

"( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)" -Submitter #78

"He is so babygirl" -Submitter #84

"you said submit him lol :3 i always gotta submit the blorbo in my brain who says everything i do" -Submitter #107

"his voice is hot 👍" -Submitter #114

"They're just cool :]" -Submitter #118

"Yeah <3" -Submitter #126

"LET HIM IN. LET HIM INNNNN" -Submitter #130

"Legit!! He is my autism Also he's a disembodied voice I mean" -Submitter #235

"He is one of two (sometimes three?) characters in the entire game and he is more powerful than the player realizes" -Submitter #139

"The real 🫶" -Submitter #145

"He’s a NERD" -Submitter #157

"Hes such a funny n silly goober" -Submitter #167

"Need I say more?" -Submitter #201

"If the narrator isn't in this tournament that is a fucking CRIME; he has more personality than a vast majority of embodied characters in modern video games" -Submitter #68

"i like the game, also on a stream with his brother the creater said that the Narrator is the 'platonic idea of divorce' and i think thats kinda funny" -Submitter #79

"Honestly he is THE blorbo at the moment. I stop to think and this silly man’s voice echos in my head" -Submitter #117

"You told us to submit him lol" -Submitter #121

"I mean. It's the narrator!" -Submitter #128

"🥵" -Submitter #143

"He is THE voice. I think about him forever I believe him wholeheartedly I support him when he blows the fuckinh building up in countdown ending" -Submitter #226

"YES IM SUBMITTING THIS! IM ALLOWED TO SUBMIT TO MY OWN COMPITITION!!!" -Submitter #3 (aka me)

"yknow ;)" -Submitter #4

"he likes shrimp" -Submitter #40

"hes so fucking bizzare i want him to get in but then lose during the first round" -Submitter #43

(you heard the man! /j -poll runner)

"Needed to make sure the boy gets in, also thought it’d be funny to specify ultra deluxe. You’ve already received him, you know he’s getting in. I just have to say it" -Submitter #134

"you know the rules and so do I >:)" -Submitter #8

"me head hurt :( my vote should count as 2 because i am sad and sick" -Submitter #94

"PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD MAKE HIM PART OF THIS TOURNAMENT ILL GO FUCKING INSANE I NEED HIM HES MY BABY GIRL PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE HES SO. HES SO" -Submitter #39

alright boys... play nice >:3 /lh

[fisherman-fight]

ROUND ONE

SPINEL from THE OUTER WILDS vs THE OLD FISHERMAN from AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER

HERE'S WHAT THE SUBMITTERS HAD TO SAY ABOUT OUR CONTESTANTS:

SPINEL - "They are the village fisher and can be found fishing out of the river that runs through the player character's home village, singing a tune with poor rhymes as they pass the time! If pressed further, they'll tell you a campfire tale of a horrible tentacled ocean beast that resides in one of the planets you can explore. It's probably not true. Probably. They were drunk when they were told this story by the astronaut philosopher known for being a stoner."

OLD FISHERMAN - "Avatar hater and called his ass out. He's an icon even if he doesn't respect his wife."

[dmsden]

Pulling Teeth - Getting players to interact

Hullo, Gentle Readers. This week’s Question from a Denizen is one I think all DMs have struggled with now and again. The Anonymous submitter says, “Hello! I've been meaning to start a campaign online with a few friends, but even when prompted to make characters or give ideas or anything, they're silent. They express no interest at all, and in previous campaigns have behaved the same way. I want to kick them from the campaign so that they don't weigh down everyone's fun, but I have a hard time figuring out how without hurting anyone's feelings.”

I’m going to blunt about this one, because this is tough, but it needs some tough love. If you have people who are that difficult to pull into activity, then you have people who aren’t really interested in playing. I understand not wanting to hurt feelings, but you have to think about your own experience and your own feelings, too. As has been pointed out many times, the DM is a player, too, and you deserve to be having fun yourself.

If I found myself in this situation, I would have a one on one discussion with each player. Tell them how you’re feeling, and ask them if they actually want to play. Explain to them that, if they do, you need them to be engaged. You need some input from them, if only on the basics of what kind of character they want to play. You can’t decide things like that for them. They need to be involved and at least minimally invested.

The reason I recommend talking individually is that you don’t know what any given person might be going through. At the best of times, there can be job pressure, loss, depression, and other factors that could be contributing to the malaise you’re experiencing. And, to state the obvious, this is not the best of times. There’s light at the end of the tunnel, but there’s a lot of fatigue as well from over a year of dealing with a deadly pandemic. I dealt with intense job drama and pressure, the loss of an old friend, depression, and more, and I know I came through in far better shape than many people.

So the person in question may be very interested in playing, but they may not be in the right headspace to be enthusiastic just this moment. They may not realize that you need the kind of input that a game needs. They may not realize you’re looking for info now, instead of a nebulous “down the road” time. A talk with them might reveal this...or it might reveal that they’re not actually interested. If the latter turns out to be the case, be cool about it. Tell them, “No harm, no foul.” Let them off the hook and look for another player who is interested. They might join you for a different game, or they may not. Either way, it is what it is.

If only one or two players are interested, you can seek more players, or just run an adventure for one or two players. You could use the Sidekick rules from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything to bulk out the party with NPCs who can help the group. Small groups can be fantastic. It might be the perfect time to play a roleplaying heavy game of intrigue, politics, and backstabbing, or a game that centers around a small group of rogues planning a heist. A small group is the best time to pull out something unusual that might not work in a larger game.

If no one is interested, then maybe this isn’t the best time to run a game, or at least not to run a game with these folks. Put things on hold. Play board games with your friends instead. Find a group to join via the many tools for finding games. Wizards of the Coast is running fairly regular virtual game tables, and you can get a fix that way. Check out Meetup.com to see if there’s a gaming group in your area that’s putting together players. Go on the Forums at D&D Beyond to see if you can find players, or check out the various Facebook groups for games. I see games being started all the time online, and I’m sure you’ll have no trouble finding folks to game with.

I hope this helps, my Anonymous friend. Just remember that you can’t force enthusiasm on your players. If they’re not interested, no amount of cajoling, bargaining, or catering is going to make them interested. Sometimes, the answer is to walk away from the situation and come back to it another time. If you have any follow-up questions, let us know. Until then, may all your 20s be natural.

[askaceattorney]

Dear Alex Cornejo,

My guess is that she at least visited Phoenix every now and then.  The Mod once made a picture of her looking sadly at the spot on his suit where his badge used to be, but I was unable to find it.  And I think it should be obvious why she returned in the newest game: fan service because she’s awesome!

Dear springtime562 and Springtrap,

Thanks!  We’ll have a fight over which one of us you were referring to now.

(Previous Letters)

Dear bluedragoncody,

They were made by The Mod, and he hasn’t been around for a long time now, so...I believe we can apply the doctrine of laches here.  In other words, go right ahead!

Dear mungeondaster,

Hey, there are no dumb ideas when it comes to new Ace Attorney content, as far as I’m concerned.  The visual novel with Pearl and spinoff with Franziska von Karma stuck out the most to me as things the fanbase would enjoy the most.  You could even give players the option to use her whip on whomever they please for fun (much like Link does with his weapons).  The other ideas sound like Flash games you’d find on an Ace Attorney website, but I'd still love to see them fleshed out.  Rhythm action games are my jam.

(Previous Letter)

Dear jnv11,

You know, I never realized the similarity between those two organizations before now.  I imagine NASA still exists as a separate entity, though, so I’m leaving the letter as it is.

Dear Anonymous,

I wasn’t aware that Holmsie’s name had been changed to something else in the (supposedly) upcoming American release, but I��ll probably keep his and every other character’s name the same.  For one thing, changing their names would cause confusion for anyone searching for them by their hashtags, plus, like you said, we’re all familiar with the fan translation names by now.  It’s your own fault, Capcom.

Dear Fortune Cookie,

(Previous Post)

Dear Modthorne,

Thank youuuuuu!!!

I’d love to have you back, especially now that I’m taking a leave of absence.  It just hasn’t been the same here without...

...

...

...

...

...

Um...  Can you all give us a moment?

Dear Anonymous,

Our Christmas idea’s already in motion (*wink, wink*), but that sounds like a fun idea.  If Matthew Taranto made it work with Mario, then why not Edgeworth?  Gumshoe could easily play Bob Cratchit, and Manfred von Karma would make a good ghost of Jacob Marley, but who would the three spirits be?  I’ll leave that up to you.

Say, would it be going too far to include Professor Layton characters?  I can’t think of anyone who could pull off Tiny Tim better than Luke Triton.

Dear skibot99,

We don’t usually start working on holiday ideas until a month in advance (at most), but I’m always open to suggestions, so thank you for those ones.  If I’m still around next April Fools’ Day, I might just try one of them out.

Dear Palbert (Sorry, I couldn’t resist),

You’ve got that right, Palbert.  I’m amazed we’ve been able to keep it going this long as well.  I repeat myself, but it’s thanks to submitters like you that we’re able to!

Whether we end up getting another installment in the series or not, I’m just glad we have the current games to enjoy and re-enjoy.  I played through the first case again with my parents recently, and it was a fun time for all of us.

Dear mungeondaster again,

I imagine Franziska’s older sibling being a sister who competes with her to be their Papa’s favorite child, as well as the most perfect prosecutor in the von Karma family (similar to her rivalry with Edgeworth).  In terms of personality, I see her behaving somewhat more refined than Franziska, while insisting that she grow up in her own subtle way (which is also a lot like Edgeworth).

Franziska’s niece has actually been a subject on this blog for a while now.  I love the idea of her being a “perfect little niece” to whom Franziska talks sweetly, and for whom she attempts to provide better coaching than her sister does.  Her being called “Aunt Franzy” and getting thoroughly irritated by it is also too much fun to imagine.

Dear Matt,

I’m honestly not sure what to say to that, except thanks!  I majored in computer science, but all the research I’ve done for Ema’s responses has come from the internet, not any scientific studying on my part.  I don’t know how I pulled off sounding so smart, but I’m glad it worked out that way.

With that in mind, thank you for trusting us, but don’t be afraid to check another source for anything we (or the characters) say.  That’s what the experts do, after all.  ...I think.

Dear snowthefirst,

Co-Mod: Unfortunately, I checked the inbox and my stash of deleted letters and didn’t see that letter among them, which either means it was deleted by accident or Tumblr ate it.  Feel free to resubmit it, and I’ll answer it and stick it in the queue.

(Edit: Looks like you already did.  Sorry for the wait!)

-The Co-Mod

[ahs-source]

Welcome to the first Fanfiction Friday! Thank you to those who submitted all of these brilliant works! Please check out these writers and spread the love! (note: this is a long post and, as such will be tagged as #long post and #FF Friday for anyone to blacklist, if so desired). 

Heavy Dirty Soul (Completed) by HadesRuinsEverything (AO3) Relationships: Michael Langdon x Reader | Tags: Slow Burn, Rape/Non-con Elements, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Past Rape/Non-con, Slow Build, Angst, Choking, Vaginal Fingering, Vaginal Sex, Oral Sex, Rough Sex, Cock Warming, Possession, Blindfolds, Blasphemy, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Demonic Possession, Dark, Heavy Angst, Dialogue Heavy, Sharing a Bed, Strangers to Lovers, Mutual Pining, Chess | Completed (17/17 Chapters) | 83359 words | Canon Divergent 

“There’s a lot of things I can’t give you. I always worry that’ll it’ll never be enough… That I’m not enough for you.”

He stays quiet for a bit.

“You’re enough to bring a fucking God to his knees.”

Requiem: Into the Unknown (Completed) by EmWrites4 (AO3) Relationships: Michael Langdon x Original Female Character, Michael Langdon x Original Male Character, Michael Langdon x Devan Campbell | Tags: depictions of graphic violence, Eventual Smut, Language, Blood Kink, death kink, blaspheming, Horror, Action/Adventure, Cthulhu Mythos, Trickster Gods, Accidental Voyeurism, Masturbation, Non-con cutting, Religious Discussion, Science Fiction, Supernatural Elements, Epic Bromance | Completed (9/9 chapters) | 23487 words | AU / Post-Canon Divergent

Michael Langdon, once the antichrist, was killed and transported body and soul to Hell. Demoted to Angel of Death by his Dark Father while his younger brother Devan Campbell is groomed for the throne, Michael gets a break for an island vacation to escape work and the looming threat of his brother’s reign. What he finds there is an even greater threat beyond his imagination.

stealing past the windows of the blissfully dead (Completed) by thedivinemove (AO3) Relationships: Michael Langdon x Mallory | Tags: Canon-Typical Violence, Post-Canon, Post-Canon Fix-It, Murder, Witchcraft, Antichrist, Rough Sex, Time Travel | Completed (1/1 chapters) | 4125 words | Post-Canon Fix-It

It keeps happening. They live an endless circle, even as time moves forward. She kills him, he comes back. The story repeats itself, more or less the same. They’re a snake eating its tail, a pentagram with no beginning or end.

Or: Mallory keeps reliving her nightmares. Michael gets killed. Repeatedly.

Tag, you’re it (Completed) by gelukstraan (AO3) / @stupidocupido​​ (Tumblr)  Relationships: Michael Langdon x Reader | Tags:  Rape/Non-con Elements, Smut, mastrubation, plot heavy, Bondage, Unhealthy Relationships, Stalking, Mildly Dubious Consent, Dubious themes, dark themes, Fluff, Angst, Cat/Mouse games, Obsession, Song Based, Degradation, Slapping, Suicide Attempt, References to Depression | Completed (2/2 chapters) | 30203 words | Post-Canon Divergent | Tumblr Link

‘Running through the parking lot, he chased me and he wouldn’t stop. Tag you’re it, tag, tag, you’re it.’

Witch!reader has an ache for her worst enemy. To get rid of this feeling she visits him in hell, but her plan does not go as she expected it to go…

turns out california is more than just a state of mind (WIP) by everythinghappensforareason17 (AO3) / @everythinghappens-love (Tumblr) Relationships: Montana Duke x Brooke Thompson x Xavier Plympton, Xavier Plympton x Brooke Thompson, Montana Duke x Brooke Thompson, Xavier Plympton x Montana Duke, Donna Chambers x Brooke Thompson | Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Pre-Canon, Backstory, Character Study, Threesome - F/F/M, POV Alternating, Heavy Angst, Abuse, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Manipulation, Polyamory, Triggers, Hopeful Ending, Hurt No Comfort, Or little comfort, Physical Abuse, body issues, Eating Disorders, Bisexual Male Character, Bisexuality, Religion, Past Sexual Abuse, Murderers, Recreational Drug Use, Drug Addiction, First Time, Voyeurism | Last Updated: 2020-02-29 (2/? chapters) | 7424 words | Canon Divergent

(And in the end, she guessed she had. She should have known that death was better than nothingness .)

And life goes on like that for such a long time…

Brooke in the shadows, watching…waiting.  

And with Montana out there, living…getting drunk… causing bar fights…doing drugs and aerobics…chasing men and women…and laughing…just laughing the night away.

.

And then she meets Xavier.

They’re never gonna give you love like ours

Unhallowed Wretch (WIP) by SisteroftheMoon (AO3) / @guiltyfiend (Tumblr) Relationship: Michael Langdon x Reader | Tags: Slow Burn, Eventual Smut, Angst, Angst and Fluff and Smut | Last Updated: 2020-03-23 (6/? chapters) | 33757 words | AU / Period Piece

Reader is a girl who is bought from her caretaker, and sent to live with the Langdon's as a "companion" for their son, Michael. He's not the son of the Devil, but he might as well be.

“I am glad it cannot happen twice, the fever of first love. For it is a fever, and a burden, too, whatever the poets may say.” ― Daphne duMaurier, Rebecca

waiting for a girl like you (Completed) by melodylangdon (AO3) / @melodylangdon (Tumblr) Relationships: Michael Langdon x Reader, Michael Langdon x Madison Montgomery | Tags: NSFW, Apocalypse, Consensual Sex, Smut, Dirty Talk (additional tags in chapter summaries) | Completed (11/11 chapters) | 30009 words | AU / Modern Day / College

Michael Langdon is a player and reader knew him when they were kids. He was rude to her but they both grew up. They go their separate ways and later cross paths again in college. Michael and the reader have a class together. She remembers him and can’t help but feel an attraction towards him. The feeling is mutual. He ends up becoming her Italian tutor and they come to know each other again. The problem is that although they are both single, Michael hooks up with a lot of girls. Will their rekindled friendship turn into something more or will they be friends with benefits?

You knew who I was with every step that I ran to Pudú (Completed) by Lobo_Steel (AO3) / @crossdressingpirate (Tumblr) Relationship: Michael Langdon x Mallory | Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Telekinesis, Clairvoyance, dream walking, Animal Transformation, Frottage, Choking, Past harm to an animal, Crack Treated Seriously, Vaginal Sex | Completed (2/2 chapters) | 10885 words | Post-Canon Divergent

Langdon stops mid-attack and looks down at her, confused. Why does he look like a giant? Mallory tries to scurry away, but something trips her up and sends her down on her stomach. Her vision is obstructed by a mass of grey. Is that my dress?! She manages to free a limb, sees fur, and screams.

Oh God, oh God, holy shit!

She’s got hooves.

Mallory wriggles the rest of the way out of her fabric prison and spins in a tight circle, trying to see her body. She catches a glimpse of four stubby legs and reddish-brown fur with spots.

WHAT IN THE EVERLIVING FUCK—  

A big hand seizes her by the scruff of the neck and gives her a hard shake.

Thank you for participating and submitting in works for our first every Fanfiction Fridays! We will upkeep this every Friday (so long as we get submissions) to continue celebrating the great diversity of writers in our community. Please continue sending submissions to ahs-source.tumblr.com/submit or through the Tumblr mobile app. *As a reminder, any and all characters and their pairings can be submitted, so long as the pairing includes a character from American Horror Story!

*PSA to Writers: If you wish to have your work or Tumblr username removed, or want something changed, please notify us and we will remove/change it immediately (usernames were found on AO3 user pages). All works are listed in alphabetical order using information found from the source page of the work.  *PSA to Submitters: Some authors were submitted more than once, we will save those praises for next week (meaning your submissions were not ignored - thank you for being so enthusiastic about certain authors)! *PSA to Everyone: If there are any improvements we could make on how we present this information or how/when it’s posted, please let us know!

[wildcardwriting]

How Social Media Infected the Glory Pro Circle #2

(or Conversations Most of the Glory Pro Community Would Like to Forget Existed)

[King’s Avatar /全职高手 - 蝴蝶蓝 | Quánzhí Gāoshǒu - Húdié Lán ]

Next Chapter | Previous Chapter

 Read on AO3

Summary: Or Ye Xiu is forced to deal with his fans. No one saw what was coming next.Because the alliance wants more exposure (i.e. fame) for the pro gamers, all pros are mandated to respond to questions from the fans.Naturally, this leads to some…strange conversations and some stranger answers. Likely will lead into AU TKA UniversePart Story, and TKA fun. Will include some social media.

XXxxxxxXX

Chapter #2: When Excellent Era Reads

XXxxxxxXX

The next day was filled with even more chaos. Slumped over the computer, Ye Xiu was awakened to the sound of loud chatter. Even though the training room had been renovated it was still located by the manager's office so even though the walls he could still make out bits of conversation.

As well as his name.

Rubbing his eyes, Ye Xiu stretched in his chair, and reach for a packet of dry food that was sitting at the next computer station over. It wasn't the same as breakfast, but it would do for now. For once it looks like he's up before it was time for training, so he might as well finish what he was doing.

Moving the mouse he woke the computer from sleep and clicked back into the Reddit email. He was expecting to see a little under two hundred questions, but instead of only having a few questions, the inbox count was over five thousand and growing by the second. Already just in the time, he was looking at the email count, the number rose by another hundred.

Resisting the urge to give up Ye Xiu set a timer. He agreed to do this, so he was going to do this to the best of his abilities... at least until training started.

XXxxxxXX

Glory Forums → Fourth Server → General -> Ye Qiu AMA?!?!

                              1st Floor— Forest of Rain

              Hey all, did you hear about Ye Qiu's thread?

                               2nd Floor— Snow Dancer

          I haven't just heard, have you read it? (Also: Sofa!) [1]

                               3rd Floor— Light of Life

                 Only some of it, but it's gold. Pure gold.

                               4th Floor— Endless Refrain

                          I know. He's just so cool!

                             5th Floor— Frost Burn

    I heard he's going to be posting weekly. Are you going to submit anything?

                           6th Floor—Barren Defeat

       Obviously. I've already submitted multiple questions. You should take this chance too.

                           7th Floor— Kicker Win

               Any chance to speak to the Great God is a precious treasure.

                             8th Floor— No No Novak

                                              +1

XXxxxxXX

Excellent Era Chatroom

[User; Ye Qiu has been removed from the chat temporary.]

[Users; Qi Breaker, Absent Sun, Merciless Magic, Bleak Sky, and Woven Shadows are logged in.]

Qi Breaker: Before we start, let's go over the issues. Did anyone else read the questions on YQ's thread? Woven Shadows: Nope was at dodging practice. Merciless Magic:   No time. I was being punished... too much training...              Absent Sun: No. Why? Bleak Sky: I did. Some of the questions were misleading. Why? Did something else come up?                       Qi Breaker: YQ came and asked me what AllYe and HanYe meant. Bleak Sky: What did you say?     Merciless Magic: Did you tell him? Absent Sun:+1 Woven Shadows: Tell him what. I'm confused. What do those words even mean? Absent Sun: what Merciless Magic:what Bleak Sky:what Merciless Magic: You don't know?! I can't believe Nurse is out of the loop. Quick, Xia Ming explain it to him. Bleak Sky: Fine. Be right back. Merciless Magic: So you gonna tell us what you told YQ? Qi Breaker: Not until Xia Ming returns. Bleak Sky: Back. Please carry on. Qi Breaker: Well, it went like this...

XXxxxxXX

When Wu Xuefeng walked into the Excellent Era practice room, a little after eight, he had expected several things. He expected to see food at Qin Tianran's desk, or extra pillows at Yin Xiong's desk, or perhaps Ye Qiu sleeping on the room couch again but what he did not expect was to see Ye Qiu typing furiously at a computer.

After their first championship, Ye Qiu hadn't needed to put in the same amount of work as he had before, and now with sponsors and a guild to back them up Ye Qiu's responsibilities had been shortened to only focusing on the team.  So to find him still at a computer early in the morning instead of in his room, especially this early in the morning was completely out of character for the rather mature teenager.

Making his way over to his captain's side, Wu Xuefeng took a look at what his captain was looking at. He blinked at the words he was reading. While one half of the screen contained the Reddit email the second was something completely different. A plain word document, containing incredibly sexual and in some cases, vulgar words were listed. Every question was tied to a username or usernames and there was even a tally next to them. Taking off his glasses and cleaning them to ensure he was seeing what he thought he was, still did not make the words vanish.

The list was still there, and it was growing.

Feeling his age, Wu Xuefeng decided to just ask.

"Ye Qiu, what is this?" He asked as he motioned to some of the words on the word document.

Ye Xiu frowned at him. "I don't know. Some of the Reddit questions were odd, so I compiled a list so I could ask just in case."

Wu Xuefeng steeled himself hoping Ye Qiu's next words weren't what he thought they were.

"What does AllYe and the rest of these mean?"

XXxxxxXX

Excellent Era Chatroom

Bleak Sky: And how did you reply? Qi Breaker: I just told him I'd tell him later. Merciless Magic: I don't blame you. Absent Sun: Wait, why not tell him? Merciless Magic: Remember who our captain is. Absent Sun: Oh right. Bleak Sky: Telling him would be boring anyway. But what are you going to do about the rest of the questions? Surely there are some that are worse. Qi Breaker: I told him that I would monitor the questions. Merciless Magic: Nice Qi Breaker: Don't be too happy, I told captain everyone would be chipping in. Absent Sun: Why do you hate us? Merciless Magic: +1 Bleak Sky:+2 Woven Shadows:+3 Qi Breaker: Either way, its time for practice. We'll talk later.

[Users; Qi Breaker, Absent Sun, Merciless Magic, Bleak Sky, and Woven Shadows have logged out.]

XXxxxxXX

       Breaking News: Ye Qiu's Shunning First Appearance on Social Media!

In a stunning first appearance, the mysterious and elusive Battle God himself made his first appearance to the fans in nearly three years.

In a Reddit thread climbing up charts (and currently number three as of this printing), Ye Qiu, or as he's known as on Reddit, OneLeafofTwo answered a large number of questions sent by fans. Everything from his favorite foods, to regrets, was answered in a Reddit MMA that is still taking questions.

Suffice to say fans are shocked, and overwhelmingly pleased to have this link to their battle God, which as all fans knew is notorious for never showing up at fan events.

Excellent Era themselves has teased some more appearances of the Battle God, but how and what shape will they take has yet to be announced.

But we at glory Pro are excited about the future.

This is Nang Shi signing off.

XXxxxxXX

Ye Xiu watched as his team scanned through his questions and sorted them into different groups. Instead of Ye Xiu dealing with all of them in a disjointed fashion, his team was splitting them up. Wu Xuefeng was sorting through his thread and setting it up into sections, while Xia Ming was adding accents and personalization to the site. Qin Tianran was adding sub-threads and other links onto the website while Xue Mingkai and Yin Xiong were checking the questions for quality.

All of Excellent Era was working through the questions so fast Ye Xiu was impressed. He didn’t think his team would even really bother with the social media accounts the alliance had set up for them but they had really taken to it. Watching them now, helping him made him feel proud and a little suspicious.

Neither Wu Xuefeng and Xia Ming were able to look him directly in the eyes, and Xue Mingkai and Yin Xiong were blushing.

Ye Xiu frowned.

He hoped they hadn't broken anything important.

XXxxxxXX

                                               AMA: Ye Qiu Edition

Congratulations all! Due to the extreme popularity and demand for this thread, this thread will be separated into several sub-threads. Click on the links below to navigate to any of the topics, or submit a question!

*Note: As a reminder, all submitters must abide by the rules. Any inappropriate questions will be removed, and the users will be punished. Personal questions may or may not be answered depending on the topic, please keep this in mind. In addition, questions pertaining to face reveals will be deleted.

Recent Questions [click to see all questions and answers]

MusingthruDreams:  Did you see yourself playing video games professionally when you were younger? And if not what was your dream profession before gaming kicked in?

OneLeafofTwo (Ye Qiu): Gaming professionally was only an option for certain games when I was younger, and I wasn't even sure it was the right choice for me at the time but I end up giving it a try. My dream profession before I became a pro was anything that didn't deal with business.

SlippingLight: Do you wish you'd gone with a different gamertag? / How did you come up with the name for One Autumn Leaf?

OneLeafofTwo (Ye Qiu): While I did come with the general name for One Autumn Leaf, I let the sister of my friend type in the name but she ended up using the wrong character for 'zhi' and instead of Herald of Autumn it became One Autumn Leaf. I just went with it in the end.

YellowFellow:  What was the worst thing you ever did in Glory?

OneLeafofTwo (Ye Qiu): I completely destroyed my friend's arena record but it was mostly by accident. He refused to stop challenging me until he won and he lost often.

UrbanKnight:  Who is the weakest player in Excellent Era?

OneLeafofTwo (Ye Qiu):Boss Tao.

RevengeFry: You've hold a number of titles in Glory, such as Master Tactician, Battle God and Glory Textbook. Which one do you like the most and why?

OneLeafofTwo (Ye Qiu): Glory Textbook. Glory is about more than fighting. Glory is a whole world of characters, and classes and meeting people. There are twenty four official classes but every person plays those classes differently and that what makes Glory.

SanonShe: How did you meet the rest of Excellent Era?

OneLeafofTwo (Ye Qiu):Most of Excellent Era was part of the guild before the team went pro, but I only met Wu Xuefeng a few months before Glory Pro was annonuced.

WaterBottleQ: What is your motto for teamwork?

OneLeafofTwo (Ye Qiu): A team can only work when all members trust each other. If an enemy needs to be defeated I can only do so with Excellent Era. Glory is not a single player game.

XXxxxxXX

Tumblr apparently hates images and spacing to see the acutally images and whatnot go to the ao3 version of this fanfiction.

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Read on AO3

[phoenotopia]

2019 May Update

Greetings everyone! Can't believe end of May is already upon us and E3 is just around the corner D:

We're still making steady progress towards the finish line. We crossed some big milestones in the past 2 months and started some new. For one, all of the levels in the game world are now done (except for "one" room, which is on hold for reasons). With all the levels effectively done, the final count for rooms actually just crosses the 700 mark! That's 3.5 times the original flash game!

Now that we've got a big beautiful game world, it's time to fill it up with NPCs, quests, and loot (the enemies have already been added). Until now, I've generally left the loot areas empty, since setting the loot heavily effects the game's pacing and difficulty. For instance, an example question I'll mull over is how much money has the player accumulated by the time they reach the 2nd town. We want the player to have enough money to buy the new equipment that becomes available - not so much money that they can buy everything and not too little that they can't buy anything - the amount of money needs to be just right. This forces the player to make decisions which forms the basis of all interesting gameplay.

On the NPCs and Quests front, I've been writing more and more. I've even started reading more! I've picked up books, which I haven't done for perhaps over a year or two! I think reading good diction helps to set your brain in a mode conducive towards good writing. Kinda like "You are what you Eat".

Here's a sampling of the Quests, Mini-games, and NPCs you can expect to meet on the journey.

The Free Runner's Quest

Bo is an NPC that the player will meet over and over. He challenges the player to a timed "Free Running" race course where they need to collect 10 flags within the time-limit. Besting his courses requires quick reflexes and route-planning. Every time you beat his course, he gives you a little prize and moves to a new location. He's not unlike the racing koopas you'd meet in Mario Odyssey.

(a bystander inspired by your performance)

The Shooting Galleries

Hard to believe 3 years ago I teased this video. (when work on PHO2 was proceeding in earnest). As cool as the old video looks - that was literally all of it, and it was really early and bug prone. Only recently did I finally revisit the shooting galleries and take it all the way home. A lot of improvements have been made to the scripting system by now and there are more robust and less buggy ways to deal with the player breaking bounds.

There'll be 6 different shooting courses total (of varying difficulty). Similar to setting loot throughout the game world and all the factors that could play into it, shooting courses boast their own interconnected challenges. I guesstimate where I think the player would be weapons-wise and power-wise, and then create a shooting course that I think the player can handle. Some shooting challenges are easy so the player can claim its prize early - others are harder and best attempted when the player has leveled up some more.

(Interestingly, the best prize is guarded behind the medium level course. Reason being the player would appreciate it a lot more at that point in the game)

(Don’t shoot the Queen!)

Fran and Moonstones

The Moon Stone hunt returns in an even bigger fashion than before. This time there are 100 moonstones to find, and they can be actually be given to 2 different NPCs. Giving moon stones to Fran advances Fran's storyline and unlocks shortcuts through the game world.

One of the major intentional changes to highlight the traversable world map is that you no longer have a quick select menu to access old areas. To access Panselo from Atai, you'd actually have to run through that broken bridge area again. And that's why it behooves the player to aid Fran in her quest for Moon Stones. Her teleportation research opens links between the towns and allows for more speedy traversal.

(Fran's quest starts when you first save her from beneath a pile of rubble)

I'm taking the the time to write more naturally flowing dialogue and give better characterization to Fran. I thought her whole story was kinda stilted and awkward the first go around.

(A video where Fran demonstrates how teleporters work)

As seen in the video, that song is Fran's theme. Will scored Fran's theme song a while back and now you can listen to it on his sound cloud as well. There was also this old song, which was in the running to be either Thomas's or Fran's theme. It's now been decided that that will be Thomas' theme!

Endings

We've also started work on the ending. Right now we're creating the art assets. The dialogue and scripting is still to come. I've settled on 2 endings. Both of which will be very different from the flash game's ending. The main ending will also vary a tiny bit depending on how much of the game the player completes. Ala Metroid, there are also different final ending portraits that can be obtained depending on the clear conditions. But the main portrait most people will see is the group shot, where more characters appear the closer to 100% game completion the player reaches.

(Depicted above is a end game portrait WIP that was rejected for a different take/version. So we decided this wasn’t too spoilerific)

Naming Contest I'd like to thank everyone for the numerous submissions! A lot of entries really went the distance - some created elaborate backstories, others created systems of names and acronyms. In an ideal world, I could choose them all. But, alas there are limited slots. Here are the name winners - I'll be contacting the submitters shortly:

I chose these names for a variety of reasons. The names were short, concise, and alliterative ("moth mines" and "mole mines"). The name keeps to a fantasy theme ("evil eye"). The name made a joke or pun ("rail shooter" and "rail sawer"). The name was cute and descriptive ("turtle bot" and "porcubot"). Or the name just sounded cool ("Constructs"). There were two entries where after screening the submissions I found I liked the "temporary" in-house name more ("smart turret" and "scrapper").

And with that, the naming contest comes to a close. Thank you again to everyone who participated!

Fan Works

Two fanarts were submitted on the reddit, which I'll be sharing here. Both were depictions of the "Last Song of Earth" place. Thank you to Firanka and laptekoz!

(by Firanka)

(by laptekoz)

Oddly enough, this place might be the most depicted place in the realm of fan art! Another interesting trivia is that the song connected to this place was the song Will wanted to cut since he didn't like it too much - but having seen how much people asked about it, of course we had to keep it in.

Next Update

The next update will run a bit later than the usual 2 months (likely August 9th). Reason being I actually have a trip to Vietnam with my Dad and brother coming up in the later half of July.

Indeed, it's an inopportune time to have a trip. I normally wouldn't go - I haven't been on a family trip in 3 years! But this one seemed important. We're getting OLD! My older brother has a wife and kids, so the opportunity to hang out like this comes but once every several years.

But I'll still try to sneak in some work. My plan is... and I hesitate to say this because whenever I communicate a plan, it falls part, but I'll say it anyway. My plan is to have the first playable version of the game, start to finish, in mid July. Then on the plane to Vietnam, I'll make my brother playtest the game since I'll have a captive audience. I'll take tons of notes on the play through, what needs to change, and so forth.

We'll see if that pans out. While we are working on things like the actual ending sequence, which signals the near end of development, I'd like to remind everyone to keep your expectations in check. Things go SLOOOW - there’s still tons of NPCs and quests to write. There’s the credit sequence to program. We still gotta playtest, we still gotta do PR, get an ESRB rating, launch the website, find an uncontested date, etcetera, etcetera. It seems like actually finishing the game is merely the arrival to the start of another race...

So pour your excitement towards E3 instead. That's soon!

[blond-jerk-tourney]

Champagne Bracket: Round 1, Poll 1

Propaganda from submitters Under Cut

Yoshiya "Joshua" Kiryu

He’s a bitch and a hate (love) him. I will now quote him below: "Sigh... I don't do the whole sweating thing, Neku." "Very impressive, Neku. Show those fifth graders who's boss." "Who needs other people's values? It's easier to just live by your own rules." "Oh! I can't say I'm particularly interested, but... I'll go ahead and ask, for the sake of convenience. Do you have a name?"

Smug asshole. Always playing mind games with the player character. Has many secrets but never shares them. Also did a bunch of spoilery shit.

Yoshiki Kishinuma

(from ask) I don't remember if I submitted Yoshiki but I can vouch for him. He's a tsundere type. He won't admit he has a crush on the class rep who stood up for him. He's an ex shithead who is trying to be better but still comes across as a bit of a dick. He's probably the most no-nonsense of the entire group. In one ending he can choose to abandon his entire group of friends including his crush to save himself.

[itscoldoutsidefilmsthings]

A 3rd year film festival retrospective.

Scumdance (Reno’s premiere underground film festival) has just completed its third year.  As such, this would probably be a good time for a little retrospective and as the festival’s sole proprietor/curator I would be glad to let a little light shine into the inner workings of what it takes to start a film festival, what it takes to keep it running, why I do this in the first place, and the lessons learned along the way.

How did we get here?  In late 2016 I was having conversations with friends, co-workers, bandmates and fellow film nerds about how there was real lack of local film festivals geared towards horror, exploitation, underground, B-movie, etc. types of films.  At the time our band’s practice space was in a warehouse on the edge of town where a loose artist’s community of sorts had taken shape.  Pottery studios, sculpture gardens, graffiti murals, custom hot-rod builders, welding shops, theaters, antique dealers and so much more was all happening in this row of warehouses. One particular spot became hugely inspirational. Next door to our practice space was an event location (for lack of a better term) called the Black Rock Drive-In.  A novelties collector had taken several old cars cut them down, installed benches within and parked them in front of a movie screen like an old-time drive-in movie theater, complete with a western setting sun mural painted on the warehouse’s interior. Combine this with his collection of Airstream trailers, mid-century furniture and appliances, and WWII memorabilia and you had the makings of a great film set.  

Standing outside that warehouse on a chilly evening, post band practice, and musing with our bass player Perry Disgrace, the thought was born… “We should totally put on a mondo-bizzaro film day with crazy movies and bands and just throw a party.” In the true DIY spirit of punk rock, the idea was born and efforts were put in place to manifest this reality.  When mentioning the idea to co-worker and fellow film nerd Gilbert Leiker, he responded “You should call it Scumdance and have the skanking guy from the Circle Jerks albums carrying a camera.”  Boom. Done. Within 20 minutes I had the logo and artwork in place.  I have a habit of taking ideas and running with them, even if they are not my own.  As Pablo Picasso is reported to have said “good artists borrow, great artists steal”… most likely he “borrowed” this from T.S. Eliot.  

As for the details of what it takes to put on a film festival, it’s honestly not all that hard. All you need is a laptop, a projector, a screen, a sound system of some sort, some chairs, a venue, a Film Freeway account and a website.  Having submitted a good number of my short films to a variety of film festivals and having received all manner of rejection (more on that later), the drive to experience critical evaluation of films from the other side was also a strong motivator in bringing this festival about. I already had a website devoted to my filmmaking endeavors. Adding a page listing the event details and linking it to a Film Freeway account was straight forward.  Acquiring the necessary hardware and physical assets was just a matter of pooling resources and gathering items that I already had. The matter of finding a venue has at times proved challenging. The aforementioned Black Rock Drive-In closed. Our favorite dive-bar, in which we hosted the event’s first year, has closed.  Finding the right venue that has a bar, allows outside food to be brought in, while having the right mix of size, space, seating and availability hasn’t been easy; but we have been fortunate enough to work with some fantastic bar owners who have been very accommodating.

The festival itself, wouldn’t be what it is without the amazing filmmakers who have submitted some truly incredible films and the ever enthusiastic judges. The panel of judges was built from a pool of friends some of whom I’ve worked with on previous film projects, some just having shown an overwhelming interest in film and some asked to join the panel after having submitted to previous year’s festivals. It is this last group with whom I am most excited to work.

So why would anyone do this? It’s a question I ask myself every year. Does it pay off when you consider: The countless hours spent watching, rating, and reviewing the films; scheduling a date, finding and coordinating with the venue ,updating FF and the website, attending local meetings to be included in Reno’s Arttown, writing press releases to be distributed on horror sites, selecting the films,  sending out acceptance and rejection letters, scheduling a run of show, setting up all the equipment, running the festival,  bringing food and snacks?   By the time I finish up the event I find myself exhausted.  It wouldn’t seem that sitting in dark room watching movies all day would be that taxing, but mentally, and emotionally it takes a toll… hoping nothing goes wrong technically, hoping that everyone (or at least most attendees) find something enjoyable in the films, hoping that the venue owner and bar staff are not completely annoyed with the films and are making a decent amount of tips, and hoping that there is enough attendance to make it all worthwhile.  While it might be “easy” to put on a festival, putting on a quality festival takes effort. That’s effort I’m willing to put in.  I want to make it the kind of thing I would be delighted to attend.

Of the benefits that come from running a festival, the number one has to be the relationships established.  This is the reason we make films in the first place. It’s all about human connection.  As I was saying above it has become our practice to ask previous year’s submitters to become next year’s judges.  George Sukara, a producer from a film submitted in the first year (HELL! The musical), has become an instrumental part of the festival. His critical insights in judging and undying support have been phenomenal.  It was great to have him at the festival, hosting one of the Q&A sessions, and bringing with him a crew of folks from San Francisco.  One of the other connections made that first year was a gentleman by the name of Michael Joy who brought us a film (Red Christmas) with Dee Wallace of Kujo fame. I’ve been working with Michael on spreading the word about Scumdance through his connections with Artsploitation Films and Horrornews.net.  The second year brought us some great filmmakers from Canada and Indiana, in Grace Mathisen and Adam Laughlin respectively.  Their films were superb, and it was great to have them there in person. They too have gone on to become valued Scumdance judges.  This last year, brought us filmmakers from Toronto, Houston, and Los Angeles.   The Audience favorite, Llamageddon (it’s exactly as it sounds) was written and directed by a young woman who was going by the name “Howie Dewin.”  Her astonishment at winning overrode even her astonishment at being entered in the festival at all (apparently someone on her production team entered the film without telling her as a fun prank).   Even after having a breakfast coffee and a decently long discussion with her, I never did find out her real name. We’ll be stoked to have her as part of the judging staff next year, that is if she responds to her “howiedewin” email.

One of the other great benefits of running a festival (or being a judge) is the experience gained by viewing so may films, of all quality levels.  You learn all the things not to do when making a film.  You see time and again, the overused tropes, the stock and often pointless dialogue, the desire to shock without attention to narrative, and films that are far, far longer than they need to be.   After all this one quickly gains an appreciation for audible dialogue, well thought out story lines, character development, motivated camera movement, inspired score/soundtrack, and tightly edited scenes.

Another wonderful discovery has been the insight into cultures and communities throughout the world that one would not have accessed otherwise.  It has been amazing to see films submitted from the US, Canada, The Netherlands, India, the UK, Austria, Iran, Italy, Mexico, and even Belgium.  In particular the films we receive from Iran have been nothing short of mind blowing. There is something so special about those films.  They tend to be intensely creative, original, inspiring, and chock full of touching humanity in a way that almost makes me reluctant to place them amidst our other less wholesome faire. Also of note, are the LGBT films we receive.  This year we had a film dedicated to trans-persons from Nepal, that was a rare insight into portions of the world not ordinarily seen.

As previously promised, I think it’s worth mentioning the feedback process.  One common thing that I noticed from festivals I was submitting to, was a lack of quality feedback.  For way too many festivals, it doesn’t seem they could even be bothered to change the judging status on Film Freeway… or if they did, it wouldn’t be changed until well after the event date.   For other festivals, they would change the status and send out the standard generic rejection emails. While they were intended to soften to the blow of rejection, they would do little to inform or provide one with any sense as to what could have been improved on the film…. no information on what exactly about the film caused it to fall short of the mark.   It was with this experience in mind that I personally made the decision to include judge’s commentary in both the acceptance and rejection letters. I feel it’s the least we can do to provide the filmmaker with meaningful feedback.

This decision has mostly been met with appreciation, but in some cases the feedback was viewed as “arrogant, presumptuous, and dismissive.”  I can certainly understand how after spending the enormous amount of time, energy and effort that it takes to make a film how one would be incredibly protective of the work.  One exchange with an initially upset but later apologetic filmmaker, gave me clear cause to stop and think about my intentions and motivations. Was I intentionally levelling overly harsh criticism against those who submitted to my film festival, as a way of feeling superior for the failings of my own films? It’s certainly something I need to be cognizant of going forward.  In the future, I hope to continue providing the judges commentary, but will most likely do so after an explicit opt-in scenario.

In regard to my own films, I’ve come to realize with much more clarity than ever that my films were being rejected for completely valid reasons.  I’ve seen what it takes to make a good film and the number one rule is to be entertaining.   In the age of short attention spans and a bajillion choices, it’s difficult (but more important) than ever to gain and hold someone’s attention.

So what’s next for Scumdance?  One exciting possibility discussed with the San Francisco crew is the idea of taking Scumdance on the road.  Perhaps we select the best films from the past 3 years and do a screening in SF or LA.   At some point it would be nice to get Scumdance into a proper movie theater as well, a but the lack of any historical or art house theater in Reno limits our options.  Another exciting possibility is the idea of bringing in a real host… someone with real entertainment value... someone like the subject of this year’s winning documentary, the Phantom Troublemaker.

Of course, I couldn’t do this without the love and support of my wonderful wife Amelia. In all it’s been a great experience that has promoted growth in me as a filmmaker and as a person. It’s been the impetus to build meaningful relationships that I otherwise would not have done and has given me cause to provide much needed exposure to small films.  This is something I want to keep doing, while growing the festival in organic and manageable ways.

Viva Le Scumdance!

Travis Calvert

[bikiniarmorbattledamage]

Layperson’s perspective and criticism credentials

“Newbies should be seen and not heard”

Our long-time reader @red-queen-on-the-heathen-throne recently brought up important point we never put to words on BABD. It’s related to the “You never played/saw/read this (so shut up)!” rhetoric. Namely, it’s the fact that perspective of someone who never consumed media in question is just as (if not more!) valid as the fans who knows all the lore, including Thermian arguments which supposedly justify bad design  decisions. 

If a design isn’t good enough to communicate its narrative purpose to someone completely unfamiliar with the story behind it (so each and every bikini armor falls under this), it fails as a design. As Red Queen puts it:

It’s not the player’s job to figure out what the designer is trying to actually tell them, as opposed to taking what is being communicated through this image at face value, before the game even begins.

And continues:

If this is what the game chooses to present to people who don’t know anything about the game yet, maybe don’t be quite so flippant about it when people get the wrong idea. Because then it actually matters that they don’t know anything about the game. 

So truly, insight of someone who doesn’t know yet how an element that looks ridiculous is explained in-universe (or even by the creators, in some additional material), is quite valuable, as it sheds light on potentially problematic things that lore-savvy fans and creators aren’t capable of noticing. 

Also please remember that parody/satire needs to keep their intent even more clear than stuff that plays the same tropes straight, otherwise Poe’s Law and “ironic” reproduction happens instead of insightful criticism.

“Hand me your geek card!”

We’re often accused by detractors of not having credentials to talk about (usually) a game we’re criticizing, because we supposedly never played it.  Putting aside a fact that with three of us being huge nerds and pop media consumers, at least one would be somewhat familiar (unless the product is super obscure) - why would that be relevant? No matter if we know the title well or just superficially, our criticism of female visual representation is always the same.

In-depth familiarity of a story behind combat lingerie hasn’t yet once made us ashamed of our words and deeds. If anything, the more we know about any particular Thermian argument, the better we are at picking it apart. So asking us to “do our homework” before we comment will make the commentary far more critical, not more lenient.

Whether or not we actually do comprehensive research for any particular piece of media depends on many factors, like: 

how influential versus obscure the media in question is

how interesting the excuses for skimpy female costumes in it are

if we’re already familiar with it beforehand

if there’s a Wiki for it

if a submitter provided some info

how much time we have at the moment

So while we try to at least look up everything we talk about, the amount of lore-heavy commentary (and its relative accuracy) varies from post to post.

Because, again, as we put it in our FAQ, this is not a full review blog, but one discussing character and costume design in the very specific context of in-story combat and meta-level sexism. Finishing a game or knowing a TV/comic series full storyline isn’t necessary for us to point at a fictional lady who goes sword fighting in two pasties and a chainmail thong next to dudes in heavy plate armor and say this is an absurd image. It just is. 

~Ozzie 

Comic-only rebloggable post HERE

[gamequoteshowdown]

Quote 1: "Take care, [player]. I was lucky to have known you. Though the parting hurts... the rest is in your hands!" - Grovyle, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky

Quote 2: "I'll be back once I eliminate that devil called poverty from the world!" - Partitio Yellowil, Octopath Traveler II

Propaganda

Quote 1: It's just. Ough.... This is arguably the best line in the game (with the other major contender ALSO being said by this character). It's the last line spoken to the player by Grovyle, who knew them back when they were human, before he LEAPS INTO THE FUTURE KNOWING FULL WELL THAT THE FUTURE. UH. SUCKS. He's so helpless in this moment but still holds on to hope because yeah, the rest is in YOUR hands. He might not be able to do anything more (for complicated reasons that I won't get into), but he knows that his ever-reliable partner is still able to finish the job. - Submitter

Quote 2: Partitio is genuinely such a kind and helpful person. He wants to help as many people as he can, so he goes out on an adventure to convince a multi billionaire to use his money for good. Partitio is a merchant passionate about his work, but not because he wants to make money, but because he wants to make people happy and wants to create a world where everyone has what they need. This line of dialogue perfectly captures that and his friendly and out going personality. Also he says it with a country accent which I think is very important to keep in mind. He's a cowboy who wants to help people :] - Submitter

[ebonguard]

The Cloak & Dagger in Post

I was pretty tired-out after last night’s event and haven’t got around to sprucing up the screencaps I took but I didn’t want to wait until after I was finished with class for the day to say: THANK YOU, to everyone who showed up. I was smiling like a doof the whole time seeing people make use of the space and, IC and OOC compliment the decor (I worked hard on it)! A few of you even gave me gil which—ohmygosh—you really didn’t have to but I appreciate it SO much!

The real stars of the show are the people who have volunteered to help run the event, though! The event quite literally would not be possible without the small group of volunteer staff that the venue has gathered together to act as waitstaff, security, and performers — and hopefully in the future, sponsors of criminal mischief.

We were a little bit short-staffed last night, but hopefully we have more people around to help manage the May 20 opening, during which I’ll experiment a little bit with venue features such as a rumor/job board (wherein people, preferrably members of Ebonguard but we have an ask/submit box for a reason) will be able to submit RP hooks/‘jobs’ sponsored either by a made-up NPC of the submitter’s invention or their player character and, more properly, a drink to order for criminal RP which will be denoted on the menu. (This will likely entail the addition of two new cocktails, if any mixologists are out there and wanna give suggestions to this bird who is only a few months shy of 21 at this point... Give a shout!)

The Cloak & Dagger is a labor of love, and the continual support of the community in this endeavor is INCREDIBLE and much appreciated! I’ll try and get some screencaps queued up sometime tonight. <3

———Crow